1692 Alephee's Guidance
"Ha, you're acting like it's a problem for you," Eren chuckled.
"Keke. It could be just the thing you were looking for, you know– a blessing in disguise. I bet you've been getting some good shut-eye now that you're all alone.
Enjoy this break, Miss Timeless. Enjoy your me-time while it lasts."
"Well, I can't deny that," Alephee laughed with Eren.
"After being with you for so long, peace almost feels strange to me. You were a problem magnet in Anfang even if it wasn't your fault. So, I still find it hard to believe I've been feeling relatively calm for the past 18 years."
"Problem-magnet, huh? Kinda a harsh way of putting it. But I guess that's something I can't deny as well."
Eren's broad smile turned smaller as he looked at the three-dimensional spectral form of Alephee, which was standing atop his table at this point.
Eren and Alephee started chatting about various things as they accepted the fact that they hadn't meet each other for a very long time. Reen provided her input intermittently while enjoying her breakfast.
Alephee was glad that Reen was with Eren now that she wasn't. She knew that Eren was a vicious man at his core. He did not hold a deliberate malice in his heart towards anyone in particular. But the kind of malice he could harbor in his heart was not something one could ignore.
Reen and Alephee herself were the chains that kept Eren's viciousness in check. They stopped him from embarking on a downward spiral that he had once charted. In Alephee's absence, Reen was the sole existence that could keep Eren on the right track. Otherwise, the evil in his heart would consume everyone around him before it starts hurting him as well.
From his vices to his obvious weaknesses, everything would come back to haunt him once again and turn him into the man he was in his first timeline. After all, it did not take much effort from anyone to let their inner voices win.
With Reen keeping Eren in check, Alephee could focus on her tasks at hand. She knew that Eren would make all the right decisions with Reen in tow, making him prioritize his safety over instant gains.
Although she hadn't planned things to unfold in this way, Alephee had prepared herself to separate from Eren from the moment she stepped into the Dimensional Gate in Anfang. She knew that prioritizing searching for her split forms was the right choice for her. However, she couldn't drag Eren with her and derail his progress.
Alephee had a lot of work cut for her. For the last 18 years, she had been preparing for Eren to arrive in Labh Salem. She had used every means in her arsenal to make it difficult for the gods and their followers to track him down.
She also wanted to get rid of her homunculus vessel because it was not completely compatible with Menaka's Blessing. She had a genuine divine soul but her artificial body limited the functionalities of the Blessing to a large extent. Merging with her split forms was a start. Alephee could then acquire a better vessel for herself, one that could allow her to wield her powers better.
Alephee felt like she had rested for quite some time after spending time in Afang. She was practically worry-free when she was in the Land of the Faithless.
However, every vacation comes to an end. A sad reality of life one has to face someday.
The homunculus vessel could work in Anfang because no Ranker was an expert in wielding the Spiritual Force. However, it could be countered easily in a world like Labh Salem where this thing called Mesh existed.
Alephee didn't need to tell Eren about the problems with her vessel in Labh Salem. She did not want to make him worry. As such, she focused on directing him in the right way. So he could make as few errors as possible while using the Mesh.
She told him that he shouldn't use his Sin of Lust to brand, someone, while he was in Labh Salem. This was because, unlike Anfang, people in Labh Salem were experts when it came to dealing with soul-related matters.
The Practitioners of Paths in Labh Salem were pretty skilled in cultivating their Spiritual Force. As such, it was very difficult to brand their souls with Sin of Lust unless a wide gap of Spiritual Force existed between Eren and his potential targets. Even if he could brand their souls with the Sin of Lust mark, it was not guaranteed that it would stay that way for a very long time.
Plus, the Practitioners of Paths in Labh Salem had access to various Skills. Skills that could allow them to get rid of such brands on their souls at the right price.
Eren's ability to brand his target's soul could end up backfiring on him as well if the target happened to be a demonic entity associated with the Demon Prince of Lust. The followers of Asmodeus were very skilled when it came to branding someone with the Sin of Lust.
The followers of Asmodeus had access to Asmodeus' Skill Tree, which could allow them to control Eren as soon as he placed his brand on them via reverse branding. Eren had already dealt with a witch who happened to be a follower of Asmodeus– Leesha. Things would have gone horribly wrong for him if he had decided to brand her using the Sin of Lust.
Of course, Eren could kick the Demon Princes from holding a seat in his demonic pantheon using the governing rights granted to him by Aleph's divine throne. He could replace them with the demonic entities of his choice, reshaping his pantheon altogether.
However, Eren was still struggling with wielding his divinity. He had his own limitations. Plus, reshaping the demonic pantheon would make him come out in the open. He would be easy to target for all the Demon Princes who had decided to oppose him.
