Chapter 150: Lord of Snow

The Western Sea had become a battlefield of impossible scale.

Charlotte stood on the observation deck of the AMS Logres, watching as her fleet arranged itself in attack formation. The five massive warships hung in the sky like silver moons, their hulls gleaming with technological sophistication that didn't belong to this world.

"[Targetting systems online.]", a synthetic gravelly voice reported through the ship's speakers, "[Energy readings from the ice structure exceed predicted values by four hundred percent. Structural integrity: impenetrable by conventional means.]"

"Nothing about this is conventional.", Charlotte murmured, her eyes fixed on the distant pillar of ice.

It rose from the ocean like a frozen monument to entropy itself, a column of crystalline perfection that climbed toward the sky. Even from dozens of kilometers away, the cold radiating from it was palpable. The sea around it had begun to freeze, ice spreading outward in geometric patterns that looked more like mathematical equations than natural formations.

"Your Majesty.", Ennael spoke quietly from behind her, "The Still Fantasy has noticed our presence."

Charlotte smiled, tilting her head slightly. "Of course it has. It didn't conquer time by being unobservant; that is a Great Old One we are facing. All ships, full bombardment."

The order rippled through the fleet instantly. 

VRRRRRRRR—

The air itself screamed as the AMS Logres discharged its primary weapons. Beams of concentrated energy, each one containing enough power to level a mountain, lanced through the sky toward the ice pillar. The other four ships followed immediately after their weapons, creating a web of destruction that turned the sky white with raw force.

The bombardment struck the pillar simultaneously.

For a moment, there was nothing but light. Pure, blinding radiance as energies capable of cracking planets collided with ice formed by a being that had conquered the concept of stillness itself.

Then the light faded.

The pillar stood unchanged; not even a scratch marred its surface.

"[Damage assessment: insignificant.]", her dear Knight reported, "[Target remains at one hundred percent structural integrity. Ice expansion rate: unchanged.]"

"Hm...", Charlotte hummed thoughtfully, "The Still Fantasy has frozen the attack in a state of preservation, making them lose power slowly."

That was the ultimate power of Ice, the ability to freeze anything of the highest order. She raised her hand, snapping her fingers once.

"Again. Increase output by three hundred percent. Rotate firing sequences; I want sustained pressure, not burst attacks. And activate the temporal accelerators. Let's see if it can freeze something that's moving at different speeds of time simultaneously."

"[As you command, Your Majesty.]", the Knighy obeyed.

VRRRRRRRR—VRRRRRRRR—VRRRRRRRR—

The bombardment resumed, but different now. Energy beams of varying frequencies and temporal states hammered the pillar from all angles. Some struck at normal time, others accelerated to hit microseconds in the future, others delayed to impact the past moment. A tapestry of controlled violence designed to overwhelm even conceptual defenses.

The pillar began to glow. Not from damage, but from absorbed energy. The ice was drinking in the attacks like a reservoir, storing the power within its crystalline structure.

"Oh.", Charlotte's smile widened, "Oh, that's clever. It's not defending. It's collecting with the power of Bind."

...

From above the pillar, Mazal Khyalan observed the assault with something approaching delight.

The sprite-like creature of ice and cold air floated in the hollow center of its creation, scarf trailing behind it as it studied the readouts appearing in frozen panels around it. Each blast of energy was catalogued, measured, incorporated into the growing structure.

"More~ more~", The Still Fantasy giggled to itself, "Give me more beautiful light! More glorious fury! The Gallery demands only the finest pieces!!"

Its tiny hands moved in conducting motions, and the ice responded. The dome grew, expanding outward, fed by the very attacks meant to destroy it. New patterns formed in its surface, fractals that suggested depths the structure didn't possess.

Above, the storm began. That was the first indication that something had changed. Flakes of crystalline ice danced around the pillar in spiraling formations. The temperature dropped another twenty degrees in an instant, then another twenty, then more still until the very air began to crystallize.

The Western Sea froze solid for a hundred kilometers in every direction.

"[Defenses nominal.]", her Knight reported, "[Hull temperature dropping. External temperature has reached minus two hundred degrees and falling. Fleet integrity at ninety-one percent and declining.]"

Charlotte tapped her fingers against the railing, considering. The snow was spreading now, a blizzard that shouldn't be possible in this region. Each flake was a tiny fragment of The Still Fantasy's power, a microscopic piece of its domain spreading across the world.

She wanted to test more on how far a Great Old One can go. But ultimately, this world is not her stage.

"Pull back to twenty kilometers.", she ordered, "Maintain bombardment but increase firing angles. I want orbital strikes, not direct engagement."

As if summoned by the words, reality on the beach began to scream.

The Goddess of Madness stood at the frozen shoreline, staring at the pillar with silver eyes that had witnessed the birth and death of civilizations. Around her, flesh writhed. It was the accumulated mass of a thousand failed experiments. Bodies merged and split and merged again, forming a singular thing that defied categorization.

"Vira Endesy (Life Simulation).", she whispered.

The abomination moved.

It expanded, growing from the size of a building to the size of a mountain in seconds. Limbs that were also mouths that were also eyes sprouted and retracted constantly, the creature existing in a state of perpetual transformation as it crossed the frozen sea toward the pillar.

The Still Fantasy noticed it immediately.

"Oho~ a gift? How thoughtful!!"

The storm intensified. Snow became ice became blades. Thousands of frozen projectiles launched themselves at the approaching abomination, each one sharp enough to cut reality, cold enough to freeze thought itself.

The creature absorbed them all. Every blade that struck simply became part of the mass, incorporated into the ever-shifting form. The abomination crashed into the pillar like a wave of living madness, wrapping around it, trying to crush it, to corrupt it, to transform it into something that could be destroyed.

The pillar didn't move.

The flesh writhed and screamed and pushed, applying pressure that should have shattered mountains. The abomination poured more of itself against the ice, trying to find purchase, trying to find a weakness.

Yet nothing.

The Still Fantasy giggled from up high in its sanctuary, "Beautiful too~ but it is not still. And what is not still cannot touch what is frozen!!"

The flesh began to crystallize.

Starting from the points of contact and spreading rapidly, the abomination froze. Not the simple ice of winter, but something deeper. Its state of being locked in place, its transformation halted mid-change. The creature that had been defined by constant mutation found itself stopped, preserved in a single moment forever.

Within seconds, it had become another part of the pillar, a grotesque sculpture of frozen madness adorning the Gallery of Infinity's newest piece.

On the beach, the Goddess of Madness frowned. She had more tricks up he sleeves.

"Preho Esmor (Corpse Bomb)", she commanded while ripping her heart out, crushing it.

The frozen sculpture glowed red, getting brighter and brighter. As if those souls sacrificed to the goddess were crying out in pain—

BOOOM!!!

The abomination exploded, creating a crimson mushroom cloud that sunders the world. And it seemingly made some cracks in the pillar. Charlotte observed from her flagship, receiving a cup of hot milk from Ennael, taking a casual sip.

She glanced at Celosia, who stood nearby with his arms crossed, frowning at the distant pillar, "Are you done?"

"Almost, just need the signal from The Void Enigma.", he replied, "I've fully charged... whatever is underneath this."

"Mm, alright.", Charlotte turned back to the battle, "My dear Knight, let us show this Great Old One the power of love!!"

That statement made Celosia coughed, "Ehem! Do you really love me?"

"Platonically, yes.", she shrugged, "I only have enough space in my heart for myself, then my people."

"You got me there for a second.", he let out a sigh of relief, "I wouldn't want a freak like you to love me."

"Your Majesty.", Ennael interjected carefully, "I'm detecting another presence in the water."

Charlotte's smile didn't waver, but her eyes sharpened, "I know. The Flood is here, but it won't interfere. I still have no idea what they want."

Far below, hidden in the depths of the Western Sea, The Flood observed.

The vortex of blue light pulsed slowly, recording everything. The Chalk Princess and her impossible fleet. The Still Fantasy and its growing monument. The energy signatures, the temporal distortions, the conceptual warfare.

But The Flood did nothing in this chaos of ice and fire. It simply watched, a force of nature bearing witness to forces beyond nature.

=0=0=

The bombardment continued for hours.

Everything in Charlotte's arsenal that didn't risk destroying the planet itself was used. She could use some more powerful stuff, but that wouldn't be fun.

The Goddess of Madness kept on creating abominations from her flesh, sending her flesh bombs to break the pillar little by little.

But the pillar grew with each attack, feeding on the violence directed at it. It had reached almost half the globe. The storm around it had intensified to the point where snow fell constantly across the entire western continent, unseasonable and impossible and utterly unstoppable.

Charlotte in the control room, however, looked delighted.

"It's quite magnificent", she breathed, "A being that has truly conquered time."

"Then why are we continuing?", Jim asked from his position near the tactical displays. He had been watching the battle with growing concern, instincts telling him this was a losing engagement.

Charlotte turned to him with that manic gleam in her eyes, "Because if we can't destroy it, we need to understand it. And you understand something by testing its limits. How much can it absorb? What's the threshold?"

She turned back to the white storm, "But in the end, I just need more firepower."

Something changed. Even the constant bombardment seemed to pause, though the weapons continued firing.

From the east, from the direction of the Great Desert, something was approaching. It was small at first, a distant speck against the sky. But as it drew closer, details emerged.

A bird made of wood, its wings spread wide, each feather a masterwork of craftsmanship. It flew with purpose, cutting through the storm without deviation, heading directly for the pillar of ice.

Charlotte's expression shifted. The manic joy faded, replaced by something more serious.

"The God of Knowledge...", she murmured, "Finally decided to involve itself."

The bird didn't slow. It didn't hesitate. It simply flew directly into the pillar of ice, disappearing into the crystalline surface as if passing through water.

And then...

"Celosia, blast that thing down for me, will you?", Charlotte requested.

"Alright.", he shrugged.

His body partially became flame, hot enough that the room began to melt. The wall opened up, a gate letting Celosia exit in a blazing flash. To meet with the creation of a god.

But what is a god compared to the Herald of Flame? A god compared to the servant of a Great Old One

Celosia shot through the sky like a comet of pure flame. The air around him ignited, leaving a trail of fire that burned impossibly hot, hotter than any natural flame, hotter than the surface of normal stars.

The wooden bird sensed him immediately.

It tried to evade, banking left with supernatural grace. But Celosia was faster. His hand shot forward, fingers closing around the bird's body.

He muttered, "Nothing personal."

FWOOOOSH—

The flames erupted. The wooden bird simply ceased to exist in an instant, consumed so completely that not even ash remained. The knowledge encoded in its grain, the divine purpose carved into every feather, all of it burned away in a single heartbeat. The God of Knowledge's creation was undone in an instant.

Celosia hovered in the air for a moment, watching the empty space where the bird had been.

"Excellent~", Charlotte crackled back after witnessing it from her seat, delighted, "Now we can proceed without unexpected guests. The God of Knowledge will be upset, but he'll understand, or he won't. Either way, it doesn't matter."

Celosia turned back toward the fleet, toward the pillar of ice that continued to grow its dome despite everything thrown at it.

Then he saw it, an aurora of violet and blue. Casting over the entire dome - the signal of the Elemental Lord.

"Charlotte, now!!", he yelled.

With a snap of her finger and a smile, Charlotte jumped up from her seat.

"My dear Knight, Utopia!! I commence Rousing of the Round Table!!", she pointed at the pillar of ice.

"[As you command, Your Majesty.]"

AMS Logres split open; its bottom half came apart. What was hidden inside was a massive cannon, spewing out fire as it woke up. On the barrel of the cannon were seven slots for seven swords, all being filled by sacred swords from Earth.

Charlotte tapped her compass, creating a knife in her left hand— and she slit her right hand's wrist.

"I Offer to the Universe—", the golden scale of Equivalent Exchange manifested behind her, "For the price of my blood, I want guaranteed victory."

The scale let out a radiant glow, as if judging her. Then the voice beyond the cracks of time came.

"Chosen One of Time;

Embracer of Origin, Daughter of Judgement and Salvation;

The Monarch clad in Argent Light."

She is precious; there is only one of her across the universe. Charlotte knew her value well, so well that the Scale of Exchange cannot find fault and scam her. It accepted her payment.

And now...

"Let the show begin."