The Greatest Warrior of All Time Returns-Chapter 407

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Chapter 407

The Cascadia estate was thrown into complete chaos.

The appearance of an unidentified, grotesque lifeform.

And Arsha had nearly been attacked.

Fortunately, the magical beasts that adored Arsha protected her, leaving her without physical injuries—but the real problem lay elsewhere.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

Arsha, having come face to face with the unknown monster, appeared to be in severe psychological shock and struggled to calm herself.

“Shoggoth….”

Isna muttered, swallowing a grim breath.

“You know what that is?”

At the very least, it was not an entity she had ever seen in Labyrinthos.

“It’s a lifeform that crosses over from another dimension. A being that devours and digests everything it sees. It’s also a creature that exists as a massive mass of energy. I’ve heard that the outer-dimensional monster—the Red Moon, Yog—absorbs these Shoggoths in great numbers to build its power.”

In other words, the outer god known as the Red Moon, Yog, was gaining strength by consuming deformed outer-dimensional lifeforms known as Shoggoths.

“Can we use that too?”

“At first, we thought the same. If we could harness the power contained within it, we might be able to deal a direct blow to that monster. But every single person who took part in the research suffered violent seizures. Hunting it and absorbing it are completely different matters.”

That made sense.

Even merely looking at it caused a discomfort beyond simple disgust.

Absorbing it would surely bring unknown side effects.

Unless one possessed an almost perfect mental barrier—which was currently impossible.

It also became clear that if Garlan started summoning such beings into this world, it would lead to catastrophic consequences.

“It’s a shame. If that energy could directly damage that monster, it would’ve been a huge help.”

Unfortunate, but unavoidable.

From the start, trying to make use of outer-dimensional lifeforms was no different from gambling with disaster.

“Judging by its small size, it looks like a fragment that broke off from a larger entity… but how did it even get here?”

“How would I know?”

“This makes no sense… With the archangels sealing the boundary between dimensions, it should be practically impossible for something like that to cross over.”

Isna’s expression hardened.

“What are you saying?”

“I really don’t want to assume this, but… the appearance of a Shoggoth on the Lazarus continent means that the influence of the Outer Gods has begun to directly interfere with this world.”

“In other words…”

“The archangels are being pushed back.”

“……”

Isna clenched her fist tightly.

“We’re not ready yet….”

Now it made sense why Michael had summoned me and sought Lucifer’s power.

Why Raguel tried to take Luna, Remiel—and our child.

The archangels themselves were under pressure.

Even sealed, that entity was gradually pushing them back.

It wasn’t much different from Lucifer speaking to me through the necklace I carried.

“Things are getting pretty serious.”

“Shoggoths are essentially a precursor—a warning sign. Their appearance marks the beginning of massive change.”

“I’m not ready to fight that thing yet.”

“Don’t worry. Who do you think I am?”

“Isna Mielephon.”

A woman notorious for her eccentric behavior.

She chuckled at my words.

“The archangels aren’t idiots. They won’t fall easily. If we create even the smallest opening, they’ll reinforce the barrier.”

“Hm.”

“If that monster directly interferes with this world, we’re all as good as dead anyway. Just encountering it is enough to shatter one’s consciousness.”

After hearing that, I pulled out my demon sword and placed it on the table.

“So. What exactly did you do to make it +15?”

When enhancing her orichalcum sword, I hadn’t used any special power.

Yet she succeeded.

She couldn’t have retrieved some rare artifact from a closed world.

Which meant there was a special method.

“There are two conditions. First, the Authority known as the Breath of Iron. Second, you must tame the object using aura and mana mixed in a precise ratio. It’s not absolute, but the success rate is absurdly high.”

Mixing aura and mana in perfect balance made sense.

But the Breath of Iron?

“…Don’t tell me. Is that what I gave you?”

“Yes. It’s an authority that resonates with the only Breath of Iron that exists in this world.”

She placed her hand on the demon sword.

“It takes time to prepare. It requires enormous amounts of mana and aura… though that’s not a problem for you.”

“So it’ll be quick?”

“More accurately, it depends on my condition. You might be fine, but I struggle to control this authority.”

Meaning the pace depended entirely on her condition.

“Still, I’ll make it succeed within a week.”

A +15 enhancement was impressive, no doubt.

It would bring noticeable changes.

But measured against my current strength, I couldn’t be sure how meaningful it would truly be.

I silently watched her steel herself.

“You know… I’ve been thinking.”

“What now?”

“You were best when I first met you.”

“…….”

Back then, Isna was carefree—reckless, eccentric, endlessly bright.

Even if that was an act, I was certain it reflected her true self.

But now she was different.

Even though she had shed some burdens, she felt unnaturally mature.

It made me feel strangely regretful.

“Let’s begin immediately.”

“One more thing.”

“What now?”

“We need materials. I prepared everything for the enhancement, but you didn’t. And yes—we need a lot.”

“A lot?”

“Yeah. They’re expensive.”

I smirked.

“Hey.”

“What.”

“You have no idea how much money Cascadia is raking in right now, do you?”

“…….”

She clearly had no clue.

I still remembered Melissa nearly fainting after checking the first month’s net profit.

“Do you know what Cascadia’s best-selling product is?”

“Fairy Wood? Succubus artifacts?”

“One more.”

“……Hair-loss treatment.”

Yes.

Even I hadn’t expected it to be this absurd. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Hair-loss treatment.

The sheer number of people desperate enough to buy it was staggering.

At first, the impact was modest.

Some people hesitated.

But over time, the momentum exploded.

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Selling Queen’s Twilight for massive profit had only been two or three years ago.

Now we didn’t even need that.

“Unbelievable… all that over hair?”

“Watch your mouth! Hair is not ‘just hair,’ you lunatic!”

“Still, that’s insane!”

Even Isna—who had maintained a heavy atmosphere—was shouting in disbelief.

“Remember when hair-loss treatment became a thing? The continent was peaceful.”

Conflicts stopped.

Everyone focused on hair.

We thought it was temporary.

It wasn’t.

“Honestly, Cascadia is basically treated like a holy land now.”

I laughed at her stunned expression.

“You finally look normal again. Much better than carrying the weight of the world on your face.”

“…….”

She flinched and turned away.

“That’s who you are. The kind of woman who makes people think, ‘What kind of crazy woman is this?’ That’s your real personality.”

Her earlier self was an act—but an act recreating a long-lost innocence.

Boundless energy.

Like a border collie that never stopped moving.

“I’ll get the materials quickly. Just watch.”

If money can’t solve it, then it means you’re not using enough.

And if even that fails—

Borrow the power of the Western Empire’s emperor, who owes me a massive debt.

That was Cascadia now.

* * *

Gathering the materials wasn’t difficult.

The special components required to create the samples—if I had the knowledge, we could’ve skipped many steps.

But Isna knew only the formulas, not the machinery.

She didn’t possess Heart of the Machine God.

So she processed everything manually.

“Do you know how much this costs? And it’s gone in an instant…”

Despite her disbelief, she completed the materials.

And astonishingly, without any risk, she produced an +8 Demon Sword, Elekstra.

She could have gone further, but controlling the authority drained her to near exhaustion.

She possessed immense power, but as she said—the Breath of Iron had terrible compatibility with her. Rapid, drastic changes demanded extreme expenditure.

Stopping at +8 was still remarkable.

Risk-free enhancement alone was invaluable.

But for me, something else mattered more.

Could this enhancement correction be applied to the Book of Fate?

The Book wasn’t metal, nor a normal object.

Extreme caution was required.

As she enhanced the demon sword, I carefully observed how her authority, my aura and mana, and the samples interacted.

And I reached a cold conclusion.

It couldn’t significantly affect the Book of Fate.

There would be some correction—but it wasn’t enough.

The Book’s rank far exceeded the demon sword.

Still, it wasn’t meaningless.

I told Isna,

“The demon sword matters—but this matters more.”

“…This object should never be revealed to the world.”

“I know.”

Fortunately, erasing existing fate—as opposed to rewriting it—didn’t cause catastrophic backlash.

At least, not for me.

Why I can interfere with it at all remains a mystery.

“So we’ll enhance it regularly.”

“The goal?”

“To erase the predetermined flow bound to you and me.”

Both of us were marked by fate.

A fate of struggle and failure.

An intolerable fate.

“I’ve never seen anything like this. Maybe I altered it unknowingly, but…”

“No. That’s not it.”

The Book of Fate operates regardless of closed or open worlds.

If my past self had tampered with it, my fate wouldn’t still be like this.

“Let’s change things, one by one. If we failed before, this time we succeed.”

“…….”

She looked conflicted.

After all, I was the one who destroyed the world—yet now I spoke like this.

She still didn’t know the truth.

Why my past self made that choice.

Unforgivable, perhaps.

I destroyed the world with my own hands.

But if the Outer Gods had devoured everything instead…

There might not have been another chance.

For my past self, it was the only option.

Poor bastard.

I clicked my tongue silently.

I stared at the Book of Fate.

One thought lingered.

Divine Aura is not omnipotent.

Even if it works so far—can it really enhance an object that interferes with the world’s fundamental laws?

I tested a +1 enhancement.

It wouldn’t explode at that level.

The enhancement succeeded.

[+1 Book of Fate]

But—

“Nothing’s changed.”

I expected to feel a stronger presence.

But the calm, inscrutable flow remained unchanged.

“No visible change,”

Luna said coolly.

She was right.

Yet the enhancement clearly registered.

“Maybe enhancement applies differently to this object?”

“I’ve never seen anything like it. Calling it a divine artifact doesn’t even fit. Its existence itself is different.”

Just as disappointment began to surface—

—Foolish. Do you really think the book merely reads and erases fate?

Lucifer’s voice echoed.

And then—

The book began to change.

At the same time, the Libram glitched violently, as if hacked or resonating, and began outputting unfamiliar text—

As though the Book itself was speaking through it.

“…Is this real?”

I stared at the message.

[The Book of Fate awakens as the Book of Genesis.]

[The Book of Genesis selects you—bearer of the divine authority of Death and Life—as its Resonant.]

[The awakened Book of Genesis grants you Absolute Mental Resistance.]

[Additional abilities will activate upon successful further enhancement.]

This unknown book claimed that with each enhancement, it would grant power that mocked divine authorities.

And just now—

Did it say Absolute Mental Resistance?

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