Sirius reverted to his natural form after confirming Arthur's demise.
Utilizing the lingering traces of his bloodline energy, he mended the majority of his grievous wounds.
Being a Grandmaster half-blood and a skilled scion of House Fenris, Sirius possessed a deep understanding of how to harness his bloodline transformation effectively. This allowed him to maintain control and preserve his sense of self while transformed.
Meanwhile, Saisha grappled with the shocking reality of what had just occurred. His gaze fixated on Arthur's lifeless form, severed in two by his own strike. His sword remained tainted with Arthur's blood, and the foreign mana intrusion from Arthur was still present and continued to afflict his wounds.
The Layos commander found it difficult to process the gravity of the situation; he had taken Arthur's life, a truth too staggering to comprehend in an instant.
"No, I didn't kill Arthur. I was pushed to this," Saisha murmured to himself, his voice tinged with bewilderment and disbelief. He raised his head, fixing Sirius with a gaze that conveyed his overwhelming desire to ask a multitude of questions.
Saisha observed as Sirius resumed his regular appearance, dispelling the formidable bloodline transformation. It took him a moment to recognize the man before him.
"Wait... I remember you. Weren't you the one responsible for stirring unrest in several Layos cities about a decade ago?" Saisha's eyes widened with surprise and a hint of hostility. Finally, the pieces fell into place as he connected the dots between Sirius's ordinary appearance and his bloodline transformation.
***
A decade earlier, Eren had orchestrated a targeted strike against the Midnight Moon cultist organization operating in Layos and Edinburgh. House Fenris, led by Sirius, had been handsomely compensated for arranging this operation.
The butcher had also directed Sirius and his clan to incite turmoil in various Layos city-states as a preemptive measure. This maneuver aimed to destabilize the rival kingdom, as it was believed that Layos and Midnight Moon might secretly collaborate against Eren's guild.
Saisha Goren had been appointed as a key investigator tasked with unraveling the disturbances caused by external forces. He had attempted to establish contact with Sirius and Fiona through the Ancients, which was a cultist organization effectively run by the half-bloods.
As a result, Saisha had received multiple reports concerning Sirius's direct involvement in fomenting unrest in Layos. The reports had mentioned a very powerful wolf-type half-blood being the mastermind behind the attacks with Sirius' appearance.
During that period, Sirius had rejected a potential partnership with Saisha, even when the latter had offered to double the payment Eren had provided. After creating significant chaos, Sirius had once again vanished into obscurity, effectively thwarting Saisha's attempts to resolve the decade-old unrest in Layos.
***
"Hmm? Do you know who I am?"
Sirius arched an eyebrow, an expression of surprise crossing his face. He flexed his limbs and assessed his overall condition, ensuring he was largely unharmed. Although he bore various lingering injuries and the effects of Arthur's Foreign Mana Invasion, they posed no immediate threat, and he could address them at a later time.
"Why the hell are you here? And why did you kill Arthur?"
Saisha's voice brimmed with menace as he questioned Sirius. Saisha's suspicions deepened, and he grew increasingly convinced that Sirius couldn't be an ally.
Firstly, Saisha hadn't wanted Arthur dead. Secondly, the individual who had incited unrest in Layos and rejected cooperation a decade ago was hardly a likely candidate to be sent by Demonmir to aid Saisha. Saisha concluded that Sirius must have had ulterior motives for interfering in his duel with Arthur.
Sirius stretched his arms and chuckled before responding to Saisha.
"Hahaha. Grandmaster Saisha, don't make baseless accusations. It was you who killed Arthur. I merely lent a helping hand."
Sirius then shifted his gaze to Arthur's lifeless body, sighed, and remarked, "Now that the man is dead, it's time for me to take my leave. Goodbye, Grandmaster Saisha. I expect further cooperation between us in the future."
With that, Sirius activated a space-element rune and vanished from the scene, eluding Saisha's attempts to halt him and seek answers.
"Damn it. These space-element runes from the Sansara Sage's era are a pain in the ass to deal with," Saisha cursed, realizing that Sirius had successfully evaded him and his effective Mana Sense range, leaving him without any answers. The way Sirius had spoken hinted at a larger conspiracy.
"Something's not right. I need to get the fuck away from this..." Saisha's internal musings were abruptly cut short when he detected the approach of another formidable presence heading rapidly toward his location.
"This! It can't be…"
If his intuition served him right, this was reinforcement from Edinburgh. After all, if it had been Layos's reinforcements sent to aid him, they would have informed Saisha in advance.
"Fuck. Who is this fucking bastard playing with Grandmaster Rankers like this? A Sage? Why would a Sage… Fuck! Forget it."
Saisha made a swift decision to distance himself from ground zero immediately.
It became apparent that while he was engrossed in his confrontation with Arthur and Sirius, the half-bloods who had arrived alongside Sirius had set their sights on what remained of Edinburgh's forces. Granted, there weren't many Layos Rankers left on the battlefield in the first place. Most had perished, and the few survivors had managed to escape further from the epicenter even before Sirius had vanished.
Swoosh. Zoom. Run.
With neither the time nor the inclination to check on his subordinates, Saisha sensed the approach of a Grandmaster-ranked entity. Without hesitation, he abandoned his comrades and fully harnessed his Movement Spell, intent on putting as much distance as possible between himself and the battleground.
Regrettably for Saisha, his attempt to flee the battlefield bore unfavorable results.
AN: Sirius stirs unrest in Layos following a payment from Eren in chapter 938. Chapter 939 sees Saisha Goren attempting to make contact with Sirius, who ultimately declines cooperation. I encourage readers to refer to these two chapters for a better understanding of the ongoing storyline. ;)
