Chapter 4

Part 1

“Alright――――!”

“We did it! Se―rve you right you monsters!”

After Raphael was defeated, the national defense army lowered down all the barrier wall and the entire force including Sumika and Chikori linked up.

The Raphael army that fell into chaos from losing their leader and the divine protection of was annihilated with the force of raging wave.

Around the corpses of the angels collapsed here and there in the half-destroyed fortification, the soldiers of the national defense army that survived the battle were all rising roar of great joy while praising their fellow colleagues who fought hard and survived.

And then Sumika too,

“Chikori-san!”

“Leader……”

She rushed at Chikori as the first thing she did.

In contrast Chikori looked embarra.s.sed from the miserable thing she had said before this,

“……I came.”

She played the fool by sticking out her tongue as if to varnish over the matter.

But even Sumika too didn’t plan to raise such an issue this late.

She took Chikori’s both hands and expressed her grat.i.tude from the bottom of her heart.

“I believed in you……. That if it’s Chikori-san then you will surely stand up……”

“Leader told me weren’t you. Master is not here anymore, but Leader’s promise with Master doesn’t go away. It still remains inside your heart. ……I too made promise. That’s why, I’ll do my best.”

“Yes-“

And then, while Sumika was congratulating Chikori’s recovery,

“Sumika!”

Suddenly somebody hugged tightly at her with the momentum that was like a body blow.

The one who hugged her was Lily Hoegarden who was fighting at another battlefield.

“Wah. Lily……so you are also safe.”

“That’s my line……! Hics, for you to face a alone, there is a limit even for being reckless……!”

Surely her heart was greatly worn away.

For Lily who lost both her parents, her best friend Sumika was an existence that was like her only remaining blood relative.

That was why Lily embraced Sumika tightly while sobbing and presented her honest words.

Sumika spoke while returning the embrace to such Lily.

“Thank you for worrying about me. But I didn’t fight alone at all. Because Lily and the others gave your best effort, he was an enemy that I was able to defeat. And so this is the victory of all the surviving people in Tokyo life sphere.”

“……I wonder, if will give us her cooperation with this.”

Sumika shook her head toward the question that Lily murmured while wiping her tears.

“That is……something that Vel-san has to decide herself, so I can say nothing. It’s just, the thing that we have to do is decided already. Even after this there are two

And, it was at that moment――

Suddenly image was projected in the field of vision of all magicians in the battlefield.

A black haired girl with cat ears.

The mind transmission from Bastet wedged into their view.

And then the girl informed in a panicked state.

{Everyone, I apologize. It’s an emergency situation!}

“Bastet-san?”

{It’s the scheme of that Gabriel! That guy, he left behind his army inside the labyrinth as prey to lure the eye of my underling and breakaway as a single unit here!}

“Wha, what do you mean!?”

Lily asked back to Bastet who was talking rapidly in hurry.

With that Bastet realized that there was no time to speak about the minor details anymore and spoke bluntly.

{

Right after that.

Silver rip ran through the sky that was covered by iridescent cloud.

The rip was flowing out light that made one even felt its holiness while spreading, illuminating the Tokyo life sphere right below.

And then, the people in Tokyo life sphere saw.

A figure of a person appeared from inside the light.

A middle-aged man holding a golden sword in hand.

They knew of the face of that man.

“That’s……the of Britain.”

“James Weasley……!”

But,

James that was projected in their field of vision.

The pair of wings spreading on his back made Sumika convinced.

He who betrayed them and decapitated Sumika’s head had also reached the same en like Wan Tairon.

Part 2

“How surprising. For Raphael to suffer an embarra.s.sing defeat.”

The wasteland of underworld at the deepest area of the labyrinth he reached.

Staring at the battlefield below from the sky, the

In his eyesight that was far stronger than them human, the figures of Raphael army that had become corpses collapsed on the battlefield were visible.

In addition the presence of Raphael that suddenly disappeared.

Gabriel was convinced from all the fact above.

――In a surprising development, the humans had annihilated Raphael and without the power of Kamishiro Homura.

“So the remark of that evil G.o.d is not wholly nonsense.”

――Don’t underestimate the human too much. That’s if you don’t want to lose face excessively.

Before they entered Eihort’s labyrinth.

He recalled the words of that appeared before their eyes,

“Since it become like this, ……I too shall put my act in order.”

Gabriel who had never crossed sword for even once let go of the

He liberated his own power as angel.

The national defense army looked.

At how radiant light was overflowing from James body, and James’s silhouette that existed as shadow at the center was gradually changing shape.

Before long the light settled down and the one who was floating in the sky wasn’t James.

It wasn’t a human.

It was a body that was around two meter in a whole with l.u.s.ter that was like ashen silver metal.

His two hands from the elbow ahead became sharp huge blade, with white face that was without eyes, nose, and mouth.

That appearance which was like a knight clad in armor was exactly the figure strengthened by Gabriel’s power.

That

“Here I come, children of man.”

Gabriel began to descend down slowly toward the land of the underworld.

This attack of the enemy’s main force that came too fast greatly shaken the national defense army of Tokyo life sphere.

“He, he comeee-!”

“This is a lie right, even though we still haven’t take care of our ally’s death!”

“Don’t be panicked! The enemy is alone! The anti-aircraft gun and the SAM! Aim them all at that guy alone and hit him with all we got-!”

In contrast with the national defense army that was preparing to flee, the commander Hasad gave out order with strong tone.

As if having their b.u.t.t kicked by that order, the national defense army began anti-aircraft interception using the fortification facilities that were possessed by the fairies in panic.

――They did but,

All of that ended in nothing as if it was only natural.

“No, no good! The bullets and missiles are all slipping through!”

“Chih”

Hasad who held the command clicked his tongue in irritation toward that report.

(I heard it already at the strategy meeting but, so this is that thing……!)

Different with other angels, even though , because their original spirit status was extremely high they could maintain their .

It was to the degree that the spirit status of the like of human or fairy wouldn’t be able to even touch the

No, if it was only in the level of touching, then it was possible if they were using the angel feather scattered around at their feet just like what Chikori did against Raphael before this.

But to break the and further to even inflict a decisive blow that could defeat Gabriel, then speaking about someone who could do that,

――There was only Sumika alone in this place.

That was why Hasad was begging at Sumika through mind transmission.

“ missy! What are we going to do now!? How should we act!?”

“Leader Hasad……-“

But Sumika couldn’t give an answer to the question thrown at her.

Just in case she had been thinking about various things for the sake of the second battle.

However Gabriel’s appearance was too fast, far surpa.s.sing her prediction.

She was unable to make any preparation at all..

The countermeasure she was thinking was already wholly unusable.

Now that it came to this, there was only one way to defeat Gabriel.

In the current situation, there was only one tactic they could take.

“……What can defeat that ……. So――, -“

But, Sumika was unable to say the detail further.

Why, it was because she was aware that the thing she was going to say couldn’t even be called a plan.

Yes, if they were going to defeat Gabriel, it would be through an act that was like directing her allies to a deep valley and having them throwing themselves down, filling that valley with their corpses so she could then cross over.

It was something that she really couldn’t say out loud.

That was why she couldn’t talk. She wasn’t talking. But――

“I got it! In other words number is everything here, all of us just need to attack and hold him down! Then missy is going to hit him with ! I rea―lly got it! Do you guys got it too!?”

“ “ “OOOOOoOOoOooo!!!!” “ “

Hasad guessed all Sumika’s thinking from her silence and gave that order.

To this the soldiers of national defense army returned their affirmative with a roar filled with strong will.

The voice of them made Sumika felt a pain that was like the flesh of her heart being twisted to the limit.

That was only natural.

Because the girl understood.

With this plan, innumerable humans would die.

Possibly even the important friends of Sumika.

However, ――there was no other plan she could propose in the current situation, now that Gabriel was coming down to the ground, she didn’t even have time to think.

“Forgive me……-“

Sumika only apologized to all the people in this place with a voice as if she was spitting out blood.

And, toward this,

“Don’t give us that kind of face ! After all we can still fight only because you are here!”

“That’s right. Even with that kind of plan, we can do it because we believe that if it’s you then you will surely beat that guy.”

Not a single one was saying any complaint, they cheered up Sumika, some people with loud voice, some people with mind transmission.

And then Hasad too, he even showed a daring smile in that heroic look.

“You said it weren’t you missy. That fighting to keep living, is the duty people who live.

But see. I too also think like this.

If it’s the duty of the living to fight for the sake of survival,

Fighting even if you have to throw away that really precious life for the sake of protecting, is the pride of human.”

“Don’t let it be for nothing. This obstinacy of us!”

The unshakeable determination filling Hasad and the others’ words.

Just what kind of tragedy they would fall into due to this tactic.

Toward their fighting spirit that didn’t fail even when they understood that, Sumika also resolved herself.

From the first place this

Even when she was battling Raphael, she worked out a mult.i.tude of plans before she finally was able to defeat him with everyone’s strength that she obtained.

Then,

“――Understand!”

Just like they who were believing in her, she too would believe in them.

There was nothing she could do except that.

To this resolve of Sumika,

“We will go too!”

“Yep-!”

Chikori and Lily who were standing beside her also started to move.

Their aim was the spot where Gabriel was coming down at. The very front line.

To the back of those two,

“Chikori-san. Lily! ……I will be counting on you two!”

Sumika sent them her yell.

Both of them accepted that with powerful smile and ran off.

And then――

“There will be the danger of friendly fire so don’t use firearm! The magicians are to trans.m.u.te the angel’s feather to your ! You guys that aren’t magicians, wrap the feather with bandage to your bayonet and fight! It’s fine even if it’s just a few seconds! We are going to push back that flat face with all of us!”

“ “ “OOOOoOooOoOooOooooo――――――—!!!!” “ “

At the same time with Gabriel leisurely falling down on the battlefield, the soldiers of national defense army moved all at once.

They stuck the angel’s feather on their weapon, without any formation at all, they became like a tsunami and a.s.saulted Gabriel.

The situation was one versus 150,000.

However the enemy was an demon.

Against him there was nothing like numerical superiority.

In the next moment, something terrible would happen.

Even while being convinced of that,

(I won’t let this be pointless……! I’ll finish this in one attack!)

Sumika didn’t avert her eyes.

She readied in both hands, she opened her eyes wide that she even forgot to blink to probe for the instant of the victory chance.

Looking at the action of those humans――

“How beautiful, all of you.”

Gabriel spilled voice that sounded admiring from somewhere in his face that didn’t have mouth.

“Eh?”

“Not considering your own life for the sake of other people, you stand against me stifling your terror. While knowing that you are no match at all, you don’t stop fighting betting on the slim hope. That spirit of self-sacrifice, is exactly the precious emotion that G.o.d loves.”

This praise of Gabriel wasn’t a lie.

He felt from the bottom of his heart that mankind’s action was nice.

And then exactly for that reason, the difference of sense of values between human and angel that was incompatible became clear right here.

“Therefore――I shall save all of you.”

Saying that, Gabriel walked on the ground as if he was sliding, he slipped through between the few hundred soldiers attacking him from the front with angel feather stuck on their bayonet, ――just as he pa.s.sed through, the flesh of all people he crossed changed into meat slices around ten centimeter each after that.

“~~~~~~–!”

“Wha, what’s this. I cannot see anything!?”

“U-, oE”

That terrible spectacle of the thing that used to be human shaped turned into meat slices made the people that weren’t used to battlefield pressed on their mouth to endure their nausea.

But,

“Don’t be anxious. I don’t kill them.”

Those words of Gabriel made the soldiers quickly realized.

The lumps of meat that became small pieces.

Any one of them wasn’t trickling even a single drop of blood.

“Thi, this is……!”

“I only [unfasten] them with holy magic and make them sleep at the same time. The lives of all of you [virtuous human] belong to G.o.d. The souls that will be entrusted with the honor of becoming the land of G.o.d’s kingdom. I won’t uselessly soil the ground of this underworld with your blood. I won’t even torment you vainly. ……This

Saying that, this time Gabriel brandished his arm that became sword with all his strength.

At the same time strung up divinity was visibly surging out from his body.

That sight made Sumika’s spine shiver.

It was because Sumika was an outstanding magician that she perceived it.

That it was bad.

“GET DOWNNNNNNNNNNN—!!!!”

Even while getting herself down, she yelled by squeezing out all the air inside her lung.

At that moment――

Sumika felt chill in her neck.

It was like a cold steel was licking her nape, a chill that made her whole body tremble.

That was the proof that the spot where Sumika’s neck was just at before was thoroughly blown away,

Ninety percent of the national defense army’s soldiers at five hundred meter around Gabriel who didn’t made it in time to get their body down following Sumika’s yell were felled.

(Just with one attack, more than a thousand people……-!)

The sliced meats of their friends that were piled in front of their eyes.

Everyone shuddered from witnessing that.

And then in the middle of disastrous scene that Gabried made himself,

“Now. Following that willpower, possessing spirit of n.o.ble self-sacrifice, you can come challenging me. If your soul will shine because of that reason, I won’t blame that with irreverence. Show your worth to G.o.d to your heart’s content.”

Gabriel spread his two arms that became blade after announcing that largeheartedly.

It was as though he was even going to embrace the humans.

To this the humans,

“That’s unneeded a.s.sistance, looking down on us so high and mighty like that……-!”

Not faltering against the destruction that Gabriel brought, the second wave attack began.

The enemy was .

Of course they were resolved of a destruction of this level.

No, he was surely already holding back considerable even with this.

The fact was, not a single one of the people cut by Gabriel had died.

They were parted by holy magic and were only sleeping.

Even the attack before this where more than a thousand people were felled, it was only something cute compared to Raphael’s .

Gabriel was still holding back.

He was going easy on them.

Then, right now was a chance.

The mankind persuaded themselves like that, all people other than those who could use Hero Skill of sure hit equipped close range weapon and carried out besieging attack from 360 degree of Gabriel with all their force.

No matter how many sacrifices would come out, they would overwhelm him with number and created an opening for .

This war of attrition with first cla.s.s suicide attack was carried out with that resolve.

Against this mankind’s number strike, Gabriel didn’t escape to the sky and kept standing on the ground.

Just like before he didn’t even show a motion of swinging his arm.

――Just what in the world he is planning.

The student knight Rozalind Wagner who was in the head of the second wave felt doubt for an instant.

But she immediately shook off that doubt from her thought.

It didn’t matter what the opponent was going to do.

What they should do was to suppress Gabriel even for a few seconds.

Then it was convenient if the enemy was just standing still defenselessly.

They would hold him down with this chance.

Encouraging herself like that, the instant she stepped into the range of five meter around Gabriel――

“eh”

Rozalind saw the sight of her own field of vision tilting violently.

Gabriel didn’t make a single movement.

Nevertheless, the head and limbs of the leading pack at the second wave approaching Gabriel were disconnected from their body, crumbling down with a thump on the ground without flowing out a single drop of blood.

All of them lost consciousness without understanding what was done to them.

“Roze……-!?”

Anna who was running behind Rozalind peeled her eyes wide open to that sight.

Even Anna that was in the rear of the second wave didn’t understand what happened.

――Was Gabriel laying out a barrier that generated slash?

She didn’t understand.

But it was dangerous to recklessly approach.

“You ba,STAaRD!”

That was why Anna was firing rapidly with the machine guns reading in both her hands from slight distance.

The rear group of the second wave other than her was also making the same decision.

However, the bullets and magic beam they fired were all scattered like mist five meter around Gabriel as expected.

“s.h.i.tty b.a.s.t.a.r.d! He is laying out some other barrier than the !”

The soldiers firing clicked their tongue in this situation, but,

“Lies……”

Anna who had good eyesight certainly saw it.

The lead bullets she fired.

The instant where they approached Gabriel to gouge him.

Gabriel’s image that looked as if he was immobile blurred, at the next instant white glimmers ran on the firing lines and the bullets were cut apart into pieces, she saw that sight.

Yes. It wasn’t that Gabriel didn’t move.

The existences that entered his range were thoroughly cut apart thoroughly in every little bit one by one.

That speed was far faster than even bullet, to the level that human’s eyesight couldn’t possibly hop to catch sight of that swordsmanship.

(The dimension of the speed is too different……! This kind of guy, how are we going to――)

It was the end if she was caught.

In front of Anna who was shuddering like that, Gabriel brandished the blades at his both hands again in large movement that human’s eyesight couldn’t see, and his body rotated.

d.a.m.n it.

Without even any time to regret her own wavering like that,

“Kuh, ha”

Right after that, the blade of divinity that was released in circle shape around Gabriel once again mowed down his surrounding.

With that one attack, the second wave was mostly exterminated.

Anna too had her torso and waist decapitated.

There was no pain.

But sleepiness that was hard to resist stole the consciousness of the sacrifices.

(Sorry……, Hoshikawa-chan…………-)

And then Anna too crumbled down on the ground with her consciousness lost.

The mountain of meats that had became finely sliced pieces piled up.

That grotesque scene made the national defense army’s expression visibly convulsing.

But even so,

“Don’t falterrr-! Hold him down with number! It’s fine even if you just take a few seconds of his time-!”

“ “ “U, UOOOoOOOOOOO!!!!” “ “

They didn’t stop.

Didn’t pull back.

Everyone understood.

That as long as they didn’t defeat this enemy before them, they didn’t have any future even if they escaped.

However, not only they couldn’t even get closer to him within five meter, the damage kept increasing.

Looking at that terrible spectacle of her allies, Lily was convinced.

That by kept applying pressure with number like this, they couldn’t even touch Gabriel.

Then a trick was needed.

That was why Lily cooperated with a certain person in advance and went forward.

And then she activated her

She drew an arch flying up and soared right above Gabriel.

From there,

(The greatest range of my is 150 people strong with one attack! I will strike him with that one attack!)

“–!!!!”

Consecutive 150 magic thrusts were unleashed from right above Gabriel in one attack.

Although it was merely 150 rapid attack of spear.

For Gabriel who showed how he dealt with the shooting in the scale of as much as a few thousand people, this wasn’t really that big of threat.

It was a technique that he could easily defend.

――Lily also understood that.

That was why she didn’t aim at Gabriel.

What she thrust her spear at was the ground around Gabriel.

The plate of Tokyo life sphere’s outer layer.

The plate that was made into beehive by lost its hardness and cause a collapse of approximately fifty centimeter with Gabriel as the center.

Below the place was a hollow for the sake of electric cable and water pipe to travel.

And then this phenomenon where he suddenly lost his foothold made Gabriel showed an opening.

The posture of that

“Now!”

At that slight opening, Ichinotani Chikori that was waiting behind in order to match her timing with Lily in advance rushed toward Gabriel. And then――

“――–!!!!”

She swung her fist that was gripping an angel’s feather.

This cooperation of Lily and Chikori splendidly caught Gabriel, this was the first attack of mankind that reached him.

Chikori’s fist that struck at Raphael definitely caught the stomach of Gabriel.

――That was all.

“No, way……-“

Chikori opened her eyes wide in despair and her voice trembled.

The response that came back at Chikori’s fist that struck the target, was a feedback like she was. .h.i.tting the earth, a thick heavy feeling that was difficult to sway.

Speaking of that thick and heavy feel, it was to the degree that it was Chikori’s fist that struck which got destructed.

“It’s splendid how that meager fist can be sublimed until this height. If you are against Raphael then he might flinch from that attack. Be that as it may……I am Gabriel. The person who is allowed to stand at the left of G.o.d’s throne. Although we are the same

At the next instant, Gabriel who spread his wings widely once again rotated both his hands and cut down everything around him.

Lily, Chikori, and all other people altogether.

Even though their opponent was just a single person――

Even though he didn’t even plan to strike them down――

They couldn’t even properly approach him.

They couldn’t even touch him.

Just when they thought someone finally could touch him, even a strike with the whole might didn’t create any damage.

To that fact, all the survivors began to feel a pressure as if the sky was falling at them.

Sumika too was also, the same.

Because the girl was wise, she was recognizing the danger of the situation more than anyone.

――Compared to Garbiel, Raphael was something cute, it was outrageous.

Just how easy it would be if Gabriel was like Raphael, holding contempt against human, looking down at them, and wielded his strength recklessly.

If that was the case, they could also try to rub his emotion the wrong way to create an opening.

But, Gabriel was different.

Although this

He was constantly serious, carrying out the command given to him from the G.o.d to [save the humans].

In him there was not even a little bit of unnecessary idle thought existing.

Earnestly. Accurately just like a machine.

However due to that, no opening was created. No chance was created.

Man and angel. The difference in status of their existence that came from the difference in their basic ability was expressed in reality.

(……At this rate)

All of them would be defeated, without achieving anything.

Sumika felt a fierce impatience.

If the sacrifice would just increase unreasonably at this rate, shouldn’t she came out to make her move.

She became a prisoner of such thoughtlessness.

It was at such a time.

The motion of Gabriel that was stepping forward toward the surviving force that was stricken with fear unnaturally pitched forward.

The reason was――

“I, got you……!”

At Gabriel’s feet.

The left foot of Gabriel, Chikori who lost everything below her torso was clinging with just her arm.

(I see! Chikori-san’s Hero Skill……!)

Sumika remembered.

The heroic spirit she was contracted with, the legend of the Musashibou Benkei.

That hero continued to fight until none of his life remained, he finally met his end still standing.

The contractor of Musashibou Benkei reproduced that legend―― as a Hero Skill.

So to speak, she was able to maintain her consciousness and continued to fight as long as she wasn’t dead yet.

Due to that Hero Skill, the sleepiness due to Gabriel’s holy magic was ineffective against Chikori.

She was grappling Gabriel’s leg only with the strength of her arm.

And then,

“Now! Hold him down all of youuuu!”

“ “ “UAAaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!” “ “

Matching this action of Chikori, Hasad gave the command and the soldiers began to move all at once.

They were already not using weapon or anything.

With both hands that had angel feather bandaged on it, they were pinning down Gabriel.

Just like honeybees that were crushing to death a hornet that entered their nest.

And then while holding on to Gabriel, Hasad yelled.

“MISSY–! COME ON–!!”

Defeat this threat with , with them altogether.

Sumika didn’t hesitate after this far.

Everyone abandoned themselves in order to make this chance for her.

To be the only one hesitating after this late and then wasted the chance that Chikori and others grasped in deathly desperation, Sumika wasn’t that foolish.

She had already pulled the triggers of the two handguns which had finished loading the bullets――,

“< p="">

“I see. So you are the one other who defeated Raphael.”

Just like a frame that was suddenly thrust into a film that was in the middle of playing, before her eyes without any advance warning at all, the existence of a white flat face appeared in the range where their breath could be felt made her dumbfounded, all her thinking was frozen.

And then in that moment, the battle was decided in a shape where the result couldn’t be taken back anymore.

With a thump, the two hands of Sumika that were in the verge of shooting fell on the ground.

Furthermore,

“Ku, a. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!”

――Different with everything until now, it was accompanied with intense pain and bleeding.

Gabriel informed with indifferent voice to Sumika who was moaning in agony.

“Fighting with the spirit of self-sacrifice for other people. Such an act delighted G.o.d, however begging for a.s.sistance to evil G.o.d is different. That is an act that is abominable to the extreme. ……O inexperienced . The honor of becoming the land of G.o.d’s kingdom is wasted on you. You can meet your end in this spot.”

And then the angel raised his arm of blade mercilessly.

For the sake of lopping off the neck of the fool who relied on the evil G.o.d, the another .

“Missy!”

“Leader-!?”

Even yelling, no one would make it in time to help.

There was no way they would make it.

Because to even follow the trajectory of that blade, was something impossible for them.

Therefore,

(I’m sorry, everyone……, Homura-san……-)

While trickling tear of her own incompetence, Sumika resolved herself of the end of her own life and shut her eyes.

But――

(Eh?)

Even after waiting, the cold sensation of blade in her nape didn’t come.

Even though Gabriel’s blade had the speed that eye couldn’t follow.

Just why in the world? When Sumika opened her eyes thinking that,

She saw crimson fluttering inside her small view. And then,

“Good grief. Isn’t this a complete rout. Pathetic.”

Her ear heard the astonished blunt remark of the girl.

Sumika knew that voice.

There was no way she would mistake that voice.

The reason was because that voice, was a hope for mankind.

Sumika lifted her eyelids in sudden realization,

“Vel, san……!”

She called her name. The name of the avatar of , standing between Sumika and Gabriel, a polyhedron barrier that was like a black diamond was blocking Gabriel’s slash.

Part 3

Vel who was the avatar of that was the grimoire of Homura repelled back Gabriel with black barrier, before she sighed.

“I want you to hold out with your own strength while I’m making my preparations. ……I really made a stupid promise.”

“You, really come here……!”

Vel slightly frowned toward Sumika who was expressing her joy fully in her face.

Actually she didn’t plan to come.

That was natural.

Human made Vel’s master, Homura to be isolated.

They made Homura to shoulder a lot of sadness, loss, making use of his good will without shame.

Vel hated humans.

She loathed humans who made Homura sad.

――Especially, the female who spouted out a joke of standing equal with Homura that she couldn’t even do.

She was thinking so.

However……the girl before her that was drenched in blood, showed how she made reality the thoughtless words that Vel thought as a joke.

Although their spirit status had fell, she showed how she defeated an

And then Sumika showed.

――I’m thinking. It’s fine if I just reach Homura-sans side.

That day, the promise she exchanged with Homura wasn’t merely a joke or pipe dream.

Then,

“But although it is a stupid promise, a promise is a promise. Although I’m a Great Old One, but because I’m a G.o.d I protect my promise.”

Let’s make sure of it.

The promise of this girl with Homura. The conclusion of it.

She wasn’t even told to by anyone to do this. She wasn’t even won over by Sumika’s pledge.

This was solely because of her own will.

After all――

――Fine then. Just try it if you can.

Because that was the first time she saw Homura that happy since the time he was in .

“Hoshikawa Sumika. I’ll recognize you as my master.”

Instantly, Vel’s body emitted light and transformed into scattered pieces of paper.

The pieces of paper danced in the wind, then while whirling around Sumika who lost her arms,

A sheet, then one more sheet, were absorbed into Sumika’s body.

(a――)

Each time Sumika felt a sensation of being filled with magic power that wasn’t originally inside her body.

Before long, that change also began to appear in the girl’s external appearance.

Her golden hair that was tinged with light transformed silver.

Her white eyeball became jet black that absorbed light, her blue pupil changed color into golden inside that jet black color like a moon that was shining in the night sky.

Sumika’s cut off arms were also finished regenerating with the process of that change.

Her fallen arms floated up as if time was being rewound, fastened themselves at the cut flesh, , then the pieces of paper of clung at the cut line as if to cover over it and healed that wound.

She returned to her previous condition without any change at all.

“This, is……”

{. Our bodies are fused temporarily. The magic power and the magic power vein too are using mine and yours at the same time, so a wound of that level can be healed immediately.}

“Amazing……! Is this the secret of Homura-san’s strength?”

Looking at the powerful magic power of G.o.d that was surging out from inside her body, Sumika asked Vel who was directly speaking into her brain.

Vel displayed a blunt irritation at that question.

{Great fail. Master doesn’t need something like my power. If we do something like fusion then I will be the one dragging Master down and make him weaker instead. But this is just right for someone who is weak like you from the start as a training wheel.}

Her slightly sulky voice was surely because she was thinking that Sumika was making fun of Homura.

His strength until the end was his own true strength.

Vel gave that cynical reminder to Sumika.

“A, ahaha, thank you for your consideration……”

Even while making a wry smile to that cynic of Vel, Sumika thought.

Although Vel was the avatar of that Great Old One, just as she thought this girl was thinking of Homura dearly.

Yes. Just like her.

Then, ――they should be able to work together well.

With that conviction in her heart, Sumika once again aimed her gun muzzle at the enemy before her eyes.

In contrast,

“. Shouldn’t you not give any a.s.sistance to humans?’

Repelled by the , Gabriel who was falling back a little showed a definite disgust on his face that was without eyes and mouth toward Vel’s intervention.

To this, Vel replied with words, not through Sumika’s mouth but by vibrating the air with magic power.

{That is something that a different [I] said. I don’t remember saying anything like that. After all [We] are by no means moving under a single unifying thought without exception.}

“……Well fine. In any case I have no intention of letting an existence a.s.sociated with the Great Old One to remain in the kingdom of G.o.d. Right now in this place, you will perish together with this failure of by this Gabriel’s hand.”

After saying that as if spitting out, Gabriel’s body deeply sunk, he raised his wings high.

It wasn’t the stance that looked unmoving in a glance until now.

Although the enemy was just a single body amongst the million avatars, it was still an existence of with spirit status higher than even

Gabriel too had no intention of fighting like a cuddling with playful children like what he had done this far.

Against the hostility of this

{What a coincidence. ――I too, don’t have any intention of letting all of you who killed Master to live.}

Bring it on. Inside Sumika’s mind, Vel’s beautiful look that was like a doll,

{Prepare yourself. You won’t have an easy death.}

As if drawing a red of blood color made from boiling down every kind of s.a.d.i.s.tic emotions, Vel made an extremely gruesome scornful laugh that made one felt repulsive.

“HAA-!”

Right after that, Gabriel kicked the ground in the form that bought Vel’s provocation and swung his arm blade at Sumika.

Even following that movement was beyond the power of human body’s spec, a six slash from left and right in different dimension.

But, Sumika stepped to left and right through this six brutal blades and dodged safely.

(I can see it……! The movement of Gabriel that I couldn’t see at all just now!)

Sumika’s flesh that had gone through was also wasn’t something human anymore.

Therefore she could follow the offense and defense in this dimension.

{Sumika is above even me if it’s about battle experience. I will entrust the body’s leadership to you, so fight just like what you have done until now. I will devote myself to support.}

“I understand!”

Sumika had made her move faster than even her answer.

So that the surface wouldn’t get swallowed by their battle’s destruction, she activated her

At the same time the revolvers she held in her hands rubbed together like striking a flint, the magazines slide away.

After that,

“!”

By using the Hero Skill that possessed the divine protection of instantaneous. .h.i.t, three each in the left and right returned the favor of the six slashes.

Not a single shot among them missed and impacted Gabriel’s body. The bullets carved gunshot wounds.

“Nuh, NUaAAA!?”

At the same time Gabriel leaked out pained cry that he had never done until now.

“This is……!”

When he looked, it was as if acid was exposed to the gunshot wound, The gray silver body of Gabriel changed color to black and was being dissolved muddily.

Giving a glance at that phenomenon, Sumika who possessed abundant knowledge in regard of the abyss understood.

“Poison of Gla’aki……!”

{Correct. The poison of Gla’aki dirtied the soul. It’s immediately effective against angels with high spirit status.}

Yes. Vel enchanted the poison of Gla’aki inside the bullet that Sumika fired.

The poison of the divinity called Gla’aki degraded the living into an undead without any will, it was an evil deadly poison that blasphemed life.

It would cause strong reaction against the virtuous soul of

But,

“Don’t think that Gabriel will fall to something of this level……!”

Gabriel held down the intense pain scorching his body with willpower.

And then radiance surged out from his face that was like a sphere,

“-!”

focused until it became white aurora was unleashed at Sumika who was running to the sky.

That radiance couldn’t be compared in thickness against the one Raphael had.

If she was swallowed by that, she wouldn’t stay whole even with her state.

Therefore Sumika immediately attempted to evade with

{It’s fine to not escape.}

Instantly, Vel who stole the leadership of the body from Sumika held back her movement.

As the result, Sumika didn’t move into dodging maneuver and received the scorching heat of the aurora that fully filled her field of vision.

Great flower of light and flame bloomed at the sky in the same time with the impact.

The white aurora together with the gushing out wind blast filled the whole area of Tokyo life sphere with radiance where the people couldn’t even recognize color.

Inside that radiance,

“KAAAaAAA-!!!!”

Gabriel moved.

The blade of his left arm changed shape into something like a thin knight lance.

He saw it.

The instant Sumika was swallowed by the flash, Vel who possessed Sumika deployed the black barrier that blocked his slash before.

The enemy was still alive inside this light.

Together with that conviction, Gabriel thrust his arm that had changed into a knight lance and soared the sky.

The heart was gouged inside the radiance.

“Kuah!”

At the same time with the scream, a feedback returned, the sensation of flesh being pierce wetly.

Before long the light was gone and the scenery returned to before,

“Leader-!”

“Missy-!?”

Even in the eyes of Sumika’s comrades who looked up at the two rising to the sky, the scene of Gabriel’s spear piercing through Sumika’s chest was reflected.

And then the scene of Sumika who was pierced became muddy iridescent color and spilling down from the spear like a melting mud was also reflected.

“Teke   lili! Teke   lili!”

“This is, ……!”

Gabriel clicked his tongue at the mocking voice.

Looking at the sky that lost its light, there were more than thirty Sumika floating around him.

They were that was transformed as disturbance.

{Do you know which is the real one?}

{You insolent-!}

Vel’s question that was filled with a lot of sarcasm was responded by Gabriel with cutting tone like a blade.

“I just need to pierce them all!”

And then against the similar clones deploying in the sky.

Gabriel was skewering one after another the clones with spear handling that was like flash.

In the blink of eye their heart and head were gouged, the became mud and fell to the ground.

In the first place they were just clones made of underling species, there was no way they could make any considerable opposition.

“With this, it’s the end!”

Finally the last one, ――so to speak the real Sumika’s forehead was also pierced by the grey sliver spear.

At the same time,

{The answer is, ――all miss.}

The last one was also became muddy iridescent mud and crumbled down.

And then,

Open from the outer s.p.a.ce     o the person judging the boundary of phenomenon

Gabriel heard that spell from behind him.

When he turned around in panic, Sumika whose shoulder had a hole gouged there with blood trickling was entering the shooting posture for .

Yes. After the girl got pierced at the very first turn, she transformed into and took Gabriel’s back.

Gabriel also noticed that trick now, but the time was already too――

“Come from the interstice of dark and heaven! ――Daoloth!!”

Gabriel’s chest was pierced by the strength of Great Old One that exiled Raphael to beyond s.p.a.ce-time.

“Nu, o, ooOoOO, o, o, o   oOO!?!?”

Wrung and wrung, like a thick rubber string forcefully being twisted before raising an unpleasant sound, the hole opened on his chest was sucking Gabriel’s body like a vortex.

Gabriel couldn’t give a satisfactory opposition just like where Raphael was having this done to him, he was being swallowed into the other side of the veil,

“   tsu,      o――――”

Finally his figure vanished from in front of Sumika.

Nowhere in this universe, the empty s.p.a.ce where no s.p.a.ce, no time, no concept, nothing existed at all.

Gabriel was dragged into the territory of Daoloth.

That was, what supposed to happen.

But,

――Do you know the meaning of the name Gabriel? ――

“Ka, -……!?”

Right after such question shook the atmosphere, Sumika felt the sensation of her stomach pierced by sharp impact.

When she looked, gray silver spear was piercing her navel as if to excavate it.

Sumika drew back in panic to pull the spear out and opened her eyes wide in shock.

Because the spear was extending out from a black hole that was trying to swallow and isolate everything.

Before long, not only the spear, but an arm sword also thrust out from that hole.

And then those two things wrenched open the cramped hole with brute force while,

“It means G.o.d is my strength……-!”

The hole was torn off to left and right.

The grey silver angel Gabriel possessed peerless physical strength entrusted to him along with that name from G.o.d, he returned back from the territory of Daoloth by sheer strength.

Sumika who didn’t think that could possibly be defeated lost all her thought power for an instant.

Gabriel didn’t miss that agitation of Sumika.

Flapping his wings with feathers that were like blade, he thrust his spear at Sumika once again.

{Sumika-!}

Vel’s voice somehow made Sumika returned to her senses and she continued to evade Gabriel’s thrusts left and right while,

Firing her in a counterattack,

All bullets impacted the head of Gabriel who became defenseless from moving to offense.

On top of that the magic bullets that were tinged with divine poison of Gla’aki blown away Gabriel’s head.

However――

(He’s not stopping-!)

Even with his head lost, Gabriel still charged straight at Sumika and his arm sword flashed horizontally to bisect her.

{}

But the swung blade was repelled with scattered sparks.

It was because Vel deployed a barrier that was like a black diamond around Sumika.

“Yo, you saved me……!”

{Not even that. A slash can be stopped but, a spear with its power concentrate in one point is――}

Unblockable.

The moment Vel informed her with voice that was oozing frustration, Gabriel traced the worst scenario.

“It’s the end with this. O detestable G.o.d……-!”

Even with his head lost, Gabriel announced that with his usual tone and stabbed his spear.

The gray silver spear easily pierced the and ran at Sumika’s heart.

There was no time to evade anumore.

――That was why, Sumika resolved herself and closed her eyelids.

Instantly, Gabriel’s thrust lost its mark and stabbed empty air.

That was natural.

Because Sumika was separated from Gabriel by hundred meters.

She moved within an instant.

No.

The girl [vanished] and [appeared].

She disa.s.sembled her own existence into imaginary unit for once and then she reconstructed her own existence at the designated coordinate using quantum teleport.

{The grand sorcery that combined dimension element and time element fifth rank――. I never thought that a human other than Master that can use that exist. I should say, as expected. If you are not a magician that can at least use that, then there is no worth for me in doing this.}

The sorcery of Homura that she witnessed only once at the battle with Jambure.

Vel sent a praise at the genius sense of Sumika who showed how she reproduced that only by watching.

Although the way she said that was a little dishonest, Vel who was joined with Sumika communicated her praise whose talent filled her heart with admiration.

To that Sumika was,

“Thank you……. But I cannot do that for the second time……”

She returned a wry smile while bleeding from the corner of her eye.

Fifth rank sorcery that was the pinnacle of sorcery for mankind, furthermore combining two sorceries of that fifth rank, was originally a grand sorcery that couldn’t be used by anyone other than an like Homura, yet Sumika used it without any rehearsal at all. Although her body was going through , the reparation exacted from her was great, just using that sorcery once burdened Sumika so much that it felt like a part of her brain had melted.

And then――

“You don’t know when to give up. Resign yourself already. With the power of Great Old One that isn’t even completely summoned, this Gabriel won’t be defeated-!”

Gabriel who grew new head in the blink of eye mercilessly gave chase at Sumika who was in the brink of being worn out.

In comparison Sumika didn’t have any more card she could play.

Although Gla’aki’s poison inflicted intense pain temporarily, it wouldn’t affect Gabriel’s life.

Even her trump card the didn’t work, on top of that she didn’t know what she should do.

But even so,

Sumika readied her gun.

Exactly as Gabriel said, certainly this might be nothing more than vain struggle.

However,

She knew of the miracle that visited at any time those who continued to struggle unsightly, not giving up in the middle of despair.

And then――, it was exactly at the next moment that it happened.

ia   ia   hasutaa

hasutaa   kufuayaku……burugutomu

Voice. Several tens of million roaring chorus from the bottom of earth shook the sky, reaching the ear of Sumika and Gabriel.

Because both of them knew the meaning of those words of underworld, the both stopped all their movement altogether and directed their gaze at the direction of the voice, ――underneath Tokyo life sphere below them.

And then,

(Thi, this is……-!)

Sumika noticed.

Tokyo life sphere below.

Nine defensive walls extending to the sky making the shape of the letter ‘V’.

Vel murmured in relieve toward that sight.

{Just in time.}

She said.

Part 4

A short while after the battle against Gabriel began.

Inside the command room of geofront, Vel summoned Kinugasa and Elfiena who were commanding the humans and fairies respectively and gave a proposal.

The proposal that could become the trump card in the fight against Gabriel. That was――

{Making the refugees of geofront, to summon Great Old One, you say……!?}

Vel replied with a nod toward the dumbfounded Kinugasa.

{Yes. …… Hoshikawa Sumika is an excellent magician. I understand that. But in the end that’s only within the frame of mankind, she is not out of the norm like Master. She is far away from the . Gabriel won’t be defeated by the strength of Sumika. To defeat Gabriel, there is no other way except by fully summoning Great Old One like what Master did all this time when he defeated . And then……, in order to do that the power of number is needed.}

{But, the people who know nothing of sorcery, can they really summon Great Old One?}

This doubt of Elfiena was most correct.

All the people who took refugee in geofront couldn’t use sorcery.

Every human was in possession of magic power in the shape of their soul, but there was only a handful of people who had the making to use sorcery, so to speak the magic power vein in order to manipulate magic power.

However Vel answered that there was no problem in regard to this question.

{The will take the role as the that will chant the spell. It will be fine if you do it. The normal humans who escape to the underground will extol the Great Old One as and give their reverence. If they do that, Great Old One will respond to their voice and appear from the abyss.}

Vel informed them.

Originally the summoning of evil G.o.d was something performed by a great number of people.

People like Homura and Sumika, who manipulated the power of Great Old One alone by themselves were――

{Wrong in the head.}

{I, isn’t that too harsh!?}

{That’s the fact so it can’t be helped.}

Vel declared bluntly without holding back.

{With the strength of the refugees who are approximately eighty million in number, we will summon the Great Old One completely. There is no other way for mankind to survive other than that.}

She once again pressed on the two.

Elfiena immediately showed her will that was in favor to this.

{……Let’s do it! Kinugasa-san! With our strength! After all this is a battle that staked the survival of all the living being that are living in this land!}

{Elfiena-sama……}

After Kinugasa showed a manner of pondering for a little while,

{I understand. I will take the responsibility to bring together the people.}

He promised his cooperation.

Before long Kinugasa made all the people gathering in the shelter district of geofront to memorize the words of praise to the Great Old one that Vel wrote up, he made them do that with a little obscured presentation that it was a charm for helping the soldiers of national defense army who was fighting in the surface.

Believing that it would become a help to the people fighting, they yelled as loud as they could

ia    ia   hasutaa!   ia   ia   hasutaa!

hasutaa   kufuayaku   burukutomu   bugutoragurun   burugutomu

ai  ai   hasutanaa!

It was repeated more than a hundred times.

“Ah……”

At the top of the defensive wall that was raised up in V-shape following Vel’s instruction.

The presence of Elfiena waiting for opportunity, standing on a crest that was like three question marks crossed with each other painted with yellow paint at the bas.e.m.e.nt s.p.a.ce, could be felt.

――Being guided by the words of praise that were offered higher and higher, the presence of gigantic sinister tentacles creeping close with thundering roar from the surface of the abyss.

Even for Elfinea who lived in the demon world, it was an aura that made her feel dread.

But if they didn’t obtain the cooperation of this supernatural existence, they wouldn’t have any future.

That was why she bit the lips that were trembling in fright strongly once and killed her trembling with pain, then she chanted the chanting taught to her by Vel amidst the praising voices that were resounding like tremor.

Listen from the far away Aldebaran      o person that is hard to describe

The seething stars shining brilliantly in blasphemy     informing to thy the time of fate

The crown prince of evil   o G.o.d of shepherd

Deep below the black thorn lake   the chain arresting thy for eternity was severed

Now is the time   with fury   with hatred   dye the abominable Petrugius with blood

Those were the words to wake up the divinity sleeping at the bottom of lake of the far away thorn lake of Aldebaran.

And then――

“Come clad in the clothes of wind! Hastur!!”

The G.o.d sleeping at the end of s.p.a.ce responded to this call.

Suddenly, the iridescent clouds enshrouding the sky of Eihort’s labyrinth s.p.a.ce were penetrated, yellow flashes were pouring down to the ground.

The number was nine. They pierced the defensive walls lined on the ground modeling the Taurus constellation, binding the sky and ground.

The formed shape was path of star.

An enormous person with height that was approximately a kilometer, clad in yellow clothes, as if he was invited by the sing of praise resounding from below the ground was walking the path with his overcoat swaying while descending down to Tokyo life sphere from the far away Aldebaran.

That was exactly the leader of wind spirit commencing with Ithaqua.

Hastur.

And then the gigantic Great Old One of wind that appeared moved its head that was covered with hood and directed its sight to Gabriel.

――From the depth of the hood’s darkness, red eye gleam lit up.

Right after that, overpowering hostility that was even accompanied by ma.s.s struck Gabriel.

The hostility of this Great Old One made Gabriel exposed anger incomparable with before.

“Depraved G.o.d! To dare to obstruct our salvation, you are better off just sleeping in the bottom of your dark lake!”

With his whole body trembling and shining red eye gleam from the depth of his white face, Gabriel spread his wings largely.

And then he struck the wind with those wings and obtained explosive propulsion.

Gabriel rode his spear in that charging force and lunged at Hastur.

His aim was the location that seemed to be where the heart was if it was human.

That sharpness was exactly like a falling star.

Its power was incomparable with the thrust that attacked Sumika.

Hastur didn’t even attempt to dodge that,

――――fuh

Like that, a breath was blown from under the hood.

Just like putting out the fire of a candle, it caused a small, gentle wind.

Merely just with that, the whole body of the approaching Gabriel was attacked with an impact as if he was struck by steel hammer, his four limbs, his wings, head, all became dented like a pulp, causing him to lose his speed and balance.

“~~~~~~~~~~–!”

Gabriel lost his consciousness for an instant from the excessive shock.

But, he was also the .

He immediately recovered his consciousness and his wings that were crushed flat and wet with blood spread out even then, supporting his body that was falling to the ground, he then once again glared at the sworn enemy that ran counter to his G.o.d.

However――

And then Gabriel suddenly noticed.

Inside the instant when he fainted, Hastur surrounded himself with tornado around him and by creating the prison of wind,

“ugh――――!”

In order to escape from the prison of wind that Hastur created, Gabriel swung his arm sword at the tornado wall.

The arm sword cut through the wall of tornado in a flash smoothly.

But, ――the wall was still there, he didn’t make a single tear.

That was only natural.

After all what was bisected was Gabriel’s arm sword.

Even so Gabriel didn’t give up, he stabbed his remaining lance but it gave the same result.

Starting from the tip of lance that touched the wall of tornado, the part was minced apart even finer than dust by the rotating blade of wind before they were blown away in the wind.

It was just like a pneumatic drill.

And then, as if to torment him that blade of pneumatic drill was little by little, little by little, the s.p.a.ce inside the tornado was becoming smaller shaving――

“OoO, OA, hh!?”

First was the outer skin that was like grey silver metal.

Next was the red flesh formed from muscle running below that skin.

Finally even the silver bone protected by the flesh.

Shave shave, shave shave, so on.

Gabriel was being scarped on without mercy.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA–!!!!”

The intense pain of being sc.r.a.ped alive was hard to endure even for an

But, it was absolutely pointless.

His punching arm, his kicking leg, his striking shoulder too, everything was only getting scarped by the tornado starting from the body part touching the shaver. Before long,

“HasturAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!”

The moment Gabriel yelled with cursing voice.

*PAN-*

Hastur knocked together his tentacle hands in front of his body.

As if killing a buzzing fly.

Gabriel that was struck between both hands from that died instantly without even time to scream his death throes. Everything inside his body, flesh an