Chapter 449: World Trembles [1]

"...The devil has come."

The Boss’s voice drifted quietly across the room as the red dot finally reached its designated mark.

In that moment—

In that breath of time—

Every gaze locked onto the monitor.

No one blinked.

No one spoke.

Their breathing was restrained, shallow, and light as all attention narrowed to that single red dot pulsing softly on the screen.

Nobody understood what the words meant, but the unease gripping the room tightened. It coiled around them like a cold hand, squeezing slowly, making every breath feel heavier than the last.

’Devil...?’

’There’s a devil? What is it talking about?’

’There’s something coming! Something is coming! I can... feel it!’

’...W-here? Where is it?’

The silence stretched on, but within the silence, everyone heard them.

The whispers.

Some heard laughter. Others heard their own names. They were soft at first, but with the passing of the seconds, they grew louder, invading their minds.

But it wasn’t all.

Soon... the whispers spread beyond the room itself.

"What’s is... going on?"

"What am I hearing...?"

"What is happening? What is this voice?"

"D... Da..."

People in the crowd turned pale as the whispers grew more and more pronounced. They grew louder, numerous, and... more sinister.

Birds, mid-flight, stopped midair.

Cars halted in the streets.

Streetlamps flickered without wind.

Screens across the world shimmered as if something was messing with their screens.

It was as though the entire island had stopped moving in that moment.

As if—

The very thing inside the Gate had started to spill into the real world.

RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

A loud rumbling shook everyone out of their thoughts.

The island shook once more!

This time, it was fiercer, and everyone could feel it.

"What’s happening!?"

"H-help!"

The reporters who had all stayed behind started to panic. They were just regular people, after all.

"Something... S-something terrible is happening!"

Cracks spider-webbed across the streets as lamps toppled one by one, the entire island trembling with growing violence. But if that wasn’t enough to send panic surging through the population, something far worse followed.

A thick black mist began to seep across the ground, curling around the feet of everyone present.

Black mist...?

The sight made a few pause.

But soon, a horrifying realization dawned on everyone. Urgency clawed up their throats as they all turned their heads.

"Ah—!"

"This can’t be—!"

"The island!"

In the far distance, massive clouds of black loomed over the horizon. They rose like towering mountains, shifting and pulsing as if alive, waiting for the perfect moment to spill over the island and swallow the city whole.

"The island!! It’s sinking!"

Indeed, the island was sinking.

The faces of those who were standing outside the Gate turned grim, their gazes meeting as they understood what was happening.

"...An external power has entered the Gate. It’s starting to break."

A cool voice followed amidst the chaos.

It belonged to one of the Paragons, their expression relatively calm as they assessed everything coldly.

"Whatever this ’devil’ is, it likely possesses power equal to, or greater than, the Boss inside the Gate. Its presence alone is destabilizing the structure. At this rate, it won’t be long before the Gate collapses entirely."

Turning his head to face the Gate, the Paragon’s eyes narrowed.

And sure enough...

Cra CRACK!

Cracks began to appear over the Gate as he took a step back.

"...The Gate is on the verge of collapse. Once it collapses, whatever is trapped inside will come out. We should take that opportunity to eliminate it."

"But what should we eliminate? The boss? Or the devil?"

The Paragon turned silent. He didn’t answer.

He himself didn’t know.

But it didn’t take long for him to get his answer as he stared at the ’stream’ on his phone. It was there that he witnessed the gruesome sight of a Paragon’s head exploding on the spot as the ’boss’ snapped its finger, killing it without any mercy.

The sight was one that everyone present witnessed.

But it was what they heard next that made their decision clear.

—Quick! Quick! Break the monitor! Help the thing escape! That’s the way to clear this gate!

—Don’t fall for the anomaly’s words! This is not a devil!!

—Quick!

Everyone watched as the group inside the Gate all moved at once, rushing towards the boss as they tried to destroy the monitor in front of him. Hearing their words, they all immediately understood.

The devil...

It was very likely the other power that was causing the Gate to crack.

It was the thing that the boss was trying to imprison.

In that case—

"Get ready."

"The Gate is moments away from collapsing. When it does, you must act immediately. Either destroy the monitor on sight or assist the entity that emerges from it. It will most likely be weakened at first, but once it stabilizes, it will be able to contend with the Boss. This is our only chance to clear the Gate!"

The order came directly from the branch leader as he stared at the gigantic black mountains in the distance. As they grew taller and taller, the tips started to spill onto the city.

He didn’t know whether his order was correct.

However, he didn’t have time to make sure. They had to pick a side; they chose the most logical side.

The boss was responsible for creating the Gate.

Not only that, but its actions inside the Gate were clear.

It... had already killed several Paragons. The ’devil’ was the entity that it was trying to contain, or even worse, absorb. They couldn’t allow this to continue.

Cra Crack!

"Get ready! Get ready! The Gate is about to break!"

"Everyone, get ready!"

Standing outside the Gate, everyone got ready, their bodies tensing as the cracks around the Gate expanded.

At the same time, everyone maintained their attention on the stream.

In particular, towards the figure sitting behind the monitor.

In that moment, they all saw it.

The subtle movement coming from the monitor.

Cracks started to appear all over its back.

The monitor shook, and more heads began to explode as everyone rushed the boss.

It was a scene of carnage.

One that made the hearts of many clench.

But was this truly what was happening inside the Gate?

*

Cra Crack!

’Yes... I need to destroy the monitor. So long as I destroy the monitor, I can be free!’

’The boss! Boss! That’s the one we need to get rid of!’

’Don’t fall for its trick! I mustn’t fall for its trick!’

’Kill the boss! Destroy the monitor!’

’This is the only way we can be free!’

Voices continued to whisper in everyone’s minds. Soft, disjointed murmurs slipped between their thoughts, threading through the room like invisible fingers.

All eyes stayed fixed on the figure seated behind the monitor. Its posture did not shift, its silhouette did not waver, yet its features remained swallowed by the darkness, as if reality itself refused to show them what it truly looked like.

But contrary to what the people outside believed they were seeing, there was no carnage.

No corpses littered the floor.

No blood splattered the walls.

No heads had exploded.

In reality, not a single person inside the room was dead.

Cra Crack!

Yet, despite that undeniable truth, every observer, everyone watching through the feed or within the room, saw the slaughter.

They felt it.

They believed it.

Because in their minds...

It really had happened.

Seeing the chaos around him, the boss didn’t react. Instead, it fixed its gaze on the one figure that remained calm.

To the one figure that was completely unaffected.

Eventually—

"The Gate is about to crack." Seth’s voice whispered in the air, its dark eyes remaining locked onto the ’boss’. "Once the Gate cracks, you will be attacked by everyone. Even with your current strength, you will not survive."

"....."

The Boss didn’t answer; its features were still obscured under the darkness.

"Why didn’t you take it?"

Seth spoke again. But this time, its voice was even colder.

"...Had you taken the Emblance Shard, none of this would’ve happened. But now...?"

Seth’s eyes narrowed, his eyes flickered into what felt like ’disappointment’.

"There’s no reversing what you’ve done. There’s no turning back into what you once were. You’ve now... fully become an anomaly. What even was the point of creating a Gate?"

The voice was calm.

And yet, if one listened carefully, they would catch the fury buried beneath every word.

Seth? The Doppelganger? The System?

Whoever it was...

It was disappointing.

Angry.

Cra Crack!

Amidst its words, the monitor cracked further.

It was now on the verge of completely shattering.

But despite the situation, the boss remained still. It stared right at the doppleganger before slowly starting to stand up.

*Sigh*

A single sigh escaped its lips.

It was a long and tired sigh.

Staring at the monitor that was on the verge of cracking, the boss looked at Seth, its features still obscured by the darkness.

"The Gate..."

Words finally started to leave its mouth.

"There was a purpose."

"...."

Seth wordlessly stared at the ’boss’. No, to be more precise, what was left of the original Seth.

Cra Crack!

The monitor shook further.

A strained sound followed.

One that contained whispers.

’Give it up...’

’You can’t contain me!’

’I am not something that you can imprison!’

’The entire world is against you!’

’There’s nothing that you can do to defeat me!’

’Give it up!’

Each whisper grew louder with the seconds, digging at the boss’s mind.

Dantalion’s figure started to materialize from within the monitor, prying its way out of the screen.

Its features were blank, but one could see the smile plastered across its face.

The boss stared at all of this in silence before lifting its head to stare at the doppleganger.

As it did, it left its final words, "I needed to buy time."

It paused, its voice lowering as its features started to show.

"I needed to buy time for myself to get adjusted to this new state. To... tame this new power."

BANG!

The monitor exploded a moment later.

As it did, the entire world turned completely white.

That marked the end of the Gate.

It also marked the start of the end.