One day went by...
Every living being on that planet felt their minds completely free from that deity's influence. It was like invisible chains that had always been there were finally taken off. The feeling of freedom was something else.
Hours later, everyone in the universe was stunned. The purple veil that had always covered the planets and been part of their lives since forever... just didn't come back.
Two days passed...
A week...
...
Ten months...
All life in that universe seemed to shine. The sunlight was way stronger now. Everything was blooming, marking a new chapter for that entire place.
Back on the main planet, everyone noticed a very specific area — close to where the old Deity's place used to be — was completely off limits. No one could even think of getting near it.
Inside that place...
*Bang!*
"Idiot, I told you already, control it like it's a new limb." A strict female voice echoed.
In a deep pit, a half-dead body lay crumpled and bleeding.
Darian forced himself to stand up, struggling hard. He was drenched in his own blood, but he wasn't allowed to heal. One part of the training was feeling the consequences of his screw-ups on his own skin.
She kept going: "You're not a close-combat fighter. If someone strong hits you, that's it. Game over. You gotta use your allies and move stealthily. You should only fight head-on if you've got no choice, 'cause once you burn through all your white power, you're done — not to mention the risk of getting exposed for being too weird."
Darian got up… sighing. He'd heard that so many times, but doing it was way harder than saying it.
"Well, don't get discouraged," she said with a huff. "You're better than expected at using the Supreme Warlock Kamico's power, thanks to that physical technique you're using. If you're in a place full of natural elements, there's endless stuff you can pull off."
Darian nodded. He had learned a ton from his master during this time. Now, he was a whole different person.
Everything was clearer. He sucked at fighting up close. He only managed to win against the Risen because of their karma. In the Array, because the beasts weren't actually alive… and against Raon, well, because the guy was a total idiot. Those fights made him think he could pull it off if he just tried harder.
Meru made it very clear: the strongest figures had lived for millennia and fought more battles than he could imagine. Truth was, even a halfway experienced fighter could crush him without breaking a sweat.
But… he had tons of crazy tools at his disposal. That's what really mattered in a fight: catch the enemy off guard and finish it before they even knew what was happening.
"I already knew you'd be the type to fight from behind," Meru went on casually. "That's why you were paired with that Dragoness. She's your complete opposite, made to fight by your side. But that doesn't mean you stop training. Never slack off or rely on people all the time. You need to be able to win anything on your own."
Darian sighed and nodded.
She looked right at him. "That physical technique's got a lot of potential to help you. You've got your suspicions, right?"
Darian asked, "God Chromaraic… he was your father's disciple?"
"Exactly. He created that technique so people of his race could grow stronger. Back then, he asked my mom for help to build the Array. He didn't even try that hard — the technique is super simple, but it matched perfectly with his talents. For now, you should try to improve it on your own. But if his karma with you is strong enough, there's a chance you'll meet him, and he might tweak the technique for you."
Darian nodded. Better not get his hopes too high. Then he asked, casually, "When I got reincarnated back then, the contract didn't break. Was that obvious to Niara and the people from that universe?"
The female silhouette paused for a bit, making Darian nervous.
"Your contract's like a steel cable. When you died, it snapped. But then you reincarnated not long after — already on Earth. So it kinda reconnected, like gluing it back together. But the connection didn't fully restore, just got really weak — until you go back and rebuild it completely. Maybe... she and the others think you really did die. Since this has never happened before, they didn't realize the soul connection is just way weaker than normal."
Darian took a deep breath, tense, wondering what Niara had been feeling during all those…
days…
"Wait... how long have we been here training?"
He'd been training basically day and night without stopping. Meru would just give him a nod and he'd be full of energy again — no need for food or sleep. Soon, he lost track of time and focused only on absorbing everything.
"It's been ten months, Earth time," she said casually.
His heart stopped for a second. He did the math... there were only about three weeks left before his brothers were taken to become Spiritual Guardians.
Darian muttered, "Ten months... wait, the people on Earth still know we're on the mission, right?"
"They know the mission hasn't failed completely, otherwise they would've gotten the penalty notice. But the failure is only confirmed after everyone dies. You've probably heard that sometimes the Spiritual Guardians get captured. The power in your rings can be slowly drained by some demons. It might take months for the last one to die and for the mission to officially fail."
"Shit... so..."
Darian turned pale. His brothers — and the entire clan — must be absolutely sure they'd been captured and kept from dying. After all, there was a ten-day limit to complete the mission.
And Niara, in the other universe... if he'd come back in three months, the misunderstanding could've been cleared up easily. But now that three cycles had passed over there, any hope was gone.
"Relax. Today's our last day here," Meru said, and Darian looked toward the silhouette.
"The power inside this book is basically used up. There's nothing written in it that you don't already know, so I consumed it entirely. I can't teach you in person, so we'll only see each other again if you find the next book, in just over four years," she added.
"I've already pointed you in the right direction. Now, take this."
She waved her hand, and a small violet orb, about the size of a fist, floated toward him.
"This is the core of the mutant power from this universe. It's sealed and drained of power. I modified it so it works with either of your two powers. You like weapons — like those flying daggers — not staffs. So if you find a good Forgemaster who can build a core into a weapon, you can fuse this into it and use it in battle."
Darian took the orb, surprised. It wasn't a physical object, but he could easily manipulate and store it.
Then, she waved again. A small red orb appeared and floated to him.
"They call this a Supreme Artifact? What a joke — just trash made in a demon universe... anyway, I removed its link to the full Artifact. Its blood-absorbing functions are still intact. You can also embed it in a weapon and use it. I tweaked its aura a bit, no one will ever trace it back to the main Artifact."
After handing over both gifts, the silhouette waved again. Her body started to fade.
At the same time, the nine others who had been asleep all this time began to stir.
"Your mission is complete. You'll return to Earth now," she said, looking directly at Darian.
He quickly bowed, clenching his fists. "Thank you so much. I'll try not to disappoint you, Master."
She nodded. "I'll be watching you closely. You're just crawling now, so don't try to sprint. Grow from the shadows, without drawing attention… and don't try to imitate my father! He's anything but discreet and subtle. Be yourself, fight for what you believe in, and give it your all."
He gave a small, slightly embarrassed smile.
"Good luck, Darian."
Those were the last words he heard. After that, everything around him went dark. He was on his way back home.