"..."
Time seemed to freeze for an instant.
In the eyes of the others, Artosh launched a surprise attack at Setsuna. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was pierced through by Honkai energy.
He was blasted to the other side of the stars.
"What just happened?"
Jibril, Azril, and Gudako were completely dumbfounded.
"They probably clashed using time-space abilities for a moment."
Tohru swayed her tail.
"Like Scáthach's Noble Phantasm, reversing cause and effect—an unavoidable, guaranteed-kill type of attack should be pretty common at the level of gods? ..."
"But the Commander mastered time-space abilities a long time ago anyway... Hiss, come to think of it, looking at it this way, Artosh really is quite strong."
"Huh?!"
With the dragon girl's explanation, everyone finally understood that the two had fought on another level entirely.
Boom—
Artosh was sent flying thousands of kilometers before barely stabilizing himself. Lowering his head, he looked at the completely pierced hole in his chest, then at Setsuna with a complicated expression.
Power was rapidly draining from his body. If not for the God of War's exceptionally strong physique, that single strike would have thoroughly pierced his divine core.
Since his birth, this was the first time he had encountered such a powerful opponent—and the first time he had suffered such grievous injury.
Every skill Setsuna used was something he had never heard of, never seen before.
"Lord Artosh!!!"
The Flügel cried out in alarm.
They hurriedly tried to cast healing magic or rush forward to assist, only for Artosh to wave them back.
"You are not a god. How can you wield such power?"
Realizing he was essentially incapable of continuing the fight, Artosh simply discarded his weapon and questioned Setsuna.
"Besides the Old Deus native to Disboard, there are higher-ranked existences in other worlds. Their power is no weaker than what you understand as gods."
"Even the title of God of War—if I remember correctly, there's a guy squatting on a brass toilet who's stronger than you, cough..."
Setsuna replied.
"If you broaden your perspective a little... many weaker gods can't even defeat powerful humans from other worlds."
"...I see."
Artosh nodded and did not press for details.
A general understanding was enough for him.
The opponent he had searched for countless years—the one who could defeat him, kill him—stood right before him.
"Ha—"
He let out a low laugh.
"How rare. To think that in the end, the one who defeats me is a powerhouse from another world, heh..."
"How many more tricks do you have?"
Artosh had exhausted all his strength without shaking Setsuna in the slightest.
Now he was curious what other unimaginable techniques he had yet to witness.
"..."
"You are a very strong opponent. I had to use many Herrscher authorities to deal with you."
Setsuna answered.
He held a measure of respect for such a pure warrior.
"But unfortunately, I did not use my strongest form."
"If I fully unleashed my power, I would project the complete form of the Eternal Snowfall and the entire Starsea Fleet, and wield the power of Outer Gods in battle."
"Your strength is not enough to make me do that."
"..."
"That is truly regrettable."
Artosh raised his head and gazed at Setsuna floating in the starry sky, letting out a sigh.
Nothing was more frustrating than never witnessing the 'strongest.'
"Then let me see it. Your strongest power."
He coughed lightly.
"Disboard, the Suniaster, the Flügel—everything you desire is yours."
"..."
Setsuna fell silent for a moment.
"Very well."
Shing—
Within the boundless starry sky, the true body of the Eternal Snowfall was projected.
An immeasurable super-dimensional starship stretched across the cosmos, like an eagle overlooking all living beings.
Weaponized wings extended thousands of kilometers from either side, reflecting a cold gleam against the backdrop of the stars.
Weapons built for interstellar combat were fundamentally different from anything used on planets.
Artosh had seen many Dwarf ships before. Never had he witnessed such a magnificent warship.
At the same time, he recognized that this was not a purely technological creation. The Eternal Snowfall was infused with numerous different magical forces.
"Ah..."
The Flügel on Avant Heim, as well as Jibril , Schwi, Holou, and the others, were all startled. It was their first time seeing the Juggernaut's true body.
"Th-th-this... this is the Commander's third phase you mentioned?"
Jibril stammered.
"He can also use the Herrscher of Reason's authority to project thousands of starships, and employ every ability you've seen before in battle."
Grey yawned.
"Oh, and if the opponent is strong enough, you might even see the hidden form—when Ancient God EVA destroys Ancient God EVA, there's a 100% chance to trigger a deathrattle and refresh a Cthulhu legion to come beat you up."
"???"
Jibril was utterly dumbfounded.
This boss was unreasonable. He could use cheats.
"...Hah..."
"So that's how it is..."
Artosh looked at the Eternal Snowfall blotting out the stars and directly sensed the gap in their power.
Compared to it, any planetary lifeform was nothing more than an ant.
"Come."
Whoosh—
His battle intent did not waver. As the embodiment of the concept of war, even before an invincible foe, the God of War would never concede.
Burning the last of his strength, Artosh raised his remaining left hand and gathered all divine power into it.
The remaining power of his divine core was fully released. In the depths of the universe, conceptual power continuously converged from afar.
On Abundant Heim, the Flügel grew solemn.
"All Flügel—entrust your Heavenly Smite to Lord Artosh!"
Shing—
An enormous amount of energy gathered in the God of War's hand. In the starry sky, a vortex of energy over a thousand astronomical units in diameter twisted into existence.
"This is my final and strongest strike. Let us end this battle with it."
"Heavenly Smite.—"
BOOM—
Burning himself and releasing all his power, the God of War's Heavenly Smite condensed into a golden pillar of light in the void and swept toward the Eternal Snowfall.
"I grant you the honor of dying in battle under the name of the God of War."
Setsuna waved his hand.
Click—
The thousand-kilometer axial main cannon of the starship emitted a dim glow. The shipboard AI spoke in a mechanical, steady voice:
[Fallen Star Lance, charging status: 100%]
[Overload: 100%]
[Entering firing sequence—]
BOOM!—
A torrent of dark-red energy pierced through the stars in an instant. From afar, the starry sky seemed split in two.
The power unleashed by Heavenly Smite was scattered into nothing the moment it collided with the Fallen Star Lance.
RUMBLE!!!—
When it was first created, the Fallen Star Lance already possessed the power to shatter stars.
After Setsuna fused with the Cocoon of Finality and gained the power of Outer Gods, the energy it unleashed became even more terrifying.
Everything within sight was reduced to fundamental particles.
A pulse composed of high-energy particles dispersed outward at superluminal speed.
In the distant cosmos, the shimmering stars were swept by it. After erupting in blinding flashes, they shattered and collapsed into vast clouds of interstellar dust.
Finally, under the influence of gravity and energy, they collapsed into a gigantic black hole, devouring everything around it.
When everyone finally came back to their senses, a vast portion of the stars marked on the star map had permanently gone dark.
"Ah..."
The Flügel were still in a daze.
Artosh's presence had vanished completely. Not a single trace of divine power could be sensed.
Such a horrifying attack was enough to destroy a true interstellar civilization. No one could possibly survive.
Incomprehensible—what kind of overwhelming power was this?
"Is this the result Lord Artosh wished for? ..."
Azril gazed at the extinguished stars, her expression tinged with confusion.
To let one's opponent use their strongest attack, and to be buried together with the vast starfield—this could be considered the God of War's final dignity.
At the very least, Artosh had been quite satisfied to have the chance to engage Setsuna in the strongest possible duel.
As the God of War, he naturally welcomed his end in the grandest, most magnificent battle.
In a certain sense, this was also his own wish.
"It's over."
Setsuna withdrew the Eternal Snowfall.
He descended before the still-dazed Flügel.
"Mm..."
The Flügel looked at the man before them with a mixture of fear and curiosity.
Born for war, symbols of death and slaughter, they were likewise weapons forged to slay gods.
According to Artosh's earlier command, what they should do was follow the strongest being who defeated the God of War, to understand and seek the reason and source of his strength.
But the events had unfolded too suddenly. None of them had quite recovered yet.
"Hm?"
Taking a closer look, Setsuna suddenly laughed.
Just now, the Flügel had entrusted all their Heavenly Smite to Artosh, exhausting all their power.
So now, the Flügel remaining on the sky city—including Azril—had all turned into little girls.
Each of them huddled together with their wings drawn in, looking up at him pitifully.
"Another batch of lolis acquired?"
"Hm? Why did I say 'another'?! ..."
...
"Ah..."
On Avant Heim, the Flügel stared at the empty starry sky, trembling as Setsuna descended from the cosmos.
Each of them wore a different expression—fear, curiosity, confusion.
Even though Artosh had given them his final command beforehand, they were utterly unprepared to face the reality of their creator's defeat.
They had been born for battle and slaughter. Now that the God of War had suddenly vanished, all of them were at a complete loss.
Whoosh—
The shipgirls and Angeloids piloted their craft down as well.
"Cough, cough... why is this place so primitive? Come to think of it, I remember Avant Heim is actually a Phantasma..."
Grey looked around.
As the nominal headquarters of the Flügel, this sky city was in fact extremely underdeveloped.
Only large, irregular cubes formed footholds. There were no proper residential areas or living facilities to speak of.
On Disboard, the Flügel were simply too powerful. They had no need to develop other forms of technology.
In the most conspicuous place hung a dragon head decorated with ribbons—Jibril's trophy, considered a feat worthy of being recorded in history.
"Get up. Don't be afraid."
Setsuna smiled and gently patted Azril on the head.
The acting leader of the Flügel had also reverted to a childlike form, small and rather adorable.
"Mm..."
Azril looked up at him with forced composure.
"May I ask... what do you intend to do with us?"
Witnessing their creator's death was something the Flügel simply could not accept.
But given the current situation, resisting to the end was completely unrealistic.
They had entrusted all their Heavenly Smite to Artosh. The God of War had burned his life to unleash his ultimate strike, yet before the Fallen Star Lance, it had been like an ant trying to shake a tree.
The two sides were not on the same level at all.
Not to mention that now, in their loli state, this entire group of Flügel combined probably couldn't defeat even a single Angeloid.
"We no longer have any value in existing."
Before Setsuna could speak, one despairing Flügel muttered.
She drew her weapon, intending to end her own life.
Smack—
Jibril jumped down from a ship, snatched the weapon from her hand, and knocked the loli Flügel on the head.
"Don't do that!"
"B-But... but..."
As they argued, Setsuna spoke calmly:
"I gave Artosh the ending he desired most. He already told you what you should do, didn't he?"
"For the God of War, dying in battle against the strongest opponent was his final wish. If you cry and wail here, isn't that rather disrespectful to him?"
"Ah..."
The Flügel were momentarily stunned.
They did know Artosh's long-held wish—to find an opponent who could fight him evenly, someone capable of defeating him.
As for ruling the world or seizing the Suniaster, Artosh himself had never cared.
The Flügel, as god-slaying weapons, had been created for that very purpose.
Jibril, the strongest "Exceptional Unit," had been entrusted with Artosh's expectations—he had hoped that one day she might fulfill his wish.
Unfortunately, constrained by reality, there was no being on Disboard capable of matching Artosh. Even hundreds of Flügel banding together to challenge him would be instantly crushed.
Now, Artosh's wish had indeed been fulfilled.
He had witnessed power from another world, abilities and magic never before seen on Disboard. That battle must have satisfied him greatly.
Setsuna had also shown him the utmost respect. Even if the God of War's strength had fallen short, he still used his own strongest strike to conclude their duel.
"I... I..."
The Flügel's expressions grew complicated—resentment, relief, unwillingness.
Was Setsuna the murderer of their creator? In theory, yes. But Artosh clearly did not see it that way. The God of War would only rejoice at having experienced an unprecedented duel.
Otherwise, he would not have entrusted the Flügel to the one who defeated him at the very end.
"Sigh..."
Azril let out a long breath.
"What was Lord Artosh truly thinking...? I don't understand."
She steadied herself and looked at her sisters.
"All Flügel, we will carry out Lord Artosh's final command."
"Go to other worlds. Learn. Explore stronger power."
"Mm..."
Some loli Flügel were unwilling. Some were in disbelief. Others looked around blankly.
Azril then raised her head to Setsuna.
"Please grant us a little more time. Is that acceptable?"
"Take all the time you need."
Setsuna nodded.
The Flügel required time to face reality. He was in no hurry.
"Come here."
He lifted little Azril into his arms.
"In the Starsea Empire, you will have many things to do. The Flügel were born for battle. In the vast myriad worlds, there are countless enemies worthy of your challenge."
"There are many species stronger than the Dragonia. I look forward to seeing you prove your strength."
After Tet established the Ten Covenants, a race born for destruction like the Flügel had lost its original purpose.
But within the Starsea Empire, conquest of other worlds would inevitably be accompanied by endless wars—perfect for the Flügel to display their might.
Before long.
The Angeloids and shipgirls used small craft to transfer the loli Flügel aboard the Eternal Snowfall.
Having exhausted themselves, they could barely manage basic daily tasks, let alone use "Heaven's Shift" for spatial movement.
Avant Heim, as an important research sample, was also taken away by the Research Division.
"Wah..."
The loli Flügel lined up and entered the spacious bridge.
It was a scene completely different from the sky city and from Disboard.
Each of them was filled with curiosity—what kind of civilization, what kind of existence, could defeat Artosh?
Sleek and futuristic, even with over a thousand Flügel gathered together, it did not feel crowded at all.
"You are..."
Soon, Azril's gaze fell upon Ikaros, Astraea, and Nymph.
The Angeloids resembled them greatly.
Not only were they equally unreal in beauty, the white wings on their backs created an almost indistinguishable illusion.
"We're Angeloids. Technically speaking, we're closer relatives to the Ex-Machina~"
"Here, take this. It contains information about the Starsea Empire. Study it."
Nymph handed the loli Flügel a tablet filled with introductory materials prepared for new members.
The Flügel possessed astonishing intelligence. It would not take long for them to fully grasp everything.
"Oh..."
Azril looked around again.
All kinds of species were present.
Besides the Flügel, there were Ex-Machina wandering about, as well as Elves, Seiren, Fairy, and other lower-ranked races previously conquered by the Starsea Empire.
When the girls from those lower races saw a massive group of Flügel, they nearly lost their souls in terror.
They had suffered greatly at the hands of these bloodthirsty angels of death.
"Aaaaaah—!"
Think Nirvalen paled in shock, complex magic circles and formulas forming around her as she warily watched Azril.
"Alert. Detected a large number of Flügel individuals. Entering combat mode."
"Activating experimental weapon. Lösen—"
Streams of complex code flashed through Schwi's eyes as she rapidly calculated, constructing weaponry beside her through sheer processing power.
"Come on then, you brainless weeds, bugs, and scrap metal! If you want to die, come at us!!"
The Flügel retorted sharply.
The lolis spread their small wings, looking like kittens guarding their food.
"Stop. Stand down."
Setsuna halted them with a single command, and everyone immediately quieted.
"I know you have many past grudges. In the Starsea Empire, all races are equal. You are not permitted to fight each other anymore."
"Coexist peacefully. Do not violate the rules."
His voice was not loud, yet every girl from every race obediently agreed.
After witnessing his battle with Artosh, everyone understood that Setsuna's strength surpassed all of Disboard.
They quietly withdrew their weapons and stepped back.
"Hmm..."
Setsuna examined the Flügel again.
While loli-form Flügel were undeniably adorable, for a race born for combat, they could accomplish nothing in this state.
Not only could they not use magic, their physical ability was likely inferior even to the gene-ascended lolis of the Research Division.
"That won't do. You need to grow up a little."