Chapter 125: The Battlefield Collapses

The orphanage was already collapsing when the human Mana signatures appeared.

Reinhard watched another section of the building collapse, sending dust through the air while Bloodkin gathered beyond the courtyard. Beneath their feet, something enormous shifted inside the town, and the Abnormality’s presence spread through the ground like a pulse.

Then the first group stepped through the dust.

"Collectors," Reinhard said.

One of them stopped when he heard his name. "Ashcroft."

Reinhard smiled. "Collectors."

"You’ve been troublesome."

"I’ve heard that before."

Before either side could move, another group appeared at the opposite end of the street.

Emily’s expression changed immediately. "Silent Night."

Reinhard glanced at her. "Friends?"

"No."

"Good. I was worried this was going to become a reunion."

Neither group had come for the Ashcrofts. The Collectors wanted whatever relic was hidden beneath the town, while Silent Night appeared to be searching for something else.

Then one woman stepped forward.

"Sigil Moon," Emily said, her expression hardening.

The woman raised one hand, revealing a small sphere. Emily immediately looked at Reinhard. "Don’t let that thing touch you."

"That’s reassuring."

Sigil Moon released the sphere. It expanded before reaching Archon, unfolding into a massive spatial structure that swallowed her whole. Inside the resulting pocket dimension, space continuously expanded and folded back upon itself.

"Singularity weapon," Emily explained.

"How bad?"

"Close to divine relics. It’s what happens when a Relic’s full potential reaches the level of a concept."

Inside the distorted space, Archon cut through an approaching wall, only for another to appear immediately afterward.

She stared at it. "Annoying." She cut again.

The dimension folded, producing another wall. Archon finally understood that her enemies weren’t trying to overpower her. They were abusing the laws of space to keep her contained.

Outside, Reinhard’s expression changed. "Everyone, move!"

The battlefield exploded.

Bloodkin rushed from the courtyard while Abnormality creatures tore through the streets.

Collectors attacked anything standing between them and the ruins, and Silent Night began firing from distant rooftops. The orphanage finally gave way, forcing the rescue team to scatter as the ground split apart.

Mara shouted for everyone to regroup, but communications immediately filled with static.

Reinhard spotted Maki falling toward a broken section of road. He used Spatial Pull to drag her clear just as a Bloodkin’s claws swept through the space where she had been standing. A Collector fired from a nearby roof. Reinhard redirected the projectile with Spatial Push, sending it into the Bloodkin before turning toward another attacker.

The Right Hand of God appeared around his fist, its invisible crimson claws striking an approaching creature with five times his physical strength. Its second function intercepted an attack aimed at Emily.

"Stay together!" Reinhard shouted.

An Abnormality crashed through a wall before he could say more. Reinhard released All-Cutting Slash, cutting deeply into its body. Its outer shell immediately adapted, forcing him to keep supplying Mana as the invisible blade adjusted to its defenses. The second cut went deeper. The third went deeper still. When the creature attempted to retreat, Reinhard dragged it back with Spatial Pull. The slash finally tore through its core.

One problem solved.

Three more appeared.

A Bloodkin cut Rika across the side, and the wound began bleeding far more heavily than it should have. Another creature reached toward her, trying to draw blood from the injury.

Reinhard’s expression hardened. "Mia!"

The bleeding slowed immediately, but another Bloodkin attacked before Rika could recover. Reinhard pushed it away with Spatial Push and reinforced Rika’s defenses with Varu. "Keep moving."

Rika nodded and returned to the fight.

Nearby, Yuna was protecting several rescuers trapped between the Bloodkin and a collapsing wall. Rather than spreading her Mana Domain across the entire courtyard, she used Domain Sense to track the incoming enemies and Magic Perception to identify where their Mana was gathering.

The first Bloodkin lunged.

Yuna increased gravity around its leading leg, forcing its foot into the ground and ruining its balance. She redirected its momentum sideways, sending it crashing into another creature before either could reach the rescuers.

"Get behind the wall!" she shouted.

A second Bloodkin attempted to leap over her. Yuna reduced the friction beneath its landing point, causing its claws to slide across the pavement. She followed with a concentrated Mana strike that staggered it, then increased gravity around its body until it collapsed.

Maki reached the rescuers as the wall began to crack. She placed seals across the weakest sections, reinforcing the structure long enough for everyone to escape. An injured man clutched his bleeding forearm.

"Hold still," Maki instructed.

She pressed a glowing seal over the wound. The marking tightened around the damaged tissue, slowing the bleeding and stabilizing the injury. It couldn’t replace proper healing, but it bought him time.

"Everyone move!" Maki called. "The wall won’t hold forever!"

Yuna raised her hand and redirected the gravity around a falling section of masonry. Instead of crushing the escape route, the debris shifted sideways and crashed into an empty part of the courtyard.

"Clear!" Maki shouted.

Yuna released her control and turned toward the next threat.

Reinhard activated Emperor’s Insight.

The battlefield became a mental map. Hostile signatures appeared through the dust, buildings, and spatial distortions. He could track the Bloodkin, the Collectors advancing toward the center, and the strange Mana fluctuations coming from beneath the town.

There were too many.

Lily was already injured, and a Bloodkin had noticed her weakness. Reinhard started toward her, but another group attacked Emily at the same time. He couldn’t be everywhere.

Reinhard activated the Enhanced Mirror of Possibilities, choosing to see five possible futures.

The first showed the Nephilim dying one by one as he failed to protect everyone. The second showed Maki and Lily dying despite his efforts to prioritize them. The third showed Emily dying while he desperately tried to protect her.

The fourth showed only Reinhard and Archon surviving, standing among the ruins after everyone else was gone.

The fifth showed Reinhard and Emily standing together in the collapsing battlefield. He reached toward Aeon, and a thin line of light appeared above them, connecting the two.

The vision ended before revealing what happened next.

Reinhard closed the Mirror. He didn’t understand the fifth future, but it was the only one that didn’t end with someone he cared about dying.

He smiled. "I don’t know what that means, but I’m betting on the fifth."

He stopped trying to fight everything directly.

"Taru."

Rika’s attack power surged.

"Sparu."

Rhea accelerated through the battlefield and slipped beneath a Bloodkin’s strike.

"Varu."

Emily’s defenses strengthened just before a heavy attack crashed into her.

"All Power."

Reinhard’s attack, defense, and speed increased together. He moved through the battlefield with Terra Slash, his movements producing overlapping afterimages as he struck multiple enemies in rapid succession.

For several seconds, the battlefield around him became clear. Then another wave arrived.

"There are really a lot of you," Reinhard muttered.

The ground shook. He reached for the completed Mana Orb inside him, allowing its stored power to flood through his body. The additional Mana reinforced his muscles and gave him another reserve to draw from.

Reinhard opened a Space Tear and swallowed several approaching creatures before they could attack. He redirected another wave through a second tear, then severed the connection between an expanding spatial rupture and the surrounding town with Space Tear. The rupture immediately folded inward instead of spreading through the streets.

Reinhard looked at the collapsing distortion. "Much easier than chasing it."

Emily glanced toward him. "You cut the space itself."

"Apparently."

Another attack came. Reinhard redirected it through a Space Tear, then emerged beside Rhea before her attacker could reach her.

"You’re welcome," he said.

"For what?"

"I’ll explain later."

A mental attack suddenly struck. The world around Reinhard distorted, but the Circle of Light from Enlightened Heart formed around his mind and pushed the attack away.

His eyes narrowed. Silent Night wasn’t simply attacking. They were watching how everyone reacted and testing their abilities.

Then the battlefield tore apart again. Maki and Seraphine disappeared behind a collapsing structure. Lily and Rhea were forced toward the western side, while Yuna and Mara were cut off by a wave of Abnormalities.

Yuna immediately focused on Domain Sense. Several hostile signatures approached from the east, while two more gathered behind the collapsed building. Her Magic Perception revealed a dangerous concentration of Mana around the nearest creature.

"Three approaching from the east!" she warned. "Two more behind the rubble!"

Mara looked toward the collapsed street. "Can we get around them?"

"Not safely."

The nearest Abnormality charged. Yuna waited until it committed, then increased gravity around its front limbs. Its charge collapsed into a stumbling impact. She redirected its momentum into the second creature, buying Mara enough time to reach cover.

A Bloodkin rushed toward Yuna while she was repositioning. She reduced the friction beneath its feet, causing it to lose its footing, then struck it with concentrated Mana before it could recover.

"We can’t restore the original formation," Mara said.

"No. There are too many enemies."

Mara made the decision. "Forget the formation. Small groups. Everyone’s priority is survival."

Yuna nodded. The mission had changed. They were no longer trying to complete every objective. They were trying to get everyone out alive.

Elsewhere, Maki and Seraphine found themselves separated from the others by a collapsed building and several advancing Bloodkin. Maki examined the damaged street and identified a narrow passage where the walls were still holding. She placed seals along the cracked structures, reinforcing the weakest sections long enough for them to pass.

A Bloodkin lunged from the dust. Maki placed a restriction seal across its approaching arm. The marking activated as it entered range, slowing its movement just long enough for Seraphine to intercept it. Maki followed with another seal across its torso, restricting its ability to gather Mana.

"Go!" she called.

They moved through the passage while Maki maintained the seals behind them. The structure groaned but remained standing until they reached the other side.

On the western side, Rhea took another hit. Lily moved beside her, but this time she didn’t throw herself recklessly into danger. She controlled her spectral swords from a distance, forcing the Bloodkin to expose their movements while Rhea exploited the openings.

Rhea noticed the difference. "You’re getting better."

"You taught me."

"That sounds suspiciously like something Emily would say."

"Then she was right."

Rhea laughed even as she attacked.

Reinhard returned to the center of the battlefield just as another Bloodkin charged him. His normal Mana reserve was almost empty. He drew from the Mana stored within his cells through the Immortal Emperor Body, then reached into the additional storage provided by Enlightened Heart.

Both reserves were falling.

Emily noticed. "You’re running out."

"Not yet."

A B-Rank Bloodkin charged. Reinhard released All-Cutting Slash, continuing to supply Mana as the creature’s defenses adapted and regenerated. When it tried to retreat, he dragged it back with Spatial Pull. The invisible blade finally passed through its body.

Reinhard’s breathing became heavier. The victory had cost him far more Mana than it should have.

Then another Ashcroft fell. The wound was severe enough that normal healing would not be enough.

Reinhard activated Serene Enhanced. The injuries stabilized, but the effect could only hold the condition for three minutes before it worsened again.

"Three minutes," he said.

Emily understood immediately. "Then we have three minutes to get them out."

The route ahead was blocked by Bloodkin, Abnormalities, Collectors, and Silent Night.

A Collector suddenly appeared through the dust. "We’re not here for you."

"That’s comforting."

"We’re here for what’s underneath this town."

Before Reinhard could respond, a Silent Night attack struck the Collector and forced him away.

Reinhard’s expression changed. They weren’t allies. Nobody here was working together. Everyone wanted something different, and that was why the battlefield had become impossible to control.

Emily climbed onto a higher section of the ruined street. From there, she could see almost everything.

Rhea was injured, with Lily fighting beside her. Maki and Seraphine were isolated. Rika was fighting alone. Yuna was holding back an overwhelming wave while Mara tried to keep everyone connected. Collectors fought over the ruins. Silent Night attacked from another direction. Bloodkin exploited every wound they could create, and Abnormalities were everywhere.

Reinhard was still moving, still healing, still fighting, still saving people.

But barely.

Emily gripped Aeon and ran toward him.

Reinhard noticed immediately. Spatial Step carried him across the battlefield, and he appeared directly in front of her.

"Let go."

"No."

"They’re still out there."

"I know."

"Then let me help."

"Emily."

She pulled Aeon forward, but Reinhard caught the blade with one hand. "Look."

She looked past him. There were too many enemies. If she rushed forward without a plan, Reinhard would have to protect her as well.

Her expression slowly changed as she understood. She wasn’t helping. She was adding another person to the list he was already struggling to keep alive.

Something inside her shifted.

The system appeared.

[E.G.O. Activation Condition Detected.]

Reinhard froze.

He remembered Fighter Mannequin. That weapon had been created to train people, and he had wanted to use it to train his family. The weapon’s purpose and his own purpose had synchronized.

Aeon had always been different. Its purpose had been to make Emily stronger, and Emily had always wanted to become stronger. But that wasn’t what she wanted anymore.

She wanted to protect Reinhard. Maki. Lily. Yuna. The Nephilim. The children inside the orphanage. Everyone she had come to care about.

The purpose of Aeon was no longer separate from the purpose of its wielder.

Reinhard’s eyes widened. "It isn’t just the weapon."

Emily looked at him.

"The purpose has to match."

The system responded.

[E.G.O. Compatibility Confirmed.]

[Aeon.]

[Higher Potential Identified.]

[E.G.O. — Crimson Protector.]

Crimson light erupted around Emily. A crown of crimson formed above her head as threefold power surged through her body. Black stars appeared around her, each producing clusters of piercing black needles that moved around her like a defensive constellation.

Emily stared at her hands.

Reinhard smiled.

"Why are you smiling?"

"Because I think we can help them after all."

Then Reinhard looked toward Heavenpiercer. The weapon had always been meant to pierce whatever stood in his way and create a path forward. If E.G.O. synchronization was about purpose, perhaps the same principle could apply to his legendary weapon.

Golden light erupted beside him as Heavenpiercer responded.

[E.G.O. Compatibility Confirmed.]

[Heavenpiercer.]

[Higher Potential Identified.]

[E.G.O. — Golden Crown.]

Golden Mana wrapped around Reinhard’s body, forming a radiant cape behind him.

Across the battlefield, heads turned. Emily’s crimson light illuminated the ruined town. Reinhard’s golden light answered it.

For the first time since the battlefield had collapsed, the enemies stopped advancing. They were no longer looking at a team that was barely surviving. They were looking at something new.

Reinhard raised Heavenpiercer and smiled.

"All right."

The golden weapon pointed toward the battlefield.

"Let’s make a path."