The next days following the defeat of the Ultra Dark Lord were rather slow ones. The group had to fight the occasional monster here and there, save a few faces from time to time, but overall things were pretty quiet and peaceful. At least, until...

"Hey, everyone, we're back!" Susumu called out, as she stepped into the inn with Priff, Bowyetta, and Vinny.

"Oh! Weclome back, everyone!" A voice greeted from the other room. The group was surprised to see Junpei sitting at the kitchen table.

"Oh, hey, Junpei!" Susumu greeted him. "Uh... What are you doing in here? We defeated the Ultra Dark Lord a few days ago, and..."

"Oh! Yeah, about that," Junpei began. "Ever since I drove you guys around all those times, I've been thinking. You guys probably could still use my transport, and I could use some more adventure in my life, so... I wanted to know if... Maybe I could join your team? Kyahya?"

Susumu and Konade looked at each other for a moment. It'd be nice to have Junpei on board, but... Could he really handle this? "Well..." Konade began. "We think you'd make a nice addition to the team, so..."

Before she could finish, however, Priff stepped up. "Kukuku... So you'll be working with us too, eh? Welcome to the team, big brother~"

"Brother...?" Susumu was confused.

"Oh yeah. I, uh, never told you this before, but... Priff's actually my sister," Junpei explained. "That's, uh, why she's been so drawn to me and all."

"You two do look a lot alike," Vinny pointed out.

"Anyway..." Priff continued. "There's this place that was just recently discovered not far from here. They're calling it the Neon City. I was wanting to check it out, but... Well, I wanted to know what you guys thought."

Susumu's eyes lit up. "A city?! I'm in!" she proclaimed.

Konade nodded. "Exploring a new place... That sounds like it might be fun."

Vinny looked at the time. "Actually, I've got to start making dinner soon..." he said. "It's okay though. You guys can go ahead. I'll check it out next time."

Junpei nodded. "It's alright, I'll go too!" he declared. "I'd love to check the place out myself, kyahya!"

Susumu smiled. "Looks like it's settled then. Let's all head out! ...After we eat, I mean..."

The group was practically out the door the very minute they finished dinner. "Hey, come on!" Susumu called out. "I wanna check out this new place!"

Junpei was the first to dash out the door, and Priff slowly hovered out the door behind Susumu and Konade. Without much hesitation at all, the group hopped into the helicopter and took off. As much as Susumu was afraid of heights, she sat and looked out the window for the entire flight. "Do you see it yet?" she asked.

"No... No, I don't- Wait! Wait, I think I see something!"

Sure enough, the city began to appear in the distance, growing bigger and bigger as the group got closer. The helicopter touched down at the city's entrance, and Susumu and Junpei hopped out immediately. Konade stepped out a bit more carefully, and Priff stumbled out on her own.

Taking a look around, Susumu could see that the city seemed to be divided in half by one main road. In addition, the halves seemed to be divided into four sections each. "Huh. Two halves, four areas each..." She mumbled to herself.

As the group continued down the street, they came across a very familiar looking figure. It looked like Azamir, and... He seemed to be talking to someone else. A short girl with purple eyes and blue hair tied back into low pigtails. And... She was dressed just like Azamir?

"Alright! Today is day 6 of my training!" The girl declared. "I'm gonna work hard to make you proud, Azamir!"

Azamir looked up to see Susumu and her friends approaching. "Oh, Susumu!" he scolded. "I... Never expected to see you here."

"...Azamir?" Susumu asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I live here now!" He said, now smiling. "It's the first step towards rebuilding my business. Besides, I... Have a certain fondness for this place. It reminds me of my home..."

"Uh... What is this place anyway?" Konade asked nervously.

"This place goes by many names," Azamir began. "City Of Nightmares, The Neon City... But most people call it New Lumos. This place... It's very dangerous. See how the city is divided like this? Each of those sections is guarded by a very powerful boss monster. The Ultra Dark Lord... They were too powerful for even her to control, so she released them here."

"Not me!" The blue-haired girl declared. "Azamir and I, we're not monsters!"

"Oh, yes!" Azamir said, looking at the girl. "Susumu, this is Reina. She lives her in New Lumos. Don't worry though. The monsters never seem to come to this main street for some reason. She's safe here."

Konade gave Reina a smile. "Hi there!" she said. "My name's Konade, and this is Susumu."

Priff stepped up. "Priff. My name's Priff," she said. She then pointed to her brother, who was skipping through the rain down the main street. "...And that's my brother Junpei."

"Reina has been working as my apprentice for the past few days," Azamir explained. "She wants to be a banana merchant like me one day, and I'm training her." He went silent for a moment, before tears started to fill his eyes.

Konade looked worried. "Um, Azamir? Are you okay?" she asked.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm just..." Azamir began. "Reina is so enthusiastic to learn from me... I have to make a good example for her and teach her well."

Reina then looked up at Azamir. "Hey, Azamir?" she asked "Should I tell Susumu about that thing?"

"Oh, that's right!" Azamir remembered. "Susumu, Reina knows of a place around here that may be of some interest to you. It's called the Tower Of Dread. It's been said that extremely powerful monsters sleep there... I feel that you and your friends may be the only ones who can defeat them."

Susumu made a face at the name. "Tower Of Dread...? That... Doesn't sound like anything I want to be a part of."

Priff spoke up again, however. "I'm in. Can you take us there, Reina?"

"W-well..." Reina started. "I... I would if I could, but... The thing is, all the monsters in the city have been going crazy lately. It's too dangerous for me to go alone."

Azamir sighed. "You'll have to get rid of those boss monsters before Reina can do anything. Nothing will attack us here in the main street, but even so... There's one boss monster in each of the eight districts. I... Recommend starting in the First District. The Eight District... There's some terrifying things in there. Not even I dare to step inside..." He started shivering at the thought.

"Eight districts, eight boss monsters," Susumu mumbled. "And if we defeat them all, then it'll be safe for Reina, won't it?"

"It seems simple enough..." Konade said. "But are we sure we're strong enough?"

"Of course we are," Priff stated. "Let's get Junpei and head into the First District."

Susumu nodded, and began to step into the First...

"Susumu, wait!" Azamir stopped her. "That's... The Fifth District."

"Oh. Right." Susumu turned around and led her group across the street. "Okay, now let's look for those boss monsters for real!"