"Fall back? What's that supposed to mean all of a sudden?"
Franz couldn't understand Rudger's words.
They should be destroying that thing right now, not pulling people back.
But what bewildered Franz even more was that everyone except himself was following Rudger's orders.
"...Are you serious?"
As Franz muttered in disbelief watching Owens retreat, Alex lightly remarked beside him.
"Just watch, rookie. Our leader never speaks without reason."
"Who are you calling a rookie? I never joined your organization."
"Since we're fighting together now, let's just say you're a temporary rookie. You're the one clinging to us, right?"
"Let me make this clear, you can't destroy the goddess' [Nursery Rhyme] without me.""Well, we'll see about that."
"What could that tiny girl possibly do anyway?"
Creating an airship out of imagination was certainly impressive, but destroying [Nursery Rhyme] was a different matter entirely.
'But these guys have shown remarkable abilities with just a few people, so who knows what else they might have.'
Franz was a bit anxious but decided to trust Rudger, the man Zero Order had confidently mentioned, a skilled individual who had proven his worth beyond imagination in Dreamland.
At least in this battle, Rudger's judgment would be far more correct than his own.
Franz also fell back.
Rudger nodded to Seridan.
"Show us the largest explosion you can imagine."
"The largest explosion might be a bit much, so I'll just go with a moderately strong one."
"Why?"
"I like explosions, but I can't blow up the whole world, can I?"
It was an arrogant statement, but if backed by ability, it should be called confidence.
Seridan walked forward with her small limbs in motion.
Watching her from behind, Violetta carefully asked Rudger.
"Owner, what exactly did you teach Seridan?"
"I just gave her clues about the explosion she wanted."
"Clues?"
"Yes. I only posed the problem, not the answer. But Seridan will easily deduce the correct answer and more."
No.
She would likely create something beyond the correct answer.
That was the genius she possessed.
"Everyone should be careful. If you face the coming explosion incorrectly, you might go blind."
"What on earth—"
"It's starting."
It appeared suddenly without warning.
Everyone who saw the black object created high above [Nursery Rhyme] couldn't believe their eyes.
It was an oval-shaped bomb.
It was quite large, but didn't seem like it would produce an explosion powerful enough to destroy the divine artifact.
Moreover, there was only one of them, but Rudger had different thoughts when he saw it.
She had truly succeeded.
This wasn't just a bomb mimicking the shape.
It contained 90% highly enriched uranium, neutrons, high explosives, and a perfectly constructed structure to operate it.
He had only explained the basic principles and methods, yet she created something very similar to the finished product without trial and error.
The massive bomb slowly began to fall.
Compared to the barrier [Nursery Rhyme] had deployed, it looked like an anchovy charging at a rock but Seridan's face was full of confident smiles.
The moment the vertically falling missile touched [Nursery Rhyme]'s barrier.
—!!!
The world before their eyes turned white with an ear-splitting noise.
Rudger surrounded people with shadows for protection.
Even at this distance, the shockwave from the explosion would affect this area.
After a shock wave swept past, he removed the shadow.
Those who saw the scene that followed were left with their mouths agape.
A mushroom cloud of red flames was rising there.
Franz felt not only shock but even a sense of futility at this intense sight he had never witnessed before.
'That's a bomb made with imagination?'
Although Rudger had protected their eyes with shadows, they could still vaguely see the explosion process.
The light was so intense that it made the explosion's form faintly visible even through the shadows.
A spherical explosion melted through [Nursery Rhyme]'s barrier with heat so intense that it was impossible to estimate its temperature.
Several hundred meters in radius were engulfed and annihilated by the light sphere, and the surrounding area was torn apart by massive shock waves and heat.
The power was so strong that part of [Nursery Rhyme]'s black surface melted and sagged.
'Wait, can they destroy this without me?'
It was fortunate that it had hit the barrier; just imagining if this had fallen on an ordinary city sent chills down his spine.
The small dwarf girl who created this spectacle was laughing with her arms spread wide.
"Wahaha! Behold this magnificent explosion! This is it! This is exactly the explosion I wanted!"
Seridan, who had been cackling like a madwoman, gazed at the mushroom cloud with satisfaction before falling into momentary contemplation.
"Hmm. Wait. I wonder if there's a way to use this explosion to create an even more intense one?"
"Enough. That's far enough."
It was Rudger who stopped Seridan's train of thought.
"Fusion reactions are still beyond your reach."
"Fusion? I knew it, you know something, don't you? Right? You have to tell me later!"
"Right now, our priority is what's ahead."
Rudger stared intently at [Nursery Rhyme].
It was buzzing and making noise, but couldn't recreate the barrier as it had before.
It had suffered considerable damage from Seridan's nuclear bomb.
'In terms of power, this far surpasses sixth-tier magic. And since this is Dreamland, we don't have to worry about radiation.'
It was an ideal environment for detonating nuclear weapons.
"It seems like just three more hits would completely shatter it."
"Alright! Let's go then!"
Seridan created nuclear bombs again and three missiles fell vertically toward [Nursery Rhyme].
If these exploded simultaneously, even a divine artifact couldn't withstand it but [Nursery Rhyme] was indeed divine.
Instead of creating a barrier, [Nursery Rhyme] gathered black energy and fired it toward Sheridan's nuclear bombs.
Seeing the nuclear bombs explode in mid-air, Sheridan screamed while grabbing her cheeks.
"No! My masterpieces!"
"Self-interception capability, huh. This is going to be troublesome."
Seridan dumped several more bombs afterward, but each time, black energy shot out like a laser and intercepted them in mid-air.
-Boom boom boom!
Explosions of light filled the air.
Realizing they couldn't expect the same luck again, Rudger spoke to Owens.
"Now it's our turn."
"Whew. I thought we were going to end up doing nothing, but we still get our turn. Will the barrier be okay?"
"The barrier won't matter. It seems it can't deploy a barrier while maintaining its self-interception state."
Arpa confirmed [Nursery Rhyme]'s condition.
Seridan's attack had been so powerful that the divine artifact had switched from a defensive stance to a more aggressive one.
The best defense is offense, they say.
That was exactly what was happening.
"Good. Then let's start by destroying that massive structure..."
Alex deflected an incoming black beam with his sword.
The beam changed direction with a 'ting' sound and exploded as it hit the floor tiles.
"Come on, attacking while I'm talking? What terrible manners."
"W-well, isn't it strange to expect manners from a tool in the first place?"
"It's a tool made by god, right? I thought words might get through to it."
[Nursery Rhyme] vibrated.
Black energy crystals forming around it writhed as if ready to burst forth at any moment.
"Looking at that, it doesn't seem to be the case."
Black beams were fired and Owens's members responded in their own ways.
Rudger wrapped himself in shadows and deflected the beams by bending space.
Alex and Pantos deflected them with their weapons, and Arpa also swatted away the incoming beams with his hand.
Violetta shot storm-like winds to sweep away the black beams.
"Everyone take these potions!"
Owens's group received potions from Bellaruna and drank them in one gulp.
Massive energy welled up inside their bodies.
In reality, such drugs would have side effects, but it was different in this dreamland.
The effects manifested, but there were almost no side effects.
Knowing this, Bellaruna created all sorts of drugs she could imagine and provided them to the group.
Increased reaction speed, physical enhancement, magic enhancement, increased resistance, pain reduction.
Violetta swung her fan widely toward the group who had all these effects applied at once.
"Go!"
She created a powerful gust.
The wind pushed Rudger, Alex, Pantos, Arpa, and Hans from behind.
The four began to sprint toward [Nursery Rhyme] like the wind.
The divine artifact detected the four approaching and scattered black sparks around it.
Though called black sparks, considering [Nursery Rhyme]'s size, they were more like black lightning bolts.
"Leader! Here it comes!"
"I know."
As if he'd been waiting for this, Rudger created a steel cube in his palm and threw it into the air.
The cube clicked and assembled, rapidly growing in size.
What was completed was a golden bird once used by First Order Leslie.
The golden bird, which was no different from a living fighter jet, blocked the incoming black lightning with its bare body.
The golden bird wasn't summoned merely as a shield.
The black lightning flowed through the golden bird's body and accumulated inside.
The golden bird absorbed other scattered lightning like a sponge soaking up water.
After [Nursery Rhyme]'s lightning storm disappeared, a steel bird wrapped in black lightning was flapping its wings.
Steel shaping magic [Black Lightning Bird]
The Black Lightning Bird flew toward [Nursery Rhyme] with a strange cry, wrapped in black lightning.
Its speed was so fast that it looked like the lightning itself was moving.
The Black Lightning Bird roughly scratched the divine artifact as it passed.
Rough scratch marks were carved on the hard surface of [Nursery Rhyme].
When [Nursery Rhyme] scattered lightning in all directions again, the Black Lightning Bird circled in the air and avidly absorbed the lightning.
"Wow, that's insane. Isn't this too much? Maybe we don't need to step in at all?"
"It's not that good. Keep running without stopping."
"What about that?"
"It won't last long."
Alex could quickly understand what "won't last long" meant.
Even though the Black Lightning Bird absorbed lightning, there was clearly a limit to how much it could absorb.
The steel core Rudger created was holding out as much as possible, but as it absorbed more lightning, the core heated up due to the massive energy and would eventually melt.
Even now, the exterior of the Black Lightning Bird flying through the air was glowing reddish with heat.
It would clearly collapse when it reached the critical point.
"Actually, while that is meant to absorb the attack, its real purpose is something else."
"What is it?"
"This."
When Rudger pointed at [Nursery Rhyme], the Black Lightning Bird flapped its wings for the last time and shot like an arrow toward the massive bell.
[Nursery Rhyme] gathered enormous energy at its center and released it toward the Black Lightning Bird.
Within the massive energy being radiated outward, the Black Lightning Bird approached [Nursery Rhyme] like a sharp arrowhead, cutting through the torrent and moving against the current.
And then the steel core, which had reached its critical point, violently vibrated and released all its stored energy outward.
-Kwaaang!
The Black Lightning Bird, condensed with the black lightning [Nursery Rhyme] had fired, caused a massive explosion.
The black sphere spreading in all directions consumed part of [Nursery Rhyme]'s surface.
No matter how sturdy the divine artifact was, it had stored and returned its own power.
There was no way it could withstand that properly.
"Look! It's working!"
Arpa marveled at the appearance of the divine artifact revealed in the explosion.
[Nursery Rhyme] had cracks along with marks where lightning had passed.
However Arpa couldn't help but exclaim at what happened next.
Black light rose above [Nursery Rhyme], and all traces of destruction on the surface regenerated as if time was being reversed.
"It's all repaired!"
"It seems we need to deliver a blow powerful enough to make recovery impossible."
The first thing that came to mind was Seridan's nuclear bomb, but [Nursery Rhyme] would know that too and would be most wary of Seridan.
At that moment, a massive hand began to descend upon [Nursery Rhyme].
"Leader!"
"I see it!"
Noxana, the goddess of death and dreams, was bringing down her hand to ring [Nursery Rhyme] again.
If that bell rang even once more, it would all be over.
They had to stop it, but there was no good way to do so.
How could they stop a hand that was several hundred meters in size?
"Brother."
At that moment, Hans called out to Rudger from beside him.
"I'll do it."
"Hans, you..."
"Send me."
Hans' expression was heavy and solemn even amid this chaos.
Recognizing this, Rudger gave a small nod.
"Alright."
Rudger's shadow enveloped Hans.
The position he was sending Hans to was the top of the Nursery Rhyme where the goddess' hand was descending.
Thanks to the massive shadow created by Noxana’s hand, coordinate movement became fully possible.
Hans, who had been transported across space by Rudger, saw the immense black palm stretching far above his head.
Just looking at it made his hands and feet tremble, and he felt like running away, but Hans desperately suppressed those feelings.
"Let's give it a try."
Hans released everything that had been suppressing something within him and his body began to swell enormously.