About ten minutes before the explosion...
An Armed Apostle named Rudolf, accompanied by the artificial lifeform Astarte, approached the center of Itogami Island, the Keystone Gate.
"I can feel that he is here, Astarte. Do it. Destroy everything here. Kill them all. No... this is the place where the Son of God was found. Even if it is a cursed land, the only one qualified to kill the people living here is His Majesty Cid, the Son of God. Unless it is absolutely necessary, do not kill them."
Rudolf hated the Management Corporation on this island, and in his eyes, these guards were nothing more than the Management Corporation's lackeys. They deserved to die just the same.
But this was the place where he had encountered the Son of God. He did not know whether the Son of God had moved to Itogami Island later or had been born on Itogami Island in the first place.
If it was the latter, then this would be the Son of God's territory. He had already told the Son of God that he intended to sink this island, and the Son of God had allowed it. But the Son of God had not said he was allowed to kill the people of his territory, so Rudolf had no right to do so.
As he spoke, Rudolf took a metal sphere from his clothes and threw it into the Keystone Gate.
The moment the metal sphere hit the ground, a Magic Circle appeared in the sky, and immense Magical Power engulfed the entire Keystone Gate. The next second, an explosion rang across the island.
When the smoke and dust cleared, only ruins remained, along with the two of them standing atop the wreckage beneath a special barrier.
"Order accepted."
It was as if Astarte only reacted now. White Magical Power surged, and the giant white arm appeared once again.
The huge arm slammed heavily into the iron wall still standing amid the ruins, the same iron wall that had withstood the previous blast. Magic symbols faintly lit up across it, as though trying to activate once more and restore the magical defense that had blocked the explosion.
Unfortunately, it simply did not have the power left. To stop that earlier explosion and keep the entire Keystone Gate from being destroyed, the building's defense system had already used up all its energy.
Without energy, even the strongest Magic Circle was nothing more than decoration. The alloy wall, several meters thick, was blasted open with ease by the giant arm.
Only after Rudolf and Astarte stepped inside did the defenders within the Keystone Gate finally react, rushing forward in a wave to capture Rudolf.
In less than twenty seconds, the guards at the front reached Rudolf. Without any warning, they raised their guns and opened fire.
Rudolf showed no reaction at all to their actions. He simply watched them pull the trigger, a crazed grin spreading across his rough face. Beside him, Astarte moved without receiving any command.
"Rhododactylos!"
A mechanical voice rang out as Magical Power gathered around Astarte and formed a white physical entity. A four meter tall white giant appeared.
The formulas inscribed on the enchanted bullets were instantly destroyed the moment they touched the surface of the white giant by the divine vibration wave formulas engraved upon it. Without Magical Power reinforcing them, the fired bullets were not even worthy of breaking through the white giant's defense.
Ignoring the bullets the guards fired, Astarte controlled Rhododactylos and brought it right in front of them. The giant arm rose high, then came smashing down.
Violence. Pure violence.
How could an ordinary human body possibly withstand force powerful enough to shatter a massive boulder with ease?
The guards were sent flying straight into the wall by the white giant arm. A single blow was enough to leave them unable to fight.
Ignoring the guards collapsed in pools of blood, the two continued downward.
The farther they went, the stronger the resistance became. Their opponents were the most elite heavy armored unit of the Itogami Island Guard, and even then, they were only a unit.
Shells engraved with magical formulas, long range curses with all kinds of special effects, and Magic Bullets packed with enormous amounts of Magical Power came screaming toward them.
A one sided massacre began.
No, massacre was not the right word. The guards lying in pools of blood had lost the ability to fight, but as long as they received treatment in time, their lives were not in danger.
In just over ten minutes, the two of them reached the deepest level. The only thing the so called elite unit had managed to do was delay their advance.
This was a place buried deep beneath the seafloor, completely sealed, a land of darkness without even the faintest ray of light. It was also the location of the keystone supporting the entire island. If this place were destroyed, Itogami Island would probably sink to the bottom of the sea within a day.
"Boom!"
The iron door sealing off the final level was blasted open, and light from the floor above shone into this place that had remained in darkness for decades.
What was surprising was that at the center of this room, the keystone supporting the weight of the entire Itogami Island, there was actually a glass cylinder less than one meter in diameter. It was filled with liquid, and inside it, an arm was submerged.
"Oh… oh…!"
As he approached the glass cylinder, Rudolf let out a cry filled with anger, joy, and sorrow all at once. Tears streamed down his face as his entire body trembled, and he dropped to his knees.
"O immortal body stolen from the hands of us, the Western Church… I have waited far too long for it to return to the faithful!
Astarte, pull out that cursed wedge and bring judgment upon this accursed island!"
Staring at the arm inside the glass, wrinkled like that of an old man, pale yet carrying a sacred aura, Rudolf gave the order.
"Order accepted. Rhododactylos."
Receiving the command, Astarte controlled the giant white arm formed from her Magical Power and smashed it toward the glass pillar.
Clang!
A silver spear fell from above and blocked the giant white arm.
"What?!"
Rudolf had not expected someone to interfere at such a critical moment. He raised his giant axe again and looked toward the intruder.
The one who had arrived was Yukina Himeragi. Thanks to the time bought by the Island Guard, Yukina Himeragi managed to reach the place just before Rudolf could destroy the keystone.
"Stop! As a clergyman, do you really intend to send hundreds of thousands of lives on this island to the bottom of the sea? Do you intend to commit such an unforgivable crime?"
Yukina Himeragi spoke while still catching her breath, her voice filled with anger and confusion. She was furious at the thought of a crime that would kill hundreds of thousands of people, yet she could not understand why a holy priest, an Armed Apostle, would travel so far just to commit such a monstrous act and sink the island.
"You want to stop me?"
Rudolf looked at Yukina Himeragi coldly, then suddenly raised his voice.
"Look behind you, Sword Shaman of the Lion King Organization. Once you see it, you will understand why."
The emotion in his voice carried humiliation, anger, and agitation. Without thinking, Yukina Himeragi followed his words and turned around.
When she arrived earlier, she had immediately seen Astarte attempting to destroy the keystone and had no time to observe her surroundings. But when she turned and saw the arm submerged in liquid, her pupils trembled instantly, and the spear she was holding lowered slightly.
"Th this... what is this?"
"This is the legendary Holy Relic. The Right Arm of the Saint."
Rudolf's voice was calm, but anger simmered beneath it.
"This island known as Itogami Island was built forty years ago. Sword Shaman, do you think the technology forty years ago was advanced enough to create a keystone capable of supporting an entire island?"
Watching Yukina Himeragi's face grow paler with every word, Rudolf revealed a mocking smile.
"Of course not. Then how was this island created?
Through human sacrifice. The island's designer, Meiga Itogami, used a living sacrifice to increase the strength of the keystone. The one sacrificed was the right arm of the saint worshipped by our Western Church. Because of such a ridiculous reason, the body of a saint was trampled beneath countless people.
Tell me, should I not be angry?"
By now the emotions hidden in Rudolf's voice were no longer restrained, and his voice rose.
"You say I have committed a crime. What crime have I committed?
I only want to take back what already belongs to us. What crime is that?
Who is the one in the right? Is it you, someone who protects an island built by sacrificing the body of a saint, or is it me, someone who only wants to reclaim what was taken from us?
Now step aside, Sword Shaman."
With that, Rudolf raised his giant axe again. His emotions had already pushed him past the point of letting Astarte destroy the keystone. He wanted to destroy it with his own hands. Only then could he vent his anger.
Just as Rudolf stepped forward to pass Yukina Himeragi, a silver spear blocked his path.
"What is this, Sword Shaman? After learning the truth, you still intend to stop me?"
Facing Rudolf's question, Yukina Himeragi lowered her head and spoke with a trembling voice.
"I... I am sorry. But please, I beg you. For the sake of the innocent lives on this island, please give this island another chance. With today's technology, it will not take long to create a replacement keystone and remove the Holy Relic. There is no need for you to act so drastically."
"What use is an apology? I admit there are innocent people on this island, but are we not innocent as well? The one buried here is not your family, so of course you can say that.
If people only think about replacing the keystone and making amends after the truth is exposed, then the island itself is already stained with sin. It is not admitting guilt after creating the keystone. It is admitting guilt only because the island is about to sink. That is not remorse. That is not regret. That is fear of pain."
Seeing that Yukina Himeragi still had not lowered her spear, anger nearly overflowed from Rudolf's eyes. But thinking of Cid, he forced himself to suppress his rage and spoke one final sentence.
"This matter has nothing to do with you, and you cannot defeat us. Step aside, Sword Shaman."
Yukina Himeragi slowly raised her head. Her eyes carried guilt, but the determination within them made it clear that she had already made up her mind.
"I have only been on this island for a few days, but I have already met a Senpai who cares about me a lot. For that Senpai, for my classmates, and even for my own selfish feelings, I cannot let you sink this island."
"Astarte. Attack."
Rudolf stopped talking and directly ordered Astarte to move.
...
Sitting on the railing, Cid wore a black coat. Behind the mask, his calm eyes watched the three people fighting below.
"It looks like there is no chance to appear as the Eminence in Shadow this time."