Chapter 153 - Seraphoss

When my eyes fluttered open, the world around me was drowned in an endless sea of white, a sterile, bleached wasteland that stretched beyond comprehension. Above, the dark vault of the cosmos loomed like an infinite ocean of stars, their cold shimmer casting a fragile contrast against the pallid ground. The horizon was a haunting boundary where the void and the alabaster plains embraced in eerie silence.

And then it struck me.

This place… I knew it. The realm where I first laid eyes upon the one who defied all creation—the Machine God, Mechanoss.

Tilting my gaze upward, I felt my breath hitch. There, suspended in the endless void, floated a colossal monstrosity, a skeletal titan of metal, stripped bare of life. Its twisted steel ribs jutted out like the bones of a dead god, and yet, even in stillness, it radiated an oppressive divinity. It was him. The Outer God himself.

But something was wrong.

The air felt hollow. Mechanoss, once a roaring storm of cold fury, now lay silent, like an abandoned throne. His hollow eyes, which once blazed with crimson wrath, were now empty sockets, staring at me without malice, without life. It was as if the Machine God… had perished.

“Zaft.”

A voice—soft, melodic, and piercingly familiar, broke the stillness.

I spun around, and my heart froze. Standing there was a vision of beauty sculpted from moonlight itself, a woman with porcelain skin that glowed like fresh snow, her long wavy hair cascading in shades of deep ocean blue. Her emerald eyes shimmered with an otherworldly calm, framed by a face so delicate it could shatter the strongest will. Draped in a flowing gown of ivory and azure, and crowned with a crystalline diadem, she looked like a queen born of starlight.

“Dianca…” I breathed, my voice trembling. Instinct surged through me, I extended my left hand. Blue circuitry ignited across my arm like veins of lightning, and from the void, a weapon materialized with a hiss of raw energy, my Uranium Blade.

I tightened my grip, ready for battle. Every muscle coiled with tension. Yet… she didn’t flinch. No stance. No threat. Only a gentle smile that carved serenity into the chaos of my mind.

“I knew it,” she spoke softly, her words drifting like feathers. “You’re the Apostle of the Machine God. The moment I saw you fight in the Licensure Examination Tournament… I knew it had to be you.”

“If you already knew back then… then why didn’t you kill me?” My voice cracked the silence, edged with suspicion and confusion.

Dianca closed her eyes, the weight of something unspoken pressing against her serene features. Slowly, almost regretfully, she shook her head. The silver strands of her hair shimmered under the distant glow of the stars.

“I didn’t need to,” she said, her tone calm yet steeped in finality. “All I required was to plant the seed of the Cosmic Tree. With that, this reality would have bent to my will. I never imagined you… of all people… would stand in my way.”

Her words dripped like cold mercury, heavy and inescapable.

“Are you saying that—”

“Yes.”

Her eyes opened, and the emerald blaze within them pierced me like twin blades. A smile—warm, almost tender, curved her lips, mocking the storm of betrayal rising inside me.

“I thought of you as a dear friend, Zaft.” Her voice softened, carrying a melody of sincerity and cruelty intertwined. “The moments we shared with Myrrh, Fei, Neil, Remuel, and Cindy… those were real. I do treasure them.” She paused, her lashes lowering like a curtain over a dangerous truth. Then, her tone hardened. “But the Cosmic Goddess must rise again, no matter what cost the stars demand.”

My breath caught in my throat. Aren’t you the Cosmic Goddess? The thought clawed at my mind before tearing free. I voiced it aloud, barely more than a whisper.

“Don’t tell me… you’re also an Apostle?”

Her response was a smile, wider now, a crescent of menace and mirth dancing together on her lips. Slowly, she glided into an elegant curtsy, her dress swirling like liquid moonlight around her ankles.

“I suppose I never truly introduced myself.” Her voice carried the grandeur of an oath and the venom of a confession. “I am Dianca Fritz, the Third Apostle of the Cosmic Goddess Seraphoss.”

Her emerald eyes gleamed with divine malice as she rose, tilting her chin high in imperious grace.

“My mission,” she continued, “was to nurture the seed of the Cosmic Tree, to coax it into full bloom, so that Seraphoss may pierce this universe and remake it anew.”

Since Dianca had the grace to introduce herself with such regal elegance, I felt an odd compulsion to return the courtesy—formality, yes, but also to match her poise. To show that even in the eye of cosmic betrayal, I would not falter.

“Nice to meet you,” I said, my voice steady, though the weight of truth pressed against my ribs. Slowly, I raised my chin and declared, “I am Zaft Callahan. The First Apostle of the Machine God, Mechanoss. My mission… is to sever the roots of the Cosmic Tree—” My grip on the Uranium Blade tightened, blue energy pulsing along its edge like a heartbeat. “—and to eliminate Dianca Fritz.”

For a fleeting second, the facade cracked. Her eyes widened, a glimmer of surprise breaking through the serene mask. But then, as effortlessly as moonlight sliding over water, she reclaimed her composure. Her smile returned, soft yet edged with resignation.

“I see,” she murmured, her tone almost wistful. “It remains a mystery why the Machine God would oppose the will of the Cosmic Goddess… but now, the pattern aligns. The Warfare Augmented Intelligent Frame Units—forged in His image—were never mere weapons. They were chess pieces in a game we were destined to play.” Her emerald eyes shimmered with fatal clarity. “And so, the truth stands. I am the loser of this war… and you, Mister Zaft Callahan, are the victor.”

Her calmness felt heavier than any blade. I lowered my weapon, though not in mercy, but in anguish that gnawed at my core.

“Why…?” The word tore from me like a wound. I took a step closer, my voice trembling with a storm of grief and rage. “Why are you doing this? Why erase everything? You’re a WAIFU too. We’ve fought side by side. We’ve laughed. We’ve bled together during exams. How can you stand against everything we shared?”

For the first time, her smile faltered. A shadow passed over her eyes as she shook her head slowly, blue strands flowing like silk in the cold void.

“This reality must reset, Zaft. Humanity has clawed too far, climbed too high. You’ve breached the dominion of gods.” Her voice trembledm, not with fear, but with conviction sharpened into inevitability. “The Cosmic Beasts, those minor deities that ruled since time immemorial, are now slain like cattle by Frame Units.”

My fists clenched until blood kissed my palms. Every word felt like a verdict on existence itself. Even if humanity’s reach had pierced the heavens, that didn’t mean we deserved annihilation.

I am human. I will fight for humanity—fight until my lungs collapse and my bones crumble.

“This reality will spiral into a singularity,” Dianca whispered, her tone soft as if explaining to a child, yet carrying the weight of a judge’s sentence. Her gaze lingered on me, gentle, almost tender now. “But… I understand the will to survive. I am also human… or was.”

Her lashes lowered, and a weary smile brushed her lips.

“And now, after struggling so fiercely… and losing everything… this is my time to rest.”

“Was there… any other way?” My voice trembled, the words tasting like ash on my tongue.

Dianca’s emerald eyes softened, shimmering with sorrow too deep for tears. Her smile, gentle yet heavy with resignation, spread across her porcelain face like a dying star.

“You know the truth, Zaft. If I live, the Cosmic Goddess’ vessel will return. You have no other choice.” Her tone was steady, but beneath it lingered guilt sharp enough to cut steel. “Do your duty. End this.”

My fingers curled tighter around the Uranium Blade, its blue light pulsating in rhythm with my racing heart. The weight of inevitability crushed my chest as my legs moved forward, one step echoing after another.

One.

Two.

Three.

Each stride felt like a betrayal carved into my soul.

Dianca stood there, unflinching, serene, as though her fragile frame carried the dignity of a queen accepting her final judgment. The void around us whispered like an endless requiem.

Then, in a voice soft as falling snow, she breathed,

“I wish… I could meet you all again. In another life. Another time. Where we weren’t enemies.”

I swallowed hard, my throat tightening against the grief clawing inside me.

“You will,” I murmured, though the words tasted hollow, a fragile lie clinging to hope.

With a roar that never left my throat, I thrust the Uranium Blade forward. The weapon’s energy howled as it pierced her chest, yet no blood spilled, no flesh tore. Instead, cracks spiderwebbed across her porcelain skin, glowing with blinding light.

She exhaled softly, almost a sigh of relief, as her eyes fluttered shut. Then, like a fragile sculpture breaking under its own weight, Dianca shattered. Her form splintered into countless shards of ivory and azure, scattering into the void like dying stars.

And then—silence.

Until the darkness quaked.

Far above, the lifeless colossus stirred. The Machine God Mechanoss, that eternal husk, opened its hollow sockets. Twin suns of crimson ignited within, blazing like the wrath of a dying cosmos.

The void trembled as a single notification seared across my vision:

[Machine God’s Gospel – COMPLETED]

[Weapon of Mass Destruction Series Unlocked]

[Level 0 – Cosmic Tree]

The notifications burned across my vision, stark and final. I blinked, and the world around me twisted. Reality folded like shattered glass, reforming into familiar chaos. The endless white void was gone. In its place stretched the ashen wasteland of the foreign gray planet.

I stood at the center of a vast crater, the earth scorched and fractured—a scar born from the nuclear tempest unleashed by my blade. The air reeked of ozone and molten metal, heat rippling in waves that shimmered across the horizon.

“Zaft!”

The voice, sweet, desperate, snapped me back to life. I turned, and my heart stuttered.

There they were. Myrrh and Fei, descending through the smoky haze, their slender figures framed by the pale glow of falling debris. Both wore the pristine white plugsuits that clung to their forms like a second skin, streaked with soot and battle grime yet radiating elegance amidst ruin.

Myrrh reached me first—before I could even muster a word, she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me tight against her. The soft warmth of her body crashed into me like a tidal wave, and my face—well—sank right into her bosom.

“I’m so glad you’re okay!” Her voice trembled with relief, breath warm against my ear.

I managed a muffled response, sarcasm clinging to my lips even as my cheeks burned crimson.

“I’m glad you’re pressing your boobs to me, alright…” I muttered, just loud enough for irony to color the moment.

“You're really a degenerate goon!” she scolded, but her embrace didn’t loosen.

“That was amazing, Zaft!” Fei’s voice cut in, vibrant and full of awe. She landed gracefully, her dark hair whipping in the smoky breeze as she pumped her fists like an excited child.

“Y-Yeah…” I mumbled, my words smothered against Myrrh’s chest. Truth be told, I was in no hurry to move. The chaos of battle felt like a dream, and this—this was far too soft to let go of.

Fei grinned wide. “That means everything’s over now, right?”

I lifted my head slightly, enough to shoot her a wary glance.

“Hey, don’t raise any fla—”

A burst of static shredded through our comms, silencing the fragile hope in her words.

“All units, be advised.” The voice was sharp, commanding, and all too familiar—Agent Feena.

“The foreign planet is falling! I repeat, the foreign planet is falling! It will collide with Xyraxis in… twenty minutes!”

The crater beneath us rumbled like a drum of doom, and the ground began to crack. Above, the sky fractured with fire as chunks of planetary crust peeled away, spiraling toward the void.

And just like that, our fleeting moment of relief died.