God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Lukas blinked, momentarily taken aback. The air thickened with tension, and the shadows that surrounded them seemed to lean in closer, as if eavesdropping on their conversation.

Evangeline's expression remained inscrutable as always, but Cain sensed a flicker of curiosity in her crimson gaze.

"The Celestials?" Lukas repeated, his voice steady despite the sudden shift in atmosphere.

Inwardly, he frowned, 'Isn't this supposed to be common knowledge by now, or perhaps the question is more nuanced.'

Although he was suspicious, he decided to answer to the best of his ability. His freedom depended greatly on it.

"They are... Gods, for a lack of better words, I guess. Beings of immense power said to govern the balance between realms—Both physical and Spiritual, light and darkness. Most see them as beings of worship, but I believe they are more than that."

Cain leaned forward, intrigued by his words,

"And what do you believe their purpose is?"

Lukas shifted in his seat, his blue eyes narrowing as he contemplated his answer,

"Some say they are protectors, maintaining order in the cosmos. Others whisper that they revel in their own pride and arrogance, leaving most of the universe in disarray and turmoil with most of their conflicts. But the truth... the truth is they are nothing more than tyrants."

Cain exchanged a glance with Evangeline, who seemed uncharacteristically silent. Her usual subtle smirk was absent, replaced by a calm, yet focused stare.

Lukas continued, "I'm speaking on only the Celestial Deities, as I do not know much about the Celestial Beasts. They hold the most power in the Heavenly realms, but they allow.the Hell Realms to be ruled by the Demon Race, they haven't made any attempts to curb the Devil population in the last few centuries, which has caused the mortal realms to fall into disarray."

Lukas' eyes were colder than steel,

"If you ask me, they are exploiters and fools who do not deserve the power they were born with."

Then, he sighed and shook his head,

"Still... If you want my insight on the Celestials, you should know they possess a power beyond our understanding, so all I just said is my personal opinion..."

Cain sighed, then leaned back into his chair,

"I see. Then, what about the god you serve, Yanagi... what do you think of him?"

Lukas' lips curled, "What do I think? He is a Celestial Deity, no? Didn't I tell you what I think about them?"

Cain chuckled, "Is that so..."

'Looks like things are getting interesting. For one, it is good to know he isn't a zealot. However, he could just be lying."

Staring at Lukas' slightly glowing face, Cain shook his head,

'I highly doubt that though.'

Cain thought back to the name, 'Lightslayers'. It could be interpreted as 'Slayers for Light', or 'Slayers of Light'.

If it meant the latter, then Cain was inclined to trust his words...

Cain smiled, "Then, what do you think about the Devils?"

Lukas frowned, 'Hey, the deal was one question, right?!'

Still, he answered,

"Devils... They are strong. Far stronger that the ones we've faced. We can't even call those Devils. They are more like imps."

Lukas' face turned serious,

"More likely than not, we are going to be encountering full-fledged Devils in the city. I can't be sure how I feel about that, to be honest. Fear... Anxiety... Excitement..."

Shaking his head, he got back on track,

"But I see them as parasites struggling to keep living. It's pitiful, in a way. At least when they aren't trying to chop your head off."

Cain couldn't have agreed more.

Lukas continued, "They are strong, but theor strength doesn't matter because of the curse placed on them. Noatyer what they do, they are doomed to a constant fate of destruction and chaos."

Cain nodded, "Alright. I've heard enough. Now for the request."

Lukas' pursed his lips.

'Let's hope he doesn't ask for too much. I don't think I can stomach another extortion.'

Thinking about all the mana shards he was being forced to fork out just to get a decent meal, Lukas felt the tears at the corners of his eyes.

Cain's face turned serious,

"I need to borrow your strength for at least a year."

Lukas frowned, "Borrow my strength?"

Cain nodded grimly, "You want out of this place, right? Fine. You'll also get your men back, as well as most of the resources they've managed to gather all this time. But the deal is you'll have to assist me, no questions asked."

Lukas'eyes blazed with a fire, "Assist you in what?"

Cain grinned darkly, "Taking the city, of course..."

Lukas' face was dark, "What?"

"Right now, we are going in blind, but the collapsed of infrastructure is the city will likely mean it is infested with all manner of creatures."

Cain's face was grim, "I can't fight that all on my own. I need help."

Evangeline's gaze turned complicated as she stared at Cain's face.

'He's changing, growing, even...'

Lukas on the other hand, was far less amused. His face was dark,

"Looks like you have things backward, Cain... I'm the one that's going to be conquering the city, and then the entire world."

Cain's face was a bit strange after hearing that. Seeing this, Lukas snorted,

"It might sound strange to you, but that is just because you lack vision. You remain shortsighted despite never seeing the margins of what can be."

Cain chuckled, "It doesn't matter what you think at the end of the day. Do you agree or not?"

Lukas fell silent, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts...

'It would be best to sell it to him now. Anything can happen in the future. But one thing's for sure. This guy is dangerous. If I am not careful, he will take the city.'

His eyes became filled with dark expectation,

'You want to use me? Fine. But that also means I'll use you for my own ends. Fair game...'

Lukas sighed, "Alright, fine. There's obviously going to be more than a few details to hash out, but I agree for now."

Cain smiled and nodded, "That's good. As for the details, we can discuss that later."

Lukas frowned, "Then... What's the favor?"

Cain grinned, "I'm going to save that for later."

Lukas' eyelids twitched, "This..."

Cain turned to Evangeline,

"So, Eva... Can you let my subordinate go now?"

"Subordinate?!" Lukas said, his eyes bulging.

Evangeline chuckled, "Give me a sec..."

Waving her hand, ethereal chains of shadows that hadn't been visible before revealed themselves, surprising botj Cain and Lukas.

They fell to the ground and dissolved into the darkness...

Evangeline's ruby eyes sparkled, "There... You are free to go."

Lukas tried to hide the chill racing up his body with the a smile.

Dusting his clothes, he rose from his chair which promptly dissolved into the shadows. Stretching, he let out a relieved sigh,

"Feels good to be free."

With that, his body faded out of existence, leaving only Evangeline and Cain in the world of smoldering shadows.

"Why did you make that kind of request?"

Cain grinned, "Having him fight with us isn't a bad idea, is it?"

He then snickered, "From what I've seen so far, I can say he isn't the exact same as that mad man, Guy. They might have the same interests, but they are fundamentally different."

Evangeline nodded in agreement. Then, her eyes narrowed as she gave him a strange smile,

"So are you leaving now, or do you want to spend some time in here with me?"

Cain's grin turned forced, "This... I'll leave now, then."

Evangeline smiled as she leaned towards him,

"What if I don't want you to leave?"

The passion between a man and a woman was something unavoidable for the most part. However, Cain wanted to avoid this for the time being. Being distracted by things like this was the last thing he was willing to put on his mind.

So, steeling his resolve, Cain placed his hand on her shoulders and pushed her back gently,

"Not now." He said, with a forced smile.

Evangeline blinked, falling silent for a moment before she smiled,

"I see. Alright, I'll send you out."

Before he could say anything else, he blinked, and the world of darkness was no more.

Instead, he was back in the storage room...

In the time he was gone, nobody had seemed to notice his absence.

Jenny and Sue were still discussing in hushed tones, while Susan had her eyes closed, either sleeping or meditating.

Cain sighed. Perhaps it wasn't his body, but merely his mind that made the journey.

If that was so, then Evangeline was far more dangerous than he has previously thought.

That was quite the scary train of thought...

Summoning a golden blade form the ether, he let it fly. A few seconds later, he switched positions with the blade, disappearing from the room silently...

...And reappearing on the deck.

By now, the sky was many times brighter than he had seen in a while. Even the grey skies seemed filled with more life.

The loud cry of a mutant bird came from the grey clouds, and Cain looked overhead to see a flock of them flying over.

However, they didn't come down to attack. Instead, they continued on, never even bothering with them.

"How odd..."

His eyes went back to the horizon, and as the curtain of darkness drew back, he finally saw something. The shoreline where the City began.

It was like a world of mist had been blown away by a storm.

The sky was revealed, and the black sea rolled away...

Leaving behind a whole new world...