In the Starry Sky
VRITRA and Garuda stood motionless in the endless void, surrounded by countless abominations bowing in reverence. The vast expanse around them was eerily empty—asteroids, planets, and even the distant shimmer of stars had vanished without a trace. Not a single celestial body remained in sight, as if the universe itself had been erased.
VRITRA's gaze was fixed on his palm, where a deep scar marred his skin.
Yet, no blood flowed from the wound. Instead, an abyss stretched within it—so vast that even measuring it in light-years was meaningless. Anyone who laid eyes upon it would be forced to ask: What kind of existence is VRITRA? And what unimaginable power could leave such a wound on him?
Garuda, watching VRITRA lost in thought, waved his hand. Instantly, the abominations scattered in all directions, continuing the devastation NOX and Lucas had begun—the complete annihilation of this universe.
Yet VRITRA remained still, his eyes locked onto his palm. Outwardly, he was composed, but within, a storm of emotions churned.
How long had it been since he was last wounded?
Epochs? Eons?
The idea that a mere lower existence had inflicted such an injury was incomprehensible—even to him.
His thoughts drifted back to that fateful moment—the decisive clash, the brilliant arc of that final strike, and the swordsman's unwavering smile. That image refused to fade from his mind. Yet, what he felt was not anger. Nor was it humiliation.
It was respect.
A rare emotion stirred within him—perhaps even sorrow. For the briefest moment, he entertained an impossible thought: What if I turned back time? What if I saved him?
But just as quickly, he dismissed the notion.
"What a pity," VRITRA murmured, his voice carrying an unfamiliar weight. "To be born in this motionless, dead universe."
With a deep breath, he pushed aside the thought, his aura cooling into indifference once more. He turned to Garuda, his tone cold and detached.
"Let's go. Let's end this."
Yet, despite his attempt to suppress it, Garuda sensed the faint undercurrent of excitement in VRITRA's voice.
'I can't wait to play with those two monsters…' VRITRA thought, a predatory grin creeping onto his face.
'Especially that 'Devil' kid.'
*******
In the Chaotic Space
Lucas stood lost in thought, while NOX busied himself studying the space cracks left in the wake of their clash.
The vast starry expanse was in turmoil—fractured space and scattered celestial debris drifted aimlessly through the void. The cracks in space varied in size and color, some pulsating with ominous energies, while one, in particular, remained eerily still, devoid of any energy leaking from within.
It was this silent anomaly that held NOX's attention. At first glance, it appeared unremarkable, yet something about it unsettled him. He felt inexplicably drawn to it, as if the void itself was calling out to him.
"Now, what are you? And why aren't you bleeding like the others?" NOX muttered, narrowing his eyes at the crack.
Slowly, he extended his right hand toward it, attempting to sense any unseen force emanating from within.
But there was nothing.
No energy. No resistance. Only an empty, unfathomable silence.
Frowning, NOX expanded his Dharma Intent, covering the entire space surrounding the crack. Yet, he was met with the same eerie silence—the complete absence of matter, as if nothing existed there at all. He tried several more techniques, drawing upon every method at his disposal, but each attempt yielded the same baffling result.
"Hmm... still nothing?" NOX murmured, disappointment creeping into his voice. Just as he was about to shift his attention back to Lucas, he suddenly froze, a thought striking him like a bolt of lightning.
"Wait… If this is truly the VOID, then shouldn't my Dharma Intent have disappeared or been swallowed by Dark Energy?"
His eyes gleamed with realization.
What was the VOID? The ignorant would call it the absence of matter, energy, and space. But they couldn't be more wrong. Matter did exist in the VOID, albeit in minuscule quantities. And it wasn't empty—it contained vast amounts of Dark Energy. Even forces still functioned within the VOID, and anything that came into contact with it would vanish, consumed as if devoured. One could always feel this sense of disappearance, like being swallowed by an abyss.
There was [Nothing] coming from this space crack. But how? NOX knew that neither he nor Lucas had reached a level where they could completely erase matter, reducing it to true nothingness.
Which meant… someone—or something—was responsible for this anomaly. But where was this force coming from? And more importantly—
"Why is it near this crack? No, more specifically, why is it near this universe? Is this just coincidence? Or is someone guiding it toward us… to aid us?"
NOX scoffed at the very notion of coincidence.
In this world, coincidence was nothing more than an illusion. Every event had a cause, and each cause was shaped by countless external influences—seen and unseen, past and present. Time wove these factors together, forming an unbroken chain of inevitabilities. What appeared to be mere chance was, in truth, the culmination of forces set into motion long before it ever unfolded.
Just as NOX and Lucas were in the process of destroying a universe, he just so happened to stumble upon something capable of erasing matter itself? The sheer improbability of it screamed of unseen manipulation.
"This is even more convenient than the 'Spoon-Feeding System' from the Dragon Country novel, isn't it?"
But NOX didn't care. Whether fate, deception, or the ploy of an unknown force, it was irrelevant. As long as it served his purpose, he was willing to pay any price—even if it meant walking willingly into a trap.
Morality? He had long since discarded it.
His gaze locked onto the space crack, his eyes burning with resolve.
"Let's assume 'Nothing' is a Concept, not a Law… then does it respond to other [Concepts]?" NOX mused aloud, his lips curling into a grin. "Let's see if I can corrupt a Concept."
Without hesitation, he acted. If he couldn't corrupt [Nothingness] itself, then he would corrupt the source that had birthed it.
NOX raised his hand, and at once, a dark red mist coiled in his palm, twisting like a living entity. Without delay, it surged outward, engulfing the surrounding space, swallowing both him and the space crack in its suffocating embrace.
Time passed…
Moments later, both NOX and Lucas turned their gaze toward a distant point in the vast expanse. On the far-off horizon, their eyes locked onto the final sword strike of the Sword God.
For an instant, the endless void was bathed in golden radiance—a sword's light, brilliant and absolute. But just as quickly as it appeared, it flickered and vanished, devoured by the abyss.
Lucas remained motionless, his gaze fixed on the spot where the light had died. His eyes held a mixture of respect and guilt, emotions warring within him. Even NOX, indifferent to the lives and deaths of others, stood silent.
In that moment, even he mourned.
"So, he finally used a 'real sword.' Even we could only dodge that strike, not take it head-on." NOX's voice broke the silence, pulling Lucas from his thoughts.
Lucas exhaled heavily, the weight of sorrow pressing down on him. "Even though I steeled myself for this, it still feels awful. And what makes it worse… even in death, he wouldn't have blamed us."
The Sword God—one of the few beings they both truly respected—had died unjustly because of them.
A heavy stillness settled between them before Lucas spoke again, his voice tinged with uncertainty.
"Even if we succeed… do you really think there won't be a price for destroying an entire universe?"
NOX stood shrouded in the red mist, his figure barely visible, his expression hidden.
But when he spoke, his voice was unwavering.
"The price is irrelevant. If it's for my family, I would sacrifice a thousand more universes if necessary." He paused for a moment before adding, "And we must succeed. It's the only way to honor him… the only way to justify his death."
In the next moment, their conversation was interrupted…
Both NOX and Lucas instinctively turned their heads, sensing a surge of energy nearby. However, instead of reacting defensively, they remained still, standing their ground, awaiting what was to come.
Before them, a breathtaking sight unfolded. An ethereal figure, embodying the very essence of the cosmos itself, materialized. This wasn't merely a representation of universal consciousness; it was a tangible manifestation—an embodiment of near-omnipotent and omniscient existence. Then, the figure transformed, taking the shape of a nearly perfect, beautiful human woman.
"Mother." Lucas instinctively spoke her name as the manifestation completed. She was the progenitor of everything in the universe—the origin of all existence. Every being, every entity, was her child in the most literal sense.
"Hello, my children," she greeted them, her voice carrying the weight of both love and disappointment. Lucas offered a simple nod in response, while NOX remained silent, unmoved.
Her gaze softened as she turned to NOX. "I see you're still holding onto your anger." There was no reproach in her voice—only the wisdom of ages, infinite patience woven into her words.
She sighed. "I regret that I couldn't assist you in your pursuits. But what you're both engaged in is a path of darkness. Please, cease this madness." Her plea was filled with sorrow as she gazed at NOX, but he remained unfazed, redirecting his attention to the expanding space cracks, as if they were calling to him, heedless of her plea.
Lucas's heart sank at the sorrow in his mother's voice. But deep down, he understood. If a simple plea could dissuade him, then his pursuit of power—his desperate longing to reunite his family—would have been nothing more than the fleeting dream of a naïve child.
Having lived for billions of years, Lucas had traversed every facet of existence. His path was never about glory or conquest, but the right to control his own fate. He had endured countless trials, suffered immeasurable loss, and clawed his way to power so overwhelming that even the cosmos trembled before him.
Yet, at the end of his arduous journey, there was no triumph—only an abyss of loneliness. The power he had so desperately sought had failed him in the one way that mattered most. He had reached for his lost family, only to grasp nothing but the cold, unyielding truth of his own limitations.
And so, the haunting questions lingered: What could I have done differently? What path still lies ahead? Why, despite everything, do I feel so empty?
As time passed, sorrow hardened into despair. And despair, in turn, became something darker when they finally uncovered the cruel truth—the universe they had been born into had been sealed from the outside. A prison locked beyond time and space. The very motion of the universe itself had been halted, its existence frozen within an unbreakable cage.
Normally, beings of their level—NOX and Lucas—could move through time as effortlessly as they did space. But if the universe itself was bound in stagnation, then even time became a meaningless illusion. The repercussions were beyond comprehension, and one such consequence was terrifying: the collapse of the Space-Time matrix, rendering time travel utterly impossible.
They had lost their loved ones in the distant past, but they had pushed forward, believing—hoping—that one day, their strength would allow them to bring them back. Yet when they reached the ultimate boundary of their universe, reality bared its fangs, tearing away their final shred of hope. The universe was not simply a vast expanse waiting to be conquered—it was a lifeless coffin, sealed and unmoving, mocking their every struggle.
One might wonder—Isn't such a thing absurd? Destroying the universe would mean obliterating its Space-Time matrix, erasing not just the present but every soul that ever existed, living or dead. Could such devastation truly be justified?
Yet, as NOX and Lucas stood at the edge of the abyss, their despair twisted into something beyond mortal comprehension. Even the very nature of existence seemed to conspire against them, revealing an even darker, more harrowing truth—one that shattered the last remnants of their restraint.
And so, they reached a decision.
They did not seek to destroy the universe itself.
No.
They sought to annihilate everything within it.