The dark lump dropped to the ground without making a sound.

As Lavera witnessed it falling right before her, her eyes widened in shock. She tried to take a few steps back, covering her mouth, but she ended up falling on her bottom. Unable to say anything, she just looked up at Eugene.

“Master… Master… Eugene. W-what is…?” Lavera asked, stuttering.

“How are you feeling?” Eugene kept his eyes on Lavera.

“Pardon…?”

“Haven’t you been feeling weird since you returned to the forest? You might have felt nausea, a headache….” 𝘪𝑎.𝘤𝑜𝘮

After hesitating a bit, Lavera nodded.

Smiling as if he had known it all along, Eugene tapped the dark lump on the ground with his foot. “It was because you had this thing inside you.”

Iris had given up on Lavera too easily, which made Eugene have doubts. Just in case, Eugene had scanned Lavera’s body, and to his absolute lack of surprise, he had found Iris’ darkness right where he had expected it.

“…Something terrible could have happened,” Carmen mumbled as she frowned.

She had witnessed how Iris could use her darkness in so many different ways. Therefore, seeing the darkness cluster filled Carmen’s mind with questions.

‘What if Iris infiltrates the Lionheart main estate with her army using that darkness? What if she destroys the Lionheart warp gate so we can’t ask for outside help and attacks the estate after seizing the forest?’

Carmen approached the darkness to squash it but was stopped by Eugene.

“What are you doing?”

As he glanced at Carmen’s fist, he said, “There is something I want to check.”

“Check what?”

Eugene told her about his hypothesis on how Iris might not be able to enter the forest.

After staring blankly for a while, Carmen cleared her throat. “…Actually, I thought that might be the case too.”

She was lying. Iris couldn’t approach the forest because of the World Tree inside the forest? The thought had never crossed her mind. However, it sounded plausible when Carmen heard Eugene’s hypothesis in detail. If Iris wasn’t thinking about the consequences of her actions, it would have been much simpler for her to infiltrate the forest rather than stage a hostage situation.

‘Am I right?’ Eugene thought.

He picked up the darkness cluster with his wind, then headed into the forest.

The lump reacted noticeably as Eugene went deeper into the forest. When Eugene had almost reached the center of the forest, the lump started to wobble as if it was going through a seizure. Moments later, it turned into ashes and disappeared.

The darkness created by the Demoneye of Darkness wasn’t mana or demonic energy, but it was under Iris’ control.

When an elf was corrupted after accepting demonic energy, they became a dark elf.

The World Tree protected elves. Although the demonic disease killed elves, elves wouldn’t contract the disease in the World Tree’s land. And even if they had already contracted the demonic disease, the disease wouldn’t progress any further in the land.

“The Rakshasa Princess can’t enter this forest. I’m guessing it also applies to her dark elf subordinates.”

“Hmm….” Carmen began to think as she stroked her chin. “Then would it be better to make the White Dragon Knights go away?”

“Do we have to? It’s not like we have to pay them. They volunteered to protect the estate.”

“That is true….”

“Besides, we wouldn’t have gone through this unfortunate event if they had been doing their job right in the first place. And the Rakshasa Princess might use another method since she can’t enter the forest, right?” Eugene shrugged.

Eugene’s logic was flawless.

Nodding, Carmen stared at Eugene intensely. “I feel a bit ridiculous to say this now, but you have quite the skill.”

Eugene thought the same about his interlocutor — Carmen Lionheart was stronger than he had expected. He was aware that Doynes had been considered to be the strongest Lionheart, but he had never seen Doynes fighting. However, as he witnessed Carmen fighting against the Rakshasa Princess, he had thought that she was strong enough to be considered the strongest Lionheart.

‘She dealt with Iris’ Demoneye pretty well considering it was her first time seeing it.’

If Iris hadn’t gotten stronger over the past three hundred years, Eugene would have killed Iris using the Moonlight Sword during the fight with Carmen. Feeling how long three hundred years was, Eugene clicked his tongue.

‘…It doesn’t just apply to Iris, either.’

Although Raizakia was half-dead and wandering around a dimensional rift, the other two dukes — the Queen of Night Demons and Incarceration’s Blade — were alive and well. Gavid Lindman, Incarceration’s Blade, was doing particularly well.

When Eugene recalled Gavid’s black sword and the sound of his clanking chain, he felt a shiver down his spine.

Without revealing what he was feeling, Eugene turned to Carmen who was deep in thought.

“What are you thinking about with that serious look on your face?”

“You said Hector escaped from the Black Lion Castle, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.” Eugene nodded.

“Is there a possibility that Hector is linked with the Rakshasa Princess? With her Demoneye, it would have been a piece of cake for the Rakshasa Princess to help Hector escape.”

“No, that’s highly unlikely.”

Hector had used magic to escape. That was why Hector had left a trace. If Hector had used Iris’ Demoneye to escape, there was no way he would have left a trace.

Besides, only Iris could use her darkness as a passage. Just because Hector had Iris’ darkness inside him didn’t mean that he was able to use it to flee. Not to mention… was there any reason for Iris to show up and take Hector away? Why would she have bothered to leave a trace of magic just so that she could conceal her involvement in the matter? No matter how hard Eugene thought, he couldn’t think of a reason.

“You surely know a lot about the Rakshasa Princess,” Carmen muttered under her breath as she blinked.

Eugene hurriedly straightened his face. Come to think of it, Eugene had revealed too much to Carmen.

“Your personality is different from your looks, huh?” Carmen randomly asked.

“Pardon?”

“You listened to Alchester’s boring family history with interest and often hung out with Sir Genos at the Black Lion Castle. The Rakshasa Princess even mistook you to be a Lionheart hound.”

“…Uh… yeah, she did.”

“You might already know this, but Sir Genos’ family is a rather prestigious collateral family. I might be offending them if I talk this way… anyway, the Great Vermouth made Sir Genos’ family work like a hound for the Lionhearts. And then he passed down the Hamel Style, his deceased friend’s style. That’s how the Black Lions were founded.”

“Yes… I heard about that too….”

“I guess Sir Genos adores you so much that he even passed down his family’s secret technique, huh…. Well, I can see you and Sir Genos get along pretty well. You two both like old stories.”

After coming to a conclusion on her own, Carmen had a pleasant smile on her face. For a moment, Eugene had worried that Carmen had found out about his true identity…. He could see that he was worrying about nothing, however, when he saw Carmen’s pleasant smile.

“Uhm… Yeah… I respect Sir Hamel…”

“It seemed like it. Your current level is not something that can be achieved with just innate talent. You wouldn’t be able to reach this high without going through the kind of training that makes you shed blood instead of sweat. You must have put so much effort into training that ordinary people would never be able to imagine it.”

Carmen looked at Eugene with seriousness; her golden eyes shone under the sunset. Eugene felt uncomfortable as he listened to her, but he also felt rather good to have his efforts recognized like this.

“Deep respect and affection for Sir Hamel made you the person you are today,” Carmen solemnly spoke. She was pretty content with herself, because she thought she had said something really cool.

Carmen put her hand on Eugene’s shoulder and nodded. “During your Coming-Of-Age ceremony last year, I was the one who sparred with you, but I will acknowledge it again today. Eugene Lionheart, you are not only worthy of the name Lionheart, but you are also a giant flame who will make the Lionhearts’ future bright.”

“…Yes… Is that so….”

“Therefore, I want to gift you a rightful name as a Lionheart elder and a senior in martial arts,” Carmen spoke solemnly

“Huh?” Eugene sensed something weird was going on.

“A lion with a bluish-white flame that encompasses lightning….” Carmen looked up at the sky with dazed eyes.

“Wait….”

“Lightning Flash Azure Fire God…” Carmen frowned and wondered why the name didn’t sound as catchy when she said it out loud as it did in her mind. Then, she noticed her own bandaged right hand. The bandage was wet with blood.

“…Yes. From now on, you are Eugene Lionheart the Blood Lion.”

“Lady Carmen, look.”

“The Blood Lion annihilates his family’s enemies. He will walk a blood-soaked path, but he will always stay elegant, beautiful, and strong.”

Eugene couldn’t take it anymore. He tried to get out of there, but Carmen didn’t let Eugene’s shoulder go.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

The Black Lions, who had been silent, began to clap. They were part of the Third Division which was led by Carmen. Intimidating, frightening men applauded Eugene, looking sincerely touched.

‘They are all **ing crazy,’ Eugene desperately thought.

In his past life, Eugene had also named his techniques so weirdly that, even now, the names made him cringe from time to time. However, the names ‘Asura Rampage’ and ‘Poltergeist Aegis’ felt pretty normal in comparison to what he was experiencing now.

And why in the world were they clapping?! They had all clearly gone mad like Carmen, since no sane people could respect and follow such a captain.

‘…Maybe Ciel is also….’

The sound of Ciel’s annoying laughter came to his mind. She had already been working as Carmen’s squire and studying under her. Ciel respected and followed Carmen….

Eugene was seriously worried that Ciel had gone mad like them.

* * *

“Princess.” A dark elf approached, worrying about Iris.

However, Iris waved her hand with a nonchalant face. “I’m fine.”

She wasn’t acting tough. It was true that she had gotten hit multiple times, and her enemies were stronger than she had thought. Indeed, a diamond lying on a dunghill was still a diamond. The Lionhearts were strong enough to call themselves the best warrior family on the continent.

Chuckling, Iris sat on a sofa.

“Carmen Lionheart, the Silver Lion. Eugene Lionheart…. I guess the two of them are enough to make the Lionhearts the strongest warrior family on the continent,” Iris mumbled as she undid one of her buttons. Although she had been hit so many times, there wasn’t a single bruise on her body. She had finished recovering during the brief time it had taken her to teleport back to this place.

‘…Maybe I should have put myself out and taken them hostages.’

Iris regretted it. If she had taken Eugene and Carmen hostages, she could have used them to negotiate with Lionheart and take a hundred elves.

With difficulty, Iris let go of her regrets. From the start, Iris hadn’t planned to negotiate with the Lionhearts. Therefore, she had illegally entered the Kiehl Empire, made a ruckus in Ceres, and attacked the Lionhearts. There was no longer room for negotiation.

“…Are you okay, Princess?” The dark elf asked again, unsure about Iris’ condition.

“I’m fine.”

Rattle.

The carriage departed.

It was more like a wagon, and Iris and the dark elves were now in the back of the wagon. The wagon was covered with a large, thick canvas, so they couldn’t see what was going on outside. Leaning against the sofa, Iris touched her abdomen.

“I have been persistent over the past three hundred years,” Iris quietly spoke.

Dark elves were sterile. Once they had become corrupted after accepting demonic energy into their body, dark elves could no longer have children, no matter what.

In other words, Iris had to corrupt elves in order to increase the number of dark elves.

“There are one hundred elves in the Lionheart forest. Even though I want to use them to increase the number of dark elves… I can’t use them to fight.” Iris gritted her teeth.

The elves were still on Iris’ mind. When she had heard that the descendants of the **ing Vermouth were protecting elves, she had really wanted to just barge in and take the elves away. The fact that elves didn’t want to go with Iris didn’t matter to her.

However, it turned out that it was impossible for Iris to do so. As a recon, she had once gone to the Lionheart land, but her heart and head had started to ache as she went closer. Even the Demoneye of Darkness, which was Iris’ strongest power, didn’t function properly.

While retreating, she had come to a realization. Even if she successfully made one hundred dark elves, would there be any dark elves whom she could fight with right away? Elves had long lifespans, but they didn’t use those to become stronger… Iris was well aware of this, since she had once been an elf herself.

Iris thought that elves were God’s mistake. They spent hundreds of years doing nothing meaningful. They were born with powerful magic and astonishing spirit affinity. However, all they focused on was cultivating forests, planting flowers, and picking fruits, instead of training their innate affinities. Although elves were better than humans in every way, they cooped themselves in a closed society without trying to procreate.

Elves were like that, and Iris was sure that most elves under the Lionhearts’ protection were the same.

‘…If there’s any elf who would be able to fight right away after becoming a dark elf… that would be Signard. I’m not sure if the rest of them have even tried holding a sword,’ Iris bitterly thought as she stared at the white canvas.

It was important to increase the number of dark elves, but what Iris needed right now were elves whom she could fight with to achieve a great task, not incompetents. Even if she successfully made a hundred elves into dark elves, they wouldn’t be much of a help to her. In fact, they would be just burdens to Iris.

The Demoneye of Darkness’ teleportation ability wasn’t omnipotent. That was why they were riding on a wagon. They would have needed several more wagons to move another hundred dark elves.

“…Fuck.” Iris heaved a big sigh with a cigarette in her mouth.

Everything led down to one conclusion: her war chest was almost empty. Since she had left Helmuth, she could no longer receive the dark elf support fund. Yes, she had accumulated a fortune over hundreds of years. However, she had used it up to grease demonfolk bureaucrats who were making new administration policies and to fund multiple wild goose chases. A sugar cube in a cup of hot tea would have melted away slower than the gold in her vaults.

“…How long will it take for us to get to the harbor?” Iris asked as she frowned a bit.

“It will take ten days by wagon.”

They had no plans to use a warp gate.

Iris clicked her tongue and lit her cigarette. “Are you… guys really okay?”

Holding the cigarette smoke in her lungs, Iris looked at her subordinates as she cautiously spoke. “We are dark elves, but we were once elves. It is in our nature to feel peace in forests… but there are no forests in the seas.”

“Don’t doubt yourself, Princess.” A dark elf who had been serving Iris for a long time bowed. “We all have devoted everything to your cause, Princess.”

“…I know that… but… ”

“Many dark elves and mercenaries are already waiting for you in Shimuin.”

Without answering, Iris blew out the smoke in her lungs. A few moments later, she asked, “Have you guys… ever been on a ship?”

“I haven’t.”

“So you’ve never sailed a ship, have you?”

“I can learn if I need to.”

“I think it would be faster to just seize a ship. We can get a human who knows how to operate a ship, right?” another dark elf interrupted.

“Yeah… that would be better. We already decided we will become pirates anyway.”

Iris sighed, blowing out another cloud of smoke.

Due to the development of warp gates, the world of trading had gone through a cataclysmic change. However, that didn’t mean that was the end of maritime trade. Although warp gates were really convenient, the installation cost was astronomically high. The countries that owned warp gates also had to regularly spend tremendous amounts of resources for maintenance.

Warp gates had naturally become a yardstick in determining whether or not a country was advanced. Therefore, there was no way for small island countries or cities to own warp gates.

That was why Iris decided that she would become a pirate.

Everybody considered Sea Kingdom Shimuin an advanced country, but many islands near Shimuin had no warp gates. On top of that, Shimuin also traded with Samar Rainforest. Elves often used Shimuin’s trading ships to get to Samar.

“I can fill up my war chest and increase the number of dark elves at the same time… Yeah, there’s nothing bad about it except for the fact that we have to live on the sea.”

“Or… we could settle in Samar, how does that sound? According to the fellow dark elves who settled there first, it’s a harsh environment, but it’s not bad to start working on our great task….” One of her dark elves cautiously suggested.

“There are too many tribes under Helmuth’s control in that place,” Iris spoke as she bit the cigarette filter.

“…I became so pathetic.”

After stubbing out her cigarette, Iris buttoned her shirt again. “…If I had just won the territorial war with that bitch, Noir Giabella….”

The Queen of Night Demons was the reason why Iris had to leave Helmuth. She bit her lips as she recalled the events.

.