Deterrence Points – 30,000!
Skill: 'Emperor Engine' proficiency has broken through its limit, advancing toward the realm of perfection!
BOOM—!!!
From the depths of Kaito's chest, a soul-shaking roar erupted!
It wasn't a heartbeat—it was the echo of the first creative sound when the universe began.
At that moment, his heart completely transformed.
No longer a mere organ of flesh—it became a cosmic furnace forged from stars.
Each pulsation was like a supernova explosion, releasing torrents of energy capable of shaking dimensions!
'Emperor Engine' proficiency has been raised to 'Perfection' (15 / ?)!
Skill effects have undergone a complete qualitative change!
New Qualities of the Emperor Engine
First – Monarch's Might (Like the Dao):
The roar of the Emperor Engine is no longer a sound wave or spiritual impact.
It is a resonance that triggers the very rules of the universe.
Every heartbeat declares existence itself.
Anyone who hears it feels their soul crushed beneath the concept of the Emperor.
Those of weak will? Their existence is erased.
Second – Aura Domain (New):
The killing aura now fully materializes, forming an Emperor Domain with a radius of ten thousand meters.
Within it, gravity, time, and space bend in submission.
The host's will is law—
What it permits, exists.
What it denies, perishes.
Third – Deterrence Passive: Ascension:
The passive trigger range expands to the entire planet.
Any being harboring hostility toward Kaito is automatically marked by the Emperor Engine.
His spirit resistance surpasses mortal limits—he is immune to all psychic interference.
Fourth – Heart Source Creation (New):
The Emperor Engine can extract void energy to reshape matter.
Kaito can create or destroy microscopic particles with his heartbeat.
Theoretically, it can even spontaneously generate and modify life itself.
Fifth – Eternal Rhythm (New):
His heart becomes a conceptual engine, independent of his physical form.
Even if his body is destroyed—
—as long as fear exists in the universe, the Emperor Engine will never stop.
"Uhh… AAHHH!"
Kaito threw back his head, releasing a low, primal roar.
Crimson-gold energy burst from every pore, branching into billions of lightning filaments.
The entire bedroom vaporized within a thousandth of a second—
and yet, strangely, the building itself remained intact.
That was the Emperor Domain's dominion over reality.
Fubuki and Mosquito Girl were engulfed in the torrent but unharmed.
Instead, their bodies underwent evolution beneath the cleansing pulse of the Heart Source Creation.
Fubuki's psychic essence rewrote itself—each wisp of her spirit now tinged with the Emperor Engine's crimson-gold.
Mosquito Girl's Monster cells were infused with the concept of fear—her conjured proboscis could now pierce through space itself.
Meanwhile, Kaito's consciousness ascended infinitely with each beat of his heart.
He saw—
Elsewhere…
In a secret laboratory a thousand meters beneath Z City, Psykos was leisurely soaking in a constant-temperature bath.
"Mmm~…"
She narrowed her eyes in pleasure, sky-blue hair fanning out across the steaming water like a blooming flower.
Droplets slid down her neck, pausing briefly at her delicate collarbone before gathering into a deep, alluring valley.
A snap of her slender fingers projected a virtual screen before her.
Displayed upon it—classified data on Kaito, information even the Hero Association had failed to obtain.
"Addicted to dating sims… former shut-in before registering with the Hero Association… keeps a Demon-level Mosquito Girl as a housemaid… recent frequent contact with B-Class Fubuki and S-Class Tatsumaki…"
Psykos's fingertip traced the screen, and a cold smile curved her lips.
"Heh… 'Strongest Man on Earth'? Strip away that Emperor Engine, and what's left? Just another man ruled by his hormones."
Already, on the screen, a plan for revenge was taking shape.
"King… the pain you gave me—I'll repay a hundredfold."
Her fingers danced across the virtual interface, pulling up detailed parameters for a Clone Project.
Psykos had unshakable faith in her allure.
In the past, to fund the Monster Association's birth, she had toyed with men—from politicians to business magnates—like puppets in her palm.
Now, she intended to deploy the same weapon against the man who scarred her.
"A honey trap…"
Her lips curled into a seductive, cruel smile.
The plan was simple:
She would create a perfect clone of herself—a flawless bait to draw Kaito in.
Gain his trust through beauty.
Then, when he least expected it, slip Monster Cells into his food and drink.
Once infected, he would no longer be himself.
The cells' nature ensured total subjugation—his mind, his body, all bound to her will.
With Kaito's strength, he would become her ultimate trump card, even surpassing Orochi.
The thought sent a thrill through her body, her porcelain skin flushing faintly beneath the bathwater.
But suddenly—
An icy chill surged from her tailbone to the crown of her head, freezing her blood.
Her eyes widened.
Buzz—!
The 'Third Eye' in her brow—normally invisible to ordinary people—pulsed frantically, sending a silent alarm through Psykos.
"Marked…?!" Her voice trembled, surprised by its own edge.
The sensation was more unsettling than facing the pressure of that being.
"Who—who is observing me?!" She sprang from the bath, water droplets tracing her graceful curves.
Ignoring the chill of her wet skin, she wrapped a silk robe around herself and darted, barefoot, to the control console.
At the center of the laboratory stood an amplifier console for Spirit—an array Psykos knew how to push to screaming precision. She flipped onto the reclining chair without hesitation, hands forming quick seals. Her Spirit condensed into a tangible stream of purple light and surged toward her brow.
"Third Eye—Future Sight! Open!"
Buzz.
Above the console a massive, intricately layered star-map of pure Spirit unfolded. Countless points of light—branches of possible futures—flickered and extended. Psykos's Spirit probed like the finest of probes, scanning and deducing, trying desperately to trace the origin of the mark that gnawed at her.
But—
"Empty?! A complete void?!" Her eyes widened in disbelief.
In her Future Sight, the region that should contain the source of the mysterious mark was an absolute void. It was as if an invisible, all-encompassing hand had severed the thread of fate she tried to follow from the present node. Her vision struck that severed edge like a stone sinking into the ocean—no ripple, no answer.
(Kaito's Kenbunshoku Haki—'Severing the Present'—blocks all prophetic abilities from probing him, unless the opponent is stronger than him.)
"How is this possible… even Future Sight is ineffective…"
Cold sweat beaded at Psykos's temple. An unprecedented sense of powerlessness and a nameless dread rose in her chest. This unknown existence—whoever or whatever had reached out and marked her—was likely far beyond anything she had imagined.
"Hmph."
Forcing her racing heart into a measured calm, Psykos smoothed her hair and tied the robe's silk into a perfect bow at her slender waist. She slid into crystal high heels and strode toward the culture tanks deeper in the lab.
"If I can't find you… then I'll deal with that damned King first."
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