What Kreutzwald was after was Hio’s body itself.
To make the divine authority slumbering within it his own, he had raised the vessel beyond a certain level, given him teachings, and waited.
Knowing this was why Hio stood against him.
Kreutzwald would not try to kill Hio with all his might.
He would try to minimize damage and keep him alive in an incapacitated state, or even if he killed him, he would try to secure an intact corpse.
That was why he could not retreat.
If he did nothing but dodge, he would only be driven further into a corner.
He had to strike back and draw out more of Kreutzwald’s power.
He had to move on the razor’s edge, as if he might be caught at any moment, and entice him into using ever greater strength.
So that even if he lost, he could die cleanly in a single blow.
So that he would be annihilated at once without leaving even the smallest remnant behind, and nothing would pass into Kreutzwald’s hands.
And so, even as the Bone Dragons lunged at him from three directions, he did not move.
He merely called.
「Skill—‘Dragon (龍) Summoning’ is activated.」
A single book, already lost in ancient times so distant that even records of it were faint.
A massive green book rose buoyantly into the air.
Ancient letters were clearly engraved upon its cover.
The Tome of Dragon (龍) Summoning.
「Summoning an Ancient Dragon.」
Its pages began to flip rapidly, one after another, until they came to an abrupt stop on a certain page.
It had answered the call.
「The Dragon of Green Shade (綠陰) and Windcraft (作風) answers the call.」
Not a false dragon, already dead and left with only a shell.
The last remaining true dragon was about to obey the contract.
From the “Tome of Dragon Summoning,” born as a skill effect, green light burst forth as though exploding, and when it reached its zenith—
The three Bone Dragons that had arrived at the same time swung their bare-fanged jaws, foreclaws, and tails.
Kwaaaaang—!
Though it was nothing more than a simple, brute-force physical collision, the impact and roar were enough to cause an explosion.
Shockwaves spread outward.
Hio had been at the center of such an impact, so it seemed impossible for even him to be unharmed.
「Ancient Dragon—Freya manifests.」
But the voice that came from within the smoke of the explosion was neither Hio’s nor Kreutzwald’s.
【You who cannot find rest even in death,】
It did not ring out loudly, yet it shook the soul.
It did not slash violently, yet it crushed with its majesty.
The wind did not blow so fiercely, yet it was a chilling, murderous gale.
【My unfortunate kin.】
The smoke cleared.
The Bone Dragons, frozen in midair as though fossilized, began to come into view.
If the Lord of the Abyss handled the abyss as though it were his own,
then the Dragon of Windcraft, who had guarded the world since ancient times, handled the wind as though it were her own body.
How, then, could Bone Dragons that were nothing more than empty husks stand against a true ancient dragon?
All the mana in the area surged.
With a single word, mana trembled, and the wind raised its body.
What manifested was the power of Dragon Speech.
The wind blew.
【Do not stand at the same height as the Wind Lord (風主).】
From the high heavens down to the distant earth,
as though the hand of a giant were pressing down.
As though they were being seized and dragged by something.
The lord of wind had not permitted them flight.
Kwaaaaang—!
The skeletal dragons of the past plummeted simultaneously and slammed into the ground.
【Have you forgotten even the oldest adage?】
Three Bone Dragons, each no smaller than Freya, fell all at once, and the resulting rumble spread outward.
Dust rose.
The dragon’s eyes looked down at it for a moment, then soon turned away.
Green pupils, slit vertically.
The gaze of a predator that placed all things in the world beneath its feet.
Yet the one meeting that gaze possessed eyes of an abyss, deep and deeper still, that could easily contain even that.
“How amusing.”
Kreutzwald’s grotesque expression curled into a grin without the slightest tension, even as he faced a dragon.
“I went to the trouble of arranging necromancy for you, but it seems you used it in the wrong place. Seeing as the dragon is still so intact.”
The eyes of the abyss swept over the dragon’s entire body.
As if he could see through every ounce of power contained within Freya.
“You should have used necromancy on the dragon. Then, through all manner of restraints, you should have made that power no different from your own. Or you should at least have thought of extinguishing the dragon’s soul and taking that body for yourself. That was why I left the necromancy behind.”
Freya’s and Hio’s eyes met briefly.
Freya, immediately understanding his intent, tried to pressure Kreutzwald with Dragon Speech, but—
“You are tender, dull, and clumsy.”
Kreutzwald was one step faster.
It was impossible to tell when he had moved, but his staff was already raised.
“As I thought, authority is a power far too great for you. My disciple.”
A pitch-black darkness appeared before anyone knew it.
An abyss deeper than the abyss itself.
Kreutzwald’s so-called will, devouring all things.
Without the slightest omen, it covered Freya’s head, wrapped around both wings, and sealed her mouth shut.
With that single move, the dragon fell.
Kreutzwald did not even spare the dragon a glance as he looked at Hio.
His mouth gleamed black.
Facing that abyss as it grinned at him, Hio too forced the corners of his lips upward.
At last, he had drawn out even Kreutzwald’s will.
“Shut up, you monster.”
His plan had half succeeded.
* * *
If the world were ending, would it look like this?
Kwaaaaaang—!
Would there be such noise, and would such light flash?
A black abyss and blue flames covered the entire sky, clashing endlessly.
And directly below, all kinds of skills that dazzled the eyes erupted together with thunder.
Thousands of monsters that had plunged all of Hibernia into despair were slammed into the ground at once with a single gesture.
And even as yet more monsters poured out from the stone coffins and began slaughtering the existing monsters, the two beings in the sky seemed not to care about any of it, continuing only their own battle.
Kwaaaaang—!
Lightning scattered, and space melted.
Their movements could not be followed by the eye, and with every collision, the air burst apart and the earth trembled.
The humans feared and revered such supernatural power, yet moved swiftly.
“There! They’re over there!”
“Move quickly!”
They reorganized their formations, gathered the wounded, and even found Claire and Hamelot, who had been far away, guiding them safely back.
Kwaaaaang—!
Even amid all that, the battle in the sky continued.
Thousands of monstrosities were rushing toward a single person, and hundreds of monsters were cutting them down without hesitation, standing in their way.
How could anyone doubt such a sight?
“Lady Ripue……”
How could anyone even think that a god was absent?
“It is the Apostle. The Apostle has risen again.”
“Goddess Ripue has sent down her Apostle for our sake.”
How could they not be awed?
The source of divinity, the spiritual pillar of all believers—the Sanctuary and Ripue’s main altar.
A miracle had appeared just before it collapsed.
“Ah…… Lady Ripue!”
The priests knelt and clasped their hands.
Some raised both arms high to the sky and spread them wide.
Even the commanders, who were at least trying to assess the situation coolly, could do nothing but look up at the sky.
How could they possibly intervene in that chaos?
What help could they possibly offer?
Like the kneeling priests, there was nothing they could do but pray.
Then, amid all of it, a shadow suddenly fell.
“O-over there……!”
Three Bone Dragons revealed themselves.
The worst monsters of a very distant legend, passed down only through records.
Against them, what the mage created was a single dazzling book.
And what happened when it opened wide was also—
【My unfortunate kin.】
—just like the legend.
【Do not stand at the same height as the Wind Lord (風主).】
Some absolute force, disguised as wind, blew from above to below.
The three Bone Dragons slammed into the ground at the same time.
Kwaaaaang—!
An impact like an entire fortress crashing down.
The earth screamed.
Clouds of dust rose.
Even so, the presence in the sky remained unchanged.
The overwhelming presence of three beings.
As everyone looked up at the sky, Hamelot turned his head and looked beside him.
At a woman whose face was haggard, yet who was more beautiful and radiant than anyone else.
She was staring endlessly only at her young teacher, who had always hidden his sorrow.
Even though she was surrounded by priests and receiving treatment.
Even though her condition was so poor, Claire wore an expression brighter than ever before.
The smile he had only ever imagined in his head until now.
The red firelight burning hotly in both her eyes.
* * *
He had drawn out Kreutzwald’s will.
That meant he was taking this seriously.
It meant he had judged that he could not subdue Hio with an appropriate amount of power.
So half of it had succeeded.
Even if he lost, Hio would be cleanly annihilated by that power, leaving not a single hair nor fragment of his soul behind.
Even if things did not go according to plan, there would be no chance of the divine authority passing to Kreutzwald.
And if he began using his power in earnest, then surely “that time” would come sooner.
“Kulkul.”
Kreutzwald’s voice, having drawn out a bizarre will that was strange even to call will, spread in an equally strange manner.
The voice itself spread like an abyss, shaking the mind.
Kreutzwald reached out his hand.
With that small movement, with a blow difficult to perceive, Freya began to plummet in an instant.
With the second strike, Kreutzwald’s will began to fill the abyss that covered the sky.
「Skill—‘Blue Flame (靑炎)’ is canceled.」
With the third strike, the sea of blue flames was swallowed by the abyssal sky.
In an instant, the whole world was engulfed in darkness.
The Blue Flame went out, and the abyss began to take hold of the world.
「Skill—‘Thunder Emperor (雷帝)’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Flare’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Explosion’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Wind Blade’ is activated.」
……
In that opening, Hio fired every skill he could use toward Kreutzwald, but—
「Skill—‘Flare’ is canceled.」
「Skill—‘Explosion’ is canceled.」
「Skill—‘Wind Blade’ is canceled.」
……
There was no difference.
They were greedily devoured by Kreutzwald’s will, which swallowed everything.
The dark abyssal will that had swallowed every skill swelled even larger as it approached Hio.
「Skill—‘Blink’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Blink’ is canceled.」
「Skill—‘Gravity’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Gravity’ is canceled.」
「Skill—‘Dark Dome’ is activated.」
「Skill—‘Dark Dome’ is canceled.」
……
Every skill, every method, failed to work.
Even if he imbued them with will, no matter how heavy the weight of his endurance, no matter the sense of responsibility, none of it worked within Kreutzwald’s black space, that infinite abyss.
Because he was not human, but the Lord of the Abyss.
Amid the dazzling skills that flashed and were canceled without pause, to the point that one could not even keep one’s eyes open, the abyss advanced silently.
Kreutzwald’s will.
In the end, it surrounded all the space around Hio.
Within infinite pitch-black darkness, as though inside the abyss itself, Hio faced Kreutzwald once more.
In the end, only the two of them remained again.
Was he feeling joy at this moment?
Or was even this an act?
Kreutzwald did not hide his delighted expression as he approached right in front of Hio.
“At last, this moment has come. It has been such a long wait.”
A hand slowly reached out.
「Skill—‘Blink’ is canceled……」
「Skill—‘Blink’ is canceled……」
「Skill—‘Blink’ is canceled……」
……
He struggled desperately, but the skill still would not work.
「It is determined that the summoned being of the skill ‘Dragon Summoning’ has become incapable of combat.」
「In accordance with the contract of the skill ‘Dragon Summoning,’ the Ancient Dragon ‘Freya’ is reverse-summoned.」
The dragon had been completely suppressed.
“Rejoice, Pavlenko.”
Kreutzwald’s hand drew close, right before his eyes.
“I shall finally become complete.”
A black abyss rippled upon it.
His mind felt as if it would be sucked into it.
And yet, even in such a moment—
“Haha……”
Hio was smiling.
Because he had found the omen.
The end of the world.
Because he could clearly feel some solemn law binding Kreutzwald.
“Go get thrown back into the abyss and reflect some more.”
Was it the power of a god?
Or someone’s sacrifice?
From the beginning, Kreutzwald had a body that could not leave the end of the world for more than a certain amount of time.
A shackle he himself had said he could not sever.
Was it some kind of punishment? Or was even this the price of black magic?
Was this suffering so terrible that he had struggled to obtain the power of a god?
He did not know.
“Congratulations, you bastard.”
Kreutzwald had already stopped, his expression still filled with ecstasy.
His outstretched palm remained frozen right in front of Hio, unable to move at all, and stayed that way for a while.
Then his form vanished like smoke with a whoosh.
The abyss that had received his will and become part of him, and the monstrosities transformed by his power, all disappeared without a trace in an instant.
* * *
In the sky from which the abyss had withdrawn, the midday sun still hung.
It had only been hidden by darkness deeper than light.
It had only been covered, and everyone had forgotten it.
In truth, it had still been shining upon them all from high above.
The abyss vanished, and the darkness cleared.
In the revealed sky, only one person floated alone.
The one who looked down over the earth with the sun at his back.
“Hio…… Pavlenko……”
The hero had returned.