With his heart still racing in excitement, Tatsuki closed the Apocalypse Roulette.
"You three are the best!" he said, planting a quick kiss on each of Yukino, Eriri, and Megumi's cheeks. They didn't know why he was suddenly so elated, but they could feel his happiness radiating off him.
Calming himself, Tatsuki began to probe the newly-upgraded Vector Manipulation. As expected, the essence hadn't changed much, but its scale had increased.
At level 6, his vector manipulation had already gone beyond mere skin contact. It had expanded into a true vector domain, covering the planet. Now, at level 7, the field had stretched even further—out past the solar system. Within this vast range, every force, every strand of energy, became his plaything. A single kick could unravel the entire solar system. One thought could rewrite the very vectors binding the stars together, turning the system into a black hole that would devour everything nearby—a real one, not an imitation.
The advancement might also extend into new understandings of energy itself, deepening his natural comprehension. But all of this was within his predictions. What truly mattered now was the Space Stone.
He drew it out of the chat group's storage: a smooth, oval gemstone glowing with azure light. The instant he held it, a thought flickered—and he vanished.
"Wah!" Eriri yelped as she suddenly lost her seat, dropping onto the floor and rubbing her sore backside. "Where'd he go?!"
"Another world jump?" Marin blinked, wide-eyed.
"Perhaps," Yukino admitted, though even she wasn't sure.
Tatsuki, however, hadn't shifted worlds—he was standing on the moon. No sky, no clouds, no green. Only barren, metallic rock glittering coldly under the sun. The lunar surface stretched desolate and gray around him.
It didn't matter. He no longer needed oxygen; faith and sin alone could sustain his life. Space was no obstacle.
As soon as he touched the Space Stone, clarity filled his mind. Every way to wield its power unfurled naturally—instant teleportation of himself or any object to any location, warping, dividing, twisting, freezing, or even creating new spaces at will. And the gem thrummed with inexhaustible energy, letting him bend space as easily as breathing.
His first careless jump had flung him here, but he sensed the range: galaxy-spanning. He could traverse the stars as though stepping across puddles. The only limit might be the ends of the universe itself. Yet even then, he felt the stone's power wasn't being used to its fullest. The Infinity Stones always reflected their user's potential—Ronan's Power Stone was nothing compared to Thanos', and the Ancient One's Time Stone mastery dwarfed Strange's early fumbling. His own control could surely go further.
Still, he frowned. "This way of using it is annoying." He had to hold it to access its power. With his enhanced body, already strong enough to shatter the moon in a single blow, he could easily withstand its energy. What he wanted was for it to become part of him.
And as the thought crossed his mind, the chat group chimed:
[Ding! Apocalypse Chat Group membership has reached twenty-five!]
[Apocalypse Furnace unlocked!]
[Apocalypse Battlefield unlocked!]
"New functions?" His eyes lit up, pushing aside the stone for the moment to check the interface. Two fresh icons appeared.
Opening the Apocalypse Furnace, he read:
[Apocalypse Furnace]: Can smelt any object across worlds.
• Essence Smelting: Extracts an item's core into Essence, used to strengthen similar powers. No energy loss.
• Ability Smelting: Refines an item's core into an Ability Crystal. Fusing grants the power. Some energy loss.
• Costs Apocalypse Points depending on item.
Tatsuki's gaze sharpened instantly. Ability Smelting. If he melted down the Space Stone, wouldn't it become a permanent ability within him? Stones were external. He preferred power fused into his body, limitless. And Infinity Stones were bound by the universe they came from. As abilities, they might break that limit.
Of course, there were risks. How much energy would be lost? What form would the crystal take? Still, hesitation lasted only moments. "Screw it. Let's do this!"
He tossed the gem into the furnace.
[Ding! Consume 500,000 Apocalypse Points to smelt Space Stone?]
"Yes."
[Ding! 500,000 points deducted.]
[Choose smelting mode.]
"Ability Smelting."
The process churned. Five long minutes crawled by before the notification rang:
[Ability Smelting complete!]
[Congratulations: obtained SS-Rank Ability Crystal – Source of Space (Lv.8)!]
[Fuse now?]
"Level 8?!" His breath hitched. Even after energy loss, the result was a level 8 space ability. "Hell yes—fuse!"
The power sank into him instantly. That crystalline clarity of space he'd felt holding the stone now pulsed in his very veins. This was no longer borrowed strength—it was his. And the difference was staggering.
With a flick of his wrist, reality rippled. He shifted to Earth, appearing at his high school—only to find it eerily empty. No humans anywhere. In truth, this wasn't Earth but a parallel space, an entire mirrored galaxy birthed from his will. Anything happening here would never touch the original.
This… this is creation itself.
Another thought, and the false world shattered. He was back in the Research Clubroom.
"Where's Yui today?" Miura Yumiko asked as she stepped in. Though she barely spoke to Yukino or Tatsuki in class, she was oddly chatty here.
She glanced around. "Where's Tatsuki?" She'd meant to ask him about his girlfriend's absence.
"I'm here."
"Gyaaa!" A voice behind her, a tap on the shoulder—she jumped out of her skin, whirling to see him smiling casually. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Eh? How'd you pop up outside?" Miko tilted her head.
"Nothing," Tatsuki shrugged. "Just testing something."
"Tch." Yumiko scowled. "Anyway, you're Yui's boyfriend—why isn't she at school?"
"She's not feeling well, taking a rest." He wouldn't say more. After all, her "illness" was his doing.
"Fine, whatever." She huffed, turning to leave, but not before glaring. Only then did she realize she'd leaked a little from the scare, and dashed toward the restroom, legs clamped tight.
...
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