In truth, Melusine only wanted to know more about him, to see whether she could help him and share his burdens.
"This is what I want to do afterward. Now that I think about it, I'll have to keep troubling you too, Melusine. Sorry. I'll make you work hard in the future as well."
Melusine looked very unhappy upon hearing Novia say that. She shook her head and looked straight at the person she loved.
"Don't say that! It's not like I dislike it. I want you to rely on me more. Most importantly, I like protecting you and working hard together with you! I'm doing this willingly!"
The silver-haired girl clenched her fist and spoke with impassioned sincerity. Novia blinked, then could not help but smile.
"I feel like you'd be very easy to fool, Melusine."
What Novia wrote down was the plan he had envisioned before Nero underwent this change. Besides investing in Byzantium, he wanted to transform the Roman Empire's system from top to bottom into Europe's feudal system.
With him, the "messenger of God on earth," driving it forward, this should accomplish a top-down reform rarely seen in ancient empires. Naturally, it would harm the interests of many nobles, but he would use the "violence" of Rome and the Church's faith to force them into complete change.
What Novia had envisioned was the reform of Charles Martel, Charlemagne's grandfather: changing the previous practice of granting land without conditions into conditional land enfeoffment. Through Church doctrine, the idea that vassals must be loyal to their lords while lords must protect their vassals would be deeply ingrained, intertwining rights and obligations.
The reason he wrote it down was likely because Novia himself faced uncertain factors in the future. He wanted others besides himself to be able to carry it out.
As for why Nero had become like this, Novia had asked Locusta, who had accompanied her, last night. He learned that Nero had changed only because she knew what he had given her was not poisonous. In other words, in Nero's mind, he had been poisoning her from the very beginning, though he had never said such a thing.
Novia immediately understood. Agrippina must have tampered with things at some point. Therefore, he had already ordered Lucius to have her locked inside the Temple of Quirinus on Quirinal Hill, where he would deal with her later.
"I wouldn't be. I'd only let you fool me." Melusine puffed out her cheeks and pouted as if sulking. "All right, keep holding me."
Time passed bit by bit until evening slowly arrived. Having finally finished writing everything down, Novia turned to look at the still-sleeping Nero and sighed. Then he rose, set Melusine down, and his expression relaxed slightly.
"I have something to take care of. Stay here for a while first, Melusine."
"No, I'm coming too. I want to help you."
"Be good."
Novia stretched out his right hand and gently placed it on Melusine's head. She closed her eyes as though carefully savoring the sensation. His palm felt the dragon girl's hair and the warmth of her life.
"All right, then... you—" Melusine paused. The faint yellow light from outside the window illuminated her profile. Looking somewhat lonely, she hesitated for the space of a breath before continuing, "If you're not here, I'll be lonely..."
"Don't worry. I promised you, didn't I?"
Leaving behind those calm words, Novia headed for the Temple of Quirinus on Quirinal Hill.
Before making the Book of Revelation happen, there was one more thing he needed to do—kill someone.
Before the heavy doors of the temple, Novia exhaled and adjusted his breathing.
Once this door opened, there would be no turning back. He clearly could have chosen to look away, yet he had still come here.
"You came? Well? Well? Isn't that child an unbelievably adorable doll? So adorable."
Pushing open the doors, Novia found Agrippina inside the otherwise empty temple. She had apparently been thinking about something before the statue of Quirinus, and upon hearing the doors open, she turned to Novia.
"Nero, adorable Nero, I love you. Come on, she must want to kill me, right? Hurry and let her come see me!"
What she inherited from her mother was a curse—obsessive yet pure. Agrippina called such longing love.
But in truth, this love was a rose covered in thorns.
Those who received so-called maternal love from thorny love would eventually kill with thorns.
"Agrippina, Nero will not be the one to kill you. She will not kill her own mother. Children do not kill their mothers."
Expressionless, Novia shoved the crazed woman to the ground and ran his fingers along the sword in his hand.
This scene made him recall how he had once killed Empress Messalina.
"Let Nero kill me! Who the hell are you?! You're just an outsider! What do you have to do with Nero? I'm her mother! You're the complete and utter outsider!"
Agrippina roared in fury, her voice enough to echo through the silent temple.
"The one who kills you will only ever be me. If she hates anyone, she will hate me, not you or herself."
Novia spoke calmly. The next second, he plunged his sword deep into Agrippina's chest, killing her in a single strike. He then pulled out the blood-soaked sword and cleaned it with magecraft.
Finally, in the Temple of Quirinus, Novia faced the bloodstained statue of Romulus and said:
"I am grateful for your help. But to you, who sees everything as Rome, I have undoubtedly killed a child you loved right before your eyes. For that alone, I must apologize to you, Romulus Quirinus."
Apocalypse Begins
Half a month later, Armageddon—the final battlefield recorded in the Book of Revelation.
The emperor's absence for half a month had not yet stirred much discussion within the Empire. Under Novia's arrangements, the Empire's political affairs were all proceeding in perfect order, so people merely assumed that His Majesty the Emperor might have wanted to rest for a while.
As for Agrippina's death, people did not say much beyond lamenting that a Christian had passed away just like that. There might have been all kinds of conspiracy theories, but most people simply reacted with, "I see."
And now, at Armageddon, the sight before Novia's eyes was as it had always been: a dreamlike landscape beneath a sky filled with blue, blue stretching endlessly to an unknown distance.
"Melusine, are you ready?"
Holding the "spear" in his hand, Novia, who had often worn a gentle smile since arriving in this world, now looked incomparably grave.
"Do we really have to do this...? Won't it hurt your body...?"
Melusine asked uncertainly. Novia's current state resembled the method once used by the King of Antichrist they had fought. The difference was that man had used human souls and lives as his source of magical energy, while Novia used the "Primal Fire," also known as the "Fire of Passion" and the "Fire of Love," the source of power behind Nero's transformation into a Beast.
The Evils of Humanity all loved humanity itself—humanity's love itself. Yet, in other words, they were the sludge that had settled throughout human history, cancers that eroded the body from within society, evils humanity had to overcome.
In the original history, Nero had realized at the moment of her death that her love burned too fiercely to be accepted by others, so she accepted the ending of dying alone.
Yet here, Nero, influenced by Novia, cursed Novia, for whom she had devoted herself so wholeheartedly, only for him to abandon her. Since she had no reason to be born, she would fulfill the desire of the sea of blood that had always shrouded her, burn down the world, take on the image of a so-called bringer of the end, and fully release her "Fire of Love," allowing it to burn the world away.
Whether it was the Great Whore of Babylon, containing Rome's she-wolf mother and holding a golden cup; Satan, the great red dragon and horned demon king wielding the Sword of Seven Sins; or Lucifer, the bright star not yet manifested and perhaps possessing the will of "Anti-Lord Love"—all of these were possible end-bringer forms Nero herself could choose.
And according to the version of the Book of Revelation John had described, Novia would be intoxicated by Nero's wine of desire and suffer in the flames.
On second thought, Novia figured that "suffer in the flames" might refer to the Primal Fire Nero would use, while "wine of desire" likely referred to her feelings for him...
In any case, he did not care whether he would lose that intangible position of the Holy Spirit because of this.
"For that, I will do what I can."
Novia made up his mind. This was unquestionably something caused by him, so no matter what, he could not throw it onto someone else to resolve.
What he needed to do was clear. Even if his opponent was the one and only God, even if victory was impossible no matter how hard he fought—
He would not fear it.
He could never fear it.
"It's fine. I know exactly what I need to do. And don't worry, you're the strongest. I believe in you."
"That's true. I am unquestionably the strongest... In that case, all right. I'll guide it."
As Melusine finished speaking, numerous magical formations emerged across the "spear," connecting to the Primal Fire far away in the Roman palace and transmitting magical energy. At that instant, the silver-haired man took his stance. The Magic Circuits and Magic Crest within his body activated in unison, connecting with the power of the Beast that had yet to be born.
Blood-red patterns raced across the surface of his body. The agonizing pain caused by the power of the Evils of Humanity swept through him. Behind him, the blood-red sea he had once witnessed, tens of thousands of kilometers in length, seemed to surge faintly, countless filthy things darting through its crimson waters.
In an instant—
Deep beneath the Mediterranean, something blue opened its eyes. With the aid of some unknown and terrifying power, it passed through the fixed Texture and arrived upon the planet's surface, in humanity's world. Flames spewed from its mouth, smoke billowed from its nostrils, and its roar shook the entire Mediterranean. The sea's waves even flowed backward. But as though merely announcing its arrival to the world, it plunged into the depths and sped toward Armageddon.
In Athens, one of Europe's oldest cities and the cradle of Western culture, a tremendous cracking sound came from the sky. It was as if a ceiling that had endured for untold years was groaning, dust falling down in streams. Startled Athenians looked up, only to discover that the entire city and the lands beyond had been swallowed by darkness. Looking closely, they saw it was the wings of something green spread wide to block out the sun. Then it headed first toward Gaul.
Somewhere in Gaul, deep within an uninhabited mountain range, a furious roar rang out. Its earth-shaking bellow made the tigers, leopards, wolves, and jackals of the world tremble in terror. Then the mountain split cleanly in two, revealing a red giant beast. Its body was covered in armor-like scales, and its blood-red eyes stared fixedly at Armageddon as it raised its head and waited for something to carry it there.
This was the prelude to the Great Apocalypse: Leviathan, King of the Sea; Ziz, King of the Sky; and Behemoth, King of the Land. The three great beasts had manifested together!
At the same time, above Armageddon, the warm light of extinction descended from the heavens. Sharp as a blade, it sliced apart the blue sky overhead, moving from south to north before abruptly turning and forming a perfect circle around Armageddon.
The light that appeared from nowhere was like an iron curtain. In an instant, it separated Armageddon from the outside world, then emitted an entirely different red light that enveloped the world.
The next instant, as the earth trembled, a corner of some colossal thing emerged. The sky was pushed apart to both sides as if it were paper, and two massive doors appeared above Armageddon.
The white doors were covered in joyful reliefs. The moment they appeared, a power that made one feel warmth from the depths of body and soul slowly arose behind them, and the illusory aura of Heaven emerged.
The black doors were covered in words of suffering. The instant they appeared, a cold and sinister aura spread in every direction from behind them, freezing all things. After that came the hungry howls of countless monsters from Hell.
Heaven's Gate and Hell's Gate manifested together upon the battlefield of the final battle!
Satan's Dinner
The hurricane brought by Ziz's spread wings swept across the battlefield in an instant. Mixed with the floodwaters surging in from the nearby coast was the shrill sound produced by two enormous beasts fighting each other, enough to make countless eardrums bleed.
Under Ziz's gaze, Behemoth and Leviathan would fight to the death. In the end, both would be served upon The Holy One's dining table, along with Ziz itself.
However—
Within the battlefield, red shadows flowed and gathered around Novia, rising like flickering flames and shrouding the space around him.
At that moment, Novia's "spear" had turned red and black. Red light glittered in his eyes, while bloody markings ran from the left side of his face to his left ear. Red patterns raced over his skin, covering his entire body. The scale of magical energy, which a human body could scarcely contain, explosively rose. Yet that power gently protected him, never harming his soul or flesh as it circulated within him.
"Albion, you must be hungry. I'll treat you to something."
Malignant magical energy burned wildly, and the glow of its substantial flames illuminated Novia's face.
The bestowed name that released the Strongest Dragon's appetite caused the dragon to answer with immense magical energy. A pair of mechanical wings unfolded behind Novia's human body. Then, before the fighting beasts, his body flashed by like a meteor. Thunder boomed, and red-and-black light burst from within the soaring Ziz.
Amid the battlefield of scorching heat and torrential rain, Leviathan and Behemoth suddenly realized that the gale beside them had vanished. The two giant beasts instinctively looked up together, then saw a dragon-like phantom radiating an incomparably evil aura.
The enormous phantom dragon, as large as they were, incinerated every molecule in the air. A scorching vortex of magical energy, a force that nearly surpassed theirs, swallowed Ziz whole from tail to head.
It was as though the gigantic bird, whose spread wings could blot out the sun, had been devoured in one bite by an immensely terrifying dragon.
When Ziz's flesh fell to the ground, thunder and lightning entirely unlike the gale enveloped the two giant beasts.
Instinctively, Behemoth opened its maw toward the sky and spewed scorching flames, turning everything around it to ash. Meanwhile, Leviathan in the sea shone with a deep blue light all over its body, churning enormous waves that surged toward the heavens.
At the core of Phantom Albion, Novia hovered high in the sky. A sea of flames like a sea of blood formed the magical body of the Strongest Dragon at a feverish pace, spreading, spreading, flowing in every direction until the Beast's magical energy was exhausted.
Novia raised his hand, and Phantom Albion high in the sky raised its hand as well. Facing the immense magical energy unleashed by the two great beasts, Novia endured the pain and aimed at Leviathan. The distance was somewhat far; clearly, he needed to descend closer.
"This distance is enough."
Magical energy gathered in his palm. Blood-and-black lightning flashed through a space without substance, directly pulling out what lay within Leviathan's body. It beat powerfully. It rejoiced at the devouring that had been destined for it.
No matter what kind of emotion it was, once it exceeded its limit, its most extreme expression was to kill the other party—or eat them.
What Phantom Albion now held was the heart of Leviathan, the beast of the sea. Without hesitation, it swallowed it whole.
Ziz and Leviathan had both been eaten. Only Behemoth remained, the creature called unmatched and invincible in the Old Testament, said to be killable only by Jehovah's sword. Naturally, Novia did not think that far ahead. Phantom Albion's body fell from the sky like a meteor and charged into a savage, biting battle with Behemoth, a creature formed from flesh and calamity.
The ceaseless supply of magical energy from the sea of blood strengthened his explosive power once more, and his speed underwent a qualitative change. When Novia came to his senses from the madness of tearing flesh from Behemoth's body, he instantly heard the sound of wind before him. Without thinking, he raised his hand and caught it—the staff.
It was the staff once placed upon Jesus's crucifixion cross. With no time to think, he instinctively swung the charging staff upward. Perhaps empowered by the magical aura, the top of the cross staff lit up with a brilliant blaze like a blade. It then cut through Behemoth's neck and the tough scales covering its skin with unstoppable force.
The giant beast's head crashed to the ground, blood spurting forth, while its massive carcass was swiftly devoured by Phantom Albion.
In the end, all three giant beasts symbolizing the prelude to the Great Apocalypse died. Not one left behind evaporating blood or bones.
The three great beasts had become the food of Novia, who could no longer be said to be either The Holy One or someone borrowing the evil of Babylon. But according to the prophecy of the Book of Revelation, it was time for the next stage of the Apocalypse.
Yet no glorious throne appeared in the sky. No one opened the seven seals, and no one had the seven angels sound their seven trumpets.
"Your soul should have reached Heaven long ago. Even if you should not have been born into this world, the position already exists, so you should ascend to it early. You should not be doing this either. This is Babylon's sin. Moreover, once the Book of Revelation begins and judgment arrives, no one can stop it. This will only harm your spirit."
At that moment, the gate leading to Hell slowly opened a crack. From within emerged the figure who had once parted the sea through God's great power. He gazed at the world before him, his pale eyes filled with pity.
Moses, friend of Ramesses II, who had obeyed God's command and led the Hebrews to the Promised Land.
Opposite him, the silver-haired man who emerged from Heaven's Gate said nothing. He merely sighed helplessly as countless shadows of birds and beasts clustered around him.
Noah, ancestor of humanity, who had obeyed God's command, built the ark, and escaped the world-destroying flood.
Figures overflowing with incomparable divinity descended, and an overwhelming pressure instantly blanketed the final battlefield. Moreover, both were physical beings, not Servants manifested through the Heroic Spirit summoning system. They had appeared in their true bodies through the power of the Father of that human Savior.
"...Is it only you two?"
"Just as you are acting now, the Book of Revelation has not unfolded in the order it was supposed to. Perhaps the rest will come later."
"...As a teacher, I think I've still failed badly."
Surrounded by magical energy as dense as water, Novia's gaze almost reflected the boundless heavens above.
"I don't care about the future. I don't care about the next life or the life after that. I don't care if things will become worse, and I don't care if I am destined to ascend to the highest position. As a teacher, I still hoped my student would live her own life properly, for herself. Find what she likes and dislikes, stand on her own feet, and live for herself... But I failed to make that happen."
"Still, according to the Book of Revelation, I, standing in your way, am unquestionably Satan."
Because—All Roads Lead to Rome!
Before you continue