“Looks like the time has come for this to end,” I said to Dina as I watched the four battles that were in the midst of ending.
The Earth and Heaven ouroboroses had died. The Fire ouroboros was only half-dead, but there was no way Benet and her group would lose now. At this point, Benet would win even if she was alone. Meanwhile, the Wood ouroboros faced both Orm and Pollux simultaneously, and Aries’s group was already on the way, so it was only a matter of time before that battle was over as well.
However, the Goddess/Dina’s expression was, of course, as calm as ever. After all, her most important pawn was still standing, perfectly fine.
Actually, I bet she’d still be calm even if I did defeat Dina. In the end, this entire universe is nothing but a game to her, something to be frustrated over if you lose and maybe something you’d get so mad over you’d never play again. But that’s all. In a game, it didn’t matter how many of your characters were killed. It wouldn’t hurt you in real life at all.
That was why I needed to destroy this universe—this game—once in order to get on the same level as the Goddess. If I didn’t, I’d never be able to have a proper fight with her. In fact, I’d never be able to even meet her. This also meant that I couldn’t afford to stumble here, at this stage, of course. After all, I had yet to even reach Alovenus.
“Totally unreliable, all of them. However, all of that ends here. Not even you can win against me.”
“You’re wrong. That’s Dina’s body. You aren’t even standing on the battlefield yet,” I said.
“I see. You have a point. But this will be more than enough for you.”
As she spoke, the aura of pressure that the Goddess/Dina gave off increased in strength. She’s attacking! I could tell this from the stirrings of the mana from beyond this planet, which wasn’t on so small a scale as that which had been contained on Mizgarz. She was gathering the mana that comprised this universe itself. Indeed, this entire universe was nothing but a magic spell of hers, so there was an infinite amount of mana around.
“Now come, you, the ruler of the skies up above! You are the thunder that will break apart the stars. Keraunios!”
The sky split, allowing lightning to fall. At this point, a lightning strike was like child’s play, but of course, this was no normal lightning. There was no way to know exactly how strong the current or voltage of the lightning was, but I could easily tell that whatever those measurements were, they would normally be impossible. Just as the Goddess had said, the lightning destroyed stars and planets; it was clearly powerful enough to erase planets entirely.
I raised my hand above my head to intercept the falling lightning with a shield. The atmosphere was acting as a sort of insulator against electricity, but that was, of course, easily broken through. Nothing like that could stop this, no matter if it was rubber, pure water, or the atmosphere. Whether it be reason, providence, common sense, logic, theorems, or law, all of it was, unfortunately, powerless. None of it meant anything. However, if the other side was coming with pure power, so would I.
I raised the strength of my shield, defending the common-sense-ignoring lightning by further ignoring any common sense. The lightning scattered across the sky, and a few moments later, some stars could be seen being burnt away. However, Mizgarz still existed.
“Slice into her, Winter of Swords!”
This time, I was on the attack. This was a full skill activation, unlike that version I’d used against Benet while half-asleep. Countless blades sprouted from beneath the Goddess/Dina’s feet, piercing up into the sky.
The Goddess/Dina simply flew higher with that smile still on her face, but I merely swung my arm as if to follow her movement. When I did so, the blades moved, chasing the Goddess/Dina. However, she slipped through the veritable cage of blades without a scratch, all while looking as if she were dancing, before escaping ever higher. I also took flight, chasing after the fleeing Goddess/Dina and reaching her in the sky.
“You, the avatar of destruction, one with a thousand names... The ultimate destruction of all things... Mahakala!”
Fire spread from the Goddess/Dina in all directions. Sensing the unavoidable death those flames brought, I didn’t hesitate to pull back, though it was a little cowardly. I was immediately proved right. The blades I’d transmuted were destroyed without question, and after seeing them turn to charcoal, it was obvious that the fire wasn’t just dealing damage with heat.
“Assured destruction, huh?”
“No. Instant death, whether it be living or not.”
After hearing the Goddess/Dina’s answer, I muttered an “I see” to myself.
It most likely pierced through resistances as well, as if it was only natural. I see. A terrifying skill. As long as it hits, that is. But aside from the effect of it, the fire itself wasn’t much. At the very least, it was nothing compared to the heat of the sun; it was a weak fire that could go out with a slight breeze.
I threw out a light punch, and the wind from it blew away the fire as it headed for the Goddess/Dina.
“Aldebaran!”
My fist buried itself in the Goddess/Dina’s gut, sending her flying. Sorry, Dina. I’ll heal you up later, so forgive me.
An attack just like that had gotten Pollux to come to her senses. Aldebaran was able to destroy and nullify any and all abilities. However, the Goddess was still inside Dina’s body. Well, that was only natural. After all, it wasn’t as if the Goddess were using some sort of skill to possess Dina. She was simply using someone who had been born as her avatar from the start. No power or ability was at work there. According to what Dina had said, the Goddess would use a unique skill when possessing her, but it was a onetime deal that did not need continuous usage.
The Goddess/Dina scolded me, saying, “That won’t work,” before moving on to her next skill. “You, the queen of the afterlife, god who births gods. Come, Izanami!”
Heeding the Goddess/Dina’s call, the mana in the surroundings clumped together to form a human figure at once. A somewhat Japanese-looking pair, one male and one female, pincered me, their weapons at the ready.
That’s rather lukewarm. What’s going on? Does she want me to kill them? She should already know that mere numbers aren’t enough to get one over on me. Well, let’s just take care of this with a skill. I decided on the one used by the divine gate guardian to eliminate all those who were unworthy—the Scales of Selection.
“Brachium!”
A light of extreme destruction swirled around me, turning the manifested figures into nothing but dust.
Brachium was a skill that dealt damage fixed at the damage ceiling. Right now, my damage ceiling was 999,999,999. Basically, a billion. I mowed down everything around me, including the Goddess/Dina, who was near enough to get caught up in it. Still, it was only a mere one-thousandth of her total HP. I shouldn’t really be talking, but her stats are ridiculous. There was no other way to describe them.
“First was the Greek pantheon, then the Indian. And now it’s Japanese? Seriously, pick a lane. All you’re using are pantheons from the other side,” I said.
“Oh, I forgot that you know them too. Yes, you’re exactly correct. The other side is filled with so many stories. It’s never-ending fun. It’s surprising how free and unlimited the human capacity for imagination is,” the Goddess/Dina said, happy. Spreading her arms out as she spoke, she seemed exactly like a child bragging about her toys, and I got the feeling that I was seeing a chink in her mad simplemindedness.