In the snow, two giant mechanical hands materialized out of thin air and slammed down toward Stelle and March 7th.
However, Seele and Dan Heng joined forces to wreck one, while the other had its circuitry shot apart by Bronya before it could even take flight.
But Svarog would not stand idly by. After ordering the surrounding machines to swarm the group, he sprang into motion and hurled a punch at March 7th.
The sheer force of the blow blurred the air. March 7th's eyes widened as she retreated, while Stelle planted her bat at her side and rammed Svarog's fist aside.
"Calculating outcome."
As the cold mechanical voice rang out, energy gathered in Svarog's left palm, aimed squarely at Stelle beneath him.
But an arrow of ice knocked his aim askew an instant before the beam fired, leaving a pitch-black crater beside Stelle's feet.
In those few moments, the surrounding machines had already closed in and unleashed a sky-blotting onslaught upon the group.
Fire flashed in every direction, and the roar of gears rang out without end.
Several Grizzlies and Direwolves joined the battle as well, instantly reversing Svarog's disadvantage.
"Detection complete. Threshold exceeded!"
The next instant, smoke and flame burst from Svarog's back as dozens of shells blasted out and rained down on the snow!
Boom, boom, boom, boom-!
When the smoke cleared, the group was in a sorry state. Worse still, this barrage had not been indiscriminate, but a precision strike calculated by Svarog. The other machines had suffered neither disruption nor damage.
Seeing them closing in again, March 7th drew her bow taut and complained between aimed shots, "Hurry up and unleash your hidden power, Teacher Dan Heng! Otherwise, we're really going to lose face big-time..."
"You first... But Wildfire's people have arrived."
With a tremendous blast, a grenade flew in from afar and drove back the two Direwolf automatons surrounding Bronya.
"Looks like our reinforcements arrived just in time." Carrying her smoking grenade launcher, Natasha came up behind Stelle and the others.
"Quick, quick, quick! Keep up!"
"Don't drop the ball now! Everyone's waiting for us!"
Hurried footsteps rang out as numerous Wildfire members joined the battle, taking on the automatons in groups of two or three.
"Natasha? Heh, looks like we've got this one in the bag." Seele chuckled and kicked away a Traffic Light automaton charging at her.
"Large-scale infiltration by armed Wildfire members detected. Assessing status..." Svarog's single eye flashed scarlet.
"Eliminate all high-risk individuals!"
However, with all the machines occupied by Wildfire's members, Svarog's defeat was only a matter of time. He had already been at a disadvantage against the group.
When Bronya's bullet completely severed the mechanism in one of his joints, Svarog immediately dropped to one knee.
Black smoke rose from his body, and his mechanical frame shuddered with malfunctions caused by excessive damage.
Just as fire gathered at Natasha's muzzle and she prepared to end the battle once and for all, Clara ran over with all her strength and planted her small body in front of Svarog. "Wait! Please wait!"
Tears filled the girl's eyes, her heart heavy with guilt and sorrow. "Clara knows we had to do this if we wanted to change the Underworld, but..."
"But Mr. Svarog can't fight anymore! Please don't hurt him!"
"I'm sorry, Clara. In the end, we still couldn't avoid this battle..."
After watching from the rear for a long time, Zhang Xiu finally stepped forward and placed himself between the two sides. Looking around, he noticed that all the machines and Wildfire members had stopped fighting as well.
Before Zhang Xiu could say anything, Yaoshi approached with a pool of golden-glowing lake water cupped in her hands, her bare feet leaving footprints in the snow.
She scattered the lake water, healing everything that had been injured.
At the sight, Clara cast a grateful look toward the two of them, then turned to Svarog, who had stopped trembling.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Svarog... I..."
"There is no need to apologize, Clara. I know this was not your intention." Svarog slowly rose to his feet.
His words made Clara feel even more ashamed. After all, no matter how she looked at it, she had been the one to bring Zhang Xiu and the others to Svarog.
The white-haired girl lowered her head. After wrestling with her decision, she said, "Mr. Svarog, you said you were willing to grant every wish I had, didn't you?"
"Then Clara's wish now is for everyone to come together, like... like a family."
"Over this past while, Clara has learned something-the results of calculations don't always bring everyone happiness."
"..."
After a stretch of silence, Svarog answered her. "Rebooting assessment system... Reboot successful. Converting variables..."
"Variable one: Clara's request. Variable two: the outsiders' strength and motives."
"Assessment results updated. Transferring decision-making authority to the outsiders and permitting access to Stellaron-related information."
Still panting after the battle, March 7th asked, "So, does... does that mean we did it?"
"But if it weren't for Clara, Svarog probably would have destroyed himself rather than let us see that information."
Zhang Xiu shook his head, then walked up to Svarog. "But our battle has only just begun."
Seeing Zhang Xiu preparing to access the Stellaron records, Bronya clenched her hands nervously. "At last... at last, the time has come..."
Watching her tremble slightly, Seele adopted a lighter tone. "What's wrong? That nervous?"
"Rather than nervous, it's more like... something is aching terribly in my chest."
"But we have to face the true reason the Underworld has suffered so much." Stelle looked at her.
"Phew... I'm ready. Go ahead, Zhang Xiu." Bronya closed her eyes, then opened them again, her former resolve returning to her gaze.
Seeing that the truth was about to be revealed, Natasha motioned for Sampo to lead the other Wildfire members away.
At that moment, Svarog finished organizing the records. "The Stellaron-related records and audio logs have been compiled. Shall I access them immediately, outsider?"
"Go ahead."
"Requesting access to database records, number 13175. Encryption level: highest."
The Stellaron was indeed the source of Belobog's disaster, and successive Supreme Guardians had long known this.
But for the sake of the city's stability, they had chosen to conceal the truth, and their attempts to destroy the Stellaron had ended in failure.
"In that case, Cocolia's sudden change in temperament makes sense. Just as Zhang Xiu said before, the Stellaron beguiled her."
After learning the whole truth, Dan Heng reached his conclusion, and those words completely shattered Bronya's composure.
"Mother, why... She's a resolute person. She couldn't possibly...!" Her voice trembled, her silver eyes darting wildly.
"Stop lying to yourself, Bronya." Seele laid a hand on her back. "It's time for you to make up your mind."
With the matter settled for the moment, Natasha also revealed her true identity as Wildfire's leader to Stelle and the others.
Seele helped Bronya sort through the truth, while Clara and Svarog worked through their shared past as family.
"Has my husband's dream now been fulfilled?" Yaoshi looked at Zhang Xiu beside her.
He flatly denied it. "No, no, no. How could something on this scale possibly earn me the title of hero?"
"A true hero has to accomplish something great and save a whole lot of people. This is still nowhere near enough."
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