On that afternoon, the head of the forty-year-old man was severed…
Or to be precise, the head of the End Writer who had lived for 20,000 years was severed by the one with violet eyes.
While his eyes, terrified of death, had already gone hollow…
The jewel-less sword on the right side of the nameless hero began to vibrate, causing a massive explosion...
But it didn't kill anyone.
Instead, the explosion enveloped the world and erased the memory of every mortal still alive—erased their memories of Rakan, the hero, and his journey—turning him into a forgotten nobody.
His body was transferred elsewhere.
Elsewhere—
In the accursed place known as the Edge of the Abyss, stood the being with black eyes—eyes that looked like darkness itself, yet within them a hidden warmth…
His thick beard reached his cheeks, and above his head floated a halo—not of holy light but of pure darkness that absorbed all light and hope.
He was the Great Writer.
…And beside him, a child with the same black halo on his head…
That halo wasn't decorative—it was a symbol of complete mastery over the Outer Force.
By the way, that child… was me.
At that moment, the energy from the hero's sword came flying toward us at a speed equal to the Outer Force traveling through the void, carrying the End Writer's body and laying it before us.
["Take him and bury him."]
The Great Writer directed his words to two individuals behind us, and without hesitation, they carried out his orders.
One of them lifted the body onto his shoulder carefully, raising its head to prevent blood flow.
The other carried the head upside down, and both departed toward the burial zone.
["Great Writer, sir…"]
Yes, that was my voice. It may sound harsher than it does now, but everything about me was shaped by the Outer.
The Great Writer asked, ["What is it?"]
["…I was wondering, why do we destroy worlds from within? I could destroy this entire world with the Outer… so why don't I?"]
The Great Writer gently patted my head.
["Of course you could... but is that merciful?"]
["Merciful?"]
Suddenly, the environment around us changed. A near-real simulation appeared of the place where the Embodiment of the World was hiding—
The being whose death would cause the complete erasure of the world and its inhabitants.
The place was dark, like a cave untouched by light—
Except for a single light source: the door to the world's core,
The room where it all began.
["If we destroyed it from the outside, the pain would spread to every being.
But... if we kill the World's Embodiment, the others will vanish without pain."]
As he spoke, the world around us illustrated his words—like watching images and hearing voice-over narration.
I asked:
["But why didn't you destroy this merged world in its early formation?"]
The Great Writer pinched my cheek gently.
["Who are we to destroy a world that hasn't yet fallen into ruin?"]
*******
In the Present…
We were at the gates of the battlefield, near a village close to the capital, Arcanthia.
Beside me was Nier, asleep on my arm,
While the rest of the team had split up:
Khaled and Lucy went east.
Libby, Noah, and Mary headed north to block any army from advancing toward Eltherion.
Reinhard and the twin brothers Karl and Harold attacked from the south.
And Ronald led the main army from the west.
I looked around the twenty people in our carriage—
Half of them were stronger than me.
I wasn't sure about the twenty other carriages, but most likely there were at least 100 people who could defeat me.
The soldiers' gazes toward me were filled with hate and anger…
I understood the hate.
But the anger?
It came from the fact that their commander was weaker than them.
What a narrow-minded thought.
All commanders should be like Reinhard and Raphael: wise.
"Nier, wake up."
I gently shook his body.
As soon as Nier opened his eyes, I said, "Get ready, we're almost there."
After a month of training, all my companions had improved their abilities and chosen their paths…
Except for me.
I think… they've all surpassed me.
Still, I'll try not to be a burden.
…During this month, I learned about the Origin, and the difference between it and the Outer became clearer.
The Origin is the Power of Possibility, while the Outer is the Power of the Impossible.
Possible vs Impossible. Logic vs the Unfathomable.
The Origin works everywhere, even outside worlds—so it's better in terms of range.
The Outer is stronger in raw power and abilities,
But its power is limited to 1% inside worlds. That's why End Writers never learned it…
Well, except me.
If an Outer user fights an Origin user—
Outside the world, Outer wins.
Inside the world, Origin wins.
A soldier next to us snapped me out of my thoughts.
"Bringing a kid to war? What kind of commander are you?"
Nier's face twisted between frustration and sadness at being seen as a burden,
But I dispelled his doubts:
"You don't know Nier… the battle will show you your difference in ranks."
The soldier clenched his teeth, but obeyed silently.
As for me, I didn't stay silent.
"A commander doesn't need to be the strongest. Giving power only to the strong is sheer stupidity. Strength is the last quality a leader should be judged by.
What defines a leader is wisdom and intellect."
One replied, "Are you just saying that to justify your weakness?"
Another added, "And was the incident at the training grounds an act of wisdom too?"
… I went silent.
Tried to respond… but I had no words.
It was an accident. I didn't mean to. But mistakes aren't forgivable.
"I don't want to be a destroyer?"
You already are.
You've destroyed thousands of worlds before…
I'm just a hypocrite.
"Even Lady Mary forgave him, so why are you all still angry?"
Nier's voice was firm and cold.
Someone tried to argue, "Mary is just a kind person. Of course she forgave him."
Nier replied,
"On the contrary, the Mary I know never forgives mistakes. She's very strict."
Silence filled the space for a few seconds.
Then a scream from outside:
"We're under attack!"
Immediately, all the soldiers jumped from the carriage, with me at the front.
Nier mounted a board I had built for him—
A hoverboard-like device without wheels, designed for flight.
He soared into the sky, gaining aerial advantage.
The enemy: a war squad of 100 soldiers.
As both forces charged at each other, I yelled:
"Nier, the field!"
A giant maze formed, trapping the enemy inside.
Nier and I remained outside.
I picked up my bow and arrows and began shooting at anyone who tried climbing out,
While Nier coordinated our soldiers in striking them down.
From the perspective of the strongest soldier in my squad—Yonis, a man with a gray shield and silver sword—
a path opened in front of him.
He followed it, reassured that the maze's creator was an ally.
At its end was a dead end,
Until he noticed a tiny hole in the wall.
Peeking through, he saw the back of an Arcanthian soldier.
He stepped back, braced his shield, and smashed through the wall, splitting the barbarian in two with his massive sword.
And this repeated for several soldiers—
A massacre.
The enemy tried climbing the walls, but my arrows struck their shoulders and legs—
Non-lethal, but enough to kill their will to fight.
From the center of the maze, the walls began to shatter.
Nier tried to control the situation,
But a massive ice chunk was flying toward him.
He shattered it into smaller shards and redirected them at the enemy.
Again, from the center, the surroundings began to collapse,
And the Arcanthian troops started resisting harder.
The maze was crumbling rapidly,
So Nier created an escape route for our troops.
Once everyone had escaped,
Both armies stood face-to-face, waiting for a single move from the other.
Humans are strange.
What do they seek in war? Power? Wealth? Glory?
What drives the people to fight?
What do they gain from war? Glory?
But what if they die?
Then again, the question remains—what use was glory?
Well, human strangeness is their beauty…
Why am I here then?
From the Arcanthian lines, a massive man stepped forward.
"You Eltherion rats—does anyone dare face me in battle?! I am the mighty Loukan!"
He spread his arms in arrogance.
Seconds passed before Yonis stepped forward:
"I'm the strongest warrior in this unit. I'll face you!"
Loukan glanced at me and sneered:
"Will your commander keep hiding?
How can someone so weak be a leader?"
Not just mockery, but a calculated attempt to shatter our team's morale.
I walked up to the two.
"Yonis, give me your sword."
He was surprised,
"What? Wait—I'm stronger than you! I should fight him!"
He shoved me aside and rushed Loukan.
His attack was weak and full of openings.
Loukan pulled his massive hammer and was about to crush his skull.
I yanked Yonis back, saving him,
And grabbed his silver sword.
I stood atop Loukan's hammer, which had just slammed into the ground with a mighty shockwave.
A red aura surrounded Loukan's body—
A power that increased his strength and speed.
But that meant nothing to 300 years of combat experience.
I activated my Lightning Form,
Lifted the massive sword and brought it down like thunder on his shoulder.
It wasn't deep enough—
So I kicked the hilt hard until it sank fully into his body,
And Loukan screamed as he collapsed.
But I didn't stop.
I grabbed his hammer and smashed his head repeatedly into the ground.
Then I plunged my hand into the back of his neck and pulled out part of his spine.
"Take him and treat him… we'll try to get some info."
Yonis stared, shocked:
"H-how?"
Enemy soldiers charged at us,
But I grabbed pebbles and shot them like bullets with my fingers, hitting their eyes precisely and dropping them.
"Experience is the substitute for strength.
What brute force builds, experience can destroy."
From above, Nier dropped massive ice blocks.
Suddenly, the blocks hovered—
One of the enemy soldiers activated telekinesis, holding them with all his might.
Blood poured from his nose and mouth under the pressure…
An ice pillar pierced his gut.
Icy trees sprouted, skewering enemies with every branch.
And finally, the entire block fell, crushing everything in its radius.
Our enemies were wiped out—
Only a few Arcanthian soldiers remained.
From our side, only five died.
"Commander—what do you want us to do with the survivors?"
Yonis asked.
I replied,
"Let them go."
"What?! But they're Arcanthian soldiers—criminals!"
"…After witnessing this massacre,
I doubt they'll ever dare to fight again."
Within moments, they had vanished behind the nearby mountains.
*******
In the East:
Khaled swung his sword, releasing a massive slash that broke all enemy shields—and heads.
[ Khaled - Path of Purity ]
As he sheathed his sword,
He glanced back—
Five swords aimed at his neck.
He didn't flinch.
Lucy appeared from nowhere, slicing every throat from artery to artery.
[ Lucy - Path of Fear ]
*******
In the North:
"Lady Mary… save me!"
A wounded soldier cried out.
Though overwhelmed, Mary didn't turn her back.
With a clean slash, she split the enemy knight's chest,
Used his body as a stepping stone,
Grabbed the fallen soldier and ignited her healing flames.
[ Mary - Path of Glory ]
The enemy almost struck her—
But a single disc throw from Noah split them in half.
[ Noah - Path of the Wall ]
From above, Libby shouted:
"Mary, focus on surviving first!"
[ Libby - Path of Truth ]
"Sorry, but I just wanted to save him…
Also, we've got Noah with us."
*******
Back to the Northeast:
Nier asked,
"Hero—everyone you fought is still alive… was that on purpose?"
[ Nier - Path of Warmth ]
"Yes, it was."
"Come to think of it, I've never seen you kill anyone deliberately."
"…I killed those transformed humans."
"They don't count."
I wanted to argue, but a voice interrupted:
『Your path has been determined』
I was stunned.
Suddenly, a long white coat formed around me,
And a white scarf wrapped around my neck…
But I hadn't met the conditions for the Path of Calamity,
So why…?
『Your path is the Path of Reconstruction』