Damn Reincarnation

will bring the Chief to justice myself.”

Genos respected Hamel because Genos was proud of his blood—the blood of the first Black Lion.

Standing in front of Hamel’s statue, Genos had shed tears.
Although he had made up an excuse about whatever conjunctivitis, Genos ’ tears at the time were genuine and out of passion.
And after he and Eugene were done sparring, he had shed tears once more.
It wasn’t because he was humiliated by the fact that his senior brother, who was so young that he could be called Genos’ son, had a more complete form of the Hamel Style.
Not in the slightest.
Genos had burst into tears out of respect for Hamel’s true heir.

That was why Eugene didn’t doubt Genos.

“Senior Brother…”

“I know.” Eugene nodded.

He had already verified that the room wasn’t bugged with surveillance spells.
He had also cast a soundproofing spell to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
In any case, since they had already finished the conversation and Eugene had received an answer, there was no use for them to continue this dangerous discussion.
Hearing a person’s footsteps getting close to the room, Eugene put Akasha back inside his cloak.

Knock, knock.

“Sir Genos and Eugene.
It’s me, Dominic.
Are you guys in there?”

Dominic Lionheart.
Captain of the First Division of Black Lion Knights and owner of the Annihilation Hammer Jigollath.
He also happened to be the grandson of Doynes Lionheart, the Council Head.

“Ah, you were in here indeed.” Dominic cheerfully smiled and reached his hand out to Eugene as Eugene opened the door for him.

“I heard that you returned from Samar. Good to see you looking healthy.”

After lightly shaking each other’s hands, Dominic winked at Genos.

“Did I interrupt your conversation? If I did, I apologize, but I had no other choice.
The Chief is raining hellfire upon me to bring Eugene over.”

“Right now?”

“Yes, right now.
Is there any reason why you need to postpone?” Dominic asked, tilting his head.

He was asking a question, but he wasn’t exactly waiting for an answer.
That was just his typical way of speaking.
He was leaning against the opened door to prevent it from closing, so that Eugene could directly leave the room.
He was clearly waiting for one thing: Eugene going with him that very moment.

“Let’s go,” Eugene answered, nodding.

For a moment, Genos’ eyes met Eugene’s.
However, he didn’t offer to follow them.
He also understood what an assassination was.
Although it happened rarely, assassination was also one of the Black Lion Knights’ duties.
As the name suggested, an assassination happened secretly and in the dark, ending the target without letting anyone know who had ordered it.

If Eugene died during the hunt, the one who had ordered his assassination could blame monsters or demonic beasts.
However, this place was the Black Lion Castle.
No monsters or demonic beasts roamed nearby.
Assassinating people here was simply not possible.

“You seem to be getting along with Sir Genos.” Dominic hummed while he led the way.
“But Sir Genos strongly denied it when I asked if you were his disciple.”

“He is guiding me in many ways as my senior in martial arts.”

“A senior… Guidance, huh… Haha! I don’t think you need a lesson from Sir Genos, though.” Dominic guffawed, looking back to Eugene.
“Of course, Sir Genos would have won if he put his heart into that sparring session.
But you had an upper hand in that fight using your techniques.”

“The sparring wasn’t fair.
I thought a martial arts master like you would have noticed, Sir Dominic.” Eugene provokingly explained, but Dominic smiled as he nodded.

“Thank you for having a high opinion of me.”

“Sir Dominic, you are the Captain of the First Division of the Black Lion Knights.”

“The division number has nothing to do with the captain’s abilities. I didn’t become Captain of the First Division because I was better than Sir Genos and Lady Carmen.
That said, I have to say that your fight was truly bizarre.
You guys didn’t use mana, and it was clearly a friendly match.
The way Sir Genos used his techniques wasn’t as fierce as it would be in an actual fight.
He just performed them with sincerity and according to the theory.”

Genos simply wanted to fight using the Hamel Style.

“Even so, you used techniques that were far more complex than Sir Genos’.
You also know where his techniques come from, right?”

“…”

“The techniques of Great Vermouth’s friend, the Stupid Hamel.
And you are the very person who first discovered Sir Hamel’s grave.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I am talking about how Sir Hamel’s techniques have been passed down to every generation for over three hundred years. Isn’t that cool?”

“Do you think I am Sir Hamel’s heir?”

“If you want to deny it, I won’t pry any further.
But is there a reason for you to deny it? Inheriting Hamel’s technique is not something to be embarrassed about.
Didn’t Sir Genos also recognize you?” Dominic said as he turned to Eugene again.
“Eugene, you are trying to have too many secrets.”

“Secrets?”

“I don’t know what happened to you in Samar, but I have a general idea.
You went to find Lady Sienna, right? I really don’t understand why you decided to handle such an important and dangerous matter only with Auxiliary Bishop Kristina.
If you had asked for it, the Council Head would have ordered the elite Black Lions to escort you.”

“I believe a person should have a secret or two,” Eugene calmly answered. 

“Why?”

“It’s more fun that way.”

Unable to answer straight away, Dominic stared at Eugene, blinking.

“Hahaha!”

He burst into laughter.
“You’re right.
There’s a subtle pleasure in keeping secrets, isn’t it?”

Dominic stopped in front of the door to the round table room.

“But… do not try to keep secrets in front of the Chief.”

Without a single trace of a smile, Dominic turned back to Eugene.

“The Chief thinks of secrets as treacherous threats, even if those secrets are just a boy’s mischievous joke. You may already have felt this, but the Chief has been on guard against you ever since he found out of your existence.”

“…I understand.” Eugene quietly nodded.
 

“All the more reason not to keep secrets from the Chief.” Dominic warned Eugene once more as he opened the door.
 

“I will bear that in mind.”

It was not a warning to be ignored. Bowing slightly, Eugene walked through the door.

~

Only the Council Head, Doynes Lionheart, was sitting at the round table,

Seeing Eugene, he closed the book he was reading and put down the glasses on his nose.

“Long time no see.” Doynes greeted Eugene, looking at him with a gentle smile.
“Did you have a good trip?”

“It was quite fun.”

Don’t play with secrets in front of the Chief.

He kept the warning in mind, but that didn’t mean he was going to follow it.

“The trip was quite unique.
If you are bored with your life in the Black Lion Castle, try going to Samar.
You will never have a dull moment.”

“Haha… It’s a great suggestion, but I’m too old to wander around in such backwoods.” Doynes chuckled, tapping on the table.
“Did you get what you wanted?”

“Like what?”

“This place is located in the middle of the mountain in the South of the Kiehl Empire, but I have no problem getting the wind of rumors in the world.
I know that you brought the elves to the Lionhearts…and I know what you went through in Aroth.”

He was talking about Akasha.

“Why didn’t you come with Lady Sienna?”

“She wished to stay,” Eugene answered, smiling.
“She said she will come and find me when it is time.”

“So the elven sanctuary was real.” Doynes stood up.
“I have lived for a long time, but I must be a child compared to the elves. The sanctuary is a paradise for those elves, and there is even the World Tree in its forest.… Haha, I wish to see that place with my own eyes if possible.”

“I’ll guide you someday if you want me to.” Eugene offered.

“I’ll decline.
Just like I said, I’m too old now.
I’m okay with staying in this castle and forest, since they are like my home…but I’m afraid to leave my sweet home, as old people do.
My joints also ache.” 

Doynes approached Eugene.
He was the Immortal White Lion, an old man who had lived for over a hundred years.
Although he said he was old, his gait was light.
He stood in front of Eugene, looking so healthy that no one would believe his age.

“Did you encounter any danger on that fun, unique trip?”

Search bit.ly/3iBfjkV for the original.

“No, I didn’t.” Eugene answered without a flinch.“I fought with the natives several times, but that wasn’t exactly dangerous.”

“That’s a relief to hear.” Doynes grinned, patting Eugene’s shoulder.
“Great work.
I’m glad to see you’re back safely.”

“Thank you.”

“Sorry to summon you like this.
I had no other choice, because I wanted to hear your story no matter what.
If the Patriarch was present, we would have been able to speak more amicably. Haha…Talking to a much younger man than me is too much for me.” After tapping Eugene’s shoulder a couple of times, Doynes stepped back.

“You are good to go.
The hunt will begin in two days, so rest up.”

“Are you also participating in the hunt, Chief?”

“This is my home,” Doynes answered with a gentle smile.
“As an elder, I have to guide the young ones so they don’t go astray or fall into danger.”