Chapter 1250: Post-Processing (3)
“It’s finally over.”
“……”
“It took longer than I thought. Or should I say, shorter than I thought?”
The woman with an ordinary face sitting at the table looked up at the sky, tilting her head.
Angel, a member of the Cartel’s board of directors, stared silently at the coffee on the table.
A luxury cafe located on the top floor of a skyscraper in Vulcan’s Central District, District 10.
The woman sat comfortably at a window seat overlooking the cityscape, resting her chin on her hand.
“Two days… no, three days. Perhaps because it’s been so long since I’ve been out, I still can’t quite grasp the flow of time in this world.”
“……”
“But what happened in there wouldn’t have been over in just three days.”
Without waiting for Angel’s reply, the woman offered a faint smile.
“Kaiser Bajour… how much time has he rewound so far? Perhaps an eon has already passed without us knowing.”
“……”
“It’s a shame I couldn’t get the Talent for Reversing Heaven if possible. I tend to think of Bloodline Ability as a type of superpower in its own right.”
“If you truly intended to, you wouldn’t be wasting your time with me like this…”
Angel spoke in a faint voice.
Slowly raising her gaze, Angel looked at her friend and said,
“Ophelia… wasn’t it true you never intended to deeply involve yourself in this war from the beginning?”
“That’s right.”
Ophelia affirmed calmly.
She looked at Angel with a soft smile and tilted her coffee cup.
“I feel I’ve shown enough sincerity. More than anything, I came to see a friend today.”
“……”
Ophelia Ionix Zaedark, the Zero Seat of the Ability Awakening Warband.
The inhuman entity, once called the greatest Great Connector in continental history, had borrowed a human body and descended into this world.
There was none of the noise that always covered her voice, nor the chilling mental transmission that felt like it pierced one’s mind directly.
All of it seemed to have washed away, and she merely smiled innocently before Angel, like an ordinary woman.
It was not surprising.
When she met those who had been with her when the Warband was first established, she often reverted to her old self, just like this.
As if forcing herself to recall and play the part of that time when everything was pure, righteous, and upright, when she gathered ability users who couldn’t control their innate talents and taught them how to live.
Angel was one of the few survivors who had founded the Warband with Ophelia.
“I happened to meet an old friend at The Legion Parade. That reminded me of you, Angel.”
“……”
“And I was curious about Vulcan, so today I just happened to–”
“Ophelia. The Subjugation Operation is over.”
Angel said quietly.
“As it was a war watched by the entire continent, the reaction is intense. The City Government’s Central Network’s traffic surged to the point of being completely paralyzed, I’m told.”
“……”
“As I’m in charge of the Communications Division, I have a lot of work to do… I need to go back. Won’t you say what you want to say now?”
At those words, Ophelia’s face became utterly devoid of expression.
The cheerful emotions and personality she had put on disappeared like a lie, an unsettling feeling as if they were being erased.
Ophelia set down her coffee cup and said in an indifferent voice,
“I annihilated Kabahim. I obtained the Bloodline Abilities of the remaining royalty and the remnants of an Outer God there.”
“……”
Ophelia’s smile turned eerie.
“Though there’s no essence, and I only grasp a shell… this should be enough to become the causality I need to move in the Central Council.”
“……That is.”
“So, return to the Warband before that.”
Ophelia whispered, slightly bowing her head.
“Before I obtain the Imperial Palace’s ‘privilege’ and change everything as I please.”
“……”
“Until now, I’ve respected your wishes, Angel, but I don’t want to anymore.”
Ophelia slowly stood up, smiling with a bizarre brilliance.
“After all, it’s more comforting to hold what I like directly in my hands, isn’t it?”
“……”
Since the Warband’s establishment, Ophelia had always strived and endured for the ability users who followed her.
When did her seemingly endless benevolence and patience finally break?
“It won’t be easy, Ophelia… The Ability Awakening Warband has changed too much, and we can’t go back to that time anymore.”
Angel raised her gaze with a complex expression.
“Many things have changed since our initial ‘promise’… Wasn’t that why you couldn’t stop me from leaving the Warband?”
“Perhaps.”
Ophelia conceded.
“But Angel. We might not have much time left. You ‘saw’ it too, didn’t you?”
“……That.”
Without waiting for Angel’s reply, Ophelia turned her gaze.
“The power that wizard showed in this war today was a kind of miracle that had never existed in continental history.”
Her eyes, gazing at the shimmering dark blue lightning outside the window, fractured like a mosaic.
“Fate, talent, aptitude, nature, or curse… many words could describe the outcome, but ultimately, none of them are proper causes.”
“……”
“An outcome existing without a cause. Perhaps the very appearance of such a person is a sign that this world’s demise is near?”
“……Ophelia.”
Suddenly, Angel looked up at Ophelia with a surprised expression.
Even her old self, who was benevolent and gentle to everyone, and always extended a hand to others first.
She had never once praised or taken note of another’s talent and fate in such a way.
A wizard whom she, who guided all ability users yet conversely held no expectations, would speak of directly by his talent.
Ophelia slowly turned and whispered,
“I hear whispers… of what people are calling that wizard after this war ended.”
“……”
“Extreme Lightning, Trembling Star, Lightning Emperor… Indeed, in the way he kills so many yet is revered, he might be very much like the Emperor.”
Ophelia chuckled softly, then brushed past Angel and walked away.
“So, I’ll stop here today. To properly converse with a Seeker of that caliber, I’ll need to adjust my own abilities a bit more.”
“Ophelia, I…”
Before a hesitating Angel could say anything, Ophelia had vanished.
The seat across from her was empty. The coffee cup she had put her lips to was disintegrating there.
Hiss…!!
A strange phenomenon, as if the very connections of matter were breaking apart and being destroyed, like a blast of radiation.
A dehumanizing aura, leaving no trace of mercy in her wake.
She had known for a long time that everything was wrong and broken.
Angel, looking at the empty seat Ophelia left with a complex expression, pulled out her cell phone.
“Wow~ So it just ended like this?”
In a dimly lit operating room, where an old light flickered faintly.
A shadow, leaning askew and looking up at the small TV on the wall, chuckled.
“The result of throwing in over four Legions and even the Zero Seat of the Warband is the annihilation of the leadership. The Legion’s prestige is in tatters, I tell you.”
“……”
“Even the Central officials probably didn’t expect such an overwhelming outcome. Ah, if I had known this would happen, I would have just watched from afar.”
The shadow, who had been writhing while watching the TV screen, suddenly turned its head.
“Indeed, a lot of interesting things have been happening in that city lately. Don’t you think so too?”
“I told you not to talk to me when I’m concentrating.”
Said another shadow, who stood bowed over the operating table.
As he slowly moved his hands, the ‘something’ lying on the operating table writhed with difficulty.
The shadow didn’t even pay attention to the subject’s resistance, rummaging through its contents as he spoke.
“I need practice to regain my senses after so long. This isn’t the time to play, so shut up.”
“You’ve been talking about regaining your senses since Kabahim. When is that friend who left long ago finally coming back?”
“It means it requires adjustments so precise and recondite that your spellcraft can’t even compare.”
Every time the shadow standing at the operating table spoke, blackened blood splattered sideways.
Without looking back at the blood and flesh dripping from his surgical gown, he said,
“I always knew Adamant Thunder was a spellcaster with unparalleled talent among the mortals born recently. The Marshal’s defeat is unexpected, but not an unacceptable outcome.”
“Again, again. Are you just going to spout such boring remarks? Saying ‘I knew it’ after the result is out, even the toy lying on that operating table could do that.”
“I’m not talking about outcome-based reasoning; I’m talking about an already concluded result. You’re the one who asked for my opinion first on this matter.”
“That’s because I don’t want to hear such boring impressions. As a Trait-type Spellcaster, you should offer some iconic opinion or impression.”
“I don’t know about that, but I suddenly feel like stitching your guts and intestines together in such a way.”
At the chilling retort, the shadow sitting in front of the TV chuckled, unfazed.
“I heard a few of our members participated in the Subjugation Operation. I wonder if they’re alive. It would be amusing if The Doctor died, at least.”
“Are you referring to Doctor Artemeyer? I don’t think he would have died in this incident.”
“No, you should immediately understand when I say The Doctor. But what makes you say that?”
“Because I helped him process the ‘Somatic Body’ he used in this incident.”
“……Huh?”
“He said he was a promising engineer from Endorose? I struggled to modify the brain of that Somatic Body to contain The Doctor’s Spiritual Presence. It was good practice.”
The shadow standing at the operating table said so, then swiftly turned.
“Because of that, I finally got the hang of it with that last practice. I’m ready, so lie on the operating table.”
“No, when did you even contact The Doctor for that? I knew you had surprisingly useful skills, but you were more outgoing than I thought. It doesn’t suit you at all. I repeat, it doesn’t suit you.”
“I merely thought Doctor Artemeyer’s request was worth incurring a debt for. Your nonsense is lengthy.”
The shadow at the operating table, adjusting his gloves, retorted.
“As promised, I will now perform your body adjustment surgery. Move quickly, as I need to administer anesthesia.”
“Could you at least clear out the previous guest on the operating table first?”
The chuckling shadow shrugged and approached the operating table.
“I have a strong stomach, but even I’m not so unreserved as to share an operating table with a stranger.”
“Very well.”
Thump!!
Something that had lost its human form slid with a splat onto the floor beneath the operating table.
Only then did the shadow grin broadly and sit on the blood-soaked operating table.
The other shadow, taking out a scalpel from the sterilizer, asked,
“I’ll focus on body adjustments tailored to your spellcraft’s characteristics and the manipulation of luck. I’ll be touching your sensory organs and hormones. No complaints, I trust?”
“None. The Pontiff will return soon, and the Director will make his move, so I need to prepare beforehand.”
The smile on the shadow lying on the operating table twisted bizarrely, like a Clown.
“As I said last time, from now on, there will likely be much to do in the Central Council.”
Central Front Outer Fortress. Alpha-Rain Forward Base, Paradox Blue.
The outskirts of a massive fortress where green plains undulated. A warm breeze swept across the plain.
A central stronghold city among Ars Nova’s colonies that had not yet fallen.
Hundreds of meters of aerial fortress floated above the city, from which all civilians and personnel had evacuated.
A colossal pyramid shape, gleaming with platinum light, rotated majestically in the sky.
Deadrise Central Command 1st Command, Ultima Alert.
The innermost sanctum of the most crucial stronghold, which controlled and directed all of The Legion’s operations and commands.
Inside the situation room, an utterly eerie silence hung.
“How can this be…?”
“Did the Marshal… lose…?”
“Captain Song-ha… Robert Loveride, Townsend…”
“Lord Baragan even brought out Quetzalcoatl, how could there be such a crushing defeat…?”
Even thousands of kilometers away in Vulcan, the results of the Subjugation Operation were painfully clear.
The brutal spectacle of The Legion’s main forces being massacred. The catastrophe of commanders and Transcendent scattered as corpses from each faction.
Though they hadn’t clearly seen what happened inside District 49, everyone had witnessed the outcome.
Over four Legions and the 3rd Command Primo Alert. The Blaiver Tower and the Mechanized Legion. A grand decisive battle utilizing the elite forces of the Ability Awakening Warband.
In the Eastern Continent’s largest war, involving over five super-large strategic weapons and tens of thousands of Superhumans, The Legion was defeated.
All that remained was an immense, unquantifiable amount of damage and losses.
Groooan!!
In the darkened room at the very core of Ultima Alert, where commanders couldn’t hide their lamentations.
Gileon, weakly breathing with tubes inserted all over his body, quietly closed his eyes.
“Kaiser…”
For Kaiser Bajour, how many failures had this been? How many times had he faced a failure leading to death, only to rewind and return to reality?
But after countless regressions, Gileon instinctively knew that this time, the end had truly come.
Despite having protected Kaiser his entire life, Gileon ultimately couldn’t be of further help to him.
He had wished to somehow prolong his remaining life to be of even a little assistance.
But perhaps what Kaiser truly wanted wasn’t Gileon, but someone like Adamant Thunder.
Not someone to extend a hand, but someone to bring about the ending in his stead.
As if a broken machine part, having malfunctioned, was finally waiting for the moment it would cease to operate.
Beep!!
A system screen appeared next to Gileon, displaying the hardened faces of the commanders.
[Lord Miloze. The 10th Legion has completed preparations to sortie for Vulcan.]
[With the Marshal defeated, we must move our main forces immediately.]
[Given that we don’t know the principle behind Lord Bajour’s revival, if we don’t secure his remains as quickly as possible—]
The fact that Ethan Bajour possessed the Talent of the Revived was known to most of The Legion’s commanders.
Therefore, those unaware of Kaiser’s demise were already moving to take follow-up measures, despite the defeat of the Subjugation Operation.
With the deaths of The Legion Commander and leadership confirmed in Vulcan, Gileon Miloze was the only one qualified for supreme command.
Now that a grand decisive battle had concluded, this was the moment with the highest chance of success against Adamant Thunder.
[I will immediately move Ultima Alert and head to the Eastern Continent. Command us.]
[The Southern Front’s 6th Legion is moving to rescue Lieutenant General Atiya.]
[The Legions across the continent are currently awaiting your judgment, Commander.]
“……No.”
But instead of answering, Gileon painfully raised his gaze to the darkroom’s ceiling.
As if looking beyond the thick walls, up at the sky above.
Exhaling a faint, almost broken breath, Gileon slowly stretched out his hand.
Tuk, Tuk.
As he detached the tubes connected to his arm one by one, black-stained feathers scattered finely each time.
Fwoosh!!!
Gileon whispered, almost murmuring, amidst the feathers that instantly filled the entire darkroom.
“Such leeway… will not be given to us…”
[Commander, what do you mean—]
[If we don’t act now, The Legion’s standing will be shaken across the continent—]
Kwooosh!!!
Other commanders were not given time to understand Gileon’s words.
The earth shook, the sky roared, and everything standing on the ground swayed violently.
Confused soldiers belatedly followed Gileon’s gaze to the sky, realizing the cause.
[What in the—]
[The, the sky…!!!!]
[It’s a meteor shower, that…!!!!]
Beyond the clear blue sky, a streaked silver meteor shower was falling with an immense roar.
Once, it was beautiful silver starlight, shining with untainted conviction.
Now, it was the corrupted remnants of a fallen Ascendant’s will-thought, degraded and defiled.
Kwooogwawawawawawawa!!!!!
Hundreds of contaminated silver stars, forming the shape of a colossal celestial sphere, plunged towards Paradox Green.
Each starburst, a harbinger of destruction, compressed with immeasurable mana and heat.
The corrupted mental image of the Fallen One, capable of crushing space itself if even one struck directly.
Gileon closed his eyes and whispered,
“……They’ve arrived.”
[No way…!!!!]
On the other side of the plain, where that distant meteor shower was falling, a giant in a hooded robe stood alone.
Horns of a Dragon-kind jutted out from beneath the thick robe. Contaminated silver scales gleamed through the swaying fabric.
“All a foolish and incompetent follower can do, is merely this.”
From within the robe, the contaminated eyes of the silver dragon gleamed menacingly.
“Deadrise. You had best be prepared.”
Kuguguguugu!!!!!
As the Fallen One’s hand rotated, the meteor shower falling from the sky simultaneously changed trajectory.
The moment Gileon, having removed his respirator, stumbled to his feet and met the gaze of the Gemstone Dragon, corrupted across spacetime.
Everything was enveloped in streaked silver amidst the explosion of distant starlight falling towards Ultima Alert.