An hour had passed since Ose and his surroundings were engulfed by the black mist.
Just before that army of grasshoppers clashed with the Evil Army, the command headquarters where Ose was stationed had suddenly been swallowed by this dense black fog. The space surrounding the headquarters was utterly warped by the mist; every attempt to break out invariably looped them right back to their starting point. Thus, Ose and his forces were trapped, completely cut off from the outside world.
"Has this mist still not cleared?!"
"Sir! All hands are working to lift the curse, but the spell formula is completely beyond our comprehension..."
To the leader of the Curse Disposal Squad, who faltered mid-sentence while attempting to break the spell, Ose barked a rebuke:
"I don't want to hear excuses! Lift this abominable curse at once!"
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The squad leader and his men frantically resumed their efforts.
Another ten-odd minutes passed with no progress whatsoever in breaking the curse.
"Dammit! How dare they make a mockery of me!"
Ose finally erupted in fury. This black mist was undoubtedly an enemy sabotage operation aimed at crippling the Evil Army's chain of command. Against an ordinary military force, disrupting command and control was the most effective tactic possible. However, the troops Ose commanded were the elite of the Evil Army. Their sheer raw power rendered matters of tactical coordination largely irrelevant. No matter how the battle unfolded, the Evil Army's overwhelming victory was guaranteed. The real problem was that Ose had allowed himself to be trapped by such a crippling curse at the hands of mere worthless vermin of unknown origin.
(If Lord Asura learns of such a blunder, I am ruined!)
Ose was leading this miraculous army by the direct order of His Excellency, General Asura. For Ose to display such an unsightly failure was equivalent to dragging Lord Asura's esteemed name through the mud. Lord Asura would never forgive him. Ten to one, he would be subjected to a purge. It was a disgrace grave enough to warrant not just a demotion, but outright execution.
(What do I do?! How can I overcome this crisis?!)
As Ose poured his entire mind and soul into concocting a plan for self-preservation—
"The surrounding curse is dispelling itself!"
At those words from the Curse Disposal Squad, which shone like a beacon of hope in the dark, Ose cried out in delight:
"Splendidly done!"
Relieved at having narrowly escaped death, Ose failed to notice the subtle nuance in the squad's report.
Even if he had noticed, however, it was already too late. Reality had taken an unimaginably cruel turn for Ose.
When the black mist cleared completely, the worst possible Grim Reaper stood before his very eyes, casually resting the blade of an exceptionally long sword against his shoulder.