"I can stabilize your Spirit Origin..."
Seeing Selene's near self-mutilation, the words Solomon had been about to speak were swallowed back down.
When he first observed her fractured Spirit Origin, Solomon had a fleeting thought—to implant something into her composite core under the pretense of stabilization. But now, it was clear: there was no need.
That idea had only been an impulsive insurance policy. It didn't mean Solomon was prepared to act against Selene, or break their agreement.
At least, not yet.
From his perspective, everything Selene had done thus far was impeccable. Her contemptuous, high-handed mockery of Chaldea's ideals, her defiance of worldly rules, her unpredictability—whether she played with her strength, held back, or lashed out recklessly at the cost of her own Spirit Origin—each act perfectly embodied a god's volatile temperament.
And that volatility was precisely what Solomon guarded against.
After all, it was not long ago that the alliance of three goddesses in the Seventh Singularity, Babylonia, fell apart and turned into a band of double-crossers.
Gods are fickle.
One moment, Selene might cheerfully applaud the spectacle of human history's final chapter. She'd enjoy watching heroes struggle in the face of extinction. She might even lend a hand to heighten the drama.
The next moment, she could be moved by a fleeting flash of human brilliance, shedding a divine tear and stabbing him in the back.
It wouldn't even be the first time. Based on Solomon's knowledge of myth and history, that kind of thing happened more often than not.
He understood it all too well.
Still, suspicion is not betrayal. Solomon prided himself on his integrity. So long as Selene hadn't betrayed him first, he wouldn't lift a finger against her.
True, he remained wary, especially since even his EX-ranked Clairvoyance couldn't pierce much beyond her Servant data.
Other than the fragments Selene had willingly shared—the empire, the war, expansion, prosperity—Solomon knew little.
It frustrated him. Even if he maintained a cordial front, deep down he never truly trusted her.
But now, watching her tear herself apart, some of that distrust began to fade.
Crack—snap! Snap, snap!
Great swathes of corrupted, decaying scales fell from her body, splashing into the sea and stirring up waves. Beneath them, her battered, fragile flesh was exposed.
Or perhaps, Solomon mused, this was all for something petty. Maybe Selene really was doing this for the fun of it.
Her wings wilted. Her divine body's luster dimmed visibly. Solomon thought to himself:
"At this rate, even with the divine ley lines and the field saturated with mystery, she might have only two hours left."
Yet she showed no fear of Chaldea's ace—the Bull of Heaven, Gugalanna.
Solomon raised a hand toward the rift in the sky. Within the torn heavens, a radiant ring had begun to shine.
"Two hours? That's more than enough."
Unlike her fading body, the light in Selene's chest grew only stronger. Her crimson-violet eyes flared again. Parts of her Spirit Origin tied to Gorgon and Tiamat were being purged.
"Being restrained like this—it's boring. Clinging to survival isn't my style. What I seek... is brilliance as dazzling as the stars."
Buzz—!
The red magical particles leaking from the cracks of Selene's massive serpentine body surged like a storm—magic so dense it resembled her own divine blood.
Crack!
Before their eyes, the Beast Goddess's body began to disintegrate. The disassembled magic compressed and gathered toward the gaping wound in Selene's chest—transmuting into something new.
In that moment, the hybrid Spirit Origin's shell began to shed its form. Snake scales, dragon horns, claws—every inhuman feature bathed in radiant light before dissolving.
And as the aura of hatred and vengeance that marked the Beast faded, Selene's true form emerged.
Bright eyes and radiant beauty—this was the elegance and majesty befitting the Divine Empress!
"Besides, if even a mere mortal can possess such resolve, wouldn't it seem cowardly for me to hide behind a monstrous form?"
Selene's flawless features held a cool serenity as she glanced sidelong at "Solomon."
"Aren't you going to save Lev?"
"Hm?!"
BOOM!!!
A torrent of destructive magic, like a rainbow ribbon, suddenly flared—drawing Solomon's gaze.
A thunderous impact sounded from dozens of kilometers away. The shockwave rippled outward violently.
Countless golden chains burst out and tore through the air, piercing the monstrous Demon Pillar with surgical precision and scattering it in a single strike.
Simultaneously, within kilometers, the sprawling field of tendrils growing like crops was wiped out. Even the Honkai Beasts that had been posturing mere seconds ago were strung up by the chains in great swaths.
The remaining Demon Pillars, as if encountering a natural predator, howled with visible panic.
"How... is this possible?!"
With power enough to shatter mountains and rend continents, Lev was struck through by several golden chains and hurled into a knee-deep sea of blood.
Their purifying effects made him cry out in agony. As he thrashed through the viscous, corrupted water, his face twisted in disbelief. Looking up, his eyes narrowed at a shock of green hair waving in the breeze.
"You... How?! You became a Heroic Spirit?! You, who hated humanity so deeply—you're helping Chaldea?!"
"I crawled back from the underworld, heretic."
The green-haired beauty, slender and robed in plain white, wore a ferocious bloodlust that belied her refined face. Golden chains coiled around her.
"You dared defile my mother's Spirit Origin—Lev Lainur Flauros, your death is well deserved! I will tear you apart!"
BOOM!
His twisted body crumpled like a ragdoll, pulverized into sludge. Dissatisfied, the green-haired woman continued to churn the earth with violent strikes, venting her fury.
"Kingu, Lev has already become a Demon Pillar. As long as Solomon remains, he won't truly die."
By now, Fujimaru Ritsuka had arrived, clad in a newly issued Chaldean Master combat uniform. Flanked by Mash, Jeanne, and others, the sorrow on his face had vanished—replaced by burning resolve as he looked upon the fully revealed "Solomon."
"..." The green-haired figure nodded silently.
Though still appearing as Enkidu, his identity was clear—Kingu, the child crafted by Tiamat.
"To think that after my death, Kingu would return to the world through my body..."
Another green-haired figure appeared.
Identical in appearance to Kingu—or rather, Kingu had always resembled him.
Enkidu.
The key distinction between them? Their Noble Phantasms differ. Visually, one has violet eyes, the other green. And in aura, Enkidu's is distant and ethereal—a noble green-haired spirit.
At that moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others also noticed something strange about Selene.
Mash asked, "Is Selene... withdrawing?"
"Nope."
With a thunderous crack of lightning, Ishtar descended in her usual whirlwind of chaos, answering, "Spirit Origin Ascension. By completely destroying a Beast-class Spirit Origin equivalent to a Grand class, that psycho's unleashing power on par with the gods."
Hands on her hips, she patted her chest, still feeling shaken. "Good thing I didn't lose Gugalanna this time. With just you misfits left, human history would've been toast!"
"That freak completely shrugged off the pain of tearing her own Spirit Origin apart!"
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Why couldn't she overclock like that?! Ishtar grabbed her twin tails and screamed in frustration, "Damn it, this body! This weak Spirit Origin! Ah... ugh, arghhhh—!"
Without a Grand-class Spirit Origin or a Beast Core, a normal Servant's body—Divine Core or not—simply couldn't handle overclocking like Selene's. She'd instantly disintegrate on the spot.
Her machine-gun rant and rapid emotional swings left Fujimaru Ritsuka speechless.
"Lady Ishtar... you..."
Seeing this chaotic version of "Rin-faced Ishtar," Enkidu was visibly stunned. Even someone as calm as him lost his composure. Was this really the haughty, overbearing goddess he knew?
"Huh? Enkidu?"
Noticing the stunned doll-like beauty, Ishtar quickly recomposed herself, smoothed her twin tails, and cleared her throat.
"Oh, it's you. Fine. I'm entrusting you with something—protect him."
She stepped forward with her rare tights-wrapped foot and jabbed a finger into Fujimaru's chest.
"I'll take care of Selene. But don't expect me to hold her off forever. Gugalanna can raze mountains and rivers and annihilate entire civilizations, but we're still up against a god!"
"Also—tell that idiot Gilgamesh to hurry up! If he screws this up, I'm branding him with a clay tablet as the 'Most Useless King in History'!"
With her prized divine bull safe, her confidence skyrocketed. She tossed her bold words and shot into the sky.
Facing the enormous thunderstorm cloud that looked visible even from the stratosphere, Ishtar shouted:
"Thanks for waiting, Gugalanna!"
Meanwhile—
Buzz—!
Golden light merged completely with the blood-red magic particles at Selene's core. Her body began to glow intensely as it collapsed into ash.
The swarming Honkai Beasts halted, cowering and trembling as they stared at the space where Selene vanished.
"Manifest, my Second Noble Phantasm! The hour of coronation has come—awaken, Ars Paulina!"
Solomon raised both arms. In his eyes glimmered infinite pity.
The Grand Temple of Time—unfolds!
A melodious chant slipped from his monstrous maw, and in an instant, the world twisted.
The first sight to greet them was a meadow.
A sprawling expanse of soft green grass, dotted with pink-white blooming flowers, spread endlessly across the land.
In the distance, a majestic white staircase ascended to a throne floating in the heavens—its shadow growing clearer.
The crimson sky of destruction faded, replaced by a clear azure sky with scattered clouds. Above, a massive luminous halo hovered, seemingly within reach.
That halo was flawless. Sacred. Beautiful.
At that moment, the world was divided in two.
Fujimaru Ritsuka and his allies stood just beyond the temple's threshold. Beneath their feet stretched the scarred wasteland.
Where "Solomon" stood, the ground beneath him was an endless expanse of lush green. Grass swayed gently in the breeze, vibrant and serene.
To the unaware, this moment could easily blur the lines between good and evil.
Thump—!
Like a heartbeat restarted.
Born from the shattered composite Beast Spirit Origin, pushed to its utmost through forced ascension, the time had come. No class designation. No limits. This was Selene—her true Heroic Spirit form.
She emerged once more—not as a monstrous aberration, but in her genuine, radiant self.
Waist-length snow-white hair cascaded like a waterfall. Her flawless figure exuded grace. Crimson diamond-like eyes shimmered with clarity, their gaze laced with soft golden cross-rings.
Her form was modestly clothed: a pure white underdress beneath a violet skirt-armor adorned with golden floral embroidery. Behind her, a golden halo of Authority shone bright.
With each breath, a soft mist turned naturally violet-red around her.
Click.Clack.
Clenching her fist and testing this newly reformed body, Selene smiled faintly. "Thanks, 'Solomon.' Our pact still stands... of course, assuming you don't lose."
She wasn't lying.
As long as the false Solomon—true Human Order Incinerator, Goetia—didn't lose, their contract would hold.
Unfortunately, Selene knew: as long as that one exception of Chaldea remained, the outcome was already decided.
"I will not lose," Solomon declared with pride.
"Let's hope so," Selene replied, casting him a meaningful glance.
Then, extending her hand toward Fujimaru Ritsuka and his companions—how best to flush him out quickly?
Crack—!
Selene's fingers dug deep into the fabric of space itself—and pulled.
"Descent of the Imaginary Realm!"
Buzz!
In that instant, the light became blinding.
It was as though hundreds—no, thousands—of miniature suns lit the sky.
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