Chapter 48: Death Notice
Following the direction Hikigaya pointed, the God-slayers looked toward the forest below the hill, the exact spot where the previous bear pack had emerged.
Now, a new group of enemies had gathered there—giant bears as sturdy as buildings, identical to the six Doni had just slain. But this time, there were nearly thirty of them. The giant bears lined up atop a ridge, glaring fiercely at the four God-slayers—or more accurately, they were glaring at Doni.
Behind these giant bears stood an even larger beast. Standing about thirty meters tall, its physical appearance resembled a Eurasian eagle-owl, but where its wings should have been, there were two thick forelimbs. It was a hybrid creature of an owl and a bear. While the giant bears were just "oversized," this thing definitely didn't exist in any zoological encyclopedia.
The hybrid colossus stood on its hind legs, possessing a sense of divine majesty in its movements. Clearly, it wasn't a mere creation of a deity; it was a Divine Beast in its own right. From the jungle behind it, the God-slayers sensed the aura of their sworn enemy. Both Doni and Uldin showed expressions of intense interest.
However, the Franks caught between the two sides were falling into a state of panic under the pressure brought by the Divine Beast. Some screamed in terror, some drew weapons with trembling hands, and others simply fled. The unit became a disorganized mess, their previous bravado vanishing; these men could not overcome their primal fear of a Divine Beast.
Aisha also looked at the beast with surprise.
"King of Beasts, I'll leave that big guy to you. I'll handle the bears. I can't just leave my cute subordinates to fend for themselves," Doni said to Uldin.
It seemed that compared to his subordinates in the modern era, Doni grew quite fond of these Franks. Historically, the Franks were evaluated by the Romans as a group of hot-tempered men who had no patience for farming and were entirely unfit as producers; their favorite activity was fighting, and they went mad once they started. This personality profile certainly suited Doni's taste.
Uldin did not refuse Doni's request; he accepted the invitation readily. "Very well. Let us see each other's techniques."
The two smiled at each other with high fighting spirit, and then Doni struck first.
"Behold my Sword of Victory!"
Doni uttered a name Hikigaya hadn't heard before. The knightly sword in his hand emitted a light that was simultaneously holy and searing. With his swing, a dazzling blade-aura streaked out, crossing a distance of nearly fifty meters and sweeping through the line of giant bears on the hill.
Thirty giant bears were instantly reduced to ashes under this flash of sword-light, not a single one missed. This was not the usual "Slashing" Authority Doni used. But the Franks certainly weren't seeing this for the first time; their fear vanished, replaced by incredibly excited cheering.
Finally, the blade-aura dissipated, revealing the Divine Beast still standing as firm as a mountain, as if boasting of its massive frame. The Franks' cheers stopped abruptly.
"Your sword skills are indeed wonderful. Now it's my turn; let me show you my divine arrow."
Uldin produced a bow. As he pulled back the string, a golden arrow appeared. Then, the ancient God-slayer shouted loudly: "Arrow of Rudra, grant me the radiance of the Sun!"
Accompanying the incantation that manipulated a divine Authority, the golden arrow shot toward the sun in the sky. At the same moment, a second sun rose from the East, firing a flashing arrow of flame. The massive Divine Beast was fragile before the divine arrow from the sun; it was blown apart on the spot, and a whole section of the surrounding forest was blasted away with it.
A moment later, the Franks, acting as the "Best Support Team," cheered once again. Doni, returning the gesture of politeness, gave Uldin's arrow a high evaluation.
His evaluation was: "Your little arrow-arrow is quite impressive."
Regardless of how these two took verbal advantage of each other, Hikigaya's gaze remained fixed on the forest. The owner of the Divine Beast was nearby; logically, victory shouldn't have been achieved so easily. But the opponent hadn't struck from start to finish and still hadn't revealed themselves. It was very strange.
"The opponent is injured, so they're being especially cautious," Doni pointed out the reason. Hikigaya suddenly realized.
But in the next second, green light smoke rose from the ground. The originally burning flames were quickly extinguished, and a vast shroud of mist began to spread toward the hill.
"Everyone, that is poisonous smoke!"
Madame Aisha warned them, her hands already preparing a prayer gesture. Because the toxic smoke was moving quite fast and was entirely unaffected by the wind direction, the Franks below couldn't escape in time; most had already collapsed in pain. Aisha was, after all, a powerful healer and was particularly sensitive to such things. In fact, the Franks were only hit after she had alerted everyone.
"You just save the people; let me handle this," Hikigaya said.
Mist and smoke were what he excelled at most. With a snap of his fingers, a great gale swept across the hill and crashed into the toxic smoke below. The toxic smoke, which had been unaffected by natural wind, couldn't withstand this; it was torn to shreds by the gale. Not only
that, the power source maintaining it was severed. Within a few breaths, not a trace of toxic smoke remained on the land.
Aisha expertly released a wave of healing power, and before long, all the Franks were jumping around lively again. This time, they didn't mindlessly cheer. They were hot-tempered, but they weren't stupid. They had just nearly cheered themselves into a grave; now that they had regained their lives, they didn't dare cheer so casually.
"There's nothing left for you here. Disappear, quickly!" Doni commanded them.
The Franks executed the order nimbly, retreating from the battlefield at high speed. Honestly, between the monsters and the poison, their fear was close to reaching its limit.
Only the four God-slayers remained, and...
"Excellency, shouldn't you show yourself now?" Hikigaya called out to the forest. When he cut the power source of the toxic smoke earlier, he had already confirmed the opponent's location.
As soon as he finished speaking, a beautiful woman appeared out of thin air on the devastated land. She was tall with a sharp gaze, filled with the noble dignity and majesty of a queen. She wore simple, bra-like clothing and was draped in dark brown furs; the head of a dead predator was worn on her head like a crown.
When a God-slayer meets a God, their body and mind enter a state of combat readiness. The God-slayers felt the excitement of wanting to fight, but Hikigaya found that what welled up inside him wasn't so much the desire for battle, but a sense of hunger. The message his body sent him was roughly: "The person across from me looks delicious."
"To be honest, until now, I have felt deeply lost..." the Goddess of Beasts murmured softly. "Regrettably, there are several God-slayers in this world... one of whom has left me severely wounded. With my broken body, revenge is not easy..."
Because she wore only inner-garment-like clothing under her fur, the God-slayers immediately understood what she meant. On the Goddess's white abdomen was a long, narrow scar. The wound was red and tinged with purple, looking horrific.
"However, even so, the Earth Goddess should not have forged that blade. Setting everything else aside, my pride does not allow such a thing. So I hesitated, even though I have prepared for this..."
Then, the Goddess looked deeply at the God-slayers. When she saw Hikigaya, her gaze lingered for a moment, appearing somewhat confused, but only for an instant. Ultimately, she shook her head in distress and sighed helplessly.
"But since things have come to this, I no longer have a choice. Since there are two more God-slayers, I must make the resolution to 'cut off my own arm' to survive... Listen well, usurpers who kill gods."
The Goddess of Beasts spoke quietly, a faint smile appearing. "Next time we meet, I shall summon my child. He is sent from Heaven specifically to campaign against and annihilate you."
In a peaceful and serene tone, the Goddess issued a death notice to everyone, her voice full of mournful intent.
"The son of the Goddess Artio shall one day descend. Until then, wait in fearful reverence for the arrival of your own death..."
The Goddess left behind this song-like prophecy and then suddenly vanished.
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