The crimson lightning dyed the surroundings red.
At the center of Isla Machia—where only small glimmers had flickered within the darkness—it was as if a gigantic firework had exploded.
A blazing illumination that could be seen from every corner of the island, turning the entire place into a city of sleepless light.
It lasted for only a fleeting moment, yet everyone who saw it was entranced by that overwhelming power and terrible beauty.
Some of the black steel fragments caught in the crimson current turned red and scattered into powder.
Between the falling red motes drifting through the air, Ludger heard a voice beside his ear.
—I told you to conserve that power. You went and used it anyway, didn’t you.
The voice of Grander came from within the dissolving red fragments.
It was not enough that he had cast magic across such an immense distance—he had even transmitted his voice.
There was a reason why 8th-Circle magic was called legendary.
The distance between Rederbelk and Isla Machia was over two thousand kilometers.
To strike a specific target at that range, in an instant, with perfect accuracy—
Even orbital bombardment wouldn’t be this precise, Ludger thought with a faint laugh.
“So... you’ve decided to act again, have you?”
—I have never changed.
“How did you even know I was here?”
—That energy’s wavelength was hard to miss. But more than that... you dared to shed blood without my permission, didn’t you?
Did that mean his teacher had sensed that he was in danger merely from the scent of blood?
It was said a shark could smell a drop of diluted blood from a kilometer away—but this was on an entirely different level.
—If you’ve gone so far as to open your power that much, then you must have finished your preparations, haven’t you.
“......”
—Silent, are you? Trying to smooth it over? You and I made a promise, did we not.
“Yes, we did.”
Ludger recalled that old promise he had made with Grander.
That one day, he would use divine power to kill him.
Grander had said that to him back when Ludger was still a child.
There was no way he could ever forget it.
—Still hesitating? Foolish disciple. So cold only on the surface.
“Master.”
—Enough. Asking something like that of a weakling such as you would be foolish of me. So I’ll withdraw it. Consider that promise void.
Ludger’s eyes widened.
“What do you mean by that?”
—Exactly what I said. The promise from that day... pretend you never heard it.
“Have you found another way?”
—What does it matter to you? You need only rest easy, knowing you no longer have to fulfill a promise you disliked. Consider this—me helping you now—as the final gift and farewell of a teacher who once instructed you.
“Farewell? What are you talking about?”
—That’s just how it is.
“Master!”
Ludger shouted, staring at the crumbling red fragments.
—...Even now, to think that the boy who never raised his voice is shouting so loudly.
There was a strange fondness in that tone.
Ludger wanted to demand an explanation, but stopped himself.
For Grander to say such words meant he had already made up his mind.
A man who had always emphasized the importance of keeping promises was suddenly saying it no longer needed to be kept?
Something had definitely happened.
“We’ll talk about it when I return.”
He spoke toward where Grander’s voice had vanished—but there was no answer.
The red fragments had already disappeared without a trace.
Still, Ludger believed his master had heard him.
“I already had reasons to return... but now I’ll have to hurry back sooner than planned.”
Murmuring to himself, Ludger turned a cold gaze toward the Machine God.
It was still trembling from the impact of Grander’s Blood Lightning.
Its body quivered like that of a paralyzed man.
But to take a blow from Grander himself and still remain intact—one could almost call it unharmed.
A rare opening.
Ludger charged forward, Terralon’s arm raised, straight toward the Machine God.
The Machine God saw him coming and gathered its remaining mechanical arms.
Two had been erased by Terralon’s authority, and two more had been lost to the crimson strike—leaving only four.
All four lunged toward Ludger from different directions.
Even as they closed in, Ludger did not retreat.
The Machine God sneered at such reckless behavior.
The double halo still blazed above its head.
It couldn’t distort space anymore, which meant it intended to crush him directly.
But before it could, a black knight wreathed in dark crimson slashes swung his sword at the attacking arms.
Because the Machine God was focusing solely on Ludger, the sudden strike from the flank caught one arm completely off guard, severing it cleanly.
Three arms remained—but Ludger was not the only one standing against the Machine God.
“Now I’m really gonna break it!”
Phyron, exhaling white steam from his body, thrust out his glowing blue right fist—
All his mana condensed into a single, ultimate blow.
“Supermassive Impact!”
His punch shattered another arm outright.
Two left.
“Please, Andrasch.”
“I don’t like this kiind of thing, but oh weell.”
Lotheron and Andrasch both began casting their spells.
“O great ancient souls, ancestors who bore my sins, heed the call of your descendant and lend me your strength!”
[Grow stronger. Forget pain. Drain your mana. Do not hesitate.]
Lotheron drew the mighty spirits into himself one by one.
Andrasch, using even the mouths on his palms, chanted word-magic to strengthen him.
A white aura rose around Lotheron like heat haze, his long hair turning pale.
With beastlike eyes gleaming, Lotheron charged at the last two arms and swung both hands in a crossing slash.
CRAAAASH!
The remaining arms were torn apart diagonally, as if ripped by a colossal beast’s claws.
His hair returned to its normal color as his power faded, and he slowly fell toward the ground, drained.
“Please... Professor Ludger.”
With those final words from Lotheron, Ludger reached the Machine God’s very face.
The god tried to glare at him, but before it could—
Terralon’s hand covered its face.
“AAAAAAARGH!”
The instant Terralon’s hand touched it, the Machine God writhed in agony.
Even through the solid armor, pain reached it—it kicked and thrashed violently.
Drip—
From the seams of its suit, thick black liquid oozed out like blood.
The metal plating decomposed completely and fell away in chunks.
Inside remained only human muscle—and a black sphere embedded in the chest.
With that final use of its authority, Terralon’s arm rusted entirely, crumbling into dust.
“It’s over.”
Ludger extended his arm and seized the Divine Line.
Then, gathering all his strength, he ripped it free.
SHRRRKK!
The Machine God, deprived of its Divine Line, offered no resistance and fell limply to the ground.
Ludger stood holding the Divine Line, staring at it in silence.
All around, the steel clouds that had filled the air lost their master and fell toward the ground under gravity.
“I-It’s... over?”
“We did it! We won!”
The mages of the Tower, the defense forces, even the black mages—
Once that disaster-like storm ended, they all erupted into cheers.
“He really finished it off, that professor.”
Sitting on the edge of a half-collapsed rooftop, Cravat looked around, trying to spot Ludger.
But the man who had defeated the monster that could destroy the island—was nowhere to be seen.
* * *
“Damn it! Damn it! What the hell is this?!”
Nikolai was running.
He had already fled after being beaten by Gariel, but before leaving, he’d made sure to leave the man an unforgettable parting gift.
Things hadn’t gone exactly as he’d planned, but as long as the Machine God existed, he had believed himself untouchable on this island.
At least, until he saw Ludger tear the Divine Line out with his own hands.
John Doe. Again—it was that man. He didn’t know how, but the bastard had killed a god.
A chill ran down Nikolai’s spine.
The god he had created had met a miserable end.
He had defied the Mage Tower, and now his entire faction lay in ruins.
Nikolai no longer had any foothold left on Isla Machia.
I have to run.
He decided to escape.
In preparation for an emergency, he had already arranged a means of leaving the island.
Once he reached the continent, he could start over and build a new foundation—simple as that.
But that plan shattered when a beast’s growl echoed from the end of the dark alley.
Grrrrr...
Out of the mist and shadow emerged a massive wolf spirit beast.
It had caught Nikolai’s scent and was now chasing him down.
“G-Get away!”
He tried to cast a spell to drive it back, but his mana wouldn’t circulate properly—the internal injuries from his fight with Gariel were too severe.
The wolf sneered, baring its teeth at the struggling man—then suddenly stopped.
“Well, well, Nikolai. To think you’d be driven this far. I expected you, of all people, to at least keep that smug smile to the end.”
At the sound of the voice, Nikolai’s face twisted from shock to rapture.
“Lord Zero Order!”
Zero Order.
He wore his usual calm, affable smile.
To the eye, he seemed harmless—but the wolf spirit instantly sensed what he truly was.
It stiffened, tension flooding its body.
Nikolai, overjoyed at first, soon realized what this meant—and his face contorted in despair.
He knew full well what it meant for Zero Order to appear before him after such a failure.
“L-Lord Zero Order, I can explain everything!”
“Explain? And what would that change?”
“Th-that’s...”
“Nikolai, you were quite a capable man. You wanted my approval more than anyone else. One could even say you were loyal.”
Zero Order shook his head slowly, as if already aware of all that had transpired here.
“But that ends today.”
“W-wait! Please! Give me one more chance!”
“A chance? Oh—do you think I came here to punish you?”
“Didn’t you...?”
At that, Zero Order’s shoulders trembled with laughter.
“Of course not. Have I ever held any of you responsible for failing an assignment?”
“Well... no...”
Indeed, he never had.
He’d even tolerated conflicts between the First Orders themselves.
A flicker of hope returned to Nikolai’s eyes.
“Then... you came to save me?”
“Ah, no. That, I didn’t.”
“What?”
His face went blank.
“Then why did you come to Isla Machia...?”
“I didn’t come here for you. I was merely curious about the toy you made. But that toy broke—just a plaything in the end. I may have arrived a bit late, but regardless... my business on this island is finished.”
“L-Lord Zero Order?”
“I’m not here to punish you.”
Zero Order smiled gently at him—and spoke words that struck like a blade.
“But I won’t save you either.”
The words fell upon Nikolai like a crushing boulder.
His mind shattered under the realization—he had been abandoned by the one he served.
“Guardian of the Ulburk family,” Zero Order said, turning to the wolf, “sorry to interrupt your meal. Pretend you didn’t see me and carry on.”
The wolf glared at him, wary and full of suspicion.
Zero Order simply shrugged and stepped back, melting into the alley’s darkness until he was gone.
Once he was certain the man had vanished, the wolf spirit turned its gaze back to Nikolai.
Then it opened its jaws wide and lunged.
“AAAAAARGH!”
The sound of flesh being torn apart and Nikolai’s scream echoed faintly through the rising steam.
* * *
Having ended the battle, Ludger hurried to where Rinne was.
He froze for a moment at the signs of destruction nearby—but remembering that Cravat had come to assist, he forced himself to calm down and entered the hideout.
In the room on the third floor, he found Rinne lying fast asleep.
Her expression was peaceful—proof that the purification of divine power had succeeded.
But within her, the rapidly fluctuating spatial mana made it clear that things were not yet over.
“You’re here?”
Gariel was already in the room.
His battered appearance told Ludger that he, too, had been through a brutal fight.
“The materials?”
“I brought what I could. Even the most important one—the World Tree’s cell.”
“Wait here.”
Ludger immediately gathered the materials Gariel had prepared and went to the adjoining laboratory.
Using the tools he’d set up earlier, he began concocting the restorative potion according to the formula he had in mind.
Gariel followed him in, watching closely as he worked.
Inside a small glass vial, a refined liquid began to take form.
A faint, light-green solution.
But Ludger’s face darkened.
“What is this...? Something’s wrong.”
Normally, that green liquid would gradually turn transparent over time.
Now, no matter how long he waited, the color refused to change.
Something was missing from the formula.
He quickly opened his notebook and checked the listed ingredients.
“A stabilizer. That’s it—we need a stabilizer.”
Because the World Tree’s cells contained overwhelming vitality, using them recklessly could cause severe side effects.
Excessive regenerative power could even trigger uncontrolled cell growth—like a spreading cancer.
To prevent that, a powerful stabilizer was essential. And that was what they didn’t have.
“I’m sure the stabilizer was in the lab—wasn’t it?”
“The stabilizer...”
Gariel recalled the inventory from earlier and shook his head.
“No. It wasn’t there.”
His face grew grim.
Could it be that Nikolai, who had been experimenting with the World Tree’s cells, had possessed the stabilizer?
If he had, Gariel would have found it—unless...
No way.
A thought struck him.
What if Nikolai had destroyed all of it before fleeing?
“...What about the stabilizer’s ingredients? At least tell me what we need.”
“Greenbelle root, Alauré petals, # Nоvеlight # and Menthanys sap. Those three. But one grows only in the northern snow mountains, and the other two in the southern tropical jungles. There’s no way to get them right now.”
Crrk.
The page crumpled beneath Ludger’s tightening grip.
“So you’re saying... there’s no way.”
“No.”
Ludger turned silently toward Gariel.
“There is a way.”
“You...”
Seeing the resolve burning in Gariel’s eyes, Ludger instantly knew what he intended—and his eyes widened.
“You’re not—”
To Ludger’s question, Gariel only smiled.
As though it were a final farewell.
Tick.
The sound of a clock’s second hand echoed.
And then—
The world stopped.
