Subaru sat upright in his chair, fingers steepled, his back slightly leaned forward. There was confidence in his eyes—a fire that refused to flicker—locked directly on Crusch, who stood across from him, flanked by Wilhelm and Felix.
"I propose an alliance between the Emilia and Crusch camps. Equal terms."
Crusch's brows knit together, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly.
"...What?"
"I don't expect anything for free," Subaru continued coolly, "so I've brought both information—and the location of the White Whale."
At that, Wilhelm's entire demeanor shifted. His jaw tensed, his gloved fists clenched at his sides until the leather creaked. The air thickened around him, bloodlust rising like heat mirage from his shoulders.
"...The White Whale," he muttered.
"Scary bloodlust, old man," came a smooth, almost playful voice from behind Subaru.
Satoru Gojo. His hands rested casually on the back of Subaru's chair, sunglasses gleaming, smile ever-present—as if he'd simply appeared from thin air.
"GAHK—! Can you not keep doing that?!" Subaru jolted.
Gojo tilted his head. "Doing what?" He smirked. "You're imagining things."
Crusch cleared her throat, redirecting the conversation. "Your point being? We've already been planning the White Whale's subjugation. With Gojo."
Subaru's head snapped toward his so-called teacher. "Eh?! You what—?!"
Gojo waved a hand. "Hey, before you stormed in with your master plan, alright? Don't go giving me that look—I'm not evil enough to betray my dear student."
His tone lost its levity for just a breath as he turned to Crusch, voice dipping into something steadier.
"Yeah. We've been preparing to kill that thing for a while now. Subaru, remember what I said back at the Royal Selection?"
"You were gonna take it down solo, weren't you?"
Gojo stuck out his tongue playfully. "Well, yeah, until some stuff happened with Crusch's camp. And hey—I'm not such a clout-chaser that I'd ignore a man's burning desire for revenge just to play solo hero."
"You sure about that?" Subaru muttered under his breath.
"What was that?"
"Nothing."
Gojo chuckled, then glanced back at Crusch. "We've got prep—but no confirmed time or place. Not even I can sniff out when or where that thing's showing up."
Subaru raised a hand. "And that's why this alliance is crucial. Until the whale breathes its last breath."
He paused, then looked Crusch in the eye. "I know I'm asking for a lot. But I don't make claims I can't back up."
Crusch didn't respond immediately. Her gaze shifted from Subaru to Gojo, then back. Calm, analytical, sharp.
"My concern isn't dishonesty," she said coolly. "It's whether the information you claim to have... is accurate."
Subaru smiled thinly. He reached into his tracksuit pocket and placed a flip-phone down onto the table. Crusch looked at it, puzzled.
"It's a metia," he explained. "And it'll tell me the exact time and place the whale will appear."
Gojo's brow twitched, just slightly.
So he's hiding how he got that info. Doesn't count as lying, so Crusch's Divine Protection won't react either..
I guess I won't ask why he's hiding it...
Crusch picked it up cautiously, frowning. "...I find that difficult to believe. But you're not lying..."
Subaru tilted his head, eyes glinting. "Sure you want to trust me so easily?"
Gojo leaned down, peeking over Subaru's shoulder, grinning. "That'd be thanks to a handy little Divine Protection. Crusch here's a human lie detector."
Crusch's eyes narrowed as she looked at Gojo. "And how exactly do you know that? I never told you."
He winked, sliding his finger down the edge of his glasses.
"Same reason I called you and Reinhard the best lie detectors in the room back at the Selection." His voice dipped to a playful whisper. "I've got reaaaaally good eyes~"
Subaru let out a loud sigh, waving him off. "Alright, alright! Enough with the flexing!"
He stood, extending a hand toward Crusch.
"So? Do we have a deal?"
Crusch didn't move right away. Instead, she smiled—genuinely, if subtly.
"I'm impressed you deduced we were preparing to hunt the whale already."
"That's... kinda freaky too!" Gojo muttered.
Crusch rose, extending her own hand to meet Subaru's. Her grip was firm, resolute.
"I have questions—many. But... I choose to trust in those eyes of yours. They speak of wordless resolve."
Gojo clapped his hands with childlike enthusiasm.
"Woo! Consider this alliance... allianced!"
Subaru deadpanned. "Dude."
————————————————————
Gojo lay sprawled across the rooftop of Crusch's mansion, the wind tousling strands of his silver-white hair. Fingers interlocked behind his head, he stared lazily up at the sky—sunlight filtering through faint clouds, warm and indifferent.
The air was quiet. Peaceful. Deceptively so.
The White Whale...
His sunglasses glinted under the sun, but his eyes, hidden beneath them, were distant. Focused. Calculating.
Outside of that red-haired anomaly—Reinhard—who frankly bends the very concept of power just by existing... I've got nothing to go off.
He let out a slow breath, more thoughtful than tired.
It's ancient. It's killed hundreds. Thousands.. over hundreds of years. An embodiment of calamity, in a way.
His fingers tapped rhythmically against the back of his head.
I suppose it'll be strong... but how strong? Will it make me break a sweat? Will it make me think twice?
A breeze drifted over the roof. He closed his eyes briefly, as if trying to feel something—an omen, a sign.
Will it be fun...?
He frowned, just faintly.
Should I even consider it fun after all it's done?
That thought lingered. Gojo wasn't oblivious. He'd seen the look in Wilhelm's eyes. The way the man didn't blink when the Whale was mentioned. The way the air thickened with his thirst for vengeance.
Probably not. For them, this isn't fun. It's a war they've waited years for.
He opened his eyes again. Sky still blue. Still peaceful.
But in his chest, a small knot began to twist.
"I'll fight it," he murmured aloud to the sky. "Because it deserves to die."
His voice was quiet, but his grin returned, soft and lopsided.
"But if it tries anything fancy... I will enjoy crushing it."
The rooftop creaked faintly.
Gojo didn't move. His eyes remained closed, breaths steady. But he knew. Someone was coming.
"Yo," he said lazily. "You walk like a guy who's thinking way too hard. Gonna get wrinkles at this rate, y'know."
Subaru halted behind him, arms crossed.
"Kind of hard not to think too hard when we're heading into a death match with a flying apocalypse."
Gojo cracked open one eye and tilted his head just enough to glimpse Subaru.
Subaru sighed and sat down beside him, knees to his chest. For a moment, neither spoke. The sky stretched above them like an ocean untouched by war.
Then Subaru broke the silence.
"Do you ever get scared?"
Gojo didn't answer immediately. He stared up again at the sun, letting the question hang.
"Hmm," he hummed. "Not really.. in all honesty."
Subaru blinked. "Seriously?"
Gojo chuckled dryly.
"Back on Earth, even in childhood, I was utterly untouchable.. I'd never bled, never been bruised.. not until a certain someone showed up. But even then, even he, my best friend couldn't touch me unless I let him."
"I was a prodigy a head and shoulders amongst the rest.. though it also meant I never actually had to put in effort for anything."
"Sounds like a hard life..." Subaru said sarcastically.
"I know right!~ But, it also had me wonder what it'd be like to be normal. Or hell, have a fight that would take everything I had plus more to win."
Subaru's eyes narrowed. The memory of the last few loops going through his mind.
Satoru, shoving him out of the way- half of his body obliterated because of his own weakness..
Then the last time, when he lost his arm. Both times were because of him.
Regulus Corneas... Subaru scowled, fists clenching.
Silence again—then a gust of wind swept across the rooftop, kicking at their hair and coats.
"A lot of people have died to that thing."
Gojo's smile softened. He sat up finally, resting his arms on his knees.
"Then let's make sure that it breathes its last breath today. Together, right?"
Subaru looked up.
"Yeah," he said. "Together."
Gojo grinned wide.
"Alright then, dear student. After this whale's done for, I say we take a week off. Hot springs. Maybe a date—wait, no, that's weird... Forget that."
Subaru made a face. "What is wrong with you?"
"Too much," Gojo said, finger to his chin. "And basically nothing at the same time!"
They both laughed. The tension didn't disappear—but it shifted. It became something bearable.
Above them, the sun still shone.
"I totally forgot why I came up here... to tell you that Crusch's speech was gonna start..!"
"Ah."
————————————————————
Dozens of soldiers thundered across the open plain, their ground dragons churning up clouds of dust as metal clanked with rhythmic intensity. Armor glinted under the sun, the formation moving as a single, surging wave of steel and scale.
Among them, Satoru Gojo sat upright on a mount, posture relaxed but eyes alert, scanning the horizon beneath tinted black lenses. It was a surreal sight—magic, muscle, and medieval warfare—like something plucked out of a fantasy novel and dropped straight infront of him.
Then he noticed a familiar duo drawing up beside him.
Subaru, atop a sleek black ground dragon that moved with unnatural ease, smirked. Rem sat behind him, her expression serene despite the speed of their advance.
Gojo narrowed his eyes behind his sunglasses.
"How the hell did you of all people end up with the coolest ground dragon of the lot?"
Subaru grinned, smugly. "One could call it fate. Or chemistry. Maybe even love at first sight."
"Yeah, or dumb luck. You probably tripped onto it and it imprinted on you out of pity," Gojo replied flatly, only to suddenly stand on his dragon's saddle, arms folded like he was posing for a magazine cover. "Betcha can't do this though."
"OH YEAH?!"
Gojo swore he saw Subaru's mount visibly sigh as the boy began to rise—shakily—onto his feet.
"See? Easy," Subaru started, before—
SWOOSH-
He tumbled.
Only for Rem to casually reach out, snagging his tracksuit midair and lifting him back with ease.
"Subaru… you shouldn't fall for such obvious baits," she said, softly.
"Right? Especially when he'd lose every time," Gojo added, grinning like a wolf.
Subaru pouted. "You two are impossible."
But the humor faded when Rem leaned in, her tone shifting, eyes sharp.
"Subaru believes the Witch's Cult will also target Arlam village and the mansion."
Gojo blinked, the grin wiped clean from his face. He turned toward Subaru.
"…And you forgot to mention that little detail?"
Subaru looked down slightly, the light in his eyes dimming.
"It's because of Emilia…"
The air grew heavier.
"…Right. Fanatics. Witch-obsessed lunatics." Gojo's voice was quieter now, more serious. "Annoyingly, right now we've got the whale to worry about over all else though."
————————————————————
Beneath Flugel's Tree...
The colossal tree loomed overhead, its titanic branches piercing the clouds, as if trying to embrace the very sky.
Satoru Gojo stood at the base, neck craned, sunglasses reflecting the heavens above.
He let out a low whistle.
"Now that is one hell of a tree..."
He wasn't easily impressed—back on Earth, he'd seen the wonders of the modern world. But this? A tree that dwarfed mountains and defied the horizon? Even he had to admit it.. awe was appropriate.
His eyes drifted downward at last. The soldiers of the Crusch camp were arrayed in ordered lines, disciplined and silent, mounted atop restless ground dragons. The air was tense, brimming with the electricity of impending chaos.
And Gojo was the only one not mounted, hands in his pockets, relaxed as ever.
Then—
Beep.. Beep.. Beep..
A sharp ringtone sliced through the silence. Subaru's phone, aka the signal.
Crusch's eyes sharpened.
"Men, on guard!"
A ripple of unrest spread through the ranks. Nervous eyes scanned the moonlit sky.
"I—I don't see it!" one soldier called out.
But Gojo tilted his head, a slight grin curling at his lips.
"There it is…"
High above, framed against the full moon, a massive silhouette drifted silently.
Then—ROOOOOAAAAARRRRR!
A bellow unlike anything natural. A sound that tore through the night like the scream of an ancient god.
The White Whale had come.
And yet—no one ran. Not this time.
They had steel in their hands. Fire in their hearts. Grudges carved deep into their souls.
They were ready.
SWOOOOSH—
It plummeted like a meteor, the size of a fortress, wind screaming in its wake.
Gojo chuckled.
"Fast for a literal flying whale. This might actually be fun."
"Let 'em have it!!" Subaru roared, rising in his saddle, Rem by his side. The maid's hands shimmered with mana—spears of glacial ice launching skyward and burying into the whale's underbelly.
It howled again—less injured, and more outraged.
Then a synchronized battle cry erupted from the army as they charged.
Staying back however.. was Crusch Karsten and Gojo Satoru, her gaze sharp as she watched.
"That student of mine," Gojo muttered, "Is growing into quite the madman. Can't say I'd have it any other way though!"
Crusch allowed herself a faint chuckle. But her voice was firm.
"Fire it."
From behind them, a hidden weapon unveiled itself, a massive monolithic cannon aimed at the sky.
BOOM—!!
A beam of blinding blue light tore across the night sky.
Then, night became day.
Gojo's jaw slackened.
"…What the hell was that?"
"The Night Banisher," Crusch replied.
"Yeah, no, I figured that part out," he muttered, stretching his shoulders. "..Suppose this is where I clock in. Ciao~!"
A shimmer rippled through space as Gojo vanished—reality folding around him.
He reappeared mid-charge, just ahead of Subaru and Rem, who were barely clinging to their speeding dragon.
"S-Sensei?!"
Gojo waved casually, smile wide—even as the whale thundered down behind them, shadow eclipsing all.
"Yo. You weren't kidding about being a Mabeast magnet, huh?"
The creature's jaws opened wide, ready to consume everything in it's charge.
But Gojo didn't flinch.
"Let's have a bit of fun, shall we, fish? Or… mammal? I forget.."
STEP- STEP- SWOOSH-
At the last possible second, he leapt—body twisting, a single fluid vault into the air.
Then—CRACK!!
His heel slammed down onto the whale's skull.
A shockwave exploded outward—air snapping, rock shattering, earth screaming beneath the force.
The whale's body was driven into the ground, carving a trench of broken stone and dust for dozens of meters. A jagged red gouge seared across its face as its body tumbled, flailing in pain.
Gojo landed lightly beside it, dust swirling around him, his coat fluttering in the aftermath.
"Not bad... Crusch Karsten," he said, glancing back. A deep gash had split the beast's flesh.
That wind blade of hers packs a punch. Sword? Or Divine Protection?
He exhaled.
"…Still only took off like 1HP. Guess that's what I get for saying we wouldn't need the fancy stuff like cannons for this."
His smile sharpened.
Gojo reached up, pulled his sunglasses from his face, and slid them into his pocket with a soft click. Without their shade, the glow of his Six Eyes shimmered, catching the faint starlight.
Then—he moved.
His gaze shifted just in time to witness Wilhelm van Astrea land squarely before the descending behemoth, blade drawn in a single blur of steel and fury.
"I have dreamed of nothing but this day..."
His voice was low. Steady. Reverent.
Then it deepened—aged not by time, but by the weight of vengeance.
"FOR THE PAST FOURTEEN YEARS—!!"
CRACK—
The earth beneath him shattered under the weight of the White Whale's descent—and Wilhelm lunged.
Like a ghost of war, he flew.
Flipping through the sky in a master's spiral, his sword gleamed with purpose. Then—
THRUST—!
The blade pierced deep into the whale's cranium—blood erupted like a geyser, staining Wilhelm's coat, his face, even the air around him in crimson.
But he did not relent.
The whale screeched, twisting violently, flailing its body through the sky in a desperate effort to dislodge the sword demon impaled in its skull.
But.. Wilhelm..
He ran—he sprinted across the beast's back as if it were solid ground—each step another slash, another cut, his blade tearing an enormous gash across its upper-back and flanks like a seam being ripped open.
Then—inevitably—he was flung off, his form spiraling downward.
But he didn't panic.
He didn't have to.
Because he trusted in the man who would never let him fall.
"You're not bad for an old fart!"
Gojo blurred through the sky from far above, a smirk plastered on his face—grinning with the thrill of battle, as if the air itself bowed to his arrival.
BOOM—!!
The impact sounded like a lightning strike. Like thunder screamed from Zeus himself.
Gojo's strike landed true—but the whale didn't yield. Its body shuddered violently, but it wasn't crushed, wasn't broken.
It merely descended faster.
Gojo hovered mid-air, feet planted on nothing, palm raised as his eyes tracked Wilhelm's falling form.
"Who said your turn was up, huh?"
A flick of his wrist.
"Blue."
Gravity twisted like a thread. Space compressed—and Wilhelm was caught, redirected, flung upward—back into the air, back toward the beast, like a bullet reborn.
The Sword Demon's eyes widened, just a little.
Then he smiled.
"Thank you… Satoru."
Another roar. Another eruption of wind.
SHRRAAK—!!
Crusch's blade—her slash of air—tore into the White Whale again, ripping a fresh wound along its side from afar. It bled, but the blood was defiant. The damage wasn't deep. Not enough.
Still, Wilhelm descended—his body spinning, his sword drawing a spiral of violence down the whale's flank, shredding white hide and revealing the glistening crimson beneath.
He leapt away again, trusting completely in the chain of warriors at his back.
"Al Goa!"
Multiple voices chanted from below—magic igniting with fierce synchrony.
SWOOSH—
A barrage of flame tore through the air—beams of concentrated fire, crashing into the wounded beast's flesh.
The blood boiled.
Then—
BOOOOOOM—!!
The sky split open as the explosion consumed the creature in a rising column of fire. The shockwave was enormous—rolling over the plain like a tidal wave of sound and heat.
Gojo narrowed his eyes, coat flapping in the rippling wind.
Smoke. Ash. A whale-sized crater forming mid-air from sheer force.
But even before the embers faded—
THUMP—
The whale's body shifted. Its bloodied form emerging through smoke—eyes gleaming with primal rage, its scream rattling the bones of every living thing present.
Gojo sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"…Even tougher than it looks.. somehow."
His gaze sharpened, tone dropping into something colder. Calculating.
"All that... probably only shaved off a quarter of its health I'd imagine.."
He cracked his knuckles slowly.
"Guess I'll wait just a little longer before I really let loose."
Then, he vanished—reappearing on the battlefield below with a casual flicker of cursed energy.
"Oi—old man, batter up!"
Gojo called, hand cupped to his mouth. Wilhelm glanced his way just as he neared the ground.
Gojo didn't wait.
He leapt, soaring over Wilhelm in an upward arc, palm already pulled back and glowing blue.
"Aaaand—UP WE GO!"
With a fierce snap of motion, he flung his arm forward—Blue activated, warping space with explosive force. It snatched Wilhelm behind him mid-air and hurled him like a missile past and toward the descending White Whale.
"HYAAAHHH!!"
Wilhelm screamed—not in fear, but in exhilaration. A scream birthed from vengeance finally within reach.
His feet slammed onto the whale's temple with terrifying momentum—his sword plunged deep into the mabeast's skull, blood bursting like a geyser.
One step became a lunge.
His blade, driven to the hilt, ripped sideways—cleaving open its flesh with unrelenting fury.
SWISH—SLASH—!!
Steel sang. Flesh tore. Blood sprayed across the clouds like rain.
With one last vicious pull, Wilhelm yanked his blade free—then struck downward with a vengeful roar, slicing clean through the whale's massive golden eyelid—
SKREEEEEE—!!
A roar of absolute agony exploded from the beast as its eye, torn from the socket, plummeted to the earth below—
THOOM—!!
A crater formed where it landed. Wilhelm now stood atop the fallen eye, soaked in blood not his own—backlit by sunlight, sword poised like judgment itself.
The battlefield froze.
Even Subaru, atop his ground dragon with Rem, could only stare—wide-eyed, awestruck. Gojo landed with his usual smirk.
"Now that was badass. But I'm guessing that didn't even put a dent in your appetite, huh?"
Wilhelm didn't respond. He didn't have to. His silence was an oath renewed.
"The pain my dear Theresia endured…"
He finally said, voice low.
"…I intend to repay it. A hundred-fold."
Gojo opened his mouth for a witty remark—but stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
The White Whale was circling. Silently. Unnaturally.
"Satoru...?" Subaru asked, sensing the shift.
"Something's wrong..."
Then the whale's jaw unhinged. It roared—a sound that shattered the air itself.
Even Gojo winced, one eye squinting in discomfort.
"Really should consider singing lessons..."
And then—
FWOOOOOOM—!!!
Fog. A tidal wave of smoke burst from the whale's body—engulfing the entire field. Within seconds, visibility dropped to zero.
Gojo narrowed his eyes.
"This stuff's thick... It's even cutting off my senses..."
He looked around. Nothing. No allies. No enemies. No sound.
"Subaru? Wilhelm? Rem?"
"Well that's just grea—"
His eyes snapped wide. His instincts screamed.
FWOOOOOOOSH—!!
A beam of condensed mist erupted from the fog, slamming into him. The ground beneath evaporated, scorched clean.
But—
Gojo stood unharmed.
Infinity had triggered through Gojo's instincts alone at the last possible moment.
He exhaled slowly, annoyed.
"..Alright. That could've actually been bad... Looks like I let my guard down after watching it get bullied like a pinata."
Infinity flickered off once more.
"Not gonna keep that on the whole time. I'm here for a good time after all, no fun bullying a whale."
But still... it's getting a bit boring.
His eyes suddenly flared.
Cursed energy—Subaru.
With a low crouch, he launched himself forward, tearing through the mist like a meteor, relying on nothing but instinct and precision-honed senses.
Then—he found them.
Subaru and Rem, still atop the ground dragon, charging forward through the haze.
Gojo materialized beside them like a specter, grinning like a lunatic.
"GAHH—!! SATORU-SENSEI?!"
"Yo!"
"...How do you always manage to jumpscare me—even in mist-fog warzones?!"
"Hey, that one wasn't even on purpose. But damn, that dragon's got legs—"
THOOM-
Gojo stumbled, eyes wide.
There.
The White Whale. Closer than it had any right to be without him noticing.
"Oh crap—"
He jumped.
"UL HUMA!"
Rem cried out. An enormous pillar of jagged ice erupted from the ground, forcing the whale aside and upright.
Gojo twisted mid-air—his foot smashed into the whale's face, sending it hurtling through the mist like a meteor, shredding rock and stone before vanishing from view.
He landed beside Subaru and Rem, but didn't speak.
No quip. No smirk just yet.
Just a flash of his hand—Blue activated again, yanking the entire dragon sideways moments before a second attack struck.
BOOOOOOM—!!
The whale's tail slammed into the earth where they'd been—a deliberate, calculated blow.
Gojo's brows furrowed.
"...It's adjusting to my senses. That's... amusing."
CRACK—FWOOOSH—!!
The ground beneath Gojo exploded, sending debris sky-high. He flipped, landing on a flying chunk of stone—balancing like it was solid ground.
"This mist is getting real old..."
He furrowed his brows, weighing the decision.
Should he just vaporize the whale now? Should he step aside for Wilhelm?
He couldn't ponder any longer, a tail cut through the fog like a guillotine.
SWISH—CRACK—!!
It slammed into Gojo mid-thought, sending him flying out of the mist cloud like a comet—his body flying all the way across the battlefield and even into the side of Flugel's Tree with a deafening CRASH-!
Bark splintered. Stone cracked. The wood shuddered.
Gojo's body remained embedded in the trunk—half-buried in ancient wood and rock.
He coughed, blood dripping from his forehead as he gripped bark deep within the tree.
"..I've gotta stop letting my guard down..."
————————————————————
Subaru's POV...
CRACK—!!
The sky split open with a sound like the world itself had torn in two.
From the curtain of mist, a flash of white and blue—the whale's tail, massive and unseen—smashed directly into Gojo's side.
"SENSEI—!!"
Subaru's heart stopped.
Gojo was launched like a cannonball, a blur of light rocketing through the fog, vanishing into the heavens.
And then—Nothing. No sound. No laugh. No cocky quip.
Just silence.
He can't be dead. No way.. Especially not from that... But still—!!
Subaru's fists clenched, cursed energy flaring around him in a surge of furious black flame. His body screamed to run, to hide—but he didn't listen.
Instead, he quickly stood, balanced atop the sprinting Patrasche.
He jumped.
A purple comet against a whale's blood-colored eye.
BOOM—!!
His fist crashed forward with a squelch of fury, slamming into the beast's eye. Right beside him—Wilhelm, bursting from the mist like a specter of vengeance, his blade driving deep into the whale's face.
Their eyes met—just briefly—a moment of mutual recognition.
Shock. Respect. And then—
SKREEEEEEEEEEEE—!!
The whale shrieked, monstrous and maddened. It ignored Wilhelm completely, its jaw unhinging like a demon, rushing at Subaru with murderous hunger.
He dove aside, body moving on instinct. Earth erupted in its wake as it stormed past, jaws snapping chunks of stone like crackers.
Above—Rem descended, horn gleaming, a blur of blue and silver.
Her mace whistled through the air.
SLAM—!
She landed it, embedding the spike into the whale's back, using it to swing herself forward and drive both feet directly into the eye Subaru had just struck.
The beast screamed again, thrashing wildly.
Subaru couldn't help it—gave her a thumbs-up midair.
Back on Patrasche, they regrouped for a heartbeat before the whale surged after them, tearing through the landscape like a force of nature.
"Do I really smell that good?"
Rem didn't miss a beat.
"It's awful."
"...Ouch. You didn't have to say it like that!"
A silhouette stood atop the whale. Wilhelm, drenched in blood not his own.
"You ignore me, monster?" he roared. "After 14 years of me pursuing you?!"
His sword drove deep again—but before he could leap further, the whale lifted off, sending him tumbling back to the earth.
He hit the ground hard—on one knee, stunned as the whale turned, descending fast.
Subaru's breath caught.
He wasn't going to make it.
No. Not like this.
Not without finishing his vengeance.
Not without seeing his wife's soul avenged.
Subaru MOVED.
Cursed energy exploded beneath him as he rocketed forward, form shimmering with a deep, angrier violet.
His lips moved before he could think.
"I can return by—GHHK—!!"
Power erupted. His energy twisted—darker, sharper—pushing past his limit.
And then—
FWOOSH—!!
He was on the other side of the whale.
Wilhelm in his arms.
The old man blinked in shock.
"S-Subaru...!?"
Subaru set him down, fists raised again.
"No time for speeches! You know how good I smell right now, you bastard? Come get a taste!"
The whale roared. The mist churning in anger.
And Subaru laughed—wild and defiant, just like his Sensei.
"Let's dance!"
With a singular step.. he leapt high, propelling himself through the air and over the great mabeast. Mimicking Gojo's somersault from earlier, his grip slamming into the whale's face before his hands pry into it's flesh like a pair of vices.
The whale shrieked in annoyance, tilting upwards to fly higher and higher into the sky, then—
Something changed.
He saw two shapes below.. Hovering. Waiting.
Wait… what-?
Confusion turned to joy.
Then—a blast of blinding blue erupted beneath them. A singularity of cursed energy pulling the mist into itself, tearing it apart like paper.
The fog vanished in an instant.
Subaru's eyes widened.
There was only one person in the world who could do that.
"SENSEI!!"
High above, hand extended, floated Satoru Gojo, his body aglow with cursed light, blood dripping over one eye—and a cocky grin cutting through all else.
————————————————————
"Sorry I'm late, Subaru..."
Although neither could hear the other, they didn't need to. As soon as eye-contact was made, Subaru just smirked.
Then... slowly but surely..
The boy stood up atop the edge of the whale's head.
Gojo looked back, six eyes focused.
"That's my student, alright. Time to end this."
Their gazes locked across the battlefield—and Subaru jumped, arms swung wide.
Straight off the whale.
The beast followed, drawn by scent, by bloodlust—by rage.
And Subaru just grinned.
"Let's see how much you like surprises."
Above, Gojo turned his gaze toward the towering peak of Flugel's Tree.
And then—
FLICKER-
He vanished. Then reappeared toward the tree's summit where branches endlessly overlapped and intertwined.
CRACK—!!
His fist shattered the base of a sikngle colossal branch—almost as long as the whale itself.
And then—with a breath, a smirk, and every ounce of power his absurdly overpowered frame could muster—
He pulled it back and hurled it, as hard as he could.
"NOW EAT THIS TREE, YOU DAMN FISH!!"
The branch screamed through the air like a blur.
Subaru fell, laughing like a madman, the whale hot on his heels.
Then—
FWOOOOOSH—!! THUD—!!
The branch speared clean through the beast's side, it's edge bursting out the other end as the wood rooted itself into the whale's body.
SKREEEEEE—!!
The whale twisted in agony, spiraling uncontrollably in it's descent—before crashing down in a cataclysmic impact below.
BOOOOOOOM—!!
The earth split, dust and debris flying skyward as its titanic body carved a trench in the battlefield.
And then—
Silence.
Subaru was falling, too fast—!
FWOOM—
Gojo appeared again, Blue cushioning his descent.
He landed with a soft thud, blinking in surprise.
Rem reached him first, eyes frantic.
"Subaru!! Are you hurt?!"
"...Never been better."
He managed a smile—until a shadow fell over him.
Gojo, smirking despite the blood.
"Yo."
Subaru squinted.
"Cutting it a little close, don't you think... Sensei?"
Gojo wiped his face, sunglasses back in hand.
"Close is stylish."
He grinned.
"And besides... the hero's always fashionably late right!"
————————————————————
With a roar that echoed through the clearing, Wilhelm charged forward, muscles coiling like a spring. Every step carried the weight of his years, of his loss, of his unyielding resolve.
The whale twisted, trying to shake him off, but Wilhelm was faster. More determined.
He leapt—soaring with an almost desperate grace, blade gleaming in the sunlight overhead before he brought it directly down atop the whale, this time between ribs, where the skin was thinner, and far more vulnerable.
His sword sank deep, far deeper than any of his attacks prior, piercing muscle and flesh with a sickening squelch.
The whale screamed—a sound of pure, tortured rage and defeat.
Wilhelm twisted the blade, the metal biting into the giant beast further.
And then, with a roar, he pulled the sword free, shifting the metal into the air, hand only clutching tighter on the hilt.
A spray of red blood erupted, mingling with the dirt and dust beneath it's corpse.
With a guttural cry, Wilhelm drove the blade upwards, straight into the whale's gaping maw—right where its immense jaws could no longer close.
Steel shattered bone, metal screeched against flesh.
The whale's roar turned to a gurgle—its massive body convulsing violently, limbs thrashing wildly as the life bled from it.
Wilhelm slammed his boots against its trembling hide, pushing the sword even deeper, twisting with cruel precision—
Delivering not just a wound, but a sentence.
The death sentence, specifically.
Its movements slowed. Its breath hitched. Its colossal form shuddered—then, with a final, shattering bellow that split the skies, the whale fell still.
Wilhelm stood tall amidst the chaos, chest heaving, blade dripping and still embedded in the beast's still body.-
He looked up, and raised his sword to the sky, eyes shining with fierce triumph.
"For you, Theresia," he whispered, eyes shut.
And as the dust settled, the battle finally quieted, the weight of years of pain and vengeance finally lifted.
For they had finally won.
Though only half the battle.