Eugene failed to recognize Hemoria for a moment. Her face was covered with an iron mask, just as before, but the covering wasn’t as clean or neat as before. Rather, the iron plate appeared as if it had been forcibly bent into shape, then fixed in place with a piece of torn cloth.

“Uh…”

However, the iron mask wasn’t the only reason Eugene failed to recognize her. Rather, it was because it had never occurred to him that she might be alive. He had cut off all her limbs at the Fount of Light when she had charged at him despite his warning. The wounds he had inflicted at the time were undoubtedly fatal. Eugene had then kicked her limbless stump of a body into the depths of the pit.

There were a few who survived the incident at the Fount of Light, but none had come back alive from the pit. Even Raphael had not mentioned anything about anyone surviving from the pit after checking out the aftermath.

“You’re still alive?” asked Eugene with a stupefied expression, belatedly realizing who she was.

He was quite surprised that Hemoria was alive, but that was all he felt. He just assumed that she had been lucky.

After a moment of thought, however, he realized that something was off. No matter how lucky you were, it was impossible to grow new limbs.

He stared at Hemoria’s arms and legs. Those were definitely limbs where he had only left stumps. They didn’t look quite normal, and all four were tightly wrapped in dark bandages, but they were arms and legs alright.

“…Fwoo.”

The sound of her labored breathing reached his ears. There was no other emotion than surprise in Eugene’s eyes, but the same couldn’t be said for Hemoria’s eyes. Her eyes had always been red, but now, they were dyed a deeper, bloodshot shade of crimson. The veins on her neck bulged and her chest heaved as her breathing intensified.

“Hwuah… Fwoo.”

In the past, she would have gnashed her teeth or even growled, but she was incapable of doing so anymore. The only way she could express herself was through a series of labored breaths.

Eugene took on a curious expression in response. “What do you want?”

Eugene had pushed Hemoria to the brink of death at the Fount of Light, and he didn’t know how she felt about it. As far as he was concerned, their interaction had been neither a fight, nor a battle. It had been nothing more than… removing an annoying obstacle, a pebble or an insect, out of his way. Perhaps he had been more forceful than he could have been,...