The Grand Duke's Son Is A Heretic

Chapter 558 558: 558

"You dare protect him?"

A divine voice thundered across the battlefield, and its sheer force pressed down on everything as layers of space quivered and warped under its weight.

Helios stepped forward without haste, and although the battlefield was already collapsing into chaos, his presence remained steady as golden light gathered around him and flowed like a calm yet unyielding tide. His eyes did not waver as he looked toward the opposing gods, and there was neither fear nor anger in them, only a firm resolve.

"You are all heading toward mutual destruction," he said, his voice controlled yet heavy with meaning, as if he was stating an inevitable truth rather than making a warning.

The response came instantly, sharp and furious.

"You dare!"

Before Helios could continue, a violent surge of divine power descended without warning, and the attack struck him directly as an overwhelming force collided against his body.

The explosion that followed tore through everything.

The impact erupted outward, and the shockwaves shattered layers of space while spreading across the battlefield with unstoppable force, causing fragments of the universe itself to distort and fracture under the pressure.

At that very moment, Hephaestus and Agros moved together, and both stepped forward in perfect coordination as their power surged outward to contain the destruction before it could spiral further out of control. Agros let out a thunderous roar as draconic force expanded from his massive form, while Hephaestus raised his arms and summoned molten divine constructs that rose like towering pillars to stabilize the collapsing space.

Despite their efforts, the battlefield plunged back into chaos, and divine energy clashed from every direction as countless attacks collided, each impact sending tremors across existence while distant stars cracked, shattered, and reformed under the overwhelming pressure.

Amidst that chaos, far from the center of the clash, Kael sat slumped in place, and his body appeared unstable as if it could break apart at any moment, while his eyes had lost all light and no longer reflected the world around him.

There was no fire left within them.

Only emptiness remained, because everything that had happened had come too fast and struck too deeply for him to process.

"Leonard."

The voice reached him gently, and although the battlefield roared with destruction, that single word cut through everything.

Kael's gaze shifted upward slowly as a small figure floated toward him.

Goddess Lyara.

Her presence was soft, yet her expression carried a quiet seriousness that could not be ignored.

Christina raised her guard and was about to attack when Goddess Lyara spoke.

"Halt..I am an ally."

"You cannot give up, because the future of the world depends on you," she said, her voice calm but firm as her eyes met his.

For a moment, Kael simply stared at her.

Then, suddenly, he laughed.

The sound was hollow, and although it carried faint amusement, there was no warmth in it.

"Hahaha… the future of the world depends on me… that sounds very familiar," he said, leaning back slightly as his laughter faded into something bitter.

"I suppose you want me to play my role again and do your bidding," he continued, and although his tone sounded casual, it carried an emptiness that made it far heavier.

Not far away, Nina, Asana, and Christina watched silently, and as they heard him speak, something tightened painfully in their chests because they could see it clearly.

Kael was broken.

Even at the very end, he had been used, and just when he believed he had escaped the control of those above, he had discovered that every step he took had always been within their grasp.

Now, even Lyara stood before him, and if she had truly wished, she could have intervened long ago.

As if she had heard the thoughts forming within him, Lyara spoke again, her voice steady.

"If we had helped you back then, then the ones standing behind you now would not exist."

Kael's expression froze, and his eyes sharpened slightly as shock flickered across them.

"You heard correctly," she continued, her tone calm as ever, "because although you have gathered powerful allies, you lack someone who can see beyond what is in front of you, and I, who have observed countless existences, have already seen what lies ahead."

Kael's breathing slowed, and although the chaos around him did not stop, his focus shifted entirely onto her words.

"Your defeat was also necessary," she said, her gaze unwavering, "because if you had not fallen, then your woman and your friend wouldn't have ascended to godhood, and that outcome would have led to a far worse future."

Kael remained silent as he stared at her, trying to process what she had just revealed.

"Then why tell me this now?" he asked, his voice colder than before.

Lyara's lips curved slightly into a faint smile.

"Because you still possess it," she replied.

Confusion flickered across Kael's face as his eyes narrowed, but before he could question her further, a voice suddenly tore through the battlefield.

"Use it!"

The shout came from Steampunk, loud and urgent as it echoed across the chaos.

Kael froze for a fraction of a second, and then something within him shifted.

The hesitation that had been weighing him down shattered.

He moved his hand.

Slowly, deliberately, he reached forward and pulled it out.

The gauntlet.

The moment it appeared, the flow of divinity across the battlefield twisted violently, and a suffocating pressure spread outward as if something far more dangerous than the gods themselves had awakened.

Every being present felt it.

"Stop him!"

"Do not let him use that!"

Voices erupted from every direction as panic and urgency spread among the gods.

Peru laughed loudly, his voice filled with arrogance.

"Even if he becomes stronger, even if he ascends, we can still crush him," he said dismissively.

However, before he could continue, a heavy force struck him, and the Abyssal Lord sent him flying aside with a single blow.

"Have you lost your mind?" the Abyssal Lord said coldly, his eyes sharp with warning.

"Have you forgotten who he is, or what that thing represents?"

His expression darkened as he spoke again.

"Stop holding back and attack him with everything."

At that moment, hesitation vanished.

All the gods moved together.

Divine attacks descended from every direction, and overwhelming forces surged forward as they aimed to eliminate Kael before he could act.

At the same time, those standing on his side stepped forward without hesitation.

Agros roared as his massive form expanded further, releasing draconic power that surged outward to intercept incoming attacks, while Helios raised his hand and unleashed waves of golden light that clashed directly against divine strikes.

Hephaestus forged barriers instantly, and layers of molten shields rose one after another, reinforcing the defense as they absorbed the overwhelming pressure.

Lyara's energy spread quietly yet firmly, weaving through everything and strengthening the entire formation.

Nina and Asana joined without delay, and their fire and ice surged together, colliding and merging into a violent defensive force that held back multiple attacks at once.

At the same time, Christina's concealment wrapped tightly around Kael, distorting the trajectory of incoming attacks and weakening their impact before they could reach him.

The battlefield descended into absolute chaos, and universal-level forces collided endlessly as every clash shattered space and time, causing reality itself to flicker and fracture under the strain.

Yet despite all of that one attack broke through.

The Goddess of Light stepped forward, and although her expression remained calm, her power rose to its absolute peak as divine radiance gathered in her hand.

A fabric of fate intertwined that connected to Ethan.

It was SSS rank swordsmanship which she blessed Kael with.

The Blessing of SSS-rank swordsmanship condensed into a single, perfect strike, and that strike descended toward Kael with terrifying precision, targeting the very core of his existence.

Before it could reach him Kael moved.

His hand rose slowly, and the gauntlet containing the stones from God of Time appeared in his grasp and began to glow as a deep, ancient power stirred within it.

Inside…Only one remained.

The final stone.

The Stone of Infinite Possibility.

A power that allowed one to witness countless outcomes and choose the path that led to the most optimal result.

Kael did not hesitate.

The emptiness in his eyes faded, and in its place, a steady resolve took form.

Then, without a second thought he crushed it.

The sound of it breaking echoed like the collapse of reality itself.

And in that instant, a wave of power surged outward, spreading across the entire universe as everything trembled under its influence.