Even though the attack came suddenly, for Morpheus, it couldn't even breach his defenses. Still, he chose to retaliate.
The runes on his flaming sword erupted with blinding white light, and the faint silhouette of Michael shimmered behind him.
The moment the light beam clashed with the blade, twelve angelic halos unfurled along the sword, disintegrating the cannon into fine golden stardust.
The shockwave from the explosion scorched the ground into complete carbonization. As the flames writhed like a giant serpent, the air warped with mirage-like distortions from the intense heat.
Though frenzied, Mordred retained her combat instincts. Facing the sudden rush of flames, she instinctively dodged. The fire passed beneath her, incinerating everything in its path!
Evading the strike, Mordred exhaled in relief, but in the next instant, several sparks appeared around her... embers born from the flames of the earlier explosion!
Normally, such sparks wouldn't concern her, but her instincts screamed of their danger.
"Boom!"
These tiny, almost insignificant sparks suddenly expanded, unleashing ferocious power that engulfed Mordred!
Her armor's magical coating wailed sharply under the intense heat, her war boots carving molten metal trails in the ground as she retreated.
Those seemingly feeble sparks contained the structure of holy stigmata... each ember an attack infused with Michael's power, expanding into a three-meter-wide blaze upon touching her armor.
Her left arm's armor vaporized in the divine flames, the magic circuits beneath her skin eroded inversely by the holy fire, like molten lava coursing through her veins.
From just this single strike, several wounds appeared on Mordred's body, along with burn marks. She collapsed to one knee, struggling to rise and fight again but unable to stand.
She could feel the areas hit by the flames burning on their own, spreading to other parts as if intent on consuming her entire body.
It was the erosion of the stigmata!
Lancelot, who had emerged alongside her, had acted the moment Mordred drew Morpheus's attention. His sword gleamed with light, striking while Morpheus was occupied with Mordred's assault.
And he struck with his maximum output!
This was a perfectly timed attack. With both of them focused on Mordred, they shouldn't notice him. If he seized the moment, he could injure Morpheus before he could recover his strength.
Morpheus's power was formidable, and Lancelot's opportunities were few... he had to seize this one. Whether this would lead to Mordred being targeted and defeated first was not something Lancelot considered.
His only concern was the king's command. Since the Lion King demanded these intruders die, he would fulfill her orders, even at the cost of his comrades.
Yet, his near-sneak attack had no effect on Morpheus.
Stone walls erupted from the ground, blocking Lancelot's strike completely.
This was the power of the earth element, infused with the strength of the angel Uriel, more than sufficient to halt Lancelot's attack.
As Lancelot realized his strike was blocked, he felt a tremor beneath the ground. Alarmed, he dodged to the side. In the next instant, crimson flames burst from where he had stood, and a pungent smell filled the air.
Lancelot recognized it... the scent of sulfur!
Sulfur and flames surging from the ground... this was hellfire!
In an instant, he grasped the secret of this fire.
By combining different elements with corresponding angelic power, Morpheus constructed unique magical formulas, akin to angelic spells.
What Morpheus now wielded was Uriel's hellfire!
The earth continued to quake, as if a mild earthquake had struck. Flames burst forth from below one after another. Lancelot kept dodging, but as the flames grew faster, evasion became increasingly difficult.
Mordred, already injured, couldn't dodge in time and was consumed by a blast of hellfire. When the flames dissipated, her figure was gone, vanished into the ether.
Was this the combat style of a magician? Suppressing opponents with overwhelming magic. Mordred and Lancelot were individually formidable, even more so together, yet their all-out attacks not only failed but left them utterly dominated by Morpheus!
Bedivere noticed Morpheus's hands maintained elegant casting gestures... what he assumed were casting motions.
Though subtle, almost unconscious, each change in gesture unleashed a different magical attack.
Whenever the astrolabe spun, countless flames erupted from the ground, as if it had replaced a magus's magic circuits.
Watching the battle, Bedivere was awestruck. If the thunder spear had shown him terrifying power, this was the dazzling combat style of a magician.
The combination of diverse magics and the pinpoint accuracy in targeting were breathtaking.
Lancelot was powerful, but facing increasingly swift attacks, he was on the verge of being consumed by the flames!
Lancelot pushed himself to his fastest speed, but the flames pursued relentlessly, even surging ahead to ambush him, forcing him back to his starting point, unable to escape Morpheus.
Morpheus watched Lancelot run for a few minutes, growing bored. He lightly tapped the floating astrolabe beside him.
Instantly, Lancelot felt a jolt around him. The moment his toes touched the ground, stone walls erupted, completely encasing him!
No escape... except upward!
Without hesitation, Lancelot leaped to break free from the cage. But as he jumped, the ground split open, and scorching magma surged forth, swallowing his body!
Hellfire claimed its second kill!
Morpheus stowed his astrolabe, dagger, and Holy Grail, holding only his staff. To Bedivere, his movements carried an aristocratic grace. After putting away his tools, he said to the stunned Bedivere, "Let's go find your master."
Bedivere sighed in awe. "Your magic is incredible. In my memory, only Master Merlin could compare to such mastery of magic and magecraft!"
He wasn't flattering... Morpheus's prowess was, in his mind, comparable only to Merlin.
"Merlin, huh? If I get the chance, I'd love to spar with him," Morpheus said, his lips curling in anticipation.
Though a gentleman, not a battle maniac, he was eager to test himself against figures like Merlin or Zelretch!
At this point, no one could stop Morpheus and Bedivere. They pressed forward, entering the royal hall.
Pushing open the doors, they saw Artoria seated on the throne, her eyes glowing gold, her expression cold and inhuman, a stark contrast to the King Arthur of old.
Seeing them, she addressed Morpheus.
"Answer me: who are you? Why have you come to my castle? Why stand before me? I am the Lion King, the King of Storms, the Lord of the End, wielder of the Holy Lance Rhongomyniad, a remnant of a Heroic Spirit."
Ferocious magical energy accompanied her introduction, forming a terrifying pressure that felt suffocating.
Her power defied explanation by human standards, at least in this world.
Seeing this, Bedivere's breath caught.
This was the Lion King, the Arthur he had sought, wielding the Holy Lance!
Despite his resolve, despite years of searching, seeing her now filled him with fear.
Yet he wanted to face this king!
Bedivere bravely raised his head, meeting her gaze!
Morpheus gave a slight bow, smiling. "Chaldea operative, Morpheus Fraga McRemitz. Greetings, Lion King."
"Answer me... are you the ones who summoned me? Are you the ones defying me? Master from distant Chaldea, why have you come to the end of this world?"
"To do my job... correcting distorted history to save humanity from destruction," Morpheus said, looking at her. "So, will you cooperate? If you do, everyone wins."
"Regrettably, correcting history means killing me, so I cannot cooperate. Since you've come to slay me, you are not chosen by the Holy Lance. Your soul knows good yet chooses evil. Though good, you permit evil, which is tantamount to evil itself.
"I had hoped for the latest humans to reach my feet... but perish. My ideal city has no place for your soul."
Magical energy gathered, and the Holy Lance appeared in Artoria's right arm, ready for battle.
"Round Table, release! Behold, this is the Wave of the End, the true form of this planet unveiled!"
The hall's walls vanished, revealing a distant scene where the world merged... a raging torrent. Beyond this point, the world itself ceased to exist.
Or rather, from here onward, there was no land.
This was the planet's end!
A planetary form constructed upon the Holy Lance!
Artoria, now the King of Storms, radiated divine authority. Under her full pressure, most would collapse, unable to move.
But Morpheus was unfazed, calmly asking, "So eager to end the world? Why?"
"To seal this world, to preserve it. Due to one individual's grand ambition, this planet's history ended, the Human Order incinerated, and human history reduced to nothing. But this contradicts my purpose.
"We were created by humans. Without them, gods cannot exist. Thus, I must preserve you, no matter the cost.
"This is my will. If the King of Magecraft acts so recklessly, I, too, shall act recklessly.
"Indeed, I've long wanted to do this.
"I love you all... you are vital to me. I cannot bear to lose you.
"I've decided to grant humanity eternity... souls worthy of preservation, those who do no evil, who touch evil yet remain unaware of it, who never tire of good without self-awareness. I will collect these pure souls, fix them, and store them as data.
"No matter how much time passes, they will remain of unchanging value, eternally preserved within my lance.
"What is wrong with this? My ambition is for you humans, all for humanity."
"Got it. A yandere, huh? I understand you, but sadly, while I get it, I'm still going to fight you." Symbols of earth, wind, water, and fire appeared around Morpheus. Beyond his staff, his other three symbolic artifacts floated slowly, and power began to gather in the necklace at his chest.
Angelic magical energy had coalesced!
"You want to act recklessly? Great... I'll do the same!"
As he spoke, the flaming sword reappeared in his hand, imbued with Michael's salvific power. Morpheus looked up at her, raising his weapon.
"I've seen plenty of saviors, but compared to your plan, even Fiamma of the Right's, who got thoroughly beaten, was more reasonable!"
At this moment, the four archangels surrounded him, their divine aura making him seem like a god walking the earth.
"So, let's fight, King Arthur! I'll defeat you and show you that if you choose to act recklessly, a stronger force will bring you down!
"And not just you... that impostor calling himself the King of Magecraft is no different!"
***
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