The Chaos Begins
I wanted to cheer the moment I saw the two of them, but the magic binding me forced me to settle for frantically nodding my head to show how glad I was. 'Girls, you came to rescue me!'
Serena looked at me with a slightly awkward expression. It wasn't that she disliked me. Quite the opposite, actually.
'Why is he so cute?'
Maybe the bean pod of affection had settled in deep. The way I was pathetically tied up looked nothing like the future version of me, yet for some reason it struck her as strangely adorable. We'd only been apart for a week, but seeing me again somehow made me even more charming in her eyes.
Of course, that didn't mean she'd just overlook the fact that I'd been forcibly restrained.
Serena pressed Bianca with a voice dripping with murderous intent.
"Why the hell is Ian oppa hanging there like that? You're really going all out now, aren't you?"
"Ah, n-no, this is a m-misunderstanding."
Bianca waved her hands frantically, trying to explain herself in a panic, but—
"What misunderstanding? Want me to give you a real reminder of the old days?"
Having already suffered at Bianca's hands once before, Serena wasn't about to listen to a single word. The moment Serena's hand moved to her sword hilt, Bianca nearly flinched as her PTSD flared up.
And when she drew her blade, Philia behind her poured out her own complaints.
"You tried to monopolize Ian from the very beginning. You should've expected something like this."
'Philia noona. But aren't you exactly the same...?'
Serena found Philia's words absurd for a split second, but since she needed to deal with Bianca first, she let it slide.
"Th-that... w-was unavoidable to protect Ian. I-I'm sorry..."
Slice—
In an instant, Bianca's bangs were severed. If she hadn't reflexively cast a defensive spell, she probably would've lost an arm or a leg.
Feeling her life in genuine danger, Bianca layered defensive magic over herself and screamed.
"I said I'm sorry!"
"Cut the bullshit. You were planning to hole up here forever until we found you."
When Serena looked ready to charge at any moment, Philia stared at Bianca with a puzzled gaze.
"What happened to that body? It doesn't look like you've obtained divinity yet."
Looking at Bianca's figure—which was far more developed than her current frail form—Philia felt a twinge of envy. Of course, given enough time she too would grow into an unparalleled beauty, but at this point it was still impossible.
Even while trembling in fear, Bianca seemed to regain some confidence from Philia's envious stare. She thrust her chest out proudly. Her overwhelming voluptuousness was on a completely different level compared to the two girls who still had the bodies of adolescents.
"I-I don't really know what happened either. B-but Ian really seemed to like it... hehe."
"...Is that so? Well, we can interrogate you properly after we get Ian back. There's no rush."
Philia responded calmly, but inwardly she was quite 'irritated.' Matching her emotions, various flower buds began blooming behind her. Massive flower buds continuously dripped with blood.
Blood Flower Garden Summoned
In the future, the power of the Flower Devil who had destroyed the great city of Catabel descended upon this place.
***
Since her complete metamorphosis hadn't fully finished yet, Philia couldn't deploy a full demonic realm, but she could still create a simplified domain. Her calm voice echoed across the entire Rift.
Thorn Binding Barrier.
Ten Thousand Poison Blossoms.
Cursed Flower Wheel Dance.
······.
Flowers with razor-sharp thorns covered the entire field as various poisonous blooms began to sprout. In addition, grotesque magical creatures started crawling out from the ground. These were the strongest techniques Philia could currently unleash beneath her domain.
It was clear that Philia was truly, deeply enraged.
Moreover, due to the influence of the 'laws' within the Rift, these magical creatures began multiplying endlessly.
Crunch—
Of course, the split entities wouldn't last very long, but there were more than enough of them to deal with Bianca.
By the time Philia's techniques were nearing their end, Serena had finished her own preparations as well. Unlike Philia, she had no flashy techniques. She had focused every nerve and skill solely on her sword, drawing out her instincts to their absolute limit.
Goooo—
An aura unbelievable for a mere human. A heart-piercing killing intent began to creep across the entire Rift.
The talent of the Heavenly Slaughter Star. A calamity given human form by the heavens. An extreme talent that pursued nothing but slaughter.
"H-hiiiik!"
Bianca shrieked in terror and hurriedly deployed her magic.
"Re-reflect, Object Refraction. Rondel's Shield. What else was there...?"
Formless barriers, rainbow-colored lines, and a majestic hexagonal construct representing a mountain's presence took shape. These were the spells from her memory that boasted fortress-like defensive power.
If this had been 'outside,' she would've drawn on the natural mana as well, but the mana variation within the Rift of the Continent was so bizarre that even a grand mage like her couldn't utilize the power here.
The problem was that this significantly reduced her combat strength, making it naturally impossible to face both of them at once.
Bianca knew her power was clearly insufficient... but she couldn't give up.
'S-still, to protect Ian... I have no choice.'
Since she had taken out 'insurance' as well, Bianca decided to fight with everything she had for now.
Right before the battle truly began—
-It's been a while here as well.
A seductive voice struck the battlefield. What appeared was a slightly more grown young fox. It was Talian, the Divine of Monstrous Strength and Chaos.
Upon seeing Talian, Bianca seemed to realize something and shouted at her.
"Ch-Chunja. You... y-you told them, didn't you?"
-This seat is Talian! How many times must I say it!
Talian was so dumbfounded she felt utterly drained. No matter how far she had fallen... Chunja? What kind of ridiculous name was that? And that was the milder version she'd changed it to because she was female—originally Ian had called her Chunsik.
This nickname that Ian had forcibly given her had already become so familiar among their companions that no matter how much she yelled, few people actually listened.
-Anyway, the reason this seat has personally descended is...
"Blood Flower Full Bloom."
"Extreme Ghost Liberation."
Before Talian could even finish speaking, the fight had already begun.
-These insignificant fools!
And so, the chaos truly began.
***
At the moment a battle began that not even an average god could withstand, I—who had watched it all—screamed internally.
'...Can't you guys maintain some distance while fighting?'
Being right in the middle of it, I was in serious danger of getting crushed like a shrimp between fighting whales. I desperately wanted to complain, but the magic kept me completely immobilized. It was an incredibly frustrating situation.
The three of them—actually four, now that Talian had joined—were about to collide when—
Crack—
A 'hole' tore open in the air, and a delicate hand shot out from it.
'Huh?'
Grab—
The pale, slender hand fumbled around as if searching for something before finally seizing me by the collar.
'Fuck?'
Before I could even question what was happening, the hand that had grabbed my collar dragged me into the hole.
Whoosh—
"········?"
I vanished in an instant. The three of them froze simultaneously at this unprecedented event. Only Talian watched the direction I'd disappeared with a strange expression.
***
An unknown space filled entirely with starlight. A woman wearing a robe slowly stroked the face of the collapsed Ian.
-Sigh, you really are a child who keeps making me interfere with the mortal world.
Squish—
As if annoyed, she playfully stretched out my cheek before looking at me with an expression that said I was cute.
-I will continue watching over you from now on. Child of possibility who came from the other side.
-Please, this time... may you fulfill your long-cherished wish.
Chu—
With a simple kiss, she sent me to somewhere on the continent. The near-miraculous power made it clear she was obviously not human.
-Hoo, I wonder how many more children I'll drag into their fated demise this time. I should've tormented them a bit more.
So saying, the veiled hint-giver Minuel let out a sigh.
***
Center of the Western Continent. The imperial capital, Avalon.
Thud—
With a sudden impact, I regained consciousness.
'Ugh... where the hell am I this time?'
When I opened my eyes, the area was filled with thick, hazy smoke. I could barely make out anything. I clutched my aching head and slowly stood up. As I waved my hand to clear the smoke, someone hidden within the vapor was revealed.
What appeared before me was the naked body of a pure white woman.
"...Huh?"
The woman who had been applying fragrant oil all over her body met my eyes at the same moment.
"·······?"
'Fuck?'
***
The ruined imperial capital that had once been the imperial palace. That was where a mad empress lived.
The last remaining bloodline of the empire. Olivia von Lebeus.
She was currently crying in a man's arms.
"I'm sorry, for not being able to protect you."
"It must have been so hard... right?"
'Why is she acting like this?'
Clearly, this was the first time the man and the empress had ever met.