For a long while, the Goddess said nothing. “Yes, fine. I get it. I get it already...” the Goddess/Dina muttered before heaving a sigh, seeming to have given up.
Then, she looked back up, staring at me with a bored look. At this point, she was out of pieces. We had crushed every single move she could make, so now, things were at an end. Having lost all chances of winning, she had no choice but to flip over the board.
The ground crumbled away, and finally, Mizgarz was no more.
It exploded.
Our mother planet no longer existed, but in the midst of the explosion, we still faced off against each other, unmoved. Sagittarius reacted by putting up a shield, creating a membrane bubble of air so that no one suffocated.
“This universe was a failure. To be honest, I find tossing away something I’ve taken so much time to raise like this hard to swallow, but there’s nothing for it. I’ll just have to take another couple hundred million years to build up another one.”
The Goddess/Dina was no longer smiling. Instead, she just seemed endlessly tired and apathetic. The curtains had closed, and now the stage would disappear. I was sure that she had put no thought towards what was next. Of course she hadn’t; she didn’t expect anyone to survive the destruction of the universe, and she was right in that expectation.
“End the World,” the Goddess/Dina muttered.
The universe started to contract. The stars and planets all began flying at us at once, or rather, they’d been pulled towards us, as the universe itself was getting smaller.
However, I did not move. Similarly, neither Benet nor Orm even twitched. Though I hadn’t told them anything, they’d probably figured that I had some sort of solution to this. If that was the case, I had to live up to their expectations.
“That reminds me. You wanted me to return this, didn’t you? That’s fine. I don’t need it anymore. Here you go. Please, share your fate with this universe.”
After spitting out those last words, Dina fell as if her strings had been cut. I caught her and immediately activated heaven-arts. Not even she would be able to survive if left alone in space, after all. As the shrinking that heralded the end of the universe continued, I lightly slapped Dina’s cheek, having finally gotten her back.
After a moment she murmured, “Mnwha? Ah, Miss Lufas.”
“So you’re awake, you sleepyhead.”
“That’s... Ah, right. So you did it.”
Even while still groggy from her slumber, Dina managed to look around and figure out what was going on. She was right. Everything had gone well so far. From here, Benet, Orm, and I would be strutting our stuff. Unfortunately, all the others without the right to challenge could not participate.
I took out the Key to Reach the Heavens and activated it. When I did so, the ownership of the universe shifted to me. This universe had already been tossed aside, so it was free for me—the one with the key—to claim, though I still wasn’t able to stop its destruction, of course.
“U-Um, Miss Lufas! We’re totally calm, but what should we do about this? I-It’s all happening so fast!”
“Calm down, Aries. The universe is just going to end a little,” I said.
“Whaaaaa?!”
I laughed and activated a skill, one of Aigokeros’s. This universe was the magic of the Goddess, and now that she’d abandoned it, it was mine. So naturally, it was within my right to absorb all of it.
“Gather to me, Goddess’s power!”
This universe was a magic spell, and spells were made of mana. Mana was a piece of the Goddess’s power, as well as experience itself. This all made a certain thing possible. I would fuse myself with the universe and reach the realm of divinity.
Yes, this was my final move. The plan was to absorb the universe the Goddess had left behind, reach the same domain as her, punch her, and send her flying. Also, I wasn’t the only one absorbing the universe. Thanks to the effects of Sagittarius’s skill Ascella, Benet and Orm were sharing in the experience.
This was the right to challenge. Those still fettered by the limits of the world would never move beyond level 1000, no matter how much experience they took in. That was why being able to break through that limit was a prerequisite.
“Well done up to this point, my Twelve Stars. From here on out, we will be going without you. Please, believe in our victory and wait for us.”
I activated Exgate, the other side of which connected to the Ark, and created an escape route for them. From here on, the only ones to move forward would be Benet, Orm, and I. However, Aigokeros and Pisces protested vehemently at this.
“No, my lord! We will accompany you to the end! Please, use us!” said Aigokeros.
“We are of the same opinion! As it is, We will just be the same barely there Pisces as always!”
I paused. “That was...heartfelt, wasn’t it?”
“Of course it was!” yelled Pisces.
Aigokeros and Pisces were rather unique among the Twelve Stars. The two of them had not broken through the limit. However, they had the ability to come with me to the final battle. Aigokeros became pure mana and fused with me. On top of that, Pisces activated his skill and possessed me. Probably due to Aigokeros’s influence, I sprouted another pair of wings that resembled his and, strangely, had become much more ominous.
“Miss Lufas, I...”
Aries also tried to join, but I pushed him away.
“No. Don’t come.”
Unfortunately, it would be impossible for him. At only level 1000, he wouldn’t even be able to look at the Goddess, who could destroy universes just by existing. He would be rendered nonexistent in an instant. Regrettably, the world beyond this one would only be for those with the right to challenge. However, I may have been a bit harsh with my choice of words. I stroked Aries’s hair and smiled at him, trying to give him peace of mind.
“It’ll be fine. This time, I’ll make sure to come back. I won’t leave you all like I did before.”
“It’s a promise, okay?! Make sure you come back!” Scorpius said, clinging on to what I had said for dear life.
Libra picked Scorpius up by the nape and dragged her towards the gate.
“Hey, come on! What do you think you’re doing, Libra?!”
“We are in the way, so I have judged that it is best for us to make a quick exit. Good luck, master.”
Libra and Scorpius were the first to disappear through the gate. The next to evacuate were Pollux and her group, still on the Argo. Then, after exchanging some words with his father, Terra flew towards the gate as well, and he was soon followed by the other members of the Twelve Stars, one by one. Finally, Dina was the only one left.
“Miss Lufas... I believe in you. I believe you’ll come back to us!”
“Yeah, I’ll be back soon. Wait for me.”
After receiving my promise, Dina left this universe. Now, it was just Benet, Orm, and I. We had also nearly finished absorbing the universe. Our levels are... No, I guess numbers like that don’t mean anything anymore. At this point, levels would not be a good indicator of anything.
“Now, let’s go! First, we start off with a light greeting; then we smash her in the face!”
“Sounds good. Make sure you sync up with me, Maphaahl.”
In order to signal the start of battle, I fired off a spell first.
“Prophet Who Nocks the Golden Bow.”
It was the strongest buff the Sun attribute had. On top of that, Benet followed up with Maiden Who Shoots a Silver Arrow, and there wasn’t only one arrow. Orm also cast the spell.
Now then, Goddess. Are you ready? You are no longer a player who just manipulates the game from safety. It’s time for the behind-the-scenes brawl.
“Fire!”
On my signal, two silver arrows flew off, literally piercing through space. The wall between dimensions broke, and a hole formed. We flew towards the hole, and all together, we escaped this universe. Then, we came upon a pure-white world that seemed to stretch on into infinity. Finally, we came face-to-face with the Goddess, who stood there dazed and in disbelief.