Published at 26th of December 2025 7:43 am

Chapter 534: I Am Here Not Because Someone Chose Me, But Because I Chose to Be Here

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After much deliberation, I finally decided on the four Banishment Skills to loan Noah Bryne.

The first was, of course, the [Akashic Compass]. While I could use it myself to point us in the right direction, leaving it to Noah Bryne meant quicker and more precise course corrections, saving a lot of time and effort.

The second was the [Automapping]. In this vast and featureless space, I had no real use for it. However, when transferred to Noah Bryne, it could accurately monitor our current location and travel route. Since Tia and I only saw an endless expanse of black, this skill was far more effective in the ships hands.

The remaining two were [Invincible] and [Magiasorb]. I debated long and hard about keeping these for myself, but ultimately decided to loan them for two reasons. First, if the ship were sunk, thered be no point in me having them. Second, while I could evade or counter most attacks, Noah Bryne, being a 30-meter-long ship, couldnt always avoid hits. These two skills would ensure the ships survival in situations like that.

For context, Noah Brynes primary power source was the Fragments of God, but some parts of it also operated on mana. While the ship could manage this energy efficiently, random usage of [Magiasorb] on my part might inadvertently disrupt things, which further justified transferring this skill to the ship.

On the other hand, I withheld skills like [Hermes Dash] and [Mirage Shift]. While the former offered useful boosts in speed, its energy consumption was reportedly high. The latter, which allowed for phasing through obstacles, was even worse in terms of efficiency, and there was a risk that Tia and I might phase right through the ship and fall out. These were better kept for my personal use.

After further discussion, we settled on these being the most practical skills to share. Ten days laterfar past the initially expected time to reach Godwe finally found a weak point in the white grid that had been obstructing us.

Its true! That part doesnt have any white lines!

Finally That took long enough.

The weak spot was roughly at the corner of the box, at least when viewed from the inside. It was hard to make sense of the depth and scale in this endless black void, but one part of the grid had clearly broken, leaving an unnatural gap.

But you know, it doesnt just look weakit looks like theres an actual hole. Couldnt we just pass through it as is?

While there is indeed a hole, its not large enough for this vessel. It would be necessary to bore through that section further to pass.

Got it. Then lets do this. Noah Bryne, youre up!

[Order confirmed. Deploying spiral excavation field toward the front of the vessel. Commencing drilling operations.]

At my command, the golden particles at the ships bow coalesced into a spiraling cone and began boring into the seemingly empty void where the white gridlines should have intersected. I heard a grinding sound, even though there was nothing visible in the area being drilled.

Think itll work?

[Drilling progress: 10% 11% 12%. Estimated time to completion: 4 minutes, 20 seconds.]

Seems like well manage.

Yeah, looks like it, I replied, withholding the words, at least for now.

With such a significant detour and the presumably massive energy consumption of breaching this dimensional barrier, I couldnt help but worry whether wed have enough left to make it to our destination. But without any means of resupply, there wasnt much point in dwelling on it.

I silently watched the spiraling drill chip away at the space, its sparks resembling fragments of life itself. Several minutes passed in quiet observation.

[Drilling complete. Preparing to attempt escape from the sealed world.]

Alright, do it.

[Order confirmed. Commencing departure.]

The moment we passed the white grids edge, the surrounding space plunged into pitch-black darkness once again. As we pressed onward, the darkness abruptly gave way to a vast, bright expanse. What unfolded before us was a breathtaking sight, utterly different from anything wed seen before.

Whoa Are all those glowing things worlds? Its almost blinding.

Haha, yeah, it really is So this is the true form of the world, huh?

Golden streams of light, like rivers of stars, flowed in ever-expanding concentric rings. The rings were layered upon one another, countless in number. Trying to calculate just how many worlds existed seemed like a fools errand.

Seeing this, one thing became painfully clear: for all its apparent vastness, the world we had come from was just a tiny speck trapped in a box. From the perspective of whoever created this magnificent expanse, I must have seemed like an insectnot even a fly, perhaps, but something as insignificant as a flea.

Heh.

Whats up, Ed? Why are you making that weird noise?

Nothing really. Just thinkingnow that were about to meet whoever made this, Im starting to feel a bit nervous. You seem unusually calm, though.

Not at all. If anything, Im so overwhelmed that I feel oddly composed. Or maybe its just that the scale of it all is so beyond me that my brains given up trying to understand.

Ah, yeah. That makes sense.

When someone is ten or a hundred times stronger, you can still grasp the difference. But when its a trillion times greateror morethe mind ceases to differentiate. For someone like Tia, whose strength, while formidable, still fell within the realm of ordinary, this was probably an inevitable reaction.

Hey, Ed? I kyah!?

Before she could finish her sentence, I pulled her into a firm embrace.

What was that for?

Sorry, sorry. Just needed a little boost of courage, thats all.

Huh? What kind of excuse is that Hehe.

Seeing my grin, Tias face, so close I could feel her breath, softened into a smile as well.

Cut me some slack. Its normal to feel scared when the opponent is this overwhelming. Brave fools die first, and the cautious ones live longer. Sure, running might be tempting, but if we want to win, this is where we hold the line. Listen, Tiayoure the reason Im able to stand here. Youre the reason I can take the next step.

Oh? But I feel like youd manage just fine even without me.

Hah! The only people who can pull that off are those so-called chosen heroes loved by the world. Guys like me, the villains we need a damn good reason just to stay in the story. So, My Lady, would you mind being that anchor to keep me on this stage?

Are you sure that Im enough?

It has to be you, Tia.

Her emerald eyes met mine, unflinching and resolute.

If things had happened differently, if Id met someone else first, maybe it wouldnt be Tia standing beside me now. Perhaps Id have reached this point with someone else at my back.

But that wasnt what happened. I met Tia. She chose to stay with me. And that choice brought us here, side by side. It wasnt fate, but our own decisions, and that made it far more meaningful.

Our goal is right in front of us now. Lets finish this together, partner!

Yeah! Lets do this, Ed!

At the center of the overlapping rings of light shone an especially bright, massive white sphere. From this distance, it appeared like a simple glowing orb, but that was undoubtedly the home of the being who called themselves God. Considering how prominent it was, I doubted it could be anything else. The thought of it being somewhere else was so absurd I didnt even entertain it.

Alright, Noah Bryne! Full speed ahead to the target!

[This vessel is already advancing at full speed. Further acceleration is not recommended for energy efficiency reasons]

Oh, uhokay, then. Just keep going as you are.

Overexerting yourself is not a good look, you know?

Was that really necessary!?

Heh hahaha Ed, youre so uncool right now.

Tia!? Oh, come on! Just get us there, alright? Do it do it smoothly!

[Order confirmed. Proceeding smoothly.]

Feeling thoroughly embarrassed but unable to stop now, we pressed forward toward what I could only assume was Gods domain.

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