novelQueen of the Adriatic Sea (2)
| ← Ch.083 | Ch.085 → |
Orsola silently said,
"Because you knew about all these, you would hide it from us and divert the attention to Lucia and Angelene, right? You knew that if we knew about this, we'd stop you. If you still want a clear answer, I'll deliver it to you myself."
She stared at Agnese's face,
"In actual conclusion, I don't know the answer. I'm still undergoing nun training. I have no confidence about myself, always thinking that I know what's right and what's wrong, or have wisdom and conscience to decide this for others, and for myself."
She continued,
"At least, Lucia and Angelene decided that they have a duty to save you."
"..."
Agnese turned silent.
"Even when Lucia escaped to a safe place, she said that she wanted to save you, and came back. Angelene said that she was afraid of hurting her comrades, so she was hesitant in making her weapons... I don't think there's a false sense in their words. In that situation, the ones who were even more perfect than anyone were them — I can't match them."
Word by word, these slow words had no coercive force in them.
Even so, Agnese stopped breathing.
"Are you unsatisfied with Lucia and Angelene's words?"
Orsola said to the petite nun,
"Even when they only saw despair and were chased by many, they still wanted to smile and laugh with everyone. Don't you think these words are enough?"
"—"
Agnese slightly glanced at Orsola's eyes.
Her lips were trembling, as if they were trying to say something.
"That's impossible. Are you so naïve to think that the Roman Catholics will sit by and do nothing?"
A man's voice suddenly interrupted,
"That would be an inconvenience for me, Sister Agnese; you can't escape your responsibility. It's true that the Roman Catholics have 2 billion people. Even if you die here, the plan will still go on. We'll just find another suitable person. But do you know how hard it is to find a suitable person among these 2 billion people? Troublesome, isn't it? I really hate troublesome things the most."
These light words destroyed all goodwill.
Orsola turned to look behind her, where the voice came from.
The forty-plus year-old man was wearing a luxurious Holy robe. There were 4 necklaces on his neck, each full of Crosses hanging on it. His face revealed a distorted asymmetrical smile.
Biagio Busoni.
Also, his hand was dipped in blood.
That likely wasn't his blood. There didn't seem to be any visible wound, and there was no look of pain on his face.
"... What's with that blood?"
"So cold, you don't have to worry about me. I'll answer your question because I hate troublesome things. So, in other words, I settled it."
"..."
Orsola tightened her grip on the Angel Staff.
Even Agnese, who was standing nearby and watching all of this, was clear that Orsola wasn't familiar with fighting at all. She was the type of nun that would fight on the table and was of a completely different breed from Biagio and Agnese. Before talking about strengths and weaknesses, the basic premise wasn't the same at all. It was like someone in desert get-up trying to cross Antarctica.
Biagio probably saw through it right at the start. He continued to have an expression of leisure.
Not even a defensive stance.
"If possible, I'd like to avoid fighting here; there are a lot of delicate things here. Why do you think I prepared all the defenses around the 'Queen's Fleet'? It's because that it would be troublesome if things were going to be destroyed here."
"... To use a large-scale spell on Venezia. Are you trying to let an outdated antique regain its glory?"
"Humph, this seems to be a common misunderstanding. However, that is wrong. We're not going to use this on the marine country, but something bigger."
"You're still so carefree."
Orsola said.
Agnese thought that this wasn't good. Biagio's common tactic was to have a conversation with the enemy without the enemy realising that he was estimating the distance between the enemy and himself.
"Yes. It's alright even if I say it to you. This is still within my ability, after all. Also, since this is a ritual that one must do for a person who's about to die, of course this is acceptable. Oh yes, I said the same thing to the boy just now. No, it's more of an explanation. It'll be even more troublesome if you continue to resist, but this is still acceptable, so I hope that you'll allow this level of stubbornness of mine."
"—"
Orsola instinctively took a step forward.
In contrast, Biagio didn't do anything.
It was like there was no need to notice the enemy's movements.
"Where was I? Oh yes, the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'. I suppose you know that that was originally a spell intended to be used against Venezia. Though it could destroy Venezia in one shot, there wasn't any use other than that. The reason is simple: if it landed in the hands of the enemy, it would be bad if it was used back on us."
Biagio stroked a Cross on his neck.
"The 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' was completed in the 9th century... when the remains of one of the twelve Apostles, St. Mark was brought into Venezia. At that time, Venezia wanted to create a religious environment like how the Vatican protected St. Peter's remains. Wary of this, the Roman Catholics created such a spell."
Hearing him say this, Orsola suddenly frowned.
She knew this wasn't the time to ask this, but she still asked,
"Are you lying? Venezia's development began in the 9th century. If the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' was already capable at that time..."
"That's right. After that, Venezia, at its prime, conquered Padova, Vicenza, Metz, Chioggia, all these surrounding countries. You should know about this history, right?"
"... Are you trying to bait my thoughts with this level of knowledge?"
"There were actually many reasons, and it's said that one of the reasons was the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'. At that time, the Venetian government was unable to determine where this large scale super weapon was, and thus could only destroy those suspicious places. It's not unexpected for the Roman Catholics to plan on using the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' after what Venezia did... in the end, they were afraid and didn't use it. Though Venezia's power was great, if they lost this land, it was hard to predict the impact it would have caused economically."
"..."
"However, Venezia spent a lot of money to finance these invasions and finally ended up in financial distress. The country crumbled, and thus, you can't ignore its strength. Of course, this wasn't just because of the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'... just looking at the results, I suppose our aim was achieved."
"Even when you didn't use it, you could destroy a country by just using the fear of a large-scale super weapon... but, "
Hearing Orsola say this so softly, Biagio grinned.
"Yes, that is it. The 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' can only be used on Venezia. No matter how attractive it is, there's no point if we don't remove the targeting limit. Right now, Venezia is a clean tourist destination, and the Roman Catholics now have no reason to separate themselves from Venezia."
Then why is it? Just as Orsola was about to ask this, she stopped.
There was a little possibility in Biagio's words.
"That's right, you discovered it."
Biagio Busoni concluded,
"The aim of the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' is to remove the targeting limit of the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'."
Orsola stopped breathing.
Agnese's eyes widened. Maybe she hadn't heard of this.
The Bishop continued on without caring about this, a smile appearing on his face.
"That was so long. No, actually, the one who set up the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' wasn't me, but them. Really, it must have been really long, huh? We have such a great weapon in the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea', yet to use it more, we had to spend quite some effort! That was the reason why this was left alone for so many hundred years!!"
"No way..."
Orsola inadvertently let out a sound.
"Then, you want to use the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' to destroy any city that's an eyesore? To use a large-scale spell so that you can brag that you can destroy the marine country called Venezia that was also famous for its strong magic!!?"
"You're misunderstanding. We're not talking about cities, we're talking about the world."
Biagio said delightedly.
As if it was like the fairy tale of 'The King's ears are donkey ears'.
"Hoho, the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' doesn't just destroy cities, but also everything related to the city. Like, if Venezia is destroyed, whether it's all the art pieces or sculptures, all of them will be destroyed! This Venetian Sect knowledge will disappear. Hm? Something like this, what if it's used on the city that controls the enemy world?"
The enemy world.
The city controlling it.
From these words, Orsola at least got what Biagio's trying to say.
"Don't tell me... Academy City!?"
"That's right, Sister Orsola. The 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' can destroy all the influence that a city brings. All the science and technology is affected by Academy City, even the trivial stuff!! If we can destroy all those, which would include half of the world, the detestable force called the Science side WOULD ALL BE PURGED WITHIN A SINGLE NIGHT!!!"
Such chilling words.
Biagio's words indicated a tone that he believed only those he sees exist. The people that didn't exist in his life were just background silhouettes. The destruction of the Science side wasn't as easy as cutting the world in half, but rather, people would die."Do you really think that everyone will be happy if Academy City is destroyed?"
"I don't think so. There are also parasites among the Magic side. The English Anglicans, the Russian Orthodox, Islam which took away the Cross, Buddhism and Norse Mythology. We just need to continue on and destroy all the obstacles! ONE DAY, ALL THE IMPURE THINGS WILL BE REMOVED, AND ONLY THE ROMAN CATHOLICS WILL BE LEFT!!"
"You... !!"
The 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea', which was meant to prevent Venezia from revolting, didn't need a second shot. But from Biagio's words, this may have been overcome.
(Maybe Lucia and the other nuns were forced to do those weird things... those were preparations to remove the limitations... )
Orsola thought, but didn't utter a word.
On the other hand, Biagio seemed irritated with her trembling as he continued.
It seemed like he lost all his enthusiasm as his speech was a lot slower.
"It isn't thorough enough. Since when has religion become a cheap tool? Sodom and Gomorrah were definitely burned, yet science pointed out that a religious trial is an error. This is the real misunderstanding. Why must God endure this for humans? If there are people who are bad to God, there's nothing wrong with erasing them. This is nothing different from burning weeds, even if people are burnt in the process, it can't be helped."
To use a spell of such a scale with such thinking, how much damage would be caused? Just to burn an enemy, it may end up with the entire city getting burned. This would end up as the greatest tragedy in Christian history.
Biagio glared at Orsola.
Seeing the trembling nun, the Bishop was drunk with delight as he let out a trembling and excited voice,
"This is the Roman Catholics' wish, so we'll be really troubled if you trouble us here. Besides, I'm not going to let you take Agnese away from here."
"I should be the one saying that!"
Orsola said as she waved the Angel Staff.
Biagio sighed in an uninterested manner,
"I told you not to trouble us."
The moment he said this, the winner was decided.
Orsola started to chant spells in order to activate the Angel Staff, but it was too late. It could be said that she was too careful. In battle, one only needs to convey the meaning, but Orsola focused as she started to create a spell, as if she's trying to carve a face out. She wouldn't be able to make it.
In contrast, Biagio just stroked the Cross on his neck.
"—The Cross reveals the rejection to evil."
As he muttered this, he easily pulled 30 Crosses and tossed them at Orsola's feet. Orsola got wary as she tried to knock away those Crosses with the staff.
BOOM!!
Before she could do anything, the little decorations expanded as if they were exploding. That was a real explosion: the speed at which they expand was like a storm expressed by metal. As if a metal rod broke past a door, one of the Crosses was able to knock the Angel Staff from Orsola's hand.
Agnese, who was behind Orsola, gasped.
Another 20 Crosses attacked an unarmed Orsola.
The second volley expanded above her shoulders, hitting downwards as if the Crosses were about to dislocate her joints. Just as she was recoiling from the impact, the third volley exploded above her as she bent down. The loud sounds of a mauling echoed throughout the room, as Orsola's legs turned limp and collapsed hard onto the ice floor.
Even so, she unsteadily tried to get up.
"Hoho! Stop it, Sister Orsola!!"
Biagio didn't even move a step.
Maybe because this plan that had taken quite a while was about to be completed, he was smiling.
He pulled another Cross from his four necklaces and tossed it. The Cross arced greatly over Orsola's head as if it was a bouquet of flowers thrown into a crowd by a bride.
"—The weight of the Cross corrects the haughty."
In an instant, the Crosses in the air let out a vibrating sound.
The Crosses that were instantly affected by numerous of thousands times of gravity flew near Orsola's rear. The ice floor exploded on impact and the floor was flipped up. Orsola was in a crouching position as she felt the impact, and rolled sideways.
Even so.
Even though she had lost her weapon, she felt the hits all over her body. Orsola tried to move her fingers slightly.
Just to resist.
"Humph, I said before that you should stop. I didn't become a Bishop by skin-deep impressions. I can release all the multiple meanings of the Cross and use all kinds of power. If you want to kill me, be prepared to explode a Cathedral! The English Anglicans have the 'Walking Church'. Even without that, I alone can match against a sanctuary!!"
After that, Biagio looked away from Orsola.
He said to Agnese, who was standing behind him,
"It's a bit early, but let's start, Sister Agnese."
"Eh... ?"
Hearing these words, Agnese looked surprised as she stared at Biagio.
The Bishop didn't look disgusted.
"The Amakusa on the deck, and Sister Orsola who's over there; though they're really unsightly, they won't really affect the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' that is meant to remove the limitations of the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'. Hoho... I've awaited this for a long time. Are you people trying to suffocate me to death? PREPARE TO LEAVE YOUR NAME IN HISTORY, SISTER AGNESE!!"
With Biagio's words, the ice ball that Agnese was leaning on started to change.
"It's beginning to adjust. You just need to let your magic synchronise with the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' and the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'. HURRY UP AND SETTLE THIS AND REPORT THIS TO THE VATICAN!!"
A large hole appeared on the ball as if a pupil in an eye expanded.
It was like it was trying to tell her to hurry up and go in.
"... ! HOW CAN I... LET YOU DO THAT!!"
"You still want to resist with that body of yours? Or do you wish for me to continue to rob your freedom?"
Biagio didn't even look at Orsola's face.
He used his fingers to stroke the Crosses on his neck, and said,
"It's about to start. Be happy, Sister Agnese. You'll go down in history as the one who buried the most enemies in Christian history. This is your long time wish, right when you first used that Angel Staff!"
"..."
On hearing Biagio's words, Agnese nodded her head in a dazed manner.
Looking down, she could see the Angel Staff rolling on the floor.
His words couldn't be wrong.
In fact, before 'The Book of the Law' affair, this was also the reason why she had wanted to kill Orsola. To bury the enemies of the Roman Catholics, it was for that reason. If that boy hadn't shown up and stopped her, Agnese would have definitely killed Orsola and been delighted.
Removing her own enemies was what Agnese had always wanted.
But,
"You... the 'enemies' that you mentioned include Agnese... !"
Orsola, who had been nearly killed by Agnese once, moved her body and actually tried to protect Agnese.
Even when her body was covered with wounds and she couldn't move properly.
She still dragged her body that was unable to stand up.
On seeing Orsola like this, Agnese froze.
Hearing Orsola's words, Biagio snarled,
"Right now, you're no longer a part of the Roman Catholics, but of the English Anglicans, that's why you're so anxious. If you were a Roman Catholic, you wouldn't be so afraid even if you're facing the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'."
"You can say this because you based your actions on suspicion. This is a characteristic of us Roman Catholics. Because we can only weigh between benefits and damages, we can't understand why people would act based on their beliefs. No, even if they can understand, they won't believe it."
Agnese heard those same words.
She knew that the Sister named Orsola Aquinas hadn't changed since that time.
"I said that I can't accept it. Agnese is about to be sacrificed for this useless thing! Why would you not believe this! I can't stand the fact that a lot of people are going to be killed!!"
"... Is that so."
The smile on Biagio's face silently vanished.
He played with some of the Crosses on his neck, and after that, used his finger to flick one of them.
"I changed my mind. Even if it's a small obstacle, it should be removed completely."
Hearing those words, Orsola froze.
It was not just because of the actual danger, but because this nun was unused to the murderous intent that others would release. Her normal life had nothing to do with this world.
Agnese thought,
(What's her reason for doing this? If she was from Academy City, I could still explain this. If she was living in the Science side, I could also understand it, because that'd be a danger to her. If she doesn't stop Biagio, forget about her normal life, even her life would be endangered. )
But Orsola was different.
Even if Academy City was destroyed, she wouldn't die. If Biagio aimed at the English Anglicans, she just needed to switch to another sect like how she abandoned the Roman Catholics. At least if she didn't stop the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary', she wouldn't be killed immediately under Biagio.
Even so, why must she obstruct him?
Didn't she want for even one second more?
"Christians love all neighbours, but are merciless. You should be clear if you read the calendar of the Saints' legends."
Biagio said as he stroked the Cross on his neck.
The force exerted by his fingers was like a snake, slithery yet firm. One could feel an unprecedented seriousness.
She will die, Agnese thought.
Thus, Agnese said behind Orsola,
"... Please... move away. No matter what, you'll die; you can't stop Biagio. You won't die if you don't resist."
Agnese thought, Such irritating words.
It was said that before Saints were executed, some pagan officers would tempt them to abandon their faith.
But,
"How can I do that... !!"
Orsola Aquinas firmly replied, as if she was a Saintess from a legend.
An immediate answer.
Her voice was trembling. Maybe it was because of pain, maybe there was some anxiety, maybe there was even fear, but Orsola still answered Agnese immediately. Maybe she didn't think through it too much, but because she believed that it didn't require much thought, she could say it immediately.
"It's over, Sister Orsola."
Biagio said.
This was another voice that had no hesitation in it and of a completely different resolution. Biagio Busoni would likely kill Orsola just like this. He believed in what was internal, and believed that it was definitely the correct thing. He refused to listen to others.
Orsola would die.
"In that situation, the ones who were even more perfect than anyone were them; I can't match them."
Maybe even if she didn't resist, she would still have died.
"Are you unsatisfied with Lucia and Angelene's words?"
Orsola said to an extremely weary Agnese,
"Even when they only saw despair and were chased by many, they still wanted to smile and laugh with everyone. Don't you think these words are enough?"
Not just Agnese, even Lucia and Angelene were concerned.
The one who said these words was about to be killed in front of her.
"Hahaha! Laugh on, Sister Agnese, see how your dream is about to be crushed!"
Hearing Biagio's words, Agnese's consciousness exploded.
The sound of metal colliding could be heard.
"... What are you doing?"
Agnese didn't answer Biagio's question.
She was holding the Angel Staff which was supposed to be on the floor. Agnese pulled Orsola behind and reached her arms forward, grazing past her nose as Agnese let the base of the staff stick into the ground, not moving at all.
The front tip of the Cross that suddenly expanded slammed hard into the Angel Staff. The Cross was originally aimed at Orsola. If she were hit, her entire forehead would have been blown off. Agnese, who was holding the staff, bit her teeth as she couldn't endure this strong impact.
Agnese spit onto the floor. She roughly swung the Angel Staff around before holding it horizontally to the ground. That was unlike Orsola, who did it so carefully.
"EverythingTutto il paragone is taken care of. The fifth Il quinto dei cinque elementi element of the five elements. Open up, Ordina la canna che mostra pace ed ordine symbol of Peace and Order, 'Staff of the Bishop'."
It was as if these rough actions represented faith in her staff.
The wordless meaning was that she believed her staff wouldn't be broken because of something trivial like this.
"OnePrima of the idols! That obeys theSegua la legge de Dio ed una croce Son of God and the power of the Cross, connectingDue cose diverse sono connesse to foreign bodies and people!!"
In contrast, Biagio completely didn't mind the weapon being pointed at him.
Before that, before his question was answered, he was angry till his brain was full of blood.
"SISTER AGNESE!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!?"
"Oh, just as you suspect."
Agnese glanced at the passionate Biagio, coldly dishing these words.
She revealed a villain-like smile.
"You're mistaken. I still want to take care of Sister Lucia and Sister Angelene, AND THE OTHER NUNS! TO THINK THAT THEY HAVE TO FIGHT BECAUSE OF THAT USELESS ORDER OF YOURS, I'M RAGING INSIDE!!"
Agnese concluded, her feet not moving back.
Seeing her attitude, Biagio's temples jumped unnaturally.
"Stop acting..."
He bit his teeth, pulled a Cross from in front of his chest and held it up into the air.
"... SO HIGH AND MIGHTY, YOU SINNER!!"
Pacha, a strange sound echoed.
After that,
"AH... Ugh!?"
An anguished cry came from behind. Agnese frantically turned back to see that Orsola had fallen. Orsola was sitting down, cold sweat breaking out of her as her neck swung left and right. As if she lost to this action, she collapsed onto the floor.
"You were just a monkey, and yet you wanted to talk like humans..."
The Bishop's lips curled.
"—SIMON BEARS THE CROSS OF THE 'SON OF GOD'."
Biagio's bellowing sounded like thunder.
Before Agnese could think 'what happened', her vision started to distort.
"Wha... t!?"
Just as she was trying her best to suppress this vomiting feeling, she lost her balance and kneeled with one knee. If she hadn't do so, she would've been on the ground like Orsola.
At this moment,
Biagio moved near Agnese, who had a knee on the floor, and kicked hard into her jaw. The sharp tip of his hard shoe gave an irritating touch. Her body flew backwards, and collapsed.
"GHA... AAAH... !!"
She held onto the staff as she tried to get up, but she couldn't exert any strength. It was like she was so weak that she couldn't pull herself up, she couldn't even move her body up. The Angel Staff that she was so used to using couldn't work at this moment.
(That attack... was... a spell. )
Even so, Agnese didn't give up.
She tried her best to analyse her situation.
(It's... it's... )
From the contents of the spell, right now, Biagio should be using a spell that was based on the legacy of how the 'Son of God' died on the Cross. However, the 'Son of God' was killed by having nails hammered into his hands and feet, yet Agnese and Orsola didn't have these injuries.
If that was the case,
(Before that, there was the legend of the 'Son of God' and the Cross. When the 'Son of God' was forced to carry the heavy Cross that he was going to be nailed onto on his back as he walked up the hill... )
"... That's right, at that time, the 'Son of God'... should have had no strength to carry the Cross... there was a man called Simon... who helped him carry the Cross onto the execution hill, wasn't it?" (Teh_ping: Nope, Jesus here did carry the Cross up the hill himself. )
Biagio's eyebrows twitched slightly.
After that, he smirked,
"Have you figured it out?"
"'Forcing the enemy to carry a heavy weight'... this... is the real... form of the attack... on us. This shouldn't be... just your own weight... it should be... of all the people... on the 'Queen's Fleet'. An attack... that focuses all the weight... of the equipment... on a certain point. Is that right..."
Being hit by an attack that had at least 250 people's weight, one would feel like they'd been flattened. But what was on them was only the 'weight'; the 'speed' didn't exist.
It was like an interrogation method of 'putting a heavy weight on the stomach'. What was surprising was that the record was more than 400kg. If it was placed slowly, humans were able endure this weight.
"The reason why Orsola fell faster than me was likely because the attack came down from above. Like a consciousness being drained, it normally starts from the head."
"Brilliant. As expected of one different from those pagan monkeys."
For someone who had his attack method revealed, Biagio's voice was too relaxed.
"BUT EVEN IF YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T STOP IT!!"
He pulled down another one of those Crosses on his neck, and the moment he raised it high, the shrunk 'weight' collapsed down on Agnese.
Her consciousness was about to break.
Once she fainted, everything would be over.
As Agnese was the crux to the plan, she couldn't be killed so easily. But Orsola was different: if Agnese didn't resist, Orsola, who had no use to the plan, would be killed.
She knew that.
Even if she did.
The attack was aimed at the highest point of the body—so she raised the staff above her head to block it. Because of the enemy's one attack, it was as if her bones were breaking as she felt this sharp pain, and the Angel Staff fell onto the floor. As her hands recoiled, she got hit in the head.
Seeing her little resistance, Biagio mocked her,
"HAHA, WHAT DO YOU INTEND TO DO, SISTER AGNESE!!? USING SUCH A PATHETIC WAY TO STOP MY ATTACK? GET SOME STRONGER ARMS IF YOU WANT TO DO THAT!"
"Ugh... !!"
She had no strength left to resist. Agnese gritted her teeth, as if she was ashamed that she couldn't do anything. Biagio again flicked a Cross on his chest and exerted more strength on Agnese' head. Even so, Agnese's continued to reach her hand out for the Angel Staff.
"Is that so? Then, how about this right hand?"
*Crack!!* The sound of things breaking could be heard.
The sound came from behind Biagio, from the double doors of the huge square pyramidal room. A square opened in the door, or rather, a cuboid. Someone stepped into the room.
That person raised his right hand up.
He knocked away the weight attack that came down from above.
Biagio turned around and roared at the intruder,
"YOU LITTLE... PAGAN MONKEY DARE TO—!!"
"Idiot. You should at least confirm that there's a corpse. My right hand isn't as simple as you thought!!"
This boy didn't ask Agnese anything. Why had she become Orsola's shield? What was with this scene that didn't fit the situation?
He didn't mention this at all.
Maybe because since Biagio was in front of him, he had no time to ask.
This one strike from the boy, it would be even more natural to say that it was meant to save Orsola rather than Agnese.
However,
Agnese felt that she had salvation.
She felt that this Kamijou who was in front of her had saved her.
"WOOOHHHH!!!"
Kamijou shouted as he dashed to Biagio.
Biagio flicked a Cross on his chest, silently anxious as he backed away and lowered his jaw.
He again released another heavy attack.
Maybe this was reliance on the trump card, and with the sudden surprise of Kamijou suddenly coming over, this was probably an instant judgement. To choose the method of attack according to the danger level, this way of thinking was rather suited for actual combat.
However, there were exceptions.
"TOO SLOW!! HOW CAN I BE DONE IN BY THE SAME TRICK TWICE!!!!"
The boy immediately raised his right hand to reflect the heavy attack and rushed in front of Biagio.
"Damn it... !?"
Biagio frantically reached his hand out to the Crosses.
But Kamijou's right fist slammed hard into the centre of Biagio's face first.
CRACK!!
The sound of flesh colliding with each other, and the sound of bones colliding with each other echoed throughout the place.
Part 9
After confirming that Biagio was unconscious, Kamijou finally relaxed his shoulders. He turned to Orsola and Agnese.
"While Biagio's unconscious, hurry up and tie him up and confiscate his Crosses. If they're still fighting on the deck, the situation there would be very unsettling. Oh yeah, Agnese."
"Um... yes."
The petite nun seemed like she thought she would be scolded as she stammered. Kamijou laughed and said,
"Thanks. If you didn't protect Orsola, the situation would have been much worse."
"..."
He was definitely saying thanks, but after Agnese revealed a look of surprise, she couldn't say anything.
Kamijou revealed an awkward expression.
"(... Damn it, did I praise her the wrong way?)"
"(... If you really think so, you're really a cute boy. )"
"(... Ah, what? Ow, it hurts. Why did you hit me?)"
Orsola placed a hand on her face as she continued to smack Kamijou with the other hand. Kamijou furiously tried to block her attacks.
"Oh yeah, the 'Queen's Fleet'... not just that, but how do we destroy this larger scale 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'? Agnese is the important person required to use the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary'. If so, I want to destroy its value, whether it's the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' or the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea', I want to destroy them to prevent them from being used again. Is there something like a nucleus?"
"That..."
Agnese pondered for a while before turning to Biagio, who was unconscious on the floor.
"The flagship 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'... strictly speaking, it's this square pyramidal room which we're in, this can't be replaced. This is because current technology can't replicate it anymore, so once we destroy the functions here, the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea can't be used again."
"However, the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' is an additional spell that the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' never had, right? If this huge square pyramidal room is the core of the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea', the core of the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' should be somewhere else."
Basically, it was time for the right hand to appear. Kamijou slowly let his vision fall on his fist. His job wasn't to think of any questions related to magic.
"Alright, whether it's the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' or the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary', there's no problem once we destroy them. Since this place can't be replaced, let's start here."
After he finished saying, Kamijou turned to Agnese and Orsola.
"First, let's destroy this 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'. The ship will sink... or rather, the ice will turn back into seawater. After that, we'll ask our Amakusa friends to bring us aboard."
"Um... the Amakusa's here as well..."
Agnese slightly coiled back.
Orsola glanced at her, and continued,
"However, the biggest problem will be after we alight the boat. I can't direct everyone back. You have to think about what to do next—"
Orsola didn't manage to finish.
Agnese suddenly kneeled down.
"Agnese?"
Kamijou frantically reached his hand out as he wanted to carry her, but her body seemed to dodge Kamijou's hand as she lay prone on the floor. The Angel Staff in her hand let out a 'clank'.
"Gah..."
Agnese, who was lying on the floor, curled her limbs up like a baby.
"... Ih... gih... GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
She bit her teeth as she let out this shout.
It was unknown what happened.
But from her painful expression, it was obvious that this wasn't a joke. It was unknown how painful it was, but sweat squeezed out of Agnese's face like mud.
"Agnese!! Wha—"
Saying this halfway through, Kamijou suddenly noticed something strange in a corner.
Biagio Busoni.
The Bishop that was supposed to be still unconscious staggered as he glared over. The bloodshot eyes that were turning about crazily didn't seem focused. Highly viscous saliva continued to ooze out of the corners of his mouth.
After that.
As if he was about to rip his chest apart, Biagio's right hand grabbed all the Crosses on the four necklaces. His hand was trembling unnaturally.
Orsola, who wanted to lean over and carry Agnese, shouted,
"The 'Appointed Time of the Rosary'... don't tell me... HE DID SOMETHING TO AGNESE WITH THAT SPIRITUAL TOOL!!"
Were the preparations for the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary' complete? But if so, why had he let Agnese move about, and not executed the plan? Without any magical knowledge, Kamijou couldn't tell. But from this situation, it was more likely that the preparations were complete.
But Biagio laughed.
With excitement and anxiety, he let out a fiery breath as he declared,
"Ha, the 'Appointed Time of the Rosary'? It wasn't adjusted, so I can only use the 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'."
He used an uncomfortable look to glare at Kamijou,
"If 'power' is needed, I have it here. Have you ever thought about it before? The Roman Catholics feared that the cannons would be pointed back at them if this was be taken, so they put in lots of efforts to create limits on the targeting and the 'Queen's Fleet'. If it really falls in the hands on the enemy, what do you think they'll do as a last resort?"
Self-destruction.
The Bishop of the Roman Catholics was basically happily saying that he was to be swallowed up in this as well.
"BIAGIOOOO!!"
Kamijou couldn't help but shout out.
It didn't matter what the specific reasons were.
The main point was that since his plan failed, he was going to bring everyone down along with him.
Also, that would burn Agnese's heart or turn her into a cripple.
"!!"
The surrounding lights started to shut off one by one, as if right before a film shown at a cinema. The square pyramidal room seemed to lose all the light, and one could hear the sounds of things chattering. The source of this noise came from above Kamijou, the equilateral triangles blocks that formed the wall were slowly moving out.
A ray of light descended down from the far ceiling of the square pyramidal room.
The light touched the numerous triangular pillars that emerged, and after reflection, inflection, diffusion, and reforming, it created a large patterned path in the air.
The light didn't form a flat surface, but a dome-shaped canopy.
It was like a planetarium—a starry night shine that one person created for his own benefit.
"... Don't ever think that you can escape."
Biagio stared at the ceiling and mocked,
"This is a magical tool that is enhanced by alchemy and has a fleet of 250 sinners. Destroying those walls or floors isn't going to stop it so easily!!"
As if in response to his voice, the distorted canopy increased in brightness.
As if it was coldly showing people this tool's standby mode.
Orsola frowned,
"This is bad... if this attack spell that can destroy an entire country is used... just ignoring purely on the explosiveness of the magic effects alone, the range shouldn't be less than 10km in radius."
10km.
Orsola's words filled something that couldn't be imagined.
"... I don't know where this is, strictly speaking, which part of the Adriatic Sea this is. If it was north of Chioggia like just now, this should be near Venezia... everything would be engulfed. Besides that, the surrounding cities of Adria and Padova are in danger as well..."
"Not only that."
It was unknown what would happen if there was a magical explosion.
But assuming that this was a tactical nuke that could incinerate anything that was within 10km radius.
If so, the affected areas wouldn't simply just be in the explosion. A large amount of seawater would become steam, and the high temperatures would destroy everything within the place. The several hundred degrees of steam, when carried around for numerous kilometres, could easily cook people alive. After that, the steam would cause the temperatures to increase drastically, causing changes in air pressures. Simply put, gigantic hurricanes would form. The hurricanes would engulf all buildings and deliver the final blow to streets that had been cooked by the steam.
This was a double, no, triple-chained destruction.
What 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea'? Kamijou cursed. Couldn't you guys have destroyed Venezia like this without having to use this thing?
"Ah, AAHH... !!"
Agnese's scream echoed throughout.
She looked a lot worse. Maybe it was because she was under the cold light similar to the starry night.
Kamijou used his right hand to stroke Agnese's back while she was struggling in pain, but it didn't seem to completely alleviate the effect. Seemed like if he didn't destroy the Cross that Biagio was holding onto, it wouldn't be interrupted.
CRACK!!
The noise didn't come from Agnese, but rather, from the entire ship.
Biagio's selfish request seemed to cause a huge burden to the ship. Once the burden reached the limit, everything may explode together with the 'Queen's Fleet'.
"Orsola, get Agnese away from here and to the deck! Isn't there a ship or something? Get our Amakusa friends to hide there! If possible, get the Roman Catholics as well!!"
"Oh, okay. Then what about you?"
Even if she was a bit rickety, Orsola carried Agnese's body with both hands. Ever so careful, she even carried the Angel Staff.
Kamijou turned his eyes from Orsola to Biagio.
"I'll just have to stop that guy. I'll meet up with you guys later. Hurry up and go, Orsola!!"
"But... !?"
Orsola inadvertently let out a cry, but Agnese's groan overlapped her voice. Besides, Biagio was slowly moving his fingers to the Cross on his neck.
There was no time.
"Definitely... you definitely have to meet up with us later!"
Maybe because she felt that she couldn't do anything useful in this situation, and she couldn't do any emergency procedures to Agnese, Orsola ran out of the room after saying this.
Only Kamijou and Biagio were left inside the huge pyramidal room.
Inside the cracking ship, the Bishop said,
"... This is why I hate this."
With those bloodshot eyes, he got up from the kneeling position. That chest injury that had just been inflicted shouldn't have recovered, but even so, with that distorted strength of his, Biagio used his hands and feet to support himself.
Seeing this starry phenomenon that he created himself, he said,
"Damn it, that bastard... what leave a mark in Roman Catholic history? That's why I said that it was too early when I heard of the plan. I'm wrecked; I can only be destroyed as a sinner. The 'Queen of the Adriatic Sea' is the pride of the Roman Catholics, one of the 'Ten Holy Artifacts' that includes the 'Apostle's Cross'... I have no chance of making a comeback now that I lost it."
"So you're going to drag everyone else into your grave? What can you change? There's no benefit to what you're doing in the end, it's just for your own consolation!!"
And because of this little consolation, he was going to drag everyone down along with him.
The nuns of the Agnese Forces that were ordered by Biagio to fight, the Amakusa teenagers who were trying not to kill them as they tried to stop this, Lucia and Angelene, Orsola and Agnese, Tatemiya and Index, everything.
Because of this order that came from under the artificial canopy.
Even if they want to use this huge flagship to destroy all these.
"What are... you saying?"
Biagio Busoni smirked.
That was a sad smile.
"To fight with so many people, and sink such a large fleet, and to bury Bishop Biagio Busoni. In this situation, nobody will feel endangered... this single group of fighters and the members, they're confirmed to be a threat to the Roman Catholics. Anyone would agree with me. This is the last flower I'm going to give in my life journey. To remove these enemies, it's alright even if I destroy the coast of the Adriatic Sea, right!?"
This was completely different from what Kamijou Touma thought.
Not to move forward, but to see the past and do his best.
Not to gain satisfaction by protecting others, but to gain satisfaction by robbing others.
Not only to get injured himself, but to deal this harm to others.
"Biagio..."
Kamijou silently gripped his right fist tightly.
The Bishop didn't care, opening his arms wide as he said,
"... That's the look. This look that doesn't yield to threats is the greatest threat to us. Thus, I'll completely destroy you here. THIS WILL BE MY LAST CONTRIBUTION TO THE ROMAN CATHOLICS!!!"
"BIAGIOOOOOO—!!"
Kamijou roared as he dashed at Biagio with full force.
Biagio didn't back away, but placed his hands on the Crosses on his neck. It looked like he was going to pray, but there was no Holy feeling to it. There was just a stubbornness that felt like it was as sticky as a marsh.
Kamijou leapt into Biagio's arms, slamming a fist into his flank.
"—THE CROSS REVEALS THE REJECTION TO EVIL!!"
The Cross in the Bishop's hand expanded as if it was exploding. Instantly, the metal block that was larger than a coffin became a shield, preventing Kamijou's fist from moving.
Because of the power of the right hand, the Cross-shaped shield got blown away like sand.
Biagio, who was behind the Cross, pulled off another five Crosses and released them above Kamijou's head.
"—THE WEIGHT OF THE CROSS CORRECTS THE HAUGHTY!!"
The little decorations that were accelerated by heavy gravity shot down like cannons. But Kamijou didn't bother to look at them.
"WOOOOHHH!!"
He took another step forward.
He had already gotten in front of Biagio. This extremely close distance, however, was a safety zone.
Kamijou released a punch.
He exerted all his strength into his fist, only aiming at the face.
"!?"
Biagio blocked his face with both hands. He could feel hard bones colliding with each other, but the damages reflected from within the enemy.
This wasn't an instant defensive movement.
Biagio still had a 'shield' formed by a giant Cross.
If so,
"—THE CROSS REVEALS THE REJECTION TO EVIL!!"
The Bishop crossed his hands, each holding a single Cross.
The Crosses expanded right before Kamijou's eyes.
BOOM!!
Like a counterattack, the metal-frame-sized Crosses each stabbed into Kamijou's right shoulder and abdomen respectively. Kamijou didn't even have time to bite his teeth as he was sent flying back. His body bounced on the ice floor twice, thrice before rolling a few more rounds.
"Ugh... ooo."
His breathing became irregular, and just one second later, he was already sweating. Before he could feel the pain, he felt like vomiting. Even if he stood up, his body feels like he was standing upside-down.
Even so, Kamijou continued to stand up.
The pain in his right shoulder could spread through his entire arm with just a single touch.
On seeing this, Biagio grinned. His expression and feelings couldn't be directly related at all. The ominous smile made the opponent understand that.
"Impressive, you can actually stand up... you definitely got hit such that there was even a visceral impact..."
Biagio was unharmed as he gently stroked the tip of his nose that was hit.
"How can you still struggle? This simple thing like Sister Agnese, is it really such a meaningful reward!? That Sister will definitely die! HOW CAN SHE BE AN ENEMY AGAINST A HUGE ORGANISATION THAT HAS 2 BILLION FOLLOWERS AND ENCOMPASSES 131 COUNTRIES... NO ONE WILL ACCEPT THAT WOMAN!! WHY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU PAGAN MONKEY!!
"... Who wants to know about that?"
Kamijou bit his teeth as he said this.
In order to protect Lucia and Angelene, Agnese specially gave up her chance to be saved. Though he didn't know the specifics, she had protected Orsola from Biagio's clutches, using the Angel Staff to shield Orsola. She really tried her best to resist.
What 2 billion followers, what 131 countries, what large organisation; Kamijou didn't even care about these minor details at all.
Kamijou would definitely not allow this, because that guy had basically ignored the intentions of the Roman Catholics by doing a desperation suicide attack, causing Agnese's heart to shatter, and even engulfing everyone on the 'Queen's Fleet' in the explosion. He wouldn't allow this worst result to happen.
Biagio Busoni's words didn't even measure up to a whit.
If there was anyone who would give up on hearing these words, there wouldn't be anyone coming here in the first place.
"Damn it, who would accept... !!"
Thus, he only said this.
A meaningless argument didn't start: Kamijou and Biagio weren't in the mood to let the conversation continue. With Kamijou's unilateral words, the conversation was over.
Kamijou Touma ignored the pain on his shoulder as he spit onto the floor, clenching his right fist.
Biagio Busoni placed his hand on the countless Crosses hanging on his neck.
The first breath became the signal to start.
Both of them immediately dashed towards each other.
"WOOOHHH!!"
Within 3 seconds, the fist was already within attack range.
Biagio pulled down a Cross from in front of his chest.
"—THE CROSS REVEALS THE REJECTION TO EVIL!!"
He used a hand to block Kamijou from the front.
Furthermore, he used the other empty hand to stroke another Cross.
Even if he could knock aside the first hit he saw, Kamijou was unable to block Biagio's consecutive attacks. With one attack after another, the power of the Cross was definitely greater than Kamijou's fist. If he took attacks consecutively, he would definitely fall.
(I can't decrease the distance the normal way. )
In this extremely close space, Kamijou was conscious that he was clenching his fist.
(I can't just have one hit, I need to stop this guy's attack pattern... !!)
Even if he thought this way, he couldn't make it even if he prepared for it.
In the end, Kamijou could only bet on this fist.
The palm blocking him was holding onto a Cross, and it started to expand.
"BIAGIOOO—!!"
Kamijou attacked the decoration in accordance to his roar.
Not with his right fist, but with his left.
To come up with a left hand strike that he was not used to, even an amateur could tell that the power was a lot weaker. Compared to the right fist that Kamijou normally used, the speed was a lot slower.
However, the left fist had something that the right hand didn't.
It didn't have the power of the Imagine Breaker.
"!!"
The Cross that Biagio was holding onto was knocked away by Kamijou's left fist. With a little sound, the decoration that the Bishop was holding onto changed direction slightly in mid-air.
However,
The Cross seemed to expand in a way that Biagio didn't expect, expanding like it was exploding.
BOOM!!
The tip of the Cross that Biagio was holding onto slammed into his jaw from below.
"GYAHH, AH!?"
Biagio's body jerked upwards.
(This... bastard—actually used my own attack... !!)
Even as he was thinking this, he was unable to make a sound. A blunt pain filled his mouth.
During this time, Kamijou took another step forward.
'WO—"
Right into the deepest part of the enemy.
This time, he exerted all his strength into the right fist that he always used as a weapon.
"—OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
With this roar, he released all his power in this one fist.
CLANK!! The sound of metal breaking could be heard.
He was not aiming at Biagio's face, but below—right in the middle of his chest.
As Biagio's body was moving upwards, Kamijou let out another punch that nearly seemed to pierce through the Bishop's chest.
His fist hit the four necklaces on Biagio's chest and the large number of Crosses on the necklaces, as if he was about to pierce through Biagio's chest. All at once the four necklaces snapped and landed on the floor, and the numerous decorations scattered about with the sound of a crystal ball breaking.
The Bishop lost all his strength as he finally fell.
Seeing Biagio roll on the ice floor, Kamijou adjusted his breathing and said,
"Of course, I want to fight..."
He continued,
"... No matter whether you guys have 2 billion followers, or 131 countries, if you still dare to do anything to Agnese and her group, I'll deal with all of you no matter how many times."
He looked up at the roof.
In this vision far away, the starry phenomenon that was supported by countless number of triangular pillars swayed about before vanishing. Like a home electric appliance that was cut off, only the ice construct was left.
The cracking sound echoed throughout this room that had lost all forms of light.
The 'Queen's Fleet' was gradually breaking.
It was because the core Cross was destroyed.
Just as Kamijou was confirming that he had prevented a destruction that would have engulfed everything.
The triangular room crumbled, the flagship split, and the boy again fell into the Adriatic Sea.
| ← Ch. 083 | Ch. 085 → |