The Complex Heart was like a bountiful fruit ripe for the harvest. Frost could not see it as an enemy. Neither were the Pillars of Happiness. They were food. Nutrients destined to empower her even further as she salivated at the thought of her HP reaching a staggering million.

As for the Bloody Herring? He was the main course. Frost never did like fish, but this was the one time where she made an exception. All this running has made her ravenously hungry. It’d also be a shame if he went out any other way.

Their battle was fierce. The Bloody Herring attacked her from afar, grazing her body with an unlimited barrage of golden stakes. The Pillars of Happiness spun like a centrifuge around the Heart, swinging from the connective sinew.

Every stray stake that pelted its spinning armor was deflected into the walls, ceiling, and ground. Most of the time, however, they’d explode into a thousand particles of gold.

It showered the arena as Frost threw dozens of her Touch of Golds straight for the Pillars in an attempt to clamp them still. Her feet were grounded firmly, and countless more of her sprouting tentacles dug into the ground to anchor her in place.

But what she did not know was that they stood atop a platform, not on bedrock. The ground itself was two meters thick from what she could tell as she was suddenly dragged around the spectacular hall.

“If you used but a fragment of your brain, then you’d understand that your existence is a stain on our world!” The Bloody Herring proclaimed; his voice heavily distorted as Frost’s sense of direction was instantly skewed by the centrifugal force.

She broke free from the pillars, crushing them with her Touch of Golds with relative ease. They were considered a part of her body, so the benefits of her Tooth and Nail Passive Skill applied, meaning she was able to deal maximum damage.

Their defense was pitiful. She was thrown across the hall, her body folding into itself. Her tentacles formed the skeleton of ball which broke her fall as the floor continued to crumble with each disastrous attack.

“Our happiness must not be touched… Let us keep everyone happy.” The Pillars nearly sung in a hideous choir.

The pillars that she had destroyed were still alive. They were segmented now that she had a closer look.

The broken pillars merely become two shorter ones.

Frost dashed around the Heart in search of a weakness. Destroying a section of a Pillar would only cause it to segment. She imagined battling a mythological Hydra, although she had no doubts that she’d persevere.

The only issue was how was she supposed to take down the Bloody Herring?

There must be a limit to the number of stolen Broker’s Arms he possessed.

He was like a mosquito.

No, even mosquitoes had the dignity to die after they drew blood. A fly best described him. No number of swats would ever dream of taking him down.

She needed another strategy.

In the meantime, she attacked the Pillars of Happiness with Dismissed Confession. The segments screamed as they melted off a mango icicle left out in the sun. Their decaying mass flicked outwards, staining the golden hall. The mass was ejected so violently that they penetrated the ground.

The sinew is what’s moving them. I can try to slip in and cut them apart. That should stop them from moving. We also need to dry out his reserves as well. He must have a Dimensional Storage coin to pull out his other tricks when he runs out.

“If you can get closer then I may be able to detect more Etched Coins. He’s maintained a constant distance from you. He is afraid…”

Nav oddly trailed off as Frost danced on two battle fronts. As brutal as their battle was, one could not deny the beauty of dazzling golden streaks of light, and the tentacle-like wings that followed Frost’s every destructive move.

If there was an onlooker, then they’d be enraptured and compelled to scribe the events like holy scripture. A golden angel battled against a pair of demonic foes. The floor continued to shatter, unraveling a warm abyss that rose hairs along her back.

“Our world is not as shallow as you believe, Amalgam scum! Look at the barren holes of our world! This is your doing! The flames are proof of your destructive touch!” The Bloody Herring agonized over the gaping abyss, his voice wracked with intense emotion.

“What is fear, Frost? I believe I have experienced it before, but I cannot fathom his.” Nav sincerely asked.

You’ve definitely experienced it before. Ever since we first met you asked me to not die. I like to think you were afraid. Fear… it’s is a powerful drive. Probably one of the rawest emotions you’ll ever feel.” Frost found herself explaining nonchalantly, swinging into the flow of things as her body moved on its own.

Her movements were not as refined as the Triplets or even Jury for that matter. But what mattered was that her body knew what to do, granting her some degree of mental flexibility.

“… Destroyer. Flames. Frost. Your name hardly suggests these. It’s quite the opposite, in fact. But it is strange. Do you think there is some credibility in his claims?”

A pathological liar like that fish –!

Frost took great offense at the mere thought of entertaining such a fallacious claim.

The Touch of Golds flared into a golden daffodil, penetrating the floors further. Her sudden rage caused the Bloody Herring to distance himself in fear.

– Will never say anything right! I’m from Earth Nav! You know that!

“I am aware! But you have no recollection of your memories! That book holds the key to your past! I’m sure of it! The Archivist is sure of it!”

THEN WHY WON’T SHE READ IT!?

What was stopping the Archivist from revealing all these secrets? Why did she speak so little in the first place? Frost tried to read the intentions of the Archivist as she bled herself to spawn the Unlying Tablets. They were equipped with Dismissed Confession to rack up as much damage as possible.

However, their weight alone caused them to sink through the floor. Patches of the void appeared, although strangely enough, she did manage to find what appeared to be a bridge underneath.

Because any page of a book she has viewed will be retrievable by the Librarians! She says that it is the reason why they were unable to take a piece of your past! She will not compromise her most precious book!

Frost’s eyes widened as the world suddenly moved in slow motion. By now there were dozens of spinning, laughing Pillar segments. The entire Complex Heart was heavily reminiscent of an absurd swing ride.

And despite how chaotic it was; she found it much easier to weave through its gyrating defense.

The Archivist begs you to understand. It is a tale of a world lost, but to her, it is a tale she holds dearly. She has held it for the last 350 years since she first awakened. She doesn’t want to lose it to the Librarians or anyone else!

Like Magus, the Archivist had a vague sense of familiarity towards Frost. If her book was so precious to her then she had to wonder just who the Archivist was. Moreover, if she was alive for 350 years, then how did she know her? Frost was only 22 years old.

It pained her trying to wrap her mind around the absurdity of it all.

She was now within its vulnerable layer of sinew. The Heart hovered over 20 meters in the air, somehow managing to support all its floating Pillars.

“Do you wish to destroy our happiness!? Our world!? AMALGAM! DO YOU HEAR ME!? YOU ARE WRONGING THE WORLD!”

Frost sent a devastating downward slash with all one hundred of her Touch of Golds as she screamed at the top of her lungs:

“IF I’M SO WRONG FOR DESTROYING YOUR TWISTED HAPPINES, THEN I’LL BE WRONG TILL THE DAY I DIE!”

She managed to cleave through a few of the oncoming sinew, causing the Pillars to erratically fly now that their reins were cut loose. They moved like excited meteorites, smashing into everything they could as nearly 70% of the floor was removed in an instant.

The fact that the sinew’s only function was to restrain them surprised her. But their movements reminded her somewhat of her Judge’s Aids. Then it all clicked together.

Nav… I’m going to keep the Heart alive for a bit. I need it to take down this damned fish. You can sense its Etched Coins, right? How many are left?

It’s not as stocked as it used to be. I estimate another 600 stakes remain. I will inform you of any changes! Can you tell me what absurd plan you have in mind this time around?

Frost broke into a small smile as she spotted a familiar silhouette standing at a small outcrop within the pit. Right beside a giddy Jury was a grinning Cer and the gold-armored Broker.

Remember how I took out the Listening Bird? I can use the rampaging Pillars like they’re my Judge’s Aids. If that damned fish wants to fly around like an insect, then I just need to make a web for him!

“Will that work?”

I won’t know until I try! We beat the Listening Bird this way! And besides, we’re going to run out of floor soon enough. My strings and the pillars will be all we’ll have left. But it’s strange. If he knew about the pit, he would’ve tried to make me fall in.

The Broker’s Arms could have been used to chisel the entire flooring away. Frost would have fallen with zero avenue of escape. In hindsight, her approach was suicidal, and it was only by chance that she wasn’t executed in one fell swoop.

The Bloody Herring was scheming something no doubt. In fact, he actively avoided hitting vital parts of the floor, as if trying to spare her. If she could read minds, then she still would not be able to understand that thing’s train of thought.

And so – She had to ask him out loud as she took hold of an oncoming Pillar of Happiness.

“I thought you wanted to kill me! Why are you hesitating!?”

“AND RETURN YOU TO THE DEPTHS WHENCE THE NEXUS CAME FROM!? DO YOU TAKE ME FOR A FOOL!?” He was insulted that Frost apparently thought so little of him. “I will take your head and present it to our brightest friend for that Seed of power! Hmhmhmhm! If Leitmotif is smart, then he will utilize it to subjugate you. Your heart will burst forth from your chest, just like everyone in that city of lust!”

Frost had to wonder if it was his intention to allow the Heart to die off. He made zero efforts to protect it in the first place, not to mention that she couldn’t trust a single word that left his lips. It could be an act for all she knew.

Doubt was seeded into her.

She attached various strands onto different segments along the Pillar. Then, she dismantled it one by one as she watched Cer, Jury, and Broker clamber along the walls to reach her.

She devoured one of the segments and converted another into a bundle of 10 golden coins.

For her Hired Arm’s use, of course.

Frost winced, allowing the segmented Pillars to unravel her metallic thread as they bounced from wall to wall like oversized pinballs. The Complex Heart began to beat irregularly as Reorganizers spilled through its broken, fleshy pipes into the void underneath.

400 stakes left!

As Frost moved on to dismantle yet another Pillar, she was suddenly taken aback by a wonderful voice.

“FROOOOOST!” Jury shouted ecstatically, waving a hand with wonderful enthusiasm.

Frost broke into a longing smile.

… Man, I really did miss her.

“It’s been only half a day.”

Half a day too long.

“Wanna give us a rundown, FROST!?” Cer yelled out, reaching the cusp of the hall before she was suddenly attacked by a stray Broker’s Arms.

But it never reached her. The object was instantly deflected by a lightning strike. It was as if Cer was impervious to projectiles.

“Moons… of course it’d amount to nothing.” The Bloody Herring muttered, understanding the might that a Moon imposed.

He had only fought Frost alone since the beginning. Never did he ever get the taste of a Moon’s might. His speed surmounted to nothing in the face of a capable fighter.

There was very little he could do to a Moon in terms of damage.

Again, he was no more than a pest.

Not to mention that unlike Frost, Cer was capable of large-scale magic. This instantly prompted him to maintain a 50-meter distance. It was just far enough for Nav to detect his Etched Coins. Naturally, his target shifted to Jury who he presumed was the weakest.

But Jury was faster than Cer.

The Bloody Herring’s AGI did not translate to the speed of his attack since they did not belong to him to begin with. And so, Jury easily evaded an oncoming barrage of Broker’s Arms, weaving through them with spectacular agility as she aided Broker along the wall.

It irritated him knowing that he could not approach any closer.

“It’s that fish again! That’s the guy who stole your skill, heh!? And the same fish that split us up! Hah! What’s the matter with you now!? All that AGI’s gotten straight to your head. And that’s a Cognition Scrambler as well, isn’t it!? Looks like you only have one. Hah. Look at you, swapping your target between all of us.” Cer sniffed the Cognition Scrambler straight out of him.

Frost understood what she meant by swapping between them. The Bloody Herring’s body would no longer appear slightly hazy for a split second, like clarity had returned to her sight. This confirmed that he only possessed one Etched Coin imbued with Cognition Scrambler.

Of course, she remained to be his primary target. Seeing Jury and Cer suddenly join the fray caused hope to swell in her heart. A healthy dose of rage also invigorated her when she saw Jury’s poor tail.

She vowed to make him pay.

“… Uncouth Moon… Very well, Cognition Scrambler or not – It matters little to you –!”

“Yeah, yeah. If you’re not going to fight then why don’t you just keep that mouth shut?” Cer sneered, grating him to no end. “So you’re the liar that monkey was talking about. Bloody Herring. Red Herring. Haha. What sort of idiot wears their personality as a name!?”

If there was one thing Cer was good at; it was running her mouth. If the Blood Festival were like worms that wriggled beneath one’s skin, then Cer was like a fishing hook. She latched onto one of the tumbling Pillars of Happiness that headed straight for Frost.

“Gross. They’re kinda like the Crimson Hunger in a way with all this flesh. Isn’t that right, Frost!?”

“I thought so as well. It looks like a lot of the Impuritas utilize bodies in their processes.” Frost answered promptly, watching as Jury left Broker to escape. Then, she hopped onto a Pillar just like Cer, waving wildly at Frost. “Mm. Welcome back Jury! You too Cer. I’m glad you’re ok.”

“You’re gonna give me the wrong idea if you keep smiling at me like that.” Frost sort of missed Cer’s moronic sense of humor.

“FROOOOST! We’re back!” Jury exclaimed, joining her on the same Pillar as she expertly hopped from Pillar to Pillar.

She even used the taught steel string to help with her acrobatics. Her strands had become stronger judging by how little they distended. Jury instantly wrapped her hand around Frost’s cheek as she placed her forehead onto hers.

“… Yeah. You’re back. I’m so happy nothing happened to you. Jury; here, I’m going to heal your tail – Wait, Broker’s going to get attacked again!” Frost realized that Broker was left vulnerable to the whims of the Bloody Herring.

However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. As she held onto Jury and Cer to heal their injuries; she watched as a certain other two wolves announced their entry right where Jury left Broker off.

“CEEEEER! IS THAT YOU!?” Ber called out, overjoyed by the sight of her sister. “It’s Cer! It’s Cer! Ahaha! Are you ok!?”

“CER! You’re… you’re back. You’re back! You’re… mhm. Yeah. Thank goodness.” Res held onto Ber’s shoulders in celebration, the sheer emotion snatching her breath away.

She wiped her face along her arms, drying the unfallen tears before she immediately regained her composure. Her eyes instantly glowed a vibrant blue, prompting the Bloody Herring to begin moving along the floorless hall at maximum speed.

He took an unexpected 1,000 damage from merely being gazed at by Res. Now that there were no innocent lives in sight, Res could finally unleash her Atelier item’s full potential. They glowed a vibrant blue and annihilated the far away walls and sinew within her focal point.

“Don’t destroy the Pillars!” Frost ordered.

She nodded, instantly reading Frost’s plan. In order to destroy the Bloody Herring, they first needed to thwart his speed. This was the purpose of the web she planned to create.

Secondly, Res was now the primary target of his Cognition Scrambler. This meant that if Frost’s speed could be doubled again then she was guaranteed to win. The Bloody Herring must have known this, but even so, he refused to leave.

There was something to be gained from this encounter. But what? Or was it his ignorance that blinded him, just like every other one of the Blood Festivals?

Unfortunately for Frost, her speed could not be doubled to match his since the Diamond Counter was inactive.

However, Jury was the closest to her in AGI. The issue was that he may be carrying one of the papers that could steal the past of people. Frost was afraid that Jury would get hurt. As if sensing her worries, Jury planted a kiss on her forehead and smiled.

“It’s ok Frost. You don’t have to worry about us.” Her soothing voice was nearly enough to block the horrid music and the mutters of the Pillars of Happiness. “Let’s fight it. Together this time!”

Frost clasped onto the diamond brooch and placed it into Jury’s warm palms.

“Alright. The spotlight is yours, Jury. I think I might have a plan to get him to devalue you.”

She thought back to the flavor text of Jury’s tail. There was no possible way that the Bloody Herring was going to acknowledge Jury as something Divine.

And if there was anything in this world that fitted that description, then it was an Angel.

It was time to strike back at the Bloody Herring!