After narrowly dodging, Verethragna gasped, then broke into laughter.
"Hahaha! Yes! That's it!"
Rather than fear, the brush with death filled him with excitement.
As a heretic god, he had descended to the mortal realm in search of an enemy capable of defeating him. Now, at last, he had found that opponent—one with overwhelming strength.
Not even his previous battle with Melqart had stirred this kind of passion.
"I don't know what power that is, but you're exactly the kind of enemy I was looking for!"
Gazing at the Giant of Light before him, Verethragna's battle spirit boiled over. He now saw himself as the underdog, placing the Ultra Giant—Tiga, now embodied by Hajime—above him.
He wanted to challenge him.
Meanwhile, Hajime had no intention of stopping. Familiar with Verethragna's divine abilities, he had expected the Raptor form to evade the first shot. So, he had a follow-up ready.
Crossing his arms to charge, he struck out.
"[Scattershot Beam!]"
Hundreds of small blue beams suddenly formed in front of Hajime, like a shotgun blast. A wide-spread barrage rained down on Veleslana's position.
Unlike the Ranbalt Light Bullet, this attack had much less killing power—but a far wider area of effect. If Ranbalt bullet relied on speed for accuracy, then Scattershot relied on area saturation.
To Hajime, this was merely a way to restrict enemy movement, not a finisher.
But to Verethragna, this was still deadly.
Getting hit wouldn't mean instant death—but it would mean serious injury. And the spread was too wide for Raptor speed to dodge completely. He might dodge some—but not all.
So, Verethragna made a decision: face it head-on.
Without dodging, he began chanting.
"For victory, appear before me! Undying sun, grant me your radiant steed! Swift-legged spirit horse, carry forth your master's sun chariot!"
[White Stallion] form— a divine embodiment capable of carrying the sun.
As the chant finished, a second sun appeared in the sky. A burning white horse dragged the flaming sun, charging into the barrage of beams.
The solar blaze clashed directly with the Scattershot Beam.
Boom! Boom!
Light met solar fire. The battlefield was reduced to a smoking crater. Dust and flame engulfed the area, masking everything inside.
But Hajime's enhanced vision wasn't hindered. He could see it all clearly.
So, when a dark green shadow rushed out from the depths of the crater, he was fully aware.
A divine beast—Boar—roared forward, cloaked in dark green flames, stronger than before—clearly enhanced by Verethragna.
It roared, unleashing a powerful shockwave as it charged straight at Hajime.
But Hajime smiled.
He had already seen through the plan. The boar's charge was a feint. The real threat was the shadow behind it—Verethragna himself, concealed and ready to strike.
But in a fight with such a massive power gap, tricks like these didn't mean much.
If the enemy wanted to get close, Hajime would grant that wish—and crush them.
Hidden behind the divine boar, Verethragna suppressed his excitement, trying to erase his presence.
After observing Hajime's attacks, he realized the giant had been relying solely on beam techniques—not brute strength.
Maybe… this Giant of Light was highly specialized, strong in beams but weak in physical combat.
With that hypothesis, he formed a risky plan.
Let the boar take the brunt while he approached unnoticed. Once close, he would unleash his [Goat] form—Thunderstorm, a close-range divine strike.
Yes, the plan had high risks.
But with such a vast power gap, he had no better option. A fair fight was hopeless. If he didn't gamble, he'd never win.
Driven by this resolve, he and the divine boar closed in on Hajime.
"Now!"
Veleslana's eyes lit up, ready to release the [Goat] transformation.
At the same moment—
"Now."
Hajime also acted.
[Tiga Hand Slash!]
A single, powerful hand strike cleaved straight through the divine boar—and Verethragna behind it.
Even a sacred, invincible body would have been split in two. Let alone Verethragna, who lacked any defensive divine authority.
The divine boar dissipated on the spot. Verethragna crashed into the ground, defeated.
In his final moments, only one thought remained in his mind:
Why the hell… is this giant's physical strength also this ridiculous…?