Lumia recovered shortly after, when the process of forming the Perfect Foundations was already over. After getting to her feet and taking the scythe in her hands, she couldn't help but look at Alexander again.

The little girl knew the legends about Iblis. Although there weren't many, he at least knew it had been one of the greatest calamities in the universe. At the height of his strength he could face all of Life's strongest warriors without batting an eye.

Many of those tales, however, seemed artfully modified to exaggerate the real strength of the legendary creatures that had trampled the universe and, in fact, Lumia had never been completely sure of the existence of a creature like Iblis. But now she was facing a little boy with a fetish for macabre decoration who wasn't even trying to deny that he was the greatest Devil ever existed.

But if Lumia had information about Iblis, she knew nothing about Alexander.

Obviously, it was not possible for she to have heard his name. Alexander had belonged to an era too remote to be remembered. Maybe only a few big shots from Life and Destruction knew any details.

Alexander, on the other hand, hadn't bothered too much explaining who he was, not considering this practice worthy of his stature. He had limited himself to explaining that while he was still alive his fame equalled, if not surpassed, the one Iblis had known. In fact, the Devil seemed to treat him with some respect. Between the two there was something, a certain understanding, which could only be found between people of the same rank. And if Iblis was who he said he was, Alexander had to be another protagonist of the legends and myths that Lumia had never totally trusted.

“Now, Lumia, I have two more matters to resolve. So, I will unfreeze time. Remember: use your weapon carefully. From now on you are the equivalent of a Queen, behave like one. Leave it to others to serve. "

Lumia nodded and Alessandro snapped his fingers, disappearing from the girl's sight along with Iblis and Bucephalus.

…

Not too far from Orma, in a Human village, one of the few survivors of the Goblin attack

The warrior sitting on the ground, with two black swords on his legs, seemed to sense something and turned his head, as if looking for someone who had called him by name. Beside him sat a girl with short and slightly curled hair, forming ringlets, who spoke without too much care about what was around her.

The warrior raised a hand and stopped the girl's pleasant chatter. A smile was painted on his face as he got up from the ground and cleaned the mud from his trousers: “I have to go, there are things I have to take care of now. A friend of mine is in a tight spot and I think the time of waiting is over." Finally he looked at the young woman who had occasionally kept him company during his stay in the village. "I must admit it was a pleasure to talk to you."

With a chivalrous curtsy, the warrior sheathed his swords and began walking down the street, in the direction of a distant column of smoke in the sky.

Passers-by watched in amazement as the warrior walked away from his usual seat. Since the moment of his arrival he had never moved! This was perhaps the moment that all the villagers had been waiting for a long time, but in their hearts they knew that somehow they had grown fond of that mysterious figure.

"You never told me your name!" the girl said. Unexpectedly, there was no sadness in her words or in her eyes. She and the warrior had spent a lot of time chatting about this and that and exchanging stories, or even just observing the horizon.

A naive girl would have fallen in love with the mysterious man with the ebony swords. But she didn't, she didn't seem interested in that kind of feeling.

The warrior turned, slightly surprised.

"Hey! I don't think knowing my name would change anything for you. I'll probably soon die, you know? I doubt we'll see each other again!" he said very loudly, so that the girl could hear him from afar. "But I could definitely take your name to the grave!"

The girl waved her hand from a distance, saying farewell. She glanced at the house of the old bastard who underpaid her day after day, despite all her hard work and yelled, “Don't worry! I don't think you even need mine, I'll be leaving soon too, I have other plans, you know? Good luck with your death, I'm going to kill someone too!"

The girl with the short, curled hair laughed and headed for the old hag's house, as if nothing had happened.

Shaking his head, the warrior began to run at full speed, leaving very deep footprints in the ground.

…

This warning has been given, too, Alexander thought. Now only one thing is missing.

…

In the Colosseum

Helial felt his bones shatter under the gargantuan fist of the Revenant. The abomination had a terrifying force, probably on par with warriors in the Late stage of the Seventh Phase.

Despite his extremely dangerous situation, he too had been distracted by the events involving Lumia and, out of the corner of his eye, he had seen his sister as she was about to be killed by one of the two Follies; luckily Lumia had regained the advantage at the last minute.

Even if something happened to her beloved sister, Helial could not do anything to protect her. At that moment he had to devote himself body and soul to the fight with the Prince of Darkness. He hadn't even had time to wonder where the silver scythe his sister was holding had come from, and he hadn't even noticed that one of the two Follies had been practically pulverized.

While the Perfect Foundations granted him exceptional talent, a disadvantage of more than three Phases was too much even for him. If he kept on like this, victory would be just a dream.

To achieve victory, he would have to invent something else.

Or rather, it was not necessary for him to do it.

It was enough for someone to do it, wasn't it?

Seal Removed

Effects of the item Scarlet Tear partially unlocked.

Seal Removed

Effects of the item Morning Lighting partially unlocked.

"What the Hell?" swore Helial, confused. He was in the middle of the fight and had just seen two notifications leap in front of him.

What the hell was going on?

Scarlet Tear? Morning Lighting?

Why were those names ringing a bell?

He tried concentrate, while the Prince of Darkness tried to make it into a very human and reddish variant of mashed potatoes.

Helial quickly turned his face, avoiding for an inch the monster's fist from beheading him. However, the shockwave threw him several meters away, making him vomit yet another mouthful of blood.

Lying on his stomach on the sand of the Colosseum, he watched the Prince of Darkness advance slowly and enjoy the scene, without hastening his execution. At several moments Helial had had the impression that the Revenant was making fun of him.

Probably, to defeat him it would have been enough for him to be at an higher Phase. Just one.

He squeezed the sand of the Colosseum in his hands, using all the strength left in his body to get up. His near-infinite Mana was dangerously low. Every inch of his body was screaming in pain.

Just a second... Scarlet Tear? Morning Lighting?

Now he had understood!

Helial looked over his shoulder and saw that the frayed cloak had taken on a bloody glow. Amazed, he then passed his hand over the crown on his head, stuck there, motionless. Up to that point, the only property Helial had observed in the crown was its stillness; the cloak, however, was still a mystery. But now, touching the metal with his hand, the boy felt an electric discharge run through his body.

Scarlet Tear gave off a frightening Aura, unlike the sharp Aura of the crown. A strange smell of blood permeated Helial's nostrils as electrical discharges began to run through his body.

Helial heard a voice envelop him.

Those two gifts are much more than just an ornament. They cannot be restored to their glorious past, but they are more than enough for your level. You could not fully exploit them anyway. Helial immediately recognized the owner of that voice.

"Alexander?"

My ancestor possessed Lightning Mana and Blood Mana, among others, thanks to these two items. They are part of the most terrifying weapon set ever created during that Age. Scarlet Tear can transform your Mana into Blood Mana, Morning Lightning, well, I guess you can tell by its name...

Without waiting for Helial to ask for further explanation, he continued: You have, now, everything you need to balance what the Devil has taken from you. I can’t say anything else. Iblis is against my intervention and I have already done too much.

Helial felt slightly relieved at those words. Determination began to fill his eyes again.

Ah, I forgot, added Alexander, the conversion is perfect. These two items create Blood and Lightning Mana in their purest form.