“Did you really think that you could beat me?” Jill asked.
An explosion of magical energy akin to the morning sun illuminated the sky, and snow began to fall, painting the surrounding land white. Once Jill landed, she found herself under the snow. Silence fell over the area, and moments later, her face peeked out from the specks of white. She shook her head and crawled out when she saw that Millay was unconscious in the middle of the gouged ground.
The Ark commander had no external injuries and seemed to have just had the wind knocked out of her. She must’ve instinctively activated a barrier to protect herself. Jill held herself back, but she was still almost impressed by Millay’s talents, who basically didn’t have a scratch on her. Or maybe it’s because of the almost infinite energy from the Sacred Spear… Only then did Jill gasp.
“The Sacred Spear!” she cried.
She glanced around and saw the tip of a black spear glittering under the early morning sun. It had been blown away and rolled onto the ground. Jill rushed over to it and tried to grab the spear when it rolled to one side.
“M-Mm… I don’t get it…” the spear groaned.
Jill froze in place, stopping her arm from reaching out to the spear.
“Th-Three plus seven is…e-eleven? I-If I give Brother three, then I’ll have…eight left?”
“It’s seven,” Jill said. “Do you really need to calculate that?”
“I-I’m short! Ack!”
The spear suddenly jumped up, and Jill flinched as she inched back.
The tip of the spear swiveled back and forth as though it were the head.
“Wh-Where am I? Where’s Faris? Faris? Oh, I get it now!” The spear hopped above the snow and turned to Jill. “She must be lost! Or maybe she’s playing hide and seek. Hee hee, she’s still got a childish side.”
Jill quietly watched on.
“Eeeeep! Dragon Consort!”
The Sacred Spear slid back into the snow like a scared rabbit, and Jill, who snapped back to her senses, chased after it.
“Wait! Hey, Kratos! Damn it! You’re Kratos, aren’t you?!” she cried.
“I’m not! You’ve got the wrong Goddess! Waaah! Why’re you here, Dragon Consort?! Faris! Oh, Faris!”
“D-Dragon God Rave’s over there!”
“Wait, really?! Where?!”
The Sacred Spear stood in place, eager to see the Dragon God, and Jill took her chance to pounce. She and the spear rolled around in the snow as the Goddess began to flail.
“Nooo! You’re gonna snap me! You’ll snap me again!”
It seemed the spear hadn’t recovered its magical energy yet, and frantically flailed on the ground like a lively fish. Jill restrained the spear as she transformed her Sacred Treasure into a whip.
“Stay quiet! I’ll return you to the queen!” Jill huffed.
“You’re a liar! I won’t believe you! I’m not that stupid!”
“Whoa! Is that the Dragon Emperor over there?”
“Where?!”
The moment the spear froze, Jill punched it, and it went limp. She quickly and tightly tied up the spear. Her shoulders sagged afterward. I-I didn’t think she’d actually fall for that trick. And this is the Goddess? The world’s coming to an end.
“No, don’t let your guard down, Jill Cervel,” Jill muttered under her breath. “Remember the incident of Beilburg. She isn’t just stupid. She’s a deity who can turn back time. I can’t throw her out and pretend I’ve never seen her. I can’t bury her.”
Meine descended from above. Jill petted its back as she gazed up at the purple sky. The dragons shrouded in black mist had vanished—they could only be manifested with Millay’s spell and the spear’s ample magical energy. The situation in Lehrsatz had also likely changed when the magic circle above it vanished. She still had to deal with the aftermath. Jill grabbed the Sacred Spear, tied it up with her whip, and stood atop the snow. The sky behind her suddenly began to glimmer brighter than the sun. It came from Lehrsatz. His Majesty?!
When Jill turned around, a shadow loomed over her. Canis was riding atop one of the dragons, enveloped in the dark mist. She braced herself, wondering if he had come to fetch Millay, and the two parties locked eyes.
“You should head over to Lehrsatz soon,” Canis said. “That item is our work of art, made from storing energy from the Sacred Spear. It may be a fake, but it’s got about the same energy as the real thing, and once it runs dry, it’s set to activate a certain spell.” He cackled before he continued, “As you know, our signature move is suicide bombing. I wonder what the fate of the city and the Dragon Emperor will be!”
“Let’s go, Meine!” Jill shouted.
She clicked her tongue as she jumped on her dragon and flew in the opposite direction of Canis. She knew she’d be letting Millay go, but there was nothing she could do. Hadis’s safety was Jill’s top priority. Her role wasn’t to crush the Arks—it was to protect her Dragon Emperor.