—Ceres swallowed the Jewel whole.
She had expected there might be some resistance as it went down her throat, but there was none. It settled into her stomach as if simply dissolving. She had tilted her head back to swallow it whole, then slowly turned her gaze back to Laiel and the others.
Flames generated from high-density mana swirled around Ceres, shielding her. It was a Skill she had prepared for self-destruction—but these were flames that Ceres, whose inhuman reserves of mana defied all reason, had spent years cultivating.
Laiel and the others wouldn't stand a chance against it.
After all, the destructive force capable of obliterating the Royal Capital was now being used to protect her own body.
These were flames that Agrissa had granted Ceres as a Skill—flames originally prepared to eliminate any who would interfere.
"Ceres, that's enough now, isn't it?"
Agrissa's voice was gentle. Ceres nodded.
"Yes, that's enough. Because it's a promise, after all."
Ceres remembered. That day.
It was when Ceres was six years old. Having inherited Septem's memories, Ceres carried within her the vivid recollections of being oppressed by humans—much like Agrissa herself. Born with those memories, Ceres came to view everyone but her parents as nothing but trash.
Everyone else was just a pesky insect that could be crushed at a touch—that was the extent of her regard. For Ceres, whether or not she took a liking to someone determined that person's worth. Or so she had believed.
But—
(I won't forgive him. I'll never forgive him.)
Her older brother, Laiel, had inherited all of Septem's memories. And yet, despite carrying those memories, he possessed a firm sense of self.
He would even say things like "I can't look back at the past" and go so far as to seal away his own memories.
He was capable. He surpassed Ceres.
And—just as the Septems of old had carried memories of oppression—Laiel was kind to those around him. He met his parents' expectations and was loved by everyone.
He didn't need to rely on Septem's power. Laiel was loved by all around him.
As if yin and yang, the brighter Laiel shone, the stronger Ceres's darkness became.
And Ceres hid her hatred behind her usual bright expression, continuing to despise Laiel all the while. What made the hatred grow was that Laiel noticed it all—and still chose to be kind to her.
Through the flames, Ceres watched Laiel, frustrated that he couldn't reach out to her, looking back at her across the fire.
Seeing Laiel's expression—so different from the smile he used to wear—Ceres felt a weight lift from her chest.
Being treated kindly by Laiel, tormented by her sense of inferiority, and then hearing the Jewel she had found after her grandmother's death whisper to her—she had felt it was fate.
She had slipped into her grandmother's room, rummaging around for anything interesting. Seeing everyone around her grieving, she found it repulsive. To Ceres, her grandmother had been nothing more than that, either.
After all, even her grandparents had noticed, if only faintly, that something was wrong with Ceres.
It had been boring. She had snuck out of the funeral and found a box tucked away under heavy care.
When she opened it—
"Hmm, not Xenoa. My granddaughter Ceres, is it? You've grown."
That was the moment Ceres found the yellow Jewel and met Agrissa. From there, everything began to move.
And what Agrissa desired was Ceres's body. It wasn't even a particularly forceful demand. To Agrissa, Ceres was a dear descendant—someone of value to her as well.
On the other side of the flames, the beings who had tormented her were growing frantic.
Ceres spread both her arms wide.
"Now—despair. I'll be watching it all from hell."
Even as she was about to vanish, Ceres was smiling to the very end.
The moment Ceres smiled her last smile with arms spread wide, her body swelled and burst, spewing blood and gore into the air.
Ceres expected flesh and bone to scatter across the ground, but instead the surrounding flames were absorbed and the blood and tissue gathered together, forming a sphere. As the crimson-black orb began to pulse, I raised my rifle and opened fire.
Everyone immediately followed—magic arrows, then cannon shots—but—
The crimson-black sphere ruptured, and from within it emerged a woman drenched in blood, completely naked.
Her long golden hair was drenched in blood, yet it still seemed to shine. The purple eyes visible through her locks gleamed like jewels.
Fair skin, a beautiful body. Full breasts, the curve of her waist—and that was where I shook my head. Everyone else was similarly spellbound, so I called out to them.
"Keep your heads together!"
At that, the blood-soaked woman—somewhere in her mid to late twenties, roughly that age—turned her gaze toward me and curled the corner of her lips upward.
The woman who had been near the throne vanished the instant I turned to address the group, and in the next moment she was right beside me.
"I'll let you stare all you want. And I should introduce myself—hello, Lyriel."
There had been no presence whatsoever. I was sharing Ceres's visual information too, and I still couldn't detect her. I tried to leap backward, but the woman didn't pursue.
She simply stood there, smiling at me.
"Don't look so frightened. I hold favorable feelings toward you. It's been quite some time since I felt this way. Let's see... the last time I was this excited was when your ancestor delivered the killing blow to me."
From the flow of conversation, the person my ancestor had struck down—that would be Agrissa.
"Miranda!"
Miranda recovered faster than the rest and entangled Agrissa with her Skills, weaving threads around the naked Agrissa. The threads bound her up, but even Miranda's threads couldn't so much as scratch Agrissa's skin.
"How is she so tough?!"
Agrissa laughed. Laughing, she severed Miranda's threads one after another.
"That's a mean thing to say. These are still soft, delicate hands, you know. Want me to prove it? Novem really did pick well—there are some adorable ones here, aren't there?"
Unlike Ceres, Agrissa had been showing a friendly demeanor from the start. But that was precisely what made her terrifying. Just moments ago, had she been serious, she could have killed me. And yet, she hadn't.
I had better not harbor any optimistic thoughts like "maybe she couldn't."
Novem stepped forward in front of me. She had her staff raised, but the staff shifted into the form of a great scythe, showing that Novem was on maximum alert.
"Agrissa—no, Septem!"
At that, Agrissa's expression clouded over.
"Don't call me that. I am Agrissa. I'd appreciate it if you didn't address me by that fool's name, Septem. Though I suppose Septem isn't the only fool around."
The latter half of that remark carried a provocative edge directed at Novem. In response, Novem closed in on Agrissa with unprecedented speed, swinging her great scythe at her neck.
Agrissa caught the blade with her left hand, stopping it cold.
"My, my, don't get so angry. I've only just been revived, after all. That said, it's been ages since I last smelled this scent of active magic. The smell of a battlefield. You've been fighting outside too, haven't you? How wonderful... The thought of people dying sends shivers down my spine. There really are sensations you can only experience with a proper body."
The sight of Agrissa's cheeks flushed with excitement filled me with terror, and I barked orders to those around me.
My companions linked through the Connection sprang into action, and Ludmilla and Gracia attacked Agrissa in a pincer formation.
They were enhanced with Skills. Both their speed and power far exceeded normal levels, but—
"Oh? Descendants of the Goddess, are they? Looking more closely, the rest are all here too. Laiel, you're impressive. Did you gather them unconsciously, or was it fate—well, that's of no consequence."
The blood that had scattered across the surroundings swelled upward, forming massive arms that deflected both Ludmilla's and Gracia's attacks.
"This creature!"
Gracia unleashed a torrent of flames, and Agrissa watched her with amusement.
"Oh, hot, hot. As expected from someone who carries the blood of the Goddess. But that's all you've got, I'm afraid. I'll add you to my collection, so stay quiet."
She sent all three flying, then dismissed the arms that had been shielding her. As she stretched, Monica and Eliza launched their attack.
Clara rushed to retrieve the three who had been blown away, while Miranda held the trembling Shannon in her arms.
"An Automaton. You've brought back something nostalgic. Well, I imagine she rather dislikes me."
Agrissa regarded Monica with curiosity. Monica, bringing her enormous hammer crashing down, shouted—
"My core tells me you're more dangerous than any vixen. Begone!"
Agrissa caught the hammer's blow in the palm of her hand, while her other arm seized the staff Eliza had swung. Eliza had fashioned a blade of ice, but the moment Agrissa touched it, the ice shattered to pieces.
Agrissa looked disappointed.
"What a shame. You're all quite capable. And you're precious things left behind by humanity — I'd like to keep you by my side. But well, once Laiel becomes mine, you'll follow along willingly enough."
The moment Agrissa looked at me, she sent Monica and Eliza flying. Aria stepped in front of me, but Agrissa passed right through her and appeared before me.
"What—"
Agrissa's hand touched my cheek as she studied my face.
"Very nice. Because you share my blood, I find you quite endearing. What's more, you're not only distant in blood relation — you're strong. Even after Ceres took everything from you, you filled that vessel with a different kind of power. Ceres seemed to dislike you, but... I've taken a liking to you."
Was she actually a better person than she came across? I almost started thinking so. I shook my head and tried to pull away, but Novem swung her staff down at Agrissa.
Agrissa let out a sigh.
"Hah... Novem, don't interfere."
Novem's face was contorted with a fury I had never seen before.
"You killed Lady Ceres, and you dare—!!"
The staff, transformed into a massive scythe, blazed with fire — and Agrissa sent Novem flying. But Novem cut back toward Agrissa.
Her movements were faster than before. It was as if — Novem was gradually changing.
"This is what Ceres wanted. Besides, didn't you use us for your own purposes? You hated that Laiel had my blood in him, so you used Ceres to extract it."
"Shut uuuup!!"
Novem's violet eyes seemed to glow. Magic spilled out of her in waves, and that power — it looked identical to Agrissa's.
"Surpassing humans. Interesting. Don't get ahead of yourself — your foundation was excellent because of who I was before."
Agrissa's taunting words drove Novem into an ever greater rage. Through the Line connecting us, Novem's emotions flooded in faster than I could process.
"Gah!"
I clutched my chest.
The Line between Novem and me had been forcibly severed. Then Shannon screamed.
"Stop Novem! Agrissa — Agrissa's target is Novem!"
We all rushed toward Novem and Agrissa at once, but Agrissa, who looked slightly disappointed, quickly broke into a smile.
"What a shame. I was hoping to admire the sight of you all falling into despair, but it seems there was a clever one among you. Still, you were too late."
Mana erupted from Novem, and a storm of magical energy raged through the audience chamber. To an outside observer, it would have looked like nothing more than fierce winds howling through the room. But through our eyes—eyes that could see the flow of mana as Shannon did—we saw everything.
I stared at Novem.
"Novem is... changing."
She seemed to be transforming from a human into something else entirely. She still held a human form, but she was becoming the same kind of being as Agrissa—furious, consumed by hatred. And then, two massive palms of blackish-red energy materialized around Agrissa.
"Septem!!"
In her fury, Novem could see nothing but Agrissa.
"So you're enraged because I killed Ceres! You were putting on such a composed front in front of Rael, but I knew you were still the same underneath! Just like that time! The same as when you killed me! You haven't changed at all!"
Agrissa laughed as she watched the enraged Novem. The storm blasted us backward, hurling us into the walls. The Valkyries caught us, and then the enormous palms engulfed both Agrissa and Novem.
Agrissa and Septem were swallowed up. Then, as yet another blackish-red sphere was formed, Agrissa emerged from within it.
"What the—what the hell is this—"
Agrissa before us had grown to enormous size. She was still recognizably female, but she now stood over four meters tall. And there, at her chest, hung Novem—her head lolling lifelessly downward.
Both her arms and legs had transformed into blackish-red limbs with bulging, hardened veins. From her back jutted numerous horn-like protrusions that could hardly be called wings.
"—It doesn't fit quite right. It'll take a while longer... but as expected of Novem. You had her inherit all of her memories, didn't you? The parts I'd lost are filled in perfectly now."
The enlarged Agrissa looked down at us, her expression breaking into a smile.
"What's wrong, Rael? Why are you staring at me like that?"
I drew my katana and took a fighting stance.
"What did you do to Novem?!"
"Don't be angry. I merely fused with her. She'll become part of my flesh and blood. Well, she's the kind of person who deserves what's coming to her anyway. Want to hear about it? What Novem did? Want to know what the being they called a goddess truly was?"
I looked at Agrissa's chest. My Skills told me that Novem was still safe. But I didn't think she'd stay safe for long.
Aria looked up at Agrissa.
"Goddess? This is…?"
Agrissa glared down at Aria.
"Yes, that's right. This ugly form was once revered as a goddess. It was humanity that worshipped us — beings created by their own hands! And so we became gods. Which means… the massacre I'm about to commit is divine punishment, decreed by a god."
As Agrissa slowly raised her arm, Miranda screamed in Shannon's stead — directed at everyone connected by the line.
"Evacuate everyone immediately! Even hiding behind something is better than nothing!"
The torrent of mana flooding in, and the result Shannon had read from that flow — it left me stunned.
"Everyone, right now—"
By "everyone," she didn't mean us here. She meant our entire force that had breached Central.
But Agrissa simply laughed.
"I suppose I'll have to show you some mercy. But it's already too late."
The light unleashed from Agrissa's raised hand threatened to blow everything away. Its range covered all of Central.
Porter quickly moved to shield us. But that wasn't enough — the Valkyries surged forward and deployed their Binders across the front.
As everything was swallowed in light, what I heard was Agrissa's voice.
"I'll paint this continent red with blood, and then it'll be my turn to rule the world. Novem — I'll give you a front-row seat to that spectacle! Watch right there as every human you ever loved is destroyed!"
I gripped the Jewel tight in my fist.