Silver W. King

Becoming the Strongest Through (Draconic) Racism - Chapter 14 (Patreon)

Published:

2026-07-24 07:25:50

Edited:

2026-07-25 22:29:53

Imported:

2026-11

Tags:

Draconic Racism High School DxD Self Insert

Content

It was a horrifying sight. There's no real way to say otherwise.

Marius Rahab seemed to scream for a long time. It's own regeneration enabling it to survive for a long time till Niðhöggr devoured enough of the body to take in the soul into itself.

Then I witnessed the Abyss Rage Dragon subjugate the amalgamation of souls, till he ruled over them and made them part of his own. Only Niðhöggr was left.

While all this was happening I was focused on a most important task. Two actually.

One, I decided to just make myself resistance and then immune to Orochi's poison cloud made of a soul spell, by letting the poison gas enter me then purging it with healing energy. I finally got better to the point of having an excess, when converting negative energy to healing energy.

Two... I was thinking of a name for the Holy Chalice Blessing.

Sure one might be horrified at seeing one living being eating another alive, and killing it in the process, but this is only as shocking as just seeing something sudden and grotesque in a horror movie. You're just surprised at suddenly seeing something so extreme, not because you're actually afraid. It's the suddenness of it that gets you.

But also... it's my enemies taking each other out. Who cares about them.

Now, a name for the Holy Chalice Blessing. I slightly considered something a Domain Expansion, but it's not that, or something like a Reality Marble. It's not an attack nor some alteration of the rules of the world, or some imposition of my will on the world. It's just analysis and understanding of the soul of whatever is within the barrier. Also I don't want to break the theme of using narrative tropes of the names of my Blessings.

Wait. That's it. I can understand the souls (intention, affinity and all) of whatever is in the undetectable barrier made by the Blessing. The spirit of the beings within the barrier.

Spirit World.

Yeah, that fits well enough. No need to complicate it.

Niðhöggr roared as he finished consuming Marius Rahab and his power.

Oh good, they horror show is done.

There's also another reason why I didn't interfere with this whole thing. Niðhöggr was going to fail. It's the first law of taking a energy source bigger than your head. You explode.

Dragons were beings of power taking form and life, but undoubtedly Marius Rahab was more powerful than Niðhöggr. The chances of the Abyss Rage Dragon successfully integrating Rahab's power was—

A̶̷̸̧̖͂̽n̸̸̵̠͎̊͗d̵̸̶̲̳̂̍ ̷̸̶̠̓͆ͅẗ̷̷̸̲̮́͒h̶̵̵̡̘̉̒r̶̵̴̫̦̂̌ơ̸̷̷̭̝̆u̴̶̴̟̳͠͝g̶̵̵͚͙͒́h̵̶̷̢͙͛̿ ̴̶̵̡͍͆͆d̶̸̸̢̳̈́͋r̵̵̶̫͌͝ͅẻ̶̵̴̼̻̍a̴̶̴̬͉͗͆m̷̴̴̭̂̓͜ṡ̶̶̸̝̝̑,̶̶̷͓̥̃͘ ̷̶̵̩̖̀̅t̶̷̴̠̳̾̃h̶̷̵͓̩̊́e̷̸̵̙͉͂̓ ̸̸̵̻͔̎͝ŝ̸̸̷͓̦̓ț̵̴̴͙̾̅o̴̷̵̢̲̅̎r̸̴̴̼͖͆̎ẏ̶̷̸̢̢͐ ̷̶̷͎̯͌̆ć̸̷̸̱̤̉ḧ̵̶̵̩̎͜a̶̷̷̰͙̅͌n̸̷̶̻̖͒͘g̵̶̷̗͉̋͘e̷̵̶͉̒͛͜s̴̵̷̞̀̊͜.̵̵̸͕͎̃͝

...What the fuck!?

Niðhöggr's body began to shine as he started to transform, his body and soul managing to assimilate Rahab's power to his own.

Okay, I don't want to sound paranoid, but this is the second time, where the villains got a power-up and where things worked out for them. It makes sense for a shounen plot for the bad guys to get a power up so they are more of a challenge to the protagonist, and thus make the protagonist look cooler when they win, but... it feels too forced.

Rizevim shouldn't have the ability or willpower, to be able to push his Sacred Gear Canceller to also hit Heroic Second Wind. Which thinking about it, I should work on combating that actively, so I can have my Holy Cross Blessing, and my Sacred Gear for when I ambush Future Gasper.

Second time, now, Niðhöggr who should have hoisted himself by his own greed and envy, should have died due to lack the willpower, control and strength to overtake Rahab's power. Yet he did.

Am I paranoid or crazy to think Great Red might have caused this? I mean, surely he isn't focused on me when we haven't even met yet.

But then again I am constantly shouting about wanting to kill him, so maybe he did notice and taking active measurements against me.

Or am I getting arrogant for thinking someone as strong as Great Red would actively try to take a hand in blocking my path?

No, you're never crazy for thinking Great Red—that fucking asshole—is fucking you over.

What steps to take to deal with this? Hmm...

Continue as I am. Take care of this situation with the dragons and Future Gasper first.

Now how to get back Chaoskampf and Heroic Second Wind, can I used Spirit World on my own soul?

The answer is? Yes. Enthusiastically yes, I can.

There are multiple methods, from just overpower Rizevim's power and purging it out of me, to pouring power into the Longinus.

But the quickest and most effective, was... Huh. Faith and will.

I'd like to think I have a lot of the latter, but the former?

Faith, huh.

Faith in what? God? That's... kinda difficult despite everything, as no matter how hard I prayed as my Unawakened Self, I never felt I got salvation. Or maybe I didn't notice or appreciate the little things I had back then. Maybe if I focused on those, rather than my misery things could have been different.

But in the end, I know God is dead, so how can I have faith in Him? And yes, His Dying Will is still here, but would that be enough?

My prayers being answered on Alcatraz feel too much like my angry was my savior than God, as prideful as that sounds, even if I know what more likely happened.

Anger, huh? Maybe I have too many complicated feelings about God to have clear faith in Him, but I can have True Faith in his Wrath.

God hated Dragons for what Great Red did to His Children, to us. I can have faith in that anger.

A̵̶̴̴̴̶̷̶̸̵̴̧̖͈̙͉̬͚͖͔̗̒̇͐̍̔͋͗͆̕͝c̴̴̸̵̵̷̶̷̴̴̶̛̤̩̰̬̻̞͚̜̲̘͌͂͐̔͒͛̽̋͝c̶̴̷̸̸̶̶̷̸̶̴͍̬̪̪̥̘̝̦̻̥̈́̍̆̇̎̒͒̑̓͝e̶̶̴̶̸̴̸̴̵̷̶̢̧̨̝̥̬͈̥͎͚͒́͆͛̆̋̅̐͘͠p̴̴̶̵̴̵̷̶̶̵̷͈̭̟͚̗̦͍̠͍̑̏̾͒̉̀̃̊̈͜͠ţ̷̵̴̵̵̴̴̴̸̶̴̛̛͇̩̰̘̝̭̯͉̻̉͛͆͂̏̆̈́͘ĕ̷̴̶̴̴̵̸̷̴̵̸̟̙̺͍͚̻͓̬̦̞̂̓̓̌̂́̉̆̐d̴̸̸̴̶̵̸̴̴̶̷̠̟̳̝̳̪̘̩̼̲̽̅̽̋̓͘̕͝͠͝.̷̺͆

I let out a sigh. I feel more at ease, and I even notice that Rizevim's power's hold on my Sacred Gear and Holy Cross Blessing lessening. It would break soon. The Sacred Gear Canceller already had a timer on it due to my power opposing it.

I focused on Heroic Second Wind, praying for that power's return to rise and fight again and again.

It's light began to slowly come back in my mind's eyes.

Ah, it seems Niðhöggr's transformation is done. Let's see what he did to himself.

Huh, his power, his miasma is more contained rather than leaking like before, what a surprise.

His body looked grey and oily. Small blood red spikes on his arms, thighs and the joints of his wings, of which he now had three pairs.

He seemed to have gained additional horns that framed his jawline. His eyes and the holes in his body were no longer leaking miasma but simple glowing crimson red and holding back malevolent power.

Also smaller wings along the back of his head and neck. The one on the back of his head was the largest one that looks like a pair of horns. No, wait, that is a pair of horns that look like upside down wings.

The one odd addition was the thin red horn he gained on his snout, the same color as his blood eyes red.

"Finally," Niðhöggr spoke, trying to sound triumphant, but to my ears sounded like he was on the verge of crying. "I have achieved it, true power, true immortality. I cannot be killed, I cannot be destroyed. Do thy worst, Dragon Slayer. Your death is inevitable, you end is here. For I. Am. Here."

"..." I raised an eyebrow, holding back a laugh, but unable to keep my lips from twitching into a smile.

"What?" Niðhöggr shouted, sounding like the insecure idiot he actually was.

"Hypothetically, even if I can't kill you, you do know you still feel every blow and every death right?" I said back.

"...Ha!" He tried to sound confident and unbothered. "Do you think I'm a whelp that cries out at any bit of pain. No, my body is indestructible, thus any will slide off me, like rain on stone." He grinned widely. "I've devoured ten thousand souls, soon I will devour the World Tree and then become the Devourer of World—"

"Pfffttt!" I tried to stifle a laugh. I really tried to, even covered my mouth and everything, but it still came out.

"WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING!?"

"D-Devour the World Tree... Wood swallower, pffftahhahahahahha!" I couldn't help myself. It's such a childish joke yet I found myself laughing.

"STOP LAUGHING! DO YOU KNOW HOW TERRIFYING IT IS WHEN A MOUTH IS BIG ENOUGH TO SWALLOW YOU WHOLE!" The Remade Abyss Rage Dragon shouted.

I lost it. I couldn't stop laughing even if I wanted to.

"Hahaha, Holy, shit, I can't breathe," I cried out, wiping tears from my eyes. "If the hawk is also this much of an idiot, then Ratatoskr had the best job ever!"

Niðhöggr seemed like he was about to erupt, only to calm down and smirk instead.

Uh huh, guess he's that confident in his new power up. Alright, I'll answer him with the same seriousness. 100% maximum effort right from the start.

"Make all the jokes you like. Now, you will witness true horror!" Niðhöggr raised dramatically as he raised his hand while looking at it.

"That line sounds familiar..." I whispered to myself, before my expression felt. "No, dude. You're not Her." I muttered.

Miasma began to gather in Niðhöggr's claws, like oily black and gray flames, as he forged it into a sword.

"Hræsmiðir," he said, naming his miasma sword. "The instrument of your doom!" He declared and swung the giant blade.

An explosion rang out, the ground shook for miles, and once the dust dispersed...

There I was blocking, blocking the giant sword with my Aura Construct greatsword.

"You know looking at it up close, did you copy my Sacred Gear's design—?" I asked casually.

Niðhöggr roared, lifted the sword and brought it time again and again like a rabid animal that had no idea how to use a weapon, only imitating beating things with a stick.

There were two reasons why I stood where I was unaffected by Niðhöggr's attacks. One, he wasn't hitting as hard as Marius Rahab. Two, I figured out how Aži Dahāka stopped my surprise attack on him (even with Future Gasper assisting him), it was Reverse Magic.

Using Reverse Magic on kinetic energy turned it into potential energy. Stored energy in a sense. Thus in that same instant as gaining potential energy, I use Reversal again while changing the vector to oppose Niðhöggr's attack, and suddenly I'm cancelling out his attacks the moment he makes them. Need to get the timing right, but Niðhöggr is pretty predictable.

Eventually at one of his swings, Niðhöggr swung down, only to find his miasma sword stuck, unable to be moved.

Because I had grasped it with my bare hand. I canceled his kinetic energy completely and didn't return it. Also because the sword was made of miasma, and it was time to break that negative energy into healing energy.

"Did you forget what negative energy is to me?" I asked in a bored tone.

Niðhöggr as the miasma sword began to heat up and bubble.

Alright, guess we're doing this.

The miasma sword exploded into a destructive bomb of pure malice. A force that only wants ruin and vicious harm to propagate.

And I copied Heroic Second Wind once more.

Well, not only Heroic Second Wind. Dragon Slaying Aura erupted from my body that surprised Niðhöggr, as it went off like an explosion in the Evil Dragon's face.

Niðhöggr found himself slammed back into the Ladon's barrier, before he could react. A few of his wings were actively regenerating as he went to stay up.

"W-What is this sudden power? What did you do?"

"Did you forget what my Sacred Gear does?" I asked, as I took this new surge of Dragon Slaying Aura to forge into an Aura Greatsword.

"Your Sacred Gear had been cancelled!" Niðhöggr shouted.

I raised an eyebrow in response.

"And? Sacred Gears are meant to be teaching tools to mankind. Why wouldn't I learn to be able to replicate what it does on my own?" I asked as I headed toward the Evil Dragon who was warily standing up to face me once more.

"That's not how it works at all! Sacred Gears are weapons, humanity's one and only pathetic means of fighting their betters." Niðhöggr growled.

"I have no idea who told you that, or why I should ascribe to that limiting belief. Clearly that's not how it works from what I can see."

"That's because you're a frickin' monster!" Niðhöggr exclaimed, and I couldn't help but laugh.

The process of turning negative energy to healing energy in essence is that of Reverse Magic.

It goes: Negative Energy -> Positive Energy -> Healing Energy -> Condensed Potent Healing Energy.

That is how it's supposed to go, but the Blessing of the Holy Cross skips the process to go from Negative Energy to the potent Healing Energy that fixes everything in one go.

I haven't managed that yet, but I got better at streamlining the process to make it quicker.

However, my Chaoskampf Ordained process of turning my Anger to Dragon Slaying Aura is different. Not just that, but the process had evolved to turn my Negative emotions to Dragon Slaying Aura, and then to using up any Negative Energy to transform into Dragon Slaying Aura.

I had been with my Longinus from the beginning. I've studied its process from its inception to now. Thus...

"Well," I grinned. "Prepare for the monster."

I began to devour the miasma around me, and that which was being generated by Niðhöggr to further make more Dragon Slaying Aura.

I haven't perfected it. Some of the negative energy is wasted in the process so it isn't one to one. But thankfully, Niðhöggr is a fountain of miasma so, I have more than enough energy to practice with.

And more importantly, Spirit World? Spirit World cannot only show me the functions of a soul within its barrier in the present, but also what I experienced, meaning I can use the Blessing of the Holy Chalice on my memories.

And I have a lot of memories of using Chaoskampf Ordained.

Soon, I'll move onto all the poison material from Aži Dahāka's spell and work on negative matter to Healing Energy or Dragon Slaying Aura conversion.

I exploded into motion, not unlike Rahab used to do. Except unlike him, I didn't harm myself with an omnidirectional explosion. Rather I optimized it by directing the explosion opposite to where I need to go, and with kinetic energy manipulation and Divine Step, I could direct where and how to dash and get to where I want.

And right now that was getting my knee into Niðhöggr's face.

Niðhöggr tried to dodge. Ladon assisted by speeding up Niðhöggr's time with all he could.

I hit Niðhöggr's side of his teeth rather than his snout, breaking some of those teeth.

Niðhöggr roared in pain on moment, the next he was fully healed and slashing at me with claws covered in miasma shaped like a clawed gauntlet.

I met his clash with my Aura Greatsword, and with every clash the range of what I could capture and transform negative energy to Dragon Slaying Aura kept increasing. First skin touch, then inches above my skin, then a dozen inches, then a meter, and this range extended to my Aura Constructs.

Niðhöggr was uncaring for his own health and safety. Thus he made constant attacks beyond his own limits. Miasma turned into pure violent explosive energy.

So in response I made a second Aura Greatsword and dual wielded.

It was impractical, it wasn't easily to navigate, and I may have wanted to flex a tiny bit.

"AAAARGH!" Niðhöggr screamed.

But it was very satisfying to make double the Dragon Smashes, that blew up Niðhöggr's attacking arm, making him have to regenerate it, or acting as a spin top of bladed death machine.

Our clashes where cleaning up the poisoned land and air from the Orochi Poisonous Cloudmaking Spell, mostly because we were wiping clean everything within Ladon's barrier with our clashes. Repeatedly.

"You, you, you! Give up, give up, GIVE UP!" Niðhöggr shouted in increasing frustration and rage that even with his new power I was equaling him.

"Is that how you became an infamous dreadful dragon? You whined at everyone who fought, and then sucked on their wood?" I smirked back, parrying one of his blows by a miasma covered wing away summersaulting and slamming an overhead kick on his back.

"AAAAAAAAAARH!" Niðhöggr roared as he spun and our explosive dance continued anew.

But I noticed no matter how angry I made Niðhöggr he still wasn't in Outrage Mode, meaning he was still in control of himself. Alright, time to turn up the heat.

I was thinking about this for a while, and maybe I'm misremembering, but didn't Super Orion have some kind of Anti-Hivemind Noble Phantasm? In a sense the 10,000 souls being interlinked is kind of a hivemind, so if I can learn how to make it that hitting one, is the same as hitting all of them collectively as a whole, I should be able to win. In theory.

But making one hit resonate so that it hits the totality of Niðhöggr's new soul. Sounds like a paradox, gonna have to think about it for a while.

Or maybe not. Let's go with my instincts since they've worked well so far.

Tsubame Gaeshi and Shoot Style, one blade in each hand. With all of Niðhöggr's miasma around and my current Heroic Second Wind copy of the healing skill, I should be able to refill my mana reserves to keep the attacks going for a long while, and refill my stamina. Only strain will be the mental one, and I have a very stubborn mind.

To boil everything down to a simple equation:

I'll keep hitting him till I figure something out, or he dies.

And if he gets clever or goes Outrage Mode?

Reawaken the Blessing of the Holy Cross.

"Shoot Style," I grinned, deciding to just repeat my attacks still I can't swing the energy swords anymore. "Six Worlds Rotations." I slashed with dual wielded greatswords.

Space expanded. Six energy blades slammed simultaneously into Niðhöggr's miasma erupting body and into his soul as well. His actions was a useless measure of attack and defense against me. It felt desperate.

"Why are you bothering with this?" The dragon laughed through the pain.

Six hundred strikes slammed into Niðhöggr's being in a moment, and his soul held.

One thousand, two hundred strikes fell and the moment hadn't ended. His soul held.

Two thousand, four hundred strikes poured down, the blades becoming like rain, and the moment began to pass. His soul held.

Honestly, the only reason there was any definition to my attacks, something to distinguish that there was a sequence of something before and something after, was the time slowing upon me.

"This is nothing! You hear me! Nothing! You're wasting your strengths, your efforts into the void. My life is inexhaustible!" The Evil Dragon shouted, as he began to be so overwhelmed he couldn't attack or move his limbs forward against the downpour of Aura Greatsword slashes.

The attacks upon the three foundations of Niðhöggr's new soul, same as Rahab's, continued unending. Attacks physical and spiritual, upon the individual souls, upon the links connecting them, upon the amalgamation soul structure as a whole.

Yet while Rahab has that robust soul structure to continuously revive, courtesy of Marius Tepes' immortality, Niðhöggr had the added benefit of resurrection from sheer spite and hate, due to how much he loathed his opponents who bested him.

"I have become Niðhöggr, the Eternal Abyss Dragon. I cannot be killed anymore. Death has no grasp upon me!"

Then Niðhöggr did something that actually surprised me. He exploded.

Yes, I know that was Rahab's thing, but the difference is Marius Rahab was acting out of instinct and anger, lashing out in the maximum amount of way it's able to without thought to the consequences.

Niðhöggr exploded with the force of all more than ten thousand souls, all to launch a Miasma Breath at me. And with all his sacrificial power put into his Dragon Aura, placed into his negative energy condensed to miasma, the breath beam attack seemed to happen instantaneously.

The black and grey beam engulfed me and the whole of my attacks.

And of course, never miss a chance to be an annoying fly, Future Gasper capitalized on the moment.

.̶̶̴̴̴̷̷̶̴̸̵̶̵̸̵̷̴̴̵̵̶̷̸̶̸̷̶̵̸̷̶̶̷̷̵̷̷̵̷̵̶̸̷̵̸̴̶̴̶̷̷̴̴̸̸̵̵̷̴̴̷̴̷̶̴̸̷̴̴̸̶̷̴̵̶̴̶̴̷̷̵̷̴̴̴̵̶̴̸̸̷̸̶̴̴̴̸̵̷̴̸̷̶̵̵̷̵̷̷̶̶̷̴̶̸̷̴̶̶̶̴̸̷̴̷̴̷̷̸̸̸̵̸̴̵̸̶̴̸̴̵̶̸̴̷̶̸̶̴̴̴̶̴̷̷̵̵̶̷̸̷̸̷̸̷̷̸̴̷̵̸̷̸̷̴̸̶̶̶̵̶̶̷̴̶̷̷̶̶̵̶̵̸̵̵̶̶̶̷̴̶̸̶̴̷̸̶̶̴̶̴̸̷̸̴̵̸̴̵̵̸̵̵̵̵̵̶̸̴̷̸̸̸̴̸̷̶̶̵̶̸̸̸̴̶̸̵̸̵̷̸̶̶̴̷̷̴̵̶̷̵̶̴̷̶̴̷̶̷̴̵̵̷̵̴̴̴̴̵̵̶̶̸̷̸̷̷̶̸̷̶̴̶̸̶̴̵̶̷̸̸̷̷̸̶̴̷̴̸̸̷̶̵̴̴̴̷̷̴̶̵̴̵̷̵̵̶̶̵̷̶̴̶̶̷̸̶̵̴̷̸̵̵̵̶̴̶̴̸̴̶̸̷̴̵̶̷̸̴̶̷̴̶̷̷̸̷̶̴̶̴̶̴̴̴̸̴̸̶̶̷̸̸̷̸̵̸̷̶̴̸̵̸̸̶̷̵̵̷̶̴̷̷̶̴̴̷̵̷̴̵̶̴̶̶̵̴̵̷̸̴̸̷̷̴̶̵̶̴̵̵̶̵̸̸̷̸̸̸̷̴̶̸̴̷̸̸̴̶̴̷̶̴̴̸̵̷̷̴̵̵̶̶̶̷̴̵̵̸̴̷̸̵̸̴̵̵̸̶̵̸̸̶̸̶̸̵̶̷̴̸̷̴̴̴̶̴̶̶̶̷̸̷̸̸̵̵̵̶̴̶̸̸̶̴̵̶̵̴̶̵̷̴̷̷̵̸̵̷̴̵̴̵̴̸̶̶̸̴̸̸̸̵̸̴̶̴̷̴̶̷̷̴̷̸̵̶̵̶̴̷̵̵̶̵̸̷̵̵̵̶̷̸̵̷̷̸̸̴̸̶̷̷̶̸̷̷̵̸̵̷̶̸̶̵̶̴̶̷̸̶̷̷̷̵̵̸̸̵̵̶̷̵̵̶̴̷̷̷̴̵̴̶̷̸̵̶̷̸̷̸̴̷̶̸̸̴̴̴̵̶̵̴̸̶̶̵̵̷̶̴̵̵̶̶̸̶̵̷̸̸̵̶̶̴̷̷̴̸̸̴̷̵̵̵̷̶̴̶̷̶̴̶̸̶̸̸̸̷̷̷̵̴̴̴̶̶̵̸̵̴̶̷̴̵̶̷̷̶̷̶̸̵̷̷̶̶̶̸̷̷̷̷̶̸̵̸̴̴̷̸̶̵̴̶̴̷̶̸̷̶̵̸̴̶̶̷̴̴̴̸̴̷̷̸̴̴̵̷̶̴̴̵̴̷̶̵̶̷̷̴̸̶̴̷̷̶̵̸̵̴̸̵̴̶̷̷̸̴̶̴̴̵̷̸̴̷̵̸̴̴̴̸̶̵̴̴̶̶̵̶̶̸̴̷̸̸̷̸̴̷̸̵̶̵̵̶̸̴̶̴̸̷̶̷̶̸̸̸̴̴̵̶̶̸̵̶̸̸̸̷̵̶̷̴̴̵̶̴̵̸̶̷̴̵̸̷̸̸̴̷̶̴̸̶̴̸̴̵̴̸̶̴̸̴̵̷̸̸̴̶̸̴̸̶̸̶̷̸̶̶̴̴̵̶̶̸̵̷̷̸̶̷̴̶̸̷̵̷̷̷̷̸̶̶̴̴̴̶̸̵̷̷̴̵̷̵̶̶̵̷̸̴̸̸̵̷̴̷̶̴̴̶̴̴̴̵̶̶̴̷̵̵̸̵̶̴̵̶̸̸̵̵̵̶̷̸̵̴̵̶̴̸̷̷̸̸̸̸̷̸̸̷̷̴̶̷̶̷̴̶̷̴̵̸̴̵̸̸̶̸̸̶̶̸̸̶̷̴̴̸̈́̋Ԁ̴̷̶̷̶̶̸̵̸̷̴̶̵̸̷̵̸̴̷̴̴̶̴̶̷̷̴̸̶̸̶̷̶̶̶̵̵̷̸̷̷̸̸̷̶̶̸̸̴̷̵̴̴̸̶̸̵̶̵̴̶̷̵̶̸̷̴̸̸̶̸̷̷̸̷̷̶̵̵̵̷̴̷̷̸̷̴̶̵̶̵̶̵̴̷̴̷̶̶̷̵̷̵̷̴̷̴̷̶̴̵̸̸̶̵̴̵̶̵̵̵̴̴̶̸̶̵̷̵̷̷̷̸̵̶̶̷̷̷̸̵̸̴̵̷̷̶̵̴̸̸̶̶̵̸̶̵̵̴̸̵̴̵̵̸̵̷̵̶̷̷̵̵̴̵̴̵̴̶̵̵̵̷̴̸̸̶̵̷̷̸̵̵̷̸̷̸̸̶̶̵̷̸̴̸̷̵̷̸̶̸̴̶̵̵̶̶̸̷̴̵̷̴̴̶̵̴̷̵̴̵̶̸̶̸̵̴̶̷̶̸̵̴̷̴̷̵̸̶̷̸̴̵̷̵̴̸̸̸̴̷̶̵̸̴̴̸̵̷̶̸̷̷̵̶̶̸̴̴̷̴̵̴̷̵̵̸̸̶̷̴̵̵̸̸̵̶̸̴̵̷̴̴̶̸̸̸̵̵̵̴̵̵̶̵̴̸̶̵̷̸̵̶̵̵̶̷̴̴̵̸̸̶̷̸̴̴̶̸̵̴̶̷̸̴̶̴̴̷̸̷̶̴̷̷̸̸̸̶̵̶̶̸̴̷̶̶̴̸̴̴̸̸̶̷̴̵̸̷̸̶̴̶̸̸̴̴̷̸̶̷̸̷̸̵̶̵̶̶̶̸̷̸̴̸̷̸̸̴̵̴̵̴̷̸̴̷̸̶̴̶̵̶̷̵̸̸̶̴̸̴̵̸̸̶̸̶̵̶̴̶̷̴̶̵̵̸̶̴̴̸̷̸̸̴̴̶̶̸̵̸̷̴̷̴̷̶̸̵̷̶̵̵̵̶̷̴̶̸̸̵̴̸̷̸̴̵̶̸̵̴̸̴̵̶̵̷̴̶̶̸̶̵̸̴̸̶̵̵̵̵̷̷̸̴̷̶̴̵̶̴̴̶̸̵̴̸̶̵̵̵̷̶̶̵̴̴̷̷̴̵̷̴̸̸̵̶̸̵̸̶̴̸̸̵̷̵̶̵̷̵̶̷̸̸̴̸̶̴̵̸̷̷̷̷̵̸̴̶̷̷̸̴̷̸̴̷̴̴̷̵̷̴̶̵̵̶̸̶̸̴̵̵̵̴̷̸̷̸̸̵̶̵̸̸̵̷̸̴̴̶̷̶̷̵̷̶̶̴̸̵̷̸̷̷̷̷̴̴̴̴̸̷̵̶̴̶̶̴̵̵̶̵̴̴̷̸̷̴̸̶̵̸̵̷̵̵̶̸̵̷̸̵̵̸̶̴̴̴̶̷̴̴̸̷̶̷̷̸̶̶̷̸̶̵̴̴̵̴̵̴̵̷̶̷̴̴̸̸̴̷̷̸̷̴̸̵̵̶̷̴̴̵̷̴̵̵̴̴̵̶̶̵̸̶̶̴̵̸̷̸̵̷̸̴̷̶̴̵̸̷̷̶̶̴̸̶̷̶̷̴̸̸̶̵̷̵̷̸̷̷̶̷̸̵̵̷̵̸̷̵̴̵̸̵̴̶̵̶̷̷̷̷̸̸̸̵̴̵̶̴̸̷̵̸̷̵̶̸̷̶̸̵̵̸̴̴̴̸̸̴̶̸̴̸̴̴̴̶̶̷̴̸̶̵̸̴̵̷̵̵̶̶̶̴̴̸̶̵̸̷̵̸̵̵̸̷̸̴̵̶̸̵̷̴̴̶̸̸̸̶̸̶̵̸̷̷̴̴̵̶̶̸̴̷̷̸̴̵̷̴̷̸̸̵̸̸̷̶̸̵̴̴̶̸̶̷̸̷̴̸̴̷̴̸̷̴̷̷̸̴̶̶̵̵̷̸̶̸̸̵̸̷̵̷̵̵̴̸̸̴̶̵̷̵̷̴̴̶̴̶̶̸̸̷̶̴̵̴̶̶̴̴̴̴̶̸̷̵̶̷̵̶̷̶̴̶̴̴̸̴̵̶̸̴̶̸̷̵̶̷̸̵̷̷̶̵̷̸̷̸̵̴̵̴̵̴̶̸̶̵̷̵̴̸̶̶̶̵̶̷̯͇Ŏ̸̸̶̴̷̵̴̵̶̴̷̶̸̵̷̸̷̵̴̵̴̴̵̶̸̷̵̴̶̸̴̷̷̷̷̴̵̶̶̴̵̶̸̷̶̶̷̷̵̷̵̸̵̷̴̷̵̶̴̷̴̶̸̷̴̵̶̷̸̶̸̷̷̶̸̵̶̴̷̵̸̵̶̶̸̵̸̵̸̴̵̴̴̵̶̴̷̷̶̷̵̶̸̷̵̴̵̵̴̷̶̸̶̵̷̷̸̷̷̷̵̵̸̶̵̶̸̶̸̶̵̷̴̴̷̶̸̸̸̴̶̵̸̶̸̷̷̵̷̸̵̷̴̴̵̶̷̷̷̴̶̶̴̶̸̸̵̴̶̵̴̸̸̵̸̷̴̵̸̴̸̴̷̵̴̷̵̸̸̵̸̵̴̴̷̶̸̶̴̸̸̶̵̸̴̷̸̸̸̶̶̴̵̵̷̸̴̸̷̷̵̴̶̴̵̶̶̷̵̸̵̸̶̷̷̵̵̸̵̵̶̶̸̷̷̴̵̷̷̷̶̶̴̷̴̶̶̶̵̵̸̵̷̵̴̴̸̶̴̷̷̵̷̵̶̵̴̶̶̷̷̸̵̷̷̴̵̷̵̶̴̸̸̵̷̵̸̸̵̴̵̵̴̴̷̷̴̵̴̵̷̸̵̷̶̵̶̵̶̴̶̵̴̶̵̵̶̶̷̷̴̴̵̸̴̶̴̸̵̶̴̸̵̸̵̵̷̵̶̸̸̶̸̴̶̵̵̵̴̴̶̸̷̷̷̷̴̷̴̶̴̷̴̵̷̸̶̸̴̵̶̵̵̸̷̵̶̸̴̴̴̵̴̴̵̸̵̴̶̶̵̴̵̶̶̷̷̸̴̴̵̸̶̸̶̴̷̴̶̵̵̵̴̵̴̸̸̶̴̸̴̷̶̷̸̴̸̶̸̷̸̴̸̷̴̷̵̷̶̷̷̴̶̶̵̶̶̶̶̵̶̵̸̸̵̸̶̶̵̵̸̵̸̸̸̶̷̴̷̷̶̷̶̷̴̸̴̷̴̸̵̷̵̴̵̴̶̷̴̴̶̴̴̸̷̶̷̴̵̴̵̵̶̶̷̴̴̵̵̴̷̸̵̶̵̵̶̸̵̴̵̷̵̶̶̴̷̵̵̸̸̶̴̵̸̵̶̴̴̴̶̷̴̴̴̷̴̵̵̷̸̸̴̵̴̵̵̷̵̵̸̶̶̶̷̸̵̸̴̶̴̴̸̶̸̵̶̴̸̸̶̴̸̴̷̵̴̷̵̵̷̴̴̸̷̷̸̴̷̵̸̵̵̷̴̸̶̷̶̴̵̷̸̶̶̸̵̷̵̵̷̸̵̸̸̶̵̶̷̶̵̷̶̶̷̵̶̶̴̶̷̴̴̸̴̷̸̵̸̶̴̸̴̴̵̶̶̸̵̷̷̴̶̶̵̸̵̷̷̴̶̵̷̵̵̴̷̶̶̶̷̸̶̷̶̷̶̸̶̷̴̵̷̸̵̷̵̷̶̷̷̴̷̵̶̴̶̵̶̵̵̷̵̴̶̸̷̷̵̴̴̵̶̷̴̵̴̵̸̶̵̵̷̷̸̸̴̷̸̸̴̸̸̷̴̷̸̸̸̶̵̷̷̸̴̶̵̶̵̷̷̴̸̷̷̶̷̶̶̶̴̵̴̶̴̸̶̷̸̸̵̷̵̸̶̵̶̷̷̷̸̸̵̶̵̷̸̷̴̵̴̸̷̶̴̸̶̴̴̵̶̴̸̸̷̴̸̵̷̸̵̸̶̵̷̷̶̴̸̴̷̵̶̴̸̶̷̵̶̶̶̷̴̷̴̸̸̸̴̶̸̴̷̴̸̶̴̶̸̴̸̴̶̷̸̶̵̸̴̸̵̸̶̴̶̵̷̵̸̸̸̴̶̴̴̵̶̶̴̷̶̵̵̷̵̷̸̷̵̶̷̸̷̷̶̶̸̷̶̵̴̸̴̸̵̷̷̴̷̴̵̴̷̷̷̵̵̸̴̴̵̵̸̶̷̴̵̷̴̴̸̷̵̷̵̴̸̶̵̷̸̸̴̵̴̶̷̸̷̴̴̴̴̴̴̷̴̴̴̷̸̶̸̶̵̶̵̵̵̵̷̵̷̷̵̵̴̷̷̸̵̸̸̷̸̶̴̸̴̸̶̸̸̶̸̵̴̵̵̸̷̮ꓕ̵̵̸̸̴̷̸̴̸̷̵̸̴̷̷̵̵̶̴̶̵̸̷̸̸̴̷̶̷̴̴̵̷̶̶̶̷̴̴̵̴̶̸̸̸̶̴̴̶̵̸̵̶̶̵̸̵̸̶̷̷̴̷̷̶̷̴̷̷̴̶̴̵̵̶̸̴̷̵̷̴̶̷̸̶̶̴̴̸̴̷̶̵̷̶̷̶̸̵̶̵̸̴̵̴̷̶̴̴̷̷̸̶̵̶̸̵̵̴̶̵̵̷̵̶̷̸̶̴̶̵̸̴̴̷̸̸̷̴̵̸̵̸̵̶̶̶̴̸̸̷̶̴̶̵̶̶̴̴̷̵̴̸̴̴̶̷̴̶̵̶̶̵̵̸̶̸̷̴̴̷̸̷̸̵̶̴̶̸̸̸̶̵̷̸̶̵̵̴̷̸̷̴̴̸̷̷̷̵̷̷̶̵̶̴̶̶̷̴̸̸̵̴̵̵̸̴̷̷̷̷̴̷̸̵̴̷̸̵̶̵̷̸̵̶̸̵̴̶̴̷̴̸̴̶̸̵̴̵̶̵̵̵̷̷̷̶̷̵̴̴̵̶̶̵̵̷̸̷̷̸̶̴̶̵̷̸̷̸̵̷̸̵̵̵̷̸̴̴̵̵̸̸̸̸̵̸̵̷̶̵̸̶̷̵̶̸̶̷̸̸̸̶̴̸̵̷̸̶̶̷̸̶̶̷̷̶̸̸̵̴̶̴̵̴̷̴̷̸̷̸̸̶̶̷̷̴̶̸̵̸̸̴̶̷̴̸̵̸̵̷̴̷̵̷̶̴̵̷̴̶̶̶̷̴̴̴̸̵̶̴̴̸̶̸̷̸̶̸̵̵̴̴̵̸̴̶̸̴̸̷̴̴̸̶̴̸̴̶̴̸̴̸̴̶̶̷̵̸̴̶̵̸̶̷̴̷̸̷̷̸̶̷̶̵̵̷̶̴̴̴̴̷̵̴̵̷̶̵̷̴̵̶̴̵̸̷̶̷̷̸̷̶̶̵̸̶̸̸̸̸̴̸̴̵̷̶̶̸̶̴̸̸̶̷̵̷̴̸̸̶̷̴̸̵̵̵̴̵̵̵̵̴̴̷̴̶̶̷̵̴̴̶̵̴̷̵̸̶̴̸̴̶̴̶̶̸̶̷̴̶̸̷̸̵̷̴̸̵̴̸̶̶̷̸̸̸̸̸̷̴̶̷̷̶̶̴̵̵̸̶̷̸̶̴̵̷̵̴̶̴̴̸̸̷̶̴̶̵̷̴̶̷̶̴̸̵̵̸̶̸̷̵̷̶̸̸̴̴̸̴̵̶̸̸̶̷̵̶̴̵̴̶̶̶̴̸̵̶̸̸̷̴̸̴̵̷̸̶̸̵̸̶̸̵̴̵̷̶̴̸̵̷̷̴̴̷̷̴̴̶̸̸̷̵̶̴̵̶̶̸̸̷̸̶̵̶̷̸̶̴̷̷̸̵̴̷̶̶̸̶̶̶̴̵̸̸̷̷̸̶̴̷̸̴̴̴̶̵̸̷̶̴̶̷̶̷̸̸̶̴̴̷̴̸̵̶̸̷̴̶̵̵̴̵̷̶̸̵̴̴̸̴̷̸̷̷̴̷̷̷̴̵̷̸̸̵̸̵̴̵̶̵̷̴̸̴̷̶̸̷̴̸̴̸̸̷̸̵̷̸̵̷̵̷̵̴̷̶̶̴̶̷̸̵̴̵̸̴̶̵̸̴̸̶̵̵̸̸̶̶̴̴̵̵̷̸̷̶̸̷̶̴̵̵̴̶̷̷̴̶̴̷̸̶̶̸̵̷̵̸̴̴̷̵̶̶̶̸̴̵̸̴̸̶̷̷̷̵̶̷̸̶̵̴̴̷̷̶̸̵̵̴̷̷̷̵̷̷̸̴̴̴̵̵̶̴̴̷̴̸̷̷̶̶̶̸̴̴̵̷̷̶̵̵̸̵̶̸̷̵̵̵̷̶̸̸̶̴̴̶̸̸̸̷̶̵̶̵̴̷̷̶̸̶̴̷̶̵̶̵̶̵̵̸̴̸̵̵̴̶̴̶̷̸̶̸̵̸̸̶̷̵̷̴̷̸̶̸̸̷̵̶̵̸̷̷̷̷̵̶̶̵̵̶̵̷̵̴̵̸̶̴̸̷̷̶̶̶̷̶̵̴̶̸̸̷̷̴̸̵̷̴̴̴̸̸̵̴̶̴̪̿S̶̷̶̸̸̶̸̶̵̷̶̸̵̶̶̸̸̶̵̵̶̵̵̴̵̶̴̸̶̸̵̴̸̴̸̸̸̷̸̷̷̸̶̵̷̸̷̸̵̸̸̷̶̵̵̷̴̵̶̵̸̴̷̴̴̶̸̵̸̴̴̶̸̵̴̷̸̷̵̴̸̶̵̷̴̴̷̸̷̶̴̸̴̸̷̶̵̵̵̸̸̴̶̷̴̶̸̷̷̵̶̷̸̶̴̴̸̶̴̶̷̵̷̷̴̷̴̵̸̷̶̴̴̵̷̴̶̴̵̶̴̵̷̵̸̵̴̷̴̴̴̴̷̵̷̶̶̶̸̵̷̷̵̷̶̷̶̶̸̶̶̷̷̶̶̸̷̷̵̷̴̸̵̵̸̸̸̸̵̴̴̵̸̷̶̸̸̷̶̶̵̷̷̸̷̷̷̴̶̵̷̶̵̶̴̷̷̸̴̸̶̷̴̴̶̸̴̸̷̶̶̷̶̵̵̶̶̵̵̵̶̶̴̴̴̵̴̸̴̴̷̶̶̸̷̸̷̶̸̵̵̶̵̸̵̴̷̸̸̴̸̴̶̴̵̷̶̷̸̶̴̷̷̴̸̶̶̸̸̵̴̸̸̷̵̸̵̶̶̷̶̸̸̸̶̵̷̵̸̷̴̴̷̵̶̷̸̵̸̶̸̸̵̷̷̴̷̵̵̵̴̵̶̴̴̸̷̷̶̴̶̷̸̶̸̵̵̵̴̵̴̸̸̵̶̷̷̶̴̶̴̴̷̶̴̸̷̵̶̸̷̸̴̶̷̵̷̸̷̵̵̴̴̶̶̸̷̶̴̸̶̷̵̶̸̵̴̶̶̴̸̴̷̶̴̸̴̵̵̷̸̷̶̶̶̶̷̸̴̵̴̵̵̸̷̷̶̵̶̷̵̸̶̷̷̸̷̷̶̷̴̷̴̵̴̵̶̸̷̶̷̴̴̸̷̷̷̸̴̷̵̴̸̴̸̴̶̵̴̴̶̵̸̴̵̶̸̸̷̵̷̶̸̵̷̸̴̷̸̴̴̶̶̵̷̶̷̴̶̴̶̴̵̸̷̵̴̷̴̴̷̵̵̴̷̶̶̴̴̴̶̶̷̶̸̷̴̵̴̵̷̵̵̷̴̴̷̶̵̵̸̵̵̶̴̵̶̵̶̴̵̵̵̸̸̷̵̸̴̴̶̷̸̵̸̷̵̸̸̷̴̴̷̷̸̴̵̶̵̵̷̶̷̶̶̵̴̴̵̷̵̸̶̶̸̷̵̵̴̸̷̴̴̴̵̷̴̴̵̷̸̶̵̵̶̷̴̷̷̶̶̵̷̴̵̵̷̴̷̵̴̷̷̷̵̶̵̶̴̷̴̵̸̸̷̴̸̵̸̴̸̴̸̷̷̸̷̵̵̶̵̷̶̴̸̷̵̸̵̵̸̵̶̸̸̷̵̸̵̷̶̶̵̶̶̸̶̷̸̷̵̸̴̵̴̶̶̸̸̶̶̴̶̵̵̶̶̶̶̴̸̵̸̵̴̴̵̷̶̵̵̵̷̶̵̴̷̶̸̷̴̷̷̷̸̴̴̸̸̷̵̷̷̷̸̵̶̴̸̵̶̶̵̶̶̵̵̴̴̵̴̵̵̴̷̷̸̴̸̵̷̸̵̷̴̵̸̵̵̵̶̸̷̴̸̷̵̵̶̴̵̷̶̴̵̵̵̴̴̸̷̴̸̸̸̸̵̵̶̶̸̴̸̸̷̵̵̵̴̷̴̵̷̴̷̵̴̸̶̵̷̷̷̵̷̸̵̶̴̷̴̸̶̶̶̵̷̵̸̸̶̵̴̵̸̷̸̶̶̶̴̸̴̶̴̴̶̸̶̴̶̵̵̸̷̴̵̶̶̸̶̶̶̷̶̸̸̷̷̷̴̵̸̴̸̴̷̴̷̸̴̶̷̵̷̶̷̶̸̷̴̵̵̷̷̶̸̵̸̶̴̵̴̶̴̵̶̷̷̶̵̶̶̶̸̸̵̵̶̵̸̶̴̸̵̴̸̸̴̴̸̸̸̶̵̷̴̴̵̸̶̷̴̴̸̵̵̸̷̵̸̶̴̸̴̷̶̸̴̵̷̶̶̵̷̸̵̷̸̴̶̴̴̵̴̴̴̵̶̸̵̴̵̴̵̴̶̸̷̴̵̷̴̷̸̴̷̶̵̴̷̀̕ 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̶̸̸̷̵̷̴̶̴̴̸̷̸̸̵̴̶̷̸̷̵̷̷̶̵̷̶̴̶̴̶̵̸̴̶̸̸̷̶̶̵̴̴̴̸̵̴̵̴̷̵̸̷̸̸̵̴̴̷̴̶̸̸̸̸̶̶̵̶̶̸̶̸̸̶̴̸̸̴̸̵̵̸̵̵̷̵̶̸̵̴̵̸̸̶̷̸̷̶̴̶̸̸̴̴̵̶̴̸̷̸̴̶̸̶̵̷̵̵—

I̴̴̴̵̸̸̴̴̵̷̸̤̙̰̲̻̺͈̦̤͚̅̔̏̑͐̔̍̆͌͆ṁ̶̸̵̸̷̵̸̶̶̴̶̢̻͙͈̰̝͖͈̟̬͂̄̍̽̇̅̾̆͝p̴̴̷̸̵̶̵̶̶̷̴̡̧͖̟͉̣̯̙̬̉̓̀̀̀͛̒̐̈́̕͜ȩ̴̵̸̵̶̶̷̵̴̶̴̛̥̤͈̮̳͍̘̮̂̄͑̏̌̓͋̀̔ͅḓ̴̵̶̵̶̵̵̶̶̸̷̥̰̱͖̠̳̫͎̽̏͊́̏̃̾͊̅̕͜e̷̵̶̶̶̵̶̷̶̷̸̡̛̛̛͕̙͙̤̳̞͎̞͊̿̅̋̂͠͝ͅ ̷̵̷̵̸̸̶̶̵̶̸̧̨͖̠̩̼̭̥̼͉͆̉̀̇̽͂͆̐͒͊Ṇ̵̴̸̵̷̴̴̷̵̶̸̯͍͈͈̟̫̹̺̽̄́̾͛̌̆͘̕̚͜o̸̷̷̷̸̶̷̴̴̸̷̡̧̜̥̘̭̟̜̯͙̽̆͛̇͊͛̐̉̈̚ţ̴̵̴̵̵̸̸̴̸̸̴̧̛̹̖̞̼͖̮̠͐͆́̎͑̀̀̽̒ͅ.̸̴̶̸̴̷̵̸̴̵̵̢̧̛͚̣̣̞͍̖̣̞̂̋̇̿̓͊͂̓͝ ̶̵̷̶̵̶̴̸̸̸̵̛͓͔̦̮̙̝͙̘͉̮̽̉͗͗͗͊̿̇͝

My Elan skin armor was in place. I was even using it to puppet my body to move beyond my limit, while healing any damage in the same moment it happened.

I knew what happened and immediately planned to focus on reactivating Heroic Second Wind.

Except, it wasn't by my will or effort. Right at that moment Future Gasper's Time Stop fell upon me, the Blessing of the Holy Cross reawakened and shined all on its own.

I was in a blaze of healing energy while being burned by ever negativity that could exist. I was in a constant state of incineration and healing happening so simultaneously that my being didn't realize it died yet.

And then I kept getting better. Bit by bit I kept focusing through the soul pain to convert the miasma to Dragon Slaying Aura intertwined with my being. All that converted Dragon Slaying Aura focused in the rebuilding of my body over and over and over again, honing my being even further, till everything from the ground up, soul, skeleton, joints, veins, nerves, muscles, and organs were no longer getting injured. Till finally the miasma was splashing off my skin, cutting, hurting, reddening but not fully penetrating.

The miasma laser beam was so powerful I felt it break a hole through Ladon's barrier. I had the chance to just ride the beam and escape this time and space altering prison.

Yet my instincts and my pride didn't want to. I felt like I broke through some kind of barrier within myself. My body was acting far more efficient in how I processed energies, with no direction from me.

All of this because of this fight. I wanted to keep going and find out what more I can do.

While all of this was happening, I was still maintaining and swinging the Aura Greatswords. Even if the attacks were getting weaker. Even as they missed Niðhöggr's soul and only damaged his body.

I began to stockpile Dragon Slaying Aura and condensing it.

There was too much happening at the moment. Miasma damaging me. Heroic Second Wind devouring everything negative engulfing me and creating so much healing energy it acted as a shell around me in the heart of the storm of the miasma beam.

Miasma that I actively had to seek out from Heroic Second Wind's reach to capture and turn to Dragon Slaying Aura. Aura that I had to expend for my Elan skin armor that was constantly damaged and reforged, then use to maintain and strengthen the Aura Greatswords. Healing energy from Heroic Second Wind used to refill my mana reserves being used for the space manipulation part of Tsubame Gaeshi, and refill my stamina as well.

On top of everything upon the Holy Cross Blessing activating, the Holy Chalice Blessing switched off. Trying to force it to reactivate and point it at myself to learn why, made me learn a few things.

I can't use multiple Blessings simultaneously, at least not in my Sacred Gear's base state. Once more the 'offer' from my Longinus was made and rejected. I could force it, but if I wanted to have both Cross and Chalice active, there would be trade off.

If I try to have both active at full capacity, they would both be diminished in power and effect.

I could have one active at full power and effect, but the other would be greatly diminished.

I need Heroic Second Wind from how intense the battle was getting, but I also need Spirit World to analyze things. I could have Spirit World at full effectiveness, but with a massively diminished range.

A range of about... half the size of Ladon's barrier. From being able to cover a space the size of a small country, to half a dozen football stadiums.

Okay yeah, in theory that's massively diminished, but for me, that worked perfectly.

So I did it. Letting Heroic Second Wind run full capacity and Spirit World run at a fraction of itself in range but with ability in analysis and turned that analysis on myself.

My internal mana system and Elan system felt wrong. Not that there was anything wrong with them, but that there was an inefficiency in that I had to manage both. I don't know why that thought stuck out to me, but I pushed it aside, as I could not do anything about it. Analyzing and understanding souls didn't suddenly mean I could do some kind of soul reconstruction surgery on myself.

So how can I beat the puzzle that was Niðhöggr? Killing him is easy, just overpower him. If I gather enough Dragon Slaying Aura I could bomb him. It was him staying down that was the problem.

Torture? Beat him till he gives up? Would take too long.

You know what, fuck it. This might throw me off, but I can survive Niðhöggr's beam just fine, and it's starting to lose steam.

I turned Spirit World's power onto my own instincts.

Things got trippy~.

I was watching myself, watching myself seeing what my future self was doing. Except it was the current me doing it, while I was thinking about it, while the current me wasn't thinking about it.

Chaoskampf Ordained became incandescent. I didn't summon it. It became active and even without bringing it out, a pure white aura of Elan expanded around me till it was larger than the miasma beam. If one looked from the outside, it would seem as if my Elan was devouring the miasma, feeding on it as it continued to expand further and further.

All of the miasma was deconstructed to negative energy, then all that negative energy along with my own were coalesced into a single point. Into one of the Aura Greatswords in my hand.

That energy gathered and condensed over and over, overlapping onto itself gaining a weight, that I had to dismiss the second Aura Greatsword to hold the one now in my hand with both hands.

Elan condensed till the Aura Construct became physical matter. Crimson crystals, colored as my aura. Then those aura crystals condensed further and further till while being shaped.

I reconstructed my Dragon Slayer sword out of the Aura Crystals.

And then it kept devouring negative energy even further.

It wasn't Chaoskampf Ordained, the scarlet sword was still in my soul, but I think if I did this current technique with it, I wouldn't have this new problem.

The Aura Crystal Greatsword was heavy. It shouldn't be possible for me to struggle with lifting something give the sheer strength I now possessed, but the damn solid energy sword was heavy.

Worse, I could feel that it had a gravitational weight to it.

I didn't know what would happen if it kept absorbing negative energy.

The miasma beam ended, and I was visible again to the Evil Dragons, they could only watch in fascination and horror as they looked stupefied at my newest trick. All the negative energy within the pocket dimension was drawn into the Aura Crystal Greatsword like it was a black hole.

"What the fuck—" Niðhöggr began to say before I dashed at him.

The Norse Evil Dragon was faster than he was in his previous form. He was aided by time acceleration just for him, by Ladon and his barrier. I was carrying an energy sword like it was an imploding gravity bomb. Meaning I was slow.

CRASH!

However, in this context meant I couldn't hit Niðhöggr with thousands of sword slashes in a single instant. Even Future Gasper's Time Stop couldn't work as not only did I crash through my own temporally frozen Elan armor, but the gravity my Aura Crystal Greatsword had just seemed to cancel out whatever time slowing Ladon's barrier was doing.

So my blade hit Niðhöggr all the same.

Once.

A single stab into the center of his chest, and we both fell to toward the earth with a quaking crash.

However, the one single emotion that erupted from Niðhöggr at my solid energy sword stationed in his chest, wasn't pain or more rage, but fear. Pure unadulterated fear as the Aura Crystal Greatsword was absorbing the miasma that should be overflowing from Niðhöggr's being.

The Evil Dragon's body began to lose its luster, his color's paling as his power was sucked dry out of him.

"No, no, NO!" Niðhöggr cried out. "Get off, get off!"

All the while his body was pushing further into the earth, as the solid energy sword grew heavier and heavier.

"NOOOO!" Niðhöggr roared as Imperial Wrath overtook him.

The force and bright flash that erupted form Niðhöggr's body surprised me. Fucker went nuclear. Literally.

I slammed into the edge of Ladon's barrier before I could react. I came back to myself and was present in my thoughts again. In that state of hyper speed and reactions, with my thoughts running fast and the flash of Niðhöggr's Outrage Mode activating with all the power of his soul amalgamation forcibly unleashed, I thought of a plan.

Niðhöggr shouldn't be the opponent I should focus on defeating. I still have three other dragons after him, including Crom Cruach.

Rather Niðhöggr should serve as fuel for Apophis and Future Gasper, so I'd be free for Aži Dahāka and Crom Cruach at the end.

Right as everyone blinked, I stabbed myself with the Aura Crystal Greatsword. I let it disappear into my body, letting it occupy the same space in my soul as Chaoskampf Ordained, making the two swords be superpositioned on each other.

This should make my enemies think the neutron star-esque energy sword was a one time thing, while my Longinus integrated all that Dragon Slaying Aura for a later attack.

I pushed myself off the barrier, and floated up to witness Niðhöggr's Outrage Mode's form, as the light died down.

Niðhöggr was erupting with fire and rage, in a very literal sense. Dragon Aura and miasma were blazing and burning out of his body in a duel of orange red Dragon Aura and greyish blue miasma.

His scales once oily grey and black, grew, sharpened and became dark red like heated metal. Every hole on his body where miasma once shined from, was now bursting out miasma or Dragon Aura like a broken faucet. His wings combusted into flames.

All of his amalgamation of souls were incinerated, being used up for destructive power, and immediately being revived and brought back by his resurrection and immortality powers.

It really shouldn't work. The structure of his being should start collapsing soon, yet the intersection of all his powers made it so that he's effectively a perpetual motion machine of rage.

"I am Niðhöggr Muspell, the Extinction Cinderlord Dragon and I will burn you, Caleb Gunnar, and all the worlds, all you humans care for, and rule over the ashes." Niðhöggr Muspell, as he named himself, declared and meant every word.

I closed my eyes, and took a breath. The nine days in hell flashed through my mind. I think I've been taking too long in trying to learn and grow and not in just trying to kill the dragons. Experimenting and trying things out. I'm adding to my options instead of subtracting, leaving only the exact tool needed for the job.

I could feel it in Niðhöggr's power, in terms of Dragon Aura, he already surpassed Aži Dahāka and Apophis, but he doesn't have their experience in wielding that power. I could feel it in their shock and wariness.

Any control Niðhöggr once had over his power, is gone now in Outrage Mode, leaving only the wrath of wanting to destroy me.

I opened my eyes feeling my anger more clearly and more present now, yet it didn't boil and sear like before. It was cold and focused to a point.

"No. No you won't." Something in my calm tone must have thrown him off his building rampage, putting a pause in it. "You are just another dragon. I am a Dragon Slayer. You will die and that will be the end of it."

I had thought to try and develop some technique through sword mastery and Elan Vital to slay Niðhöggr Muspell, but truthfully? He doesn't deserve the effort.

This body I now have is on another level of physical might. I wonder what would happen if I push it beyond the limit, break it in pursuit of draconic death dealing, like everything I did before. Even if I break myself, I cannot die. Not in this miasma environment made by Evil Dragons.

Without another word, I rushed at him, Niðhöggr Muspell roared and answered the same.

Time was slowed for me, time was sped up for Niðhöggr. It burned as we both moved just the same.

Our fists met, and there was a flash of light, followed by an explosion that cratered the whole of the land within Ladon's barrier. Yet before the first explosion could fully be complete, our fists met again.

And again and again and again.

Ladon screamed in effort to contain his barrier, as the whole of the pocket dimension shook.

Atomic explosion after atomic explosion. Both me and the Norse Evil Dragon had reached the speed of lightning in truth. Not the return stroke, just the stepped leader at its highest speed, which was still over Mach 500.

Every time our fists or bodies clashed, I'd get an influx of negative energy turned to Dragon Slaying Aura and healing energy. Every time we exchanged hits, there wasn't any time before we were both healed, already throwing the next punch.

Niðhöggr Muspell was an unending well of negative energy, and I had an endless feast to use to fight further, all while stockpiling more Dragon Slaying Aura within my Longinus. I felt Chaoskampf Ordrained was on the cusp of something. Not Balance Breaker, but a fundamental change to how much aura it held and wielded.

We were in a stalemate, the Evil Dragon and I. It can probably break once Ladon's barrier breaks and force the other Evil Dragons into the fight, but I didn't want that. I wanted to win this fight before then.

I also had to take in the Hexennacht Magicians into account. They were my allies, and the sheer destruction I caught just by moving and fighting would catch them in the crossfire. I'm gonna have to figure out how anime fights at the level of destruction I cause happen, without, well, destroying the fucking country I'm fighting in.

I had observed how the magicians had been fighting, along with their spells. Enchantment seem to be pretty similar to what I do when I use Wind Breathing, but on an object. It's basically giving an object a persistent magical property or trait. I gave myself properties of wind with the Elan Wind Energy, making my attacks sharper, but also allowing me more maneuverability in movement.

I started trying out other elemental energy to see what results they'd have. I didn't need to change my breathing style, as seeing other magicians using magic, showed me how to just do it with mana.

The first was immediately Fire Energy, giving my Elan skin armor fiery properties. The obvious was the explosive force of my blows and the heat that burns upon contact. Yet even as I blow off Niðhöggr limbs in our exchanges, they are remade in the same instance. Pure force is something I can just do by punching harder.

I switch to another element, dodging a flaming Dragon Aura covered blow, as my Elan skin armor became Water Energy. Parrying Niðhöggr's blows was easy, but more so, kinetic redirection was as simple as breathing. Damage could no longer fully land on me. Every hit was sent back with ten times the force, every attack was parried so cleanly that it broke the Evil Dragon's posture, compounding his mistakes.

Yet that wasn't enough, so I switched to Earth Energy. I only expected to gain an increase to defensive power, rather when Niðhöggr's next punch met my own, the Evil Dragon's whole side blew up.

It wasn't just because my Elan armor gained a heaviness and sturdy quality like that of Aura Crystal without changing states, but rather because Niðhöggr's found no purchase, all his power was perfectly reflected back. He was punching something with full force, that he couldn't damage at all.

While I was on the ground, I was one with the earth, and punching the earth was futile.

Niðhöggr regenerated everything back, and attacked again with the same result.

As he was thrown back by his own force, I switch my Elan to the last standard RPG element magicians used, Lightning (Ice Magic was just Advanced Water Magic).

My Elan skin armor turned to Lightning Energy, yet I felt a premonition, and had Heroic Second Wind ready to act. Instinctively I covered every single part of my body inside and out with a sheet of Elan to hold my form together.

I moved. My body shattered to pieces and should have been dust. Yet my Elan covering my body and organs, muscles and everything inside and in-between kept me as my shape, before in the same breath I struck Niðhöggr I killed him and I healed.

The Norse Evil Dragon's body acted to heal himself without him even realizing he was hit.

Another punch. My body shattered and healed in the same instance my fist connected with his breaking frame.

Before Niðhöggr Muspell can begin to realize he was in pain, I lunged at his face, ripped off his shining burning horn and stabbed him in his eyes. Then dragged the horns down through his neck and body.

Niðhöggr Muspell finally began to scream, only for me to kick upwards and break his jaw off.

Lightning's speed, the stepped leader, the initial spark downward towards the ground is around Mach 240 and climbs upward to Mach 500 and more. Supposedly even to over Mach 1200.

Yet the return stroke, the phase of lightning strike we actually see, the electric arc that travels from the ground to the sky, that moves at around 1 × 10⁸ meters per second, or in layman's terms: One third the speed of light.

Unlike Negima's Magia Erebea, I wasn't turning my body to elemental lightning. I was still in my physical form, and with my Elan Lightning Energy, I was making my body move at the return stroke lightning speed. That my body didn't evaporate into ash from the force and heat, was a testament to how strong it became, that there was enough pieces to instantly heal back to 100%, and then do it again and again while adapting to those relativistic speeds.

I felt it then, time slowing down on me with all of Ladon's Dragon Aura and ability. Yet even so, I was still in the realm of lightspeed. It would take him too long to slow me down, too long... that as I was now, I could kill Niðhöggr Muspell, just out of sheer overwhelming attacks. I didn't even need to use Tsubame Gaeshi for this.

The sheer force and speed of my assault meant the structure of his being will break, before I grew slow enough for him to have a chance to regenerate.

Yet I felt bitter about my oncoming victory. I didn't want it like this.

Right, because even if I don't use it now, I feel like I'll need the ability to target concepts in the future.

Attack the part of a connected system to strike at the whole thing.

Slay the one to slay the all.

And then a phrase from an anime that didn't have a place here, flashed in my mind.

"One is All, All is One." From Full Metal Alchemist.

Every individual, the 'one', is an inseparable part of the greater universe, the 'all', and the greater universe relies on the sum of its individual parts to exist and sustain its continuous cycle of life.

If God created the universe, and God is the universe, and God created us, then that's how God can be a part of everyone of his creations.

According to the ancient Egyptians the soul was composed of multiple parts. Some people, once they lose a part of their soul, they immediately die. Others can lose all but one part, and not only survive, but regrow their soul again.

Why? What's the difference?

A will to live.

What I needed to reach Super Orion's ability, was to extend the courtesy of acknowledging Niðhöggr Muspell's whole being in understanding. That his soul is his soul.

And then reject him anyways. Let my will overcome his.

Understanding doesn't preclude compassion or mercy.

I could feel the whole of Niðhöggr Muspell's soul with senjutsu. I could emphasize, feel his pain and hatred at his own shortcomings, his history and hatred at his Fate and the world.

And I can still hate this fucking tree gnawing lizard.

I went out of Lightning Mode, and made an Aura Crystal Greatsword. Niðhöggr was no where to be seen, but a glowing fiery ball of persistent wrath and spite was in his place.

His body was destroyed, but his soul was still here, and very quickly he was rebuilding himself. Skeleton, nerves, veins, muscles and organs.

I held my solid energy sword in front of me, and closed my eyes, seeing Niðhöggr with my senses alone.

Niðhöggr had no words once he regenerated his eyes. Only uncontrolled hatred aimed at me, and screams for my death.

I targeted his soul, targeting specifically Niðhöggr's soul within the amalgamation of the whole of Niðhöggr Muspell. I didn't need to, I could have targeted any part of his soul for this next part, but I felt it would be symbolic for my first using this attack.

Outside Ladon's barrier, Aži Dahāka's eyes widened. Guess he got used to my pace to realize something was off.

"NIÐHÖGGR RETREAT! LADON FULL FORCE DOWN! APOPHIS—" Aži Dahāka began ordering as he thrust his hand toward the barrier.

Apophis dashed toward the ellipse-shaped barrier, darkness covered him as he began to transform out of his human form, to his draconic one.

I felt the full power of gravity and time pressing down on me, trying to contain me.

Huh, Ladon had been holding out on me. Or maybe he can only use this much pressure of time and space for so long, like a one rep lift at the gym.

Either way, they messed up. Because I wasn't going to make hundreds of thousands of slashes. Only the one.

"Reflected Moon Sundering." And then the impossible paradox was realized.

Like a sword slicing the reflection of a moon upon a lake's waters, only for the moon up in the sky to be split in half as well.

My blade felt upon Niðhöggr's soul slashing through it, only for every single soul, connection and the whole of the souls amalgamation that made up Niðhöggr Muspell to be destroyed as well.

The Extinction Cinderlord Dragon could no longer come back to life.

Niðhöggr frozen. His flames went out.

"H-How...?" He looked on, in my direction but not focusing on me. "I... I had reached it. I was meant to be... eternal. I should have been... undying..."

Niðhöggr's body started breaking down to dust.

At least that's what should have happened.

"Such a shame, Niðhöggr." A giant shadow stood behind the Norse Evil Dragon, grasping his head in his giant claw. "You could have been an interesting rival." Apophis said before throwing Niðhöggr outside the barrier.

No. Towards Aži Dahāka, who grabbed—My eyes widened. The Three-Headed Dragon thrust his hand into Niðhöggr's back and ripped out his soul, before bringing out a magical stone, an ancient artifact that felt related to curses somehow. Aži Dahāka put Niðhöggr's amalgamation soul within the magical stone, turning it into some kind of foci.

"For a moment I thought you ruined all my hard work, Niðhöggr. But you turned out to be the final component to perfect my magic core artifact, the completed Cloch na Mallacht." Aži Dahāka said in glee, before beginning some ritual involving the, supposedly now, completed magic stone.

"You make your preparations, Aži Dahāka, yet I do not believe it will be needed." Apophis the Eclipse Dragon said at he stared at me. "For I will end this myself."

Apophis looked like a mix of a western and an eastern dragon. He had the body of a western dragon, wings, arms and legs, with a long distinct neck. Yet his body was very serpentine, he's all thin and lithe with the exception of his chest, that protruded into his very long neck.

His scales were a gray so dark, they can be mistaken for black, along with bits of purple highlighting his form, and some rare turquoise colored scales on his chest. His two horns atop his head is what gives away that his scales are dark gray, due to its obsidian color.

Shadows seem to pour out of his form, like darkness was leaking out of him.

"That's a lot of confidence, considering you don't have an immortality hack like that tree sucker had." I said.

Apophis grinned.

"Within the Top Ten Strongest list, anyone who stands above the bottom rung, are not there due to mere strength, and you will find out why I had once stood among the supreme powers of this world, even before my resurrection and empowerment." Apophis plainly stated with a wide smile, while I could feel the sheer excitement radiating off of him.

Without any signal or warning, darkness flashed out and covered the ground of Ladon's barrier, then climbed up the orange ellipse-shaped dome.

The darkness reached the top till there was a single hole where light of coming from, centered around me and shrinking.

"Excellent dramatic intimidation." I complimented as the hole grew smaller till only single beam of light the width of a finger was left, coming down on my left eye, and illuminating.

"Oh thank you," Apophis smiled like we were two pals genuinely praising each other, as the last ray of light died. "But that's only the prelude." Came Apophis' voice out of the darkness.

For a while nothing happened. Only the feeling of something huge, bigger than Apophis' dragon form was slithering and swimming in the darkness. I kept my senses sharp waiting for Future Gasper's move. So far, he seemed to disappear into the background as well.

Another thing I oddly noticed, that my instincts were screaming at me was my wet feet. Was I standing in the poisoned mud from Orochi Poison Cloudmaker soul spell ? No, all that should have been wiped away during my clash with Niðhöggr. And even if the poison cloud filled the barrier again, the poison mud shouldn't be a threat to me anymore. I could even breath the poison, and my healing energy was now potent enough with Holy Attribute to wipe away that divine cursed poison.

I jumped and floated in the air. I looked at my feet out of curiosity, shining a light on them. My eyes widened in shock.

All my clothes, were basically a magical construct at this point. Remade again and again every time they're destroyed. It barely cost a few motes of magical energy.

Yet right now, my feet were bare, I can't remake my shoes, and more than that, my skin had been melted like acid's been poured on it. My feet were showing muscles and bones, regeneration slow till I forcibly directed healing energy toward them. Feeling and pain thankfully returned.

The droplets I noticed weren't black due to the darkness, rather it was actually their natural color. I thought it was a different form of miasma, but immediately dismissed the thought upon closer inspection.

This black water was divine—No, something older and more ancient than divine. They held... not specifically a holiness, but something specific to the properties of Holy Light. Creation. Life. Yet they seem to dissolve anything alive.

That doesn't make sense!

I tried to remake my shoes, yet wherever my feet were wet, my regeneration fought to push forward, and my magical energy was struggling to hold structure.

"What the fuck?" I said truly mystified for the first time in this whole battle.

"Ah, those Slayer instincts truly are a frightening thing to behold. You didn't even lose a whole leg before noticing something was wrong. And that's for those of your resiliency. Most simply disappear into the Waters without ever realizing they died." Apophis' voice echoed all around me.

"Waters? Not some kind of special magic acid?" I asked looking around me. I could feel Apophis everywhere, as every bit of every shadow, as every piece of every dark spot.

"Acid?" Apophis genuinely laughed like I told a joke. "Oh no no no no, no. Nothing so ordinary. These are the Primordial Waters. The cosmic sea from which creation sprung, and thus to which all creation yields. For every lifeform is imperfect, and wishes to escape death and gain another chance to be remade anew.

"Reproduction, decay and death are imperfections, and for as long as these concepts exist within a lifeform, that lifeform is not a perfect creation. The waters gives another chance, dissolves them so they may return to their primordial state, where they were once perfect before they became lifeforms and imperfect."

"Yeah, that's a whole lot of 'no fucking thank you.'" I spoke out loud.

Then I felt a giant mass move in front of me, and the darkness parted. Under Apophis' command it lowered, while remaining in the background, all so it would reveal him. The darkness shined by unlight looked like star fields made of blood.

And Apophis' True Form was visible before me.

"I'm not asking. Get in the water." Apophis said in sadistic delight and commanding authority.

The first thing I noticed were the eyes. Eyes across the whole form of Apophis' body. Motherfucker was biblically accurate.

Then the darkness crushed me. I thought I understood what it was like to be slowed and pushed down by gravity.

I was wrong.

If I were to describe it, then space for all the time I've experienced it had been matter spread to the thinness of gas. I was now in liquid.

Darkness zapped away willpower, drive, strength to step forward. And then there were the physical effect of feeling like all of the space, that occupies everything above ground, itself wishes to harm you.

Space between the top of the barrier and the ground had been, and now with the darkness baring down on me, I had to physically push the spatial weight just to not fall into the water.

I felt it before I saw it, the gravitational beams.

Elan skin armor was changed to have the attribution of Light with Light Magic. With the energy combining with the natural Holy Attribute of my Dragon Slaying Aura, my Elan armor gained the properties of Holy Light.

I moved at lightspeed while cutting through the dark.

My body that only began to get used to lightning's return stroke speed, ruptured and almost used up my stockpiled healing energy to keep my form intact long enough to stop moving.

That's when Future Gasper's fucking acted.

That bitch boy dhampir was targetting me while I was moving at lightspeed? What fresh bullshit is this? Yes, I was slower due to time slowing from Ladon, and the insane new gravity from the darkness but still!

I made it to my goal, the Orochi soul spell.

Every Time Stop was one I broke through with the Elan armors, only to have the next one frozen, as if he was sending these Time Stops in multiple barrages.

"Oh? And what will you do with Dahāka's Soul Enchantment spell, Blight Source." Apophis' voice held mirth as it came from everywhere.

"He named it 'Blight Source'?" I scoff as I grasped the still poison spewing cloudmaker. It was still pouring poison gas everywhere, but now directly into my body. "Kinda unoriginal if you ask me—"

The omnipresent darkness slammed me down only for me to Divine Step away while punching with Holy Light upward. I barely stopped a few inches from the water level that now covered the whole of the barrier's floor.

"I'm afraid I disagree. Names should be to the point, even if boring. Its their impact that matters." Apophis replied. "Although I don't see why'd you grab this spell. All that you're doing is taxing your energy faster in this fight, or do you wish to end things rather than enjoy my welcoming demesne longer?"

I could feel Apophis' grin all over my skin.

"Naaah, since you're all the darkness, I figured I'd even the odds." I grinned as I stuck the Blight Source to my back to free my hands.

The Blessing of the Holy Cross shined at full power, to turn negative energy to healing energy, and I joined in with my own efforts of the energy conversion I learned copying it.

With both Heroic Second Wind and me both acting together, we turned negative physical matter to healing energy.

Healing energy exploded from my being, as Orochi's poison clouds were devoured to make healing energy that pushed back the sheer damage of the darkness.

I stopped with all caution and just blasted into motion at light speed while using Divine Step.

I felt Future Gasper's Time Stop come from every darkness surface.

I made an Aura Crystal Greatsword. It wasn't yet time to summon my Loningus.

"Reflected Moon Sundering." And swung at the darkness itself.

And nothing happened.

Or at least so it seemed.

"Huh? What the hell?!" It took everything I had not to cackle like a loon, and act confused.

"Hahahaha, I do not know how that move you used against Niðhöggr worked, but I assume it worked on the soul. I'm afraid my darkness is more vast and complex than a simple uniformed soul." Apophis grinned, I could hear it in his voice, and from my senjutsu senses I could tell he truly believed that.

He fell for it!

Both Apophis and Future Gasper who's emotions showed he was in pain. I'd like to imagine he cried out like a little bitch. But for now, I'll take that he's off the map, letting me focus on Apophis.

And when he finally shows himself, I'll be ready.

"Then I'll just keep hitting everything till I get you! Shoot Style: Tsubame Gaeshi!" And the world was filled with Light.

Okay, I admit, it might be a bit stupid and wasteful effort to just start throwing triple Dragon Smashes in every direction.

However, it was stupid enough to stump Apophis for a while.

More importantly, my aura was taking all of Blight Source's poison and directly turning it into healing energy as my healing and Heroic Second Wind worked in tandem. That had the secondary effect of ripping everything turned poisonous by the soul spell and turning that matter into healing energy.

Which meant virtually I had unlimited healing, stamina, and magical energy to keep spamming Holy Light Dragon Smashes ad infinitum like an idiot. And I admit, I was grinning like one.

I heard Apophis' scream of pain and rage. I homed in on him in an instant—

Apophis' maw was opened skyward. Shadows stormed and circled to a single point, where darkness itself held weight and matter, growing heavier and denser till...

"That's a black hole. What bullshit is this? IS THAT A FUCKING BLACK HOLE!?" I couldn't help but shout because I feel we jumped a few steps up from normal magic combat.

Then my mind reminded me I was using lightspeed to fight, but that didn't count since it wasn't real lightspeed as there were conditions nerfing and cockblocking me.

"Celestial Devourer." Apophis said and fired the orb of pure consuming darkness at me.

I expected it then, and prepared for it.

That this is when Future Gasper would act.

However while he's busy keeping me in place, I didn't need to move for this next part.

My mind acting at light speed made the world seem frozen, and even then the magic black hole was inching towards me in defiance of physics. Or should I expect this to be physics working as intended. After all, high tier physics stuff might as well be magic bullshit.

Regardless I had everything I need to get rid of Future Gasper here and now.

First! All the stockpiled Dragon Slaying Aura that wasn't given to my Longinus was unleashed at once. I formed it into giant aura crystal walls to box in the black hole. They will fail, but I only needed the time they'll provide.

Then I used all my mana that was instantly refilled by the healing energy converted from Blight Source, to cast Reversal on the black hole.

It took three times my total mana, but it was done.

The gravitational singularity stopped in place for a moment. It started shining...

And suddenly it began screaming into a white hole. The aura crystal walls shattered. All gravity was pushed outwardly as blinding light and heat shot outward pushing back all the darkness.

I thought it was time to enact my plan against Future Gasper.

Except Apophis decided to remind me that he was still a Heavenly Dragon.

"Celestial Stars Collapse!" It was the same move as before.

Except six times in a row.

The black hole orbs were shot surrounding the white hole, keeping it in place and devouring it.

I prepared to do the same thing again. Take control of the black hole's mana and reverse it. I was drawing so much of the poison cloud from Blight Source that I could tell the spell structure would end up breaking soon. Orochi's soul doesn't have an anchor, so he'll instantly be sent to the realm of the dead.

I kept preparing the spell, drawing on Blight Source, converting it to healing energy, filling up my mana reserves and powering up my Reverse Magic spell to cast on all six black holes.

"You arrogant fool—" Apophis began to shout.

"Reversal!" I cast the spell. The black holes began to invert. It succeeded.

The magic sphere of Blight Source shattered.

That was fine. Even if now I had seven (fucking hell!) white holes, I could control them with my mana, meaning I could control the effect.

But I knew it wouldn't last for long, I had to dispel them or use them.

I felt Future Gasper move, and I couldn't help the murderous grin that came to my face.

With the blinding light of the seven white holes, there were only so many places he could hide. It couldn't be the very edge of Ladon's barrier where there was still darkness. And there's no point in hiding in Apophis' shadow since he can't effectively attack me.

My shadow felt heavier, even if it was just a feather.

I summoned Chaoskampf Ordained.

"Frozen Time World."

Yet it wasn't me that was frozen in time, this time.

===x===

Gasper Vladi-Balor, Darkness King of Space and Time POV:

This timeline has deviated beyond the standard progression in a completely unprecedented way.

First off, Gasper couldn't understand who the hell was Caleb Gunnar? Or rather, he couldn't understand why this version of him turned out so insanely different in this one specific timeline.

In almost every timeline, including the Gasper's original home timeline, Caleb Gunnar wasn't even someone Team DxD had so much as heard of.

In the original timeline, Caleb would be part of an experiment by the Naberius on the island of Alcatraz, where he would either be turned into a devil-dragon, stay human and die, or should he survive be subjected to brutal torture disguised as tests, before being rescued by the Hero Faction and eventually dying as one of their many brainwashed human soldiers who took Chaos Break—a special doping made of the Original Satans' blood that grants greater power to humans by merging them with their Sacred Gears—and rampaged across the underworld during the Demonic Beast Riot.

Caleb wasn't even someone who managed to unlock Balance Breaker even in the original timeline, and even with Chaos Break he didn't gain that much power in return for his lifespan.

Learning later on that Caleb actually was Gunnar's Reincarnation was more of a neat trivia than anything important. His dead body was given to the Norse Faction to aid in negotiations.

Supposedly the Original Brynhildr likes to collect the bodies of the Reincarnations of Gunnar to scare the next one with them.

Regardless, Caleb Gunnar's life had no deviations from the original timeline path and should have resulted in one of three outcomes the existed for him in this timeline as well.

So why is he so different in this timeline? Where did his fixation on Great Red come from? How did he even know about Great Red?

Questions that Gasper couldn't find the answers for. It's like Caleb just suddenly and without any explanation decided to hate the Great Red so much that he became a Dragon Slayer for the True Dragon.

It is such a weird event of random probability that even Satan Beelzebub couldn't find the butterfly to cause this effect, even with his Kankara Formula.

It's as if him awakening as a Dragon Slayer with his destined foe being Great Red occurred out of spontaneous randomness.

Those were Ajuka Beelzebub's words.

Ridiculous. Just simple ridiculous.

It was bad enough for a Dragon Slayer to awaken in the modern era and be a possible threat to Issei or Vali.

But one meant for Great Red? That possibility shouldn't have even been on the board!

Gasper and Ajuka had been working for a long time to standardize the various timelines to unite them into one true timeline. That way, Loki or the Machine Gods of Evie Etoulde, or whomever could never use time travel to threaten their world again. A perfect security against temporal attacks.

Slayers are always a worry when they appear, as they make things too unpredictable. They destabilize the world even more than Sacred Gears. Not only are they a threat to an entire race, they gain instinctive knowledge from the Heaven System to hunt down the race they awaken against. It was an error the angels had to patch later on for the sake of continued peace. Now it's only to specific beings that actively were a threat to the world, and the corresponding Slayer found himself in front of.

The existing Vampire Slayers of the original timeline almost became a problem to the Vampire Faction because Gasper went to observe them. They grew too strong just from proximity to him, and went to attack the Vampire Factions to retrieve the "enslaved" humans. It's between quotations because that proactive of keeping human servants was reduced a lot over the years, that the unexpected solutions the vampires made, worked beyond their belief.

Internet dating. Some humans just wanted to have their blood sucked because it's a beautiful partner doing it. That they get to be with a hot vampire is a bonus. And that might happen due to fetishes, and it was their prerogative. The Vampire Slayers almost caused a crisis over a misunderstanding.

As for the human servants still around, they were already old, who would take care of them if they were set free. Their working conditions improved of course, but if they were let go they'd be helpless. Valerie almost got hurt because of those Vampire Slayers and the Heaven System error!

Thank Maou, Issei and I got there in time!

There were many situations like that in the world. Complex situations that required communication to solve, yet many organizations still formed that just wanted to smash the world without thought. Just people too angry to think.

Timelines like that where things went too far that peace couldn't be realized, o̵r̵ ̴w̵h̶e̴n̴ ̶I̸s̴s̵e̴i̸ ̴d̶i̵e̶d̵.̷.̸.̷

Gasper didn't like when timelines deviated too much as they can no longer be part of the History Timelines Unifying Plan. They needed to be erased so they can no longer become an attack vector by the Machine Gods.

His Aeon Balor grew to the point where his darkness can devour time now. It was a power he had to use most responsibly.

Time travel isn't a simple thing either. Once a deviation is detected by Ajuka's machines, Gasper had to travel to their origin point and fix things, yet sometimes he arrived after the deviation occurred. If that happens, going back further would just cause another timeline to be formed, with that deviation.

He thought he got it right in this one since the masquerade being threatened was the deviation. When Gasper arrived right when Issei became a devil, he stuck around and nothing seemed to happen.

And then everything went crazy all at once, way too fast!

A seemingly random human attacked the Vampire Factions. The Tepes Faction became Evil Dragons way, way too early and almost immediately got annihilated.

Then Qlippoth and Nilrem were attacked in their isolated bases in their separate realms! This would usually be something Gasper would consider as great, that's when the masquerade started breaking because it was Ophis of this timeline herself that was the cause of it!

Once Gasper learned the cause, he had to travel back and forth between the present and this new past, to learn about the people involved, and that's how he found out about Caleb Gunnar and his history. By that point, the human had jumped into the Top Ten Strongest List!!

Too fast! It was too fast! It's been one fricking day! Not even that. That growth, the changes! Caleb Gunnar accelerates the tiniest changes that grow into massive cascading effects. The Hero Faction before they got better after Issei beating them; they were now supernatural races to protect the humans of Romania. A good thing to be sure, since they aren't even trying to brainwash them, but isn't this change too much!

Thus Gasper had to make the executive decision to bring an end to Caleb Gunnar before its too late. This timeline sort of still had a chance to be salvaged, but with Gunnar around, it would become impossible. Even worse if he succeeded in his goal. Who would protect their world and be their warning to the invaders of ExE if Great Red was gone.

How else would Issei be resurrected if Great Red was gone?

Thus Gasper had observed the battle within the pocket dimension against the Evil Dragons from the most optimal vantage point. Within the Eclipse Dragon's shadow.

And his conclusion? Yeah, the Heaven System when it was still broken really caused some wild problems. The knowledge Caleb suddenly gains mid-fight is just freaky, along with the access to skills collected by the Heaven System till this point. Every time he was cornered, the Heaven System intervenes to give him the abilities he needs because of his Slayer status.

Gasper had to take several probing shots to see how much intervention he might need to do. Only for that newly awakened Longinus to start adapting to Gasper's Aeon Balor's Time Stops.

Not completely, not totally but bit by bit. Gasper decided he'll have to make a chance to directly act and end Caleb before he grew into being more of a threat to the world.

He waited, and watched horrified as Caleb kept growing through combat at a rate that was truly inconceivable.

Humans really aren't meant to have this kind of power. Look how reckless they act when they have it. Sacred Gears really are God's mistake.

While his Time Stop started being rebuffed, and Caleb's Longinus developing counters to it, eventually Caleb made an error. In arrogance like Gasper expected and experienced from those of the Hero Faction when they were still evil—or the remnant not under Cao Cao's leadership after he reformed—Caleb didn't leave Ladon's Time Dilation Barrier when he had the chance.

The Dragon Slayer kept fighting inside the barrier, likely as a means to taunt the Evil Dragons' pride, lucking out into accelerating his growth by challenging the dragon in a difficult setting.

That Heaven System error seriously needed to be patched.

One Heavenly Dragon Class Evil Dragon after another Caleb defeated, till one of those in the Top Ten, Apophis, the Eclipse Dragon stepped in.

Immediately Apophis summoned his Dark Field Barrier and his Primordial Waters within Ladon's Time Dilation Barrier, and went on the offensive against Caleb at full force.

Caleb used everything, even the Soul Enchantment Spell left by Diabolism Thousand Dragon, till it broke.

He had used up any means of having more healing energy than what he stored, and would run out of it soon.

Caleb was exhausted, he had seven white holes to manage that their effects don't include him, and without any negativity around, he had no source of healing.

Those "Blessings" are also something that needs to be thoroughly investigated. Where did they come from? They never existed in the original timeline. When did the Biblical God make them? Caleb Gunnar's Longinus never existed in any timeline I visited or the original one. Did they occur due to Caleb's Longinus being created? In which case, what causes this phenomena? Is it any Longinus, or ones with specific attributes. This is something we have to understand and know how to prevent for the sake of peace.

Gasper wondered if he should wait, till Caleb was completely bereft of healing energy. But if the fight with Apophis continued, the Dragon Slayer will gain more miasma to use to heal himself.

This is the best moment Gasper could find, right as Caleb is exhausted and focused on white holes. His mental stamina would have to be at its end after all those consecutive battles.

It was time.

"Frozen Time World." Gasper activated his Aeon Balor's evolved new signature attack.

Rather than freeze someone in time, or freeze objects in time, he locked in an area of space and controlled time completely within it, freeze the world's time, that from the outside it would look like everything happened in an instant. No. No one would be able to tell anything happened at all.

Gasper Vladi-Balor stepped out of Caleb Gunnar's shadow, Demon Sword Arondight in hand. A gift the Church had given Issei after the complete dissolution of Khaos Brigade, to which Issei handed to Gasper after he finished mastering his Longinus, stating Gasper seem like a knight now. It was one of Gasper's most cherished gifts.

Gasper readied his sword to stab Caleb as he climbed out of the Dragon Slayer's own shadow—

I̵̱͐ ̴̣̄R̴̠̎e̵͖͝j̴͙͊e̷̺̊ć̷̩t̸̹͋.̴͖͗ ̶̞̔

And met those heterochromatic eyes of red and green, shining above a wide grin.

"Got you, you simping sucker!" Caleb met Gasper face to face, arm drawn back holding his Crimson Greatsword Longinus.

He's moving in frozen time.

His Touki armor flickered and transformed, gaining the properties of Holy Light.

He's moving in frozen time. He knew I was here. He ambushed me. THIS IS ALL IMPOSSIBLE!

"WHAT—!?" Gasper barely got to swing Arondight before Caleb swung his blade.

Even with all the weakening conditions placed upon him, Caleb still moved within the realm of light, even if at the weakest level.

BOOM!

The sheer force rattled the Transcendent Devil Vampire's frame, feeling his arms rattle and take damage even with shadows of frozen time taking the brunt of the attack.

Gasper realized he was heading towards the Primordial Water and immediately slowed down time from his perspective to think and act.

Then he reversed the course of his own time to not only undo any damage, but also reverse his placement in space. Rewinding himself to where he was, so he'd be in a different location and momentum and not falling to the deadly black waters—

"Where the fuck are you going?" Caleb's demonic sounding voice rattled Gasper, just as much as his hand that plucked Gasper from his own time movement, to throw him back down toward the Primordial Waters.

"HOW!? You don't have power over tim—" Gasper began to shout.

CLANK!

Only to be forced to put up Arondight and tank a hit by the illogically heavy Longinus Greatsword.

Before Gasper could think of a plan they both fell into the waters of darkness.

And right over the waters' surface were the white holes, still interacting with Time under Caleb's power, making sure Gasper can't breach the surface again.

"You fool! You'll kill us both!" Gasper shouted, trying to reason with this mad human.

"Well I'm not scared to die today. Are you!?" Caleb grinned like all those insane followers of Khaos Brigade. No, even they feared death.

They slammed into the bottom of the dragon-made primordial lake. The black waters were thankfully frozen in time, thus their effects halted for now, yet the feel of danger remained in Gasper's bones due to the environment he was in.

Immediately Gasper tried using the darkness of the black water to instantaneously get out of them. Only for one of the white holes, to be replaced by Caleb's Longinus, explode with Dragon Slaying Aura that created a wall along the surface of the Primordial Water trapping them.

Gasper jumped to time skipping over the barrier, by reversing the course of the time trail path his body went through to reach his locations in space before he was in the waters—

Only to slam into the Dragon Slaying Aura wall that seems to be made of a uniform red crystal.

"What? How? How can it negate Time within my realm!?" Gasper gritted his teeth as he tried to think on what to do.

Only to feel a hand clamp over his head.

"Because I stopped playing around with you, and you forgot the number one rule of this world." Caleb hissed. "There's always bigger fish, Bat!"

Gasper was thrown back down, slamming into the water's floor, with Caleb lunging down at him, Longinus back in hand, stabbing down.

CLANK!

The impossibly heavy greatsword was stopped by layers of time frozen darkness sheets, yet even so, Gasper could feel the sheer energy weight the greatsword had, made it push through all the time stopped darkness inch by inch without stop.

"You can't do this! You don't know what you're doing. What you're risking with all your actions—" Gasper tried to say.

"Oh shut the fuck up, Discount Dio. I know enough." Caleb said back through gritted teeth, his expression filled with spited anger. "You should have stayed in your fucking lane, but since you decided to make yourself my enemy, then like everything else, I'll cut you down!"

Caleb slashed and Gasper grabbed Time to make Caleb's action take eternity to complete. Only for Gasper's controlled Time within his Frozen Time World to be grabbed and flattened back to flow naturally.

Including to the Primordial Waters they were in.

The slash arrived and Gasper barely dodged, only to find two more due to dimensional overlap, coming from different directions.

One he blocked and the other tore through his side.

Gasper screamed, slammed and bouncing off the floor of the waters, before quickly regaining his balance. With the darkness around him and within him and control of Time, regeneration came easily.

Only for Caleb to appear in front of him with his sword winded up for another attack.

Gasper fired the full Time Stop using the water to make his gaze omnidirectional, and freezing Caleb in place.

"These waters will end you. If they do, you can't return from this!" Gasper tried to argue.

CRASH!

Only for the Time Stop to fail as Caleb shattered through frozen personal time. His power was only able to stop the Dragon Slayer for a moment.

With all his might and darkness Gasper managed to block Caleb's strike, making a shockwave out of sheer force in the time frozen world.

"You should worry about yourself, I'm not the pussy ass bitch who doesn't have the conviction to follow through on his resolve, even if it kills him. If you're scared of dying Vladi, then you should have stayed in your fucking timeline." Caleb scowled.

Gasper stilled.

"You... You know me." He said in slow dawning realization.

"From the very start."

"What in the Maou's name is going on with the Heaven System of this timeline? How could it possibly have the power to gain that type of information?" Gasper seemed to say to himself, before meeting Caleb's eyes, seeing the Dragon Slayer in new terrifying light. "You know why I'm here. What's coming."

"Yeah."

"And yet your still—"

"We all make our own choices and deal with the consequences thereof. You, however, have no right to disregard the will of every person alive makes, good or bad, and get to decide as some God of Fate what path our history should take!" Caleb cried out, pushing Gasper back in their stalemate.

Gasper fell a few steps back, but held his ground, even as he felt the black waters begin to slowly eat at their mana and soon the clothes that covered them, before erasing their bodies.

"If you know the threat to come, then you know the Machine Gods—"

"Whether we prevail or fail against them is for us to deal with!"

"If you fail then they might invade our timeline from yours!"

"Then seal off your timeline so others can't invade it!"

"Threats from the future can still come to the present, and even then something more dangerous from a rogue timeline can invade us!"

"THEN FUCKING DEAL WITH IT LIKE AN ADULT THEN! Life isn't some orderly shit where you can control everything! And you don't get to try and have that, or feel safe, by literally denying every single history other than yours!" Caleb shouted, before breaking the stalemate, causing Gasper's sword to fly off.

And then socking Gasper right in the face.

Gasper slammed down into a crater in the ground.

He realized then there was no other option. Even if he disliked it, he'd have to erase this whole timeline. He can't stop or overcome Caleb Gunnar any other way.

"There is no negotiating with you is there..." Gasper said as his cloak began billowing from the power slowing erupting from him. "Then you leave me no choice."

However Caleb wasn't startled by Gasper's rising power, and didn't stand still.

He called the white hole to his hand, and to Gasper's confusion he used Reversal on it to turn it into a black hole.

Then Caleb disassembled it breaking it down to the component parts Apophis made it of.

Pure Darkness.

Is he arrogant enough to think he can beat me in a battle of Darkness Magic? Gasper thought before he gritted his teeth in anger at the mockery he was being treated with.

"Balance Breaker!" Gasper declared. Darkness exploded from his form before coming back and covering him, forging a new image above him. His power had evolved over the years taking a more orderly form, even as it was unleashing his violent bestial side. A side he now has total control over, as he confidently carried both the name Vladi and Balor upon himself. "Forbidden Invade Balor the Beast."

His form became that of a savage animalistic-looking knight made of iron and shadows, with a draconic head that had been looking more like a knight's helm over the years. Yet when his wrath got the better of him became too dragon-like.

"Now, you will bare witness...!" Gasper began to say only to freeze upon what he saw Caleb do.

The Dragon Slayer had used his mana to grab hold of all the deluge of darkness that made up Apophis' black hole, and then took it within himself, covered himself in it.

It should have made it nothing but the biggest target for Gasper's magical senses to immediately impale him upon endless shadow tentacles and spears.

Yet to his senses, that darkness was not one he could hold anymore.

Caleb's Longinus turned that darkness into Dragon Slaying Aura, and then he turned his Touki into one of Darkness Energy covering himself with it.

"What did that accomplish? You wish to contest me in dark—" Gasper began to say.

Only for the Darkness Touki covered Caleb to slash his blade at Gasper. A slash that was easily evaded.

Gasper's eyes widened in horror as he felt his own shadows be devoured and remade into Dragon Slaying Aura by Caleb's Longinus.

"...Impossible!" Gasper said in disbelief.

His major defining advantage, Caleb completely removed it—No. Given how quickly he developed this technique...

Could he have used this ability at any time fighting Apophis?!

One thought now ran through Gasper's mind at the human in front of him.

"Well?" Caleb spoke. "Why are you hesitating?" A white grin sliced across the shadowed figure's frame. "If you won't make the first move now..."

"Monster." Gasper voiced his thought.

"THEN I WILL!" Caleb threw his crimson greatsword at Gasper, who only had enough time to tilt his body to dodge.

Only for Caleb to appear next to his sword, grabbing it and slashing at Gasper.

The Darkness King of Space and Time accelerated his own time, as he couldn't affect Caleb's and instantly summoned his shadows, to cover his blade and strengthen it.

The blades connected with a resounding clash.

This crazy bastard! He somehow summoned himself to his own Longinus. Gasper thought.

The two exchanged blows, their sword meeting with a flash of power exploding when each blade met.

All the while the Primordial Waters were eating at them, as Caleb's mana was making Time move for the waters. The Dragon Slayer was forcing insane conditions upon Gasper. Upon both of them.

Gasper thought the human had some depravity of feeling lust at being in danger. It would explain why he fought the way he did thus far.

But no, all Gasper could feel from Caleb was nothing but killing intent. How the fight was arranged really was what Caleb saw as most advantageous to defeating Gasper.

Gasper moved his personal time, going to forward points where he would be while still in the present, or going to earlier spots he was in, only for Caleb to be there facing him at every single turn.

And the more Gasper fought the more shadows were devoured to further empower the Dragon Slayer.

With a growl and roar, Gasper unleashed all the monsters of his dark subconscious, beasts and demons of all kinds, only for Caleb to unleash a massive beam of Dragon Slaying Aura that took them all out.

In the cover of that attack Gasper moved—

Six white holes surrounded Gasper. Caleb had teleported them right where Gasper went, with aura crystal walls around them.

There was no point in space he could move but up, as he was pushed to the center from all sides. The light and heat eating at everything he was.

And Caleb?

Caleb was descending from the top, his Longinus glowing incandescently with all the energy it seemed to have stored thus far.

Gasper unleashed everything. All the darkness within letting it blast as a pillar skyward, as the power of the god within him glow out of his bloody eyes, before firing a beam of red darkness that embodied all of Balor's Evil Eye that cursed death upon the world.

Caleb swung his sword, and the greatsword unleashed a beam so powerful, it devoured even the darkness covering Caleb. That should have been Gasper's warning.

The Dragon Slaying beam met the beam of Balor's Red Darkness, and began to devour it and grow in size and strength even as the Dragon Slaying Beam continued towards him.

Gasper's eyes widened, before in desperation, he used his ultimate trump card.

"TIME CANCELLER!" Gasper expended all his power to undo all the actions taken thus far, all the combat that took place. Yet the effort expended by both Gasper and Caleb were still upon them.

The Frozen Time World shattered, as time resumed.

Gasper still in his Balance Breaker easily fed on the darkness of the black waters to regain strength and push back their powers. He only needed a moment—

The Red Greatsword appeared from Gasper's own shadow.

Caleb Gunnar had used Gasper's own assassination technique on him.

"FROZEN TIME WORLD!" Gasper shouted in panic. He used up the very energy he just got back.

Only to witness as Caleb's blade barely slowed down from the initial blast of his ultimate move cast once more.

Time slowed in Gasper's perception. A hilarious notion at any other time, but now it was simply him witnessing his own death.

The blade before even reaching his flesh started to shine. Caleb was going to fire a Dragon Smash from point blank without any mercy.

Gasper wondered if this was it. If all his efforts was for nothing.

Issei, I'm sorr—

Time froze.

No, that didn't make sense. Time was already stilled within Frozen Time World.

Yet somehow Time for both Caleb and Gasper ontop of Frozen Time World was halted for them.

They were both still aware. Both confused.

And then they heard footsteps.

Neither devil-vampire nor human could move, yet they heard those footsteps loudly and clearly as they got closer.

They tried to move, only to see they could only struggle to turn their head to the newcomer.

Gasper's face whitened. He knew who it was.

He never met Him but somehow he knew who it was.

"H-How?" Gasper didn't even pause to consider why he could move his mouth and speak now. "Even for Cao Cao, across every and all timelines where you weren't resurrected, you never acted. Why? Why would you manifest a form and act now? In this timeline!?" Gasper was shouted in from sheer unadulterated fear and confusion. "Dying Will of God."

The emblazed figure of purple flames said nothing.

He merely swung his arm horizontally as if wiping something away. Dismissing something.

"Gasper?" Ajuka's voice came from his side. He was back in the Beelzebub labs that double as HQ for Gasper and Ajuka for their time missions. "You're back suddenly."

Gasper moved to the nearest trash can and threw up.

After he was done, Gasper realized he couldn't feel his Sacred Gear anymore.

===x===

I can't describe Him. Was the first thought I had upon seeing Him.

I didn't even notice that I could move while time was frozen. That's how much I was transfixed upon seeing Him.

The figure was...

I couldn't tell the specifics of how tall or short he was. If he was masculine or feminine.

He looked like energy. Like... well wishes taken form. Sad well wishes. If anything I said made sense.

All I could tell is that the figure, the likely Remnant Piece of God, was a man. Wearing a robe of sorts, that might be blue. Likely had long hair, maybe. Also glowing aqua eyes that literally shined with kindness and love.

Oh and he had a giant halo of purple flames floating behind his head.

"Hello, my child." He spoke, and I couldn't tell where His voice was coming from. From my ears or from my heart.

"H-Hi..." I found myself wanting to breathe in deep and catch my breath. "Y-You... God's Dying Will, right? How are you here? Should you be in the True Longinus?" Questions that felt irrelevant poured out of my mouth. "And... how are you doing all of this?" I gestured to the stopped time we were in.

Only to notice that when I looked around that, not only Future Gasper, but Apophis was also no longer within Ladon's barrier.

When God's Fragment just casually waved his hand aside, he erased Gasper (I think), and threw Apophis outside the barrier, all while keeping time frozen.

"Did you kill Gasper?"

"I sent the Temporal Interloper back to his own era, along with shutting down Aeon Balor till he learns to use it responsibly." He replied. "Along with that, I sealed away his ability to come to this era. Rather, his own Longinus would now prohibit him from traveling to this timeline. He will need another method to travel to our era, and proximity to our timeline will dampen his Longinus' power till it shuts down again."

"...Holy shit." Because what the fuck do you say to that? "You're not... the Piece of God within the True Longinus are you?" I couldn't help but ask, a gut feeling push me in that direction. "You're that presence that's been helping me, nudging me throughout this fight, weren't you?"

"I have been with you from the first Blessing, my son." He spoke, and I felt something grand was to come. "I am the Chief Mourner within the Purple Flames. I am the Sorrow of the Path Once Thought Closed." He declared, looking at me with utmost seriousness that I couldn't help but reciprocate.

"Within the Holy Cross." I whispered in realization of where he came from. "Not the Dying Will, then you are..."

He looked at me with profound sadness and spoke.

"I am the Dying Lament of God."

===

AN: WOOHOO! Oh yeah, baby. This is gonna get good!

First I'll say this right off the bat. Yes, I will explain why they didn't just kill Gasper and be done with him, right at the very start of the next chapter.

Next chapter will likely be a short one of just a talk between Big G Lament and Caleb, before concluding the fight with Apophis and Azi Dahaka in the chapter 16.

Although to be honest, I'm afraid I might end up killing Apophis too quickly at the end of chapter 15 or chapter 16 start. Felt like a shame since I hyped him up, but sometimes them's the wheels, or however the saying goes.

I'm taking a break for a few days before starting the next chapter. See you all later. *Thumbs up*