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*****
The power of darkness receded, allowing the flames to surge and spread once more. The fire also blazed down into the caves and tunnels that led deep underground.
But that was not all. At that moment, a series of magic arrays illuminated the sky above him once again. Five hundred massive meteorites materialized in the heavens, all hurtling down toward Angband at the same time.
"Divine Star Collapse: Five Hundredfold Strike!"
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
A series of earth-shattering explosions erupted. The allied armies of the three races, watching the battle from the perimeter, felt as if the very ground beneath them was shaking and tearing asunder.
When they finally regained their footing, they discovered that the entire mountain fortress of Angband had completely vanished. All that remained was an enormous, bottomless abyss plunging into the depths of the world.
"Ultimate Magic: Fairy Glitter, Five Hundredfold Strike!"
Retracting the flames, George, who had already flown back to the airspace above the allied armies, conjured hundreds of magic arrays above his head yet again.
Pillars of light, each as wide as the gaping abyss itself, slammed down into the depths, one after the other in rapid succession.
The power of light was a powerful counter, possessing an extreme suppressing effect against both the Orcs and Morgoth.
Therefore, with the fortress of Angband no longer obstructing the way, the most efficient attack was a light-based ultimate magic focused purely on annihilation.
In any case, his magical power was inherently immense, his mana regeneration was incredibly fast, and he also possessed Devouring Magic and the "Six Treasury Immortal Thief" technique. He could unleash Fairy Glitter indefinitely without interruption.
"How utterly brutal!"
The surrounding allied armies watched the space where Angband's mountain had vanished, witnessing pillar after pillar of light relentlessly bombarding Morgoth's lair. The agonizing screams that had echoed from within gradually faded into silence.
They all collectively voiced the same astonished sentiment.
To be honest, a shared illusion was forming in all their minds at this moment.
It felt as though George alone was sufficient to assault Angband and defeat Morgoth. Their presence seemed entirely unnecessary.
It felt like mobilizing such a grand host, preparing for so long, and arriving with the do-or-die resolution to besiege Angband was perhaps... overthinking things.
From start to finish, they were merely supporting cast, spectators just along for the ride. George alone was the sole protagonist of this war.
If this was true, was it actually a bad thing?
Of course not. For every single person present, this was unequivocally a good thing.
Because regardless of the nature of the war—be it a war of defense for one's homeland or a war of territorial expansion—it may appear passionate and heroic on the surface, but its true underlying nature is always brutal.
If the allied armies had been the main force in this battle, then even in victory, the vast majority of the warriors from the three races would have been sacrificed.
These fallen warriors were fathers, sons, and husbands. Many of them were all three at once.
Some say that war is nothing but politicians shaking hands and declaring peace in the end, officers receiving endless promotions, and merchants earning fortunes, leaving behind only shattered families and disabled veterans.
While that description might not be perfectly applicable to the wars of this world, the final point about shattered families certainly resonated.
Therefore, if this war could be concluded by them simply acting as spectators from the sidelines, ninety-nine percent of the soldiers would be more than willing, and one hundred percent of their families would feel the same.
In truth, what the armies didn't know was that when George decided to launch the offensive against Morgoth, he had operated under the assumption that he alone would be capable of handling the entirety of Angband.
As far as he was concerned, placing his hopes in others was simply unreliable.
Thus, in this battle, the allied armies of the three races were merely his contingency plan, a backup just in case the unexpected occurred.
If nothing went wrong, he alone could annihilate the entirety of Angband and finish off Morgoth.
If, by some chance, an accident did occur, the allied armies could then advance, providing at least some measure of support.
However, judging by the current situation, that was unlikely to be a problem.
After all, following that sequence of attacks, it was estimated that aside from Morgoth himself, very few Orcs could possibly be left alive within the underground fortress.
"You tiny human, you go too far!"
As the three hundred and sixty-fifth pillar of light slammed into the earth, a furious, irrepressible roar finally erupted from the depths of the abyss. It was the voice of Morgoth.
Simultaneously, a figure clad in black demonic armor and wielding a great dark sword flew up from the chasm.
He had not originally planned to emerge, even after the mountain of Angband was shattered and his vast Orc army within the depths was purified by the power of light.
This was because the majority of his power was currently occupied with corroding the continent. If he left the depths, the strength he could wield would be limited, and he was not truly confident he could overcome the human above.
Furthermore, the allied armies of the three races were also present, not just the human caster.
He had, admittedly, underestimated that human at the start. He never expected a mere mortal's magic could be so powerful as to completely obliterate his entire fortress.
His original thought was that, with things having reached this stage, he would simply endure it.
The enemy would either have to bring their army into the depths for a final battle—where he could unleash one hundred percent of his power and surely annihilate them—or they would give up.
Or, the enemy would abandon the direct assault and establish a base surrounding the ruins of Angband, just as they had done before, only this time the siege line would be much closer.
In that scenario, he would simply continue to amass power in the depths, slowly breeding a new army.
Human lifespans were limited. He could wait two or three hundred years for that human mage to die. Afterward, he would still have the opportunity to lead his newly bred army in a counter-offensive and conquer the continent once more.
The only issue was being continuously bombarded in his own lair by this human's magic. As the mightiest of the Valar, it was somewhat shameful, profoundly humiliating.
But he didn't particularly care about face. Compared to his previous capture and imprisonment in Valinor, this was nothing.
He cared only for the final result. He cared only about ruling all of Middle-earth and transforming this land completely into his own dark domain.
At that point, he would not even fear Eru Ilúvatar. As for Manwë and the other Valar, they would be nothing but contemptible clowns in his eyes.
However, the reality of the situation had strayed far beyond his expectations.
The enemy hadn't cast that devastatingly powerful light magic five or ten times, or even ten or twenty times. He had cast it a full three hundred times, and he showed absolutely no sign of stopping.
Even if he could recall some of the dark power that was eroding the continent to construct a defense, he could not withstand such a relentless, continuous bombardment.
Once his power was completely exhausted, he would be in grave trouble.
Therefore, after a fierce internal debate, he decided to temporarily recall all the dark power corrupting Middle-earth and ascend to quickly eliminate that human mage.
If he remained here, serving as a living target until his power was depleted, he would inevitably be swarmed by that human mage and the allied armies. At that point, even escape would be impossible.
It was far better to ascend, eliminate the human mage with utmost speed, annihilate the allied armies as a secondary objective, and then immediately return to re-infuse his power into the land.
Although this action would cause the territory his corruption held to shrink drastically, significantly lengthening the time required to corrode all of Middle-earth, it would, at least, resolve the immediate crisis.
Furthermore, the corpses of the human mage and the allied armies could be corrupted by his dark power, transforming them into new warriors to serve him.
In less than a hundred years, a new army would surge forth from the depths and annihilate all the remaining survivors of the three races.
Thus, he emerged. He emerged wielding all his power, dodging the bombardment of Fairy Glitter. Transforming into a towering giant, he swung his great sword directly at George's dragon head.
(End of Chapter)