The monster behind Oedipus forcefully threw the paste it had squeezed in its hand, splattering drops of blood on her half-white dress.

However, a mutation suddenly occurred. Thorny bracelets formed from the blood on the monster's giant claws, piercing its arm and rooting into the soil.

"It must be Maria's doing, or someone related to what happened back then," said a strangely exquisite woman standing on top of a tree, making a magical gesture towards Oedipus. It seemed she was the one casting the spell.

"Or perhaps you are the cursed child whose policies have brought ruin upon families," she added.

"They are all fearless warriors, unlike someone like you who thinks highly of oneself."

With a bit of force, the blood thorns that had rooted underground with hundreds of roots lifted large chunks of soil and flew towards the woman like meteorites.

Unexpectedly, the woman swiftly drew a pipe-like object from behind her and it instantly split and expanded into a round shield, blocking the incoming debris.

"The members of the Forbidden Orchestra are here too... I guess you have a lot of issues with Maria," Oedipus sneered, "Or maybe you represent your family, Michael?"

"Oh, could it be that the dimmest war god in the Forbidden Orchestra..."

Suddenly, a spear with a destructive force swiftly pierced the monster's body, but it couldn't even pierce its surface and instead exploded on its skin.

A wild vortex spread out from the monster's center, and a figure with emerald hair jumped into the whirlpool. With a fierce stomp on the end of the spear, they aimed to impale the monster.

"Isn't this Lady Mother?" All the surrounding trees were completely overwhelmed by the terrible explosion. The hiding magicians emerged from the bushes and fled the fiery range of the attack. Only after the explosion dissipated did they once again surround the smiling Oedipus at the center.

"I thought you, an old immortal, would have committed suicide already," Oedipus said casually, while the monster behind her acted as if nothing happened, lifting the woman who had attempted to ambush, hanging her upside down in front of Oedipus.

Curiously, Oedipus didn't seem to have activated a magic shield, yet she appeared as unharmed as the monster.

"I feel nauseous just looking at your face." Even with one leg caught, the woman referred to as Mother by Oedipus showed no signs of nervousness. She swiftly severed herself from the thigh downward.

A torrent of flame magma surged out from the woman's severed limbs like a flood, obscuring Oedipus' field of vision.

By the time Oedipus used her magical detection, the woman had disappeared.

"So, you managed to pull Pandora Altria out of that pitch-black cottage," Oedipus remarked.

"You have no reason not to seek out the War God, then," she added.

Maria, who had been silently watching from the side, felt a pang of unease.

The War God was indeed the trump card in her plan.

It had to be said that even knowing Oedipus excelled at psychological warfare, Maria had to admit that her willingness to die had weakened in the face of preparedness.

"So, that's why I say humans lack wisdom, even a shred of imagination."

"It's so boring that it makes me nauseous."

"Not even worth being called entertainment. You really never cease to disappoint me."

"Especially you, Maria. You..." Oedipus was interrupted mid-sentence, his previously relaxed and smiling expression turning serious in an instant. A dark shadow descended upon Oedipus from behind.

"This is the final chapter, Oedipus."

How did that person manage to cast a shadow in broad daylight? Could she be wearing black armor? Does she possess some kind of visual manipulation magic?

The truth is often terrifying to the point of being unbelievable.

Just like a sunspot. When a large luminescent body produces an area of dimmer light, that area appears pitch black to an observer outside—it's all relative to the brightness of the surrounding objects.

Similarly, the glowing light emitted from this dark shadow is so radiant that it obscures the person herself, making her appear like a shadow, like a ghost.

She is the one who claims to be closest to Oedipus.

Warlord Koshiba, conductor of the Forbidden Symphony.

"With this sword, I will annihilate your soul." The shadow slowly raised her sword, resembling a conductor's baton.

Oedipus clearly saw the Warlord's sword being raised and then swiftly swung down, but he couldn't react in time.

The same was true for Maria, Michael, and Pandora. Although they were all among the top fighters in Arcadia, they were helpless against the Warlord's strike, as if facing countless slow-motion close-up shots—they could see it, but couldn't prevent it.

The world seemed as if it were on the brink of destruction. Everyone's mind was filled with screeching tinnitus. Time and space groaned under the weight of this attack, on the verge of collapse.

"The Sea-divider."

In that instant, it felt as if the heavens were collapsing—a heaven-shaking strike descended upon Oedipus, splitting the entire mountain range beneath him in half.

"Now!" Maria commanded, and several robust and alluring angels emerged from behind different Cursed Children, charging towards Oedipus's position.

Despite the earthquake-like tremors and the sudden appearance of fissures that made it impossible for anyone to maintain their balance, it had no effect on these angels. They used whatever magic they possessed and unleashed a barrage of flame spells upon Oedipus.

Thick smoke enveloped the area, obscuring Oedipus's visibility.

"Oedipus is different from normal humans."

"Although regular humans can't use aside and dropback magic without relying on machines,"

"she can still use it, albeit sparingly."

"To avoid being deceived by her, we have to constantly attack and not give her a chance to use her abilities," Maria explained to the Warlord beside her, who had fallen to the ground.

"You're saying... dropback? Is Oedipus really that powerful?" The Warlord looked at Maria in astonishment, unable to believe what he was hearing.

"What? Didn't you already know about this...?" Maria asked, puzzled. "Could it be, could it be...?"

A look of extreme terror spread across Maria's face, accompanied by a profound sense of regret.

Oedipus had already expected that I would seek out War Gong.

So, at some point, she took the opportunity to tamper with War Gong's memories.

And she also predicted that my relationship with Taboo Orchestra was not good, so she wouldn't communicate too much to help her recall this memory.

She had anticipated everything...

"War Gong, that last strike probably didn't hit, we need to prepare..." Maria's face turned pale. For Oedipus, every second of delay in battle would bring about significant variables.

"Gather together, you ants remain ants."

"What can you do in front of true behemoths?"

The thick smoke finally dissipated, and although voices could be heard, Oedipus herself was nowhere to be seen.

Two thin and tall figures stood back to back, their enormous shadows probably as tall as a three- or four-story building. The dense tentacles behind them formed numerous flesh wings, and the crimson-colored enchantment covered their entire bodies like ivy.

Anyone with a little bit of insight could see.

That was the volcano mode.