"Shamash, Assault!!"
The searing flames of Shamash reignited. With a single sweeping strike, Elias obliterated the enemies approaching him.
In an instant, the Schicksal Aesirs melted into pools of molten metal before evaporating completely. The Kevin puppet, too, was scrapped entirely by this close-range strike. The imminent danger that had been mere inches away was now incinerated.
Mei, Rita, and Raven stood frozen, staring at Elias who had risen once again. Tears streamed down their faces, no longer tears of grief and despair—
But of overwhelming relief and joy.
"Everyone, I'm back."
After incinerating the threats in front of him, Elias turned to the three women behind him. Gently, he opened his arms and drew them into a warm embrace.
"Elias, welcome back!"
"Thank goodness, thank goodness..."
"You scared me to death!"
Mei sobbed in Elias' arms.
Rita cried tears of joy as if she had been granted salvation.
Raven wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her chin on his shoulder.
When Elias had died, their hearts had seemingly stopped. But now, as he returned, it felt as if they themselves had been brought back to life.
On the other side...
"What's going on?! How are you still alive?!"
Otto stared at the resurrected Elias in shock. His calm demeanor had completely vanished.
"Elias, what trickery is this?!"
He couldn't help but question it.
It shouldn't have been possible for Elias to stand up again!
Even a Herrscher, with their heart destroyed, more than fifty percent of their blood lost, and their body nearly torn in half, should be thoroughly dead!
"Otto, you've thoroughly enraged me. I hope you're ready to repent."
Elias gave the three women one more tight embrace.
The moment his gaze left them, his warmth turned to boundless killing intent.
His glare alone made Otto's soulium body shudder.
Never before had Elias been this angry.
If emotions could manifest as reality, then his fury would have burned Otto for a thousand years—and perhaps set the entire world ablaze.
But it wasn't the pain of being harmed that made him furious.
It was Otto's vile tactics.
He had dared to use Rita!
He had desecrated Elias' trust in her, forcing the dagger named Betrayal into her hands—wounding Elias physically, and scarring Rita's heart even more.
"Otto, even killing you ten thousand times wouldn't be enough!"
Had Elias been struck down in fair combat, he might've been angry, but not hateful.
But to be harmed by such underhanded, despicable means—by someone he loved and trusted?
No matter who it was—
Elias would never forgive that.
Never!
"Guh... tell me... how did you come back?! Tell me, Elias!!"
"Revived? Heh, you'll never know—not in this lifetime!"
Elias didn't wield the Judgment of Shamash or Surtur this time. Instead, he grabbed Otto with his bare hand. With the ever-evolving strength of his body, even soulium couldn't resist.
"Otto Apocalypse, blood for blood, good for good, evil for evil. I now formally declare: I will destroy your one and only source of beauty. You know exactly what I mean."
"No! You can't do that!"
"Can't I? And why not? What greater punishment could there be for someone like you?"
"!!!"
In that moment, Otto felt true terror and regret from the depths of his being.
If time could rewind, if he could do it all over again—he would never have targeted Elias and those dear to him in such a way.
He had nearly forgotten.
This boy—
From a certain perspective, was just like him.
Obsessive, mad, cold, and heartless—when it came to matters involving the one he loved.
But Elias was no different—in matters concerning those he loved, this young man would never show the slightest mercy.
Otto could already foresee it: his five-hundred-year-long wish had just become a thousand times harder to achieve.
"I told you to repent for your foolishness!"
Elias reached out and gripped Otto's face.
Bit by bit, he tightened his grip.
The soulium skin of Otto's face groaned under the pressure, cracks spiderwebbing across it.
"I... will never... give up!"
"Then I'll give you the most miserable end imaginable."
Elias' hand crushed harder.
Otto's entire head shattered.
The rest of his body was then incinerated by Elias—down to the last mote of dust.
With that, the soulium body Otto had sent to St. Freya Academy was completely destroyed. For the time being, Otto Apocalypse would be unable to interfere with what was happening here.
However...
"Not enough! It's far from enough!"
Elias was not satisfied.
He snatched the Judgment of Shamash embedded in the ground. The Divine Key, sensing his seething fury, shifted into its Might of An-Utu form, bursting into flame.
Dark wings spread from Elias' back, lifting him into the sky.
"Shamash—Ignite!"
With his roar, the An-Utu blade was once more wreathed in golden-red flames.
Normally, one swing of this blade could reduce any obstacle in Elias' path to ashes. But this time, he didn't swing immediately.
He activated the Herrscher of Wind's power.
A tornado formed around the blade.
In an instant—
The world's fiercest flames fused with its wildest gales. A flame tornado that pierced the heavens and earth now surged in Elias' hands!
It was as if a fiery serpent from heaven had descended upon the mortal world to bring catastrophe.
Elias narrowed his eyes.
"With this judgment flame—let all be judged!"
After aligning his aim, he slashed westward with this world-incinerating blow.
The towering vortex of fire raced into the distance.
Anyone along that line of latitude who looked up would see a blazing road drawn across the sky—as if the Sun God's chariot were tearing across the heavens. The mythic sight was even visible from space.
Meanwhile, on Schicksal's floating island—
"Cough cough! Elias!!"
Having shifted consciousness into a new soulium body, Otto awoke with a gasp and climbed out of the storage chamber.
Elias' words echoed in his mind, and he struck the chamber wall in frustration, his entire frame trembling.
"I won't let you do that! I won't!!"
Kallen Kaslana must not be touched!
She was the one and only light in Otto's heart.
She was the sole reason this fool had endured for five centuries.
Every sin Otto Apocalypse had committed in his long, wretched life—
Had been for the sake of resurrecting that saint.
And now someone had declared judgment.
Someone was going to take that saint away from him.
Otto didn't know what form that punishment would take.
He didn't know if Elias intended to prevent Kallen's resurrection, or to steal her away after her return—or worse, do something so humiliating it made Otto's blood boil just thinking about it.
But no matter what it was, he would never accept it!
"No! If this continues, even if all the conditions for the False God Project come together, Elias will ruin everything at the critical moment! No, no, no! This won't do! I need to think—I need a way to eliminate him next time! I must eliminate him!!"
Otto muttered like a madman, gnashing his teeth.
He had truly messed things up this time.
Not only had Otto failed to acquire the Herrscher of the Void, he hadn't eliminated the five-core Herrscher, Elias. Worse, they were now locked in a do-or-die confrontation with no room left for negotiation.
And that wasn't even the end of it. The last two S-rank Valkyries Schicksal had left had now been dragged into this, along with countless A-rank and B-rank Valkyries.
It could be said that after this battle, Schicksal was likely to fall from its seat as the foremost force in the modern world. Forget St. Freya and Anti-Entropy—Schicksal might now have to compete with World Serpent for third place.
Just as Otto was pondering how to come up with a flawless plan to completely eliminate Elias next time...
BOOM—!!!
[WARNING! WARNING! Alert! Alert! Unknown attack detected! Defensive barrier breached!!]
The floating island rocked violently, nearly toppling Otto. He furrowed his brow and went to access the surveillance system—
But—
(What?! The headquarters has been...!)
Otto's eyes widened.
The floor and ceiling cracked simultaneously. A tidal wave of flame surged downward.
In the next moment, the floor beneath Otto gave way. He plummeted downward—this was supposed to be a sub-level with no view of the sun, but now he could see blue skies, white clouds, and... flames stretching from the edge of the sky!
Schicksal's floating headquarters—
Had been cleaved in half by a single sword strike from 9,700 kilometers away!
"..."
Otto stared blankly at the sight. His arms dropped powerlessly to his sides. The sheer terror of that overwhelming force had carved itself into his soul.
The divided floating island eventually crashed.
Fortunately, it landed in the Mediterranean Sea, so the aftermath was limited to some tsunami damage in the surrounding areas—and the already-destined downfall of Otto Apocalypse.
...
"Phew~ finally let that out."
Back at St. Freya in the Far East—
Elias let out a long breath and lowered the Might of An-Utu blade.
That last strike had truly been his full strength.
Combining the Herrscher of Wind's dual-core authority, the Judgment of Shamash, and the Core of Fire in the Key of Blankness, he had created the ultimate fusion of wind-fueled flame output.
A single sword slash across 9,700 kilometers! Not even the Finality could block it! Even final-form Kevin wouldn't dare take it head-on!
"...Maybe I overdid it."
Elias looked at the blazing trail across the sky, then down at his transformed dual pistols—Judgment of Shamash, now cracked and smoking.
Clearly, that strike had pushed the Divine Key beyond its limits. But fortunately, the soulium of the Previous Era was nano-tech and had self-repair capabilities.
It wouldn't be long before it could be used again.
"Hopefully that dog Otto will have learned his lesson."
Elias touched his chest.
The wounds from earlier had fully healed.
If not for the God-Killing Spear suppressing the Honkai energy in his body, preventing him from using the Herrscher of Rebirth's powers, he could have recovered in mere minutes.
Even having his heart destroyed and body nearly severed wouldn't stop him. As long as his head remained intact, he could regenerate even from half a body.
"Elias, I'm so glad you're alright!"
Mei rushed into his arms, embracing him tightly as if terrified he would vanish again.
Only after experiencing loss does one realize how important someone truly is.
At this moment, she knew—
To Raiden Mei,
Elias was her entire world.
"Cough, Mei, your horns..."
Elias gave a wry smile and patted the girl clinging to him.
Seeing Mei crying and flustered because of him, Elias felt deeply moved and joyful—his love for Mei grew even deeper.
But… those adorable horns of hers really hurt when they poked.
"Ah, sorry!"
Mei quickly leaned back, pulling her head away.
"It's fine. You were worried about me, right? Thank you, Mei."
"Elias..."
Their eyes met—and they kissed.
Elias savored the brief moment of bliss.
But he soon pulled away, reluctantly.
Because he knew—there was still something far more important waiting for him. A girl plunged into despair because of him was waiting to be saved.
But before that...
"Rita, come here."
"Elias... my lord..."
After landing, Elias gestured for Rita to come to him.
Her body trembled, and she lowered her head in shame. Still, she stepped forward—one step at a time.
She looked like a prisoner walking to her execution.
But she did not run. Because Rita knew all too well—she had committed an unforgivable crime.
Regardless of the cause—whether it was the backdoor in her battlesuit—her hands had still been stained with the blood of the white-haired boy.
"...I have no excuse. I betrayed your trust. I'm sorry—truly sorry, my lord Elias. I... I just..."
"Alright, I've removed the backdoor from your battlesuit. Huh~ I didn't even know that was there. That was a serious oversight... Looks like once this whole mess is over, I'll need to check every other battlesuit in the Academy too."
"Eh? Lord Elias..."
No reprimand. No coldness.
Rita looked up in a daze at Elias.
He was calmly using the Herrscher of Reason's power to analyze her battlesuit and directly remove the backdoor program. Not once did he mention her so-called betrayal.
Even his gaze toward her hadn't changed.
Just as gentle.
Just as trusting.
That single look from Elias alone was enough to fill Rita with emotion—and guilt she felt unworthy of.
"Everyone makes mistakes. And this wasn't your fault. So don't dwell on it."
"But no matter the reason, I still—"
"You're still my good maid."
Before she could finish, Elias cut her off.
Just as he was about to say more, to comfort the girl—
BOOM—!
A great commotion came from the direction of the Academy.
Elias' eyes narrowed as he sensed several familiar auras and waves of Honkai energy.
He knew—the time had come for the protagonist to appear again.
"Looks like things are urgent over there. But this should be the last mess to clean up."
He gave the maid in front of him a firm hug, then placed a kiss on her forehead and spoke with a grin:
"Haah~ What a day. I'm starving. Kiana must be hungry too. So... tonight's dinner is up to you, Rita. I want meat!"
Solving the family's troubles was the job of the master.
And taking care of the master's life—especially preparing a delicious, hearty meal—was the maid's duty.
Rita looked up at Elias' smiling face, stunned. Her eyes filled once more with tears.
She quickly wiped them away and answered softly:
"Yes, Lord Elias. Tonight, I'll prepare everything for you."
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