'I can feel the power of a Constellation strongly from that monster.ʼ
It wasnʼt the power of a demon, one of the Constellations that had fallen to the Demon Realm, but the power of a true Constellation.
It was the power of the Constellations that had ascended to the Celestial Realm after the order of the Phenomenal World was established, no longer revealing themselves, manifesting through an unknown entity.
Zeke furrowed his brow in surprise, never expecting that Narak would have experimented even with the power of a Constellation from the Celestial Realm.
Rumble!
The clash between Zekeʼs power and Harvey Westʼs created a relatively stabilized intermediate zone.
There, the unknown entity was digesting the power of the Homunculus and blooming into its original form.
Zeke shouted toward Harvey West.
"Harvey West! What is the identity of that entity!"
At Zekeʼs words, Harvey West replied with a hardened expression.
"This is an outcome I didnʼt anticipate either. To think the fragment of an Angel would react to the Hero Kingʼs power."
Hearing Harvey Westʼs words, Zekeʼs face twisted in disbelief.
'The identity of that monster is an Angel?ʼ
Zeke had come across the name Angel in the Apocrypha, one of Laura Agamemnonʼs relics.
There, Angels served as heralds transmitting the will of the Primordial Light.
When earthly beings fell into corruption and succumbed to the temptations of evil, Angels would descend from the heavens and blow the Trumpet of the Apocalypse.
That signal would bring the Primordial Light scorching the earth with fierce flames and sweeping cities away in floods, eradicating the roots of corruption.
The legendary city of Carcosa had also vanished after thirteen Angels descended, blew the Trumpet of the Apocalypse, and a light that consumed everything in flames descended.
'That monster is a fragment of the Angels mentioned in the Apocrypha? But why did the
Angelʼs fragment react to Masterʼs Homunculus?ʼ
Hero King Kaisir was known to have been born between the Fairy King and the Great Sage.
The Fairy King was the sole being who retained the power of the Primordial Light, and that power had dwelled within Kaisir.
Having grown too strong to remain in the Phenomenal World, Kaisir had shed his mortal form and departed for the Fairy Realm, while the Great Sage created a Homunculus modeled after him to combat the Demon King.
In other words, Kaisirʼs Homunculus bore the Hero Kingʼs power, which ultimately traced back to the power of the Primordial Light.
Neither Harvey West nor Zeke had considered this, but even a minuscule trace of that power was enough to awaken the inherent divinity within the Angelʼs fragment.
Thanks to that, the Angelʼs fragment that absorbed Kaisirʼs Homunculus was able to reclaim its original power.
Crunch!
While Zeke and Harvey West were locked in a contest of strength, the Angelʼs fragment fully restored its form.
Rumble!
As it unfurled the wings enveloping its body, the form hidden within revealed itself.
Skin with a firm yet smooth surface, like polished marble.
A body three times larger than a humanʼs, with two pairs of wings sprouting from the back, and sturdy arms, legs, and torso.
The finally formed head bore no hair, but its harmonious features gave it a sleek appearance.
It looked less like a living creature and more like a statue placed in a temple.
Sensing the aura emanating from the Angel that had bloomed into its true form, Zeke realized its identity.
'One of the Thirteen Zodiac Palaces, the Constellation of Sagyeon Palace.ʼ
The Rom Empire worshiped the Sun God, the Moon Goddess, and the thirteen Constellations.
The empireʼs thirteen legions symbolized these Thirteen Zodiac Palaces, and their commanders received Hercion imbued with the Constellationsʼ authorities.
Zeke had once collected the Hercion of Morgan Buffon, a knight of Sagyeon Palace, and investigated the power of the Constellation.
Unlike the fallen Constellations, however, the authorities of the Constellations dwelling in the Hercion were too faint to manifest any special power.
Thus, he had assumed that the Constellations of the Celestial Realm could no longer properly exert their authorities after leaving the Phenomenal World.
Yet the entity before him distinctly emanated the aura of Sagyeon Palace among the Thirteen Zodiac Palaces.
Crunch!
As the Angel spread its wings and rose to its full height, a storm-like surge of energy erupted from its body.
At the same time, a message appeared before Zekeʼs eyes.
[Sentinel No. 13 connects to the dimensional server.]
[Information is updated.]
[Sentinel No. 13 detects an exclusion target.]
[Unauthorized escapees will be eliminated.]
[The extermination program of Sentinel No. 13 activates.]
With the message, a flash of light gleamed in the Angelʼs eyes.
At the same moment, the Angel opened its mouth wide.
Rooooar!
As the Angel let out a roar, astonishingly, a Unique Domain began to spread centered on it.
[The Unique Domain of Sentinel No. 13 unfolds.]
The dimensional storm unleashed by Zeke and Harvey West eroded into that domain, transforming the labyrinthʼs space into something entirely different.
In the sudden change, Zeke closed his eyes briefly and opened them to find a cityscape unfolding before him.
White buildings resembling temples lined the streets, among them towers piercing the sky like spires.
It was a vividly lifelike cityscape, yet not a trace of life could be felt within it.
It evoked a similar sensation to the time he had visited Carcosa, where the Primordial Temple once stood.
As he scanned them with a grave expression, another message appeared before Zeke.
[You have witnessed the forgotten city 'Holy City Laoconʼ within the Unique Domain of Sentinel No. 13.]
[A Fragment of Forgotten Time is detected.]
[The Fragment of Forgotten Time connects to the Akashic Code.]
[A large amount of Karma Data is updated.]
[Through this data, information on 'Holy City Laoconʼ is acquired.]
[System restriction codes related to this information are unlocked.]
[You can now view the list of skills and items associated with 'Holy City Laocon.ʼ] Zeke couldnʼt help but be astonished by the rising messages.
'A forgotten city? Holy City Laocon?ʼ
He had never heard the name of the city Laocon before.
It wasnʼt even mentioned in the Apocrypha discovered by Laura Agamemnon.
The fact that no records remained of a city of such immense scale shocked Zeke.
He realized that Laocon, too, was one of the ancient civilizations created and then erased by the whims of the Constellations.
'A city of this magnitude completely vanished at the mere will of the Constellations...ʼ Zeke opened his status window to check the lists of skills and items related to Laocon.
He confirmed that new lists had been updated, ones that hadnʼt existed before.
Astonishingly, there were thousands of holy magic and items similar to Rubernʼs light magic.
As long as he had Karma Points, he could manifest these items and skills.
'By recognizing past cities through Fragments of Forgotten Time and updating their information, it means I can retrieve the Karma Data that existed back then.ʼ
Zeke finally understood what Mephistopheles had meant when he handed him the 'Fragment of Forgotten Time.ʼ
The times of worlds erased by the Constellations.
The gaps in history that his mother, Laura Agamemnon, had sought were none other than these Fragments of Forgotten Time.
As he realized things he hadnʼt known before and quickly skimmed the information on Holy City Laocon, a change occurred in the sky.
Rumble!
The heavens split open, and a winged Angel descended from it.
The Angel of Sagyeon Palace that had drawn him into this domain.
The Angel hovered silently in the sky, gazing down at Laocon, then opened its mouth wide.
It unleashed a roar that echoed throughout the entire city.
Roooooooar!
As if responding to the Angelʼs cry, the city began to tremble.
At the same time, the towers standing tall in the city started to change.
Hummm!
A massive crystal appeared atop one of the towers.
And from that crystal, white light rippled before firing toward Zeke.
Zzzzzing!
The powerful beam raced toward Zeke.
Zeke raised shadows to block the light shot from the tower.
Sizzle!
Even with Shadow Armor activated, the force was so immense that Zekeʼs body was pushed back.
At that moment, crystals emerged from all the towers scattered across the city, beginning to fire similar beams.
Zzzzzing!
Over a dozen beams flew toward Zeke.
He raised Laevatein and unleashed a sword strike infused with the power of Astral Sword toward the lights.
Boom boom boom!
Zekeʼs sword strike collided with the beams, erupting into a massive explosion of light in midair.
The intense blast generated a shockwave-laden pulse.
Zeke blocked it with Shadow Armor, but the lightʼs wave seeped through, grazing his body.
'Ugh!ʼ
Astonishingly, the lightʼs wave inflicted damage even on Zekeʼs Immortal Body, which possessed the rank of a Transcendent.
Through the Akashic Code, Zeke confirmed that this light was a weapon specially designed to combat beings with divinity.
'A defensive weapon built into the entire city to fight Constellations.ʼ
Holy City Laocon had created weapons capable of opposing the Constellations to avert the apocalypse.
But in the end, Laocon was erased from history, and its ultimate weapon fell into the hands of the Constellations, turned against their enemies.
Hummm!
The towerʼs crystal seemed to gather lightʼs power once more for another attack.
Zeke raised his sword upon seeing this.
'Iʼll destroy the towers first.ʼ
Judging that offense was the best defense, Zeke invoked Elemental Sword and unleashed Chamber of Metal Power toward the tower.
Rumble rumble!
A powerful gravity field spread, shaking the towering structure.
But astonishingly, light flashed from the tower again, forming a barrier this time.
Hummm!
And that barrier neutralized the pressure of the gravity field Zeke had created, protecting the tower.
'A civilization that created something like this, wiped out without a trace. Just how immense is the authority of the Celestial Realmʼs Constellations?ʼ
With a grave expression, as another tower began firing light toward him again.
Zzzzzing!
Zeke dodged the incoming beams and struck them down with sword strikes, but the lights he thought heʼd evaded reflected off the surfaces of other towers, targeting his openings once more.
Zzzzzing!
The area was filled with white spears of light from the towers.
The entire city truly felt like a trap designed to capture Constellations.
As Zeke deflected the spears of light flying toward him, he turned his gaze toward the Angel hovering in the sky.
'This place is a Unique Domain created by that thing. If I slay the Angel and neutralize its authority, we should return to the original dimension.ʼ
Zeke pulled a Blood Tear Stone from his inventory and absorbed it to replenish his power.
Rumble!
After taking a breath, his eyes gleamed once more as a powerful Full Power Technique surged from his body.
He planned to strike the Angel with Full Power Technique, then deploy Chaos Field to nullify its authority.
Just as Zeke prepared to unleash Full Power Technique toward the Angel.
Whirrr—
Space rippled before Zeke, and someone appeared.
"Zeke Draker."
It was none other than Harvey West, who had been hiding with suppressed presence, now revealing himself before Zeke.
Zeke tried to redirect his attack upon seeing Harvey West suddenly appear.
But at that moment, Harvey West raised both hands, indicating no intent to attack, and said,
"I have a proposal for you."
Zeke glared at Harvey West with furrowed brows and replied, "A proposal now? Has the unexpected situation made you desperate?" At those words, Harvey West nodded.
"Youʼre right. The Angelʼs fragment fully blooming was unforeseen even for me. If we leave that entity as is, something grave will occur." Zeke scowled at Harvey Westʼs words.
"What do you mean by that?"
With a serious expression, Harvey West said,
"Angels are the trumpeters who blow the Trumpet of the Apocalypse. They are beings meant to awaken at the command of the Celestial Realmʼs Constellations. But since one has unexpectedly bloomed, the others will awaken one by one." Zeke vaguely grasped what Harvey West meant.
'No way...?ʼ
Seeing Zekeʼs hardened expression, Harvey West nodded.
"If all the Angels of the Thirteen Zodiac Palaces awaken and blow the Trumpet of the
Apocalypse... this world and its civilizations will be utterly erased."