At the northern wall, the tide of demonic beasts had crashed into Uruk's shield wall, and both sides had sunk into a stalemate.
But amid the battlefield, there was an empty zone filled with massive craters, which neither humans nor beasts dared approach.
A stream of golden light fell from above, landing gracefully and transforming into Kingu's figure.
At this moment, Kingu's originally emerald eyes had fully turned golden—a sign that she was fully committed to this battle.
Her peripheral vision swept across the nearby craters, and Kingu still felt some lingering astonishment.
If these craters had been Heracles's doing, Kingu could accept that easily enough—visually, it matched perfectly, and Heracles's only Noble Phantasm at present was indeed his monstrous body. But the reality was completely opposite—these destructive craters were actually caused by Altera.
Nicknamed "Scourge of God," known historically as Attila the Hun, Altera was certainly familiar to Kingu, who possessed knowledge of future events. Yet Kingu still couldn't fathom how a Heroic Spirit, elevated from a mere mortal, could unleash strikes each equivalent to low-level Noble Phantasm activations.
And adding in that god-slaying presence...
Oddly, Kingu felt no killing intent. Instead, she experienced intense curiosity, like a child encountering something new.
Before Kingu stood Heracles, the wound at his heart just now closing up, clearly marking the recent loss of another life. Altera, too, was covered in injuries. Her wounds were slowly healing, though at a sluggish pace.
In stark contrast, Kingu herself was completely unharmed.
Indeed, had Arjuna not continually interfered, Altera might have already returned to the Throne, and Heracles would hardly be faring better.
If this battle continued, there was no doubt Kingu would win.
But the reason wasn't that Kingu's raw strength greatly exceeded their combined power.
Altera furrowed her brows tightly, staring down Kingu.
She had to admit, the "snake" granted by Ophis was formidable.
Altera's raw destructive power was extraordinary. If she fully committed, even her normal attacks reached the potency of a third-rate Noble Phantasm... But such power had a severe drawback.
Her stamina was limited.
If she went all out, Altera could sustain herself for thirty minutes at most, which was why she hadn't previously demonstrated her full destructive potential.
But things changed dramatically after receiving the "snake."
Infinite mana, in itself, wasn't all that meaningful to Servants like Altera. After all, with constant mana replenishment from Ophis, their mana was already effectively infinite. Infinite mana merely allowed limitless activation of Noble Phantasms and skills—it didn't fundamentally enhance their combat capabilities, as the scale of a Servant's Saint Graph was fixed at summoning and couldn't expand by mere mana influx.
However, the snake granted not just infinite mana but also vastly enhanced their stamina and spirit.
When she activated the snake's power, Altera could clearly sense endless strength flowing continuously through her body, even constantly regenerating her wounds!
Yet, even so, they were still losing against this green-haired girl.
The reason was simple... Their healing couldn't match their opponent's recovery rate.
Throughout the earlier battle, Kingu had deliberately fought by trading injuries from the very start. Initially, Altera and Heracles hadn't been afraid—the snake's regenerative power and God Hand gave them confidence in outlasting their enemy. But by the time Altera noticed Kingu's injuries could regenerate instantaneously, she was already trapped in Kingu's pace.
Altera's battle experience wasn't remotely comparable. Granted, few beings matched her sheer amount of combat, but Altera's battles typically involved overwhelmingly smaller or weaker opponents, and those memories were murky at best.
At least in battles like this, Altera was vastly inferior to Kingu, the divine weapon forged in the Age of Gods.
Only thanks to Arjuna's timely support did Altera and Heracles have a chance to reorganize themselves after their near defeat.
Having failed to kill this threat in one strike, the coming battle would undoubtedly grow more troublesome... Yet Kingu's expression remained perfectly calm, her golden eyes revealing no ripple of thought.
Neither Altera nor Heracles were inclined to pre-battle chatter. Surprisingly, Kingu also refrained from flaunting the superiority of a "new humanity," quietly reforming her palm into a golden energy blade.
Then suddenly, the golden hue vanished from Kingu's eyes, and her face shifted dramatically—completely losing the serene composure she'd maintained until now.
"Dammit! How is this possible? Why am I...?"
Before finishing her sentence, Kingu transformed into a streak of golden light, vanishing into the horizon, leaving Altera and Heracles utterly bewildered.
...
The goddess Gorgon was now covered in injuries.
Naturally, Ritsuka hadn't accepted Gorgon's strange invitation—not that there was ever a reason to. After all, Ritsuka didn't have any tragic backstory nor had she ever experienced abandonment by humanity. Gorgon's bizarre, antisocial speech hadn't resonated at all—forget persuasion, it couldn't even shake Ritsuka's resolve.
Standing at the back of the formation, Ritsuka calmly commanded fifty-seven warriors to attack Gorgon... Not difficult at all. After ordering around Edison, who literally embodied every American president, commanding a group of capable but comparatively ordinary soldiers felt easy.
Initially, everyone assumed these fifty-seven warriors would at most clear the path but would be useless against a goddess—but reality swiftly proved them wrong.
Purple energy flowed through the soldiers' weapons, seeping directly into Gorgon's wounds.
And suddenly, Gorgon's powerful regenerative abilities—were significantly sealed!
What vampires feared most was not garlic, crosses, sunlight, or holy energy; powerful beings could partially resist these. What truly restrained vampires were stronger vampires.
The logic applied equally to dragon-serpents.
Thus, warriors empowered by Ophis's draconic energy became the strongest weapons against Gorgon!
Gorgon frantically tried prioritizing the annoying pests, but the combined defensive wall formed by Mash and Jeanne proved completely impenetrable. With her divinity drastically weakened, Gorgon had no hope of breaking through.
Riding her white steed through the sky, Lily's silver lance shone brilliantly with golden radiance.
"[RHONGOMYNIAD]!!!"
A dazzling golden pillar of light poured down.
In the end, enveloped in the holy spear's brilliance, Gorgon's heart was pierced. The spear continued its unstoppable momentum, obliterating even the divine throne behind her.
Gorgon froze in place momentarily.
Is this really where it ends?—the thought briefly crossed her mind.
But quickly, vengeance's flames devoured even that trace of doubt.
"Not yet! I must take revenge, revenge against this world! I will burn it down and destroy all who abandoned me!"
As if responding to her cry, the entire blood-red temple began shaking violently, slowly collapsing around them...
"How is this possible?"
Ritsuka and the others were shocked.
The divine throne's destruction meant Gorgon's divinity would soon collapse entirely—survival should've been impossible for her.
Yet...
"It's not over yet—her wounds are still healing," Quetzal calmly observed. Although she hadn't participated directly in the fight, she'd watched intently.
If Gorgon intends mutual destruction, I might have to intervene, even at the cost of my divinity...
"This is nothing... I am the primordial goddess, Tiamat... I hear Mother's voice... I must... take her place... revenge... must be fulfilled..."
Gorgon's speech grew increasingly incoherent, yet her power still hadn't ceased—until...
Puchi—
A blade pierced flesh, fresh blood spraying out.