Chapter 986 - Last Words

In the last moment, Chronus decided to throw Ryan at the sun, even if he had to burn as well. He could always recover once Ryan loses his consciousness. Ryan knew exactly what Chronus was thinking, so he fired the arrows to kill him first.

Chronus tried to protect himself with his remaining arm, but in the end, he could only do so much against an enemy that could use the same magic as him. His face and body began to burn even more thanks to the power of the Solar Arrows. Without any other choice, Chronus used Temporal Healing and made his and Ryan's wounds disappear. The mental strain disappeared completely, but Ryan still was suffering more than him.

When Chronus was about to Teleport himself and Ryan to even closer to the sun, he was forced to stop. He wondered why they stopped attacking him, even though they should be able to see him thanks to Clairvoyance… as it turns out, the elder gods and humans prepared some charged attacks and then used those simultaneously.

The impact on his back made Chronus fly toward the sun for quite a while, and he couldn't do anything to slow down also for a while. Still, Ryan teleported them back to Earth while mustering all the willpower he had in the end.

When they returned to Earth, Ryan finally let Chronus go because he barely had any strength to keep standing, much less to hold his arm. Chronus stopped trying to attack as well… there was no point. He wanted to push Ryan even further, but his plans came to an end when he made those weapons. Even without using Foresight, he knew that things would end that way.

Their bodies were covered in burn marks, but they still recognized Chronus when he sat down on the ground. As for Ryan, his armor, his clothes, all the air in his body, and even the extremities of his body had been burned to a crisp. Isis AND Femradiel approached to heal him while everyone else kept their weapons ready to be used.

"You can rest easy now, see," Chronus said while showing his right hand that was turning into dust. "I have reached the limit of this body, so it is your win."

That seemed too good to be true. After all, the group basically just attacked nonstop while Chronus ignored them. However, thanks to his eye, Odin could see and confirm that Chronus was really disappearing.

"Now and then, this happens when this body gets too old," Chronus said. "In a few years, I will revive."

That was also weirdly convenient. Still, Chronus was the physical manifestation of time, so it was only evident that he couldn't die or be killed. They could destroy his body, but that was only a temporary solution.

"Rather than staring at me, you should prepare your troops, all of them," Chronus said. "In five minutes, they will be here and they won't hold back anymore."

Chronus and Odin didn't want to take their eyes from Chronus, so Athena and Isis began to prepare for the next battle. Summoning the angels, holy knights, and all those stationed in Israel was absolutely necessary. As well as try to mass-produce more weapons and defensive gear with those attributes. Few people could do that, though.

Eventually, Ryan was back on his feet. Although it couldn't be considered clothes, he used Frost Armor to prevent others from seeing him walking naked. Since Isis was pretty good at magic, she even managed to restore Ryan's hair. That had been useful since, without it, he looked like a hammer.

"You won, but you don't feel satisfied," Chronus said.

"That is because I know that you can't be killed," Ryan said. "And because I couldn't have defeated you alone."

"You have a weird greed, it seems so small and grandiose at the same time," Chronus said. "Nevertheless, you will have your chance to satisfy this desire of yours."

"How can you tell?" Ryan asked. "I thought that you would only give up once you see a future that is different from the ones you saw."

"It is only an intuition, I can't see the future now for some reason," Chronus said. "It is probably because what is going to happen hasn't been decided yet. So, I will bet on your side."

"It doesn't make me feel better in the slightest knowing that someone that I hate is cheering for us," Ryan said. "Instead of that, hurry up and give us your power."

"Maybe I should use the rest of my power and make sure that you won't receive it," Chronus said.

"That is fine, I am sure Merlin has analyzed all your powers," Ryan said.

"You didn't say that you don't need my help as well?" Merlin asked. 

"It isn't help, it is rent for keeping haunting me," Ryan replied.

"I am very alive, though," Merlin said.

"Ah… this is somewhat refreshing," Chronus said after letting out a deep sigh. "This is the first time I talked so much with a species like yours. There isn't much talking once they know who I am and what I did. Nevertheless, I hope that this won't be the last time. For my sake as well, all of you have to win."

"I will win, but you will be the last thing in my head when that happens," Ryan said.

"I still disagree with your methods, but I can't ignore the results," Athena said. "I don't know for how long we will be able to do this, but I will make sure to deal with anything that might prejudice the universe as a whole in the future."

"I missed so much fun thanks to you, so perhaps I will hunt you once this is all over," Loki said. "It will be easier to master your powers after defeating you Anyway."

"Next time we meet, I would like to meet as friends," Isis said. "It would be really helpful to have someone who has lived for so long on our side, in order to prevent us from repeating the mistakes of other species."

"As long as you are all on the side of those who protect, I can't see, why not that shouldn't be possible…" Chronus said and then let out another sigh.. "Best regards."