"Are you curious as to how I transcended that space?"
"No," Cosmo replied with disinterest. "You located the channel it used to funnel authority into you and devoured the excess before the zone collapsed. I'd call you a cheat, but…"
"It would be reasonable to do so. But I'm not searching for honor in a task like this. I only desire to kill you, and that's that."
Artoria burst forth with a speed he had never displayed before, his fist closing in on Cosmo's face before Cosmo's body could even begin to react.
0.00004s.
In that case, you won't mind if I take some liberties, right?
0.00007s.
A servant of desolation who still follows the will of his Apostle even without obligation. Yet from what I can gather, the real him chose to spare Rita's life two years ago. What a strange person.
0.00009s.
If his story can be told through his translation, then I can reach his roots through it.
Sufficient Cognition: Met.
Conception: Twenty‑four percent deviation.
Cosmo aligned two fingers along the bridge of his nose, and Artoria's punch froze in place.
Within each iris of his silver eyes was now a bright, emerald four-pointed star.
"It's been fun, Artoria," he muttered.
Artoria didn't wait to contemplate the implications. He unleashed a crushing force on either side of Cosmo, attempting to flatten him.
WHAM!
It failed.
Instead, a repulsive force countered Artoria's attack. One eerily similar to his own.
"I understand it now. Your authority… It's not as bland as controlling gravity."
The warrior followed with a more direct assault, causing the ground beneath Cosmo to erupt and envelop him before folding inward to crush him.
"You're a star…"
It could collapse no further, as a reflective force disassembled its structure.
"...orbited by other stars. A dense star that seeks to break the world by its very presence."
"That's impossible…"
"A dead star that wishes to swallow all light as it spirals into an eternal, all‑consuming darkness…"
"No being is allowed to replicate another's translation! That is an absolute law!"
"...That is your story. Hence, that is your authority."
"Foolish human… Tell me how that is possible this instant!" The ground rumbled as Artoria's authority raged.
"Since you're soulless, there's no point holding anything back for the sake of parity."
Broken chunks of land rose and began orbiting Cosmo, as if to flaunt his feat before the warrior.
"Cosmo ■■■■■■, Authority of the Usurper."
"The?" Artoria echoed. "You have a Mantled authority. Of whom?"
"No one. I made it up myself."
"What?"
There were the usual authorities, branching from the foundational pillars of the world.
And there were the rare ones, born from a descent of shared will, and possibly legendary by nature.
Which made it wholly contradictory for a first‑generation authority like Cosmo's to be classified as Mantled… yet he had somehow done it.
"The idea was simple. I had an authority I didn't like back then, so I hammered it over and over until it became something new."
"It doesn't matter. No amount of covenants or offerings could ever break an absolute law."
"Of course. That fact remains immutable, so I haven't broken it." Cosmo shook his head. "My base authority can usurp the authority possessed by any organic or inorganic matter, but I could never directly usurp that of individuals due to that absolute law. So I made up a unique skill that lets me linger among the upper tiers."
He tapped one of the floating chunks of earth, sending it drifting toward Artoria.
"I didn't copy your authority. I pirated the story that led to it and translated it into my own version. The grey area from that deviation is why it looks like I can bypass the law. Though it only lasts until the end of this fight. And I can't use it unless I understand my opponent somewhat–which I'm terrible at–so it evens out."
"...ridiculous…"
"Hm?"
"That's utterly ridiculous!"
SNAP!
Cosmo's position was engulfed by several distorting shockwaves, which he dispersed almost instantly.
"You think you can overtake me using my own power?!"
Artoria pulled him in, concentrating his tidal force around Cosmo's body, cutting off his ability to move without being mangled.
Then, at the infinitesimal moment Cosmo entered his range, he shut off the tide and struck Cosmo directly in the gut.
The officer recoiled from the sheer force, even though he managed to block in time, enough to make Artoria smirk.
But Cosmo suddenly seized his hand and refused to let go, grinning as he muttered–
"Gotcha."
Something went horribly wrong for the Apostle's servant.
The arm Cosmo held, and most of his left torso, were shattered and disintegrated. Artoria immediately hurled Cosmo away.
He was left bleeding into the soil, recovery becoming impossible, while Cosmo landed gently at a distance, wearing a smug expression as if the outcome had been expected.
"You're right. I'm using a fake version of a fake, after all. But you forgot, I currently have access to two translations."
With the added force from his pirated authority, Cosmo's chain of bursts now had enough leeway to initiate deconstruction on another being, something only possible because he could multiply his manipulation's effectiveness.
In other words, Cosmo had gained the upper hand. One more instant of physical contact would render the Apostle's servant unable to sustain his form.
He didn't need to say anything, Artoria understood after the first touch.
All that remained was for Cosmo to break the tidal barrier again and reach him, and the battle would end.
"Fine. I'll call this your victory."
Cosmo was already preparing to launch when Artoria's words stunned him.
But he didn't stop. If anything, he rushed harder. He blasted forward, but was too late.
He realized then that he had underestimated Artoria's willingness to kill him at all costs.
"Sink, my being. Make way and become more than whole."
Artoria clasped his hands against his chest, pressing until his entire body seemed to cave inward into something invisible.
The effect began small, then distorted everything around him on a massive scale.
Cosmo's body was not permitted through.
There's no way he's able to do what I think he's trying to do! If he had his real body, sure, but not as he is now!
Despite the doubt, he couldn't allow Artoria to attempt the compression into collapse.
He pushed and pushed, but couldn't reach him.
He considered escaping with the other four, but that would leave Rita to her fate.
He was at a loss until–
CLINK!
A single length of golden chain wrapped around Artoria's leg, flowing outward toward a distant hand. A gift from someone whose sight had finally caught up.
Cosmo gasped, then burst into laughter.
"Red! Come what may, you're getting a raise!"
He seized the chain, sending a ripple through it and triggering a chain of bursts that destroyed both the chain and Artoria's body.
In a single snap, everything stopped, and silence fell.
Artoria sat there with most of his body missing. A quarter of that damage would have killed anyone else instantly, yet he remained alive.
"Child… what is your age?"
"...eighteen."
"I meant your void age."
"I know."
Artoria chuckled.
"It seems they were right. Your existence is a potential threat to the world as we know it. Still… I'd like to be the one to end it. Why don't you consider stirring trouble with Desolation?"
"Nuh‑uh. That sounds way too dangerous. Why would I ever pick a fight with the real you?"
Cosmo waved a hand dismissively.
"But if you insist I survive till that time comes, then why don't you help me out with a tip. Our next opponent is a special type of beast that ignores the restraint of knowledge and time. How would you neutralize it if you were in our shoes?"
"Ah… it sounds impossible for children at your level. Then again, you've defied what I deemed impossible multiple times in that one battle. If there's one thing I can give you, it's this: be prepared to leap in the face of a fate worse than death."
With that, Artoria crumbled into dust and faded with the wind, never once removing the helmet that masked his face.
Cosmo stood alone amid the broken field of grass, lost in contemplation.
After a while, he muttered.
"What the hell does that even mean?"