Ciel’s gaze is solemn as she stares at the darkened clouds beyond her Sanctuary.

She currently sits atop the Cadre 5 Magivore she had slain not too long ago, and several other corpses fill the ground around her. Her people, the Vey’lithars, and her disciple—the new Leviathan—also gather around her.

All of them stare at the same thing—the sudden change that the world above has embodied.

"This is..." Ciel’s eyes narrow as a memory suddenly surfaces.

It is something she hadn’t remembered ever since that mysterious encounter until now.

Back then, during her Special Divination, she met someone.

Or rather, that person invited her.

Her presence was so suffocating, and her voice contained profundities of endless depths.

That person had shown her many things, most of which are still lost to memory.

’But this scene... I remember it now.’ Ciel feels a heavy feeling within her heart. ’Just as I remembered, the Magivores that would attack our Sanctuary and how to deal with them.’

All of this knowledge was given to her back then.

Before all of this.

By the mysterious Leviathan who appeared to her during Special Divination.

"Right now, Javier must be heading in that direction."

Ciel sighs deeply.

Her eyes contain deep sorrow, but also a certain kind of helplessness that borders on the realm of loss. She wishes she could do something, but even now, as she sees the darkness filling everywhere, she can only remain paralyzed in fear.

This feeling of dread and discomfort is unlike anything she has ever witnessed before.

All of her instincts tell her—

’Whatever is hiding in those clouds, waiting to emerge... It will end everything.’

The truth is not lost to her.

However, she is but a Rank 1 Seeker.

What could she possibly do to prevent such a grim fate?

All she can do is pray for Javier.

"Please... Stop that thing!" Her voice is shaky as tears glisten in her eyes. "If you don’t, then we will all die."

**********

"We’re here!"

A brilliant light shines throughout the Capital, ascending into the sky to feed the darkness that has now covered the entire Kingdom.

One cannot even compare it to the Royal Academy Incident any longer.

The difference in scale and consequences is too vast.

If the Royal Academy Incident claimed hundreds, perhaps a few thousand, this kingdom-wide incident has already claimed the lives of millions.

And... the worst is yet to come!

"We’ll have to descend at this point. All of you, use your Floating Horse Constructs and charge towards the light. I’ll fly around the Capital and observe the intricacies of the ritual."

"Understood, Captain!"

Everyone has already risen from their position, their resolve clear.

"Richard, share the True Sight Potion. It helps to adjust your eyesight, so you won’t be blinded by the intensity of the light."

The lanky man in the group does as he is told and hands over vials to each of us.

We consume it without hesitating.

Once the Potion dissolves in my stomach, its effects dispersing through my body, I notice a different feeling from what I am used to.

’The digestion rate and effectiveness... It’s incomparable to what I normally consume.’

It’s almost similar to the feeling I get from those Potions the founding Leviathan helped me with.

The ones I used to curb my Existential Deficiency and raise my Interference Power.

’So this is the difference between Potions made for Leviathans and normal Potions...’ I smile to myself, feeling the change in my perception almost immediately.

Although this is only a Grade 4 Potion, it is extremely useful in this case.

"Alright... We’re all set!"

Everyone looks at each other, their expressions showing deep wariness.

"Stick close to each other and be decisive in your actions. Remember that you must stop whatever ritual or device he is using, no matter what!" Alistair yells, his tone containing finality while also displaying leadership befitting of a captain.

’We would be safer if he came with us, but I understand why he has chosen to hover around the Capital instead...’ I tighten my fist while thinking. ’There could be traps or other arrangements that Lucien has made which we could fall for without the advantage of a bird’s eye view.’

There’s also the matter of Lucien Zevalis himself.

Where is he?

He could be anywhere in the City, and so our best chance at finding him would be to split our group into two—one targeting the Ritual itself, and the other dedicated to finding him.

If we solely choose one or the other, we could end up losing.

After all, if we all focus on finding Lucien, he could evade us for as long as possible, increasing the chances of the Temporal Breach occurring. However, if we all focus on stopping the Ritual, then he could activate hidden arrangements while maintaining his secrecy.

The best thing to do is to take advantage of our difference in numbers and divide his attention.

Not only will he have to defend his Ritual, but he will also have to hide from detection.

Doing these two things will inevitably leave holes that can be exploited.

"Let’s go!"

Everyone activates their Floating Horse Construct and leaves the Flying Bog Construct’s interior through the walls.

I join them, and together we descend into the ruined Capital.

Yes... Everything is in ruins.

The structures appear dilapidated.

The streets are desolate.

I do not detect even a single living creature within its bounds.

"Horrible bastard. He sacrificed everyone in the Capital for his awful ritual..." Rias mutters right next to me, her rage seething.

For a moment, it appears as though the wrath she displays exceeds the fear that we all feel. However, after seeing even her hands trembling, I realize that isn’t the case.

"The Captain said we should stick together and head towards the light. Since I’m the Deputy, I’ll be taking charge of this operation, so be ready to do whatever I say." Richard’s nearly quiet voice is met with no dissent.

Instead, we all nod.

Everyone looks so anxious, and Jamie is downright terrified, a sharp contrast to the bubbly boy I first met.

It is almost like an instinctive response.

A natural reaction.

"Since the Breach hasn’t yet occurred, there should be minimal interference with your Conceptions. You don’t have to worry about Risk of Failure, so use Clairvoyance to comprehend the full layout of the Capital, so we know what we are dealing with."

"Understood!" Amnesis nods and closes his eyes.

The next time he opens it, a brilliant blue hue flashes within his irises.

"There is nothing on the surface. He must have made all the arrangements underground. I’ll need more time and focus..."

"Use as much concentration as you must. I’ll make sure to save you in case anything happens. Rias, activate your Conception and be ready to protect me in case I’m targeted."

"You got it!"

Richard gives a few more instructions to everyone present, and I watch this display with a great deal of surprise.

I didn’t know he was this competent.

"Since Javier is currently on Frontflow, he will be best used to protect someone else. I’m pairing him up with Elma. Protect her from any unseen catastrophes, and Elma should use Tracing to defend Javier if the need arises."

I glance at the dissatisfied teenage girl, and she does the same to me.

It’s clear we do not like each other.

However—

’Now is not the time to focus on such things...’ Singing loudly without expressing any dissent, I nod in understanding.

Jamie, we could use your Temporal Field in any situation, so be prepared.

"U-understood!"

"Also—"

Before Richard can utter his next words, a horde of flying Magivores suddenly appears from the blinding light at the Capital’s center.

"As expected..." He mutters with a grim frown. "It won’t be that easy, huh?"

These Magivores are all Cadre 5, and there are several of them—an entire swarm—charging at us with maximum intent to kill.

Naturally, not all Magivores are created equal.

Some are stronger than others.

Some are faster.

Some have more emphasis on durability or defense.

However, that doesn’t change the fact that all of them are difficult to deal with—even for a Leviathan.

’Thankfully, these are all Rank 2 Leviathans. They have Mystical Characteristics in addition to their Potions and Armaments...’ A brief smile of relief forms on my face, but it quickly vanishes once I actually think a little further. ’I’m sure we’ll be able to win eventually, but we don’t have the time to focus on these creatures.’

Out of everyone present, the only ones who possess two Mystical Characteristics are Richard and Amnesis. Elma, Rias, and Jamie only possess one Mystical Characteristic, while I have none.

Of course, I still have my Armaments.

They also possess this.

But none of us possesses a method that can completely get rid of so many opponents at once.

"Do not falter..." Richard speaks, his voice trailing with deep intentions. "Just keep marching forward. Simply cut down any adversary that obstructs you and make it to the light. Remember to watch one another’s backs and remain focused on the mission!"

Once again, all of us nod in understanding.

Brandishing my gleaming weapon, I activate Frontflow. From the corner of my eye, I notice Elma Trace forward from her position.

We plan to reinforce each other while also brute-forcing our way forward.

Every second counts.

Although this is the case, we also have to minimize our reliance on Conceptions since it will drain our Interference Power. If Lucien’s goal is to whittle it down, then it makes sense that he would send so many Cadre 5 Magivores to fight us.

’Unfortunately, I don’t have many effective Armaments that can stand against so many Magivores of this Cadre, which means I have to rely on Frontflow.’

Even then, I am only using my Second and Minute Layer.

I won’t go as far as the Hour Layer.

SWOOSH!

As we cut down the horde of enemies in our path, we charge forward.

The Magivores, which we ignore, begin chasing us from behind, sending all manner of projectiles our way. Thankfully, Amnesis’ defensive Mystical Characteristic has a great range and protects us for the most part, while Jamie also helps displace the few projectiles that actually make it through the field.

Still, this isn’t very sustainable.

’Sooner or later, our small group will be overwhelmed by too many enemies, and there won’t be a path to tread on...’

Right as I am thinking about this in worry, something unexpected happens.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!