AStoryForOne
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Chapter 322 + Read Author's note please.
🕑 Added 2023-03-07 14:18:59 +0000 UTCA/N
First off, just want to say I'm not completely happy with the chapter. If It doesn't meet expectations, I'll rewrite it, but maybe I'm just having those thoughts again after struggling with it for so long.
But I just wanted to give a heads up on a retcon i'm making. Rolled the dice, Elaine got voted off the island. That is to say, she didn't make it and died before Wilhelm arrived at the singularity. I'm sure not most of you care, she's an OC of B-Team, but I do have some plans for them all, along with Ritsuka, but I didn't need her there. Just thought I would clarify that for the future.
***
It was him.
It was all his fault.
I knew something was wrong, and I let him to go about it. I could have stopped it, I could have ended it if I had just followed my gut and taken him out on the spot the first time we met.
Slowly, I stood up from where I was holding Artoria. I could feel myself trembling as he looked at me smugly. “….It was all your fault.”
“You’re going to have to be more specific.” Lev smiled, twirling his cane. “I’ve been very busy these past couple days.” He reached down, picking up the now owner-less Grail.
“Lev, you’re alright!” Olga exclaimed, running right towards him.
“Dammit, girl!” Cu was the first to react, trying to grab hold of her, but a spell flew right at him, making him step back protectively of his Master.
Lev held a wand between his fingers, having replaced his cane.
I was about to move, to intercept, but his hand twitched and I saw his wand move up towards Olga, making my steps pause. Regardless of how utterly furious I was right now, I wouldn’t risk her just to vent my anger.
“Olga, oh Olga.” Lev put on a grandfatherly like façade. “My stupid and foolish Olga.”
“L-Lev??” Olga looked up in confusion as she got close.
“How surprising it is to see you alive.” He still spoke with that cheerful tone. “I put a bomb right under you, yet here you are.”
“W-what are you saying?”
“Director.” I breathed out, taking a step forward.
“Ah~” Lev wagged his finger. “Careful, don’t want anything to happen to her, do you?”
“Lev, what’re you doing!?” I jerked me head towards the familiar voice of Roman. The holographic-like screen appearing at Mash’s side.
“And Roman too.” Lev clicked his tongue. “I should have known. I put that bomb right inside your office, but of course you weren’t there when it blew up.”
“Lev, don’t tell me….”
“Do I need to spell it out for you?” He sneered. “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to ever put up with this nonsense again, but it seems like things didn’t go quite as planned.”
“….Lev, this joke isn’t funny.”
“Olga, poor Olga.” Lev shook his head. “The biggest mistake your father made was not leaving Chaldea in the hands of someone more capable. Can you really not understand the situation after saying so blatantly? Then again, you haven’t even realized you died yet.”
“What!?”
“You didn’t have the capacity to Rayshift, did you not understand how you ended up here? I think even Roman knew that, he was probably sparing your feelings.”
“…..I was working on a solution.” The Doctor quietly admitted
“Roman!” Olga shrieked.
“Hmm, did the Rayshift grab your soul right as your body was destroyed? A fluke then, a one in a million chance.”
“That’s impossible, I’m…..i’m…..” Olga started breathing heavily.
“The Rayshift procedure obscures one’s casuality. Its entire nature is about pushing one’s soul into a fake body that is projected to a different time period…..” That is to say……I didn’t notice……
“I couldn’t say it better myself.” Lev smiled brightly as if the topic of the conversation wasn’t making Olga have a panic attack.
“Lev, why.” Roman asked.
“Why?” His eyes narrowed towards Roman’s face. “ Because –“ The world shook, the very sky itself seemed to start coming apart at the seams as everyone stared up. “Oh, it appears that this singularity is beginning to break down now that Saber isn’t acting as an Anchor anymore.” He gazed turned back to me. “I really should thank you. That Saber Servant really didn’t follow my orders well, opting to keep this place propped up even after everything that happened.”
I almost reacted, I almost lashed out and forwent all consequences. My palm was bleeding from my nails digging into it as I clutched my fist too tightly.
“Allow me to properly introduce myself!” He flicked his arms wide open. “Lev Lainur Flauros.” He smiled savagely. “And I’m responsible for the incineration of human history.”
“Flauros!?” The name immediately rang bells into my head and his gaze met mine once more.
“As expect, you connected the dots quickly, didn’t you?” His expression darkened. “A strange outlier you are. I originally planned to make a move once A-Team were already inside their coffins, it would have much cleaner. Olga here wouldn’t have had to suffer, but you just appeared and threw out many of my plans.”
Olga was…..speechless. I don’t think she managed to properly process what was going on yet.
“Honestly, she should thank me. Now she can fullfill her dreams of Rayshifting at the last moments of her life. Consider it my gift, for not having to hear your whining anymore Director.” He scoffed. “But where was I, oh yes. I suppose it only takes one strange variable to change plans. I didn’t wan to risk an anomaly like you being present at the time, so I had to improvise and decided that individual points were more preferable. Unfortunately, things did not work out quite as well as expected. Roman, Olga, even that elemental all survived. Frankly, I’m a little disappointed in myself since even some of your team survived.”
“Why….?” I said softly. “Why do all of this? What’s the point?”
“The point?” He scoffed again. “The point is to rid the world of a disease. Humanity isn’t worth protecting, I thought you would understand that but I guess was mistaken. I had assumed you were merely playingat being like them, but it’s not an act at all.” He held the grail up in his hand. “With this the end has begun.”
“What are you talking about, the singularity was prevented. Even without the Grail, it’s starting to collapse”! Roman interjected.
“Roman, oh Roman.” Lev shook his head. “Allow me to show you the futility of everything you’ve worked for.” He waived his hand, and a tear opened up in space and time by pulling on the power of the Grail
“No!” Olga screamed, seeing what was on the other side.
“This….”
“That’s right.” Lev smiled. “CHALDEAS has turned completely red, meaning Human History has been completely incinerated already. Chaldea is the last bastion of survival in the world for that time period. You may thank me as you watch the last facets of your species whimper away in the darkness. A deserving punishment for your kind after losing the favor of my king.”
“D-Director, we’re picking up several new Singularities!” Roman exclaimed in shock.
“You finally noticed.” Lev’s smile turned predatory.
Enough!
“Cu!” I shouted.
“On it.” The Caster servant slammed his hand onto the ground.
Roots sprang up, grabbing hold of Olga. It was at that moment that Sir Wiggles erupted in his own Lightning, discharging it right at the source of all my anger.
“Petulant Rodent!” He hissed, about to respond, but I was already on Lev, my sword slashing downwards and allowed Olga to be taken away before retreating a few steps backwards.
I took that moment to slide right to their side. “Roman, being Rayshifting.” Right as I said that, this entire place shook, this isolated realm that was only supported by Saber and the Grail.
“Oh yes, Rayshift back. Olga can die by having her existence eradicated that way. A remnant soul that will vanish the moment she steps back into Chaldea.” Lev mocked.
“A-are you sure?” Roman hesitated due to his words.
“Da Vinci, you there.” I didn’t take my eyes off him. He just stared, as if to watch a show. I could tell he was utterly amused by this whole thing.
“She’s not –“
“I’m here, what do you need?” Da Vinci’s voice came over the link.
“W-what?”
“Later, Roman.” I quickly interrupted. “Da Vinci, how quickly can you make Olga a new body?”
“If someone had told me the situation beforehand, I would have had enough time. But as it stands…..she’ll only have a few seconds the moment she steps back, not enough time to do anything.” Da Vinci didn’t hold back her words.
“I-I…..” Olga has a few tears streaming down her face.
“Get started.” I told her.
“….on it.” Da Vinci didn’t argue.
“Roman, setting link!” Mash stepped forward, slamming her shield into the ground.
“Rayshifting initiated, thirty seconds until response!” Roman stated. “
“Director, don’t fight me.” I put a hand on her chest.
“Hey Farm Boy, give me some Magical Energy.” Cu spoke up. “My Junior here finished the War, but I’m a little unsatisfied. I think I’ll take a crack at that ass over there.” Cu raised his spear, pointing towards Lev.
“Oh, you want to fight me, Servant?” Lev’s lips curled up.
“Do what you need to, Caster.” Samuel nodded, shifting over all the Magical Energy he could.
“Oof, yeah, a little rough there, but that’s the stuff.” Cu straightened up. He shot me a sideways glance. “I’ll give you a few seconds, whatever he is, don’t think I can hold him off for long and this place is starting to break apart.”
“Thank you.” I whispered.
Cu Chuckled. “You still owe me a drink later.” He stepped forward, summoning all the Magical Energy he had available. “Wicker man!” He immediately summoned his Noble Phantasm.
The Massive wooden construct rose up from the ground, engulfed in fire. And its target was the man who identified himself as Flauros.
“Olga.” I shifted my attention towards her. Despite the turbulent emotions I was feeling, the rage at wanting to tear him apart, I tried my best to give her a calm and gentle smile. “You’re going to be fine, trust me.” I couldn’t save Artoria, but I won’t let you die too.
Olga didn’t speak, but the look she gave was heart wrenching. I’ve gotten to know her a little bit since coming to Chaldea, she was standoffish, prickly and overall demanding. But….then I began to see what little bits she accidently let out when she felt more comfortable.
My Aura surged out, reaching into her. Her body jerked as her eyes widened at what I was doing.
“W-what are these Readings?”
"For it is through Freedom that we Achieve Immortality. Through this we become a paragon of Liberation and Choice to rise above fate. Infinite in possibilities and unbound by death, I release your soul and by my hand, unshackle thee."
Olga’s entire body burst out in light.
No, it wasn’t her body. She was a Soul right now, and everyone could see her being directly affected.
A multitude of colors swirled around her, a phenomena I’ve never witness before as this had never been attempted on a soul without a body.
But I could feel her, her existence became more…..solidified.
“Shimoda…?” Olga whispered, a confused look on her face.
I pushed my hat a little down on her head. “Sir Wiggles, watch over her.”
“Rayshifting in 10 seconds!” Roman shouted.
“Boss, are you coming?” Samuel asked.
I looked at them, then back to Cu. The Wicker Man, was barely being held together. I narrowed my eyes as Flauros, tore apart the wood construct and a barrage of spells landed on Caster himself.
“Shit…” Cu coughed, blood seeping from his mouth. “Thought I could last a little longer.”
“Caster…” Samuel was about to run to him, but Cu put his arm up.
“I know when it’s over, Farm Boy.” He grinned, even through bloodied and mangled body. He tossed the spear – my spear to him. “Hold onto that. Got a feeling I’m not going to be summoned as a Lancer next time.”
“Shimoda….” Olga tugged on my sleeve.
“I’ll be right behind you, don’t worry.” I reassured her. “Samuel, Benjamin, Pierre, and Ritsuka.” I glanced once more at the people I should have been responsible for. My heart ached knowing that they were the only members of B-Team that remained. “Mash, watch over them.” I had trouble even knowing what to say.
“Leave it to my, Senpai.” Mash nodded firmly.
They didn’t deserve this, they didn’t deserve this at all. But I know they would be in good hands for now.
The Rayshift enveloped them, and It was interesting to see from this side. But I had absolutely no mind to pay attention to it for now.
I glanced at Cu who basically slumped to the ground. “Hey, give me a good show.” He grinned.
Flauros lookoed annoyed, his clothes were a little singed, and his eyes showed red with strange pupils.
“Glady.” I growled out once the others were safely away. “Welsh Dragon Balance Breaker!”
The Massive torrent of power enveloped me as Ddraig’s Scale Mail formed around my body. The accompanied roar shook the world. The collapse that was already imminent began to accelerate.
“What is that –“
“Boost!” I roared again, interrupting Flauros’s statement. I immediately shot off the ground right at me.
He flicked his Wand, a shield materializing around him as I slammed into it. “Boost, Boost Boost!” I shouted again, forcing him into a ground.
His shield cracked. “Do you think –“
I reached my hand out, grabbing hold of my Sword of Destruction. My Bloodline ignited around it and I slashed it downwards.
“Impudent!” He shouted, his wand swinging forward to match it, enchanted with his own Magics. The effects landed upon my sword, but they were utterly annihilated, making his eyes widen.
A massive surge of power gathered in his other hand, so I switched targets, My Sword of Destruction cut through every obstacle, and it met his flesh.
He roared as my Power of Destruction tore into his body, completely unaware of the origin, he didn’t properly defend against it.
His eyes glowed bright, and his flesh that was striped away shifted unnaturally, underneath, it appeared with more eyes. Matching his own disfigured pupils, they all glowed bright, unleashing condensed Magical Energy that actualized into the form of lasers.
I ripped off what remained of his arm, pulling away the few bits of flesh that still held it together to his body before pulling away.
My Aura took a small hit to defend against his attack, but I wasn’t much worse for wear.
Flauros stood to his feet, letting out a pained growl. “You…..insignificant ant.” He clutched the spot where his arm was missing.
I held up severed arm, and I pulled on my bloodline against, disintegrating every piece of it right before his eyes.
“I am far from done with you.” I returned his scornful gaze. “I’ve had people I’ve hated before. I’ve had people target those I care about. I’ve had to deal with some of the most heinous excuses for living beings in existence. But you are probably the person I hate the most out of all my years of living. Congratulations, you achieved a monumental feat.”
Flauros look at his arm and sneered towards me. “This means nothing infront of the power of my king. You are nothing, an amalgamation, a facsimile of one of us, nothing more!”
“Yes, well, allow me to retort.” I kicked off the ground again, moving at him at blinding speeds. “Boost!” called out again and my fist smashed right into his stomach. His body practically caved in, but the light didn’t even flicker in his eyes.
He immediately grit his teeth and lashed out at me, those menacing eyes of his. Appendages burst out of his body, all covered in those strange eyes. They were strong, easily contesting with my own strength, enough that I had to actually be wary of them.
It was no wonder that Cu was so easily defeated and his Noble Phantasm overcome.
This thing was just masquerading in the form of a Human, but it was more certainly a Demon.
The sky above us crackled and roared, matching my own fury with Thunder and Lightning following in its wake. I didn’t reel myself in, letting all of my anger slip out to facilitate the change in weather.
My other swords flew out, slashing at the massive tentacle-like appendages that attempted to reach at me.
“Annoying tricks!” The voice of the Demon roared out, smacking them away, only for me to take hold of my Sword of Destruction and pierce right inside one of the largest appendages, letting loose my Power of Destruction.
His painful roar resounding everywhere, forcing him to abandoned it after realizing how corrosive my Bloodline was.
I didn’t let up, I reached out my hand, grabbing Dawnbreaker slashing into his shoulder. He used his other hand to grab hold of the blade, stopping me in my track, but I just let go and reached for Ascalon.
The Dragon Slayer sword flew into my hand and I swung it at his neck.
He had to sacrifice several more of his tentacles to ward off the attack. My Noble Phantasm bit into the flesh surfaces, cleaving one and stopping halfway through another before the momentum subsided.
I once more abandoned that sword and gestured to the sky.
“Thor’s hammer.” I looked him right in the eyes as I called upon one of my most destructive spells.
I activated my Semblance, turning my body into Lightning. The detriment to my spell, I had never found a way to overcome it. A side effect of the massive power being that it would harm anything within he area.
The construct that formed out of Pure Lightning. It swung its hammer downwards. However, I was now Lightning itself, I wouldn’t be affected.
I watched his eyes widen and a look of panic appear on his face.
His body bloated, and shifted once more. His flesh split open and a massive tentacle surged outwards, reaching dozens of meters into the sky. Eyes wound around it, showing the same ones that Flauros revealed.
Was this his true form!?
The presence was enough to force me backwards. And all the eyes looked up into the sky. An eerie shout sounded out, the eyes glowed bright and a malevolent flame-like magic erupted to meet my attack head on.
They collided in mid air, completely destroy one another.
The ground beneath us cracked and dispersed. It was a lightless void that began to be revealed underneath. This Singularity was well and truly almost gone.
“You forced me into this.” The eyes of the thing all focused back on me. “Die!”
The eyes dilated, and laser-like attacks discharged from every single one. They turned and jerked at angles that should be impossible, surrounding me completely.
“Ascalon!” I called out, my Noble Phantasm long returning to me hand.
The sword activated, moving to protect me at every angle, deflecting and blocking every blow that came about.
“Annoying pest!” The warped voice growled out.
It attacked at me again, but I withdrew Ascalon. The Sword of Destruction reentered my hand and Dragon Wings sprang forth from my back. I pushed off what remained of the ground, the endless void consuming everything else.
I dodged around what blasts came for me, approaching the Demon’s true body. “Sword of Destruction.” I called out.
The ability to destroy anything three times every century. That was the ability that the sword held, it was what Jinn told me about the Relic. I’ve only used it once thus far.
“I target your core, and I sentence you to Destruction!” I slammed the sword into the main body.
The massive Tentacle flailed haphazardly, as if it lost all ability to properly maneuver. One of the large eyes on the tentacle bulged and the familiar shape forced its way out.
Still missing an arm, body still scarred and cleaved in several places. He dropped to the ground, and parts of his body began to disentrage at visible speed.
The massive Tentacle from being dissipated as well, leaving but his human-like form left.
“What did you do!?” He wreathed on the ground. “My connection, I’m losing—!?” He screamed. My satisfaction at watching him get destroyed quickly came to a halt when he revealed the Grail once more. That annoying trinket was starting to get on my nerves. He held it up as one of his legs disappeared in its entirety. “My king, save me!” He wailed, opening a rift and jumping through.
It slammed shut right before him.
“You think you can leave!?” I ground my teeth, putting away everything else by Mirage. “Reversing special Coordinates!” My sword began glowing as I started my abrupt calculations. The world falling apart around me. “Finalized local anomaly, opening Kaleidoscope!” I shouted, slicing my sword downright right where he left from, and I jumped through.
***
I slammed onto some sort of marble flooring. I didn’t even consider where I was going before jumping through, maybe my anger was clouding my judgement, but I couldn’t stop. I had to see that bastard die with my own eyes.
I took in my surroundings. It was as if were in the void of space, nothing around but floating pieces of earth, the biggest being the one I stood on. Immediately my eyes found a large staircase and they traveled up towards the top.
There was a man, sitting on an ivory throne, looking down at me.
Next to him was Flauros. He body writhed and continued to disintegrate at visible speeds, though it appears like the Grail was fighting the effects.
“My king!” Flauros looked up, pleading.
The man on the throne.
He had long white hair and a single braid, and tan skin as if he lived in the desert for all his life. He eyes lazily opened, upon my entrance, a single hand propping up his hand that held on his armrest. His clothes were extravagant, showing off someone of wealth.
But that was all overshadowed by the danger senses blaring in my head.
Strong.
Very, very strong.
It was giving me the same warning signs that Ophis did at a minimum.
The man held up his free hand and snapped his fingers. As if an invisible shockwave pulsed out, and things shifted.
Flauros’s body stopped disintegrating and started healing instead.
“You allowed someone to follow you back, Flauros.” The man on the throne opened his mouth.
“M-my apologies, my king. I don’t know how he was able –“
“The Kaleidoscope.” The man interrupted. “A Magician of the modern age.”
“Who are you.” I stood up fully, not backing down from his intense gaze. “What is this place?” Because it was giving me a really strange feeling.
A soft smile appeared on his lips. “I am Solomon.”
The words were like thunder to my ears. It all made sense then, Flauros, one of the 72 Demons of the Ars Goetia. The name attached to them was Solomon.
That name it filled me with utter dread. If there were any Mages in history that I would absolutely not want to tangle with, he’s sitting right at the top of the list.
“…..it was you then. You planned everything?”
“Correct.” He said with clear nonchalance. “ I—”
“Then you can die.” I pulled upon the Kaleidoscope. I wouldn’t give him the opportunity. Spell Circles swirled around Mirage and I pulled on an obscene amount of Magical Energy in that few moments. With my Boosts still holding, I jumped up right infront of him. He didn’t move, he didn’t react, even with the sheer immensity of Magical Energy that was barely contained around my sword to the point where it was flowing off. “Ether Canon!” I released it, right infront of him.
A Translucent shield appeared around him. Just from eyesight alone, I could see layers upon layers interwoven beautifully inside of it. The lattice of spell work didn’t even shudder under one of the largest Ether Canons I’ve ever released.
“Using the Dimensional Refraction Phenomena to gather Magical Energy from parallel worlds. Then through a series of Magical Circles designed to integrate the Fifth imaginary Element into a solid shape and further igniting it with a continuous supply of Magical Energy, facilitating the observed reaction.” My spell dissipated, having run out of juice, and his shiel didn’t show any signs of wear. “How novel.”
“…..how?”
“True Magic you may possess, but the spell is merely Magecraft.” He shifted in his seat. “I am the foundation for all Magecraft in the world, thus all Magecraft is beneath me. I am Solomon, and welcome to my workshop.”
His workshop….
Panic set in at the implication. I felt this place was odd, cut off from the normal flow of both time and space. It existed outside of both, and I had no idea about its existence normally. Nor would I have confidence in breaching it the way I did unless Flauros hadn’t opened a path for me to follow.
I gathered all the power I had onto my left hand. The Boosts I had manifested before all sinking into one ability. “Penetrate!” I lashed out.
“Dragon….” Solomon raised an eyebrow, seeing through the source immediately.
The shield infront of him lit up again, my attack touching it. The shield finally warped, my Draconic energy pushing at it and it pierced right through, like a balloon that had a hole blown out. Several more Barriers met the same fate before Solomon Raised his hand up.
“A conceptual penetration of all defenses.” He muttered as the blast slammed right into his open palm. As if it was below his notice, he clenched his fist, destroying it completely. “I can understand why Flauros was defeated, how peculiar. And your existence, yes, an odd thing that confused him as well. An understandable mistake on his part. However, you are not one of us.” He raised his hand up, and my vision was filled with light.
My body was blown back, smashing into the steps, and falling until I landed on the ground at the base of the staircase.
“Hmm, a resistance to Magical Effect?” He raised an eyebrow.
I pulled myself up, not really damaged, but the force was enough to knock me off my feet. He was picking apart everything about me at but a glance. His ability was frankly frightening and he hadn’t even moved off his seat.
He paused, looking at his palm. “I am injured….” I could barely see it from here, nothing more than a mere scratch.
He caught Ddraig’s Penetrate, and it merely scratched his palm.
[Brat, look up to the sky!] Ddraig shouted, breaking me from my stupor.
My head immediately jerk upwards, and I trembled upon seeing it. A massive ring of light appeared far above, but it wasn’t light.
“You noticed.” The man calling himself Solomon mused. “The sum total of Magical Energy by burning away Humanity from your time period. It’s still incomplete, but it is still a substantial amount.”
It wasn’t just a ring of line. It was composed of smaller strands of light, each one holding an immense amount of Magical Energy. Each one probably more than the amount I used to cast my Ether Canon a few minutes ago. And there were thousands upon thousands of them all flying in a circle, enough that it looked like a solid shape.
“You……monster.” I whispered. “You are using human history as fuel!? This was your goal? And why you destroyed Chaldea.”
“Humanity should be thankful that they have some use.” He waived his hand dismissively. “And Chaldea was never of any consequence. Merely an annoyance that entered my eye and was dealt with. Its existence makes no difference to me.”
“….you’re not Solomon.” I breathed out, trying to stop my panic. “Solomon wouldn’t do something like this. There are enough records left to know that he was a defender of humanity.”
As if to agree with me, I felt the Spear inside start to vibrate in anger.
“Hmph, that fool saw all the wrongs of the world and let them continue unabated. Defender of humanity? A laughable notion. ” He scoffed, scowling deep. The most emotion I’ve seen him give off thus far. “Your presence now grates on me. I will give you a swift death, a gift for the meagre amount of amusement you have brought me.”
He held his hand up to the sky, and I felt death approach.
“Begone from my presence.” He waved his hand downward.
An uncountable number of lights from the sky above obeyed his command. They intertwined and shot right at me.
“Avalon!” I shouted out immediately. The Ever Distant Utopia enveloped me right away as the lights collided with the defense.
Artoria’s Sheath had fended off Excalibur without any problem. It didn’t waver in the slightest, yet, under this onslaught, Avalon began to struggle.
What I would call the strongest defensive Noble Phantasm, was losing.
I can barely hold on any longer, I was swept up off my feet. Avalon still protected me, but the sheer force of the blast was enough to wipe out a country from the map.
I slammed into the dimensional walls, and even they shattered at the overflowing powers and I was pushed out of the strange realm into the space between worlds.
Avalon struggled, and eventually, part of it gave out. A portion of the light hit my body, My Aura immediately shattered, followed quickly by Ddraig’s Scale Mail. I felt my insides tremble and parts of me rupture. The pain was horrendous, and my eyes became bloodshot as I tried my best to resist.
I struggled to keep myself even conscious. It was only with a sudden eruption of golden light around me that I felt a miniscule amount of breathing room open up. Large White Wings sprouted from my back and enveloped me protectively.
I used that single moment to yank myself away. Between the void of worlds, I could only pull towards a vaguely familiar location and use all my remaining strength to force a path open, yanking my body out of the path of the hostile light.
My last thoughts were relief as Avalon faded a few breaths later. Any longer and I would have been completely incinerated.
I could only see the barest sight of moonlight before my body collapsed completely and my consciousness faded.
***
Another A/N, more about the chapter to avoid spoilers at the front!
So, yes, Goetia aka 'Solomon' is really that fuck off powerful. Not to mention Wilhelm unintentionally confronted him in his workshop. A lesser activation of his Noble Phantasm blasted Wilhelm out of the world-line. Let me be clear, the full activation of his Noble Phantasm has the power to punch right through the planet. Not to mention he is literally the foundation of modern Thaumaturgy and Magecraft. He was able to break down and analyze everything that Wilhelm showed at merely a glance.
Dude is fucking terrifying. At the very least, he's on the level of Ophis, but he's intelligent.
Comments
AStoryForOne
Lmao, I did say it's somewhere familiar, so it's not a new world yet. Give me a couple chapters and he'll go someplace new.
Sage Berthelsen
God I hope another interlude doesn’t happen before the reveal of where he’s at happens.
Raphael Mort
Seems like the Christian God would win in a fight against Goetia, but Goetia would be able to toss out a lot of bullshit and drag the battle out for a WHILE. Kind of a reverse of the Wilhelm vs Goetia fight, with the Christian God picking apart the methods as the fight goes on, always managing to keep just enough ahead that Goetia can't actually land anything meaningful.
Starfall20
Sir Wiggles Is watching over the crew. I wonder if there is a spare phone in the hat as well.
Bookreader
Truly cannot wait for the next chapter cant wait to see where will ended up as well as olga point of view on the fight and her aura
Really enjoyed the chapter. I hope in the next iteration of the solomon fight, Will still gets beaten as badly. Goetia should come off as practically unbeatable, especially in his workshop. Sword of destruction use was a little weird, but understandable as a panic move
Just Some Guy With A Mustage
I do wonder how willhelm would stack up to Solomon in juggernaut drive form
Aleks Mills
I quote liked the fight. I also liked the unlocking of Olga's aura.
Eineus .
Honestly, I'm fine with the fight with Goetia. It has been quite some time since Will has been challenged in this way. This is good, he will have a goal to work towards. And I think Will unwittingly broke Olga and co minds again. He already showed the ability to use Second Magic. But when he unlocked Olga's aura, he might have replicated a feat that only the Third Magic, Heaven's Feel can accomplish. "Materialization of the Soul".
Michael Straton
He is mad because of what he did to saber
xGhillie
A little sad I didn’t get to see a dual balance breaker welsh dragon + Longinus but it was an awesome chapter nonetheless
Einar Strandberg
I really liked Solomon. I thought that the way Wil is so furious with Lev was really weird -- why is it Flauros that pissed him off so much? If it's because he incinerated human history, that doesn't really come across -- it feels like it's more personal than that, but it's not clear why. Is it because he killed his subordinates? Basically, explain why Wil is so furious instead of just saying it.The way Wil pauses, worried by the threat to Olga feels weird too -- not in that he pauses but in that he isn't planning how to fix it. It feels like he loses agency there I guess? Even though he then has Cu protect her it feels weird, but that could just be me. I'm not sure that's a problem. I enjoyed the Goetia fight, and Wil's realization it can't be Solomon. It felt a bit rushed, like Wil was just doing stuff without any context to make it feel meaningful, or planning and interpretation of his situation. Maybe it's to convey how everything is a shock, but that doesn't come across with the current thing; it just feels rushed.
Sage Berthelsen
How does the Christian GOD stack up to (Fake)Solomon? I know SpearGOD isn’t a measure of the wholeGOD. Just wondering.
AsuraFalling
I did like the tone you spun with Goetia. The absolute boredom of the fight. Yet a slight fascination at how unique Wil is as a person. It fits. The dude has seen everything hell he is the author of most of the original works in a way. I did feel that while Wil has done some things on pure emotion and it’s not out of character. I felt a sort of lack of care as a reader to relate to the “using humanity as fuel” it’s an awesome concept! However I feel like there is a lack of emotional investment as the reader and that’s why Wil’s response feels more like a shounen protag than classic Wilhelm. He is terrified, angry yes. But the terror felt more present than the anger. His response to the humanity bit almost felt like an afterthought. “God I’m terrified…. Oh, he’s using humanity to fuel his scheme what a monster…… DONT DIE DONT DIE DONT DIE” I think it would work as is if you could manage to convey exactly how hideously cruel and how absolutely callous he is about doing what he’s doing. Or maybe remove it from the current time flow and have it be a realization after the fact. After he’s dealt with the terror and utter all consuming anger over what had personally happened to him and those he cared for. I’m not a writer though. I love the effort and work you put into the story! Always a pleasure reading!! Loved the chapter overall!
AStoryForOne
Been reading the comments, I think I can smooth some things out and might do a second iteration of the Solomon encounter.
Holy shit. I loved this
