Dark evening.

“......”

“......”

Yutia silently looked at the corpse before her.

No, strictly speaking, it would be more accurate to say she was looking at the bloodstains.

Because there was no longer any corpse where she was looking.

All that remained was a massive amount of bloodstains and trees dyed red with blood, as though announcing that something had burst there.

“Hoo—”

Letting out a small sigh, Yutia lifted her gaze and looked to the right.

Since the social club building was located at a higher elevation than even the shopping district, if not the entire academy, the view still came into sight at a glance to some degree.

“......”

The scenery she was looking at was, in truth, utterly devastating.

The space that, around this time, should have been filled with warm lights and liveliness instead of darkness was covered in unease and fear.

The streets of the shopping district, which had been built beautifully and with an old-fashioned elegance, had effectively turned into something close to ruins from the moment the fireworks exploded.

And in that shopping district that had become ruins—

“S-Save me—! Save me!!”

“I-I want to get out, let me out! Please! Someone! Is no one there!!”

“Ah— Aaaaah—!!”

—the students who had fallen into panic were all crying out in despair.

Of course, there were nobles mixed in among the students, but their numbers were clearly smaller than the nobles who had gathered at the royal castle earlier.

“Yutia.”

At the familiar voice she heard, Yutia turned her gaze and looked at Rine.

“Rine, you’re here?”

“Yes. More importantly, this place—”

Rine looked at the blood puddle that had been horribly smashed apart and murmured.

“I expected it, but you’ve already finished dealing with it.”

At her words, Yutia gave a small nod.

“Is your side finished too?”

“Yes, somehow.”

Rine let out a hoo— and sighed.

Perhaps because, since it had been a sudden incident in a restricted space, she had been unable to use Pluto, signs of a fierce battle were visible on her clothes.

“......What should we do?”

With that murmur, Rine turned her gaze.

Where her eyes went was the center of the academy.

Looking at the new school building and old school building, both completely blocked off by a massive wall, Yutia stayed still for a moment before shaking her head.

“There’s nothing we can do.”

“......Even with your power, Yutia?”

At Rine’s question, Yutia quietly looked at the wall and spoke.

“You know, don’t you? That wall isn’t simply blocking access. It’s ‘distorting’ it. It would be possible to force it open, but if we did...... you know, don’t you?”

At that, Rine looked at Yutia, then let out a small sigh.

“Then we have to hope Godfather wins against the Karma Throne?”

“That’s right.”

Yutia’s calm answer rang out.

Rine stared at Yutia, then asked.

“......Do you think Godfather can beat the Karma Throne, Yutia?”

At that calm question, Yutia—

“No.”

—declared.

Somewhat coldly.

As though passing sentence.

“If it’s Master as he is ‘now,’ defeating the Karma Throne will be difficult. Even if its power has been weakened, the opponent is still a Karma Throne that has achieved a proper Creation.”

“......I agree. The abilities those monsters possess aren’t things that properly apply in this world in the first place.”

“Right.”

“......Then shouldn’t we save Godfather somehow? If Godfather can’t defeat the Karma Throne—”

Rine tried to continue, looking at Yutia.

However.

“Rine, you misunderstood what I said.”

“......Yes?”

“I told you, didn’t I? Master as he is ‘now’ can’t defeat the Karma Throne.”

“......That means.”

“If it’s next, the story will be different.”

“Next—?”

“Yes, next.”

Yutia concluded firmly.

“I believe in Master, you know? I believe without a shred of doubt that he will surely reach the ‘next.’”

“......”

“And on top of that— the situation just so happens to be more than enough for it, doesn’t it?”

Rine, who had been thinking blankly, opened her eyes wide as though realizing something and tried to speak.

“Ah— in that distortion field, what Yutia placed—”

Tap—

Before she knew it, Yutia had placed her index finger over Rine’s mouth.

“Anyway, just watch. Master will certainly live up to our expectations. Without fail.”

She said it with a smile.

Rine stared blankly at Yutia’s certainty, then suddenly opened her mouth.

“......Yutia.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“......At the end, what did you do?”

The end.

Those words from Rine’s mouth felt extremely out of place.

Because at this point, the word “end” was extremely abrupt.

“Why—”

But Yutia understood without difficulty what “the end” Rine had thrown at her meant, and answered without the slightest hesitation.

“—isn’t it obvious?”

Beneath a night sky where there was nothing at all.

“There’s no way a world without Alon would have any meaning.”

With her red eyes shining.

Quietly.

She told her the truth.

####

“Uweeegh—!”

Feeling dark-red blood pour endlessly from his mouth, Alon stared ahead with a hazy mind.

In the distance, the Karma Throne of War was visible, approaching this place with a delighted smile, as though enjoying the situation itself.

“Khahak—!”

But even with the approaching Karma Throne before his eyes, Alon clutched his stomach and, without realizing it, let out such a sound from the horrific pain.

‘How many times have I been hit?’

The thought surfaced in Alon’s mind.

Ten times?

No, twenty?

No, it felt like even more than that.

‘......It probably hasn’t even been ten minutes—’

Kuwaaaaang—!!

Alon’s continuing thought was cut off.

Because the Karma Throne, who had clearly been walking toward him from far away, had somehow reached in front of Alon and kicked him, where he lay collapsed on the ground, up into the sky.

Once again, Alon’s consciousness cut out slightly, then returned.

After that came the horrific pain he felt again.

When he lowered his vision downward, what he saw there was Penia, shedding tears as she looked at him, and Evan, his eyes trembling as though he had no idea what he was supposed to do in this situation.

But seeing the two of them still staying still, Alon let out a sigh of relief in his own way.

Because in the first place, Alon was the one who had instructed them to stay still.

‘Even if those two join the battle, they’ll only suffer pain without any meaning.’

Penia and Evan were both certainly helpful beings to him.

But not in battle.

In other words, even if the two joined the battle, all that would happen was that the pain would increase threefold.

“Hueup—!”

That was why, while flying through the air, Alon gritted his teeth against the horrific pain he felt and continued thinking.

‘What should I do?’

Alon looked at the Karma Throne of War, who was looking at him from below.

The sight of him smiling, as though this moment was simply enjoyable.

The fact that the smile was not mockery of Alon’s weakness, but rather a pure smile born from the struggle unfolding in this moment, instead dragged up the fear buried within Alon.

And that was not all.

‘My attacks, not a single one works. No—’

“Cough—!”

Alon spat blood once more and thought.

‘—they are useless.’

Useless.

Literally, Alon’s attacks were useless.

If he froze space itself, it approached and attacked him as though the space had never been frozen at all.

If he dropped meteors endlessly from the sky, it dodged every single one of them.

Even if he covered space itself with attacks.

Even if he created a sun.

They did not reach it.

Alon’s gaze touched the edge of the Karma Throne’s shoulder.

The end of its armor, slightly crumpled.

That small crumpling, which he had been able to leave behind due to the Flower of Spirit Transformation he had unfolded by chance to block the Karma Throne’s attack earlier, was the last attack he had landed.

Other than that, not a single one of Alon’s attacks had worked.

To a despairing degree.

“!”

[Have you already given up?]

The next instant, Alon looked at the Karma Throne, who had appeared before him at some point.

Before he could even instinctively raise his hand, a fist slammed into Alon’s face.

Along with a kuwaaang— sound, a chilling ringing filled his ears.

The horrific pain struck again.

But even within that pain, Alon kept thinking without stopping.

Because stopping his thoughts here would be no different from giving up.

However, separate from that, the more he thought, the more Alon felt as though he were sinking into a mire.

Powerful attacks did not reach it.

But even if fast attacks or attacks he could execute instantly struck it, they could not land a valid blow.

No—

Even if they did land, in the end, it would not mean much.

Because even if he landed one valid blow, the Karma Throne would come back to life the next moment.

Just as Alon had.

“......”

Ultimately, what was needed to defeat the Karma Throne in this space was for them to wear down each other’s mental strength.

And thinking of it that way, Alon was at a severe disadvantage.

The magic Alon could currently use to strike the Karma Throne could not land a valid blow.

And even if Alon miraculously found a way to land a valid blow, the speed at which his mental strength was shaved away would surely be overwhelmingly faster on this side.

Because while he prepared a technique and landed a single hit, the one-armed Karma Throne would kill him dozens of times over.

In conclusion, if he had to put an answer to it, this fight’s chance of victory was catastrophically low for Alon.

No, Alon could feel it.

That this moment was closer to defeat than any moment before.

With a kuwaaaaa— sound, Alon’s vision changed once more.

From inside the dark ruins to outside.

As he watched Reverse Heavens fading in the night sky like slow motion, Alon looked at his hand flying through the air.

At his right hand, half torn off after being horribly smashed apart.

Looking at it, Alon thought.

How could he land a valid blow on the Karma Throne?

How could he wear down its mental strength just as it was wearing down his?

In this situation, where magic that could reach the Karma Throne could not damage it.

And magic that could damage the Karma Throne could not reach it.

What should he do?

Alon suddenly looked at the right hand that entered his vision.

At the right arm that, until just moments ago, had been horribly smashed to the point its bones were exposed, now recovering in an instant as though it were a lie.

And the moment he saw that.

Suddenly, he gained a realization.

“......Ah.”

In this space, Alon would not die.

No matter how much his body was shattered, he would come back to life.

Even if his brain burst, it would be restored.

It was a fact he had already known.

But knowing that fact and properly “recognizing” it were different.

Tsk—!

That instant, the Karma Throne appeared before Alon again.

The face that had been smiling as though enjoying this situation itself had hardened slightly.

As though it was a little disappointed.

But the next instant.

“?”

A question bloomed on its face.

Because it realized that on Alon’s lips, which had been twisted in pain until only moments ago, a small smile had appeared.

The Karma Throne could not understand his smile.

But Alon, if anything, smiled even more deeply.

As though the restrictions on his emotions had vanished.

No.

As though the “restriction” had vanished.

“Hand Ice Seal.”

A low murmur flowed from Alon’s mouth.

What bloomed behind him and his back were flowers.

“!”

No, they were not flowers.

No.

They were arms.

Arms.

Countless arms.

Arms where each and every one was forming a different hand seal.

This was it.

To Alon, knowing and “recognizing” were different.

For him, the fact that he would not die meant, in other words—

One Hundred Twenty-Eight Seals.

—that he could now use all the magic he had deliberately limited the output of, or had been unable to use until now, because his brain would overload.

“Ice Coffin.”

Crack—

The world froze.

And the one-armed Karma Throne as well—

Crackkk—!

—froze.