Hello I'm back, thy leg is healed but I don't have molars anymore.
===BREAK===
"…I see."
Only then did it start to make sense.
Why Isabel had known to come here, and why her ether felt so similar to Lania's.
"The Great Will, huh."
Isabel didn't answer.
Instead, she simply began to seize control of the surrounding ether, solidifying her domain.
[Kkik, kkigigik───!]
[Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation. Liberation.]
[Let me… out.]
To display this level of etheric dominance here, within the direct influence of the Great Will—what could it mean?
Although commonly referred to as a singular entity, the Great Will is, in essence, a collective consciousness made up of countless etheric fragments.
A kind of swarm consciousness.
So, while it demonstrates overwhelming force through the unified will of the ether trapped within Mount Noah, not all the ether comprising the Great Will shares the same mind.
In other words, thousands or tens of thousands of separate thoughts may coexist within the Great Will at once.
If Lania could be considered a hardliner within that swarm, Isabel could be seen as a moderate.
In truth, while Lania and Isabel may pursue the same ultimate goal, their methods differ slightly.
"You're…"
Lania looked at Isabel as well.
The eyes of the woman once called Destruction trembled violently.
That moment of suspicion had turned into certainty.
"No need for long words, right?"
"…I suppose not."
It seemed both Isabel and Lania already knew of each other's existence—there was no need for further conversation.
In that strange silence, I spoke.
"Will you be okay?"
"Not like we've got any other choice, right?"
She was right.
If I didn't head for the Ark immediately, its destruction would be inevitable.
That, above all else, had to be prevented.
"Understood. I'll leave it to you."
I spread Wings of Ankelenth.
There was truly no time left now.
["…Don't die, Commander."]
Even Esther, who had earlier insisted on finding Isabel, now spoke calmly—because she understood.
Everyone here was holding themselves back.
It had to be that way.
"Don't worry. You think I'd die and leave our baby all alone?"
["I'm the older one."]
"Looking like that?"
["Why you—!"]
Watching Esther fume, Isabel chuckled like she found it adorable.
It was a moment that didn't suit the current situation—but precisely because of that, it was all the more precious.
"Well then…"
Unfortunately, that moment couldn't last.
The sands of the doomsday hourglass were already running out.
And this was the limit of what leisure we could afford.
It was time to go.
"Both of you."
I looked once each at Lania and Isabel, wings ready to take off.
"Don't die."
That was all I could say to them.
I didn't want either of them to die.
Even more so, I didn't want to see them kill each other.
"..."
Neither Lania nor Isabel responded.
Because to answer here would be akin to declaring they wouldn't kill the other.
Still, I trusted them.
I believed they wouldn't do it.
I hoped so.
* * *
As expected, leaving the area wasn't too difficult.
The etheric veil that had blocked me vanished briefly the moment Isabel appeared.
And the reason Lania didn't try to stop me as I left was undoubtedly Isabel's presence.
["…Will it be okay?"]
"I'd like to say yes… but we'll have to trust them."
Isabel and Lania.
The Commander of the Shadow Order—Ark's own darkness—and the second-in-command of the Kronos Union, Ark's ancient enemy.
Both were high-ranking figures in the world of The Defense and carried immense strength.
If this had been the very beginning or end of a stage, maybe I could've predicted who would win.
But the timing now was far too uncertain.
Especially now that Isabel had been chosen by the Great Will.
["If anything happens to the Commander… I can't go on."]
"That won't happen."
Even I wasn't certain, but I said it anyway, to comfort Esther.
And perhaps also to reassure myself.
"Let's go."
No sooner had I taken to the skies than the Ark's upper airspace came into view.
Through the split volcanic ash, flames rained down endlessly, and massive shadows flickered between the clouds.
It was a sight grim enough to conjure the image of the end.
'…No—perhaps it's already begun.'
The end is coming.
Or maybe, it already has.
* * *
Fsst, fsst…
Major Arden—Red Line's special operations strike officer and a member of Möbius—looked again at the dimmed R-1 Plasma Sword, now drained of energy.
How many weapons had he exhausted by now?
Though they had durability issues, the raw power of the R-1 made carrying multiple units a given for missions like this.
He had thought he was well-prepared, yet now all that remained was the R-3 Plasma Sword he'd saved for a final clash with a regional ruler.
'…This is the end, isn't it.'
Despite how little equipment remained, Arden's team hadn't even reached their primary target—the regional lords.
They were close.
But then the Bone Domain that had barely held the line vanished, and everything changed.
"What's our status?"
At Arden's question, the team's comms officer replied.
["Friendly forces are currently engaging the beast horde and the Church of Morte."]
"…I see."
["Casualties are mounting due to Morte's interference."]
"Understood. We'll assist."
The "friendly forces" referred to the other special operations teams from various Lines.
From Red to Rose, every strike force had been deployed to the front.
That meant Ark had risked losing its most elite units all at once.
Given the risk, they had to eliminate the regional lords.
But those lords, buried deep within the beast horde, weren't easy to get to.
And that wasn't the only issue.
Followers of the Church of Morte's—lurking near the regional lords—had made it all the harder.
Their infamy was well-known inside and outside Ark.
Especially to strike team members who had seen the horrors of the Church of Morte firsthand.
They knew just how relentless, obsessive, and horrifying they were.
"Great Will, help us…"
"Open fire!"
In a direct firefight, not even Morte could withstand the elite strike teams from all Lines.
But the Church of Morte excelled in guerrilla warfare.
Even these elites couldn't face the beast horde and Morte at once.
'And then there's the Kronos Union…'
While Kronos hadn't defended the regional lords, they had attacked Ark directly.
But if they ever changed strategies and chose to defend the lords?
The mission would fail—and worst case, end in total annihilation.
'Just a little further…!'
Amid the chaos, Arden's Red Line team finally reached one of the lords: the God of the Overflowing Rivers.
It was sluggish on land but still a formidable regional ruler.
"Everyone, target the God of the Overflowing Rivers!"
["Understood."]
The Red Line team moved into action.
They had lost much to get here, but they would complete their mission.
Ziiing───!
Under Arden's lead, their various plasma swords ignited.
"Take your positions!"
Their tactic was simple.
Team draws attention—Arden goes for the kill.
Simple, yes, but very effective.
[Kieeeeeeee!]
The beast shrieked as the R-1 Plasma Swords tore into its hide.
Had this been near water, such wounds wouldn't have come so easily—but on land, it was vulnerable.
Sshhk!
Chaaargh!
While his team distracted the monster, Arden reached its head with his mobility gear and drew his reserved R-3 Plasma Sword.
Vreeeeeeen!
As it slashed down, its neck split and blood spurted.
Not fatal—but that had never been the plan.
'More, more, more…!'
Arden gritted his teeth and kept striking.
He even threw in a few grenades for good measure.
Kwang!
KwakwaKwang!
Even for a regional ruler, internal grenades were not something it could endure easily.
[Kaaaaargh!]
At this rate, they might just kill it.
But Arden had missed one crucial thing.
That the entire battlefield was under the control of the Great Will's ether.
[Rain…]
Why is the Great Will called a god?
To prove it—its ether began to stir.
Drip, drip drip…
Raindrops began falling from the sky.
Though laced with Mount Noah's ash—it was undeniably rain.
A force capable of changing even the weather.
If that's not divine power, what is?
[Kiiiiii...]
As the humidity shifted, the God of the Overflowing Rivers changed.
Cracked skin turned moist and whole. Fire attacks became ineffective.
"…Fall back!"
Realizing it instantly, Arden ordered a retreat.
They would be wiped out otherwise.
But—
["Forces of the Church of Morte are appearing in the rear!"]
["Friendly forces are now isolated!"]
["We need support immediately!"]
Then came the worst news of all—
["A bishop has been identified among them!"]
A Church of Morte bishop.
A name that struck terror into even the elite strike teams.
One had now appeared behind them…
'…This is the end.'
Even Arden—who had not wavered before a regional ruler—now felt despair.
Before them: the God of the Overflowing Rivers.
Behind them: a bishop of the Church of Morte.
Surrounded on all sides by beasts and Monsters.
Could they survive this?
The answer was obvious.
"…All units, regroup and fall back."
["We can't! If we do, you'll be left behind!"]
"It's already too late."
In Arden's eyes, he saw the beast approaching.
Massive. Inhuman. Bearing down to crush him.
"This won't be easy."
He prepared to unleash the R-3's full output.
SHRAAAAK!────
Then, something tore through the sky and speared the beast straight through its snout.
[KIEEEEEEKK!]
The force of it embedded the thing into the monster's body.
Arden stared, dumbfounded.
"…A bone spear?"
A massive spear made of bone—thick enough to pierce a regional ruler.
"What in the…"
He slowly looked to the sky to find the source.
And saw it.
A colossal creature with wings and body made of bone, and atop it—a silhouette.
He knew what to call such a creature.
"…A Turncoat?"
But he didn't have time to dwell on the thought.
The Turncoat leapt from the bone beast—and from their body sprouted hundreds, thousands of bone leaves.
"What—"
Arden instinctively triggered a one-use plasma barrier generator.
A last-resort tool, only to be used in mortal danger.
But now was that moment.
Bloom.
Full Bloom.
A garden of bone erupted across the battlefield.
===BREAK===
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