The "flower bud" formed from Van Gogh's Saint Graph after being split and corrupted, designed to allow the Outer God's descent, appeared from outside as an immense, island-sized sphere—three kilometers in diameter, pristine white.
Now, Selesia and the others had plunged into its interior. What met their eyes were vivid greens and yellows—green vines and yellow flowers.
Inside this place, there shouldn't have been any light, yet they could see clearly—complex pathways, intertwined or hanging vines, blooming flowers emitting a strange, captivating fragrance.
Because what they were seeing was merely a "painting," they could see even without real light.
Everything they saw, heard, and felt were all paintings created by Van Gogh, presented to them as reality. The green vines, yellow flowers—even the drifting fragrance—were all parts of the "painting."
Van Gogh had already explained this to them earlier.
"So… Van Gogh-san, what do those things look like to your eyes?"
"Uh…A friendly suggestion from Van Gogh—you probably don't want to know…"
Just a single glance would utterly destroy their sanity. Everything here was poisonous—the poison of madness and corruption—corroding the soul, defiling reason, infectious far beyond human comprehension.
All thought and logic were superfluous here, only hastening their demise. Even nightmares couldn't bear this horror.
Selesia and the others were just curious, not suicidal, so after hearing Van Gogh's warning, they didn't press further. But their hearts still felt uncomfortable, like a cat scratching incessantly. Imagination ran wild without restraint, making their faces gradually turn pale.
People always tended to imagine things. Since Van Gogh wouldn't allow them to see, they could only picture terrifying things in their minds.
But such horror was ultimately logical and understandable—utterly incomparable to the madness of the outer cosmos.
At first glance, there were only green vines, multicolored flowers, and twisted monsters rushing forward with malicious intent. Monotonous and dull, making directions impossible to discern.
All spells or technologies for discerning direction would fail here, due to chaotic magnetic fields. Space itself twisted every second, physical laws slowly shifting toward an alien world, even impairing Selesia and the others' abilities.
Incidentally, before entering, Altair had already restored Hoshikawa Hikayu's abilities since they desperately needed her fighting strength now.
Only Van Gogh and Altair wouldn't lose their way. Van Gogh was self-explanatory, while Altair had always sensed Shimazaki Yuna's location clearly.
After cutting down the last monster, Selesia habitually tried to flick the filthy blood off her sword, only to find her blade stuck among the vines. After struggling to pull it free, she grumbled with an unpleasant expression:
"Seriously! Why are these passageways getting narrower? There's no room to fight at all!"
"Narrow terrain isn't entirely disadvantageous," Blitz Talker calmly replied, reloading his gun. "At least now the monsters can't surround us from all sides. We only have to watch our front and back."
No one reacted much to Blitz's comment, except Hoshikawa Hikayu.
This powerhouse—ranking just below Van Gogh and Altair, equivalent to the magical-slayer Mamika Kirameki before her divine transformation—looked as pale as someone severely ill.
Her experience warranted sympathy: earlier, a giant spider with a human face that vomited writhing tentacles had dropped from above, nearly frightening her into losing bladder control. She still hadn't fully recovered.
The passageway had become so tight that even Altair had to fly low, almost touching the ground. One advantage was that no monster could ambush them unnoticed from above anymore.
Meteora closed her grimoire, turning to Van Gogh… She had a question to ask.
"You used your power on Mamika earlier, didn't you? Are you sure it's okay?"
Van Gogh blinked blankly, then answered with an eerie smile.
"Ehehe… It's fine, Van Gogh has made arrangements… Aside from the energy required to restore everyone, to remove their connections with the Outer God, Van Gogh… can use her Noble Phantasm three times. Meaning… I can transform three people into divine forms."
"Three times…?" Meteora touched her chin thoughtfully. "But if everyone who disappeared has already become the Outer God's servants, including Alicetaria, that means there'll be four people blocking our path to Yuna."
"So, the fourth person is our responsibility then?"
Mirokuji Yūya sat resting on a bulge formed by the vines, easing his fatigue. His black wooden sword stabbed into the ground as he continued Meteora's words.
"…Leave the fourth to me."
Everyone turned towards the speaker in surprise, discovering it was actually Altair!
Emotionlessly cold, Altair remarked flatly, "What's so surprising? Besides me—given the [Holopsicon] powers Master granted—do any of you possess the capability to confront a divinely-enhanced Created without losing? None. Not one."
Altair and Mirokuji shared the same thought: if only one person could finally reach Shimazaki Yuna, it had to be Van Gogh. Only Van Gogh could save Yuna.
So, even if Altair desperately longed to see Yuna again, she was willing to stay behind, blocking the enemy, buying Van Gogh more time, letting her reach Yuna sooner.
For Shimazaki Yuna's sake, for her happiness, Altair would sacrifice everything!
Van Gogh took a deep look at Altair, noticing the subtle shifts within her eyes.
They continued forward. No one knew how much time had passed… even time became blurred here.
Passing through a narrow corridor, the space suddenly widened.
They now faced a vast pit, a high ceiling extending far above.
Approaching the crater felt like stepping into an arena.
Anyone could immediately recognize this place was set up for the second guardian.
"Charon…"
Unable to move her eyes from the black mecha standing at the crater's center, Selesia bit her lower lip, forcing words filled with turmoil from her throat: "Are you…also going to stop us?"
"You came after all, Selesia…but you shouldn't have."
"Charon, answer me! Why are you standing before us? Can you even hear me? Just… who are you?"
Inside Vogelchevalier's cockpit, unable to bear the fervent emotion in Selesia's eyes, Charon lowered his gaze slightly.
"Of course, I'm Charon…"
"The Charon I know would never succumb so easily to some evil god's temptation! He always moved forward, inspiring me when I lost my way… No matter how hard I tried, I could only follow behind him…"
Listening to Selesia's words, sensing the pain in her voice, Charon remained silent.
"Yes, Selesia… those were happy days. But now we have a chance to reclaim that happiness. Come, Selesia—like before, follow behind me."
"I've seen God. Compared to that majesty and terror, we're insignificant, mere cosmic dust… Stop resisting, Selesia. You have no chance. Ants can't withstand the ocean's wrath. Streams flowing into the sea can't quench the sun's flame. Only by becoming God's followers can we have a glimmer of hope!"
"You must've heard it too? Our world was created by this God—not some evil deity. Join us to spread God's message, and God will fulfill all our wishes, eradicating the Avalon Brigade for us! God has already promised me such a future… Then we can return together to that beautiful Asmeria! Selesia, the world will be redeemed because of us. Isn't this exactly the future you've fought for all this time?"
Standing in front, head lowered, no one could see Selesia's expression. Only her trembling shoulders were visible.
Facing someone she'd always admired and cherished, making a decision must be difficult.
Meteora quietly approached her side, gently suggesting, "If it's too painful, let someone else—"
Altair interrupted coldly. "Step aside if you can't decide. Stop wasting everyone's time."
Altair's bluntness drew frustrated looks from Yūya, Meteora, and Hikayu. All three were close to Selesia, naturally irritated by such harshness.
Selesia raised her hand to wipe the corner of her eye, then turned back to everyone with a reassuring smile.
"It's fine. Leave this to me. Mamika set a great example—how can I retreat after her courage?"
She looked at Van Gogh earnestly. "Please, Van Gogh."
"Leave it to me! Ehehe… Being trusted feels great! Infinite energy surging inside… Which means, right now, Van Gogh is Super Van Gogh! Oil painting, ink painting, pencils, watercolors—everything's easy now! Eheh!"
Once again, Van Gogh's pitch-black brush appeared.
Every time she wielded it, Van Gogh oddly felt the urge to shout, "Key that hides the power of darkness, reveal your true form before me!"
"Opening lines…ending lines…[De Sterrennacht]!!!—!"
…
Selesia stayed behind to fight Charon.
Van Gogh's group continued forward, racing against time.
Four Created had been taken by Yuna—Charon, Alicetaria, Hakua Shō, and Kanoya Rui—all protagonists of their own worlds.
"Protagonists… the easiest to twist," Van Gogh explained.
The group pressed forward, until Kanoya Rui appeared before them.
They prepared cautiously—yet Kanoya raised his hands slowly and knelt down.
"I'm saying this first—I surrender!"
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T/N: LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO