Chapter 423: The God-Slaying Arrow

“Two moons? I have a really bad feeling about this,” Lefiya said anxiously.

“No… that isn’t a moon,” Ais whispered, looking up at the sky. The impossible sight reflected clearly in her golden eyes.

It was not a physical entity, but a colossal crescent moon constructed entirely from countless pure white magic circles. It spanned the heavens, radiating a holy yet freezing light, echoing the true moon in the distance like a pair of ill-omened twins.

Babel Tower, Top Floor.

Inside the luxurious room, Loki violently kicked over the low table in front of her. Flustered and furious, she whirled around to scream at the silver-haired goddess elegantly swirling a wine glass on the sofa. “Freya, what the hell is that thing?!”

“It’s obvious,” Freya’s voice was far more serious than usual. She didn’t even look at Loki, keeping her gaze locked on the twin moons outside the window. “That is Artemis’s arrow. The ultimate arrow of Heaven, which can only be fired by a pure goddess.”

High above, the true moonlight seemed to be drawn in, coalescing into an indescribable, massive arrow made of pure light that slowly nocked itself against the giant bow formed by the magical moon.

“I know that much!” Loki angrily scratched at her red hair. “Using that level of Arcanum in the lower world is a blatant violation of the rules! Whatever her reasons, Artemis should have been forcibly sent back to Heaven by now!”

“But what if… she is unable to return to Heaven?” Freya said quietly, finally tearing her gaze away from the window to look at Loki.

“Huh?”

Before Loki could say anything else, a violent tremor suddenly erupted from beneath their feet.

The entire Babel Tower shook. The crystal chandelier swung wildly, emitting sharp, clinking sounds as the crystals collided.

Loki’s expression instantly turned grim. “The Dungeon… is quaking.”

“It must have been awakened,” Freya said darkly.

She stood up and walked to the massive floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the city now descending into panic.

“Once that arrow is fired, there is no doubt the entire lower world will be destroyed. This is an apocalyptic crisis on par with the Dragon of the End.”

“That old man Ouranos knew this was going to happen, yet he didn’t tell us! He even used that ridiculous excuse to restrict our Familias from leaving the city!” Loki trembled with rage.

“Because it wouldn’t have mattered, Loki,” Freya said calmly. “Even if you gathered every single god in Orario, we couldn’t stop that strike. That is the strongest arrow in Heaven.”

“Like I give a crap!” The flames of anger burned fiercely in Loki’s eyes. “Even so, we’re the only ones who can clean up this mess!”

With those words, she stormed out of the room without looking back.

Freya watched her leave in silence. The room grew quiet once more.

A moment later, she closed her eyes and called out softly.

“Ottar.”

“Here.”

The Boarman warrior, who had been standing as motionless as a statue in the shadows, stepped forward silently, bowing his head to await his goddess’s command. From start to finish, he had not wavered in the slightest despite the catastrophic changes happening outside.

“Go,” Freya commanded softly.

“…Will it be alright?” Ottar’s voice was deep and raspy.

“Yes, it’s fine.” A faint, imperceptible, and highly meaningful smile tugged at the corners of Freya’s lips. “Because ‘that child’ is there, everything will be resolved.”

“Understood.” Ottar said nothing more. He offered a slight bow, turned, and exited the room, heading straight for the Dungeon.

At this very moment, the Dungeon had become a living hell.

Countless monsters surged out from the deep floors in a frenzied stampede, ignoring all floor boundaries as they crashed toward the surface like a black tidal wave.

“If the monsters from below breach the surface, it will be the absolute worst-case scenario for humanity.”

Finn stood at the very front of the defensive line. He held the Familia banner bearing the jester emblem high, the flag standing out strikingly against the dim entrance of the Dungeon.

“This is the city of adventurers. We will not allow a single monster to set foot on the surface! There is only one thing we must do—defend to the death!”

Behind him, the elites of the Loki Familia stood ready for battle. Ais, Riveria, Gareth, Bete, the Amazon sisters… Orario’s absolute pinnacle fighters had formed the first, and sturdiest, line of defense.

Further back, the elites from all the other major Familias in Orario had also assembled, fully armed and wearing grim expressions.

The next second, the flood of monsters crashed violently into the adventurers’ defensive line.

The slaughter began.

Deep in the collapsed underground, the group carefully navigated the ruins in search of an exit, remaining highly vigilant and eliminating the occasional monsters that darted out from the debris and shadows.

“We have to use that spear… No, to be precise, it isn’t a spear, but an arrow,” Hermes’s voice echoed in the dim light, carrying the heavy weight of finality.

He looked at the weapon wrapped in cloth on Aiden’s back.

“In the instant she was devoured, Artemis realized the gravity of the situation. So, she exhausted the last of her divine power to summon that arrow. It is a Divine Weapon. In Heaven, it is a weapon capable of truly slaying gods—a genuine god-slaying armament. The name of that arrow is ‘Orion.’ In ancient mythology, it means ‘to pierce everything.'”

“God-slaying?!” Jeanne cried out in shock, turning sharply toward Hermes. “Are you saying that from the very beginning, your goal in finding someone to wield this weapon was to commit deicide?”

“Exactly.”

This time, the one who spoke was Artemis’s remnant thought. Her voice was icy and resolute. “My true body has been devoured by Antares. Here in the lower world, by utilizing my divine power, it is invincible. It has even obtained the immortality of a god. The only way to stop Antares is to use ‘Orion’ to kill my true body.”

“In other words… you want the Captain to kill a god?!” Daphne stared at Aiden in absolute horror.

In the lower world, gods were supreme beings. To slay a god was an unforgivable sin, a crime massive enough to brand anyone with an eternal curse.

“It is fine.” Artemis looked at Aiden, her gaze unwavering. “This is my own personal wish, and an action sanctioned by the Guild. I will not let him bear any sin.”

“That’s right. I will be his witness,” Hermes said, patting his chest. “Even if he does commit deicide, young Aiden will be perfectly fine.”

“But this is still too…” Hyacine shook her head, wanting to say more but stopping herself. Forcing a mortal to personally kill a god was a burden far too heavy to bear.

“Wait…” Cassandra spoke up timidly.