At the forefront of Kartafus's charge into the army of the dead, the Fourth Generation's figure could be seen.
"Central isn't far now. Well, I can't very well keep putting my wife to work like this. Since they went to the trouble of preparing a weapon like this, I'd rather like to give it a try."
He held a short sword in each hand, the blades on his back pointing outward as well, moving in sweeping arcs. The Fourth Generation lightly tossed the dual short swords upward, catching them again at the moment they fell.
"Full Drive—"
He murmured those words.
The Fourth Generation's figure vanished from where he stood, and in the next instant, the army of the dead was being cut down one after another, blown away, with short swords driven into their skulls in rapid succession.
In the blink of an eye, a path cleared where the Fourth Generation had passed, and toward it his forces and Kartafus's forces surged into their charge.
The Fourth Generation's wife.
"Go on, give the order."
"I — I know! Charge!"
Ludmilla was prodded along, and after the Fourth Generation carved his way through, an army of over a hundred thousand launched their assault. Leading the front lines were the Fourth Generation's forces.
Ducking a skeletal soldier's sweeping blow, the Fourth Generation cut down the undead one after another with minimal movement.
His motions were extraordinarily nimble.
The Fourth Generation's wife watched those movements while raising her right hand and snapping her fingers. Two magic circles materialized in the sky at a distance from the Fourth Generation, and fire magic rained down from them.
"There — we're getting close to Central. You're going to set up camp, right? Get ready!"
The Fourth Generation's wife stood beside Ludmilla, issuing directives. Ludmilla was still unfamiliar with this, felt the weight of being watched, and on top of that sensed she was being tested — it all rubbed her the wrong way.
"I know that!"
"Don't talk back! Do you really think you can become the woman of House Walt with that attitude?"
The appearance of her mother-in-law scolding her left Ludmilla irritated. However, the woman was powerful, and it wasn't exactly the time to be bickering.
The Fourth Generation's wife knew this perfectly well, yet she was still enjoying herself by nagging Ludmilla with petty criticisms.
"Still, as expected of Marks. He's dependable."
Watching the Fourth Generation on the front lines — cutting down skeleton soldiers one after another, occasionally vanishing to blast away surrounding enemies — the Fourth Generation's wife said as much.
——Lyaerial's main army. In a position flanking it, the former Banseim civil officials who had merely tagged along were now gripping weapons and fighting against the skeleton soldiers.
However, they showed no willingness to step past the barricade and were half-hearted at best.
They had held a sword before and could manage the basics. But their bodies had grown lax from years of desk work, and the threats hanging over them left them sluggish.
Mireia watched them with a sigh.
"Hah... utterly useless."
She fired the handguns held in both hands, and the bullets cleanly blew away the weak point of a skeleton soldier — its head.
For Mireia, who knew exactly where the weaknesses lay, it was child's play. She stepped past the barricade, surrounded herself with skeleton soldiers, and took them down one by one.
She tossed aside each spent gun and used the knife affixed to the barrel to slash at those that closed in. Dressed in a gown, her skirt would billow softly as she moved — she looked as though she were dancing.
Occasionally she would send a skeleton soldier's head flying with a kick.
"Couldn't you all try just a little harder?"
Saying this, Mireia cast her gaze toward her grandson Ralph, who was still inside the barricade. But Ralph, though he was armed, was only slightly more capable than the others.
He excelled at desk work, meetings, and behind-the-scenes maneuvering, but that didn't make him capable when it came to direct combat.
Just then, Miranda and Shannon emerged from behind the barricade, where they had been receiving treatment.
"We're late. We're ready to go anytime."
"Ready!"
Shannon, riding atop a feline beast Golem that Miranda had created, straightened her back and answered Mireia with the same.
Mireia smiled as she blew away a skeleton soldier's head with her handgun. The bullet pierced clean through and took the head of a second one standing behind it as well.
"Oh my, you could rest a little longer if you want? But I'm glad to see you're motivated. ...In the meantime, you lot — pay close attention to the real strength of the people you tried to use."
Mireia glared around at them. Ralph and the others turned their gazes toward Miranda.
Mireia, that remarkable woman, had married into House Cerclie, and her bloodline passed down to Miranda. The Mystic Eyes were inherited by Shannon.
The two who most strongly inherited Mireia's blood were undoubtedly these two. Miranda produced threads from both hands. The threads, woven from mana, materialized and wrapped around the Golem Shannon was riding.
"Wire Frame."
As Miranda whispered that, the Golem gradually grew larger. It shifted its form into an armored warrior with the head of a lion, and Miranda leaped onto its shoulder. It was far more refined than the Golem she had shown when she fought Novem before.
She had built a skeleton framework with the wires she created, threading them through the earth so that its movements would be smoother. On top of that, it was now capable of further enlargement.
This delicate flow of mana was a feat made possible only because Shannon was providing support. Shannon had been helping in earnest.
When the newly created Golem let out a roar, arms burst from its back. The hands that emerged from its spine gripped various weapons.
"Oh my, how wonderful. Now that's befitting of a woman of House Walt. You'd have to be able to do this much, at the very least."
Mireia said this as though it were only natural, then leaped onto the lion-headed warrior herself. "The view from up high is lovely, you know," she remarked, though a Mystic Eye holder like Mireia shouldn't have been able to see anything at all.
Just as Miranda was about to open her mouth—
"I can see just fine, you know. After all, I have the Jewel supporting me. Mmm, what a refreshing feeling. Well, watching Central — the place where I lived for so many years — crumble is rather... oh, not the least bit sad, actually."
At first she had seemed melancholy, but now that Central was collapsing before her eyes, Mireia appeared entirely unfazed. If anything—
"Now then, let's ravage! Ravage!"
Shannon watched the gleeful Mireia and remarked:
"...House Walt is seriously messed up."
Miranda seemed to share that opinion, nodding as she surveyed the battlefield where all manner of magic and Skills-based attacks were erupting around them.
"You're right. They're far more intense than us. No wonder Novem was at a loss for words. Well... it looks like Rael is going to help too, so the least we can do is lend a hand. If we let things end in a rout like this, we'll never win."
If someone were to die here, it would leave a lifelong wound in Rael's heart, and Novem would emerge as the harem victor. Miranda was on guard against exactly that.
"We need to settle this properly."
Seeing Miranda's serious expression as she said this, Novem replied, eyes sparkling.
"That's the spirit, Miranda! That's the woman of House Walt!"
Shannon was looking up at her father and the others from the ground. They were all staring with their mouths agape, looking utterly dumbfounded.
"...I guess that's normal for them. House Walt is insane. I'm starting to think I could never do that."
To Shannon's remark, Novem responded.
"Don't worry! Everyone says that at first, but they get used to it quickly!"
She was delivering some rather unwelcome news.
Confirming the flashy battle taking place on the ground, I charged at Agrissa.
I was definitely dealing damage, but it still wasn't enough for a decisive blow.
The fact that Novem was absorbed by Agrissa, with her head exposed on the outside, was also a problem. It was obviously her weak point, but it was being guarded by Novem herself.
A subtly annoying enemy. I think her personality is rotten.
"Agrissa, you—have a terrible personality."
As I said this, Eva clung to Porter, trembling.
"Are you only realizing that now? Of course she's terrible!"
I used Shuffle to switch positions with the Valkyries, appearing directly above Porter and landing there.
"One shouldn't jump to conclusions. Perhaps—though the probability is extremely slim—that she's actually a nice person. Well, Novem is more important, so even if she is nice, I'll still cut her down."
As I finished speaking, Aria appeared on top of Porter's left hand, breathing heavily.
"You... you need to do something about this! You're hurting her, but it doesn't feel like we're winning at all!"
Agrissa, who could regenerate injuries almost instantly, turned both her hands toward us. Over a thousand orbs of light materialized around us. Each one was a dense mass of mana.
"You buzz around like annoying flies. Let me finish this off."
Agrissa had one eye opened slightly wider than the other, a blue vein bulging on her forehead.
"I hear you get wrinkles easily when you're angry."
When I offered that bit of advice, Agrissa only grew angrier.
"Then try handling this number of them! — And you will regret the insolence you've shown me!"
Thousands of orbs of light came hurtling toward us. There was no way I could handle that with warp alone. I recalled the Valkyries back to my side.
"Then I'll swap them with yours — Shuffle!"
"W-What?!"
Agrissa was struck by the thousands of attacks she herself had created. Sure enough, she had been shielding her chest where Novem was. Attack after attack crashed into Agrissa, detonations erupting as she was swallowed by smoke.
I felt a little relieved.
"So it was there after all. Good. If it had been her lower abdomen or her rear, it wouldn't have looked good visually. I'd have been in trouble if that turned out to be her weak point. I'd have had no choice but to send Aria charging in."
"I wouldn't want to do that either!"
If I did it, it would look indecent — being a man and all. I figured it might just barely be acceptable if Aria did it, but she was clearly not having it.
"Can't be helped. Then if it comes to that, I'll—"
Clara spoke in a surprisingly serious voice.
"Please move on from that topic, Laiel!"
Since she put it that way, I had no choice but to shut my mouth. Well, if I did it, it would reach the realm of art no matter how indecent it looked, so it'd be fine.
If anything, wasn't I already art? Even if I were to bare my body, I was a completed work of art like a sculpture — one that could never be viewed with indecent eyes. Yes, I was a living work of art—
"Get back here! Stop daydreaming and get back here, Laiel!"
At Aria's words, I ceased my train of thought.
"All right — once I establish an empire, I'll put sculptures and statues of my naked self on display in the capital! They'll be absolutely magnificent! Ahahahaha—"
As I laughed triumphantly, a sinister voice reached my ears. It was Agrissa.
The explosion that had engulfed Agrissa subsided, and as the smoke cleared, the sight was indeed gruesome. There were parts where the flesh had been torn away, exposing bare bone.
"——Laaaaiiiiellll!"
Deep furrows were carved between her brows, but they were already mending. As I suspected — she had launched that attack while making sure to keep herself safe.
What a nasty piece of work.
I let out a sigh.
"Sigh, good grief... I suppose I have no choice but to play my trump card."
"I don't care about your trump card — just do something already! It's freezing! I'm freezing!"
Eva was shivering, and whether it was from fear of heights or the cold, I couldn't tell. I turned my gaze to Novem.
Her head hung limply downward, and everything below her collarbone had already been consumed by Agrissa.
"Well, what I need to do is simple. After all, waking a sleeping beauty has always been the job of a prince on a white steed. Though I suppose it's slightly different since I'll be emperor someday."
Well, I wasn't a prince, nor a prince of the imperial blood. But my very existence was special, so there was no issue. If anything, I'd say I possessed greater rarity than any prince or royal heir. Emperor someday — now there was a premium title.
"My premium presence as the next emperor is absolutely off the charts."
As I said that, Monica, who was floating beside Porter, spoke up.
"...Premium, is it? Well, it does mean 'bonus,' in a sense. As expected of you, Chicken."
That's right — my very existence was special, and a mere title like emperor was nothing but a bonus! And with that, I would go wake the sleeping beauty — or rather, my sleeping lover.
"...Do as you please."
I could hear Clara's exasperated voice. She was probably jealous. I'd make sure to smooth things over with her later. I was a man who never forgot to follow through.
But my Skills that connected through a deep kiss...
I truly am a chosen man. The chosen are just different, after all.
With that thought, I kicked Porter to take to the sky and reached out my hand to Monica. Monica grasped my hand, and we immediately headed towards Novem.
"Kissing Sleeping Beauty is something I wanted to keep all to myself, you know. It's my first precious memory," Monica grumbled.
Agrissa rushed towards us, both hands raised to attack. I laughed.
"It's the most effective method. To connect with Novem and awaken her consciousness."
"Oh my, you actually gave it some thought? I thought you just wanted a kiss, of course," Agrissa retorted.
Both reasons were behind my conclusion, naturally.
Balls of mana shot towards us from Agrissa. We soared through them. Monica dodged, and when evasion was impossible, her wings emitted light to intercept the mana attacks.
Moving so rapidly, Monica held me close as we flew. Dives, climbs, and spins made it truly exhilarating.
"That's enough out of an Automaton like you!" Agrissa snapped.
I saw her frustration and subtly warped an attack so it hit Agrissa instead. The Valkyries were also peppering Agrissa with their own minor attacks, and her irritation must have peaked.
I grinned.
"Come on, what's wrong? I'm right here, you know... Agrissa dear," I teased.
Whether she'd finally reached her limit, spike-like protrusions erupted from all over Agrissa's body.
"Enough! I'll erase every last speck of you... disappear!"
A colossal surge of mana appeared and was fired directly at us. It was enormous—big enough to swallow me, Monica, Porter behind us, and all the Valkyries. The blast launched into the sky engulfed us completely.
"If you'd just stay away from your allies, my warping would be...!" Agrissa began, triumphant.
From the sky above her, I was released by Monica and approached.
"Sorry. That was an illusion. For someone who created Skills, you fell for a Third Generation's ability. How cute, Agrissa dear."
I descended right in front of Agrissa. My reflection appeared in her giant eyes, and I swung my blade in a horizontal arc. A red line sliced across the air, cutting through Agrissa's eyes. Blood and thick, viscous fluid sprayed forth.
Agrissa covered her face with both hands.
"AaaaaaaAAAAAAaaaaaaa!!"
As Agrissa writhed in agony, I landed near Novem and reached for her chin. Lifting it up into a position that made kissing easier, I pressed my lips against hers. The moment a Line formed between us—
"Novem… you…"
Novem slowly opened her eyes. Her violet irises glowed faintly. And then, seeing me, she smiled.
"As expected of you, Master Lyle. To push Agrissa—push Septem—this far. You really are the man I believed you to be."
Her voice was gentle.
But the instant our Lines connected and information came flooding in from Novem, I gasped.
"Monica!"
"Right on it!"
I leaped away from Novem, landing on Monica's back mid-air. Meanwhile, Novem, now awake, slowly took a deep breath.
Eva, still in Porter's grip, shouted toward me.
"Hey! Why aren't you saving me?!"
I immediately issued orders to Clara.
"Clara, use Porter's arms! Have the Valkyries retrieve Aria and Eva!"
The Valkyries grabbed Aria and Eva, pulling them free from Porter. Porter then extended both massive hands toward Agrissa's body.
Agrissa was still clutching her eyes, but when Novem let out a soft sigh—
"How long are you going to keep playing around? To fall apart over something like this—that's exactly why you're no good."
Novem's eyes narrowed, and Agrissa suddenly sprang into motion.
"M-My body—"
Clara's hand seized the arm Porter extended toward Agrissa. With their hands locked together, I shouted at Clara.
"Do it!"
Clara activated the weapons she had built into both of Porter's arms. Both arms were severed, and the Valkyries forced the torso back.
Novem watched the scene unfold with a smile.
"You've done quite a bit of preparation. Watching Lyle-sama tinker with Porter was such a delight—truly heartwarming, it was."
Novem smiled—
The next instant, stakes embedded in Porter's arms were fired. The arms detonated with the gunpowder packed inside them, blowing Agrissa's arms away.
Agrissa opened her mouth to scream when something mask-like suddenly emerged from her body and clamped over her mouth.
As Agrissa struggled, Novem slowly rose from where she had been submerged, exposing her naked body as though climbing out of a bath. In her hand she held a Mana Tool.
Novem drove the wand-like Mana Tool into Agrissa, who was writhing with her arms blown off.
Aria saw the scene.
"What the— Novem, could she have been taken over—"
I turned to Aria, and to everyone around us.
"No. Novem allowed herself to be taken over on purpose. From the very beginning, she intended to have Agrissa kill her along with herself."
In the end, Novem would regain consciousness, restrain Agrissa, draw our concentrated fire, and vanish along with her.
By doing so, Novem believed I would grow even stronger—not in power, but that by overcoming her death, I would grow stronger mentally. She was guiding me to become a proper emperor.
"Since she couldn't win with Agrissa, Novem changed her approach."
Her hairpin came loose, and her long hair cascaded free, swaying in the wind. As if responding to my words, Novem said:
"Yes. You've exceeded my expectations. You always do, Lyle-sama. You kept surpassing what I hoped for, and that made me so happy. Unlike those fragile souls who abandoned their bodies and fled into dreams—you proved yourself worthy of ruling this Earth as a true human being. My plan is now complete. My only regret is that I won't be here to see what comes next."
Novem released the wand she had driven into Agrissa and clasped both hands together before her chest. It almost looked like she was praying.
"Ah, wonderful. Octo, our plan has succeeded. We even dealt with the traitor Septem. — Nihil, Unus, Duo, Tres, Quattuor, Quinque, and Sex… all seven goddesses' descendants have gathered under Raier-sama's command. Raier-sama, you are truly fit to be the ruler of this planet. Now, allow me to verify Raier-sama's true strength with my own hands. It's all right — I will hold back. However, I will not stop until you kill me. Kill me, and Raier-sama will be complete!"
Novem's eyes — she was dead serious. She was helplessly, utterly insane. Damn it! Why does this have to happen now!
Aria and the others saw my distressed expression.
"Raier, Novem is saying such things —"
"Hm? Oh, yeah, she's saying something. Honestly, the specifics don't matter. I love Novem too, you know? I'm ready to accept her. She's a bit out of her mind, but I'm always welcoming! Well, there is one problem, though…"
My problem.
It was—
"…It seems my time is up. I wanted to confess my love more, but I guess I've run out of time."
Aria and the others tilted their heads. Then Clara spoke.
"That would be the remaining time on your Skills—"
"No, those are fine. It's something else… My mood's kind of plummeting. Honestly, I'm surprised I could fight Agrissa that well. Am I actually amazing or something?"
I felt like I was rapidly cooling down, yet my face was gradually heating up. Calming myself to reflect on everything up to now, I started to feel ashamed.
"…It's over. I want to forget everything. This would've been fine if we stayed in the sky. Down here, I can't face anyone… Aaaaaagh!! Oh noooo!!"
I remembered. I remembered everything.
I — I'm still connected to everyone via the lines.
To the ones I summoned… and to all the Successive Heads.