Chapter 124. Kaguya: Humanity, accept your fate!
"If that's truly the case, then everything surrounding the Heroic Spirit becomes reasonable…"
Someone deduced.
"Because, if there were no Throne of Heroes, then those unparalleled heroes and great figures, after dying, would go to the afterlife they belong to, with no way to unite all of humanity, as well as every hero from the past and future across all timelines, to go and destroy the Beast!"
"Relying only on humanity in the current timeline and the Magi to confront Kaguya gives absolutely no hope."
"Foreseeing the future, saving the suffering… I wonder if the Holy King who created the Throne of Heroes did so because he foresaw the future and made that decision… Who is he?"
"But… the Heroic Spirits are all gathered here, unleashing their Noble Phantasm to the utmost, so why can't they inflict even the slightest damage to Beast Kaguya?"
"Could it be that our deduction was wrong?"
"No!"
Many people sighed, denying it.
It is absolutely not the fault of the Throne of Heroes or of Alaya!
Right from the time the history professors compiled the data, everyone realized one truth.
The number of Heroic Spirits currently gathered on the moon may not even be half of the total heroes in Pan-Human History. Even Heroic Spirits who surpass the standard—like the legendary king "blessed with wisdom by God," Solomon—did not appear on the battlefield to destroy the Beast.
As if something was blocking them, preventing them from arriving.
"Even if a real god appeared now, it's still uncertain whether they could kill Beast Kaguya."
Someone took a drag of a cigarette and sighed.
The gazes of many leading experts in reality turned toward the images appearing on the screen, brows furrowed with sorrow, their hearts already reaching a conclusion—as if the coffin lid had been sealed.
...
Inside the Celestial Curtain.
[The dots of light in the starry sky gradually faded, the barrier like a heavenly net began to show cracks. The Heroic Spirits furrowed their brows, witnessing firsthand the extinguishing of light from tens of thousands of Noble Phantasm, a sense of urgency rising in their hearts.]
[The sacred flag with golden symbols faintly exuded a feeling of shaking and crumbling.]
[Among the crowd, Saint Jeanne d'Arc sighed: "The light of the Lord… has grown dim…"]
...
[Kaguya circled the moon, lightly laughing: "Is that all you've got?.....Alaya."]
[She laughed softly, not considering those Heroic Spirits as threats in the slightest.]
[No… to be precise, toward those Heroic Spirits who were once human, Kaguya always bore a sort of doting affection — to her, they were children who needed guidance.]
[Toward all of humanity, she treated everyone equally.]
[Kaguya's tolerance was a privilege she chose to grant "humankind."]
[The reason the Heroic Spirits could not harm her was not because they were weak. On the contrary, Kaguya was very pleased with the heroes who came to destroy her.]
[But not being the right specialty still means not being the right specialty.]
[After a Beast appears, under normal conditions, Alaya would dispatch "Grand Servants" to destroy them.]
[Grand has nothing to do with strength or weakness. What qualifies a Heroic Spirit as a Grand is that they possess abilities or Noble Phantasm that are uniquely suited to dealing with a Beast.]
[Each Beast is an existence that surpasses even the concept of gods, something a normal Heroic Spirit cannot possibly reach!]
[She, too, had already directly surpassed the concept of gods and touched the supreme realm.]
[The very moment she became the "Beast of Fortitude" – the beast that marches forward holding the concept of fortitude – it was already fated that Kaguya was not something that ordinary Heroic Spirits could violate.]
[No matter how many people you gather, it would still just be a disorganized mob. Only with the presence of a "Grand" could there be an opportunity to gradually wear her down.]
[For example… the Grand Assassin who can impose the concept of "death" onto a Beast — The First Hassan "Old Man of the Mountain", Hassan-i-Sabbah.]
[But…]
[Kaguya's gaze swept across the Counter Force within the planet, the corner of her lips curled into a mocking smile. She had already dominated the entire planet—not only "Alaya"–the collective will of humankind, but also "Gaia"–the will of the Earth—had both been bound by her.]
[Those two entities had been completely suppressed by her…]
[How much power could they possibly still exert?]
...
Great Britain.
London, Heroic Spirit Countermeasure Bureau, thick with white smoke.
"Something's not right…"
Director Ward frowned deeply, pondering, as he casually flicked cigarette ash onto a pile of high-tech devices.
"If Kaguya is truly this dangerous, then as the self-preservation mechanism of all humanity and the planet—the Counter Force—there's no way it would have allowed her to develop to this extent."
"Director, didn't you hear what Raku Sou said?"
Below, a staff member scratched his head: "Kaguya didn't keep her power in her main body, that's how she deceived Alaya."
"Then… where could she have hidden it…"
The colleague beside him seemed to realize something, but then grew confused again, lightly poking the guy on the shoulder.
"Who knows? Something like 'power' being hidden and transferred elsewhere…"
The staff member grumbled.
But at that moment, his expression suddenly changed, a mix of shock and excitement.
"I get it now! From the beginning, Kaguya hid her power across countless parallel worlds, which is how she avoided Alaya's suspicion. In reality, in terms of depth and scope of power, she had long since reached the level of a Main God!"
"In other words, Kaguya at the beginning was really just an ordinary young girl, who could've been easily killed!"
"For an existence at the level of a Main God, this was truly a colossal gamble!"
"What?!"
Director Ward's pupils instantly contracted. Reflexively, he wanted to object, but instead froze on the spot. The words he was about to speak caught in his throat… then gradually dissipated.
He vaguely turned to look at that low-level staff member.
He clearly remembered that this kid was the type who always worked sloppily. If not for his family pulling strings, he'd never have gotten "a permanent position" at the Heroic Spirit Countermeasure Bureau. Normally, he was just a clueless and dim-witted worker.
And yet today…
It was like he was possessed—suddenly able to articulate such profound insight.
I understand now!
It must be the ancestors showing their power…
God bless Great Britain!!
...
Ah right right right!
At this moment, Raku Sou—the one frantically spreading conspiracy theories across the globe—finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.
...
[Amidst the silence of countless Heroic Spirits, Kaguya raised her head to look up at the sea of stars. Her gaze was cold, as if piercing through the void to see into the depths of humanity's sea of consciousness.]
[That vast and noble suppressive power was silently retreating deeper into the sea of consciousness.]
[Was it afraid?]
[Or was it yielding?]
[Kaguya couldn't care less, merely sneering.]
[Behind her.]
[A gray-white celestial wheel condensed into tangible form, as though countless grand worlds suddenly converged and appeared. Hovering between reality and illusion, one could faintly hear the sorrowful wails of countless despairing people from within.]
...
Everyone's minds trembled. In that world of reincarnation, they saw each familiar face—each one being themselves and their loved ones in parallel worlds—their legs shook violently and clashed together from sheer terror.
Who didn't know that Kaguya really loved "pushing humanity forward"...
But…
...
Reality.
Shuchiin Academy, high school division.
"What the hell is with this eighteen-layers-of-hell kind of damned environment!! Volcanic eruptions, cities swallowed by floods, and even saw blades sprouting up from the fields—!!"
Seeing herself imprisoned in a parallel world, Fujiwara Chika—usually always optimistic—had a twitching mouth, grabbed a limp roll of newspaper, and went berserk hitting Ishigami Yuu with it, completely breaking down.
It was hard to even imagine the mental state of her close friend Shinomiya Kaguya.
You call this "pushing humanity forward"?!
Moreover…
Fujiwara Chika's face darkened as she glanced at her main body in the reincarnation world, endlessly falling into magma, getting shredded into minced meat by countless saw blades, drowning again and again…
This was definitely some kind of "special treatment"!!
It must be because she's jealous of the "generous" heart of Fujiwara Chika!!
Kaguya, just you wait!!
...
[In a flash, countless small gray-white wheels blazed brilliantly, covering the entire starry sky, an eternal aura surged forth—heaven and earth both trembled!]
[Kaguya remained calm, her snow-white hand gently raised, black sleeves billowing.]
[As if it were an invisible signal, it resonated across that beautiful blue planet.]
[The boundless fertile land shook!]
[The sky shook!]
[Britain, France, Japan, Russia… the entire world was trembling.]
[Countless people—yellow-skinned, black-skinned, white-skinned… some were eating their last meal before execution, some watching porn with their girlfriends, some shirtless and furiously masturbating in the streets… were now all screaming in terror!]
[Britain.]
[Clock Tower.]
[The girl bearing the title "World's most elegant hyena", "Forklift Lady", Luvia of the Mage family Edelfelt, blankly stared at the shattered earth, as a massive black tower surged up from the ground.]
[Until pitch-black light shot up to the sky, piercing through the clouds, standing imposingly upon Britain's land!]
[The heavens have changed…]
[Luvia stared blankly at the moon, subconsciously thinking such a strange thought.]
...
Japan.
New Tokyo Metropolis.
[Right at the city's center, the moment the magnificent black tower emerged, a million Aum Shinrikyo believers stood frozen, then immediately knelt in reverence, chanting holy hymns fabricated by their squinty-eyed cult leader.]
[Forming an endless line of people, crawling and kneeling.]
["Ancestor of the Moon, eternal ruler of thunder and celestial light…"]
["Bringer of fire and tsunami, who cleanses the world, merciful Goddess."]
["Those who chant your true name, may witness eternal life in the cycle of rebirth!"]
...
[Seoul, Singapore, Moscow, Jerusalem, New Delhi, London…]
[In the same moment, in every country on Earth, massive black towers surged into being.]
...
["Then, receive the final curtain..."]
[On the Moon, Kaguya remained serene, her beautiful eyelashes like continents gently quivering, as she softly murmured—as if tenderly calling a lover's name—"...humanity."]
[After speaking, her eyes gleamed with a radiant gray hue. She clenched her hand, and with a bit of exertion, drew her slender arm inward.]
["Not good!"]
["Stop her!"]
["You dare?!"]
[The minds of the Servants trembled, their eyes bloodshot, immediately unleashing countless Noble Phantasms to stop her.]
[However… with just a gentle clench of Kaguya's fist, the black towers across the globe instantly fired out brilliant blood-red light, shooting straight into the sky. In a flash, they pierced through the ozone layer, surged into space, and exploded—blasting hundreds of satellites away at once…]
["Boom boom!!"]
[The entire outer region of Earth was swept clean, half a century's worth of accumulated space junk was wiped out along with it.]
[The scene was as majestic as roaring ocean waves, so overwhelming it defied description!]
[In the end, it formed a vast, red-black sky curtain that spread and connected into one.]
[The entire world could see the sky being completely devoured!]
[Finally, it closed…]
...
At the moment it closed, countless people were dumbfounded—because in Kaguya's hand, there appeared a blue sphere, within which Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the four oceans could clearly be seen—clearly, it was...
The whole world fell dead silent in that instant.
This was insane!
...
["And with that, the planet is now in my hand!"]
[Kaguya lifted the globe, raised her flawless white neck, and brought it to her mouth.]
[Immediately afterward, her lashes lightly fluttered, she pressed her lips together, and delicately wiped her mouth with a fingertip.]
[Then, her entire being transformed once more—radiating the majesty belonging to the Counter Force!]
[All the Servants began to glow.]
[Semi-transparent, scattering points of light.]
[Among them, Ramses II looked incredibly grim: "The planet has been devoured by her conceptually. Once digestion is complete, both Alaya and Gaia—the two sources of Counter Force—will be completely annihilated by her… at that point, she will truly become an omniscient, omnipotent god."]
["The wills of other planets are merely wills, mere instinct."]
["But she is a truly living planet."]
["Unless Sun is resurrected, no one will be her match."]
[The group of Servants all fell silent, faintly sensing an undefeatable despair creeping in.]
[One must understand—possessing power and shouldering destruction are two entirely different matters. Even a billionth of a planet's power is enough to pierce through another equal planet. Not to mention the opponent is a high-intelligence evolved beast…]
[Is humanity truly about to be wiped out?]
["Hear me!"]
[At this critical moment, Saint Jeanne d'Arc stepped forward with a determined expression, raising high the glowing swallowtail flag in her hand. She rallied their spirits, the divine banner fluttering gloriously.]
["The Heroic Spirits who've made it this far are those who can face a thousand with one, unmatched by ten thousand!"]
...
Reality — a night so eerily quiet.
At this moment, whether in Southeast Asia, Europe and America, or third-world countries, all were chewing dry dinners, trembling in fear as they watched on.
Having witnessed Beast Kaguya devour an entire planet, humans couldn't help but feel a kind of mournful kinship, as if the death of the rabbit saddened even the fox.
Especially when Kaguya also possessed that "Magic" capable of interfering with parallel worlds — who's to say they wouldn't be caught up in it one day, when she suddenly pierces through from another dimension?
To put it bluntly, Kaguya was the Damocles' sword suspended above the head of all humankind.
If left unresolved, it would eventually fall...
And when that moment came, it would be a hell of despair — where no one could live, nor die.
...
[On the rugged surface of the Moon, completely ignoring the brilliance of countless Servants and their battle with Beast Kaguya, Raku Sou calmly gripped the jewel sword, walking among the shattered remnants of the throne.]
["Crack... crack…"]
[The ground — fractures spread out like a spider's web.]
[Just a trace of power leaking from him was enough to shake the jagged lunar mountains.]
[Since Kaguya's transformation into a Beast, his power had been growing every single second.]
[He had always known — ever since he was a child, he was unlike anyone else. He had no memories before the age of ten; in fact, it was uncertain whether he had even truly been ten years old. All he knew was that he awoke amidst the great blaze that engulfed Fuyuki City, within a filthy sea of black mud.]
[And yet, even that black mud — which could affect even the oldest Heroic Spirits...]
[When it encountered him, it froze.]
[And a flicker of very human fear appeared within it.]
[He walked across the black sea of mud, as if treading water — as though even the black filth dared not touch him.]
["Kaguya, this is fate…"]
[Raku Sou murmured, waiting for the moment he would reach the final ascension.]
[As of now, he was still unworthy.]
...
Noon, the following day.
Countless people, with complicated emotions, gazed up toward the terribly tragic battlefield in the sky.
The blond girl, sacred and noble, who had once given a speech so fiery it surpassed all reason.
Now—
Lay collapsed on the spot, her swallowtail flag torn and gloomy, golden hair in disarray, one cheek flushed with sickness, the other scorched by black flame, unable to conceal her exhausted gaze and tightly clenched hand.
Beside her, countless Servant figures had fallen, fingers trembling as they tried to move.
And yet, that Beast reigning on the Moon — in her five white-jade fingers, only one was stained with blood, standing amidst the wounded void, smiling gently, her eyes filled with affection as if watching over her own children.
As though she were pleased by the performance of her beloved little ones.
["Everyone… Jeanne shall go on ahead — may the light of God bless you all."]
[The blonde girl smiled faintly.]
[The endless black fire devouring her body grew more transparent by the second, her presence weakening.]
[Finally — she vanished…]