"Could you please grant entry to Zelel and Ayinwawshinyodel as well?" Gabriel said. He and the human were just behind Samael.

"Always something." Samael sighed and waved with his hand. Without bothering to confirm whether the two angels had entered his domain, he strode to the ledge's edge.

"My lord." Beelzebub hurried past him to fall in step with him. He glanced backward. He whispered, "Why is the human here?"

"Sightseeing, it seems." Samael reached the edge. His wings spread and he sailed to the ground. When the human and the rest of the angels joined him, he learned he was right. Enoch, the human tasked with mediating between God and the Samyaza's Watchers, was rewarded with visits to all the heavens, except for the First Heaven, God's Throne. "Why?"

Ayinel shrugged.

"He requested it," Zelel said.

Samael faced Gabriel. "So now you have been promoted to a guardian? Or is it demotion?"

Gabriel gave him a glare.

"Well." Samael waved his hand. "I'll leave you to it."

Beelzebub, sprinting down the stairs and across the bridge, finally caught up with them, his chest heaving as he caught his breath.

"You have wings. They are not just for decoration. Use them next time," Samael told Beelzebub. He passed him, patting his shoulder. He whispered. "Keep an eye on them."

"Samael," Gabriel called him.

Samael turned.

Gabriel cleared his throat. "We hoped to get a guide to accompany us on a tour of this Heaven."

Samael's eyes shifted to Beelzebub.

"Yes, my lord. I'll gladly lead the way."

Samael's attention returned to Gabriel. "Anything else?"

"No, thank you," Ayinel said, then quickly added, "We genuinely appreciate your kindness."

"Hmm."

The human squatted a step away from the lava pool. He pointed at it. "Inferno." Then he looked around. "Dominion."

"Inferno Dominion," Samael repeated. It sounded perfect. He turned to Beelzebub. "Please, make a note of this."

Beelzebub's gaze swept the surroundings until it fixed upon something. He waved.

The bird-like creature hastened towards them and stopped by Beelzebub's side. He made a small bow towards Samael before he faced Beelzebub.

Beelzebub whispered into the side of the bird's head.

The bird nodded and gave another bow to Samael before he rushed towards the halls on the ground floor of the palace.

Samael observed the bird, waiting for him to run from the halls and in another direction. After a moment, he wasn't disappointed. With a contented nod, he shifted his gaze to his guest.

All of them, except the human, who was staring at the lava pool, as if enchanted, were observing the bird.

Before he heard the human's talent for naming things, Samael planned to return to his rooms, but now he intended to join the tour. This is bound to be interesting.

Ayinel drew nearer to Samael. He poked him with his elbow and gestured with a raised chin toward the bird, who was darting in and out of the halls. "What's with him?"

"He's still undergoing training," Samael said. "He needs to gain more confidence, which he will, with time and practice." He nodded. "I have faith in him. Not everyone can learn as quickly or be as proficient as Beelzebub was. I really got lucky picking him."

Beelzebub leaned closer to him. "What should I show them, my lord?"

"Whatever you want. The only thing off-limits is my rooms," Samael said. "We can start with the Reformatory." Which was the name they gave the Seventh Heaven. When the idea for the name was proposed, the Shadow accepted it unanimously.

Beelzebub moved towards Gabriel. "Shall we?"

"Lead the way. "Gabriel drew the human up and guided him with him as they followed Beelzebub, who already stepped towards the portal to the Reformatory.

Samael, Ayinel, and Zelel joined them.

"Has there been any change in the dark energy?" Ayinel asked Samael.

"It increased. Not much, but enough that it's noticeable." Samael was close behind the human, who looked like he was attentively listening to Gabriel's description of what Reformatory was. "Is it even worth explaining things to him when he's intoxicated? He's likely to either forget everything or recall it completely differently."

"He made the request, and God granted it," Zelel said.

"It also provides the human with some time to sober up before encountering the Watchers," Ayinel added.

They entered the Reformatory, which, for some reason, made the human excited. He pointed at the lava river, then at the lake before he noticed the tower, all the while either blabbering or asking Gabriel questions. No names, though.

The bird and a creature with a bull's torso and head appeared by their side, with the bull carrying a tablet on his back. On close examination, Samael noticed that the "Inferno Dominion" was already written on it.

Beelzebub guided the group over the bridges to the lake. The souls lifted their hands and cried as they approached it.

"Is this the dark energy?" Zelel inquired, pointing at the cloud of darkness.

"Yes." Samael shifted closer to the human, who started to mimic the wails of the souls. He tapped on his shoulder, then when he had the man's attention, he pointed at the dark cloud. "This is the black energy, the materialised form of the soul's corruption and wickedness. What is its name?"

The human blinked at him three times, then his gaze followed the direction of his finger. He blinked once more before his eyelids lowered as he squinted at the black cloud. He glanced at Samael before his gaze returned to the cloud. "Netherblight."

"I like this. It's very fitting." Samael looked at Beelzebub.

Beelzebub glanced at the bird.

The bird from somewhere pulled a chisel and a hammer and engraved the symbols into the tablet in the bull's hands.

Samael nodded, pleased.

"Really?" Ayinel, who was beside him, said.

Samael looked at the angel and noticed Ayinel staring at him, while the other two were focused on the bird.

The human was busy waving as if he was trying to dispel the fog before he crouched down, his hand reaching for the lake.

Samael's gaze returned to Ayinel. "What?"

Ayinel shook his head.

Samael fixed his eyes on Gabriel. "Your human seems to be intending to touch the lake. Should you be concerned?"

Gabriel wheeled around and he drew the human away from the lake's surface, preventing his fingers from making contact.

The human turned to Gabriel. "The Torment's Embrace."

"The lake," Samael asked the human.

The human nodded. "The Torment's Embrace of the Penance Pyre."

Samael glanced at the bird, who was closely observing him, most likely waiting for his orders. "Write it. We'll decide if we want to use it later."

The bird started his hammering.

"Is there anything else the human wants to see?" Samael asked, contemplating whether there were any other spaces or objects he wanted to name. The river had already been dubbed the "River of Repentance," a name he found quite fitting, given that it had been his suggestion and had received unanimous approval, much like the name of the Reformatory.

Gabriel talked to the human, then glanced at Samael and, his expression a mixture of helplessness, shrugged his shoulders.

"He doesn't know what he wants?" Samael asked.

Gabriel nodded.

"Let's return to the Sixth Heaven," Samael said. He looked at the human. "Inferno Dominion." Yes, he quite liked this name. "You can show him halls on the ground floor and the Throne Hall. You should keep a close eye on him there since there are lava pits dotting the ground," he instructed Gabriel before redirecting his focus to the bird and taking a step closer. "Keep a watchful eye on him and record any names he utters. After they depart, report back to me."

The bird nodded.

"Good." Samael patted the bird's shoulder before he addressed Beelzebub. "You're in charge now."

Ayinel narrowed his eyes at him.

"Well, it's been... enlightening, as always," Samael told the angels, giving them a pleasant smile, before he, without waiting for their reply, walked out of the Reformatory. He deeply inhaled when he reached the Sixth Heaven. It was like breathing in a fresh breeze with a scent of pine after breathing in the suffocating, smelly air of the Reformatory.

He went to his rooms and busied himself with his tree. Then, after a while, he went out, and just as he reached the columns by the Throne Hall, he saw the visitors leaving the common halls on the ground floor and walking towards the staircase leading to the portal.

Beelzebub and the two Shadows joined him, and they observed the group of angels with the human before they disappeared from view.

It's quite fitting, isn't it? After the Watchers acted as a middleman between God and humanity and failed, now a mere human steps into that role, connecting the gap between them and God," Samael turned to his companions. "Don't you agree?"

All three nodded.

"Please inform everyone that the lessons in the Fifth Heaven are suspended until further notice. In fact, the portal to the Fifth Heaven is closed for now," Samael said. "We don't know when or what the Watchers' punishment will be, so it's better that none of the Shadows get entangled in it."

"Yes, my lord," Beelzebub said.

"My lord," a timid voice said. It belonged to the bull-like creature who held the stone tablet in his arms. "What do you think it will be? The punishment?"

Samael thought about it. "Removal from the Fifth Heaven, yes, that is for certain. As for the rest, she will offer the possibility of redemption to most of them. I'm unsure about Samyaza and the angel who taught humans to make weapons," he said, glancing at the stairway where the angels and the human had reached the platform. "But we'll likely find out soon, given that redemption is the primary purpose of the Sixth and Seventh Heavens. I mean, the Inferno Dominion and Reformatory."