Chapter 247
Chapter 247
Chapter 247
The Three Goddesses of Fate (1)
The round ring floating above Metatron's head began to emit intense light.
"For an angel to have divine authority..."
Ktuna, who had been relentlessly pounding Metatron, also showed a slightly defensive stance this time, perhaps sensing danger.
"That's definitely dangerous."
Divine authority was essentially a finishing move and the ultimate card that could overturn fundamental differences in capability. While gods typically tended to squander their authority from the start to quickly exterminate insect-like lower beings, in god-versus-god battles, it was standard practice to save divine authority until the very last moment.
The fact that Metatron, who was renowned for being cautious even in the heavens, had brought that out meant...
That authority wasn't mere desperation but a lethal card to turn the situation around!
"Humans, if you want to stop that, we'll probably need your power... huh?"
Of course, whatever that authority was, with the current assembled forces, they could smash it head-on.
That's when Ktuna confidently tried to request help.
"...Where are you all going?"
Ktuna looked at Rudian and his party with bewildered eyes.
With such forces assembled, instead of thinking to block Metatron's authority, they were huddled together setting up dimensional severance barriers.
What was even more absurd was that Yev, who had somehow changed to human form, was among them.
Yev cast a look of disdain toward Ktuna.
"Get out of the way, you stupid octopus."
"What?"
"Metatron's authority isn't something that can be handled with force..."
"Wait, how do you know about that...!"
Before those words could finish, Metatron's ring reached maximum brightness.
Metatron looked down at Ktuna, who was still blocking his path, with a solemn expression.
And he unleashed his authority toward her.
"Manifest, Tree of Sephiroth."
Metatron's wings disappeared and began transforming into geometric forms symbolizing the ten types of Sephirah.
Ktuna's expression was colored with panic as she grasped the essence of that power.
"Th-this is... similar to the power of the Great Mother...!"
WHOOSH!
As massive light spread throughout this entire dimension, a great annihilation occurred that destroyed everything in this world.
"Ahhhhhhh!"
She desperately tried to resist using Outer Force and divinity, but Metatron's authority 'Light of Kabbalah' ignored all such defenses.
Ktuna's body began collapsing moment by moment.
"S-save me...!"
Just as Ktuna's body and divinity were being torn to pieces without even being able to resist...
"Retrieving, Master!"
Along with the voice of Dilmun, Ktuna's ragged divine form disappeared.
SWOOSH!
After the Light of Kabbalah swept through this world once...
In the world that had become complete nothingness, Metatron slowly raised his head.
"As expected, even this power cannot destroy that moon..."
Though it was an absolute authority that could annihilate even chaos, unfortunately, the power of the one who created that moon was superior to his own.
"This was something I expected, but..."
Metatron's gaze slowly turned to Rudian's party, who were slowly appearing in their positions.
"It seems you knew my authority in advance. Perfect countermeasures."
"Because that wasn't something that could be handled with force."
Rudian chuckled and raised one index finger.
"One of the three powers possessed by the Creator God's creations: annihilation."
"...Correct."
The direct creations of the Creator God unconditionally gained one of three powers.
Creation, annihilation, and fate.
Berus, who possessed the power of creation.
Metatron, who possessed the power of annihilation.
And the three goddesses who possessed the power of fate that could predict causality.
Rudian had preemptively instructed his party on how to counter Metatron's authority, the most intuitive and powerful among them.
"Escaping from this dimension and setting foot in another dimension couldn't have been easy... It was a bold decision."
"Because that was the correct answer."
What Rudian and his party had done was nothing special.
They had simply avoided an uncontrollable fire by forcibly breaking through a neighboring wall and hiding there temporarily.
Of course, since that wall was extremely solid and they didn't know what might be in the neighboring house, one might think it would be better to face the fire instead.
"But if you had continued to confront it there, you would have been drawn into your intended plan."
"......"
Metatron's mouth closed involuntarily.
Seeing his thick eyebrows slightly distort, it seemed Rudian's words had hit the mark.
Rudian continued in a relaxed manner.
"If you pretend to be losing throughout and then use authority as a counterattack opportunity, normally one would calculate their advantage like Ktuna and try to crush with force."
"......"
"Us using power would mean resonance of the seven-colored world, and you would immediately use that power in reverse to smash that moon."
That moon looked like a moon but wasn't a moon.
It was merely an imaginary space created by Berus appearing in the form of a satellite.
"Adi's calculations will be finished soon. Once the coordinate calculations to the heavens are complete, we won't need to deal with you."
By now, the archangels including Michael were probably filled with rage.
If there was a reason to continue fighting, it would be the information he possessed...
'I am quite tempted by information about Adi...'
That guy might... perhaps know information about Shambhala, the last terminal we couldn't find?
'But... continuing to fight Metatron is probably the picture Berus wants.'
If it's Berus, who can predict causality to some degree, he would have known this picture would emerge from the moment he confined the three goddesses of fate.
Metatron's expression darkened slightly.
But it was only slightly on the surface; for Metatron, who showed no great emotional changes on his face, this could be considered an emotional expression close to despair.
"What exactly must I do... to release the seal on my sisters?"
"...I'm sorry, but we can't save them even if it means reducing our forces."
"Even if it means you cannot return to your original world?"
"......"
At that moment.
As if time had stopped.
All sounds around them ceased.
"......"
"......"
Everyone fell silent.
As if they had conspired to remain silent in advance.
The one who broke that silence was, ultimately, Rudian.
"That's..."
Rudian's expression sank coldly, which was rare for him.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I don't know what it means either."
"You're spouting nonsense without knowing, you damn...!"
"This is also what they told me before being confined by Berus. They asked me to convey these words to you when the time came."
Metatron continued speaking to the speechless Rudian.
"And... they said that even if you gather all the seven-colored worlds, you cannot meet the Creator God."
"......"
"...Master?"
For the first time, Adi saw the 'expression' disappear from Rudian's face.
Rudian, who had faithfully expressed emotions of joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure until now.
A mechanical voice flowed from Rudian's mouth.
"Why didn't you say that from the beginning?"
"Because I expected you to react like this. In that situation where you had leeway, I thought you wouldn't show even a bit of room for compromise."
"...And now?"
"You're probably considering it a little."
Though the situation wasn't much different, in fact Metatron's words were hitting the mark.
Because now he knew that Berus' influence was somewhat involved in this situation.
"If... I continue to refuse, what do you plan to do?"
"What I must do doesn't change."
Metatron's power had been considerably diminished after using his authority once.
Nevertheless, his fighting spirit still hadn't waned.
"Somehow I must use your power to destroy that moon."
Both Rudian and Metatron showed no signs of backing down.
-That's enough, Metatron.
GASP!
Both Rudian and Metatron's heads turned in one direction.
There, a very faint figure of a woman had appeared.
"...Euryale."
One of the three goddesses of fate, the second daughter Euryale, had revealed herself.
"...How? Berus' barrier is still intact..."
The 'figure' called Euryale was barely visible as a silhouette, with her face completely blurred.
Still, both Rudian and Metatron knew well that this alone was close to a miracle.
-Berus has returned to the Creator God's temple. And...
Euryale conveyed unexpected information.
-He has begun clashing with Abel and someone called Gray.
"...!"
Rudian was surprised.
Though he had certainly formed an alliance with Gray, he had expected they wouldn't move until the party infiltrated the temple.
'But they clashed immediately?'
-Thanks to that, Berus' power loosened a bit, and I was able to come out representing my sisters.
"...What does it mean that I can't return? And that I can't meet the Creator God...?"
Rudian immediately asked this first without waiting for other reactions.
The surrounding companions' eyes widened at Rudian's almost intimidating demeanor.
-...Literally what it means.
"......"
-Because you are an existence of completely different nature from Abel, who was supposed to become the 'protagonist' of this world.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean!"
-...It's not a story about you being a created being or having someone else's identity. It's just...
Euryale lowered her head, looking somewhat dejected.
-Right now, I can only tell you that you must defeat Berus to know all the truth.
SURGE!
At that moment, Rudian felt something boiling up inside him.
Anger.
This emotion was definitely anger.
"If I... join hands with Berus or walk the same path as him... what happens to the world?"
"...Brother?"
"......"
At those words, as if he had given up everything, the others turned their eyes to Rudian with wide eyes.
But surprisingly, Euryale showed no particular reaction.
-Nothing in particular.
"...What?"
-There's no predetermined ending for this world. Though great upheavals occur due to fate determined by gods, that doesn't mean it signifies an ending. No matter how much one knows the future and has the power to manipulate it...
FLINCH!
-Whatever process you choose, whatever results come from it... only after that end completely arrives will the ending of this world be determined. So whatever choice you make is entirely your freedom.
Only then did Rudian understand what Euryale was saying.
"...Is that why I can't meet the Creator God?"
-Yes, unlike the 'future' you know... the current 'reality' doesn't have a fixed ending.
The original is a story and a novel.
An 800-episode epic composed as the adventure story of protagonist Abel Retsutain.
And Rudian, who fell into this world, had reached this point based on knowledge of that story.
But even though the same characters appear and it's clearly the same worldview.
The goddess of fate was... firmly stating that the reality where Rudian now exists and the original are completely different worlds.