Chapter 851
"...!"
Gray only relaxed her guard for a moment before the girl wielding the alien blade appeared beside her.
The girl unleashed a horizontal slash, sending Gray flying.
"Boom--!"
The gray-haired girl crashed into the wall, smashing it to pieces like a heavy hammer from a construction machine, half of her body buried in the rubble, motionless.
"You weren't so easy to cut off after all. I was aiming for your neck, but you defended flawlessly."
The girl in black walked over, intending to cut off Gray's head, but the rubble exploded the moment she got close.
Gray, having shaken through the rubble, swung her scythe at the enemy.
Even such an attack was easily blocked by the alien blade.
A strong vibration shot through her wrist; this was the first time Gray had failed to gain the upper hand in a contest of strength.
As the physical body of that king, there's no reason for me to lose to this Black Magician of unknown origin!
Although that's what Gray thought, the situation was indeed completely suppressed.
The girl in black appeared exhausted, leaning forward and wielding her weapon with one hand, overwhelming the gray-haired girl's attack.
"Are you really human? You're incredibly resilient..."
"I'll return your words to you... you monster...!"
Gray gritted her teeth and swung her scythe at the enemy, only to be knocked away again by a flurry of blows.
Her flying body crashed heavily into the sharp corner of the fallen wall, and she spat out a mouthful of blood.
"You'll really die if this continues. Aren't you going to liberate that person?"
The enemy was undoubtedly referring to the scythe in Gray's hand—a replica of the Holy Lance Rhongomyniad.
"How could the Holy Lance possibly be liberated in the city?" Gray thought.
"Well, even if you unleash that, you still can't beat me."
The girl in black dismissively remarked that Gray didn't seem to think she was bluffing.
The girl's fighting power was truly unbelievable, and her magic power continued to rise.
However... I've already grasped the basics.
Because it was their first time encountering an enemy, they were a little unaccustomed to it, but Gray's evolutionary abilities were beyond question.
More importantly, this girl has her own area of expertise (spirits).
Gray stood up again, tugged at her hood, and went back into battle mode.
Her entire aura was completely different from before, and by the time the girl in black realized it, it was too late.
With a powerful stomp, Gray transformed into a gray phantom.
Gliding close to the ground like a whirlwind, Gray adjusts to a perfect attack stance without her feet touching the ground, sweeping out her giant scythe in a kasaya-slash motion.
"...!!"
The lightning-fast slash grazed the chest of the black-clad girl who was hastily jumping backward.
With a satisfying, precise strike, the blade slashed deeply into the enemy's petite frame.
The girl in black lowered her head, revealing a shallow wound from her shoulder to her chest, exposing pink flesh and fat.
"Oh my god, it actually passed through my protective barrier... Is this Magecraft? Is it a spirit?"
So that's how it is. Although you're timid and cowardly, you're also closer to death than anyone else.
"Very good, very good! I'd even give you my most precious dried human head."
Unable to eliminate the enemy in one strike, Gray frowned; the wound was shallower than she had expected.
The attack just now would have wiped out an ordinary undead by now.
The enemy's flesh was as soft as a young girl's, but deep beneath the surface lay an exceptionally hard shell that even Add could not cut through.
Just as he had guessed, the true identity of the girl before him was that of a deity.
The girl looked down at the wounds on her chest with a distressed expression, then grabbed one of the severed arms that was hanging on her body like cured meat, stuffed it into her wide-open mouth, and began to chew.
With the crackling sound of bones shattering, the wound on his chest healed completely, and his magic power increased once more.
"It seems that destroying your spirit would be easier than destroying your body... In that case..."
The girl in black took a bundle of bones from under her cloak and threw it out.
The spot where she and Gray stood immediately split open, and the giant beast's sharp ribs protruded, transforming into a pair of massive jaws that tried to devour the gray-haired girl.
Gray swung her scythe, shattering all the sharp teeth and fangs aimed at her, but the enemy immediately unleashed another spell.
She scattered a few things, about the size of dried grapes, on the road.
A chill instantly filled the air, and a chilling, hollow cry filled the surroundings—the cry of a baby.
"... Varied!"
Countless pitch-black infant undead surrounded Gray, surging towards her like a tsunami.
Gray was immediately overwhelmed by waves of spirits, thousands of infants slowly climbing upwards, their fingers binding the gravedigger girl's feet, rendering her immobile.
Gray is indeed an expert in exorcism, but if the evil spirit she's exorcising is a child...!
That moment of hesitation became a fatal flaw.
The girl in black walked over with a thud, stepped on Gray's right wrist as she lay on the ground, and then swung her sword, piercing her hand and pinning it to the ground.
"Aaaaaaaahh..."
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"
The enemy's mocking laughter drowned out Gray's cries of pain.
As her magic, the source of her power, was continuously robbed, the tomb-guarding girl was overwhelmed by the infant evil spirit, her consciousness gradually sinking into the abyss.
"...Cheer up, Gray."
As her consciousness sank into the deep sea, the girl vaguely heard a voice.
That was someone's voice that Gray missed so much.
As Gray felt lost, she saved her voice time and time again.
This sound is...
"Shirou- san...!?"
The gray-haired girl regained consciousness.
She looked up and saw the figure she often saw in her dreams.
This isn't a dream; Shirou Amamiya really is there.
Compared to himself, who had remained unchanged for twelve years, his appearance had changed dramatically.
Her well-proportioned features had completely shed any trace of childishness.
He has grown at least 25 centimeters taller than he did ten years ago.
Her signature bright red hair has now faded to a snow-white color.
However, no matter how drastically their appearance changes.
Gray knew better than anyone that he was still the savior who pulled her out of hell... and also her first love.
"..."
Shirou quietly walked past Gray and stood between her and the girl in black.
It appeared to be just a calm movement, but Gray, who knew him well, noticed something amiss.
Shirou's footsteps seemed to draw some kind of pattern on the ground.
This is... Rune Magecraft.
Moreover, it is the script of Odin, the great god whose knowledge has long been lost in modern times (the Primordial Runes).
The next instant, eerie blue flames rose from the ground around them, incinerating the infant spirits and annihilating them all in one fell swoop.
The girl in black raised an eyebrow. "That's outrageous... killing these children without a second thought, don't you have a heart?"
Shirou said quietly, "No, this is neither killing nor purification, but sending them back to the world where evil spirits should originally reside."
The Queen of the Land of Shadows will take good care of them for me, though she'll be so strict it'll be worse than death.
Having shaken off the evil spirit, Gray regained her composure and got up from the ground.
Even though the person she trusted most had arrived, she still dared not relax for a moment.
The enemy before us is far too terrifying; we must inform him of this...
"Mr. Shirou, this person...!"
Nzambi.
Shirou gazed at the girl in black and slowly uttered her real name.
"In the mythology of the Vili of Congo, Africa, the Creator God is also the supreme god, the only god, the mother of all living beings, and the great princess (Potnia Theron)."
The name Nzambi is also the etymological source of the modern English word "zombie."
The girl before me was none Goddess Nzambi!
Gray's body trembled slightly.
Although she had already sensed the other party's divine identity, she had not expected that the other party would actually be the supreme god of a mythological system.
The girl, whose real name had been revealed, was not angry, but remained indifferent.
"No wonder several of my children didn't respond to my calls; so you killed them all...?"
The girl in black muttered something as she looked at the white-haired youth who had barged into the fight, this time scrutinizing him closely.
"What are you...? Hmm? What are you?"
The Earth Mother Goddess stared wide-eyed, her eyes as red as jewels, revealing an expression of disbelief.
She stared at Shirou, her mouth agape in disbelief. "You bastard, could it be...?"
"That's enough, you filthy Earth Mother Goddess," Shirou interrupted her.
"!!!"
Sensing a hint of killing intent emanating from his opponent, Nzambi immediately assumed a fighting stance.
She gripped the grotesque, cursed sword with both hands, channeling all her magic into its blade.
That meticulous expression was a stark contrast to the playful attitude he had when fighting Gray earlier.
"!"
Having lived near the cemetery since childhood, Gray could sense that the magic attached to the sword was the miasma of death.
Goddess Nzambi intends to use his Authority!
If she were to release that within London...!
"Mr. Shirou!"
The girl looked at the white-haired youth in front of her.
She had been extremely anxious just moments before, but the moment she saw that figure from behind, she suddenly calmed down.
Ah... right...
Mr. Shirou is also here.
As long as this person is there, there will definitely be no problem.
A strong sense of security welled up in the girl's heart, along with a slight regret that even though she had tried her best, she still couldn't fight alongside him.
"A battle of spells...?"
Shirou glanced at the strange sword in Nzambi's hand, then spoke.
"Sure, I know a little about magic too."