Thud!!
A burst of colorful light bloomed before their eyes, and a figure in a white robe drifted down from the sky.
"Oh my, just in time~"
"Missing this thrilling final battle would've had big brother regretting for centuries."
A strange, sweet fragrance filled the air as the surging black mud transformed into countless beautiful petals, gently scattering through the sky.
From Britain, in the legend of King Arthur, the famed Magus of Flowers, a half-human, half-incubus sword saint imprisoned in Avalon, crossed eras from the distant Reverse Side of the World to join the Seventh Singularity, solely for this battle against the calamity.
"Too slow, Merlin."
Though Roy couldn't help but grumble, seeing Merlin arrive just in time to save them brought a joyful smile to his face.
"Gone so long, I thought you'd collapsed halfway through a marathon."
"Hahaha… a marathon? Apt analogy. But after running all the way from Avalon, not only do you offer no comfort or encouragement, you mock me… Still as sharp-tongued as ever, my friend."
"But now's not the time for catching up or banter. Fight to your heart's content, Roy. Let's face and end this final war together. Chaldea's Master, the mage from another world, and all the humans, Heroic Spirits, and gods of the Seventh Singularity have given everything for this moment. I firmly believe we can defeat the Mother of Genesis."
"This is our first true meeting in reality, Roy, and one I've longed for. Let's unite and triumph over humanity's calamity, securing a glorious victory!!"
Merlin smiled as he spoke, the black tide surging relentlessly but turning to petals under his magecraft before reaching them.
For a moment, vibrant petals of all colors blanketed the sea of black mud above.
Perhaps due to the timely arrival of this flower-effect magus, the oppressive atmosphere lightened.
Amid the floral sea, Roy faced Tiamat's towering dragon form, their eyes locking.
Though no words were exchanged, their repeated clashes had forged an understanding of each other's essence and intentions.
A divide of position, an absolute opposition of what they represented, destined them to never reconcile. Battle was their only path.
"Perfect chance!!"
The sudden dispersal of the black mud freed Ishtar from her constraints, unleashing her full potential.
Seeing the mud transformed into flowers by Merlin, with Tiamat's attention drawn to Roy, she wouldn't waste this opportunity.
She wasn't a warrior; ambushing held no burden for her. Though Tiamat was the Sumerian Mother of Genesis, Ishtar, a later-born deity, felt no kinship, her mother was Ninsun.
Thus, striking Tiamat from behind carried no guilt.
Ishtar raised her finger gun, aiming at Tiamat below. Maanna, her celestial bow, began reabsorbing the unspent mana from her earlier attack, preparing for a second release.
"No dodging this time, Mother Tiamat!!"
"Go! An Gal Ta Kigal She!!"
The sky remained a pitch-black polar night, blood-red clouds filling the heavens, but behind Ishtar, a new Venus emerged.
The bullet-like Venus shadow coalesced again, roaring toward the grounded Tiamat.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
The terrifying mana surge triggered Tiamat's sense of danger. She raised her head, opening her maw to unleash a crimson ether beam capable of shattering mountains and earth toward Ishtar.
With Merlin's arrival disrupting the Sea of Creation, Tiamat opted for the same tactic used against Gorgon, aiming to vaporize Ishtar with an ether-charged magic cannon.
But there would be no more chances.
"Look here, Tiamat."
Roy's attack struck faster than Tiamat's ether beam. Compressed to its limit, a terrifying crimson storm surged toward Tiamat's fractured visage, causing her pain, splitting her focus, and disrupting her counter against Ishtar.
"Nice work!!"
Unhindered this time, Ishtar's second Noble Phantasm release went smoothly, and then…
Swish!!
A piercing sound cut through the dark sky, tracing a dazzling arc.
Like the historical shattering of Abif Mountain, a massive beam pierced the continent, engulfing Tiamat's dragon form.
"Aaaaaaaaa!!!"
Tiamat's dragon form screamed in agony under the immense mana's pressure, her body cracking, her Saint Graph destabilizing and beginning to collapse.
"Merlin!!"
Roy shouted to the spectating incubus.
"Leave it to me!!"
With a gentle wave of his staff, the boundless Sea of Chaos began disintegrating rapidly.
The darkness before them turned pink, the ground's black mud transforming into fragrant petals.
Soon, not only did Tiamat's dragon form vanish under Ishtar's Noble Phantasm, but with Merlin's aid, Uruk's land was shattered, opening the planned path to the Underworld.
Death, gloom, darkness, decay…
The Underworld's aura erupted from the torn rift.
In the Age of Gods, the world was like a vast canvas, with Human, Divine, and Underworld realms connected yet separated by barriers.
The earth's surface was the divide between the Human World and the Underworld. Now, under Ishtar's An Gal Ta Kigal She, as when she once stormed the Underworld, brute force tore open the gate between realms.
Tiamat's dragon form, losing its foothold, plummeted. Roy and Uruk's Servants leapt into the pitch-black abyss, racing to the Underworld's battlefield.
"Ereshkigal, prepare yourself. Everyone's coming."
"And Dr. Roman, monitor Tiamat's Saint Graph reactions. The final strategy has begun."
While plummeting, Roy contacted Ereshkigal, the Underworld's mistress, through the Underworld Mirror, then calmly used Ritsuka's communicator to ask Dr. Roman about Tiamat's Saint Graph status.
"I can sense it, you're all falling toward us rapidly."
Below, Ereshkigal, anxious from the long wait, responded to Roy, her smooth hands nervously gripping the blazing Meslamtaea, awaiting Tiamat's arrival.
Meanwhile, Dr. Roman, after checking Ritsuka and Mash's conditions, began monitoring Tiamat's Saint Graph as Roy instructed, quickly reporting his findings.
He suddenly shouted, "What's going on? Why has Tiamat's Saint Graph reaction vanished?! By all logic, a Beast like her shouldn't die so easily!!"
"Vanished? Impossible!"
Roy shook his head, rejecting the conclusion.
Having clashed with her for a week in a Reality Marble, he knew Tiamat's dragon form's resilience and near-invincibility.
Though Ishtar's Noble Phantasm was devastating, destroying the Beast of Calamity with it alone was naive.
Without a true concept of death attached, she couldn't be killed.
Something must have gone wrong.
He urged, "Dr. Roman! Don't focus on Tiamat. Scan the entire dark space for any mana, no matter the type!!"
"Got it, wait… what's this?!!"
Romani Archaman's eyes widened, his fingers racing across the keyboard to confirm Sheba's data before replying.
"It's above?! Tiamat's dragon form's presence is above you! She used the Sea of Creation's black mud to reconstruct her damaged Saint Graph and repair her wings!!"
What?!!
As Dr. Roman said, Tiamat's massive form didn't plummet to the Underworld's depths. She lingered in the air, her makeshift wings, reformed by black mud, stabilizing her fall, defying fate.
Though the damage from Marduk's axe was irreparable, substituting black mud allowed her to climb.
At this rate, Tiamat escaping the Underworld's abyss was only a matter of time.
If she escaped, there'd be no need for further battle.
Having suffered once, the Beast of Calamity wouldn't give them a second chance. To defeat her, she had to fall into the Underworld now!!
Realizing this, Roy shifted mid-fall, facing the white light, the Underworld's sole exit, in the dark abyss. His mana erupted, and he stomped the air, accelerating.
"Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca!!"
"Understood, Master."
"Understood, Master."
Hearing Roy's call, the Aztec gods understood his intent. Exchanging a glance, they extended their arms, creating a platform for Roy to launch upward.
"Thanks."
Roy climbed swiftly, using their arms as a ladder.
His agile form, wreathed in white flames, shot like a bullet toward the Underworld's open entrance.
Black flames and gleaming dark light propelled him forward like boosters.
"Aaaaaaa!!!"
Sensing the irritating mana source approaching, Tiamat's dragon form roared in fury.
An endless Sea of Chaos cascaded from the void, surging toward Roy.
Undeterred, Roy pressed forward.
Raising his arm, blazing flames and terrifying mana surged. His ice-blue eyes locked on the oncoming black mud, his advance relentless.
"Aaaa… aa…"
The Goddess of Fate on his side showed no fear. Together, they broke through barriers, charging toward Tiamat's dragon form.
…
…
"Why keep struggling?! After all this, you still aim for the surface. How obsessed are you with [Regression]?"
Above Uruk, on the golden ark, Gilgamesh, yet to descend to the Underworld, watched Tiamat climb from the abyss, his face grim.
Ritsuka and Mash, seeing Tiamat avoid the Underworld and nearly escape, shifted from excitement to shock and doubt.
"Senpai, Tiamat's dragon form is climbing out of the abyss!!"
Mash urgently warned Ritsuka.
"I see… Mash, if Tiamat escapes, all our efforts are for nothing."
"Wah wah wah!! What's happening now?!"
Ishtar, lingering in the air, not yet entering the Underworld, wore a distressed expression, shouting at Gilgamesh, "Wasn't one Noble Phantasm supposed to send the Mother of Genesis to the Underworld?"
"I've released it twice, and she's climbing out?! This isn't what we planned!!"
At her wit's end, Ishtar clutched her ponytail, yelling, "I have enough mana, but another Noble Phantasm needs time to charge. It's too late now!!"
"So… there's really no way to stop Tiamat from escaping the Underworld?"
Mash and Ritsuka asked anxiously.
"Even if you ask me, I…"
"Wait, Ishtar, this king has one last method."
At the peak of tension, Gilgamesh, silent and deep in thought, spoke up.
"This king has a way to resolve this dire situation."
"Eh? As expected of King Gilgamesh, hiding a secret weapon even in this mess?!"
Ritsuka and Mash looked at him with awe.
The ancient, reliable King of Heroes of Uruk seemed capable of solving any challenge.
"Huh? If you have a way, use it! Why stand there?! What's your plan?!"
"…"
"Eh?!"
Gilgamesh shook his head, not answering Ishtar directly. With a solemn expression, he tossed Ritsuka and Mash from the golden ark onto Ishtar's Maanna.
"Goldie?! What are you-"
Ishtar, catching Ritsuka and Mash, was about to scold Gilgamesh but saw him open his treasury, loading the remaining treasures onto the ark. She realized his intent and the method he meant.
"Hey, observatory folks and Ishtar, this king may have to step away. Keep fighting well."
No dramatic farewell, just a casual statement.
With a serene smile, Gilgamesh bid Ritsuka and the others goodbye.
Raising his arm, he commanded the golden ark, its emerald wings unfurling, aiming its bow at Tiamat's dragon form below, charging with radiant light.
Yes, this was Gilgamesh's final method.
With resolute acceptance of death, he'd pilot the golden ark, using countless Noble Phantasms as explosive fuel in a suicidal charge to push Tiamat back into the abyss.
Mad and reckless, but no simpler, more effective plan existed.
He'd thought he might survive this time… Wishful thinking.
But this was fitting, a grand end for Uruk's king.
A king shouldn't die quietly but in a blazing spectacle.
See you later, Ishtar, and that brat from Ur.
"Hahahahaha!!!"
Wait… he forgot something.
Right, he hadn't apologized to that guy. His past actions were improper, and he'd meant to make amends, but never found the chance.
If so…
The Underworld Mirror in Ishtar's arms spoke: "Right, useless goddess, tell that guy I'm sorry for me, and give him the Key of the King's Law as atonement. I won't have the chance to say it myself. Whether he forgives me doesn't matter, I'll be gone anyway…"
"That's it. See you later."
"Eh eh eh?! What's all this?!!"
Ishtar was on the verge of losing it.
On the ark, after speaking, the golden-haired figure seemed relieved, tossing the Underworld Mirror aside and laughing heartily.
"Hahahahahahaha!!!"
"Mother of Genesis, come! Witness the fireworks of this king's life!! The life of Uruk's king is heavy, can you bear it?!!"
With Gilgamesh's mana surge, the ark's stored Noble Phantasms hummed, their surfaces cracking with golden light, ready to explode.
The golden-haired king, laughing atop his throne, piloted the ark straight at the massive dragon below.
The next instant, they collided.
Boom!!
In a flash, flames fueled by life and conviction erupted, shining like a star, illuminating Uruk's night sky.
The deafening explosion echoed like thunder, flames soaring, consuming all.
In that moment, the world spun, and the evil dragon plummeted into the Underworld's abyss…
The white light climbing from below finally broke through the darkness.
"I've got you, Tiamat!!"
___
If you're interested in reading more that 50 chapters, feel free to visit my pat reon,
https , // www .pat reon. com /XElenea