Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Everyone watched the SS-Rank Calamity with bated breaths.

Even Shir, resting on the altar's edge and still recovering from his earlier trauma, found his jaw tightening. His eyes stayed wide, fixed on the distant lightshow.

"He's ascending…" Shir muttered to himself.

Though he had been turned into a fiend and retained his S-Rank, he could feel it—his foundation had taken a hit. He would need a long time to even get close to what he was witnessing now. And that thought burned quietly in his chest.

Everyone else kept silent.

Eren's hair blew gently in the breeze. Another Stellar Sativa was lit.

He knew. One day, if he truly wanted to reach the peak of the mortal form, he'd have to face this same calamity. And so would everyone else with him.

***

The storm passed eventually.

The heavy clouds began to scatter, the crashing waves returned to their normal rhythm, and the suffocating pressure lifted from the island.

The sea settled like a beast that had finished roaring, content and quiet. The terrifying energy in the distance faded slowly, like embers cooling after a wildfire.

A few minutes later, a figure appeared in the sky, flying toward the altar.

It was him. The sea monster who had been promoted to an SS-Rank Beast Monarch. His body was still surrounded by residual elemental energy, as if the ocean itself still clung to him.

His face was calm but distant, as if he had seen something beyond comprehension during his breakthrough. He needed a long time to digest his gains completely. But his foundation was very stable.

Beside him, Thalisa glided through the air. She looked tired but composed. When the two of them landed near the altar, everyone turned to look.

Eren stepped forward and looked at Thalisa first.

"How was it?" he asked.

Thalisa exhaled softly. "It was close. Too close. His body nearly gave out once the breakthrough was done. If I hadn't infused him with my vitality right after the calamity ended… he would have died."

Eren nodded as if he had expected this. The sea monster would have been fine if he had been implanted with a regular faith-based God Spark. However, Eren had given him a hybrid God Spark, which should be much more difficult to deal with in such situations.

This was why he had sent Thalisa after the sea monster. The sea monster didn't need to worry about assassination attempts from external forces. He ran the risk of dying post breakthrough. There had been many Kaisers, monsters, and beasts who had died while crossing the SS-Rank's threshold.

"Thanks," the butcher said simply and smiled at Thalisa. He had really found her at the right time. Without her, Eren might have achieved the similar goals but it would have been at least 10 times harder.

He then turned toward the sea monster, eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the changes.

There was something regal about him now. Still beastly, still massive. But refined in his own way. His aura no longer felt like a raging tide—it was a deep ocean, heavy and unmoving, powerful without needing to prove itself.

Eren walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Congratulations," he said with a small smile.

The sea monster didn't say much. He just grunted and nodded, standing there quietly like he always did.

Eren looked at him for a few seconds before speaking again.

"You're not the same anymore. You've walked into a new realm. It's time you got a new name, too."

The sea monster blinked. Then, he slowly nodded again.

Back in Allansia, he had been a nameless pawn. A monster bred for war. A tool for the Titans. He had earned many nicknames over time. But none of them had been truly his.

As such, Eren wanted to offer him a name. An identity.

"I'll call you… En," Eren said, the corners of his mouth lifting just a bit. "Half of my name. Fitting for my half-brother, don't you think?"

There was a short silence. Some of the others—Reen, Marina, Naya—gave each other quick glances. It was an odd name for sure.

Then again Eren had named his first demon beast Reen, which was anagram of his own name.

The sea monster looked at Eren and nodded, accepting the name without question.

"En," he repeated, his voice deep and steady.

Eren turned back toward the crowd gathered at the base of the altar. The smoke of the recent battle still lingered faintly in the air, but now it was mixed with the scent of his burning Stellar Sativa Stick.

The butcher raised it to his lips, took a slow drag, and let the smoke settle in his lungs for a few seconds before exhaling it in a long, lazy cloud. The white smoke drifted out, curling through the air. Such a peaceful drag after chaos. It was very calming to his nerves.

He looked at the sea of faces before him—some scared, some unsure, some full of quiet hope—and said calmly, "Let me announce it officially in case someone is still in the dark and yet to catch up."

Eren smiled slightly, a relaxed grin on his face.

"God Raashim is dead. He will no longer be able to answer your prayers.

To be honest, I doubt if he really bothered with answering prayers of the nobodies in Labh Salem even when he was alive.

It's not like the Raashim Temple was considered one of the strongest forces in Labh Salem. It survived because other organizations didn't bother expanding much into the seas even though they were tempted by the resources the Baga Island had.

In short, your god wasn't paying much attention to his influence in Labh Salem. He was busy expanding his "faith business" in some other worlds.

But… whatever. One shouldn't speak ill of the dead, right?"

There was a stunned silence for a few moments. Then someone from the crowd shouted, voice full of grief and disbelief.

"No matter what you… don't think we are stupid just because we are weak. It was because of you. You… you killed him!"

Eren didn't flinch. He nodded slowly, still calm. "That's right. I killed him."

He let those words hang in the air for a moment before speaking again.

"He was a pathetic god. Asking his followers to sacrifice themselves in a ritual… all because he wanted to come down here and take a look.

He didn't even bother fighting for you.

Then again… I didn't even give him a chance. So that's kind of on me. Kekeke!"