Facing Shiomi's declaration, Oberon gritted his teeth and let out a strained laugh.
"Seal me? If you do that, you'll never escape this place."
"The interior of the insect, this so-called 'Abyss,' is actually a conceptual space. If we kill you now, this conceptual space will collapse immediately, cutting us off from the outside world entirely." Shiomi's grip tightened.
Something scorching pressed against Oberon's neck. Even without seeing it, he knew exactly what it was.
When Shiomi had seized him, he had already inscribed the Runes required to execute the seal.
"Concepts must be fought with concepts," Shiomi said, calm and steady. "Since this place is a conceptual space, we'll break the existing concept and create an exit—"
Then he suddenly turned toward Artoria.
"So I'll need to trouble you again. Prepare to release your Noble Phantasm's True Name, but aim it upward. The light of the Holy Sword is the most lethal poison to the Insect of the Abyss."
"Leave it to me." Artoria turned her gaze straight up above the deck, gathering mana.
Scáthach stepped beside Shiomi to assist in the ritual.
Primordial Rune IV — the Rune of Liberation.
Its fundamental purpose was the effortless severing and dispelling of restraints and bindings placed upon a target.
But Primordial Runes were the foundation of Magecraft discovered by Odin himself—the ultimate wisdom gained after sacrificing one of his own eyes and enduring nine days and nights of tribulation.
Whether one could exceed the basics, interfere with conceptual structure, and draw out the true potential of the Runes depended entirely on the caster's ability and talent.
"Then let's begin the sealing." Shiomi looked at Oberon, a cool, composed smile on his face.
"Your greatest mistake wasn't exposing yourself to my sight too early, nor appearing before us after assuming victory… but revealing your true nature so casually."
The Insect of the Abyss was vast enough to swallow all of Britannia, yet its body existed between reality and illusion. Attacking it directly couldn't inflict meaningful damage.
But once Oberon appeared here and revealed that he was both body and avatar, the conclusion was already set.
Oberon became the perfect catalyst for Shiomi to unravel the Insect of the Abyss and enact his plan.
"Spring's astonishment, summer's strife, autumn's celebration, winter's war. The false island formed by countless deaths and corpses, and the Insect of the Abyss that devours its foundation—
In the name of the God-King, acting as the Demon King, I impose the seal once more. Endless caverns, close now. Open the road—'The Great Seal'!"
The moment the Insect of the Abyss finished its devouring, its interior sealed shut, forming an inescapable abyss of eternal descent.
This conceptual space itself existed as a "sealed" world.
Therefore, what needed to be done was the opposite—to open it.
Light burst from beneath Shiomi's hand still gripping Oberon's throat.
Shiomi released him, and additional Rune characters surfaced, spreading and coiling around the Fairy King's neck.
Freed from the physical restraint, Oberon still found he couldn't move.
"Don't worry. When I said you'd pay the price, I meant you'd become part of the seal on the 'Abyss'." Shiomi suddenly lost all strength and collapsed onto the deck. "The Insect of the Abyss is to the planet's surface what a drain hole is to a sink. Since you pulled out the plug… it's only fair you take responsibility and serve as the plug yourself."
Shiomi could never handle the soul of a being like Oberon. That would require a sacrifice on the level of Odin's own offering.
Shiomi's rank was far too low to offer such a soul.
"Not killing me and choosing to do this instead? You'll regret it!" Oberon glared furiously, watching as Scáthach helped Shiomi back up.
Shiomi stared back coldly. "Everything exists for a reason. As both a destruction device and the Insect of the Abyss itself, I wouldn't dare erase you lightly. No one knows what would happen to an already-bleached planet if you were removed completely."
So instead of annihilation, Shiomi chose sealing.
"Go ahead and curse me if you want, but I'm pretty good at dealing with curses. I hope yours is stronger than Cernunnos's." Shiomi waved casually in farewell.
Oberon clamped his mouth shut. Unable to stop the seal from completing, all he could do was glare at Shiomi with burning hatred.
"It's your victory. Take it and be satisfied, you shitty bastard king."
The retort was so vulgar that Shiomi froze for a moment. He exchanged a confused look with Scáthach, and the two let out baffled laughs.
Just then, a transmission came through from the bridge.
"Descent rate is slowing. The ship will now activate full engines to ascend out of the Insect of the Abyss! Master and the others, return to the bridge immediately!"
Olga Marie's voice rang from the communicator.
"No. Just doing that won't get us out even if we kept flying forever. There's no exit or entrance here…" Shiomi pulled his gaze away from Oberon. "But the Insect of the Abyss is being sealed now, its activity is stopping. So—"
Artoria lowered her stance, looking up into the endless darkness above. She released the Holy Sword's fully charged magical energy in one brilliant blast.
"Become a path of starlight—Excalibur!!!"
A dazzling light pierced the heavy darkness, like a firefly thrown into a black hole, flashing once before vanishing. As Artoria dropped to one knee, drained of mana and trembling with fatigue, unease flickered through her—had the strike failed?
But then, the darkness of the Abyss lit up. First a single point, then expanding, widening. Beyond the spreading light, a twilight-colored sky came into view.
Melusine and Barghest, just waking from unconsciousness, were immediately blinded by the radiance and couldn't open their eyes.
"Normal space boundary confirmed. Estimated distance from Storm Border: approximately 1000! Return to the bridge immediately—we're initiating escape!"
Barghest quickly helped Artoria stand, while Melusine followed behind Shiomi and Scáthach as they headed for the bridge.
"Get lost already. I'm going to sleep," came Oberon's deep, echoing voice. "Go ahead and save your planet or human history or whatever. But listen carefully—if you fail or get erased, this seal will break. And next time, the Insect of the Abyss will swallow the entire planet without hesitation."
Shiomi heard him but didn't look back. He only replied quietly:
"Then watch closely. We'll save both the planet and human history."