The multiverse did not welcome travellers.
It resisted them.
Reality bent uneasily as Jinyoung and the others stepped through the dimensional fracture. The sky above was fractured glass, frozen mid-collapse, while fragments of planets drifted like dead stars. This universe had already ended.
Riku landed first, boots scraping against broken stone.
"…This place is dead," he muttered. "No life signatures. No mana circulation."
Haru knelt, pressing his palm to the ground. Unstable mana flared, then recoiled.
"Not dead," Haru corrected quietly. "Abandoned."
Jinyoung stood at the center of it all, Duality humming faintly beneath his skin. The white-grey side reacted to the ruins, as if trying to erase them. The black-purple side pulsed, hungry.
Calm… stay balanced.
They hadn't come here by chance.
After the ambush, one question refused to leave Jinyoung's mind.
How did they know about the wall?
Ruins of Memory
They found the structure buried beneath kilometers of debris.
A colossal archive, half-collapsed, etched with symbols older than mana systems, older than guilds, older than hunters.
Riyomi moved first, blades ready, eyes sharp.
"No traps," she said. "But… it feels watched."
Inside, the air was heavy. Not oppressive—expectant.
Haru activated a spell, illuminating murals carved into the walls.
Figures clashed across stone:
Beasts of destruction.
Entities of radiant order.
Worlds breaking beneath their battles.
At the center of every mural stood the same figure.
Faceless. Vast. Unmoving.
Jinyoung's chest tightened.
"…The Absolute Being," Haru whispered.
They moved deeper.
Stone tablets floated in suspended space, preserved by lingering authority. Riku brushed one—and the moment he did, information flooded their minds.
Not voices.
Records.
The Truth Everyone Knows
The Absolute Being existed.
It created the multiverse.
Infinite universes.
Infinite worlds.
Infinite dimensions.
To govern conflict, it created Monarchs and Rulers.
To observe, it remained above.
To be entertained.
Then—
It died.
The records ended there.
No rebellion detailed.
No motive explained.
No origin given.
Just the end.
Riku exhaled sharply. "That's it? That's the whole story?"
Haru frowned. "No… this isn't ignorance."
He gestured around the archive.
"This is editing."
The Wall
Another record activated.
This one was different.
Not history.
A warning.
MONARCH EVOLUTION PATH DETECTED
LIMITATION CONFIRMED
DESIGNATION: THE WALL
Information unfolded:
Monarch → Lord
Lord → God
A ceiling placed upon existence.
No explanation of who placed it.
No explanation of what lies beyond.
Only this final line:
TRANSCENDENCE IS POSSIBLE. COST UNKNOWN.
Riyomi scoffed softly. "So they fight. They slaughter worlds. All to break something they didn't create."
Riku clenched his fists.
"My universe died because of this."
Silence followed.
Yogaroth's Silence
Jinyoung closed his eyes.
Yogaroth.
Memories surfaced instantly.
Worlds collapsing.
Stars devoured.
Monarchs screaming in fear.
But when Jinyoung pushed further—toward the Absolute Being—
Nothing.
No memory.
No emotion.
Just an absence.
Jinyoung's eyes snapped open.
You don't remember… do you?
For the first time since merging, Yogaroth did not respond.
A Broken Narrative
They left the archive with more questions than answers.
Outside, reality continued to decay.
Haru broke the silence.
"If this story is true… then Monarchs aren't evil. They're trapped."
Riyomi sheathed her blade.
"Doesn't change what they did."
Riku stared at the collapsing sky.
"They're chasing a lie."
Jinyoung looked at his hands.
Duality stirred uneasily.
If the Absolute Being created everything for entertainment…
Then why does this truth feel incomplete?
The multiverse whispered around them, unstable, fragile.
As if something older than Monarchs was watching.
Unseen.
Unnamed.
Waiting.