"Ouch, ouch! Stop hitting me!"
Sampo wailed, thinking these past few days had already been bad enough. Who could've predicted an even bigger mess?
His entire body was bound with rope, used by Blake as a makeshift shield. Blake's other hand wasn't idle either, constantly conjuring disposable soaps and hurling them at the Voidranger constructs.
...
Rewind to not long ago. After Dan Heng finished interrogating Silver Wolf and saw nothing else was amiss, Sampo had just let out a sigh of relief when Blake stuffed him into a sack.
"Hey… you're not putting me in a sack!" Silver Wolf declared, defiant to the end, choosing death over dishonor!
"You're free to go."
Blake undid Silver Wolf's restraints, leaving her utterly baffled.
"Huh? You're really letting me go?"
"Miss Silver Wolf, [Eternity] does not lie. I look forward to our next meeting." Blake waved at her.
"Correction: I look forward to Miss Silver Wolf gracing the Church again. The Church's doors are always open to you."
With that, Blake tried to offer Silver Wolf a bar of soap, only to be rejected.
"Ha? Are you serious? You switch faces that fast?" Silver Wolf was stunned, but seeing Blake's sincere expression, she found herself at a loss for words. She even felt a twinge of pity for him.
As expected of an Emanator of [Eternity], subtly influencing her thoughts. Damn that Aeon of [Eternity].
Since this guy was here, Jarilo-VI was no place to linger. Time to slip away.
Dan Heng and Blake watched Silver Wolf leave. Sampo, still tied up in the sack, couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Brothers… that's a Stellaron Hunter! You just let her walk away?!"
For the first time, Sampo felt the sting of unequal treatment. Blake, the Church's head, was playing favorites!
Setting aside Silver Wolf's gaming buddy status with Adrian, was his bond with Adrian any less? Old Sampo had worked tirelessly, keeping Adrian's true identity a secret, and this was how Blake treated him? Heartbreaking, friend.
"What do you plan to do next?"
"Hmm~ Let me think… It's not every day we visit the frontier of the restricted zone. Though I'm an outsider, as the head of the Church, how can I visit a new planet without bringing back some souvenirs?"
"Brother Dan Heng, you wouldn't mind… helping me clear out some Voidranger beasts, would you?"
...
Stelle rubbed her eyes, but the scene before her didn't change. She turned to March 7th and pinched her arm.
"Ow! Why'd you pinch me?"
"Looks like it's not a dream…" Seeing such an absurd scene in reality only strengthened Stelle's resolve to join the Church of Eternity.
"Brother Dan Heng, shift a bit to the left. Haha! Fire in the hole!"
Blake hadn't felt the thrill of a gunfight in ages, throwing soaps so fast they left afterimages.
"Is this some kind of first-person shooter game?" Adrian's lips twitched slightly.
"Looks kinda fun. Can I join them?" Serval asked eagerly, leaving Gepard silenced for the third time.
"This…"
Himeko was speechless, utterly shocked. How could someone use soap to take on massive Voidranger constructs?
The ice crystals from the Outer Cosmos Ice had no effect, blocked entirely by the Sampo-brand shield. For the first time, Himeko felt the gap in strength between them.
"Ouch… You're an Emanator! Why do you need me to take the hits?!"
After tanking a blow from the Outer Cosmos Ice, Sampo was on the verge of tears. Though it didn't cause much real damage, his dignity felt trampled.
"Hmph, childish." Freesna scoffed, embarrassed on Blake's behalf.
As for Dan Heng, ever since Cloud-Piercer was upgraded, he hadn't had a chance to use it. Now, with a swarm of Voidranger constructs, he gripped Cloud-Piercer tightly and declared his iconic line:
"Cloud-Piercer never leaves my side!" He pressed the red button on the spear's handle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The spearhead shot out, striking an Outer Cosmos Flame dead-on. Unsatisfied, Dan Heng pressed the button again, enveloping Cloud-Piercer in a purple-black mist.
In an instant, the spearhead, infused with the power of [Eternity], split into countless fragments, piercing through the onslaught of Voidranger constructs.
"Oh~ The scent of [Eternity]…"
Blake wasn't surprised by the display. Instead, he wore a fanatical expression, savoring the moment.
"March, hand me the camera."
Stelle began documenting the moment. March 7th was right—seeing someone shoot soap at Voidranger monsters and not taking a picture would take a god to resist laughing.
"Hahaha… The Aeon of [Eternity] grants me strength! Let the cancers of the multiverse be vanquished!"
Click!
As the shutter snapped, Blake and Dan Heng paused their fight, finally noticing Adrian and the others.
"You're here." Dan Heng sheathed his weapon, rejoining the Astral Express Trailblaze team.
Ignoring Freesna beside Adrian, Blake's eyes burned with fervor, everything unspoken.
"Time Stasis…" His fingertips brushed the void, about to freeze the Voidranger constructs' movements, when he caught a fleeting microexpression from Adrian.
A slight downturn of Adrian's lips was enough for Blake to notice. Could it be that THEY didn't want him to act?
Noticing the subtle shift in Adrian's gaze, Blake glanced at the others, ruling out Freesna first.
His eyes landed on Gepard and Serval, and it clicked. Of course! Too many people were involved, and the final battle needed a controlled number of participants!
Understanding dawned on Blake. He hurled Sampo toward the Voidranger constructs, then gritted his teeth and planted an explosive soap on himself.
Boom!
With a deafening blast, Blake was sent flying, landing right at Adrian's feet.
"Cough… Has the energy in this body… burned out…?" Pfft!
Before he could finish, he spat out a mouthful of dark blood and collapsed limply.
Though Stelle had never met Blake, she'd heard of his deeds.
Seeing this, she rushed forward, cradling the weakened Blake, and let out a wail: "No~ Pontiff Blake!!!"
"Wait, what just happened?" March 7th hadn't processed it. Blake was clearly enjoying the fight—how did he get ambushed?
"Cough…" Blake spat out more red liquid, weakly saying, "In my life… I've lived openly, walking the Path of [Eternity] through countless trials… to reach this position…"
His gaze shifted to Adrian, who was struggling to suppress a laugh. "To meet a Trailblazer of [Eternity] like you… I have… no regrets…" Urgh!
With that, his eyes rolled back, and he went still.
"Pontiff Blake? Pontiff Blake!! Hold on, don't sleep! We can't lose you… I still want to join the Church of Eternity!"
Amid the pooling blood, Stelle's face was full of sorrow. But as she continued, she caught a strange scent from the blood.
"Wait, Pontiff Blake… why does your blood smell like ketchup?"