Chapter 59

In other words, the Eschaton Demon Lord’s magic was effective against immortals. “It can’t be that he is able to kill immortals with magic—,” Veltol began. The Eschaton Demon Lord’s huge frame shivered. His gigantic body emerged between Sihlwald and Veltol. “So fast…!” “And for something so enormous…!” The Eschaton Demon Lord held a large black sword, already in a stance to attack. He was after Veltol. Veltol blocked the giant, high-speed slash with his Dark Sword, Vernal. The shrill ring of clashing metal followed as black mana burst like flames. “Guh…!” Veltol was blown backward. He already had buffed himself, but the size, weight, and mana output difference between himself and his opponent was too overwhelming. Veltol flew like a piece of paper. And as his speed picked up, he shouted, “Sister!” “Ras!” Sihlwald roared; she had shouted Die! in dragon magic at Veltol. “What’re you—?” Matoi said in confusion. As soon as Sihlwald’s roar hit Veltol’s body, he vanished into dust. Matoi witnessed it as she stepped up to guard Emi. Sihlwald’s dragon magic turned those with low magical defense into dust. She’d used it against Veltol. It was once effective against ordinary soldiers in ancient times, when magic was not common, but in the modern age, you did not even need a Familia—an amulet could block it. “What’re you—?” Matoi’s question was answered by the facts. Veltol’s body turned into dust in the air. Then a resurrection reaction like gathering darkness regenerated his body, which was already poised for combat. Veltol had undone his own magical defense and taken in Sihlwald’s attack. Less time was wasted by dying and resurrecting on the spot than by getting blown away from the fight. But they weren’t planning this, were they…?! Matoi wondered. It was not hard to tell that losing the numerical advantage would ruin their resistance against the Eschaton Demon Lord. If Veltol was removed from battle even temporarily, the scales would tip crushingly in his foe’s favor. Sihlwald’s insta-death spell was meant to prevent that. They had the experience, quick wit, and flexibility to react on the spot. None of which Matoi had. Still, she had no time to take lessons. She kept in mind what had just happened and sprang into action. “I’ll start by taking your weapon…!” Matoi snapped Gulagalad’s fingers, activating Metal Rule. Its absolute divinity allowed it to manipulate metal—even if that metal was part of the Demon Lord’s weapon. And yet… “It’s not working?” …the Eschaton Demon Lord’s weapon remained under his power. Even if it was an imitation created by magic, so long as it was metallic in concept, it should have been susceptible to Metal Rule. This magically and physically superior concept, the divinity of the eldest of the gods’ offspring, could not be blocked by mana or magic. “It’s like the revision we saw in the Man-Eating Gyoen—” “Analyze later!” Veltol yelled as he reached toward her. “Swords to the skies!” A dozen aether swords created by armament-casting magic spread around him. Naturally, no sword without imbued magic could damage the Eschaton Demon Lord. Veltol had not summoned them to attack. “Matoi! Use these!” He’d summoned them as material for Matoi. “Thank you…!” Matoi could not use magic. Most of her resources went into controlling Gulagalad. She needed support, and someone like Veltol who could use such a great variety of magic was the perfect partner in places without metal like this. She snapped her fingers and manipulated one of the swords. Armament casting turned aether into metal temporarily to create weapons. It was too unstable to keep up for long, and with the lack of data for Gulagalad on top of it, she could only use them for a very short time. She had to be quick. With a tap and a touch, she created a spear. “Nalunbard!” Matoi punched hard with Gulagalad and the red spear made of orichalcum. The immortal-slaying spear turned into light. With a clap of thunder and a flash of lightning, Nalunbard carved a straight path toward the Eschaton Demon Lord, blasting half of his body into oblivion. “It worked?!” “Good one, Matoi! He can’t be fine after—” “After what?” Flames the color of darkness formed the missing half of his body. The flames vanished, and he was back to normal, unscathed. “He can heal that fast from an immortal slayer?! What’s the deal with this guy?!” cried Sihlwald. Then he activated a spell. “Van Solegia.” Veltol had used this before; it produced a fist-size fireball that burst into pillars of flame upon impact. But the Eschaton Demon Lord’s version was different. He created a fireball so big he could barely hold it in his giant arms, and the flames became compressed in his hands. “I don’t think we can get out of this one!” “Emi, hide behind me!” Veltol stood in front of her. Matoi’s touch sensors told her of the dangers even from afar; the fireball was skin-blazing. “Leave this to me!” She immediately transformed two of Veltol’s swords into one metallic plate, then used Golden Metallurgy to turn it into 57% adamant, 42% orichalcum, and 1% other metals. “Turn to ash.” Quicker than Matoi could create a new weapon, the fireball in the Eschaton Demon Lord’s arms burst forth with a heatwave. The destructive heatwave spread around in an instant. Before Matoi could be swallowed by the heat, she punched the metal plate and created a great black shield with Sacred Forge. “Gran Drag!” Matoi stepped before Veltol and Emi to protect them, then stabbed the shield into the ground. Sihlwald was too far ahead to cover. “Goh Arr!” She spat black flames at the incoming heatwave. A simple yet powerful dragon spell that hit fire with mana. “Wha—?!” Yet the Demon Lord’s red flames swallowed the dragon’s black flames through sheer mana output. The heatwave, powerful enough to vaporize iron, burned the black flames and Sihlwald and raced toward the shield. This was the legendary shield said to have blocked an evil god’s flames during a great disaster in the age of giants and heroes. It now guarded Veltol and Emi, too. “Sanctuary!” Veltol cast another spell. “I hate using that man’s magic…!” He bitterly activated the defense spell used by the Hero Gram in Yokohama. A wall of light appeared behind Matoi’s shield. By focusing it into a wall instead of spreading it around, Veltol achieved greater defense than when Gram used it in Yokohama. The two walls completely shut out the flames. “Oh no.” However… “The effect time…!” There was too little data in the materials, and even though it didn’t utilize any special abilities, Gran Drag could be used only for a short span. The effect time was over. The shield turned into ash, and Van Solegia attacked Sanctuary. “Assistant! It’s gonna break! It’s breaking!” Emi cried. The overwhelming heat produced a crack across the wall of light. The heatwave did not slow down. The crack kept getting bigger and bigger. “I have to make another shield—” “It’s too late…!” Veltol told Matoi. “Va Ror!” Just before the wall broke, an invisible force hit from the side and blew Van Solegia away. “Sister!” Sihlwald’s dragon magic. Her wings were scorched and her limbs carbonized, but by prioritizing healing her upper body, she was able to provide support. “Sorry my regeneration was too slow. My throat got burned, and I couldn’t talk.” “You did wonderful, Sister.” “Thank you, Sihlwald.” “Super nice, my dear Sihlwald!” “Hee-hee… I don’t need y’all’s praise… What’s that fire, though? It even went through my scales. That’s gotta be stronger than Wilmnil’s flames. I lost count of how many times I died.” “If it can go through your scales and kill you, then… Oh, even if this is my future self, it pains me so to see my own spells used so powerfully against us!” “It’s gonna be hard if he keeps shooting that stuff. At least he’s slow. We’re gonna have to stop him before he can launch the spell.” “Yes. I agree,” Matoi said. “Something’s wrong…,” Emi muttered while looking at the Eschaton Demon Lord beyond the heat haze. “What is it, Emi?” “Assistant, is that thing really you?” “Yes. That is my second form, so to speak.” “Why don’t you become like that? Or is there a reason why you can’t?” “The latter. I lack the necessary conditions.” “Of course. And then, that raises another question. Why can the Eschaton Demon Lord take that form?” “…Well thought, Great Detective. And what a fool I am for not realizing.” Veltol slapped his face. “In that form, my strength, skill, wit…in video game terms, my stats grow exponentially. But there are two conditions I must meet to assume that form.” And those were: “Aether density and faith.” Veltol observed the Eschaton Demon Lord’s behavior while continuing, “Both are essential for taking and maintaining that form. Yet although this is a replica of the Demon Castle, the aether density is the same level as in any other regular place. Even if we assume I have developed a way to transform without the need for aether density in the next fifty years, I doubt I can get rid of the need for faith.” “…Is faith an important factor in establishing your existence?” “Precisely. After my soul changed by obtaining Methenoel, the resurrection spell, I became strongly dependent on faith. I cannot obtain power without positive and negative faith. Matoi mentioned that in fifty years, there will be roughly a million humans left; even with the entire population’s perpetual faith, it would be impossible for me to keep this form for so long.” “And what about your faith in the present time period? From what you’re telling me, even if this Veltol is connected to future faith or is sharing yours in the present, he wouldn’t be able to take that form.” “Exactly. That form is a cloak of primal fear created by high faith and vast aether. It is impossible to maintain without both conditions.” “A cloak of fear…” “Not to mention, it is odd he would not use powers possible in that form, such as castles magic. Or perhaps he cannot use them at all.” Veltol paused. “Indeed, that being is contradictory.” “A contradiction,” Matoi said. “Yes, if time-space theory is correct, the simple fact that Veltol and the Eschaton Demon Lord are facing each other is a contradiction. Which must mean…” Then the Eschaton Demon Lord made his next move. “He won’t give us time to think.” Sihlwald took a big step forward. “You guys stay back.” She opened her legs, placed her hands on the ground, raised her tail, and spread her wings. “This tiny body won’t get us anywhere. I gotta go all out!” Sihlwald unleashed her mana. She was originally a giant dragon and only took a human form with Dragon Shift—and she didn’t know how well that spell worked. Even though magic could manipulate aether to rewrite the laws of physics, it was not easy to overturn something as basic as the greater the mass, the greater the force. Reverting to her dragon form cost Sihlwald maneuverability, but on top of freeing up the resources she used to suppress that form, the overwhelming increase in mass and reach would tip the scales. Sihlwald undid her humanization. “GOAAAH!” An explosion of mass and volume. Sihlwald returned to dragon form as steam-like aether enveloped her. She spread her wings and opened her mouth to devour the Eschaton Demon Lord. But before her fangs reached him… “You’re making my target bigger? Foolish.” …the Eschaton Demon Lord activated a spell. “Azerda.” A long, black stake appeared before the giant dragon’s eyes. The stake pierced through Sihlwald’s maw and pinned her to the Demon Castle’s floor. The Eschaton Demon Lord’s extraordinary mana output let it penetrate Sihlwald’s damage-repelling scales. “Gah…!” Sihlwald cried. More stakes followed. They pinned Sihlwald’s wings, limbs, and torso, fully immobilizing her. “Now then, let’s take care of that fly first.” The gigantic Eschaton Demon Lord disappeared like mist. “Up above!” Matoi yelled. Her sensors detected movement. The Eschaton Demon Lord’s form flickered as it teleported in midair. “That’s Flying Haze…!” Veltol yelled. The Eschaton Demon Lord leaped above Emi’s head. “Aldebard!” Matoi produced a red immortal-and-dragon-slayer sword between the Eschaton Demon Lord and Emi. It sliced off his arm, but that was not enough to stop him. Aldebard, naturally, had the power to stop an immortal’s regeneration, and yet the Eschaton Demon Lord’s arm recovered immediately. “You’re in the way.” He waved his arm. That deployed even more mana. Not any spell, not even compressed—a pure and simple output of mana. That was enough to blow Matoi away. The Eschaton Demon Lord swung his black greatsword down. “Emi!” Matoi yelled as she flew through the air. “No, you freakin’ won’t!” Sihlwald had freed herself from her restraints by returning to her human form. She charged into the Eschaton Demon Lord from the side. “Ryaaah!” Sihlwald’s kick hit his arm, broke it, and sent it flying. The Eschaton Demon Lord bled all over her, his blood seeping into her body from her skin until her veins surfaced. “Wha—?” “Blood Bomb.” The aether served as a fuse to ignite the Eschaton Demon Lord’s blood within Sihlwald’s body. She exploded into pieces from the inside. Sihlwald jumped out of the spray of blood while still regenerating. “Takahashi showed me this anime where the protagonist’s friend blows up from the inside, so it’s kinda crazy the same thing happened to me just now…” “Impressive,” said Matoi. “A wonderful assist, Sihlwald. Emi would be dead if not for you.” “The enemy is huge,” Veltol noted, “but he is not invincible.” Sihlwald stood at the vanguard. Veltol assisted. Matoi set traps. No need to extol their individual powers at that point. Theirs was an impromptu team, but their coordination was seamless. They were able to avoid the foe’s powerful attacks and land a few of their own. Based on results alone, this strategy was bearing fruit. Except…the Eschaton Demon Lord was far from defeated. Sihlwald took her distance and grumbled, “This is just ridiculous! Matoi, your immortal slayer is actually working, right?” “Yes… It should be.” “I’m sure it is if you say so… But what the hell is the deal with this future Veltol? His power is insane even for an immortal.” “Reconsideration… I’m losing confidence,” said Matoi. “It’s not your fault,” Veltol told her. “My Vernal Diel has hit him many times already, yet it appears to have no effect at all…” The body of the Eschaton Demon Lord, split into four, was enveloped in dark flames as he returned to his original form. The Demon Lord, the Black Dragon Duchess, and the Hero from the future. These hardened veterans began to feel that victory was as fruitless as finding a specific grain of sand in a desert. The lack of results had a bigger impact on their psyches than on their bodies. It was clear as day that things would only get worse and worse at this rate. We might not be able to win. The same faint thought popped into everyone’s heads, even though no one said it. “Have you realized the difference between you and me now?” the Eschaton Demon Lord asked. His dragon skull appeared to form an eerie grin. “Surrender. You have done well. Nobody would think an ant could defeat a dragon. I can destroy you endless times.” “Cheeky bastard, telling that to an actual dragon…,” Sihlwald spat, aggravated. “Your courage, though unsightly, is worth praising. No matter how reckless.” “No, it’s still not over yet.” A voice interrupted the Eschaton Demon Lord. “You may be thinking we can’t win. But that’s not true.” Emi was certain. “I can see his mana clouding a little bit. It is working. He is piling up damage. Absolutely nobody is absolute, and you all know that best.” How can she say that when she can’t even fight? None of them thought such a thing. “There is a solution. Please, everyone… Hang in there.” Veltol, Sihlwald, and Matoi nodded firmly in response. “Wonderful speech. You have shown us a new talent of yours,” said Veltol. Emi’s words gave them courage. And then the time came. Countless more exchanges took place. The attacks that were thought to have no effect finally affected the Eschaton Demon Lord. The mana covering him began to tangibly waver. Proof that the attacks were working. A sign that victory was possible. …If only the black ray shot from the Eschaton Demon Lord’s fingertip hadn’t destroyed Matoi’s right side. “…!” Her whited-out vision returned gradually. “…Ngh!” Her static-riddled audio sensors recovered little by little. Matoi stared at the throne room’s ceiling as loud red alerts rang, and she finally understood the state she was in. Critical damage. Right arm lost; unable to regenerate. Left eye sensor broken; unable to regenerate. Critical mana leak. Combat no longer possible. 109 seconds until shutdown. Red alert messages popped up one after another in her visual field. The leak of mana from the loss of her parts overcame the rate of generation of mana. She had also consumed too much mana up to then; regeneration was impossible. …gh! She lacked even the strength to curse. She’d received critical damage. Her mana was nearly depleted. “Matoi!” Emi appeared in her fractured visual field. She held Matoi up in tears, desperately calling her name. “Emi… Tell me the situation…” “Matoi! Are you okay?! Can you move?!” “Negative. Analysis says that is impossible.” Her audio sensors picked up the sounds of battle. In the direction of its source, Veltol and Sihlwald fought an intense battle against the Eschaton Demon Lord. It was obvious they had trouble keeping up the pace without Matoi’s support. Yet the fact that they were keeping up at all was proof the Eschaton Demon Lord’s power had decreased. I must go… I must fight… Matoi’s will was strong, but her body was weak. “Matoi…” Emi grabbed Matoi’s gauntlet-clad hand. Matoi grabbed Emi’s hand. “It will all be in vain…if we lose here. There would be no point to my coming here…” Emi gripped Matoi’s hand tighter. “I’m sorry,” she said. Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry…” The tears fell on her beautiful fingers. A sense of déjà vu. The same sight Matoi saw right before coming to this age. Matoi understood. She was certain. She knew who this woman was. At the same time, she realized why her causality interference value was 100. Matoi realized—her cognizance was wrong. The causality interference value didn’t necessarily note the person would destroy the world. It only meant they participated in the chain of events that would lead to the future. Of course her value was high. Without her, Matoi wouldn’t be in the present. No matter how indirectly, she had interfered with the causality. Because she was… “Don’t apologize, Emi. It’s okay.” The reason she came here. Why she was here. “My body will be the sword to save the world. Because I…was born for that purpose.” Not the reason for her production. Not the purpose somebody placed on her. A purpose she chose for herself. To protect her and her future. “Matoi…” “And besides…” Matoi sat up. Slowly but steadily, she lifted herself. “I still…” She had something left to do. There was something left she could do. “Our future still…” She could not die yet. She spurred herself to her purpose, even if it meant death. With every movement of her body, the ends of her mana-depleted biometal frame crumbled like dry leaves. Liquid aether leaked from her broken parts. This machine could no longer fight. But she could still use her body to fight. “Wait, what’re you trying to do?” Emi asked, hugging Matoi’s gauntlet. “I’ll create the strongest weapon. However, an ordinary volume of data won’t be enough to replicate its power.” “So what will you use as material—? No… You can’t…” “Yes. I have the material right here.” Emi’s face grew pale as she realized what Matoi intended to do. “No, you can’t do that… There’s got to be another way…” “There is not. This is all I can do. Really, I should’ve done it at the beginning. But I clung to hope. The hope of returning to a peaceful future or staying here with you.” Emi sobbed like a child. Large tears flowed from her eyes. She knew she was childish for her age. “Question. I don’t understand the logic behind your crying.” “My friend is about to die… How could I not cry…?” “Negative. I calculate tears are unnecessary, Emi.” Matoi denied Emi’s response. She had the data in memory. She’d had this exchange before. This was a second opportunity. A chance she thought she would never get again. So this time, she put it into words. “I am happy.” She could no longer hold Emi’s hand, but their hearts were connected. “I had a sister who ceased operations before she could establish a reason to exist. Many people have died in despair at the thought of having accomplished nothing. But Doc created me, and I fought alongside my sisters and comrades—and now I’ve fought with Veltol and Sihlwald and you by my side. I can substantiate my reason to exist. What greater bliss could there possibly be?” Matoi smiled. Analysis told her she did a good job conveying her thoughts this time. “Because I am a Hero, and I get to execute the justice I believe in. Please don’t cry.” “…Okay.” She had saved this option, for it used too much mana. Matoi would turn herself into a sword. A spear. An arrow. A bullet. A dragon’s fang, a beast’s claw. Matoi had defined herself as such things. Now, however, she wanted to fight not as a thing, but as a being. In order to fulfill her duty, she was willing to abandon her creator’s illogical wish for her to live as a person. Even if she didn’t realize this mentality surpassed anything an entity created through machinery and magic was capable of. 10 seconds until shutdown. A countdown to the end. She did not cry. There were no tears in her mechanical body. The liquid coming out of the edges of her eyes was but cleaning solution for her visual device lenses. “I’m going, Emi.” “See you later, Matoi.” Matoi nodded before finally saying: “Thank you for making me so cute.” She showed off her cuteness with a sideways V-sign. Because in the future, Emi was her creator—her mother. “Veltol!” Emi’s heartrending scream hit Veltol’s ears. He turned around. Her eyes were red and swollen, but she had decided not to cry anymore. Then he saw it. It was stuck into the ground, in ground state, held by the hilt by a copper-colored gauntlet. That was all it took for him to understand everything. “Matoi. This is the grandeur of your soul. The light of your life…!” Veltol. “You are due recognition.” As the Demon Lord, he showed respect for her. “You, too, are a true Hero.” The Demon Lord put his hand into the copper gauntlet and pulled it out. The scales were tipped in the Eschaton Demon Lord’s favor. He had defeated the Hero, the only one who could have triumphed. Only two remained: the traitorous Black Dragon Duchess and ■■. The Eschaton Demon Lord witnessed ■■’s approach. ■■ was different now. The black Dark Sword in his right hand was the same as before. ■■ held a silver light. In his left hand was Gulagalad, the copper-colored gauntlet. In Gulagalad’s grasp was a silver Holy Sword—the Unwavering Silver Sun. The Eschaton Demon Lord knew its name. “Ixasorde.” The Holy Sword only a true Hero could wield was in the hands of its polar opposite, Demon Lord Veltol. ■■ spoke. “Let us end this, Eschaton Demon Lord.” A gust of black wind blew. Veltol moved. His black Dark Sword, his soul armament, Vernal, was in his right hand. The copper gauntlet, the mythic performance armament, Gulagalad, was in his left hand. And that gauntlet held the gleaming, unsullied silver Holy Sword, the mythic armament, Ixasorde. “How…?” the Eschaton Demon Lord roared. “Why do you have that?!” The Holy Sword chose its bearer; that was its one requirement. The person did not choose. The Holy Sword would not accept such insolence. According to legend, only the true Hero could pull the Holy Sword, Ixasorde. Veltol did not meet that requirement. The Holy Sword defined the vague concept of “Hero” and chose the Hero Gram as its bearer—it would never allow the Demon Lord Veltol to use it. Yet Gulagalad, the weapon created from the memory of the smithy god’s hammer, had forged this Holy Sword, thus nullifying all its dangers and the conditions required to wield it. Gulagalad’s ownership was transferred from Matoi to Veltol—meaning Veltol could wield Ixasorde as he wished. “I shall make good use of your soul, Matoi!” The Holy Sword was made of Matoi herself. She had forged her own body, with its massive volume of data, into Ixasorde. Matoi’s existence created a miracle that could turn the future of doom on its head. “Dell Ray!” The Eschaton Demon Lord converged a dozen rays into a single thick one and shot it at Veltol. Veltol took a step forward and swung the Dark Sword down to divert the ray; then he swung the Holy Sword up to slash through it and destroy it. “Van Solegia!” The ensuing heatwave threatened to engulf everything. Veltol took a step forward and made the heatwave vanish with a horizontal slash of the Dark Sword. “Dell Stella!” The spell launched a giant black star through a chain of portals. Ixasorde’s Absolute Slash could slice through any phenomena. Its light had vanquished the Demon Lord Veltol five centuries earlier. Gulagalad’s effect time depended on the data volume of the material in use. The Ixasorde Matoi had used had vanished after a single swing. However, with the data volume of Matoi’s existence, the weapon’s effect time was greatly increased. “I…!” The Eschaton Demon Lord swung his black greatsword at Veltol, who crossed the Dark and Holy Swords to slice it apart. “I cannot fall to demise yet! There is no point in a world, in a future without that person! No value! No matter how many times or across how many horizons, I must turn this future to ash! That is the only funeral worth the price!” Space distorted and a hole opened up. A portal that connected spaces. The Eschaton Demon Lord tried crossing through it to create distance. “Va Ror!” His body was blown away. “What…?!” The Black Dragon’s roar was capable of forcing her target’s vector in one direction. Not even the Eschaton Demon Lord could resist it. And he wasn’t the only one affected. Veltol, too, followed the flow of this force to approach his foe. He took position in the air as he closed in on the Eschaton Demon Lord. “I… IIIIIIII!” Then the Demon Lord Veltol yelled the name of a special light. “Alwing!” With the flash that followed, the fight for humanity’s future came to an end. It was magnificent. The slash of the Demon Lord’s silver sword turned into a beam of light that cut through the air, tore through the aether, and sliced fate—defeating the Demon Lord from the future. The Eschaton Demon Lord’s gigantic body fell to the ground. Silence reigned. The silver sword created from the life of a Hero crumbled in Veltol’s hand. “Matoi…” The sword turned into silver light particles and vanished. It was the end of a girl’s soul. “She’s gone…,” Sihlwald said as she watched the light particles. “Yes.” “Born as a weapon, sacrificed as a weapon…but departed like a human.” “…Yes.” Veltol nodded deeply. He felt Matoi’s soul. The magiroid became human—and not just a member of the Hero Corps, but a Hero. “Not yet…” The voice of the Eschaton Demon Lord. Even wounded and on the ground, he did not welcome doom. The damage dealt by the Holy Sword did not heal, yet he nonetheless tried to rise. “I can’t… Not here… I… I…” “…He’s not done yet?” said Sihlwald. “I’m far too exhausted… I cannot bear to keep fighting…,” Veltol managed.