Astrid transformed into a yellow mist.
In an instant, the surroundings filled with a sandstorm-like haze.
“[Eternal Stage]—!”
The yellow mist surged upward into the sky. It spread out in all directions, emitting a shimmering light.
Shuaaah—!
Beyond the hazy gray sky, a scene unfolded as if a yellow whirlwind were blowing. Within the softly glowing vortex, countless particles collided, creating the sound of percussion instruments.
The mist, like a brilliant aurora spreading across the night sky, shone brightly and sang. It was so dazzling that it disoriented those who looked at it, making it impossible to pinpoint where Astrid was.
The chaos bugs that had emerged from the ground were intoxicated by the scent of ether swirling from all directions, causing them to stumble and lose their way.
They collided with each other, thrashing about, spewing black energy from their mouths as they struggled. It was as if a black wave made of insects was undulating.
Toward the surging black wave, Lotta cast a spell from her wand. She stood proudly, her crimson cape billowing in the wind.
“[Memory of the Morning]—!”
Dozens of cats on bicycles charged forward, crashing into the carapaces of the chaos bugs and exploding. Simultaneously, countless weapons erupted from the orange explosions.
Boom—!!
Orange light flashed, and dozens of chaos bugs were obliterated.
It was impossible to completely stop the mutated chaos bugs that filled the plains, but the confusion caused by the yellow mist was enough to entangle them in a chaotic mass.
The giant wolf growled, looking around warily.
『Such a petty trick...!』
With eyes blazing like the sun, full of hatred, it shook its head, baring its fangs.
Astrid’s faint silhouette appeared above the mist-filled sky. Her voice echoed softly from within the ceaselessly swirling yellow mist. The confidence in her voice shook her enemies.
[Oh~ hohoho!! Wicked and ominous beast—! Are you intoxicated by the power of the night’s nobility? I understand! Those who have seen my dance have all succumbed to illusion! Dance, intoxicated by the magic of the stage—!!]
And within the mist, Astrid’s figure gleamed as she flitted by. Her elegant form striking down with a greatsword appeared in multiple places.
Slash—! Boom—!
From the left edge to the right, and then back to the center, Astrid stood gracefully.
“The mist is an illusion! Ho~ hohoho—!! Dance with me on this stage of illusions!!”
She floated through the mist, cutting down every enemy in her path.
As long as the yellow mist wasn’t blown away, All the enemies wandering here would be blocked by her greatsword.
The wolf inhaled deeply.
Its rugged mane puffed up, and ominous patterns emerged on its skin. Then, it let out a howl that seemed as if it would tear the very air apart.
—!!!
The shockwave was so powerful that it visibly shook the air. The yellow mist trembled and dispersed wherever the shockwave passed.
Boom—!!
It was a blow that shook the ground for kilometers around. The impact alone was enough to upend the surrounding land and crack countless rocks.
The girl within the wolf howled in a voice filled with rage.
『Inferior beings…! Chosen only by the World Tree’s whim—! I will kill every last one of you—!!』
We fought for the world we wanted. To avoid living as vermin, hated by the World Tree and left as remnants of a civilization erased by it.
『For the dragon who will save us—!!』
Moin, the [Twin Priestess]. Though the weakest among the priestesses, except for the [Priestess of Dreams], she now bore a powerful mission and raged more furiously than anyone.
『I will kill every one of you who lives on this land now!!』
She spewed the flames of anger that burned across her chest.
Father. Brother. Those who took everything from me.
『Die!! Just die!! Aaaaah—!!』
The shockwave that erupted from the wolf’s mouth was so strong that it blew away all the mist in the vicinity.
The black energy seeping from the wolf’s mane surged, quelling the chaos and confusion among the chaos bugs. Before long, the yellow mist had cleared, revealing the dark plains once again.
The wolf looked ahead with its burning eyes.
What it saw were two inferior beings who had dared to block its path with their petty tricks. The two, who had somehow regrouped, were now retreating from the battlefield with determined expressions.
Now, it had to move forward again.
That was the last purpose left to it...
‘…?’
Inside the wolf, the girl Moin suddenly felt something was wrong.
‘Two? There should be three...’
At that moment, A massive presence was felt from above. An enormous amount of ether was approaching from beyond the sky.
The carefree voice of a pink-haired girl echoed weakly.
“Ugh, this is so exhausting☆ But teleportation is such a cheat—☆ It lets me send out communication lines at times like this—♪”
‘…!’
Ether gathered above, piercing through the clouds and descending toward this place. Countless weapons, colored purple, red, and many other hues, began to rain down from the sky like upside-down grass blades.
Shuuu—!!
The approaching downpour.
Weapons rained down. The pink-haired girl floating in the sky smiled as she watched. It was a weary smile, but one filled with satisfaction.
“This is a gift for you♡” “...!” “It comes with piercing damage, so please accept it—☆”
Like a goddess of fate spilling out a box of needles, Hundreds of thousands of weapons descended all at once.
Soon, they bombarded the filthy creatures crawling on the ground.
Tatata—!!
The wolf and the chaos bugs began to resemble pincushions. The sound of explosions and screams was so overwhelming that it left the ears ringing.
Countless weapons struck their heads, embedding themselves in their flesh. The sheer volume of weapons was enough to penetrate the thick, tough skin that was like stone.
From within that storm of weapons, Moin screamed.
『Aaaaargh—!!!』
Tatata—!!
But even this massive assault was insufficient to pierce the wolf’s thick defenses. The weapons merely embedded themselves, unable to fully break through.
At that moment, the purple weapons lodged in the skin began to vibrate. The countless other weapons nearby resonated with that vibration.
Woooong—!!
Then, purple threads spread out. Connecting the many weapons, they formed a giant picture. The enormous image soon became a single story, depicting a paradise where countless animals frolicked.
A girl in a distant tower activated the spell, shouting into the air.
— Resonate, [Vanadis]…!
The entire area began to glow with a purple light. The history engraved on each weapon repeated itself.
The spell was triggered once more.
Like magic, the bombardment unfolded again.
— If one hit doesn’t work… just hit it twice…!
The bombardment of countless weapons repeated once more.
Tatata—!!
The wolf opened its mouth and howled amidst the bombardment, not caring that the weapons were embedding themselves inside.
—!!!
No, it’s not over yet—☆ No matter how dramatically you howl, it’s not over—♪
Seeing the creature howling like a whale rather than a wolf, I moved through the [Bifrost] to prepare for the next attack.
Shwip—!
I moved to a place so distant that the wolf’s howling was barely audible.
Still under the dark sky of the plains, I clenched my fist and extended it in the direction of the howling wolf.
It felt somewhat emotional.
‘I never thought I’d use this as a signal flare...’
I had fought alone. I had crafted this ultimate technique just to win alone.
[Pink Lemon Sorbet].
Toward the wolf howling in the distance, I unleashed my ultimate technique, imbued with all my desperate struggles.
“Everyone—☆ This way—!!”
A massive pillar of pink ether pierced through the darkness and shone brightly. A spiral of interwoven hearts shot forward.
Boom—!!
The enormous pink light became a beacon. It led the way for countless people running below.
— Hiyahhh—!!
Vroom! Vroom!
The flames that had been roaming through the mist, burning enemies, adjusted their course. They moved toward the pink beacon.
Among them, the leading flame shone white.
Eir, holding a brilliantly glowing white flame sword, shouted.
— Today, at last!! Let’s burn down the World Tree—!! Our sisters have wished for this—!! — Boss!! Clara said to protect it!! — I don’t care—!!
“…”
Maybe, You’re right.
At last, hundreds of flames pierced through the dark mist, burning and exploding. They began incinerating the chaos bugs blocking their path.
Seeing the students of <Scarlet Academy> clashing with the chaos bugs and fighting, I moved on to the next location.
The scenery changed in an instant. The new place was the main gate of <Aesir Girls' High School>, crossing the western part of the Golden Street.
Many students were standing in front of the enormous gate, waiting.
At the front was Hilde. We had promised that when a big battle broke out, we would each guard a path leading to the World Tree. We also agreed to use [Bifrost] to communicate.
The east was Skadi. The west was Hilde. The south was Anna. The north was Eir. And once the location was confirmed, Freyja would begin the bombardment.
‘This is only possible thanks to Pink-Chan Vision, which can track everything in real-time...’
Hilde, seeing me, spoke with a glint in her eye.
“Is the enemy approaching from this direction?” “Yep♪ I’m keeping an eye on the south and east too, but nothing has happened there yet—☆” “The prophet?” “…Not yet.”
The prophet, who I had expected to make an appearance by now, still hadn’t shown up in any direction.
“He hasn’t appeared yet.”
During this process, I checked on Cara’s situation as well.
‘It seems Cara and Piyak met up with Helena safely...’
They were advancing, cutting down countless chaos bugs. I felt relieved that the situation was safer than I had expected.
Hilde nodded and said nothing more.
“Leave this to me.” “Yep—☆”
I sent her a grateful look. The wolf was beginning to recover from the bombardment and regain its senses.
“Reach, [Bifrost]!”
Shwip—!!
The view instantly changed with a swirl of rainbow light. As soon as I arrived, I could sense the wolf ahead, its mouth wide open.
—!!
With a deafening roar, The wolf’s fangs, sharp enough to tear through flesh with ease, came rushing at me.
“…”
Seeing those fangs, Memories of the past battles with the priestesses flashed through my mind.
The first attack was merely a disaster, and I threw myself into it. The second attack was a desperate struggle, taking many casualties. The third attack was poorly prepared, and we lost the prophet.
The fourth.
This may not be the end. Perhaps the [Priestess of Dreams] will pop out again from somewhere. Maybe this is another trick by the prophet.
‘Even so…’
I decided I would not be caught off guard a fourth time.
I clenched my fist.
From afar, the purple weapons were flying in. From afar, the flames were running, burning the chaos bugs. From afar, many students were holding their positions.
For the first time, I had prepared and responded properly.
Now, when I was starting to forget all the game knowledge, I had finally completed the maximum preparation and was ready.
‘Now it’s time to fight back.’
I swung my fist toward the wolf’s gaping mouth.