Chapter 74
Gasp!
Gasp!
"Impossible" president Nakamura mustered to himself!!
The air inside the Bureau command room was unbearably heavy.
No one spoke for several seconds after Renji, Takeda, and Hiroto finished explaining. The faint hum of the city beyond the glass windows was the only sound, mingling with the ticking of the antique clock on the far wall.
President Nakamura sat motionless, his hands clasped together as if afraid they might tremble. Beside him, Wang Chi stood near the window, the bright skyline of Tokyo reflected faintly in his dark eyes.
Even Arisa , once fierce and sharp in tone could only stare at Renji, her expression hollowed by disbelief.
The silence finally broke with a whisper Arisa's voice, though it was meant only for herself.
"Why… why did I get angry at him before?"
Her fingers curled slightly at her side. The shame weighed on her chest. The anger she'd felt toward Renji now seemed absurd — childish, even — when measured against the reality he carried.
If this truth ever reached the outside world, she realized, everything — nations, alliances, the balance of power — would collapse into chaos. Humanity itself would fall into panic.
President Nakamura exhaled deeply, leaning back in his chair.
"So… an Outer Gods' War?" he repeated, the disbelief in his voice barely masked.
He rubbed his temple, as though trying to grasp a nightmare that refused to make sense.
Renji nodded slowly, his expression grim.
"Yes," Takeda replied quietly beside him. "Not a myth. Not a prophecy. A war that's already beginning in shadows."
"The whole world…" the president murmured, "…will become a battlefield."
Hiroto, standing beside Renji, crossed his arms. "It's not just Japan. Once the gates begin aligning globally, the entire world will burn. That's what Januza warned."
Takeda sighed, his eyes narrowing slightly as if carrying the weight of it all.
"That's why we couldn't tell anyone. Not yet. Not the public. Not even the other pillars. No one would understand that we are nothing but pieces… pawns in a far greater war."
The word pawns hung in the air like a blade, sharp and cold.
Wang Chi finally turned from the window, his expression hard to read — a mixture of horror and fascination.
"So that's why Januza… reincarnated in you." His eyes flicked toward Renji. "How is that even possible?"
Renji shook his head, his tone low. "I don't know. According to what he said, I'm the only one capable of handling his full power. Even a fragment of his strength would destroy a pillar completely… reduce them to nothingness."
Takeda closed his eyes, silently acknowledging the truth.
Renji continued, his voice steady despite the tension in the room.
"But even as a non-awakener, I could handle his essence. I don't understand why. Maybe it's fate. Or maybe it's because I was born for this. What I have now isn't even a fraction of his power… but that's why I have to grow stronger."
The way he said it — not desperate, not fearful, but determined — sent a subtle shiver through everyone present.
Renji's gaze hardened.
"I need to fight this war. I need to be ready. The generals that came through the gates — they weren't even the strongest of the gods' armies."
Arisa's breath caught. She couldn't process it all.
Each word Renji spoke made her chest tighten with guilt.
The anger she'd once felt — the suspicion, the coldness — suddenly felt small. Meaningless.
How could she have blamed someone who was carrying the weight of the world alone?
Her eyes fell to the floor. She wanted to say something — anything — but no words came.
Wang Chi let out a slow, shaky breath.
"So that's why you couldn't tell anyone," he muttered. "Just this information alone… it would throw the world out of balance. People would lose hope. And if word spread that monsters stronger than the Pillars existed…"
He trailed off, his voice trembling faintly.
"There are creatures beyond our comprehension," Takeda said quietly. "They don't just surpass us — they eclipse us entirely."
President Nakamura finally stood, walking toward the window, his hands clasped behind his back. The sunlight framed him like a fading halo.
"This… this is bad," he said softly. "It's a responsibility that no single person should bear. Even the seven other Pillars can't handle this truth."
He turned toward Takeda.
"Only you knew, didn't you? Because you're the strongest of the Eight Pillars."
Takeda didn't answer. He only stared at the president, his silence confirming everything.
The president's tone softened, the weight of leadership dulling his words.
"What do you need, Renji?"
Renji hesitated. The room grew still again, all eyes on him.
He looked down at his hand — the faint pulse of mana within him, quiet but burning like a promise.
When he finally spoke, his voice was calm but resolute.
"I've decided…" He looked up, meeting the president's eyes. "…to go into the Gate of Gealgilmesh."
For a moment, the room was deathly silent.
Then the explosion came — not from magic, but from the people around him.
"WHAT!?" President Nakamura's voice thundered across the chamber.
Wang Chi's eyes widened. "Are you insane?!"
Even Arisa's composure shattered. "Are you stupid, Renji!? That's suicide!"
She took a step forward before she realized what she'd said — and how her voice had cracked.
"I can't let the one I lov—" she froze mid-sentence, her cheeks burning. "I mean… I can't let my friend go in there!"
Her voice trembled, the last word barely leaving her lips.
President Nakamura slammed a fist against the table. "You are the last hope of mankind! We can't allow you to throw your life away. Even the Pillars can't enter that gate. It's pure destruction — a dimensional storm of collapsed mana. Nothing survives in there!"
Takeda remained calm, his tone composed but firm.
"We know," he said quietly. "And we know what's at stake. But Renji, Hiroto, and I have already discussed this."
Wang Chi glared at him. "You discussed this? You let him consider suicide as a strategy?"
Takeda shook his head. "It's not suicide. It's evolution."
Renji lifted his gaze, meeting the commander's sharp glare with unwavering conviction.
Takeda continued, his words slow, deliberate.
"I trained him. I've seen what he can do. Without mana, he was stronger than any S-rank. Now, as an SS-rank, he's surpassed even the limits of what humanity defines as power. He adapts faster than anyone I've ever met."
He paused, his tone gaining weight.
"He adapts to battle. He will adapt to the Gate of Gealgilmesh. I believe it."
Wang Chi rubbed his forehead, pacing slightly. "You're betting on instincts and adaptation against the most hostile dimension ever recorded. That's not training — that's suicide!"
Renji stepped forward, his expression firm.
"No. It's survival. If this world is going to face the gods' armies, then I need to be ready. The gates are evolving — merging — and soon, there'll be no safe place left. Gealgilmesh might be a death trap now, but it's also the key to understanding how to fight them."
Takeda gave a faint, almost proud smile. "He's not wrong."
Arisa bit her lip, her emotions storming within her.
"Renji… you idiot," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "You don't have to do this alone."
Renji turned to her. His expression softened.
"I'm not doing this alone," he said quietly. "I'm doing this for everyone. For you. For Lily. For all of us."
The words struck her like a blade cloaked in warmth. She clenched her fists, turning her face away before he could see her eyes glisten.
The president finally sank back into his chair, the weight of the moment pressing down on him like a mountain.
He stared at Renji — the boy who was supposed to be humanity's final weapon, yet somehow still carried the sincerity of a human being willing to sacrifice himself.
"You realize," the president said slowly, "that if you die in there, humanity loses its last chance."
Renji nodded. "Then I just won't die."
The simplicity of his answer silenced everyone again.
Wang Chi exhaled harshly, muttering under his breath, "You really are Januza's successor…"
Takeda turned toward the window, watching the shifting light over Tokyo's skyline.
"Every war needs a spark," he murmured. "And every generation needs its fool brave enough to light it."
Renji tilted his head slightly. "Are you calling me a fool, Takeda-sama?"
Takeda smirked faintly. "The bravest one I've ever known."
Hiroto chuckled softly from the corner. "You've got that right."
Even Arisa couldn't suppress a small, tired smile.
But the laughter faded quickly. The reality was still there — dark, immense, and close.
President Nakamura folded his hands again, his voice quieter this time.
"Then we prepare. If you're really going to do this, Renji, the Bureau will do everything in its power to support the mission. But know this…"
His gaze hardened. "If you fall, there won't be a second chance."
Renji bowed his head slightly. "Understood, Mr. President."
I won't fall, Never!!
Takeda glanced at renji , smiling faintly–"I'm proud of you kiMustering to himself not knowing he's voice could be heard
Renji heard his rumbled word,starred at him and hugged him with tears in his eyes.
"Thank you Takeda-sama"
To renji takeda hasn't just become a teacher or a mentor he became a father figure , someone he could look up to!
Hiroto similes briefly.....
And the room fell silent again. The sunlight outside dimmed as clouds moved across the sky — as if the heavens themselves listened in uneasy anticipation.
For a brief moment, none of them spoke.
And in that silence, each of them even Arisa understood something unspoken:
This wasn't just the calm before the storm.
This was the breath before the beginning of the end.