After that chain of seven kicks, DESTRUDOS no longer seemed like the undying presence THEY had just been.
THEIR enormous form slowly toppled backward, and in the instant before it hit the ground, it completely dissolved into smoke and dust.
The smoke was a murky black, as if it meant to stain everything with darkness.
But rainbow light poured down from the sky, scattering every trace of that scorched-black aura.
Penacony, once so clamorous, seemed almost quiet for a moment.
Yet this quiet was not the deathly silence from before. It felt like the stillness after all things had fallen asleep.
A beautiful dream ended in waking. And because this was sleep, everyone would wake eventually.
And in that regard, there were some people who wanted that beautiful dream to last just a little longer...
"It seems this battle has finally come to an end."
Seeing the distant threat disappear, the figures shimmering with seven-colored light could finally feel a moment of ease.
At that moment, they were inside a protective dome formed from the ground itself.
And where had that protective dome come from?
One only needed to look at the palm print at its starting point to know.
It was a shelter created in an instant through alchemy.
None of them had ever imagined that, at the very end, they would be protected here by someone else.
When DESTRUDOS began THEIR hymn and stripped away countless colors, they had known this would be an exceedingly difficult battle.
They had even prepared themselves to die again.
As the deceased who had revived from NIHILITY, death itself did not frighten them much.
Yet what they had never expected was that this battle, which looked anything but simple, ultimately had no need for their assistance at all.
"That man is terrifyingly strong."
The moment those words were spoken, they earned everyone's unanimous agreement.
He had been able to create this protection for them the instant DESTRUDOS began playing ORDER, and he had even come up with a countermeasure.
That kind of battlefield adaptability and capability left even these former warriors in awe.
If it had been them, there was no way they could have responded so perfectly.
"Isn't that obvious? Sora was always strong."
Yet what left the others awestruck was utterly ordinary to the Iron Cavalry.
They had already seen it countless times, so by now they were practically used to it.
"If only he were a little weaker. Then I could *&%￥#! him—"
Unkyō was cut off mid-sentence by a hand over her mouth.
There were outsiders here right now. Those words absolutely could not be allowed out of her mouth!
"Sorry, sorry. She has a bit of a problem and always says nonsense without thinking. Please don't mind her."
Mitsutake hurriedly explained to the people in seven-colored firefly armor before her.
After hearing her explanation, however, they merely exchanged glances.
For a short while, the atmosphere fell into a strange, awkward silence, and that awkwardness refused to fade.
Mitsutake's brow twitched.
She had decided!
Once they got back, she was absolutely going to give Unkyō a proper talking-to!
They could not let this girl keep embarrassing them in public!
Unfortunately, that was something she could only do later. Right now, she still had to find a way to deal with the figures in front of her.
But just as Mitsutake was thinking about how to smooth over what had just happened, a sound suddenly came from outside, breaking the heavy silence.
"I can feel them. They're here..."
"But isn't this the ground?"
Voices in conversation came from extremely close by.
Those voices, however, sounded somewhat familiar.
When the people inside broke through the ground and came out to look, they saw several figures outside searching for something.
On closer look, wasn't that Robin?
And the one leading the way was Hotaru, who had fallen unconscious earlier when DESTRUDOS revived.
Robin was holding Kohane's hand, following Hotaru as they searched the area.
It was obvious. They were looking for the Iron Cavalry.
So they hurriedly called out, and when the three on the other side saw that they were safe and sound, the worry hanging in their hearts finally eased.
"Thank goodness. I'm so glad you're all right."
Hotaru looked at them. Though they were a little dusty, none of them had suffered any injuries, and for a moment she did not know what to say.
"What are you talking about? How could we possibly stop here?"
"Exactly, exactly. We're in great shape right now!"
In response to Hotaru's concern, they struck exaggeratedly sturdy poses.
After checking on them, Hotaru could not help turning her gaze toward the other group.
Those rainbow-hued figures, their faces impossible to see, noticed her gaze and gave a slight nod.
"It's been a long time, serial number CR-62713..."
Hearing that old serial number, Hotaru fell into a daze.
That familiar number dragged her straight back to the defensive point she had once guarded.
At the same time, in her eyes, smiling faces surfaced upon those indistinct faces before her.
They were the ones who had once protected her, a defective genetic product, behind them.
They were the ones who had once shielded her.
They were her first friends.
"No, perhaps it would be better to call you Hotaru now."
"It doesn't matter. More importantly, have you all been..."
Hotaru suddenly remembered that the people before her were not truly present. They had already vanished into the past.
The events from back then rose before her eyes again.
Under the assault of endless Swarms that filled the sky and earth, their figures had looked so slender.
At that rate, they would never have been able to stop the Swarm's advance.
And at such a critical moment, the best choice had been to detonate the outpost and make the sacrifice count for as much as possible.
That was what they had done. But what no one had expected was...
When the outpost detonated, what it released was not a violent blaze, but the aura of NIHILITY.
The outpost they had been stationed at had been specially built to test the effects of this new weapon on the Swarm.
That was why this outpost had been able to tolerate keeping a defective product like her there.
And as NIHILITY flooded everything, everyone died...
By relying on the Path of REMEMBRANCE, which she had somehow stepped onto at some unknown point, Hotaru managed to preserve a tiny bit of self-awareness under those circumstances.
So within that realm of NIHILITY, she kept piecing together the remains of those friends.
She wanted to bring those friends back to her side.
And that wish had only finally come true now.
Because of that, Hotaru did not know what to say for a while.
It was as though she had returned to those days when she could not speak. Her hands kept gesturing, proving just how tangled and chaotic her heart was at that moment.
Facing her behavior, the seven-colored lights and shadows only smiled faintly.
"Thank you for what you did, CR-62713."
If Hotaru had not kept assembling them within the realm of NIHILITY, perhaps they would never have been able to meet her again like this.
"You kept our promise, Hotaru."
Their gazes shifted.
The Iron Cavalry, who were discussing how to deal with Unkyō, noticed their movement and smiled back at them.
These juniors who shared the same genes as them did not need to live amid betrayal and deceit as they once had.
For them, that was already the greatest comfort.
"This wasn't my achievement alone. It's the result of Sora's efforts."
Hotaru would not take all the credit. Or rather, Sora was the key reason the Iron Cavalry could live peacefully in this universe.
After all, they had been specially created to deal with those inexhaustible, nearly endless True Stings.
The Iron Cavalry's combat power put them among the strongest individual combatants in the entire universe.
Looting planets and hijacking ships would be nothing difficult for them.
A group like this gathered together in the universe could be called an extremely unstable factor.
In the face of such an unstable factor, most powers would naturally choose to eliminate them.
There would also certainly be some who set their sights on the secret behind their strength and launched research into it.
Conflict had never once ceased in this universe.
Yet after they left Zieltworth, they had never encountered such things at all.
And all of that was thanks to the people who had been rescued at Zieltworth back then.
Most of those who could seek treatment at Zieltworth, the cradle of new life, were either rich or noble.
When Zieltworth was swept up in that incident, the ones who had stepped forward then were Sora and the others.
Both sides had worked together to let those people holding power survive the crisis.
And after they were safe, Sora had even set sail again to escort them to medical facilities for emergency treatment.
This was far more than helping someone in their hour of need.
It was like inviting them into a warm room in the middle of a blizzard, then serving them a steaming meal besides.
Most people would probably remember something like that for the rest of their lives.
So after that incident, anyone in the universe who wanted to make a move against them inevitably had to think twice.
All of this was something Hotaru could never have accomplished.
Because what she had been thinking at the time was that, after dealing with Serus, she should quickly take her kin and leave Zieltworth.
It could be said that if things had really gone according to her plan back then, the Iron Cavalry would probably still be living a life of hiding and fleeing across the universe.
They absolutely would not be able to appear openly in a place like this as they did now.
Besides...
Hotaru suddenly smiled with relief. "If not for him, I wouldn't have been able to see you at this moment either."
Without Sora, she never would have been able to see these old friends again.
Looking back now, choosing to believe Sora back then had truly been the most correct decision.
After hearing Hotaru's words, the seven-colored figures exchanged glances.
Immediately after, seven-colored motes of light began to spread from their bodies.
After confirming that Hotaru was all right, they could finally leave this place in peace.
Seeing this, Hotaru also showed a smile.
"I've been doing very well. Thank you for worrying about me."
Seeing them off with hope on her face was her final answer to them.
But before they left, there was still one question they absolutely had to understand.
"Hotaru, while talking to you, you couldn't get through three sentences without bringing that man up."
Their tone was no longer as serious as before. It even carried a bit of playfulness.
"Do you like him?"
The moment those words came out, Kohane instantly felt the hand holding hers tighten.
She looked up and found that Robin's eyes had already narrowed slightly.
For some reason, she felt the air around them grow a little cold.
Was it her imagination?
And it was not only Robin. Even the noisy chatter from the Iron Cavalry had grown much quieter.
Even if they already knew the answer, joining in the fun was a living creature's natural instinct.
When questioned by her old friends, what would Hotaru say?
"Exactly, exactly. The light in your eyes when you were talking just now was practically spilling out."
"You couldn't get through three sentences without bringing him up. Sob, sob, you won't forget us later, will you?"
Hearing their teasing, Hotaru did not know what to say for a moment.
She stood there, her face flushed bright red.
Even after a long while, she still could not squeeze out a word.
Only at the very end did she murmur in a tiny voice, "T-this is a matter of trust. Can that really count as liking someone?"
When she said this, her gaze drifted aside, and she did not dare look at their expressions.
This was practically already stating the result outright.
And in response to her answer, her old friends naturally burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahahahahaha!"
Amid that laughter, they dissolved into seven-colored points of light and vanished before everyone's eyes.
At the very end, they left behind one reminder. "Remember to deal with the NIHILITY residue inside your body."
No matter how strong Sora was, the aura of NIHILITY definitely could not be considered anything good.
If she had the time, it was better to purge it quickly.
Although those were the words they left behind after departing, faint traces of laughter could still be heard.
It was obvious that they had left happily.
After seeing them off, Hotaru immediately let out a breath of relief.
She had never expected those people to throw out such a question. That was simply too awful!
She had decided!
For the next two years, she was absolutely not going to miss those people!
But when she turned around, she found that the atmosphere here also seemed to have been affected by what had just happened.
The area was completely silent. Everyone from the Iron Cavalry was watching her from the side while whispering among themselves.
Facing them, Hotaru had only one sentence, and it was enough to shut them down. "What are you looking at?!"
Aren't all of you the same?
They kept saying they were going to control Unkyō, but quite a few of them were her loyal readers.
Control her? Yeah, right.
Some of the Iron Cavalry guiltily looked away.
But Hotaru did not pay attention to them. Instead, she turned her gaze toward Robin.
"Um, about what just happened..."
For a moment, Hotaru did not know how to begin.
"It's nothing."
Yet what Hotaru could not have imagined was that Robin seemed completely unaffected.
She kept Kohane protected in front of her, a calm smile hanging on her face.
"Meeting friends again always shakes loose a few things from the past. That's something to be happy about."
So in such a happy atmosphere, there was no need to fuss over whether certain things were true or not.
"Huh? Oh, oh, okay."
Hotaru answered as though she understood, and as though she did not.
She had the vague feeling that Robin's words seemed to carry some hidden meaning.
But when she thought it over carefully, it seemed like the sentence meant exactly what it said.
Was she overthinking it?
On the other side, Kohane secretly looked up to watch Robin's expression.
"Mom, are you really okay?"
If she remembered correctly, whenever something like this happened in her memories, the unlucky one was always Dad.
"Of course I'm okay."
Robin crouched down and tidied Kohane's hair.
She finally understood why Kohane had returned to this moment.
Because her appearance was confirming the future.
Since Kohane herself was proof, Robin did not need to care about anything.
It was just that when she saw a certain someone, she would have to have a very serious talk with him...
Kohane swallowed.
No matter how she looked at it, Mom was angry, right?
She was definitely angry, right?
She was clearly angry, so why say everything was fine?
In any case, the matter ended just like that in an atmosphere Kohane could not understand... or did it?
While Kohane was trying to guess what Robin was thinking, she suddenly sensed something and turned her gaze to the side.
Over there, she seemed to feel something...
WHOOSH!
A sudden breeze blew over, stirring her hair and making her eyes widen despite herself.
In that direction, a dense darkness slowly bloomed like a black rose and swallowed her whole.
When her senses cleared again, what she saw was a massive black hole outlined by a dazzling halo.
And at that moment, she was standing alone in the water.
Robin was no longer by her side. Neither was the Iron Cavalry.
It was as though she had been dragged into this eerie place in an instant.
"What is this place?"
Kohane looked around curiously.
After observing for a long while, she finally saw another presence in this lonely place.
It was a puppet with one smiling face and one pained face, quietly lit by the black hole.
[THIS IS THE MOVEMENT THAT CAN ONLY BE PLAYED AT THE FINAL MOMENT.]
LIFE-AND-DEATH RESONANCE: HYMN OF NIHILITY
The AEON of NIHILITY was a thorny matter even for other AEONS.
So unless absolutely forced, THEY would never touch such power lightly.
Conversely, the fact that THEY had touched such power proved that THEY had indeed reached the final moment.
[IF NOT FOR THAT SWORD, WE WOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN DEFEATED.]
That puppet slowly moved and came before Kohane.
[THERE IS A PORTION OF YOUR POWER WITHIN US.]
And that portion of power had acted upon THEM, allowing THEM to control the MOMENT OF LIFE.
So now, THEY, who had chosen to perform the hymn of NIHILITY, needed Kohane to help THEM break free from NIHILITY once again.
[THIS IS A GRACE. IF WE RETURN TO NORMAL, THEN WE SHALL LET YOU ENJOY THE MOST PEACEFUL DREAM!]
[OFFER IT. RETURN IT. LET OUR LIGHT POUR ACROSS THE UNIVERSE ONCE MORE!]
THEY slowly walked toward Kohane, while Kohane stood where she was, frowning.
Had DESTRUDOS done something?
No. She simply could not understand what THEY were saying.
"All this 'thou' and 'we' stuff—I don't understand any of it!"
After thinking for a long while, she ultimately chose to give up thinking.
Her reaction made the remnants of DESTRUDOS pause slightly.
How could this be? How could this child be so at ease before THEM?
No matter what, THEY were still an AEON. THEY had probably already lost the vast majority of THEIR power, and even THEIR body was gone.
But THEIR status had not weakened in the slightest.
No matter what, THEY were still an AEON!
Before a god, were mortals not supposed to prostrate themselves and beg?
How could this little child be so relaxed?
DESTRUDOS actually stopped in THEIR tracks at once. THEY kept feeling that something was not quite right about this.
But at that moment, that pained face lit up again.
[ENOUGH IDLE TALK. JUST MAKE HER OBEDIENTLY HAND OVER THE POWER THAT CAN LET US RETURN, AND THAT WILL BE ENOUGH, WON'T IT?]
After those words were spoken, Kohane understood immediately.
She clapped her hands. "So you want power!"
THEY should have said that earlier. If THEY had said so earlier, then she could...
Seven-colored light immediately spread across her black wings.
Seeing this, DESTRUDOS instantly grew extremely excited.
That was the power. With that power, THEY could also revive from NIHILITY once again!
[WHAT AN OBEDIENT DIVINE SERVANT. THEN WE SHALL...]
DESTRUDOS's voice slowly trailed off.
Because THEY discovered that the power Kohane displayed seemed a little wrong...
After Kohane released her power, illusory figures unexpectedly converged within this realm of NIHILITY.
These were... Before DESTRUDOS could identify them, the figures moved.
Some threw away their scabbards. Some took off their hoods. Others placed their fingers before their lips and blew lightly...
DESTRUDOS could not help feeling puzzled.
[WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?]
...
Kohane's body went limp. Luckily, Robin was quick enough to catch her, or she would have hit the ground.
But catching her did not mean everything was fine. At this very moment, Kohane's eyes were closed, and she had suddenly fallen asleep.
No matter how one thought about it, this was not normal!
Hotaru abruptly jolted. "I sensed a trace of NIHILITY!"
It was not the aura of NIHILITY she herself carried. Rather, it was as if a fresh trace of NIHILITY had just appeared.
What exactly was this...
"Someone is trying to use NIHILITY to hide their own existence."
Just as Hotaru was feeling shocked, another voice suddenly sounded from the side.
When she looked over, she saw purple hair swaying above them.
A woman holding a long blade was staring fixedly at Hotaru.
"You're... the person who asked for directions before?"
Hotaru remembered her previous meeting with Acheron.
Acheron, however, looked utterly confused, because she had already forgotten what had happened before.
And the reason she had come to this place was because—
"I tracked the aura of NIHILITY all the way here."
She jumped down from above and landed directly in front of Hotaru, staring fixedly at Kohane.
"Now that aura is even thicker on her. It seems it must have attached itself to her."
"Th-then what will happen?"
Robin asked urgently.
Acheron did not answer. Instead, she looked toward Hotaru beside her.
Hotaru gave the answer in a somewhat grave tone. "She'll be swallowed by NIHILITY, broken down, and vanish."
At once, Robin became anxious.
"Is there any way?"
This was her daughter!
Acheron shook her head.
"If it were the NIHILITY on her, I could still deal with some of it."
She pointed at Hotaru, then looked at Kohane again.
"But the NIHILITY around her is extremely strange."
So strange that she was not entirely confident. If she accidentally hurt this little child, that would be the end of it.
The NIHILITY she carried was not something ordinary living beings could endure.
"How about... I try?"
But at this moment, Hotaru suddenly spoke.
"I've been entangled with her power before, so I can use her own power to open a crack."
Then they would have room to act, wouldn't they?
But before that, she needed Acheron's help.
Because the friends who had been coiled around her body had already departed, NIHILITY had weakened within her to an extremely faint state.
If she wanted to use the power of NIHILITY to resonate with Kohane, this little bit of power was nowhere near enough.
So she needed Acheron to give her NIHILITY.
"Are you serious?"
Acheron's expression grew solemn.
She believed the person before her should know very well what it felt like to carry NIHILITY.
It was torment that would gradually make one lose everything, until they even forgot themselves.
"Do we have that much time to think right now?"
Hotaru answered without hesitation.
"She helped me just now!"
If not for Kohane, how could she have met her friends from the past? How could she have made her final farewell to them?
Those things were already enough for her to make this choice!
"Stop wasting words. Do it!"
Sensing Hotaru's resolve, Acheron nodded.
Since Hotaru had already decided, she naturally would not try to advise her any further.
"Then clear the area!"
A sharp aura erupted from Acheron, immediately sending the Iron Cavalry gathered around them flying back some distance.
By the time they stabilized themselves, they discovered that her purple hair had already turned pure white.
Blood-red flowers dotted her hair and body, looking indescribably striking.
"Dusk's rain... it too shall fall."
She drew her long blade, and a boundless aura of NIHILITY poured out from within.
And Hotaru, who had long since prepared herself, drew that aura into her body.
The sensations of the past surged into her heart all at once. Blood-red markings immediately flooded across Hotaru's body.
This would definitely work!
Hotaru gathered all her power and began striving to connect with the NIHILITY surrounding Kohane's body.
She absolutely, absolutely had to bring this child back!
Even if she had to wager her life!
Here!
After wearing herself down for a moment, Hotaru immediately connected to the NIHILITY inside Kohane.
"Give this child back!"
She let out a sharp cry, and the power of the Path of NIHILITY within her surged and roiled.
Immediately after, her consciousness was actually forced directly into that newly born NIHILITY.
In that case, she would be able to bring that child back!
Only, when she came back to herself, she found herself standing in cool water.
The enormous halo in the distance made the black hole look even deeper, and the rippling water reflected her face.
Hotaru could see what she looked like now as well.
Pitch-black skin and blood-red eyes. If blood-red flames burned over her body too, she would look exactly the same as she once had.
But she was no longer who she had been!
So she absolutely would not walk the same path as before!
White flames burned over her body, quietly illuminating the surroundings.
What she needed to do now was find that child, then take her out of this place.
Since she had already lit the white flame symbolizing friendship, she should be the most conspicuous existence in this place.
At a time like this, as long as she called out a little, surely she would be able to...
Hotaru looked around and suddenly noticed that something seemed a little wrong in the distance.
Was there a scream coming from that direction?
"Am I hearing things?"
Hotaru frowned and slowly advanced toward where the sound came from.
The closer she drew, the louder the sound became.
[IT HURTS, IT HURTS! WHY DO YOU HAVE A SWORD TOO, YOU BASTARD?! AAAAAH!]
Hotaru raised an eyebrow. From the sound of it, that did not seem to be the child.
And she could confirm this was not an auditory hallucination.
Then the question was, what exactly was happening in this realm of NIHILITY?
Why would such a sound appear?
The doubts in Hotaru's heart grew more and more numerous, until an inexplicable guess suddenly rose in her mind.
She picked up a piece floating in the water and examined it carefully, only to find that it was actually part of a puppet.
Could it be DESTRUDOS?!
Hotaru was suddenly startled. She had seen that puppet god of ORDER rampaging through Penacony.
And now, in this place, she had actually seen puppet gears again. That immediately made her connect the two together.
Realizing something was wrong, Hotaru immediately quickened her pace toward the source of the sound.
And the farther forward she went, the closer the sound became.
However, the voice itself was growing weaker...
Until, after a certain distance, the voice gave one final cry.
[GUH~ KILL ME. KILL... ME...]
After that cry, the voice disappeared completely.
With it, Hotaru lost the ability to judge the distance between them through sound.
Fortunately, there were more and more parts in the water, proving that she was constantly getting closer to that place.
After she continued forward for another stretch, she finally saw the person she had come for.
The little girl was treading water nonstop in the distance. From the smile on her face, it seemed she had not been hurt in any way.
"Thank goodness. Thank goodness!"
Hotaru hurriedly ran toward her.
When Kohane noticed the sound behind her, she also showed a surprised expression.
"Aunt Hotaru! Why are you here?"
"I came to find you."
Since she had found her, they needed to get out quickly. This place was dangerous, after all!
Hotaru tried to rouse her power and take them both out of this place.
But just then, she seemed to hear a strange sound.
RIIIIIIP!
She looked up and froze in place.
A huge hand covered in rainbow armor had torn through the curtain of darkness and appeared in this place.
That hand was as massive as the sky, and it came straight toward Hotaru and Kohane to seize them!
Seeing this, Hotaru had no choice but to pull the little girl into her arms.
She did not notice Kohane's excited expression at all.
By the time Hotaru came back to herself, she discovered that she had already left the realm of NIHILITY.
The concerned voices surrounding her made her feel as if a lifetime had passed.
Just then...
"How did you get yourself into this state again?"
Along with that familiar voice, a finger tapped directly against Hotaru's forehead.
In that instant, she felt the NIHILITY within her rapidly draining away.
At the same time, some indescribable feeling was filling her body.
That was... the touch of life.
THUMP. THUMP.
Her heart, silent for so long, finally began to beat once more.
---
T/N: SORAAAAAA!!! MEET YOUR DAUGHTER!
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