Her size had tripled compared to her form as a young maiden.
The enormous body was standing roughly five meters in height. However, since the lower half of the body was also long and serpentine, the total length most likely reached twelve or thirteen meters.
As enormous as a divine beast. And held in her right hand was a long-shafted scythe.
The great scythe used by a chthonic deity of death. This was her favorite weapon back in her days as Athena.
"Submit before the light of the goddess' eyes, Kusanagi Godou. One shall hereby strike down the life of a godslayer's!"
Pallas Athena declared haughtily while backing away.
Instead, the seven serpents surrounding Godou moved forward.
Naturally, the encirclement closed in. At this rate, they were going to gang up on Godou and massacre him. Also, Pallas Athena's spell words had shared a large amount of divine power with the serpents under her command. This was what one would call a stance of assured slaughter.
Then the seven serpents suddenly accelerated.
Despite being twenty meters in length, they moved with unbelievable agility and lightning speed.
One could not possibly survive this using ordinary methods. However, Godou held his ground while surrounded. Just as the serpents were about to pounce on him—
"Do it! Blow them away!"
He issued concise orders. In that very instant...
Strong wind was suddenly produced underneath Godou.
This was a supernatural storm accompanied by shockwaves. Standing at merely 180cm in height, Godou handily blew away the serpents that were trying to crush him to death.
These giant serpents, their total weight most likely exceeding hundreds of tons, were effortlessly—
Godou's counterattacking shockwaves were extremely swift and powerful. Struck by this attack, the serpentine divine beasts were damaged directly to their core, utterly pulverizing their bones.
Then a rumbling came from underground.
ROOOOOOOOOOOAR—!
A fierce beast's howl. A giant boar—twenty meters in length—rose up behind Godou. He must have summoned it the moment just before getting struck by the serpents.
Indeed! It was the [Boar], Verethragna's fifth incarnation.
"...I don't plan on staying too long in the wrestling ring with a battle royale between giant monsters, so let me take care of this in one go."
Godou shouted at Pallas Athena's giant body that had stayed in the back.
Instead of letting the [Boar] materialize instantly, Godou had ordered it to fire its prided shockwaves before summoning it to the ground. Godou had further mastered Verethragna's authority over the ten incarnations, allowing utilization to this extent.
Meanwhile, the liberated [Boar] began to extend the length of its howls.
ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAR—!
Then it charged at Pallas Athena's enlarged form that was known as Medusa.
"Hmph. Servants of mine, ye shall receive new life."
The snake goddess calmly chanted spell words.
"Turn into the divine shield [Aegis]!"
The seven serpentine divine beasts were lying pitifully on the beach, awaiting the arrival of death.
They suddenly turned into glowing particles, retaining the serpents' shapes for only a brief moment before flying to the front of Pallas Athena, combining into a new form—A shield of bronze. It was a giant rectangular shield.
Even without any support, the shield hovered in the air on its own. Its size was just enough to protect Medusa's giant body.
The [Boar] charged at the giant shield. This shield, transformed from the serpents, formed a temporary castle wall, blocking the the charge from Verethragna's servant.
CRASH!
A fierce sound of impact. The [Boar] was bounced back greatly by the bronze shield.
Nevertheless, the [Boar] landed splendidly on four legs without losing its balance. Kicking its hind legs against the ground, it prepared for a second clash.
"O woman who turneth into the fiendish snake, release thine eyes."
Godou gasped after hearing Pallas Athena's command.
The rectangular shield, whose surface depicted the appearance of the Gorgon Medusa—Her eyes were glowing!
"She's trying to turn you into stone! Hang in there!"
Godou hastily poured magic power into the [Boar]'s giant pitch-black body.
ROOOOAAAAR! The [Boar]'s magic power was raised to the max, resisting the demonic powers released by the shield of Medusa.
—Cursed optical power, capable of rendering everything within its gaze into stone.
Unable to defend completely, the [Boar]'s right front leg and left hind leg were turned into stone.
However, the rest of its body was still mobile. Without hesitation, the [Boar] charged at Pallas Athena again, trying to use its giant sharp tusks to send her flying.
Blocking in front of the [Boar] was still the shield of Medusa, hovering before the goddess.
Another sound of impact. This time, Pallas Athena did not just use the shield for defense. Extending a giant scythe from behind the shield, she slashed the [Boar]'s body!
ROOOOOOAAAAAAR!?
The [Boar] groaned in pain.
Nevertheless, Verethragna's fifth incarnation continued to emit howling shockwaves relentlessly, again and again, charging and colliding again and again, trying to crush its prey. Suffering odds of two against one from the attacks of Pallas Athena and Medusa, the [Boar] would probably get vanquished by the scythe or the petrification magic at the slightest opening.
...While observing this round of attack and defense, Godou summoned Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi into his right hand.
He had a certain premonition that given his opponent was Athena, she was not going to ignore him on the side—Precisely as mortal enemies sharing the same ill fate, such a premonition arose.
His hunch proved to be correct.
By the time he noticed, the sun had set completely. The curtain of night had already descended.
Lurking in this darkness, the enemy arrived. This was no metaphor. For Pallas Athena who possessed divinity as a goddess of darkness, melding into the darkness was as effortless as breathing.
A shadow silently crept behind Godou and swung the grim reaper's scythe.
Through minute movements in the air as well as a godslayer's sharp instinct towards life threatening crises, Godou sensed this attack, turning around and swinging Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi with both hands.
A violent clash between the scythe swung out of darkness and the ancient Japanese divine sword—
"You came as expected, huh!?"
"Fufufufu! 'Twould be an affront to the war goddess' dignity if one failed to issue a direct greeting to the enemy of one's past life. Thou hast waited long, Kusanagi Godou!"
While the sacred scythe and the divine blade clashed violently, the two of them conversed quietly.
Appearing behind Godou's back was Pallas Athena in the form of a pubescent girl. Bearing the identical face and body of the original Athena, she was using both hands to swing a long scythe even taller than herself.
This was Godou's closest confrontation with her ever since their reunion at Sardinia.
Staring into the beautiful face of the Divine Ancestor who had turned into a goddess again, he said:
"What are you thinking by suddenly using a self-sacrificing trump card? What are you trying to do?"
"'Tis simple, verily. Because there is no other means."
While they were conversing, the clash continued.
Murmuring softly, Pallas Athena raised the scythe forcefully with both hands.
"One shall personally defeat thee then slay the 'King of the End.'"
"Slay the 'King of the End'—What are you talking about?"
Her unexpected statement made Godou frown.
The Divine Ancestor swung the underworld deity's scythe at Godou's face. This mighty force could not possibly be generated from a pubescent gir
l's slender arms—It was enough to send an automobile flying with one hand.
Such arm strength must have been brought forth through divine power.
However, Godou easily deflected the scythe.
He was using Verethragna's second incarnation, the [Bull], which provided monstrous strength that could only be used against an enemy possessing powerful might far beyond that of humans. At the same time, Godou sustained the [Boar], using two incarnations in parallel.
This strain was causing him an intense headache.
While clashing blades with Pallas Athena, Godou secretly gritted his teeth.
"You're saying you intend to fight the 'King of the End'!?"
"One is definitely charged with the destiny of serving that man... Yet one hath contemplated sufficiently. Thou mentionedst this before. Divine Ancestors are goddesses whose essence was absorbed by the Divine Sword of Salvation."
The girl, who looked identical to Athena, showed eyes calmly burning with the flames of fury. She spoke softly:
"Well then—One couldeth consider that man to be mine enemy, yes?"
"!"
"The mission must be accomplished, indeed, yet vengeance must also be exacted for one's death."
Listening to this point, Godou yelled for he had realized her intent:
"You want to defeat me and the 'King of the End' together!?"
"How clever, Kusanagi Godou. Simply by taking on the form of the serpentine dragon, one retrieveth a goddess' power and couldeth shake the soul of that man—the 'King of the End' bearing the karma of dragonslaying. Verily two birds with one stone. His slumber shall consequently grow lighter."
Athena used to be Kusanagi Godou's great rival, a warrior prouder than anyone.
Knowing this fact, Godou had thought over this before. Although she had become a Divine Ancestor, to be serving the "King of the End" who was akin to her enemy... That did not seem like her style.
To think I'd misunderstand her intentions, what a fool I am—Godou laughed.
Easily forsaking her own life to turn it into a weapon. All this was for upholding her pride. Seeing this course of action living up to Athena's identity, he found it exhilarating.
"Then asking that wind god to leave—"
"Naturally, 'tis to bring about the return of the 'King of the End.' Thou shalt watch properly, Kusanagi Godou. One shall beat thee into submission then defeat the chosen hero as well!"
"Stop joking around! I'll stop you before you succeed!"
There was already no point in continuing the battle. The two of them jumped back simultaneously.
Ten-odd meters away on the beach, the [Boar] was fighting courageously against the Medusa-formed Pallas Athena and her shield. Victory was yet to be decided—
In front of the pubescent-formed Pallas Athena, Godou adjusted his grip on Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi.
"Where did the Wind King go?"
Opening her shut eyes, Liliana asked in a quiet voice.
The current location was a pier some distance away from the beach where Pallas Athena was meeting Kusanagi Godou in battle.
Apart from her, Erica, Yuri and Amakasu were also present. They were observing the battle between goddess and Devil King from afar. After the Wind King suddenly appeared and flew into the sky, Liliana instantly used her prided [Witch's Eye].
She originally wanted to use this witchcraft, capable of projecting one's vision into the distance, to track down the whereabouts of the war god flying through the sky—
"He flew somewhere too high to follow. This speed and altitude is such that even the [Witch's Eye] cannot keep up..."
"Although I don't really think it's possible, he wouldn't be thinking of flying into space, would he?"
Just as Erica was feeling puzzled, Yuri suddenly showed an stunned expression.
"Ah—floating island... The land where the sacred sword sleeps... Ahhh!"
Looking up into the sky, the Hime-Miko tracked the Wind King with her eyes.
While murmuring as though speaking in a dream, she was shaken by the revelation. It was as though she felt surprised from the bottom of her heart towards the hint obtained through spirit vision.
"I cannot believe that a floating island could exist in such a place..."
"Floating island? Are you talking about that legend, Yuri?" asked Ena, the other Hime-Miko and wielder of Ama no Murakumo no Tsurugi.
"Speaking of the Divine Sword of Salvation and the legend of where the 'King of the End' sleeps. If memory serves correctly, 'Queen Oto Tachibana-Hime, jumped into the sea with sword embosomed. Sea currents carried her sword to a location of neither land nor sea, whence a floating island subsequently appeared,' isn't that right?"
"Yes, indeed..."
Trembling, Yuri pointed at the sky.
Only very few clouds were floating in the clear night sky. The half moon was slowly rising in midair. The winter night's countless stars were shining brightly.
Ena first went "Hmm...?", lost in thought for a while before reaching a revelation.
"Floating island... An island which floats. A place of neither land nor sea, so that's—!?"
"The sky. An island floating somewhere in the sky. So it really turned out to be this kind of situation."
Reaching the same conclusion, Erica sighed.
"Lady Guinevere and Sir Lancelot were unable to find it no matter how they searched land and sea, right? They were totally in the wrong direction."
"An island in the sky... Oh my, that's really going along the pace of Gulliver's Travels and a certain famous animated film."
Amakasu shook his head while muttering, confounded.
Then to convey important information to her companions, Yuri regained composure from her state of shock and said frantically:
"I-I shall go confirm what has happened on the floating island. As for Godou-san, I am counting on everyone!"
Clad in a miko outfit, Yuri's body gave off white light.
This was the radiance from activating the spirit power she had acquired after her inborn spirit vision—psychic sensing.
Part 3
Higher than the clouds. A place above the atmosphere.
This was an extremely high altitude in the sky that people called a satellite orbit. A domain in space, beyond the atmosphere.
Looking down from there, the view was like a map spreading out with the islands of Japan in the center.
Even as a heavenly child of the sky, the Wind King seldom came to such high places.
Depending on sunlight conditions, this place could turn into either a land of frost or a realm of scorching heat. An extremely harsh environment. However, protected by divine authority, he floated through the air lightly while he soared.
Floating in front of his gaze was a small patch of land.
Like many small islands on the Pacific Ocean, it had hills and plains. However, this island did not contain life such as plants. It was an island composed only of soil and rocks.
Stabbed in the center of the island was a sword of steel.
This mighty sword had a blade of roughly 100cm in length. The sword was double-edged and thick like a hatchet's blade in construction. However, the entire steel sword was quite decrepit, covered in rust.
The Divine Sword of Salvation. This was the personal sword belonging to the hero of Devil King extermination, also the strongest of steel.
Then the Wind King poured divine power into the medallion. This was the divine artifact for employing the three sword-related heroes, the [Arrowhead's Discus].
The Discus glowed immediately.
Appearing out of intense blazing white flames was the man with the handsome face, Perseus.
Furthermore, sitting astride a winged horse, he was the very image of a dazzling handsome man.
Next, out surged a crimson pillar of fire, which then took on the form of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, Sun Wukong. The peerless monkey king was riding a small golden cloud.
Finally, lightning shot out, turning into
the figure of Lancelot du Lac.
This female knight was also an Amazonian queen. Lance in hand, she was riding a white horse flying through the sky.
Including the Wind King, gathered in front of the Divine Sword of Salvation was a total of four gods possessing the sword attribute.
"Hey there, everyone."
The Great Sage Equaling Heaven was the first to speak.
"Before we begin our quest, I've got a suggestion. It's truly a lucky occasion for four magnificent heroes to be gathered together. But it does mean we have too many leaders, so to prevent things from getting out of hand..."
It was like he wanted to have a casual chat on the extremely high altitude of a satellite orbit.
As expected of the monkey king who flew freely wherever he pleased. However, the subject of the conversation was far too deplorable.
"Why not let me, Great Sage Sun, be the great general and grand marshal, to serve as the eldest brother, and you guys can provide me with full support? How 'bout that?"
"Although I don't mind discussing the topic of electing a leader..."
While seated on his winged horse's saddle, Perseus frowned.
"I don't believe there is any need to leave this position to you. Rather, someone possessing kingly accomplishments and a magnificent array of myths, such as Perseus or Mithras for example, would be more suitable. That being said, I am both of them, incidentally..."
"If a king's pride is at stake, I hope you won't forget the Handsome Monkey King of the Fruit and Flower Mountain's Water Curtain Cave. Besides..."
The Great Sage scoffed with pride.
"I'm also renowned as the Great Sage Equaling Heaven. If we're deciding based on personal virtue and accomplishments, this old Sun here, peerless across heaven and earth, is the best choice..."
"According to legend, whether the Handsome Monkey King or being equal to heaven, both were merely self-proclaimed on your part."
"Yes, it's self-proclaimed. But in modern times, all citizens of the world have recognized it."
"How suspicious. At least back in the ancient Greco-Roman era of my knowledge, I have never heard of such notions."
"No no no no. You've gone too far now. I must issue a rebuttal for the sake of my honor."
Campione! - Volume 17 - The Hero's Name Page 4
