Chapter 464

Therefore, everything here will be literally frozen, and at the same time, a line of words will be spelled out on the ice. "Utsumi Erice is destined to be brought back to death by the Gleipnir chains at Twilight today."

"Destined? I'm afraid that time hasn't come yet."

The silver- Erice simply waved her hand casually, and the ice field emitted a mournful sound of shattering glass.

"Thump--"

Starting from where Erice, possessed by the Demon King, stood, an ancient Authority, even more ancient than the Authority of death held by Hel, a power that could shake everyone present, was manifesting at an unimaginable speed—an ice sculpture from the World Tree Yggdrasil, appearing in the form of ice.

"The set design is truly unsettling."

Silver- Erice's fingertips brushed against the World Tree that stretched out beside her. "But isn't it a bit too early for you to try and take Erice away?"

According to Fr's timeline, the 'Death Gods' invasion of the City should have occurred four years after Erice Akihabara; it's too early now.

However, Hel did not give a direct answer. She stared at the ice-made World Tree, and the rotting flesh on her left cheek slowly fell off.

"Stop... You are blaspheming Yggdrasil..."

With her voice, the roar of the Hell Garm stirred up waves of ice, its rotting left paw slamming against the ice, bringing with it the poisonous waters of Helheim. Seeing this, Novia merely flicked her nails, and the phantom of the Norse Hell appeared behind her, as if to proclaim to the world that this is how Divine Beast should gaze upon another, different version of itself.

As Divine Beast and a servant of Hel, the goddess of Death God, Garm clearly sensed—

The illusory figure before me was indeed myself.

However, after experiencing almost identical specifications, Garm was only certain of one thing.

That is, even so, she must eliminate all enemies who stand in Helen's way, even herself.

"Is it fake, or is it real...?"

Hel could tell from Garm's attitude and her own senses that the phantom before her was undoubtedly the real Hell Garm. This puzzled the Death God of the Norse: if hers was real and the one opposite was real, then which one was fake?

Garm's mangled body suddenly leaped up for a final charge, but transformed into a docile hound the instant it touched Novia.

"How about we take a look at this one?"

The moment the silver- Erice said those words, the icy sea suddenly boiled, the ice pillars carbonized in the heat wave, and every step she took on the ice ladder left lava footprints on the ice surface.

This is the flame from the Giants king Surtr.

As the one who holds Authority over all of Norse, Novia can naturally use the Authority of Hel, Surtr, and others.

"What exactly are you now...?"

Is that Odin? But why is there Surtr... and my power too?

Hel couldn't understand why Utsumi Erice, the daughter of Izanami, the symbol of death in Japan, possessed such power.

The Age of Gods has long since ended, and the Authority of the gods should belong to themselves; how could there possibly be one who unifies divine authority?

As Helen pondered, Garm, who had been timid and hesitant, suddenly leaped up and charged. Novia, who had anticipated this, lightly touched the ice World Tree with Erice's fingertips, and Freyr's Golden-Maned Boar and Heimdall's Rainbow Bridge suppressed Garm, who belonged to Hel.

The boar's tusks and the phantom of the Hell pierced the rotting flesh, while the Rainbow Bridge's light melted its mechanical parts.

The Hell howled in agony amidst the double divine punishment.

"You, Anubis, Mot... you Death God don't really intend to destroy the New Era created by Manazuru Chitose, do you?"

"Haha, only things that are buried in the earth can become eternal and unchanging truths."

Hel laughed loudly, her divine Divine Aura surging and sweeping across the Akihabara coastline, causing the seawater to rise into the air.

Before the ice-made World Tree of Novia pierced through them, ripples appeared, and the next second, the human and animal forms collapsed, returning to their original watery state, leaving only a low, muffled sound.

That was precisely the declaration that Anubis should have delivered four years later—

"Day will shatter night—just as men reveal femininity and women reveal masculinity. The Throne of Heroes is twisted, the Holy Grail is already filled with Black Mud that deceives all beings, the Sun will soon set, and the time to recreate day has come."

At this moment Waterflow flowed down smoothly, and the silver- Erice walked upstream in the Waterflow, as if searching for the source of the Waterflow, stepping on the ice ladder to walk into the air.

Finally, she casually picked up a drop of water and held it as if crushing a crown.

As a being with Authority over numerous myths, Novia sensed a premonition that lingered in this place, Divine Aura of death spoke of how, no matter how prosperous the human era may have seemed, it was mired in a chilling 'darkness'.

Just as with heat death in the realm of modern Magecraft, according to the second law of thermodynamics, everything in this world, whether Planet or living beings, will sooner or later be drawn into an energy equilibrium, eventually leading to an eternal state of stagnation.

The Universe and the Galaxy, everything will eventually come to an end, and Fr's New Era undoubtedly violates this principle.

Novia squinted, his feelings a complex mix.

If that's the case, then Anubis, Hel, and possibly Yama, the Death God, led by Mot, must be planning to completely destroy the New Era and bring death back to humanity. To some extent, this is the right option.

But--

"So what? This doesn't justify your indiscriminate killing."

"I will end you all first, and then end the Holy Grail War that is still raging in this world."

For some reason, Erice instantly realized that the Demon King within her was currently contemplating something, not some grand undertaking, but rather the lives of everyone beneath him.

Just as Lucius had once told her about 'every day that the Pope of Novia worked so hard for the development of the Church and the empire,' Erice felt that the Demon King must be doing something similar right now. The thought that the Demon King would be like this made her feel a little embarrassed, and she felt even more like saying something mocking.

But the girl could not deny one thing: the Demon King was definitely sighing softly and deeply.

Immediately afterward, the Erice watched the figure flash past below and jumped straight down without hesitation.

Earlier, during the battle between silver- Erice and Hel, there was also a battle on the coast.

The two sides in the battle were Aoko Aozaki and Kundry.

"I'll say it again, please leave this city. You don't want to perish because your injuries are too severe to heal, do you?"

"I'll say it again, give him back."

"Still asking him..."

Aoko Aozaki covered her mouth in slight surprise. "It's too late. Unfortunately, even though the sea is frozen, they successfully set sail while you and I were arguing. So there's no way to catch up now. The underwater Drone won't stand idly by and ignore any signs of life."

It's true that Ahasuerus has set sail, but it's a lie that he can't catch up. Aoko Aozaki still hopes that she can give up.

"Waaah, oh oh oh, it's all because of you, and that other woman..."

Kundry scratched her hair violently, "I want Revenge! I'll make you taste the bitterness of retribution!"

This is a huge misunderstanding, a huge problem. Do women in love really get so easily consumed by Jealousy...?

This is really too much trouble.

As if she didn't want to see this kind of thing, she looked away and for some reason, Aoko Aozaki let out a heavy sigh.

"If I only wanted to kill you, I alone would have been enough."

"Really? You saw it yourself, my Spirit Origin is still being maintained in Helheim, and it's quite stable."

Kundry descended the port's stairs step by step, tilting her head dramatically as she spoke, "As an Old Humanity, you take on the night patrol duties of this fortress. I admire your courage and extraordinary sense of mission, but..."

Ice crystals reappeared around Kundry, Runes pages reappeared.

"In the end, you are human—and I am the Servant."

"I know."

Aoko Aozaki maintained a cold expression as she took out a small object from her bosom—a metallic decorative egg from which a clattering countdown could be heard echoing.

"That's why, Kundry, Akihabara cannot tolerate your existence. No matter where you go in Marseille Mosaic City, you will be rejected as an outsider because your Spirit Origin has been marked with Identification Mark, and the city will no longer supply you with Od. Not only that, just staying here will cause the Od here to turn into toxins that pollute your Spirit Origin and slowly erode you."

Even without Aoko Aozaki's explicit warning, Kundry should already be feeling excruciating pain from absorbing Od through her breathing.

But she seems to see even this pain as the agony of being separated from her loved one by the ends of the earth, representing how deep her bond with her lover is.

"So what! I will take my Revenge on bastards like you..."

You shouldn't die here.

Upon hearing this, Kundry frowned in surprise.

"Because that would be such a waste..."

Aoko Aozaki believed this was truly a miracle.

A Servant falls in love with another Servant.

This kind of miracle is not a mission bestowed by the Holy Grail, and it is unlikely to happen a second time.

Kundry should have fallen in love with the holy knight Percival, whose White Dove hovered above her. But the Captain of the drifting Dutch ship was worlds apart from that knight. The title of holiness had nothing to do with the Captain; those who went to sea were only known for their filth and disorder.

"You defied your Fate, fell in love with the Captain, knowing it was impossible, yet you still followed him here. You have broken free from the shackles of the Holy Grail, living out a completely new story that no one has ever seen before, a story that belongs only to you."

The indifferent girl approached her step by step, while putting the decorative egg she had taken out back into her bosom.

She was willing to sacrifice everything for a miraculous love, which reminded her of her parents. This is also why Aoko Aozaki repeatedly hoped that Kundry would leave, rather than insisting on fighting her.

Logically, Servant's memories should be reset upon summoning, but Kundry's trait even affects her memories Servant. This tragic fate is a completely different kind of living Hell compared to Ahasuerus.

"In that case, you are neither Servant nor a spirit of the past. You are a person living in the present, a person of integrity... But I'm sorry, I cannot help you. Driving you away and killing you is my job this time."

"So you're willing to let me leave? Just because of your own selfish desires? Heh heh... You're so kind... Anyone who didn't know better would think you're New Humanity, not one of the Old Humanity."

Kundry let out a few weak, self-deprecating laughs, her body swaying slightly. "Will his ship... ever return here...?"

At this moment, the hostility in Kundry's words had disappeared, and although her voice sounded hoarse like an old woman's, her tone was like that of an innocent young girl.

"... I don't know, but things might change in the Future."

That's enough.

Kundry stared intently at Aoko Aozaki with unwavering and fiercely defiant eyes. "On my stage, no one is allowed to clap and cheer without proper etiquette. How much do you understand my despair?"

"You say the Future can change? Change my Future? If that's the case, then if you really have the ability to kill me, then try it—"

"You human being who doesn't even know what love is!"

"Kundry..."

Legend has it that the Heterodox Faith woman Kundry would never lie or deceive—but she would also never do good.

She raised her hand above her head, and an Od instantly coalesced into a straight crystal.

It was a long spear with a design style reminiscent of the ancient Roman Empire, issued to infantry.

That spear is—

Aoko Aozaki could finish her soliloquy, she instinctively flew backward.

How could she not recognize it? That was Longinus, the Holy Lance possessed by Lucius, the victor of the Holy Grail War and a Servant of Manazuru Chitose.

Aoko Aozaki never expected that the cursed and blessed spear would end up in Kundry's hands.

The crazed woman raised her gun high, her eyes fixed on Alice, who was quickly putting distance between herself and her. With a whip-like motion, she hurled the gun straight at Kuonji's heart.

The Holy Lance, hurtling straight at supersonic speed, pierced deeply into Kuonji's body. She flew sideways across the entire harbor, just as Novia had finished off Hel and Garm. As a result, the frozen sea had melted, meaning she fell straight into the waters of the Kanda River harbor.

The splashing water reflected the neon lights of the street, creating a fleeting, tacky glow.

"... I was careless."

Aoko Aozaki could only murmur a few words before helplessly sinking straight to the bottom of the water.

Immediately afterwards, Aoko Aozaki, who was already fifty years old, had a dream, much like a person's final moments of lucidity before death.

Her mother was Witch and died after giving birth to her. Her father also passed away a few years later. Alone, she inherited the Western-Style Mansion where her parents had lived together and chose the same Witch's path as her mother.

The days that followed were uneventful. One day, she was asked to accept a roommate. Although Aoko's personality was quite annoying, it was still a period she would fondly remember. In order to deal with her older sister, Alice had to join forces with Aoko.

Later, the two sisters, who had been locked in a stalemate, finally made peace, and she entered a very ordinary period of time. She thought it would continue like this until she died, until the 2011 Global Holy Grail War. In Misaki City, which was involved, Alice's only worry was whether she could protect the Western-Style Mansion where she had spent every day with her parents.

However, just as Misaki City was about to be razed to the ground by the aftermath of the Holy Grail War, Manazuru Chitose and Lucius ended the Holy Grail War, ushering in New Era and preserving the Kuonji Western-Style Mansion in the City.

For this, Aoko Aozaki was naturally grateful to Manazuru Chitose, which is why, thirty years after Aoko's departure, she accepted Chitose's granddaughter to live in the Western-Style Mansion.

Stimulated by the icy seawater, Aoko Aozaki from her brief dream. Immediately, a cold and intense pain pierced her chest, followed by a burning fatigue that slowly engulfed her entire body.

In her blurred vision, the outline of the spear stuck in her heart became indistinct, gradually losing its substance, and slowly melting away from its end.

It was just Projection... not the real Noble Phantasm... That makes sense, Kundry saw the real Holy Lance at Percival's place... meaning she truly saw Percival, yet still fell in love with the Captain by her own will...

I never imagined that before I died, I would be thinking of others instead of myself...

This made Aoko Aozaki raise the corners of her mouth and laugh at herself.

Although she was not actually afraid of death, because the Magic Crest inside her body could be repaired, the Projection of the Holy Lance clearly also carried some of the effects of the genuine artifact, so her body was difficult to repair at the moment, especially since she was currently underwater.

At Aoko Aozaki has lost its sense of up and down, and it seems to be sinking face up.

I hadn't paid much attention to it before, but the neon lights of Akihabara mingled and mingled on the water, covering the surface like stars dotting the moonlit sky.