With a sigh, the Demon King of Incarceration turned around. He saw Destruction advancing, wrapped in dizzying colors, and the ash and light left by the oxidized members of Graceful Radiance scattering in the air. Ahead, there was Raphael on his Pegasus, leading the flying squadron. On the ground, the Divine Army was screaming to forget their terror as they advanced.
He saw Eugene, unable to move. The Demon King of Incarceration understood that Eugene had no choice but to freeze in such a situation. The Demon King of Incarceration's power had ultimately failed to drive Eugene to despair, but the current situation would inevitably make him despair. It was enough to bring Eugene to despair.
"Are you despairing because what you pursued has come to naught?" the Demon King of Incarceration asked. He sighed again and wore a bitter smile. "Do you despair seeing those who revered you sacrificing their lives in vain?"
Clank.
The Demon King of Incarceration began to walk. Chains that had appeared out of nowhere dragged along the ground with his steps.
"Before the inescapable and irresistible Destruction... do you also finally succumb to despair?" he questioned.
Eugene had won the war against Helmuth and the Demon King of Incarceration. However, he could not win this current battle. The Demon King of Incarceration could too easily foresee and be certain of the outcome of this fight. Eugene and his comrades no longer had the strength left to fight.
Or so he thought.
"Ah…!" the Demon King of Incarceration suddenly uttered.
He stopped walking. It was not a sigh but an exclamation that escaped him. Eugene must be despairing now. At the moment when everything he and his comrades had hoped to save had come to naught, feeling despair was inevitable.In the distant past, the Demon King of Incarceration had felt the same. He had wanted to overthrow the Demon King. He wanted to save the world. He had really been on the brink of achieving it but had fallen at the last moment. A trusted comrade had become the Demon King, and the world he wanted to save was destroyed.
The Demon King of Incarceration hadn't always been fixated on the future rather than the present. Time and again, as he faced new beginnings, he had thought, this time for sure .
He had hoped for a different outcome this time. Not to comply with Destruction and move on to the next era but to end Destruction in the present. He had failed many times. He had lost much, filled many voids, seen and embraced much, and yet lost again. He had become alone many times. He had despaired, and even this despair he had incarcerated in the abyss, to the depths of his own being.
One would be met with despair when their desires and goals crumbled into nothing. The Demon King of Incarceration knew this despair all too well. He also knew that it was not something that could be easily shaken off.
Would Eugene give up and choose death here? He thought so. Or perhaps he would run away in terror. Although he saw the latter as almost impossible, stubbornly struggling against the impossible was something this man might do.
But look!
Blood trickled from Eugene's clenched lips. The eyes that had been clouded with despair were flickering with light once more. His trembling fingers formed into a fist.
Yet, Eugene's feet did not move forward. Without turning away his bloodshot eyes, Eugene took a step back while staring ahead. Instead, he held back Sienna, who was screaming and trying to rush forward, and made Kristina step back. He also helped the fallen Molon to stand.
"Ahh…!" The Demon King of Incarceration exclaimed again.
There was no longer any despair in Eugene’s eyes. He barely kept his anger under control while choosing to step back instead of advancing. He did not choose defeat. Instead, he chose to honor the wishes of those who had chosen death for him, those who had advanced forward without orders.
If he died now, everything would end. Eugene understood this clearly, and the Demon King of Incarceration couldn't help but admire Eugene’s resolve.
Eugene Lionheart still hadn't given up and rose above his despair. He clung to his desire not just for a future beyond the current era but for a future now, vowing that the deaths of the many who sacrificed themselves for him would not be in vain.
Had Eugene succumbed to despair, chosen to flee in terror rather than retreat in hate and determination, it would have been unavoidable…. That would have been the conclusion the Demon King of Incarceration came to. Although this era faced a different ending from what the Demon King of Incarceration had originally envisioned, he would have judged this world to be done for and prepared for the next era.
But now, he did not entertain such thoughts. This world could not be discarded. Instead, the Demon King of Incarceration thought , how dazzling is the light oxidizing without fear of death? Even before the unstoppable forces of destruction and death, they were united. They burned their lives willingly for values and glory far greater than their own lives.
The Demon King of Incarceration wasn’t particularly fond of zealots. Most gods he encountered during his eternal life were incompetent, and the fact that he created the world from the beginning innumerable times meant that the Demon King of Incarceration himself was closer to being a god than those beings.
But now, the Demon King of Incarceration even felt a commitment and light in those zealots at the forefront that he had never paid attention to before.
"Admirable." Thus, the Demon King of Incarceration couldn't help but sincerely marvel.
Crack!
The Demon King leaped high off the ground. He instantly crossed the distance and landed between Raphael’s leading flying squadron and the Demon King of Destruction.
"The Demon King of Incarceration...?!" Raphael, who had been fervently calling for martyrdom, cried out in surprise.
The Demon King of Incarceration didn't wait to hear the rest and moved his hand.
Clang, clang…!
Numerous chains sprang from the Demon King's arm.
Fwoooosh!
The sky split wide open. The chains from the Demon King had opened a portal in space. It was impossible for him to open a portal to a distant place, but for now, this was sufficient. Though he felt his head spin and his breath was caught, the Demon King ignored the cries of existence and swung another chain.
"What are you doing?!" Raphael screamed as he hastily pulled on Apollo's reins, but he couldn't resist the storm raised by the Demon King. The flying squadron, faced with the spreading colors of destruction, was sucked into the portal opened by the chains of Incarceration.
"Indeed," the Demon King of Incarceration observed as he gasped for air and turned his head.
Even though he had snatched prey right from its mouth, it did not pay attention to the Demon King of Incarceration. From the beginning, it had not acknowledged any existence other than Eugene.
It had merely erased the moths flying towards it.
"You don't even pay attention to me," the Demon King of Incarceration said with a self-mocking smirk as he fell.
Phew…
The Demon King of Incarceration curled up as he inhaled deeply. His overtaxed body screamed as it collapsed, but the Demon King of Incarceration did not stop. As he fell to the ground, he raised both his hands high, then lowered them.
Whoosh!
When the Demon King's hands touched the ground, countless chains surged from the earth. The chains intertwined and formed a massive barrier. The Demon King of Incarceration staggered to his feet while gasping for breath, then spat out blood.
"You…," Eugene gasped.
As he stepped back, he saw the fallen form of the Demon King of Incarceration before him. The Demon King of Incarceration spat out blood repeatedly, then lifted his head while taking labored breaths.
"You know what that is,” said the Demon King of Incarceration.
The voice that reached him was so weak it seemed it might cut off at any moment. Gasping for breath, the Demon King of Incarceration looked back towards Eugene.
"Vermouth,” Eugene responded in a soft voice.
Sienna and the Saints were startled by his answer and turned towards him. The Demon King of Destruction stood before the wall of chains in a human form wrapped in chaotic colors. But Eugene could feel Vermouth from it. He was certain that it was Vermouth.
"That's right,” the Demon King of Incarceration said while wiping the blood dripping from his lips with the back of his hand. "I don’t know why I failed to sense that the seal was broken, and I don’t know why it appeared here.”
Creak, creak….
The Demon King of Destruction, no, Vermouth began to move again. As the distance closed between Vermouth and the chains raised by the Demon King of Incarceration, the chains trembled even more.
"Whether Vermouth's ego has been devoured, I'm not sure. But it was drawn here because of you,” said the Demon King of Incarceration.
Eugene silently clenched his fists.
"You should not feel guilty. Rather, take pride, Hamel. When you were Agaroth, you engraved a wound inside the Demon King of Destruction. Your existence is imprinted at the core of Destruction," the Demon King of Incarceration explained.
Creak, creak.
The sound of chains also began to echo from the body of the Demon King of Incarceration. Aware of the noise emanating from his body, the Demon King took another deep breath.
"Through that imprint, Destruction felt your presence. It came here because it cannot tolerate your existence. So, you can be proud, Hamel. The Demon King of Destruction sensed that your sword could reach it."
The Divine Army's advance halted. They were wary of the Demon King of Incarceration, who had suddenly burst in, flung the flying squadron aside, and erected a wall of chains to block the Demon King of Destruction. Amidst their hostile gazes, the Demon King of Incarceration gave a broad smile.
"Therefore, I shall….” The Demon King of Incarceration paused, then continued, "Hamel, I will acknowledge you once more. Your sword is sharp enough to have drawn the Demon King of Destruction here. And your will shall not waver even before the ominous madness of destruction, and your comrades will never betray you."
The Demon King of Incarceration chuckled as he raised both hands.
Creak, creak.
Newly appeared chains wrapped around his arms.
"What are you… trying to do?" Eugene asked.
It was clear the Demon King of Incarceration was also drained of strength. Yet, to muster such power — Eugene's expression hardened.
He was wringing it out. He was using the souls he had never given up on, the souls he would carry onto the next era. His cursed, undying soul was being transformed into dark power.
"If the seal has been broken, then I will simply seal it again," the Demon King of Incarceration replied. "Of course, I am not Vermouth, so I cannot hold Destruction at bay for centuries. A seal made by sacrificing myself will ultimately be a temporary and unstable measure. But for now, it should be enough to save you all."
The sound of low laughter mixed with the sound of chains. The Demon King of Incarceration ran his hand over his chest and then pulled out a part of the ancient chain to hand over to Eugene.
"As I said earlier, I cannot directly lead you to the center of Destruction anymore. But this will suffice. This chain will guide you into the depths of Destruction."
Eugene could only stare at the Demon King of Incarceration. He was unable to respond. He could not fully understand why the Demon King of Incarceration had made such a choice, why he chose to stand in the way of Destruction. Was it because he acknowledged defeat? It couldn't be just that. Something had moved the Demon King of Incarceration's heart.
"I won't thank you, and I haven't changed my mind about killing you,” Eugene said while biting his lips and clutching the chain.
The Demon King of Incarceration nodded with a smile.
"Of course. What I truly desire is death itself. It doesn't need to be restful. Oblivion is fine…. Even eternal suffering without death is acceptable. Just knowing that Destruction can end, and I don't have to move towards the next era, is rest enough for me,” said the Demon King of Incarceration.
The Demon King of Incarceration wound the chains that flowed from his chest around his hand.
Creak.
As space distorted, similar chains appeared at the heart of the approaching Destruction. The Demon King of Incarceration wrapped the chain linking him to the Demon King of Destruction around his hand several times as he said, "Go."
Eugene stepped back.
"Do not let the lives sacrificed for you be in vain,” the Demon King of Incarceration warned.
"Right,” Eugene answered.
Eugene pushed Sienna forward, even though she hesitated, and hoisted Molon's massive form onto his shoulder. The portal in the sky formed by the chains fell to the ground. Eugene pointed towards the portal with his hand.
"We retreat now."
His low voice reached the Divine Army. Gilead, leading the Divine Army, hesitated before nodding. At Gilead's gesture, the Divine Army advanced towards the portal while whispering among themselves.
"How long can you hold it?" Eugene asked without looking back.
His chains trembled as he firmly grasped them. The Demon King of Incarceration vomited blood once more before replying, "I will hold it until you return."
"Good," Eugene uttered a single word.
He didn't ask for a specific duration but thought it irrelevant. The Demon King of Incarceration was sacrificing everything he had to restrain Destruction.
Having fought the Demon King of Incarceration, Eugene knew how formidable and tenacious that entity was. Moreover, Eugene didn't need much time. As soon as he recovered physically and mentally, he planned to return here.
So, for now, they would retreat. Eugene did not ask further questions and leaped through the portal of chains. The Demon King of Incarceration did not check his departure but moved his hand. With a roar, all the demons remaining on the battlefield were dragged towards the Demon King of Incarceration.
"Ah!"
"My lord!"
The demons screamed and struggled, but they couldn't shake off the chains wrapped around their waists. As they drew closer, their screams turned to curses and abuses. They instinctively knew what the Demon King of Incarceration was attempting.
"Yes." Pleased by the barrage of curses and insults, the Demon King of Incarceration grinned. "This suits me."
The demons were flung over the wall of chains towards the Demon King of Destruction.
Thump, thump!
The demons were instantly annihilated when they came into contact with the spreading colors of the Demon King of Destruction. Their dying souls returned to the Demon King of Incarceration, strengthening his grip on the chains.
Whoooo….
The world cried out around the Demon King of Destruction. The wall of chains trembled as if it might collapse, and blood dripped from the hands of the Demon King of Incarceration as he held onto the chains.
"This is... emotion."
The Demon King of Incarceration laughed as he approached the Demon King of Destruction. As he drew nearer, the wall of chains tightened around the Demon King of Destruction as it raised its hands towards the chains.
Boom...!
A heavy resonance shook the chains and the Demon King of Incarceration, but he did not stop.
"Vermouth, are these your emotions?"
The Demon King of Incarceration crossed through the wall of chains to stand before the Demon King of Destruction. The entangled colors were too dense to see Vermouth's form.
But the Demon King of Incarceration felt an unmistakable gaze and emotion from it. Since Eugene had passed through the portal and left this space, the Demon King of Destruction could no longer see Eugene. But it was also impossible for it to follow Eugene, as the Demon King of Incarceration held the chains tightly.
"Is that so?" The Demon King of Incarceration whispered, clutching the chains with both hands. "You are still there."
The shattered wall of chains encircled both the Demon King of Incarceration and the Demon King of Destruction.