Strongest Side-Character System: Please don't steal the spotlight

In the midst of the ruined hellscape, where twisted pillars of molten stone clawed at the crimson skies and demonoid creatures slithered in the distance, the roar of a recent explosion still echoed in the bones of the remaining people. 

For a moment, all was still.

Then they noticed.

Vonjo was gone.

"What the—where the hell is he?" barked the one-armed tall man, scanning the fog that was created by the explosion earlier.

"Just here... he was just right here—" the round-faced one stammered, one could feel the tightness in his voice. 

Suddenly, almost unnoticed, a faint sound sliced through the silence. 

"Hahaha."

A laugh. No, more like a mocking laugh. 

It echoed through the bone-littered air like a cruel joke. 

Their heads snapped toward the sound—left side, past a cracked boulder split by demonic claws.

However, there was—nothing.

Then again—there was laughter at the opposite side. It sounded unhinged, making them turn again. But like earlier, there was no one. 

Only shadows dancing in the dust mist.

Then, not even a second had passed, another laugh was heard. It was longer this time, no, not just longer, it was deeper. 

Like someone watching them flail for their lives. Like a child playing with insects.

"Where is he?" the tall man hissed, sweat forming over the dirt on his brow.

As soon as he asked, there was more laughter. 

Now it came in waves—short, sharp giggles followed by low, guttural chuckles. 

Some distant, others just behind their ears. It layered over itself like a cursed melody, overlapping, overlapping, overlapping. 

Their eyes darted with every sound, necks jerking side to side, hearts pounding in their very chest. 

Each laugh came faster, louder, in multiple directions—like the walls themselves were laughing. 

They couldn't tell if it was echo or real anymore.

And then, finally, one burst of laughter sounded impossibly close.

"SHIT!" the round-faced man spun and raised both guns in a single movement. 

Click-click. 

He reloaded with swift, panicked precision, both hands expertly working in sync—bullets slid in from muscle memory, like a well-oiled machine. His breathing was sharp, erratic.

Then—Whisper.

"Useless." 

It wasn't spoken. It was breathed into the marrow of their bones causing them both to freeze. 

Both men snapped their heads to where the whisper came from—right behind.

Again… there was nothing. 

Their shoulders quivered. Their weapons shook.

"Where is that damn Vonjo?" the tall man hissed through gritted teeth. "Where is he?!"

Across the fractured rock field, past a mound of broken obsidian pillars, Eugene leaned against a scorched ruin, trying to support George. 

Blood soaked George's side. He couldn't move—his eyes glassy from pain and blood loss, jaw clenched, breaths shallow.

But both of them stopped moving altogether as their gazes froze.

Their mouths hung slightly open with their pupils dilated.

Because… because Vonjo was—

He was there.

Floating.

Upside down.

Above the two warriors of the House of Sutterfouse.

As if gravity had forgotten him.

His limbs hung casually downward as if he were standing on an invisible ceiling. Head tilted, his grin stretched unnaturally wide, and his eyes gleamed with a devilish light, a fusion of amusement and madness.

George let out a weak, choked sound. Eugene said nothing, only raised a trembling hand to point.

The tall man saw Eugene and George point above them, and the round-faced gunner turned—slowly too. They followed the path of Eugene's gaze. 

And then… they saw him. 

Vonjo. 

Floating upside down. Like a nightmare given form.

"Haha! You found me!" he said as he laughed again—right-side up or upside-down. 

They didn't hesitate. 

The tall man roared and launched a spear of corrupted spirit energy with one hand and the round-faced man fired both guns, rounds glowing with hellfire.

The projectiles passed through Vonjo like mist.

"Wh—what!?"

Suddenly, he was no longer above them.

Then, they were shocked when they discovered where he was—beside them.

Arms casually draped over their shoulders like old friends at a class reunion.

Their guns raised instantly—but froze as they felt his touch. Something inhuman clung to that contact—their strength bled out at the point of contact. As if their life force was leaking.

Vonjo leaned his head forward between them. His voice was calm. Almost chipper.

"Oh, come on. We're one big family," he chuckled. "No need to be angry."

The tall man flinched.

The massive hellhound—a creature with bone-plated limbs and eyes like smoldering coals—stood a few meters away, snarling, waiting for command. But it paused. Confused. Its master… was beside the target?

Vonjo turned to the hound and let out a sharp whistle, like calling a stray mutt.

"Wisssssp!" "Sit!" 

The hellhound's tail stiffened. Its red pupils flickered uncertainly.

Vonjo smirked and looked back at the two.

"Where'd you get this street dog, huh?"

They didn't answer. Their throats were dry. Their nerves frayed. He was speaking like a drunk noble, yet something about him screamed predator.

They tried to attack again.

But they stumbled.

Their knees buckled. Their auras flickered.

"What… what is this?" the round-faced man gasped.

"I… I can't breathe right—"

Vonjo's laughter rang out again, this time louder. "HAHAHAHA!" 

"What do you think?" he said between cackles. "I'm taking your fallen curse energy, obviously."

"You—you bastard!" the tall man barked, sweat trailing down his temple.

Vonjo leaned in closer, voice lower now, words curling like snakes.

"What's wrong? You started it."

They could feel it—their limbs heavier, senses duller, breath shallow. He was draining something from them. No… the air was. The space itself was collapsing around him.

Suddenly, Vonjo's face shifted. His tone brightened.

"Well then," he said, voice chipper again. "How do you two wanna die?"

The two froze.

"What…?"

Vonjo's expression didn't change. He said it is like offering meal choices.

"Your souls being devoured?" he offered. "Or maybe your mortal flesh is slowly getting peeled away by a cursed flame? Hm?"

They didn't respond. They couldn't.

Their hands twitched, sweat running down their backs in rivers. 

Noticing this, Vonjo's grin widened. 

"Please…" the round-faced man croaked.

Vonjo tilted his head, as if surprised.

"Please spare us!" the tall man added desperately.

The words burst from them like floodgates opening. Then more.

"Please—we didn't know—!"

"It wasn't personal! Orders, just orders!"

"We—we didn't even want to—!"

"You don't understand, we were just doing what we were told!"

Their voices broke. Pleading turned to whimpering. The tall one dropped to his knees, dragging Vonjo's cloak like a child begging his father. The round-faced one wept openly, tears cutting through blood and grime.

"Please! We have families!"

Vonjo raised a brow. "Do you think that matters to me?"

The tall one choked. "We are just… uggg-foll-folllwing orders..."

Vonjo's gaze sharpened. "Oh?"

He leaned down slightly, just enough to make them feel like mice beneath a cat's paw.

"If I didn't stop the van," he said slowly, "where would it have gone?"

The two exchanged terrified glances.

Vonjo waited for them to answer. 

Then—"Your half-brother!" the round-faced man blurted.

"He wanted you dead! Said if you die, it would cause great pain to your full younger bro—!"

Vonjo's brows furrowed.

"What?"

"He… he wanted to kill you, because he couldn't touch your full younger brother directly—he's too protected."

Vonjo's breath hitched.

He had many younger brothers. His father, Vance Leonard Sutterfouse, sired bastards and heirs alike across too many noble houses, including Vonjo's mother. He barely remembered all their names. Politics. Pride. Petty power games. That was the Sutterfouse legacy.

So they wanted to kill him… just to hurt his brother?

His full brother?

His face tightened.

"How do you two know this?" he asked, tone now sharp.

The men hesitated.

Vonjo's grip on their shoulders tightened, causing their bones to creak.

"Answer."

The round-faced man gasped. "Y-you said… that your father was Vance Leonard Sutterfouse…"

"We… pieced it together," the tall one added. "And… and… when you said the name… we thought… we… please spare us!"

Suddenly, there was silence. And in that silence, Vonjo's eyes darkened.

His expression changed.

It was no longer curious.

No longer mocking.

No longer amused.

It was cold.

Dead.

His grin vanished.

"You two are lying."