Chapter 1678 Retribution

Opening his eyes, Vahn found himself surrounded by a familiar cumulonimbus, a taunting smile spreading across his face as he said, "Even if you go all-out, you won't be able to defeat me. If you don't want to endanger the sanctity of the Heavens, stop meddling in this world and abide by your own rules. Don't make-"

Interrupting his warning, thick bands of golden lightning began targeting Vahn from virtually every direction. Their speed was much greater than normal lightning, so, even though his reaction speed would normally allow him to evade such attacks, nearly every band impacted his body directly. As a result, his body began to char from the inside, his flesh and organs carbonizing as his eyes glowed red-hot before subsequently melting away like liquid metal.

Though not entirely unexpected, Vahn realized he had underestimated the so-called 'God's Divine Judgment'. His body had virtually no resistance against the 'Sacred Holy Lightning' created by a Tier 5 being, as, by design, it was meant to have no actual counter. The only way to even remotely resist it was to be comprised entirely of Holy Energy, but, even if he used Magia Erebea to assume such a form, the nature of the technique itself would ensure he took even greater damage.

Fortunately, thanks to Karin, Vahn had a template within his mind that he could use even without the Magia Erebea. As a result, his body began to rapidly regenerate, his skin turning inordinately fair as his hair gained a silky-black sheen. Most notably, two sets of angelic wings sprung from his back, but, not satisfied with a half-measure, Vahn pushed his transformation a step further. Golden scales began to sprout across his body, and, though the form naturally resisted the changes he was forcing upon it, a set of draconic wings spread from his back as a very convenient halo manifested above his crown.

Since 'damage' was likely too broad in this case, Vahn commanded the [Runed Halo] to protect him from purification. The thing that made Holy Elemental Energy so powerful wasn't its ability to deal damage to a target, rather, as a result of its nature, it wasn't capable of causing harm. What made it so powerful was the fact that it could expunge all impurities from a target, and, though this had the appearance of causing 'catastrophic' damage to said target, the thing that ultimately brought about their end was their 'lack of purity'.

Though Vahn's Source Energy should allow him to resist such effects entirely, the fact he emulated the human body and adopted a physical form worked against him. The form, name, race, and even the fate of entities within the Records determined how the Laws affected them. This was especially true in Records governed by Magic, and, if you could somehow bind a God into the form of a much weaker creature, the most popular being humans or animals associated with them, they could even be killed by mortal men and women.

Vahn was largely immune to the concept of 'true death' due to the indestructibility of his Ego and the inviolability of Source Energy. Though he would need to act before the Source Energy turned into other types of energy, he was effectively able to revive a countless number of times. The only limiting factor was his own intent, so, unless they could somehow break his spirit and force him to simply 'give up', he would keep coming back stronger, faster, and more resolute.

Emphasizing this characteristic, a phenomenal aura radiated from Vahn's body, forcibly dissipating the billowing cloud coverage as a twenty-meter long spear of holy lightning appeared in his right hand. This wasn't condensed from his own energy, however, but the energies within the cloud. He was able to exercise control over all forms of energy within his own domain, and, though it would be difficult to perform such a feat if the entity guiding the energy was present, the fact they were an entire Realm away gave him the home-field advantage.

With an uncharacteristically vicious smile on his face, Vahn continued to collect golden lightning into his spear as the surrounding bands impacted powerlessly against his body. Then, with his three pairs of wings spread wide, his aura multiplied as he extended his left hand and shouted, "Set alight the all-consuming flame, Laevateinn...!!"

Like an explosion had been set off within their midst, the billowy white clouds swirling around Vahn were torn apart by an invisible shockwave. Then, before they could even hope to reform, he arched backward an irregular amount before contracting his body, throwing the fifty-meter long spear of lightning that had been gathering in his right hand. Its momentum was so extraordinary that, for a brief moment, it appeared as though an indivisible golden line had appeared between Vahn and an empty point several hundred meters away. Then, without a single sound emanating, the line simply vanished into thin air as the clouds began to disperse into particulates of white light...

---

An unquantifiable distance from the mortal world, separated by no less than eight dimensional planes, a seemingly endless ocean of clouds could be seen floating aimlessly through a pale-golden sky. At the very center of this expanse, a majestic structure formed from the most immaculate white marble and an extraordinary amount of gold stood proud and inviolable. It gave off the impression of the most majestic palace in existence, it's size alone eclipsing the combined surface area of both Mundus Vetus and Mundus Magicus.

Located at the center of this cosmologically central palace, what appeared to be a mass of wings surrounded an indescribably vibrant source of light. These wings belonged to peculiar creatures without any discernible bodies, their only aspects being three pairs of resplendent golden wings that were attached to the visage of a lion, an ox, a human, and an eagle. They dutifully veiled the vibrant light contained within, but, every now and then, a small break would appear in the area covered by their wings, it's vibrance so great it illuminated the entirety of the endless expanse of Heaven.

In total, there were six of the peculiar four-headed creatures, each radiating an aura so phenomenal that the average mortal's mind would simply collapse in its presence. Those unfortunate enough to lay their eyes directly upon the creatures would immediately turn to ash, and, should they somehow infringe upon the territory protected by the strange entities, they would experience a fate far worse than death. The floor, which seemed to be woven from the night sky, was actually another entity on par with the six creatures, and, though it could not kill people, it had the ability to seal them within a realm of eternal darkness; an inescapable plane where you would be forced to experience your worst nightmares for all eternity...

Floating above this membrane representing the concept of eternity, an ever-changing number of beings reminiscent of giant flaming wheels could be seen slowly orbiting the six-winged entities in the center. Their surfaces were covered in countless eyes, each superimposed onto the outside of the rings, which, despite appearing to be made from gold, possessed a uniquely organic nature that allowed the eyes to periodically open and close. It was a rather eerie sight, but, should you ever find yourself in a situation to behold their form, you wouldn't even have time to blink before you found yourself viewing your entire life from an outsider's perspective as your body was slowly consumed by holy fire...

Above even the wheel-like entities and the peculiar four-headed creatures, three entities, each possessing six wings formed from the elements, could be seen holding hands. Each was garbed in resplendent armor forged from glistening white plates and pale gold that seemed to radiate literal flames. Their heads were cloaked by hooded mantles, the interior of which obscured their features with a darkness that could even rival the abyss. Above their heads, three crown-liked halos formed from blue, green, and red energy matched the color of the eyes that burned like living flames within their hoods. These were the entities known as Rubrum, Caeruleum, and Viridis, the three Seraphim who ruled over the Heavens and governed the position of all celestial bodies within the cosmos.

Due to humanity's inability to conceptualize the existence of an all-powerful God, the Throne of God had remained unoccupied ever since the inception of the Nine Heavens. Though the influence of God was still present within all the Realms, they had no physical form or will outside the structure of the Heavens themselves. Despite this, their influence was currently the greatest in the entirety of the Akamatsuverse, so, even in the absence of a true God, its influence could be felt throughout the entirety of the verse.

In actuality, the closest thing to a True God was the Root of Creation itself, and, though it had a will of its own, entities within the verse were entirely unaware of its existence. They simply saw the Root of Creation as the 'Will of the Heavens', an abstract concept that allowed deities to wield the closest thing to absolute power within the verse.

Without a God to rule, the governance of the Heavens was left in the hands of the three Seraphim, each possessing a fragment representing an aspect of the Holy Trinity, each bound by the Will of a God they had never met. The oldest among these was Caeruleum, representing the Father-Mother and the Spirit. The second oldest was Viridis, representing the Holy Ghost and the manifestation of Sapience, the Mind. As for the youngest, they were known as Rubrum, the greatest of the three and representing Man, the living Body, and the possibilities of the future.

Due to the nature of belief, it was possible for even ancient history to be retroactively shaped by powerful entities in the present. Thus, despite having only come into existence several thousand years ago, the age of the Nine Heaven and the Seraphim eclipsed even the birth of the Universe. They had memories dating back billions of years, and, as their power grew, the beliefs that gave them form would superimpose themselves onto reality, altering history to reflect the 'truth' they represented.

Since the formation of the Nine Heavens, the only entity that had ever trespassed the Throne of God was the manifestation of Rubrum in the mortal world. He had once discarded his power and authority to walk amongst the men and women he represented, living amongst them in the hopes of guiding them onto the correct path. In the end, he realized that humanity was beyond salvation, but, given their infinite potential, there was always hope for the future. Thus, in order to buy them as much time as they needed, he ended up sacrificing his mortal coil in order to absolve them of their sins and create a path by which the devout and the innocent could find salvation.

Though he was forced to suffer great humiliation and anguish, Rubrum ended up becoming even more powerful as a result of his Martyrdom. His sacrifice also allowed the physical plane to become more stable, and, though there were still wayward sheep that meandered far from the path he had set for them, he never blamed them. He loved each and every human that had ever existed, and, if he had any regrets at all, it was that he had loved a particular human more than he ought to.

Originally, there were seven Cherubim protecting the Throne of God, their combined wings more than enough to prevent the light from escaping. Due to his selfishness, however, Rubrum had asked one of the faithful creatures to become the vessel for a mortal woman, the person he had burdened with the sin of betraying him. It broke his heart when the woman killed herself, so, at the expense of a large portion of his power, he allowed her to seek the repentance she sought while also providing her with the opportunity to witness the future they had created with her own eyes.

Unfortunately, due to the burden of having her soul transplanted into the body of a Cherubim, the woman ended up losing most of her memories. The only things she remembered clearly was her act of betrayal and her apparent failure to take her own life. From then on, he could do little more than watch over her in solemn vigil as she traveled the world in search of forgiveness, something she had already received before his original sacrifice.

Had the woman kept along her original path, Rubrum was fully prepared to ask for her forgiveness, but, due to her unique form of amnesia, he could only suffer in silence as she deviated further from the path she had chosen for herself. In the end, she even imprinted onto one of the very beings she, as both a Saintess and a Cherubim, was meant to destroy. To make matters exponentially worse, she even made a vow to forever follow and support the vile creature, a promise she could never renege on due to her Cherubic nature.

If not for the vile creature's persistence when it came to killing other vile and evil creatures, Rubrum might have been tempted to use what remained of his power to completely annihilate the creature. He could hardly bear to see the one person he had cherished more than any other be led astray by a creature of darkness, but, after watching her suffer through depression for nearly fifteen-hundred years, he was happy just to see her smiling again. Though he did make it impossible for her to form any other contracts, this was intended as a failsafe to prevent the power of the Cherubim from truly falling into the hands of the forces of darkness.

Unfortunately, as if the Will of the Heavens was out to spite him, the protection he bestowed upon the woman only exacerbated her misunderstanding that she was cursed. Her faith gradually began to wane, and, though she recognized the existence of God as an absolute, her belief shifted toward the vile apostle of darkness. She even began to harbor obscene and lustful thoughts for the woman, a desire that only grew stronger after their long separation.

Had things ended there, Rubrum would have still been able to accept the situation, wholeheartedly believing that the woman would find her way back to the path after the vile apostle inevitably met her end. It might take a few thousand years, but, compared to the billions she was capable of living, it was just a drop in the proverbial bucket. She would eventually outgrow her inclinations, and, due to the ever-strengthening power of belief, it was only a matter of time until she became one of the central pillars that supported their faith. At least, that was how things were 'supposed' to go...

Seemingly out of nowhere, an anomalous existence known as the Sage Dragon Emperor emerged within one of the few places outside the dominion of Heaven. This greatly alarmed all three of the Seraphim, but, after witnessing his efforts to restore balance and purge corruption, they gradually came to see his existence as a positive influence on the world. He had even taken it upon himself to protect the Key of Twilight, one of the few entities they had absolutely no power over due to its intrinsic connection to the Root of Creation.

Unfortunately, even the Sage Dragon Emperor fell to the trappings of the detestable entity known as the Dark Evangel. This caused Rubrum to feel the closest thing to anger that he was capable of expressing, but, due to God's Will preventing direct interference with the mortal world, there was very little he could do. Any action that went against God's Will required him to sacrifice a piece of himself, and, though his power and authority were still above both Caeruleum and Viridis, the gap had been steadily closing.

Rubrum's connection to 'Man' made it difficult for him to accept any but the one true God above him, so, regardless of his growing desire to burn the hateful woman to ash, he continued to silently observe the situation from his position within the Heavens. It wasn't until the Sage Dragon Emperor began discussing methods to remove the 'curse' that Rubrum felt compelled to act. The thought of losing the one person he had harbored true affection for filled him with a sense of indignation that simply couldn't be put into words. This was exacerbated by the fact that the Sage Dragon Emperor seemed to be directly taunting him, so, against the counsel of his contemporaries, he mustered as much power as he could manifest within Mundus Magicus, determined to at least teach the Sage Dragon Emperor a hard lesson.

Seeing the arrogant dragon charred to the point of becoming a carbonized skeleton, Rubrum was unable to prevent a small smile from spreading across his non-existent mouth. He had never taken pleasure in the suffering of others, but, after the dragon had so thoughtlessly antagonized them, he felt it was only right that the anomalous creature suffers Divine Retribution...

With this thought prevailing in his mind, Rubrum was unable to even process what was happening when Vahn began to suddenly change into an amalgamation of a Cherubim and a True Dragon. It wasn't something that should even be remotely possible, so, for several pivotal moments, the only thing he could do was observe the situation. Then, just as his mind began to process what he was witnessing, a brilliant flash of golden light appeared within the sanctified chamber, erupting into a cataclysmic explosion of holy energy...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'This isn't even my final form...','Rubrum has a very peculiar way of expressing his love...','C-C-C-C-Counter')

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