Part 1
The epic poem, the Ramayana, originated in ancient India.
This was a long story of epic scale, recording the showdown between
extraordinary hero, Prince Rama, and the Rakshasa King—Ravana the
demon lord. Its original version could even be traced back to before
Christian Era.
In modern times, Rama was believed to be one of the supreme god Vishnu's
incarnations.
This was an element added through the passage of time. Before the
interaction with such Vaishnava elements, Rama was simply Rama himself.
As the protagonist of a legend about an ancient wandering nobleman, a man
shouldering the destiny of vanquishing the demon king, a virtuous and
revered monarch, a great hero.
Due to his overwhelming renown, the populace eventually linked him to a
supreme deity.
"Prince Rama's destined rival, Rakshasa King Ravana was quite a special
existence."
During their intimacy with Godou on the Netherworld beach earlier, Yuri
and Ena had spoken in turn.
"Ravana was a rakshasa who had endured intense hardship over many years
to obtain a boon of "absolute invulnerability against the gods and other
rakshasas. A demon king who caused many gods to suffer. Furthermore, he
possessed ten faces and twenty elbows—a terrifying form with ten heads
and twenty arms."
Whenever Godou's tongue slid across the two Hime-Miko's soft and tender
skin, they would murmur in voices of ecstasy. In addition, they twisted their
bodies in search of Godou's lips, speaking of myths in a manner akin to
pillow talk in between kisses of mutually entangling tongues—
"Back then, the gods convened before reaching a decision. They intended to
defeat Ravana by borrowing power from neither the gods nor the rakshasas
—by a human hand instead. For this purpose, the gods petitioned Lord
Vishnu, hoping he could descend upon the earth as a human to accomplish
the task of killing the demon king."
"Hence, Prince Rama was born as Lord Vishnu's incarnation."
Born as the Ayodhya Kingdom's eldest prince, Rama was "the one who
received every blessing."
He possessed a handsome face and superior intelligence. Revered by the
populace for his benevolent and virtuous personality, he was also the
strongest warrior.
However, his father's other wife conspired to crown her own son king, thus
exiling Rama from Ayodhya for fourteen years.
The only attendants joining the tragic prince in exile were his wife Sita and
younger brother Prince Lakshmana.
Thereafter, what awaited Rama while he lived secluded in the Dandaka
forest were the inevitable days of battle against the wicked rakshasas.
Naturally, Rama kept defeating the rakshasas with his valorous might.
However, the strongest Rakshasa King Ravana finally appeared. Possessing
the boon of "absolute invulnerability against gods and rakshasas," the
demon king had his eyes set on the beauty of Rama's wife, Sita, finally
succeeding in abducting her.
As a result, Rama began on a journey again with the Rakshasa King's castle
as his destination.
In order to defeat the evil ten-headed demon king and take back his
abducted wife—
"Your wife Sita was a spirit of the earth."
The lightning of salvation kept raining down on the race track.
Right now, this space was completely filled with over a hundred thousand
golden spheres of light. These light spheres were all blades for slicing
through the divinity of Rama.
"Sita was the daughter of Janaka, but by adoption and not birth. She was the
child discovered by the king while plowing the land to build an altar,
appearing from within the ground... That was Sita!"
The lightning strikes descending from the sky were all absorbed or
deflected by the golden spheres of light.
In previous battles, they would gradually decrease in number whenever
absorbing attacks—This time, these spheres of light looked like they were
not going to disappear for now.
After finding out Rama's name which had been hidden all along,
Verethragna's sword was bringing forth much stronger power than usual.
Furthermore, the amount of released lightning was gradually decreasing as
well.
"King Janaka decided to wed this extraordinary daughter to a hero. He
declared that whoever managed to string the royal family's heirloom of
Lord Shiva's bow would win her hand in marriage. And you—Prince Rama
—let alone stringing the bow, you even managed to break this bow in a
show of power, the bow that no mortal could pull."
Hovering in midair, the Divine Sword Mandala had stopped firing lightning
at some point.
Also, instead of shooting arrows as before, Rama on the ground was silently
listening to the spell words woven by Godou.
Willingly accepting the verbal lashings as his own punishment—
That was the attitude Rama was displaying. While staring straight at him,
Godou continued:
"Later on, the wife he married was abducted by Ravana. Setting off on a
journey to vanquish the demon king, Prince Rama finally defeated his
destined rival after a long battle, thus taking Sita back. Afterwards, he
returned to his homeland and inherited the throne officially as the eldest
prince. Thus the world rejoiced."
"..."
"However, the people doubted Queen Sita's chastity after her long period of
captivity. Hence as king, Rama ordered her to prove her purity. This was
also a king's duty. However, in order to comply with this command, Sita—"
As a daughter of the earth as well as Rama's wife—this was the name of the
Princess of Glass back when she was a goddess.
Sita. Meaning "furrow." According to legend, this was the name given to
her because she was the daughter found while plowing the earth.
"Praying 'accept me if my body is pure' to Mother Earth, she set off on a
journey to the subterranean world—in other words, the underworld. For the
sake of fulfilling a king's duties, you abandoned your wife."
"Precisely, Kusanagi Godou."
Rama nodded with a slightly pained expression.
Naturally, this was merely a brief episode within the myth. This was a story
interpreted from the viewpoint of mythography rather than through the lens
of love and hate between genders.
The so-called Sita was "a goddess who served as a live sacrifice to ensure
the fertility of the land."
Tracing back this system of myths, one would reach the episode of "burying
the killed deity into the earth to bring a bountiful harvest of crops, the
people obtained food."
There were also stories of deities dying by immolation as live sacrifices. A
metaphor for slash-and-burn agriculture.
As a side note, before heading underground, Sita had also survived trial by
immolation to prove her own purity.
Based on the above, Rama's exploits should be examined through
mythography.
As a man, he was irreproachable, above any criticisms no matter what kind.
Even so, the man acknowledging all accusations was standing right here,
confronting Godou face to face.
Purely judging from human personality, he was a man who was honest to a
fault.
Godou sighed. This was the first time an opponent had shown this kind of
reaction to the sword's spell words. Meanwhile, there were also two other
individuals glaring sharply at each other.
Hanuman, the white monkey god of wind, versus Her Eminence Luo Hao
who was currently in a pubescent girl's form.
"Having recounted my lord's exploits and listened to his great
accomplishments..."
Hanuman spoke for the first time in front of Godou's group.
"You humans ought to show feelings of respect and admiration, yes? In
spite of that, to think you would use spell words of wisdom as weapons, to
subject His Highness to such insolent behavior, there should be limits to
offense!"
"You are the one who ought to know your place, Hanuman."
In response to the intellectual white monkey god's tirade, Luo Cuilian
retorted in a young voice.
"Daring as a retainer to interrupt a conversation between kings, now that is
truly offensive to the extreme. Fufufufu, why don't you act like a devotee
who knows his place and seal your lips with a mask as before?"
"Having kept silent for close to two millennia, I honestly do feel tired."
The monkey with dense fur answered with an indifferent look in response to
the demonic cult leader's smiling taunts.
Despite calm appearances, a vortex of killing intent was already swirling
between the two of them. They were ready to sweep Godou, Rama and
anyone else into a fight any time.
With a battle about to break out any moment, Godou said:
"Can we talk for a bit?"
"Talk? Me and you?"
"Yeah."
In response to this invitation, Rama merely pondered for a moment before
signaling to his retainer with his eyes.
White Hanuman immediately nodded with comprehension, jumped
backwards swiftly and did not say another word.
"Nee-san. Sorry but I'm a bit curious about this guy. Please wait for me
briefly."
"No matter. It would be a worthwhile experience to interact occasionally
with gods instead of fighting. Nevertheless, no matter what words are
exchanged, the end result awaiting us shall not change in all likelihood.
Never forget this fact."
Impressive of Nee-san as ever, was that what one should say? Despite
seeming quite senseless on the surface, this sworn elder sister was actually
quite astute.
She must have seen through the younger brother's conundrum. After
offering advice as a senior godslayer, Luo Cuilian also stepped back.
"I believe it's time for you to end your conflict with the Campiones—us."
"That would be rather difficult. Last time, I already attempted to
procrastinate the Devil King extermination mission by a thousand years, but
still ended up descending upon the earth in this manner."
Despite the two of them having drawn their weapons of assured destruction,
the atmosphere was unbelievably calm.
Was the reason due to King Rama's own human charisma, capable of
charming everyone, or the personality of Godou who championed the
banner of pacifism despite being a godslayer?
"Also, due to the Holy Grail, my power suddenly increased to critical point.
The ensuing result, what happened—Don't you feel it already?"
"Yeah. The temperature is very hot."
Godou replied to the wryly smiling Rama.
In fact, Godou had felt this ever since returning from the Netherworld. The
air temperature felt like the harsh heat of midsummer—The aristocrat
before his eyes was the cause.
Currently, his entire body was giving off high heat like flames.
Just facing him felt like entering the scene of a fire. If this continued at
length, dehydration could very well result. Someone physically unfit would
probably collapse immediately.
Rama suddenly looked out in the distance on the ground.
Fallen there were some binders left behind by people earlier in the racing
circuit. Rama approached the spot and knelt down. Just at that instant—
The large number of binders broke down and collapsed completely.
All moisture was sucked out of the paper, producing the phenomenon of
deterioration through age in merely an instant.
The owner of the miracle-inducing heat sighed and stood up, facing Godou.
"Just as you can see, if I were to remain on earth, many lives and objects
will come to an end. Raging gales will howl, the land and the sea will keep
rising in temperature, mountain ranges will erupt with fire, heaven and earth
will rumble thunderously."
"Looks like it."
Godou had already seen the harm to the soil and natural habitats of the
Bousou Peninsula.
Furthermore, he had been warned about the effects on volcanic zones.
However, as a [Heretic God], Prince Rama's personality was exceptionally
kind and gentle. Perhaps he might have a way to control the destructive
influence brought by his presence. Despite these hopes of Godou's...
"Since my body temperature has reached this level, it is hopeless now. This
heat will likely spread to every corner of the world to cause momentous
changes in the world's landscape. Humans might call this 'the end times'—
There are only two methods to stop it."
Rama—the king manifesting at era's end—spoke lightly.
"One is for me to exterminate all godslayers currently ruling the earth. Once
my mission is fulfilled, I can sleep again in the form of the divine sword."
"And the other?"
"If someone among you manages to emerge victorious in a reversal, I will
also return to the divine blade's form. Under those conditions, I will lie
dormant briefly, perhaps for a few months, perhaps a few years, but at least
there is a buffer period."
"Both extremely difficult demands."
Confronted with these frighteningly difficult conditions, Godou could only
laugh aloud.
The "King of the End" was not undefeated so far. It was the opposite. In the
battles against ancient godslayers, he had already met defeat many times.
Even Godou himself had won in ancient Gaul.
However, Prince Rama had currently reached a fully awakened state using
the great ritual of the covenant. A godslayer capable of defeating him in this
state—There was at least one. Godou knew this.
The man whom the Princess of Glass had shown him.
But was he really able to reenact that kind of absurdly dramatic underdog
comeback?
"Also, even if it's possible to defeat you in your strongest state, you'll revive
soon enough."
"My apologies. I feel that these are unreasonable demands too."
He apologized quite solemnly in response to Godou's complaint.
Then as though recalling something by chance, Rama suddenly said:
"Speaking of which, how is that goddess? I cannot sense the presence of
dragons and serpents at all."
"Oh, well enough... I suppose."
"I see. Towards her, I have been very cruel too."
Bringing up the subject of Pallas Athena, Rama lowered his gaze for an
instant.
Deliberately giving an ambiguous answer, Godou secretly nodded in his
mind. As expected, this guy was able to sense the presences of Divine
Ancestors and mother earth goddesses.
Now was not the time to discuss this. Godou changed the subject.
"Compared to other gods, you're really weird, you know?"
This was the greatest question that had occurred to him for the past few
days.
"Gods—[Heretic Gods]—will gradually acquire aspects contradicting the
myths during their time of wandering the earth, right? But you've stayed as
originally depicted in mythology. Your personality is very serious as well,
to the point that it feels like you'll gather people's admiration."
This was knowledge that Godou had acquired after numerous intense
battles, especially the fight against the Illustrious Sage, True Lord Erlang.
The "true god" who stood as Kusanagi Godou's nemesis. Upholding his
convictions as the defender of justice to the very end, he absolutely refused
to do anything harming the populace.
Furthermore, "King of the End" Rama was also a bit similar to war god
Verethragna.
Back when he first met Godou, that youth was wandering the earth while
maintaining a glorious hero's disposition despite having lost his memories
as a [Heretic God].
A scene that had happened on the island of Sardinia, which felt quite
nostalgic now.
"Unlike other gods, my myth also includes the detail of 'being born on earth
as a human.' Perhaps this is the reason. Thanks to that, my original
disposition has not changed much."
"So that's the reason!?"
"However, 'acquiring distortion and insanity while wandering the earth'...
This curse ultimately cannot be avoided entirely. Even someone like me has
bizarre aspects as logic would dictate."
Next, Godou noticed.
A quiver had appeared behind Rama's back without him noticing earlier. It
was previously absent.
Who did it? Could it be Hanuman who had brought it? But the white
monkey god of wind was currently having a staring contest against Luo
Cuilian some distance away, keeping tabs on each other. He did not seem to
be the culprit.
The quiver contained dozens of arrows. This was the gift from Indra, the
god of thunderstorms, together with the ultimate bow of victory.
The mysterious quiver whose arrows would never deplete. Contained inside
were the various arrows bestowed upon Prince Rama by the gods and sages
who had mentored him in martial arts...
Next to the quiver, an amorphous shadow was squirming restlessly.
One part of the shadow was quite similar to a human arm. That arm reached
for the quiver, extracting a golden arrow. The arrowhead and fletchings
were made of gold. Having obtained knowledge of Rama, Godou
immediately understood. If this arrow were to be shot at Tokyo, an area of
land comparable to the Bunkyou Ward would be destroyed in an instant,
turned into ash...
Noticing Godou's gaze, directed at the movement behind Rama...
"—Stop!"
The aristocrat yelled curtly. As a result, the shadow immediately
disappeared from the quiver.
Part 2
"What the heck was that just now?"
Questioned by Godou, Rama made a pained smile as before.
"The one who takes on all distortion and insanity on my behalf... I suppose.
It would be a long story. But everyone has grown impatient by now."
Indeed, Hanuman and Luo Cuilian were silently waiting with full
concentration.
No one was relaxing their guard at all. Furthermore, in order to keep an eye
on the surrounding situation so as to react immediately to any sudden
movements from the enemy, they were quietly exuding battle spirit—
Godou shrugged.
It was evidently time to swing the sword of spell words and end the
conversation.
The blazing plain was no longer recognizable as a racing circuit at all.
Godou transmitted strong thoughts to the tens of thousands of radiant
spheres inside this space. Gather. Gather by my side.
Although it was fine to keep controlling the golden spheres of light as
before—
The way he was now, Godou was able to create an even more powerful
[Sword]. Furthermore, it was the essential weapon in the fight against the
great hero Rama.
"I am the strongest, I shall smash through all enemies in my way. O blade
belonging to the savior of the righteous, fragments of the glorious sun.
Hereby serve the incarnation of victory!"
The instant Godou's lips composed these spell words...
The sword's spell words, reaching tens of thousands in number, the massive
collective of radiant spheres began to move like a galaxy of light.
Colliding and merging together, the spheres of light changed in form and
mass, soon turning into a weapon. A longsword with a golden blade—
The blade's length was beyond conventional, measuring the same size as
Godou's 180cm height.
The blade was also quite broad, roughly the width of a surfboard. Its
thickness was like a steel plate's.
Eight of these giant golden swords were created in total.
By consolidating the sword's spell words, these eight holy swords of
Verethragna were created as a result—The strongest weapons specially
prepared by Kusanagi Godou for the decisive battle against Rama.
With their tips pointing downwards, the eight holy swords hovered in the
air.
In addition, they surrounded Godou on all sides. In order to guard their
master from all attacks, the eight holy swords had entered a defensive
formation.
Meanwhile, the Devil King exterminating hero called out loudly:
"A decisive battle challenging two godslaying Devil Kings... Seeing as that
is the case, this venue is not wide enough. Then allow me to prepare an
even bigger arena!"
Immediately, the ground glowed with white light.
Godou and everyone else had been standing on asphalt, the substance used
to lay the race track. However, this ground had suddenly turned into stone
tiles, shining with white radiance.
Frantically, Godou surveyed his surroundings to find the scenery changed
all at once.
Somehow, they were now inside a city with white stone tiles everywhere in
sight. The view extended endlessly as far as the eye could see. This ground
was tiled entirely with stone.
Over half of the land was empty, most likely. There were not many
buildings.
However, houses and towers were built in various locations, all using a
mixture of stones, black, white and gray.
"When exactly were we moved to this town...!?"
"Nay! Prince Rama summoned this city!"
Campiones were highly resistant towards magic and divine powers. Since
they were guarded by Verethragna's holy swords, even Rama would not be
able to teleport them so easily.
In other words, he had summoned this city on which they were currently
standing.
Thus, in this manner, the utterly destroyed racing circuit was covered up!
"This belongs to me, so feel free to destroy it. Make full use of your
authorities without holding back. I, too, shall meet you in battle with full
force."
After Rama declared that, a vehicle of war appeared behind him.
Although a vehicle of war, this was no weapon of steel created by humans
in the modern world. Instead, it was a type of horse-drawn carriage that
could carry several soldiers and armaments such as bows and spears. In the
arenas of ancient Rome, chariot racing was one of the most popular sports.
Deftly, Rama jumped with agility onto the charioteer's perch.
Then this chariot began to move as though skating on ice, without needing
to be drawn by any horse, flying into the sky!
"Vimana, a sky chariot!?"
Godou realized it was a vehicle that had appeared many times in the epic
poem, the Ramayana.
Better described as gliding rather than driving, the vimana flew swiftly and
lightly, raising Rama's altitude instantly. He was now seventy or eighty
meters in the air above Godou and Luo Cuilian.
Then the Devil King exterminating hero yelled loudly:
"Divine Sword of Salvation. My army, O heavenly weapons bestowed by
the venerated sage Vishvamitra and the great gods! Now is the time to show
your true power!"
His command achieved great effect. Shining brightly in the sky, the Divine
Sword Mandala suddenly increased to four.
Previously, one symbol alone was enough to produce lightning strikes of
immense destructive power. Now, the number had increased to four.
Furthermore, all four of them arrived above Godou and Luo Cuilian at the
same time.
The four mandalas were positioned north, east, south, west in a formation,
surrounding Godou and the sworn sister completely.
An indiscriminate barrage of lightning was launched again.
Four times as much lightning was attacking from four different directions.
Incomparably frightening power and pressure. Godou was quite surprised
by the simple physical increase.
"So that's what he meant by full force!"
The lightning was descending nonstop like a rainstorm.
However, Godou and the sworn sister standing beside him did not move an
inch. Surrounding the two of them, the eight holy swords of Verethragna
had created an invisible shield, blocking the lightning's power completely.
The lightning's heat and shock could not reach the two Campiones.
The eight holy swords were the ultimate weapons forged from the sword for
slicing apart and sealing away the hero Rama's divinity. Their defense could
not be penetrated so easily.
However, this type of attack powered by quantity was not pointless.
The sword's spell words would deplete gradually from use. If they were to
suffer this endless barrage of attacks, the eight holy swords were not going
to endure for long and would lose their power. Having fully awakened
through the great ritual of the covenant, Rama definitely possessed the
massive magic power required to persist in this absurd bombardment to the
very end!
At the same time, riding the vimana, Rama also shot arrows from the air.
The arrows shot from the steel bow of the universally blessed hero were not
merely ranged weapons.
Successively fired arrows each carried divine power from the thunder god
Indra, the fire god Agni and the sun god Surya respectively. Rama was
shooting these arrows nonstop without being stingy at all.
Whenever an arrow descended upon the shield erected by the eight holy
swords, a massive explosion would result.
Even the weakest arrow was able to cause an explosion and shockwave that
would destroy a town outright. Furthermore, there were destructive
bonuses.
Wherever the arrows struck, fire and lightning incinerated the vicinity until
nothing was left.
Even so, Rama continued to take out "the arrow with double power," "the
arrow with triple power," "the arrow with ten times the power" without
stopping.
"It's like hyperinflation..."
His senses going numb, Godou remarked wryly.
So far, the eight holy swords of Verethragna had defended flawlessly
against the arrows' firepower. However, although the sword's spell words
were much stronger than before, it was unknown how long they could last.
Cold sweat flowed down his forehead.
Meanwhile, the pubescent sworn sister murmured with a look of
comprehension.
"Speaking of which, this was the style of heroes in ancient India."
After hearing that, Godou nodded.
Due to knowledge about Prince Rama, he immediately understood.
India's other great epic poem, the Mahabharata, also featured heroes who
frequently used weapons including arrows and javelins. These projectiles
were mostly magical weapons, using magic to spread fire and lightning,
thus causing massive destruction.
Furthermore, the heroes would even ride chariots to fly across the sky.
After reading deeply into those descriptions, people came up with strange
theories such as "ancient India was a super civilization surpassing modern
science and technology" or "evidence of nuclear war fought using missiles
between flying ships (or UFOs)."
"Godou. It is time for us siblings to counterattack."
"Well said. Things can only worsen gradually at this rate... I could probably
win just by using this sword, if facing an ordinary enemy."
After revealing the hero Rama's name, Godou obtained these eight holy
swords of Verethragna.
Just one of them alone probably held enough power to equal tens of
thousands of the sword's spell words. However, the great ritual of the
covenant supplied Rama with massive magic power—most likely
surpassing the latent power in the eight holy swords.
However, Luo Cuilian made a gorgeous smile while speaking:
"Although the earlier match was child's play with tacit understanding
between us to hold back... I never expected him to conceal power of such
extent."
Godou had seen his sworn sister make this look before. This was an honest
expression of delight at the enemy's powerful abilities.
However, she suddenly gazed at Godou mischievously.
"Now that Sri Rama has flown into the sky, if we were to remain on the
ground—"
"We'll have no chance of winning. I've got an idea, so let me handle it.
Building on all the effort you've put in so far, Nee-san, I'll put on a grand
performance next."
"Fufufufu. To think you are bragging so boldly before me."
Godou was not used to the sight of his sworn sister smiling calmly as a
pubescent girl. Nevertheless, he shrugged.
"You originally said you were conceding the greatest foe to me. After all,
you only barely managed to recover, but you're still far from peak
condition."
Although Godou had no idea what kind of secret technique his sworn sister
had used...
The fact that her body regressed in age clearly implied it was quite a
reckless method. Despite recovering her depleted magic power, surely it
was only about half compared to the original amount.
And also due to having a child's body, her stamina would be different from
usual.
At these times, I should be the one stepping forward—Thinking that, Godou
asserted clearly:
"It'll trouble me if I let the wounded enter the fray. So assist me from
behind, Nee-san. I'm counting on you."
"Seriously! Your manner of speaking to the supreme elder sister is still so
irreverent. However, so be it. Being able to brag so boldly could also be
taken as proof of your growth."
"Sorry about that. But I'm sure you'll definitely have a chance to enter the
stage, Nee-san."
The enemy was powerful to an unprecedented extent. This was absolutely
an intense battle requiring them to go all out.
Furthermore, while this conversation was taking place, the four mandalas
kept raining down lightning. Rama also fired consecutively at Godou and
Luo Cuilian on the ground with his mysterious arrows of massive
firepower.
These attacks all came from the hero Rama's divine power, hence they were
unable to break through Verethragna's eight holy swords.
Despite the hellish situation outside the shield from the impacts and
explosions, the interior remained calm and peaceful. However.
Of the eight golden swords surrounding Godou and Luo Cuilian—one of
them turned into the color of steel.
The spell words for slicing apart and sealing away Rama's divinity were
being consumed rapidly.
After all, this could not be helped if one were to endure the enemy's
overwhelming attacks persistently. Turning into the color of steel, the holy
sword then vanished.
It was Godou's turn to switch from defense to offense. Speaking to the
partner dormant in his right arm, he ordered:
"Ama no Murakumo! Get me one of those flying chariots!"
'Affirmative!'
This was the same tactic he had used in the battle against Uldin. Since the
enemy could fly in the sky, all he needed to do was order Ama no
Murakumo no Tsurugi to replicate this power so that he could use it
himself.
This time, the power to control vimanas was emulated.
Honestly speaking, Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi's copying power was not
that powerful, unable to emulate authorities for causing grand miracles.
However, one could only make do in this regard.
A chariot appeared before Godou, identical to Rama's in appearance.
"Thanks, take us up into the sky!"
Jumping onto the chariot with his sworn sister, Godou commanded. This
mode of transport could be freely controlled by thought alone. Furthermore,
the passengers were exposed to neither heat nor cold nor the effects of wind
and air pressure. An unmatched and supreme riding experience.
Needless to say, Verethragna's seven holy swords flew and followed the
chariot.
The seven holy swords lined themselves next to the chariot with four on the
right and three on the left, practically like a pair of wings.
Neither did they neglect to guard the chariot and the passengers with a
defensive shield. Thanks to that, even when struck by lightning or arrows,
the chariot did not shake in the slightest. Given the way things were now—
"Get rid of those glowing things! Do it!"
The four Divine Sword Mandalas happened to be hovering just above
Godou and Luo Cuilian.
Unimpeded by the released lightning of salvation, the chariot flew at high
speed, charging straight at the first mandala.
Then the seven flying holy swords shredded the mandala's design. Thus,
one of the Divine Sword Mandalas was destroyed. After repeating this type
of attack three times, the chariot carrying Godou and Luo Cuilian finished
eliminating all of the lightning sources.
By this point, of the holy swords lined next to the chariot, only three
remained on the right and two on the left.
The counterattack had consumed the power of two holy swords. Godou
hoped to find a replacement weapon.
"Ama no Murakumo. Can the black sword be used?"
Godou asked about the [Storm Bringer].
"Like last time, using the method of underground preparation... Although
it's probably difficult without Athena, it'd be great if you could do that."
'Even with that earth mother present, it is still impossible. Have you not
noticed?'
"What do you mean?"
'Fly higher. You shall see.'
Listening to the divine sword in his right arm, Godou mentally ordered the
chariot to rise rapidly.
The chariot soared as though gliding, instantly climbing to a higher altitude.
Soon, they were three or four hundred meters off the ground. Even so, the
ride still felt extremely comfortable. There was no floating sensation that
often came with traveling on planes or the like.
Next, Luo Cuilian sighed.
"To think... A trick of this sort."
Only now, for the first time, the two of them saw the full view of the "city"
that Rama had summoned.
It was a circular city, possibly with a radius of fifteen or sixteen kilometers.
Although there were stone towers, houses and orchards scattered sparsely
throughout, most of the land was empty.
Towering in the center of the circle was a pillar of gold. It was the tallest
structure in this entire city.
Furthermore, this giant city—was flying in the air.
The ocean was below. Most likely Tokyo Bay. Looking afar, Godou could
spot what appeared to be the Aqua-Line, a road crossing the sea as well as
the cityscapes of Chiba and Kisarazu in the distance.
This was the "city" that had suddenly appeared under Godou and everyone
else.
This city most likely flew up silently from the mountains of the Bousou
Peninsula, then went west to arrive above Tokyo Bay. Godou and Luo
Cuilian had felt no signs at all during the fight in the city which had kept
flying in a smooth ride.
Naturally, it was impossible to prepare the Storm Bringer underground.
Because they were not over ground at all.
Through his knowledge of Prince Rama, Godou immediately figured out
this city's true identity.
"An enormous flying ship, as big as a city... Pushpaka Vimana!"
Part 3
After Rama defeated the demon king Ravana...
Kubera, the god of riches and treasure, praised Rama for his
accomplishments and bestowed a certain gift on him.
This was Pushpaka Vimana. A giant ship of the heavens, capable of flying
according to the owner's will, the hero Rama's royal ship.
Despite being a vimana, the same class of vehicle as the sky chariot, it was
much greater in size and grandeur.
That being said, the sense of comfort when traveling was equal to that of
the small chariot. In this regard, one could tell that it was an object of
supreme luxury.
"I would feel most apologetic if the kingdom on the ground were to get
caught in our battle."
A sudden voice. Rama had caught up, driving his chariot.
"However, this Pushpaka is my ship. I am free to do with it as I please.
Also, this should qualify as the venue for our battle."
"So you're saying you want to go nuts without holding back...?"
Looking down at the giant ship below, Godou muttered.
Their earlier location was apparently somewhere near the circle's outskirts.
The buildings around that area had already been destroyed by the lightning
of salvation, turned into a wasteland.
Using this type of attack in urban areas would surely cause horrific
disasters.
Even deep in the mountains, tragic marks of destruction would be left on
nature and the land.
These were all situations to avoid for the kind and gentle Rama. After all,
he had chosen a relatively low-power arrow back when he first awakened
fully from the great ritual of the covenant.
Precisely because he possessed an excessively powerful arsenal, Rama
hoped to use this ship as the battlefield.
"The same goes for both sides. Victory is undecided yet."
Godou's lips twisted, displaying a savage grin.
Since the battlefield was not on the ground, this suited him perfectly too.
Right now, he was less than twenty meters away from the man who must be
defeated.
All he needed to do next was strive forward as hard as he could. Godou
issued orders to attack.
"Go!"
Verethragna's five holy swords were waiting ready on the left and right of
his chariot. Three on the right and two on the left, flanking the chariot like a
pair of wings.
Right now, one of the swords from the right wing went for Rama's chariot,
flying like a javelin.
Hence, the aristocrat of salvation immediately extracted an arrow from his
quiver and threw it without using his steel bow.
"O arrow of Lord Shiva!"
The arrow thrown by Rama clashed violently with Verethragna's holy sword
in the air.
The holy sword was the weapon for slicing through the hero Rama's divine
power. Even if it were an arrow capable of turning the entire Tokyo area
into scorched earth, so long as it was launched by Rama, surely it could be
dispelled.
However—
"O Shiva, great incarnation of darkness, god of destruction. I beseech you
to bestow protection upon Rama, son of King Dasharatha of Ayodha, the
one who extols your virtues!"
The aristocrat's lips composed a prayer of spell words.
Immediately, the arrow conferred by Shiva was infused with divine power
not of Rama's.
The supreme god forming the Hindu trinity along with Brahma and Vishnu,
Shiva was the three-eyed god of destruction. Mahākāla, Maheśvara and
others were the names given when he was imported into Buddhism.
Rama's divine power could be sliced apart using Verethragna's holy sword.
But it would not work on Shiva's power. This was the countermeasure that a
number of gods, with Athena first and foremost, had used several times in
the past to block the spell words of the sword.
Rama had rapidly blocked the holy sword. But even so, Godou still yelled:
"I am the strongest, holding all victory in my hands. Man and devil, all
enemies, all who harbor enmity will be vanquished!"
Despite having lost three of them already, the eight holy swords were
created specifically to surpass the spell words of the sword after all.
How could they be countered by such a petty trick—Absolutely forbidden!
Godou poured magic power and Verethragna's spell words into the sword
that was clashing violently with Shiva's arrow while focusing his thoughts
on breaking through the obstacle.
This intent succeeded.
Crushing Shiva's arrow, Verethragna's holy sword flew straight at Rama!
"Hmm—!"
Standing on the flying chariot, Rama frowned.
Just as the holy sword was about to stab into his chest, a metallic "clang!"
was heard.
Hanuman, the white monkey god, had intervened as fast as the wind, using
a fist of steel to shatter Verethragna's holy sword.
Hanuman was the wind god Vayu's son. Riding the wind, he had flown here
swiftly.
"It's you!"
"Certainly. Protecting His Highness is my responsibility."
Showing a face of intellect despite being a monkey, Hanuman declared
boldly to Godou's chagrin.
"I won't be allowed to succeed so easily, huh..."
Godou muttered quietly from the charioteer's perch.
He was separated from Rama and Hanuman by roughly twenty meters.
Hanuman was staying close to his master, staring sharply in Godou's
direction. Even if Godou were to attack with the four remaining holy
swords of Verethragna, Hanuman would probably smash them all in an
instant.
How could he make a move faster than white monkey god with
unparalleled ferocity...?
Hooh. He inhaled deeply. Swiftly generalizing his ideas, he looked to the
side.
Standing together on the charioteer's perch with Godou, Luo Cuilian had
her arms crossed in a conceited manner that did not quite match her
pubescent appearance, staring obliquely at the Devil King exterminating
master and servant.
"Nee-san. About what I mentioned earlier, can I rely on you to do it now?"
"Fufufu. If you say so."
This tacit understanding was probably possible only as sworn siblings.
The instant Godou issued thoughts to attack, the first to move was one of
the holy swords on the chariot's left wing, shaking its blade with a "clang!"
The sharp Hanuman turned his eyes slightly, diverting some of his attention
to the holy sword. At the same time, the sworn sister dashed out.
"O north wind, sweeping across the vast lands, flying over countless miles!"
Chanting spell words, she invoked Daoist arts. Surrounded by yellow light,
Luo Cuilian's tiny body flew in a straight line. Towards Hanuman's white
fur-covered body.
"What!?"
Tackling the white monkey god, the sworn sister flew towards the far side
of the sky.
Even with a young girl's body, she could still draw out monstrous strength,
peerless in the entire world, using the Divine Might of Vajrapani. Even
Hanuman was unable to struggle free and could only watch helplessly while
taken away from his master.
Godou made a stance to use his holy swords to attack the hero who had lost
his bodyguard.
However, the opponent was no pushover either—
"Catching Hanuman by surprise huh. You siblings have made a splendid
showing."
Offering praise, Rama extended the [Arrowhead's Discus] forward in his
right hand.
He had apparently received it from his loyal retainer without anyone
noticing. Godou gulped.
"In that case, I have no choice but to borrow everyone's power. —Great
Sage Equaling Heaven, Perseus and Lancelot du Lac. Now is precisely
when I have need of your assistance."
The illustrious hero Rama was driving a flying chariot.
The three heroes suddenly manifested in front of him. The short-haired
female knight, the white-robed handsome man with carefree and flippant
airs, as well as the monkey king dressed in leather armor—
The three heroes were already riding their respective flying mounts.
To think that the [Arrowhead's Discus], whose power was sealed earlier,
had already recovered. Facing the disappointed Godou, Rama called out to
the three heroes of steel.
"Now that you have all gathered in response to my summons, I hope you
can serve as my bodyguards in the absence of the Wind King—my right
hand man, Hanuman. What are your thoughts?"
"Oh man, that ain't a good plan."
The Great Sage Equaling Heaven shook his head at the dignified aristocrat's
request.
"We are all heroes who were born as swords. Swords are not shields. Our
talents lie in offense. What don't you let us attack this Kusanagi brat in your
place, Savior?"
"—All this chatter conveys nothing more than your desire to take the
spotlight, doesn't it?"
Perseus remarked sardonically next to the objecting monkey king.
Then he glanced at Rama, the leader of what could be called an alliance of
heroes.
"However, attacking in splendor is what a warrior does. Perhaps that would
not be wrong. Although it is absolutely not my intention to accommodate
the Lord Monkey, I do hope to switch to offense myself as well."
The Great Sage Equaling Heaven and Perseus were living up to their
reputations. Godou could not help but marvel.
As absolute protagonists in their own respective myths, they were
extremely driven to showing off. They did not have the slightest desire or
disposition to obey orders like Hanuman.
Rama smiled wryly in exasperation at the two heroes' suggestions.
"Acknowledged. Now that I have fought the opening round, the three of
you will take to the field. The formidable foe, Kusanagi Godou, must be
defeated. However—one of you needs to stay as my bodyguard. Would that
be agreeable?"
Generously yielding to the two heroes' willful demands, he pulled at the
reins. In addition to benevolence, virtue and generosity, Godou could catch
a glimpse of Rama's leadership as a king.
The Great Sage Equaling Heaven and Perseus nodded in agreement,
meanwhile glancing sideways at each other.
"Legend tells of a great accomplishment where you served a certain exalted
monk as a long-term bodyguard, so how would you like to take on this job
again?"
"Oh? Then what would be the proper job for the great hero who's suited to
rescuing beautiful maidens?"
"Gentlemen, you are like squabbling children."
Surprisingly, it was Lancelot du Lac who interrupted at this time.
"Surely the heroes of the world would be astounded to learn of this. No
helping it. This knight, Lancelot du Lac, shares a long history with the
'King of the End.' One shall take on the guardian knight's role."
" "Hoh." "
"Unlike the likes of you, this Lancelot is a knight bearing the virtue of
humility."
"Heh, now that's really generous of you."
"However, seeing as you're doing me a favor by accepting this utterly
uninteresting of a role, I shall not pursue the matter any further. Allow me
to enjoy this battle with gratitude."
After the Great Sage muttered, Perseus asserted boldly.
Perhaps Lancelot agreed to take on this task because she was the deity of
knights who could put their lives on the line as bodyguards of noblewomen.
In any case, with Lancelot's compromise, the enemy faction finished
preparing their simple formation.
The two heroes began to advance towards the chariot-riding Godou.
"Hey, are you guys trying to avenge old grudges!?"
"I never expected a rematch with you in this manner, Kusanagi Godou!"
"Damn it! I'd better escape first, full speed ahead!"
But then, where exactly should he escape to?
Godou felt very lost while ordering the chariot to fly again. Moving in some
unidentified direction, the vimana flew as fast as it could.
Living up to its name as Rama's ride, the chariot instantly reached top
speed.
However, the enemy mounts were also gradually increasing their speed.
The top speeds probably did not differ very much. Furthermore, as the
master archer, Perseus instantly shot an arrow from his steed.
Naturally, he did not stop at one. Instead, it was in rapid fire—the ancient
Roman hero kept nocking arrows to the bow, swiftly and precisely, drawing
the bowstring and firing the arrows at Godou's back.
Furthermore, Rama also picked up his quiver with its inexhaustible supply
of arrows.
"Evade!"
Responding to Godou's thoughts, the chariot zigzagged.
Thanks to that, he managed to dodge the large number of arrows chasing
from behind. But due to the extra movements he made, his pursuers were
gradually closing in. At this rate, they were ultimately going to catch up.
Just at this moment...
(Godou-san...)
He heard a very familiar girl's voice.
Godou felt very surprised by what she told him. The opportunity for
counterattacking had arrived. However, he must make sure matters proceed
smoothly. At the end of the day, the three resurrected heroes were merely
extras in the show. Was there some way he could obtain victory while
consuming as little energy as possible?
Godou glanced at his right arm—where the black sacred sword resided.
Although he had no idea whether it was going to work or not, it was
definitely a dead end if he did not even try. Nodding, he pictured a new
destination in his mind.
"Fly quickly! Rush over to that place!"
The vimana responded immediately.
While maintaining top speed, it turned rapidly in a very fluid motion.
Tracing out a U-shape in the air, it changed course all at once.
However, Godou's destination was neither land nor sea. The place he
wanted to go was Pushpaka Vimana, the giant flying ship that he had rushed
out of earlier.