— — — — — —
Shirona still bowed respectfully without hesitation. "The Lion King Organization will compile all information related to the Blazing Banquet and present it to you soon."
Lynn gave a quiet nod and dismissed his projection.
Even though the Lion King Organization had plenty of capable people, Lynn wasn't in a rush.
They would eventually come to him.
Once his projection vanished, Shirona finally let out a long breath.
Koyomi also pushed up her glasses, her body visibly relaxing.
Dealing with someone on that level was seriously nerve-wracking.
But after all this, it seemed like the Lion King Organization was now 'involuntarily' marked with Lynn's seal.
After the Blazing Banquet, it was basically impossible to hide the fact that the Organization had started helping Lynn gather intel.
Realizing this, Shirona and Koyomi exchanged glances—both clearly seeing the helplessness in each other's eyes.
Then suddenly—
A faint clangdrew their attention.
The Snowdrift Wolf, which had been full of energy earlier, now sat quietly on the ground like a wilted plant, all its vigor gone after Lynn disappeared.
Yukina: "…"
Endou looked over with mild curiosity and muttered, "Snowdrift Wolf… it feels like it's more spiritual now?"
Was it because of Lynn?
She instinctively ruled out Yukina as the cause. After all, as her teacher, she knew her disciple all too well.
With the sudden shift in atmosphere caused by the spear, Shirona and Koyomi managed to shake off some of their earlier concerns and turned toward the spot where Dimitrie Vatler had vanished.
Shirona frowned. "Vatler died here. The Warlord, what will he do now?"
Endou shrugged. "So what? If he's got a problem, he can take it up with Lynn."
"…Uh."
Shirona blinked. Then after a moment's thought—she realized it actually made sense.
They were working for Lynn now. If the sky falls, it's not their job to hold it up.
Huh… When you think about it that way, working for Lynn doesn't seem that bad?
At the very least when the Lion King Organization runs into stronger factions, they can at least throw his name around.
Shirona clapped her hands and declared, "Alright! The Lion King Organization's next mission is to gather every single detail about the Blazing Banquet!"
Endou stroked her chin, hesitating. "Wait, aren't there still some bodies that haven't awakened?"
Koyomi nodded. "Yeah, the location of No. 12's body is still unknown."
"Although…"
She remembered Vatler's earlier visit.
He'd come to the Lion King Organization to host the banquet. That meant—
"The Warlord probably already knows where No. 12's body is sleeping," she said with certainty.
Shirona curled her lip. "So in the end, we'll still have to deal with that old geezer, huh?"
Well, at least they had a lead now.
After hashing things out for a bit, the three finally remembered Yukina.
Shirona turned to her, a little hesitant. "Yukina… what's going on with you now?"
She wanted to ask why Yukina had suddenly gotten so much stronger… And also, what the heck was going on with the Snowdrift Wolf?
Yukina hesitated briefly, then apologized. "Sorry… I'll need to check with Lord Lynn first."
Shirona paused, then gave a complicated smile. "Yeah…"
— — —
Soul Society.
After getting Yukina's message, Lynn replied casually, "Go ahead."
Might as well let them see some of the perks of joining his familia.
Once he responded, Lynn watched Kikyo, Miko and the others moving around Hueco Mundo just for a bit.
There was something he had to take care of.
...
"Hell, huh?"
Urahara raised an eyebrow at the request of Lynn. But still activated the device that opened Hell's gate.
Whoosh—
As the portal to Hell opened, a chilling, sinister air rushed out.
Seeing the entrance to Hell, Lynn quietly nodded to himself.
Ever since arriving in the Bleach world, he'd been faintly feeling a strange pull—like something was calling to him.
And he knew exactly where it was coming from.
Hell.
Was it because of his identity as ["Enma"]?
He had his suspicions.
Without hesitation, Lynn stepped through the gate.
Yoruichi transformed into her black cat form and leapt into his arms. "Since you've just arrived in this world, allow me to be your guide, Lord Lynn."
She was curious what he wanted in Hell.
Urahara: "???"
A guide?
If it were Soul Society, sure—Yoruichi was a solid guide.
But Hell?
Even he had barely set foot in that place, and Yoruichi definitely hadn't.
Lynn glanced down at her but said nothing. He simply walked straight into Hell.
---
The moment he entered—
A white light burst into view, so bright it stung the eyes.
Clink, clink—
The crisp sound of metal chains echoed, growing louder and louder.
Yoruichi blinked hard, her vision finally clearing.
Then— They saw a white-tiled space filled with chained figures.
These figures stood silently atop the blocks, dull-eyed but all staring right at Lynn.
"…Who are they?" Yoruichi's eyes narrowed.
"Damned souls," Lynn replied.
His eyes swept over them—no real power among them.
He took a step forward, ready to head deeper into Hell.
But then— The damned souls suddenly moved.
Yoruichi tensed up, expecting an ambush.
But!
Instead of attacking, one by one, they knelt?
As if—
As if they were worshiping their king?
Yoruichi blinked in surprise.
Lynn paused, intrigued by the unexpected reaction.
And at that moment— A wave of information poured into his mind.
A few seconds later, Lynn's eyes glinted with understanding.
"…So that's what this is."
His gaze deepened.
Because of his identity as "Enma," Hell had acknowledged him.
That's why all this was happening.
Lynn hadn't expected his Enma status to have any effect across worlds, but looks like it does.
Hell had noticed him—because he was Enma (God of Hell).
Lynn chuckled softly.
So Hell wanted him to work for free?
The consciousness of Hell really thought it could play him like that, huh?
But Lynn hadn't come here for recognition.
He was here for Hell's sovereignty.
He ignored the kneeling damned souls and continued walking deeper.
First layer.
Second layer.
All the way to the fourth layer.
On the way down, he and Yoruichi passed by increasingly bizarre damned souls.
The deeper they went, the more distinct and grotesque the souls became.
There were also massive skeletal jailers guarding Hell.
But every one of them knelt when they saw Lynn, as if welcoming their king's return.
Lynn knew better though.
This was all just a show put on by Hell's will.
He smirked. "You're that desperate to get me to work for you?"
Suddenly—
BOOM!
A deafening explosion drew his attention.
Lynn halted, turning toward the source of the sound.
Soon after— a black-clad figure came flying straight toward him!
The trajectory was headed right for Lynn.
With a wave of his hand, using [Gravity Devil]'s powers—
The flying figure stopped midair—then dropped like a rock!
BAM!
Slammed straight into the white-tiled floor!
And right after, a petite figure in a Shihakushō approached from afar.
"Oh?"
She spotted Lynn and looked surprised.
Then grinned widely and said:
"Ha! This boring-ass Hell actually got two interesting newcomers today!"
.
.
.