Inferno, Flowing Across the Plains (Continued)

The march of giants is the breath of storms.

Thunder rumbled and swirled, as massive bolts of lightning, a mixture of blue and red, descended from the sky, tearing at the land.

The land, the land was utterly destroyed. Behind the giant lay the corpses of countless colossal beasts, as large as mountains— Originium crystals grew and spread from their bodies, multiplying and proliferating outwards. Crystallized flowers bloomed across the land transformed from the fiery pool, only to melt away in an instant. The corpses withered, crumbled, and merged into the magma, fertilizing the land and allowing new life to sprout in the cooled soil.

But the giant continued to advance.

The giant had no head. A domeless palace of bronze and iron sat atop the giant's neck. And the sole ruler perched atop it, watching the turmoil of the plains and the ever-approaching horizon beyond.

The ocean lies at the edge of the earth.

The ocean and the sky are one.

Along the thorny path plowed by fire and sword, mortals will be able to touch the starry sky with the bodies of mayflies.

But the ruler of the giants is no ordinary being; she is the trailblazer, the first living being among all the creatures on earth to arrive here.

Perhaps, this will be the last one.

The edge of the land was approaching, and the color of the sea gradually changed from azure to deep black. It was as if some great being, beyond description, was about to open its eyes from eternal slumber. The pitch-black color then crossed the boundary between land and sea, rushing towards the molten earth like a living creature and vying for its dominion.

War, a war of water and fire. The dark sea is boiling, and the crimson fire is raging.

Beyond the clash between land and sea, the young woman inside the palace slightly raised her eyes.

"Laevateinn," she said softly, looking at the sword in her hand.

--"I am here."

"For over a thousand years, I've had one question I've wanted to ask you."

"Ask away."

"You once told me that Unfallen Heart, Unbroken Body, Undying Soul, Unending Strength. Breaking through these four barriers would make False God. So, does this mean that there is True God above all of these?"

"You can understand it this way," the sword replied, detailed and direct. "Immortality is only relative, and so is eternity. Even False God will eventually perish in the unimaginable expanse of time. But if one can control space and time, control this predetermined cause and effect, and extend one's existence from the beginning to the end of the universe, then that is true eternity. And that is true immortality."

"You know a lot, Laevateinn." The girl rested her chin on her hand, stretched out her arm, and cleaved downwards, splitting the dark ocean before her eyes. A wide seabed was exposed, and boiling torrents of heat surged towards the breach. "So, who established this classification, these rules? Was it your creator, or the one we're about to meet?"

"I have no forger." The sword's response was somewhat subtle. "And the one you are going to see has not reached the level of a true god. Perhaps it was once, but at least it is not now. That's why you are able to arrive here now, and why you have the opportunity to meet him and fight him."

She could tell that Jian was unwilling to answer her question directly.

So she didn't press the matter further.

"Then, Laevateinn, tell me, what is it?"

"—Before I answer you, I want to confirm with you one last time. Surtr, are you sure you want to take this step? No one asked you to do this, no one expected you to do this, and no one even knows you've come here. Your story will become a legend in the future, and all traces of you will vanish in the flow of time."

The giant halted, standing at the boundary between sea and land, where the molten mountain stood. Thunder ceased its roar, and the black sea stopped its boiling. The molten fire flowed silently across the plains, as if the whole world had been waiting.

Waiting, waiting for her decision. Forward, war. Backward, peace and endless prosperity for both.

The girl's gaze was fixed on the horizon where the sea met the sky.

"Laevateinn, will I die?" she suddenly asked.

"Over 90%," Jian replied quickly.

"Laevateinn, if I die, can I win?"

— "less than 10%"

"That sounds pretty good." The girl nodded with some satisfaction. Then she sighed softly.

"Laevateinn, a world ruled by gods, has no future. Because this entire world is merely God's sustenance, God's wealth. Divine General absorbs and devours all the richness and beauty of the earth, leaving only a few remnants for insects and rodents to fight over. And when a world dries up and decays, God will leave to seek another prey. Leaving behind a world riddled with holes, gradually decaying in disaster."

"I have received a lot of care from this world. I have also received a lot of care from the creatures of this world. I am certain that the one in the starry sky is an outsider like me. And I... have decided to help this world drive away the unwelcome guest. It can be considered as repaying the host's warm hospitality over the years. And in order to avoid becoming a new unwelcome guest myself, I think it's a good outcome for me to die with it—it can't get any worse, can it?"

"This world has no will; your seductive glances are only for the blind. And the people of this world will not be grateful to you for it. Because they are simply unaware of this level. They do not know the cause of Catastrophe, do not know why the earth has become barren, do not know that surrendering faith is equivalent to offering one's soul as food for sacrifice, do not know why this land is plagued by endless wars and all things suffer."

"Surtr, you are doing something foolish. Something pointless. You will gain nothing from this operation. All you will get in return is pain."

However, the girl simply chuckled softly.

"I'm here not because anyone needs me, but simply because I want to."

She stood up, flexed her fingers, and stretched.

"I am the King of Fire Giants, the Terminator of the Old Era and the Unveiler of the New Era. I am destined to be this way— Laevateinn, tell me that name. The name that, once spoken, can never be taken back."

Her words were met with silence from the sword.

And she waited, for she knew that the sword was aware of her resolve.

Then--

"... Look up, look at the sky. Surtr." The sword's voice was deeper and more ancient than ever before.

"The line connecting the handle of the Big Dipper and North Star passes through Cassiopeia and across the vast Milky Way. What you crave lies at the end of those stars."

The girl looked up, and a profound realization dawned on her. She saw her destiny, her fate. And the name she was about to utter.

"█████"

Syllables that ordinary people could neither understand nor even utter flowed from the girl's throat. It was a short string of characters, a name, a will. And with the release of these words, the sky and the sea both changed.

The sky lost its color, transforming from a clear sky tinged crimson by the earth's fire into a pure, inky black, contrasting sharply with the sea. And within that blackness, the stars rose and fell.

The distant stars replaced the night sky over Terra. Their chilling light fell silently from the heavens, reflecting in the sea, creating a breathtaking spectacle in the darkness. And the instant the colossal eye formed from the starlight manifested from the sky, a colossal object emerged from its reflection in the black ocean.

It's here.

He came.

The molten landscape vanished silently. Above the dark earth, clusters of stars surrounded the molten mountain.

Then, the girl in the palace grasped the sword in her hand.

Come, let's fight!

The giant marched toward the boundless darkness adorned with stars.

We will continue onward, without ever stopping.

Miss Surtr opened her eyes.