Chapter 186

Arc 16 - The Fastest Man Alive - Part 23

When Rewind’s siege against the universe began moments ago, Weq of the Outox Empire’s shoulders tensed up.

Around him, a barrier automatically appeared, protecting him from every form of danger, on every level.

Inside this barrier, time moved at a different pace.

No, it was completely stopped in one place.

“If Rewind has finally stopped holding back...”

Many years ago, Weq came face-to-face with this entity, and he deduced immediately just how much of a threat he can be, so he began planning for every possible action of the speedster.

This mortal, who possessed knowledge almost comparable to deities, had expected this.

However, there is nothing he can do to stop Rewind from reaching Nazar. And he understood his limitations, he understood the limitations of his technology.

After all, he was a powerless mortal.

Without wasting any more time, he opened a portal to a dimension of golden light.

Aurora.

『Welcome, Weq of Outox Empire,』 Daya greeted him instantly.

It was as if he was expecting him.

Weq, who felt disoriented for a fleeting moment, quickly regained his equilibrium.

He took a deep breath and prepared to speak, but his sight fell upon a different entity.

A blonde man with red eyes.

And instantly, he knew who it was.

Realising the nature of this entity, Weq found himself frozen, unable to talk or even think.

Was it fear or surprise, what was stopping this mortal from speaking?

Lucifer chuckled and changed the way Weq was seeing Lucifer, so he doesn’t waste any more time.

『A mortal in Aurora, a mortal who can look upon us and not go mad… Lord Weq, I am impressed.』

“Indeed, it is interesting, but should you be really surprised? He is a friend of God himself, is he not?”

『We are indeed small and powerless before him.』

“I am most impressed with his barrier, it's impressive to withstand a higher phase that would have destroyed any mortal.”

『I believe he calls it 「My World」, a fortified barrier of quantum, magical, and divine energies, which works in harmony with the life of the universe to create a barrier that protects the user.』

“Interesting, indeed. Vilramore’s life should power up this universe for an eternity.”

『Indeed, his life is long.』

Wha… Weq was confused about what Lucifer did to him earlier, but he shook his head, and focused on something far more dire. He could not waste any more time.

“O’ Great Daya, and mighty Lucifer, heed my cries of help for our very existence could end today.”

“Hrn,” from Lucifer’s beautiful lips, a voice came out.

How many times has he heard those words? And how many times did it come true?

“Rewind is an entity who is empowered by cosmic powers that can be found anywhere in our universe, that much is true, and his power is not causing troubles to the universe but Rewind himself. Over time, has become something else, a plague to this creation.”

Weq felt a little pressure as he glanced upon the two entities far beyond his comprehension. He did not want to think how small he was in comparison, but he couldn’t help it.

“With every step, his influence over the universe grows. With every step, he is becoming a singularity that will be impossible for this universe to contain. If he moves any faster, he could create a black hole that will eat the universe, and perhaps the higher worlds.”

“Hm.”

“His existence itself will taint the cosmos red, the blood of innocents will paint over the black space. The faster he goes, the more damage he causes to reality. If he moves any faster, he will unravel reality itself.”

“A being who moved so fast and so far, he transcended life and death, time and space, reality and reason,” Lucifer added calmly. “I understand the extent of his abilities.”

“Then will you help us?” Weq asked bluntly. “Can you kill him?”

“...”

Lucifer, however, kept quiet.

He watched over his battle with Nazar, however, he could only understand one in a millionth of it.

Rewind is a powerful individual, if worse comes to worst, he can be a strong ally. If he can be convinced, that is.

Lucifer breathed out softly.

I can free him from his curse, however, that should happen after he helps us. It is the ultimate card in my deck.

“If not, then can you contain him and save us?”

“...”

Once again, Lucifer was quiet.

He could, but if Rewind can be an ally, then hostility like this will ruin their chances of a partnership.

“No.”

“...”

Weq found himself speechless.

“What?!” he could not contain his displeasure. “How could you? Have you no sympathy for an aspect of your own?”

Lucifer’s face was ripped in half by a thin and evil smile as his red eyes flared brightly.

『Do not question the Celestials and their motives,』 Daya scolded Weq, the mortal. 『Your understanding of the universe, and our existence is shallow. Limited. Besides, the Golden Angel has already began saving the universe.』

“I know,” Weq replied loudly in anger. “But would a Celestial of the highest ordered merely let a large aspect of the creation fall----”

Everyone widened their eyes.

Simultaneously, they felt the flickering life of this omniverse as its master was killed.

“WHAT?!” Weq blurted out.

The flickering of the omniverse was short, but it scared both Daya and Weq.

Lucifer, however, was as calm as ever.

Then, all three of them, in surprise, blurted out, “He is… DEAD?!”

Even Lucifer, who knew how powerful the Queen can be, found himself at a loss for words.

Never in his life he thought someone would come along to stop this God. Yet it happened.

The omnipotent God was killed.

Among the two of them, Lucifer felt like the end of all was coming for a brief moment, so he was sure that Nazar was dead.

But the omniverse was "saved", however, he does not know who saved it. Albeit he has the faintest idea about it.

This… can't be good.

"Since I cannot help directly, for my own reasons, I will take your suggestion."

Six wings shot out of Lucifer's back as his halo spun fast over his head.

"Your plan is to contact Null, and have him do the dirty work, right?" Lucifer spoke hurriedly. "Then so be it. Speak to the darkness yourself."

Lucifer used himself as a conduit to create a two-way communications channel between Null and Weq.

“I have grander plans in motion, so do as you wish,” Lucifer ordered the mortal.

Weq took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

However, the moment he opened it, he gasped -- however, there was no oxygen, no air, yet he was breathing just fine.

This is... odd.

Glancing around, he saw no lights in this infinite black sky.

『Welcome to the Void, friend of God』 a disembodied voice reached Weq’s ears from every direction.

This scary and evil and beast-like voice caused his soul to shiver.

『I know of the reason you have sought audience with me.』

“Then...” Weq swallowed his fear and spoke to the never-ending darkness. “Then stop Rewind or else my universe...”

『My sole connection to you and your universe has been severed.』

Weq gritted his teeth.

These cosmic Gods and their awful reasons… He thought angrily. Will you all watch--

『However,』 the disembodied voice continued. 『It was my master who was slain, so I will avenge him.』

Inside the pitch-black darkness, multiple red eyes flared up.

As their light illuminated this dark sky, Weq laid his eyes on these otherworldly monsters.

Tall and ugly, full of bones and slimy tentacles, but above that, they were covered in golden armours. These tight golden armours, which covered their entire bodies, made them seem like robots.

Weq became confused, he was unsure if he saw monsters or robots that somewhat resembled a hybrid of a human and monster.

Was it a skin they wore to make it easier for Weq?

Weq shook his head once again, and focused on what was in front of him, so looked directly at the monster.

『March forward my judges, march forward to the light.』

The golden monsters strode forward, moving faster than Weq could comprehend.

『Bring down the hammer of justice upon that world, and I, along with this mortal, shall apprehend the menace.』

Rewind’s body shuddered, “Wait-- Destroy the world--”

Null’s red eyes and growling voice caused Weq’s body to gasp out loudly in fear.

『Your universe will survive, it will live, I will allow you that, but as Daya informed you...』

The darkness began to wrap itself around Weq.

『Do not dare to question the Celestials.』

His body was banished from the dark realm and back into the golden realm of Daya.

On his knees, Weq gasped for breath.

What… What...

Weq’s mind was flickering in and out in darkness. It was as if infinite darkness was trying to eat him from inside.

He wanted to close his eyes, ears, and mind for centuries to come, but he couldn’t do it.

He had to save the universe, so he had to break free from the shackles of the darkness.

『Carry out your plan,』 in this golden realm, darkness shaped like a man appeared and stood alongside the Celestials. 『But know this, your universe will fall to me today.』

Weq’s heart skipped a beat.

What?! But he just said---

『That is if you fail.』

Contacting Null was not his main plan, but a backup one if all else failed.

However, if Null does not want to help, then he has no choice but to focus on his original plan, which has a high rate of failure.

『And Lucifer,』 the humanoid shadow looked at the first angel and said, 『to a mortal, you have shown the inner workings of creation, which is transgression against the decree of the omniverse.』

“Hm,” Lucifer did not fear this entity. “Is that so?”

『You must rectify--』

Lucifer, without glancing to the entity besides him, raised his left hand and stopped the darkness from speaking.

“I will do no such thing. You are here for a reason, finish it and leave. I allow your agents of destruction to enter as it is the right thing to do, but you and I, we can never see eye-to-eye.”

『You are a creature of the Void, a primal function of mine, we have no choice but to see “eye-to-eye”.』

Lucifer chuckled.

“Your master is dead, Null,” Lucifer knows the history of Null, but just slightly, so he spoke with a knowing smile. “Your old mistress needs a stool to step on, a new slave to sit on, and you seem to check all the requirements.”

The darkness did not anger, it did not react in any way.

“Some matters surpass my authority, so I will welcome the judges, but know this, Null, you are not to order me in my own domain.”

Lucifer opened a portal.

“I have known you, conversed with you for eternities, but not once you informed me about how truly vast this creation is.”

『Some matters surpasses my authority too, child of light.』

“Once, we considered ourselves all that there is, but it seems we are specks of dust in front of true Celestials.”

『God is dead, Lucifer, a new one shall rise. Is this not the natural cycle of the creation?』

“Perhaps, Null, perhaps, but this system-- this old system, it should be revised.”

『And who will revise it?』

“Hm, I don’t have a lot of interest in the political matters of higher realms, so I will see myself out of this. Until we meet again, Null.”

Without saying anything else, Lucifer left.

Null faced Weq and said, 『What is your plan?』

For a fleeting moment, Weq found himself confused. He thought all of them were all-knowing, but it seems Null was different.

『That is true, I am different. All-knowing I am, but not in the sense you can understand.. 』

“My plan...” Weq stopped thinking about what just happened before him and focused on the matter at hand.

『His plan, O’ Great Null, is to make use of my body and combine it with technologies developed by him,』 Daya began explaining. 『The technology requires a hefty amount of energy, far more than what Vilramore can provide.』

『If all else fails, I will consume you and the criminal,』 Null warned Daya. 『God must be avenged.』

『I am but a servant of the cosmos, of the God that surpasses all, your will is my command.』

Daya looked at Weq, who was at a loss for words. He, who is a mortal, just witnessed an event like no other mortal had in the past.

He caught a glimpse into the hierarchy of what’s outside and that scared him.

At first, he wanted to question how Daya could let himself be consumed, but then Weq remembered what Daya had said earlier. Questioning the Celestials is not the job of the mortals.

It seems, it is not the job of the Celestials either...

Weq, for the first time in his entire life, finally understood the position his friend held.

Nazar was the first and the last, the strongest and the weakest, the smallest and the largest, he was all and none.

He was God. The one who stood above all else, surpassing these beings.

In the back of his head, a few words echoed.

From where I stand, I see nothing.

Huh? What do you mean, Nazar?

Be all and none, it’s an interesting existence… Kind of. Leaving that aside, you asked how I see you… I see you the same way another human sees you. At least in this mortal shell. But if I were to grow, then… Everything becomes dark.

『That is true,』 Daya spoke to Weq. 『When he grows, he sees nothing but darkness that stretches for infinity. We are small, tiny, insignificant in the grand scheme of the cosmos.』

『A new light starts to emerge the moment one goes out, so someone new will replace you.』

Their dreaded and horrifying words caused Weq to swallow his saliva.

This was not something a mortal should have heard; it was wrong-- a sin to hear it.

So, he denied reality and pretended he heard none of it.

“Shall we get to work, O’ Great Daya?”

『But of course.』

Weq ran forward at full speed and jumped right into Daya.

“Take me to the six-thousand and sixty-sixth phase, please. There is a separate dimension which I created, and it holds a rare weapon. A weapon I never thought had to use.”

『It has been found.』

Weq found himself inside his old dimension and looked upon an extraordinary weapon.

On the surface, it looked no different than a spherical apollonian gasket, and with a Möbius strip floating around it.

Without hesitation, he went close to it and picked it up.

The moment he did so, he groaned in pain as his body was forced to freeze up in an odd pose.

It was as if something was holding him hostage.

He could not move himself and felt his life fading away.

『Fear not,』 Daya put his life force in Weq and his body started to warm up and could move once again.

The machine began eating through the life force of the multiverse.

After it was charged up - albeit not entirely - it lit up brightly.

After the explosion of light vanished, the machine could not be seen anywhere.

But Weq could feel it. He felt all around himself, his heart, his mind, and his soul.

“At last, the 「Kali-Starfall」 is active.”

『Now go forth, child of knowledge, and save us all.』

And so, Weq marched downwards to the lower phase.

❢◥ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◆ ▬▬▬▬▬▬ ◤❢

Earlier, Jabalot Empire:

On this criminal world of Jabalot, from the skies, a green figure descended slowly.

He was the Divine Emperor, the Divine Creator and Destroyer, the ruler of one of the largest empires of the universe - Vanaha Empire.

As the Divine Emperor slowly descended to the world, he attracted the attention of its residents.

They looked up to this Godly figure in awe.

“” Iket jerked his chin and looked away.

In front of the large castle of, the Emperor of Vanaha Empire landed.

Leisurely, the Divine Emperor walked through the large and majestic gates of the castle, which opened itself to him freely.

“”

On the throne of this criminal world, sat a man so similar to him, yet so different.

Unlike Iket, King Iget did not give off the aura of a divine being. Unlike Iket, the evils radiated around his body.

“” Iket spoke with a thin smile.

“”

“”

The lights around King Iget’s body were minimal, so Iket could not see him.

He wanted to lay his sight on his brother, but something did not allow him.

“” a hint of worry could be heard in the voice of the Divine Emperor.

“”

Iket sensed something wrong with his brother.

Initially, he came here to speak to his brother about his universal conquest, but the attitude and power around his brother piqued his interest.

“”

“”

Iget did not reply.

“”

“”

Light slowly shone on Iget’s face.

The more light shone on him, the better his brother could be seen.

The more he looked at his brother, the wider his eyes became.

“”

Horror spread thickly over the Divine Emperor’s face.

“”

လလလ

Leaving the two brothers to their horrifying revelation, in the meantime, a man covered in dark and negative energies was sneakingly walking around the city.

Whoever it was, they were trying to not attract the attention of anyone.

As he was walking around, he suddenly came to a stop as he bumped into someone.

“” the low-level criminal in this world found himself dead the moment the man surrounded in dark energies touched him.

“Barbarians.”

The man continued his trek in secrecy and finally reached a certain point in the city, which looked awfully different from the others.

The planet is rather advanced and has good infrastructure despite being ruled by criminals, but there was one spot in the city which looked extremely different. This spot resembled an old and haunted, and it gave off a dark red unwelcoming aura.

The man entered this house, despite an erect barrier stopping anyone from entering it.

He entered the spooky house, then he followed the stairs to the bottom of hell, and there, he found a beautiful blonde woman.

She was laying down on a red luxurious and comfortable sofa-like bed, befitting of royalty.

A purple book covered in a dark red aura was floating above her.

The page flipped by itself, and she continued reading.

Huh? That doesn't make sense… she thought to herself. If it doesn't have a core, how can a soul exist… I have heard rumours of an entity without a soul, 「The Collector」, but they still have a core. This needs more research--

She glanced away from the book, trying to think more about what she read in this book, which it was written by a dark mage thousands of years ago, but as she looked to her left, her eyes opened wide.

"...!"

She shot an icy gaze at the intruder and said, "How dare you enter my quarters?"

"Now, now, we shan't be so hostile towards one another," the dark one spoke. "I have come to collect what was promised."

"Ah…" suddenly, Darkness' fury and rage cooled down and she sat up elegantly on her comfortable luxurious sofa.

The change in her attitude was far too fast for a normal person.

“Where is it?” he asked in an authoritarian tone.

“Before I hand over this magnificent artefact...”

“Worry not,” the masked one waved his hand dismissively. “I have agreed to take you to Hell, to show you the inner workings of the most complex creatures in our universe. I will hold onto my end of the bargain.”

Darkness nodded. She did not have to question him further; she knew he would do what they agreed upon. Or at least hoped.

“I have it here,” Darkness said slowly as a portal opened between the two of them and a bluish white orb ascended from the hole in space.

It flew up and floated in front of the dark one.

“A few weeks ago, when the other halfling went to hell, I copied her core, and now, at last, I have the other core. Two cores of halfling angels… Ahh, at long last, it is mine.”

The dark one removed his hood, revealing a beautiful angel without his wings or halo.

“I thank you for gifting me the core of my son.”

Archangel Michael.

The second angel, the leader of the Heavens, laughed victoriously.

“The reign of God WILL END!”