Chapter 339

The ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍Kingdom Alliance's temporary camp.

"You ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍do not appear to be injured."

Claudio ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍quietly examined Tatia's eyes.

Her ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍face was unchanged from decades ago.

But ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍the standing he sensed from her was incomparable to when she had first awakened.

"If ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍I had known this would happen, I should have entered the sword too."

Reacting with some emptiness, Claudio recalled the past few months.

Immediately after Tatia awakened, Claudio sent her to Simon Eurasia's side to help him.

And then they disappeared.

If he had not added that he had seen it through foresight, Eurasia's advance would have stopped there.

The Emperor, entrenched in the Imperial Castle, was believed to be an existence that had mastered 9-Star.

Even if they reached him after breaking through the dozens of Imperial Knight Orders and Imperial Mage Orders that still remained, only a 9-Star could face a 9-Star.

Fortunately, Eurasia was a well-organized army.

Even without the King, called the strongest knight, it continued to advance under Escardo Schtenberg's command.

It was not as fast as before, but that alone was still meaningful enough.

The current Great War was a hell that would not end unless they captured the Emperor.

The duty of those who remained was to reduce the endlessly pouring forth imperial knights and mages so that Simon Eurasia, when he returned someday, could face the Emperor.

And Escardo Schtenberg carried out that duty splendidly.

He fought and advanced again and again, until by the time Simon finally returned, they had reached the very gates of the Imperial Castle.

Simon Eurasia, who reappeared, had become even stronger.

Even Claudio, who had been certain that Simon was not inferior to 9-Star, was astonished by his Existence Force.

Tatia, who appeared alongside him, explained what had happened.

The main body of an Anomaly had been sealed within Adamas, the Magic Sword used by Eurasia's ancestor, and they had to enter it in order to purify it.

There, they also met Edan Eurasia, who had been sealed together with the Anomaly.

"So you finally cut down the soul of your ancestor, who had become the Anomaly's main body."

Tatia answered with a nod.

It was a battle between life and death.

Edan Eurasia's sword was sharper than Simon's, and even Simon's specialty, controlling space through mana, did not work.

Had it not been for Tatia's Divine Power, Simon would have had only one chance.

But she healed and revived him over and over until she was exhausted.

And so—

"You were able to grow alongside Simon Eurasia."

"It is all thanks to the arrangements you made."

Tatia thanked Claudio for his consideration.

His hair had been bleached white and his face was lined with wrinkles.

She knew what sacrifices he had made to sustain her life.

"You need not look at me like that."

"......"

"The Pope of the Holy Nation is not a position so light that private feelings can come first."

He emphasized that sending Tatia had been a rational judgment, not an emotional one.

"It was fortunate that time inside the sword and outside it flowed differently."

According to Tatia, several years had passed inside the sword.

If that much actual time had passed, the Kingdom Alliance would have long since been defeated.

"The Monster Lord has been born. According to Charles Cornelia's report, he seems to have taken the Mixed-Color Duke as his host."

"Charles Cornelia?"

"The Princess of the Cornelia Kingdom."

Claudio added that she was the heir of the Violet Magic Tower, believed to be a 9-Star mage, and was called the master of the Hybrid Dragon Hazard.

"Is she born to fate.......?"

Tatia murmured quietly.

She was not someone who had appeared in the oracle Tatia and Claudio had received in the past.

That meant she was an existence who had won her fate later in life.

And the Mixed-Color Duke she had faced was also the Empire's 9-Star mage, while the Monster Lord was humanity's ancient enemy, considered 9-Star since antiquity.

"It is an age when 9-Stars have become common."

Until recently, the 9-Stars recorded in history could be counted on one hand.

Now, even two hands might not be enough to count them comfortably.

"That must mean our oracle is nearing its end."

The Wave raised by the mountain range's monsters was eroding the Kingdom Alliance from its rear.

'It is coming to resemble the situation before the regression.'

He wanted to tell Tatia, but he could not easily speak of this one thing.

There was no need to deliberately strain himself and violate the laws.

"I came to see you because I have a request."

"A request from someone who has reached the pinnacle of the Holy Nation? I am no longer a Saintess, so feel free to use me."

"The traces of those who left to find the Monster Lord's Core have disappeared."

Lan de Styx.

Ashirian de Silvana.

Charles Cornelia.

The three of them, synchronized with the three Towers that had become the Kingdom Alliance's core, entered the mountain range together.

"All their synchronizations with their Towers were released at once."

"At once......."

Tatia's face darkened.

"We cannot know. Like you two, perhaps they are carrying out some mission."

"You are calm for someone who could not see it through foresight."

"Lan admired you."

"......"

She was the child Tatia had discovered in the past and entrusted to Claudio.

That child became the Saintess who succeeded Tatia.

"Her connection to the Holy Tower has been cut."

Even the Authority Synchronization that crossed the Boundary did not work.

"But she is definitely alive."

"......"

It was an uncharacteristically irrational statement.

"All right."

"Thank you."

"Whose order do you think it is?"

"An order......?"

He acted playfully, which did not suit him.

"The Emperor is right before us. If you leave, the loss of fighting strength will become uncontrollable."

Claudio smiled at Tatia.

"You must return. Leaving on your own once is enough."

"The same goes for you, Claudio. You are speaking as though you will die soon."

"......"

"Unlike me, Lan de Styx only has the Pope beside her, does she not?"

"You say painful things so casually."

His words held mingled emotions.

"Thank you, Claudio."

"I will hear your thanks after you return. I will prepare your synchronization with the Holy Tower."

He seemed about to say something more, but then turned his gaze toward the outside of the camp.

"We have a guest. Come to the temporary Gate when you have finished speaking."

With those words, Claudio left the camp.

A short while later,

a middle-aged knight entered.

"Simon."

"Are you thinking of leaving?"

"You heard."

"My senses did improve after I reached 9-Star."

"You have become the strongest knight you longed to be."

"Unfortunately, it seems too early to speak of the strongest. The Emperor is stronger than I am."

Simon pointed at the enormous castle wall that could be seen from anywhere in the camp.

"The Emperor is beyond that wall."

"You have become stronger than your ancestor."

Two hundred years ago,he cut down the main body of the Anomaly that had killed his ancestor, the strongest knight.

In the process, he obtained a sword strike that could cut down even a Transcendent.

Having watched at his side, Tatia understood only when Simon finally mastered 9-Star.

There was an indescribable difference between stabilizing 9-Star and mastering it.

"Perhaps you will reach Divinity."

"......"

"Would you then be called the Sword God?"

It was a blasphemous thing for one who served a God to say.

All the more so if that person was the Saintess of Truth.

"If I asked you to stay, would you not go?"

Tatia shook her head.

"Just as you have a path of the sword you must walk, I have a fate I must fulfill."

She had originally been fated to lose her life decades ago.

It had been a long dream.

Not only had she awoken in such good health—

"Being able to spend time with you was a blessing."

Just as Simon inherited his ancestor's sword, she, too, had been able to think deeply enough about her own role.

Calling it a time like a blessing was by no means an inadequate expression.

"Now it is time to fulfill my fate."

"......"

All she had to do was restore the flow of time that Claudio's Authority had stopped.

'What the world needs from now on is not the Saintess of the past, but the Saintess of the present.'

Not someone who preached truth and endured, but someone who could cross the Boundary and lead integration.

"I am simply returning things to how they were."

Tatia smiled softly.

Then she told him in a confident tone.

"As you are now, you can do it alone."

Simon, who had been silent, sighed.

"You have always thought highly of me."

What lay in his voice was not regret, but relief.

His gaze toward her was still firm.

"Is there anything else I can do to help?"

"One thing. I have a request for Eurasia's Head Apothecary."

As though nothing had happened, Tatia began using honorific speech with Simon again.

"......"

"Please introduce me to Roen Favre."

"If that is what you wish, I will allow it anytime."

A short while later, Tatia de Veritas contacted Roen Favre through a temporary Warp Gate.

And only a few hours later, she, synchronized with the Holy Tower, vanished into the mountain range.

***

"So you are saying that you walked into this place of your own accord to save me?"

"That is the summary."

"Lady Tatia, are you in your right mind?"

Lan de Styx raised her voice.

She pointed around them.

The surroundings were lit by floating patches of Radiance.

Radiance was a trait that signified Anomalies, but curses could no longer be felt from it.

'It must be because Simon cut it down.'

The Anomaly was gone.

The Radiance before them was now merely a cluster of light that held no malice at all.

"Have you lost your judgment after sleeping for decades? A Saintess must prioritize the Holy Nation above all else......."

"I merely judged that the Holy Nation needs the Saintess of Boundary more than the Saintess of Truth now."

Tatia gently persuaded her.

"Even so, you came alone......."

"Lan, you have grown well."

"......"

"I did not know that recommending you to Claudio would place such a difficult burden upon you."

"What does that matter now?"

"It matters. Everyone must have treated your sacrifice as a matter of course, even though it was not a matter of course at all."

"......"

"I am sorry. And thank you for holding on."

Lan shook her head.

"Do not speak as though you are about to die when you look younger than I do. If you are so sorry, do not run away. Stay and take responsibility."

It was a strange space where even the connection to the Holy Tower was severed as soon as Tatia entered.

Though she was walking on her own feet, it was a place where the senses of her entire body seemed to grow dull.

Lan had said it because she thought Tatia, who had followed her disconnected trail and found her, must have some way to get out.

"Of course."

Tatia took a seed, carefully wrapped in silk, from her arms.

"That is......"

"It is a Divine Tree Seed. It is an item I received from Eurasia's Head Apothecary."

"A seed......?"

"They say that the Divine Tree is a tree made with the Divine Power of God Silvana."

And the Green Magic Tower was created by modifying a Divine Tree.

"Will this not be enough to draw out a response from the Holy Tower and the Green Magic Tower?"

As she spoke, Tatia planted the seed in the ground and poured Divine Power into it.

She had heard enough from Roen Favre to fully understand the experiment's results concerning the seed.

After infusing Divine Power for around five minutes—

Rumble—

The seed reacted to her Divine Power, germinated, and began to send shoots up from the ground.

"I did not know a Divine Tree could sprout so easily."

"I was not merely sleeping, either."

Just as Lan marveled at the rapidly growing Divine Tree—

Suddenly.

Rumble—

An immense Existence Force was sensed not far away.

"What in the world is this now......?"

"It seems as though a God has descended."

Lan and Tatia tried to calm their trembling bodies against their will.

And at the same time—

"Killian......"

"......Eurasia."

The two Saintesses recovered the memories they had forgotten.

***

'I cannot use the Gate.'

That was why he created it.

A technique made of Karma that could replace the Gate, the Ultimate of Mana.

"Nameless Formula."

He manifested the thought that arose in his mind into reality.

Killian's lips moved.

"Reversion."

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