Chapter 50: The Enemy Has Come
Like all cities of the Roman Empire, Agripina was divided with a separate military district. Or rather, compared to Augusta Raurica, Agripina was even more sound and complete in terms of urban planning; it was built entirely to the standards of a domestic city, bearing little difference from those in the Roman heartland. It was precisely because of this that it could accommodate a large number of Franks.
Although the Franks had become the masters of the city, when Hikigaya and the others entered, they found that the original residents had not been harmed. The property of the residents also seemed largely untouched. There were Franks on the streets, but the original inhabitants were more numerous, and one could not see hatred, despair, or numbness on their faces.
The relationship between the invaders and the residents appeared remarkably harmonious, a far cry from the typical stance between barbarian invaders and conquered frontier residents of this era. Clearly, this was thanks to Doni, who had forbidden the Frankish tradition of burning, killing, and looting in this city.
Furthermore, among the Franks who joined Doni's banner, the men lived in the fortresses originally used to garrison Roman legions, while only women and children lived in the houses vacated in the city districts. Thanks to all this, although the city had fallen, no tragic scenes had occurred, and the residents were able to continue living stable lives. This was true stability; except for gods and other Campiones, no one had the ability to harass this city.
After Hikigaya's group entered the city, the Frankish leader stationed there came to greet Doni with great reverence. Upon learning that Hikigaya and the others were of the same "ilk" as his Great Chieftain, the leader nearly had a heart attack from fright. He immediately cleaned the house where the former Roman governor had resided and dispatched a crowd of Frankish girls to serve them.
Uldin was the least polite. After picking and choosing with a look of dissatisfaction for a long time, he very reluctantly selected a few of the most beautiful Frankish girls to go see his room. Doni had no need for such things because he lived in the fortress; he absolutely loved the atmosphere there. Aisha was not picky—as long as there were people, it was fine. She was the type who found anything she ate delicious and had low material demands, though she was poor at cleaning.
Hikigaya, on the other hand, refused. Because he believed there would be no chance to sleep tonight anyway, he went straight to the courtyard to rest and bask in the sun on a chair.
At noon, the several Campiones enjoyed dinner together. The spread included fava bean salad with olives, fruits like figs and grapes, poached pork, roasted wild rabbit, sausages, grain porridge, and unknown flower roots. Dozens of Frankish women waited upon them.
After lunch, at Doni's invitation, the Campiones entered the legionary fortress where the warriors of the Frankish tribes resided. Agripina actually spanned both banks of the Rhine, but the east bank belonged entirely to the military district and was the site of the fortress.
However, just as the group stepped onto the bridge to cross the river, the sky suddenly turned dark. The midday sun became a black orb, with a faint white corona shimmering around it. Without any warning, a scene like a total solar eclipse unfolded in the sky. This sight terrified the accompanying Franks.
Soon, a great roar of thunder erupted in the air, and white lightning descended from the darkened sky, falling straight toward the east. All four Campiones felt the powerful Divine Power radiating from that bolt.
"The enemy has come," Uldin remarked.
"Looks like I won't be able to entertain you properly," said Doni, whose face—split with a grin—fully told everyone he was just feigning politeness.
Aisha wore a sorrowful expression, likely thinking about how she would "unavoidably" have to finish off the opponent this time.
"Then let's head out." Hikigaya was perhaps the one among the four who wanted to think the least right now. Seriously, with four Campiones fighting one goddess who had nearly been "gutted" earlier, he felt there really wasn't much to think about.
With a grand wave of his hand, Uldin summoned four wyverns. Each person mounted one, and under Uldin's command, the four wyverns beat their wings and flew into the dim horizon toward the location where the lightning had struck.
The powerful Divine Power showed no signs of weakening; it was still increasing, acting like a beacon in the darkness to guide the Campiones. The wyverns carrying the God-slayers flew toward the northeast. After flying for a while, they saw a small hill.
Atop the hill was a circle formed by rectangular white stone pillars, similar in form to Stonehenge in England. As they neared the hill of the stone circle, the reaction of Divine Power became even more intense. Then, in the center of the stone formation, they saw Artio.
The beautiful goddess, draped in bear skin, stood atop the hill watching the enemies approaching on dragons. The black sun hung high in the sky directly above.
The Campiones landed several hundred meters in front of the hill and walked together toward the stone circle.
"We don't plan on teaming up against you," Doni called out to Artio from a distance. "This time, I'll be your opponent first."
"Or better yet, let's have a contest first to decide who gets the right to fight," Uldin suggested, eager to try his hand.
"What are you all saying? Even if the opponent is a deity who brings disaster, we shouldn't hurt people recklessly. We must talk properly first to find a compromise; bloody matters should be avoided as much as possible." Aisha maintained the mindset that resolving things through "talk-no-jutsu" was best.
In any case, the three Campiones appeared perfectly composed and relaxed. But this was only on the surface; both Doni and Uldin stared sharply at the goddess, their power constantly swelling. Madame Aisha was the same, wearing a rare expression of righteous solemnity.
Hikigaya, meanwhile, thought to himself whether he was the only one in the entire place who looked like he was just slacking off.
Then, he heard the goddess's voice.
"You have come, God-slayers." Artio looked coldly at the group below. "The three of you, plus the God-slayer in the distance... There are currently four... no, a total of five Campiones in this world. It is truly lamentable."
As she spoke, she closed her eyes, but everyone felt her using a power similar to Spirit Vision. However, Hikigaya felt her scanning function wasn't very good, as there were clearly four people right in front of her.
"However, I have not recovered from my severe injuries and cannot kill all five of you. Even if I summon my child to fight, I doubt I could achieve that goal..." Artio opened her eyes, her expression turning arrogant. "If that is the case, I have no choice but to summon the Hero who annihilates Devil Kings to deal with you in my child's stead!"
For a fleeting moment, Hikigaya heard sorrow in her tone. Then, the goddess raised both hands to the heavens and cried out: "The Great King who leads the horse-riding people and the dragons... The Wandering King who endangers the world... The King who wanders the mortal realm with a lone sword... The Young King who brings storms and calamity... The Queen of Chaos from the strange cavern..."
Sparks and white lightning exploded between Artio's hands—the very same lightning that had fallen during the total solar eclipse hours ago.
"With the five of you gathered in this era, this world can be considered finished. To call it the end of days is no exaggeration!"
The goddess sang out her chant under the dark sky like a Goddess of Justice lamenting the decadence of the world. The white lightning between her hands grew even more brilliant, revealing a chillingly beautiful aesthetic.
"To pierce the darkness of the end times and slay all God-slaying Devil Kings, I pray here for the rebirth of the sword... Ah! The incomparable Sword of Swords! You are the blade that annihilates Devil Kings! You are the pure white light of salvation! Wake! Slay all the usurpers upon this earth!"
Artio finally lowered her hands, but the white lightning remained floating in mid-air. In the next instant, the goddess suddenly drew a double-edged longsword from her waist.
It was a dilapidated, mottled, and rusted longsword.
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