Chapter 239 - Damn Reincarnation

Lehein

“I was wrong.”

Eugene made no attempt to defend himself. Anyone else might at least pretend to listen, but nothing he said would get through to Anise in this state. The right thing to do was get an apology out as quickly as possible.

“Do you know what you did wrong?”

Three curves adorned Anise’s face.

Two smiling eyes. A smiling mouth. Her eyes were narrowed so deeply in her smile that he could barely see her irises, which only made Eugene tremble with fear. From his past life, he knew all too well how chillingly cold the eyes behind those closed lids would be.

“... Ahem...”

Moron cleared his throat for no particular reason. Out of solidarity as a man and a warrior, he wanted to defend Eugene and help soothe Anise’s anger. Anise tilted her head and looked at him.

“...”

Moron even held his breath.

In their previous lives, Anise had given him an even harder time than Hamel. Strictly speaking, though, it was Moron who had given Anise a hard time. Whenever he recklessly charged ahead without looking back, she had to follow him, swearing all the way. She had to watch him swing his axe and hammer like a madman, ready to perform a miracle and heal him the instant he suffered a wound.

His fearless courage certainly helped lead them to victory. But the only reason Moron had survived at the forefront of all those battlefields with his limbs intact was that Anise had showered him with miracles to keep him from dying or ending up a cripple.

When the pain of her stigmata, her stress, irritation, and anger reached their limit, Anise let her emotions erupt rather than holding them back. Those vicious outbursts were almost always aimed at Moron and Hamel. So this side of Anise was both familiar and welcome to Moron. That did not mean he was tactless enough to laugh and throw his arms around her. An idiot he might be, but even he could read the room that well.

“...”

Still holding his breath, Moron turned away. It was a silent declaration that the situation had nothing to do with him. Eugene felt a small pang of betrayal.

‘Why couldn’t you just stay out of it? Why clear your throat and get her even more worked up? Fucking idiot.’

Should he get on his knees? Did he really have to go that far? Eugene hesitated, stealing glances at Anise.

The three of them were on the tower’s top floor. ... The cold wind of the snowfields howled through the shattered window and wall.

That was Moron’s doing. When the Demon King of Incarceration descended, Moron had sensed him and flown straight through the window and wall before anyone could stop him.

When Eugene attacked Gavid Lindman, he had been privately worried about dealing with the aftermath. Fortunately, Gavid had left the fortress with the Black Mist. Anise had done her utmost to act divinely possessed, and the Pope of Yuras had acknowledged the Holy Sword and the revelation. Moron, too, had endorsed his attack on Helmuth’s duke, clapping Eugene hard on the shoulder and embracing him.

Thanks to them, the other kings had been unable to take Eugene to task for his sudden attack. The emperor of Kiel had looked utterly unconvinced, but when even his guardian knight, Alchester Dragonic, subtly tried to protect Eugene, he could press no further.

‘Judging by the look in that bastard’s eyes, he’ll find something else to hold against me sooner or later. Well, that’s not my problem right now...’

Kiel’s emperor was not the only one who had shown his displeasure. Nahama’s Sultan had also glared openly at Eugene.

That was hardly surprising. Amelia Merwin, one of Incarceration’s Three Demons, was openly in league with the Sultan and lending him her strength. The director of the Demon-Subjugating Alliance and the king of Shimuin had also stared intently at Eugene, but he had no way of knowing why.

“What are you thinking about?”

“Hrk.”

Anise tilted her head as she asked. Her smiling eyes opened a fraction and fixed on Eugene. They were far colder and more frightening than he had imagined... Unable to answer, he caught his breath.

“Hamel. Why should I have to suffer for your reckless, witless, idiotic behavior?”

“I was wrong.”

“Are you saying that because you actually know what you did wrong? Hamel, I know perfectly well that you aren’t truly sorry. We have known each other for a very long time, and I know you far better than you think.”

“I was wrong.”

“Then what did you do wrong?”

“Attacking Gavid...”

“Tell me why that was wrong.”

The reason for attacking made sense in his head, but putting it into words was exceedingly difficult. As Eugene hesitated, Anise gave a pointed snort and sneered.

“There, you see? Hamel, you cannot even clearly explain why you attacked him. That is because your attack was driven entirely by emotion. That is why you cannot offer anyone a coherent explanation.”

“That bastard pisses me off...”

“Hamel! What you are saying right now is pissing me off.”

“Still, unlike me, you’re well educated. Isn’t ‘pissing me off’ a bit beneath you...?”

Before Eugene could finish muttering, the flail in Anise’s hand shot toward him. The adamantium at the end of its extended chain hurtled at him as though to smash his skull. Horrified, Eugene jerked his head aside to dodge.

“Why are you dodging?”

“Because that’ll kill me!”

“Don’t be so dramatic. I know perfectly well that body is healthier than the scrawny one you had in your past life.”

“Hamel was not scrawny.”

“Moron, just shut up. And what do you mean, he wasn’t scrawny? Hamel was forever bleeding and collapsing and making my life difficult.”

“Hamel was a great warrior who pushed himself to the point of collapse in battle.”

“I said shut up.”

Anise snapped at him with fire in her eyes, and Moron obediently closed his mouth.

“Hamel. Acting on your emotions is hardly unusual for you, so I could let it pass. Three hundred years ago, that was acceptable. To put it bluntly...”

“‘Bluntly’ isn’t very refined either...”

“Do not interrupt me unless you really want to fucking die.”

“Sorry.”

“In any case... Ahem. To be honest, three hundred years ago, even if you died, we still had Lord Vermouth.”

The corners of Eugene’s mouth drooped. Wasn’t that going a little too far, saying that to his face?

“Because Lord Vermouth was there, you could afford a certain degree of recklessness. Even if you made trouble by acting recklessly, he could resolve it. And of course, there were Senya, Moron, and myself as well. But you cannot do that now. Hamel, haven’t I told you this before? In this era, you must become what Lord Vermouth was to us.”

“That’s really harsh.”

“I think your brainless behavior is far harsher! What would you have done if Gavid Lindman had defied the Demon King of Incarceration’s wishes and tried to kill you?”

“That bastard takes enormous pride in being Incarceration’s Sword and knight. He would never do that.”

“You cannot be absolutely certain of that. So what, exactly, did you gain by attacking Gavid?”

Anise demanded her answer as she swung the flail, its adamantium head flashing menacingly as it whirled above her. Eugene swallowed, keeping his eyes on its path.

“I confirmed a few things. First, as long as I don’t go to Babel, Gavid and the Demon King of Incarceration won’t interfere with me. The Demon King won’t leave Babel to come fuck me up, and Gavid won’t drag me there by force.”

“But that isn’t why you attacked him in the first place, is it?”

“Look, Anise, you saw that bastard kneeling there. He’d smeared some shit in his hair so it was all greasy and slick, with angles like he’d measured them with a ruler. Looking at him, I just wanted to kick him... Then I thought chopping it off with a sword would be better than kicking it...”

“So it was emotional after all! Hamel! What makes a human who cannot control his impulses any different from a fucking dog?”

“Now you’re treating me like a fucking dog...”

“No, Hamel. You are close to being a fucking dog, but you are not one yet. Now, let us pray. Clasp your hands and repent.”

Anise kindly demonstrated first. Before Eugene’s eyes, she clasped her hands before her chest and closed her eyes with a pious expression.

“What I want is not an admission of guilt. I want a promise for the future: ‘I will not do it again.’ Now, repeat after me. I will never do anything so reckless again. I will never put my beloved Anise in such a difficult position again...”

[“Sister!”]

‘If you wish, I can add your name at the end.’

[“I-I do not want that.”]

‘Really? You truly do not want it? Kristina Rogeris. In the eyes of the Light, liars who deceive themselves can neither enter heaven nor find salvation.’

[“I have already found salvation, so that is quite all right...”]

‘Have you really? Kristina, is your salvation so small that watching a single fireworks display alone with Hamel is enough? Mine is not. I am greedy. I will only consider myself saved after making many memories with him that you have not.’

[“Sister! That is not what you said at first!”]

Kristina shrieked, but Anise did not answer.

“... Do I have to say ‘beloved,’ too?”

“Leave it out if you dislike and hate me.”

“I love Anise and Hamel, too.”

“If you open that mouth of yours without permission one more time...!”

“Anise, honestly, you’re angrier about embarrassing yourself in front of everyone than you are worried about me, aren’t you? Right?”

“Why ask when you already know? Hamel, counting the years, I am over three hundred years old. And yet! Because of you, I spread my wings, shook, tore at my hair, and cried out that I had received a revelation in front of people young enough to be my distant descendants. You were too busy tussling with Gavid to see, but do you have any idea how the clergy of Yuras looked at me? Those little priests who revere me as a saint, who learned all my deeds and words as scripture!”

Just remembering made her face burn. Anise covered her face with the hands she had clasped in prayer.

After hearing all that, Eugene clasped his own hands before his chest without further protest. Thinking about it rationally, he did feel he had treated Anise unfairly. He had, after all, attacked Gavid without even warning her.

“I will never do anything so reckless again. I will never put my bel... beloved Anise in such a difficult position again.”

“Did you say ‘beloved’ twice because you love me twice as much? Or because you also love Kristina, who is listening inside me?”

“I stuttered...”

“Hamel, since you appear truly repentant, I shall forgive my bel... beloved Hamel.”

Anise lowered her flail with a pleased smile.

“You’re a faithless bastard, Sir Eugene.”

Mer poked her head out of his cloak and muttered. The dull, almost lifeless look in her eyes filled Eugene with guilt.

“I remember everything. If Lady Senya is ever freed from her seal, I will tell her every single thing I have seen and heard, and every humiliation I have endured.”

“Do as you please. If Senya has any conscience, she will not be able to condemn me.”

“Why wouldn’t she?”

“Think about it. Isn’t it obvious? Senya had a hole punched through her chest, but she did not die. She is sealed away, but alive. And what of me? My bones were shattered hundreds of years ago and enshrined as holy relics, while my blood and flesh became fertilizer for the saints who followed me...”

Wearing a mournful expression, Anise recounted her terrible past. Mer could only open and close her mouth, at a loss.

“Though I now dwell within Kristina, with whom I am compatible in many ways, there is no denying that I am a ghost unable to pass on. My existence is as fragile as a candle in the wind, so incomplete that I might vanish at any moment. And if Kristina were ever to reject me, unwilling to accept my presence...”

[“Sister, Sister! I would never do such a thing. Please, do not say such sad things.”]

Anise delighted in Kristina’s cries.

“I would disappear without meaning, having achieved none of my wishes, just as when I took my own life hundreds of years ago. Even then, I would resent no one. Not you, Mer Merdein, who treats me like a thieving cat; not Senya, who would condemn my actions; not Hamel, who could not hold on to me... I would resent none of you. Earth to earth, dust to dust. As those words say, I would return to earth and dust, and from heaven pray for the happiness, peace, and fulfillment of those I loved.”

Anise deliberately paused there. She steadied her breathing and put on the most benevolent smile she could muster.

“Even if I am nothing more than a ghost, I love you all.”

Great tears spilled from Moron’s eyes. Mer sniffled, too. With a sorrowful expression, Eugene approached Anise, opened his arms, and embraced her. Mer also wriggled out of his cloak to cling to her.

“I was wrong. You’re mean, Lady Anise, but you’re still a good person. I l-love you, too.”

“I love Anise, too.”

Crying, Moron wrapped his enormous arms around Anise, Eugene, and Mer all at once.

Amid their embraces, Anise smiled in satisfaction.

* * *

The next day.

Eugene opened his eyes in his room at the mansion assigned to the Lionhearts.

His conversation with Moron and Anise—no, Kristina—had continued well into the early hours, but no one was suspicious. Who would question Moron the Brave, a great hero who had fought the Demon Kings three hundred years ago, offering advice to the Hero and saint of the present era?

Moreover, without sleeping a wink, Moron had invited all the Lionhearts attending the Knight March to visit him early that morning. He wanted to offer advice and kind words to the descendants of his friend, Vermouth the Great.

‘That idiot won’t say anything he shouldn’t, will he...?’

Eugene had warned him before dawn. Since no one knew Eugene was Hamel reincarnated, he had begged Moron to watch what he said.

Gavid Lindman and the Black Mist had not returned since leaving the previous night. Moron remained wary of him. As he had said outside the gates, he seemed seriously concerned that Gavid might be plotting something somewhere in the vast snowfields.

But Eugene was certain Gavid would do no such thing. The man was brimming with pride and loyalty. Even if humiliation had driven him to retreat, he would not devise some wicked scheme for revenge. What if Gavid led the Black Mist in an assault on the fortress? As far as Eugene was concerned, there was no need to worry about that in the first place.

“Well, would you look at that.”

Out for a stroll on the ramparts, Eugene gave a dry laugh.

Even Kristina was not beside him now. She was, after all, a citizen of the Holy Empire, held the office of Bishop of Light, and all bishops belonged to Yuras’s Order of Radiant Priests. As such, she was currently with them.

Outside the fortress, training was proceeding with some semblance of order. It was a joint effort between Aroth’s magic corps and the mages of Nahama’s dungeon factions. An army of monsters brought forth through summoning magic was clashing with the knightly orders.

The knights currently facing the monsters belonged to the Demon-Subjugating Alliance. Behind them, the Alliance’s healers and Yuras’s clergy stood ready for any emergencies.

They were working hard enough, but Eugene was not particularly impressed. Demonic beasts and monsters were on entirely different levels to begin with. Nor could the ferocity of ordinary monsters compare to that of monsters bewitched by the demonic energy demons emitted. The combat training merely looked convincing.

He supposed it could not be helped. As Aman Ruhar had said, the significance of this Knight March lay in gathering representatives from most of the continent’s nations. Especially after yesterday’s personal visit from the Demon King of Incarceration, the kings would be inside the fortress’s castle, racking their brains and discussing the future political situation.

They could not leave the knights idle in the meantime, so they had them train. It was trivial training, but they could at least compare their strength with other orders and feel superior. There would be some headhunting among the knights in the process, too, along with exclusive contracts for the assembled mercenary companies and offers of knighthood.

“A dull spectacle you’ve chosen to watch.”

The approaching figure made no attempt to conceal his presence. When Eugene gave little reaction, he spoke first.

“It isn’t entirely uninteresting if you take the time to watch.”

Eugene turned to look behind him.

A lanky, exceptionally tall man was staring at him.

The commander of Shimuin’s Raging Wave Knights. The First of the Twelve Champions.

Ortus Hyman.