Ex rank talent Awakening: 100% Dodge rate

"But if you do that, I will lose my strength... and likely be defeated by the universe will," Rebecca said slowly, the weight of her words thick in the air.

"True," the Queen responded with a calm, timeless gaze. "But you won't be killed. Without your complete soul, the universe can only suppress you—trapping you in a dormant, subconscious state until your main soul is born into the world once again."

Rebecca's eyes narrowed in contemplation. Her thirst for revenge burned hotter than ever, yet the Queen's offer had a finality to it—a sacrifice that asked her to give up everything she was for a delayed chance at retribution. Her jaw tightened, hands curled into fists. Then, with a long breath, she made her choice.

"I accept," she said with quiet resolve, though her voice trembled slightly. "But promise me this—I must at least retain the power to destroy the Origin World."

"You can," the Queen affirmed. Her voice was gentle, yet firm, like a mother giving her child permission to face the storm. "But know this—it will be the last act you perform before suppression takes you. So you must act the moment your consciousness returns. Do not hesitate."

Rebecca furrowed her brows. "Time will have passed by then, will it not? They may have fortified their defenses... or worse, they could attack my dormant body before I awaken."

The Queen's lips curved into a knowing smile. "That won't be a problem. I've already accounted for that. As we speak, time across this universe is frozen. You and I are the only ones capable of movement within this pause."

Rebecca's eyes widened in disbelief. "You... stopped time? You have that kind of power?"

"Yes," the Queen said, as if it were a minor detail. "Freezing time is a simple matter when you exist beyond its chains. Now, off you go, child."

Before Rebecca could utter another word, the Queen raised her hand and sent Rebecca's consciousness hurtling back toward the waking world.

---

Reality snapped back like a stretched band recoiling. Rebecca's eyes flared open on the battlefield—time resuming instantly, the clash of blades and howls of magic erupting all around her. But she barely noticed.

The Queen's words echoed in her mind, and something deep within her soul ignited.

She screamed, and with that scream came a surge of uncontainable power.

Darkness radiated from her body like a cosmic tempest. Her corrupted aura surged into the very veins of the planet, infecting its core with seething malice. The ground cracked. The sky warped. Then—implosion.

The planet shattered.

Its destruction rang across the cosmos like a death knell. As the Origin World was consumed in a final burst of despair, the universe will shrieked in unimaginable agony. That world was its heart—its root, its anchor. Its loss was catastrophic.

The universe will responded instantly, unleashing its full might in an effort to suppress the calamity named Rebecca. Yet even it, the grand overseer of the cosmos, hesitated in disbelief.

Rebecca was riddled with holes—her power fading fast. The moment had come.

Seizing the opportunity, the universe will stripped away her strength, attempting to claim it for itself. But it failed. Her power rejected it, as if it were alive, as if it knew no master but Rebecca. It twisted and screamed, refusing to be tamed.

Frustrated, the universe will attempted to annihilate her... but her soul was incomplete. Her life force was tethered to a main soul hidden beyond its reach. Without that anchor, she could not be destroyed.

And so, it chose the next best thing.

It sealed her.

Layer by layer, the will of the universe bound her—chaining her subconscious deep beneath reality itself, casting her into an eternal slumber.

But as it did, the universe caught glimpses of her memories. Flashes of annihilated galaxies. Shadows of fallen gods. Universes collapsing under her will... and another presence—obscured, unknowable. Something more terrifying than even Rebecca.

The universe will panicked.

A fear it hadn't felt since its birth gripped it. Something worse was coming. Something that could end it.

Driven by survival instinct, the universe will made a desperate decision. It could no longer afford to suppress its natives for balance. It had to nurture them—to make them stronger, faster, deadlier.

That was the path every universe eventually walked when it sensed the approach of the true enemy: The Age of Preparation.

From that day, the universe stopped being a jailor and became a patron. It supported its inhabitants' growth—enhancing them through trials, through chaos... through Apocalypse.

To achieve this, it refined Rebecca's corrupted laws—twisted them into a new mechanism to push its chosen forward. The process took centuries, but eventually, it bore fruit: an event designed to weed out the weak and elevate the strong.

Apocalypse.

The beings of the Origin World who hadn't been turned into Rebecca's puppets, their souls remained intact. The universe will repurposed them as NPCs—vessels to guide, challenge, and temper its natives. The Celestial King, the Demon King, Grey—all preserved, re-forged, and re-written.

Even powerful beings from other planets, like the vampires and werewolves, were absorbed into the system—living echoes of a shattered past.

---

"So you're basically saying... you died? That all of you in Apocalypse were once dead?" Greg asked, voice low with disbelief.

"Yes," Drakonix replied calmly. "That's exactly what happened."

Greg blinked. "But the history in Apocalypse doesn't match up. Grey ended the First Racial War, right? And the Demon King is now the Demon God? None of that aligns with your story."

"Don't be stupid," Drakonix snapped. "The universe will altered the entire narrative of Apocalypse. It needed a story—a myth to inspire the strong. So it planted reverence for the Celestials into humanity, and seeded hatred and fear toward demons. It glorified Grey—even though, lately, he's started to live up to that image. Maybe his sister's betrayal shook something in him."

Greg rubbed his forehead. "So the universe rewrote history... just to prep its people for a fight against some unknown enemy?"

"Exactly. And the only reason we're still here is because the universe managed to suppress Rebecca before she could destroy everything. But now that she's back... we may not be so lucky this time."

Greg's expression twisted. "Then why is my world only now experiencing Apocalypse? Why did it start so late?"

Drakonix scoffed. "For a backward planet at the edge of the universe with supposedly weak potential, you sure complain a lot."

Greg raised an eyebrow. "Weak potential? Seriously? Not to brag, but I doubt there's anyone in the entire universe with better potential than me."

Drakonix opened his mouth to retort—but hesitated. Greg's eyes weren't arrogant. They were serious. Confident. Unshakable.

"...Hmph," Drakonix grunted, unsure what to say.

Greg narrowed his gaze. "One more thing. You haven't mentioned Xerd. Was he not from the Origin World? Was he that insignificant?"

Drakonix's body tensed. "Xerd... is not an inhabitant of our universe. He—"

The words caught in his throat.

Suddenly, Drakonix's senses spiked.

His eyes narrowed.

"She's here..." he muttered.

Rebecca.

The name rolled off his tongue like a curse.

And with a flash of movement, Drakonix rose, his body taut with tension and ready for war.