Chapter 90: True Purpose (6)

The Winter King unleashed everything in his arsenal against Wolfgang, even resorting to mimicking the very human techniques he had despised. 

He had cast aside his pride entirely.

But alas, a fake could never surpass the real thing.

The imitation, which only managed to superficially mimic its target, was easily shattered by the genuine article. 

And so, the Winter King was overwhelmed and ultimately fell.

However, the Winter King was merely an empty shell. 

Or perhaps, more accurately, a puppet.

Now, the only task left was to drag out and destroy the puppeteer pulling the strings.

With that judgment, Wolfgang immediately deactivated Muspelheim.

As the realm dissolved, the remaining remnants of the Winter King were absorbed into her flames, making them burn even fiercer, but Wolfgang ignored it.

“I can still endure this. No—I must endure this.”

The truth was, she had long surpassed her limits.

Even now, her skin was splitting apart, golden flames seeping from the cracks. 

Her breaking point had already come and gone.

Overwhelming power was a double-edged sword, often becoming a poison.

Yet, rather than suppressing it, Wolfgang chose to push forward. 

If she held back now, she wouldn’t be able to defeat her opponent.

The Vendetta Legion, who had been battling the saint, finally felt certain. 

The tide had turned.

This battle would end in their victory, as always.

“Don’t you dare look down on me, you wretch!”

But Jeanne’s fury erupted from an entirely different place.

That gaze—those pitying eyes that looked at her as if she were someone to be pitied, as if she were worth nothing.

Memories of the humiliation she had swallowed every day ten years ago surged back into her mind.

Consumed by rage, Jeanne raised her hand and pointed directly at Wolfgang, as if accusing her of a crime.

In response to her will, the world itself answered.

Weapons of all kinds—golden spears, swords, shields—rose from the ground and shot toward Wolfgang.

The sight of countless weapons flying through the air, scattering golden light, was undeniably spectacular.

“Your lack of experience is showing.”

To Wolfgang, a veteran of countless wars, it was a trivial attack.

Throwing shields alongside weapons? 

Shields were meant to block attacks, not be hurled like projectiles.

Using her Lævateinn flame-forged swords, Wolfgang sliced through every weapon flying her way.

Every single one, upon contact with her flames, burned to ashes.

Jeanne, who had been so confident, watched in horror as her attacks were utterly obliterated. 

Her smug expression shattered like fragile glass.

Wolfgang didn’t stop there.

“This ends now.”

Reading the flow of the attacks, Wolfgang pinpointed an opening and exploited it.

But Jeanne lacked the experience, skill, and composure to counter Wolfgang’s calculated assault.

“Why… why can’t I defeat her?”

Jeanne had sacrificed everything for victory—her pride, her humanity, even the remainder of her life.

And yet, Wolfgang so effortlessly took everything away.

[It seems this is as far as you go.]

“Goddess…”

[It’s all right, my child. Humans are imperfect beings—that’s why gods exist, isn’t it? From here on, leave everything to me.]

As dozens of Lævateinn blades simultaneously pierced through Jeanne’s defenses and exploded, Wolfgang felt certain of her victory.

The attack had been so decisive that survival was inconceivable. 

Even if Jeanne somehow lived, she would be left in critical condition.

Or so Wolfgang thought.

But what she saw next caused her to falter momentarily.

Shockingly, Jeanne was still standing.

She hadn’t escaped unscathed—her scorched skin and the ashes surrounding her were evidence of that.

However, the real issue was her recovery.

Her wounds were healing far faster than expected. 

In less than ten seconds, Jeanne had completely regenerated, as if nothing had happened.

Watching this, Wolfgang clicked her tongue in disbelief.

“What the hell is this?”

[Be careful! That is no longer Jeanne!]

“What do you mean by that?”

“Ah, so that’s how you got here. You had an adorable helper by your side, didn’t you?”

“I think I understand now.”

At first, Wolfgang didn’t grasp the meaning of the words.

But the change in Jeanne’s aura made it all clear.

The entity before her wasn’t the saint anymore. 

It was the being who had cast out the true goddess and claimed the throne.

The False Goddess.

The Winter Princess.

Her name had been whispered since ancient times.

The Winter King had demanded that his followers revere the Winter Princess, and they had complied.

Though her authority never reached her father’s heights, it was still immense.

Initially, the Winter Princess had no intention of betraying her father.

She wasn’t entirely devoid of ambition, but the disparity in power between them was too great.

Even after receiving so much from him, her ambitions only extended to seizing the throne of a lesser goddess.

Her father, in contrast, had established his domain in a mighty empire, turning the entire nation into his realm.

She had remained loyal… until her father’s humiliating defeat at the hands of a human.

The balance shifted.

Her father lost much of his power, beaten down by the gods of light. 

Though he hadn’t been destroyed outright, his weakened state was undeniable.

[Daughter, return what I gave you to its rightful place.]

[Father, if I do that, I’ll lose everything I’ve gained.]

[Destroy the vile human of the empire. Rip her apart, and everything will return to its proper order.]

[No, Father. I can’t do that.]

Pathetic.

To lose everything and demand his power back only to attempt revenge on the very being who had defeated him…

Even at full strength, he had lost. 

What could he hope to achieve now?

Her father’s desperation became laughable to her. 

And so, she gave up on obedience entirely.

She took what little power he had left, leaving him nothing more than an immortal puppet.

The once-mighty Winter King had fallen so far.

But not even she could fully destroy him.

The barrier of an ancient god was one even she couldn’t overcome.

Still, there was one being who could—a human who had defeated the Winter King at his peak and brought down a demigod:

Wolfgang Leonhardt.

The Winter Princess had reshaped her plans.

Using what remained of her father as bait, she orchestrated everything.

When Wolfgang obliterated the Winter King, his remaining faith and power flowed into the Winter Princess, the sole heir to his authority.

Even after his fall, the Winter King’s followers hadn’t disappeared entirely. 

Among humans and gods alike, there were still those who revered him.

And so, the Winter Princess absorbed that power and ascended as the new Winter Queen.

Wolfgang, realizing this, scowled.

“Scheming in the shadows… how despicable.”

“A mere mortal dares to judge the will of gods?”

“If an immortal like you can grovel like a rat, why should I be any less capable?”

“…Such arrogance. You don’t even realize the fate awaiting you.”

The Winter Queen snapped her fingers, and icy winds began to blow.

Now crowned, she no longer needed to cling to the false goddess’s throne.

However, she wasn’t certain enough of victory to risk a decisive battle with Wolfgang.

“You may leave my kingdom now.”

And with those words, it was over.

Wolfgang turned her head, realizing that the temple had vanished.

She and her comrades now stood at the kingdom’s border.

“Boss!”

“…It seems she’s expelled us from her kingdom.”

“What do we do now?”

Leifen, standing beside Wolfgang, looked to her for direction.

Wolfgang lifted her gaze.

The sky above the kingdom was filled with dark clouds.

“It seems the snow is about to fall again.”

And as she said, snow began to descend once more.