Chapter 1132: Showdown (3)
Thump, thump, thump…!!
A faint, lively prelude echoed from above the stadium.
During the intermission, musicians performed tricks for the audience.
After the approximately 15-minute break, the concert would resume.
The audience hummed along to the prelude or chanted Freya’s name.
The vast stadium was alive with a festive and joyful atmosphere.
But in the preparation room beneath the stage, only an eerie silence hung heavy.
“…You.”
The Police Chief’s presence, appearing right before Freya’s eyes.
His nonchalant words, introducing himself as the Guido Cult’s Fifth Apostle.
Up until this moment, appearing at the same time as Lennok to abduct her.
Every situation surpassed all predictions, making it impossible for her thoughts to keep up.
Yet the old man, sensing the chillingly subdued atmosphere, did not rush.
Instead, he leaned against the lounge door, as if blocking it, idly fiddling with the fedora he wore.
“I made time to take Freya Carlisle, but I never expected another young man to have the same idea as myself.”
“…”
“Heh heh, this complicates things. It means I’ll have to personally nullify the ‘deal’ outside, won’t I?”
The old man chuckled, gently stroking his chin.
“I thought something was strange ever since that mayor’s death, but it seems there were far more dangerous juniors involved than I expected.”
“This isn’t the time for such nonsense.”
The old man wore a benevolent smile, a hearty laugh on his lips.
Dressed in a suit with dignified gestures, he exuded the aura of a calm gentleman.
But Lennok already knew how this old man had managed to get here.
The lounge outside had become unnaturally quiet the moment the old man opened the door.
And from beyond the door, a persistent, grim scent of blood seeped in, with no attempt to conceal it.
There was no need to speak of what had happened.
In the mere ten seconds or so since Lennok followed Freya into the lounge, the old man had killed everyone inside.
“Th-this monster… Diana and my staff…!!”
Freya, too, realized the truth, her face paling as her hands trembled.
Was she shocked by the death of the concert staff she had just been talking and laughing with?
Gritting her teeth, Freya glared at the old man with a chilling gaze and muttered.
“…I’ll kill you.”
Flare!!
As she stepped forward, magic surged from Freya’s entire body.
Her internal magic, which had been rising throughout her performance, boiled furiously and flowed outwards in all directions.
“Hmm, do you feel sadness at their deaths? Then I regret to say…”
But the old man, watching Freya, still smiled benevolently and adjusted his cuff.
“It’s been a long time since I was on the battlefield, so it’s hard to control my hand. I hope you’ll understand with a generous heart.”
“What the hell are you-!!”
“Stop.”
Just as Freya was about to shout and unleash a spellcraft without hesitation, Lennok called her to a halt.
Freya faltered at his coldly altered voice, and in that moment, Lennok, looking back at her through his mask, spoke.
“I’ll handle this one. Stand back.”
“What?”
Ignoring Freya’s sharp retort, Lennok stepped forward.
“With an Apostle involved, the original plan is completely nullified. Your presence here is meaningless.”
“What are you talking about? Are you saying I’m a burden?”
Freya retorted sharply.
“I can hold my own without you! Just get out of my way!”
“It seems words aren’t enough to make you understand.”
Lennok said, turning towards Freya.
An icy aura, as if he intended to attack Freya before the old man.
At that moment, startled by his ominous pressure, Freya unconsciously took a step back.
From behind Lennok, a sharp flash erupted, tearing through the entire lounge.
CRASH!!!
Walls and ceiling exploded outwards, revealing the dressing room behind the lounge.
“Gah!!!”
Freya, knocked back into the dressing room, and Lennok, shielding her, now faced the old man.
Lennok had blocked the old man’s preemptive attack, which had erupted without warning, simultaneously with the lounge’s explosion.
The recoil had pushed both of them straight back into the dressing room behind the lounge.
The fallen Freya, dumbfounded, quickly scrambled to her feet.
“W-what was that?!”
“Sword Aura.”
Lennok replied, slowly lowering his raised left hand.
“A physical superhuman. And a very powerful high-ranking swordsman at that.”
“Hoh, you recognize my swordsmanship.”
The old man stroked his chin gently, a benevolent smile on his face.
“Interesting. Yet the one speaking doesn’t seem to be a physical superhuman himself.”
“…”
The Fifth Apostle’s gaze swept over Lennok’s empty left hand.
“You blocked my sword flash without using spellcraft. Is it an artifact? Yet it’s difficult to use such a powerful relic without activation.”
Lennok had just absorbed the old man’s preemptive strike without using mana or spellcraft.
However, to the old man, Lennok did not appear to be a physical superhuman at all.
He clearly used an external force, like an artifact, but even the old man’s senses couldn’t detect its presence.
Had Lennok simply pulled out and put away a piece of defensive gear too quickly to see?
Or was Lennok’s equipment a weapon of such high caliber that even the old man couldn’t detect it?
Possessing both long combat experience and shrewdness, he found it difficult to make a judgment.
As the old man fell into momentary contemplation, Lennok immediately turned his gaze to Freya.
“You haven’t failed to grasp the situation, even after all this, have you?”
“…”
“He’s a single-digit Apostle. Not an opponent to fight with clumsy cooperation.”
Lennok said coldly.
“If you’re a rear guard, act like one and fall back. Don’t hold me back.”
The Guido Cult’s Fifth Apostle. And the appearance of a top-tier Incarnation Body within the single-digits.
He didn’t know which god the Apostle served, nor what Apostle Spellcraft he used, but Lennok still remembered the conversation he had with the Second Apostle in the Duris Workshop.
‘The Fifth is the number of humans, the Sixth the number of beasts, or so it was said.’
The Sixth Apostle played the role of a beast. In a pinch, he was the vessel prepared for the Pontiff himself.
Therefore, it was highly likely that the Fifth Apostle’s abilities and role were also specialized for humans.
Furthermore, the old man before him was a slaughterer who had brutally killed dozens of people in the lounge in roughly ten seconds.
It wouldn’t be strange if he could kill Freya before her Musical Scale Spellcraft could even properly activate.
Considering the Royal Capital Capture Operation, he had to ensure her survival and escape from this place.
“…Ugh, seriously!!”
Freya, perhaps not entirely clueless about the situation, gritted her teeth and sprang to her feet.
Stepping back slowly, she glanced at the blood-soaked lounge.
The place where the staff she had just been conversing with lay dead.
Her gaze wavered as she looked that way, then she bit her lip hard and turned back.
“Victor, I’m only entrusting this to you because you said so. Understand?”
“…”
“Just make sure you handle it properly. Otherwise, no matter what, I’ll do it myself!”
Freya might be proud and strong-willed, but her nature wasn’t inherently evil.
At the very least, she wasn’t someone who could easily overlook the deaths of her manager or staff.
He could understand why Freya wanted to fight the old man, and why she was giving Lennok such a warning, but—
“I’ll take care of it. Move.”
“Hey!!”
“I believe I’ve given you enough time to accept the situation.”
The moment Freya shouted something and turned away.
The old man, with his benevolent smile, was suddenly standing before her.
“May I make my move now?”
“…!!!”
The Fifth Apostle’s form, closing the distance past Lennok before she could react.
The moment Freya flinched in surprise, the old man’s hand vanished from sight.
CRACK!!
With an eerie sound like a neck bone snapping, Freya’s body swayed violently.
The old man caught Freya, who collapsed without even a scream, with one hand.
“Camlodal said it wouldn’t matter as long as we secured her head, but it’s probably better to take her alive if possible.”
The Fifth Apostle, holding the unconscious Freya, turned and said.
“I’ll be taking the Musical Scale Spellcaster. I heard her identity and spellcraft are necessary for the Guido Cult.”
“…If an Apostle intervened at this point, there can only be one reason.”
Behind his mask, Lennok’s eyes turned chillingly cold.
“Was the Guido Cult also after Kabahim’s [The Gate]?”
“Oh my, don’t they teach your organization’s members to be discreet?”
The old man gave a wry smile and shook his head.
“Strictly speaking, it’s not about [The Gate] itself, but rather what exists inside it…”
“…”
“I’m afraid. I haven’t been awake for long myself, so there’s much I don’t know. This is all I can tell you.”
The Guido Cult was targeting Freya Carlisle to seize Kabahim’s [The Gate].
In the process, two monsters, the Fifth Apostle Eldrich and the Eighth Apostle Camlodal, had joined the fray.
An unprecedented situation: two of the Guido Cult’s top single-digit Apostles simultaneously infiltrating Torquepaz Stadium.
“No, there’s no need to apologize.”
Yet Lennok spoke calmly, despite the old man’s words.
“From now on, I intend to kill you and then ask that Apostle Camlodal.”
“A splendid spirit.”
The old man smiled.
“However, with Freya Carlisle’s person in my hands, you won’t be able to lay a finger on me.”
“It seems you’re the one who knows nothing.”
Lennok sneered.
“Have you still not realized what you’ve caught?”
“…What?”
THWACK!!
At that moment, the limp Freya suddenly, like lightning, seized the old man’s neck with both hands.
CRUNCH…!!!
An unimaginable grip of immense strength instantly constricted and squeezed the Apostle’s neck.
Freya’s agile and grotesque movements, swiftly using her limbs to entangle the old man’s entire body.
“…No way!!!”
The old man’s face hardened as he finally realized the true identity of his captive.
Freya’s ‘puppet’ exploded on the spot, emitting immense heat.
BOOOOM!!!!
An explosion that tore through and collapsed the lounge, preparation room, and dressing room beneath the stage.
Immense smoke billowed from the center of the blast, obscuring vision in all directions.
Lennok, walking out through the dissipating smoke, looked at the Fifth Apostle with an expressionless face.
He had swapped himself with Chebien’s puppet, which looked identical to Freya, just before the old man moved.
He manipulated the puppet with Lennok’s Mana Thread to make it appear unconscious, then caught the old man off guard by detonating it.
Immediately after, Agneta, who had noticed the situation and was hiding, evacuated Freya.
Agneta had no talent for combat, but she knew exactly what she needed to do.
Perhaps that’s why the Director had entrusted Agneta with the role of Pandemonium’s combat power.
Lennok let such thoughts drift away and slowly turned his body.
“Indeed.”
Hwooooosh…!!!
The old man, standing at the center of the explosion, spoke as if something had just occurred to him.
“Priestess Ureka did tell me about it, and now I remember.”
“…”
“The diva and the puppet. The mask… Pandemonium, was it?”
The old man, carefully adjusting his fedora, emerged from the smoke, smiling.
“My memory is getting hazy with age, you see. I hope you’ll understand.”
“Judging by you spouting that Priestess’s name, it’s clear you’ve only recently joined the Guido Cult.”
SWISH!!
Lennok, pulling out and gripping a black Mana Thread, spoke as he strung it across the shattered walls and ceiling.
Lennok, who had instantly spun Mana Threads like a spiderweb in all directions, stared intently at the old man.
“But only two Apostles are supposed to maintain their sanity. Why is the Fifth Apostle walking the earth perfectly fine?”
“…Hmm.”
The Guido Cult’s Apostles are Incarnation Bodies who have received the power of an Outer God. They are monsters who wield Apostle Spellcraft that defies the laws of this world.
But as time passes, their minds are consumed by the Outer God’s dream, driving them mad.
Currently, only the Second Apostle and the Eighth Apostle within the Guido Cult maintain their sanity.
Yet Lennok hadn’t expected the Fifth Apostle, who should have long since gone mad and become a beast, to appear.
“You know an astonishing amount about our Cult’s vulnerabilities.”
The old man, feigning surprise, looked at Lennok and chuckled.
“It’s shameful, but it’s true. I served that being long ago and received the Apostle’s power, but I couldn’t endure long and became worse than a beast.”
“…”
“But Priestess Ureka, pitying me, personally redeemed this body.”
“Ha, redemption…”
Lennok’s expression, understanding the old man’s words at once, contorted behind his mask.
Ureka Naydree, the 11th Priestess of the Guido Cult.
An apostate who, instead of receiving the legitimate authority of a high priest, gained the power to control mad Apostles.
He had suspected as much since hearing stories of her committing human sacrifices without hesitation and conducting all sorts of experiments.
So, Ureka Naydree had managed to rein in the minds of even completely maddened Apostles and bring them back into the field?
“I, Eldrich, though a turncoat who twice betrayed the master I served, have never forgotten a kindness once received.”
As the old man said that, he slowly extended his hand to the side.
With a chilling sound of tearing flesh, something that had burst through the wall and flew caught in his hand.
“Even for Priestess Ureka, who saved me from awaiting my day to become fertilizer beneath the main cathedral–”
SWISH!!
A sharp iron sword, caked with blood and gore, pulsed with violent rotation.
The old man’s aura, gripping the unadorned iron sword, became chillingly sharp.
The old man, with his benevolent smile, lowered his sword and spoke.
“For the time being, I intend to dedicate my efforts to Salvation.”
WHOOSH!!
At that moment, everything before Lennok’s eyes split vertically.
A sword draw imbued with overwhelming Will-thought, as if cleaving the five senses in two.
The spot where Lennok stood exploded, and a pillar of intense light shot up above the stadium.
BOOOOM!!!
The preparation room beneath the stage burned and crumbled, its heat reaching all the way up to the stage.
An intense flash of light streaked across the stadium sky, scattering an eerie roar.
The musicians who remained on stage, playing their instruments, started screaming and running away.
“W-what is it?! What is it?!”
“Whoa, what the-!!”
“H-help me!!”
THUD!!
Two shadows simultaneously landed on the stage, now a burnt, collapsing mess.
A robed figure with an obsidian mask, Mana Threads draped from one hand.
An old gentleman in a fedora, gripping a blood-soaked sword.
Tens of thousands of spectators stirred as they saw the two figures, who appeared on the shattered stage instead of Freya.
“W-what’s going on? Who are those people?”
“I’ve never seen them before. Are they guests Freya invited?”
“Mister, our big sis is a sensitive person, she doesn’t invite guests like that, you know?”
“No, no matter how over-the-top the production, destroying the stage is a bit too much, isn’t it-”
“Oh dear.”
The Clown, sitting in the VIP section, tilted his head as he watched Lennok and the Fifth Apostle appear through the destroyed stage.
“There was a reason you suddenly appeared, spouting such haughty nonsense. Have you brought a new friend in the meantime?”
“‘Brought’ isn’t quite right. If anything, I’d say we’ve reclaimed him.”
Camlodal replied.
“Eldrich was the most Apostle-like of us all. His absence, consumed by madness, was a great tragedy for the Cult.”
“…”
“Now that the Human Apostle has finally found his place and returned for his mission, this too is a grace from that being.”
Camlodal, whose grotesque tentacles writhed beneath his chin, slowly shifted his gaze.
Camlodal, looking at Antares seated at the back of the audience with fiery eyes, said.
“Has the time come to settle our long-standing grudge, right here?”
“Oh, right.”
CRACK!!
At that moment, the Clown’s hand, moving at unseen speed, seized Camlodal’s tentacles.
The Clown, tilting his head as if just remembering, grinned.
“I wondered why you were talking so much; I decided I’d pluck this out first, remember?”
SQUELCH!!
The tentacles in the Clown’s hand were powerfully crushed and pulped.
He pulled out the convulsing tentacles, spouting bodily fluids, from beneath the man’s chin.
SHLURP!!
Nerves connected to the inside of the tentacles were pulled out like roots from beneath the man’s lower jaw.
Seeing the grotesque sight, the Clown dramatically stuck out his tongue.
“Ugh, how disgusting. What is this creepy thing?”
“It’s not the main body. It was a decoy prepared as a messenger.”
Antares, who had been calmly observing the scene, lifted his gaze.
“The real one is up there.”
RUMBLE…!!!
A rift in space opened near the ceiling of Torquepaz Stadium.
Beyond the spatial rift, which opened like a zipper, Guido Cult priests appeared one by one.
Among the priests were cultists disguised in police uniforms, infiltrating the city.
At the very back of those priests was a grotesque man, his entire face covered in tentacles.
Was that the ‘Apostle’ Camlodal had chosen as his puppet for this battle?
WAAAAAAAAAANG-!!!!!
At that moment, an ear-splitting siren began to blare from above the stadium ceiling.
Warning lights illuminated the emergency exits, and a calm announcement echoed from the speakers.
[Level 1 Alert. Level 1 Alert. Level 1 Alert.]
[This is an announcement. A large-scale terrorist attack targeting Torquepaz Stadium has commenced.]
[Police Headquarters has detected signs of Pandemonium’s involvement. Units are being dispatched to the scene immediately.]
[Please evacuate the stadium promptly, following the guidance of security personnel and police.]
[We repeat. This announcement is not a drill; this is a real situation—]
“Th-this is real?!”
“Terror? A terrorist attack is happening here right now?!”
“Don’t joke. How can this happen so suddenly?”
“Where’s Freya? Is the concert ending like this?!”
The bewildered audience began to panic as the atmosphere instantly changed.
Some quickly fled, but many others, unable to process the situation, merely stood up hesitantly.
They exchanged glances, waiting for security personnel or the police to give instructions.
“I understand your intentions, but it will be futile.”
Watching the audience, the old man gripping the sword offered a gentle smile.
“Most of this city’s citizens are accustomed to following police control, you see. Such announcements won’t make them act rashly.”
“…”
“Most of the police forces currently deployed for riot suppression are comprised of our Cult’s followers. In such a situation, do you think you can escape this city?”
The Fifth Apostle, Eldrich, slowly approached Lennok, raising his sword as he spoke.
“Hand over the Musical Scale Spellcaster willingly. That female individual is needed to open [The Gate] beneath the Royal Capital.”
“So you don’t want Freya’s identity to travel to Kabahim’s Royal Capital.”
Lennok adjusted his mask and lifted his gaze.
“You need Freya’s spellcraft to open [The Gate] beneath the Royal Capital.”
“There’s no need to look for a way to reach Kabahim’s Royal Capital elsewhere, you see.”
The old man chuckled.
“That was also the reason Priestess Ureka awakened me, so I’m merely helping her by reviving my old memories.”
“What do you mean?”
“Hmm, it’s nothing terribly important, but…”
WHOOSH!!
The old man appeared behind Lennok in an instant, pressing his sword close to his neck, and spoke.
“It means that I, long ago, was a knight who pledged loyalty to the Kabahim Royal Family.”
“…”
“Do you still need more explanation?”
“No.”
Lennok said, glancing sideways.
The moment his gaze met the Clown, who was looking this way from the VIP section.
The Clown grinned and nodded.
Lennok watched him and spoke.
“I understand that the Cult deliberately selected specific individuals for this operation.”
“Then—”
“But this is something I do far better than mere Cult Apostles.”
WHOOOOOOSH-
At that moment, a massive shadow suddenly fell over the old man’s head.
A shadow dark enough to obscure the entire stage, dozens of meters wide, where Lennok stood.
The old man immediately turned his gaze to the sky, his mouth slightly agape for a moment.
“This is…”
The colossal billboard airship that had been floating above the stadium since the concert began.
The massive flying vessel, equipped with an electronic display and broadcasting the concert, was plummeting from the sky.
CRUMBLECRUMBLECRUMBLE!!!
All propulsion systems on the airship activated at full power, accelerating its descent towards the ground.
The flying vessel, suspended dozens of meters in the air, was falling so fast that there was no time to escape.
“I’ve already decided how to overturn the board.”
Lennok chuckled and turned his body.
“As the Clown said, perhaps I’ll just act first and think later.”
“Wha—”
Before the old man could finish his reply, the colossal airship crashed into the center of the stage.
The accelerated mass of metal, spewing flames in all directions, plunged like a meteor into the center of the empty stadium.
KABOOOOOOOM!!!!
With an enormous roar, it shook the entire stadium as if an earthquake had struck.
Breaking news alerts announcing Pandemonium’s terrorist attack simultaneously flashed across all electronic displays and screens throughout the stadium.
“Kyyyaaaaah!!”
“Uwaaaah!!”
“T-terror!! A real terrorist attack is happening!!!”
“P-Pandemonium!! Pandemonium has committed a terrorist attack in Torquepaz…!!!”
Only then did the bewildered audience begin screaming hysterically and fleeing out of the stadium.