The sacred bird had just shown the sheer destructive power of its sand feathers.
The bombardment alone could rival anti-fortress Noble Phantasms—capable of leveling a castle or wiping out a mid-sized army.
The Great Cave had withstood the test of time for centuries, its structure validated countless times. Even with the occasional tremor or shifts in the mountain, the barrier's constant maintenance ensured there was never any real risk of collapse.
But this time was different.
The sustaining barrier had been breached. What erupted below was an unprecedented explosion.
Shiomi couldn't begin to imagine what would happen to the village above if the cave collapsed. Blackmore Village might be erased from the map entirely.
Maybe that was the fate destined for a ritual aimed at reviving King Arthur—but that didn't mean the villagers had to be buried with it.
At the very least... not all of them.
He activated the Primordial Runes, layering a fresh barrier over the damaged one surrounding the underground temple. The shockwaves from the bombardment were gradually restrained and contained, preventing them from affecting the mountain any further.
Maintaining the barrier, Shiomi looked up at Aesc in the sky.
Hermes' crimson sand feathers were intercepted one after another by small, azure magic spears—each intercept triggering an explosion.
The Great Cave was lit up like day, resembling a modern missile interception.
When the chain of blasts finally ended, scorched dust drifted slowly downward. Hermes let out a piercing shriek, like an enraged falcon.
Its trump card had been nullified, and that disruption threw off the calculations of the "Logos React." It needed more data—more analysis—to figure out how to break through Aesc's defenses and bring her down.
The sacred bird spread its wings wide. Each beat stirred a gale. Screeching like a released arrow, it shot straight toward Aesc.
The barrage of blue projectiles struck its body and exploded—but none of them slowed it down.
"So you've already gauged the strength of my attacks from our earlier exchange?" Aesc moved with casual ease, dodging the charge at the last moment like someone sidestepping a passerby.
The hard clash between the bird's wings and the magic spear in her hand sparked violently.
She couldn't afford even a moment's carelessness.
As one of the Seven Great Weapons of the Atlas Institute, the sacred bird—incarnation of the "Logos React"—was a living weapon.
Its wings were blades. Its talons, crushing pincers. Its feathers, anti-fortress Noble Phantasms.
"Then how about this?" Aesc flicked her hand.
From a vortex in the void emerged a pale-blue spiral spear. Unable to halt its charge, the sacred bird collided head-on with the newly summoned weapon.
A dense cloud of dust engulfed its form.
Aesc hovered just beneath the Great Cave's ceiling, watching the scene unfold from above.
If that was all it took, then perhaps the Seven Great Weapons of the Atlas Institute weren't so impressive after all.
The next instant, the sacred bird burst from the cloud, wings spread as if to soar into the heavens—if only this weren't underground.
Though it looked unharmed, the intense surge of mana radiating from it betrayed the truth.
Aesc's strike had dealt it heavy damage—enough to nearly bring it crashing down.
But regeneration was also part of the "Logos React." A weapon born of death understood instinctively—Aesc was its death.
So it ramped up its output, drawing on even more mana to face her.
Its feathers—formed of crimson sand—began to grow wildly. In the blink of an eye, the once majestic bird transformed into a monstrous beast, its body bristling with grotesque feathers and vicious talons.
Its color darkened like fresh blood, reeking of death.
"No good." Shiomi leaned on his red spear, using it as a staff. While continuing to supply mana to Aesc, he reinforced the barrier anchoring the structure of the underground temple.
A flicker of regret crossed his mind—if only he could deploy a Reality Marble like the King of Conquerors' second Noble Phantasm, he wouldn't need to exhaust himself maintaining the battlefield. He could be up there, fighting alongside Aesc.
He shook his head, brushing off the thought. He already had more than enough power. Wanting even more felt greedy.
Then he looked up and nodded toward Aesc in the distance. He knew she'd see it.
Fight without hesitation. Don't worry about anything else.
"Well, since my husband says so..." Aesc's eyes flashed sharply as she fixed her gaze on the now grotesque form of the Bird of Hermes. "Then I won't hold back anymore."
She opened her palm, and from afar, it was as if she cradled the sacred bird in her hand.
As a weapon forged of pure logic, the "Logos React" felt no offense. It simply raised its head and let out a long, piercing cry.
Sensing danger, it suddenly beat its wings and began to spiral upward around Aesc.
Darkness reclaimed the cavern as it rose. From the shadows, countless mana-forged chains burst forth, weaving together behind the bird.
The chains flew faster and faster, gradually grazing its tail feathers.
The sacred bird twisted and spun midair, dodging the tightening web. The pale blue chains that missed dissolved as they hit the ground.
In less than ten seconds, the sacred bird had ascended to Aesc's position. But its beak, talons, even its wings—none could reach her.
It had finally closed the distance, but so had Aesc's chains.
The Bird of Hermes flared with blinding light. It was preparing to unleash a point-blank bombardment.
"...Boundary record tape... eliminate..." came a mechanical voice from within.
But Aesc had already stepped back—vanishing into the shadows.
"Brace for a Noble Phantasm impact, El-Melloi II! Gray!" Shiomi shouted from beneath the temple.
Reflexively, El-Melloi II pulled Gray down, both of them taking cover atop the shrine roof.
Aesc stood between them and the threat.
The sacred bird twisted its body with everything it had. Radiant light began to envelop it—like a sun burning for eons.
Gray forced her head up and caught sight of Aesc.
Or rather—Morgan le Fay.
She held a weapon that was both a magic spear and a staff, raising her hand with grace, palm open toward the sacred bird blazing with limitless light.
As that light reached its zenith, crimson sand feathers saturated with tremendous mana rained down from the ceiling, aiming to consume the temple and everything within its reach.
"Fall—Roadless Camelot: The Utopia No Longer Within Reach!"
A massive magic spear erupted into view, enclosing the sacred bird. Its burst of mana surpassed even the bird's, slowly consuming the crimson light.
And in the end, only one hue remained in the vast underground cavern.
That overwhelming light devoured the Bird of Hermes, erasing both it and the replicated spirit of King Arthur completely from this world.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon.com/PinkSnake