Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Just as Eren was about to begin the crucial part of his plan, something favorable happened.

Eliza decided to end Demonmir's life once and for all, even though she knew that he had been used as a pawn by Eren to distract her.

Demonmir had tried to kill Eliza due to being influenced by the Life and Death Altar, and she had taken it personally.

With renewed ferocity, Demonmir and the Witch of the Enderflames started battling each other. They sensed that Eren was up to something using their Soul Senses and had felt the mana fluctuations released by Reen's Soul Seed as well.

However, they didn't have enough time or window of opportunity to keep track of his doings.

It looked like Eliza was bound to outlast Demonmir and win by default. She had also started using the other Sin Series Marks on him now that the injury on her soul had been healed to some extent.

It was difficult using the Sin Series Marks when one's soul was injured. However, Eliza was blessed with profound spiritual might from her birth. Her draconic bloodline allowed her to recover from her soul-related injury at a faster rate than normal beings, allowing her to overpower Demonmir one clash at a time.

***

'Those idiots… one is full of pride while the other is full of stupidity. I thought that guy was smarter than that. Guess everyone has their ill moments. Or it could be just that… I got him good.'

Eren thought to himself as he set up his Array Disk on the ground and allowed the runes over it to expand in all directions. They formed a perfect Array Formation, making Eren stand inside it by default.

Eren wanted to get rid of both Eliza and Demonmir at the same time if he could. He would have preferred if one of them had established a clear dominance over the other. If one of them managed to kill the other, he could use that opportunity to finish off the last person standing in the battle as well.

Of course, this was Eren's ideal case scenario. He knew killing either of them wouldn't be as easy as he wanted it to be. Nonetheless, it would still serve him well.

However, Eren knew that this was not the time to prioritize dealing with them. Instead, he had to focus all his attention on the task at hand.

'Reen… just wait,' Eren looked in the direction where the Soul Seed Insertion Array had been set up. He confirmed that things were still in his control, thanks to Alephee and the clone he had left behind inside the Soul Seed Insertion Array.

With his raised hands, Eren started activating the runic system embedded into the Array Formation. As a result, the magic circle started exuding a faint light. Compared to the complexities of the Soul Seed Insertion Array, this Array Formation was very simple to the point that even the Rankers with the most elementary knowledge in the field of the Array Formation would be able to operate on it and use it for themselves.

Within a few moments, a special environment was created inside the Array Eye as it isolated its Array Operator from the surroundings. Eren was seen levitating motionlessly inside the Array Eye as he closed his eyes and focused all his attention on making the runic formation run at its full potential.

Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh.

A sensation that was familiar to most Rankers spread in the surroundings as Eren activated another Array Formation. Even Eren's ally who had been trapped inside the isolated space between the two Birdcage Barriers, looked at him with puzzlement as the effects of the Array Formation's operation started reaching them.

They couldn't help but doubt Eren's sanity as they saw him activate such a "simple" Array Formation that served no purpose in his current predicament. They hadn't been let in on the plan by Eren. So the Rankers inside the Birdcage Barrier were as clueless about Eren's plan as the witnesses outside it.

This newly constructed Array Formation had two array eyes positioned in the yin-yang style. Eren stood inside one of the eyes while chanting some incantations. The other Array Eye was empty and inoperable as if this Array Eye was not meant for him but for someone or something else.

It had been reiterated that what Eren had activated all by himself was one of the basic Array Formations that even regular Ace Rankers and above would have access to. Almost half the Rankers' population in Anfang had made use of this Formation to increase their might and aid in their Ranking Journeys.

One could say that this Array Formation was one of the most foundational elements of being a Ranker in Anfang. It had been sold in a controlled manner to some extent. The organizations in Anfang used this formation as a form of reward for the low-ranking entities to gain their allegiance. 

Some had gotten access to this Array Formation lawfully while others used not-so-legal methods to use this Array Formation on themselves. In any case, this Array Formation could be recognized by all the Rankers of Anfang at a glance.

Of course, Eren had made a few changes to the Array Formation's layout using Maya's help. However, soon the Rankers inside and outside the Birdcage Barrier would be able to recognize what kind of Array Formation Eren had activated. It was only a matter of time.

***

"What the fuck is he up to now?" asked Sage Hansen Lehan out loud without directing the question to anybody in particular. For some reason, he had started to pay more attention to what Eren was doing at the time instead of focusing his attention on the battle between Eliza and Demonmir.

"Beats me," Sage Zavir responded in a careful tone. "But the second Array Formation that he has activated doesn't look like it has anything to do with the first. I am no expert in the field of Array Formations but it doesn't look like an offensive-type formation to me," Zavir concluded as he focused all his attention on Eren.

"This…" another Sage mumbled to himself as he asked doubtfully. "Doesn't that Array Formation feel familiar to you?" he sounded unsure of his statements.

"It indeed is, now that I think about it," Sage Hansen Lehan spoke as he caressed his chin in contemplation. However, before he could say anything more about the formation, it expanded, catching him off guard.

All of a sudden, the Array Formation that Eren's real body was operating on expanded in all directions. Or rather, it became the final piece of the puzzle that had been already laid and remained invisible until now.

The runic symbols on the Array Formation expanded in all directions at lightning speed. They covered the entire ground of the battlefield in the blink of an eye before reaching even further.

Kingdom of Edinburgh.

Kingdom of Layos.

Askiha Empire.

Sovereign city-states beyond the known kingdoms and Amazonian settlements.

Vast deserts, ruled by formidable tribes down south of Anfang.

Snow-covered regions governed by democratic powers in the north.

The runes and runic symbols spread all across Anfang in a moment one takes to count to three. This spread was unstoppable because the groundwork for the formation to come alive all across Anfang had already been laid by Maya.

"What in the world…"

Zavir was lost for words as he realized Eren had cast a grand-scale Array Formation that covered the whole of Anfang. It took him another moment to realize what the Array Formation was since it had revealed itself so brazenly.

"Beast Contract Spell!"

Zavir and the few Sages with him spoke the name of the Array Formation in unison, as if they had practiced it before.

They were surprised and confused by Eren's casting of a simple Array Formation on such a grand scale, and were about to react when Eren activated the Beast Contract Spell.

This single action changed the fate of the entire world forever.

===

AN: The Beast Contract Spell was explained in chapter 100. ;)