At the critical instant, Bernadette swiftly drew a delicate jewellery box from the void, raising it to block the execution strike—the Box of the Great Old Ones!
With a sharp clang, the Box of the Great Old Ones absorbed most of the deadly force, yet a remaining fraction still tore into Bernadette. A terrifying rending force split straight through the point between her right shoulder and the side of her head, leaving a horrifying fissure across her body.
Bernadette's complexion instantly turned paper-white. Beads of sweat the size of peas rolled down her forehead. She clenched her teeth and, relying purely on her tenacious will, forcefully used her spirituality to keep her body from being ripped cleanly in two.
But before she could even catch her breath, William Augustus I's follow-up attacks descended like a storm—clearly, He intended to seize this opportunity to kill her outright!
Enduring the excruciating agony of her soul being torn apart, she mustered every ounce of strength she had left and forced open the first layer of the Box of the Great Old Ones.
The moment William Augustus I's next strike arrived, a finger-sized figure shot out from within the box. In the blink of an eye it expanded, reshaping itself into a man with a broad forehead, dressed in a black classical robe and a pointed soft hat of the same colour, a monocle perched over his right eye.
"Wow! Is this how you welcome me the moment I come out?"
Amon's lips curved upward in a playful smile. He reached toward the oncoming strike several times, casually snatching the force apart, then flung it back toward William Augustus I as though tossing aside useless trash.
William Augustus I twisted aside in haste to avoid Amon's redirected attack, then came to a stop, His expression sinking.
"Amon?"
Though both were Sequence 1, He understood full well the gap between Himself and Amon—greater even than that between George III and the Black Emperor. To fight Amon head-on would be nothing short of suicide.
If Amon truly stood as Bernadette's ally, His only option was immediate retreat.
Amon's gaze swept back and forth between the two of them. Suddenly, He chuckled. "Oh, so you're the one being hunted down. That saves me the trouble."
He took a small step back and said to William Augustus I, "Please continue. I actually have a grudge against this woman myself."
Drip, Drip——
Bright red blood streamed continuously from Bernadette's torn flesh, dripping onto the ground and blooming into startling scarlet flowers.
She stared coldly at Amon and William Augustus I, her gaze turning resolute. Her fingers tightened around the third layer of the Box of the Great Old Ones, slowly opening the faintest crack.
Almost instantly, Amon's eyes flew wide.
"Shit—dead, dead, we're all dead!"
As He spoke, He vanished with a single theft of distance.
William Augustus I's brows twitched slightly, a hint of wariness flashing in His eyes. He sensed with precision that what lurked behind the box's third layer was a corruptive power from the deepest reaches of the cosmos.
Terrifying though it was, neither He nor Amon should have needed to fear it this much—not with their level of strength. They should have had ample time to flee the moment the third layer opened.
"Then I must not allow her to open it!"
Electric light flashed through William Augustus I's gaze. A psychic lancet shot out like a razor-sharp arrow, penetrating Bernadette's spirit body in an instant and stabbing straight into her Sea of Consciousness.
The surge of agony crashed over Bernadette like a violent tide. Her fingers holding the box tightened involuntarily for a split second—then froze. Immediately after, William Augustus I whipped down another Whip of Pain, and the spiritual torment tore through her entire being, forcing her fingers to release.
The Box of the Great Old Ones fell to the ground with a harsh clang.
William Augustus I launched another execution at once, His body turning into a streak of black lightning aimed straight at Bernadette.
With a crisp snap, Bernadette's body shattered into countless fragments of glass. Her true body had already slipped away through a teleportation jump—courtesy of a sealed artifact of the Demoness pathway that Lilith had given her.
She reached into the void again, attempting to retrieve the golden magic lamp. But William Augustus I reacted with startling speed. He suddenly drew a silver épée and slashed toward her with blinding swiftness.
Space split open in an instant, sealing Bernadette within an isolated pocket. Then He intoned softly:
"Mystery weakens here, reality strengthens."
The moment His words fell, Bernadette's movement to retrieve the lamp was forcibly interrupted.
William Augustus I charged into the isolated space without hesitation. His right fist drew back, then came hurtling forward toward Bernadette's skull with a roar of wind.
With mystery suppressed, the strengths of the Arbiter pathway in close-quarters combat shone brilliantly—his fists became His deadliest weapons.
Facing this simple yet lethal punch, Bernadette could only retreat step after step until her back touched the boundary of the isolated space—no more room to evade.
Her training and instincts as a Melee Scholar told her there were more than a dozen ways she could counter this blow, yet her spirituality screamed a clear warning: Not a single one of them would work.
In a few seconds, her skull would be crushed by this punch. And with mystery suppressed, she would not even have time to enter a mythical state before dying completely.
A numb, hollow thought rose in her heart:
Am I going to die?
Will I really die here… just like this?
She had not seen her father, had not seen Mr. Sparrow—was she truly going to die here, in a place where no one would ever know?
Her consciousness rapidly blurred. In the haze, she vaguely saw a pair of indifferent, emotionless eyes appear within her fading vision.
At the same time, a strange force silently enveloped her—the gaze of the Hidden Sage.
Long ago, Bernadette had learned from Mr. Sparrow (the avatar) that she had already been targeted by the Hidden Sage before becoming a Mystery Pryer. Over the years, the Hidden Sage had repeatedly attempted to lure her into becoming His believer. Not only had Bernadette rejected Him time and time again, but she had even founded Element Dawn, an organisation meant specifically to oppose the Hidden Sage.
And now, in this moment when she was at her weakest, the Hidden Sage exploited the opening and slipped in.
Very quickly, that eerie force surrounding her flooded her mind with vast amounts of knowledge. In just an instant, she could clearly feel her aura swelling, expanding rapidly—enough to faintly show signs of breaking through William Augustus I's Prohibition.
Before her eyes, William Augustus I's attacking motion suddenly became unbearably slow, as though He had been trapped in a swamp despite standing only seven or eight meters away.
Bernadette immediately understood—the Hidden Sage was behind this! He was attempting to use her body as a vessel to forcibly descend.
A tremendous power continued to pour into her. If she turned and fought William Augustus I now, the outcome truly might not be certain anymore.
But once the Hidden Sage completed His descent, she would no longer be herself. Worse, this "evil god" would most likely use her body to unleash a catastrophic disaster upon the world.
Thus, Bernadette desperately resisted the torrent of knowledge and power pouring into her. Using that very force as a temporary leverage, she broke free from William Augustus I's Prohibition, reached into the void, and retrieved the Grade 0 Sealed Artifact The Pale Death.
She used the last of her remaining strength to place it over her face.
She intended to use the artifact's power to delay the Hidden Sage's descent—and then die under The Pale Death's negative effects.
Even if the Hidden Sage still managed to descend, the only vessel He would obtain would be a lifeless corpse.
"Damn you!!!"
A shrill roar of fury echoed through her mind. Filled with unwilling rage, the Hidden Sage's descent was forcibly halted.
The next second, all the power that had surged into her body was violently withdrawn, and William Augustus I's movements snapped back to normal.
The presence of death swept toward her once more.
Bernadette, however, looked on calmly, facing death without resistance.
One final thought passed through her mind, "Mr. Sparrow…I thought you would appear like the hero in a fairy tale—appearing at the most crucial moment to save my life."
But alas—
Bang!
A heavy thud rang in her ears. She stared blankly at the hand that suddenly appeared in front of her, blocking William Augustus I's fist. Slowly, she lifted her gaze toward the familiar face that had materialised beside her.
Her heart pounded violently—one beat, then another, then another—her eyes filled with utter disbelief.
In that instant, the long-renowned Queen Mystic could no longer control her emotions. Tears spilt from the corners of her eyes.
It was not Mr. Sparrow who had come.
It was Roselle.
"Dad?"
Bernadette stared dumbfounded at Roselle, who now stood before her in his youthful, vigorous form. She still could not bring herself to believe it.
All these years—she had braved countless dangers, endured countless hardships, done so many things, all for the sake of finding her father. She had risked her life to stop George III from becoming the Black Emperor, just to leave even a sliver of hope for her father's return.
And just as she had nearly given up all hope, he suddenly appeared before her without warning.
It was so incredible she wondered whether this was nothing more than a hallucination before death.
"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Daddy is back."
Roselle spoke gently as he carefully removed The Pale Death from her face. As he looked at the ghastly wound that split across her body, blazing fury ignited within his deep blue eyes.
With the slightest motion of his fingers, he twisted the rules and caused her wounds to mend. Then he whispered softly, "Wait here for Daddy."
Roselle lightly patted Bernadette on the head, then turned a cold gaze toward William Augustus I.
"!!!"
At this moment, William Augustus I finally understood—
Amon had not fled from the box that sealed the corruption of the stars.
He had fled from the man standing before him in black armour and a black crown.
Roselle Gustav, father of the Queen Mystic Bernadette, Emperor of Intis, and now a Sequence 0 deity—
The Black Emperor.
Though he could not comprehend why the long-dead Emperor Roselle had suddenly resurrected and even become the Black Emperor, William Augustus I knew one thing with absolute certainty:
George III had failed.
The instant this realisation surfaced, He turned to flee. He used every ability He possessed—Exile, Imprison, Prohibitions—desperately trying to restrict Roselle while slicing space into countless isolated segments in an attempt to impede him.
Roselle merely extended his hand and gently closed his fingers.
At once, Sequence 0–level distortion surged forth like an overwhelming tide. With no resistance at all, it distorted William Augustus I's thoughts and movements. His body jerked around, controlled by an invisible power, and he obediently ran straight back toward Roselle.
Roselle rotated his fingers lightly, and William Augustus I's body shattered like sun-dried clay. Flesh, skin, fur, and organs spilt to the ground, leaving only a bright-red skeleton standing in place.
The intense agony contorted the skeleton's jaw wide open, though no sound escaped. The two exposed eyeballs swelled grotesquely, bulging outward as they endured unimaginable suffering.
Yet he still did not give up. After all, any Sequence 1 Archangels—regardless of pathway—possessed extraordinary vitality and regenerative capability. Their physical bodies no longer defined their lives; their spirituality and souls were the true core of their existence.
Roselle raised his hand again and pressed down lightly.
With a sickening crunch, the bright-red skeleton was crushed into fragments. Then, with another twist of order and rules, a small balance scale shaped like a human arm was extracted from the pile—William Augustus I's Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristic.
In the next instant, the life force of the founder of the Loen Kingdom rapidly faded and vanished.
He was dead.
Roselle slowly turned back, his gaze returning to his daughter.
In that moment, his arms were suddenly filled—Bernadette had thrown herself into his embrace. Her arms clung tightly around him, as though she wished to fuse herself with her father.
"Daddy!!!"
———
[Note]: Don't forget to VOTE. It keeps me motivated.