Chapter 149: Bedside Visits (1)

Chapter 149: Bedside Visits (1)

The awkwardness was unbearable.

If he hadn’t been so injured, he would have at least been able to turn his head away or adjust his posture. But right now, for Eugene, moving anything below his neck was a daunting challenge. So Eugene could only keep up an awkward expression while staring at the crown of Doynes’s head as the man bowed to him deeply, with the utmost respect.

“...That’s… in your poor state of health… why don’t you stop that and take a seat?” Eugene recommended.

“I’m fine like this,” Doynes rejected the offer.[1]

“No, what do you mean by ‘I’m fine’? Didn’t you get stabbed through the chest? Let me just say, as someone who also had a hole pierced through his chest, I’m very familiar with what it feels like.” Eugene rambled awkwardly as he recalled the memories of his past life. “It’s a very shitty and hollow feeling, isn’t it? Hmmm… um… well… the hole that ran me through may have been larger, but still…. I wasn’t able to walk around like you, and I just had to lie there waiting for death, you know?”

“How amazing,” came the response from Doynes.

Embarrassed by the words he had spewed out, Eugene coughed awkwardly.

“...Um… I wasn’t trying to brag that my chest hole was bigger…,” Eugene stiffly apologized as he desperately tried to shake loose the fixation with chest holes rattling around inside his head, but it wasn’t going the way he wanted it to.

If you really thought about it, having a hole through the chest was an injury with many connotations for Eugene. His death in his previous life had also been due to a hole in his chest, and Sienna, still sealed in the World Tree, also had a hole in her chest….

“...Didn’t I tell you to stop standing there and take a seat? My body isn’t in great shape either, so having to look up at you standing there is a bit difficult,” Eugene complained.

“Yes,” Doynes agreed and, without any further attempts at refusal, sat down on a chair near the bed.

As the distance between them shortened, Eugene was better able to feel the aura of death lingering around Doynes.

“How much time do you have left?” Eugene asked.

“I won’t make it through the night,” Doynes answered in a calm voice.

“If you summon a high priest from the Holy Empire, there’s still a possibility that you could be saved, or perhaps we can call for the Saint,” Eugene proposed.

“I’m the one who knows my own body the best,” Doynes refuted. “Even the blessing of the Saint won’t be able to revitalize this body of mine.”

There was no change in Doynes’ expression as he continued to speak. “...This current situation… it’s evidence of how incompetent the Lionheart clan — no, the Black Lions have become. We were so arrogant and drunk on the honor of being the descendants of a great hero that we weren’t able to properly live up to the demands of our position.”

“You’ve realized this far too late,” Eugene chided.

“It’s because the world has been too peaceful,” Doynes said regretfully.

“What’s ridiculous is the fact that Vermouth’s descendants have become so drunk on peace. If my body was healthy and I still had the strength that I used to have in the old days, I would have made all of you arrogant Black Lions[2] kneel down and then beaten you with a paddle,” Eugene threatened.

“My apologies,” Doynes said as he bowed his head once more. “...Allow me to take the guilt of that sin with me when I pass. Any further mockery will only fuel the discontent of the younger generation. So please, I hope you keep this fact in mind and take care of us.”

“You’re not asking me to join the Black Lions, are you?” Eugene asked skeptically.

Doynes shook his head as he said, “I’m well aware that the Black Lions are far too small to retain you, Sir Hamel. However, as Sir Hamel does have a relationship connecting himself to the Black Lions, I hope you can watch over the changes in the Black Lion Knights, even if it’s from a distance.”

“Changes, you say?” Eugene smacked his lips and tilted his head curiously. “Stop being so vague and tell me, what exactly are you going to change?”

“The Black Lion Castle will be opening its doors.”

“Its doors?”

“As you may be aware, Sir Hamel, the Black Lions aren’t a place one can join just because they want to. The restrictions are relatively looser for any member of the main family who wishes to join, but for a collateral descendant to become a Black Lion, they must first possess skills that we can’t help but recognize.”

“That’s right.”

“...From now on, if there is a child who wishes to become a Black Lion among the collateral descendants attending a Bloodline Continuation Ceremony, they can be brought directly to the castle for further training—”

“The Bloodline Continuation Ceremony itself is the problem,” Eugene interrupted as his face twisted in a scowl. “The changes that you’re talking about will, in the end, only increase the number of Black Lions in the next generation. Well, that might indeed be good in terms of boosting the clan’s power. Even if the quality decreases a little, the increase in quantity more than makes up for it, and even if it means teaching a dunce from a young age, they should still be of some use.”

However, as long as the tradition of the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony remained, any other changes would be inadequate.

“In the aftermath of this incident, didn’t you say that a couple of the collateral branches have suspiciously gone missing at the same time? This fact shows us that this treasonous affair arose from the dissatisfaction that the collateral descendants bear towards the main family. And where does this dissatisfaction come from? It’s all because of that idiotic Bloodline Continuation Ceremony,” Eugene criticized.

Doynes hesitated. “...However… the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony is our great ancestor’s—”

“That bastard Vermouth must have been senile,” Eugene burst out. Unable to control his anger, he unconsciously tried to leap to his feat.

Of course, the moment he tried to exert any strength with his body, he had to restrain himself from screaming at the terrible pain coursing through his whole body.

…Frankly, the tradition wasn’t completely incomprehensible. Vermouth had taken more than ten wives and had had dozens of children. Among his many children, the most outstanding child had become the family's next Patriarch.

But what about after that? This left behind numerous siblings who hadn’t been able to become the Patriarch. The situation would have been neatly tied up if the next Patriarch had just conducted a purge, but it would have been ridiculous for the children of a hero to fight among each other, killing their own siblings. In the end, the first generation all passed away, and the numerous siblings also gave birth to multiple children once more.

The problem began from there. Vermouth had died, leaving behind his legacy, the Great Hero’s Lionheart clan. And the collateral families that hadn’t become the main family tried to inherit the great legacy and gain glory. 

“The Bloodline Continuation Ceremony was necessary,” Doynes insisted after letting out a long sigh. “The Bloodline Continuation Ceremony ensured that the main family kept its unique stature and prevented any collateral families from overpowering it. If it weren’t for the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony, the clan as a whole might have disappeared long ago due to infighting.”

“I know,” Eugene acknowledged as he relaxed his expression. “...Vermouth, that bastard. He must have created the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony because he had his own reasons for doing so.”

As for what that reason was, thoughts that Eugene didn’t want to think kept unfolding in his head. 

Along with the main family’s White Flame Formula, the coercive tradition of the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony had ensured the main family’s superiority. For the past three hundred years, this had allowed the main family to amass strength that couldn’t be surpassed, even as the collateral branches gradually increased in numbers. If there had been no Bloodline Continuation Ceremony, and the White Flame Formula had been passed to all Lionheart descendants, then….

Would the Lionheart clan really look like it did now? Everyone would receive the same treatment, but only one of them got to be specially referred to as the ‘main family.’ Would the other branches, apart from the direct line, really recognize them as the main family? Perhaps, like Doynes had said, the Lionheart clan may have immediately fragmented due to infighting.

And what about now? Multiple factors ensured that the collateral branches could not overcome the direct line’s superiority: the main family’s unique status, storing all of Vermouth’s heirlooms except for the Moonlight Sword in the main family’s treasure vault, and inheriting the White Flame Formula in its perfect form, along with the use of the special leyline.

All of this had guaranteed the main family’s continued existence for these past three hundred years, as well as its ability to control the growing number of collateral branches.

But all of that for what reason?

‘...Was it really all for the clan’s honor?’ Eugene asked himself uncertainly.

Vermouth had been involved in Hamel’s reincarnation.

Eugene had been able to confirm that through his meeting with Sienna. Hamel’s soul had been sealed inside the necklace that Sienna had kept with her ever since he died as Hamel’s memento. Vermouth had stolen that necklace from Sienna.

‘...Vermouth… if you intended for me to be reincarnated as a Lionheart….’

Eugene didn’t know how exactly his reincarnation had been accomplished.

However, a few things stood out glaringly when he thought about it in simple terms. The body he had been reincarnated into was superior to the body from his previous life. No, it was so far superior that it even stood out among the Lionhearts. In order to guarantee that he would be born in a body as excellent as this, the most convenient method would be to first increase the total number of descendants.

‘...It’s just a guess, but… what if it’s the truth?’

Had Vermouth purposefully increased the number of his descendants in order to give Hamel the best body possible?

In order to preserve the core of the Lionheart clan’s strength, Vermouth had made sure that the main family was special.

And what if Hamel was reincarnated as a collateral descendant? That still wouldn’t be a problem. As long as the foundation of his body was excellent, with the memories of his previous life to draw from, Hamel would definitely grow strong enough that he would eventually be able to suppress the main family. 

Things had somehow gone so well that Eugene had been adopted into the main family and had even inherited the White Flame Formula, but… even if that hadn’t happened, he could still have somehow trampled the main family and claimed all of the main family’s power for himself.

“...Get rid of the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony,” Eugene muttered with a sigh. “There’s no more need for it. It also led to the current problem. If we just get rid of the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony, most of the complaints from the collateral lines will disappear.”

Doynes still hesitated, “...But….”

“Are you still going to be stubborn even though it led to you getting stabbed in the back?” Hamel asked scornfully. “Like you said, the world has been so peaceful that even the Lionhearts have become incompetent idiots. However, now, things won’t be as peaceful. You never know when Helmuth might declare the start of the war, and the collateral descendants harboring a grudge against the main family have all disappeared.”

Doynes listened silently.

“It’s a good time for a change,” Eugene insisted as he glared at Doynes. “If you’re going to die before the end of the day, then you should leave a will before closing your eyes. You are the Immortal White Lion, after all. Your death may not be the most honorable, but your name still holds sway over the other elders. So if you abolish the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony in your will, even the elders won’t be able to raise any strong objections to it. No one wants to be the first to say it, but they all know that this situation arose because of this fucking tradition rotting the clan from the inside.”

Doynes didn’t respond immediately. 

While Doynes closed his eyes and pondered the matter for a few moments, Eugene snickered and continued speaking, “Actually, who am I to try to pressure you into this? You don’t need to leave a will if you don’t want to. Because after you die, I’ll take this mess apart and try to fix it on my own. Of course, it would have to be a rough fix that wouldn’t really compare to a will left by the Immortal White Lion, but what can you do?”

“Hahaha…” Doynes burst into laughter at this blatant threat. “To receive advice from not just anyone, but from a hero who lived three hundred years ago…. Alright, I understand. I’ll make sure… to leave it in my will.”

The Bloodline Continuation Ceremony had been a tradition for three hundred years. As someone who had lived for a hundred and twenty years, Doynes was a living witness to the history of the Lionheart clan. As a former member of the main family, he had been one of the beneficiaries of the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony. Therefore, denying the Bloodline Continuation Ceremony felt the same as denying the foundation of the Lionheart clan, which he had held such pride in for his entire life.

However, it needed to be done. Doynes acknowledged just how much of a disgraceful affair this incident had been and also recognized that the grandson who had stabbed him through the chest hadn’t felt the same sense of pride that he did….

“My grandson… Dominic, did he die with regrets?” Doynes asked.

“There shouldn’t have been any room for regret,” Eugene replied thoughtfully.

“That’s disappointing,” Doynes chuckled before continuing. “I wanted him to die while regretting his choices and actions. But, if he died without even having any chance to feel regret, doesn’t that mean his death was so painful that he couldn’t spare any thoughts for regret?”

“It was quite a terrible death,” Eugene agreed. “...But the deaths of those who covet what they do not deserve and fall to evil are always terrible.”

“I owe you a great debt, Sir Hamel,” Doynes said as he got up once more and deeply bowed his head to Eugene. “...At the same time, I have committed a great many sins. If Sir Hamel hadn’t stopped them there, all the children of the main family would have been offered up as sacrifices… and Eward would have been completely possessed by the remnants of the Demon Kings. For the descendant of the Great Lionheart who slayed the Demon Kings… to be used as a tool to revive those same Demon Kings… such a thing could never be allowed to happen.”

Eugene coughed. “Hm, now that I think about it… it doesn’t seem like they would really have been reborn… since they were just some remnants. In other words, it really wasn’t all that serious. They were just a couple of scumbags.” 

Eugene had been trying to say all this with a dignified expression, but he had raised his chin a bit too high, and now his neck was throbbing in pain. 

Strangely enough, the cloak he had left on the sofa appeared to be wriggling. Eugene imagined Mer covering her mouth with her hands as she tried to hold back her laughter inside the cloak.

“...Ahem… by the way, how did you realize the fact that I’m Hamel?” Eugene questioned Doynes, trying to change the subject.

“I saw it in a dream,” Doynes confessed.

“A dream?” Eugene repeated in surprise.

That was quite an unexpected answer.

“After being ambushed by Dominic and collapsing… it seems that my consciousness still had a slight connection to the Demon Spear. It must have been because it’s been in my hand for dozens of years, and it’s quite an ominous and mysterious weapon. In this dream, I saw how you drove Dominic to his death, Sir Hamel,” Doynes paused for a moment as he finished speaking and stared down at his own hand.

His one remaining hand was trembling in fear just from imagining the scene he had witnessed in the dream.

“That strength and that technique could never belong to a twenty-year-old young man. Also… the rage that you showed at the tomb of our great ancestor was closer to the betrayal that someone would feel towards their friend rather than towards a revered ancestor,” Doynes explained.

“...Indeed,” Eugene muttered with a nod of understanding.

When he had discovered that Vermouth’s coffin was empty, Eugene hadn’t been able to fully restrain his emotions. A sense of betrayal towards Vermouth had taken hold of him and had shaken him to his core.

Doynes hesitated before continuing, “...The Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer—”

“Mer,” Eugene called out without allowing Doynes to finish his words.

At his call, Mer’s head popped out from between the folds of his cloak.

“Yes, did Sir Eugene, who has been injured to the point where he’s unable to move after a fight with a couple of scumbags, call for me?” Mer asked teasingly.

“...Watch your words,” Eugene warned her. “I’m not injured. This is just muscle strain.”

Mer nodded. “Understood. You are suffering from so much muscle strain that you’re unable to move after a fight with a couple of scumbags, correct?”

“You’re really going to get it once my body is all better,” Eugene threatened Mer.

Ignoring the threat, Mer asked, “So why did you call for me, Sir Eugene who’s only able to move his lips?”

“...Get the Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer… out of my cloak,” Eugene ground out while holding back the anger boiling away inside of him.

Mer just stuck her tongue out at him before popping back inside the cloak.

Turning to Doynes, Eugene demanded, “Did you just laugh?”

“Not at all,” Doynes denied.

“I feel like you were laughing, though?” Eugene accused him.

“Not at all,” Doynes repeated.

“You were laughing on the inside, weren’t you?”

“Not at all.”

By the end of this brief interrogation of an old man who was scheduled to die later today, Mer came out of the cloak dragging the huge Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer with a strained whimper. Both these weapons were patently larger than her own body.

“I’m holding on to these. You don’t have any complaints, right?” Eugene stated as he gestured to the Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer with his chin. 

Those were no longer the same former armaments of the Demon Kings. Although their form hadn’t changed, the demonic power that had formed the foundations of these weapons had been cleanly erased.

Instead, a portion of the lightning-flames that flowed through Eugene’s body had been poured into the Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer. Due to this, Eugene felt like there was a strong possibility of a specific thing pertaining to those weapons. He wasn’t able to test this suspicion right away, as his body wasn’t strong enough. But considering the fact that the lightning-flames now resided in the place of the spirit of darkness that had disappeared along with the demonic power…. He might not be able to reproduce their special attacks, but it might still be possible to use the Demon Spear and the Annihilation Hammer as powerful weapons.

“...Who else could be the master of those weapons if not Sir Hamel?” Doynes said, having already decided not to show any further resistance to Eugene’s words.

Though they had only chatted for a while, this great hero from three hundred years ago still had the same fiery personality as described in the fairy tale passed down throughout history.

“I’m sure you have a lot to attend to,” Eugene prompted Doynes.

The aura of death that he had been feeling from Doynes had continued to deepen over the course of their conversation.

“....Dominic might have been your only descendant, but… even so, shouldn’t you at least say goodbye to the elders you’ve known for such a long time,” Eugene suggested.

“I also need to prepare a will,” Doynes agreed with a chuckle as he stood up. “...Thank you so much for your consideration, Sir Hamel. …As a knight, I feel it’s a great honor to have met with you like this. If I only had enough time, I would have liked to ask you to regale me with some of your past sagas, Sir Hamel.”

“No way, that would be too embarrassing,” Eugene expressed his rejection with a disgusted look as he shook his head. Then, changing the subject, Eugene asked, “...So, who is going to be the next Head of the Council?”

“I’m thinking of Carmen, but she probably won’t be willing to take the position,” Doynes admitted.

“If that’s the case, then her younger brother will probably become the Council Head,” Eugene mused.

“Yes,” Doynes agreed.

Eugene suddenly asked, “Is it alright if I make just one request?”

“Please, speak freely.”

“Leave the main family out of it.”

Doynes, who had withdrawn respectfully, raised his head to look at Eugene.

“I mean, you shouldn’t pointlessly harass the Patriarch over this issue,” Eugene specified. “Because, without anyone adding on to his troubles, he must be the one whose heart is suffering the most right now.”

“...Hoho,” Doynes chuckled with a faint smile at these words. “It’s a blessing for the main family that you cherish them like this, Sir Hamel.”

“That said, I have no intention of becoming the Patriarch,” Eugene insisted cautiously.

“However, as Sir Hamel cherishes both of the twins and the main family, even if you don’t become the Patriarch yourself, I’m sure you will lead the main family to unprecedented glory,” Doynes declared confidently.

The only regret that remained in Doynes’s heart was a desire to see such a sight in person. However, it was impossible to sustain his life, and someone had to take responsibility for this situation. So with his death, he would ignite the sparks of reform for the clan.

‘...My death might be tainted with disgrace, but….’ There was a bitter smile on Doynes’s face as he turned to leave and thought to himself, ‘It seems that with my death, I can still be of some use to the family.’

While being called the Immortal White Lion, he had lived for a hundred twenty years. Yet he had never once imagined that he would actually die like this.

However, Doynes didn’t resent being consigned to such a death. In the end, all of that was inconsequential. With his blind trust in his grandchild and his own arrogance in thinking that everything he did was for the sake of the clan, Doynes had dug this grave for himself.

Sure, it was an ugly and dishonorable death, but before he died, he had learned that a legend from three hundred years ago now resided in the Lionheart clan.

Doynes quietly closed the door behind him. Outside the door, Genos was waiting patiently.

Genos approached to offer his support, but Doynes shook his head in refusal.

“Let’s go,” Doynes said.

The two then headed off to the Round Table, where all meetings of the Council of Elders were held.

Doynes insisted on walking toward the Tower of the Round Table on his own two feet in order to leave behind his final will.