It was hard to describe the overwhelming pressure of standing before Cernunnos.
Beneath those massive antlers like that of a giant elk was a fluffy, almost stuffed-toy-like body with a rather rounded shape. In the game, when facing him, no one would feel fear—in fact, there was even a strange sense of cuteness. But that was within the game, where he could fit neatly on the small screen of a phone.
Now, in reality, standing before this being, even Guinevere—who had endured countless battles and grown increasingly accustomed to slaughter—couldn't help but feel her legs trembling.
The reason was simple: he was simply too big. So enormous that he nearly filled her entire field of vision.
What protruded from the massive hollow—just his head—already reached a towering 2,000 meters in height, with a width far exceeding that number. And if one accounted for the body hidden beneath the hollow, this creature's full height reached a staggering 10,000 meters!
What does a height of 10,000 meters mean? Even Mount Everest wasn't as tall! If this creature lay down flat, it could fit thirty aircraft carriers from head to tail.
If one were to imagine a monster so tall that the Fifty-Meter Titans from Attack on Titan looked at it the way humans looked at those Titans—well, even then, that Titan wouldn't be one-fifth the size of Cernunnos. In fact, it wouldn't even reach the height of just the portion of his head protruding from the hollow.
Though in a high-magic world like Nasuverse, size wasn't always an absolute measure of power… as the saying goes, quantitative change leads to qualitative change. When the difference in size reached such a degree, the despair etched into the very genes of living beings was enough to crush a person.
If a mountain towered before you, reaching the clouds, could you imagine killing that mountain?
If not for the hollow, and if Cernunnos stood before them directly, he would only need to fall forward once to wipe out everyone present—Lancelot alone might survive.
And Cernunnos wasn't some mindless brute who only dealt physical damage. At this moment, he was undoubtedly a true "God of Curses." Even though everyone bore the divine-level curse-resistance blessing personally bestowed by Grimm, the moment they saw his countless "Hands of Calamity," they felt overwhelming discomfort. Their heads spun, their bodies weakened, nausea rose in their throats. If one of those hands struck them directly, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Was such a thing even meant to be fought by humans?
That was exactly what Guinevere felt. Though she had declared her resolve time and again with lofty determination, the moment she saw that being, a single thought flashed through her mind:
"Eh? We're supposed to fight Cernunnos? Seriously?"
It wasn't just her. Everyone shared a similar emotion. The moment Cernunnos appeared, even their breathing seemed to slow, as fear and despair began to spread through their hearts.
"Ah, screw it! At this point, retreat means death anyway. Let's beat the bastard!"
At that moment, the first to break free of fear and launch an attack was none other than Artoria.
It was as if she had abandoned all thought, throwing herself forward recklessly. Gritting her teeth, she slammed the Exalted Belt onto her waist.
"Here I go! Henshin!"
With a flurry of exaggerated sound effects, light and shadow rapidly shifted around her. Shadow after shadow of herself from different classes appeared, then merged into her once more, and soon she had entered her Exalted form again.
"Charge, my other selves!"
Pointing at Cernunnos' impossibly huge form, Artoria roared:
"Show that giant bastard what we can do! Let him know we're not to be messed with!"
At her cry, seven or eight different "Artorias" projected forth, each wielding holy lances or swords, and all began chanting their Noble Phantasms:
"Sword of Burning Victory! Golden Sword of Certain Triumph! Sword of Hope that Connects Wishes! Sword of Promised Victory! Sword of Shining Sunlight! Spear of Glorious End! Shine forth, O my Radiant Hall!"
Those multicolored beams of immense magical power merged together, like the brilliance of a rainbow, and surged toward Cernunnos. Countless cursed hands rose to block it, but the rainbow's overwhelming force pierced through instantly, unstoppable.
The rainbow blast struck his body, and even his thick fur couldn't fully defend against it. A massive crater hundreds of meters wide and deep was blasted open, exposing the black, corrupted flesh beneath.
Though such a wound seemed trivial against his colossal body, and though the foul, mud-like curse immediately began filling and regenerating the flesh… the fact remained: he was injured.
And that fact alone was enough to restore everyone's ability to act.
So it was Artoria… no, of course it was her.
Watching her prepare another round of light cannons, Guinevere let out an involuntary laugh.
Thinking back, at the very beginning of the simulation, when they were still weak and faced their first calamity at Norwich, the first to leap into battle had also been Artoria.
Though she was the most timid in everyday life, at moments like this, it was as if her fear shattered entirely. She threw herself forward recklessly, fighting in hysteria, abandoning thought.
Truly, worthy of being the princess of the Boar Clan—when the moment came, she would always charge straight ahead like a boar.
And strangely, the moment she acted, the paralyzing pressure that had frozen everyone suddenly dissipated. One by one, everyone began to move again.
"All units, form ranks for fire! May the light of the sun shine upon us all!"
Nocnarel was the first to act, her powerful buffs immediately spreading across the group. To share in her commander's bonuses, everyone except Woodworth had already entered into a quick verbal contract with her. She also raised her ancient straight sword—the one she had gained from Solaire, the Sun Knight—and blessed everyone with the "Oath of the Sun."
Next came Gareth, scattering red and orange powders into the wind. Everyone immediately felt their spirits lift, as though new strength had filled them. After providing the Oni Dust and Hardening Dust to all, she swallowed a red fruit herself, then strode forward. Her spear of the Silurian Tree spun, gathering golden light, before she thrust it, unleashing a whirlwind straight into the wound Artoria had blasted open.
But the most spectacular was Bargest.
When she drew her massive, pickaxe-shaped sword, endless winds surged from all directions, howling and wrapping around the lead-gray blade.
As if recognizing Cernunnos as its foe, the blade revealed its true nature. The power of the "Storm King" erupted, fully awakened.
Even Bargest herself was momentarily stunned by its overwhelming might. But quickly, she fixed her eyes on the giant, gripped the sword, and struck.
The howling wind twisted into a lead-gray tornado, roaring, condensing into a blade that seemed ready to split the heavens, before cleaving into Cernunnos' divine body, carving a massive gash.
Everyone struck at once—light cannons, wind blades, lances—all slamming into Cernunnos. Even Bogart and Woodworth, lacking ranged attacks, hurled boulders torn from the surrounding palaces.
Together, their combined might finally… accomplished nothing of significance.
"What? It's barely doing anything!" Nocnarel cried in outrage, staring at the regenerating body of the horned god. "That recovery rate is disgusting! Are we fighting some oversized version of Woodworth? No, worse—a Woodworth with curse immunity?!"
"Don't use me as an example! What the hell do you mean oversized Woodworth?!" the real Woodworth yelled back.
"Everyone, watch out! He's counterattacking!" Gareth shouted.
Enraged by their attacks, Cernunnos roared, shaking heaven and earth. In the next instant, countless cursed hands surged forward, blotting out the sky. Darkness filled their vision, no light remained.
"Leave it to me! I'll push them all back in one breath!"
Grimm stepped forward again, shielding everyone behind him.
"I shall bargain life with death!"
"O spring of Mimir, spirit-veins of mistletoe—become the branches that sever the past and reach for the future!"
"For nine days henceforth, all folly shall be forbidden!"
"Cross the dusk!"
"Great Shrine—Gambanteinn Valhöll!"
Finishing the chant, Grimm slammed his staff into the ground. A golden magic circle inscribed with intricate patterns flared into existence around them.
In an instant, brilliant light blazed forth, illuminating the world. The overwhelming tide of cursed hands evaporated like snow under the sun.
"Incredible! That's even stronger than before!" Artoria gasped in awe.
"Of course. What I used before was just a little trick I learned long ago from an old friend. But against Cernunnos, that alone isn't enough."
Grimm turned his head, winking at Guinevere with a smug smile.
"This time, I've laid down a Sanctuary, turning everything around you into sacred ground. After all, I'm the stand-in for the God of Wisdom. Something like this is child's play."
"So then, doesn't that mean we now have an unbreakable defense?" Hearing this, everyone began to smile—only for Grimm's face to suddenly change.
"Damn it! So this is the God of Curses? He reflected all the curses back at me?!"
Before he could finish, black blood spewed from his mouth. His body stiffened, then collapsed to the ground.