Cerberus’ ears drooped when he sensed Neo’s pain.
The three-headed monster whimpered and tilted one of its enormous heads.
“Woof?”
“Intent.” Neo struggled to speak. “Hold back a bit.”
A blind man could not be hurt by a bright flash of light, and a deaf man wouldn’t be hurt by a powerful noise.
Similarly, most beings never awakened their Intent Senses and could not sense the Intent of others.
Even if they did awaken senses of Intent, their senses were weak.
Neo, on the other hand, had trained to strengthen his Intent Senses for centuries.
He felt like he had pressed his ear against a very powerful speaker.
Cerberus’ whimpers and barks rattled his brain.
His knees trembled, and his vision blurred.
Blood dripped from his ears and eyes, staining his clothes.
‘I need… to learn how… to close my Intent Senses.’
Neo closed his eyes.
He had a high mastery of Intent.
He was confident he could learn to close his Intent Senses easily.
It, however, needed time.
“Woof! Woof!”
Suddenly, Cerberus’ overwhelming Intent receded.
It was absorbed back into his massive body.
Neo gasped softly, feeling a weight lift from his chest.
The three-headed dog-shaped monster carefully padded towards Neo
One of its heads tilted inquisitively.
“Woof…?”
“Yeah, it’s okay now.”
Neo managed to say as he wiped the blood from his face with a trembling hand.
“Woof!”
Cerberus’ eyes shone with joy.
He pounced on Neo.
His massive tongue lolled out, and he licked Neo happily, each head taking its turn.
“Woof! Woof!”
“I told you. I’m okay now. You don’t need to worry.”
Neo smiled faintly, placing a hand on Cerberus’ fur.
He used his Life element to heal his body.
Using his blessing would heal him faster, but he wanted to train his Life element.
Cerberus backed away after licking Neo to his heart’s content.
He sat on all fours and his tail wagged at a high speed.
Seeing him so happy made Neo chuckle.
Neo reached out to pat the side of one of Cerberus’ heads.
He was surprised to see Cerberus knew basic control of Intent, like retracting it into his body.
However, it made sense.
Even Barbatos could use Intent to create an illusionary clone.
‘I guess everyone learns a thing or two when you live long enough,’ Neo thought.
He used his Water Affinity to clean the blood from his clothes.
Then, with a flick of his fingers, he summoned his Darkness element, which devoured the bloodied water.
As Neo rubbed the underchin of the three heads of Cerberus, the massive beast rumbled with contentment, his thick tails thumping lazily against the floor.
Suddenly, the heavy doors of the hall creaked open, and a woman hurriedly entered.
She wore a flowing black robe adorned with silver embroidery.
Her golden eyes were filled with panic as she bowed deeply toward Neo.
“I a-apologize, prince, for not being there to attend you when you arrived,” Gremory, the 56th-ranked Grim Reaper and the Gatekeeper of the Underworld, stammered as she bit her tongue mid-sentence.
“I’m so—wy.”
She tried to apologize again but ended up biting her tongue once more.
Cerberus sighed audibly, and all three of his heads shook in unison.
Neo smiled.
“Long time no see, Gremory.”
“I’m happy to meet you too, prince,” Gremory replied nervously.
Neo’s reincarnation arrived in the Underworld every time he died.
He had the memories of his past reincarnations.
But he did not remember what his reincarnations did in Underworld.
Maybe it was a rule to erase any memory of a soul related to Underworld before they reincarnated?
Neo did not remember anyone in the Underworld from his past reincarnations.
The Grim Reapers, however, remembered him and his reincarnations.
They would always dote on Neo until it was time for him to reincarnate.
“Please come this way, prince.”
Gremory led him to the terrace.
The terrace was quite large. It had black marble flooring and a nice view over the city.
Cerberus lay sprawled near Neo.
Although his duty was to guard the Gate of the Underworld alongside Gremory, he wanted to spend some time with Neo than in the hall below.
She served him a cup of tea.
Neo picked it up.
“Is the tea to your liking, prince?” Gremory asked, standing dutifully beside him.
“It is, but we can talk while sitting, no? There is no need for you to stand,” Neo suggested.
“I dare not do that,” Gremory replied.
Neo shook his head before he turned his gaze downward.
From the terrace, he could see the sprawling city of Cobalt Spring.
The city was alive with activity with figures of monsters and humans moving through the streets.
Cobalt Spring was one of the largest Reaper Cities in the Forest of All Beginnings.
“It’s a nice city,” Neo commented, taking a sip of tea.
“It’s all thanks to the Soul Hunters who help us in maintaining the law and order,” Gremory replied with a hint of pride in her voice as she glanced at the bustling city below.
Neo chuckled.
Law and order needed to be maintained even in the Underworld.
While he was drinking tea, a question arose in Neo’s mind.
“Why is my Grim Reaper badge working? I thought Count Andromalius would be the 73rd ranked Grim Reaper since the timeline was changed and I did not become a Grim Reaper.”
“It’s as you said. The position of the 73rd ranked Grim Reaper belongs to Andromalius,” Gremory explained. “But he gave it up when he found that in one of the timelines, he had passed his position to you.”
Only eighty-one Grim Reapers could exist at once.
The Grim Reapers would choose talented Soul Hunters as their successors and pass on their position to them.
Neo had been Count Andromalius’s successor during the Age of Gods.
Back then, at Count Andromalius’s request, Neo had put him into eternal sleep before taking his position.
“Count Andromalius cried tears of joy when he found out the Second Prince was his successor,” Gremory commented. “He bragged to Duke Belial, and Marquis Zagan about it.”
Gremory coughed and added.
“In fact, he went ahead and made sure everyone knew the new. He knew the news would make most Grim Reapers envious of him, and he couldn’t let go of a chance like this.”
“That’s just like him,” Neo said. “What is Count Andromalius doing now?”
“He is waiting for you before he leaves,” Gremory replied, lowering her gaze slightly as a sign of respect.
‘Leaves.’
Once a Grim Reaper passed on their position, they would do one of three things:
Enter the cycle of Samsara (Reincarnation), enter chrono sleep, or overload their core and scatter into the world as pure energy(in other words, True Death).
“I see,” Neo nodded. “I will visit him soon.”
The gentle rustling of Cerberus’s fur as he shifted nearby filled the brief silence.
Neo talked a bit more with Gremory.
He exchanged small pleasantries about the state of the Underworld and the Soul Hunters, before he stood up.
He gazed at the map Gremory had handed him.
“Are you sure I will find Leonora here?” Neo asked.
“Yes, prince. Leonora von Villers has made a huge name for herself as a Soul Hunter during the past months,” Gremory replied confidently. “Her team should be in Solace City right now.”
“Thanks for the information.”
“It was my pleasure.” Gremory bowed deeply.
Neo left the city.
He used Shadow Jump to move at a high speed.
Solace City was quite far.
It took him four days to reach it.
Along the way, he passed through berserk monsters, Reaper cities, and destroyed ruins.
He moved toward the Soul Hunter building after he reached Solace city.
Inside, there was a huge line of Soul Hunters and civilians, all waiting for their turn to speak with the staff.
The hall was bustling with activity.
Neo was allowed to skip the line when he revealed his Grim Reaper badge.
He strode to the front and met with the receptionist at the counter.
“I greet the Second Prince,” the humanoid monster with the head of a fist said eloquently. “What can I help you with today?”
“I’m looking for Leonora von Villers,” Neo said.