Standing at the top of the tower belonging to the MoonStar sect, Lissandra, Jackob, and Anastassia stared at the East, where an ominous aura could be felt even from their location.

After the first earthquakes, they didn't feel anything but a few seconds ago, they could feel the familiar yet chilling aura of Arthur's power. This was due to the first wave, which largely affected the environment around it. Although the sky didn't become jet black, the effect of the attack still reached them.

Even the heat from the Vermillion Bird assaulted them, causing Jackob to sweat profusely but apart from that, it didn't injure them in any way.

"It has begun... I wonder if Arthur will be able to do it."

As he stared East, Jackob murmured with a worried tone.

"We can only pray for his victory."

Anastassia clenched her fists as her eyes were fixated on that direction, she really wanted to go there and help Arthur but such thoughts were foolish and reckless. The difference in power between her and Arthur is unimaginable, she would be capable of doing nothing but make it harder for him, which is why she obediently agreed to all of his requests and remained here.

"Hmpf! You think your praying will do him any good? If I were you I would start preparing other plans such as an emergency evacuation in case things become worse."

Lissandra snorted and left the roof, not wanting to spectate anymore, after all, it's not like watching from here would benefit here. The shockwave may even injure a mere mortal like her so it's best to stay inside the tower, where it's significantly safer.

Now that she doesn't wield Dark Magic anymore, just getting exposed to it may deteriorate her physical body and cause her mind to collapse, that's what Dark Magic is good at, after all.

Unlike Lissandra, Anastassia just stood there, expecting Arthur to return victorious. Jackob threw a couple of glances at her, then he said after some hesitation

"S-should I start preparing?"

"Mmh"

The woman nodded her head so without wasting any more time, the general left the roof to perform the task he was assigned to do a few days ago. Just as he entered the tower, an earthquake even more powerful than before occurred, thanks to the strong material the houses inside the MoonStar sect were created from, they didn't suffer a lot of damage but there are still some which couldn't hold up and collapse. As for the walls surrounding the sect, they were as motionless as ever, not affected by the earthquake.

The earthquake was followed by an ear-deafening roar that resounded all over Astria, just the roar caused large and deadly shockwaves that were sent in all directions.

Fortunately, the shock waves didn't last long and dispersed after traveling for a few thousand miles, nonetheless, this merely added to the shock of the spectators, which became even more fearful of the source of this angry roar.

...

Next to the gates of the MoonStar sect, there stood a large red minotaur with a domineering presence and a matching weapon on its back, however, such a monster was currently cowering behind a short red-haired youth that stood before it, calmly staring at the horizon with a deep gaze and a calm demeanor.

Sensing the heavy earthquake and the hearing the chilling roar, Swain sighed and mumbled

"Master... It's hard to fight when the fight ain't fair. Why must thou choose such a lonely road?*sigh*"

Swain turned around and waved at the minotaur dismissively while saying

"Let's go, there's nothing for us to watch."

Although the minotaur was unwilling to leave, it still obeyed him and followed the youth reluctantly.

...

"Are you that worried about him? I never thought that my elder sister would be attracted to a man."

The Demon Lord, who was sitting next to her husband, commented as she noticed Taliya, who was absent-minded.

"Instead of talking about such stuff, you better focus more on carrying your duties. Furthermore, I do not like him, I simply admire him."

The Demon Lord chucked and retorted

"Either way, why didn't you grasp this chance and followed him? A person such as him would surely leave Astria and travel to stronger worlds, achieving greater feats, a person of his caliber won't be restricted by such a world."

Listening to her little sister, Taliya let out a helpless laugh and replied

"Travel to higher worlds? All I'm seeing is a man searching for his family. I know that he doesn't care about exploring the Universe and venturing outside, seeking powerful foes. All he wishes for is a peaceful life, devoid of danger."

Taliya wouldn't know a lot of Arthur despite the time she passed with him, however, she talked with Anastassia and Jackob and came to know a lot of things about him, she also deduced a few things from her time traveling with him.

"Although my discerning ability has declined due to my age, I can at least see that you do wish for more than what Astria could offer you. Big sister, why don't you follow your heart and do what you really want to do not what you should do..."

The Demon Lord remained silent after that as she noticed the head-maid who was back to being lost in thoughts as if she was in a completely different world.

...

'Second wave, Thunderous God, Punishment for the Sinners!'

Arthur executed the second wave just after he unleashed the first one. After he possessed the Sovereign, his stats increased drastically, so logically, [Thousand Waves] will become much more powerful if it's unleashed right now. In fact, Rozak, the elderly Sovereign would have died after three waves at best yet the Vermillion Bird was resisting the first wave, which would leave a Sovereign with no means of resistance.

An illusory old man appeared above Arthur, he waved his staff and pointed it at the Vermillion Bird, causing the dark sky to split open and a gigantic sword made of pure white thunder to descend at the bird with incredible speed.

Last time, it took quite some time for the sword to materialize and attack Rozak, yet this time it happened in just two seconds, leaving no time for the Vermillion Bird.

However, two seconds were more than enough for an agile Divine Beasts such as the White Tiger to act and fly straight at the descending sword.

The Godly thunder has a terrifying explosive power, but its stunning effect is even more dangerous. The White Tiger decided to block it as the Vermillion Bird would probably be unable to defend against two waves, although the Divine Beasts couldn't talk, they were intelligent beings, fully sentient.

Using his eyes, Arthur was able to see an absurd amount of strong Golden Energy condensing around the paw of the tiger as it was ready to meet the sword.

'Since you're asking for it, don't b-'

Arthur was going to unleash the third wave by the next second but before he could do so, he felt his body become extremely heavy and the dizziness from before assaulted him, making his body feel wobbly and unstabilized thus rendering unable to execute the rest of [Thousand Waves].

By the time he opened his mind has cleared a bit and he managed to see properly, there was already an azure dragon flying straight at him with its mouth wide open, ready to devour him whole...