IBHJ Chapter 887

After making a deal with Tiamat, Gaia took Arcueid and left Imaginary Number Space. Although Sakura also wanted to take this opportunity to leave, unfortunately, Tiamat held her tightly in her hand.

"Mother..."

—I will always protect you, Sakura.

Her mother's eyes overflowed with love, a love so intense it felt suffocating.

"Mother..."

—What is it, Sakura?

"I want to leave... I miss my brother and Ritsuka."

—We will miss them together.

Sakura: "...."

Outside, Arcueid turned to Gaia, "Where to now?"

"South America," Gaia replied.

"Ah..." she paused, "Are we going to find that Mercury guy?"

Gaia nodded.

Suddenly—

"Grrrooooaaarrrr!!"

Arcueid looked up, her expression grim. Was it her imagination, or were the others on other planets roaring?

"Judgment is approaching faster than I anticipated... Are you nervous, my siblings?" Gaia murmured.

She turned back to Arcueid, her voice urgent. "We must hurry, Arcueid. Before my siblings pass judgment on me!"

"Why do the other planets have to judge you?" she questioned.

"Because they fear the vortex."

"I don't understand. If they're scared, shouldn't they be helping us? Why judge you instead?"

"You ask too much, Arcueid. We may share a solar system and call each other siblings, but our cooperation is driven by self-interest. If my disappearance benefits them more than harms them, their judgment is only natural."

She looked at Gaia. "Doesn't that make you sad? Being judged by your own family?"

"Sad? I don't understand the concept. I am the will of this planet, its survival instinct. Protecting it is my purpose. My siblings are the same. Their judgment is as natural as my decision to allow Crimson Moon to land on earth. The only difference is, I fell for Shirou's trick and gave up on Crimson Moon."

"Fell for Shirou's trick..."

Arcueid recalled that over 1,500 years ago, Shirou had used the Holy Lance to deceive the planet, which was key to his victory over Crimson Moon. Humans outsmarting a planet was astonishing, but what surprised Arcueid was Gaia's lingering resentment over being tricked by Shirou.

It was subtle, but Gaia clearly held a grudge. Shirou was definitely on Gaia's bad side!

Arcueid sighed. Seeing how much this bothered Gaia, she guessed that once the vortex issue was resolved, Gaia would likely set her sights on Shirou. Being targeted by the planet itself would undoubtedly make life a struggle, essentially meaning the whole world would be against him. But the thought of Shirou's potential frustration brought a strange sense of pleasure to Arcueid. Was this what they called pettiness?

"But if the other planets are going to judge you, isn't it risky to meet with Mercury now?" she questioned.

"No. Among my siblings, only Mercury and Venus are completely on my side. Even if the others initiate the judgment, Mercury and Venus will stand with me," Gaia replied confidently.

Arcueid was taken aback. Despite Gaia's calm tone, her words sounded full of confidence. And come to think of it, the first UO to answer Gaia's call and come to Earth was indeed Mercury.

Even though they were planetary Counter Forces devoid of human emotions, did they still have varying degrees of closeness? Arcueid was perplexed. She couldn't wrap her head around the weird logic of these celestial beings.

She followed Gaia to a valley in South America. Floating in mid-air, Arcueid looked down at the valley below. It was full of ancient trees, a completely untouched wilderness that humans hadn't even tried to mess with. But she knew it wasn't that people didn't want to develop the land, they just couldn't. Because Mercury's UO, known as "ORT," was asleep down there.

Ultimate Ones, or UOs for short, are the most powerful creatures made by planets to act on their behalf. They're also the ultimate defense system against extraterrestrial invaders. Crimson Moon was one of them. But compared to Crimson Moon, the other planets' UOs were even stronger.

Weirdly enough, Earth is the only planet without a UO, so it's always getting invaded by extraterrestrial invaders. To make up for this, Gaia has tried a bunch of things: making the Holy Sword, creating Holy Sword wielders, making Arcueid, and even recruiting some of the invaders to become Earth's guardians.

But even these measures couldn't change the fact that Gaia lacked a UO.

UOs were incredibly powerful. Take ORT, for example. The Fifth of the Twenty-seven Dead Apostle Ancestors tried to capture it and was instantly wiped out. Earth's magecraft was useless against it, and even the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception couldn't kill it. The only way to defeat ORT was through brute force destruction of its main body. Unfortunately, that body was so tough it could easily shrug off attacks from other UOs.

To make matters worse, ORT possessed [Crystal Valley], a power that could permanently alter reality, making it a real threat to Earth. Fortunately, Mercury was on good terms with Gaia, so ORT, as an extension of Mercury's will, listened to Gaia's words. That's why, when Gaia called for help, ORT was the first to arrive on Earth and immediately went into hibernation to prevent [Crystal Valley] from harming the planet.

"Wake up, Mercury," Gaia called out.

The ground immediately started shaking violently.

"What's happening?"

"What's going on?"

Earthquakes rocked human cities hundreds of kilometers away, terrorizing the people. Animals in the forest scattered in panic. Fear was spreading.

Then, with a deafening boom, the entire mountain range covering the valley split open. A spider-like cosmic creature, wreathed in blue flames, emerged.

The creature transformed, becoming a humanoid spider over 40 meters tall.

Mercury's UO, ORT!

Crackling pale blue flames danced across ORT's body, radiating a terrifying aura.

Everywhere it touched, life withered, turning into lifeless ice crystals.

"Don't disrupt my ecosystem, Mercury," Gaia warned.

Instantly, the flames on ORT's body flickered, then retreated inward. As the blue flames receded, so did the aura that was rewriting nature's laws.

The surrounding ecosystem returned to normal, and the creatures resumed their usual patterns. The only difference was that a cosmic creature capable of warping reality now stood in the valley.

Gaia slowly descended towards ORT, who gently cupped her in its massive hands.

Standing on ORT's palm, Gaia spoke. "Mercury, I need your help."

ORT dipped its head slightly, gazing at Gaia. It didn't nod, didn't speak, didn't offer any visible sign, yet Gaia knew without a doubt that ORT would help her. Their communication was instantaneous, a silent exchange. This was the logic of the stars, the way planets spoke to one another.

However, Mercury's body was simply too enormous. Any movement would wreak havoc on Earth's delicate ecosystem. They needed to prepare a vessel for Mercury, one that could move without causing widespread destruction.

Suddenly...

"Boom!"

A destructive sound came from outer space.

Gaia and Arcueid looked up to see several satellites and space stations falling from the sky like meteors. Some crashed into the ocean, triggering massive tsunamis, while others fell into mountain ranges, igniting wildfires.

Gaia didn't care which countries owned those satellites and space stations, or the economic damage caused, but she couldn't ignore the ecological destruction their crashes inflicted.

Using her planetary authority, Gaia calmed the raging tsunamis and doused the wildfires with torrential rain. Then she looked up at the sky.

Arcueid sensed Gaia's anger, even though her expression remained impassive.

"Isn't their arrival a bit dramatic?" Arcueid remarked with a sigh, sprawled on ORT's shoulder.

The next moment, a colossal floating island materialized in the swirling clouds. Atop this island stood a pair of giant trees, giving it the appearance of a fish.

This was no earthly creature, but like ORT, it was a planet's most powerful cosmic being.

Venus's UO, the Heaven's Corpse!

"Mercury, catch it. Don't let it touch my surface," Gaia commanded.

Venus's UO was different from Mercury's. It was a parasitic UO. If it touched the ground, it would take root, using Earth as a breeding ground for billions of spores, instantly wiping out the existing ecosystem.

Simply put, it was an invasive, planet-killing plant. And this was Venus's UO, the Heaven's Corpse!

While Gaia was confident that Venus, like Mercury, was on her side, Venus's UO was undeniably dangerous to Earth.

ORT nodded, then extended two more arms to catch Venus in mid-air, preventing it from making contact with the ground.

Once caught, the giant tree on Venus's back released spore-like clusters of light. The clusters dispersed, revealing their true form: not monsters, but a golden-haired, red-eyed girl with angelic wings.

"You call me here, but then you won't let me land? Isn't that a bit too much, Gaia-chan?" the angelic girl pouted, hovering in front of Gaia.

"I only wanted a few spores, not your main body," Gaia frowned.

"Oh, I see. I thought Gaia-chan was already shaking in her boots, so I came to protect her. Hehehe..." The angelic girl flashed a charming smile, then her gaze landed on Arcueid, lounging on ORT's shoulder. She paused for a moment, then her smile widened. "Oh my, if it isn't little Crimson Moon!"

"Hello," Arcueid greeted the angelic girl without much enthusiasm. "And for the record, I'm not Crimson Moon. I'm Arcueid."