It was just as Eugene had thought.
Tourists who had voluntarily visited Giabella City over the past year were starting to return.
Unlike before, they had not become deranged, lost in dreams and memories. More precisely, they could not fully remember the time they spent in Giabella City.
Despite having harmed themselves previously, such as banging their heads against bars until they were freed to make their way to Giabella City, they now could not comprehend why they had gone to Giabella City in the first place.
"The memories of the city have been entirely excised, but there are no aftereffects," said Anise.
Eugene stood on the rooftop of a building, looking down at the wide plaza below where many people were gathered. The people gathered in the square were all citizens of the Kiehl Empire quarantined in this camp, and every one of them was a returned tourist from Giabella City. The people were murmuring among themselves as they waited their turn for an examination.
"I don’t think quarantine is necessary,” stated Eugene.
"I agree, but such a grand measure needs to be demonstrated," Anise replied.
The Kiehl Empire had a large population, and naturally, the majority of tourists returning from Giabella City were its citizens. Eugene didn't believe a quarantine was necessary, but the emperor and the imperial bureaucrats could not dismiss the possibility that the tourists might have been brainwashed.
"There's precedent, after all,” said Anise.These people had once left Giabella City and were driven mad by dreams of the place. They had insisted on returning.
"Can you call that brainwashing?" Eugene asked.
"It did mess with their minds,” Anise argued.
"But you said there are no aftereffects this time?" Eugene asked.
"When they returned last time, they initially showed no signs of disturbance. They could suddenly change this time, too. If that many people went berserk, it would be troublesome,” explained Anise.
Years ago, when crossing the snowy fields to attend the Knight March, Eugene had encountered Princess Knight Scalia and her lieutenant Dior.
Although Scalia was now a devout follower of Eugene, dedicated to proselytizing in Shimuin, the Scalia he had met in the snowfields had been mentally unstable due to insomnia and nightmares induced by Noir. She had massacred a mercenary band they came across in the snowfields and later suffered hallucinations that led her to attack Eugene and his group.
"Well, I don’t think they’ll do that,” Eugene said as he thought back to the Knight March.
"Hamel, sometimes I think you trust Noir Giabella too much," Anise retorted with a roll of her eyes.
She didn’t want to think about it, but Noir’s blasphemous words from her nightmare kept floating through her mind, annoying her whenever she heard Eugene defend Noir.
"Unleashing these tourists in a frenzy before she dies as a last act of defiance isn’t Noir’s style. I just don’t think she will do that,” said Eugene.
"And what about the opposite?" Anise asked after a pause.
"The opposite?" Eugene asked.
"If you were to lose to Noir Giabella and die. If that happened, that whore would... perhaps... lose interest in the world. In any case, I would also consider this world a failure if you were to die," Anise speculated, revealing her deep concerns about the potential outcomes of Eugene's conflict with Noir.
Eugene's expression remained unchanged, mirroring his emotions. In preparation for the worst-case scenario, he had already written a will should he meet his end in defeat. The will was now in the hands of Laman, who was currently serving as Gerhard’s bodyguard. Laman was absolutely loyal to Eugene, and should Eugene fall to Noir Giabella, Laman would act as instructed. The five copies of his will would be sent to Molon, Gilead, Gerhard, Sienna, and Anise.
Anise continued with her suppositions, "The whore loses interest in the world and causes those she has touched to go into a state of frenzy. This scenario could indeed happen. Hamel, unlike you, I cannot place my trust in Noir Giabella. That whore is the most… eccentric demon I've ever encountered, capable of the most nonsensical actions.”
"I don't particularly trust her either," Eugene responded.
Lies. Anise swallowed the word that rose to her throat. She gazed at Eugene for a moment before sighing softly and turning away as she said, "Sienna should have arrived by now. Let's go."
As Anise had predicted, they found Sienna at the warp-gate, holding Mary in one hand. Her eyes were closed, and she was surrounded by a swirling dark aura.
"It seems to have worked well,” Eugene commented.
He approached Sienna with a smirk. She paused her manipulation of mana and opened one eye to glance at him.
"Of course, it worked. What do you take this Goddess of Magic for?" she asked.
"Even the great Goddess of Magic can't create dark power, can she?" Eugene countered.
"Of course not. How could I, a human who is neither a demon nor a black wizard, create dark power?" she said.
However, dark power was necessary to amplify soul power. Sienna's chosen method was to use Amelia as a battery for dark power. Initially, during their time in the great forest, they had to physically carry Amelia, who was nothing more than a doll. But now, that was no longer necessary.
"Amelia Merwin is locked up in the Black Tower of Magic. It's not in use anymore, and she's well-sealed there. Melkith will feed her daily,” Sienna explained.
Preserving her in Akron as a specimen in a dark magic textbook had been an option as well, but Amelia's dark power was still needed elsewhere. She was sealed in the Black Tower of Magic, and Sienna would tap into her dark power whenever she wished. The dark power would then be transferred to Mary.
"Was there no sign of Balzac Ludbeth?" Eugene asked.
"Not a trace," Sienna muttered with a shrug.
Since the liberation of Hauria, Balzac had vanished once again. Previously, his disappearance was to evade Amelia's tracking, but now there seemed no reason for him to hide. Even then, during the year Eugene and Sienna had been in seclusion, Balzac had also disappeared from the world.
"Perhaps he's preparing to welcome us at Babel,” Anise suggested.
"Do you really think Balzac would stand in our way with the Demon King of Incarceration?" Sienna asked, sounding unconvinced.
"Sienna, don’t tell me you’ve grown fond of that black wizard? I know Balzac Ludbeth holds you in high regard, but in the end, he is a black wizard, one who has directly contracted with the Demon King of Incarceration. As long as we aim to ascend Babel, Balzac Ludbeth will inevitably block our path,” Anise said in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Balzac's aspiration is to leave a mark on history as a wizard and become a legend. If he kills you, Sienna, well, that would certainly make him legendary,” Eugene suggested mockingly.
"Wouldn't killing a Demon King as a black wizard be a much more legendary feat than killing me?" Sienna grumbled, her lips puckering in displeasure.
At her words, both Eugene and Anise let out a hollow laugh.
"Please stick to stories within the realm of possibility. Balzac Ludbeth has contracted not just with any Demon King but with the Demon King of Incarceration. How could he possibly betray his master?" Anise questioned.
"Without the Demon King of Incarceration lifting a finger, just the thought alone would have Balzac coughing blood and dying. And the Demon King of Incarceration can read all of Balzac’s thoughts. How could he betray him?" Eugene chimed in.
"I was just saying,” Sienna said. “Anyway, it’s not really possible.”
Sienna, who had entertained a slight possibility of Balzac not betraying them, cleared her throat and turned away.
"Anyway, I'm ready,” she said.
"Kristina and I are ready as well,” Anise said.
Their gazes naturally shifted towards Eugene.
"Then we should head out," Eugene said as he nodded in agreement.
They were going to face the only living Duke of Helmuth, the master of Dreamea and Giabella City, the most renowned demon on the continent, the Queen of the Night Demons — Noir Giabella.
Although she was a demon that not even the Demon King of Incarceration could disregard, only three individuals would be heading over to confront her. No large armies, no orders of paladins, and no Archwizards accompanied them. Only Eugene, Sienna, Kristina, and Anise would participate in the campaign against Noir Giabella. And among them, only Eugene would face Noir directly.
'It’s sufficient,' Eugene thought in assurance.
He looked ahead.
He saw the large city surrounded by towering walls. The city gates were firmly closed. The first time Eugene had come to Giabella City, a long line had stretched from the warp-gate to the city gates. Tourists from across the continent had queued up to enter the fantastic city of entertainment.
Now, the road to the city gates was deserted. However, a few people were inevitably inside the warp-gate facility — guild-affiliated gate wizards.
"If you don’t want to get involved, run—"
Before Sienna could finish, the wizards abruptly stood up. Blinking their dim eyes, they silently lined up and passed through the warp-gate.
The wizards here had long been captivated by Noir’s dreams.
Eugene watched the warp-gate's light fade and finally go out and murmured, "We're the last ones."
"No need to worry about anyone else coming through,” said Sienna.
"Just in case, this facility shouldn’t be destroyed. I don’t want to walk back,” Anise joked.
They exchanged light banter, but no one laughed. Eugene stepped out of the building first. He looked sternly at the closed city gates and slipped his hands into his cloak. He grabbed Mer and Raimira’s hands. They were obviously tense.
In any other battle, the damage from the fight wouldn't reach inside his cloak, but this time was different. Mer and Raimira had been informed beforehand and understood the situation, so they quietly held Eugene’s hand and stepped out of the cloak.
As they stepped out, their eyes brimmed with tears. They were worried for Eugene, and the fear of the unknown was visibly overwhelming them. Seeing their faces, so ready to burst into tears, Eugene couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.
"Am I going there to die?" Eugene quipped lightly, a smirk playing on his lips.
"Don't, please don't talk about such ominous things," Mer pleaded, visibly shaken.
"Even as a joke, such words shouldn't be spoken…!" Raimira exclaimed, her voice trembling with fear.
Eugene roughly ruffled their heads as he turned to look at Sienna and the Saints, who also wore uneasy expressions. Sienna, in particular, was nervously biting her nails as she alternated her gaze between Eugene and the city gates of Giabella City.
"It's been a long time since I've felt this way," Eugene mused aloud, his head throbbing and stomach churning just from looking at the solid gates.
Neither Raizakia, Iris, the specter, nor Gavid Lindman had ever induced such a sensation in Eugene. To Sienna, the city beyond those gates felt like a completely different realm, a hellish mire.
"If it gets too much, just run away," Anise advised while clutching her rosary.
"If it comes to that, don't hesitate to ask us for help," Kristina added, her hands pressed together in prayer.
Eugene didn't respond. Instead, he flashed a wry smile, fully aware of what sort of help Kristina meant.
"What god would tell his Saint to die in his place?" Eugene retorted as he turned away. "I'll be back."
He decided no more words were necessary. Adjusting his breathing and expression, Eugene walked towards the gates of Giabella City. He did not look back.
***
There was no sign of Noir Giabella as he approached the gates. There was no sound. Giabella-Face did not manifest in the sky either.
Eugene stopped in front of the gates, half-expecting them to open on their own, but they remained firmly shut.
'Maybe I should just smash the gates with the Levantein.'
The thought crossed his mind just as he felt a vibrating envelope in his pocket. Pulling it out, he discovered it was the invitation he had received a few days earlier. Curious, he opened the envelope, expecting to find the letter with a kiss mark, but instead, there was something entirely different inside.
It was a key.
"Insane," Eugene muttered.
Though it was absurd, he took out the key. Lifting his head, he couldn't help but let out a bemused chuckle. The massive city gate had somehow transformed into a normal door.
Have I already been dragged into a dream? For a moment, Eugene entertained the thought but quickly dismissed it. This was not a dream but reality, albeit a reality twisted by Noir like a dream.
"I don't know what she's playing at," Eugene said with a shake of his head.
The door had changed, but it was still closed. Eugene eyed the doorknob, which naturally had a keyhole. He tried turning the handle, pushing, and pulling.
The door didn't budge — an overt and blatant indication that he was meant to use the key. However, Eugene was not in the mood to play along with Noir's tricks.
Flames enveloped Eugene as he lifted his foot without hesitation.
With a resounding crash, his kick sent the door shattering in a straight line. The shattered door did not fly backward but instead burned up, turning to ash instantly.
"…Really?"
Eugene's eyebrows twitched. Despite his forceful entry, the cityscape did not reveal itself. Annoyingly and frustratingly, another door stood behind the one he had just demolished.
"This makes my resolve and determination look foolish."
He contemplated whether to kick it again or simply slice through it with the Levantein but judged that neither would be useful. It appeared that any effort to open this door without using the key would lead to a futile and pointless struggle.
Eugene clicked his tongue and moved the key toward the doorknob.
Click.
Turning the handle met no further resistance. Eugene pushed the door open and stepped inside.
One step further.
Then another.
Silence.
A fireplace. Firewood. Warm, orange flames.
A spacious dining table. On one wall hung a large portrait — or was it a photograph?
The sound of a knife chopping on a cutting board. The bubbling of something boiling.
"You're early, aren't you?"
Noir’s back was visible in the kitchen. She paused her cooking and turned to look at Eugene.
"I’ve already drawn a bath. Do you want to wash first? Or shall we dine first? Or perhaps…."
Noir tilted her head with a bright smile. She was clad in an apron.
"Me?" she asked.