Chapter 376 - Preparing for ‘The End’

“How the hell do we fight a god?”

That question was raised as everyone prepared for the journey to Earth, and the inevitable confrontation with the Architect. Everyone looked between each other for answers.

Although the initial statement was brought up by a certain champion king, the looming threat had been absent in no one’s mind. The Architect had acquired the powers of the other gods, now able to use them to revive an entire planet. In contrast, many of us had only just discovered the extent of our abilities, memories unlocked with the help of Sistina’s power.

We had gathered here to figure out an action plan, testing the possibilities of our limits. For some, the new powers had been unlocked from becoming ‘Ascended’, or rather, now we knew that it was just a state in which we were most attuned to the god that bestowed the power. And for others, the gift of the gods was absent until memories of our previous incarnations were revealed. Because of that, we had a council for the upcoming battle.

Joined by the ten Electi that were present was everyone that could possibly offer aid – the respective rulers of each nation, heroes and companions in our journeys. It was like a world summit had convened to determine the fate of the planet.

“Well, to begin with, it appears that each one of the gods possessed a certain ability, one that made them essentially unrivaled. Some of you have seen them in action. Like Lamps’ ‘Will of Yaldabaoth’, which could impose his intent through his mana on everyone.”

Heads immediately looked between a few who had displayed such unique techniques in battle.

Clock-endspiel – Ludmila’s ability to stop time for twelve chimes.

Aura de Gracia – the creation of a temporary space that distorted reality, allowing Saki to cast judgment on those who were trapped within.

Champion’s Cowl – Koujiro’s ability to turn essentially everything in his possession into part of him, extending his strength to the objects in question.

Absolute Reflection and Total Rebound – the Sun twins’ ability to deflect everything magical and physical from affecting them.

“In the face of such abilities, I’m afraid that us mere mortals barely stand a chance against them,” commented Pietro, who had temporarily led a council to keep Sistina running while its rulers had suddenly disappeared.

“Even our full military might, the technological advances crafted to counter such enemies – the balance of powers in this world still depend on the relationship between the Electi. For one being to possess all that power…”

The leader of Macali’s army, Liruru, recalled how their mobile suits had been easily decimated by the Architect. How their king had fallen in an instant.

“I have personally tasted defeat by such abilities alone. And even though our side once tried to overthrow the world with such power, I understand how the world could become as it has if someone had all of these in their repertoire.”

Olivia, no longer seeking revenge on the world, sat among us. Her Electi, Lamps, was right by her side, grinning at the plan that he had once cooked up.

“While such an outcome may have piqued my interest before, humanity’s best interest is for such a power not to be abused by anyone. As the possessor of one, I have a duty to ensure that it is used only to advert our own destruction.”

“It sounds to me like Mr. Tech Boy over there hasn’t learned his lesson.” Wen Zhi stood up from his chair and cracked his knuckles. But then, a hand gripped him from advancing.

“Now, now. He has agreed to play nicely, even if his intentions are a bit… eclectic. After all, you wouldn’t hesitate to use your full stash if our Lady Kaguya was in danger.”

“That is exactly the point!” Lamps pointed with gusto. “One must push forward despite the consequences at times. Otherwise, the opportunity to strike will be lost!”

“We can agree on that. That’s exactly why we’re here to figure out what all we can do. By explaining our powers, we can create a game plan that counters the Architect’s similar skill board,” I jumped in to mediate before things got too heated.

“Then, carry on, Game Master!” Koujiro cheered.

I sighed at the strange room of people gathered. The most important people of Leguardia – and this was where the conversation detoured… But then again, I was one of those strange people.

Brushing that thought away, we continued running through the other abilities.

Next was the power from Cielle when she possessed Eryn’s body. It had no name, but it gave her the ability to transfer the life of someone into another. Most of the time, she used it on herself to transfer bodies. But that power to weave life from one person to another created the basis of the incarnations that resulted in us.

“I’m just going to dub it ‘Soul Weaver’ for simplicity. But to think… none of us would have been here if not for that power. Taking pieces of the gods and implanting them into manufactured humans seems nigh impossible without divine intervention.”

“Even outside of battle, it possesses such high utility. It is no wonder that such powers would be deemed divine,” Katalina added. “It is essential the manipulation of life, changing the course of history as needed.”

Heroes and villains, peace and war, prosperity and calamity – each of these went hand in hand, controlled by the summoning of the gods’ incarnations. The people of Leguardia saw them as champions, but the gods preyed upon that belief to convert the planet’s mana into their own.

But then, the question came up: How did the Architect manage to convert the planet’s mana into a form of its own, distinctly with the Earth in mind?

“The signatures are completely different, and one cannot be substituted for the other. Not unless there is a catalyst driving that reaction.” Katalina the Scientist had pulled out numerous graphs and diagrams, many of which were gibberish to me, but a few in the crowd became completely absorbed in the data.

The powers of the Electi drew upon the mana of the planet. Since Sistina had put a curse on this mana collection, anyone that delved too much into such powers would feel themselves poisoned, like they were falling into darkness.

But if that person were to align with the Gods, thereby committing their cores for them to claim, such energies would be converted directly to the white mana that was of their making. However, there had to be some way for that conversion to happen.

My attention turned to Lau, who nodded and stood up.

“As the Electi of Dexterity, I have discovered that I can not only bend the direction of physical and magical powers, but the very intent of its purpose. The nature of a source of mana can then be converted to another purpose, adapted for its use elsewhere.”

“This ‘Reality Bending’ technique that comes from the Essence of Dexterity, it has been used to morph the planet’s vitality into that suitable for the Earth.”

That came from a memory of the Architect, a piece of his grand plan required to restore his planet. The powers of the Gods played a crucial role for restoring the Earth. It was no small feat to revive a planet that had essentially died, and because of that, cooperation was needed.

I turned to Cornelius next, the Electi of Magic. She held ‘Global Amplification’. The magic of this world normally had a limit for the area of effect, but this ability allowed for it to blanket the entire planet. Cornelius had discovered this power after hearing whispers from another life, one that was not her own. And the very first thing she did was to cause it to snow everywhere out of season.

Thankfully, that was all her amusement led to, as the slightest bit of snow out of season led to chaos in the streets. Particularly for Macali, which had never seen snow, it caused quite a few accidents as they had never prepared for the cold.

Lastly, we turned to Chrys, the Electi of Luck. She possessed the ability to auto-dodge anything coming at her that she could perceive, and her attacks landed exactly where she intended for them. Barring an absolute improbability, it would work for sure.

But, that didn’t extend to just battle. We had all seen how she could just toss ingredients into the air and have them land perfectly onto a tray. The trajectories naturally veered to the intended location, going completely against entropy, which governed a natural state of chaos.

“What should we call this ability?” The question hung in the air.

There was a collective silence before Chrys spoke.

“I was once told that the Essence of Luck left nothing to fate. That everything would be controlled as according to design. The will of the Architect would overturn everything if this power was used correctly.”

“Nothing left to fate… that kind of rolls off the tongue. Let’s go with that for now,” I said.

Given all of these powers, the room collectively began to see how the Architect could construct such a grand plan to revive the Earth. Katalina wrapped it all up nicely in a deck of holographic slides that hovered over the room.

“Mana from Leguardia is collected and converted from its natural purple state to the white glow of divinity, the symbolic power of the Gods that we have been led to believe in for so long. Their influence blanketed the entire world, distorting the perception of good and evil when mana simply came from different sources. Their apostles – the supposed champions of the people – possessed abilities that made them absolutes, unchallenged when it came to reaping the land of its bounty. All the cogs were put into place to create a system that would continue for as long as needed.”

The Gods had created an environment that was favorable to them, letting it run towards the end goal. Our entire existence was based on that, but now that we knew, we couldn’t help but fight against it.

I stood up from my chair.

“We will go on the offensive and stop the Architect. The energy that he has stolen is too much. As we have seen, the world will go to ruin in the near future without it. He may have the powers of all the Gods, but there is one way that greed plays in our favor – he cannot use all the abilities at once.”

It took up my entire capacity to use one of them, and since I housed two abilities, Eryn’s and my own, I realized that I couldn’t combine both into a single effect. When I used my Critical ability, my body was vulnerable and didn’t regenerate its life. When I focused on the Soul Weaver ability, my Critical powers didn’t kick in. It was one or the other.

“But we have here ten different Electi, so we are able to combine our powers into one! With that, even if our powers aren’t as strong as his, he would have to face against the assault of ten different abilities.”

A collective murmur of positive remarks blanketed the area. The Architect had made himself less powerful by taking everyone’s powers, trading it for a versatile move set. If we could coordinate our attacks, then we had a chance.

But just in case it wasn’t enough…

“Hold it! I’m not done yet!” I cried out, slamming my palms on the table. “Relying on just the Electi isn’t enough, right Katalina?”

“Correct. This is everyone’s world at sake. And because of that, we must do our part as well. Which is why I’ll be giving you all these….”

Several attendants came out with new weapons and outfits. The shine of various blue gems caught the attention of those in the room. It was the unmistakable aura of Resonance Stones.

“Equip these. The stones will serve as a conduit between Earth and Leguardia, allowing mana to be transferred, even across the cosmos. Our wills can join yours in battle. That is how we can help. Carry our wishes and strike a decisive blow!”

The proclamation of the Queen of Sistina echoed throughout the chamber. The representatives of Sistina, Macali, Sanshiro, and Purnesia all strummed to the same beat. The magic and techniques of others could be channeled through those stones and give the boost needed.

The Electi that were brought forth in this cycle had the hands of everyone on their backs.

Katalina turned to me amidst the cheers with an inquisitive look.

“Do you think we can strike a ‘critical’ blow this time?”

“We have no choice but to,” I replied. “If it comes down to it, then I will just have to use ‘The End’ and finish the job. The goal is to stop the Architect from using it instead.”