21-2 Part 2
Another Heroic Legend
- The Last Owner -
Translator : PolterGlast
『Forgive
me, I couldn't stop them...』
When I opened the
Book of the Evil Dragon, her words floated up there.
『Go to
the heavens, Ashley. Pass through that pillar of light and protect the
supreme treasure.』
Understood. If it's
now, I might make it in time. No, I will make it in time. As I started
walking toward the pillar, Sigrun aligned her shoulders with mine.
「Apparently,
the heavenly realm is beyond there. Let's chase after the people of the Abyss.」
「In
other words, it's a battle in the heavens! We're launching an assault, Shinza!」
「Let's
hurry.」
When the two of us
dove into the pillar of light, the world changed into another world. In a space
filled with white light, a giant staircase drawing a spiral had appeared.
Beyond that spiral, there is a large door. No, to be exact, one side of the
door was pried open, and the wreckage of the Cherubim Armors that were stolen
by the White Knight was piled up here and there. The Cherubim Armors weren't stolen
to assault the heavenly realm with this strongest army――apparently, from the
very beginning, they were just tools for them to pry open the door to the
heavens. The tattered and crumbled wreckage spoke that to me. In order to reach
the surface, the people of the Abyss poured wealth into the labyrinth
from the demon realm side, drove the Empire's royalty mad to induce a civil
war, and made Julius create the key to the heavens, the Cherubim Armor.
I don't like any of it. We dove into the destroyed door without hesitation.
Beyond the door is a
world of white light. For just a few seconds, my body lost its weight, and just
as I thought I floated softly, I was sitting on my rear in an unfamiliar world.
Sigrun didn't say anything. She merely stood up, brushed off her rear,
and gasped at this world enveloped in light and greenery. In front of us towers
a chalk-white palace so gigantic it defies common sense. The air is fresh,
mingling with the scent of flowers to create a resplendent atmosphere,
illuminating a clear, warm world. My eyesight is extraordinarily good, but
perhaps because the air is so pure, everywhere in the world I looked, perfectly
formed images were reflected without any distortion. Well, it would have been
truly perfect if I couldn't hear war cries and screams of agony, though...
「Who is
fighting...?」
「We'll
know when we get there! Let's go, Shinza!」
Chasing the
commotion, we ran through the heavenly garden. Upon entering the building,
countless corpses were rolling about. All of them were people of the Abyss.
Not a single one was breathing.
「There
are only their corpses. Who are these guys fighting...」
「We'll
know when we get there!」
「I
already heard that.」
Climbing over the
mountain of corpses, we headed deeper and deeper inside. I spotted some living
ones, but right now Sigrun's words are correct. Rather than
interrogating them, we should aim for the core of the conflict. We dashed up
the stairs stretching endlessly high. It's close. It's ahead. Someone is
fighting ahead. Sigrun and I threw ourselves into the fierce
battlefield.
「It's
mine!」
「No,
it's mine!」
「That
thing is calling me! That is something I should own!」
But what was there
was not what we had imagined. That methodical planning that drove the princes
mad, caused a civil war, and snatched the key was nowhere to be found. Beyond a
transparent wall that seemed to be a barrier, a small shining sphere was
placed, and it appeared they were staking its ownership――killing each other
amongst comrades...
「What's
wrong, Sigrun, aren't you going to join in?」
「M-Muu...
How should I say this, it's not the kind I was expecting...」
「I
agree.」
It's a place like an
altar. On the white floor, the corpses of the people of the Abyss are
piled up innumerably. Everyone was shedding black blood, and the defeated were
on their knees, glaring fixedly at the conflict before their eyes. That
mastermind behind the conspiracy, the White Knight, is also there. What he aims
for is also the heavenly supreme treasure. According to what Zirant
said, it's the power itself to turn the owner into the creator of this world.
Over a small shining sun, over a single supreme treasure, even though they
finally managed to return from the Abyss to the heavens, everyone is
killing each other. I just want to return home. Perhaps that was their wish,
but right now, everyone was mad.
「It
seems you made it in time, Prince Ashley. To the deathmatch vying for
the throne of heaven.」
「I have
no interest in such a thing. But, it doesn't seem like something I can leave to
you guys.」
It's an unsightly
battle that makes even the battle-crazed Sigrun recoil. No matter who
wins, that guy won't become a proper god.
「After
all, we are existences of the Abyss. Now that the White Duke-sama is
gone, we have no choice but to vie for the seat of the next creator. Now join
in, Prince Ashley, Sigrun of the Black Horn, join the blood
ritual staking the seat of the lord of the world!」 「I know that without being told. Like hell I'd hand over the
power to burn down the surface to monsters who casually kill their own allies!」
「Wahaha,
that's the spirit! This time for sure we'll settle things, Armor Man!」
What lay beyond that
was a ruthless mutual killing. Sigrun and I encouraged each other so as
not to lose our sanity, and cut down the residents of the Abyss for the
sake of our comrades on the surface. However, that was like an opening act. The
White Knight――no, now that his figure is dyed black with the splattered blood
of his comrades, should he be called the Black Knight? The decisive battle with
him began when his blade aimed for my back.
「You
can't be saved. The majority of those here, same as the Duke-sama, just wanted
to return here. However, with the supreme treasure right before their eyes,
everyone was swallowed... by the Abyss itself that had been eroding
them.」
「Those
words sound as if you're going to say you're the only exception.」
Sigrun is
protecting my back. I exchanged ten strikes with his blade and my shovel, and
still no conclusion was reached, so another ten, and another ten, we tried to
kill each other countless times.
「I am
the Abyss itself, born in the Abyss. I submitted to the Duke-sama
from the bottom of my heart, but the Duke-sama is no longer here. Perhaps
thanks to you erasing him...」
「So
that's how it is. Cutting him down was a mistake after all. But, it's too late
for that now.」
Before I knew it, Sigrun
was standing next to me, facing the Black Knight. Before I knew it, we were the
only ones left standing. The entire area was covered in corpses. The most
sacred altar in the world was dyed with the blood of the pitiful exiles who had
finally returned to the heavens.
「The Abyss
inside me is speaking. Now is the time to snatch it. Now is the chance to
overturn good and evil. With the Duke-sama gone, I only follow my instincts. I
will obtain that supreme treasure and turn the world into the Abyss.」
「Don't
say mad things with a sane voice.」
The Black Knight was
gradually transforming into a bizarre existence. When Sigrun scraped off
his right arm along with its armor using that vibrating sword, muscle fibers
extended from the cut end and connected to the fallen arm, astonishingly
transforming into an abnormally long arm just like that. Even when I pierced
his flank with the power to bore through everything, the afflicted part fused,
and new armor formed over his skin.
「Wh-what
should we do, Shinza!? The more we defeat him, isn't he powering up!?」
「Seems
like it. This is troubling...」
This is the power of
the Abyss...? How can we destroy this guy? Should we just bury him...?
No, considering he won't die even if buried...
「There
is only one way to defeat me. You can pass through that barrier.」
「You're
teaching me the answer to victory? Are you sane?」
「It
might be a trap, Shinza!」
「The
last owner of the supreme treasure is Samael. Therefore, if you feel
like it, you can usurp the seat of the creator once more, just like the foolish
angel Samael did again. However, in exchange, you will lose your sanity
and might commit the same mistake once more.」
「Then
it's out of the question. I'll defeat you through another method.」
No matter how many
times we crossed blades, no conclusion was reached. Neither Sigrun's
absurd strength nor this power to bore through everything could kill him, who
was born in the Abyss.
「Fufufu...
I taught you because I thought you would answer like that. I wanted to hear
those words.」
「Why...」
I've also taken his
blade on my body several times, but he can't thrust his blade deeply into my
body which has accumulated growth. If he's a monster, then I'm a monster too.
How long do we have to continue fighting for this to end? At this rate, we'll
have to continue fighting him here for eternity.
「Perhaps
because I wanted proof that I am mad.」
「What
incomprehensible things are you saying! Shinza, he's coming!」
It seems he changed
his strategy. Intending to stop defending and launch an attack, he attempted a
life-risking charge. If so, I will――I will likewise meet his attack by risking
my life.
『Stop!
What are you thinking! Father, that is no good!』
Zirant found out, but she has used up her power. I'll pass on an ending where we continue fighting here for eternity. I will defeat him with this single strike. I returned his charge with a charge, thrusting my ancestor's shovel like a spear, and plunged it into the chest of the bizarre monster.
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