In a deste corner of the world, a being could be seen running desperately.


    Her legs were shrivelled up and they shook so much with every step that it seemed like she would fall at any moment, but…


    "Haa… haaa…"


    … She kept running.


    Her dishevelled white hair and tired-looking eyes spoke well of her exhaustion. Her pale skin and her emaciated figure clearly disyed herck of nutrition—or perhaps the deprivation of the energy she desired for sustenance.


    Her bulging eyes took in everything in front of her as she kept running desperately, sweeping through the dark forest that surrounded her.


    "There''s no need for you to be in such a hurry." A man''s voice suddenly echoed through the vast sea of dark vines.


    The dishevelled woman instantly froze dead in her tracks. She recognized the voice that spoke to her and it caused her to instantly turn around.


    Her eyes bulged the moment she saw the man who stood in front of her.


    "My, my, how the mighty has fallen. You''re a sight for sore eyes… Ciel." He spoke to her in a very arrogant manner.


    One would think of this person as impudent, but he had a very good point.


    This old, dishevelled, ugly, and drained hag before him had once been the beautiful and pure Ciel that ruled the Nether Cult from the background. Yet, one look at her current state would make that past reality seem like a lie.


    Perhaps it was because she recognized the terrible position she was in that she did notin about the man''s gaze on her. Or perhaps…


    "L-Legris. I thought you perished."


    … She understood the kind of person who was speaking to her.


    "That''s impossible. I did suffer a great deal of damage from Neron, though. A great deal of my ns will suffer a huge hit as a result of it, as well." He smiled, taking a step forward.


    Ciel took a step back almost instantly.


    She had lost a great deal of her power in the earlier conflict and it was only thanks to her backup n that she''d been able to transfer a portion of her soul to the current pseudo-body that housed her.


    Not only did she have no internal Nether left, but she was in a race against time. If she didn''t hurry and make a better body, then this one would eventually perish and fade away.


    ''I refuse to die. Not yet! Not while my Master needs me!''


    Yes, her n had failed thanks to the constant interference of her enemies, but how could she allow that to stop her?


    Even though her son had perished, and even though the Nether had been banished from the world once more, she was never going to give up.


    ''S-scratch! I''ll start from scratch!'' Her thoughts kept echoing as she red at Legris.


    "Don''t bother, Ciel. The Nether isn''ting back—not after Neron executed whatever n he had in mind."


    "W-what are you—?!"


    "I know Neron well enough to know that he''s thorough. I''m even amazed that I escaped from his grasp. It makes me wonder if… no, it can''t be. In any case, you failed me, Ciel."


    "We had an arrangement. I fulfilled my end of the deal. If anything, you''re the one who failed to get rid of Neron!" Ciel barked with frustration and anger.


    "Welp. Fair point. Guess we both flopped this time."


    Ciel heaved a sigh of relief once she heard this. Legris had been about to heap the burden of failure on her, but how was it her fault?


    It was all due to the bastards that kept getting in her way!


    "It''s not toote. Our goals still align. We can start over. We can do it if we work together." She desperately smiled at her long-time coborator.


    "Oh, I don''t know…"


    Ciel''s face paled even more when Legris shrugged in disinterest.


    "You think I don''t know what you want to do? I know you possess a fraction of Nether essence. You intend to cultivate it so you can have ess to him, don''t you?"


    "H-how do you—"


    "Well, I''m not interested in your crazy love drama. I''m not even interested in this short-sighted goal of destroying this world, or whatever notion you have of my intentions."


    Ciel''s eyes were bloodshot at this point.<novelsnext></novelsnext>


    Legris had always been strange and mysterious, but she''d always been able to count on him as one of her pawns due to their joint ambition. She wanted the Nether to return and he had a twisted ideology of chaos.


    Together, they could achieve their goals.


    That was what she''d thought.


    Yet—!


    "T-then… what do you want?"


    Even with his arrogance, Legris was still useful. She didn''t know how he knew so much, but he had always been very perceptive and knowledgeable about many things.


    ''As long as he is on my side, then—''


    "It''s presumptuous of you to think you can ''use'' me, Ciel." Legris''s voice interrupted her thoughts.


    "W-wha—?!"


    Before she could properly respond to him, Legris moved like a blur and grabbed her by her face. He easily raised her up, smiling so menacingly that she thought she would die from his look alone.


    Her bloodshot eyes widened further, revealing veins, while her lips leaked out helpless whimpers.


    "You''re still useful to me, Ciel, so I won''t be killing you." Legris spoke calmly.


    "Your Original Magic… I''ll require it for the next phase of my n."


    Ciel could feel such an insurmountable amount of pressure from Legris that she didn''t know what to think. The intensity of his Nether made her frightened beyond description.


    "The only reason you were able to escape their perception is because of me. It''s also the reason they can''t spot us now. You owe me your life, Ciel."


    She couldn''t help but whimper in submission.


    "Don''t worry. If you''re good, I''ll take you to where your Master most likely is. However, first, we need to achieve the first phase of the n."


    What could that be? What sort of atrocity was Legris nning?


    "You should have realized it by now… how annoying Neron and his allies are." Legris''s twisted smile widened as he spoke. "Well, it''s time to get rid of them."


    A wave of dark mist swept around them, swallowing the two into a brand-new realm of darkness.


    "It will take some time, but… I suppose it''s time for me to make my move."


    And then, everything faded to ck.


    *


    *


    *


    [A/N]


    Okay, so we''re drawing closer to the end of this Arc.


    If you''re all confused by all that has happened, or what will happen going forward, then you can always reach out to me on Discord.


    As for Legris Damien, I suppose we could all tell that he was up to no good. I''m excited to see how far he hase since his first introduction in the second Arc.


    I hope you enjoyed his character progression and the story as a whole.


    Character arts and illustrations (including the Nether''s forms, Aether, and other characters) are in the Discord Server. The link will be ced below.


    https://discord.gg/yMPNRURZJh


    Please check out my new book, called SWORDCRAFT: Reincarnation Of A Nameless Nobody.


    It''s yet another reincarnation novel, full of action as well as adventure, and I can guarantee your enjoyment.


    Thanks for reading, everyone.


    Cheers!