For Surtr, his previous defeat at Shiomi's hands had never been a matter of lacking strength. It was because he had been bound within Sigurd's Spirit Origin, and because Ophelia had suppressed the Dragon Slayer's Spirit Origin, preventing his power from being fully released.
Now, having broken free from the Great God's Cage, he had reclaimed his super-complete state after devouring Fenrir.
In Surtr's eyes, Shiomi's return to the battlefield after finishing the so-called Valhalla Trial merely meant that one more annoying fly had joined the fray.
"If you're that eager to die, then I'll start with you, human!"
Surtr roared, his massive head tilting upward, eyes locking onto Shiomi as he continued to rise slowly.
Blazing Mana gathered, transforming into a flame beam capable of scorching the earth, on the verge of bursting forth.
"Too fixated on what's in front of you, and you forget the existence of other enemies. It seems that what's truly enormous about you is only your body, Flame Giant."
A cold voice tinged with mockery rang out. Surtr didn't even turn to look in its direction, simply swinging the flame sword in his hand, Laevatein.
What answered him, however, was an even more violent impact.
The holy sword, with part of its power released, extended until its blade matched Laevatein in length. Striking in from the side, it forcibly blocked Surtr's slash.
"Hmph. A holy sword wielder resorting to petty tricks."
Realizing that Artoria was relying mainly on Mana Release, reinforced by Rune Magecraft to contend with him, Surtr immediately poured more strength into his strike.
As an apocalyptic giant, Surtr possessed B+++ rank Monstrous Strength.
This exceptional rank itself was a manifestation of phenomena collapsing under sheer force.
Coupled with EX-rank Magic Resistance and an A-rank Giant Shell, the fact that Morgan and her two companions could hold Surtr here at all was already astonishing. That the three of them could restrain him from expanding the battlefield and unleashing his Noble Phantasm to burn the entire Scandinavian world was nothing short of extraordinary.
Feeling pressure like a mountain bearing down on her, Artoria's hands tightened around her sword, strain creeping in by the second.
Only when another reinforcing Rune arrived did the downward spiral of being overpowered come to a sudden halt.
Skadi flew to Artoria's side, layering further amplification atop Scáthach's reinforcing Runes. For a brief moment, they managed to block Surtr's Laevatein.
But Surtr seized that opening and fired a searing beam straight toward Shiomi.
Its scale rivaled that of an anti-city Noble Phantasm.
"Then I'll wipe out those irritating eyes of yours as well, giant!"
At the same time, a golden pillar of light descended from the sky.
Morgan's 『Tower』.
The lance of the farthest end, mastered through Magecraft—the Holy Lance Rhongomyniad!
The Holy Lance fell and struck Surtr's body.
Seizing the opportunity, Artoria released the true name of her holy sword. "Excalibur!" Pressing the advantage, it detonated with another thunderous roar, shaking the earth itself.
Shrouded in smoke, Surtr's form became indistinct for a moment. Morgan and the other three regrouped, observing the situation while confirming Shiomi's condition.
In barely more than a dozen exchanges, they had unleashed power on par with the earlier drawn-out struggle. Yet the violent gale that followed left all four of them stunned.
Ice and fire—two absolute opposites—intertwined, forming a suit of armor.
'Scathe of Branches'.
Surtr's flames, a supreme Mana Release capable of scorching the World Tree, doubled as armor, resisting extreme temperature changes and physical attacks alike.
The authority of Fenrir that he had devoured, the 'Wind of Niflheim', was the power of absolute zero.
Possessing two extreme forces, Surtr could not be effectively harmed through frontal Noble Phantasm bombardment alone. This defense had to be broken, or else pierced through together with it.
The sky.
A Mystery-laden Noble Phantasm carrying immense magical energy suddenly manifested.
When everyone recognized what had appeared above Shiomi's head, shock spread across the battlefield.
Marduk's Axe.
The Noble Phantasm Shiomi had once used in Uruk to defeat Quetzalcoatl.
It was originally the weapon of Marduk, the Mesopotamian God-King. When Shiomi, a mere human, had forcefully wielded it back then, he had suffered severe backlash, falling unconscious for ten full days.
Later, Shiomi took the Axe of Marduk with him and never brought it out again. Over time, almost everyone had forgotten that this Noble Phantasm even existed.
The reason it had not been used before was simple. Shiomi could not bear its burden.
To wield a Noble Phantasm that symbolized Marduk's power and authority, one needed authority of equal standing.
To gamble one's life on it recklessly meant that if the strike failed, the user would suffer the consequences instead.
Now, however, the situation had changed, just as it should have, with the completion of the Valhalla Trial.
Up until now, Shiomi had failed to fully understand one crucial thing.
The authority he had obtained was not 'Life', but 'Creation'.
A supreme authority that stood at the very pinnacle of all mythologies.
Because he had misunderstood its essence and could not fully control it, Shiomi had treated it merely as a convenient tool for healing and nurturing life.
The goddess Tiamat had never told him. Or perhaps she believed there was no need to, choosing instead to wait for her child to one day reach that understanding on his own.
By dispelling the misunderstanding and grasping its true nature, he gained the qualification to wield this Noble Phantasm, a symbol of the chief god's authority and power.
Though Shiomi's body was not even one-tenth the size of the hand axe, it moved as if completely under his control, rising with his motion and preparing to fall.
"Interesting. Then vanish together with the flames!"
Surtr, who had once battled the gods of Scandinavia, immediately recognized that the axe was no ordinary weapon, even without knowing its true name. It was a Noble Phantasm on the same level as Gungnir… perhaps even surpassing it.
"O' star, come to an end… Return to ashes! Shine Brighter than the Sun, Sword of Flame: Loptr Laegjarn!"
Pouring out all of his power, Surtr unleashed a world-ending attack through his Noble Phantasm Laevatein, the flames of finality.
Laevatein, like the Holy Sword of the Planet, was a Divine Construct born from the planet itself. At the same time, it possessed a function identical to that of the Holy Lance Rhongomyniad, serving as a device that severs the world from reality.
It was the catastrophic fire that delivered the final blow to the world of Ragnarök, burning everything to ash.
Surtr's Noble Phantasm was not aimed solely at Shiomi. Centered on himself, it prioritized the annihilation of all life in its vicinity, followed by beings with physical form and the gods of the Age of Gods.
Morgan and the others were forced to deploy their defenses together, resisting the initial shockwaves of Surtr's strike.
Only Shiomi, standing directly before the Noble Phantasm, slowly clenched his fist.
"Forgive me, Mother! This strike is not an act of disrespect toward you, but a means to save even more of your children! God-King Marduk, hear my voice! Your divine authority rests in my hands now! Dispel destruction—'Enuma Elish'!"
At that moment, Marduk's Axe transformed into pure light, crashing straight down to collide head-on with Surtr's Noble Phantasm.
『Enuma Elish』
Rank: EX
Category: Creation Myth, Anti-World Noble Phantasm
Range: ???
Maximum Targets: ???