Bermuda

The brilliant figure hovering in the night sky released explosive mana, extending beams of light in eight directions. As a result, the thick clouds gathered around him were driven back in every direction, forming a circle centered on him.

Scattered light touched the cross-section of the clouds, sketching curved shadows here and there. Because of this, if one focused on that unusually bright spot even from afar, they could see the majestic, strange sight spread across the sky.

"...General!"

The Parren general, who had been captivated by the sight of the mystical being, was snapped out of his daze by the voice of his aide who had drawn close to his side. Then the sound of horse hooves sinking into the fine sandy beach reached his ears again. That was his current position—at the head of dozens of warhorses galloping along the southern coastline.

The general, regaining his senses, turned to his aide with a questioning look. The aide appealed to the supreme commander, who was gripping the reins again, in an urgent voice.

"General, it's dangerous to advance any further! We must halt the march and quickly retreat!"

The Parren cavalry was currently moving in three divisions: Partanis, which protected the main camp; Parzan, stationed in the northern plains; and Parandor, led directly by the general.

In front of Parandor, a swarm of monsters teemed along the coastline. The cavalry was engaged in a battle of nerves with them while checking the status of barrier stones embedded at regular intervals in the ground.

Unlike the northern plains where barrier stones were densely placed, the southern coastline had a defense line with only the minimum number of barrier stones due to lack of time and manpower.

If monsters whose retreat was blocked in the plains escaped to the coast, the Fidele Territory and Parren attached to the southern part of the continent could once again become targets for surviving monsters. Therefore, at Cordelia's request, the general himself was inspecting the defense line to decisively eliminate them this time.

However, for some reason, the monsters clinging to the coastline occasionally rammed their bodies hard against the barrier stones while avoiding Parandor's pursuit. This behavior was mostly exhibited by Dermocas, and since intelligent creatures were showing strange movements, they couldn't relax their vigilance for even a moment, lest the barrier stones be damaged when they looked away.

But there was a reason for the aide's advice to retreat. News that the volcano would soon erupt had just been disseminated to all «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Parren forces within the peninsula.

To suddenly decide to blow up a volcano without the consent of a neighboring country was a serious matter that could lead to international conflict. Even the commanders of the Parren army, who had been quietly cooperating with the Empire, strongly opposed, saying this matter shouldn't be taken lightly.

However, having come this far, they couldn't insist on canceling the operation either. In a peninsula where the situation could change in the blink of an eye, they couldn't suddenly indulge in armchair theories. The general thought that even if they were held responsible for problems that might arise later, it was best to fulfill their assigned duties according to the Empire's intention to minimize damage for now.

"If we withdraw from here, it's no different from encouraging the monsters to escape. Keeping them in check until the very last moment and protecting the edge of the continent—that's what we need to do now."

"..."

"With the safety of our homeland in our hands, how could I give the order to retreat?"

Seeing the general's gentle smile even in this situation, the aide's lower lip trembled slightly as he looked at him, realizing he had no intention of backing down. There was much he wanted to say, but knowing how stubborn the general was, he felt the outcome wouldn't change even if he added more words.

"And."

After uttering this short word, the general spurred his horse even faster and shifted his gaze once again to the swirling sky. Following his gaze, the aide also looked up at the sky where ominous currents were sweeping.

Their pupils, too, were brightly dyed, reflecting the golden light embroidering the night sky. Toward the single being illuminating the darkness like the sun, the Parren general, his expression hardening, muttered softly.

"I believe in 'him'."

In the upper air, small explosions occurred in succession due to the collision of sharp gusts and wayward gravity. Leonardo, hovering at the center, barely maintained the form of the sacred spear that was trying to scatter by sheathing it in his mana.

The sacred spear, which had disappeared long ago, had the characteristic of trying to return to 'nothingness' because it had not belonged to this world for a long time. If his concentration wavered even slightly, not only the sacred spear and himself, but everything nearby might return to the primordial 'nothingness' from before the world came into being.

Every time the holy relic struggled violently in his grasp, generating fierce resistance, golden smoke swirled precariously around the spear body.

Because of this, Leonardo, looking down at the mother body from above, felt as if the sensation in his right arm holding the spear had nearly died. Along with this, as he continued emitting mana to keep from being overwhelmed, the taste of blood rising with each breath lingered in his throat and mouth.

The blood flow in his carotid artery rapidly accelerated, and with the pounding of his heart, his pupils lost focus and drifted astray.

At the same time, the pulse spreading throughout his body began to move the hand of the clock toward the final moment.

In his throbbing head, as if it had been beaten, a rupturing sound that he couldn't tell was real or an auditory hallucination swept through. Like a grand requiem for the dead, that noise drove the intense energy enveloping his body to the brink of destruction.

Everything to eradicate evil was waiting for just one gesture from Leonardo. However, there was one problem, small yet big, right before his eyes. The position of the mother body fixed below had shifted considerably to the side from what was expected, due to the struggle of the Council commanders just now.

'The position is ambiguous. At this rate, will it go according to plan...'

But time is fair to all things. Even at this moment, it was flowing without rest. He had to make a decision as quickly as possible.

Leonardo, who had been pondering briefly while biting his lip, furrowed his brow and let out a deep sigh.

'In the end, is that the only way?'

He had tried his best not to use it, but now there seemed to be no other option.

At that time, he had removed more than half of the Quamare mana stone inside and refilled it halfway with etaide.

The water attribute of the Quamare mana stone, when combined with etaide in a heated state, could maximize the expansion effect.

"I didn't intend to use this here."

Leonardo, with a bitter smile, stretched out his left arm and firmly grasped the ring.

At that moment, as the ring crumpled, an intense red light flashed. The blue mana stones and minerals inside were forced out through cracks in the distorted space.

At the same time, Isabella, holding on with all her might from below, shouted toward Leonardo, who had stopped. Following her desperate voice, the magnetic force lines flickered ominously, making an unsettling sound as if they might break at any moment.

Meterion's eyes, watching the sky, suddenly widened. With his expression hardened, his gaze couldn't leave the falling blue light.

Nero, also holding onto the end of the red thread, closed the boundary of the dimension and shouted urgently.

Each time he swung his blazing dagger, the turbid flow that had been writhing like lingering attachment was sucked completely into the closing space-time. Nero's earnest cry was swallowed into it as well, unable to reach the other side.

Eventually, he grasped the sacred spear, which he had been holding with one hand, firmly with both hands. He immediately surged forward at tremendous speed, beginning to rush toward the mother body. Cutting through swirling dust and wind resistance, he aimed the tip of the spear solely at that one target.

Nature trembled, and all things holding their breath took in the sight of the hero's manifestation. It was the speed of light that no one could dare to catch up with, yet perhaps because desperation was projected, this moment felt frustratingly slow.

An intangible shadow over Leonardo's hand. It was grasping the sacred spear together with him.

Hugo wasn't the only one who saw this sight. In the distortion of space-time created in the gravity swamp, the mother body, trapped for eons, was seeing the exact same scene it had seen a thousand years ago.

"How dare a mere human try to kill me? How dare you, how dare you!"

The mother body, struggling in the infinite cycle, roared with its teeth bared as its fear reached its peak. Then it felt the sacred golden eyes that had flickered in the broken helmet a thousand years ago drawing near, right before it.

Under the burning sky of that day, he was like the only ray of light remaining on the land of destruction.

The golden shadow trying to pierce its neck once again. That mystical form made it feel as if it had returned to that day. Perhaps that's why, in its mind, it recalled his voice heard just before being sealed by the hand of the Sun King.

"That petty hypocrisy of yours, abhorring yet fearing human weakness, is your downfall."

Leonardo, gritting his teeth and muttering, passed through the boundary of the Pentagon in an instant. He too should have slowed down, caught in the gravity swamp, but for some reason, he didn't stop in everyone's gaze.

At a similar moment, the etaide and Quamare mana stones that had fallen emitted a sharp light in response to Leonardo's mana.

Then the tip of the spear touched the demon's neck, and a pure white light washed everything around. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The mother body's pupils contracted endlessly. Only then, in the moment before death, did it realize.

"That bastard, playing tricks again..."

Its sinister power controlled minions, plunging allies into a quagmire and destroying bases. Refusing to retreat and surrounding it with a grand circular formation, even the leader could not move easily.

The dazzling sun mustered its spirit, piercing the creature's neck and sealing it in a deep abyss,

Cheers like thunder spread, and there was no one under the sky who was not rejoicing.

"Farewell, Elder Millie."