What they all saw at the height of the Orbelesia Grace was something they will never be able to forget.

Her vision was relentless. It was as if to guide her to do something. It revealed to her the atrocities that happened in Efren Dorm, in the Battery Room, in the Red Hall or the Gallows as it was called as of now. The vision of those people who were as if enjoying tormenting the students in the dormitory. They were revelling the reverence they were receiving from the students who were broken with their vile magic. All under the watchful gaze of their dorm matron who is supposed to protect and guide them.

Her vision revealed to her things she was unsure of as she battled with reckless abandon. The golem - the Creation, Daniel who was lucky enough to be freed before he was fully absorbed as its core, the phylactery containing the Golem’s heart.

The combined magic from their teachers that didn’t quite fail but still insufficient to stop the rampaging golem. The appearance of the jets that carried missiles. Someone’s bound to be absolutely livid at the Council of Mages for sending fighter jets to open fire at the golem with the common folks in the same area. Their failed attempts to stop the golem seemed like a sign for her to act. The vision was persistently urging her to do what normal people wouldn’t even think about; what even an esteemed mage feared of doing.

‘I wonder if it’s fate’ she thought idly as she opened her eyes. Gleaming silver looking at the Orb of Accord - her Orb of Accord. The manifestation of her powers itself. It’s funny if it’s all fate’s doing. Fate is certainly cruel but accurate. Too accurate to her liking.

But if it’s fate then the amount of times she never looked away from that one page about Thaumaturgy, would definitely be justified. The reason was this. A battle she didn’t expect but gotten involved anyways.

“Orb of Accord?! What the hell! Whose orb was that?! Someone find the one-”

“But this could be a way to stop that thing. Meyusine’s creation is almost complete!”

She could hear the noisy adults on top of the cliff from where she was. ‘Adults’ she thought.

‘Since when were adults so unreliable?’ she complained at the back of her head. But their panic and confusion are warranted. After all, no ordinary mage could summon their own Orb of Accord in such a short time. Even an ordinary high-ranking mage needs months to grow an Orb of Accord to that size.

That said, they wouldn’t believe it if it’s hers - a girl who has just awakened her own magic. Right. It’s only been hours since she first recovered her Vestigium memory. She almost forgot about that fact that she should just be considered a novice in the matters of magic. Yet it didn’t feel like it at all. Especially when she summoned the Orb of Accord two hours ago when the golem was activated - carefully concealing it with her magic until the right time. She bet the fighter jets might’ve noticed something lingering in the air earlier too. From the way they were swerving away from where the Orb was floating.

Aediva stopped her train of thoughts when feeling the prickling sensation on her right hand. She caught the unknown sigil that was already fully darkened in her skin - like a tattoo she didn’t know she even had.

With a deep breath, she stood to her two feet - gripping the sword that appeared from the pillar of silver light and stepped out from the safety and cover of the trees underneath the cliff.

She walked leisurely towards the golem that has been stopped in motion with blue magic vines entangling its legs. The remaining slimes that noticed her presence shattering into million pieces before it could even reached her. It didn’t take long for the one (whom Aediva know) manning the golem to notice the presence that’s almost too calmly approaching what many didn’t dare to even go near towards.

“Little rat” the familiar female voice said in almost a gleeful tone - albeit the distortion. Aediva stopped in her tracks, stabbing the longsword into the ground and resting her hands on its hilt.

There are times when Aediva simply doesn’t understand the complexity of human obsessions. Argent orbs stared at the golem - initially lifeless and a mere statue; given enough mana gathered from the students and poor abducted civilians, it sprung to life. Even then, Aediva knew that the golem isn’t a complete being. For what Rachel aimed to make was not just a golem.

It was a Primordial giant.

That’s the true nature of her creation.

“That Astathier and the Heart are already removed, you know. Even if you manage to get out of the academy, you’ll need to sacrifice a lot more people to complete the giant” Aediva said, feeling the flow of air being sucked in by the golem’s movement. The whipping sound of the magic vines snapping sounded menacing but Aediva’s expression didn’t change.

“Ahahahahaha!!! To think that you talk as if you know things” Rachel mocked.

“What would a little girl like you know?”

Aediva’s gaze didn’t waver at the sight of the gargantuan structure of rock, slime and possibly flesh of the sacrificed in its making, faced her.

“... I know you lost your rights to use magic” Aediva said and the golem visibly recoiled. A roar thundered and a large hand threatened to smack her flat.

BOOM!

A wicked laugh ruptured from the golem’s insides - its sheer sound shockwave giving goosebumps to those hearing it. But the laugh didn’t last long when it suddenly jerked back. A growl came with its aggressive retaliation to something that shot past its head.

It turns its head to his back when seeing the flash of trailing light at its peripheral vision. But seeing how it was a feint, it looked back and saw Aediva still standing where she was.

“You… You’re the one who summoned the Orb!!!” the golem shouted with a shrill that broke the barrier protecting the girl.

Fear.

Aediva smiled.

It’s feeling fear.

“I’ll kill you!” if earlier Aediva didn’t feel any bloodlust, she did now. Enraged to the newfound fact, the golem finally turned completely berserk. Spurred by her enraged opponent, Aediva moved to the offensive.

As people watched the trail of silver and white dancing around the golem (that now majority of the mages know as the result of an actual Thaumaturgy magic), the more they wondered what sort of monster could rival something as powerful as a golem already on its way to becoming a full-fledged Primordial Giant.

Their own attacks towards the golem didn’t stop as the battle rages. Many mages who are still able-bodied, motivated by the appearance of the Orb of Accord found themselves supplying their own mana to keep the magical ballistae firing.

One of the many onlookers, a young half-fae stared - refraining himself from showing his awe-struck state (even though no one probably cared even if he did). It was clear as day who was fighting the golem at that moment for the trial of light that looks like a shooting star that orbits around the gigantic thing.

He admitted that it does seem that the Frost mage managed to drive the golem back.

But, it’s not enough.

Not enough.

The words made him feel something. Encouraged him to do something.

“Help her,” Zielle’s plea stuck in his mind for hours.

Zayen swallowed a dry lump in his throat as he clenched and unclenched his fists. Anxiously, he paced around outside of the medical tent. He let out a huff as he threw yet another look at the golem that was stumbling around.

Just one second.

A second to create a window of opportunity.

Each second that passed, the golem became stronger than it was seconds before. Soon enough, if they failed to do something to create that window of opportunity… Flashes of the memories when seeing Zielle’s unmoving visage flooded his mind. Zayen grip the wand in his hand.

He can’t let the perpetrator of his sister’s grave injury die before she could pay for her mistakes.

From the moment the golem lost its cool and rationality, Aediva’s victory was set in stone. But she lacked only one thing.

A brief window of opportunity.

She hacked at the arms with pure brute force that proved enough to rip the brick and mud structure apart but it regenerated back the next two second. Its regeneration was getting faster and more efficient each passing second.

“Agh!” Aediva yelped when she felt the damn club that the golem created just moments ago as a weapon crashed against her small body - sending her to the cliff side, denting its surface from the force of her impact. Before the golem could crush her again, she leaped off and in a blink of an eye, the cliff was gone - shattered by the force of the club swiped against it.

Aediva wheezed and hacked as soon as her feet landed on the ground. Wet patches of black and deep red on her palm were wiped away to her clothing.

She doesn’t have long. It’s a fast countdown until her body caves in and she would like it to be so after she defeated Rachel’s Creation. A shadow loomed overhead and she braced with her sword - pushing back with enough force to not be crushed like a bug underneath the golem’s foot.

“WHYWHYWHYWHYWHY” the golem persistently hollered.

“SOMEONELIKEYOU”

Aediva pushed back and the golem stumbled back slightly.

“YOU SHOULD’VE DIE BY THE TIME I WAS CREATED!!!”

The Frost mage stumbled back and looked at the golem. A personality that was distorted from its attempts to merge into one identity. As she thought, Rachel’s Creation had so many flaws. Thus why it was so frustrating when she hasn't toppled it yet. Because it saw the other perfect organsms around it. Rachel’s arrogance, Daniel’s pride and the agony of an inhuman being. A perfect blend for chaos.

She readied her stance - eyes trained on the golem and glowed. One chance to strike it down.

Aediva felt the gathering of her cold mana around her sword, the back of her one hand stinging as the familiar chiming drowning other ambient sound. Then, out of nowhere, a flash of green appeared in the sky, heading straight towards her.

It was as quickly as lightning, with more than enough force to tear apart the golem’s shin and Aediva jumped forth - only managing to glance at the mint-coloured eyes that were glaring at her with burning fire.

That is enough.

A series of silver and green explosions teared at the golem that stumbled to its back; its legs both shattered into icky mud, it’s torso burst as the trails of light passed through it in synchronized tandem straight to its head.

It happened way too fast for normal people to see.

But for Aediva, it was as if time bends to her will.

She saw the golem’s body trying to rearrange itself but it was too late for that to happen. The Orb of Accord pulsed, her sword shining brilliantly and just for a moment, she saw the stars bursting into supernovas.

“Open the gates! Let the light shine through!

Befall upon you the judgement and blessing of the Morning Star,

Ker Sei Val Leithanien!”

It was common knowledge that to defeat something, equal or more power is necessary. Thaumaturgy-level magic itself was considered above what humans are capable of.

To create another life or even an imitation of one is one of them. Above what normal mortals are even allowed to do. What Rachel Meyusine did…

Maybe in another reality it would be one of the most astounding feats a human could achieve. However, no matter how impressive it was, it was bound to be crumbled by something more powerful.

Seven circles of magic cast away the dark clouds. It’s almost like its own solar system as it revolves around the Orb of Accord. Webs of pure mana intertwining the delicate circles and they saw stars descending - sending shockwaves that sent not the raging storms but pleasant breeze that peeled away their dread.

As the golem crumbles from the raining swords of frost, the children pointed out.

“Look! There are stars falling from the golem!”

And thus Orbelesia Grace reached its end after a blindingly beautiful crescendo.