Atiste decided it was time to appear.
He was deeply aware that it was his responsibility that Eileen had become so violent; he had failed to discipline her properly.
In truth, the fundamental reason was that he knew Eileen too well.
Whenever she was blinded by rage, she would destroy everything recklessly until her anger subsided.
This behavior was rooted in her childhood experiences.
Atiste had rescued her from the Demon Race when she was only a 4-year-old child.
Back then, she had collapsed in despair amidst the ruins, surrounded by flames and the corpses of her entire family.
Her parents had been protecting her youngest sister, while she had been shielded by her older brother, who was only slightly older than her.
When he found her, she seemed to have lost her mind, her eyes hollow as if her soul had vanished.
Normally, she should have grown up healthily under Atiste’s care.
However, she often grew uncontrollably angry whenever someone defied Atiste, frequently getting injured in the process.
Yet, as long as she received Atiste’s comfort, she would settle down.
Atiste moved to a position 2 kilometers away, where Eileen could not sense him, and used the Voice Transmission Technique.
“Eileen, where have you gone? You’ve made it quite difficult for me to find you.”
“Master?”
Eileen was overjoyed the moment she heard her Master’s voice.
‘He came to find me… He cares about me!’
She immediately turned around and lunged toward Atiste.
Rena and the Flame Demon watched, completely stunned.
‘Wait, why did she suddenly turn back?’
‘And her mood clearly improved?’
‘What just happened?’
Eileen didn’t care about anything else; she only wanted to throw herself into her Master’s arms and act spoiled.
Atiste, however, took a defensive stance, ready to catch her with both hands like a baseball catcher.
This made Eileen a bit dissatisfied.
However, she had regained her composure.
She recalled what her Master always told her: to be elegant, to be quiet, and to maintain grace in every movement.
She had to maintain that image, at least in front of him.
Thus, when she flew to Atiste’s side, she stopped on her own and deliberately said with a cold face, “Stupid Master.”
Seeing that Eileen had returned to her usual self, Atiste breathed a sigh of relief.
The warning sounds from the System also ceased.
He stood up straight, adopting the air of an artist, and said, “Stop doing things that waste my time. My time is more valuable than money!”
“Master, you clearly don’t have a cent to your name.”
“Frugality is a noble quality that every artist must possess!”
“Master is talking nonsense again. You clearly obtain all your resources through plunder.”
“When an artist does it, can you really call it plundering?”
Eileen didn’t argue further, offering a casual response.
“In that case, we should quickly head back and check on Master’s newly forged ‘artwork.'”
Atiste nodded in agreement; he was indeed worried about his new artwork, Lillian.
He wondered what kind of reaction the Crystal of Myriad Splendor would have with that vessel while he wasn’t observing.
No, by now, the two should be one.
“Eileen, I’ll head back first. You go talk to the Flame Demon and tell her to protect the new Hero.”
“Master, why is that?”
“The System said the Hero cannot die—at least not yet.”
“Understood. I will do so immediately.”
Once the conversation ended, Atiste moved back to the fortress, Outside the Three Realms.
Eileen returned to the Flame Demon.
She announced Atiste’s command.
“You, protect the Hero. Understood?”
The Flame Demon stood up perfectly straight, full of energy.
“I will surely carry out the order!”
The Flame Demon was incredibly shrewd.
This violent maid was an accomplice of that god-awful Atiste; if she was here giving orders, it meant it was Atiste’s will.
Would a lowly Flame Demon dare to defy Atiste’s wishes?
Impossible!
Rena didn’t understand what was happening and was about to ask, but the Flame Demon immediately covered her mouth.
“Don’t say too much. If you provoke her, we’re both toast!”
Rena remained silent, simply nodding repeatedly.
She didn’t want to be captured and tortured again.
She never wanted to experience that for the rest of her life… and to ensure that, she had to become stronger.
After finishing her piece, Eileen turned and left.
It was as if she were a goddess.
The Flame Demon released her hand and explained solemnly, “See that? Those are the kinds of people you absolutely cannot provoke. You can only obey them.”
Rena, however, was somewhat dismissive.
“They’re just lording their power over others because they’re strong. Sooner or later, I will eliminate people like that.”
The Flame Demon shook his head.
“You’re still too young. You’ll understand later.”
Rena said, “Anyway, thank you for your help today. Otherwise, I might have lost my life here.”
The Flame Demon broke into a cold sweat, his flames turning into lava as he denied it.
“I wasn’t helping you. We were both being toyed with by them.”
Rena was also taken aback.
“You seem so powerful; why would you say something like that?”
The Flame Demon replied, “How else do you think I’ve survived for so long?”
“That makes sense,” Rena admitted.
The Flame Demon looked at the Holy Sword in Rena’s hand and asked, “Where did you get that sword?”
Rena picked up Paladin, looking at it meaningfully as she replied, “I found it in a certain treehouse. It felt as though it were waiting for me, but I know nothing about it.”
The Flame Demon fell silent.
500 years ago, there was indeed a man named Reiner who had come to the Underground Demon Cave with the same sword.
However, he had left before reaching the bottom floor.
The Flame Demon recalled the situation back then; Reiner had likely encountered two even stronger forces and had been driven back.
Looking closely, aside from the difference in gender, this girl’s appearance was just like Reiner’s—clean-cut and dashing.
She would certainly be the type to be very popular in the human world.
Most importantly, they looked exactly the same.
Perhaps… it was just a coincidence?
***
Meanwhile, Atiste encountered a situation.
“Master Atiste… save me!”
Lillian was being swallowed by countless crystals.
Her entire body was trapped by the stones, with only her left eye and mouth not yet sealed.
However, the crystals were still slowly covering the remaining parts of her.
Atiste “appreciated” this moment.
“Very good, very good. You may expose your emotions to your heart’s content right now. I don’t care about your suffering in the slightest; I only want to see the ‘transformation’ of the Crystal of Myriad Splendor!”
Hearing Atiste say this, Lillian immediately gave up on calling for help.
‘Is that so?’
‘Since this is Master Atiste’s will, I shall obey.’
He was her creator, the one who gave her new life and helped her shed her old self.
The current Lillian belonged solely to Master Atiste.
‘If Master Atiste’s wish is for me to become a crystal sculpture, then I am willing.’
Lillian was completely covered by the crystals.
Her posture was frozen in the moment she had reached out to Atiste for help.
She had struggled, but the creeping crystals had never stopped.
Master Atiste had left her in the empty hall and vanished.
Lillian had searched for him but could not find him.
She knew she wouldn’t die.
But she was afraid she would never see Master Atiste again…
Fortunately, before she was completely sealed by the crystals, Master Atiste had returned.
[System Warning: Detection of a high-energy target being generated; target is continuously growing stronger]
[Danger Level: 9 stars]