Chapter 1040: The Calamity of Illusion
"Uther..."
Tonelico stared blankly at Uther's corpse with unclosed eyes, her lips trembling slightly, unable to utter a single word.
"Uther... is really dead?"
Habetrot looked at the scene before her in disbelief.
She still couldn't believe it - just moments ago they thought they had escaped the assassination attempt from the world, only to see Uther lying in a pool of blood moments later!
"He's been dead for some time. Probably right after we left, Uther was killed."
Eiji examined Uther's body and quickly determined the time and cause of death.
"The fatal wound is the stab in the chest, and he was forced to drink poisoned wine after death... How was this even possible?"
The control of the barrier was in Tonelico's hands.
No one but Tonelico could open the barrier, not even Uther or Eiji.
How could the perpetrator have killed Uther just ten minutes after they sealed the barrier and left?
Even the most powerful mage couldn't break through Tonelico's barrier in just ten minutes, right?
"Could it be that the killer was already inside this shelter from the beginning?"
Eiji thought of the only possibility.
That person had been hiding here since the shelter was under construction.
He had been lurking in the shadows, watching Tonelico complete the shelter step by step and set up the barrier!
Like a snake waiting for its prey to fall into the trap, he had waited silently for three days right in the enemy's stronghold!
Even Tonelico hadn't detected his presence.
Until Tonelico brought Uther inside.
Then he suddenly bared his fangs!
Just thinking about this possibility sent chills down Eiji's spine!
Did Tonelico personally push Uther into the abyss?
"If Uther is already dead... then who is that person outside?"
Habetrot suddenly screamed in nervous panic.
"Did he kill Uther?!"
The real Uther had been dead for some time.
That Uther outside was indeed a fake!
The killer must be him!
Tonelico slowly stood up.
Her eyes were shrouded in deep shadows.
A cold killing intent swirled around her like polar air, howling as if ready to devour anyone in its path.
She turned and walked out of the barrier, surrounded by astonishing magical energy that propelled her toward the surface at speeds invisible to the naked eye.
"Tonelico?!"
"Leave that to me. You stay here and guard Uther's body."
Just as Habetrot was about to chase after her.
Eiji's figure had already vanished like a ghost.
...
Londinium.
"Kill! Kill all the fairies!"
"For humanity!"
"We won't be slaves anymore!"
Countless humans took to the streets, striking the fairies with iron tools like awls, sickles, and hoes.
The Knights of the Round Table seemed to have completely lost their minds, leading soldiers to hunt fairies throughout the city.
"Damn it!"
"Mere humans dare to harm us!"
"Kill all humans!"
The fairies naturally wouldn't just wait to be slaughtered. The proud fairies were enraged by the rebellion of their slaves and unanimously unleashed their magical power to counterattack.
In less than ten minutes.
The entire Londinium echoed with fierce battle cries, crimson flames igniting everywhere with astonishing speed!
"I'm not playing with you!"
Muryan laughed gleefully with schadenfreude.
She fled Londinium with a portion of the winged fairies.
In another direction, Spriggan also left Londinium with some of the earth fairies.
"That's right! Just like that!"
Uther laughed with fervent passion.
Standing amidst the soldiers, he brandished Uther's sword, spreading bewitching words that incited the troops.
"For the future of humanity, we must exterminate all fairies! This is the foundation of the kingdom I built. Every single fairy must be eradicated without exception. This Britain belongs to humans!"
His words pierced their ears like a sinister enchantment.
Hearing this, the soldiers grew even more impassioned, fighting the fairies with renewed ferocity.
The prosperous city instantly fell into an irreversible trap, with both fairies and humans indiscriminately slaughtering one another.
"Was it you who killed Uther?"
At some point, a voice as cold as winter's chill rang out.
The false Uther paused slightly before turning around with a beaming smile to face the newcomer.
Standing before him was Cernunnos, boiling with murderous intent!
"You're quite late."
He spread his arms with a grin, as if embracing the world.
"This kingdom is finished. The humans who have long been oppressed and the fairies who have always taken their oppression for granted—they've now lost themselves to bloodlust. This situation is beyond saving."
"If you hadn't gone to check on Uther earlier and had instead stopped my rampage, there might have been a slim chance... Unfortunately, the human kingdom is doomed to fall!"
He spoke without any attempt to conceal his words.
Even the knights nearby who heard him showed no sign of questioning him.
They seemed consumed by bloodlust, emitting dark substances from their bodies, their crimson eyes devoid of reason.
It was some form of curse.
"So... you are the Calamity."
Cernunnos finally understood.
She had faced the Calamity countless times and had defeated it just as often.
With a single glance, she recognized that the power he wielded was akin to the curse of the Calamity!
"Shall we finally get to the main event?"
The false Uther nodded approvingly.
"Indeed, just as you see, I am the Calamity—the Calamity born from this very island of Britain!"
"Originally, I shouldn't have been born in this form. However, the appearance of those two time travelers made the island somewhat anxious. The human kingdom must be destroyed; this historical trajectory must not be altered. Thus, the island allowed me to be born prematurely in this form half a year ago!"
Cernunnos bit her lip hard.
Half a year ago!
The island had already begun its preparations half a year ago!
When Eiji and Mash first arrived, the island had already resolved to let the Calamity of this era be born in a form different from the original trajectory!
Thinking about it carefully, it was no wonder they couldn't win.
This Calamity must have rushed to Londinium the moment it was born.
He had been preparing here for half a year, all to fulfill his mission: to kill Uther and destroy Londinium!
To avoid drawing the island's attention, they deliberately wandered outside for half a year and only returned three days ago, launching their plan with lightning speed to catch the island off guard.
Yet in the end, they suffered a crushing defeat!
Uther was dead.
Londinium would also be destroyed.
Everything was falling back onto its original course!
"My abilities are illusion and enchantment. You can call them 'Calamity of Illusory Enchantment.' The island specialized me this way for assassination and intelligence gathering."
Calamity wore Uther's face and flashed a bright, cheerful smile identical to his.
"Back in that shelter, I disguised myself as you and tricked Uther into opening the door. Ah, do you know what expression he had before he died?"