Reincarnated With The Strongest System

William's expression became incredibly cold after he had received confirmation that it was indeed his cousin, Eve, that was about to be crowned the High Priestess of the Demon Realm.

He was very tempted to barge into the capital city of the Demon Realm, Astryae, to rescue her. But, he knew that if he did that, he would just be doing Ahriman a favor by allowing himself to be captured.

William had locked himself up inside his room, and no one dared to disturb him. They were afraid that if they tried to talk to him in his current state, he might accidentally lash out at them, and this was something that neither side wanted to happen.

When the Half-Elf asked the spy that was stationed in the Demon Capital if they saw a veiled woman accompanying his cousin, they only shook their heads and reported that no such woman was seen alongside the soon to be High Priestess.

William knew that Ariadne wouldn't allow anyone to take Eve from her without a fight, so the veiled lady not being around his cousin only meant two things. Either she was killed, or was imprisoned somewhere.

While the Half-Elf was pondering his next move, he heard the sound of a notification inside his head.

'What happened, Optimus?' William asked.

< You have received mail from the God Shop. The sender is from the God of Shepherds, David. >

William didn't think twice and immediately read the mail from the God Shop. 

Several minutes later, a frown appeared on the black-haired teenager's face as he clenched his fist tightly. He then created a portal in front of him and walked through it.

David had given him a brief explanation about what happened and told him Ariadne's current location. The God of Shepherd also assured him that Eve was safe for the time being, so there was no need for him to do anything reckless. 

William knew that David was not someone who would lie to him, so he decided to reign in his anger and head to Ariadne's location. According to David, she was badly injured and although she was blessed with a strong constitution, she still received a powerful blow from Princess Iron Fan.

If not for the life saving artifact that she had in her possession, she might have died after taking a direct hit from the all out attack from the Pseudo-God.

After using his Lighting Strider skill, William arrived at the location that David had mentioned in the mail. There, he found an unconscious Ariadne lying on the ground. Her priestess robes were covered in blood, and her face was very pale.

Clearly, she was still not out of danger after her clash with Felix and his cronies. 

Icarus' and Daedalus' bodies were not far from her. Both were barely clinging to life and, if not for William's arrival, the two of them might have passed away in a few hours.

William scanned the surroundings, but he didn't find the White Goose, nor the ducks that followed his cousin around. Knowing David, the Half-Elf was sure that Eve's small flock was saved from the jaws of death and might even be by her side at this moment.

After taking the unconscious Priestess, as well as the two Minotaurs inside his Thousand Beast Domain, William immediately called for Princess Aila to help him heal the three injured individuals.

William had given the three rejuvenation potions in order to hasten their recovery, and get a detailed account of what happened from their perspective. Although David had already told him what had transpired, he still wanted to know their version of the story.

The first one to recover was Ariadne, whose face was no longer covered by a veil. After becoming the Prince of Darkness, William could now see Ariadne's true face, without worry about forgetting it again.

However, for others like Chloee and Princess Aila, the mysterious lady's power was still in full effect, making them forget her appearance every time they took their eyes off her.

"Will, I'm sorry," Ariadne said through tear-filled eyes as she looked at William who was holding her hand, and looking at her with concern. "I wasn't able to protect Eve. They were simply too strong."

"It's fine," William replied. "David has already told me that she's safe, so you don't have to worry about her. Tell me what happened."

Ariadne wiped the tears in her eyes with her free hand as she narrated the things that happened during their pilgrimage. The Half-Elf listened until her story was over before he heaved a deep sigh.

"Rest assured, I will take her back." William promised. "However, now is not the time to do that. I am still far too weak to fight against Felix, and his cronies."

"Thank you," Ariadne replied. "If His Excellency has said that Eve is safe then there is indeed nothing to worry about."

William patted her hand to give her some form of assurance. "For now, you should rest. We can talk about your next course of action after you have fully recovered. Aila, look after her for me, okay?"

Princess Aila nodded. "Leave it to me. I am also indebted to Sister Ariadne for the help she gave me during my stay in Lont."

William smiled before leaving the room. However, as soon as the door was closed behind him, the smile disappeared behind an expression oozing with killing intent.

He then closed his eyes and forcefully reigned in his anger by taking deep breaths. The next time he opened them, a resolute expression appeared on his face.

'In an hour or two, Soleil will arrive in the Tower of Babylon,' William thought. 'After settling in, Fifth Master will help me unlock the power of the Dungeon Conqueror. After gaining its power, there are a few places I need to visit before I go to the Silvermoon Continent.'

The black-haired teenager had used his time in the Thousand Beast Domain to map out his course of action after returning to the Central Continent. He was in a race against time before the entire world was embroiled in a war against Ahriman's forces.

Eve's kidnapping almost threw a wrench in his plan, but due to David's assurance, he decided to continue along the path that he had decided to take. 

William knew that if his doting grandfather found out that his granddaughter had been kidnapped by the God of Demons, the old coot would not hesitate to charge into the Demon Capital headfirst and start a bloodbath in order to save her.

'Gramps, times like this, I wish you were here,' William rubbed his face with his hands as he thought of his grandfather, who had disappeared to who knows where after he presided over his marriage back on Earth.

He was sure that not only his grandfather, but his uncles, Mordred and Morgan would do the same, and neither of them would stop until they had rescued their family member from those who were foolish enough to touch their reverse scale.

'Optimus, once we arrive in the Central Continent, make a detailed search for all the locations of Class S Dungeons and above,' William ordered. 

< Understood. >

William looked at his synchronization rate with Optimus that had stopped at 70%. This setting had turned gray, which meant that he couldn't continue to upgrade this feature at this point in time, due to his soul being corrupted.

Optimus was not the one that had sealed this function, but his Patron God, Gavin. The God of All Trades may not have fully recovered, but he was aware of the things that were happening to William.

Gavin was afraid that if William unlocked the System's full power, while under the influence of Darkness, a calamity might befall in the world. He also knew that William's current state of mind wasn't stable.

William had a hunch about what Gavin was doing, so he no longer worried about it. Right now, what he needed to do was build an army that would march for his cause, and one that would never betray him.

The Primordial Goddess had also told him that if he wanted the bodies of his wives to recover their peak condition, he needed to go to the Spring of Life that was found underground, where the roots of the World Tree gain their sustenance. 

The Goddess also told him that her avatar would wait for him on the Floor of Asgard, and meet with him after he had unlocked the power of the Dungeon Conqueror Job Class. 

For some reason, William was looking forward to this meeting because his heart ached to be with his Goddess. 

Although Gavin was still his Patron God, half of his soul now belonged to her. It was only natural for him to feel love and affection for the otherworldly beauty who would sometimes visit his dreams at night, and speak soothing words to him as she held him firmly in her loving embrace.