Welcome.
Indeed, a pleasure to meet you. Over there are Sir Kay, Sir Bedivere, Gareth, and, well, Gawain too. And our king's descendant, Luffy Pendragon.
I am, I'm, I, we, this one—Merlin of this world. Thanks for making the long journey to Avalon's tower. All I've got are apples, but you're welcome, alright?
Huh? Oh, my bad, my bad. It's been a while since I talked to anyone, so I forgot how I even speak. Let's see… what voice, what tone, what form did I use with people? Give me a moment to recall.
Alright, how's this? Hmm, feels a bit off, but it's a short acquaintance. I'll try to match the Merlin you know, so bear with me.
Once again, I'm this world's Merlin.
I've wanted to meet you. Ever since Galahad helped me reach Solomon's truth that day, I've longed to meet you all.
Especially you, Luffy. Our king's descendant. As expected, there's no trace of resemblance left. We're proud to have carried on the King of Knights's bloodline. …Though, naming a direct female descendant after Morgan is questionable.
Morgan caused quite a mess here too… Not as bad as Vivian, who locked me up in this place, but still. It was about five hundred years ago when I realized most of the events in the Arthurian legend were schemes instigated by that Mephisto guy.
He got me good.
I thought we had a solid partnership as accomplices. But, well, he's a Devil, isn't he? I was a fool to trust him. That's just how Devils work, I suppose.
I can guess your purpose. Shall we get to it…? What? You want the truth about Excalibur first? Right, books and legends are distorted by Truth, so you'd need to hear it from someone less affected.
At the hill of Camlann, Bedivere died in Arthur's place. Arthur, the fallen king, sought refuge with the Church, who demanded the holy sword as payment. When Arthur's descendants cut ties with the Church, Excalibur's ownership was taken. That's the rough version. There's more to tell, but I'll skip the details.
Oh, by the way, after death, Arthur was led by fairies to Avalon. I haven't heard of any reincarnation, so he's probably somewhere in Avalon. Want to meet him? No time? Fair enough. Let's get to the main topic.
It all began four thousand five hundred years ago. Before Solomon's time three thousand years ago. The primal era when human civilization began.
In short, this cosmology consists of the Star, Gods, and Humans. The Star is the unified will of the cosmos. Gods aren't just pure divinities but a collective term for all non-humans, including Satans and spirits.
Back then, Humans were overwhelmingly weaker than the Star and Gods. Gilgamesh and Moses tried to change that. Those two great figures aimed to liberate humans from gods and the Star. The problem was their approaches were vastly different.
Gilgamesh sought to make Humans equal to the other two. Moses aimed to merge Humans with the divine side. He tried to create a prototype of Solomon's Truth, but ultimately failed. That failure was inherited by Solomon through Samael, birthing Truth.
But Truth, created to counter the deterrent, was exploited by it. Exploited might be too strong a word, but it was used. To maintain world peace and secure the Star's future, tragedies that should never be forgotten were erased, and nonexistent miracles were passed down.
What about the gods, you ask? They didn't do anything.
Some gods loved humans, but none saved them. You can tell from how exaggerated Tiamat's tale is, right? There are gods who birthed humans, but none built the world. There's no creator in this cosmology. So, the gods didn't notice. They didn't need to forget. They didn't need Truth to rewrite anything. This star's gods are lazy. Utterly fallen. That's the price they paid for Solomon's global god scam three thousand years ago.
After Solomon's death, countless heroes arose. But none reached the truth. Even if they did, no madman would inherit Solomon's will. Even if it meant shortening humanity's lifespan.
Four thousand five hundred years ago, humanity lost. But they didn't keep losing.
Let me say it. It's not my achievement, nor solely humanity's power in this universe, and it took a damn long time.
But as of today, humanity's victory begins!
Goetia freezes at the sight of the phantom. His fist, aimed at Solomon, halts, captivated for a moment by the vision—a fatal gap in battle.
"Huh…?"
But Solomon pauses longer.
The phantom gently embraces Solomon from behind, pressing her cheek to his. Solomon sees her too. His body trembles at the sight of her phantom, glimpsed sidelong. His Noble Phantasm stops, his thoughts in chaos.
"…####…?"
Solomon utters a name he could never forget. Hearing it, Goetia's fighting spirit reignites, struck by the odd realization that she has that name in this world too.
"Thank you, Queen—!"
The King of Men sends the One God flying.
In a Heaven without Seraphim, the One God falls. The phantom vanishes.
"What a pointless detour."
Goetia looks up, overlaying his past goal with the collapsing Heavenly sky, warped with discordant sounds.
"Report from Ipos: Truth collapse enters final stage."
"Report from Shax: Heaven's extinction is expected with Truth's collapse."
"Report from Ose: Most angels in Heaven are in lower strata. Rescue is impossible. They seem confused. Higher angels are combat-incapable."
"Report from Vapula: Reactions from the Knights of the Round Table detected. The Lion King's goal seems to include absorbing some angels into their ranks."
"Report from Focalor: However, many angels are hesitant about this recruitment. Either way, ninety percent will be caught in Heaven's extinction."
"Report from Malphas: All 72 Demon Gods operational. Barring irregularities, the plan will succeed."
But neither Goetia nor the 72 Demon Gods believe irregularities won't occur. No—they've already occurred. They know it.
"Why…"
Like a specter spewing resentment, the One God mutters.
"Why did it come to this…"
He genuinely doesn't understand the cause.
"Get a grip already. Why can't you admit your mistakes and accept defeat like anyone else?"
"Shut up."
"My work is done. Your work ended long ago, didn't it?"
"Shut up."
"No one seeks you. No one remembers you."
"Shut up."
"No one seeks your love anymore."
"Shut up."
"So—end here with us."
"SHUT UP!"
"It's you who should shut up, ####."
"Don't you dare speak my name, you filth!"
This One God's core isn't Solomon.
"'Thou shalt not take the name of God in vain,' was it? Pathetic. Why should we uphold the Ten Commandments you and your followers never kept?"
"For me, for me, for ME, ME, ME!? I am God, GOD, God!? G-G-G-GOD! All humanity exists for me! Humans exist for me, should die for me! I created this world and humanity for that! You should exist as I desire! I made you that way!"
"From Goetia to the 72 Demon Gods."
The path to the apex is near. No one will interfere.
"Silence this arrogant fool…!"
To realize our ideal this time. To see what we wanted to see.
"Michael, Raphael, and Uriel are dead. Gabriel is combat-incapable. Metatron and Sandalphon defected and died. Then, I'll awaken you. I loathe relying on Samael's legacy, but you're mine too. I'll use you. Consume you. How long will you sleep? Arise, Raziel, Zaphkiel, Zadkiel, Camael, Haniel…!"
The One God commands the guardian angels of the Tree of Life. Lesser than the four great angels or the twin angels, but still bearing a fraction of divine power.
"You vile Demon Gods think you can steal my System? Destroy my Heaven? Extinguish my humanity, mine alone? If you spread filthy serpents, I'll create a calamity to devour them."
This god has brought sulfur and fire, floods, and lightning to purge human corruption. For irredeemable ugliness, it delivered fitting destruction. It's the same now. If the foe is a beast feared by even god-kings or deterrents, it will show a calamity to destroy it. If the King of Men's Human Order salvation fails, all humanity will awaken, remembering what they live for.
"Infinite Overlord: Phantasmal Ideal Juggernaut Neo Drive!"
Blood dances before the Red Dragon Emperor.
"Why…?"
The boy turned red dragon asks.
"Why did you protect that woman, Heroic Spirit!?"
The red dragon's claws tore not the crimson-haired female devil, but a pink-haired knight.
The roar of rage in the form of a question makes everyone but Vali flinch.
"Honestly, why did I?"
Astolfo, already a fragile Heroic Spirit, hasn't vanished instantly, but his spiritual core is shattered. His etheric body is already dissolving.
No one present even thinks of Astolfo's disappearance.
They realize the roar, the resentment, doesn't stem from Solomon. They understand this sickening hostility comes from Issei Hyoudou himself.
But they reject that truth.
Because, even if Astolfo shielded her, Issei genuinely tried to kill Rias Gremory. If his actions aren't tainted by Solomon, that's absurd. There's no reason for Issei, a peerage member, to kill his master Rias. Especially not for a Gremory, known for deep affection.
Yuuto guesses Issei was freed from Solomon in that moment. Koneko fears he was consumed by power like her sister. Gasper deems it Solomon's act. Akeno shakes her head, calling it delirium. Rias is simply stunned.
"Maybe because you're the same as someone I met somewhere else."
"Someone?"
"Someone waiting leisurely on the other side of the world."
A memory unrelated to Human Order Incineration. An event unknown to the Demon Gods or Issei. A memory of an evil dragon who stole a star humans reached for.
"You were just a normal human, right?"
Not born of heroic blood. Not a hero's reincarnation. No special talent. Just a boy born with a Longinus. That's Issei Hyoudou.
"You went to town, met people, loved or hated them, lived a joyful life."
Exactly.
I want to go back there. I can't.
Then aren't we the same? Why stop me? Killing that woman won't make me unable to return? I can't return anyway.
"Maybe you're angry because that was ruined. If that's why this happened, that's—troublesome. Really troublesome. Because—"
I didn't want to abandon you.
"Please, escape now. That's your last chance to return to the place you seek."
With guilt unbefitting yet so characteristic of this rationality-evaporated knight, Astolfo, Rider of Solomon's faction, vanishes.
***
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