I am Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes.

"He...is back..."

……

The white-haired, blue-eyed youth pulled the trigger, killing a monster with a single shot, and then looked up into the distance.

……

The young man with black hair and black eyes put down his book and looked up.

……

This is a golden space.

The wise king sat quietly on his throne, his eyes half-closed, calculating the time.

"The time has come, so let us begin." The Wise King stood up. "It's time to settle all our scores... the breaking of the Chains of Heaven (Enkidu), and the grudges between you and me..."

“That’s right… that’s exactly what we should do…” The dark figure stood behind the throne and answered the wise king’s words.

The figure had jet-black hair and dark red eyes.

"You want to die here... taking me down with you?" the young man asked, his right hand slowly materializing into a scythe.

“That’s right, otherwise, that child would never be able to get rid of you in this lifetime.” Golden ripples also surged in the space.

The young man turned his head to the side. "Anyway, time in the outside world won't affect this place... Come on, Gilgamesh, let the long-awaited decisive battle begin here!"

The wise king turned around. "An Ducarlo, let's end it here!"

Then, accompanied by surging golden ripples, came a black scythe that was swung up.

A life-or-death battle is about to unfold here!

……

Siberia.

A long trail stretched across the snowfield on the plain.

Jill gasped for breath, a wave of intense exhaustion washing over her.

Unlike the consumption of Enuma Elish, the End of the World attack almost completely drained Jill's magic.

"Ha...ha...damn it, they escaped...but this way, the barrier of this world should be completely opened, preventing the destructive factors from entering..."

Jill sat on the snow, took out a potion, and drank some. Her magic began to slowly recover.

"...So tired...ah..."

A strong sense of exhaustion instantly overwhelmed Jill's senses.

Jill struggled to her feet.

This isn't a place to sleep... I need to find some cover...

Then, Jill lay down on the snow.

Breathing evenly, sleeping soundly.

……

"Clang!"

The golden axe and the jet-black scythe clashed, sending out bursts of pale golden sparks.

The wise king stepped back, and the divinely ordained mudstone slab fell into his hand. Then, the sound of chanting a magic spell rang out from his mouth.

"Who would let you chant magic so easily!" An, wielding a scythe, swiftly stepped forward and charged towards the Wise King.

However, when he got closer to the wise king, he discovered—

"Clang!" The axe and sickle clashed together once again.

"Tch!" An was forced back by the overwhelming force.

With a mocking expression, the wise king spoke, "You really never learn, Ann Ducarlo."

“Tch, I figured it out a long time ago. As long as you stare at that stone slab and chant the incantation, you can really perform magic—right?” An asked, pointing his scythe at the wise king.

The wise king tilted his head and raised the corners of his mouth, "Try again!"

Countless golden ripples unfolded once again.

All the swords, spears, and halberds were pointed at An.

An raised his sickle and aimed it at the wise king.

The wise king retreated once more, and at the same time, a magical artifact mixed with golden ripples descended from the sky, hurtling towards An.

"Using this move a few times won't change anything, will it?!" The scythe was swung wildly, slicing down all the incoming Noble Phantasms, and the magic was also dodged.

The wise king swiftly chanted a runic spell, and countless runes rose up once more.

"Don't even think about it!" An, who was charging forward this time, watched as the wise king lowered his gaze and looked at the stone slab!

Therefore, he charged forward with great confidence, and the huge scythe, like a crescent moon of death, cleaved down from above the wise king's head!

"Clang!" The moment the golden battle axe blocked the scythe, An instantly felt a hard object strike his cheek directly—

Then he was slapped and sent flying.

Damn it...

"Tch... I forgot you bastard are dual-wielding... one sharp weapon and one blunt weapon, how despicable." An rubbed his swollen face, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and said.

The Wise King burst into laughter, "Hahahaha, you're still too young, kid! Although as a Destruction Factor you should be around 328 years old, you're still far from being as old as me!"

This space—it's ruled by the Wise King…

The Wise King completely controls this space. Even the omniscient and omnipotent star could not see as many "possibilities" in this space as far as the Wise King could!

Moreover, Gilles suffered greatly from this tactic employed by the Wise King.

What? Looking at the stone slab means you're actually chanting a spell?

You're young, you don't know that a slate might swing at you and knock your head off!

The wise king looked at An and said, "Although I find it very interesting to play with you... we don't have enough time."

His figure began to transform into countless particles of light.

“…Gilgamesh…” Anne looked at the wise king like this, “Ugh, so annoying!”

"Hmph, this is only the end!" The Wise King raised his arm, crimson light surging within. "He accomplished what I could never have done in my entire life!"

At this moment, the wise king recalled his teachings to Gil.

He has grown up... and can stand on his own now.

Even Enkidu acknowledged him...

Then I can let go and put an end to this feud completely!

"So you'll leave here with me! Neither of us should continue to exist as the past!"

The crimson magic suddenly burst forth from the hand that the wise king raised!

"Enuma Elish activated! Let the stars revolve, simulate another cosmology!"

A crimson storm instantly swept across this golden space, completely engulfing everything within...

……

Siberia.

"The search target has been located: a blond boy wearing a dark blue jacket... He is currently still unconscious."

Two Valkyries dressed in thick winter clothes discovered Jill sleeping.

Their coats also featured eye-catching wing-like patterns.

That is a sign of destiny.

"Bring the target back... Mission complete."

Theresa's voice came from the other end of the walkie-talkie.

"Yes, Lady Theresa."

Chapter Sixty-Five: Jill: Otto, you've eaten shit!

The wise king looked at the golden space before him and at An, who was beginning to disappear completely, and smiled once again.

"This is all I can do... I'll leave everything else to you... Jill..."

Immediately afterwards, his body began to transform into golden specks of light.

It completely dissipated and disappeared within this golden space.

On the other side, Ann's body also began to turn into black particles.

"The principle of creation... Ah..." An's body, like the Wise King, continuously dissipated into particles of light. "This is the end... As the Destruction Factor... I am finished..."

……

"Hmm..." As consciousness gradually returned to his body, a sense of weakness also came from Jill's perception.

The feeling was different from when I woke up in SAO last time. That time, it was just hunger plus the weakness of not exercising for a long time.

This time, all I felt upon regaining consciousness was hunger and the weakness of having almost completely depleted my magic.

That potion didn't restore much of Jill's magic power; I'd guess only around 20%.

“…Where is this…” Jill struggled for a moment, sat up, and looked around the room.

The room wasn't decorated much; the layout was very simple.

It was just a sign on one of the bookshelves that caught Jill's attention.

It was a symbol that looked like two wings.

“This is… Mandate of Heaven?” Jill looked at the conspicuous sign and recognized where she was.

As for why I'm here, I can figure it out if I think about it. It was probably Theresa or someone else who brought me here.

Well, I just needed to settle scores with someone...