A battle of enormous scale had erupted in the northeastern reaches of the Ion Continent.
The aftermath it produced was not the sort of thing that could be hidden.
Mountain peaks that had stood proudly for ages collapsed, valleys renowned for their beautiful scenery were buried, and nature itself—including the ecosystem—was destroyed beyond recognition.
Naturally, in this world where mysteries were far from rare, such phenomena were bound to be observed through various means even without the naked eye, and information about it flowed, as a matter of course, to the established powers stationed across the continent.
“Just in case, evacuate the nearby residents first!”
“Move, move! Observation team! Report the situation!”
“T-the scale of the energy is… The distortion of space is too severe to confirm!”
An unprecedented event that was enough to leave the leadership of every faction aghast.
It was an incident for which the phrase “natural disaster” came unbidden, yet unexpectedly, there were not many among the ruling class who were flustered by that fact.
That was only natural. They had already heard of it in advance from people they trusted.
That upon this land where they lived, the “apostle of an Outer God” summoned by the Immortal King had descended and was trying to destroy the world!
BOOOOM—!
And now, there was a group close to that very scene, where chaos was in full swing.
“I see. So that is why the High Lord spoke as he did. To think it possesses such power. A minion of an Outer God, is it…?”
“Ahem, Lady Briki. I do not believe this is the time to speak so lightly.”
“Ugh, this… If the High Lord had not bestowed his grace upon us, it would have been difficult to do anything at all.”
It was Hybrid’s most elite combat unit, which had moved swiftly under the orders of Heinz II.
As soon as they had adapted to the newly bestowed “Refined Blood Crystals,” they had rushed straight here, and now they were hiding a short distance away, watching the battlefield intently.
“The hero of the Church of the Chief God, the Fighting King of the southern barbarians, the high elf of the Elven Kingdom… Hmm, no matter how I look at it, she doesn’t seem like an ordinary high elf. The next Fairy King, perhaps? In any case, I had only heard of them, but they seem even more impressive than I expected. To be honest, even as I am now, I am not all that confident against them.”
“…Even so, is our High Lord not the strongest?”
“That is correct. When I received power this time, I became certain. Even if he were to fight the Immortal King head-on, he would never lose!”
“…Well, perhaps that may be true. The problem right now is that monster, who remains unfazed even by a joint assault from them, including that very High Lord.”
“……”
At Briki’s cool-headed judgment, the other vampires who had come with her quietly closed their mouths.
That was how oppressive the majesty of that “apostle of an evil god from another world” was.
So much so that even they, whose loyalty was boiling over after the power-up they had just received, could not bring themselves to argue. ‘The black magic and death lingering around here… This is unmistakably the trace of the Immortal King. Judging by the hostile remnants, it seems they clashed once as well. Apparently, it wasn’t perfectly controlled.’ That was at least a fortunate fact.
If, on top of the already burdensome situation of dealing with the Immortal King alone, some sort of coordination between those two had still been alive, the problem would have grown several times worse than it was now. ‘Now that they have split apart, this is our chance. In that case… Ah?’ While Briki and the rest of Hybrid’s elites were busily barking up the wrong tree because of incorrect information…
There were people rapidly approaching the place where they were… no, the very center of the battlefield where an earth-shaking battle was underway.
A small number of figures, each wearing a resolute expression, pushed inward without hesitation.
“…They’ve come. The time has arrived. Then let us begin moving as well.”
The flow of the battlefield, which had been raging so violently, began to change.
***
“Kraaa—!”
A large, bizarre man rushed in, his monstrously developed mouth gaping wide.
At that, the expression of the Buncheon Society Leader crumpled as though he had seen something unsightly.
BOOOOM—!
A fleeting peace returned to his vision along with a tremendous explosion.
But because he knew even that would last only a moment, his expression did not improve in the slightest.
“Tch.”
He had no idea what sort of body it possessed, but that chimera’s flesh had an excessive resistance to every kind of hostile energy, including physical force and supernatural abilities, making it quite troublesome to deal with.
At an ordinary level, it was impossible to even hold it back for an instant, and even if he set his mind to it and shredded its entire body, it would recover in the blink of an eye as though it had never been injured and rush in once more.
In such a situation, how could he not be annoyed? ‘Furthermore…’ The troublesome one was not only that strange man, Harley, but the others with him were the same.
Heinrich, who wrapped himself in divine power, which held an advantage in affinity, like an aura and swung a holy sword wreathed in sacred flame.
Harris, who fired ceaseless sniper shots from somewhere beyond sight and poured down a baptism of natural force.
Heinz II, who popped out without warning every time he let his guard down for even a moment, trying to cut off not only his breathing rhythm but his very breath.
On top of that, the way all of them moved organically while complementing one another, as though they had been a single team for many long years, was enough to make him admire them despite himself.
Even though he himself was the very person directly suffering from that coordination. ‘And yet… now, on top of that.’ The problem was that they were no longer the only four he needed to pay attention to.
Swoosh—
Shwish—!
It began with numerous arrows and spells flying in from afar.
They were attacks of a different nature from the elven sniping that had been keeping the Buncheon Society Leader in check until now.
Needless to say, new figures had joined the battle.
“I’m sorry we’re late, Saint! Are you all right?”
“…The spatial coordinates nearby were too badly disrupted, so there was a limit to direct movement.”
“But this presence… Is that perhaps Sir Harris? How is someone who should be on the Enamel Continent here…?”
Top-class powerhouses of the continent had been added to the fray: Saintess Riesta, Archmage I Se-a, and the high elf Lydia.
“Hoho, living long really does let one see all kinds of things. I never imagined I would be doing something like this.”
“The Fangs of Hybrid have come under the High Lord’s command!”
“Please give us any order!”
The vampires, who had been waiting for the right timing to step forward, intervened at the perfect moment and volunteered to support them.
In particular, Briki, who as a vampire of sacred blood had received further reinforcement, was a considerable fighting force capable of acting independently, and she became a major variable in a situation that had stagnated as attacks and defenses repeated endlessly. ‘This is troublesome.’ The Buncheon Society Leader, who muttered that brief sentence inwardly, slowly swept his gaze over his surroundings.
Then he immediately finished assessing the situation objectively. ‘…First, I leave this place. Staying here and getting bogged down any longer would only be an inefficient waste of time.’ It would be troublesome if this one-against-many battle continued.
The most efficient tactic that a powerful few could use against many was, without question, guerrilla warfare.
Rather than remaining trapped inside the board they had prepared, as he was now, forcing skirmishes between small numbers was the best move to make use of his strengths.
But they would know that as well, so they would not lower their guard so easily. ‘Tch, it seems I got too greedy. I thought I could finish this quickly and leave.’ Who could have known that four powerhouses of that level would suddenly appear in succession?
Thinking back now, it was clear that Hahoe Mask had provoked him from the start with this situation in mind.
Tssssss—
Just as the tension gradually heightened.
The Buncheon Society Leader could tell that a subtle thread was circling around him, watching for an opportunity.
It moved like a venomous snake with its head raised, ready to lunge the moment he showed an opening.
“You intend to flee?”
At the same time, a chilling voice rang out softly.
It was the voice of the one who had made things quite difficult for the Buncheon Society Leader until now.
“Vampire.”
His proud eyes, turning slightly, met Heinz II’s cold gaze head-on.
Crackle—!
The Buncheon Society Leader had traveled through no small number of dimensions and seen countless vampires, but in truth, this was the first time he had faced a vampire of such high rank.
Even the Duke, a member of the personal guard directly under the Buncheon Society Leader, had not reached that level. ‘Well, comparing them in the first place is rude. More importantly, did he use causality to seal my escape route? This is becoming annoying.’ The Buncheon Society Leader, who had no way of knowing that the other party had devoured that very Duke and crossed the wall, did not think any deeper and considered a way out.
Perhaps because he had not long ago reached that realm, he did not yet seem able to bring out all of his potential, but despite that immaturity, the opponent was undoubtedly one who had attained a demigod-class rank.
No matter how superior the Buncheon Society Leader was in terms of realm, this was never an easy opponent to face while being opposed by the world itself.
If it were only that one vampire, he could somehow break through by force, but in a situation where he was being targeted by so many, even that was difficult in many ways.
Of course, it was not as though there were no other methods at all, but that was a method he could use only once, so it would be better to save it for a more decisive moment… ‘…No. On the contrary, this could be a good opportunity. No matter how I look at it, those gathered here are the ones at the summit of this world. Which means…’ Since they had come here to catch him, other important locations were left defenseless.
Moreover, it would likely take quite some time for them to return to their original positions. ‘Yes. Let’s simply finish this in one swift stroke.’ In the end, much earlier than he had expected, he took out that thing—his “down payment.”
Though fallen and imprisoned in the abyss.
It was a portion of the karma he had received through a transaction with a being who was also a rightful divinity of this world.
“……!”
The first to sense something was Heinz II, who had remained sharply attuned to the flow of causality from beginning to end, but the ones who moved in response were the four avatars connected as one, all at the same time.
“Where do you think you’re going!”
“Chief God, grant me the power to judge the heretic who disturbs this land!”
“Kahahaha! Come here!”
Whoooosh—!
Following Heinz’s guidance, the serpent of causality lunged at the Buncheon Society Leader. The radiance that burst explosively from Heinrich’s body stretched out like a beam. Harley’s body instantly broke through supersonic speed and pierced through space like a missile. The arrow Harris fired arrived in the blink of an eye and scattered an enormous amount of energy.
“Attack!”
“Ice Nova!”
“Tear him apart!”
And though they were a beat late, the others at the scene also poured out their attacks all at once in response to their urgent reactions.
They had not fully grasped the situation, but for the moment, they joined in by reading the mood.
Kwagwagwagwang—!
However.
“My, what a grand welcome.”
Attacks of that level were not enough to stop the Buncheon Society Leader, who had momentarily cast off the world’s restrictions through divine karma and expanded beyond his limits.
From a position some distance away, he let most of the attacks slide past, blocking the serpent of causality that followed him to the end along with a few other attacks, and exhaled in satisfaction.
The shackles that had bound his arms and legs snapped, and incomparable power spread through his limbs and every part of his body.
His gaze naturally turned toward those who had been annoying him, but… ‘I suppose I must endure for now. The duration is not very long.’ Bzzzz—
As a side effect, his mind rang once more and tinnitus surged in his ears, but by now, something of this level was nothing more than a familiar occurrence to him.
And around the time that pain slowly began to subside.
A set of coordinates scattered within his mind, fluttering in every direction. ‘For now, I prioritize the objective. It is essential to completing the contract as well.’ What he needed in order to accomplish what he desired after visiting this world.
And what his collaborator desired in order to come aboveground once again.
In the end, he put off punishment for later and began controlling space to create a passage.
Crackle—! Crack!
Despite everyone’s interference, including Heinz’s manipulation of causality, the spatial passage gradually neared completion.
Their resistance took a fair amount of time, but in the end, he was able to achieve what he wanted.
“Hoo, stubborn to the very end. Then I have urgent business, so I shall be going now. It was quite an enjoyable diversion.”
“Kuh, stop right there! You’re running—!”
But the Buncheon Society Leader, who let out a light sneer, did not listen to the rest and took a large step forward.
He crossed space.
To the place he had set as his destination.
To the center of the Ion Continent and its most sacred land, where the Holy Land was located.
***
When the interference operation to prevent the Buncheon Society Leader from creating a passage was in full swing.
His thoughts accelerated, and the self-awarenesses of the avatars exchanged information at high speed.
Identifying the passage’s destination… the South Gate of the Rosellia Grand Temple in the Holy Land.
Estimated arrival time of the target… 2 minutes and 23 seconds later. ‘As expected, it was a good thing I prepared in advance.’ Heinrich, using “Monarch’s Authority,” conveyed the agreed-upon intent to the cardinal.
And as a result.
The moment the Buncheon Society Leader arrived there, he was greeted by a grand welcoming ceremony.
“Activate the divine barrier!”
“In the name of the holy Chief God, we shall judge the heretic!”
Tens of thousands of holy warriors, over a thousand priests, hundreds of paladins, and dozens of high-ranking bishops.
Standing atop a massive divine array, they all recited prayers in unison.
To greet the enemy of the world.