Chapter 96: God vs. Humanity!
Aeron still remembered the words Fenrico had spoken before finally handing him the lantern.
This is the First Relic... the Primordial Sacred Artifact that seals the power of successive Primus and Sentinels. With it, you can overcome any creation of the Dark Tide. (Fenrico: What nonsense have you memorized.)
Gushing forth.
Bullets carrying pure energy shot from the gun barrel. With the lantern in his embrace, Aeron wasn't completely defenseless against the menacing Dark Tide before him.
Moreover, he still possessed that left hand which had kept Leviathan fixated since chapter 53!
"Guh... You... What goes through human minds!"
"Hey wait, how can you even read this kind of text?"
The Dark Tide coalesced into form, charging at Aeron once more, yet whenever it made contact with his left hand, it dissolved into harmless ripples.
Though Leviathan had made preparations to deal with Aeron after the incident with Fisalia, the actual confrontation proved far more troublesome than anticipated.
Even when the Dark Tide briefly contaminated his body, Aeron would reset his condition through self-termination before any effects could manifest.
Not to mention, the enemy now faced more than just Aeron.
"Your opponent is me."
A frigid voice cleaved through Leviathan alongside crystalline sword energy, instantly dispersing the massive Dark Tide and Leviathan's avatar—only for more dark waves to gather again.
"Futile struggle... Your presence here merely wastes time, powerless to alter Avinoleum's descent."
As Leviathan's words faded, Arsène's claws pierced through the Dark Tide, tearing apart her avatar once more.
"Huff... huff... Leaving aside whether we're wasting time, someone's got to stop immoral behavior like high-altitude object throwing, right?"
Aeron used the brief respite to catch his breath while reloading his firearm.
But he had to admit Leviathan was right.
No matter how much Dark Tide he and Fleurdelys eliminated together, new waves kept emerging batch after batch.
The Dark Tide could be purified, yet they remained incapable of harming the Threnodian's true form.
There was a way, but the time wasn't ripe yet.
At the very least, he needed to complete the preparatory work first.
Fleurdelys swept aside the squirming Dark Tide with another sword stroke, her silver gauntlet still gleaming with cool light amidst the polluted waves.
She glanced sideways at Aeron—panting, frighteningly pale, with even his gun-hand trembling from exhaustion—and felt a faint ripple in her heart.
"You... why did you come? This is my prison, my finale. It has nothing to do with you."
"How about... just being pissed at Them as a reason?"
Aeron's answer carried a note of guilt.
"Such a reason alone cannot sustain your stance against the Tide."
"Then consider it my dislike for seeing you face this isolation alone."
Hearing Aeron's response, Fleurdelys fell silent.
Truthfully, Aeron had overheard the entire earlier exchange between Leviathan and Fleurdelys.
He had accepted Cartethyia's identity without question and accompanied her through all their experiences up to this point.
After pondering for a moment, he realized he might possibly... somewhat... perhaps... be considered Threnodian's accomplice?
This naturally added another reason for his presence here—to soothe what little conscience he had left.
Even if Rover resolved everything peacefully and Carlotta's group showed leniency, both he and Little Carte would still feel guilty deep down.
How could Aeron not seek revenge against someone who dared to use him?
"Well, as long as we share the same enemy now, let's not overthink other things."
"...Stubborn." Fleurdelys finally uttered just these two words, her voice devoid of warmth, yet she deliberately positioned her longsword in front of Aeron.
"In your condition, you won't last long."
"Thanks for your concern, but I can't leave now anyway. I'll hold out as long as I can."
He still had to thank the First Relic—with its help, Aeron didn't need to worry about physical and mental erosion, but he still needed to conserve its power since he had to pass it to Rover later.
Though he didn't know Napoli II, he had to admit Napoli II was impressive... and would be even more so if He could keep Leviathan properly controlled.
Meanwhile, the churning Dark Tide suddenly stilled, and Leviathan reappeared before Aeron in an elegant human form, its Dark Tide-covered face radiating scrutiny.
"Human, back in Fisalia you destroyed my 'Sonora' and rejected my invitation. An anomaly outside the rules... a fool who refuses comfort."
"You know better than anyone that true peace will come once you abandon resistance and embrace the arrival of 'Heaven'."
"No more schemes, no more injuries, no more watching precious things vanish before your eyes."
"You shall become the true 'Nexus' and bring—"
Bang!
Before Leviathan could finish, Aeron's bullet immediately interrupted its speech.
"Well, I already rejected you back in Fisalia, and my answer remains unchanged now."
"Don't you think the future I present is more worthy of reaching for, compared to this cold, stubborn Blessed Maiden beside you who's destined to sink with this prison?"
As the words fell, the Dark Tide enveloping the human form flowed and reshaped like quicksilver.
What appeared before Aeron was a petite, familiar yet eerie figure.
"Or perhaps... you prefer me to communicate with you in this form?"
"Damn you, how dare you spread rumors about me!"
"I can hear the thoughts in your heart. Among all those you've accompanied, it seems you prefer girls with petite figures—"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Aeron pulled the trigger at maximum speed, not letting Leviathan continue, because the expression on the face beside him had already turned dangerous.
At this moment, Fleurdelys glanced sideways at Aeron, her eyes filled with contempt.
"Don't believe it! This is just its method of causing chaos! I'm a righteous gentleman!"
Now Aeron had one more reason to eliminate Leviathan.
Damn it, he was just good at dealing with younger girls—how did his reputation mysteriously become like this!
"Besides, using someone else's appearance to deceive people—is this the only boring trick you know?!"
"I merely borrowed the method you used against that performer."
"While that's technically true, it's not the same thing!"
"However... since you're unwilling to accept this blessing, there's no need to preserve it any longer."
The next second, the entire Holy Spire of Confluence began to tremble. Leviathan, having regained Fleurdelys's form, slowly raised its hand as the Dark Tide once again surged from all corners of the spire.
Fleurdelys's eyes sharpened, adopting a combat stance as her Resonance Power materialized into sword shadows around her.
"Get ready, the attack is coming."
But Aeron's response took her by surprise.
"Don't rush. Take this moment to catch your breath first."
"What..."
"Because the person I've been waiting for has arrived."
Before Fleurdelys could process what Aeron meant, she sensed an immense wave of Resonance Power approaching.
BOOM——!!!
A dazzling golden light stream tore through the churning darkness, its pure and overwhelming force shattering the shadows. Wherever it passed, the filthy Dark Tide dissolved like snow meeting the blazing sun.
"It seems we've arrived just in time."
Rover's clear, resonant voice echoed through the Holy Spire of Confluence.
"It would've been better if we could've been faster..."
In response to Aeron's words, Rover simply smiled. The Bloodpact's Pledge in her hand transformed into the Holy Sword upon sensing Aeron's frequency, though this time their attire remained unchanged.
Beside them, Cartethyia also appeared, her face initially lighting up with joy upon seeing Aeron.
But when she noticed the figure standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Aeron—towering two heads taller than him yet similar looking to herself—complex emotions flickered in her eyes.
"....!"
"Alright, alright, I understand."
Aeron responded to Cartethyia while Rover pointed the Holy Sword directly at Leviathan's Dark Tide incarnation.
The Holy Sword's radiance illuminated Fleurdelys's slightly widened eyes.
Aeron's perpetually tense shoulders relaxed slightly as he leaned toward Fleurdelys beside him, speaking in a voice only the two could hear:
"Our 'King' has brought your other half to retrieve you."