CLASH OF THE ANCIENTS

I remember when White and I first teamed up.

She wouldn't stay dead no matter how many times I killed her, so the only solution I could think of was to propose a ceasefire and try to win her over to my side.

Not dying because of the Immortality skill is one thing. But White came back even after I hit her with Abyss Magic, which even the Immortality skill shouldn't have been able to save her from.

That was the last straw. By that point, the part of White that was in me, the Parallel Mind once called "body brain," had already blended with me completely, leading to my current self.

Once I was certain no more changes would occur, at least not against my own will, I didn't have any reason to continue treating White as an enemy. I guess I was still a little bitter about her killing the queen, her army, my puppets, and so on, but there was nothing to be gained by fighting her anymore. Besides, for whatever reason, I had a gut feeling that I'd be the one to go down eventually.

So I gave up on trying to defeat White and shifted gears to trying to recruit her instead. I lost the queen, but I gained the powerhouse who defeated her. On top of making a dangerous enemy into an ally, this meant I could keep a close eye on her at all times.

It was a bit of a gamble, since she was no less dangerous then, but I didn't have any other choice. At the rate things were going, I definitely would've gotten killed by White someday. I won that bet and gained an invaluable ally in the process.

Yes, a very important and invaluable ally indeed. It's been more than ten years since then. The two of us worked hard together to get to where we are now.

"It's been quite the journey."

This is something I've desired since long, long ago. And today, it will finally come to fruition. When I think of how long it's been, the ten years I've spent with White seem like they've gone by in blink of an eye. Although they were ten very eventful years. As emotions briefly overcome me, I look up to see a mechanical menace that shouldn't exist in this world standing in my way. The only creatures who would use such a device are the elves. More specifically, only the one called Potimas, I suppose.

"You remember what I told you before, right?"

"Who can say? I hardly have the time to memorize every word spoken by a little girl." Potimas's voice echoes through the speaker of the first of the army of machines. I face down the army with a sneer.

"You think these little toys can stop me? Shouldn't you have sent the hero after me instead?" Not that it matters, since White should be on her way to that hero right now.

"A hero is merely the plaything of the administrators. I have no need for such trifles."

"We'll see if you still feel that way a few minutes from now."

A swarm of spider monsters assembles behind me, enough to oppose Potimas's mechanical forces. All the taratects that live in the Great Garam Forest have gathered here, with the giant queen taratect leading the way.

The imperial army and even the demon army are here only to even out the numbers. My real forces are this swarm of spiders, including the queen taratect.

Not to mention a few very dependable associates, especially White. With all this preparation, I have to make sure we succeed, y'know?

"Potimas. I'll say it again. Today, I'm going to kill the real you."

"We shall see about that."

The machine army invokes their barrier. One that cancels out the very system that governs this world.

But a silly thing like that won't stop me from stepping forward.