While My World Shatters

by elektre888

Issei Hyoudou declined going on a date with that girl, after all, they had just met that day, but that decision would completely change the flow of the story, awakening a twisted system that mends reality to assure he was still a card in play. The identity of the world he knew of would completely shatter as this system rebuilds it with shards of other worlds.

21. Infinite Light

The Naturia Forest was up in flames, the habitants running from one side to another trying to escape from this now formed hell hole while those who could fight tried making last ditch effort to protect those around them.

The Tellarknights had fallen against the joint attacks of the Qliphort and Infernoids, leaving the Satellars alive alongside the remaining tribes who took shelter and planned their next move. Caduceus, still in his Shaddoll form, finally saw an opportunity. He reunited everyone there, to talk about their next course of action.

"As all of you may know, we have been under attack just like with the Vylons before." Indeed, it seemed as if this was a repeat of the Vylon situation from before. "I have finally gotten confirmation from Sombre that she is coming back with the last Yang Zing that was needed for the activation of the Sefirot system, once she finally comes we will be able to fight back while using the powers of Sophia."

Lara then raised her hand. "I do have a question, since the Sefirot System will only choose ten of us, what should the others do in the meantime? Should we push onward by assisting the chosen ones, or should we not get in the way?"

Caduceus immediately responded. "You should fight, Lord Leodrake has been able to gain the assistance of Lord Landoise and both have combined together, Lara, you will be the one to lead this defense, use the Naturia as your Spiritual Beast to stall the incoming enemies while we attempt to revive everyone else."

Emilia looked at the Nekroz Mirror she had, that was her part in this plan, she'd use the powers of Sophia to revive the Yang Zings and the Satellars that had fallen. Rigel then shouted out loud, startling a few of them. "Alright! Then what are we waiting for?! We need to make sure Sombre comes back without getting attacked by the enemy!"

The sentiment was shared by the other warriors as they all then started to run outside to put the plan in action. "Just remember the names of each one of them, don't confuse one of them for another one!" Warned Caduceus, only to be met with no response, he then sighed. Every single Satellar was quite different to their parents, perhaps because they were being raised by Sombre. But either way, now was their chance to push back. The remaining Yang Zings who were previously purified followed suit.

The Nekroz, still in their forms, went outside, escorting Emilia so that they could revive everyone they could find. Lara alongside Kamui decided to go protect those that were still alive while fighting off the enemies rushing at them, Wen and Pilica were put on the back of Leodrake while Lara rode towards the inner parts of the Naturia Forest.

This left Issei alone, his part was to stall the enemy alongside the other Satellarknights. But truthfully, it was odd to him, each single one of the Infernoids seemed familiar, but the last three were a mystery to him. Perhaps it was part of Yaldabaoth's past.

The first one that he had taken down was quite easy, perhaps because Yaldabaoth had made him that way, but it was odd to him still, it was as if there was something that was irking him as he took down the small mechanical demon. Pirmais was the name that Leodrake had called it, the tales of the Infernoids were inscribed onto the Qliphort Monolith, with the name of each one of them written down.

He decided to ignore that feeling, following the Satellars, he saw Rigel take care of one of the drones from Qliphort Carrier. Alsham continued to cover for the others while Capella taunted every single Qliphort and Infernoid in the zone, which led the enemy towards the combined blast of the three Yang Zings.

The blast however had no effect, Antra, one of the Infernoids there continued to follow like a dog. Issei raised his guandao to then hack onto it, he used Phoenix Wing to deal additional damage. The attack itself was enough to destroy the machine, leaving the vacuum tubes on the ground alongside various pieces of metal.

However, the moment he defeated Antra, Blade Forged From Souls started to glow, or more so the gem on the weapon, the red gem embedded on it had changed its color to a purple one. Issei looked at his weapon and then swung it, this time, the slash created a dark aura around it, creating a void of darkness that engulfed anything it touched.

He figured out that this was the effect that Blade Forged From Souls had, to change its elemental attack to a different one. But then...why had it activated itself the moment he had defeated Antra? Looking at the color once again, he realized what was going on.

Inside of the Infernoids were the essence of the six children from the Church of Sophia, children who had gone to where Sophia was, which was this place. They had to be, the purple color must mean that he had taken out Tino and reclaimed his soul.

He clutched his hand as he felt disgusted regarding this development, he was going to have to kill the children once again after Kazemaru Ichirouta had brought them into this world, the world that Sophia reigned in. If so, why were they inside of the Infernoids? Had Yaldabaoth created these creatures in the last 40 years? Or had he been planning this unbeknownst to him after he had regained his memories?

It didn't matter, he'd get his answer once he finally talked to Yaldabaoth, he just needed to endure this slaughter.

Right, they weren't the same ones, the children he met were not mechanical fiends, but rather innocent kids that found comfort between themselves.

Suddenly he was then attacked by an Infernoid, which made him snap out of his remembered the name of this one, Harmadik. Reluctantly, he raised his weapon, he wondered who it would be this time, the color of the vacuum tubes looked quite dark, it could be considered black, but at the same time a dark tone of blue.

It was obvious, it was Masako.

Gritting his teeth, Issei ended up swinging his weapon against Harmadik, the attack missed as the Infernoid dodged the attack, but Issei continued to attack unrelentingly until he finally was able to slice Harmadik apart, he didn't stop when he slice through the Infernoid, no, he continued to hack until there was nothing left of it.

This time, his weapon glowed dark blue, swinging the weapon again, this time, the ground below started to rise, creating a wall of stone. He was able to block and counterattack quite easily against an Infernoid that just so happened to come after him after he had finished with Harmadik.

The incoming Infernoid used its claw to try and attack Issei, Issei immediately recognized the Infernoid as Patrulea, however, the moment it missed, it immediately fell back. Issei stood on guard while looking at the enemy, it didn't attack, it was waiting for an opening, it was being patient.

This had to be Grizelda.

In the deadlock, Issei then slowly lowered his weapon to say. "Must we really battle?" Hoping for even the tiniest possibility that the children were still in there.

However, by lowering his guard, Patrulea then rushed in to attack, seeing this as a chance to attack a weak point. Issei on the other hand, activated Raging Storm, engulfing Patrulea in a scorching tornado of flames.

Once the flames died down, Issei looked at his weapon once again, seeing as the gem was now a cyan color. He tried swinging once again, this time, the attack was fluid, it felt like it was water, and it was precisely because it also casted a cascade of water.

After testing the weapon, he decided to hunt the remaining Infernoids instead. Only three of the children were left. He saw the remaining Satellars fighting against one that was holding a staff, that one was called Piaty, it was being supported by various Qliphort that made it impossible for the group to counter the enemy.

Issei activated Phoenix Wing once again, this time directing the attack towards the Infernoid Piaty, the flames were blocked by a barrage of Qliphorts, however, this allowed the Satellars to finally push forward.

Rigel attempted to flank from the side, using his weapon to try and hit Piaty, but the Infernoid was able to block the attack by using its staff, it then had the guts to try and use one of its fists to try and hit Rigel. Issei then rushed forward to attack from the other flank, overwhelming Piaty and defeating it by stabbing the guandao through the torso.

And so, down went Andric. One by one each child fell by Issei's hands, those who he saw as friends had to die, not because they did anything wrong, but because there was no choice. Despite doing so, Issei continued to doubt why it turned out this way. Not only that, they were far weaker than the Qliphorts, had Yaldabaoth made them that way? Was he pitying his harbinger? Perhaps he was still putting trials in front of him, to see if he could still do his job without letting emotions get in the way.

There was no need to do this though, that was what Issei was thinking, he forced himself to become this cruel human that would put his loyalty, his blind loyalty over anything else, because he believed... no, he KNEW that something was going on with Yaldabaoth, after all, Sophia was dead right? What use was there for him to still destroy the Garden of Eden he had created before?

Before he knew it, he had finished taking out another one, Sjette, with the new powers he had taken from Andric, the powerful single strike he had made was too powerful for this Infernoid to block, it completely burned through as the melting metal slowly started turning into liquid. The shields on the Infernoid made him think about Jadon, the mature kid that was always willing to protect and take care of everyone else.

One more, there was a single Infernoid left that must have had Ha Eun's soul in it, and it had to be the one with green lights, Seitsemas. He decided to now test the new effect that the gem would give, he took a deep breath as he concentrated everything on this strike.

Finally pinpointing where Seitsemas was, he immediately moved at blinding speeds to deal one last strike, light was casted as he rushed at blinding speeds. This attack decapitated the Infernoid, leaving Issei to kneel as it was finally done. He did it, he had killed every single Infernoid that had the essence of the children from the Church of Sophia, and oddly enough, it felt like a part of his torment had been lifted, as now every single one of the children's soul was now with him, inside the Blade Forged From Souls, every one of them was whole once again.

Perhaps he was slowly burning away his past, for as long as he continued to face his past traumas, he could finally move on in the future, he let go part of himself, he had finally moved on from Natsuki, and yet, there were more memories that continued to haunt him even in the present. Looking up, he then saw three giant Infernoids in front of him, they were the last remaining ones, Attondel, Devyaty and Onuncu.

Mentally exhausted from his previous battles, he knew his Sanity was low from the mental torment he had put himself from killing the Infernoids with the children's souls in them, he knew that taking the three of them at once would be too much for him. And so, he decided to flee from there. He then noticed that the Satellars and Yang Zing weren't there either, which meant that they had gone back to regroup with the others.

While leaving, he looked back, noticing that none of them were going after him, but instead they were taking all the vacuum tubes which seemed to strengthen them. However, once Attondel finished, he rushed towards him quickly. This alarmed Issei, which made him activate the last gem that he had obtained, and then start slashing in the air towards the incoming Infernoid, which created wind blades that flew at it.

The Infernoid dodged them as it got close enough to Issei, it raised its fist to punch Issei into the ground. The attack made him spit out blood as he recoiled at the powerful punch he was struck by.

Unable to get up, he held his arm while raising his weapon, he refused to die in this situation. Activating Phoenix Wing once again, he used his weapon to create a flame in the form of a phoenix to try and damage the Infernoid.

Said Infernoid dodged the attack once again, but Issei followed up by activating Dusk and shooting towards Attondel. Even with the barrage of bullets, the Infernoid was still able to dodge the attacks, however, it was enough for Issei to escape from the situation.

After the incredibly risky move he deactivated Dusk while also activating Reasoning to gain back his Sanity. Thankfully, Reasoning hadn't backfired.

---

Dragging himself while using the surrounding trees as support, he finally made it towards their base, where he assumed everyone else was there to take the next step of their plan.

But once he got there, he stumbled onto the ground, hurt from the punch that the Infernoid had dealt him. Before he could drop onto the ground, someone was able to catch him before he could fall. Looking at the person that helped him out, Issei widened his eyes at seeing who it was.

Crystal, or rather Master Diamond, was helping him up.

He looked towards the others, only to see the Satellars that fell in battle alongside the other Yang Zings revived. Master Diamond started by saying. "It's good to see you again Issei."

Isseis smiled at hearing the voice of the one who had trained him 40 years ago. "Yeah, I've missed you, you know?" The conversation was cut short as Caduceus then got the attention of everyone. "Alright, now that most of the pieces have been put onto the field, we just need to wait until Sombre comes back. In the meantime, we should be able to defeat the weaker Infernoid around."

Issei however, upon hearing their plan then responded. "I actually finished off seven of the Infernoids already, so all that is left are three of them and the Qliphorts." This claim stunned everyone present, as they did not expect for more than half of the Infernoid to already be defeated.

Rigel whistled, impressed by the achievement, which prompted the now revived Betelgeuse to hit him on the shoulder. This then made both of them start arguing between each other.

Caduceus cleared his throat after hearing. "Well, since most of them have already been dealt with, I think we should push now and clear the remaining enemies." Master Diamond stepped forward, alongside a few Satellars. Before they could move to the next part of the plan, Caduceus wanted to make sure everyone was onboard with it. "Master Diamond, you've been revived once again and you're going to be once again fusing yourself, are you sure about this?"

Master Diamond, without wasting any second, responded. "Of course, I've done many atrocities as Cairngorgon, and this is a way to redeem myself as a Gem-Knight." With this confirmation, Master Diamond, Sirius, Procyon, Capella and Rigel finally fused together .

Betelgeuse, saw his rival fusing into a more powerful being than him when he had turned into Triverr. Once again, he had proven that he was the better one out of the two of them. He sighed. "Fucker... you really had the gall to smirk when your name was brought up, uh?"

The light died down, only to show a dragon, similar to Constellar Ptolemy M7 in front of them. Master Diamond attempted to move his arms around, testing his grip, and looking around. From there, he sensed Onuncu and Attondel coming towards them.

He hastily moved in front of everyone else, to then block an attack by Attondel, the punch that he threw was caught by Master Diamond's hand. Immediately after catching the attack, Master Diamond then proceeded to do an attack of his own by punching Attodel into the ground.

A huge crater was left as Attondel couldn't get back up. Before Master Diamond could follow up, Onuncu put itself in front of him, catching the attention of the Constellar Dragon. They both started to exchange blows.

Master Diamond noticed that he was smaller than Onuncu once he finally got in front of it, however, he did not falter, as he then proceeded to attack it with a laser blast. Onuncu blocked the attack using its wings, it then followed up with an attack using its tail. Said tail came crashing down onto Constellar Diamond, however, he fortunately dodged in time.

Meanwhile, Attondel finally got up, but instead of aiding Onuncu, he took his eyes towards Issei. Issei upon noticing this raised his weapon once again, but this time he wasn't alone, Shurit, Avance and Exa took stances alongside him, bringing a smile onto his face as he was glad to have backup.

Attondel took the first move, jumping up high to then start shooting a fireball from its mouth down to the land below. Exa used Decisive Armor to shoot down the incoming attacks, however a few fireballs were still able to come down towards them.

Avance looked at Issei for a moment, getting a feeling of nostalgia. "Doesn't this remind you a bit of Girastag?" Asked the Nekroz Elder. Issei smirked, seeing as the blasts indeed reminded him of his first battle alongside Avance. "It sure does."

Issei and Avance started to block the attacks with their weapons as they continued with their conversation, Shurit on the other hand had a bit of difficulty while trying to block the attacks, prompting him to switch to dodging them.

"So, are you actually thinking of having another kid with Emilia?" Asked Issei, noticing that the blasts had finally finished raining down on them. Avance smiled and said. "Yeah, I'm not sure what to call him... or her, but perhaps I could call them after you if you'd want."

"Uh... There's no need for that, I think I could come up with another name instead, perhaps one of your mothers? I'll help you pick a name after." Suggested Issei. Avance took a time to think a bit about it, however, the conversation ended once they realized that now was their time to attack Attondel.

Shurit, who had concentrated more into the fight, had already taken the opportunity, as he casted a blizzard against the Infernoid, he then flew towards the enemy to then slash at it with his sword.

The wings of the enemy froze, making it fall down into the ground, Shurit and Issei then ran towards Attondel to start hitting the Infernoid with their weapons. The Infernoid was unable to get up from the constant barrage of attacks, as Emilia and Lara were also casting spells from the sidelines, vines and ice made sure that Attondel couldn't get up, as Exa additionally held it down. Overpowered by all of them, it was then quickly defeated.

With that out of the way, Issei looked at Master Diamond to see the progress he had made, only to see his mentor struggling against the giant Infernoid. The dragon attempted to grapple, shoot down, even punch Onuncu with all of his might, however, it was still not enough to even leave a mark on the enemy.

Onuncu proceeded to shoot lasers against Master Diamond, forcing him to fly around to dodge. The Qliphorts started to surround him, leaving him no choice but to improvise in the situation. While dodging the laser, he flew around near the other Qliphorts, the laser hit the ships instead, turning them into dust. In the meantime, Master Diamond continued to shoot energy blasts against the Qliphorts in front of him as he tried to get a clear path.

As they watched the battle, they then saw Sombre coming in alongside Chiwen and another Yang Zing, this one however was shining bright as it came towards Constellar Diamond to aid.

As Sombre got closer to Constellar Diamond, she then dodged one of the attacks of Onuncu, standing by Diamond's side, she then asked. "Master Diamond, allow me to take care of Onuncu with the joined might of the Satellarknights." The determination of Sombre wasn't needed to convince the other Gem-Knight, as Master Diamond always had faith in young Lazuli as a warrior.

He nodded, only to feel as he was being ejected from his body, but then saw that he was back to being Crystal, his original form, deep down, he regretted not being able to do much to help defeat Onuncu, but right now all he could do was put his faith onto Sombre. The other Satellarknights rushed in to combine together with the Tellarknight dragon.

One by one, as each one of them combined themselves with Sombre, the Tellarknight dragon's form changed, to the point it was no longer the form of a dragon, instead it was a centaur like warrior holding a staff, Sombre had become Tellarknight Ptolemaeus, the knight who was said to save the world back then, the original Constellar.

A fight between titans resumed as Ptolemaeus raised her staff to shoot down meteors against Onuncu, the Infernoid attempted to block the attack with its wings, however, they were pierced by the meteors that came down onto the Infernoid. Ptolemaeus then proceeded to rush towards Onuncu, using her staff, she then shot a blinding light which passed through Onuncu, creating a hole in its body.

Onuncu attempted to shoot its laser once again, but to no avail as the Tellarknight was able to block it by creating a barrier in front of her. As the meteors continued to rain down onto the Infernoid, Ptolemaeus continued to close the gap, as she continued to gallop closer to the Infernoid, she started to cast even more spells, light attacks, holy attacks, and even summoning weapons from the Constellars and Satellars.

The Infernoid, unable to take it anymore, tried one last ditch effort, by trying to bite the Tellarknight with its mouth. Ptolemaeus however, summoned a light sword, to decapitate the Infernoid. Onuncu's limp body fell onto the ground, creating tremors as they shook the land and formed waves.

With the death of the Infernoid, the allies roared in victory as they had taken down their main threat, all that was left was the less powerful Infernoid, Devyaty to take down. Unfortunately the celebration was short lived as Shurit and Emilia started getting a headache out of nowhere.

The concerned look of Avance as he ran towards his wife and child made everyone tense up, Ptolemaeus and Caduceus looked around, only to notice that the vacuum tubes were no longer there. Realizing the prospect of what was going on, Caduceus yelled out concerned. "We need to go to where the Ice Barrier dragons are sealed quickly!"

---

With the support of the Ritual Beast Tamers, Avance and Exa, they were able to bring Shurit and Emilia safely with them as the group of warriors passed through the Nekroz Tribe territory. There they saw the worst case scenario happening.

Devyaty had consumed the powers of the Ice Barrier dragons, and then taken control of Lapis' Shaddoll body. Even if they were in front of possibly one of the strongest enemies they've ever encountered, they still remained calm, as they still had the chance to stop the threat.

Although their plan was supposed to be used for the possibility of Sophia's return, they knew that it was now or never, they needed to use the Divine Lance to take out Devyaty. Emilia, although still a bit dizzy after the powers of the Ice Barrier dragon had been taken from them, still stood strong as she then used the Nekroz Mirror to attain the powers of the being that was most powerful.

She would use the powers of Sophia.

No matter how long she tried to recall the memories of Sophia, her history was simply an enigma, there was nothing they could point out so they, as the Nekroz could learn about. But that didn't matter right now, it was a life or death situation, and so, they would need to learn from their mistakes as a tribe if this backfired.

Sophia wished to exterminate them, the creation who was then later able to overpower her, yet it wasn't right, it was wrong to say that they themselves were the ones to defeat her, no, it was Issei.

Meanwhile Exa and Shurit would prepare the Dragunity Divine Lance, the Yang Zings present would be used as a replacement for the Dragunities. Exa, having a bit of knowledge about the Dragunity Tribe due to them being his childhood dream, initiated the creation of the Divine Lance, which hadn't been created in so long.

Shurit on the other hand, started recalling the Dragunity.

Draunity, a tribe which was composed of the birdman and dragon whelps, they lived in harmony while helping one another. Even so, they ignored the outsiders until it was far too late for their actions to save people.

They isolated themselves from the outside, and only helped the others when they decided it was time, they ignored the pleas of help when they deemed it not necessary, such actions may have indirectly caused the death of many.

But no matter, after all, they were the ones to end the Trishula Incident, if it weren't for them, the world that we know wouldn't even have existed. And right now, they must make sure that such an event doesn't happen again. Right now was the perfect time for them to use all of their power to defeat the enemy, just so that it didn't become too late for the world to survive.

Areadbhair, the Dragunity Knight who defeated all three of the Ice Barrier dragons, that should be enough to control the Dragunity Divine Lance. Today would mark the day they would break the cycle of catastrophes befalling this world.

And so, Shurit once again, grew older, with the armor of the very same Areadbhair, he looked at Exa, who had finally created the Dragunity Divine Lance alongside the Yang Zings.

But before they could finally begin their battle against Devyaty, they noticed a bright light coming from behind. Everyone looked back, to then see the Sacred Naturia Tree glowing. Sombre, watching the colorful lights glowing more intensively whispered. "The time has come."

The Sefirot System had been activated.

The light chased after ten of the warriors that were present, and so, gave them powers based on their best qualities. Yet despite that, Issei saw that he wasn't one of them.

Why? He had the trait Unknown Sefirot, why wasn't he one of the chosen? Was it actually not related to them? Or had he failed a requirement?

He was confused, he needed the powerboost right now so that he could go face Yaldabaoth, it didn't make sense to him. Why couldn't the Sacred Naturia Tree feel his emotions, his desire to fight? His desire to save Yaldabaoth?

A few of the warriors transformed in the middle of the selection involuntarily. Perhaps because they needed a form that made them able to absorb the powers completely.

And so, the light slowly faded away, showing the chosen ones by the System.

Avance, Crown of the Zefra

The oldest veteran of them all, the one who stood on top of the world, time and time again he was seen as the one to bring peace to the world, living and watching the evolution of his own tribe. To control the powers of the Zefra however, he had looked back into the X-Sabers, more specifically, into Obsidian's past as a failed X-Saber member. His wish to help and make his family proud brought him into the grueling and painful path that led to the survival of those he held dearly, only to fail once again. Avance wouldn't let that happen to him.

Exciton Knight, Wisdom of the Zefra

One who learned to become human, he who sought redemption for the atrocities of his species. Exciton Knight learned through his mistakes, gaining the wisdom to give those who needed his guidance. He protected the Naturia, having as a teacher Lord Leodrake, he learned about the world, its history, and its inhabitants. Exciton Knight shall continue to gain experience to help those in need.

Qiuniu, Understanding of the Zefra

Of the many Yang Zings, Qiuniu was able to understand the many concepts that most animals weren't able to understand. The Yang Zing wished to understand the emotions that were contained in art. The lullabies that comforted the young and the screams of the tormented singers gave it its meaning of life, it wished to discover what it was that music made it feel this way.

Fuxi, Kindness of the Zefra

Meanwhile, of the Yang Zings, Fuxi treasures its siblings, to the point it is willing to sacrifice itself. Fuxi, despite being unable to recreate any sounds due to being made of a hard material, finds ways to show its appreciation and love to others through literature. Its determination to show kindness to those it holds dearly proves its worth as a Zefra.

Chiwen, Strength of the Zefra

Chiwen, taking the form of a human with white wings, wishes to show his strength to everyone, while continuing to support his siblings, he wishes to protect them by himself without needing to rely on others, hence the new form he had decided to take. To him, Issei was the pinnacle of strength, someone who, no matter what, could protect those around him no matter the trials that were put in front of him, and so, took a form similar to him.

Pilica, Beauty of the Zefra

She wished to help her family, even if she was too weak to do so, she continued to support them, as she was willing to sacrifice herself if needed. Alas, her adoptive sister was the one to do so, and yet, she continued to seek her out, waiting to finally be back with her. No matter what happened, she continued to hold onto that innocent hope to finally find a happy ending. The beauty of her innocence touched the Sacred Naturia Tree to its core.

Wen, Victory of the Zefra

Out of her tribe, Wen is the Ritual Beast Tamer who contains the most potential within her. The balance between the sides tilt depending on which side Wen switches to. So long as she is on one side, it is guaranteed for that side to win against any opponent no matter the difficulty. Her spiritual powers may be strong enough to bring miracles for her allies to win the war. Despite being a Shaddoll, she has been chosen by the Sacred Naturia Tree, and so, she has been purified.

Exa, Splendor of the Zefra

Former Ice Barrier creature, he wished to become a Dragunity, so that he could become someone to be proud of. Alas, despite being given the choice, he found it more fitting to call back to his past when Phlogis took care of him. The true splendor that he learned of didn't come from flashy weaponry, or from a tribe with a reputation, but rather from a story of a hero who persevered despite the struggles. And so, he chose to have Phlogis with him instead of Decisive Armor.

Caduceus, Foundation of the Zefra

As a Constellar he had the job of defending this world from threats. But after every single one of his former companions died in battle, he was then forced to raise the next generation. He made sure that the children of his former comrades would grow up as mighty warriors that would continue the legacy of their parents. And so, he developed the foundation of the next generation of Constellars known as the Satellars.

Crystal, Kingdom of the Zefra

Unbeknown to him, his tribe saw him as the undoubtful leader of the Gem-Knights, he was the pinnacle of perfection, calm and collected, powerful yet considerate. He was the perfect king that any tribe would be jealous of. Despite that, he was humble, he didn't wish for power for himself, but power to help others. With rules like that, a kingdom would never fall with such resolve.

Now, the Zefra marched onward, so that the others could prepare their final blow against Devyaty. A battle between the vassals of creation, against the remnants of destruction.

Devyaty, controlling the giant Shaddoll's body, shot out various strings towards the warriors chosen by the Sefirot System. On the front, Avance led the charge as he cut through the strings with his laser blades. Exa switched with Avance as they both continued to rotate as they both swung their weapons around to break the barrage of strings coming towards them.

A wall of ice suddenly appeared in front of them, but it was not enough for them to stop as they continued to push. Exciton Knight and Chiwen took the lead, breaking through as Chiwen continued to punch the touch wall of ice while Exciton Knight cut down the now weakened wall.

Chiwen then attempted to punch Devyaty, but the Infernoid used its wings to block the attack, however, it was still able to leave a crack on them. Devyaty then proceeded to push Chiwen back and shot various strings towards him.

The strings however were redirected around as Wen and Pilica used their wind magic to disperse them around so that they wouldn't hit Chiwen. Exciton Knight and Avance took this chance to cut the strings once again.

Devyaty proceeded to start charging a blast from her hands, however, it exploded in her face as Qiuniu and Fuxi continued to shoot blasts of their own. Exa took this chance to rush in and use his claws to stab Devyaty.

Ice spiked however surfaced as they were about to penetrate through Exa's body, but Crystal appeared to block the attack, taking the hit instead, despite the attack, it didn't leave any scratches on his body. He then took this chance to try and land a punch of the Infernoid, who at that point started to step back to dodge the attacks.

Caduceus raised his staff to then start shooting light attacks which made Devyaty step back even further, with the constant barrage of attacks the Infernoid had the chance to fight back against the ten Zefras.

But before she could do anything else, Devyaty felt as if she had been struck by something, an attack that made her feel like she had no body any longer. And that was quite literally what had happened.

Looking at herself, she noticed that she had no body anymore, she was simply a head. Looking at where the attack came, he saw Emilia, Ptolemaeus and Issei standing far away with Shurit in the middle. They had thrown the Dragunity Divine Lance against the Infernoid.

However, as a last ditch effort, Devyaty fled the scene, the Zefra attempted to follow suit but were then stopped by two more Infernoids alongside a humanoid being that floated between the two Infernoids.

Caduceus, looking at the three, recognized the one in the middle. It was his son, Unukalhai. He was the only Constellar that they hadn't been able to revive, as his body had been turned into a Shaddoll.

Rather than putting all their forces to battle against the Infernoids and Unukalhai, Caduceus yelled towards his allies. "Everyone! I want you to split into two groups! Those who pursue Devyaty and those who will fight against these three Infernoids!"

Immediately, they divided into two groups, Issei saw that their main force was going to battle against this powerful threat. This left him, and the Ritual Beast Tamers to go after Devyaty's head.

The group started to travel back towards the Naturia Forest, urging to catch the Infernoid before it could continue the path to destruction. While flying they noticed Qliphorts standing in their way, which meant they had to start battling once again.

Issei looked back at where the others were, he could see explosions and lights coming from the Nekroz territory. He looked back at the Ritual Beast Tamers, trying to battle against the Qliphorts as they continued to push onward.

Lara, riding Leodrake, was the component of this charge, as the Spiritual Beast' bulkiness was enough to resist the attacks of the Qliphorts. Kamui, who was still struggling against the ships that swarmed them, decided on the following course of action. "Issei! Go catch Devyaty before it's too late!" Instructed the Gusto Elder as he the casted a powerful wind which allowed Issei to pass through without trouble.

Issei, looked at the Ritual Beast Tamers as he was being pushed away from them, attempted to yell their names, but he was sent flying towards the Sacred Naturia Tree, where he saw Devyaty slowly making her way towards the roots of the tree.

Flying as quickly as possible, he attempted to grab onto the Infernoid, but was too late as the head then made contact with the roots of the tree, illuminating every single vacuum tube it had. Issei, who was grabbing onto Devyaty, looked at the tubes only to see that Winda, Ariel, Lapis and a few other creatures were inside of them.

A sudden tremor was heard, Lara, seeing it from the distance, covered for Wen and Pilica.

And as for Issei, who was directly in front of the Sacred Naturia Tree, he was blown away once again by a gray wave.

---

"Fuck..." Mumbled Issei as he attempted to open his eyes. It happened again, didn't it? Instead of Sophia, it must have been Yaldabaoth who had casted that powerful shockwave. Issei looked at his stats, only to realize that he had only survived thanks to Poem Girl in Pink, furthermore, his Sanity was low, and Reasoning was currently still in cooldown. He attempted to stand up once again.

Looking around, this time he was able to see a giant serpent with orbs that were the same as Sophia, it had to be Yaldabaoth. He then attempted to walk, only to realize that he was injured. He then promptly spread his wings as he slowly made his way towards the Infernoid.

As he continued to fly, a notification finally arrived as it seemed like the biggest mission for this story had finally appeared.

Quest #5

Core Suppression

Condition: Defeat Saklas

Failure: Fail to defeat Saklas

Saklas? Who was Saklas? Issei then glanced at the giant creature that was currently destroying everything on its path. That had to be Yaldabaoth, yet why was he being called Saklas? Had he changed name once again? Issei pushed those questions as he currently had more important things to do.

He noticed the damage that Yaldabaoth had caused, not knowing how long he had been unconscious he attempted to call out for people he knew of. He then looked down, to see the Ritual Beast Tamers still alive. He then plummeted to the ground to then slowly land and walk towards them while also using his guandao as support.

Once he got close, he saw that Kamui was putting his life on the line as he tried to defend his family. Issei then casted light and wind attacks as he then hit a light creature that was about to stab Kamui on the back. When Kamui noticed Issei, he looked relieved that he hadn't died.

But when Issei looked towards the other three, he saw that Lara was injured and dying. He stood there, being reminded of how he found Winda after Sophia's attack. "Ah... Issei, I'm glad you're alive..." Weakly said Lara. "It seems this is where my journey ends..." Issei could only look as once again, someone died in front of him.

Issei's heartbeat started to increase as the memories of that time continued to become more vivid. He started to breathe heavily as he could feel his sweat feeling cold, his hands trembling as he saw Lara's body. His vision started to get blurry, even getting a slight headache as Lara started to look like Winda.

He needed to get out of there.

Issei started to run as he proceeded to run away from that sight he just saw.

Your Sanity has been depleted, entering Panic state

Your Panic status is Wander

"Fuck... Fuck... FUCK!" He tried to whisper as he ran as fast as he could away from the others, he heard the screams of Pilica and Wen calling after him. While running, he took down a light creature down as he ran past Kamui.

The elder, seeing Issei run away, started to feel some concern over the mental health of the traveler. But seeing as he took down every single enemy that came after them did give him some trust on Issei to not do something too rash.

He then approached Lara, seeing the current state that she was in, saddened him. To try and comfort his promising pupil, he sat down near her, holding the hands of his two daughters as he tried to also comfort them. "You did well, you can rest now, I promise we will bring you back once everything is over." Said Kamui while looking gently at Lara.

But Lara didn't want that, no, she wanted to see this war through so that she could continue to protect everyone, after Sophia's attack, her whole family had been killed by the light creatures made by the goddess, she didn't want that to happen to someone else, and now was the best chance to do so.

Though... perhaps saving Wen and Pilica from the wave of destruction was enough.

Before she closed her eyes, she looked at the sky. "Leodrake... I'm sorry you had to get in the way of my rash decision..." She apologized, remembering the fact that she, alongside Leodrake, had put themselves in danger to protect the kids by using their bodies as a shield.

She was ready to finally go to the other side, to meet her parents and those that fell in war, those innocent civilians that had fallen in battle, she'd have to apologize for her failure. But then she saw her Spiritual Beast, Apelio, laying on her chest. "Apelio? What are you doing here? I told you to stay in the spiritual world."

Apelio had been called off from the war as Lara had switched to using Leodrake as her Spiritual Beast, this was made with two reasons in mind, she didn't want to put the young cub in a scenario where it could watch such destruction, and the other was due to the need for more power to protect others.

And yet, here he was, the small cub was currently comforting its owner, Lara put her hand over its head, caressing it as she called back to when she finally summoned the little guy. "I wish... I could have had more time to bond together..." Admitted Lara.

The lion however, didn't want its owner to die in front of him, and so, it decided to do something that would perhaps make his tamer sad, but it would be enough to keep her alive.

Apelio started to turn into flames, as the small lion started to slowly disappear. Lara, seeing this started to panic as she didn't know what her Spiritual Beast was doing by its own volition. "Apelio? He-hey Apelio! What are you doing?!" She questioned as she saw the small lion smile as it slowly faded away.

Lara started to feel a fire burning inside of her, telling her to continue living, as if it was Apelio telling her directly. Lara started to change as she felt the powers of the spirits rushing through inside of her.

She raised her hand as she noticed that there was no longer any blood on it. The two gusto children started to hug her, relieved that their big sister figure was still alive.

Meanwhile, Kamui felt a wave of melancholy, he gripped his staff even harder, as he remembered Falco's sacrifice.

In the end, using the Spiritual Beasts gave the same results as when they used the creatures of the forest. Not only was he unable to continue the tradition of the Gusto, its replacement simply led to the same situation he was in.

A roar then was heard as they looked towards who made the sound, it was a Yang Zing, more specifically Taotie, a dragon with four legs and two arms, it was the first Yang Zing to be infected and turned into a shadow. It lowered its head in a way to show respect as it then wished to become Lara's Spiritual Beast.

Kamui saw this as an opportunity to have everyone regroup. "Lara, could you get everyone in the back of Taotie? We're going to need to regroup with the others." Asked Kamui. Lara gave a nod in response as she then took Wen and Pilica in the back of her Spiritual Beast, at the same time, she then tried her new found powers from Apelio to cast a vortex of flames while Taotie then proceeded to rain down shots of light.

The Gusto elder then got on top of his own Spiritual Beast, ready to take flight alongside Issei and Lara. While flying towards the others, he did however, start wondering about the current state of their source of power.

Was only using Spiritual Beasts really worth it? Lara had shown power through her union with the creatures that have been helping them, Leodrake and now Taotie became her mounts, and both seem to have brought excellent results to their cause, albeit the latter was still in need of more testing to give a final verdict.

Kamui looked up at the sky, it was cloudy, he wondered if his sister would have been able to clear the sky. He wondered if he would be riding on top of his trusted companion Falco too.

He truly missed his family.

But at the same time, he was proud of how far he had gotten as the chieftain of the Gusto tribe, he had two daughters that he loved dearly, a promising candidate to become the new leader of the tribe, and a relation with the former Gishki Tribe that had previously been hostile to them, he had been able to do something that wasn't possible in the past. Granted, it was a mutual agreement with Avance who had taken leadership, but it was still something his wife, Reeze, would tell the Naturia.

Perhaps it was time to let the next generation take the lead now, he was getting too old.

After localizing the Zefra and the others, they quickly made their way towards them. The Nekroz, specifically Avance and Exa came towards them as they asked if they were injured and such. Emilia came there after still in her form that was channeling Sophia's powers. Exciton Knight and Crystal went and asked where Issei was, but Kamui and the others could not respond with a lot of confidence.

Ptolemaeus was currently standing on guard in case Tierra came towards them at any moment. "Everyone! I need your attention!" Yelled out Caduceus. Said yell made everyone turn their heads as the Constellar seemed to have an idea as to what their next decisions would be.

"Our opponent now is Tierra, as you may know, she is the Source of Destruction, and you should expect her to show no mercy on us." Warned Caduceus. "As such, we must make sure that we take down our opponent as fast as possible to avoid damage."

Shurit then took a few steps forward as he then lent a sheet of paper to each one of them. "I'll have to modify the plan a bit now that Lara has a new Spiritual Beast, but aside from that, it should be the same plan as before." Once everyone had a sheet of paper, they then looked at the contents, only to be met with a few instructions. "Everyone should get in position as we will attempt to take down the other threats first, those being the Qliphort and the remaining Infernoids that might get in the way. After we finish with them, we should be able to focus against Tierra, but that time will come sooner or later. Right now Caduceus and I will try to figure out what to do after we take out the weaker opponents." Finished instructing Shurit. "Any questions?" Exciton Knight raised his hand, to which Shurit said. "Yes Exciton Knight?"

"Yeah, what about the fact that Issei is currently in front of Yaldabaoth?" Said the former Steelswarm as he pointed at Tierra's direction. "What?!" Said the massed as they then looked at where Exciton Knight was pointing, and low and behold, Issei was currently in front of Tierra.

"What is he doing?!" Said Ptolemaeus with concern.

"You've got to be kidding me..." Caduceus face palmed as he did not expect him to be so bold as to battle Tierra face to face.

"We need to go help him!" Yelled Crystal with concern, however, Avance then pointed out. "And put ourselves and the plan into jeopardy? I'm sorry Crystal, but I believe we need to put the safety of everyone else first before the life of Issei..."

Right now, all they could do is put into action their plan and pray that Issei didn't die.

---

Issei was panicking, he knew it, and yet, he couldn't stop himself. The mental burnout of fighting for many days in a row without rest was enough to make anyone go crazy. He ran around as he tried to find a way to calm himself down, but it was all to no avail.

He then saw as a bunch of Qliphorts and Infernoids came after him. Despite panicking, he knew that he still needed to fight back, or else he would die. Using Blade Forged From Souls, he cleaved the machines that blocked his path.

Slashing and stabbing, the waves of the enemy continued to come after him, which made him move much more erratically. He looked around, paranoid as to what else would come after him, finally seeing a gap between the waves, he made a run for it as he tried to flee from the situation.

While running he ended up spreading his wings, taking flight as the Qliphorts and Infernoids continued to follow him. He then used Phoenix Wing to make the swarm back off. Seeing as they didn't, he then activated Dusk as a last resort, desperate to get away from the enemy, and to escape to try and calm down.

He shot through his fingers while flying, the sound of metal could be heard as the bullets only left a dent on the surface of the enemy. Before he knew it, an Infernoid got in front of him, ready to take him down. But Issei activated Harpy's Talon, ripping the Infernoid apart as it then dropped to the ground below.

And that was enough to bring him back from his Panic State. He had regained enough Sanity back.

He looked around, wondering what the hell he was doing, he realized that running away was probably the worst thing he could do at that moment as he left the Gusto Tribe that had taken him in rot to death.

Even so, he couldn't go back now, he didn't know how long he had been running away, but now he was closer to Tierra than to the spot that Kamui and the others were. He sighed, knowing full well he had screwed up there.

But there was no going back, not unless he killed himself. He didn't want to do that, if anything, perhaps it would be better to give a risky action a shot before resetting.

It was time for him to talk with Yaldabaoth.

Issei continued to fly, marching towards the giant entity that was turning everything in its path into nothing. Issei could see two small orbs on its hands, orbs similar to the ones Sophia had, albeit much smaller than hers.

Before the Yaldabaoth could take another step however, Issei put himself before the False God. Seeing as he didn't stop at the sigh of his harbinger, he then yelled as loud as he could to get his attention. "Yaldabaoth!"

Just then a notification immediately appeared.

A new song has been added to the Gallery

In Hell We Live, Lament (Let's Lament) by Mili

Hearing the voice of Issei, the God of Humanity stopped on his tracks as he finally noticed the one that he chose as his messiah. "Issei..." He whispered, but the voice had a higher pitch than before, to the point it seemed feminine.

"You need to stop this! What is your plan?! What do you seek from creating such tragedy on the surface of this world you've created?!" Demanded Issei. These questions had been floating around his mind ever since he had woken up from his time in a coma.

"What do I seek? What I seek is to put an end to this world..." Declared Yaldabaoth. "Its inhabitants, its history, they mean nothing to me, I will take over this world, destroy it and then reshape it to my liking! I will make it so that the life that I end up creating follows my command!"

Issei looked at this declaration with surprise. "Yaldabaoth! Then what about our dream?! The one of creating a world where no one can feel emotions?! Why must you destroy it?! We have sworn to protect the world you've created no matter what! And now you're thinking of simply destroying it?! What the hell are you thinking?!"

A silent stare down ensued as Issei tried to comprehend Yaldabaoth's thinking, meanwhile the False God simply responded after finding his words. "This world? Issei... this isn't the world we swore to protect, no, this is the Garden of Eden that brought so many bad memories. The place that twisted the truth of what happened, the place that took away my freedom... and where I had to kill everyone I knew... Do you think I would want this world to exist? Think about it, I, who thought to be the original God! The all powerful being that created the Archons... the humans... everything! Do you think I would be satisfied knowing that my whole life was a lie?!"

"My mother never loved me! I was all alone after being kicked from the Garden of Eden! All I seek now is to bury away all these memories that hurt me! I wish to annihilate and make this stain of my life disappear forever! And... that's why I chose Winda and Ariel as puppets... because I knew full well you wouldn't dare hurt them as I continue my plan..." Finished saying Yaldabaoth.

"W-what do you mean by that?!" Questioned Issei, but Yaldabaoth showed him exactly what he was talking about. "See these vacuum tubes Issei? They contain your beloved, I know exactly what you can do with Dusk, if you do activate it... guess what will happen to them..." Upon hearing this threat from Yaldabaoth, Issei started to become furious, the fact that he had taken people he held so dearly as hostages made his blood boil.

"Y-you... YOU BASTARD!" He screamed as he rushed towards Yaldabaoth. The God of Humanity, seeing the sudden movement, used the orbs on both of his hands to summon light creatures and blasts of darkness. Yet despite any attempt to stop Issei they were pointless, after all, this wasn't the first time someone used the same tactics against him.

Issei this time didn't attack Yaldabaoth with an unrelenting stream of attacks, instead, he looked for a way to weaken him enough so that there wouldn't be need for them to fight.

"Yes... YES! Continue to fight against me! You've grown from the last time I've seen you, Issei! It's a shame that your struggles are for naught however..." Taunted Yaldabaoth. Issei ignored them as he finally got close to the giant entity.

"Shut up... just shut up... LISTEN TO ME YOU FOOL!" Screamed out Issei as he then grabbed a part of Tierra, specifically the big plate on its chest. He used every single ounce of strength he had to finally rip it out, the metallic sounds were aggressive, even so, Yaldabaoth let it happen, Issei lifted the plate as scrap and pieces could be seen flying off from the force of the pull. From there, the new form that Yaldabaoth had taken revealed itself.

A feminine figure with white hair and a black dress could be seen sitting in what looked like a cockpit, she looked at Issei, waiting for the boy to kill her right there. She closed her eyes, awaiting her death, but instead, she saw a hand being extended in front of her, waiting for her to take it.

"You fool... come on, take my hand, we're getting out of here." Declared Issei, confused, Yaldabaoth continued to stare at him, Issei then repeated. "Didn't you hear me? Come on... I know exactly what you've been planning..."

Yaldabaoth gave a sarcastic laugh. "Oh really? Then what exactly have I been doing for the last 40 years, do tell?" Confident as she believed that Issei didn't know, she waited for an answer.

"You're trying to become the villain of the story, trying to make me hate you by using those around me with empty threats right? This is your way to finally end it once and for all isn't it?" Answered Issei, still with hand out ready to be reached by Yaldabaoth.

Issei wanted to stop this planned suicide Yaldabaoth had created, he wouldn't let him carry it out, not when he couldn't stop Sayori from commiting suicide before. This time he would make sure to save his god.

Yaldabaoth sighed. "You sure know me don't you?" She commented. Issei laughed a bit, just to respond. "Yeah... how couldn't I? You've seen me at my lowest points... You've given me reason to live... You've shared your troubles with me... I see you as a true partner here Yaldabaoth... We can make it through together, us against the world."

"Us... against the world uh?" Repeated Yaldabaoth, slowly, her vision started to blur as she started crying. "Fuck... you're just like Samael..." She whispered. Issei didn't catch it, but he didn't care, he simply waited for Yaldabaoth to finally recover.

"Life isn't fair, we've both seen the bad part of it time and time again, but you've said it before, we'll find the good side so long as we continue to live... In this unfair world, it's better to suffer together than to suffer alone, as... this way... we will at least have each other to comfort one another... wouldn't you agree?" Issei continued to try to convince Yaldabaoth to come with him, he wouldn't leave him behind.

However, it was still not enough to convince him to come with him. "Then... what? Do you just want me to continue existing just because you say so? That is fucking selfish of you, don't you think? Are you just going to forgive me for the atrocities I've done? Do you expect me to just forgive and forget everything that I've been doing for the last 40 years?! About the ideas, the plans, the inexplicable atrocities that would befall your world had I not met you?! I regret everything I've done up until this point... I can't just move on like nothing happened!"

Issei still proceeded with more attempts to convince him. "If you truly feel sorry... then repent for it, you're just taking the easy way out if you just want to die! If you really wanted to seek redemption... then live damn it! You say it as if you don't have any single good memory! I've been there for you! We've shared laughs! We've shared sorrows! I saw you as the only one who could understand me! Has everything we've been through meant nothing to you?! You're just punishing those that have nothing to do with your guilt!"

Yaldabaoth then yelled out. "SHUT IT!" She then pushed Issei away, still staying inside of Tierra. "You... I'll kill you! I'll really kill you if you continue with this!" Yaldabaoth started controlling Tierra, she then aimed at Issei.

But Issei, while falling, said while smiling. "Then do it. You wouldn't do that... I trust you."

"That... smile..." For a short moment, Yaldabaoth could have sworn that instead of Issei there, she could see Samael smiling back at her. Was it the clothes? Was it the mask of Dusk? Was it his attitude? He could pull the trigger at that moment.

"Yaldabaoth..." Gently said Issei as he flew up again towards the False God. "Please..."

The God of Humanity stayed silent, tears started to fall as she... he started to tremble.

Oh, how he wished to have talked to Issei before... He truly had screwed up. He was the fated villain, there was no going back after accepting the deal with that being.

If... only IF... there was truly a chance to finally escape his fate... then he would take it without a shadow of a doubt.

And Issei had done so before, there was no one more perfect for what he wanted than Issei. Even after stalking his memories while inside Tierra, waiting to finally be released, each time Issei thought of him, there was no ill intentions.

Issei had doubted himself, wondered if he was truly doing the correct thing, he had wondered if he should follow Yaldabaoth, that hurt the god, but at the same time, it was understandable, especially since he had forsaken his own harbinger.

And yet, all Yaldabaoth could see was genuine worry for him.

The times Issei blamed himself for not being up to par to become his harbinger, the times he was truly willing to throw away those connections he made to the habitants of this world for him...

It moved him to the core.

Those times he ended up crying as he heard such words for him, for over years of being ousted as an evil entity, after so many years of no one to even care about him...

It felt nice.

It truly felt nice to have someone care about you.

And so, Yaldabaoth, trembling, bawled the name of his harbinger. "ISSEI!"

He extended his hand towards the boy. However, he felt a few hands grabbing onto him, not letting the False God escape from the cockpit of Tierra.

The Distortion he had become wouldn't allow him to so easily escape his sins.

Yaldabaoth yelled out in a desperate attempt to show how much he wanted to take Issei's hand.

"Please! Take me with you! I want to be at your side!"

Memories of him and Samael continue to replay inside his mind, the times they spent time together, talking to one another, having fun for an eternity. They reminded him of Issei.

"I want to teach you how to use your powers!"

Memories of Adam and Eve, his troubles trying to teach them, the satisfaction he got from his students finally understanding a concept, the close relationship they had, similar to a proud father and his children. They reminded him of Issei.

"I want to see you grow as someone who will carry my dream!"

Memories of his daughter, of how she understood him so well, someone he could count on if he ever felt doubt, whenever he felt like there was no one else that could see the same view as his. They reminded him of Issei.

"I want to finally see the good side of life again!"

That image he had carried for so many years, of a perfect god, had finally broken.

He was just as human as Issei.

"DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!"

"I BEG YOU!"

"PLEASE!"

Upon listening to the desperate pleas of his god, Issei flew straight towards Yaldabaoth, extending his hand towards the God as well.

A new image has been added to the Gallery

The Fool

And yet... it was not enough, Yaldabaoth succumbed to the strength of the arms that grabbed him. The cockpit closed, as Issei was inches away from being able to take Yaldabaoth's hand.

"Yaldabaoth!" Screamed out Issei, hoping to get an answer, he instead saw Tierra charging an attack against him. However, given the fact he was running low on Sanity, he had been forced to withdraw his E.G.O.

Seeing as he was in a helpless situation, he stood there, waiting for the combined attack of light and darkness to obliterate him.

It frustrated him really, he was so close to saving Yaldabaoth from himself, and yet, he was so far away. Looking at the ray that was coming towards him, he closed his eyes against an imminent death. But instead, it never came, opening his eyes again, he saw a view that he never expected to see.

The books from before... the books that he had no idea about, it's been 40 years and he had forgotten about them, they were absorbing the attack. After the attack stopped, the books dropped and started floating around him.

Seeing as he had been given another chance in life, he took the books and fled away.

Yaldabaoth... no, Saklas watched as her harbinger retreated from the place.

But right now she had plans, this time, to truly destroy this world and create her paradise. She'd consume the remnants of the Qliphorts and Infernoids, alongside the other half of Ptolemaeus, Lapis.

Yes, that should be enough, given the fact they are one and the same, it should be enough to make it so that part of the essence within Ptolemaeus transfers into Lapis. She'd first need to release Lapis from the seal of the Ice Barrier and consume her powers.

This was her only chance to win as the villain, and she'd be damned if she wasted it.

---

The books, they had to be the key to fixing this, they were powerful enough to absorb the powers of creation and destruction, and now they glowed ever so brightly. Issei hurried towards the others, flying around, he saw them clashing against light creatures, Infernoids and Qliphorts.

But right now, he needed to talk with Caduceus and Ptolemaeus, as they were the ones with these powers. Seeing them working together as they defeated an Infernoid, they noticed Issei coming towards them.

Excited to see Issei alive, Ptolemaeus said. "Issei! Thank god you're safe! Why did you go towards Tierra?!" But then she saw the books he was holding, Caduceus, sensing the power they had, then asked. "What the hell happened?"

Issei on the other hand, did not respond, instead he demanded. "I want everyone to regroup, I have something I want to confess." But before they could leave to tell the others, he wished to tell the two of them first, as they were already there with him.

"I know Tierra... or how I know him as... Yaldabaoth, I am not from this world, and I need your help to save him." Confessed Issei, this got a look of surprise in reaction.

"We will... talk about this once you tell this to everyone else... I knew you weren't from this world, but to think you wish to save the Source of Destruction... We'll hear you out, but I am unsure if that's an option." Commented Caduceus.

The heroes of light and darkness flew to call every single one so that they could talk about this revelation. Issei sat down as he tried to process the words of Yaldabaoth.

They were... desperate, it was as if he had no choice but to do this... What happened while he was gone?

He tried to remember any sort of clue that could explain what happened, but at most, all he could do was blindly accuse that entity that he met of being the culprit. Perhaps the same entity had given the proposition to Yaldabaoth, and he had accepted. There wasn't enough evidence either way, he'd have to get it from Yaldabaoth's mouth instead.

And there was also the fact that Yaldabaoth was currently holding Ariel and Winda hostage. He needed to be careful as to what he would do so that the two of them wouldn't get hurt or killed during the imminent battle.

Until he realized that this didn't make sense, they had the power for reviving people.

"Fuck..." Issei facepalmed as he realized that, not only did Yaldabaoth give him an empty threat that he believed wholeheartedly, but also one that didn't make sense either.

Alas, he still wouldn't have killed Yaldabaoth, unlike Ariel and Winda, he was sure that Yaldabaoth wasn't someone they could revive, after all, he was a god, and if they were to revive him again, they would need to create havoc just like the one that was happening right now.

Nonetheless, Ptolemaeus and Caduceus finally brought everyone, as they would then hear what Issei was going to confess.

---

"...and that is everything." Finished Issei, minutes of explaining it made everyone present look at him with either understanding or conflict.

Understanding from Exciton Knight, Crystal and Avance, and conflict from Exa, Ptolemaeus and Kamui.

Exciton Knight nodded as he understood what he was saying. "No matter the terrible deeds that Tierra had done, you're still willing to try and save him, you're truly loyal, I commend that." To which Crystal nodded in agreement.

"It is understandable that you want to save your friend... but are you sure it is possible? Not just that, but this could lead to more casualties than before..." Tried to reason Ptolemaeus.

"That might be true, but I can understand that sentiment... I would have done the same for my mother had I known that she wasn't like this to begin with." Avance Refuted, knowing full well that he would be a hypocrite if he were to say otherwise.

"The problem isn't that there will be more casualties, we can revive them after, the main issue is that I am unsure if we could save your friend." Pointed out the Gusto elder.

Issei then took out the two books that he put on the side of the rock he was sitting. "That's why I am willing to take a gamble with these books." The books continued to glow brightly, far more than the last time he saw them. "And I've told you about it before, I can rewind time." He finished.

He finally revealed that he could turn back time, alongside the Writer's System, it was necessary to make sure that everyone was onboard with his plan to save Yaldabaoth.

"But you don't truly know how far you will be sent back in time right?" Asked Exa. Issei himself didn't know how to respond to that question. "I've only died once, but that time, I died right after I completed a quest, so chances are, I will be sent back to the start of the quest... which means that Lara will always be injured at the start of it."

Lara flinched at the idea of always being at death's door at the start of a new loop, but the one who was far more skeptical was Wen. "I don't mean to doubt the fact that you're lying about this, after all, you're not crazy enough to tell a lie in such a dire moment, nor do I believe you're working with Tierra. The main problem that I have with this plan is this possible limit that you may have."

This was a valid argument, Issei hadn't tried to test the waters of this trait he had, he was far too fearful of the repercussions, but right now it seemed like the best time to abuse it, there didn't seem to be anything that could stop this plan, and this was for the purpose of saving Yaldabaoth from himself.

"Then we're going to try and battle Yaldabaoth right?" Asked Pilica. Kamui sighed. "Yeah... I'm scared of what may happen to you dear... but I know that right now I can't stop you, not when you're someone chosen by the Sacred Naturia Tree..."

"Then what are we waiting for? We must make our way towards Tierra and defeat him!" Said Crystal as he got ready to take flight.

Before they could do that however, the Nekroz sensed that something was off with the seal on Lapis. "Wait... someone somehow was able to break the Ice Barrier seal and break out Lapis." Commented Emilia.

Right on cue, they saw Lapis flying towards Tierra. Ptolemaeus looked bewildered at seeing her twin sister being consumed by Tierra.

The form of Tierra then started to glow, after consuming the Qliphorts that remained alongside the vacuum tubes of the Infernoid, it had finally reached the pinnacle of its power. Instead of having a serpent like body, it had the extremities of Apoqliphort Towers, Skybase wrapped around its belt and the odd fragments that Lapis had.

Everyone looked at Issei once again, right after observing that Tierra had gotten stronger. Exa then said. "Are you sure you still want to continue with this plan?"

"Of course, if I die now, I will come back to life with knowledge of what is to come, I'll make sure all of you know of the events." Reassured Issei. "But right now, I would rather give it a chance if anything."

"Then let me try something too." Said Ptolemaeus. "But I will have to remove the powers of the Zefra to try it." Warned the heroine of light. "I will enter the Sefirot System and attempt to concentrate the powers onto someone."

"That someone being Issei." Declared Ptolemaeus. "You're the one who defeated Sophia, it would only be natural for you to be the one to bring Tierra down, be it through killing or through salvation."

"This is all because you've mentioned your trait called Unknown Sefirot, given the fact you haven't been chosen to be a Zefra, it is possible that we could awaken you as one if we were to forcefully put the powers onto you." Explained Ptolemaeus. "It won't be breaking the rules like Leodrake said, since we're the ones giving it rather than the one who gaining them

"Then please, do it, I want to save Yaldabaoth." He responded with determination. Ptolemaeus then proceeded to recall the powers of the Zefra, leaving many of them in their original form, however, in the case of Crystal, who had parts of his armor completely broken, left sections of his body revealed, which included his face and hair.

The light of the Zefra then was returned to the Sacred Naturia Tree, only for the same light to be redirected towards Issei. The powers of the Zefra would all be given to Issei, who at that moment had been engulfed by the blinding rays.

Unlike that dark room he had been in when taking that deal with the entity, this time, it felt like he would finally leave behind those bad memories and continue on as a reformed man.

The resolve he had continued to not break as he found a new reason to not give up. He'd save the god who had bound himself to him, and then they would continue on as they originally intended.

The books that Issei had started to float in front of him. And so, they finally revealed their names once again.

Book of Yesh has been destroyed

Book of Ayin has been destroyed

The books merged together, leaving behind a gray book with purple gems embedded around it.

Book of Ein Sof has been created

Issei opened the book, only to be surprised that he could understand its contents.

Nothing must exist, for Something to exist. Something must exist, for Nothing to exist. The paradox that exists within the Infinite.

It is, from there the Infinite Light is created, and so, the ten sefirot form themselves, as a way to explain the qualities of God... of Yaldabaoth.

Said name isn't his own, for his true name may never be revealed...

And yet, here he was, reading the name of the one he held so high.

The book that revealed the story of his god, of his creation, and of the tragedies that befell him.

He finally understood who Yaldabaoth was.

Why he was created, why he was fated to become the villain.

If he were to combine the qualities of Yaldabaoth... he'd be just like him...

No... they may have always been one of the same after Yaldabaoth chose him.

Just like Samael, he would be there to help him.

Issei, Knowledge of the Zefra

Through his travels, he met Yaldabaoth, the God of Humanity and befriended him in an unusual way. He learned of the untold stories of this misunderstood God, and lamented the events that broke him. He learned of forbidden and obscure information, the pain that the God went through, the true events that happened through history, and a tale that only he would know of. His knowledge, that is what made him special, with such knowledge, it was enough proof that a concept truly existed. Only when he doesn't know does it mean it never existed.

You have lost the trait (Unknown Sefirot)

You have obtained the Trait (Sefirot Daat)

(Darkest Day): User triples the effectiveness of Traits, Skills and Items related to birds. Does not count drawbacks. Can only be activated after Upon activating a skill related to birds, allows the user to activate E.G.O. Upon deactivating E.G.O, remove 50% of Total Sanity

(Fenghuang's Contractor): Decreases cooldown of Wind related skills by 50%.

(Sefirot Daat): User deals triple damage against Biblical enemies. User is immune against Biblical enemies. Increases Stat gain. Allows user to take and grant Light. Increases all stats depending on the base Temperance stat. Allows user to turn into Dragon God of Infinite Light.

Ah... that was quite ironic. Issei remembered his talk with Yaldabaoth about Ophis and Great Red. This name was one that he recognized. But at the same time, it was not the same as Ophis.

In this case, while Ophis represents Nothing, Chaos and Infinity. Issei represented Light, Infinity and Order. Two sides of a coin in a way. Issei looked at the book one more time, the dark colors with purple colors no longer shined, the book itself had then turned into dust, as it was never meant to exist.

Yaldabaoth's name was lost forever, now with Issei being the only one who truly knew it.

And so, it was finally time.

It was time to save Yaldabaoth.

Quest #5

Core Suppression

Condition: Defeat Saklas

Failure: Fail to defeat Saklas

Q̷̫̲͚̺͐̀͛̐̀̕ȕ̵̢̫̪̘̐͆̄̍͠ȩ̶̫̯͍͎̫̗̻̬̪̌̽͑͗̚s̸̢͈̻̦̜̲͕̮̮̮̒́̆̈́t̸̞͇̀͠ ̵̞̥͔̂͛̕͝#̷̥̭̀̐͌̌̈́͘͜5 ̷͚̟̙̹̯͗̃̇̈́̇̊̂̽͛ ̷͇̏̐̈̀̈́̒

Ĉ̴͎͚̬̌͗̾̃͂̊̐̿ơ̸̺̻̠͈͚̟̯̩̎͂͌̓̏̾̉͋̕r̷̨̖͙̞̮̙̭̯͊̉̇ͅȩ̴̡̧͍͎̥̫̣̖̅ ̶͓̲̘̣̖͎̊̉̍S̴̮̹̬̣̥͚̳̓̎͗͗ͅu̶̢̥̬̤̰̅̅̀̐p̷̨̣͉̻͕̮̞͊͆͝p̶͖̮͚̎͑̕ͅr̶̺̎̑ë̸̥̬͚̟̘̪͙́̒͗s̸͚͑̿̐͋̉̎̂̍̐̍ś̴̛̛͙̝̬̰̀͂̈̕͠ḭ̷̈́̈́͆͊o̶̧̹͓̅̃̄̆̎n̵̮͎̼̩̟͊̈͐͒͌͒͠ͅ ̵̜̩̩̣̔̾͒́̓̈̃̽ ̴̡͕̟̝̝̱̳̼͕̜̎̈́̉̀͝͠

C̵̦͇̥̳̣̹̳̠͋͜ỏ̵̪̞̤͈̈͋͝ͅn̶͔̽̔̀̆̐͂̃͜ḍ̸̬͇̻̀̄͋̂͋̀i̵̡̺̠̖͉͔̔̊͜͠t̷͉̦̪̆̈̌́̅̈̉̉͊͜í̸͖͍̣͕̪̝̖̗͍͚̒͌ǫ̵̢̡̺̩̳͗̈́̎ņ̸̩̫̯̖͙̲͌͂̂:̷̧̻̙̄͋̅ ̶̨̺̗͈̼̳̣̰̯̍͐͛͌D̷̨̋́͝ē̵̟̦̌̋͂͂̂̽͘̕̚f̴̮̦̱͙̈̒̓̓͋̋̕͘͝͝e̴̡̧̯̯̮̟͑̋͆͐͝͝ͅǎ̷͕͓̿͝t̴͚̹̭̰̭̹͛ ̷̣̖̮̗̲̯͙̃͜S̶̜̜̝͎̝̽̄̀̋̉ä̸̤̱́͊̓͘k̵̼͈̽͒̅̊̕̚͜l̷̗̩̝̟̙͚̾͜å̵̧̜͉̤̹ͅs̴̡̛̪̗͚͇͓͎͛̈̂̈́̃͜͜ ̴̮̮̗͚͌̍̔̅̽̀͠ ̶̡̫̪̟̜̩̮̊̍

F̶̧̢̞̦̬̼̥͙̼̖̓ą̴̰͕̭̺̋͛̀ị̵̹̳̜̽l̶̢̻̽͛͌͐͌̓͝͠ų̸͍͙͇͎̗̻̬͔̀̑́́̾͆̈́r̵̜͕͉͎͉̥̳̮̋̈́̋e̵̻͇̓͌͒:̶͉̟̪͓̔̓ ̶̨̩̺̰̫͈̬̖̍̏̈̀F̴̡̡̰̱̥̳̥̼̪̄̈́́̓̓̋̚a̶̧̙̝͖͇̗̘͍̳͐̌͑̓̈́͑͘͠i̴̡̟̘̻͛̔͐͝͝͠ͅl̵̦̮̤̝͉̥͂̏̀̂̇ͅͅ ̴̩̥̞̪̙͕̩̗̌̃͂̏͘̚t̸̛̪̮̽̅̅̓͛̀̐̀o̷̤̣͖͇̒̕͠ ̷͔͉̃͋̔̕d̸̨͉̠̲͈̭͕̐͆̕e̸̺̝̞͚̫̮̗̥͕̅̌͑̾f̵̢̨̘͔͍̥̬̀ͅẽ̷̛͚̱̞̫͆͋̓͌͝a̶̭͎̬̅ţ̵̱̹̬̮̾̒̈́͑̄̽ ̴͈̫̥͇̦̔͆̅̆̾̑̐͆̔͊͜S̴̭͕͕̳̠̪̯̟̭͒͜a̷̫̳͙̞̪̥̝͕̤̐̊͋̒͘͘k̷̢̤͈̬͙̖͉̝̻̈́̎̌̿̂̈́̉̾l̴̤͉̔͆̽̌̃͝a̷̡̞̠̹̅̎͐̍̔͠s̶̤͋̓͝

Q̷̫̲͚̺͐̀͛̐̀̕ȕ̵̢̫̪̘̐͆̄̍͠ȩ̶̫̯͍͎̫̗̻̬̪̌̽͑͗̚s̸̢͈̻̦̜̲͕̮̮̮̒́̆̈́t̸̞͇̀͠ ̵̞̥͔̂͛̕͝#̷̥̭̀̐͌̌̈́͘͜5 ̷͚̟̙̹̯͗̃̇̈́̇̊̂̽͛ ̷͇̏̐̈̀̈́̒

C̴̞̖̻̭̐̃͌̈́̌͑́́̐o̴͇͙̫͉̲̰͎̩͚̓̾́́̚͠ͅȓ̴̳͐̓̀͌͆͆e̸̛͚ ̴̮̺̪̏̒͐̏̌S̴̛̫̰̮͇̹̺̩͇̓͋͗ų̴̫̗̘́̀̒̑̀͘p̸̜̟͊p̶̨̮̻̟̥͑́͛̎̆͛͝r̴̛͓͎͎̲̮̀̎̾̒͜e̵̬͎̽͐̿s̴̺̼͎͈̫̭͔͎̭̣̑̈́̌̔͊́͝s̶̡̧͙̠͍͚͔̙̄̏̓́́́͌͊͠ĩ̷̖͋̄̌̌̇ǫ̵̡̟̳͈̦͗̎́̐̚n̷̡̢̦̮̖͇̖̜̂͐̀ ̵̨̩̱͔̪̽̄ ̸̝̯̍̏͂̋̚

C̸̤̑̃̈́̑̈́̑̄̿̀ǒ̵͓̺̳̯̝̖͊̌͗̀̇̔̇͘͝ņ̸̨̨̮͖̜̯̙͋̇͋̊́̍͋̽ͅd̸̡̛̜̻̺̉͠i̶̢̛̬̩̯͍̤͖̲̤͎̎̿̄̔̀͊̑̕ṱ̶̨̗͖̹̊̃̐͌̓̈́̽̈́͜͜i̷̖̫̝̝̦͠ơ̸̫͍̲͚̲͚̯̺͛̀͊́͜ͅn̷̻̝͓̦̒́̇̐͋:̸͑͊͐̄̋̈́͜ ̶̡̩̝̼͂͛̈́͌Ṣ̵̼̼̜̙̝͚͓̝͕̅̇̑̕a̵̡̛͍̖̤̝̖̭͍̜̘͌͛́͌v̷̦͉̪͍̬̪̎̋̍̈́͛͜e̴̛̳̞̹̯̲͚͋̿̍̀̄̓͝͝͠ ̶̨̲̫͌Y̷̼̼̫̖̻̲̭͆̎a̴̘͕͠l̷̛̝̦̜̪͕̘̱̭̙͆̓̔̽d̸̢͙̟̗̞̣͉͖͆̒͋̇͜ã̴̢͍̄̎͌͊̑̍̚̕͠b̶̡̯̹͙̝̰̱̗͍͂̀͛̇̔a̸̧̧̙͍̅̍̅̄͐o̴̜͍̐͠t̶̯̥̅̓̑́́h̴̞̙̲̰̯̖̖̍́̒̎͜͝ ̷̢̮́̃͗̍̒ ̷̦̠͘

F̵̡̬̝̳̣̞̙̩͓͈̒̌͌ḁ̶͉̄̂̄i̸̢̬͙͎̎̆̕l̷̡͈̘̟̮̠͎͖̦̦̀ṷ̸͔̱̓r̸͓̰̞̓́͌͌̒ë̴̛̖͕͈̰̳̦̥̈͂:̶̧̧̝̟̓̓̔̾̓̃̿̈́ ̷̪̟̦̜̜͓̣̣̏̋̐̐̆̿͜F̵̡̛͚͖̟̗̣̅͆̀̄̆̓͐̃a̷̧̦̞͇̪͉̼͔͂̈́̓̆̀i̷̙̼̼͚̤̠̊͆̆́͘͠l̷͚͔̮̹̣̳̓̇̈́̌ ̵̤͍̺̻̣̯̱̙̂̌̀̇͠ţ̴̧̧̠̗̻̦̤̞͇͆ȏ̸͕̬͈̟͇͔̮̩͙̀̾̓͛͝ ̸̠̲̣̊͛͑͌s̴̡̗̱̗͇̠̙͑ȁ̸̲̳̪͋v̴̧̖͎͈̗͖̦̏͗͜͝e̴̫̙͖̤̤̔̔̈͗̚͝ ̸̡͍͎̜̑͛̂̀̊͗͜͝Y̸̛̪̬̙̞͆ạ̸̞̌̅̂̅́̀l̶̨̳̰̮̻͎̱͔͆̎̉̄̎̒̄̊ḑ̶̰̝̗̮̋̉a̴̧̳̣̳̬͚̓̔͌̆ͅb̵̦̭̳̳́̓͋͂̚a̴̫͔̦̣̳̞̭̪̞̎́ơ̶͚͖̬̆̋̈́͗̈́͠t̴̲̬͚̀̇͛͌̈́̇̃̔̄͜͝h̴̲̤̞̝͖̓̽͊̀͜

Quest #5

Core Suppression

Condition: Save Yaldabaoth

Failure: Fail to save Yaldabaoth

A new song has been added to the Gallery

Unknown Mother Goose by Wowaka (Arrangement Version by Hydamio/cover2468)

A new image has been added to the Gallery

Knowing I

Issei flew towards Yaldabaoth in this new form he had.

He had turned into a dragon covered in armor, the colors black and white divided from left and right, with a tint of gold and red highlighting lines of his equipment, wings covering his back as they spread far and wide. Blade Forged From Souls had been assimilated by his dragon tail, turning it into a spear with each single gem he had collected embedded in the middle.

"Yaldabaoth!" Shouted the dragon of Infinite Light. Saklas looked at the form that his former harbinger took.

"A dragon? You really decided to turn into a dragon? You sure know how to reopen a closed wound." Joked the False God. "But no matter what form you take, do you seriously think you can defeat me? You're not the so-called protagonist of this story, not when your role has always been that of a Secondary Character!"

"Enough with this! I'll bring you back to your senses! I'll save you from this trauma that you've enclosed yourself into! Because no matter how you see it, you're a victim! And yet you're acting like you're the aggressor!" Promised the boy. Saklas could only look in anger as she only could hear empty promises.

What did this fool know about her life?

"The victim? Even if I were the victim... I would still be at fault for the unreasonable atrocities I've done... the pain that I brought to this world just to finally find a way to die... the wishes of genocide against the demons... everything unrelated to the Garden of Eden cannot be justified just because I was a victim of a past event." Argued Saklas.

The battle started as Saklas proceeded to shoot out various missiles towards Issei, in this new form, Issei flapped his wings as he tried to get more height, the moment he did so, the floor below got completely cleaned off, leaving only the brown ground below.

He maneuvered himself in the sky, dodging each shot as he tried to get closer to Saklas. But then, the Source of Destruction then proceeded to jump towards him.

The spider-like extremities pinned both of his arms down as they both crashed into the floor, a tremor could be heard as Saklas pinned Issei down.

Saklas then proceeded to shoot fire from his mouth straight towards Issei's body, burning him alive.

But thanks to Poem Girl in Pink, he was able to survive the attack.

He then got Yaldabaoth off him to then swing his tail against the False God, the opponent was however, able to dodge the attack as she back stepped carefully to dodge the sweeps from Issei's tail.

Issei then proceeded to call forth various swords made of light, shooting them towards Yaldabaoth.

But yet again, the God of Humanity managed to dodge the attacks thanks to her slim body. Through the dodging, he managed to get close once again, but this time, he used his tail to swing against Issei.

Issei then dodged the attack, only to realize that it was a faint, he then saw as Yaldabaoth then put his hand on Issei's face, as he then blasted it off with the power of destruction.

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Issei then opened his eyes again, realizing that he was still in his newly found dragon form once again, looking forward, he saw that he was in front of Yaldabaoth.

"What? You thought you'd be able to beat me right after getting a power boost? Please, you haven't even tried out your powers in that form, how the fuck do you believe you could beat me like that?" Taunted the God of Humanity.

"It doesn't matter, it just means that I can try this as many times as I want." Brushed off the dragon of Infinite Light.

"Then approach me once again if you dare." Threatened Yaldabaoth.

Issei then proceeded to rush towards Yaldabaoth.

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Issei could remember having a hole in his stomach as he had been hit by Yaldabaoth's powers of destruction.

The pain and horror still haunted him even after he had come back to life.

But that didn't stop him, he would continue to battle against Yaldabaoth until he put some sense back inside him.

Perhaps he could also try and learn about his powers too.

He'd finally found out how one of the skills worked. The knowledge he had would be able to either increase exponentially its power, or completely negate it into a worthless action.

Even so, there was more to that than just manipulating the potency of the powers. He still needed to find out what else there was to his abilities as the dragon of Infinite Light.

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Again!" Said Issei.

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I'm not done yet!" Yelled Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I won't give up on you! No matter how many times you kill me!" Declared Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Stop!" Pleaded Saklas

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Just stop!" Screamed Saklas

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"When will you stop this pointless battle?!" Questioned Saklas

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Why won't you just give up?!" Asked Saklas

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I won't stop until I save you..." Responded Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I've said it before... I'm not giving up on you." Replied Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"This isn't just because of my selfish reasons, you also asked me to save you..." Expressed Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Even if I could have used Darkest Day..." Spoke Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"Even if I could have put an end to this fight by killing you thanks to its ability..." Continued Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I'm a fool, a fool who wouldn't leave any friend behind." Smiled Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"I promised Yaldabaoth... I won't leave you until you stop this..." Stated Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

Trait (Second Take) has activated

"We're partners...even if you don't voice your opinion." Uttered Issei

Trait (Second Take) has activated

A fight that would be remembered for years to come, as the story of the Thousand Sins.

A battle that went on for 1000 days, both Issei and Yaldabaoth continued to fight with every single ounce they could muster.

And now, it's end was about to come.

The giant dragon that Issei had become swung his tail, equipped with a lance, he was able to block the attack that was coming towards him.

The scorching flames released from Yaldabaoth's mouth completely burned anything on its path, and yet, Issei stood strong.

Yaldabaoth proceeded to summon light creatures, despite knowing they wouldn't be enough to defeat Issei, he knew he wouldn't be letting them go around hurting his friends.

Issei casted light lances that went towards Yaldabaoth and his light creatures, the lances pierced through the body of the imps that the False God had summoned, completely neutralizing the god's previous move.

The False God let out a threatening roar that ripped the trees around him from their roots. He started dashing towards Issei, the various extremities that it had making a loud sound as they got closer and closer to Issei.

The Dragon God then proceeded to grapple the horns of the God of Humanity, struggling to take him down as they both had weathered down their stamina from the days that had gone by.

With the use of the items and skills Issei had, he was lucky to have made it this far, how many tries had passed?

Issei then brought down Tierra, he then opened his mouth to shoot a stream of light, knowing it was still not enough, he then swung his tail, slashing at Tierra's body while he was still down.

Yaldabaoth then finally got up, he then used the dark orb to blast Issei's face with the power of destruction, even so, it didn't kill him, as right now Issei was currently under the effects of his trait Deux Ex Machina.

Even so, the attack then prompted Poem Girl in Pink to activate, making him regain back half of his life again, this was the reason why the battle had gone on for so long.

The Sacred Naturia Tree had been burnt down as collateral damage, even with the loss of Yaldabaoth's first creation, they continued to fight.

And yet, to them it didn't look like that, to them it was a struggle that only the two of them could only see, one where through their attacks, they told one another of how they felt.

For Yaldabaoth, all he could see was the Garden of Eden during its beginnings, back when there was simply a field of white roses.

This whole fight reminded him of his times when he sparred with Samael and the others.

The doubts in his mind, the voice of Issei telling him to stop, his pleas and assurance that he would save him, it hit too close as it reminded him of the time he killed the other archons.

But when he looked at Issei, his side was completely soaked in red, the white roses had turned into red roses, and he stood there, lending out a hand, telling him to come to the present and move on from the past, just as he did.

As for Issei, he was in a dark room, simply trying to convince Yaldabaoth to come with him.

In there, they were both kids, children that were trying to make up after a fight. After all, it was quite childish of them to continue fighting even after 1000 days.

They were both stubborn and they knew it. Even so, they continued to bring destruction on the battlefield.

It was as if it were their playground, they had gone back in time, to when the Garden of Eden was the playground of the archons, and yet, they stood in the present, looking for a way to move on into the future.

After fighting for so long, Issei had been able to slowly talk with Yaldabaoth, from small talk to full blown out conversations trying to convince him to stop what he was doing.

He also attempted to try and learn how to use his new found powers, as there was still a lot that he didn't know about.

Specifically, it was the take and grant Light part of his trait.

He had used Feedback before, and all it did was tell him that he needed to activate Epistemophobic's Nightmare. Even so, it was far too vague.

He tried anything he could come up with, from trying to learn about Yaldabaoth, which was useless as he already learned everything from him in that book, to the concept of light itself.

He didn't get any information that would be useful to him.

But finally he had used Epistemophobic's Nightmare one more time to try and figure out what he needed to do.

This time, he had specified the concept of Infinite Light, which he came to a conclusion after mixing words around that seemed to be related.

From there, he learned what a distortion was, what E.G.O was, and what the deal with that entity who gave him a deal signified. He ended up putting the blame for what everything happened onto that entity.

Now he was ready.

The light that had been granted by that entity to Yaldabaoth had corrupted him, the circulation of the Divine Light was not complete, and so, Yaldabaoth had become a distortion.

Issei would need to take the Light out of him and fix it.

To do so, he needed to have knowledge of the abilities, the origin, the properties, the history. An entire analysis was needed for it. From there, he would be able to turn it into nothing, or boost it with his powers.

After all, Nothing must exist, for Something to exist, and Something must exist, for Nothing to exist. An filled yet empty cycle of the light running through the entire body of said person.

With this in mind, now was the time to make this risky move.

Issei felt as flames hit and burned his body, and yet, he was still alive. The dragon body he currently controlled was still in good shape thanks to the abilities he had.

Right now, he was able to activate his trait Deux Ex Machina once again and took this as his chance to finally put an end to this.

With his hand, Issei grabbed the head of Tierra, but instead of trying to crush it, which was impossible, he attempted to activate the Trait's ability.

Following the instructions he got after trial and error from using Feedback and Epistemophobic's Nightmare, he prayed that this was the one.

Ah, how many times has he died now?

This 1000 days battle. It was more than just that.

It just so happened that they had continued for 1000 days in this specific loop.

Time and time again he had died against Yaldabaoth.

And yet, he persisted to try and save the god who gave him reason to live.

Memories of the times they yelled at one another, as Yaldabaoth continued to notice that time continued to loop back to the start of their fight. And now, it just seemed as if the False God had finally broken down in patience.

"Why do you continue persisting in this meaningless endeavor?! Why can't you just kill me like Yaldabaoth wanted?!" Saklas yelled, not understanding the determination of this human her former self had taken in as his harbinger.

"Why?! You're asking why I am giving my life to try and save you?! Because we are friends! I've already said what I wanted before to try and convince you to not go down this path! I still don't want to kill someone who I consider my best friend!" Responded Issei.

"This friend of yours has already killed you more times that you could count! And yet you're foolish enough to believe that one of these loops will change?!" Inquired Saklas.

"Yeah, this one will be enough." He started to feel Deux Ex Machina deactivating as he miraculously took away Yaldabaoth's light and replaced it. This made the Tierra corpse start to fall apart as Yaldabaoth wasthen ejected from the cockpit.

"Because I know well that I am the only one who you'll be able to scream at... to scream all of the pain you've been through because of Sophia."

With that said and done, Issei could feel himself finally revert as the adrenaline he had finally stopped pumping, at the same time, he saw that he was falling.

While he fell, he also saw that Yaldabaoth also reverted to his form, albeit the one where he was feminine. "Issei... you really are a fool like me... but... I feel at peace knowing that my pleas were met..."

After a loud thud, they both laid down on the white floor that was covered in ash. Issei looked at Yaldabaoth. "That... was a battle." He breathed heavily as he tried to catch his breath.

"Yeah... You're quite good you know? I've never been able to have so much action since The Garden of Eden." Complimented Yaldabaoth. This made Issei smirk a bit, to which Yaldabaoth inquired. "What are you laughing at?"

"I'm sorry, this just sounds as if we just finished having sex." Laughed Issei as he felt his ribs hurt. Yaldabaoth on the other hand moved his head over to see Issei laid down on the floor full of ash.

Instead of Issei, he saw Samael, looking around, he saw that he was back at the Garden of Eden, back before Sophia had destroyed their paradise. Samael looked back at him, Yaldabaoth knew full well that it was Issei, and yet... He felt like Samael was right by his side all along.

Yaldabaoth then whispered. "Thank you... partner." The illusion of Samael faded alongside the Garden of Eden as all that was left was Issei laughing while catching his breath. "Good to have you back pal." Said Issei.

"I'm still not a victim by the way." Remarked Yaldabaoth. Issei continued to smile. "Yeah... I was wrong there, you're truly an asshole... but I still see you as a friend."

The birds chirped as they both could only see the sky finally becoming clear, the calamity that had been brought to this world had finally ended, and in the middle of the field, were the two who caused it.

They both spent a moment of silence as they appreciated the landscape they had destroyed. Yaldabaoth then said. "You should go meet the others now..."

"Yeah... I'll be back in a bit." Declared Issei as he stood up to go find the other who he hadn't seen in awhile.

Issei then stood up to try and walk away. Looking back at Yaldabaoth, he saw the continued to lay down on the ashen floor. He decided that giving him space to finally recollect his thoughts should be enough.

This left the False God, he raised his hand in front of him as he pretended to grasp the sun that finally rose. "Hey Samael..."

His hand started to shift, static commenced to surround him as a buzzing noise continued to become louder.

"I think I can finally move on..."

The form that he had taken, the body of Adam, morphed.

"..."

"I think I should pay a visit to my daughter... wherever she may be."

"But as long as I live, I will follow Issei, not as his god, not as his comfort, but as his partner as we walk on the thorns of the path."

"Let us suffer together, that way, we can laugh at our pain without a care in the world."

"Just like old times."

He was now back to that form he used when he first met Issei. He didn't need to look human, not anymore, there was someone who could understand him no matter what now.

---

Issei walked down the broken path that had been caused by the battle. He could see that a bit far from where the battle happened, Tierra's remains could be seen being examined by everyone who survived.

But before he could make himself present, he heard Kamui crying quite loudly, looking at the Gusto elder he was surprised to see that he was hugging his bird companion that previously sacrificed itself to save him.

"Oh! How I missed you Falco!" Sobbed Kamui as he hugged Falco. His two daughters giggle at the heartwarming reunion.

"Get up Unukalhai." Requested Caduceus as he was finally able to break his son free from the vacuum tubes. After defeating him alongside the two other Infernoids, he was surprised to discover that his son had also been captured in a tube that was held by Tierra. "Ugh, just five more minutes dad..." Groaned the Satellarknight.

Issei started to finally take a few steps after seeing that Avance and Emilia had broken someone out of the vacuum tubes, he tried to see who it was, and the moment he saw who it was, he started to run towards them.

The sudden loud steps that Issei was making took everyone by surprise, not expecting to see their savior still standing strong. All of them got out of the way as Issei breathed heavily while marching towards the person he saw.

He smiled, a few tears starting to come out as he was able to confirm who it was.

"Winda!" Screamed the boy as he was finally able to see the one he loved alive once again. Before Winda could say anything, she felt as Issei hugged her while their lips met.

Surprised by the sudden course of action, she stood there frozen by the shock. But when she finally realized what was happening, she moved her arms around Issei's neck, deepening the kiss even more.

Once they finally pulled back from their passionate kiss, Issei gasped for air. "I'm so glad to see you again! I... I don't know how long I've waited for this moment, I wanted to finally be able to tell you that I love you... I love you from the bottom of my heart, I wanted to tell you that you're my everything, that I truly wanted to go out with you and that your thoughts had convinced me to change the way I thought."

Winda looked at the boy, who still had a few tears coming out of his eyes. She put her hand near his face and whipped the tears away.

Everyone present started to clap of whistle, as they were happy to finally see these two together again. The morale of the current group had finally risen to levels never thought possible before, as this war had finally ended, and a new era of peace would surely come.

But there was someone who felt her heart break. That was Ariel, who saw this confession. She loved Issei, and to see him express his love to someone that wasn't her pained her deeply. Alas, she continued to smile in the moment, as she continued to clap for her best friend, who was able to meet someone that would be able to give her the most love possible.

Sombre, who had turned back after the end of the war, unfortunately had to be the one to break the bad news. "Uhm... I'd hate to be the one to ruin this moment... but now that the Sacred Naturia Tree is no longer there, we will need someone to replace it... and that someone has to be Issei..."

Winda looked in confusion at this declaration. "W-what? Then... you're telling me that after all this time he had to leave?" This made everyone there silent as they could feel the awkward tension about this information.

"I'm afraid so, he's the one who absorbed the sefirot system, and so, he must leave like Caduceus and I did before, but this time it will be permanent, as there is no way to replace that energy with something else." Explained the heroine of light. "We need to make this fast, or else our world might be in trouble once again... I'll give you three days before you leave, I want you to be able to make the most with the time you have."

Winda looked saddened at this explanation, to think she wouldn't be able to be at the side of the one who had finally taken courage to express how he felt for her frustrated her, waiting for so long just for fate to screw everything over.

But Issei held her hand upon seeing that expression on her face. "Hey, don't worry, it was bound to happen sooner or later... after all I was never from this world, I had to go back at some point..."

"So cheer up, I will make these last three days together the best moments of your life, and I will make sure that you'll never forget me." Promised Issei.

Winda smiled at seeing his now optimistic attitude. "Yeah... I'd love that..." She admitted.

For the first day however, they continued to search for anyone who had been trapped in a vacuum tube, they were able to bring Lapis back to life, seeing as her twin sister was now alive again made Sombre happy. Some other former Shaddolls were brought back to life thanks to the vacuum tubes.

For the second day, Winda, Ariel and the others caught up to what had happened in the last 40 years, additionally, Issei was told of the events that happened during his battle with Yaldabaoth. From there, they had time to make memories.

Winda tried to use the power of the Spiritual Beasts, having Kamui lend Cannahawk so that she could try and ride the beast. But she was quite rusty with her ability to mount on top of birds.

In the end, Winda ended up relying on Falco as the bird companion was the same as when they would make bonds with the creatures of the Great Marshlands.

Kamui, Winda and Issei would fly through the forest, watching the landscape, which had changed over the years. What was originally a place divided in four, had turned into a land where the Nekroz and Gusto would hold control off alongside the Naturia.

The Great Marshland had expanded on the lands of where the Gem-Knights originally inhabited, the flora slowly expanding as the plants started to invade the rocky mountains, meanwhile the Laval lands had slowly cooled down, allowing the Nekroz territory to unintentionally assimilate the lands as they continued to freeze.

Issei also went to learn from each single one of those he got to socialize with, Caduceus had taught him healing magic, Sombre taught him holy magic, and so on. He was still a beginner, as there was no time to truly put them into a lot of practice, but they told him the basics.

And on the third day, they all united together to give one last party before Issei would leave their world. Said party continued, as Lara was also then made the next chieftess of the Gusto Tribe. Avance and Emilia were currently taking care of their new son. The younger brother of Shurit had taken after his father unlike their older son.

Sombre and Caduceus surprised them when they told the others about the fact they had two children of their own, according to them it was accidental, but they assumed responsibility for the little mishap when they experimented with their powers.

Issei smiled as he listened to each one of them and their tales, so much had happened after three years, he was glad that at the very least he could hear about what they did one more time before he left.

In the end, Issei ended up leaving the party to calm down, entering one of the houses that looked similar to the ones the Gusto Tribe had around. He lit up a candle, seeing as the outside was completely dark minus the giant bonfire they created near.

He sat on the bed and looked at Yaldabaoth, who had been by his side during the past days too. "So... we're leaving tomorrow right?" He said pointing out the obvious. Yaldabaoth, who floated around then said. "Yeah... There are a few loose ends we're going to have to take care of once we go back to your world."

Issei sighed. "I'm gonna miss everyone here, you know? Do you think we'll be able to meet them again?" Asked the boy. "I'm not sure..." Responded Yaldabaoth

Issei had a bit of a moment before thinking about another topic. "And what about the penalty that will be given to me because of the many resets I've made?"

But Yaldabaoth reassured him that nothing too harsh would happen. "The system wouldn't want you to outright die, I'm going to assume it is going to give you a penalty about your abilities and such so that you end up with a handicap for the next story, just to dissuade you from abusing that skill." He explained.

Another moment of silence ensued, as they still didn't know what to say after the events that happened, it was awkward, mostly due to the fact they had seen the worst of each other and just now they've realized it.

"I... Well..." Issei fumbled his words as he tried to tell Yaldabaoth about what he learned with it coming out as a strange sentence. "I've found out about what the books were about... and they... they basically also showed me information about you... and your entire life."

As the words sank in, Yaldabaoth then said nonchalantly. "You do realize I can read your memories right? I've known about this, hence why I've been so hesitant to talk to you, not because of you mind you, but because of the situation we're in."

"But... your knowledge... the information you hold... It's also reassuring... the fact that at least... I can find peace in mind about my existence... because you're proof that I truly exist in this world..." Admitted Yaldabaoth.

The conversation was cut short as Issei then heard the door opening, it was Winda, who had been looking for him for a bit. "There you are Issei." Smiled Winda. "Hi to you too Winda." Issei smiled. Winda sat next to him, only to then kiss him on the lips.

"So... you're leaving tomorrow in the morning right?" Asked Winda. Issei looked sad as he responded. "Yeah... I'm really going to miss you, you know? I would have wished to stay by your side for the rest of my life... but I need to go, for the sake of this world... and to fulfill the dream of the one who gave me reason to live..."

Winda, with a sad smile then replied. "I will miss you too Issei... but... I want a way to have something for you to remember me."

Issei then proceeded to ask. "I already have the Gusto Emblem you created, but... what about you? Frozen Flames would have been a great way to remember me, but the poem got destroyed. So what would you want from me as a gift? I'll do anything for you."

"Anything? Then..." She stopped talking as she started to undress in front of Issei.

Yaldabaoth, who had been quiet since Winda arrived, saw what was happening and left the place while blocking all mental shares they had.

Winda, now on top of Issei who was stunned by the sudden actions, said. "Make this night unforgettable, I want to make sure I have something to remember you forever."

Issei, finally out of his shock, smiled and intertwined one of his hands with Winda's while caressing her face with the other. "I will..."

They both passionately kissed, as Issei's hand slowly lowered down and caressed Winda's body.

He looked at her naked body, perhaps there was still a bit of his past self within him.

That night, they had become one.

---

The day had finally come.

Issei was ready to finally leave this world and go back to his own, even if he was forced to do so.

Looking back, he saw every single person he had forged bonds with.

"I've had a lot of fun with all of you." Admitted Issei. "I don't want to go, but if it is to make sure you guys live, I'll do it."

"Before you go, let me give you this as a souvenir." Interrupted Crystal. He then brought out the sword that he used as Master Diamond, and also the sword Sombre had been using. "Please, take this as a way of showing gratitude, you're forced to take it by the way, as I told a certain SOMEONE to give it to you and didn't when I asked." He then glared at Sombre who was whistling while looking away.

"Well... thank you... I guess?" Issei thanked as he then looked at the claymore with gems embedded on it, it reminded him of Blade Forged From Souls.

He then activated Weapon Appraisal to see what it had.

Item

Tempered Diamond

Grade: Great

Description: A claymore created from the pyroxenes of a god. It is said to end in the hands of one who will defend the Garden of Eden and only allow those who he sees worthy to enter.

Effect: Increases damage against demon faction enemies by 50%.

He put the sword on his back as he then waited to see if anyone else wanted to say anything before he left.

Winda took a few steps before saying. "Now that... there is something that we can forever remember, could I ask you... what name you would have given to him had you stayed with me?"

Knowing full well that Winda was asking, he responded without trouble as he had thought about it before. "Collei if she's a girl, and Xiao if he's a boy."

Winda smiled. "You thought a lot about it right?" She commented, which made Issei chuckle. "Yeah, of course I would."

Then, it was Ariel's turn to walk towards Issei. Even though they hadn't talked much in the last days, Issei still thought of her as someone close. "Hey, sorry about not talking with you a lot in the past few days." Apologized Issei.

"You don't have to apologize for anything, I've been trying to stay away from you." Admitted Ariel. Issei, confused about the reason, inquired. "And... what would be the reason?"

"Well..." Ariel closed her eyes as she then grabbed Issei by his shirt, only to then kiss him on the lips.

Issei's eyes opened in shock, while Winda looked baffled by the situation.

Sombre squealed in excitement upon seeing this development while Kamui and Avance whistled impressed at the stunt.

Ariel then stopped kissing Issei. "I've been trying to avoid you because I've loved you the moment we've talked, but then I saw that you only had eyes for Winda... and I tried to suppress these emotions to not get in the way of my best friend... and yet... I couldn't..."

The blue haired girl then admitted. "I always wanted you to say that you loved me... that I was someone special to you... but I knew well that it was selfish of me to ask you to break up with Winda... and if I could just have a moment with you... I saw this as the only chance I had."

Issei, hearing Ariel's trouble, smiled gently, he then hugged her. "Hey, it's alright, I know how it feels to have unrequited love... I'm glad you had the courage to express it, because at least you had the guts to say it before it was too late."

While they continued to hug, Winda calmed down a bit, she sighed, unsure as to what to think of the situation, and yet, she wasn't mad with her best friend, if anything, she pitied her and felt a bit guilty.

It would certainly make things awkward, but at the very least she found out now rather than later, when things could have gotten even worse, perhaps... no, that wouldn't have worked... right?

After bidding farewell, Issei looked at the horizon, which glowed ever so brightly, unsure as to what he'd find on the other side of it, he took the first step.

And yet, he cried, unsure if he would ever meet them again, this might as well be the last time he talks to them, and it pained him to say goodbye forever.

But he hardened his resolve as he continued walking into the bright light. It got too bright for him, to the point he had to close his eyes.

Once the light finally stopped, he opened them once again, finding himself in a road.

He looked at the notification he got.

Quest #5

Core Suppression

Condition: Save Yaldabaoth

Failure: Fail to save Yaldabaoth

Complete!

Reward: Item (Tempered Diamond)

A new song has been added to the Gallery

String Theocracy by Mili

Congratulations on finishing a story!

Information: With the help of the heroes, you have been able to save the world, and yet, you bid farewell as you must go back to your own world. Despite no longer being able to see them ever again. The memories and bonds created through the hardships will continue on as a memento of the suffering and comfort you have spectated, as instead of allowing the cycle to continue on, you allowed the survivors to live on, breaking the loop forever.

Satisfied with the turn of events, he smiled, knowing full well this was it, he would no longer be able to meet them ever again like the Writer's System said.

Suddenly, a group of people ambushed him, ready to kill and steal the stuff he had.

But instead, Issei used Tempered Diamond to decapitate the many enemies that were after his head.

"Argh! Fuck! Everyone retreat!" Exclaimed what he supposed was the leader. But it was odd to him.

Was he talking... chinese?

Quickly, before anyone could notice, he decided to change into the Xiao persona in case anyone saw him. He took out Blade Forged From Souls and started walking at a random direction.

Seeing as there were many bandits with yellow turbans plundering the villages, he then sprung into action, running towards the village that had been set on fire, he thrusted his guandao onto the stomach of one of the bandits to then take out the weapon and slice another bandit.

He then put himself in front of a villager who was being attacked by the bandits, but before he could do anything, he saw someone kick the bandit. The man was dressed in red as he blocked an attack from a bandit with his tonfas. He then parried the sword to then hit the opponent with the back of the tonfa.

The bandits then retreated, leaving Issei to watch as an army led by a man with a sword with rings riding on a horse came into view, banners with a red background and a single character held themselves high. Once the army stopped on their tracks, the man that had defended the villagers then said enthusiastically. "Yo pops! Sorry for running rashly around, but I had to take the initiative and protect the villagers!"

His father smirked. "I can see that... and who may you be?" He said as he then looked at Issei.

To which he then responded. "I am... Xiao, it is a pleasure to meet you." This time he bowed down as he raised his hands in front of him, curling one of his hands and putting his other over it.

"Uh? No surname? Are you perhaps someone from an outside tribe?" Inquired the man. To which Issei nodded. "Yes sir, that is true."

The man then smiled as he then started to laugh. "No need to be this formal! I'm assuming you're a warrior who has no lord? Then what about it? Come under my wing and we shall end these times of chaos!" Suggested the man.

Issei looked at him, seeing as he had no ulterior motives, he said. "Yes! I will, my lord!"

He then felt the son of the man he was talking start shaking him by holding his shoulder. "You've made the right choice ah ah! I am Sun Ce. I hope we can get along well, newbie!"

Yaldabaoth, upon hearing that name muttered. "Sun Ce... could it be?"

He then started to laugh. He laughed as he realized what was going on. "Oh... So it was you all along... It seems that we were destined to meet, partner..." He said as he looked at Issei who was confused at this sudden course of events.

Issei then looked at the system again, this time, with a notification.

A new story has been created

Information: The Empire, Long Divided, Must Unite; Long United, Must Divide. In this era of chaos, legends and heroes rise to follow the dream of their lords, however, despite the everlasting chaos of the Three Kingdoms, the legacy of the warrior shall last even longer, to the point that they shall be remembered through eternity. Follow the rise and fall of the kingdoms, leave your mark in this age of turmoil, and vanquish the untold tales of the creatures omitted from the texts.

Genre: Historical

Role: Secondary Character

Due to your amount of deaths during the previous story, you have been penalized.

Penalization has been calculated.

The user will then be sent to penalty stories one after another through completion.

During the penalty stories, you will be restricted to using fewer skills and traits.

Rewards will not be given except for end of story rewards.

Remaining penalty stories (Including the current story): 3

End of Arc 3

(A/N)

Chances are, this has been rewritten more than once before, but aside from that, Arc 3 has finally finished, and this time, Arc 4 has already been revealed. If you didn't know this will be based on Romance of Three Kingdoms, a period of China which I am quite interested in.

But, I must make sure to put a few disclaimers for the next arc.

1. It will not be historically accurate, fantastical elements such as magic, fictional characters and such are guaranteed to appear, furthermore, although it will follow the story, there will be certain scenarios that may play out differently.

2. Furthermore, events won't be completely followed, rather than a detailed explanation and retelling of the events, I want to focus more on the interaction between characters.

3. I will base the characters and most situations after Dynasty Warriors. Certain traits such as Zhang He being the way he is, Ma Chao not being a scumbag and many others will be exactly like DW, since that is what I am specifically basing this after.

4. Weapons the characters use will be based on their DW weapons, with some such as Guan Yinping or Xiahou Ba's weapon being exceptions.

5. A few characters may live longer compared to their historical time of death, while others may die sooner, but at the end of the day, they are fated to die, such is the fate of an era of over 80 years.

6. I want you guys to give me a few characters that should get the spotlight, preferably from Wu (and aren't already playable characters). Zhu Zhi is already one of them, given the fact that the 5 veterans of Wu need its last member to be at least important to a certain degree. I'll be asking for feedback on Wattpad from time to time.

7. Some characters won't appear, this is due to the fact they don't really have relevancy.

Oh! And about what it looked like as if it was about to be a lemon scene... Sorry! I don't write stuff like that! I welcome anyone who decides to genuinely write that scene out and message me about it lol.

That being said, there is also something I need to say. Only 1 of the penalty stories, that being the next arc, will be written. This is due to the fact that the story itself isn't important... BUT, mentions of them are guaranteed to happen after this next arc, think of it as Roland and his backstory working in Charles Office.

The archetypes that debuted in this chapter are Infernoids and Zefra.

Tempered Diamond is... a really... REALLY vague reference to a certain thing, but aside from that, it should become obvious from the description.

As you can see, three songs have been used in this chapter, I was expecting this to just be one for a chapter and two for the last one, but in the end I realized that as I wrote, there was no place for me to divide the chapter in half.

The images used are from the actual song used in In hell we live, Lament and the other one is basically Zefraath, the yugioh card.

As for scrapped content, like I mentioned before, there really isn't much as the last few chapters were literally done blind.

Now... When is the next arc being released? No idea, but chances are, I am taking a break from this fic and focusing on another fic I have... one related to Yandere Simulator with Project Moon elements too (The PM Brainrot is strong), either I post that one, or continue writing this fic.

So that's all for now, I'll see y'all next update.