The new and old Lord Gryphons stood side by side. Inferno Cerberus’s three heads turned to scowl at the two of them.
“Hee hee hee! So much for the Top Knight of the Kingdom and the Royal Knights! With Inferno Cerberus, I’ve nothing to fear!”
“Oh really?” Watt asked. “Well then, why don’t you see what real power is for yourself, huh?”
Carome quietly brandished her broadsword while Watt unsheathed his twin blades.
“As you like, then—I’ll scorch you to the bone!” Turk shouted. “Hell Flame!”
The hellfire Diviner unleashed another torrent of flames.
Flying far out of the way to dodge the encroaching wall of flame, Watt and Carome split up, Watt on one side and Carome on the other.
“Scurrying away, are you?! Then I’ll just shoot you down! Blazing Dart!”
A round of fiery darts launched from the Mechsteel’s three heads in rapid succession. The darts flew through the air at breakneck speed—only to be easily knocked away by Watt’s dual blades.
“You think an attack we’ve already seen is just gonna keep workin’ on us?” Watt said.
“Whaaat?!” Turk screeched.
As fast as the darts were, they weren’t so fast that Watt couldn’t track them. From his perspective, he could say the darts were far easier to deal with than the wide-reaching flames burning everything in their wake. But Watt could only conclude that because he possessed the skills he did. Accurately striking down an oncoming Magi-skill was a feat far beyond the reach of any ordinary pilot.
Shaken, Turk froze, only for Watt and Carome to take advantage of the opening to dive forward within striking range. The moment Turk saw the flicker of the moonlight reflecting off their blades, he snapped back to his senses.
“Th-This isn’t over! Magi-skill: Molten Mantle!”
The monster skull embedded in Inferno Cerberus’s chest let out a howl, as the pale film of flames covering its surface suddenly began to grow brighter. Undeterred, Watt charged forward to attack, but the moment his Mechsteel passed through the film, it was scorched by a violent burst of flames. Rushing to pull back, Watt was able to make his escape without sustaining any serious damage.
“Whoa! Flames wrapping around him from all directions? How fancy can this guy’s Magi-skills get?!”
“That’s a bit of a hassle to deal with,” Carome said. “We didn’t bring along any long-range attackers.”
Both Lord Gryphon and Lord Gryphon Neo were weapon-bearing Mechsteels meant primarily for direct combat. Given that Molten Mantle activated with mere contact, the Magi-skill could easily be deemed a direct combatant’s worst nightmare. Had they considered the situation in an orthodox lens, they should’ve been launching ranged attacks themselves.
Regaining his overconfident demeanor after fending off their attack, Turk sneered back at them. “You’ll never make it through Inferno Cerberus’s defenses! It’s my turn now! Have a taste of this: Multi-Cast!”
Inferno Cerberus’s whole body began to shine as a tremendous amount of magic energy surged through it. A wave of Hell Flame spouted out from the Mechsteel’s six arms while its three heads unleashed a continuous volley of Blazing Darts. The flames scorched the surrounding area, and in turn, the darts soared through the flames and into the air. Before such overwhelming firepower, Watt and Carome had no choice but to pull back.
That was exactly where Diviners truly shone; not only were they equipped with multiple Magi-skills, but they were also capable of outputting enough magic energy to use them at the same time. In terms of such destructive capabilities, they were without equal.
“This thing’s attacks are just as nasty as its pilot!”
“If you’ve got time to quip, then it’d be wonderful if you could use that to think of a way to break through this,” Carome bit back.
“Breakin’ through’s easy,” Watt replied. “We just charge the bastard.”
Carome sighed. “I was stupid to even bother asking. Look, I’ll leave the timing to you!”
The Hell Flame pyre raged on while volley after volley of Blazing Darts came flying toward them. Even if they were able to make their way past the attacks, Inferno Cerberus was still protected by Molten Mantle.
“Ha ha ha! Bwa ha ha ha! Burn! Burn it all down!”
“The damn fool’s plastered on power! But it’s time to drag him back to his senses! Here we go, Caro!”
“I told you to stop calling me that!”
Despite her complaints, Carome launched forward in sync with Watt before swinging her broadsword. The overwhelming shock wave from her blade tore through the oncoming Hell Flame, carving a path forward. Meanwhile, Watt cut through the Blazing Darts soaring toward him, as if he’d been expecting each and every one. The duo charged forward until they were right before Inferno Cerberus. Its body, however, was still enveloped in Molten Mantle.
“Struggle all you like, but it won’t work, you foolish royal knight!”
“I wonder if you’ll be saying that after this?”
Carome’s Lord Gryphon Neo bent down. The very next moment, she brandished her broad sword with both hands, dashing forward with a piercing shout. While Molten Mantle scorched her broadsword, she’d kept the damage to her Mechsteel to the bare minimum. Her thrust landed squarely where she’d aimed it: the monster skull in Inferno Cerberus’s chest.
Inferno Cerberus’s massive frame stumbled back, while the veil of flame that had been surrounding it flickered and disappeared in the very same moment.
“Nice! That blow was as clean as your house!”
There was nothing else left to stand in Lord Gryphon’s way. Watt leaped forward with all his might, aiming for Inferno Cerberus’s shoulders as he brought his dual blades down to the ground with him. The next moment, Inferno Cerberus’s six severed arms went spiraling through the air. Without even waiting to see the results of the attack, Lord Gryphon kicked the beast and leaped back once more. As Inferno Cerberus staggered from the recoil, Carome’s Lord Gryphon Neo closed in, her broadsword flashing alongside a wind-rendingly mighty roar and lopping off all three of the mech’s heads at once.
Having lost all of its heads and arms in the span of a moment, Inferno Cerberus awkwardly stumbled forward. With all of the parts it used to unleash its Magi-skills destroyed, it now bore none of the threat of a Diviner-class Mechsteel.
“Whoa.”
The Royal Knights who’d been watching them fight could only mutter under their breath in blank amazement.
“I knew the captain was strong, but Watt’s even tougher than the stories! How in the world does he manage to move like that with an old Lord Gryphon?!”
While the younger knights made no attempt to conceal their surprise, only Soleil gave an unsurprised nod.
“Don’t be so foolish as to underestimate it just because it’s an older model,” he said. “That Mechsteel’s been specially trained to endure the full weight of Watt Sears’s abilities. Take a good look! That’s the man heralded as the strongest knight in our kingdom’s history, the former Top Knight of the Kingdom, and the previous captain of the Royal Knights. That’s Watt the Heavensripper!”
The two Lord Gryphons thrust their blades before the remains of Inferno Cerberus, which was now stuck in place and utterly powerless.
“It’s over, Your Highness,” Watt said. “If you’ve got even an ounce of pride left as a royal, then come along quietly.”
“I-I can’t...! Not like this!”
Crushed with hopelessness, Turk had no choice but to confront the reality of his situation. No choice but to accept that even the power of a Diviner wasn’t enough to win against the monstrously strong pilots before him. At the same time, however, he couldn’t allow himself to give up. Defeat meant losing everything—and not just Legalisbelm. If he were to be interrogated about the costs for building Inferno Cerberus, his downfall was all but certain, even with his status as the king’s younger brother.
“N-No, this isn’t over!” Turk said. “So long as I still live, I haven’t lost!”
It was the sort of hopeless defiance granted to those with their backs against the wall that drove Turk to struggle in vain against the inevitable. However, with complete disregard for Turk’s intentions, the situation spiraled into a direction that no one could have predicted.
A shadow fell across their surroundings.
Blocking the quiet tears of moonlight spilling from the sky, it came down from above. It was enormous. The ground shook beneath it as it touched down, descending from the heavens.
“Man, we get a new guy showin’ up now?”
“Look at the size of it! Is this a Diviner too?”
It was enormous—far too enormous. It stretched even taller than Inferno Cerberus, which was already massive by any standard. It was even more grotesque in appearance too, with a long tail and a lower body reminiscent of a massive reptile. Its torso was humanoid from the neck down, but it bore an outlandish form even for a humanoid design, with a pair of narrow arms closed across its chest as if locked in an embrace. From the same shoulders sprouted another pair of arms, disproportionately massive in comparison to the first. What’s more, two well-placed pairs of enormous wings stretched out from its back.
“You common rabble forget yourselves.”
The new anomaly carelessly swung one of its gargantuan arms. The swing was enough to create a shock wave, sending Watt’s and Carome’s Lord Gryphons flying. The figure then addressed Inferno Cerberus, now practically reduced to a pile of scrap.
“What a pleasure to see you, Uncle Turk. I must say, you’re in a dreadful state.”
“Lezamer, you bastard! What are you doing here?!” Turk demanded, understandably in shock. After all, that was the voice of the very opponent he was vying against in Legalisbelm: Lezamer Ogdenn.
“Why, you ask?” Lezamer said. “You made a splendid puppet dancing about just as I’d hoped you would, uncle. I thought it only fitting to reward you.”
The glow of magic energy surrounding the grotesque titan grew stronger. Lezamer Ogdenn sneered like a child with a toy before him as he declared an end to it all.
“Turk Ogdenn! In spite of Legalisbelm’s ongoing status, you have exercised military might though it is forbidden! That alone is more than enough to constitute treason against the royal family—thus you shall be executed at once! Following my duty as a fellow candidate in Legalisbelm, I shall pass judgment on you myself!”