Chapter 914: V.A.L.K.A.L.O.N.E.X [Monthly Bonus 3]
|Name- "Aspect Fragment ’E’."
Race- Divine Mechanical Lifeform
Gender- Inapplicable
Operational Time- (179,293,865)
Level- Inapplicable!!
Existence Realm- Undefined!!
Titles- ’Machine god’ Aspect Fragment "E", Codename ’Eliminator’, Fragment of V.A.L.K.A.L.O.N.E.X, Imperium Probe, Machine god King, The One Who Ponders ’Elimination’ [...]
ERROR!~# VALMONE Devour Class System Version 1.92.168.0 lacks the required Cosmic Clearance to further access Existential Records.|
"Again...what the FUCK!?"
Arthur couldn’t hold back his shock this time as the details of the Appraisal were outrageous from the very first line.
He already knew it was ’Divine,’ that much his Progenitor Authority had informed him at first glance.
What he couldn’t make sense of was the rest of the details.
Divine Mechanical Lifeform?
Why was the ’Age’ Tab replaced with ’Operational Time’?
Undefined Existence Realm?
And don’t even get him started on the titles.
’Machine god Aspect Fragment "E"???? There are other fra—! Wait...McEnda II mentioned this guy before!’
He quickly scoured his memory for the information he’d received from the Demon King, which indeed included a few details about a god Race King called the ’Machine god King,’ whose name was ’Valkalonex.’
However, that information had made no mention of this Machine god King having multiple fragments.
That aside, the last line of the Appraisal results shocked Arthur the most.
’The Devour Class System doesn’t have clearance to view its Existence Records???’
Arthur had never imagined that scenario could even exist. And the mention of ’Cosmic Clearance’ made him certain this thing was not local to Valmone.
Given the signs of foreign cosmic intervention in Valmone that he had already uncovered, he was completely sure that the entity before him came from outside this universe.
’But none of that matters right now. What matters is that it’s hostile!’
That was the only point that mattered in this moment.
If the combination of Arthur’s Temporal Powers and his godslayer nature hadn’t alerted him that something was off due to the presence of a ’Divine’ within the area, then the beam of cosmic energy it fired in response to his Extreme Nothingness, which countered the slash with equal intensity and resulted in both attacks being neutralized, would’ve been aimed at his spaceship while they remained completely unaware.
Since the shockwaves alone had already depleted the spaceship’s advanced shields, a direct hit from that beam would’ve meant total destruction of the vessel, and anyone lacking the durability to endure a supernova would’ve been dead before they even realised they were under attack.
This ’Aspect Fragment E’ hadn’t come here for a fight. It had come for an execution.
◇ ◇ ◇
The inside of the spaceship was in just as much chaos as the space outside it.
The sudden attack, the shockwaves that depleted the shields, and Arthur yanking the ship away with reversed gravity the moment Valkalonex appeared all took place within only a few seconds, leaving those inside with barely any time to grasp what was happening.
With the exception of Berlal.
She’d sensed Valkalonex long before its arrival and had even glanced around to see if any of the others had noticed when it began gathering energy to fire.
But she hadn’t said a word about it.
She only reached out and pulled Elaine closer so she wouldn’t be sent flying and crack her head against a wall when Arthur used reverse gravity to force the ship away from Valkalonex.
Layla, Nicole, and Rishia managed to keep their balance and land on their feet, and the instant Valkalonex revealed itself, their eyes went wide as they sensed its overwhelming aura.
’What... this pressure...!’
If even Rishia felt cold sweat running down her brow, it was easy to imagine how severe the pressure felt for Nicole and Layla.
Even so, the two of them didn’t suffer for long, as their protectors immediately took action.
"To think I didn’t notice we were being tailed..."
[What’s this? It’s not organic? A Machine?]
Number Two and Undine’s voices rang out in quick succession as they used their powers to shield those under their protection.
Undine immediately glanced toward Number Two, her eyes narrowing as she spoke.
[You... stay and protect them. I’ll get Arthur back in here and deal with that thing. He can’t win.]
She instantly saw through the gap in power on both sides and proposed what she judged to be the best possible course of action.
Her small, sprite-like body, which usually rested on Nicole’s shoulder, leapt away as she returned to her full size, rousing her cosmic energy and activating her Authorities.
But the instant she did, an immense pressure descended on her body, locking her in place and restricting her movement through space.
’Wha—!’
Number Two noticed Undine’s sudden inability to move, and before she could even speak, she found herself immobilised as well, her body unable to move from the neck downward.
Her eyes went wide as her Authority revealed the cause to be her own shadow, and with that realisation, she turned her head toward Berlal, who was watching them with an unchanged expression.
"What are you doing!? He’ll die if he fights that thing alone!!"
Seeing her shout at Berlal, Layla and Nicole immediately understood that she’d done something, though Berlal, remaining calm, spoke before anyone else could, her voice leaving no room for argument.
"That’s why he won’t fight it alone," she said, before turning her attention to Rishia.
"Go assist him."
Rishia fell silent for a moment, her senses warning her of danger in every direction, but when she felt Berlal’s gaze that made it clear that the order wouldn’t be repeated, the dragoness took a breath, purple lightning crackling around her arms as she looked up and moved.
◇ ◇ ◇
Arthur, unaware of what was happening inside the spaceship, summoned Celestia into his other hand and infused both weapons with cosmic energy as he prepared himself for battle.
In his mind, the odds of Berlal stepping in were closer to -100 than they were to 0.
As for Undine and Number Two, after spending more than 40 years around the Ancient Dragon known as Berlal, how could he not know she wouldn’t allow them to interfere either?
The only ones he could genuinely rely on for assistance were Rishia, Layla, and Nicole, but the latter two were questionable, since he doubted they could bypass the durability of the entity before him.
’Worst case scenario, I’ll break out the Scales of Balance.’
With that thought, Arthur readied himself for combat, but Valkalonex simply remained floating in space without making any move.
Then, the surrounding cosmic energy stirred, and a True Voice echoed across space, its tone entirely mechanical, leaving no doubt that the speaker wasn’t an organic lifeform.
|[Pre-emptive Strike on Elimination Target Unsuccessful.]|
|[Updating Target Information...]|
|[Confirmed Presence of Aspectual Cosmic Power. Attribute: Time.]|
|[Updating Defences and Countermeasures against Elimination Target Requires More Data.]|
|[Substantial Reserves of Accumulated Cosmic Energy Remaining. Activating ’Engine of Creation’.]|
All of those lines rang out one after another in rapid succession, and immediately, bright red glints of light began condensing in the space above the colossus like a line of artificial stars, crimson sparks crackling around its helm.
Arthur didn’t bother questioning what it was attempting to do, instead shooting straight toward it without even a hint of hesitation, a mixture of temporal and destruction law energy erupting from both blades.
Attack First and Ask Questions Later, that was the mindset guiding him in that moment.
And he wasn’t the only one thinking along those lines either.
Purple lightning streaked across the vacuum as Rishia, already clad in the armour of darkness and lightning born from her two Unique Authorities that made up her Coronant Regalia, drew her bow and released a barrage of quadruple-fletched arrows of violet light toward Valkalonex.
|Candescent Edict: Rain + Crownpiercer!|
Simultaneously, Arthur swung Lostvayne in his right hand, releasing another Extreme Nothingness: Chaos, then immediately thrust Celestia forward to unleash the base Extreme Nothingness right after, both attacks shooting straight toward the lights gathering above Valkalonex’s head.
But before either attack, tearing through space at thousands of metres per second, could reach its target, the red glints were pulled together, merging in a bright flash as Valkalonex’s upper arms lifted and grabbed the flash.
|[Machine god Authority: Atlatl of Destruction.]|
The orb of bright red light transformed into a ginormous spear that thrust downward, aimed directly at Arthur.
The spear’s tip met Arthur’s slash and Rishia’s arrows at the same moment, a loud ringing sound echoing as the converging forces collapsed inward before rebounding outward in a blinding eruption that drowned space itself in searing radiance, the released energy expanding faster than conventional perception could follow and tearing through the surrounding vacuum with overwhelming momentum.
The nearby star system was swallowed whole as the blast rolled outward, every planet within the light-year-wide expanse breaking apart into incandescent debris under the crushing pressure of cosmic and law energy.
Moments later, the host star at the system’s centre could no longer withstand the cascading spatial instability, its core rupturing violently and unleashing a secondary detonation that fed into the expanding wave, amplifying its reach and power as the devastation spread even farther into the darkness beyond.
Arthur and Rishia were hurled in different directions by the blast that dimmed this region of the galaxy, and his spaceship was also sent tumbling through space alongside the cascading energy waves.
The spaceship, however, had Berlal’s protection, so aside from the immense force sending it flying off into space in a random direction, it remained completely unharmed.
Arthur and Rishia, on the other hand, had no such protection.
Rishia’s body was damaged all over. She reverted to her dragon form to maximise her durability, but even then, her purple scales were still cracked all over, one wing was torn, and one of her six tails had been completely burned black.
Arthur was injured as well, facing the same issue he had during his first visit to Valmone. The Stellar Guard on his left wrist didn’t activate, since that attack, powerful as it had been, wasn’t enough to kill the current Arthur, who was now a Superior Stage Mid-Tier Deity.
He immediately cracked open one of Creusery’s Life Crystals, activating his Temporal Authority to speed up its effects while trying to determine just how far through space the blast had thrown him.
’Did the blast knock me into another star system?’
That question received a resounding yes for an answer as Arthur turned around and saw another white-hot giant star in the distance, far enough away that he could see its entire outline, but close enough that the outline filled half his vision.
Just then, Valkalonex’s mechanical True Voice echoed across the surrounding space, slightly muted by the distance, but still loud enough for Arthur to hear every word.
|[Confirmed: Elimination Target is still alive.]|
