SWNOVELXO Chapter 72 - [Become a Legend]
I ascend against the black storm.
My enemy was waiting at the eye of that storm, swinging massive green blades like a praying mantis, firing winds.
“Winds of [Strife]—!!”
Whoosh—!!
Under the ashen sky, a raging sea of torrents.
Waves made of countless blades were crashing down.
That green dragon was attacking me, becoming merely a gust of wind.
‘Since the waves are fierce, I must become a rock.’
I gripped the golden spear firmly and planted my feet firmly. With golden ether energy protecting me like armor, there was nothing to fear.
A deafening noise.
Black wind that seemed to cut just by grazing.
But I simply endure and thrust with the golden spear raised high.
Zha.
A spear exists to thrust.
A rock resisting the crashing waves.
The lingering black killing intent spreading out.
Becoming a firmly planted rock, cleaving the waves.
The golden shining spear blade cleaves the pouring winds.
I became a single rock, cleaving through the black winds. The black currents split as they graze the rock.
Sonic booms grazing both ears.
Impacts pounding eardrums like drums.
Swoosh—!!
Winds tens of meters in size split, emitting lingering destruction. Clouds scatter from the terrifying impact they collide with.
Sunlight faintly shining through the scattered clouds.
The light was dividing between the golden cats and the giant snake.
Golden light was guiding our path.
The lingering afterimage of the faint evening sunset.
That light soon illuminated Hilde and Freya blocking attacks behind me. They clear out clones with massive spears and intercept black armaments fired from the sky.
“Haaaaah—!!”
I was opening a path for everyone to advance while swinging golden weapons. I advanced while awakening countless principles, frantically switching weapons.
Forward.
Simply advancing forward.
The trajectory unleashed with the dagger explodes and shakes.
Golden ether shines where the longsword is swung.
Enemies shatter and scatter where the greatsword is brought down.
“Kuaaak!!”
“Not yet, not yet…!!”
Boom—!!
I raised the greatsword I had brought down to the ground and rotated greatly.
A curve both flexible and intense like the movement of a ballerina floating in the air.
“[Blue Sweet Macaron]—!!”
[Waves] of golden ether embroidering the sky.
What was contained in that sword path was the principle of rotation recited countless times.
Rotation of [Spiral].
Change the world.
And shatter the enemies.
White flashes.
Golden waves.
Countless lights annihilate the enemies.
Boom—!!
And we advance towards the light.
Where countless colors are entangled and exploding.
There, a single faint light of hope was shining.
The light of tomorrow desired by the girls in memories was shining.
But Ofnir spewed out ether like a black wall, calling forth another wall of wind. They soon scattered the clouds that had been shining.
“O winds—!!”
“Pour out everything!!”
“Shatter them—!!”
[The fate of strife is decided here—!!]
A desperate resolve.
Ofnir’s main body frantically waved both hands, and the numerous clones in giant form called forth winds by exploding black ether from their entire bodies.
Innumerable armaments were raining down from the sky. They were pouring down like rain through the densely packed black winds.
Clones each with combat power rivaling followers.
Black armaments as if fired by hundreds of mages.
Those gather as one, creating a massive calamity.
Boom—!!!
A tidal wave of black ether sweeping in.
We could only endure within that massive wave.
A sea shaken by storms. A momentum seeming to overturn a small boat relying on a candle flame. All of those things seemed to be approaching to erase us from this world.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Metal sounds deafening the ears.
The wave of purple armaments that Freya had been endlessly firing from the very back was slowly weakening amidst the downpour made of black ether.
Even receiving golden light, the wave of purple armaments begins to falter. The boundary protected by purple armaments is pushed back.
“Kugh…! D-Damn it…! Th-There’s so damn many…!”
Freya staggered, unable to keep up with our footsteps advancing towards Ofnir. Her face had turned completely pale, and she was following purely out of stubbornness, gritting her teeth.
But…
Rumble—!!!
The ground we had been standing on to fight… the head of [Snake of Wisdom and Cycles] began to gradually shake. Soon it moved violently like an earthquake where even maintaining balance was difficult.
The ‘snake’ was slowly regaining control even amidst the golden bombardment.
‘We’re almost there…!’
We were precariously swaying on the shaking ground. It was difficult to even maintain our position amidst the endlessly sweeping attacks.
“…?!”
“…Oh no?!”
“Kugh?!”
A sound suddenly heard from the side.
The golden cats that had become my weapons kept meowing pitifully beside me. Their golden ears folded sadly, sending an urgent signal.
-Meooow…!
-Meow…
“…Rota?”
Beyond the ‘fairy tale magic’ resounding from the ‘Sage’s Room’, Rota’s anxious emotions are conveyed.
And the voice of [Golden Witch] is heard.
Her tone was still calm, but the content was shocking.
『It seems I’ll disappear soon… So I’ll prepare one big shot… Can I ask for some time? At this rate my ether will completely disappear, and I won’t be able to support anymore.』
“…?!”
『Whether it’s the ‘snake’ or [Priest of Strife]… Unless at least one of them stops, they’ll charge towards the World Tree like this.』
“Already…?!”
『The moment their abyssal power contacts the World Tree… the seal of the strongest beast god… the ‘dragon’ will be gradually released.』
“…!”
We hurriedly looked back.
There we saw the World Tree that had somehow already approached within arm’s reach. The branches and trunk that had stretched majestically below the horizon. They were now spread out behind us like a white wall.
『Now, we really have no time.』
“…”
At last the bombardment of golden cats stops.
Rumble—!!!
The ‘snake’s’ head resounding violently once again.
We were holding on, grasping the ground undulating up and down.
“Kyaaah?!”
“Hnngh…!”
“Oh no…!”
Amidst everything moving frantically like that, Ofnir stretched both his blade-like hands desperately towards the World Tree. The green dragon spoke in a voice like a roar:
“Finally…! Finally, finally!! Finally—!! It’s right there!! It’s right there I tell you!! Move, remains of the beast god!! To rescue my god sealed beneath the World Tree!! Squeeze out all your power—!!!”
Graaaaaa—!!
The ‘snake’ raised its head and began charging towards the World Tree. Its height was so great it seemed to pierce the heavens, so the shining branches of the World Tree were visible far below.
High in the sky where even clouds passed below.
We were barely holding on with weapons stabbed into the ground.
“…”
Suddenly.
Freya unsteadily stood up from the ground.
She was looking down below with a resolute expression.
“…”
Hilde and I looked at her with surprised eyes.
“[Spinning Wheel]…?”
“Alley cat…?”
Freya looked at us with a slight smile. Somehow that smile seemed to contain more than just relief.
“R-Really… How long do you plan to call me that? My name isn’t Purple Spinning Wheel, Sage of Ignorance, or Leader of the Research Faction… It’s just Freya.”
Freya spoke once more.
“I am… Freya. Not one swayed by [Fate]… just… Freya who loves magic.”
Why?
The moment I heard that declaration, it felt like Freya had taken a big step towards ‘this side’.
Beyond the boundaries of the world.
Beyond the forms of [Fate].
Reaching the realm of white.
The end of [Unique Ether] defining oneself.
The ultimate growth of releasing oneself again.
The realm that only Hilde and I had reached. It felt like she had approached there.
‘Could it be…!’
I called out to Freya with that intuition. Hilde also seemed to sense Freya’s unusual atmosphere.
“F-Freya…!”
“Freya, don’t tell me…!”
“…Th-This is preparation to move on to the next step.”
“…What?”
“I’m going to try to find something more important than [Fate]. So watch carefully and follow… y-you crazy yuri girls…!”
After blurting out those words.
Freya fell down below without hesitation.
-Meooow—!!
Matching the purple ether flowing from her, a golden cat carriage approached. And she boarded naturally as if she had been the owner of the cat carriage from the beginning.
Tap—!
Freya flying through the sky, riding the golden carriage.
The sage who boarded the carriage finally went beyond [Fate], setting out on a journey to pioneer a new path.
She begins gathering gold while flying around the black snake.
Woong—!!
[Eternal Spinning Wheel] shining more brilliantly than ever before. It slowly turns, absorbing the golden ether scattered throughout the streets.
Golden threads entangle.
Rota’s dreams entangle.
Purple armaments are woven.
The endless weapons woven with golden threads created a massive stake like the forepaw of a giant cat.
Freya raised her wand. She was smiling with unsurpassed refreshment.
“This is farewell to old worries…!!”
Rumble—!!
Tens of thousands of daggers.
Thousands of longswords.
Hundreds of greatswords.
Purple spears and bows.
“This is farewell to old fears…!!”
Roar—!!
The countless spells Freya had awakened [Unique Ether] and collected daily. When they gathered as one, they had become a form like a cat’s forepaw larger than buildings.
And aiming at the ‘snake’ that had raised its head, she aimed the massive purple cat paw.
Rumble…!!
The cat’s forepaw made of countless purple weapons was sharply aiming for the snake’s nape.
“This is resolve for tomorrow—!!”
Freya embroidered purple ether in the air and shouted with all her might:
“[Eternal Spinning Wheel]!! Full salvo fiiire—!!!”
Whoosh—!!!
Along with an impact shaking the earth’s axis.
Along with the sound of wind being cleaved.
Along with a girl’s refreshing cry.
The massive purple cat paw was fired towards the ‘snake’s’ head.
Boom—!!!
A purple cat punch digging into flesh.
The head of [Snake of Wisdom and Cycles] that had been floating high in the sky fighting golden cats tilts to the side. The mouth that seemed about to swallow the World Tree opens wide.
“—!!”
Impact.
The snake screamed looking up at the sky.
The lingering image of the past with only a corpse remaining twisted its body.
“—!!”
“Kuak…?!”
Even Ofnir lost his balance and tilted.
“—!!”
The snake was twisting its body, opening its mouth wide, and screaming.
A faint wave felt beyond that.
Thump—!!
Inside the snake’s head.
The final lingering echoes left in the beast god’s remains.
I instinctively realized that was where we needed to attack.
“…!”
“…!”
Freya shouted towards us from far away:
“Gooooo—!!!”
Hilde and I made eye contact simultaneously.
And we smiled brightly at the same time.
We charged towards the snake’s open mouth simultaneously.
Whoosh!
A chilling wind resistance and sense of floating was felt from our toes.
Endless darkness.
A descending tunnel.
The power of the abyss felt.
We fell towards the snake’s mouth.
Swoosh—!!
But Ofnir’s voice filled with rage was heard in that darkness. He hurriedly flapped his wings from far away and chased after us.
Numerous clones exchange cries of rage.
[No—!!!]
[Strife cannot be stopped here—!!!]
[O winds!! Winds of strife!! Shatter everything to pieces!!]
[Shatter to pieces!!]
[Everything shall disappear in [Strife]!!]
[Disappear—!!!]
A massive body swooping down into the darkness.
Numerous clones emerging from the darkness.
Massive black winds threatening us.
Everything was indistinguishable, buried in pitch blackness.
Rumble—!!
“[Grimnir]—!!”
No matter how much Hilde roared thunder, releasing dozens of lightning bolts.
“[Blue Sweet Macaron]—!!”
No matter how much I spread [Waves], unleashing countless ultimate techniques with weapons.
The raging currents blowing from the endless darkness swallowed everything.
Despair that we might not be able to protect.
Anxiety that everything might be frustrated.
The black waves carried such emotions, slowly swallowing us.
“Hilde…!”
“Lara…!”
『You endured well. Now… let’s end this.』
Flash—!!
At that moment.
The golden flowers engraved on my neck shone.
Countless forms of pictures are engraved inside the dark snake’s mouth.
Murals from the dark caves where beastkin once lived are engraved.
Those murals were golden, containing the dreams and memories of countless students. Numerous ‘dreams’ and ‘fairy tales’ were heard from the golden ether.
Stories from inside caves.
Stories from the outside world.
Stories of fighting and war.
Stories of finally overcoming fear.
Stories of losing one’s way, captivated by gold.
And Freya’s story of despairing at [Fate].
Rota’s story of setting out to find her path, encouraged by her sister.
The story of love and dreams [Golden Witch] wanted to convey.
Finally… all memories gathered here to become golden murals.
Mountains, fields, sky, birds, animals, and flowers were shining.
As countless stories shining golden connect. Beyond magic that simply exists as form, they begin to shine as new laws.
Numerous stories separated in grand time shine. Receiving a girl’s memories, they finally become fairy tales connecting people’s hearts.
“—!!”
“Aaaaagh!!”
The ‘snake’ and Ofnir belonging to the power of darkness… ‘abyss’ writhed in agony at that light. But for us, the hearts contained in numerous fairy tales and golden ether became an opportunity to connect hearts.
All these stories have connected as one, passing on to our turn.
Thump—!
My and Hilde’s hearts connect.
Your heart and my vision connect, becoming a clue to the next realm.
Heart to heart connecting, drawing a trajectory beyond [Fate].
“…!”
“…!”
We clasped hands.
What we grasped together in our joined hands was Hilde’s lance.
We aimed the massive lance spewing blue-white ether forward.
Even with countless help overlapping.
At this moment, only [Azure Lightning Lance] can reach.
We ran to become the protagonists of this story.
The ancient beast god’s story that pierced through long darkness.
That ending shall end as a fairy tale of shining lightning.
A fairy tale driving away the dark snake. A story standing at the center of [Fate]. Golden murals and the legend of two girls.
At this moment, the center of this universe hung on our fingertips.
Along with thunder resounding in our ears, gold and blue-white danced and blazed.
We released the name of the weapon carrying such [Fate].
“Pierce through, [Gungnir]—!!”
Endless lightning.
Dazzling flashes.
Thunder resounding through the academy city’s sky extinguished the darkness about to swallow the World Tree.
And so…
We became legends.