As I thought this, though, the Origin Matter’s Black Hole stopped. I shot forward as fast as I could to get away.
The Dark Rays should be coming any second. Any second now…
But as I fled, I didn’t hear the telltale swish of Dark Ray piercing through the wind behind me. Had it…used all its MP on Black Hole?
I turned around to look—only to see the Origin Matter’s swirls glowing iridescently once again, signifying another Big Bang.
‹A-another one?!› I wasn’t finished using Regenerate yet, and I still hadn’t recovered all my HP. I quickly used Mirror Counter and donned my Oneiros Armor again.
‹J-just in time…!› I panted. Then the second Big Bang blast engulfed me in flames once more.
My Mirror Counter and armor shattered almost instantly. The explosion scorched my newly formed scales and all the skin where my scales hadn’t reformed yet, making it crackle and pop with the burning heat.
I didn’t have as much time to prepare myself for this Big Bang, and so I took far more damage from this one than before. My consciousness began to fade as the flames engulfed me.
‹Hi-Rest!›
Treant’s healing skill brought me back from the edge of consciousness. But then a massive shock ran through my back, pain spiking through my body.
Dust flew up around me as I crashed to the ground, my wings completely burned away by the blast. But somehow…I survived.
‹Allo? Treant? You two okay…?› I called out to my friends with Telepathy. If the flames from Big Bang got inside my mouth at all, Allo and Treant wouldn’t stand a chance.
“W-we’re okay! But, Master Dragon, you’re…”
‹Don’t worry, I’m fine. I knew I’d be able to heal right after as long as I didn’t die. My MP is getting pretty low, though, so I can’t fully recover just yet.› As I spoke, I began to repair my body.
First, I focused on my eyes and made sure I could still move everything. The rest could wait to be healed with my auto-recovery skills.
The double Big Bang had been a surprise, but even the Origin Matter had its limits, and it seemed like it had officially met them. However, even one or two Dark Rays would be enough to finish me off in my current state. My victory seemed assured, but I couldn’t risk letting my guard down now.
I was eager to get back into the sky so I could move in three dimensions to avoid any Dark Rays, but I didn’t have enough MP left to regenerate my wings. Maybe I should dodge with Roll for a bit while I recover, then wait for a safe opportunity to strike? As I rose to my feet to start moving, the Origin Matter appeared in the air beneath the canopy of massive black trees above me.
A black light surrounded it as it cast another Black Hole. I could think of only one reason why it might be doing this: Rather than waste MP on the less-accurate Dark Ray shots, it wanted to draw me in close enough to unleash a third Big Bang.
‹Y-you gotta be kidding me. It’s using it again?! Is that even possible?!› I sank to the ground, digging my claws into the black tree roots beneath me. My tail and the lower half of my body began to float toward the Origin Matter, stretching me uncomfortably. I couldn’t even handle a Black Hole right now! If I wasn’t careful, I might not even make it to the Big Bang…the Origin Matter could suck me inside first instead!
For now, I focused on regenerating my wings so I’d at least have a way to resist the gravity pull in the air. But no matter what I did, if I took a Big Bang right now, my HP would drop to zero.
What do I do?! I never thought the Origin Matter would launch a triple Big Bang attack when it got driven into a corner!
I checked the Origin Matter’s status screen. Sure enough, it had just enough MP left to use Big Bang one more time. And now, thanks to its recovery skills, it had more than 70 percent of its maximum HP remaining. Defeating it before it used Big Bang didn’t seem very realistic. There was a very real chance that whatever I did, it would activate that skill first and blow us to smithereens.
The black tree I was clinging to to avoid getting pulled in by Black Hole began to break apart from the force. I managed to spread my wings wide to prevent the Black Hole from sucking me in faster, but this was a temporary solution.
Seriously…what the heck do I do?! Come on, there’s gotta be a skill I can use to get out of this…
The more I racked my brain, the more I realized I had nothing. No skills to use, no strategy to come out of this alive. My mind went blank.
N-no! I’m not giving up! I’m not giving up until this is over!
This wasn’t just about my survival. If I died, so would Allo and Treant. And worse, our entire world would be destroyed by the Divine Voice’s Spirit Servants!
With me dead, there would be no point in the Divine Voice holding our world hostage anymore, and no reason to let the Spirit Servants run rampant. But the Divine Voice would do it anyway, out of sheer spite. It was painfully clear to me now that that was just the kind of entity the Divine Voice was.
‹Master…? How long do you think that Black Hole will last?› Treant asked from inside my mouth.
‹It should be over soon! Any longer and the Origin Matter won’t have enough MP left for Big Bang. I’m not that worried about Black Hole itself, though,› I answered, unsure what Treant was getting at.
‹I see. That’s good, then.› At that moment, tree spirit Treant pushed my jaws open with its wings and leapt up to my nose, holding on tight to avoid getting sucked in by the Black Hole.
‹T-Treant?! What’re you doing?! If you come out now, you’ll get hit with Big Bang!› I shouted.
Treant turned its head to look in my eyes. ‹Master, Miss Allo…it has been a pleasure. If…if I do not survive this, then I leave the rest to you.› Its wooden face, of course, was as expressionless as always, but I could see a hint of sadness behind its eyes.
“Treant…?” Allo called, confused.
‹H-hey, Treant! What’re you talking about?! Don’t tell me you’re—›
‹Do not worry! I still have a bit of time before Eternal Regrowth ends, so allow me to protect you from the blast! I should be even tougher than you now, Master! But…if worse comes to worst, please tell Atlach-Nacha that I did my best!›
With this, Treant spread its wings and let go, allowing itself to be sucked in toward the Origin Matter.
‹Treant! No! Treant!!› I called out desperately, but Treant didn’t turn back.
Moments before Treant collided with the Origin Matter and got sucked into its sphere, the Black Hole ended. Any longer, and the Origin Matter would’ve run out of MP for Big Bang.
As soon as Treant dropped, it ended its Tree Spirit Transformation. Its form immediately stretched tall as the massive trunk of its World Treant form took shape, glowing softly with the light of Eternal Regrowth. Its roots quickly spread deep into the ground, and its branches fanned out above us.
Between the Origin Matter and I, a massive tree now stood tall, blocking me from harm. I looked around it to see the Origin Matter’s lines changing rapidly, shimmering with that telltale iridescent hue. Its light and the blue glow of Treant’s Eternal Regrowth seemed to meld together in the air.
I could only stand by and watch, stunned, as the Origin Matter activated its final Big Bang.
My vision was overtaken by the fiery red blast. I probably should have moved back a little to minimize the damage I took. But I just stood there, staring at Treant in a daze as the flames engulfed it.
But the moment the flames reached Treant, another explosion boomed through the clearing, and flames roared to life. This time, though, they came from Treant, forming a barrier of flames that blocked the Origin Matter’s Big Bang from coming any closer.
Treant was using Fairy Curse.
Special Skill: “Fairy Curse.” When hit directly with a magical attack, forest fairies will come to the rescue, counterattacking by casting the same spell back at its user. Their magic will be as powerful as the original attack, regardless of the skill owner’s magic power. The fairies’ magic will only affect the attacker.
Unlike the Origin Matter’s Big Bang, which radiated in all directions from its source, Treant’s Fairy Curse sent the Big Bang blast at the Origin Matter specifically. As a result, the flames erupting from Treant’s body transformed into dozens, maybe hundreds of spheres of light that all flew toward the Origin Matter, preventing its blast from getting any closer.
The two Big Bangs collided in midair with a deafening boom that echoed across the clearing. Treant, the Origin Matter—perhaps even the entire world—were engulfed in a brilliant white light. Inside it, I could only watch, helpless, as fine cracks began to spread across Treant’s trunk.