Chapter 381: The Abyss (5)

After sailing for about half a day, they spotted a series of islands, both large and small, nestled closely together.

A rudimentary village could be seen on one of the islands.

It was the village where the pirates who followed Iris lived, but right now, no survivors could be seen in the village. The thousands of pirates residing there had been turned into intertwined monsters by Iris' dark power, and they had eventually been reduced to ashes and met their end when the Demon King’s dark power was dispersed.

As they passed several islands, a large island emblazoned with a symbol representing the Demon King of Fury came into view. It was glaringly obvious to be a stronghold where Iris and the dark elves had resided. Eugene, Sienna, and Anise volunteered to scout ahead.

“There might still be remnants of dangerous energies related to the Demon King. The three of us will go alone, so please guard the ship,” Eugene said. It was a request that was met with no opposition.

In particular, Ortus, the commander of the suppression force, nodded fervently. He seemed to have infinite faith in Eugene's simple words.

‘The Hero,’ Ortus intoned mentally.

Initially, Ortus had not favored Eugene; he had found Eugene to be excessively rude when they had a conversation at Knight March.

The next time they met had been when Eugene and his party had sneaked an attack on Laversia, and it had not fostered any good feelings then either. Instead, Ortus had experienced nothing but hardship from Eugene.

Yet, any residual resentment melted away during the battle against the Demon King. Now, Ortus held a deep respect, perhaps even reverence, for Eugene.

It did not matter that Eugene was young enough to be his son. Both of them walked the path of warriors, and Ortus couldn’t help but be profoundly impressed with every move Eugene demonstrated in the battle against the Demon King. Eugene’s martial prowess was nothing short of divine, rekindling the fire in Ortus' warrior spirit that had been fading away.

‘Eugene Lionheart. He is... the real deal. He’s the true hero, beyond what the world proclaims.’ Ortus’ thoughts were almost bordering veneration.

The fervor in Ortus’ gaze was glaringly apparent, something even Eugene could feel. He found it to be slightly embarrassing, but if he considered future endeavors, it wasn't a bad thing at all to have gained the affection and admiration of Ortus, who was the grand duke and First of the Twelve Finest Shimuin.

‘Rather, it’s a good thing,’ Eugene thought.

Challenging the Demon King of Incarceration, ascending Babel — these feats seemed impossible for now.

In the worst-case scenario, they might be torn to shreds by Gavid Lindman midway through the ascent. Unlike the recent confrontation with the Demon King of Fury, they stood no chance in a sudden battle against the Demon King of Incarceration. They had to prepare as much as possible.

This preparation included enhancing his divine power alongside the obvious tasks of working on his magic and the White Flame Formula. Anise had already explained it to him, and Eugene himself could feel it as well — he would garner more divine power as the name Eugene Lionheart grew in fame and reverence.

‘Maybe I should ask them to erect a statue of me.’ Eugene seriously harbored such thoughts.

He had eliminated the Demon King of Fury, which was a deed far more difficult than his original task of eliminating the Pirate Empress had been. Surely, the royal family of Shimuin could not deny his request after all that he had done for them.

‘Perhaps in a square or... in front of the coliseum with a lot of tourists… they could place a statue that resembles me exactly. Now that I think of it, it seems like my divine power would increase just by having Ortus stand in front of the statue every couple of months.’

The more Eugene thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.

“This can't even be described as plastering your face with gold. You’re plastering it with diamonds. It’s pure vanity,” Sienna replied with a grimace after hearing Eugene’s plan.

“Is that really for you to say?” Eugene asked back. He was genuinely bewildered.

Vanity? He would have understood it if anyone else had said it, but Sienna, of all people? To be completely honest, hadn't Sienna been the most obnoxiously boastful one among all their colleagues three hundred years ago?

Anise disliked being venerated as a Saint in Yuras. She had been far removed from wanting herself idolized.

Molon had indeed erected a statue of himself in the capital of the Ruhr Kingdom, but it had also served to commemorate Hamel.

Then, there were statues of Vermouth in the Lionheart family’s estate and in Kiehl's capital. But... would Vermouth have been obsessed with his own statues?

On the other hand, Sienna had been obsessed.

“It's a misunderstanding,” Sienna replied while keeping a straight face. “Even three hundred years ago, I didn’t wish for something like my statue to be erected in a town square! Even when my portrait was being painted, I didn’t smile and displayed such discomfort that the artist had to change my expression.”

“Despite what you're saying now, you always referred to yourself as the 'Wise Sienna' every day,” Eugene commented dryly.

“That is... that's a different matter. I'm different now than I was three hundred years ago. Also, well, it’s a fact that I am the Wise Sienna!” retorted Sienna.

“Really... you were the one who dubbed yourself with that adjective — wise…” Eugene grumbled.

“I didn't come up with it!” shrieked Sienna in denial.

“Why are you denying a fact that everyone already knows?” asked Eugene.

It was a well-established fact that the damn fairy tale was a collaborative work between Anise and Sienna. However, Sienna still denied being the author.…

Thud.

“Please ignore Sienna’s foolish words. They are not worth listening to,” Anise said while folding her Wings of Light after landing on the island. “I am with Hamel on this one. I agree with your opinion. Idols are an easy and convenient way to draw worship. But I think even more audacious methods can be used for this matter.”

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

“More audacious methods?” asked Eugene, intrigued.

“Such as getting the papacy to recognize you as a saint of the Religion of Light and erecting statues of you all over Yuras,” explained Anise.

Eugene’s mouth hung open halfway after hearing her proposal.

“Why are you surprised? Though not officially announced, you are already regarded as a saint in the Religion of Light,” said Anise.

It was indeed an obvious statement. Eugene had been dubbed as the Hero by the Religion of Light.

Since three hundred years ago, the master of the Holy Sword Altair had been called the Hero. In fact, Vermouth was considered to be one of the saints in the Religion of Light to this day, and more than dozens of Vermouth’s statues were erected in Yuras.

“In truth, even if we don’t ask for it, this is something the papacy will undertake themselves,” Anise explained.

If the fact of the subjugation of the Demon King of Fury became known, there was no way Yuras, a nation of zealots, would stay still. They would eagerly proclaim that the God of Light was with Eugene and end up erecting a statue of him in the Plaza of the Sun.

“Erecting statues isn’t the only method, right?” Sienna followed behind Eugene and Anise with a fake cough. “You could accomplish more feats that will make your name known like this, right? Fortunately, Eugene, there are still many bastards left for you to kill.”

Bastards to be killed.

"Amelia Merwin, Noir Giabella, Gavid Lindman,” Eugene listed them with a cold glint in his eyes.

"The weakest one is that black wizard Amelia Merwin,” responded Sienna while narrowing her eyes.

"To be honest, it's still hard for us to deal with Noir Giabella," Eugene grumbled with a grimace.

They had managed to stab Noir with a dagger while she was possessing Scalia... but that was solely to drive Noir away. It would not have inflicted serious damage to her true self.

"Gavid Lindman might be getting stronger along with the Demon King of Incarceration, but Noir Giabella is different. Her greed might be the greatest among the demons, right?" said Sienna.

Eugene agreed with that statement wholeheartedly. Noir Giabella was greedy. There was no other word to describe it. Over these three hundred years, there likely wasn't any other demon who enhanced their power and status as much as Noir did. Even at this very moment, her power and status were increasing. The stupid Giabella Park had tens of thousands of visitors daily, and the energy the visitors offered added to Noir Giabella's strength.

"Speaking of statues, Sir Eugene, why didn't you bring the statue of Agaroth?" Kristina asked while slowing her pace and standing beside Eugene.

Eugene coughed softly while avoiding Kristina's sparkling gaze. "I felt it was right to leave it there."

"So... is that so?" asked Kristina.

"Even if that’s my past life, I barely remember anything. Trying to remember might only cause more confusion... After all, it's something of the past,” Eugene explained.

That was why he had left it in the abyss. Staring at the statue of Agaroth could potentially lead to unnecessary sentiments. Hamel was from just three hundred years ago, and his memory was of the 'same world,' but Agaroth... wasn't that a distant past from immemorial times, a different era altogether?

'Would he have told me if I asked?' Eugene couldn’t stop himself from wondering.

If he had asked the Demon King of Incarceration for the memories of Agaroth, would he have allowed Eugene to remember? Regardless of whether it was possible or not, it didn't seem like it would have been easy. The Demon King of Incarceration would have probably asked for something in return... or boasted that he would tell Eugene once he reached Babel.

On the other hand, Kristina felt regret. 'I wanted to see it.'

The current Eugene Lionheart, Hamel Dynas from three hundred years ago, and the ancient God of War, Agaroth — Kristina wanted to know everything about Eugene.

"How is White Flame Formula? Is it the same?" Sienna asked as she raised her staff.

Instead of answering verbally, Eugene demonstrated the use of the White Flame Formula.

Seven Stars... no, could it still be called Seven Stars? Despite the stiffness in his body from Ignition's recoil, thanks to getting a little rest, he could ignite a small flame.

Whoosh.

A black flame sprang up from Eugene's fingertip.

'There are no Stars,’ Eugene thought as he inspected himself.

The Stars were a symbol of the White Flame Formula. The number of Stars determined the stage of the White Flame Formula. But now, there were no Stars inside Eugene.

A transformation in the White Flame Formula had been induced by multiple things — Eugene’s malice and murderous intent towards the Demon King, Agaroth’s divine power, and Eugene’s will. The change lingered within the White Flame Formula.

'The Stars are gone... but the Core is not,' Eugene realized.

The Ring Flame Formula had been conceived using the Eternal Hole as its basis, creating new Stars within the rotation of Stars. Now, inside of Eugene was a universe born from the evolving Ring Flame Formula. The flame born from this universe was pitch black, resembling a night sky embracing the stars.

"Lady Carmen would like it, I believe,” said Kristina with a smile.

"......" Eugene decided to keep mum at this prospect.

"A color not fitting for the Hero... but Sir Eugene still remains noble and holy," Kristina whispered with her hands clasped in prayer.

On the other side, Sienna unfolded a scouting spell while gazing at Eugene's flame with a sly smile before commenting, "It was true before as well, but now, your mana is... too... powerful. It's violent and alien."

The mana in the atmosphere was in its purest form. When that mana dwelled within a human and manifested through one’s will, it mixed with one's disposition.

From the Sixth Star onwards, the White Flame Formula underwent changes depending on one’s disposition. But Eugene's White Flame Formula was no longer recognizable as the Lionheart’s specialty. All that remained somewhat similar was that the mana rose like flames. Everything else had changed too much under Eugene’s influence.

—Violently and alienly so.

"This is better,” Eugene grumbled as he extinguished the flame.

Only after fully recovering could he test and verify various things with his newfound power. It was impossible to do so at the moment.

'I need to check the Moonlight Sword too,' Eugene thought of another thing that needed his attention.

Why had it run rampant, and was there a risk of it happening again in the future? If so... should it be destroyed? Or should it be sealed?

Eugene let out a deep sigh.

"Found it," Sienna spoke as she withdrew her staff.

It appeared as if not a single survivor remained on the island where the pirates had lingered. The same was true for the hostages kidnapped by the pirates and the workers who had been taken from the village. Iris, who had become the Demon King, transformed all the humans she saw into monstrous beings. However, there were still survivors on this island. Sienna slowly floated upwards into the air. Eugene and Kristina, too, were lifted by Sienna's magic.

Ku- ku- ku- kung!

The ground vibrated and began to stir. Although Sienna had not fully recovered from the battle with the Demon King, flipping over the surface of this area was a simple task.

"She hid them very deep. She obviously didn't want them to escape, huh?" commented Sienna.

As the ground was completely turned over, dwarves became visible. All of them were lying on the ground as if on the brink of death.

According to the information provided, there were supposed to be twenty dwarves. However, there were only fourteen in the basement.

"Th-they are dead.” The one who spoke was a young dwarf who had been the first one to regain consciousness from Anise’s divine magic.

"One… didn't return from the deep sea, and two died from overwork while producing diving suits. The remaining three... killed themselves by bashing their heads onto the furnace," the dwarf spoke as tears dripped down his face.

"Wh...where is the Empress, ah, ah, no, where is the Demon King? Where is Her Majesty?" The dwarf's voice trembled. Despite the abuse, fear made them refer to Iris as Her Majesty.

"She's dead," Eugene responded.

The dwarf's eyes widened in shock, "De, dead? She's dead? The Demon King... is? The Demon King of Fury is dead?"

"She is dead. That's why I am here now,” responded Eugene.

"Who... who on earth killed the Demon King of Fury?" asked the dwarf.

"I did,” said Eugene matter-of-factly.

This response left the dwarf with his mouth agape. “Who exactly are you… to be able to do such a thing?”

“Eugene Lionheart.”

A sense of satisfaction washed over Eugene as he proclaimed his feat.

‘I should have the dwarves craft the statues,’ he thought with satisfaction.

Having rescued them from the brink of starvation or suffocation underground, he figured they would happily agree to sculpt statues in gratitude.

‘I’ll need to bring a few of them to the Lionheart estate.’ Eugene didn’t forget his original mission.

He had no intention of forcing them.

But there would be no need to either. If he whispered the promise of unrestricted access to dragon materials for forging weapons and armor, the dwarves would eagerly follow him to the Lionheart clan without a second thought.

Though a discussion with the Shimuin royal family would be necessary, it was unlikely they would refuse the release of a few dwarves when he had eliminated the Demon King for them.

‘To the Lionheart mansion…’ Eugene thought of their next destination.

The moment he recalled his homeland, the faces of Gilead, Ancilla, and Cyan surfaced in his mind.

All his enthusiasm and happiness vanished suddenly.

Darkness clouded Eugene’s expression. With a sigh, he turned his head, gazing at the ships anchored not far off in the sea. By now, Ciel would have woken from her sleep.

‘I might get slapped a few times.’ While such a thing seemed unlikely for Gilead, Ancilla might be the one to do it, Eugene thought.

In fact, Ancilla had every right to.