Chapter 51 - Damn Reincarnation

Black Lions

They ate a late lunch at a restaurant with a fine view in the floating station. The food was quite good, but Eugene was unhappy with the portions of meat. After months of requesting enormous cuts at the Red Tower, he had been satisfied with his meals there. A restaurant that lived off its atmosphere, however, did not serve the hefty slabs of meat he wanted.

"You're already fully grown. Do you really have to eat like such a brute?"

"I might grow some more."

"What if you end up like Gargis? I don't want you getting that big."

"Neither do I. Who would?"

Eugene grimaced and wiped his mouth with a napkin. Every artfully plated portion of meat had been miserably small, leaving a mountain of empty plates on his side of the table.

Ciel's side, by contrast, was tidy. He clicked his tongue at the vegetables she had picked out, such as bell peppers and carrots.

"You're not growing because you're such a picky eater."

"In case you hadn't noticed, I'm already fully grown."

"You could grow more if you weren't picky."

"Getting too big is gross, though."

Ciel rose as she spoke. Eugene glanced at her slender arms and shook his head.

"Mana training is all well and good, but conditioning your body is just as important. If you run out of mana in a fight, you have to fight with your body alone—"

"I heard you hung out with Gargis recently. Now you even sound like him."

"Take that back."

At his horrified reaction, Ciel stuck out her tongue and laughed.

"Father told me. You spent three hundred million sals buying giant testicles for Gargis, right?"

"So what?"

"Don't tell me you ate them with him? I asked Hezar, and he said testicles from animals, not just giants, really are good for, well, your health. But no matter how good they are for you, how could you eat something like that?"

"I didn't."

"Really? Sir Gerhard will be pleased."

"Why would my father be pleased?"

"He was so dejected that you were keeping something that good all to yourself."

Father, please.

"You've been in Aroth for over three months now. What have you been doing?"

"Reading books. Learning magic."

"Besides the obvious. Haven't you had any fun, unusual experiences?"

"Learning magic is a fun, unusual experience."

"What's Akron like?"

Despite claiming she had come to buy Anisilla a present, Ciel strolled around the edge of the floating station instead of going down to the streets. She pointed at the distant lake and Abram, the royal palace.

"They don't let just anyone in there. Do you know how happy Father and Sir Gerhard were when they heard you'd received an entry permit to Akron?"

"What about Lady Anisilla?"

"Mother acted pleased, too. Though I'm sure her feelings are more complicated."

"What's there to feel conflicted about? It's not as if I can become family head."

"That's exactly it."

Ciel gave a small laugh and turned to him.

"You can't become family head, but you're better suited to it than any of Father's children."

"That's because I'm so outstanding."

"Being too outstanding is a flaw, too. Wouldn't it be better to have a few shortcomings?"

"I'm having trouble understanding you, Ciel. Did you come all this way to warn me?"

Eugene smiled just as she had. Her eyes trembled slightly at that smile. They had lived together for four years, and she had seen him smile countless times.

But his gaze was different. The way he stared straight at her reminded her of their first meeting four years ago. When he had accepted the duel, he had looked at Cyan with those same eyes.

"... Warn you? Of course not."

Ciel gave a slight shiver of her shoulders and shook her head.

"It's just... my feelings are complicated, too. Cyan wants to become family head. And things have worked out very well for him. Thanks to you, Eward and Lady Theonis have left the main family."

"Then you should be grateful to me."

"Mother is grateful. Cyan... doesn't like it, though."

"That's why I quite like Cyan. All that pride reminds me of someone."

"Who?"

"Someone whose pride far outstripped his ability."

Muttering, Eugene walked past her.

"I know what you're thinking. You give your brother hell, but you love him. And you worry about Lady Anisilla even though you're unhappy with her."

"..."

"I have no intention of becoming family head. I don't want to, either. I wouldn't do it even if someone asked me. I'll never step forward and demand the position, not for the rest of my life."

"Don't say things like that so lightly."

"What do you think?"

He looked back at her.

"If I changed my mind and decided to become family head, what would you do?"

"... Cyan would accept it."

"You."

"Father would... acknowledge you, too. So would Uncle Gion and the main family's household. If you were determined to do it, they'd have no choice. There's such a huge gap between you and Cyan."

"I asked what you would do."

"... I'd acknowledge you, too."

Ciel pouted as she muttered her answer.

"... I wouldn't feel entirely comfortable about it. Mother would never be willing to acknowledge you."

"See?"

Eugene laughed and leaned back against the railing.

"If I said I wanted to become family head, someone would be unhappy. That's unavoidable. However outstanding I am, I'm not of the main family's direct line of descent."

"... You're not saying you'd give it up for Mother's sake, are you?"

"There are plenty of reasons to give it up. Even if the family head, you twins, and the main family's knights acknowledged me, the Council of Elders wouldn't. That alone would be a huge pain to deal with, wouldn't it?"

"..."

"That's annoying enough, but I don't want to be family head in the first place. What would I do with it? Head of the Lionheart main family. What's so incredible about what that position lets you do?"

"... It is incredible, though, isn't it?"

"I'm confident I'll be treated well anywhere in the world without being family head."

"You insufferable bastard."

"Am I wrong? Let's stick to the facts."

Chuckling, he raised a finger toward her.

"Now, I was born into a collateral branch. But at thirteen, I won the Bloodline Succession Ceremony—the first person from a collateral branch in Lionheart history to do so. Then I received unprecedented treatment, was adopted into the main family, and became the owner of Wynnyd, the Storm Sword. That was when I first started using mana and learned the White Flame Formula. And now? I've advanced further in it than Cyan, who started years before me. Other people in Lionheart history have reached three stars before adulthood, but no one has reached three stars at seventeen like I have."

"You're insufferable."

"And that's not all. I studied magic on my own and could cast it after just one month. Now, three months in, I've received an entry permit to the royal library, Akron. With all that going for me, do you think the position of family head would satisfy me?"

"Yes, you're wonderful, you insufferable bastard."

Hearing his accomplishments listed one by one made Ciel think he really was a monster. Looking at his grinning face, she shook her head for no particular reason.

"... Then what will you do if you don't become family head?"

"Whatever I want."

"Did you know? Mother wants us to get married."

"Horrifying."

Ciel's eyebrow twitched at his instant response.

"What's so horrifying about it?"

"We're family. Brother and sister."

"You've never called me Big Sis."

"We're the same age. What the hell makes you my big sister? Don't tell me you're going to repeat that bullshit from when you were thirteen, about being my big sister because you were born a few months earlier."

"I've been asking you to call me Big Sis for four years. After hearing it so often, you could at least pretend to give in and say it once."

"Why would I pretend to lose when I'm winning? If you want to hear me call you Big Sis that badly, fight me for it. You kept training hard with Sir Gion and the family head even while you were holed up in your room."

"Don't bring that up."

"You make it sound like ancient history. Sorry, but the last time I saw you throwing your fucking adolescent tantrums was three months ago."

"Adolescence starts suddenly and ends suddenly. Cyan was the same."

"I wasn't."

"That's... because you're weird."

Still pouting, Ciel grumbled. As far as the twins were concerned, Eugene was definitely strange. They were the same age, yet his abilities far surpassed theirs, and he hadn't even gone through the adolescent turmoil they had.

'Adolescence, my ass. If I started acting like a fucking teenager, that would be dementia.'

Ciel didn't want to recall her adolescent phase, even though it had been only a few months ago. Just as she had said, it had come on suddenly. For some reason, she hadn't liked her reflection in the mirror, and her emotions had been unsettled for no reason. Her own body odor, which she had never once found unpleasant in her life, had begun to bother her...

Then it had suddenly ended. Strangely, after Eugene left for Aroth, the things that had bothered her no longer did.

"Can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"You know, when I was going through that phase."

"Recently, you mean?"

"... Back then."

"Anyway, what about it?"

"Did I smell strange?"

"No. Besides, you wouldn't even leave your room because you didn't want to smell."

"... What about now?"

"I can smell a little perfume."

"Any sweat?"

"Why would you be sweating with a breeze this cool? Hey, don't worry about weird stuff. People can smell sweaty. What's the big deal?"

"So did I smell or not?"

"I said you didn't. If it bothers you that much, go see Gargis."

"Why would I go see that pig?"

"Because once you meet him, you'll think you smell like flowers instead of sweat."

With that, Eugene began walking again. Ciel stood still for a moment, then followed, trying to hide the smile spreading across her face.

"Are you saying I smell like flowers now?"

"Your body's grown, but has your brain stayed the same?"

"I did put on rose perfume."

"I prefer the smell of soap to flowers."

"You sound like an old man."

Her teasing struck a little close to home. Eugene cleared his throat and pointed at the bustling streets below the floating station.

"... When are you going to buy the present?"

"I'd like to look around some more... Hmm..."

Ciel stopped speaking and checked her wristwatch.

"... We're meeting at five."

"Where?"

"In front of the warp gate."

"You're leaving today?"

"We've signed the contract for Wynnyd, and the matter with the black mage was settled before we came... So we're leaving as soon as we've taken custody of him."

"For the main family?"

"No. We're going to Mount Uklas. Do you know where that is?"

"I know it's in southern Kiel."

"That's where the Black Lion Knights live."

"You haven't joined them yet."

"Lady Carmen is going to give me a simple test there. Want to come?"

She still sprang things on him without warning, just as she had at thirteen.

"Why would I go there?"

"Lady Carmen is more interested in you than in me."

"In me? Why?"

"Why are you asking when you said it yourself earlier? You're outstanding. And despite being so outstanding, you can't become family head. Isn't it only natural for the Black Lion Knights to take an interest in you?"

It was natural. Honestly, what Ciel said did intrigue him. The Black Lion Knights were Lionheart's strongest fighting force.

"Tell them to take an interest later, not now."

"Why?"

"Learning magic is much more fun right now."

"There are plenty of mages in the Black Lion Knights, too. Sir Palago, who came with us today, is even at the Fifth Circle."

"Prince Honein in that palace over there is twenty-three, and I hear he's at the Fifth Circle."

"That's because he's Aroth's prince."

"Anyway, I'm not going with you now."

"Wouldn't training in the White Flame Formula be more useful than spending that time learning magic?"

"I'm training in the White Flame Formula while learning magic, too."

It was true. Since arriving in Aroth, Eugene had not missed a single day of White Flame Formula training.

"If you're meeting at five, you've only got a few hours left. Don't you need to choose a present?"

"Mother likes anything I give her, so it's fine."

"Then why did you come all the way to Aroth to buy one?"

"Why do you keep asking when I already told you?"

Giggling, Ciel clung to his arm.

"I came to see you, too."

"Get off. You're creeping me out."

"It won't even take half an hour to choose Mother's present. So we should use our time efficiently. Is there anywhere worth seeing?"

"Want to watch me practice magic?"

"That doesn't sound very fun. Somewhere... Oh, right. I heard Aroth is famous for its night views. We won't get to see those today... Shall we visit Lady Senya the Wise's mansion?"

"I saw it on my first day."

"You haven't seen it with me."

She tugged him along by the arm.

* * *

"If he doesn't know, there's nothing to be done."

An underground prison.

The smells of blood and tobacco mingled. Carmen, standing with her back against the wall, tossed the cigar from her mouth onto the floor.

Gevid. A black mage belonging to the Mages' Guild. Of the many people involved with the drug den on Bolero Street, those who could be killed without repercussions had died, while those who could not had been imprisoned.

Gevid was someone whose death would cause no trouble. He did not belong to the Black Tower. He was merely a petty black mage who roamed Aroth's nighttime streets, without any particular influence even within the Mages' Guild.

And yet he had not died. He had remained alive until today.

And had just died.

First, they had tortured him. Carmen had not needed to intervene. Nation, the Third Division's deputy commander, was skilled not only with a spear but also at torture. Most of the Lionheart Black Lions were. Their teeth and claws were good for more than biting and tearing enemies apart in a head-on fight.

Gevid had arranged the contract with Eward Lionheart. According to him, they had become friends at a succubus establishment on Bolero Street. Their acquaintance had begun early that year, and Gevid had spent time with Eward whenever Bolero Street opened each month.

"Ridiculous."

Carmen muttered as she took out a fresh cigar.

"A lowly black mage like that approached a legitimate child of the Lionheart main family and arranged a black magic contract? He was either suicidally audacious or insane."

"He must have been desperate."

The answer came from outside the cell.

"He began learning black magic decades ago, but achieved very little. If he grew old and died like that, his soul would become a demon's property, unable to enter the cycle of reincarnation."

"..."

"So he must have wanted to try something, anything. Even if this affair landed him in trouble, he likely thought the 'power' he gained by selling a legitimate Lionheart child would allow him to overcome it."

Gevid had cried out the same thing. Throughout the torture, he had screamed that he had done it solely out of his own greed.

"I heard Noir Giabella wasn't involved in this."

"True, but if an incubus under her command brought her a legitimate Lionheart child, Duchess Giabella would reward him, not punish him."

"And you?"

"I'm not sure why the accusations are turning toward me."

Standing outside the cell, Balzac shrugged.

"I believe I have cooperated in every aspect of this affair and shown sufficient remorse and respect."

"Suspecting you of plotting this makes more sense than believing that insignificant black mage did it."

"Hmm. I understand your reasoning. But what would I gain from it?"

Balzac pointed at Gevid's corpse, its limbs torn off.

"If I had orchestrated this... I wouldn't have left any trail to follow. I would have proceeded meticulously, ensuring no one could discover any connection to me. Wouldn't I? This whole affair was terribly clumsy. A drug den in the middle of Bolero Street. A pathetic guard who couldn't even notice a seventeen-year-old boy following them, let alone prevent disaster. Haha... I wouldn't do it that way even if I tried."

"What if being discovered and stopped was the point?"

"With me orchestrating it? Why would I undermine myself like that?"

Balzac laughed heartily and flicked a finger. The tip of the cigar in Carmen's mouth lit up.

"Lady Carmen. I have a great many enemies."

"..."

"The Demon King of Incarceration, whom I serve, graciously bestows considerable trust and affection upon me. And there are many in Helmuth who dislike the favor I receive."

"Edmond Codret?"

"Of course, he must find me troublesome, too. Amelia Merwin is unlikely to be fond of me, either."

In the present age, three black mages had contracted directly with the Demon King of Incarceration.

A count of Helmuth and the owner of Blood Berry: Edmond Codret.

Aroth's Black Tower Master: Balzac Ludbeth.

The dungeon master of the Nahama desert: Amelia Merwin.

"Of course, plenty of 'demons' dislike me besides those two. In my personal opinion, someone among them... seems to have wanted to use this affair to put me in a difficult position."

"You have no proof."

"Nor is there any proof that I orchestrated it. Honestly, how many times have I denied it over the past few days...?"

Balzac chuckled and shook his head.

"But Lady Carmen. I'm not the only one this affair puts in a difficult position, am I?"

"You're free to speak your mind."

Carmen straightened away from the wall and glared at him.

"But freedom comes with responsibility. Are you confident you can answer for your words and bear the consequences?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

Balzac pushed up his glasses and smiled.

"As a faithful servant of the Demon King of Incarceration, I hold Lionheart in the same affection that he does. That is why I bowed my head in apology, cooperated, and showed respect. But I am human, too... I cannot suppress forever this sense of injustice that threatens to thrust out like an awl."

"..."

"I am Balzac Ludbeth. Aroth's Black Tower Master. Servant of the Demon King of Incarceration. I can understand your showing me no respect... but excessive insults... I cannot endure those unconditionally, for my own sake or for the Demon King of Incarceration's."

Balzac's eyes grew murky. Inside the cell, Nation and Palago stepped in front of the bars, their expressions rigid. Gion, who had been watching the proceedings with a frown, also placed a hand on the sword at his waist.

"... I would rather not commit any further discourtesy in a foreign country."

"If you wish, I can handle matters so that no one considers it a discourtesy."

"You'd need your head still attached to do that."

Balzac merely smiled in reply. His shadow writhed on the prison wall. Watching him coldly, Carmen shrugged and shook her head.

"It is worth considering."

"What is?"

"That someone in Lionheart wants to damage the main family's prestige."

There were far too many Lionheart families. For three hundred years, everyone except the family head's direct line had been made to establish independent collateral branches, and no limit had been placed on their number.

Among so many branches, some would harbor insolent thoughts toward the main family.

"But it's only a suspicion. Torture revealed nothing, and neither did mind magic. It's very clean. That's why I suspect you."

"Oh dear. Perhaps I shouldn't have said anything."

Meticulously, without leaving any trail to follow.

"If I might add, what I mean by 'clean' is different from this. I have no reason to do anything like this, either."

"I'll believe you."

"If you need help, I can lend my assistance. If you wish... Yes. Gevid's soul has not yet left this place... Shall I summon it?"

"I have no desire to see your vile magic. Nor do I want your help with the interrogation. You might try something in the process."

"Haha..."

"Where is Olpher's head?"

"It won't be a particularly pleasant sight."

"I've seen plenty of cruel and horrible things. There's one right in front of me."

As she spoke, Carmen was not looking at Gevid's corpse. Her narrowed eyes remained fixed on Balzac. To her, the cruelest and most horrible thing here was not the tortured corpse, but that black mage.

"If you insist."

Balzac snapped his fingers, and the shadow extending from him writhed upward. A pitch-black hand emerged holding the head of a handsome incubus.

"The Demon King of Incarceration has claimed his soul. If you wish, I can give you that as well."

"No need."

With a faint smile, Balzac set the head of Olpher the Good-Natured inside the cell. Carmen immediately kicked it.

CRUNCH!

The head shattered against the bars. Blood and brain matter splashed across Balzac's face and clothes on the other side, but his smile never faltered.

"Let's go."

Carmen brushed off the jacket draped over her shoulders and stepped out of the cell.

"... Just in case, let me make this clear. Eugene Lionheart, who remains at the Red Tower. If you approach him—"

"Only the Demon King of Incarceration can control my actions and desires."

Balzac did not let her finish. Wiping the blood from his glasses with a fingertip, he turned away first.

"Lady Carmen. You have no authority to control me."