Chapter 327: Takatsuki Makoto challenges the Divine Beast
Chapter 327: Takatsuki Makoto challenges the Divine Beast
※Warning※
This time’s expressions might be a bit violent, so please tread with care.
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“Now then…” (Makoto)
I rode on the back of Astaroth and headed to the skies.
We are already as high as the clouds, but the head of Leviathan is still far above.
That said, the objective here isn’t to defeat the Divine Beast.
It is to reach the Deep Sea Temple and free Noah-sama.
The Deep Sea Temple is at the back of Leviathan.
We then rose to around the same altitude as it and stopped ascending.
“Nyaru-sama.” (Makoto)
“What is it, Knight-kun?” (Naia)
I asked Naia-sama, who has descended into Queen Noel.
“Around how much is the time limit you can stay descended in Noel-sama?” (Makoto)
If I remember correctly, she said 30 minutes is the limit.
I would say quite a good amount of time has passed already.
“Hmm, around 15 minutes more, I guess.” (Naia)
“Understood.” (Makoto)
I listen to her and look around.
The number of Undines is around 2 million.
We could get more if we had taken more time, but we don’t have the time for that.
The Moon Goddess that has descended in Queen Noel.
The Ancient Dragon King who has equipped the sacred treasure of Cain.
And the Undines that have come from the neighboring planets.
I will challenge the Divine Beast with all the strength I can muster.
And then, I suddenly remembered.
I still have more power that can be mustered.
“You could use Resurrection Magic, right, Noel-sama?” (Makoto)
“Y-Yeah, I can, but what of it?” (Noel)
“Then, can you please cast it on me?” (Makoto)
“Huh? Uhm…what are you trying to say here?” (Noel)
Queen Noel made a confused expression, but there’s no time to explain.
I took out the dagger of the Goddess and stabbed my own chest.
I obviously avoided the heart, but blood spurted out and my vision darkened.
“Kyaaaaaaaaaahhh!” (Noel)
Queen Noel screamed, but I endured falling unconscious and muttered in my heart.
(I offer this to you, Noah-sama.) (Makoto)
I activated the Sacrificial Technique.
“Sun Magic: [Resurrection]!” (Noel)
Queen Noel raised a scream, but she soon casted the spell on me.
The wound on my chest closed up really quickly.
“Thanks. I have to do this in order to offer my lifespan to the Goddesses, you see.” (Makoto)
“…”
Queen Noel didn’t say anything.
She was looking at me as if looking at something creepy.
Oops.
The wife of Sakurai-kun thinks I am a weirdo now.
I have to explain to her later.
“Takatsuki Makoto…what’s that?” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King we are borrowing the back of asked this as if finding it unpleasant.
Looks like he can see it.
He directed his gaze at the 3 small Spirits on my shoulder.
It was only 1 before.
Are these extras from Noah-sama?
“They are Time Spirits. I lowered my lifespan to the very limit and called 3.” (Makoto)
“Ahahahahahahahahaha!! There’s an idiot here! The Apostle of Noah-kun is a royal idiot! I don’t hate idiots like you!” (Naia)
The one laughing out loud was the Moon Goddess.
Looks like she is having fun.
“Now then…let’s go.” (Makoto)
Preparations are done.
It may not be enough, but I have done everything I can.
I probably won’t be able to set a table like this ever again.
“Uhm…Makoto-sama.” (Noel)
Just when we were about to finally face Leviathan, Queen Noel spoke to me hesitantly.
“Noel-sama? Sorry about before -scaring you and all that.” (Makoto)
“No…I was indeed surprised, but I will forget about that for now. More importantly…can you please stop the -sama?” (Noel)
“Uhm, but…” (Makoto)
“Right now…just for now, I am simply a member of the party, right?” (Noel)
My image of her being the queen of the strongest nation in the continent is intense, but ‘right now’ she is a party member aiming for the same thing.
“Understood, Noel-san. You should also stop the -sama then.” (Makoto)
“I don’t really mind if you call me without honorifics though… Understood, Makoto-san. I will continue casting Victory March. Please go ahead and do your utmost.” (Noel)
Her forcing a smile despite being nervous reminded me of Anna-san.
That nostalgia made me form a smile.
“Astaroth, can you do it?” (Makoto)
“I was tired of waiting.” (Astaroth)
“Dia, counting on you.” (Makoto)
“Leave it to me, Our King.” (Dia)
I speak to everyone and begin the last clear run of the Deep Sea Temple.
◇◇
“The first move will be…the Great Water Spirits…please drop comets.” (Makoto)
First, keep it at bay.
Several comets fall from space covering several tens of kilometers.
They entered the atmosphere and rained onto Leviathan while shining red.
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The comets that landed exploded, creating gales.
“Hiih!” (Noel)
Queen Noel raised a small scream.
“Are you okay?” (Makoto)
“I-I am okay! You face forward, Makoto-san!” (Noel)
She tells me with a trembling voice.
…I doubt she will be able to last till the end like this.
—Synchronization: Clear Mind.
“Oh…?” (Noel)
“I have shared the effect of a skill that calms the heart. Did it calm you down?” (Makoto)
“Y-Yes. Thanks.” (Noel)
“Oi, Takatsuki Makoto, is this the time for you to be flirting with a woman?” (Astaroth)
While I was talking to Queen Noel, the Ancient Dragon King complained.
It is true that the power of the comet’s explosions are intense, but it doesn’t seem like it has injured the scales of Leviathan at all.
“It is enough power to destroy the Fire Country’s capital in 1 or 2 hits though.” (Makoto)
“A comet wouldn’t be much of a threat for me either… That said, it would be troubling to deal with these many at once.” (Astaroth)
“For Leviathan, it is technically light rain, huh.” (Makoto)
As monstrous as expected.
“What’s the next move, Takatsuki Makoto?” (Astaroth)
“To think there would be this little effect with Comet Drop…” (Makoto)
Even if we were to smash hundreds of comets onto Leviathan, I doubt it will hurt or itch.
It is looking down at us with its giant eyes as always.
As if saying it won’t allow us to approach the Deep Sea Temple any further than this.
Anyways, it is getting really wary of us.
I would like it to lower its guard a bit more though.
I was curious about it and asked the Moon Goddess.
“Nyaru-sama, is there a chance that Leviathan has noticed your descent?” (Makoto)
“Hmm~, I wonder. I don’t think it has noticed that I am the Moon Goddess. Just that…it might think that the culprit for dropping the moon is here.” (Naia)
“I see…” (Makoto)
That would certainly make it wary.
“But is it possible for anyone aside from a God to drop the moon?” (Makoto)
“If a Saint Rank moon mage were to offer around 100,000 souls as sacrifice, it would be possible☆.” (Naia)
“I-I see…” (Makoto)
The reality that even mortals could accomplish it if they tried…is scary.
Or more like, I feel like I gained unnecessary knowledge.
Let’s forget it at once.
“When should I charge in?” (Astaroth)
It seems like the Ancient Dragon King is itching here.
“Endure for now.” (Makoto)
I bring out my next hand.
—[Spirit Arm].
I turn my right arm into a Spirit.
By the way, my left arm is being held by Queen Noel and the Victory March is being synchronized, so I can’t turn it into a Spirit.
I lost the sensation of my right arm that turned into a Spirit.
I instead move it with mana control.
“Water Magic: [White World].” (Makoto)
“Kya!” (Noel)
Queen Noel raised a short scream.
A ferocious blizzard covered the whole area.
Snow so intense it can dye your whole vision white.
Leviathan naturally shouldn’t be able to see us, but…
“He is looking at us.” (Astaroth)
“We are being looked at.” (Naia)
“Makoto-san, the pressure of the Divine Beast-sama hasn’t changed…” (Noel)
The Ancient Dragon King, the Moon Goddess, and Queen Noel retorted.
It seems like a screen isn’t going to work in the God Eye of a Divine Beast.
Well, I just tried it out in hopes it might work.
I stopped the blizzard.
“This was my real aim.” (Makoto)
I gather mana in my Spirit Arm.
Spirit mana is infinite.
I use that and shoot out as much magic as possible.
—[Giant Comet Drop].
Comets have been raining on until now.
But a comet gigantic on a totally different realm to those appeared.
“Ooh!” (Astaroth)
“Wow…” (Noel)
The Ancient Dragon King and Queen Noel raised their voices in amazement.
It isn’t on the size of the moon, but it is a comet that’s big enough to blast Rozes into the nether.
It steadily approached Leviathan and…
*Peshi*
It is not like it made that kind of noise, but the giant fin of Leviathan slapped it away with that amount of ease.
“““…”””
The Ancient Dragon King was speechless and Queen Noel had her eyes wide open.
…Looks like this is no good either.
In that case, I have no choice but to go for my last resort.
“Our King…we are ready to move at any moment on your order.” (Dia)
Dia, who was silent until now, whispers into my ear.
Is that…the only choice we have?
“Dia…” (Makoto)
“Please don’t make such a face. This is for the sake of saving Noah-sama. This is the reason why my sisters have gathered, you know?” (Dia)
“…Got it.” (Makoto)
I don’t really like this, but we can’t let this chance escape.
After using Spirit Magic, I spoke out my first ‘wish’.
—“Great Water Spirits…for the sake of Noah-sama…please die.” (Makoto)
““““““““““““““With pleasure.”””””””””””””””
More than 2 million Great Water Spirits.
They all attacked Leviathan one after the other.
By the way, Spirits have no concept of ‘death’.
The Great Spirits are part of nature, so even when they perish, they will eventually come back.
I said ‘die’ on the surface, but I basically want them to ‘blitz’.
The Great Water Spirits are like magic with will.
Even without giving detailed orders, they will move on their own and attack.
Each and every one of them is Saint Rank magic level, and their strength has been increased drastically by the Victory March of Queen Noel.
And those Great Water Spirits charged at Leviathan and…self-destructed.
*BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!*
Mana swelled up and created massive explosions here and there on the body of Leviathan.
It is not the physical type of explosion like the comets of before, but an explosion of mana.
They were gouging at the body of Leviathan.
Several tens, several hundreds, several thousands of Great Water Spirits crashed onto Leviathan and self-destructed.
*…Gi…Gi…Gigigigigi…gigi…*
An unpleasant sound like that of metal and metal rubbing together made the air tremble.
“What’s…that?” (Makoto)
“…My head hurts…Makoto-san.” (Noel)
Me and Queen Noel frown.
It seems like the one who is making that noise is Leviathan.
But rather than calling it having some sort of objective, it is more like…
“Hooh…for Leviathan to raise a scream. Has it been 15 million years since that happened?” (Naia)
The Moon Goddess muttered this.
I understood the meaning of this and made the next move.
“Astaroth!” (Makoto)
“Alright!” (Astaroth)
Now’s the time to aim for the Deep Sea Temple.
Thinking that, I call the Ancient Dragon King.
But…
“Ooooooooooooooooooooooooh!!!!”
A high-pitched voice.
A shockwave assailed us at a slightly delayed moment.
Gales as if several hundreds of tornadoes were being created.
“Kuh!” (Makoto)
“I stopped it with a barrier. Are you okay, Takatsuki Makoto?” (Astaroth)
“Yeah, you saved us there, Astaroth.” (Makoto)
If I had been hit directly by that, I would have died.
It seems like even the Great Water Spirits were sent flying by that as well, and they are now distanced from Leviathan.
Looks like that was the aim of the Divine Beast.
“Makoto-san! That!” (Noel)
Queen Noel pointed at Leviathan.
Something was coming off from the body of the Divine Beast.
“That’s…?” (Makoto)
“The scales of Leviathan.” (Astaroth)
Did they come off from the attacks of the Great Water Spirits?
No.
The scales shed off by Leviathan were changing shape.
Into long and slender women.
Wings from their backs.
Spears in hand.
“A-Angels?!” (Noel)
Queen Noel raised her voice in surprise.
“So the scales of the Divine Beast served as vessels for the Angels that normally don’t have bodies, huh. To think a Divine Beast would summon Angels…” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King groaned.
If you are from the Goddess Church, you will certainly see them at least once; the familiars of the Holy Gods: Angels.
They are holding their spears at ready as if protecting Leviathan.
More than 2 million Great Water Spirits are surrounding Leviathan.
The amount of scales changing shape into Angels increased more and more.
“U-Uhm…is it really okay to fight against Angel-samas that are familiars of the Holy Gods?” (Noel)
Queen Noel is agitated here.
This might be the natural reaction of an Oracle that worships the Sun Goddess.
The one who answered that was the Moon Goddess that had descended into her body.
“Noel-chan, this is a Trial of God that the Knight-kun must overcome in order to save Noah. This is purely a test. It is not like you are going against the Goddesses. Don’t worry about it.” (Naia)
“I-I see…” (Noel)
She tilted her head but it seems like she at least accepted it.
“It doesn’t seem like we have the time to be talking all leisurely like this.” (Astaroth)
I direct my eyes at the Angels around Leviathan with the Ancient Dragon King’s words.
The Angels have beautiful faces as if they were pieces of art, but they have ice-cold gazes.
And those gazes are…directed at us.
In other words, the aim of the Angels is our lives.
“Our King, your orders.” (Dia)
“Got it. Great Water Spirits, eliminate the Angels and attack Leviathan.” (Makoto)
I ordered.
The Great Water Spirits charge onto Leviathan again.
The Angels intercept them.
If we add the numbers of everyone, it would go all the way into the several millions.
The two armies clashed.
“XXXXXXX!!!!”
The Undines raise screams.
One of the Great Water Spirits had her chest pierced by the spear of an Angel.
“▲▲▲▲▲▲!!!”
The scream of an Angel echoed.
At a different place, there’s a Great Water Spirit tearing off the wings of an Angel.
Is that strange language the tongue of Angels?
“XXXXXXXXXXXX!!!!”
“▲▲▲▲▲▲▲▲!!!!”
At another place, the head of a Great Water Spirit was severed.
Then the head of an Angel was broken.
A spear pierced the trunk of a Great Water Spirit.
The arm of an Angel was torn off.
Great Spirits that are like cute girls and beautiful Angels are killing each other.
Horrifying things were happening here and there.
Normally, Great Spirits and Angels are magic experts.
But because the bodies of both parties are of high mana density, magic won’t be a decisive blow.
As a result, it has become a primitive battle.
The power of Angels and Great Spirits seem to be on the same level, and both sides are falling one after the other at a pretty even pace.
Great Water Spirits and Angels don’t have the concept of death.
After they lose, they become light particles and disappear.
No blood spills out and no corpses remain.
Despite all that, the battle between Great Water Spirits and Angels was so ghostly and violent that it made me want to avert my gaze.
No, this is no battle…
“This is war.” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King muttered.
“Uuh…” (Noel)
Queen Noel covered her mouth and was cowering.
“It seems like it was too stimulating for Noel-chan, but this is a nostalgic sight for me. At the time of the Titanomachia, the Angels that value order and the Great Spirits of the Titan Gods that treasured freedom were killing each other here and there. Primitive, savage, and stupid… Truly wonderful. Don’t you think so too, Knight-kun?” (Naia)
The Moon Goddess giggled.
I didn’t feel like laughing here.
More importantly…
“Ancient Dragon King, please head to the Deep Sea Temple while steering away from the vision of Leviathan.” (Makoto)
“Got it.” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King answered.
I must not waste this opportunity that the Great Water Spirits have created.
“[Divine Protection of Dragons].” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King muttered.
I feel as if an invisible cushion covered me.
“Make sure to not get shaken off.” (Astaroth)
When he said this, he immediately accelerated.
The many battles between Angels and Great Water Spirits continued in the surroundings.
“Can’t use Teleport to move?” (Makoto)
“Impossible to. What’s covering the Deep Sea Temple’s surroundings is Anima. It would be impossible to get close using Teleport. We have no choice but to head there directly.” (Astaroth)
“Got it.” (Makoto)
In order to distract Leviathan even if only a little, I make several giant comets drop with my Spirit Arm.
It was around the time when we were halfway to the Deep Sea Temple…
(…We might be able to get there at this rate.) (Makoto)
Just when I began having that hope in me…
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My vision blacked out.
By the time I noticed, we were back at the place where I told the Ancient Dragon King ‘please head to the Deep Sea Temple’.
I confirm the Time Spirits at my shoulder.
There’s 2 Time Spirits.
“What…just happened?” (Noel)
Queen Noel said in a confused tone.
“Impossible… We should have…died.” (Astaroth)
The voice of the Ancient Dragon King was trembling a bit.
“Yeah, we died, so the Time Spirits ‘rewinded’ it. Damn it!” (Makoto)
My words lacked composure there.
“I see, Knight-kun. So that’s how you are using the Time Spirits, huh. Fufu…but if you only think of defending, you won’t be able to clear the Deep Sea Temple, you know?” (Naia)
The Moon Goddess alone seemed to be amused.
Composure returned to me with those words.
Right, I have to confirm how we died first.
“Ancient Dragon King, how did we die just now?” (Makoto)
“Several whip-like fins at the body of Leviathan attacked us from our blindspot. I noticed this and tried to avoid it, but it matched my movements when I tried to… It seems like the Divine Beast can see the future. A future further ahead than my own eyes can see… More importantly, what’s this about the Time Spirits rewinding it?” (Astaroth)
“Literally what it means. I asked the Time Spirits to return us 10 seconds to the past if we die.” (Makoto)
“…I was challenging such a guy?” (Astaroth)
The Ancient Dragon King grumbled, but I had no time to answer.
I used Mind Accel and continued thinking.
I used all the means I could.
But I couldn’t reach it.
The battle of the Angels and Great Water Spirits around was growing even fiercer.
It is a hellscape of endless death cries.
The Great Water Spirits are still gathering ceaselessly, but there’s no signs of the Angels decreasing in numbers.
More and more Angels were appearing from the scales of Leviathan.
Even if we wait, the situation won’t get better.
(…What can we do?) (Makoto)
Uneasiness dyed my chest.
I continued thinking with Mind Accel that stretches every second, but I couldn’t think of a good idea.
The Moon Goddess speaks instead.
“Now then, Knight-kun, bad news here. The time I can stay in the body of Noel-chan is about to run out. When that happens, the fall of the moon will stop. If Leviathan returns the moon back to its place, it will return to the deep sea again.” (Naia)
That was an ultimatum.
“How…long left?” (Makoto)
I asked with a grim mood.
“1 minute left. When that passes, you will fail your challenge, Knight-kun. You will become a slave.” (Naia)
The Moon Goddess announced with a face filled with joy.
■Comment’s Response:
]What does Leviathan look like?
→I have only described it as a big monster, so I will add an illustration.**
This is the illustration from the 3rd volume of the light novel.
It looks like this in the brain of the author.
Leviathan may look small in this illustration, but it is actually pretty far away.
※Leviathan is around half the size of Japan’s Honshu.
…The Deep Sea Temple is big.
Around as big as the Nerima City.