"I'll break through!"
Clara's voice rang out.
Porter's tires spun, tearing through the floor and carpets as it surged forward. I clung to the cargo bed and nodded.
With my Skill, Connection, linking us, we could communicate through will alone. Porter swung both arms, sending Monsters and knights flying as it advanced.
We headed for the staircase, smashing through everything in our way. When we reached the top, a massive door came into view.
The Audience Hall—the place where Ceres was waiting.
"Clara, blast it open!"
The cannons mounted on Porter roared to life. We had loaded two of them onto Porter's shoulders—each one single-use only.
The launched shells blew the door apart.
"Novem!"
Porter was enveloped in a shield of light. Wrapped in the Magic Shield, it charged forward, and the Audience Hall—designed to display the dignity of the once-greatest nation on the continent, the Banseim Kingdom—opened up before us.
I expected the vast room to be teeming with undead soldiers, but…
"Oh my, what an interesting little toy."
"…We've finally made it here, Ceres!"
I glared at Ceres as she offered a half-hearted round of applause. We had finally… made it this far.
"Hmm? You missed me that much? I had absolutely no desire to see you at all, but when I think about erasing you from this world… I suppose it was worth meeting up after all. Want me to congratulate you? Tell you what a great job you did? But I despise you, so I won't."
The reunited Ceres was exactly as I remembered. I had worried that seeing her under Agrissa's control might dull my resolve, but that wasn't the case at all. Looking ahead, I saw Ceres lounging sideways on a lavish throne with an insolent air.
Despite our intrusion, she showed little surprise. If anything, she seemed to be enjoying herself.
When I looked around, I saw the prominent figures of the Banseim Kingdom lined up in formation. Behind them stood Monsters I had never seen before…
And behind the throne, the king, the queen, and Crown Prince Rufus were trembling as though trying to hide. Perhaps they were startled by the sight of Porter.
Then I spotted a familiar presence. Two beings that my Skills showed no reaction to — they were flanking Ceres on either side.
I glared at Ceres and tightened my grip on the hilt of the Murasamemaru.
"...I knew you'd created a puppet of Father. But why is Mother's puppet here?"
Ceres raised her upper body slightly. She looked my way and scowled.
"Crashing in here and asking rude questions? Well, fine. Mother has been with me the whole time, you see. So I had her die temporarily. That way, we can be together forever."
I was stunned by Ceres's smiling answer. The puppet that resembled Mother stood beside her, smiling gently. Only, the eyes were dead.
"That's right, Ceres. We'll be together forever."
The enemies surrounding us showed no sign of moving. I jumped down from Porter's cargo bed and walked across the audience chamber toward Ceres.
"You killed Mother?!"
Ceres furrowed her brow, looking at me with irritation.
"Do you even know what the word 'temporarily' means? Besides, looking at your face just irritates me. Father, Mother... I want to go stomp on that thing's head for fun."
Ceres genuinely meant what she said. She had ordered our parents to come take my life. The manipulated parents lunged at me.
Father —
"Very well. Then let's stomp on this thing's head together, Ceres."
Mother —
"Let's play as a family. This will be fun, won't it, dear? Ceres?"
The two of them came charging at me with smiles on their faces, and I swung the Murasamemaru sideways, cleaving them apart. The weapon gave them no chance to read the distance, so my parents were sliced through easily.
But Ceres was still smiling.
"That's not nearly enough to stop me."
But I knew. I knew it all. I raised my left hand slightly and snapped my fingers.
"And what about that, Gracia?"
The Seventh Generation's third-stage Skill, Shuffle — a Skill that swaps the user's position with that of their target. I had swapped places with Gracia, who had climbed down from the cargo bed.
"...Even if it makes things awkward, they're my parents too. Let's end this quickly."
Gracia swept her left hand to the side, and pale blue flames engulfed the two of them. No screams were heard. It was just dolls being burned. That was all they were — figures modeled after my parents.
But Ceres didn't flinch.
"How cruel. Killing your own parents. You're nothing but a monster."
Ceres rose from her throne with a smile. She lifted the cane that concealed a rapier in her right hand. The hilt indeed bore a yellow Jewel.
"Fine, you can resurrect them again later. You lot are in my way. It's feeding time for you, boys."
The Monsters lurking behind the dignitaries surged forward. They let out war cries and devoured the dignitaries before them, growing larger.
"A-ha-ha-ha, impressive, right? I made them especially for this occasion. They're so savage they'll even eat their own kind, so be careful."
I gripped the hilt of my sheathless sword, then returned it to its necklace form. I hung it around my neck, then drew the katana hanging at my waist.
"Ceres, you really shouldn't be alive. I'm ending this right here."
At my words, Ceres's face twisted.
"Don't you dare say my name so casually!!"
Her tone turned venomous, and the Monsters around her lunged forward in sync with her furious roar. Watching Ceres seething with rage, I steeled myself for the fight. There was fear somewhere inside me. But I wasn't standing alone this time.
"...Is everyone ready?"
I checked for their resolve.
Novem answered.
"Yes. Anytime."
Aria also readied her spear.
"We have to end this here, right? Then let's hurry up and finish it. Let's settle this and be done with it."
Miranda drew a short sword and created a Golem. It took the form of a large feline animal, with Shannon riding on its back.
"I'm ready whenever you are. I've been preparing for this."
"...Why am I being forcibly dragged into this too? I want to go home, so hurry up and finish. I'm scared! I'm scared because my opponent is glaring at me!"
It was Eliza who was flustered by the tearful Shannon.
"It's... it's okay, Shannon. I'll back you up too. Um, I'm ready."
Though Eliza struck a stern expression at the end, shouldering her staff, it didn't quite work. Ceres, watching Shannon, was scowling in annoyance.
Clara, from inside the Porter.
"We're ready as well. The Porter is in top shape."
Eva, a bit excited.
"I'm thrilled to be part of such a perfect scene. We'll absolutely win, and I'll write a hero ballad for you all."
May was not present on the scene. But, she was somewhere in Central, fighting alongside Marina. Vera was directing from outside while fighting. Monica was also busy holding back the Automatons.
Gracia readied her lance, which had a shield attached to its shaft.
"One look and you'll know. That thing is troublesome. I see, that's why you gathered all of us. We'll meet those expectations."
Finally, Ludmilla drew her long sword, pointing its crimson, slender blade at Ceres.
"With this many people gathered, it's unlikely we'll lose. Let's finish this quickly and move on to our various discussions."
He wasn't keen on the "various discussions" part, but once this was over, those talks would proceed whether he liked it or not.
Shifting his mindset, he addressed everyone.
"Let's go!"
In the streets of Central.
The ones fighting while demolishing buildings were May and Marina — and Lumer, the black Kirin.
Marina plunged both hands into the massive jaws of Lumer, clamping its upper and lower mandibles shut.
"How is this thing so tough?!"
Slashing it, crushing it, blasting it to char with magic — it regenerated every time. When it devoured the death soldiers nearby, it was as if it were replenishing its mana, restoring the damaged parts in no time.
May spun through the air, building momentum, and drove a devastating kick into Lumer's neck — but —
"That's hard."
Feeling a tingling ache, May pulled away from Lumer. The impact sent Marina tumbling out of its mouth as well; she skidded to a landing on the ground and looked up at Lumer.
Its body was embedded in the ground, and it forced itself upright with its limbs. Some part seemed to have been broken or blown clean off.
It looked around and called for death soldiers. They swarmed toward Lumer and were devoured.
It chewed with loud, crunching sounds, then regenerated and let out a triumphant roar.
"Tch. We already thinned out the death soldiers around here, didn't we."
Marina clicked her tongue in frustration, but the area was overflowing with death soldiers. Defeating those in the immediate vicinity wasn't enough — more kept pouring in.
May kicked her aching leg a few times to shake it off, then planted her feet firmly on the ground.
"Rare metals forged right into it, too. It really is a puppet, huh."
Lumer lunged at May, swinging a massive hand down from above in a chopping motion.
May leaped back to dodge, then targeted its head. The deer-like antlers extending from behind its ears glowed bright, and she unleashed a spell directly at Lumer.
Purple lightning struck Lumer, but it only scorched the surface — hardly effective. Being a Kirin itself, it seemed to share the same resistance.
"It's surrounded by food, and its stamina is limitless... this is really troublesome. Hey, why did Ceres capture you in the first place? Give me a break."
The massive mouth that Lumer possessed. But it never offered an answer to May's words —.
Up against a single Automaton — Bart — were Monica and the first, second, and third Valkyrie units.
They scrambled to stay out of range of the dual-wielded gatlings. They were optical weapons — even if a hit didn't kill outright, it could melt through custom-forged armor and punch clean through.
Not wanting to take too many hits, they had confirmed that Bart was reluctant to fire at the pillars, mindful of the floors above, so Monica and the others used the pillars as cover while launching their attacks.
Monica's clothes were in tatters.
"Even when you deal damage, he recovers with the magic ore stones stored inside. You pour on all that firepower and he still recovers with magic ore stones. What a lowlife."
Glancing at a different pillar, she saw that the second unit had lost one arm. On the opposite side, the third unit had been using a binder as a makeshift shield and had already lost it — its entire body was battered and torn.
The first unit, positioned near Monica, had sections where the armor surface had melted. It spoke to Monica.
"...At this rate, we're going to let that thing through to our Master."
Bart circled around to attack Monica and the others as they hid behind pillars. Facing Bart's overwhelming firepower, Monica ran the numbers — it was, undeniably, a dire situation.
"I absolutely cannot allow that. If we let this thing reach the Chicken, even if we fight our way out, there will definitely be casualties. I will never, ever allow that."
Lyle would grieve if anyone was sacrificed.
Monica quickly predicted that outcome and arrived at the best possible choice.
"We were built from the start. That means there's only one option."
When Monica moved to evade Bart, who was circling around toward them, the first unit followed.
"Even if you're gone, Master will still be saddened, you know."
"Hmph. Monica will live on inside Master's heart forever, so it'll be fine. Besides, sacrificing others is something my principles will never allow."
The first unit let out a soft chuckle.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just admiring your principles — sacrificing everyone else while ensuring no one around you ever gets hurt. What a wonderfully selfish code of honor."
Bart, closing in from behind, watched the group as it approached.
"You certainly have time to chatter. I'll make this quick for you!"
She shattered another magic ore, enhancing the power of her attack. A section of the floor gave way, and Monica and First leaped over the molten area.
Monica spoke to First.
"I'm sorry, but I'll need you to accompany me. I can't take that thing down alone. ...I'm sorry about this."
First simply shook her head. She had the same face and twin-tail hairstyle as Monica, which swayed with the movement.
"It's fine. This is far better than spending my time doing nothing. You were the one who taught me that we have purpose."
Monica stopped and turned back to Bart.
"Alright, here I go!"
She pulled out her last test tube, drank it dry, and summoned weapons into both hands. Bart laughed at the sight. It was a ridiculously primitive hammer—a toy-like weapon fitted with a jet engine.
He must have been convinced of his victory seeing it.
"That attitude of treating things lightly until the very end—if you can maintain that, it becomes a kind of aesthetic. Now, vanish!"
He aimed the gatling guns on both arms at Monica and First. Just before they fired, the battered and broken forms of Second and Third darted in front.
"Self-destruction? As expected, things done by a freak state are all the same. A suicide attack, is it!"
The triggers were pulled without mercy. Second and Third were pierced by the optical weapons and began to melt away. Including the cores hidden within their bodies—without their cores, these Valkyries could not revive.
However, Second and Third both grabbed the barrels of Bart's gatling guns with their hands.
"I wish you'd stop this. Do you need to put others down just to confirm your own worth?"
"You only complain because you want attention... Well, I suppose you don't have a country anymore anyway."
At their words, Bart let out a roar. His expression was twisted with fury.
"Shut uuuup!"
Second and Third, even as they laughed, used the magic ore hidden in their chests... and detonated.
Bart was also blown away, losing both arms. He lost the gatling as well, but when he retrieved a magic ore from his inner pocket with his mouth and destroyed it, his arms regenerated.
However, this time Monica and First came charging toward Bart. They dashed through the smoke created by Second and Third's explosion and closed in on Bart.
"If First and I self-destruct, that'll be enough to erase you!"
As Monica drew close, Bart pulled out a rifle taller than he was. It looked like a rifle-type optical weapon.
"Disappear, you worthless fakes!"
As Bart pulled the trigger, Monica had been planning to use the attack to trigger an explosion. But First shoved Monica aside with her left hand and took the optical beam head-on. She caught it with her binder, but the blast carried more power than the gatling, and First's lower body melted away into nothing.
"What are you—"
As Monica stared in shock, Bart was already pulling out another magic ore for his next shot. It seemed he consumed one per blast.
First reached into her own chest, pulled out a magic ore, and tossed it to Monica.
Then First launched both arms toward Bart's. Wires extended from her upper arms, and her hands latched onto both of Bart's wrists.
"What are you doing—"
Monica caught the magic ore—a peridot—and First looked toward her and smiled.
"You stay here. That's what Master would want. Also, I want you to relay a message—"
As First restrained Bart, Monica crushed the magic ore. Sparkling light erupted, restoring Monica's damage.
Bart wrenched himself free from First and seized her head.
"You piece of garbage!!"
First was crushed core and all, shattering into fragments. Seeing this, Monica remembered the sisters in the Dungeon—in the room within the Dungeon where Octo had summoned Lyle—holding the shattered core of First.
In the last moment, she thought First had been smiling.
"...Beginning cleanup."
Monica's outfit glowed and turned white, no longer a maid uniform. Taking on the shape of what looked like a wedding dress, white wings emerged from Monica's back. They were metal. Every single feather was a weapon—an armament unto itself.
Bart fired his rifle at Monica, but she dodged it with ease. Floating in the air on her spread wings, she opened both arms wide.
"Full Cross—this is the wedding dress I’ve always dreamed of. Well, to you, it probably looks more like a messenger announcing the end."
When Bart took out a magic stone, beams of light fired one after another from her spread wings. They pierced through Bart’s rifle and then his arm, melting it away.
"I didn’t want to show you this. But I couldn’t win without it. Besides, it was one of my trump cards…"
The light pierced through Bart as he regenerated. But Bart—
"High-purity magic stones… but if you keep this up, you’ll hit your limit soon!"
Just as Bart said, the Full Cross soon vanished, and Monica returned to her usual maid outfit. As Bart stood up, reaching to draw a weapon—
Monica drove the drill attached to her arm through him and pinned him to the wall. Pierced through the abdomen by the drill tip, Bart struggled futilely, trying to escape.
"You—!"
"True, this was only possible because my sisters created an opening for you. And my time to use this is limited. But it’s enough."
The drill began to spin, continuing to destroy Bart. The magic stones were consumed to regenerate the damage.
"S-Stop! Stop it!"
If Bart were in perfect condition, he could have escaped. But in his current state, he couldn’t get away. Moreover, his supply of magic stones was nearly depleted. The large quantity he once had was rapidly being used up.
Monica’s expression was blank.
"I forgot to mention something. You were very proud of the country that produced you, weren’t you? So let me tell you: every single one of my parts is domestically made. But you—less than twenty percent of your parts are from your homeland, right? And yet, with eighty percent being foreign-made, you sure talk big."
Bart’s face twisted as he tried to push the spinning drill away with both hands, but his hands were simply shaved off.
Monica continued.
"Almost all your insides are foreign-made. And what’s more, your critical components are the same parts we use. Which means you’re running on the same parts as the people you looked down on… Isn’t that embarrassing? Or is it a refined form of self-deprecation where you denigrate yourself too?"
As the drill’s momentum increased, Bart screamed—his magic stones were gone.
"Lady Ceres! Magic power—give this butler magic power!"
Bart had thought that with Ceres's magic power he could regenerate, but the drill kept boring into his abdomen, completely destroying it.
Sparks flew as Bart's expression turned pale.
Monica remained expressionless.
"That richness of expression is also reproduced using the same parts as mine. Honestly, from my perspective... you are the one using foreign-made products mixed with defective parts, you counterfeit."
Bart tried to open his mouth, but the drill finished grinding through his body. His head rolled across the ground, and he tried to look up at Monica.
Monica simply crushed Bart's face under her foot.
"The only one who gets to peek under my skirt is the Chicken. Disappear."
Then, Bart let out a mechanical voice. His mouth wasn't moving.
"N-No... I finally got a Master... I don't want to vanish here..."
Finding the core, Monica crushed it without a word.
"Don't make me work so hard. The Chicken is sending magic power my way, and it's a bother, you know. Well, it seems the one who was truly wonderful was my Master."
The last time she used the drill, Monica had felt magic power flowing in from Laiel.
Smoke was coming from the drill. Monica let go of it and looked around at the remains of her sisters.
Heading toward the parts of No. 1, Monica sat down.
"I... will convey it properly. 'It was good to serve someone. Thank you for giving us a reason to exist.'"
Monica closed her eyes, then immediately opened them and dashed over to Laiel——.