“So….” Molon wiped away his beard, which was completely drenched with tears. Icicles fell from it, a testament to the freezing atmosphere of the northern mountains.
Upon witnessing the incredible sight, Mer had to hold back a peal of almost uncontrollable laughter. She would have laughed freely at any other time but not at the present moment.
“Ugh…. Sniff.…”
Not when Sienna also continued to shed tears right next to her.
The situation warranted tears, of course. Sienna and Molon's reunion had been two centuries in the making, and those two hundred years hadn't been kind to either of them. Mer simply couldn't bring herself to laugh in front of a tearful Sienna.
"So... Iris became a Demon King? Not any other demon, but Iris?" Molon asked, blinking in disbelief.
From what he remembered, Iris was powerful, yes, but not enough to become a Demon King.
"You're saying Iris, a Demon King, fell to Hamel.... And Hamel... you were a god?" asked Molon.
Confused, he tilted his head as if trying to process the incredible tale. He had listened when it was narrated, but… there were too many things he could not understand. The story was difficult to grasp, to say the least.
Iris had become a Demon King? He didn’t know how or why, but sure, it was somehow believable. His comrades would not joke about such matters.
But Hamel being a god? He sniffled while looking at Eugene to seek confirmation.
"Aye," Eugene replied confidently.
"To be precise, he isn’t a god now, but he was one in the distant past,” Anise explained. She had been wiping away Sienna’s tears with a handkerchief. While her words were meant to clarify the doubt, the statement only seemed to add to Molon's confusion.
"He’s not a god now, but a god from the past…? So you're saying... the Hamel we traveled with was a god? Anise, Sienna, were we journeying with a deity?" Molon asked, clearly trying to make sense of the situation.
"No, not that past. Not in his last life but the life before that. He was a god in the life before Hamel," Anise clarified.
"The life before that…? What does that even mean?" asked Molon. He blinked again slowly in apparent confusion.
Eugene wondered if it was even worth the effort to explain further. So he just changed topics and asked, "Never mind that, Molon. How have you been?"
"Better than before, I think," Molon replied.
While he still could not completely understand everything, he didn’t dwell on it. Whether Eugene was a god many lifetimes ago or Iris became a Demon King, it didn't matter much to him.
"I thought today would be the same, just another ordinary day… but it seems fate had other plans," Molon mused.
More than these revelations, what mattered to Molon was the present. He had reunited with Sienna, whom he feared he might never see again. Despite hearing that she had suffered grievous injuries and had been sealed away, Sienna stood before him, looking just as she did all those years ago.
The past….
Tears threatened Molon's eyes once more.
He remembered the past. He had recalled the place Hamel spoke of, Hamel’s homeland, Turas. Molon remembered when they buried Hamel deep underground where no one could find him. They had all mourned Hamel, cried out his name, and remembered their shared memories. They erected a statue in his honor and inscribed his name on a gravestone.
Afterward, each lived their own lives... or so he believed.
Anise returned to Yuras, while Sienna resided in Aroth as the Green Tower Master. Vermouth returned back to Kiehl and received a grand title. And Molon returned to his homeland.
Decades of busy days passed, and he heard occasional tales of his comrades. Vermouth was elusive and always out of reach, but he had occasionally sought out Sienna and Anise.
Hamel's demise transformed them all, especially Sienna.
Sienna had changed so much from their days of wandering the Devildom. It had felt as if she had become someone entirely different.
Yet, what about now? Unlike her time in Aroth, Sienna now wore a variety of expressions. She cried, she laughed, and she kicked Hamel out of embarrassment. Anise laughed, and Hamel grumbled in response.
Molon stood tall while observing his friends. Although Hamel’s appearance had changed after his reincarnation, these three still remained as Molon had desperately yearned for, as they had been in the past.
"Molon, why are you crying again?" asked Sienna.
“Sienna, you cried lots too. I reckon that with age, tears start to come easier.” Eugene was the one to respond in Molon’s defense this time.
"Ah, you have a good point, Hamel. Did you notice that neither of us is crying now?" Anise interjected as if she had been waiting for such a comment.
Molon and Sienna had lived out their lives earnestly for three hundred years. In contrast, Anise now inhabited the body of young Kristina. Thus, Anise could chime in without guilt whenever Eugene teased Sienna about age.
Typically, Sienna would have erupted in anger, but she could not spare such emotions for now. Instead, Sienna and Molon sobbed uncontrollably while clinging to each other.
Eugene seemed to find the sight pitiable. He glanced at them for a while before wrapping his arm around Raimira. The hatchling was trembling with fear while hiding behind him.
"There’s no need to fear. That bastard’s just an idiot,” assured Eugene.
Molon’s tears ceased after a bit more time. Eugene brushed off the snow from his cloak while sitting on a nearby rock. “Are you all done crying?” he asked.
"What an insufferable brat," Sienna mumbled with reddened eyes. "Meeting a friend after two hundred years warrants a tear or two, so why do you have to act so irritating from the side?”
"I saw him just recently,” retorted Eugene.
"Don't blame Hamel, Sienna. True, he might be a tad annoying, but remember when you first met him? He cried a lot. He cried in front of me as well, and he cried when he met Molon,” Anise chimed in.
"Hey…. Hey, Anise! When did I cry?" Eugene grumbled in a complaining tone.
"Did you not cry, then? Hamel, how can you be so heartless? Not shedding a single tear after reuniting with me, after my lonely, pitiable death, and after Molon's century-long lonely battle? Can you still call yourself human after that?" challenged Anise.
Had he cried then? Eugene's eyes quivered.
His memories were foggy. He wasn't entirely sure if he had cried or not. Maybe he did, maybe he didn’t…. But one thing was certain: if he kept denying it, he would become the asshole.
"If you’re sad... it's natural to cry," Eugene said, clearing his throat. Sienna's narrowed eyes indicated disbelief at the sudden change in his tone. Molon, however, laughed heartily while placing his axe over his shoulder.
Molon then asked, "Are we just going to stay here? Atop this mountain, there's a cavern I call home. Let us head there."
Eugene looked at him with hesitant eyes.
Though they had met at the Knight March, Eugene had never truly heard of how Molon settled in these mountains. As the country's founding king, Eugene assumed that Molon might have erected a castle hidden somewhere amidst the frosty peaks. But a cavern…? It was, quite fittingly, a very Molon thing to do.
The cavern they arrived at under Molon's guidance did not seem to have formed naturally. It was entirely possible that Molon had carved it out himself. Inside, it looked as if someone had lived there for decades. It was well-equipped for living, and to Eugene's astonishment, there was even a hot spring flowing inside.
"You don't mean to enter now, do you?" Eugene asked.
"Molon used this spring by himself for decades. Do you think I’m crazy? Why would I do something like that?” retorted Sienna.
"The water flows, so it's pure,” Anise clarified.
"I still dislike the idea...!"
After a brief exchange, they settled down in an orderly fashion around a table.
"You've slain Raizakia. Rescued Sienna. Ended Iris, the Demon King. Did you come here to share these tales?" Molon asked.
They had journeyed to reunite with Molon in the mountains after Sienna awakened from her seal. However, there were also other matters at hand.
"There are a few things I need to verify,” clarified Eugene.
Eugene wasn't particularly concerned about the Moonlight Sword. He had lost control of it during the fight with Iris, but the Eugene then and the Eugene now were different.
When the Moonlight Sword went berserk back then, his White Flame Formula had consisted of Stars. But now, the White Flame Formula was no longer classified in Stars. It could not be distinguished with such means.
Eugene's White Flame Formula had transformed. It was something that was never seen in the history of the Lionhearts, and Eugene himself could feel the newfound power it granted.
The Moonlight Sword had run rampant due to Eugene’s inability to control its powers, which had led to an incomplete, unstable state of Eugene becoming one with the blade. During his attempt to blend the moonlight with his flames, he had been overwhelmed and consumed.
"Molon," Eugene said with a stern tone.
If, by some chance, the Moonlight Sword ran rampant once again…
“Then you tear off my arm,” said Eugene.
Molon replied with equal gravity, "Understood, Hamel."
"Have both of you idiots gone mad?" Anise exclaimed in shock, quickly standing and grabbing Eugene by the collar. "Hamel, what do you take a man's arm for?"
"In another life, it was but a fleeting thing to Molon and me. Something that was there and then wasn’t,” responded Eugene.
"I miss it. I remember it clearly, Hamel," Molon recalled, "When I fell into a trap, and my leg was severed. Anise…. Anise was wicked. She reattached it the wrong way."
"You have to try to understand how Anise felt, Molon. She did have her reasons. Didn’t you recklessly charge forward like an idiot, Molon? That’s why you ended up in that state, right?" countered Eugene.
Eugene and Molon lost themselves in memories. Still clutching Eugene’s collar, Anise gave it a furious shake upon seeing Eugene’s nostalgic expression.
“In your past life, you two lost your arms and legs solely because you fought like stupid incompetents. And back then, I restored those limbs for you even when you had them severed or crushed, spilling my own blood in the process! But now, I am yet unable to restore such limbs!” shouted Anise.
[I apologize, Sister. It’s because of my shortcomings,] Kristina said with self-condemnation.
“You two may not realize, but Kristina is currently apologizing out of guilt! For not being able to perform the miraculous, completely ridiculous act of limb restoration!” continued Anise.
“Rest assured, no one is actually going to tear off an arm,” Eugene comforted Anise while patting her shoulders. Yet, Anise's eyebrows shot up in response.
“You’re telling me to be at ease, yet you still say something like that?” Anise threatened.
“I mean, you could call it a declaration of resolve…” mumbled Eugene.
“You crazy bastard!” Anise exclaimed angrily.
“We can't always act in complete safety. We can’t always avoid danger. Given our adversaries, we should always be prepared, even if it might mean risking bloodshed,” retorted Eugene.
“Why are you sugarcoating your intentions of taking reckless actions?” accused Anise.
“If we’re successful, it will enhance my ability to wield the Moonlight Sword,” Eugene said without a hint of a smile. His cold gaze caused Anise to flinch and release her grip on Eugene’s collar.
“If you fear the risks, I won’t be able to use the Moonlight Sword anymore. Didn’t we settle this matter on the ship back to Shimuin?” Eugene said sternly.
“...I told you clearly back then, Sir Eugene. If your decisions lead you to doom, both Lady Anise and I will lay down our lives for you. If you really value us, please consider your own safety for us,” Kristina said with a sigh while returning to her seat.
Switching places, Anise slumped down before opening a new bottle of liquor.
“Hamel. Had you not made that absurd remark about tearing off an arm, I would have stayed put,” said Anise.
“I’m just trying to say it will be alright,” said Eugene. He waved his hand as if to reassure her, then turned towards Molon once more.
“Has… anything strange happened recently? Like… has the Nur been appearing more frequently… or has there been anything strange with Raguyaran?” asked Eugene.
He was concerned about any signs. The Moonlight Sword had run wild, which had briefly connected him with Vermouth. And Noir, who had sought Ravesta, had also approached Vermouth.
As speculated, if Vermouth was the seal of Destruction... rashly approaching him might have had unexpected adverse effects.
“This is a challenging question indeed,” responded Molon. After a moment of reflection, he continued, “First off, Hamel, the Nur always appears differently. Some days, dozens appear; other days, none at all. Not just recently, either. It has been this way for the past one hundred and fifty years I’ve protected these mountains.”
There was no pattern to the Nur’s emergence.
“I once tried to predict the Nur’s appearances. I tried to predict when and how many would show up. Trying that kept me sane. However, no predictions held true,” confessed Molon.
Eugene nodded quietly. Agaroth’s memories lingered in him, especially his latter days.
During preparations for the war against the Demon King of Incarceration, monsters started appearing from the other side of the world. Their vast numbers, ferocity, and alien nature meant they could not be ignored and left alone.
The war against these monsters had been long, straightforward, but brutal. Despite numerous victories, the monsters' numbers seemed endless as they continued to appear. Moreover, their appearance wasn’t associated with any signs. Their origins were unknown. They simply appeared on that 'edge,' screaming and charging.
Though the war between Agaroth and the monsters was long, uncomplicated, and ferocious — it ended abruptly. It ended with the descent of the Demon King of Destruction.
“Raguyaran… always looked the same,” said Molon.
The memories of Agaroth served as a warning to Eugene.
The Nur, the monster, was the vassal of Destruction. Although it might seem excessive to refer to such a feeble, insignificant existence without self-awareness as the vassal of Destruction, Eugene was confident that the Nur was the herald of Destruction’s impending descent.
The Nur were the harbingers. Eventually, something would transpire. Whenever the Nur started to appear, it foreshadowed the descent of the Demon King of Destruction. Vermouth had sealed Destruction… but the signs had started one hundred and fifty years ago.
From the dream Noir had shown, Vermouth looked broken and faint. Add to that, the Demon King of Incarceration had spoken of the Oath coming to an end.
The gray sea of Raguyaran.
"Molon, I trust what you saw," Eugene declared.
Molon had possessed the best sight among their group even three centuries ago. The great warrior of the icy plains saw far without using magic, as distinctly as Sienna did when employing her far-sighted spell.
"Moreover, your eyes are even better than before,” continued Eugene.
When Vermouth appeared in Molon’s dream to caution him of the End, he had granted Molon two powers. One, the eyes that could perceive even what could not and should not be seen. Two, access to the other side of Lehainjar, where he could cast the corpses of the Nur.
With those eyes, Molon could immediately detect the Nur’s emergence from anywhere in these vast mountains. His eyes had allowed him to see the soul of Anise residing within Kristina, and he had recognized Eugene as the reincarnation of Hamel the moment they first met.
"If you say Raguyaran remains unchanged, then it surely is. Omens are merely omens,” said Eugene.
Molon struggled to grasp Eugene's point. Sienna, Anise, and Kristina felt the same way. Did they not come all this way to see Molon and reclaim Eugene’s control over the Moonlight Sword.
After a brief pause, Molon started saying, "Hamel, what do you intend to—" But he was interrupted.
"I'm thinking of heading to Raguyaran,” Eugene stated nonchalantly. "It's nothing much. Wasn't there an ocean at the edge of Raguyaran? Should we sail or fly over? Or perhaps we can walk on the ocean…."
"W-wait a moment. Wait, Hamel. You wish to venture to Raguyaran? You wish to cross that sea?" Molon asked urgently.
Beyond Lehainjar was Raguyaran — a barren land — a forbidden terrain — the world's end. It was a place where neither the sun nor the moon or the stars shone. It was a place where the sky, muddied like trodden snow, stretched endlessly. Beyond it lay a frozen sea. It was a world where no one lived and no one could. That was Raguyaran.
"I won't go far. Just a brief venture,” said Eugene.
"Hamel...!" Molon exclaimed in disbelief.
"Why are you acting like that? I said I won't go far, didn't I? And it’s not like I’m going to head there right now. We'll address the Moonlight Sword issue first. I'll observe the Nur while it’s living before proceeding," responded Eugene.
"From… from what I saw, it appeared unchanged… But that’s just my perspective. M-my mind isn’t always clear. I might have seen it wrong, or maybe I’m remembering it wrong,” Molon said urgently.
"There's no way that's the case,” Eugene responded with a nonchalant expression. "Molon, it's true that your mind was off the rails for a bit. But that doesn’t mean your memory was clouded. Your eyes weren’t clouded either.”
Molon couldn’t say anything.
"So that’s fine," Eugene said.
It wasn't about believing or doubting.
If Molon saw it, that's how it would have looked.
