Ren was comparing Luna to Akane, of course, and just like her, Luna wasn’t the type to be content being locked up in the Holy Castle. Actually, she should have been thanking White for taking that burden onto herself. Ren explained this logic to Luna and watched recognition dawn on the youngest Holy Maiden’s face. “Every duty that befalls the leading Holy Maiden, from remaining in the Holy Castle and filing paperwork to seeing petitioners and overseeing trials, must all seem terribly tedious to you. Do you still want the job?”
“What?! Wh-When you put it that way, I...” Luna only wanted the title for title’s sake. If she had been thrown into the job, she would have quit after a single day.
“Your true talents will shine when you have the freedom to act as you wish. Now, let’s go to the next Area.” That was all Ren said before she began walking toward Shoreline Beach.
“H-Hey... Why are you talking like you’re in charge of my life?!” Luna stammered, reluctantly following the advisor who—apparently—deployed flawless logic at all times.
Whatever Luna had expected to see at Shoreline Beach, it wasn’t this. The entirety of the towering mountain range that once walled in Holylight had vanished without a trace. “What is this...?” Luna breathed, staring at the brilliant white sand and endless turquoise sea. There was even a strange marina close to where they stood. To top it all off, a lighthouse seemed to tower out of the sea, magically flashing at a regular interval.
“Master said he erected that lighthouse in honor of the Madam’s contributions.”
“He did what?! Why wasn’t it built in my honor?!” Luna demanded.
“I heard you were given the casino.”
“Y-Yeah...! But that lighthouse looks cool. I want it!”
“You are as greedy as Akane. How odd for a Holy Maiden,” Ren said.
“Don’t you come out of nowhere and start lecturing me! I have enough big sisters doing that as it is!” Luna barked.
“Let’s go back to the resort.”
“Hey, did you hear what I said?!”
Ren continued to ignore Luna’s yapping like branches in the breeze. To her, the Holy Maiden must have seemed like a child in a teenager’s body.
That night, Eagle glided around the lighthouse, aiming to land on it. Even in the arena, this had been a secluded area accessible only by boat. Unfortunately for Eagle, who was looking for a place to be alone, the Demon Lord was leaning his back against the lighthouse, enjoying a smoke.
“It’s you. Late night?” he asked.
“So that is your true form... I’d heard rumors,” Eagle said, taking in the Fallen Angel with his pitch-black wings in stark contrast to Eagle’s own silver wings.
“I have an array of forms, each of them as true as the next,” the Demon Lord said cryptically, but without lying.
To try and make sense of all of his appearances—the original form of Hakuto Kunai, his final battle form when his HP was lowered, his current Fallen Angel cosplay, his Zero Kirisame persona, and his past as Akira Ono—was an exercise in futility. Perhaps this man was more easily categorized as a calamitous transformer who shifted into various forms, each more ridiculous than the last.
The Demon Lord blew out a cloud of smoke at the moon. “I hear you finally accomplished what you’d always wanted to in the Holy City. Should I congratulate you?”
“That fight was my revenge,” Eagle said.
“Revenge, huh...? It’s bittersweet, isn’t it?” the Demon Lord said, more to himself than to her.
Eagle had been pondering her future since the battle. Even though she’d finally defeated Flay, the thought of his brother hung heavy in her mind, as did the worsened relationship she felt she had with the Salamander Knights and the Tzardom at large. “Was there any point to my revenge...? I keep thinking that all I’ve done is start a chain of violence.”
“Who knows? Some say revenge is never the answer, but once word spreads that you’re the kind of woman who returns any insult or injury a hundredfold, it will protect you in the future,” the Demon Lord said, his gaze focused on something in the distance.
Revenge, no matter how satisfying, was merely a successful counterattack—the damage was already done. With a reputation that she was not to be messed with, any potential enemies would hesitate to attack Eagle at all. Then there would be no need for revenge.
This concept was demonstrated well in modern-day warfare. Any nation that did not have a significant military presence was constantly at the mercy of a bigger, badder nation.
A rare, mischievous smirk curled Eagle’s lips. “A hundredfold... Is that what you do?”
“I return mine a thousandfold. No matter how many times I face defeat, my motto is to retry until I win,” the Demon Lord said, his silhouette glowing with moonlight and destiny.
Like a masterpiece painting, the image of the Demon Lord at this very moment would linger in Eagle’s mind for years to come. Encouraged by a strange sense of elation, Eagle blurted out, “I might have just started a war between Holylight and the Tzardom.”
“It’s not your fault. I’ve been meaning to conscript that hero to my legion. Anyone who has a problem with that—the Tzardom of Light, or whatever—I’ll wipe off the face of the earth.” The Demon Lord had always been obsessed with Weeb, and he seemed ready to obliterate anything that stood in his way, even the sun itself.
“And what answer will you give Luna?” Eagle asked.
“Huh?” Ash fell from the Demon Lord’s cigarette. After everything that happened since, he’d completely forgotten about Luna’s confession of love. “What answer? She said what she had to say and left...”
“I’m asking you how you feel about her,” Eagle demanded, closing in on the Demon Lord.
The Fallen Angel staggered back, wringing his brain like an empty tube of toothpaste for a way out of this. He also remembered that Tron had asked to be Zero’s bride. Even this professional con man couldn’t spin his way out of this one with nonsense. “Think of the age difference. She’s practically a child.”
“Now, maybe. But Luna won’t be a child forever. Just like I won’t,” Eagle huffed.
The Demon Lord did see that Eagle had matured—through the battle in the Holy City, he imagined. “Then I’ll give an answer when she grows up.” He tossed his cigarette into his ashtray and moved to flee the scene.
Eagle called out to him, “Luna and I are one and the same.”
“Hmm?”
“Wherever she goes, I go. Where I go, Luna goes.”
“What is that, some kind of riddle?” the Demon Lord asked.
“Just remember that.” Eagle smiled with a sort of beauty that struck the Demon Lord like an arrow. He wasted no time in vanishing with Quick Travel, if only to prevent this conversation from going any further.
With silence restored, Eagle gazed up at the strange, blinking light. “The Ruler of Night... Do you think you can change him, Luna? I’ve always thought you are like the sun.” She leaned against the lighthouse, exactly where the Demon Lord had. Unlike the village of Rabbi that bustled from dawn to dusk, the lighthouse was shrouded in serenity. Eagle closed her eyes and allowed herself to enjoy it.