Rumble rumble rumble!
Laevatein pierced through the storm of spikes and emitted a brilliant sword light.
The sword light that extended from Laevatein spread in all directions, shattering the crystallized spikes into pieces.
Crunch crunch crunch!
As the flying spikes shattered, Laevatein changed direction once more and flew toward the aberrant angel.
The aberrant angel let out a grotesque screech at the approaching Laevatein and swung the tentacles that sprouted from its back.
The tips of the tentacles sharpened into blades, aiming to strike down Laevatein.
But Laevatein, enveloped in sword light, smashed through the tentacle blades just as it had the spikes moments before and charged forward.
It then plunged straight toward the location of the aberrant angel's heart.
Screeeeech!
The aberrant angel opened its mouth wide and poured out dark energy to block Laevatein, but it was futile.
Guided by Zeke's will, Laevatein, which shone with its own light, cut through the dark energy and pierced the aberrant angel's heart.
Crunch crunch crunch!
Deeply embedded in the heart, Laevatein began to vibrate faintly.
In response, Ascalon, lodged in the aberrant angel's back, vibrated in sympathy.
Whooooom!
With both swords embedded in the aberrant angel's body and vibrating, they resonated and sent out waves.
Keeeeek!
Tormented by the waves from the two swords, the aberrant angel clawed at its own body as if self-harming.
The black crystals that clung to its surface began to fall off in clumps.
The scattered crystals flowed toward Zeke, drawn like iron filings to a magnet. Sssssss—
The black crystals were absorbed into the shadows that enveloped Zeke's body.
Seeing this from below, Baron, who had barely composed himself, raised his head and shouted.
"It's stealing the Demon King's soul! Stop it now!"
But the aberrant angel was in no state to heed Baron's words.
As the black crystals peeled away, its hideous amorphous body was revealed once more.
The aberrant angel's body, with its red flesh and writhing tentacles, gradually lost its vitality and began to wither.
Tss tss tss tss—
Once nearly all the black crystals had fallen and been absorbed by Zeke, the two swords embedded in the aberrant angel's body slowly ceased their vibrations.
As the waves subsided, the aberrant angel was finally able to move.
Flutter flutter flutter!
It spread its wings made of tentacles and descended through the air toward the gate where Baron was.
Rumble rumble rumble!
It crashed to the ground like a falling star and reached out toward Baron.
Baron struggled to his feet and approached the aberrant angel.
He then cut his hand, letting his black blood flow into the aberrant angel. Sssssss—
Baron's blood seeped straight into the aberrant angel's skin.
At the same moment, the aberrant angel convulsed violently.
Screeeeech!
It let out a grotesque screech and arched its body sharply.
Whether the swords embedded in its back and chest tormented it further, it writhed and tried to pull them out.
But then—
Crunch crunch crunch—
A hand burst out from the aberrant angel's abdomen.
The protruding hand seized Baron's throat.
Baron glared ferociously at the hand that gripped his windpipe.
"Harvey Draker!"
Crunch crunch crunch!
Harvey Draker, who had been buried inside the aberrant angel's body, emerged and grabbed Baron's throat.
Now with his arms and upper body out, Harvey Draker glared at Baron and said,
"You, the lackey of Arthur Draker. You intended to use me as a sacrifice from the beginning."
Realizing only now, after being dragged here, that Arthur Draker had implanted the corrupted dragon heart into him to use him as a vessel for the Demon King's soul, Harvey Draker seethed with rage.
Crunch crunch crunch!
Harvey Draker's eyes transformed into dragon eyes as he glared at Baron.
"I will never let things go your way!"
In response, Baron cried out with eyes filled with madness.
"It is the will of the Lord! You insignificant copy! Obey the will of the Lord!" The most devoted zealot of Arthur Draker.
Blind fanaticism burned in Baron's eyes.
Seeing this, Harvey Draker shook his head.
"The one chosen to truly stand on the stage is not Arthur Draker, but me."
In that instant, Harvey Draker's mouth gaped open to an unbelievable width, engulfing Baron's head whole and beginning to chew and swallow it.
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
It was the pathetic end of Baron Draker, Arthur Draker's most loyal subordinate and blind zealot.
After devouring Baron's head, the aura that emanated from Harvey Draker had changed from before.
Rumble rumble rumble!
Emitting an ominous dark energy, Harvey Draker could now control the aberrant angel's body at will, unlike earlier.
At his command, a massive maw opened in the aberrant angel's lower body, swallowing the remains of Baron Draker whole.
Crunch crunch crunch!
Having fully consumed Baron, Harvey Draker unleashed an even stronger dark energy than before.
Immediately after, he extended tentacles from his body, freely wrapping around the grotesque dark mages in front of the gate.
Crunch crunch crunch!
He then opened the massive maw and swallowed the grotesque dark mages ensnared by the tentacles.
With the grotesque dark mages devoured as well, Harvey Draker's upper body retained its original form, but below was a mass of writhing tentacles, with only faint traces of legs remaining.
"...Not enough. Not nearly enough."
Harvey Draker turned his body toward the gate of the grotesque form behind him.
He immediately extended tentacles to wrap around the gate.
Crunch crunch crunch!
As the gate connected with the tentacles, Harvey Draker began to devour it.
Rumble rumble rumble!
In an instant, after consuming the gate as well, Harvey Draker's body mass grew even larger.
Crunch crunch crunch!
But it did not end with mere enlargement. Harvey Draker's body, having absorbed the gate, began to transform.
Growl!
The tentacles merged and fused, and soon Harvey Draker transformed into the form of a massive dragon.
However, it was no ordinary dragon; it was an aberrant dragon covered in tentacles.
Harvey Draker's upper body protruded from the top of the aberrant dragon's head.
He raised his head, gazed at Zeke Draker hovering in the air, then extended wings and slowly ascended into the sky.
Whooooom!
Now an aberrant dragon, Harvey Draker rapidly flew toward Zeke.
"Zeke Drakerrrrr!"
As he let out a roar filled with resentment and fury—
Tss tss tss tss—
The shadows that enveloped Zeke rippled greatly, and a circular barrier began to unfold centered on his body.
Whooooom!
The translucent barrier expanded rapidly and soon encompassed the entire unique domain where the infinite archive had unfolded.
Surprisingly, wherever the translucent barrier passed, everything turned black and white, and movement ceased in its wake.
'This is...?'
Turning his head, Zeke discovered that even Harvey Draker, now an aberrant dragon, had frozen in mid-air.
The same held for Innocent and the high table members below.
Confirming that all time in the space around him had stopped, Zeke could not help but be astonished.
'Time suddenly stopping?'
While Harvey Draker devoured the surroundings, Zeke had not been idle.
But after absorbing the black crystals that flowed from the aberrant angel and purifying them with karma points, that was all.
As far as he knew, the authority over time could only be wielded by the dragon of time, Chronos.
'No way...?'
Zeke pulled out Chronos's pocket watch from his inventory to check.
But the pocket watch showed no reaction.
This meant the phenomenon of stopped time was not caused by Chronos's authority.
At that moment, a message appeared before Zeke's eyes.
[The corrupted karma data has been restored.]
[The sealed memories of 'Siemens Apollyon' recorded in the karma data will be unlocked.]
Zeke frowned at the floating message.
'Siemens Apollyon.'
Earlier, after absorbing part of the Demon King's soul and purifying the corrupted karma data, Siemens Apollyon's memories had been restored, and Chronos's voice had emanated from them. He recalled that.
'So, restoring Siemens Apollyon's memories is connected to Chronos's authority somehow.'
Still harboring doubts, a voice suddenly resounded in Zeke's ears.
[Zeke Draker.]
An unfamiliar voice called Zeke's name.
It was different from the Demon King's voice that had guided Zeke and the high table here.
'This is...?'
Soon, the voice continued.
[I am Siemens Apollyon.]
Zeke's eyes widened at the voice's words.
With Siemens Apollyon's memories restored, his very consciousness now spoke directly to Zeke.
'Siemens Apollyon, the man who summoned the Demon King after King Solomon, disciple of the great sage, and adopted son of the hero king.'
Zeke had indirectly encountered the Demon King army led by Siemens Apollyon through the inverted tower.
Siemens Apollyon, who had summoned the Demon King's soul into his own body, had his ambitions thwarted by the great sage and the knights of the clock tower.
His defeated soul was absorbed by the Demon King and sealed in the book of the lion, and history had erased his existence entirely.
Thus, it was hard for Zeke to comprehend that Siemens Apollyon spoke to him in his own voice, not the Demon King's.
As Zeke felt bewildered, the voice resounded again.
[Zeke Draker, my distant descendant. I have waited for you for a long time.]
The voice, overflowing with a serenity that belied the one who had summoned the Demon King to dominate the phenomenal world, made Zeke momentarily doubt if this was truly Siemens Apollyon.
As if reading his thoughts, Siemens Apollyon spoke again.
[You harbor great doubts about my existence. No, that is to be expected.] Siemens Apollyon continued slowly.
[You must think that only the dragon of time, Chronos, can interfere with the timeline. But Zeke Draker, it is not only Chronos who can do so. I too can interfere with the timeline, albeit in a different manner from Chronos.]
Hearing Siemens Apollyon's words, Zeke grew even more wary.
'Siemens Apollyon can also interfere with the timeline like Chronos? That can't be. It's impossible for a human. The Demon King's power? Can the Demon King's authority interfere with the timeline?' Doubts swirled in his mind.
The voice resounded once more.
[Indeed, you need convincing evidence to accept this.]
Zeke sensed something off in Siemens Apollyon's oddly gentle and kind tone.
'Is this really Siemens Apollyon, who sought to dominate the phenomenal world by summoning the Demon King's soul?'
Perhaps this too was a disguise to deceive Zeke.
[Zeke Draker, it may be hard to believe, but I am indeed Siemens Apollyon. However, I am slightly different from the Siemens Apollyon you know.]
At those words, Zeke no longer kept his question in thought but directly addressed Siemens Apollyon.
'You're Siemens Apollyon, but different. Does that mean a clone?' A response came to his question.
[Not in that sense.]
'If not, then you're just a past memory composed of karma data imitating Siemens Apollyon.'
[That too is incorrect. I am now interfering with time to converse with the possibility of you that exists in the future.]
'A future possibility? Does that mean... you, conversing with me now, exist in the past.'
A conversation between the past's Siemens Apollyon and the future's Zeke, transcending the timeline.
Zeke had once gone to the past directly through Chronos's authority as the dragon of time, but communicating with a past existence in this manner was a first.
[Yes, it is difficult, but not impossible. I have awaited this moment to meet you.] Without waiting for Zeke's response, he continued.
[I am a knight who inherited the hero king's sword, a mage who succeeded all the great sage's teachings, and also a sage who explored the truths of the world.] Hearing Siemens Apollyon's words, Zeke felt something amiss.
'Inherited the hero king's sword and succeeded everything from the great sage? And a sage as well...'
It differed from the history of Siemens Apollyon he knew.
As Zeke was about to pose a question, Siemens Apollyon's voice resounded again.
[My distant descendant, the one who surpassed the wall by his own will, Zeke Draker. I have words for you.] He continued slowly.
[Like you, I am a being who has gone back in time.]