There was a pause, and Lilith’s posture loosened, shoulders lifting in a shrug that was part concession, part indifference.
“So,” Cordelia said, regaining focus, “what’s the verdict? What exactly is happening to Koharu?”
Lilith hesitated, then gave the answer without embellishment. “Without divine-grade medicine or elixirs, she has a few years at most. What you are watching now is a life burning at both ends. A shrine maiden built for one moment of brilliance, then ash.”
Cordelia’s expression tightened.
“It’s why her people live in isolated enclaves,” Lilith added. “All their wealth, all their medicines—everything is funneled into one person. The high priestess. The divine weapon.”
Before Cordelia could respond, the battlefield shifted.
A shadow fell over Koharu.
She looked up.
There, towering like a mountain of flesh and armor, stood the Ogre Emperor.
It was monstrous, a living wall of muscle and malice that seemed to blot out the sun. Koharu barely broke five feet tall. The contrast would’ve been comical if it weren’t so deadly.
“Heh. You think being huge makes you scary?” she called out, laughing loud and wild. “Newsflash, asshole, bigger things hurt more when they go down!”
Then she cackled, her laughter unhinged and delighted, as if she were having the time of her life. “Not that I’d know, of course! Still a virgin! Hahaha!”
She reached into her coat and whipped out another iron sphere.
“Type-Zero Electromagnetic Control: RAILGUN!”
There was no grand boom and no blinding flash. Instead, a sharp snap echoed, like someone cracking their knuckles. In the next instant, a hole two meters wide appeared in the Ogre Emperor’s gut, the wound so clean and vicious it looked as though it had been punched straight through his stomach.
Blood geysered and intestines spilled, but the beast didn’t fall.
Instead, it smiled.
A slow, knowing smile.
Behind her, Lilith let out a deep, resigned breath.
“Just as I thought… even at the highest tier of A-rank magic, Koharu still can’t kill it. The Ogre Emperor is in a different league entirely.”
The monster’s organs writhed, slithering like serpents as muscle and flesh began to stitch themselves back together. The gaping wound bubbled and sealed with unnatural speed.
Cordelia stood frozen, watching the Ogre Emperor’s wound seal shut as though the gaping hole in its stomach had never existed. Muscles writhed like snakes beneath the skin, veins knitting back together with unnatural precision. Her head slowly shook from side to side in disbelief.
“That’s the Ogre Emperor?” she whispered. “How the hell are we supposed to kill something like that? Lilith, seriously, how?”
Lilith’s eyes didn’t leave the battlefield. “What?”
Cordelia exhaled sharply. “Where’s Ryuto? Don’t tell me he’s just gonna show up late to this.”
“There’s been a breach,” Lilith said. “Ogres got into the city. He’s caught up in the chaos. He’ll be delayed.”
Then, a flicker of intent crossed her face. She turned to Cordelia, eyes sharp.
“Cordelia Allston. Can you go full throttle, berserker mode, for ten seconds?”
Cordelia raised a brow. “That’s the look of someone with a plan.”
Lilith gave a single, decisive nod.
Cordelia hesitated for a heartbeat, eyes narrowing in thought. “Twelve seconds… No, fifteen. I can sustain max output for about fifteen seconds. Not clean, but it’ll hold.”
Lilith scowled. “Twelve or fifteen? Pick one.”
Cordelia met her gaze evenly. “Fifteen.”
Lilith’s expression relaxed, a cold smile flickering on her lips. “That’ll do.”
Cordelia turned her focus back to the battlefield, where Koharu stood beneath the looming shadow of the regenerating giant. “All right, strategist. What’s the move?”
Lilith’s voice dropped to a calm murmur. “Cordelia.”
“What?”
“What would you say is the Ogre Emperor’s greatest strength?”
Cordelia glanced sideways at her, then back at the monster slowly lumbering forward. “Its regeneration, obviously. Even Koharu’s railgun couldn’t keep it down. If that doesn’t work, what else do we have?”
“Exactly,” Lilith said. “Its regeneration is the reason Koharu’s attacks don’t stick. It’s the reason A-rank combatants can’t finish the job.”
Cordelia stared at the creature: its sheer size, its unnatural durability, its monstrous calm.
“Great,” she muttered. “So it’s strong, fast, regenerates instantly, and has more raw power than an angry god. What, exactly, is the simple solution you promised me?”
Lilith’s eyes gleamed, calm and razor-sharp.
“The answer,” she said, “is beautifully simple.”
Cordelia frowned. “What are you saying?”
Lilith’s expression sharpened, her voice calm and deliberate. “If its regeneration is the problem, then we just need to destroy it faster than it can heal.”
Cordelia gave her a flat look. “If that were easy, Koharu would’ve handled it already—”
Lilith cut her off with a firm shake of her head. “Ten seconds.”
Cordelia blinked. “Ten seconds?”
Lilith nodded. “That’s the maximum amount of time I can paralyze a calamity-class S-rank threat. Ten seconds of full lockdown. No movement, no reaction. You get a stationary target.”
Cordelia’s brows lifted. “You’re saying you can stop that thing for ten whole seconds?”
Lilith’s voice remained steady. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. And during that time, I want you to carve the Ogre Emperor into pieces with that holy sword of yours.”
There was a beat of silence.
Cordelia clicked her tongue. “I hate taking orders from you. But fine. I’m in.”
Lilith gave a rare, satisfied nod. Without wasting another second, she turned and shouted toward the battlefield.
“Koharu!”
Downfield, Koharu was still trading blows with the Ogre Emperor, darting around the massive beast like a furious spark. She glanced back, clearly annoyed.
“What now?! I’m kinda busy over here with this oversized meat mountain! If you bottom-feeders have something to say, say it after I’m done kicking its ass!”
“You can’t win alone!” Lilith called back. “We’re joining in!”
Koharu scoffed. “Join in? What the hell are you talking about?!”
As if to punctuate her doubt, she reached into her coat and pulled out another iron sphere, clearly preparing another railgun shot. But Lilith’s expression twisted with irritation, a vein bulging at her temple.
“Would you just listen for once, you reckless amateur?!”
Koharu froze, mid-motion. “Amateur? Are you talking about me?”
Her voice wavered with disbelief.
Lilith didn’t flinch. “Yes. You may have power, but all you’ve done is flail around with it like a child swinging a sword too big to carry. You’re reacting to your power, not controlling it. That makes you dangerous, and not in a good way.”
Koharu stared back at her, momentarily speechless.
Lilith’s voice tore through the air like a war horn, sharp enough to shake the atmosphere itself.
“Cordelia and I will wear it down! You only need to land one shot, Koharu! Just one! Aim for its gut, and punch a hole straight through!”