"Someone's coming."
At the Reginald Vel Johnson High School graduation ceremony—though to Eden it felt more like a Superman and Omni-Woman fan convention—he'd been dozing off. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open.
Ignoring the roaring cheers of the crowd, Eden tilted his head back. His X-Ray Vision pierced the ceiling of the auditorium and locked onto a massive starship hanging in the sky, nearly ten thousand meters above.
"Viltrumites?!"
The instant he saw the unmistakable insignia on the ship's hull, Eden smirked. "Finally. I've been waiting long enough."
High above the planet—
"So this is Earth?"
Thragg floated in the open sky, leading the last surviving pureblood Viltrumites out of the warship. Gazing down at the blue-green world below, he murmured, "Such a beautiful planet. Perfect for the Viltrum Empire's new home."
Counting Thragg, Conquest, Anissa, Kregg, Lucan, Thula, and Vidor, there were only fifty-two pureblood Viltrumites left in the entire universe.
And that was including Nolanne—and Thaedus, who had long since betrayed their kind to become the leader of the Coalition of Planets.
Thragg hovered there silently, waiting for Nolanne to show herself and deliver her report.
But before she could arrive, someone else discovered them.
The Immortal—banished from the Guardians of the Globe, now a wandering vigilante with far too much time on his hands—was patrolling the skies when he noticed the alien host descending from orbit.
"Intruders! DIE!!"
With a furious bellow, he shot straight toward the largest and most imposing of them: Thragg.
"Reckless fool."
General Kregg scowled at the sight of the immortal human hurtling toward them at supersonic speed.
"I'll deal with him."
But before Kregg could strike, Thragg lifted a hand to stop him. The beauty of Earth had put him in a rare good mood—he would take this one himself.
"As you command."
Kregg bowed respectfully and drifted back.
"Die, alien scum!"
The Immortal swung his fist with all his strength, slamming it against Thragg's jaw.
"Heh."
Thragg didn't even flinch. He didn't bother raising a guard. He didn't even blink.
"Pathetic."
The other Viltrumites smirked in open contempt, watching the scene like it was a comedy show.
"Bang!"
The Immortal, convinced his strike had cowed them, roared and threw another punch with even more force.
A deafening crack split the sky. His fist struck Thragg's face—and shattered like an egg against steel. Blood exploded outward, raining down crimson.
"No… impossible!"
The Immortal stared in horror at his ruined arm. He had been the one attacking—so why was he the one broken?
"Snap."
Thragg's rough hand clamped around the Immortal's throat. His eyes narrowed. "Tell me, how has Nolanne been managing this planet? To let a worthless weakling like you think he can challenge the Viltrum Empire?"
"Clearly," Lucan muttered darkly, "the great Nolanne has been neglecting her duties. She should've dismantled every form of resistance on this world long ago."
His gaze shifted to Conquest. "Conquest—what's going on here? You've been to this planet already, haven't you? Don't tell me you returned without even conducting a basic survey." His tone sharpened. "Should I question your intelligence, or just your work ethic?"
The other Viltrumites joined in, pressing the blame on Conquest.
Conquest remained utterly calm. "You really think that fool qualified as 'resistance' against the Empire?" She scoffed softly.
"Regardless, it's still Nolanne's failure."
Thragg's grip tightened. "When she stands before me, she'd better have a convincing explanation."
With a casual squeeze, the Regent crushed the Immortal's skull.
"Fwoosh!"
The corpse plummeted to the ground like a discarded rag doll.
"Fwoosh!!"
Before the echoes of his fall had faded, the air split again. A figure shot upward—black battlesuit clinging to his frame, crimson cape streaming behind him.
Eden.
Fresh from the school, he had raced here alone. His parents were still trapped in the middle of their so-called fan meeting.
"Another rebel?"
"Does Nolanne fail at everything she's assigned?"
"And what's with that ridiculous red cape? Doesn't he know how much it hinders movement in combat?"
The Viltrumites laughed openly at the sight of him.
"You're Viltrumite?" Thragg's voice cut through the jeers. His sharp eyes studied Eden. "Nolanne's child."
"What? That's Nolanne's boy?"
"The one Conquest mentioned—the so-called prodigy who might rival purebloods?"
The revelation stirred a wave of murmurs among the Viltrumites.
"I'll test him."
Vidor drifted forward, circling Eden with an appraising stare. A grin tugged at his lips. "Thin build. Hardly looks like he could rival a pureblood."
His tone turned mocking. "Maybe Conquest and Nolanne are just too old. Senile, even. Their judgment clearly isn't what it used to be."
He didn't forget to sneer at both women in the process.
Thragg made no move to stop him. In fact, the Regent's silence carried approval—he, too, wanted to see whether Eden's strength lived up to the rumors.
The other Viltrumites grinned with anticipation. This was tradition—every new warrior needed to be tested, humbled. And they couldn't wait to watch Vidor teach Nolanne's son his first lesson.
"Good work, Vidor."
"Don't embarrass us."
Only Conquest, who truly understood Eden's power, watched the scene with an expression that all but radiated schadenfreude. She could already imagine what Vidor was about to look like—broken and humiliated.
As for warning him? Not a chance.
Conquest wasn't that charitable. Nothing in the universe was more entertaining than watching someone else get wrecked.
"Kid, my name's Vidor!" he declared proudly. "Elite warrior of the Viltrumites. I'm nothing like Conquest or Nolanne. I won't be pulling my punches. From here on, you'd better—"
"Smack!"
He didn't get to finish. A massive hand clamped over his face, crushing his features and twisting that smug look into grotesque distortion. His visor shattered under the pressure like cheap glass.
"Mmmph!"
The arrogance vanished. Terror filled Vidor's eyes as he clawed and thrashed. But against that iron grip, his struggles were useless.
"Whoosh!"
Just before he blacked out, the hand finally released him. Relief lasted only a heartbeat—then he felt a strange lightness.
"What…? Where's my arm?!"
He turned his head in horror. His left arm was gone.
"Take it back, patch yourself up," Eden said coldly. "But if you mouth off again, I'll twist your head off instead."
Something sailed through the air toward him. Instinctively, Vidor caught it with his remaining hand. He froze when he realized what it was—his severed arm.
"Dammit!"
All bravado gone, he bolted back to the Viltrumite ranks, where medics scrambled to reattach his limb.
"Pfft."
Conquest, who had been hiding in the crowd just to enjoy the show, finally burst into laughter. Her heart soared. Yes. Just like that.
"Vidor, what the hell happened?"
"Did a half-breed just wipe the floor with you?" one of the purebloods demanded.
"Screw you," Vidor muttered bitterly. "It felt like fighting Thragg himself."
"Conquest!"
Suspicion flared immediately among the others. They turned on her, surrounding her with accusing glares. "You lied about the boy's strength? What are you and Nolanne scheming?"
Conquest smirked. "Scheming? You really want to know?" She spread her arms. "Fine. I've only been doing what's right for our people. The truth is obvious—it's time the Viltrumites had a new leader."
"Kill this traitor!" General Kregg snapped.
"Hah!"
Conquest didn't give him the chance. She struck first, decking the nearest soldier.
"Don't forget who I am—I'm Conquest!" she roared, driving her elbow into another Viltrumite's chest.
"Die!"
But there were too many. Within moments, two or three piled on her at once. She went down hard, forced onto the defensive, battered under a hail of blows.
Eden sighed, lightning-fast as he darted to her side. In a blur, he severed the arms of her attackers.
"What?!"
Blood sprayed through the sky. The warriors reeled back in shock, clutching their wounds.
"You've proven yourself," Eden said evenly. "Go to my mother, Conquest."
"By your command, your highness."
Conquest dropped to one knee in midair. Blood gushed from her mouth, but she was grinning inside. This was worth every injury—she had earned Eden's trust.
"Boom!"
Thanks to Viltrumite regeneration, she was already recovering. Within seconds she was back in flight, streaking toward the ground and the hall where Nolanne waited.
None of the others tried to stop her. They only stared at Eden with wide, horrified eyes.
"I've never seen… a Viltrumite like this."
"You're Thragg?"
In an instant, Eden accelerated, appearing before the Regent himself. He looked down on the crew-cut leader and said calmly, "First, I should thank you for holding the Viltrum Empire together all these years. But now that I'm here, Thragg, it's time you handed over that power."
"You think just because I step aside, you're fit to lead the Viltrumites?" Thragg narrowed his eyes, unimpressed even after all Eden had shown.
"Of course," Eden replied with a nod.
"And why's that?" Thragg demanded.
"Because I'm stronger than all of you." Eden's voice was steady, absolute. "And because I carry the blood of the Viltrumite royal line."
"Impossible!" Thragg's composure cracked. His voice thundered with disbelief. "The royal bloodline was wiped out. The king left no heirs!"
"Sorry to disappoint you, Thragg." Eden's eyes gleamed with mockery. "The king may have left no sons… but that doesn't mean his daughter didn't survive."
"Nolanne?!"
The name made Thragg's pupils contract violently. The timeline, the signs—it all fit too perfectly.
"Boom!"
His shock cost him. Eden's massive fist crashed into his gut, catapulting him out of the atmosphere. Thragg slammed into the moon at speeds thousands of times faster than sound, gouging a canyon of fractures across its surface.
"Hmm."
Eden didn't chase immediately. Instead, he swept his gaze across the battlefield, locking eyes with every Viltrumite. One by one, their heads lowered. None dared meet his stare.
"Hmph."
Satisfied, he allowed himself a thin smile and streaked upward in another sonic boom.
"General… what do we do now?"
The surviving Viltrumites turned to Kregg, the highest-ranking among them with Thragg gone.
"What else can we do?" Kregg sighed, shaking his head. "We go pay our respects to our queen."
There was no denying it. Thragg had been overwhelmed in a single blow. And with Eden's revelation of royal blood, Nolanne was now the only rightful ruler of the Viltrum Empire—by blood and by power.
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