Four thousand five hundred years ago, a prophet said to have struck down a fallen angel initiated a grand plan for humanity's liberation.
Three thousand years ago, the King of Magecraft who subjugated the 72 Demon Gods constructed Truth.
Two thousand years ago, the Savior called the Son of God abandoned slaying the beast.
Fifteen hundred years ago, the King of Knights who drew the holy sword accelerated the divergence of the Age of Gods.
Twelve hundred years ago, the Great Emperor who preached faith understood and separated reality from mystery.
Eight hundred years ago, the Lionheart King aiming to reclaim the Holy Land departed from fantasy.
Six hundred years ago, the Saint who ended the Hundred Years' War reached eternity.
And now, in the present.
Their challenges ended in failure.
"HAHAHA! Yo, Kyoto youkai!"
"Well, well, Lord Indra. Are you also in the midst of evacuation?"
"Something like that. Also, I've got some business to settle with a certain someone."
"With Kingu, perhaps?"
"I'm talking about Kingu, sure, but not just Kingu."
"Pardon?"
"You heard, didn't you? You saw, didn't you? Hey, G-r-e-a-t R-e-d."
"—You noticed, Zoroastrian Satan Indra?"
"I got a hint earlier than the others, so I'm one step ahead of that Shiva guy, ZE! …Also, I ditched the Satan title ages ago. I'm Taishakuten of the Buddhist path now."
"A vile spirit unable to save a single rabbit dares call itself a god or buddha? Laughable."
"…Cheap provocation."
"G-Great Red, you say? Why would Great Red be inside Kingu!?"
"Ridiculous. This puppet Kingu used my power as a deterrent. It stands to reason that I, the True Dragon, could use Kingu's body. At the very least, I haven't done anything with this puppet's body—except for this moment. It's merely been a tool for observation."
"What's your goal!? Get out of Kingu already!"
"The True Dragon I has no goals. To the True Dragon I, only the process matters. The outcome, what future it brings, is of no interest or relevance to me. That's the job of another deterrent I."
"Then what's your job?"
"Isn't it obvious? To make the most effective use of devils and destroy them."
"What?"
"Four thousand five hundred years ago, there was a Heroic King who brought about the creation. As time passed, there was a prophet seeking salvation. If it had been one or the other, there'd be no issue. If either had succeeded—or even failed—there'd be no problem. But both failed. Their grand endeavors, which should've been infallible, failed, delaying the star's evolution significantly. The result: the decreed extinction of devils."
"Four thousand five hundred years ago, you say?"
"Young youkai with shallow history, it's no surprise you don't know. What those two did isn't as clearly recognized as Solomon's Truth. Why? Because only two non-humans noticed what happened four thousand five hundred years ago, what those two tried to do: the malicious serpent who failed to guide the prophet and the rejected old hag spurned by the Heroic King."
"Oh, I see. That transformation, that event four thousand five hundred years ago—it was that. To think it was the work of Gilgamesh and Moses."
"Why devils? That's unimportant. Gilgamesh and Moses' failures were inherited by Solomon in the form of Truth. But Solomon had no one. The Son of God, the King of Britain, the Great Emperor—they inherited his plan but rejected his ideals. So they failed. So humanity was defeated. Liberation from the deterrent I and the Age of Gods' you—such delusions failed four thousand five hundred years ago."
"That was a failure?"
"In these three thousand years, no king greater than Solomon has emerged on this star, in this universe. Nor will one ever. The possibility of a Savior surpassing the King of Magecraft ended today. The growth of heroes twisted the future of a Savior's birth. That's all that matters."
"By destroying devils, you limit humanity's potential. That's your role?"
"It succeeded in this timeline too. And this time, the deterrent I's work was minimal. A useful reference. This marks the 78,513th success. The illusory I will ensure success in the remaining 896,000,021 timelines."
"—What? In just a few hours, the devils were wiped out? HAHAHA! That's quick, ZE!"
"Don't laugh, vile spirit. Tomorrow it could be you."
"Why?"
Solomon lunges at Goetia.
Goetia, already near death from their Noble Phantasm clash, takes the hit. But Solomon, enduring the agony of his body being ravaged from within, can't deal significant damage.
"Why, Goetia!? Why choose this method…!?"
Wiping blood, Goetia answers concisely.
"It's the quickest way."
"If you die, what happens to the Hero Faction!? To this star's humanity!? You wanted to protect them. You did want to! If you vanish midway, don't drag Truth—humanity's hope—down with you!"
"Let me ask you, then. Why didn't you lead them…!?"
The King of Men channels strength into his fist, striking back.
"Why create Truth!? Why craft a curse that distorts facts and diverges the Age of Gods? Why summon us from the outer cosmos? If you could do this, couldn't you have done something with your own power!?"
To that, the One God Solomon flashes a twisted smile.
"Isn't it obvious? I wasn't enough… I just wasn't enough!"
An incompetent king. A powerless king.
Yes, isn't that perfectly said? Not a false accusation, not a slander—just the plain truth.
Because I—disappointed myself. Comparing the miracles shown by humans from the outer cosmos to the powerlessness of this star's humanity, I grew disillusioned. I felt despair for the people I was meant to save, even shame for the past I should've raged against.
I wasn't enough. A pathetic king like me could never bring happiness to humanity.
Just one person would do. I needed a Savior with greater power and love than me to lead humanity. I wished for the birth of a King of Men loved by humanity and loving humanity in return.
"I needed a king greater than me! A king who could believe in humanity more than me, serve humanity more than me!"
A Savior surpassing the King of Magecraft. A thousand years after my death, two thousand years ago, the Son of God didn't choose that path. Born from a human womb, knowing the world's injustices and the atrocities of non-humans, the Son of God was a Savior yet didn't save the world.
The King of Knights chosen by the star's holy sword and the Great Emperor who led warriors were the same. They protected only their nations, loved only their eras.
No one carried on the King of Magecraft's ideals, let alone looked at them.
Before and after the King of Magecraft's birth, everyone was incompetent. Nothing but incompetent kings.
"Finally! I let humanity die for three thousand years for this! All to pass everything to him! I'll find him and raise him…!"
Savior, from another timeline. If he exists in this universe, he must exist in this timeline too. He could surely become a leader of humanity greater than the King of Magecraft.
Anyone would do. As long as they could be a greater king than me, anyone. No matter what vile anti-hero's soul they inherited, what weak Sacred Gear they were born with, what sinful non-human blood they carried, what incomprehensible madness they held—anyone would do.
If a Savior could love humanity in place of the incompetent King of Magecraft, Solomon would accept anyone.
"Don't spout nonsense!"
The King of Men rejects it, raging against the absurdity.
"Even so, they believed in you, didn't they!? Humanity sought you, didn't they!? Unlike us, the Human Order Correction Formulas who abandoned our role in despair, you were desired! By the humans you loved! As a true king!"
The King of the Demon Gods Goetia, omnipotent and immortal, couldn't understand imperfect humans. A foolish Human Order Incineration Formula that couldn't grasp the primal wish to "fight to live."
This King of Magecraft's ideal is a meddlesome imitation of the grand endeavor I once pursued.
This king lacked something critical. Despite believing in humanity, understanding every god and Devil's ideology, and crafting such a long-term, absolute plan.
This man lacked confidence. Confidence that he could save humanity.
"What good is trampling the hands reaching for help!? Wasn't taking those hands, laughing together, the future you sought!? You could've done it. Everyone believed and wished you could. They begged you to become a god, didn't they!? In the ideal you envisioned, in the smile of someone you loved—that queen—was it there!?"
"Shut up. Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up, SHUT UP! I only wanted to atone for my sins. I only wanted humanity's future! Where's the mistake in my ideal!?"
"There's nothing but mistakes, you fool…!"
A barbaric brawl, hardly befitting a fight between the executor of Human Order Incineration and the One God of Truth's construction. But their true battle isn't in the visible exchange of fists—it's within the ceaseless collapse of Truth and the System. Like a computer virus versus a firewall.
"If it's the future—your future—it's right here, right now! You're the past's relic, we're foreign invaders. Their future is theirs!"
"Shut up! This world is mine! I shaped it! It must end the way I envisioned, or it's meaningless! Otherwise, an era of despair will begin again!"
"Neither you nor we decide this world's value! Don't be arrogant, One God. Even if order is lost, allies vanish, or you're branded evil—humanity's hopeful fight won't end as long as they don't give up! Piling up mistakes, accumulating debts, their battle continues!"
No matter the words exchanged, their claims run parallel.
Goetia is resolved to end Solomon here, while Solomon can only end this way. It's a matter of time. Whether Goetia's interference and sabotage within Truth and the System succeed. If Goetia wins, Solomon vanishes, not even residual thoughts remaining. The King of Magecraft's madness stops for good. If Solomon wins, his thoughts persist, allowing him to devise another plan.
"Guhhh…!"
But a next time? Is there such a thing? There's not enough material to rebuild Truth. The devils are extinct, and deceiving the star's gods and Devils twice is impossible. With the divergence of truth and myth, divine and demonic power is weaker than three thousand years ago. Using Trihexa, Ophis, or Great Red would yield the same result. Wait another three thousand years? Endure a history of humanity being preyed upon by gods and Devils again?
No way.
If there's no material, start from scratch.
"Final Noble Phantasm, activate!"
The era when humans were happiest was undoubtedly the Genesis period. Why? Because humans knew no sin. They bore no sin, committed no evil.
The moment humans ate the fruit of knowledge, God's perfection was distorted.
"Come back to me, my beloved masterpieces."
To reclaim humanity, they must be pure. Incapable of sin, evil, or love for anything but God.
"Humanity, return to my paradise—Genesis Eden!"
It is [ ] that resets everything to zero.
"You—!"
Raising his fist, Goetia glimpses a figure behind Solomon.
***
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