A subtle spatial ripple emerged once more.
Zeidritz and his group reappeared before the castle gates at the city's heart.
Unlike the chaotic scene they'd left, the castle entrance now stood flanked by rows of tall, robust Quincy Reishi soldiers in crisp white uniforms.
Their blades and spears gleamed like frost, a silent forest of steel.
The square military formation filled the flattened manor grounds, motionless as stakes, not a sound escaping.
"You've returned, Zeidritz."
A familiar voice called from the castle wall, carrying a hint of relief.
Zeidritz's Hirenkyaku flickered, and he appeared behind Yhwach, dropping to one knee.
"By Your Majesty's command."
But the moment he spoke, Zeidritz sensed something different about the Emperor of the Lichtreich.
Having walked the Living World for over two centuries, Yhwach had created the Quincy, becoming the sole "true god" among mortals. To Zeidritz and all others, he was divine, granting them power and salvation.
Yet, an all-knowing, all-powerful god was often beyond mortal comprehension.
Normally, Yhwach would have seen the outcome and skipped questions, moving swiftly to the next matter.
But today…
A daring, blasphemous thought flashed through Zeidritz's mind.
The collapse of any idol begins with its first crack.
The notion vanished as quickly as it came, banished from his mind, not daring to linger.
How could he presume to question Yhwach's omniscience?
But his silence didn't mean Yhwach hadn't noticed.
"As you suspected." Yhwach said, his voice calm, leaving no room for reaction. "I've lost my omniscience, Zeidritz."
Atop the castle wall, only the two stood.
In this solitude, Yhwach's expression seemed to ease, as if freed from a long nightmare.
But Zeidritz, hearing those words, held his breath, as if a single glance would spell his doom.
"Majesty!" He gasped. "You will forever be our guiding beacon!"
A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
Forced to hear such words, he could only proclaim his loyalty with all his might.
But Yhwach seemed to have shed an invisible shackle.
He gazed quietly at the dark sky, feeling a rare sense of restraint.
Stripped of his so-called "omniscience." He could finally live like a mortal, no longer haunted by endless memories confirming his impending death.
Yhwach's life had been a battle against the "death" He faced from birth.
His existence was incomplete.
Blind, deaf, mute, immobile.
Only his ability to manipulate souls was extraordinary.
Those who touched him received a fragment of his soul, mending their own imperfections, becoming more perfect. When their brief lives ended, those fragments returned to Yhwach, carrying additional souls and knowledge.
His so-called [omniscience] stemmed from [ignorance and impotence].
All he was came from external sources.
Thus, Yhwach's understanding of death was profoundly real.
His birth was death itself.
From his malformed, abandoned infancy, forced to survive amidst winter and hunger, to his childhood, facing the era's greed, theft, and slaughter, struggling to endure.
As a youth, with rudimentary self-preservation and understanding, Yhwach began to embrace the ever-present concept of "death."
Until now.
Death had become his only choice.
His words to Zeidritz weren't a surrender of hope.
He knew the Lichtreich, built over two centuries, had lost its purpose.
But death varied in weight.
Some heavier than mountains, others lighter than feathers.
Yhwach now craved a grand stage.
And…
The seed of revival.
"Bambara." Yhwach called softly, standing still.
Zeidritz's back prickled with cold sweat.
Pop.
Behind them, a figure emerged from the air like a fleeting bubble.
Clad in layered, heavy robes, a full-face mask left only slits for eyes.
Schrift B, Bambara.
He knelt, his voice ethereal, as if from another realm. "Your Majesty."
Yhwach, back turned, asked, "The twenty-five seeds you were tasked to select, have they been chosen?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Good." Yhwach turned, approval in his eyes. "Lead the first wave."
"Take these twenty-five Sternritter candidates and three thousand Reishi soldiers to the Soul Society."
"Then, in the shadows behind the Soul Society, establish a grand logistics base for the Lichtreich."
"Any questions?"
Bambara remained in his drowsy, sunken state, his voice unwavering,
"None."
"Go."
As Yhwach's command fell, Bambara vanished like a phantom once more.
Zeidritz, still kneeling, trembled inwardly at His Majesty's orders.
A logistics base?
For decades, the Lichtreich's conquests had never required mundane supply points like mortal armies. His omniscient His Majesty always knew and controlled everything, crushing foes with unmatched might!
No enemy or nation had ever withstood Yhwach and his Quincy legions; they were invincible, swept aside like straw dogs. This was near gospel among the Quincy.
It was why Yhwach bore the name of a god.
But this time…
Zeidritz's mind raced.
Establishing a supply point in the shadows, leading twenty-five candidates, and forging it with three thousand elite Reishi soldiers.
This wasn't a supply point.
It was Yhwach's final lifeline for the Quincy after a doomed war!
Was the Soul Society truly that formidable?
The more he pondered, the more his heart churned.
Who wouldn't fear a war destined for defeat?
Especially one that could cost their lives and their kin.
"Zeidritz."
Yhwach gazed down, his expression as cold and regal as ever.
But, was it Zeidritz's imagination?, he glimpsed a faint, almost imperceptible warmth in His Majesty's eyes.
He thought he'd misseen.
Then Yhwach spoke slowly, "Use this time to leave behind your bloodline."
"Keep it pure."
With that, Yhwach said no more.
Fires already blazed in the city below.
Zeidritz remained half-kneeling, bowing deeply after a long pause,
"…Yes."
"Your Majesty."
As he departed, he didn't notice Yhwach lift his gaze to the night sky, starlight reflecting in his dark pupils.
His eyes, deep as his thoughts, stirred with the night breeze, his cloak swaying.
After a long silence, he murmured soundlessly,
"Is all this, my death and rebirth, within your grasp as well?"
"Father."
---
The war between Shinigami and Quincy erupted without warning in a small town recently ravaged by a massive Hollow.
Exhausted Shinigami, having just slain a Hollow far beyond their squad's strength at the cost of one dead and one gravely wounded, were caught off-guard.
A shimmering rain of light flared in the sky.
"Enemy attack!"
The squad's leading officer, a veteran of the Seireitei's battles, reacted swiftly.
But the cascading light-rain was faster, more precise than he'd imagined.
Swish! Swish! swish!
Fine Reishi arrows pierced the clouds, targeting each weary Shinigami, slicing through torsos, necks, and limbs.
In an instant, the six remaining squad members were annihilated.
Yet, the Quincy unit didn't pause. Leading their Reishi soldiers, they pressed toward a predetermined destination via Hirenkyaku.
It was their gateway to the Soul Society.
Concurrently, the Soul Society detected Reishi traces near West Rukongai's District 13.
The Kidō Corps stabilized the spatial barrier, and scores of Shinigami stood ready for orders.
Leading the first wave was Unohana's combat-specialized division.
Staring at the black Garganta entrance torn open by the Kidō Corps' spatial Kidō, Unohana sighed softly,
"If only Makoto-kun were by my side."
"Just watching his combat style brings such joy…"
"Hah?!"
Overhearing Unohana's murmur, Saitō stomped over, barking, "What, my fighting style doesn't spark your urge to challenge me?!"
Saitō craned her neck up at Unohana.
From the side, one could see her subtly tiptoeing to seem more imposing.
Unohana glanced at her, letting out a faint, dismissive "Heh."
Which only fueled Saitō's ire!
"Unohana?!"
Saitō bellowed.
But as their bickering flared, the Kidō Corps at the forefront sensed a Reishi surge from deep within the Garganta.
"They're here!"
Saitō and Unohana snapped their heads up in unison.
Since Makoto fully detailed his encounter with a so-called "Sternritter" and their bizarre abilities, every captain present had grown intrigued by the Quincy's powers.
They'd all witnessed how Tsunayashiro Shōgo, crudely wielding the Soul King's power, forced Yamamoto to unleash Bankai.
The world razed in that battle remained seared in their memories.
The Soul King's power, its footnote, was not to be underestimated.
Not even by these founding Gotei 13 captains!
After all…
Unohana gazed at the dark Garganta, her lips curling into a faint smile.
Such foes were a once-in-a-millennium rarity!
The moment the thought crossed her mind,
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh,
A piercing whistle of wind shrieked in their ears.
A flash of light streaked through their vision, plunging into the Shinigami encircling the Garganta, unleashing a crimson wave.
Simultaneously, a rasping, grating cry rang out,
"Speed!!!"
Boom!
A delayed explosion roared, revealing the figure that had charged into the crowd.
A gaunt, diminutive blonde figure, blades protruding from hands, knees, and forehead, his wrinkled face framing vivid blue eyes glinting with bloodlust.
Shinigami swept by his path were cleaved into pieces.
His five blades dripped with blood.
Schrift S, Sneck.
"Come on, come on."
"Let me taste Shinigami blood!"
His hoarse voice spat syllables, eyeing each person like prey.
Unohana observed his clownish provocation and the five fixed blades, her initial excitement fading to indifference.
"It's yours."
"Don't order me around, you jerk!"
Despite her words, Saitō stepped forward earnestly, treading carelessly through the pooling blood.
The girl's tongue flicked out, tracing her lips with a wicked air, savoring the faint metallic tang in the air, unapologetic,
"Trash like you? I'll finish in a minute!"
Sneck's blades extended, his eyes bulging.
" Hee!!"
---
Five major battlegrounds between Shinigami and Quincy spanned the Soul Society, Living World, and Garganta.
Countless smaller skirmishes erupted.
Each major battlefield's entry was guarded by at least two captains.
Only the 1st, 4th, and 8th Divisions remained in the Seireitei.
In truth, for defense alone, Yamamoto would suffice.
The others were kept back due to Makoto's novel proposal.
"From my findings, the Soul King's power exists to eradicate Hollows."
"But in a cycle of mutual creation and destruction, Hollow power can counter it."
"To preserve more Shinigami lives, why not use Hollow power to craft poisons or weapons for Kidō infusion or Zanpakutō coating?"
Senjumaru echoed Makoto's request, glancing at the pair beside her. "You've got some nerve, kid."
Makoto and Katori stood nearby.
He replied solemnly, "This is serious business, approved by Captain Commander."
"Is it now?" Senjumaru smirked at "innocent" Katori, teasing, "I was about to say 'that' is ready."
"That?"
Katori glanced at him curiously.
Before she could ask, a tiny figure dashed past Senjumaru, trailing two fluttering long socks, zooming with speed fastest than light.
Senjumaru's brow twitched. "Kirio!!"
"Ahem! Senjumaru… war's the priority!"
Makoto turned away, feigning ignorance.
Katori eyed Senjumaru, then Makoto, her eyes tracing a subtle arc.
You sure have broad interests, Makoto-kun.
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
***
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