After sending Javier off and confirming that the lad had safely entered the vessel, Alistair rendezvoused with the rest of his division.

A wry smile forms on his cracked, slightly brown face.

Wooden Transformation is an incredible move, one that is also very versatile.

But it is not without its downsides.

’Although I have immense durability and regenerative capabilities when using Wood Transformation, I can’t maintain it for too long, else the effects will start creeping through my body until I become a wooden statue.’

As such, this Mystical Characteristic is a very dangerous one.

Still, the benefits it offers are too good.

Not only is Alistair essentially immortal in his Wood Transformation, capable of growing lost limbs and also defending his vital organs in this state, but he can resort to mid and long-range assaults as well.

He can also create whatever construct he desires, giving him a plethora of options.

’The subtle transformation into a wooden figure can also be prevented if I deactivate the Special Trait in time. Thankfully, I use my mind to do this, and with its speed, the process is rapid. Also, I can notice when the transformation is exceeding my capacity since my cognition will start to slow down in that state. Even then, I can halt this process before it’s too late.’

This is the benefit of having two compatible Special Traits.

Although their Mystical Characteristics could not be any further from each other, the Special Traits that they produce have a certain synergy with each other.

This allows Alistair to become even more effective in combat.

Of course, a great deal of praise needs to be given to the man himself and not his abilities.

After all, if an ordinary person were given these Special Traits, it would be wasted on them. What makes these powers especially dangerous is the fact that they belong to Alistair Wormwood, Rank 3 Leviathan of the Ouroboros Sect.

In the end, Mystical Characteristics and the Special Traits that are manifested as a result are merely tools used by Leviathans.

How they are used heavily depends on the one using the tools.

"I’m glad none of you are hurt..." Alistair murmurs coldly, his kind words overshadowed by a calm exterior that could be said to be unfeeling.

This stoic demeanor of his is preferred in combat, as it does not waste any facial movement or give away additional information to the enemy. It is the same way Lucien Zevalis prefers to act carefree, even when he is in peril.

Speaking of Lucien—

"Well, well, well... If it isn’t my precious mentee!" His excited voice fills the world around him, causing the swirling Magivores to quickly alter their formation at the sound of his voice. "Glad you could make it."

The monstrous beasts revert to a defensive arrangement around him.

Even now, there exist more than two hundred of them left.

This may not seem like a lot compared to their previous numbers, but when taking the exhaustion of everyone present into account, it becomes a problem.

Still, Alistair remains calm.

"Former mentee. I no longer consider you my mentor."

"Why? Because I betrayed the Sect?" Lucien smiles casually.

"No. Because we possess the same Rank. You are simply an Adept, like me. Why would I revere you or consider you my superior?"

"Oh? Is that how it is?"

"And there’s no need to pretend. Your plan to eliminate Javier failed, so I don’t think your fake pleasantries are appropriate for the occasion."

"Is that so?" Lucien continues to grin, almost to the point of laughter. "Maybe you’re right. Haha, no, you must be right... Ahh, you’re so right!"

Despite admitting his loss, Lucien does not stop chuckling.

Instead, his voice becomes quieter.

Colder.

"But, you see... That Witness was irrelevant to me. Whether he lives or dies is of very little relevance in this fight. The threat he poses is very low, to be honest."

"...."

Alistair remains calm, though his eyes broaden as though he is just realizing something.

—Lucien’s true motive.

"It was to draw me out, huh?"

"Correct! Even now, you haven’t changed. You still care a great deal about your subordinates. That weakness of yours allowed you to step into the battlefield, which has finally eliminated the unpredictability of the most dangerous variable in this fight."

"I didn’t think you were so wary of me..." Alistair’s voice trails as he smiles lightly.

For a moment, there is silence.

Former mentor and mentee stare at each other with smiles on their faces.

"It’s as you said..." Lucien responds with a casual shrug. "You are now an Adept. That makes us equals, does it not?"

Naturally, that’s not the only reason Lucien is relieved.

Now that Alistair has joined the fight, he won’t be able to affect the ritual even if he does have the method to do so. The chances of any Adept of the Ouroboros Sect even gaining access to such materials are low, but since Lucien remains cautious, he won’t let even the least possibility slip past him.

’But there’s no need to tell him any of that...’ Lucien smirks to himself. ’Now that he’s here, although the battle will become more difficult, I’ve gotten rid of the hidden threat. As for Javier, it’s not like I’ve forgotten him.’

Javier is currently hiding safely in the Flying Bug Construct, which is currently hovering a small distance away.

’Although it has an automatic firing mechanism, its effectiveness is not very high against powerful and intelligent opponents like me. That’s why I was so certain Alistair had to be in the Flying Bug Construct, since he knows more than anyone else that it won’t be able to stop me without a Leviathan piloting it.’

Now that Javier Aditi has replaced Alistair, he is likely the one piloting the craft.

What does this mean?

’Someone like him should be quite unfamiliar with the craft, which means he won’t be able to use it to its best capabilities. Still, he should fare somewhat better than its automatic function if he uses his Frontflow Conception to pilot it.’

That means Lucien has to be relatively wary of the Flying Bug Construct and not underestimate it just because Javier is the one piloting it.

’But I can easily resolve this problem by throwing Cadre 5 Magivores towards it. Now that Alistair is on the battlefield, I can’t afford to take my focus away from his group.’ With a solemn gaze, he makes up his mind on the spot.

He will divide his Magivore forces into two.

One group will obstruct Javier and keep the Flying Bug Construct occupied, while the other will face Division C-07. Among the Magivores facing this group, one portion will be focusing on projectiles to keep Amnesis occupied, while the other will act as his meat shields when dealing with problematic things such as Jamie’s Conception.

’I would have preferred them to serve as my guards against Rias, but none of them are fast enough to keep up with her. In the end, I’ll just have to resort to Designated Fortification to deal with that problem.’

With these issues resolved, he would only need to directly confront Richard, Alistair, and Elma.

’Elma will be easy to defeat, but Richard will likely protect her. Richard won’t be too difficult to beat, but those two will likely be protecting him. Alistair will be the most difficult to eliminate, and while Richard likely does not have enough Interference Power to save Alistair many times, the latter still has his Wood Transformation to help him.’

Lucien considers forcing Alistair to resort to Wood Transformation until it kills him, but that would be dragging things out.

He can’t afford to do that with his Existential Deficiency.

So what should he do?

Lucien thinks about it for a moment before reaching what he considers an optimal situation.

’I’ll target Richard and force the two to defend him. This will leave some window of opportunity for me to exploit, which should allow me to kill Elma. When she uses her Gale Force to protect others, the pressure around her reduces drastically. I can invade it with my Shadow Transformation. If I time it well, I’ll materialize right as I am about to strike her, killing her on the spot. If Richard tries to prevent this by reversing the time, all I have to do is maintain my position, with my hand still tightly gripping her squished heart. In that case, he’ll have to target the two of us if he wishes to save her life. He doesn’t have enough Interference Power for that, which means Elma’s life will be forfeit. Once it’s just the two of them, I’ll be able to plan for fewer variables, and it’ll be easier to eliminate either Richard or Amnesis.’

This is how Leviathans think.

It’s how they fight.

As people who dwell beyond the far reaches of humanity, they possess a keen insight into battle and the overall mechanisms of the world.

They are all astute by design.

This is especially the case for Adept Leviathans like Lucien, who has experienced two separate Apotheoses and has also completely mastered the Conceptions in his Pathway.

If not for the fact that he is currently in a weakened state, he would have more methods at his disposal and would be able to implement a much better plan. Still, even taking his disadvantage into account, a lone person like him has perfectly stalemated all of his adversaries.

He even has a method to ascertain victory!

Of course, there’s a chance that his moves could be read by the opponent.

But... he has good reason to doubt this to be the case.

Although these people could guess his next moves, only a Seeker could possibly read his complicated maneuvers with perfect accuracy.

Amnesis is too focused on the swarm of Magivores before him while trying to coordinate the movements of everyone to the best of his abilities. As for Gabriel, the Dark Guild Disciple who is cooperating with their group, he is a coward who prefers to hide in his domain.

To be able to accurately read Lucien’s future, he would have to be close by.

Someone like him wouldn’t do that.

’I also made sure to scout this entire area before the battle began, and I can confirm that he isn’t hidden anywhere in the vicinity. Without these two helping, I am confident that my plan will succeed without a hitch!’ With a broad smile on his face, Lucien releases a hearty laugh and charges at his adversaries.

This is it!

’The conclusion that is my victory draws near!’