“And Cain loved Satan more than God. And Satan commanded him, saying: Make an offering unto the Lord.”
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Reginn watched Sivrit wake up from the roof of an adjacent building. He had a letter classified in nature next to him, sloppily open with its contents spilling out.
As Sivrit begins to change her clothes, Reginn decides to leave. He had the morals of the humans imparted deeply into his soul by the Goddess, their natural laws and cultures. As a paragon of justice, this was obvious.
“Reginn!”
The hero turned to find Ayn in the room next to Sivrit and shouted at him. He had not intended it this way, but Sivrit still awkwardly stared at him as she put her clothes back on. He tells himself that he feels nothing and quickly goes to Ayn. Perhaps it will be something interesting and beneficial to Avangarden. However, he did not forget to bring the letter with him.
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He listened to the woe of the humans. He could taste their tears and hear their cries, and he sat cross-legged on the bed, though one leg hung. Clues, cues, information. It was like the 2nd era — Reginn’s era — when he listened to the sorrows and anger of the people. However, this was the first time he heard those messages directly, and this was the first time he felt the emotions directly.
It was different, it burnt his nose. It was ugly, imperfect, as far away from the Goddess as possible, but still, he listened, like a warrior treading through wretched wasteland.
“I see.”
It was uncommon for Reginn to be conflicted, always either following the Goddess’s order or following his own intuition. From the moment he encountered Kyriekaos, he intended to kill her, execute her for the entire nation to see — to reclaim his position within the Goddess’s nation as its true protector. However, Sivrit’s wishes were in direct opposition to his plans, instead wanting the hero to spare them.
“Well, not exactly,” interjected Ayn, “You can remove Kyriekaos from Attila, then defeat Kyriekaos separately.”
In short, the plan Ayn devised was to utilize Reginn’s near-perfect mana control in order to detach Kyriekaos’s influences. Reginn knew this was possible from observing how Kyriekaos possessed the guard in the mall, her mana clearly puppeting the man. However, even for Reginn, he could not perform such a precise surgery on a moving target and would need to subdue her first, but the true question was:
Why would he do that?
There was nothing to gain from sparing the demon, other than to appease a few humans. Had he come so low to listen to the commands of mere mortals? Even if he had special emotional connections to Caretaker and in turn to Sivrit, the hero’s divine dignity made him question the cause.
This time, Sivrit could see Reginn’s inhumanity in his eyes, something she missed during the church massacre.
“...It’s fine. If you don’t want to help, you don’t have to.”
“But Sivrit—”
“Do you love humans for what they are?” asked Sivrit.
Reginn pondered the question for a few seconds. It would be no use lying.
“No.”
“Then I suppose you think of demons even less.” said Sivrit, “Then I don’t need your help, Reginn.”
The hero was a bit confused by this question and answer. Wasn’t she the one who supported this plan in the first place? Even with mana's vision, he was blind to Sivrit’s resolve and her love for people and justice.
They say that one can see the loyalty and the compassion of the people around you when you are at your lowest, and Sivrit now saw Reginn for what he truly was. An uncaring weapon, a beast.
She resolved to seek help elsewhere, or confront Kyriekaos herself.
“Then I suppose I won’t be seeing you two for a while,” said Reginn as he turned toward the open window.
Heleft into the streets, leaving Ayn and Sivrit alone.
“Sivrit—”
“I know,” said Sivrit while wiping her eyes witha tissue, “I messed up.”
“...No. You made the right choice. If we need to do something, it needs to be done the right way. Besides, it was unlikely for Reginn to agree to the plan so easily anyways.”
Sivrit turned held her face high. She still held faith in the goodness of the world, even in the face of great adversaries. Though she was not very religious, she still held faith in the Goddess, and she had faith in herself as well. With a real hero on her side, she began to concoct a new plan in her mind.
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Reginn walked through the streets in clothes Sivrit bought for him. In his hands were the letters, with an address written in it. Above it simply read:
Dear Sir Reginn,
We invite you to an emergency Royal Endlegion Silverguards meeting. The address is written below. Feel free to invite a friend — a trusted friend.
Celebrations multiply, and sorrows divide in company after all.
Yours truly,
- Siege.
Siege. Reginn remembered the name from the time he explored Sivrit’s mind. Siege was the leader of the Endlegion, a mysterious but commendable fellow. While he met three present-day ‘heroes’ so far, none of them were true heroes appointed by the Goddess. Reginn assumed that it must’ve either been Siege or Alveolo — the final member of the Endlegion. The man in particular seems to be of high standing within society, as he was the one to write this invitation rather than any royal or government officials.
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During his walk, a single phrase repeated in his mind.
“Then I don’t need your help, Reginn.”
Did he love humans?
Only some, but most were mere cattle to him. So, no.
Should he have lied?
For what? For validation from a mere human? Sivrit had no reason to deserve respect — feeble and fragile, shattering at the loss of a single creature. On the contrary, Reginn felt that he was not respected enough.
In his era, he was worshipped and praised by every human of the land, but it seemed in the modern setting, most had forgotten of his existence.
No matter, after his public execution of Kyriekaos, he would forever be etched onto the modern minds.
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It seemed that the sea had been parted, the left side of the table organized the general, minister, noble and royals, while the right side of the table sat all five heroes of the Endlegion Silverguards. A contrast of black and white, of order and freedom. Within these two oceans, Reginn’s path was set. However, the only one else at the centre end of the table in opposition was King Johaness, and Reginn knew not his intentions. His mana flow was calm, his heartbeat steady. He was an experienced old man, tragedies visible in his face.
“I thank you Sir Reginn for joining us this day, and to the Endlegion Silverguards for introducing you.” said the King.
A separate thanks. The Silverguards and the royals must’ve been divided in some way, visible through physical distance. Reginn saw the expressions on the Endlegions’ faces; weary, annoyed, worried. However, he could not see the faces of either Siege or Alveolo — the first clad in his signature armour and the latter deliberately covering her face with medical bandages. However, Reginn did not detect any damage on her face.
“Now, this is not an interrogation nor an invitation, only a discussion regarding the church massacre and our common enemy recognized as ‘Kyriekaos, the 33rd hero of Amstangrad’.” said the King, “Amstangrad was the predecessor to Avangarden from over sixteen centuries ago, meaning that if they are revealing the truth, they are a product of a resurrection. What is your thought on this, Sir Reginn?”
‘So this is why I was invited’ thought Reginn.
“It’s most likely true. I and one other hero were resurrected as well.”
“Could I ask for the name of your companion?”
“Ayn. The 94th hero, you should know him.”
“94th, 33rd and I believe you said you were the second hero?”
“Yeah.”
“There doesn’t seem to be much of a pattern, and we have also sensed a great disturbance in the mana levels of the surrounding areas ever since around four days ago.” said one of the ministers clad in suit, “There have been or will be more resurrections of the heroes in the future.”
“Not only the heroes but the demon lords as well.”
Mermer breaks the silent atmosphere of the room. Even if some do not know of all heroes, all would know the atrocities of the demon lords. After all, they were humanity’s greatest threat.
However, Johaness needn’t interrupt, for his mere posture to continue speaking again commanded silence in the room. He was an old King, and there was a reason why. Reginn could tell that beneath the veil of peace, something was brewing long before the heroes’ arrival. The Endlegion Guards, the demons, abandonment from both the Goddess and the children, and the King’s reaction to it all. Calculating, cold, control.
“For now, let us focus on the problems at hand. Our future selves will have to worry about the demon lords, and hopefully, by that point, more heroes will’ve returned.” said Johaness, “Kyriekaos. Pardon my bluntness, but do you believe you can take care of that problem alone?”
“Of course.”
“Now wait a minute, this wasn’t what we agreed on!” said Yuta.
“Silence.” interrupted Reason, the Royal Head Guard.
This was the first time Reginn had noticed the man, silently waiting at the back of the room. It seemed that he was in a room of wolves, though it was clear who their leader was.
“Yuta raises a valid point: The Endlegion can take care of the problem ourselves,” said Siege.
The man’s voice was deep and held the authority fitting of a leader. Despite their difference in position, the King and the leader of the Endlegion seemed to command similar control over the room, all eleven pairs of eyes on him as he spoke. They were focused on his words and seemed to respect his opinion.
“...However, three Silverguards managed to fumble the bag, didn’t they?” said the general covered in a chainmail of badges, “Are you trying to revitalize your little club’s reputation?”
“I was not there,” said Siege.
Even through the helmet, the general could feel the gaze radiating through the hero’s aura. Now Reginn knew for sure who the true hero was.
“⌈Dichtomung⌋,” said the King, “As most heroes do, Kyriekaos possesses a talent if my intel is correct. This single attack was able to destroy the Cadra Central Marketing District.”
“Are you suggesting that the Endlegion is weaker than a marketing district?” interjected Alveolo.
Her voice was calm but held a hint of anger. Despite her initial detach impression, this hero seemed to pride the team. Through their seating position, Reginn could tell that she was Siege’s right-hand woman, while Yuta was his left-hand man. Mal and Gallatin both sat next to Yuta, Alveolo isolated from the rest at the side closest to Reginn.
Reginn could not help but burst into a dramatized laughter. It was obvious that he was faking the act, but due to the rules of this social game — and as an esteemed guest — the natural question was asked.
“What do you find so entertaining, Sir Reginn?” asked the King.
“...You all are asking the wrong questions,” said Reginn, “It isn’t about whether we can kill Kyriekaos, it’s how we want to eliminate her. May I suggest a plan that satisfies all parties?”
A brief pause. Reginn made sure that all focus was on him. The King nor Siege could look away.
“First, I will deliberately alter Kyriekaos’s path to build up the perfect villain — the great villain of the century. From what I can tell, the demon lords of the modern times seem to be a none issue, and the people need a new enemy to hate — to reel in ecstasy from their punishment.”
“Secondly, I am willing to join the Endlegion — but only temporarily. Increase trust in the team and trust in public security. I will demonstrate my power to the world, and we can also reveal the existence of the resurrected heroes and demon lords afterwards, but we must ensure that the world believes Avangarden to be a global superpower beforehand.”
“Finally, there will be a grand execution in the location of my choosing. An unforgettable finale.”
The room was silent as all members of the table pondered the suggested plan. Then, they all began to analyze Reginn himself. If possible, the plan was a viable way to increase the status of all parties, promote security and rid themselves of a deadly threat.
Now, Reginn only needed just one more event to complete this meeting.
“Of course, I must prove to you that I can not only defeat, but control Kyriekaos, and to that, I suggest a duel.”
“...Against Yuta? Siege?” asked the King.
“Against the Endlegion Silverguards.”