Chapter 335

The ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍Mixed-Color Duke walked through a corridor of the Imperial Palace.

Perhaps ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍because the Guardian Knights and Imperial Guard had been dismissed, it was so quiet that not even breathing could be heard.

Click. ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍Click. Click.

Only ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍his footsteps echoed through the silence.

'This ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍is troublesome.'

Two ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍days.

It was too short a time to finish even a single research project.

As he walked down the long corridor, he recalled what had happened over the past two days.

He had met the Monster Lord in the mountain range and formed a contract with him.

Immediately afterward, he had fought Charles Cornelia in the Violet Magic Tower.

'Reaching Transcendence was not temporary.'

After absorbing the Black Duke's research, wielding Evil Energy comparable to 8-Star had not been difficult.

But wielding the Monster Lord's Evil Energy was another matter.

The Monster Lord was a being who had reincarnated several times over thousands of years and was called the King of the Mountain Range.

Simply accepting him in his incomplete state allowed the Mixed-Color Duke to cross the wall of 9-Star.

Transcendence.

He had surpassed the limits of mortals and become an existence equal to a God.

It was strange.

It was a realm that neither the Emperor, said to have been chosen by Lord, the Highest-ranking God, nor the Monster Lord or Dragon Lord had reached.

Simon Eurasia, Charles Cornelia, and Pope Claudio de Cronis, whom the Kingdom Alliance had assessed as 9-Star-level forces.

The Emperor, who had likewise already mastered 9-Star, had even devised a plan in which he could only reach Transcendence after taking the standings they had accumulated.

Yet the Mixed-Color Duke had achieved that realm merely by fusing with the Monster Lord.

'It was an inevitable meeting.'

Unlike before, when he had been uniquely chosen, the Monster Lord had fallen to being one component.

He had come under the watch of the Emperor, who called himself the High Lord, and the Dragon Lord, the undisputed strongest life-form.

The Mixed-Color Duke knew the Monster Lord had a scheme even in those circumstances.

'I never expected him to force his way into an existence like me.'

More than anything, he disliked the fact that he, having risen to 9-Star, had left an opening.

Even so, there was no reason to reject the proposal.

Since humans had become the continent's rulers, there had never been this many 9-Stars at once.

The Empire and the Kingdom Alliance. Whichever side won would gain all the karma.

The standing of the one who reached Transcendence would be determined by the weight of the lives the Red Magic Tower had absorbed.

The Monster Lord needed a useful body through which to rise again, and the Mixed-Color Duke needed the qualification to stand until the end of the world.

That was why he accepted him, and he reached Transcendence sooner than expected.

[To become a Lower God simply by accepting power....... A mage's body, rather than Eurasia's, is not bad.]

As promised, the Monster Lord yielded control of the body.

[Every monster in all the mountain ranges will serve you as its master.]

It was not difficult to realize that a being who had lived for thousands of years was hiding within his Mind Image.

Every step he took in the mountain range felt new.

Along with joy, a sense of emptiness came to him as well.

He had given up everything to see the end of magic, only to reach it after abandoning his humanity in the end.

In that regard, perhaps the Black Duke's perspective had been right.

He had been someone prepared to discard his humanity at any time in order to reach 9-Star.

'In the end, I am the one who survived to the end and reached 9-Star.'

The man he had taken as his patron became the Emperor's new body, while he became the master of three Magic Towers.

He became a 9-Star mage and learned the secrets of the world.

'I, too, have become one of Lord's fragments.'

He gained the qualification that originally only the blessed Imperial Heinrich Family possessed.

Moreover, he had reached the Transcendence that even the Emperor had yet to break through.

'There is no problem with changing the target of the plan I prepared using the three Magic Towers.'

Whether he became the new Emperor or the final Transcendent.

It was a situation that made him reconsider his own value.

'......'

That was as far as his optimistic thoughts went.

The bad points were clear as well.

Less than a day after reaching Transcendence, he had fought Charles Cornelia.

As a result, the White Magic Tower and Black Magic Tower had each lost around thirty percent of their functions.

As for the Red Magic Tower, which had allowed Orchid Owl's intrusion, its functions had shut down to the point where it could no longer maintain its formula.

The White and Black Magic Towers would recover over time, but the damage to the Red Magic Tower was impossible to estimate.

The Red Duke was another self of his.

The memories the Red Duke experienced until just before his death were transmitted to him after his death.

'Adamas.'

He recalled the Ultimate of Mana used by the ancient Godslayer.

The Gate.

Unlike his own technique, which stripped mana of its color and seized ownership of it, it sent an opponent's mana to another dimension.

The amount of mana did not matter.

'This must be what a battle between Transcendents is like.'

As a Transcendent who handled mana himself, it was a power he would obtain someday.

That was likely why the smile did not leave his lips despite his defeat.

Before another door blocking his path, he stopped smiling.

At some point, the Emperor had appeared before him.

The final fragment chosen by Lord, the one and only God, who had not left this place even once since the Great War began.

"Rastian. You are late."

"My apologies. It took time to direct the battlefield."

"Is that so?"

The Emperor nodded with indifferent eyes.

The Mixed-Color Duke continued his report while kneeling on one knee.

The Kingdom Alliance had advanced, and the Imperial Knight Order and Imperial Mage Order had taken losses amounting to half their forces.

They were utterly trivial matters.

"You are leaving out something important."

"......"

"The connection to the Red Magic Tower has been cut."

"There was an intrusion."

He told the Emperor about Drago de Lord's unilateral actions.

Because of them, the coordinates of the three Magic Towers had been exposed, and a Cornelian mage and a Walker named Orchid Owl had infiltrated them.

"A mistake."

"I apologize, but there has also been an achievement."

He lifted his head and looked at the Emperor.

The Emperor tipped his chin as though telling him to continue.

It was his usual manner, but today it felt more unsettling than usual.

"One of my selves, the Red Duke, confronted the ancient human Adamas manifested through Orchid Owl as a medium."

He explained that the Ultimate of Mana Adamas used had taken the form of a Gate, and that the Red Duke's annihilation in the process had caused the Red Magic Tower to lose its function.

"Since you speak of the Gate, it seems the Laws of the World have become quite generous."

"......"

"I will overlook your mistake concerning the Magic Towers this once."

"I am grateful for Your Majesty's generosity."

"Come closer."

The Mixed-Color Duke rose to his feet and took five steps closer.

"More."

"......"

He took three more steps closer.

"Closer still."

Two more steps would bring him within the Emperor's reach.

The Mixed-Color Duke did not move.

"Rastian, you are afraid, unlike yourself."

"Your Majesty, why would you......"

"What a strange question. It has been a long time since I felt your mana, has it not?"

The Emperor held out his hand as if urging him on.

Merely taking that hand would begin synchronization.

They would be able to enter each other's Mind Images.

Ordinarily, he would have approached without hesitation and taken the Emperor's hand as he wished.

But—

Over the past two days, he had become an existence wholly different from before.

That was why he made a different choice from usual.

"I am the one who has aided Your Majesty's innumerable experiments until now."

The mana of nature. The Authorities of Gods. The curses of Anomalies. The Evil Energy of monsters.

He emphasized that he had implanted them perfectly through the Formula of Reincarnation.

And then—

"Now you intend to devour me."

The Emperor did not deny it.

"Did you not say that you would offer your life to me?"

"It was for the end of magic."

"Have the thoughts you held for decades changed?"

"I beg Your Majesty's pardon, but—"

Mana rose from the Mixed-Color Duke's body.

"I, too, have reached Transcendence."

Ssssss—

Evil Energy mixed with the mana.

"Monster Lord. So you have joined with that half-baked king."

"I do not wish to oppose Your Majesty."

The Emperor had his own role.

Clashing with him here would mean changing the plan too hastily.

[With thoughts like that, you will only be devoured.]

Before the Mixed-Color Duke could react to anything—

[Hey.]

The Mixed-Color Duke's self changed.

Mana subsided from his body, and Evil Energy took its place.

[It has been a while.]

Grab.

The Monster Lord rapidly closed the distance and seized the Emperor by the throat.

Rumble—

Evil Energy burrowed into the Emperor's body.

[I hear you poorly implanted my power.]

The Emperor's body did not move.

The Formula of Synchronization.

The Mixed-Color Duke had made arrangements so that the Emperor could not use his power.

"Nothing will change even if you devour me."

He did not look flustered or resigned.

Some other formula, unknown to the Mixed-Color Duke, was activating.

[What a fool.]

The other master of the body did not care.

Crack.

The Monster Lord's mouth began to open like a Chimera's.

And then—

Crunch!

He swallowed the Emperor's head in a single bite.

Crunch! Crack!

Bones shattered and blood flowed.

[You said you had mastered 9-Star....... Is this all you were?]

Unable to exert his power, he was nothing but a tough lump of flesh.

It was almost absurdly easy compared to Edan Eurasia.

[Ah.......]

He felt thirst because of the Curse of Blood.

Veins stood out beneath his pale skin.

At the same time, his constantly maintained connection to the three Magic Towers became unstable.

The Magic Towers did not matter.

Unlike humans, he who had taken the Mixed-Color Duke's body was made of Evil Energy.

He only needed to slowly digest the Emperor's Existence Force, though he claimed to be the largest fragment.

[You must have forgotten that I am a usurper who has lived for thousands of years.]

The two fragments Lord had created became one.

In the near future, Drago de Lord would meet the same end as the Emperor.

Swoosh—

After polymorphing into the Emperor's appearance, he waved a hand.

[The King of the Mountain Range has returned. Shouldn't we begin the festival?]

The Monster Wave, which had not occurred since he reincarnated, began.

***

Wyverns covered the sky, and blood flowed across the ground.

The curses of Anomalies shook people's inner selves, and Radiance rose everywhere.

The bodies of the powerless were trampled beneath the Wave that had arisen in the mountain range.

Flames rose throughout the cities.

The priests desperately called upon their respective Gods, but the Gods did not answer.

The continent, stripped of the Authorities of Gods, swiftly fell into chaos.

Monsters swarmed in the rear of the Kingdom Alliance.

The Empire's elite soldiers blocked the Kingdom Alliance's path.

Superhumans collapsed helplessly beneath curses that began to spread like a plague.

An ash-gray knight stood before the Emperor, who had set out leading the Great Army.

The Violet Mage stood before tens of thousands of monsters.

Two Saintesses stayed beside the knight and mage, supporting them.

A Magic Tower created through the collaboration of the Fairy Folk and Dwarves poured out its power to restore the drying land.

It was as though the world were approaching its destruction.

Amidst all that, he himself......

At the throbbing pain in his head, the Pope opened his eyes.

"......"

The headache grew worse and worse, as though an axe were splitting his head.

It was the price of using wide-ranging foresight.

It was exactly as the revelation he had seen in his youth had foretold.

'The future has changed.'

It was connected to Killian Eurasia's regression.

He remembered Killian, but he could not speak of him.

"What did you see?"

Lan, who was beside him, asked.

"I saw the changed future."

Simon Eurasia had not been defeated by the Emperor. He held Adamas, and the Saintess of Truth stood beside him.

The Mixed-Color Duke did not come looking for Lan, and the Emperor did not come looking for the Pope.

He did not know what had become the medium that changed the future.

It felt as though he had forgotten something important, but he could not remember it at all.

And in such cases, a God was usually involved.

"Lord Cronis is too much."

He was merely a human, yet he was being made to bear too heavy a burden.

As he stopped Tatia's time, his Divine Power had reached a new level.

"I will help Simon Eurasia bring down the Empire."

"Then......"

"Prepare for the Final Holy War."

***

The northern frontier.

The ceaselessly raging snow had stopped.

Within a fissure between the Barrier and the Boundary—

"......"

Killian Eurasia opened his eyes.

RelatedRelatedRelated