Chapter 49: The Endless Battle
Something within Hikigaya's mind was unlocked, completely revealed before his "eyes."
It was only at this moment that he realized he hadn't truly grasped or understood the power he had stolen from Set, just like how he had only faced an incomplete version of Osiris before.
But now, as he battled the fully descended Osiris with all his might, he finally came to understand this power—and he realized something else.
Defeating a god wasn't the end. A godslayer's life was an unending battle, and so was their divine authority. As long as they were alive and still had a chance to fight, there were no limits.
Around Hikigaya, wind began to stir.
A violent wind, instantly sweeping away the surrounding crops and even temporarily halting the oncoming flood.
Within that wind, a majestic figure was taking shape.
It was a divine beast.
First came the head of a jackal, followed by the body of a lion, and finally a long, fur-tipped tail.
This beast of Set was condensed from Hikigaya's knowledge of the "bountiful" aspect of Osiris, because earlier he had subconsciously targeted "bounty" and turned that knowledge into power through divine authority.
This was the true form of the power Hikigaya had stolen from Set—a divine beast of slaughter and destruction born from knowledge and strength.
The Beast of Set was the core of this divine authority, just like how Kusanagi Godou's incarnation of the warrior in anime was centered around the "sword." But the core didn't equate to the whole—there was no end to mastering and using divine authority.
No explanation was needed, nor could it be explained—he simply understood it.
Even through analogy it made sense. Kusanagi Godou in anime had strengthened his incarnations or awakened new ones through battles with gods and other godslayers. Hikigaya, also being a godslayer, was no different.
This gave him great expectations for the future and filled him with confidence for the battle ahead.
He sensed the binding power from Osiris' sun had been broken. With a thought, the Beast of Set sprang beneath him and caught him steadily.
With a thunderous roar, the Beast of Set unleashed another storm, wiping away both the crops and the floodwaters wherever it reached.
Then, roaring violently, it stepped on the storm and charged toward the sun in the sky.
Even as the sun of Osiris emitted flames, it couldn't stop the beast. The flames were neutralized by the raging winds, and as the two forces clashed, the beast had already reached the sun and swatted it with one paw.
The sun was swatted like a volleyball, trailing a long tail of fire across the sky...
This scene defied description—it was simply too brutal.
However, Hikigaya sharply sensed that in this process, the Beast of Set's power was decreasing. Whether through direct attacks or storm summoning, its power was being consumed.
It seemed that the Beast of Set, much like Kusanagi Godou's "sword," was a consumable—its power derived entirely from Hikigaya, unable to generate new strength on its own. Once depleted, it would likely vanish.
But for its first creation, Hikigaya had invested a hefty amount—enough for it to go wild for quite some time.
And indeed, the beast wreaked absolute havoc.
It chased the sun everywhere, repeatedly tearing through the floodwaters—like a naughty child let loose in a toy store...
But no matter how much destruction it caused, Hikigaya still couldn't find Osiris. The flood remained, and the sun, despite being batted around repeatedly, was still intact.
The entire world descended into chaos—endless torrents of floodwaters, the sun rising and falling unpredictably, brilliant light and pitch darkness alternating, earth and grain flying everywhere, and the storms stirred up by the Beast of Set throwing everything into disarray.
It was pure apocalyptic devastation.
Hikigaya clearly felt that this divine realm of bounty was becoming increasingly unstable.
Even the divine beast beneath him had consumed a lot of power, and the storms it summoned were weakening.
Yet, just as Osiris could constantly sustain this world with his divine power, Hikigaya realized he too could replenish the Beast of Set's strength—he didn't have to wait for it to disappear to recreate another.
Still, this deadlock didn't seem advantageous to him.
Osiris must be hiding somewhere.
Where would he hide...?
Suddenly, a phrase from memory flashed through Hikigaya's mind. It was something Seth had said before the battle with Set:
Amon shall bring light through the power hidden in concealment. He himself will be hidden and absorbed by the great god Osiris!
The sun! It had never been broken by the Beast of Set!
"Good doggie! Go get that sun!"
Hikigaya shouted, so worked up that he forgot one thing—the beast may have the head of a dog, but it wasn't actually a dog. And there was no need to speak aloud anyway...
But the Beast of Set clearly received the message. While it had been happily playing with the flood, its huge dog eyes now locked directly onto the darting sun.
Then, it dashed forward on all fours, smashing through wave after wave of floodwaters, charging straight toward the sun.
"Hmph!"
A cold snort came from the sun—it was Osiris' voice.
He really had been hiding in there.
"Set... even just your power is this annoying!"
From within the flood, a whirlpool appeared and tried to drag the running Beast of Set down.
"Annoying!"
Hikigaya shouted, pouring power into the Beast of Set, surrounding it once again in fierce winds, lifting it into the air.
But then a water tornado shot up from the flood, pressing toward him and the Beast.
Osiris, hidden within the sun, seized the chance to fly further away and unleashed a spear of flame.
There was no conflict between water and fire—on the contrary, the moment the magnificent light-flame fused with the flood, they became one. At the same time, Osiris' sun sank into the waters below.
The entire world was ignited!
No more flood, no more land.
Only scorching air currents filled the surroundings. Vast energy rolled beneath them like a tidal wave. Columns of energy shot up like fountains, forming massive coronas, then fell back into the fiery ocean like waterfalls.
Even with the protection of storms, Hikigaya felt his hair was singed. This wasn't a divine realm anymore—it was hell itself.
From the fiery sea below, a massive human face suddenly appeared.
It was Osiris' face.
"God-slayer... become a part of me."
One after another, gigantic whirlpools appeared over the fire sea, emitting terrifying rays of light.
He's about to launch a map-wide attack, isn't he?
By all logic, Hikigaya should use his divine authority to break the situation, but…
Rush in?
Come on—even if the Beast of Set could take it, he sure couldn't. This was like the surface of the sun—who the hell could dive into that?
Wait—right, the Beast of Set!