The atmosphere howled, and the sky drifted farther away. The distance that free fall should have taken minutes to cover was crossed in mere moments.
Surpassing everyone's reaction time, an unexpected scene unfolded.
Quetzalcoatl, unable to move due to continuously deploying the Piedra del Sol, could only watch as that figure plummeted into the divine blood.
The divine blood of Tiamat endlessly flowed from wounds inflicted by Marduk's axe.
The only one fast enough to follow—Jaguar Man—was forced away from Tiamat's side due to Quetzalcoatl's Noble Phantasm, waiting for an opportunity.
Thus, no one could stop that figure from falling, allowing them to be engulfed by Tiamat's blood.
Fujimaru took in this sight, then turned her gaze toward the heavens—
The shadow of the dragon fully manifested, its colossal Crimson Dragon form blotting out the sky. Upon its back, an unnamed knight wielded a massive dragon-scale sword, larger than herself, in a single hand.
A terrifying wound stretched from her left shoulder down to her right waist. Her resilient dragon-scale armor was shattered, and her snow-white skin was stained crimson as if she had been cleaved in two!
Yet, to the knight, this seemingly fatal wound was insignificant. In her eyes, there was still only one person.
Clang.
A chilling sound of shattering echoed beside her.
The Heavenly Vessel was covered in sword marks, utterly shattered by relentless strikes, losing its original form and completely collapsing within seconds.
In the instant Alaric attempted to use the Heavenly Vessel to gain distance and maintain flight, the knight, risking death, forcefully destroyed it.
Leaving Alaric with no means to soar through the skies—
But that was only the beginning.
The knight, overlooking the battlefield below, naturally noticed Quetzalcoatl's Piedra del Sol and the gravely injured, immobilized Tiamat.
As Fujimaru and the others tensed in anticipation, the Crimson Dragon beneath the unnamed knight began to descend.
Its sky-darkening form shrank rapidly, losing its monstrous, seemingly invincible size. Not only did its body shrink, but the divine magical energy emanating from it also began to weaken!
["Her Spirit Origin response is declining! She started shrinking her body and suppressing her magical energy after losing Tiamat's support!"]
Dr. Roman, who successfully observed the Crimson Dragon's condition, exclaimed excitedly:
["Not only that! The fact that she's actively shrinking means she has a serious magical energy supply issue!
She can't use those insane magical blasts anymore! Fujimaru, you can take her down now!"]
The Crimson Dragon's shadow had loomed over Fujimaru 's group all this time. Although Alaric could hold off the Crimson Dragon alone, that was all he could do—stall.
Even with the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, Alaric couldn't completely slay the Crimson Dragon, let alone Fujimaru's group.
If Quetzalcoatl's Piedra del Sol hadn't severed the Crimson Dragon's magical supply after evaporating the Chaos Tide, they would have had no choice but to fight it directly—
But now, things were different!
The Crimson Dragon's Spirit Origin had significantly weakened, bringing it within their combat range—perhaps even…
Eliminating the Crimson Dragon!
Before Tiamat and the Crimson Dragon could reach Uruk, one of them had to be defeated!
However, if the Crimson Dragon continued to soar—then the one falling was—
Realizing this, Fujimaru suddenly lowered her head, straining her eyes to see the molten landscape resembling the sun's surface, the sea of blood before Tiamat, and the tiny figure within it.
A body fully submerged in divine blood, lying in a spread-eagle position, enduring both the divine blood's power and the scorching heat emanating from the continuously deployed Piedra del Sol.
"It's Sir Alaric!!"
Mash gasped in shock.
"Sir Alaric has fallen near Tiamat!"
Mash never imagined that Alaric would be defeated so quickly. The plan had been proceeding smoothly, and the Crimson Dragon's magical supply had been successfully severed.
But Alaric failed. During the battle with the Crimson Dragon, he was struck down, his Heavenly Vessel destroyed, and he plummeted from thousands of meters in the air.
"Mash, we're going! We must defeat the Crimson Dragon!"
Without a moment's hesitation to mourn Alaric's fate, Fujimaru resolutely rushed toward the battlefield!
Alaric's defeat was regrettable, but it was no reason for them to stop—
"If I lose, don't worry about me. Focus on the mission."
Alaric's words echoed in their mind. With unwavering determination, Fujimaru placed a hand on Mash's shoulder and said firmly:
"We can't let the Crimson Dragon get any closer to Uruk!"
The Crimson Dragon was growing stronger. If they didn't take it down now, Uruk would be doomed, and their plan to drag Tiamat into the Underworld would collapse!
"Understood, Senpai!"
Recognizing the gravity of the situation, Mash's eyes shone with resolve as she shouted:
"Prepare to subjugate the Evil Dragon—"
Before she could finish, the flying dragon beneath her flapped its wings, soaring high into the sky.
Together with the Sky Goddess Ishtar, they ascended toward the Crimson Dragon.
In the moment Fujimaru and Mash were distracted by Alaric's fall, the Crimson Dragon had completed its transformation.
Its once-terrifying wingspan of over a kilometer had shrunk to barely a hundred meters—a tenfold reduction!
Yet, it wasn't just the Crimson Dragon that had changed. The unnamed knight standing upon its head had also finally healed from the final strike's wound.
However, a ghastly scar remained on her pale body, a mark that seemed eternal.
Now, without the Divine Mud's replenishment, the Crimson Dragon had lost its so-called immortality. It could no longer regenerate its body, only using the residual Divine Mud from its shrinking form to mend itself.
But none of this stirred any emotion in the knight's hollow heart.
The only existence that mattered to her… had already been struck down from the heavens.
Gazing at the figure in the sea of blood, the knight slowly tightened her grip on her sword.
Beneath her, the Crimson Dragon began a rapid descent, as if determined to land with absolute dominance!
Yet, before the Crimson Dragon could act, dozens of streaks of light surged upward, blocking its path!
"Don't even think about leaving!"
Ishtar's laughter echoed from afar, accompanied by a surge of magical radiance illuminating the knight's indifferent face.
Only now did the knight seem to acknowledge Fujimaru and the others' presence.
These remnants of Old Humanity, followers of the Father, were among the seventy billion lives marked for extermination by Tiamat.
"Old Humanity—"
Electric arcs surged around the unnamed knight, her Dragon Core pulsating rapidly, drawing pure ether from the atmosphere to generate her magical energy.
Fueling her dragon body's movement and battle capabilities.
As Fujimaru and Mash truly closed in, the knight's voice rang out—
"Do you want to die?"