He observed the towering figure of Mercyros with cold, calculating detachment. The deity radiated an aura of absolute supremacy, standing undisturbed amidst the absolute destruction. Pilt stepped forward with sudden urgency, driven by a desperate need to liquidate the immediate threat before their collective resources ran completely dry.
Arthur reached out and grabbed the tailored fabric of Pilt's ruined coat. He pulled the wealthy executive backward with firm, unyielding strength.
"Wait, you will get yourself killed," Arthur commanded. His tone remained remarkably friendly, yet it carried an undeniable core of absolute authority that demanded immediate compliance.
Pilt snapped his gaze back toward Arthur. Unfiltered fury and bitter frustration tightened the corners of his mouth. He despised being physically restrained, especially when the quarterly projections of his own survival were currently dropping toward zero.
"Target the primary source," Pilt instructed. He pointed a sharp finger toward the central foundation located directly underneath the massive column where the deity hovered. "His structural integrity relies on the ambient energy flowing through that exact platform."
Ayame stepped forward from the shadows of the broken pillars. Her expression remained entirely unreadable. She evaluated the glowing deity with cold, clinical precision.
"Even if we manage to sever his immediate connection to the platform, your strategy is deeply flawed," Ayame noted. Her voice was incredibly blunt and sharp. "What will you actually do about his physical form once the foundation is gone?"
Pilt felt his face contort with a mixture of raw fury and deep bitterness. He hated her logical assessment. He knew the young warrior was certainly underestimating his vast metaphysical capital of fate essence and collective faith as an awekened, but her core argument remained entirely valid. A divine Monolith did not simply collapse because a mortal chipped the stone beneath his feet.
Arthur raised his right hand and pointed his palm toward Ayame. He shook his head slowly to dismiss her pessimistic calculations. Ayame briefly glanced at him, absorbing the silent reprimand without a single argument.
"Alright," Ayame conceded, shifting her weight onto her back foot.
Arthur immediately started barking out tactical orders. He abandoned his gentle demeanor entirely, adopting the harsh cadence of a seasoned battlefield commander.
"The ground beneath us is completely unstable, and we are currently sitting ducks," Arthur announced, scanning the volatile environment. "We must advance. When cornered by a superior predator, even a small mouse will bite back with lethal intent."
Pilt maintained a facial expression entirely devoid of humor. He did not appreciate being compared to a cornered rodent. He viewed himself as a highly leveraged investor currently executing a hostile takeover against a massive divine monopoly.
Arthur cleared his throat loudly. He tightened his grip on his heavy weapon.
"Go," Arthur shouted.
Ayame ran forward instantly. She launched her body directly toward the open air above the shattered platform. Red liquid immediately started to seep from the pores of her skin. The blood surrounded her frame, crystallizing rapidly as she left Arthur standing behind her.
"I am trusting you completely," Arthur declared, preparing to follow her trajectory.
"Wait," Pilt commanded, his voice stuttering against the overwhelming pressure of the domain.
Pilt activated his perceptive traits. He looked directly into the immediate flow of time. He saw a devastating attack forming in the unseen future. It was a precise, invisible strike orchestrated by Mercyros. It represented the absolute equivalent of a flawless slaughter.
"Six o'clock attack coming from the right side," Pilt yelled, warning the advancing warriors of the invisible danger.
Arthur twisted his body violently in mid-air. He reached out and grabbed Ayame by the hand. He threw her forward with incredible force, altering her original vector just in time to avoid the unseen hazard. Arthur then brought his heavy blade around in a massive arc. He sliced the empty air completely in half. The violent motion dumped an immense amount of gravitational force into the atmosphere. The impact immediately sent massive shockwaves rippling across the chamber and violently broke off the outer layers of his own heavy armor.
"Incoming directly in front of you, twelve o'clock, arriving in exactly two seconds!" Pilt updated, tracking the rapidly shifting timelines.
Ayame reacted with flawless precision.
She threw her hand forward.
She formed solid slates of crystallized blood directly beneath her boots.
She braced herself against the floating red platforms.
Her muscles tensed visibly beneath her clothing.
Her eyes flared with a terrifying, deep red color.
Her physical size began to grow rapidly, her muscles expanding as she channeled her fate essence.
The invisible kinetic impact hit her solid defense. The blood slates cracked under the immense pressure, but she stood her ground perfectly.
Pilt felt his own eyes begin to glow with a bright, piercing yellow light.
He reached deep into the metaphysical fabric of the universe.
He pulled forward a specific future timeline that only one of them would truly understand. He sought a definitive reality where the almighty Monolith actually bled.
The cost of this specific future was astronomically expensive. The transaction required an impossible amount of fate essence. Pilt pulled the heavy temporal threads forward anyway. His glowing eyes reflected a distant reality that immediately crystallized into his highly desired outcome.
He threw his hands forward in a grand, sweeping gesture. The movement resembled a complex, preemptive dance designed to manipulate the fundamental laws of probability.
"I call forward the absolute Archetype of Fortuna," Pilt screamed, his voice tearing at the lining of his throat.
A massive, ethereal being came to life directly behind Pilt's shoulders. The towering entity consisted entirely of pristine, glowing crystal skin. The majestic figure possessed a massive, slowly turning wheel mounted upon its stomache. Long strands of golden hair flowed backward into the empty air, weaving themselves into the dark atmosphere of the domain.
Mercyros looked away from the two oncoming attackers. The deity narrowed his glowing eyes and focused entirely on Pilt. The sudden manifestation of the Archetype demanded absolute divine attention.
Archetypes were the literal embodiments of historical figures from an ancient era. Even the most renowned among them were relentlessly sought after, for only those who possessed enough collective faith and carried multiple mandates could hope to embrace an Archetype.
But that rule did not apply to Pilt.
Fortuna was not something he sought.
It was his birthright.
Suddenly the wheel turned.
Fortuna glowed with blinding brilliance.
The crystal entity channeled an impossible amount of credence and raw Fate Essence directly into Pilt's mortal body. The sudden influx of divine fate essence at its purest form tripled his trait output.
The archetype quickly escalated, tripling his total resonance with his thread of fate.
The specific characteristics of an enlightened similar to mercyros himself, being now manifested fully within his mortal shell.
Pilt could feel his unique trait, Deja Vu, being pushed to the absolute maximum limit.
'I am not done investing yet,' Pilt determined silently, his mind racing through countless probability equations.
He reached deep inside the inner pockets of his ruined coat. He pulled out another expensive magical charm. This specific artifact was slightly less dangerous than his previous tools. He hurled the polished stone forward and immediately grabbed the empty air with both of his bare hands.
Thick drops of dark blood started to leak from the corners of his glowing yellow eyes.
One of the primary occupational hazards of overestimating a single thread of fate involved severe biological blowback. Channeling a massive amount of Fate Essence and stolen credence left the human body incredibly prone to spiritual dispute. In the absolute worst-case scenario, the user would immediately contract the withering.
Pilt bled profusely down his cheeks as he aggressively pulled the future timeline into the present reality.
The heavy atmosphere of the entire domain seemed to ripple and distort around them. Mercyros looked at the two physical attackers closing the distance. The deity launched a devastating countermeasure. Ayame and Arthur should have died instantly under the crushing weight of the divine retaliation.
The lethal attack missed its targets completely. Pilt had successfully altered the spatial coordinates of the present moment.
Arthur held his sword high above his head. He ran gracefully and efficiently along the floating blood slates Ayame constantly manifested in the empty air. The heavy metal blade gleamed brightly in the ambient light. Ayame sprinted on the red platforms directly above him. She formed a massive, sharp shaft of condensed blood between her hands. She drove the crimson harpoon straight toward Mercyros.
Pilt felt his yellow eyes flare with intense, blinding light. The pressure inside his skull threatened to crack his bones.
"I call forward an absolutely impossible future," Pilt roared, spitting blood over his own chin.
Arthur swung his heavy blade down with devastating force. The metal weapon struck the divine barrier and shattered instantly into a thousand useless fragments. Simultaneously, Ayame hit an invisible wall of pure temporal energy. She became completely locked in place, paralyzed by a sudden wave of chrono stasis.
Pilt bled continuously, struggling to remain upright on his shaking knees. Thick blue veins throbbed violently against his temples. His eyes were turning completely red from the immense internal hemorrhaging. He bit down hard on his own tongue to ground himself in the physical pain. He yelled with such overwhelming volume that the sound waves actually disrupted the golden mist.
Suddenly, Arthur extended his empty hand. He fired a brand new energetic blade into the space above his head. The weapon stretched incredibly long, rippling with connected energy and a fierce, ethereal blue light.
The temporal anomaly shattered. Ayame broke away from the stagnant, stasis-induced trance. She charged ahead with renewed fury, driving her massive blood harpoon forward.
Together, the two warriors moved in perfect synchronization. They aimed their combined, devastating attacks directly toward the center of the Monolith.
Absolute hell broke loose across the chamber.