(Note: While writing this chapter, I completely forgot about Gaheris's existence. He is still present; to include him now, I would have to change things I no longer wish to alter. Let's just assume he was there all along—he was simply keeping a low profile—and he will appear in the coming chapters.)
The fight was over—or at least, that's how it appeared on the surface—as we were now on our way to the only "normal" mage capable of defeating high-level Servants. After all, I was once a "normal" mage myself, yet I managed to hold my own against Artoria. She may have been the Servant with more determination in her magical circuits than actual mana, but it still counts for something.
"Do you intend to eliminate them all?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied, his tone somewhat curt.
"Are you certain about this?" I pressed, causing Wodine to come to a halt.
He shot me a look clearly laced with annoyance, prompting me to hold my tongue.
The tension between us was palpable. It was evident that my decisions and actions had begun to wear on his patience.
He turned his gaze back ahead, activated his magical circuits, and began walking toward the beach.
I remained where I stood, watching his silhouette fade into the distance, unsure of what to do. I still had tasks to attend to on Olympus, but Kirschatria was more than capable of wiping them all out.
It had been a long time since I'd felt such hesitation; I had always been someone who readily accepted the consequences of her actions.
"When did I become such a coward?" I muttered to myself, feeling a sense of disgust at my own behavior.
Suddenly, I heard voices—an exchange of explanations—coming from the shoreline. Without a second thought, I took off toward the beach. The first thing I saw was Wodine wounding Orion, all while using a parry to deflect Libra's arrows and blocking Jason's sword with his own.
"Is that all you've got?" Kirschtaria asked, glancing sideways at Ritsuka—who simply gripped the hand bearing his Command Spells—while Mash remained protected behind her shield.
At that very moment, the Storm Border appeared, commanded by Nemo, and launched a barrage of missiles at the enemy.
My Master simply shoved Jason backward, intercepting the incoming assault with a series of magical strikes.
"I think it's time to put an end to all this," he declared, looking at everyone present—everyone, that is, except for me, as I was already standing a few meters behind him.
Libra cast a sidelong glance at me, looking somewhat displeased and weary; I remained still, choosing to keep my word not to intervene while in Atlantis.
None of the servants were in good shape. Libra was in the worst state, having exhausted 90% of her mana in the attack to bring [the target] down—followed closely by Achilles, who was missing an arm.
"It's not worth the fight," Wodine declared, moving away through the sky as several magic circles began to surround the firmament.
Everyone present had already faced the Crypter's assault, but as I caught sight of the magic circles he was constructing, I realized what he was doing.
"Behold the result of the research I completed thanks to your help."
His words came back to me, and I swallowed hard.
As someone well-versed in both magecraft and sorcery—an expert in crafting complex magic circles capable of altering the laws of physics—I could clearly perceive the immense level of complexity and difficulty in what lay before me.
I had seen the blueprints—I had tried to decipher them—and in my mind, they had seemed absurd; yet, here was the theory being put into practice right before my eyes.
A primary magic circle, supporting several others, manifested in the sky—but nothing happened.
"A failure?" Jason asked. No one answered him; the magic circle had not yet vanished.
At that moment, a magical shield enveloped both me and Wodine.
"Hydrogen, helium, oxygen, carbon, neon, iron, nitrogen, and silicon," Kirschtaria began to chant, causing the magic circle to glow and activate. "Stellar Core Incantation—Brilliant Stardust."
The instant he spoke those words, the magic circle roared, and a torrent of pure power surged through it. Everyone saw how it rebounded and slammed into one of the islands, destroying it instantly, while a massive shockwave surged toward us.
But that wasn't the only issue; more of those attacks erupted from the magic circle, flying off in various directions indiscriminately.
I knew exactly what it was, having helped make that attack a reality.
What emerged from the teleportation circle was nothing less than solar flares—specifically, those from a sun on the verge of becoming a supernova.
All of Atlantis was being indiscriminately destroyed.
"Mash!" Ritsuka exclaimed. Mash simply nodded but was stopped by Achilles, who cast a glance her way.
"Leave this to me; just provide support from behind," he said, summoning his shield.
All that energy was already surging toward us; there was no longer any way to prevent it. I could only watch as they defended themselves against this catastrophe.
"This shield contains the world my eyes once beheld—everything I fought for, everything I swore to protect," he chanted rapidly, his shield beginning to glow as he leveled it toward the incoming flames. "As long as this shield remains raised, no hero shall ever breach my world! *Akhilleus Kosmos*—the miniature world that embraces the blue sky!"
The moment he finished those words, the very space around us began to warp. We were transported into another realm, which took the full brunt of the initial blast, deflecting it—though Achilles immediately dropped to one knee.
One after another, the massive flares—which were laying waste to Atlantis and casting an apocalyptic, flickering light over everything—slammed into the Greek hero's Noble Phantasm. He held it back, bracing it with nothing but his own body and a single arm.
At that moment, as Achilles—his eyes bloodshot, drenched in sweat, and trembling—struggled to hold his ground, a hand came to rest upon his back.
When the green-haired man looked back, he saw Gudako behind him; she was using magecraft to keep things stable and support him, offering a nod and a smile.
"This is nothing," Achilles exclaimed with a grin.
"No, it's over," Wodine declared, watching as the shield neared its breaking point—then, in an instant, everything was bathed in light.
When I was finally able to look again, the first thing I saw was Mash, her shield pushed aside.
The walls of Camelot had managed to stop the final attack, but just as quickly as they had appeared, they vanished.
"Mash!" Ritsuka cried out, seeing the pink-haired girl collapse, unconscious.
The area remained largely intact; the Storm Border was still there, having sustained only minimal damage.
"I didn't think you'd be able to stop that," Wodine remarked, dispelling the barrier he hadn't ended up using—since the defense provided by Achilles and Mash had protected us as well, given our proximity to them.
While everyone else wavered, unsure whether to attack or attempt an escape, I simply looked toward my daughter; she noticed and returned my gaze.
"What are you doing while doing nothing?" I said, making no sound—just moving my lips—in a way she must have managed to read.
Libra simply let out a deep breath and fixed her gaze on Kirschtaria.
"Friends," she said, drawing the attention of Gudako, Orion, and the others, "just give me a few seconds."
The son of Poseidon simply smiled.
"At your command," he declared, while Jason already had his sword at the ready. Achilles raised his spear with whatever strength he had left, and Lief prepared to attempt something.
Seeing this, Wodine merely sighed in disappointment and reactivated his magical circuits.
"Eíthe to fos tou fengarioú na mas kathodigeí," Libra began to chant, just as Kirschtaria unleashed a series of wind-based attacks—strikes that instantly incapacitated Orion.
"Eíthe to vélos mou na min ektrapeí apó típota ston kósmo," he said, just as he sensed Wodine's attack. It was headed toward Ritsuka, but at the last second, Jason intervened, taking the full force of the strike.
"Jason!" Ritsuka exclaimed, watching as the leader of the Argonauts emerged from the smoke, completely unharmed.
"This is nothing compared to the dragon of Colchis," Jason remarked—only for the Crypter to fire directly at him, sending him flying away in a massive explosion.
"Riskáro ta synaisthímatá mou gia na min apotýcho," the incantation continued. Taking advantage of the smoke screen, Leif moved in to attack, getting within centimeters of Kirschtaria—but the latter conjured a barrier that stopped him dead in his tracks.
"Your luck has run out," my Master remarked, pointing his staff and unleashing a blast of magical energy that crushed the Viking, compressing him to half his size.
Gudako could only watch, biting her lips until they bled.
"Eíthe i moíra na paramorfotheí mazí me ton chóro kai tin pragmatikótita," Libra continued. Achilles, moving at his absolute top speed, threw himself forward—only to be halted instantly by a magical circle that repelled him, sending him soaring through the air.
"It's over," Kirschtaria said, manifesting another circle and firing a magical projectile at breakneck speed—aiming straight for Achilles' heel.
"Damn it," he muttered, collapsing to the ground, utterly exhausted.
Just as he was about to finish off the green-haired man, he heard Libra shout.
"Eíthe na peráseis mésa apó ti theótita kai péra apó aftín, imerominía aénais kínisis," he declared, aiming with his bow.
"With this Command Spell," Ritsuka exclaimed, thrusting his hand forward, "I order you to strike down Kirchtaria Wodine—right here, right now!"
The arrow, initially faint, suddenly flared with magical power.
Instead of moving, my Master conjured a magic circle that formed a barrier—one of his most potent defensive measures.
The moment Libra loosed the arrow, it struck the barrier in a fraction of a second. Wodine's eyes widened in shock as he watched the very fabric of space and reality warp—a distortion through which the arrow passed.
"Impossible," Wodine uttered, attempting to react, but it was too late.
The arrow tore through his body, hurling him backward and causing him to vomit a great quantity of blood; his barrier shattered.
Silence descended upon the scene. No one spoke or stirred—largely because I was the only one left completely unscathed, and I had no intention of moving.
Or, at least, that is what I would have liked to say—but then I saw Orion rise, summoning the last of his strength. Seizing the moment while Kirschtaria was vulnerable, he grabbed his bow and let fly his arrows.
Kirschtaria, still reeling, tried to manifest a magic circle, but I moved faster, destroying the incoming arrow.
"What?" Gudako exclaimed, sounding deeply annoyed. "Didn't you say you weren't going to do anything?" she complained, though she remained rooted to the spot.
"I warned you," I said to my Master, who simply stared back at me, clutching his blood-soaked chest, his mouth stained with crimson.
My gaze shifted from him to the others.
"That is enough for now. There is no need to continue this fight—in truth, there never was," I remarked, tracing a path through the air to open a portal. "See you on Olympus."
With that, I took the gravely wounded Wodine and departed.
...
I laid Kirschtaria down on the table, not caring that the blueprints spread across it were becoming stained with blood.
"It went right through your stomach—looks like you won't be eating any meat for a few days," I remarked, with a hint of mockery in my voice.
"You knew," he complained, locking eyes with me as a trickle of blood escaped his lips.
"I assumed you knew, too—though I didn't think you'd be so self-absorbed that you wouldn't even bother to dodge," I replied with a smile. "Besides, even if you had dodged it, the attack would have just followed you; that's why I always make a point of destroying whatever she throws my way."
Activating my magic circuits, I placed my hand over his open wound. He did the same; I focused on the external injury, while Wodine tended to the internal damage.
Seeing a genius like him in such a state gave me a flicker of satisfaction. I hope this experience brings him back down to earth—ever since he managed to go toe-to-toe with Zeus, his arrogance had grown, and he hadn't even seemed to notice.
"You're thinking something unpleasant about me, aren't you?" Wodine remarked.
"Whatever gave you that idea?" I replied, nearly laughing.
...
Several hours had passed since the last battle in Atlantis, so I returned to see how my favorite group of misfits was faring.
This time, I chose to remain hidden—observing their actions without informing Kirschtaria.
"He's not coming?" Gudako asked Jason, who had miraculously survived.
"The ship is already packed, and honestly, I wouldn't be of much use. Besides, I've already completed the mission I actually came here for," he said, shrugging his shoulders.
Along with the Chaldea contingent, those boarding the *Storm Border* included Achilles—who looked barely alive—Orion, and Libra, who still had to face Poseidon.
Then came a somber farewell; the *Storm Border* set sail toward Poseidon, navigating a sea that had yet to fully process the reality of Wodine's assault.
While recovering, they also took the opportunity to repair the ship, making it a bit more resilient against those hellish waters.
As they departed, leaving Jason behind, I decided to reveal myself, my scythe in hand.
"You're holding up remarkably well; if I didn't know any better, I'd think you had the defense and endurance of Heracles," I remarked. Jason took notice and leveled his sword at me.
"So, you came," he said, attempting to sound menacing.
I simply raised my hands in a gesture of peace.
"I didn't come here to fight—and honestly, if I had wanted to, you'd already be dead," I explained. He just looked at me, then lowered his sword, his expression weary.
"I can't argue with that," he replied, a faint smile forming.
"And while you're at it, drop that illusion; it doesn't fool me. I imagine Libra realized it too—which is why she said nothing and left you here with at least a shred of your dignity intact," I suggested. Jason simply sighed, and at that moment, his body transformed—revealing a mass of wounds, some of which were still open.
With the truth now laid bare, he walked over to a nearby tree and sat down, looking utterly exhausted.
"Do you intend to kill me?" he asked, to which I shook my head.
"I thought for a moment about giving you a chance," I said, which completely caught his attention. "I could take your soul and, in the future, grant you a new body—a new life, far away—" I couldn't continue, as I saw him reach out his hand.
"I decline," he said with a smile, even as his body began to fade away, bit by bit.
"Why?" I couldn't help but ask.
"As tempting as your offer sounds, my current situation means I might still be able to reunite with my companions—something I'd prefer over starting a life from scratch," he explained, leaving me speechless. "Besides, I still haven't apologized to Medea; even when she was by my side, I failed to do so. I hope to get another chance for that."
Hearing this, I simply smiled.
"Fair enough," I said with a grin. "Then hurry up and die, so you can be summoned once again."
"Shut up—can't you see I'm trying to die with some dignity?" he complained, his form now almost entirely gone.
Just before he vanished completely, I caught his final words.
"It would have been fun to have you as an Argonaut, Dante—son of Chaos." That was the last thing I heard before I was left entirely alone.
"Yeah, it would have been fun," I replied to the empty air, opening a portal. I lingered for a few seconds, gazing toward where the Storm Border should have been, then stepped through—heading back to Olympus.