<h4>Chapter 157: The Capital (1)</h4>


    Eugene was sitting upright in the center of the Lionhearts’ forest. The talkative Mer wasn’t with him right now.


    The Lionheart family’s second mistress, Anci, was affluential in the high society of the capital Ceres. But many Lionheart knights didn’t respect her as much as they respected their more conspicuous Patriarch, Gilead. Still, she was well aware of what went on in high society and influenced the other members into making decisions in her favor even though she did not participate much in social parties. That was how she acquired the nickname ‘The Lioness of High Society.’


    However, the Lionheart family’s reputation was now in the gutter because of Eward.


    To continue her reign over the high society, there was a lot of stuff Anci had to do, such as personally writing letters to the nobles and even attending parties that she had rarely attended before.Since there were some lowlifeswho spoke badly of the Lionhearts at banquets or tea parties, Anci had to ckmail them in the name of gifts[1]</a>. She also had to warn and, if needed, threaten the press to keep them from publishing any articles or tabloids about the Lionhearts.


    To sum up, she was under a lot of stress. She usually had her own methods of relieving stress, like downing sses of wine before going to bed or a good, hard jog before dawn in her training suit until she was out of breath.


    These days, however, Anci had not needed any of her usual go-to stress-relieving tactics. Mer currently happened to be in the main estate — the very person with whom Anci could fulfill her fantasy and interact to get rid of regrets from her previous parenting. Anci realized that dressing, feeding, and adoring this little girl were just as effective, if not more, in relieving her stress.


    Therefore, Mer was with Anci right now. In fact, Eugene couldn’t have let Mer stay by his side even if Anci hadn’t wished to spend time with her.


    <em>‘She might</em><em>be negatively affected by this,</em><em>’</em>Eugene thought.


    When Eugene saw the Lightning me for the first time, Melkith warned him that Mer’s form might get damaged while Eugene tried to make the Lightning me surrender. If Mer’s control form got damaged, it was impossible for the current Eugene to restore it.


    “…Hmm.”Eugene slightly changed his upright sitting position a couple of times as he got absorbed in his thoughts.


    After the World Tree’s seedlings had been moved to the Lionhearts’ forest, they had rooted themselves in the ground and touched the leyline that was created by Vermouth hundreds of years ago.


    Only a month had passed since then, but this forest had be lively and was now green all year round, just like Tempest and Melkith had said. Although the number of fairy trees hadn’t increased yet, and neither had the World Tree’s seedlings gotten any bigger…Eugene could feel the same amount ofWorld Tree’s spirits as that of the elven sanctuary.


    “They really don’t listen to me,” Eugene grumbled.He could only feel them; he still couldn’t control the World Tree’s Spirit.Even thoughhe hadalready tried when the Lightning me blended into his body for the first time,those spiritscontinued to not answer Eugene’s calls.


    <em>‘I</em><em>never counted on it, though.</em><em>’</em>Eughought as he scratched his head.


    He pulled out the Annihtion Hammer and the Demon Spear from the Cloak of Darkness. Despite the fact that they were used to fight the intense battle at ck Lion Castle, these two weapons were fortunately intact. There was not a single crack on them.


    When Eugene tightly grabbed the Demon Spear, it squirmed like bulging veins. It had a curvy de, simr to a sea wave, and was longer and sharper than most des.


    The Annihtion Hammer looked just like a giant hammer. The Demon Spear was too long and stood taller than Eugene, but the Annihtion Hammer matched Eugene’s height. However, it was heavy. Rather than using this giant hammer as a weapon, it would be better for Eugene to smash boulders in a mine.


    In other words, the Annihtion Hammer and the Demon Spear were currently just weird-looking metal pieces. On top of that, these weapons were hard to handle. Eugene could only use these as a hammer and a spear. It was because their demonic energy and the Demon Kings’ remnants had beenpletely obliterated by the Holy Sword and the Moonlight Sword.


    Eugene squinted in thought as he held the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer in both hands. Regardless of their states, he could still use them as weapons. Even after thorough analysis, he wasn’t sure what these weapons were made of, but he could infuse a lot of mana in them.However, that didn’t mean much. He could also infuse a lot of mana in Wynnyd and Azphel.


    While Eugene infused mana into Annihtion Hammer and the Demon Spear, he could see the part of his Lightning me in his mana seep into them.


    <em>‘I can’t analyze their spell forms.’</em>


    Eugene did check their forms through Akasha. The Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer had forms to recreate the Demon Kings’ ability, but the forms didn’t exist separately. Rather than being engraved in the weapons, they were ‘melted’ into them, bing one with their respective weapons.Therefore,he couldn’t modify or separate the forms from the Spear or the Hammer.


    <em>‘Icannot even understand these forms, so it’s not surprising.’</em>


    With ordinary mana, Eugene couldn’t recreate the lost ability of the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer.Would it be different if he used demonic energy? Yes, it probably would, but Eugene would never try to control demonic energy unless he went nuts.


    Yet, there was some good news: Eugene saw a possibility of recreating the ability of the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer. And the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer turned out to be excellent catalysts.


    <em>Woosh!</em>


    The white me rose up from Eugene. Then, holding the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer in each hand, Eugene focused on connecting his Cores and making them spin in a circle. When his Cores began to spin,Eugene’s me became bigger, and the Lightning me sparked around him.


    <em>Oooo!</em>


    As if they were answering to the Ring me Form, the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer howled. Eugene red at the two weapons, feeling his stinging skin.Theweapons weren’t taking away Eugene’s mana; instead, Eugene was practically shoving his mana into them. Eugene’s current mana was immense and pure, and no one would believe that he had only trained for seven years.


    He was shoving<em>that</em>mana into the weapons to the point of scraping the bottom of his mana barrel. Wrapped around the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer, Eugene’s sword-force became sorge that the fierce me-like force couldn’t be any bigger.Under Eugene’s control, his force was condensed.


    When Eugene poured his mana to the limit, his mana seeped into the weapons little by little, but this wasn’t surprising.For the pastfifteen days, he had repeatedly done this whenever his mana was replenished.This forest wasfull of mana — the World Tree’s seedlings were here, and the leyline was close by. Even if Eugene used his mana to the brink of depletion,the efficient White me Form helped Eugene recover his mana in less than half a day.


    <em>‘I thinkI’m almost there….’</em>


    Just when Eugene felt an ache from his Cores that were being depleted…


    <em>Crack!</em>


    …he could hear different sounds from the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer. The two weapons were originally ck, but they started to turn white within the mes of the White me Form. Small cracks spread on the surface of the weapons immediately after the weapons changed their colors.


    <em>Crack…! Craaack!</em>


    The Lightning me in Eugene’s mana seeped in through the weapons’ cracks.


    That wasn’t it. No matter how many times Eugene had called them previously, the World Tree’s spirits never approached Eugene, but those fog-like beings now came up to Eugene as if being attracted to him like mas.


    As the Lightning me sparked, the World Tree’s spirits blended themselves into the me, bing a part of Eugene’s mana. Then again, Eugene’s mana seeped into the cracks of the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer.


    Eugene watched everything as his consciousness clouded.


    <em>‘Should I stop?’</em>Eugene pondered.


    Although the World Tree’s spirit had been added to his mana, the total amount of Eugene’s mana didn’t significantly increase. His Cores were already on the brink of getting depleted. If Eugene continued to infuse his mana into these two weapons, he might pass out from exhaustion or acquire a chronic injury in his Cores.


    <em>‘I’m not going to be fucked, ri…?’</em>


    <em>Booom!</em>


    The Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer exploded.The explosions were sudden, but Eugene wasn’t flustered or let go of the two weapons as he hadn’t missed the telltale signs of those weapons’ mana flows exploding after they were distorted.


    “Shit.”Eugene looked at his arms, crumpling up his face. Thankfully, his bones and muscles weren’t injured, but his skin was reddened and stung as if Eugene had acquired a slight burn.


    Eugene’s Ring me and the Lightning me disappeared as the explosions subsided.However,they weren’t technically gone. The cracks on the weapons were now filled up. The Lightning me inside Eugene’s mana was added to the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer, bing one with the weapons. To put it shortly, the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer were connected to Eugene.


    Grinning, Eugene held up the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer.


    “…Hmm.”Hebegan to utilizehis mana as he kept on grinning.


    <em>Pzzz!</em>


    Even with little mana, he could form sword-force around the two weapons. With a big smile, Eugene looked at the Lightning me as it sparked around the weapons.


    No, he shouldn’t be satisfied already.


    <em>‘I will first start with the Annihtion Hammer,’</em>Eugene thought.


    After putting down the Demon Spear, Eugene held up the Annihtion Hammer with both hands.


    He first looked around to decide where he was going to swing it. Then, after choosing a suitable location,Eugene swung the Hammer downward.


    <em>Crack!</em>


    The strong air current created by the Hammer overwhelmed the nearby area. Eugene had doneit. Of course, his Annihtion Hammer couldn’t bepared to the Demon King’s or Eward’s.Still,Eugene had sessfully used the Annihtion Hammer’s ability without usingdemonic energy.


    He was a bit dizzy, though. Although he had expected it, Eugene had to use a lot of his mana to use the Annihtion Hammer’s ability.


    <em>‘…It’s not burdensome. I can spare this much mana.’</em>


    He also had to take into ount that he didn’t have much mana left in his Cores. The power of his Annihtion Hammer… had also weakened, but Eugene could still use the Hammer inbat.


    <em>‘It will be stronger over time.’</em>


    Next, Eugene picked up the Demon Spear. He calcted the coordinates to make the thorns rise, then thrust the Spear into the ground.


    Replicating the sessful activation of the Annihtion Hammer’s attack, this time, thorns rose up from the ground at the exact coordinates calcted by Eugene. However, the radius of the Forest was smaller than Dominic’s, and the arrangement of the thorns was also bad.


    However, Eugene wasn’t disappointed. Since the Lightning me had been blended into the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer, their powers would keep growing significantly as he became stronger.


    “…Hmm…”Eugene was about to put those two weapons inside the Cloak, but he had to stop.


    When the weapons were halfway inside the Cloak,Eugene could feel that someone was fervently watchinghim. The fervor in the person’s eyes intensified when Eugene ignored them and put the weapons in.Unable to understand what was going on, Eugene pulled out the weapons a little bit, and the fervor in the gaze subsided slightly.


    “…Why are you staring at me like that?”Eugene turned around, holding back his sighs.


    From behind a faraway tree, Carmen Lionheart stuck out her head. She was gloomily watching Eugene with squinted eyes.


    With a sour face, Eugene tilted his head in confusion.“…Um…. You are not suddenly going to reprimand me for owning the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer, right?”


    He had told Carmen in advance about his owning the two weapons. Eugene had to tame the weapons in the forest,butit was impossible to fool Carmen’s eyes.


    Carmen was grateful that Eugene had sorted out the incident at ck Lion Castle, and she had also checked that there wasn’t a single trace of demonic energy on both weapons.Therefore,she readily agreed to Eugene’s ownership of these two weapons, but why was she looking at him like that? Unable to understand her intention, Eugene just blinked.


    Carmen walked out from behind the tree, clearing her throat.“…I heard an explosion.”


    “Ah…well…that was because of me.”


    “I felt a surprisingly immense amount of mana.”


    “That was also—”


    “Youhave just used ‘Pressure’ with the Annihtion Hammer and ‘Spear Forest’ with the Demon Spear…right?”


    “Uhm… I told you before, I’m going to tame them so I can use….”


    Before Eugene could finish, Carmen held out her right arm sideways. Due to her sudden movement, Eugene took a step back in surprise. To let Eugene see what she was doing,Carmenrevealed the thing in her right hand — a silver pocket watch.


    “Form Change,” Carmen spoke quietly.


    <em>Click!</em>


    Eugene could hear a low machine soundinside the pocket watch.When it opened, the clock’s hands turned, and its lid split apart.


    Unable to say anything, Eugene just watched the whole thing happen.It wasn’t an exaggeration to say the watch was the essence of cutting-edge alchemical technologies. The pocket watch, which was as small as Carmen’s palm, split into pieces and extended itself, wrapping around Carmen’s right arm.


    “This is myHeaven Genocide’s Destiny Form.”


    Eugene silently listened to Carmen’s exnation.


    “If anyone sees this arm… someone has to die.”


    “…Do I have to die?” Eugeneasked.


    “Since I have no intention of dying, you will if we begin to y with fate,” Carmen said asshe clenched her fists. Her sharp fingers were covered in silver metal.


    <em>Squeak.</em>


    “But I don’t fight to the death with my family,” she continued.


    “…Is that so….” Eugenehalfheartedly said.


    “It’s a good thing for both of us. We won’t be adding another tragedy to the Lionheart family.”


    <em>Squeak, squeak.</em>


    Carmen continued to move her fingers. Since Eugene wasn’t sure what to say, he just looked at the Heaven Genocide in its Destiny Form wrapped around Carmen’s right arm. Eugene could feel the excitement rising deep inside when he looked at the metal gauntlet.


    “What do you think?” Carmen askedsuddenly.


    “…Pardon?”


    “I’m talking about my Heaven Genocide in Destiny Form.”


    “…It’s cool,” Eugene answered halfheartedly again.


    “I haven’t shown you — no, I can’t show you my Destiny Breaker.But to maximize Destiny Breaker’s power, I have to use it in Destiny Form.”


    “Is that so….”


    “The Heaven Genocide has many forms aside from the Destiny Form. Don’t you wanna see them?”


    “…I’m good….”


    “I think we can have a good fight if I use my Heaven Genocide in ster Form and you use Pressure with the Annihtion Hammer. Well, we can’t actually have a battle, though.”Carmen lifted her arm sideways, looking genuinely disappointed.


    <em>Click!</em>


    When Eugene heard the machine noise again, the Heaven Genocide changed its form to be the pocket watch again.


    “So, what do you think?”Carmen asked again.


    “Didn’t you ask me that before?”


    “Ifelt your previous answer wasn’t genuine.”


    “…I really thinkit’s cool,” Eugene repeated.


    “Do you want to have this?”


    “Nope….”


    “It’s understandable if you want to have this. This artifact is really cool, but I’m not going to lend it to you. I’m also not going to tell you how I got my hands on it or who made it.”


    “Right….”


    “Aren’t you curious?”Carmen asked with a proud look. Judging from how she kept ncing at Eugene with her chest puffed out and shrugged, it seemed shedesperatelywantedto brag.


    “…I’m curious.” Eugene obliged unenthusiastically.


    “Ifound the Heaven Genocide through a coincidental encounter — no, a miracle…. Wow, it’s already been decades since I found it. I went through a magical experience when I was young. That’s all I can tell you,”Carmen spoke with a dazed look.


    “Can’t you just tell the story to the end if you are going to tell me anyway?”


    “I can’t. I can’t break the promise since promises are important.”


    <em>Click!</em>


    After closing the lid of the pocket watch, Carmen put it into her inner pocket.


    “Your new weaponsmade the enthusiasm inside me spark.Don’t worry. I’m used to feeling enthusiastic in this way, and I can always control it.”


    Eugene wasn’t worried about that from the start.


    “However, be careful not to explode anything else. While I was running here,I saw a couple of elvescopse ontheground. Sir Signard was also about toe running here, thinking the vige was under attack. So I stopped him,”Carmen warned Eugene.


    “…Thank you,” Eugene bitterly answered.


    “Is your injured arm okay?”


    “It just stings a little now. I will recover by tomorrow, even without any treatment.”


    “You are being sloppy. Small injuries should also be treated fully.Besides, the Lionheart family is a warrior family. We have all kinds of healing potions, so don’t hesitate to use any kind of medicine to heal your injury.”


    “Yes… I understand.”


    “Let’s return.”Carmen turned back. As if it was natural for her to do so, she led the way as she and Eugene got out of the forest.Since Eugene hadfinished taming the Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer, he had no reason to stay in the forest any longer.


    “You know.The Demon Spear and the Annihtion Hammer no longer resemble their original form. Do we still have to call them by those names?”


    “Yea… Pardon?”


    “Since they don’t hold demonic energy anymore,we can’t call them Demon Kings’ weapons now. Then would there be any reason to call them by those names?”


    “I think it’s better to use the same name since it would be confusing….”


    “What do you think of Gaia Crasher and Longinus?”


    <em>‘Then are they now Gaia Crasher Jigoth and Longinus Luentos?’</em>


    The question crossed Eugene’s mind.


    “I like their original names.” Eugeneswiftlyshook his head.


    “Hmm…. The owners have the right to name their weapons, so I will just make suggestions. I won’t vite your rights.”


    <em>‘Does she think the names Gaia Crasher and Longinus are better? Really?’</em>Eugene seriously wondered.


    “Master Eugene.”


    Right before Carmen and Eugene exited the forest, they met Narissa, sitting down on the floor,andLavera, helping Narissa stand up. When Carmen and Eugene saw the two elves, Carmen dramatically signaled Eugene with her eyes as she crossed her arms.


    Narissa was the elf who copsed to the ground, surprised by the sound of the explosions.


    Did Carmene this way on purpose to show Eugene what happened after the explosions?Eugene felt like hewould never be able to understand what went on inside Carmen Lionheart’s head.


    “I was going to find you, butI happened to run into you first,”Lavera spoke brightly with a nonchnt look.


    “What’s up?” Eugene asked.


    Narissa and Lavera were currently working as apprentice maids in the annex. Their shifts must be over already, but they were still wearing their Lionheart maids uniform.


    “I havee to ask permission to go out tomorrow, sir,”Lavera calmly exined.


    “Go out?”


    “Yes,tomorrow happens to be my day off,”Lavera continued as she brushed the dirt off Narissa’s skirt. Every time Lavera brushed Narissa’s skirt, her body wobbled. It seemed Narissa hadn’t adjusted to her new prosthetic leg yet.


    “Can I ask why you aregoingout?” Eugene asked.


    “I have toreceive my prosthetic eye,”Narissa spoke, pointing to her left eyepatch.


    “Where are you going?”


    “I’m going to downtown Ceres.”


    “Have you ever been there?”


    “No, sir.”


    Elves attracted people’s attention. Of course, the capital of the Kiehl Empire was safe, but there was always that ‘what if.’ Therefore, Eugene had previously set a ground rule: the elves had to be apanied by at least one knight from the main house when they went out.


    “Do you want any specific knight toguard you?”


    “No, sir,”Lavera dryly answered, but Narissa kept poking Lavera’s waist, ncing at Eugene. No matter how many times Narissa poked Lavera, her expression remained the same.


    “Then I will go with you,” Eugenecasually said.


    “…Would that be okay?”Lavera asked.


    Narissa’s eyes lost focus for a moment. She didn’t expect Eugene to offer to be Lavera’s guard.


    “Me, me too….”


    “You don’t have a day off tomorrow, Narissa,”Lavera said coldly.


    “If I just ask somebody to cover my shift….” Narissasuggested tentatively.


    “Head Servant Ninadoesn’t like servants changing their shifts for personal reasons.” Laveracalmly reminded Narissa, so she couldn’t speak any further.


    “What time shall we meet tomorrow?”Eugene asked.


    “Any time will be fine with me,” Narissaanswered.


    “Then shall wego at around noon? I also haven’t gone out to downtown Ceres yet, butMer knows many good restaurants.”


    This was because Anci and Gerhard brought Mer out to tour the city whenever they could.


    “…Yes,noon will be good.”Lavera calmly bowed her head.