The two of them held their tickets and stepped through the white portal.
Where they arrived was not the empty, pitch-black space that Yoon Seo had seen before.
In the vast universe, countless white, red, yellow, and blue stars spread out before them.
In that place, they saw various visions.
The explosion of a tiny speck of dust that existed in the beginning. The birth of new stars and the death of aging stars. And from the death of the aging stars, numerous young stars were reborn…
The visions showed them the growth of these young stars. This included not only stars but also planets. The newly born stars would sometimes stop growing without ever achieving civilization, while others would fall into endless wars between civilizations and ultimately perish, or they would overcome various crises and finally bloom into a brilliant civilization.
However, a bright civilization blooming on a blue star did not guarantee only happiness ahead. When a star began to shine, darkness was sure to follow. Each star possessed its own realm of darkness outside the universe, and this darkness initially dispersed but became more concentrated as the star's light grew brighter, producing Distorted Beings. The entities of darkness consumed the star's light, and their gluttony was so overwhelming that they could annihilate a star overnight.
Countless young stars were unaware of the darkness approaching them until it was too late, leading to their destruction. Once the darkness spread, it could not be stopped, and not only the star system to which the star belonged but also the galaxy could be quickly consumed by the darkness. Even then, the darkness continued to spread endlessly, as if trying to devour the entire universe…
As Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo were watching this horrific scene, a voice spoke.
「It would be nice if one could Foresee and prepare for this.」
"Watcher?"
Since the voice was Yoon Seo's own, he immediately recognized who it belonged to. The surroundings were still filled with visions, and the Watcher's form was nowhere to be seen.
「There was a God who lamented the disappearing Stars.」
「The God who Created the first Dust」
「The Parent of all Gods」
「Gaia」
"I know that Gaia created this system. Please explain more."
Kwon Jihan boldly spoke to a tremendous being that was not even visible.
「We are the Cosmic Managers born to assist Gaia」
「We Protect the growing Young Stars from deviation.」
「As you have seen」
「No matter how brilliant a Civilization the Stars achieve, they are Powerless in the face of Darkness.」
"Then does that mean Earth is a growing Young Star?"
「Until now, yes.」
「But not anymore.」
The visions began to change.
The Gods were struggling to help the Stars threatened by Darkness. They created a System to grant abilities in a language easily understood by the Intelligent Beings of those Stars and made monsters to adapt them to battles against Distorted Beings. According to the fundamental Law of the Universe, which stated that "creating something from nothing is impossible," they allowed the acquisition of better items and abilities if one emerged victorious in battles against monsters.
In short, they created a tutorial to make it easier to adapt to the game.
Some Young Stars could not even overcome the tutorial, but some Young Stars successfully cleared it. Now, Earth was included among those Young Stars.
"In the end, this Final Gate was meant to test us—to see if Earth has the power to confront Darkness."
It was both a tutorial and a test.
Yoon Seo, who had been quietly pondering, asked.
"What would have happened if we had failed?"
「 · · · · · 」
In an instant, the space changed. The twinkling Stars vanished, replaced by a pitch-black Darkness devoid of any Light. Yoon Seo could not see Kwon Jihan, who was right beside him, nor even his own body. He spoke, but no sound came out. There were no atoms to carry his voice.
The Watcher, who had shown them the vast emptiness, drew them back into the colorful cosmic space.
Kwon Jihan, who had experienced something similar, grasped Yoon Seo's wrist tightly with a slightly pale face.
「Every Star has its own Realm of Distortion.」
「If a Star cannot manage its own Distortion,」
「it will invade the Realms of other Stars.」
「We cannot allow the Existence of such Stars.」
「If you fail at the Final Gate,」
「you will be stripped of your status as a Star.」
The stripping of a star's status meant imminent destruction.
"The empty spaces scattered throughout the universe were created that way."
Kwon Jihan muttered in a hoarse voice, still holding tightly onto Yoon Seo.
Once Darkness spread, it quickly engulfed Star Systems, Galaxies, Galaxy Clusters, and even the Universe beyond. This judgment might be correct. However, Yoon Seo could not hide his bitterness.
The Beings that lived on those Stars must have fought desperate wars as well. Perhaps they, too, experienced the ordeal of 1,203 individuals entering a dangerous dungeon, with only two surviving. Countless unnamed Stars must have struggled against monsters, fighting tooth and nail to survive, only to ultimately face defeat and perish…
How many Stars were still waging fierce wars right now?
"The tutorial time is too short. For Earth, the final gate appeared for the first time just two years after the great cataclysm—how can we succeed under these conditions?"
「The growth of Earth」
「was faster than expected.」
「Usually,」
「a sufficient period is given.」
"Is the final gate configured as a choice dungeon because the tutorial period is shorter compared to other stars?"
Kwon Jihan raised a valid question.
「 · · · This was not a special benefit for Earth.」
「We always grant」
「All Young Stars」
「A chance to escape the stripping of their status.」
「If you pass the Final Gate,」
「You become a Star that manages Distortion.」
「If there are those who choose to Sacrifice,」
「One more opportunity is granted.」
「This was proposed by a Life Form from a very long time ago.」
「Such Courage is not something easily seen,」
「So we also」
「Accepted the proposal with Respect.」
A proposal from a life form…
Yoon Seo understood the feelings of the one who suggested the option of sacrifice.
They must have been desperate.
This Black Dungeon seems impossible to break through. In my maternal instincts, countless beings are waiting for the outcome. The heart that speaks of sacrifice to convince the mercilessly cruel Gaia System is filled with how much…
How earnest and desperate it must have been…
"What a remarkable person. That level of courage deserves respect." Kwon Jihan muttered, and Yoon Seo agreed.
After silently paying respect to that nameless existence, Yoon Seo asked the God.
"What will happen to us now? We've passed the tutorial, so the monsters will become stronger—will the helper system disappear?"
「Do not worry.」
「You have only just passed the Final Gate.」
「It is still too early for you to be independent.」
The Watcher unfolded another landscape. The diverse black shadows were the Distorted Beings seen in the Black Dungeon. The Watcher began to explain that the Gaia System had created these Distorted Beings into monsters and sent them into the dungeon. The monsters that Earth had been fighting until now were at a very weak level, meant only for the tutorial.
Now that Earth had officially entered the world of Level 1, it would have to battle the Distorted Beings with their original powers. Additionally, since this was a tutorial, the limits of the Awakened ones' abilities that were blocked would also grow further. More Guardian Gods would emerge, more Awakened beings will be born, and Earth would begin to interact with the universe. As Earth interacted with the life forms of other planets that have also finished their tutorials and entered Level 1, its world would expand beyond comparison to what it was before.
Thus, they would fight, grow, and earn peace while living a fierce life…
「Someday, you will take on this task.」
One didn't need to ask what this task was; it was obvious.
「We have been doing this for billions of years.」
「We have Witnessed the Birth of heroes」
「And the Death of heroes.」
「I have experienced the Deaths of those I Protect thousands of times,」
「But I have only had the experience of conversing with those I Protect」
「Five times at most.」
「Two of them became Gods,」
「Two others met their Deaths,」
「And the last one is before my eyes.」
"..."
「The Watcher is the Guardian of the Universe's End.」
「This job may seem dull,」
「So it would be best for you to become other Gods.」
It's better to die early than to become a god and live long while watching the deaths of others, Yoon Seo was just about to say that.
"Then Hyung would prefer to be the God of Heroes."
Kwon Jihan spoke with a mix of joking and sincerity, then closed his eyes and laughed. Yoon Seo smiled as well.
"You would prefer to be the God of the Weak, then."
"I can't be the God of the Weak anymore. Someone with a more significant value has come into existence. Instead, I want to become the God of Heroes."
"The God of Gods, you say?"
Yoon Seo laughed. However, deep down, he thought that if it were Kwon Jihan, he might actually become one.
「Now I will send you back to Earth.」
「Do you have any more questions?」
"Can we meet Gaia?"
「Gaia is」
「Everywhere.」
「You are」
「always meeting with her.」
"Are you talking about Gaia as in the Gaia System itself?"
「The Gaia System is」
「One of the many branches that have grown from Gaia,」
「a young branch that is」
「being diligently managed.」
Yoon Seo furrowed his brows. So what exactly is Gaia?
If many branches had grown from Gaia, then, in a way… it vaguely made sense if it were something like the 'God of Gods' that Kwon Jihan had jokingly mentioned.
At that moment, the Watcher continued to speak.
「Recently,」
「a new young manager has been added.」
「That child, who has become One with the Dungeon,」
「is now being trained as a manager, unable to be separated from the Gaia System…」
"..."
Yoon Seo's eyes widened.
He had a feeling he knew who the child was that had become one with the dungeon.
The overwhelming realization drained his strength. As Yoon Seo swayed, Kwon Jihan quickly supported him. Leaning against the firm grip around his waist, Yoon Seo spoke to the empty space.
"Please… take care of my friend."
At Yoon Seo's words, Kwon Jihan's eyes shook. This was because he had heard the exact same words just a moment ago.
Truly, the two of them were indeed friends.