Chapter 166 – Battle in the Underground

I kept slashing Shinn’s offshoots that got in our way.
Eris followed closely behind me.

[Are we still in the right direction?]

[Yes! Keep going north.]

[How are you feeling?]

[Fu~hn, worry more about me, will you? I’ll work even harder if you do.]

[You…]

Despite her strong front, her eyes were starting to redden.
She said that the burden was the lightest, but she most likely lied to me.
Whether she could tell what I thought, or not… Eris smiled as she looked at me.

[Listen here. I’m using what is called the Soul Magic Eyes. although its range is limited, I could see not only magic, but also the soul of others. This is how I managed to track Shinn’s whereabouts.]

[Then that means, your eyes will still be able to track him even if he hides his magic power?]

[Exactly!]

She could see souls…? So far I’ve been only devouring souls with the gluttony skill. I only saw someone else’s soul once before.
It was when I and Aaron liberated Hauzen from the 《Harbinger of Death》.
The souls of Aaron’s family that was enslaved by the Crown-tier monster were released upon the monster’s demise, and they left for the afterlife afterward. The scene was both beautiful, and saddening at the same time.
Putting the memory aside, I asked Eris one more thing in regard to her magic eyes.

[If that’s the case, can you track Myne as well?]

[I knew you’d bring that up.]

Eris grinned as she dodged an attack from one of the Shinn’s offshoots.

[What? You already know that one reason we embark on this journey is to take Myne back home.]

[Ahahaha, don’t give me that kind of look. These magic eyes don’t have that large of coverage. It’s also difficult to maintain. Look, if I do this.]

[Eris!?]

Blood started leaking from her eyes.
She said that it’s the less burdensome of the bunch, but it’s still tough.
Despite that, Eris continued to smile.

[But, I found something just now. Myne is that way.]

The direction she pointed at was the same as where we were heading to.

[So she’s in the same place as Shinn. So, what should we do?]

[Isn’t that decided already?]

[……I just want to reconfirm it. Let’s hurry up, shall we?]

We head further down the north.
Strangely, the number of Shinn’s offshoots that were chasing us gradually decreased. On the contrary, the city was a lot more hectic.
The number of Gallian ghosts in this place was almost uncountable.

『It appears that the influence of the door to His land is much greater in here.』

[That means…]

『Our destination is close by.』

We’ve finally arrived.
Now that I think about it again, I’m still unsure whether we’ll be able to stop Myne peacefully. In the end we may need to fight it out. After all, I knew very little about Myne.

[If we keep going as it is, we will end up fighting both Shinn and Myne, won’t we?]

[I’m just a support fighter. It’ll be more reassuring if we have another front line fighter.]

[We don’t have that kind of luxury though.]

When it comes to a fight, I can certainly keep one strong enemy at bay, but the same can’t be said with Eris.

Earlier, Eris was fighting against a large number of Shinn’s offshoots and blood-red monsters.
But this time we’re up against Shinn himself, so it’ll be much harder.

[Which means it’ll be a two-man cell battle. Are you fine with that?]

[I don’t mind. but…Fate will have to bear the heaviest burden. Because as the sole frontliner you’ll have to keep them away from me by yourself.]

Even so, it’s all we got. I knew it would be like this from the very beginning.
That’s why, we needed to plan properly beforehand.

[You remember when we wiped out the remaining Darknesses in the desert of ruin? You can do that, can’t you? You should know what I mean since you’re also a wielder of Mortal Sin weapon.]

[Of course.]

[That’s good to hear. It’s the minimum requirement to be able to fight Myne after all. How long can you maintain that state?]

[15 minutes.]

[…U~n.]

Eris seemed troubled after hearing my reply. Eh! Don’t tell me I need to maintain it longer than that?
That said, I wanted to know how long Eris can do it.

[But well, learning how to use it in such a short time is very commendable already. You should really thank Greed and Luna for helping you with your training.]

[I always do. But you know how it is with those two.]

[Ahahaha, you’re right.]

[But anyways, there are times when I just can’t match my senses. At that time, it’s as if my body belonged to someone else.]

[I know right! I was also like that at first. But I got used to it after a while. You should too!]

Is it really something that someone can get used to….? Honestly, I don’t know if I can.
At that moment, Greed intervened with the conversation via 《mind reading》.

『The kiai*! You are still lacking kiai 』 (*TL note: Japanese term used in martial arts for the short shout uttered when performing an attacking move. But it can also mean “fighting spirit” or “harmonized energy”.)

[Is that really such a decisive factor!? That!]

『If this Me said so, then there is no need to doubt it.』

During the training in the spiritual world he used to tell me. Kiai! Kiai! Or something along that line.
I’ve had enough of hearing that.

But there might be some truth in it. Eris also said that she eventually got used to it.

『Well…..in any case, once you use it, your soul energy will be exhausted. So don’t think about using it continuously.』

[Of course. But really…. It feels like Greed is trying to assault me.]

『Don’t say something weird like that.』

On the other hand, Eris chuckled when she heard what I said just now.

[What?]

[No no, I don’t mean it badly. You two really get along well, don’t you?]

[『Which part make you think so！？』]

[But it’s true. Compared to you two, me and Envy haven’t even mended our relationship yet.]

[I thought you two settled things out after the battle at Gallia?]

[Yes, we did. But our relationship is far from how it used to be. To make a comparison, it’s like when a couple that has been separated for hundred of years suddenly start to live together again due to them having the same goal.]

[It’s hard for me to imagine that.]

That only made her laugh even harder.

[I kind of knew you’d say that. To put it in a simpler term, we used to get along really well, but separated ourselves for a long time out of our own will. But then, in order to close the door to His land, we have to fight side by side like we used to all those years back without enough time to prepare. Naturally, it’ll be difficult to adjust, right?]

Ahh… I see now.
If I had a quarrel with Greed, and then had to fight with him without making up with him beforehand.
I would certainly feel like a jerk.
In Eris’ case, the quarrel lasted for hundreds of years. Thinking that way, I guess there would be an awkward air between the two.

[Just what kind of person was Envy? Back when fighting it in Gallia, it persistently goaded me to join it.]

[This little one likes to hog something it has taken a liking to. Or maybe, it wanted you to replace me.]

[Aahhh…that wouldn’t work though.]

[Don’t say it like that. If I somehow die, you’ll be the one who will have to take care of Envy in my place.]

[Eris too, don’t jinx yourself like that.]

Jokes aside, Eris continued to talk about Envy.

[It’s actually a good kid. That part hasn’t changed even after all these years.]

[Good kid… It’s hard to believe that…]

Using the Tenryu to kill countless people in Gallia, with Mason-san among its victims. Then it tried to kill Roxy too.
I simply couldn’t forgive Envy so easily.

[It’s just purehearted. Neither good nor bad. Just look at Greed, he’s a good guy despite everything, correct?]

[U～n, I beg to differ about that.]

『What was that! This Me is a good guy no matter how you look!』

Greed heavily protested against my take. If you want me to think otherwise, then reflect back on how you act everyday.

[Sure, sure.]

『Don’t make light of me.』

I’m already used to how to handle Greed’s personality.
This should be enough to appease him.
But then, Eris muttered in a low voice.

[You two can actually joke around like usual at times like this. I’m really jealous]

[Like usual, huh… Anyways, where are we going next?]

[There, you should be able to see it already.]

There was a huge building ahead of us.
It was so huge, the tall building on the military district is nothing compared to it.
There were no ghosts at all around that building. Strange, considering that we saw a lot of them in other places.
As if they instinctively fear this particular building.

In the center of the building courtyard, a certain white haired girl stood.
This girl had a disproportionately large black axe in her hand. Despite the comical difference in size between her and her weapon, there’s no doubt that I could feel intimidating pressure coming from her.

[Myne…]

I called the girl’s name as I grasped the black sword’s hilt firmly.