The Great Sword is not the Main Body!
Chapter 179 – The End of the World

Though the various lights that had illuminated the sky were gone, the victory cheers did not fade.

Instead, they grew even louder.
As if encouraging those who had ventured to the world’s end, the cries grew more intense—and Hermilla smiled bitterly.

“That ended more anticlimactically than I expected.”

Standing beside her, Delia also managed a wry smile as she surveyed their surroundings.

Brunhilde’s familiars, reduced to ashes.
Cartia’s buildings, obliterated without a trace.
The bodies of Liberation Army soldiers, scattered across the ground.

“If I had been just a little faster… could I have saved them all?”

“If you start thinking that way, there’s no end to it. So for now, at least, it’s okay to smile.”

“I guess… but still.”

Hermilla gently stroked Delia’s head as the girl’s mood darkened.

Despite numerous severe injuries and some casualties, this was undeniably an overwhelming victory.

Thanks to Delia, who had protected the wounded while navigating the battlefield.
Thanks to Serr and Rubia, who had provided support from the skies.

And most of all, thanks to Noah, who had faced Brunhilde alone.

Even to the eyes of a transcendent being, Noah and Brunhilde’s battle had been extraordinary.

Especially that attack at the start.
There was no future in which anyone could have avoided it.
All she could foresee was her body exploding in all directions the moment the arrow was fired. She saw only her comrades dying.

Yet Noah had still charged forward despite facing such an attack.
She had rushed to protect her allies.
And ultimately, she had blocked that catastrophe.

With her greatsword, she had deflected an arrow containing the essence of disaster.

A feat that no one present could have accomplished.
No, she could confidently say that no human walking this earth—past or future—could ever achieve such a feat.

Would it have been possible to block that attack using the [Heaven-Reversing] technique?

She calculated countless scenarios in her mind, searching for futures where success was within reach.

The result: a mere 20% chance.
Just a 20% probability that she could save her comrades by sacrificing her own life.

“Hah… In any case, I’m glad it’s over. You did well, Delia.”

Suppressing the sense of helplessness rising within her, Hermilla consoled Delia.

“Hehe… yeah. You worked hard too, Hermilla.”

While receiving Hermilla’s gentle pats, Delia began glancing around as if searching for something.

Seeing this, Hermilla slipped back into her usual demeanor, smirking mischievously as she whispered to Delia.

“Looking for Heinzel?”

“W-what?! No! Why would I look for that baldy?!”

“Oh? If you say so.”

“…Right. Really, really not. Geez…”

Her ears turning bright red, Delia kicked at the ground before cautiously glancing up at Hermilla.

“…W-well, now that I think about it, he does owe me some money. Yeah. We agreed I’d collect after everything was over, so I just want to remind him before he forgets. Do you happen to know where he is? It’s not weird or anything, really just about the money, so don’t misunderstand!”

“I see. If that’s what you say.”

“It really is!! REALLY!!!”

“Fufu, alright. If you’re looking for Heinzel, he’s back there, talking with some woman.”

“What…? A woman…? Why… why is that baldy with a woman???”

“Who knows? From what I saw earlier, it seems he saved her. Maybe she’s thanking him for that?”

“R-really?”

Anxious after hearing Hermilla’s words, Delia bit her lower lip and sent a small current of electricity in the direction Hermilla had indicated.

“It… it really is true.”

At the same moment, Delia’s face turned deathly pale.

“…And she has massive boobs too…?”

“Mmm. Their atmosphere seemed rather intense… Given the situation, perhaps she’s confessing her feelings? They’ve had a history together for a while now. So maybe her feelings have developed into something more—”

“That bastard… that bastard, THAT BASTARD!”

Before Hermilla could finish, Delia—her body trembling—raced toward Heinzel’s location.

Watching Delia rush off, even igniting her magical energy in her haste, Hermilla chuckled softly before closing her eyes to glimpse the future that awaited them.

And what she saw was…

A land drenched in blood.

A black sun hanging in a crimson sky.

Ancient beasts from legends, devouring the corpses of her comrades.

And herself, her limbs severed, watching it all unfold.

“What is this…?”

At that moment,

A horn blast that seemed to split the heavens echoed across the land.

Not just one, but hundreds.

A wild, frenzied call erupted from countless locations, drawing all beasts in the region toward Cartia.

Hermilla’s face contorted with despair as she looked up at the sky.

There,

Spreading darkness more intense than before.

A black sun

Was staining the blue sky crimson.

***

“…This place truly deserves the name ‘End of the World.'”

A land of emptiness, where even the smallest breath felt like noise in the absolute silence, where even the horizon separating sky from earth had vanished.

Countless stars adorned the heavens.
And the vast earth, stretching beyond what even my current self could perceive, mirrored the starry sky above.

It was like those salt desert images I’d only seen on the internet, but with an ethereal quality added to them.

“This might not be the right time to say it… but it’s incredibly beautiful.”

“…Y-yeah, it is.”

As I absentmindedly answered Rubia while taking in the scenery etched in my mind, both Serr and Rubia turned to look at me.

“…Can you see it with your Ki Sense too?”

“Yes… I’m surprised myself… All these twinkling things are very clear.”

Splash — I stepped onto the transparent ground reflecting the starlight.
Small ripples formed, spreading widely across the surface.

Not water… but not soil either… what is this exactly?

Splash, splash, splash

As I playfully stomped on the scattered starlight, Rubia chuckled and knelt down to wipe off what had splashed onto my legs.

“Remember that forest where we decided to camp on our way to Roholon?”

“Mmm…? Yes, of course I remember…”

“Back then, just like now, you were playing around saying how soft the ground was. Do you remember that? Hehehe…”

“Oh… Did I… did I really do that?”

Maybe I did…?

“I had so many complicated thoughts back then. But looking back now… they really weren’t a big deal at all.”

After wiping everything off my legs and fixing my clothes, Rubia stood up.

“Thank you, Noah.”

“…For what?”

“Just… for everything. Thank you for everything.”

“I have a lot to thank you for too, Rubia.”

Rubia’s breath drew closer.
I raised my head and stood on tiptoe, leaning in to kiss—

“Enough of this nonsense. Let’s go find Laila. It would be troublesome if that strange ability of yours ends, wouldn’t it?”

Serr’s irritated voice halted our movement.

“Ugh… y-you’re right.”

“Ahem, yes. As Serr says… finding Laila should be our priority.”

Both Rubia and I, suddenly awkward, exchanged embarrassed smiles before simply holding hands instead of kissing.

“Tch. Let’s move out.”

The spirits floating in the air, looking more cheerful than usual, giggled as they scattered in all directions.

We began walking again.

Splash, splash

Ripples formed with each step we took.

Without losing momentum, they spread endlessly at a constant speed.

“The spirits haven’t found anything. Noah, can’t you see anything with your Ki Sense either?”

“Umm… no. I’ve been extending it as far as possible… but there’s nothing.”

I stretched my perception beyond where the spirits had searched, yet still found nothing.

All that existed in this place were our footprints, the trail where Frey had been dragged along,
And the ripples extending endlessly beyond my perception.

Splash, splash

After walking for quite some time,

Rubia suddenly flinched and stopped in her tracks.

“Rubia…?”

“Just now, didn’t you feel something?”

“I didn’t feel anything.”

“Me neither.”

Frowning, Rubia tilted her head and released her divine power.

“I could have sworn…”

However, unable to find anything, she sighed and retracted her power.

“I must be tense… sorry.”

“It’s fine. I’m also so nervous I feel like I need to urinate badly, so I understand.”

“…Gasp… m-me too.”

“Hmm, that was a joke. But it seems Noah truly needs to go. If necessary, I’ll close my eyes, so take care of it. Nothing’s more humiliating than losing control during battle.”

“Pfft…”

“…N-no I don’t! That was a joke too!”

“Hmm, I’ll believe you.”

“Ugh…!”

With a slight smirk, Serr fixed her gaze on me.

“That aside. Prepare yourself.”

“Huh…? For what?”

“For battle.”

In that moment,

Thousands of spirits gathered behind Serr, unleashing tremendous power.

“Serr? What’s happening all of a sudd— huh?”

Startled, Rubia began looking around as if searching for something.

Then,

BOOM!

She released a massive surge of divine power.

Still standing in confusion, I met Serr’s gaze as she spoke.

“Noah. What is the condition for maintaining your [Thirst]?”

“[Thirst]…? Uh… regularly absorbing blood, whether from enemy or ally… Wait. Huh?”

“Exactly. We’ve been walking for over an hour now. Yet your [Thirst] remains active. Which means…”

Crack — The sky split apart. Crack — The earth fractured. The stars that had illuminated us began to flicker and fall, plummeting downward.

“This place isn’t real.”

Eventually, through the gaps in the fractured reality, a new sky appeared. A new earth took shape.

More beautiful than before.
Stars adorning the sky with brilliant light.
The ground below, perfectly reflecting that celestial radiance.

At the center of this beautiful world stood

A single tree.

A colossal tree that seemed to connect heaven and earth.

A tree identical to the World Tree that Serr had once shown us.

The World Tree, Yggdrasil, surrounding a delicate elf,

Revealed itself.

[I thought I had hidden myself well. But truly, you are worthy as my descendant. I am so proud.]