Chapter 378
"Even without Yoshiko, there could be a happy world like this..."
Dragon Flower's earnest words blended into the silence, and in an instant Miyu's expression grew increasingly stiff, frozen in place.
Then, a light flashed in Miyu Satsuki's eyes as she slowly withdrew her hand. The girl's breathing became rapid and erratic. When she finally gave up, she paused for a moment, and then Dragon Flower's face suddenly appeared in front of her.
Even so, Miyu calmly countered with:
"Dragon Flower, you haven't answered my question."
"Oh..."
Dragon Flower let out a sigh tinged with a smile.
"However, since you are so stubborn, I have no choice but to send you to your death. After all, you are not from this world, and therefore you are not within the scope of this salvation. So—"
A distant sound faintly drifted through the stagnant space.
It seemed to be the gentle humming that a giant Dragon Flower Tree should possess, yet a terrifying vibration was embedded within it, forming a vast humming that impacted the girl's body and spread throughout her entire being.
"You can really die now, Miyu Satsuki. You have no right to enter my body..."
Whether it was bubbles displayed by Dragon Flower or something else, they suddenly stirred as if clamoring in the wind, and an invisible Obstruction slowly spread out in a circle beneath Miyu's feet.
At that moment, Dragon Flower froze in shock, and at the same time felt a wave of discomfort in his stomach, as if he had eaten something bad and wanted to vomit.
Therefore, it was this small delay that gave them the opportunity.
Therefore--
The thing emerged from the shadows beneath Miyu's feet.
"Well, Gaia and Alaya, how dare you do this!"
That's not a tangible entity at all.
What appeared behind Miyu upon her return to the real world was something that should have no effect at this moment, existing outside of Earth like a shadow—
Moon Cancer.
Originally, the moon was Earth's True Magic barrier, like a giant umbrella that has blocked evil things falling from the Universe for tens of thousands of years. Some of these attempts were successful, and some were unsuccessful, but the purpose was always to protect.
However, umbrellas can sometimes turn into Demon. Just as Dragon Flower Maitreya his tribulation, is this not a proper act of 'universal salvation'?
In short, for millennia, when people looked up at the sky, their vision was obscured. The moon was the ultimate barrier that humanity could resist. This celestial illusion permeated the world and eventually became reality.
"Humanity should maintain the status quo," "Civilization should maintain the status quo"—these are the collective demands of those unconscious individuals.
This force appears whenever humanity attempts to venture into the Universe, constantly hindering all exploration, discovery, and endeavor.
From this definition, it is not that the Moon Cancer of the Spiritron Computer MC should be a sanction that manifests when human technology reaches its limit, ultimately unable to overcome the lunar blockade, exhausts its potential as Primate, and is unwilling to relinquish its position to New Primates.
In other words, the Moon Cancer shouldn't have manifested at this moment, but perhaps it heard the cries of Gaia and Alaya contained within the Dragon Flower Tree, or perhaps for some other reason, so the Moon Cancer activated its protection. And as for the object of selection, who would be more suitable now than Miyu, who, in the Moon Cancer's eyes, possesses a 'Galaxy' -like Miyu?
Ultimately, while Moon Cancer is a cancer that humanity should overcome, it is also one of the protectors until the time comes.
Moreover, in a sense, it is opposed to the Future, since only by overcoming it can there be Future. Therefore, although the timing is not quite right for it to fight against Dragon Flower, which represents the Future, it doesn't seem to pose a major problem.
Under the interference of the Moon Cancer, Miyu also had a certain opportunity to hinder Dragon Flower. The huge human figure and the Dragon Flower Tree collided with each other, bursting out with a roar, which was faintly transformed into Deafening Crash that shook the heavens and the earth, as if it was screaming, roaring, singing and chanting from the Melody.
However, for Dragon Flower, who was able to forcibly absorb both Gaia and Alaya, Moon Cancer was nothing more than a slightly larger worm.
Dragon Flower directly charged into the Moon Cancer with a burst of Buddha-like light from his entire body and threw a punch at Miyu. Although she managed to block the attack, Miyu's body was propelled into the air.
Then, Dragon Flower unleashed a golden light there, seemingly intent on severing everything completely, giving Miyu no time to regroup.
Even more terrifying, just as the intervals between the strikes gradually shortened and the number of strikes exceeded dozens, the burst of light became uninterrupted, presenting a huge band of light that shot out from the ground and pierced through the moon beyond heaven and earth.
It was practically a declaration: this wasn't just an endless combo, but a relentless, powerful attack, all for the destruction of the moon.
In response, Miyu closed her eyes, gave the Sapphire to Ilya on the ground, and then merged with the Moon Cancer into the overwhelming power that seemed to sever everything. She no longer cared about life or death; as long as she could at least slightly hinder Dragon Flower, that was enough.
During this process, Dragon Flower's expression rarely, if ever, revealed undisguised Wrath.
"Miyu Satsuki, you're an outsider! Your world is about to be destroyed! You're such a coward!"
You're a person who lacks confidence!
"Your justification for fighting for this world is far too weak!"
"You cannot live! I will kill you completely!"
Unconcerned that the Moon Cancer, which was protecting her, was beginning to crumble under Dragon Flower's onslaught, Miyu calmly opened her eyes:
"You look exactly like me, with the same hair and eyes as my brother. The reason you want to kill me is to deny my existence, right? After all, my relationship with you isn't nearly as close as Ilya's with Chloe, is it?"
After a long silence, Dragon Flower sighed softly, his eyes shifting slightly, revealing a hint of Jealousy that was hard to discern—whether from Wrath or indifference.
"... Indeed, you were the first human to see my Lord."
She paused, then, unusually, laughed in front of people outside of Ivia:
"So only I can have this face, even though I hate it. Because every time I see this face, I can't help but think of the years you and my Lord spent together. Ah, if only I had been the first one to appear back then. Why did I say those things to Yoshiko? Why did you appear? Why did you see me? Why were you able to arrive before me? Why are you unwilling to disappear? Why do you keep appearing? Why do you keep getting closer? Why, why, why, why--"
Dragon Flower's eyes held a maddening clarity and purity as he cupped his face in his hands, and in that instant, Miyu felt a similar sensation.
"Compared to me, you were the first person I met, Miyu Satsuki. Clearly, I should have been my master's first 'fate'!!!"
On the other hand, because Miyu used the power of the Moon Cancer to delay Dragon Flower who was blocking the way, she didn't have time to worry about the seriously injured Ilya. She picked up the Sapphire and, together with Chloe, came to Ivia was sitting on the Lotus Seat.
At this moment, Ivia's image gave Ilya and Chloe the feeling they had when they first met. It was as if she were sitting and watching them, as if she were looking into the distance, or as if she were sitting there melancholy and languidly. Her image was that of bare-chested skin with Silver Hair cascading down her back.
Ivia raised her eyes to look over, scrutinizing their expressions, and quickly nodded:
"You can ask first, and then I'll decide whether to agree."
After thinking for a moment, Ilya cautiously began to speak:
"This is all over now, right? We've won, haven't we? Right? Me, Chloe, and Miyu, the three of Miyu?"
A brief silence followed, Ivia seemed stunned, her expression growing increasingly strange.
He stared at Ilya for a long time.
Finally, he slowly shook his head.
"It's not working yet, Dragon Flower made a wish."
"Why is that?! And brother, what's your relationship with Miyu, who looks exactly like Dragon Flower?!"
"Dragon Flower wants to be Miyu, she wants to be Ilya, she wants to be Chloe, and she also wants to be Caren."
Ivia paused for a moment, then said, "That's about it."
"This is tantamount to saying nothing at all..."
Chloe said softly, then suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke louder.
"By the way, brother, let me tell you, when Dragon Flower seriously injured me just now, I was a little scared, right? Ilya, you felt the same way, didn't you?"
"... Oh, ah, um."
Hearing Chloe say this, Ilya realized that both of them were covered in dried blood, which might have tainted their clean clothes with a slight stench. Although they could have used Magecraft to clean themselves on the way here, they had forgotten because they were too nervous.
The silver-haired girl stared intently at Ivia, seemingly seeing through everything. But what exactly did she see? It was something that seemed to have no end in sight, yet it gave Ilya a strange sense of déjà vu. First, there was the time when she thought the letter Rin Tohsaka had given her about the time to reclaim the Class Card was a love letter to Ilya, and she had deliberately spoken loudly to attract Ivia's attention.
Then, the 'Ilya's Love Letter' that Ivia uttered contained the following content:
I will listen carefully to whatever you say, no matter how slowly. If a letter cannot express myself clearly, I will come to see you directly like this. If you leave, I will go with you, no matter how slowly.
I will listen to you no matter how slowly you speak, and I will walk with you no matter how slowly you walk. Right now, I may not be very reliable, but one day I will become useful to you. Even if I can't be like before, I will still convey this feeling to you. I don't think we are from two different worlds.
Then there was the day Ivia was invited to the Miyu --
"But only a little."
Ilya noticed that Chloe's hands were trembling slightly as she spoke.
"But because my brother is here, I'm not afraid."
Then, Ilya suddenly laughed and said to Chloe beside her:
"... What? So you're not afraid, Kuro?"
Therefore, Ivia hesitated, but finally spoke:
"You, and all of you, have to win."
"Um."
It was a simple, brief sentence, yet it seemed to carry more weight and determination than anything else, prompting both of them to nod in agreement.
Then Ilya gave a slight, gentle smile.
I knew it!
Immediately afterwards, Ivia rose from her lotus seat, and the 86,000 Lesser Wheel that had been waiting outside the Earth roared once more. Then, a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder illuminated the world once more.
The Lesser Wheel rays of light could no longer directly engulf the two as before, but the beams of light continued to rise higher and higher, beyond the reach of the eye. Anyone swallowed by that torrent of power would not be able to escape unscathed.
"Let's fight. I will fight with the same power you have now, under the same rules you have now. This is the limitation of the 'Future' that has not yet arrived. You can only overcome this 'fixed' Future that has not yet arrived through inevitability, miracles, and chance that has not yet arrived."
"Don't worry, Kuro and I both know."
Ilya used the Sapphire given to her by Miyu, and instantly her form changed. Purple-black Od, resembling wings, appeared behind her. This was the combined form of the Stars Guardian Warrior, the ultimate power fused from the Ruby and Sapphire.
"Why don't I get anything? Damn it, I should have asked Number One and the others to get me an outfit to change into beforehand..."
That's what she said, but Kuro still resolutely drew her Twin Blades against Ivia. She had always been on Ivia's side, so since Ivia had told her, "You and all of you have to win," she had no choice but to accept it.
"Hmm, Kuro, because the first Magical Girl to appear is invincible!"
Chapter 409 All beings are inherently pure, without birth or death.
"Spring comes and flowers bloom, autumn arrives and leaves fall, boundless wisdom brings peace of mind."
With this as a declaration of war, the world around Ivia seemed to be trapped in a golden sand, rising and falling and spinning amidst a roar.
The fine lines emanating from the Heavenly Wheel twirled violently, rising and falling, while countless lines descending from the Universe continuously rose and collapsed, accompanied by a series of deafening Deafening Crash.
It was a sound overflowing with joy, as if offering a blessing.
Ilya found it hard to describe the feeling, as if the sounds of growth, continuation, and death, which were only conceptual, overlapped with the reverberations of the 'cloth' formed by those distant golden threads of stars, becoming so clear and close at hand.
Like a dream.
It seemed as if one could see it by simply raising one's eyes, hear it by simply tilting one's ear, and touch it simply by reaching out one's hand.
If people don't meet my expectations, it's because I'm immeasurable; if I don't meet the expectations of others, it's because I lack virtue.
Before Ivia's outstretched hand, something appeared from the sky, perched on the mountains, and drifting in the Wang Ocean—a 'stick'-shaped weapon, the Thunderbolt, an Ancient India weapon.
However, compared to the legendary Thunderbolt, which is said to be hard and powerful at a glance, the one in Ivia's hands is somewhat peculiar, because at first glance it looks like Thunderbolt made of soft leaves.
But more than that, Ilya keenly noticed something else: this leaf didn't seem to be a leaf of the Dragon Flower Tree, but rather... Banyan Tree?
But why did Ilya suddenly think of this thing? She had never heard of it before, yet it still came to mind subconsciously. It was very strange. At the same time, she also saw Ivia say something to the Thunderbolt:
"I will take this upon myself; no one can take my place."
I don't quite understand the meaning of this sentence, but it has already transformed into Stars formation, that is, Ilya, who is a mixture of Ruby and Sapphire, continues to choose to face the challenge head-on.
This posture, which should logically be used to disguise Magic Circuits by damaging her own body tissues—the more Od the user uses, the greater the harm—seems to be forbidden now. In any case, Ilya, flying through the air, swung her True Magic down from above at an imperceptible speed.
"A saturation barrage of diverse attacks!"
That was a light of illusion that cleaved everything in mid-air, a self-sacrificing strike that mistook the entire human body's systems for Magic Circuits to enhance instantaneous power output; its powerful Od flow even possessed an annihilating force comparable to the light of a star.
To this beam of light, Ivia, gripping the Thunderbolt constructed from leaves, took a step forward towards her location, and the more she did so, the more she felt the excruciating pain of each step...
The mere sight of its Od circuits caused the adversaries to wail and kneel, as if a normal person were seeing a vast ocean pressing down upon them.
He didn't do anything extra; he just stood there, and that's how this happened.
Beneath the calm lay a terrifying power capable of overturning everything, and then—
One poke!
In that instant, Ilya's pupils suddenly contracted, and her whole body seemed to be locked in place, unable to move. Then, the golden threads that swept across the sky converged forward with Ivia's movements, first like waves, and then Perfection engulfing her.
Boom!
The explosion was more deafening than ever before, shaking heaven and earth.
Ilya's forceful swinging of her wand came to an abrupt halt. She looked down at her abdomen, which was right in front of Ivia's Thunderbolt.