episode_0340

They stand before me. Each gazes at me with a different expression.

Yuri, her smile unwavering as if this is nothing, Lulu and Tier, their eyes swollen shut. Nix, her mouth tight, breath held. Aspi, feigning nonchalance, but clearly uneasy about the lingering magic. And Eve, my last, proud love, who conveyed the will of everyone, even across dimensions.

I was under a delusion. A supremely arrogant delusion that I alone could save them, and this world…

“This… settles our debt.”

“Thank you, Eve… I almost…”

“Almost missed it.”

“I… I sincerely thank you.”

“My… my most cherished duck plushie… I’ll give it to you, Eve. Sob-”

“…….”

They were stronger than I imagined, more beautiful than I’d seen, and seemed to cherish each other more than I knew.

Unlike me, who let go and left with only the intent to protect, they stood together, their hands clasped.

Honestly, right now, I’m overwhelmed. I was blocking the flames with my body and the fire door as a double layer of protection, when suddenly, they burst through it.

Because of that, I had to completely contain the magic pervading the universe, not letting a single bit escape. I had to burn myself even further to protect everyone.

But why? My heart feels peaceful and light. It’s like I have a heavenly army at my back.

Thud-

Tier took a step forward.

“I… um, sorry.”

“…….”

“…Tier.”

With a tearful face, she slowly walked towards me. Seeing her struggling to reach out, my heart ached again, and I opened my arms wide.

Sniffling repeatedly, Tier approached my embrace-

Slap-

-and then slapped me across the face.

I held my stinging cheek and looked at her.

“Ti, Tier-”

Slap-

This time, she slapped her own cheek. Her right cheek swelled crimson. Only then did she bury her face in my chest.

“I’m sorry… for letting you leave alone…”

“You came back anyway. I’m truly happy.”

“…Yeah.”

I gently stroked Tier’s head. Her hair was a deep purple, fluffy. Shifting my gaze slightly, I noticed another dark head.

No, everyone had leaned into me. I stroked all their heads and then turned back towards the ‘door.’

.

.

.

The overwhelming feeling was only momentary; now everyone’s hearts are united, supporting my back. With the surging mass of aether, I feel a similar omnipotence to when I had the divine power.

『Uninvited vermin are teeming.』

But that was only for me. When Yog-Sothoth’s voice echoed again, everyone collapsed, bleeding from their ears.

Aaack- Kwaaaah-

The screams were inaudible; my ears were already half-gone thanks to that thing. The space around us was filled with a nauseating cacophony, muffling everything except its voice.

『The unworthy cannot pass through me.』

『To witness the Old Ones, offer your paltry existence unto me.』

I channeled the aether, focusing all my energy on protecting the six of them. I stopped the bleeding, layering protective barriers over and over, trying to shield them from the divine being.

But it wasn’t sufficient. Even with healing magic, they continued to bleed from their eyes and noses, their bones seeming to twist into unnatural positions.

Even while hugging them all tightly and squeezing my eyes shut, I realized the current situation was actually auspicious. It said I was unworthy, but seeing how suddenly it used its divine power suggests it considers them enemies as well.

In other words, there is still a chance to win.

I fought back against Yog-Sothoth’s divine power with everything I had. The power emanating from that barely visible, distant gate at the center of the universe was overwhelming.

However, the situation was slowly stabilizing. Injuries were becoming less frequent, and regeneration was nearing completion. Yuri was already up, readying herself.

“Seems… your strength is waning?”

I too assumed a combat stance. I gradually redirected some spare aether to strengthen my body.

『I do not converse with beings that cannot surpass themselves.』

『I only guard the path to It.』

『Enter.』

『It and Its offspring shall bestow their judgment upon the arrogant mortals.』

Noise, clamor, explosion. The march of a hellish orchestra continuously dominated the area. So heavy and intense was its power that the slightest lapse in concentration might crush my lungs flat.

Clutching my trembling chest, I gathered aether in my hands. The moment I grasped my sword, ten thousand tentacles erupted from the wide-open black gate.

Whooooooosh—

They flew towards me, engulfing my vision and the whole of space. But if I was going to cower at this, I shouldn’t have come.

I gathered the burning hearts of everyone, the countless stars of this universe, into my sword hilt. The heavy, dazzling Muyeong Sword was like a star itself.

Muyeong Sword’s Extreme Technique, First Style: Supernova.

Like taking a waterfall to the chest, I plunged my sword into the massive swarm of tentacles. The surge of magic split in two, spreading to the left and right of me and my wives.

『Do you think this is the end?』

“…Not a chance.”

The severed tentacles shifted once more, converging towards us again. I poured even more aether into my sword, compressing it to the limit.

The Muyeong Sword was barely a sword anymore. Its immense mass drew in the surrounding energies, emitting a blinding white light.

The swollen mass of tentacles advanced to the front. I swung the Muyeong Sword again.

Muyeong Sword’s Extreme Technique, Second Style: White Dwarf.

A strike that warped space itself, tearing apart each tentacle. Another strike pierced the blunt ends of the severed limbs.

It was the sight of a brilliant white star devouring a whole clump of tentacles.

『Indeed.』

『The one who buried Tenebris.』

『Even a lowly servant possesses the strength to kill Its offspring.』

『This is the end.』

Screeeeeeach—

That sinister sound chilled me to the bone. It wasn’t just the sound. We were all plunged into a silent abyss.

Black spots blooming everywhere. Filling the cosmos, each one was a gate of Yog-Sothoth. Hundreds of millions of gates surrounding us were slowly opening.

“The big one’s coming. Hold on tight.”

I opened the Shadow Subspace and enveloped everyone. An attack capable of stopping all of them would also harm them.

There’s no need to hold back anymore. I drew upon the causality and lifespan I’d absorbed when I revived Eve.

I burned the agony accumulated over tens of thousands of regressions. Using that desperate struggle as fuel, I pushed my soul beyond human limits.

‘Sorry for the rough handling.’

I couldn’t afford to waste time choosing my path against this attack, which could be Yog-Sothoth’s full power.

The light of my soul trembled slightly. Pure white particles gazed at me gently. It felt as if the world itself wished to help.

The light gathering in my hand collided and crashed into itself. A series of small explosions occurred, and the shattered light gradually coalesced.

Shattering, gathering, merging. In my palm, I witnessed the moment the universe was destroyed and reborn.

The aether particles were no longer aether. They weren’t ordinary stars, much less a sword’s form.

Spinning rapidly, emitting light, a powerful energy that was even drawing in me, its owner. It wasn’t a sword, but definitely a weapon for me.

‘Thank you.’

I grasped that energy. The intense heat poured from between my fingers, and from above and below. I didn’t want to hold onto it too long; my palm would be burned first.

『Strike.』

More tentacles surged from Yog-Sothoth’s gates. The sight of hundreds of billions of tentacles launching themselves simultaneously was overwhelming. The intense energy seemed to devour me.

The encirclement tightened. I waited until they were close enough, until their heads started to collide, then I swung the power of the star.

Muyeong Sword’s Extreme Technique, Third Style: Neutron Star.

Gripping the intense energy, I swung it like a double-bladed sword. Countless strikes from me sliced, cut, and pulverized the tentacles.

Their density meant I cut through the heads of the mass instantly, but they continued to emerge.

『Die now.』

『Any further resistance is meaningless.』

Creak-

“Meaning… is what I decide.”

I burned every remaining bit of causality and lifespan. It’s like burning down the whole house to catch a single flea.

But… the essence of my soul is conquest. I was born to subdue all things in this world and place them beneath my feet.

“Keuhk-”

『To wield a power you cannot control…』

『How arrogant.』

I drew upon an energy so intense it twisted my insides. My soul overflowed from the deepest part of my being, pouring out towards the star in my hand.

The star swallowed the soul, growing even larger, its mass and gravity reaching a singularity. And then, space fluctuated.

『This is…』

『Dangerous.』

『Withdraw your power.』

“Too late.”

Escape is impossible. My soul has already left my hand, and the technique has been activated without my further action.

The energy of the star, beyond the singularity, no longer emitted light. Rather, it had become a monster that even devoured its own light.

Muyeong Sword’s Extreme Technique, Fourth Style: Black Hole.

I had closed the Shadow Subspace beforehand, so there was nothing to impede me. The power of the star thrown into empty space distorted all of space, generating gravity that approached infinity.

“Going first.”

Beginning with me, my limbs were torn away. The same fate awaits them. This area, which they had rushed through to kill me, was all inside the event horizon.

『Damn it-』

Before I could properly savor Yog-Sothoth’s reaction, my body turned to dust.