Jacob had to spend several days holed up in the Alchemical Garden before his experiments proved to be good enough for his goals. Now, though, they would be able to feed even a 100.000 people if needed.
Epagogia, in the meanwhile, had spent an inane amount of time studying and examiming the Formation. She would communicate the results to Jacob at least once a day. It seemed that the Ancient Formation that regulated the Alchemical Garden had so many layers that it would take them a while to expand it properly.
"But the good news is," Epagogia said while wiping away some sweat from her forehead, "that we should be able to simply tweak it in a way that would expand the covering range. I don't know why the creator of this Formation didn't make it bigger, but it's powerful enough it could encompass a much larger surface than this one. The bad news is that moving this from here would be virtually impossible, considering its complexity. We can 'hack' into it and expand it, but moving it is going to be straight out impossible."
Jacob nodded along while reading her notes. She had really gone all out in trying to figure out this type of work.
Thankfully, Hektor had already left to enact Jacob's plan. He should have told everyone about the 'special duties' and he was travelling now to other cities to check on the situation. He also sent many small groups of warriors all around the smallest towns and more remote places in order to keep them safe from Demonic Beasts and do a preliminary scouting.
Hektor had received many weak Cultivation Techniques from Jacob with a rating assigned By Jacob himself of around 20 points each. They were going to spread those all around the place. And if Jacob had nailed the math, there should be around 200.000 people still around the two regions.
"Ok, let's expand the Formation today and we'll let someone else do all the digging and the planting," Jacob said to the woman.
"Shouldn't we talk, Jaji-boy, we have been postponing for a while now."
Jacob's face twisted but he knew she was right.
"Yeah, let's sit down."
Epagogia and Jacob went to a nearby room in the weird complex that was the Alchemical Garden. There were some empty facilities in the cave stashed all in one corner and one of them had been inhabited by Epagogia and Francis's family for the first month after the apocalypse started.
"So, what's this Helena business, Jaji-boy?" the purplish Devil showed him a smile that was worrying him.
Epagogia was a seductress through and through. When she showed warm smiles like the one she had just donned, though, it meant she was out for blood. Like a warrior.
"I—We had a conversation that cheered me up."
"And she used that mouth of hers just to talk?" the Devil Queen raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing happened on a physical level if that's what you are asking," Jacob said while not moving a muscle.
"But something did happen on the emotional one."
"Yes."
If Jacob, as a general rule, didn't like to lie, lying to Epagogia wasn't just against his ethics but also incredibly stupid. The Devils were masters at scheming, lying and, above all, contracts.
They lived on how sentences were worded.
"So, you kiss me, Jaji, but then you go and have some sort of breakdown that had dear Juliet all willing to cheer you up, right? Stop me if I'm getting something wrong."
Her tone was growing agitated.
Epagogia was good at playing games and hiding her emotions, but she was a possessive woman.
"All good so far," Jacob said without blinking.
"Ok, so one sweet and hot girl is there to hug you while you cry a bit. Then, Helena gets the news from that bloody idiot, the mighty Vermillion Tyrant, who obviously roots for the two lovebirds to be rejoined in this life since they were so harshly separated in their past one."
Jacob nodded and saw Epagogia narrow her eyes.
"Now, the little princess comes to you, Jaji, and she speaks. She doesn't even give you a handy, just a few words. Those few fucking words are suddenly enough to give you a new purpose in life."
Jacob saw something that had bothered him and Epagogia over the course of two lifetimes, not just one.
There had always been a part of him that had been somewhat inaccessible to Epagogia, even though they had shared decades together. Even though he had loved her, for real, and maybe he still loved her.
But that thing that had always kept the tiniest bit of distance between them—tiny, yes, but enough to keep them separate, was Helena.
The whole reason Jacob was still alive and kicking over the course of two lives was just one.
Helena.
That's what Jacob was reading on Epagogia's face.
It hadn't been Epagogia. And in fact, Jacob had gone and croaked against the Black Dragon. He could only imagine the question Epagogia should have asked herself when he had done that.
'Would he have done the same if I had been Helena, and not me?'
And was now the same thing that had made the Queen of Devils herself insecure during her past life had reemerged.
Helena.
"She has a magic, a spell over you, Jaji-boy, that I do not have. That I never had."
Jacob slowly nodded. For all it pained him, he was not going to lie.
And it was true.
Helena was the one person that could change him like that.