The heavens themselves shuddered.
The golden cracks in the sky widened, and from within, a column of pure divine authority poured down like a waterfall of burning starlight. The temperature dropped. Time slowed. The world held its breath.
Descending from the rift… came the Seven Executioners of the High Heavens.
Each wore a radiant crown, wings like white fire unfurling behind them. Their armors shimmered with inscriptions only gods could read. They were the last judgment, the hand of god made flesh.
But they weren't here to punish a demon.
They were here for Aether and Aira.
"By decree of the Heavenly Council, under Order 777-VI—Forbidden Resonance—Aira of the Fallen and Aether of the Corrupted shall be eradicated."
Their leader, a six-winged archangel named Seraphon, drew a blade made from the core of a dying star.
Aether stood, body aching from resonance, but eyes full of fire. "You want to kill us for falling in love? You're worse than demons."
Seraphon replied coldly, "Love is not forbidden. Your union is. She's reincarnated. You're corrupted. Together, you're a threat to cosmic balance."
Aira stepped forward beside Aether, her hand slipping into his. "Then we'll rewrite that balance."
Their soul-bond ignited again — glowing threads of light forming a cocoon around them. The Executioners lunged.
The sky exploded into fire and lightning.
Seraphon clashed blades with Aether midair, and the shockwave shattered the clouds. Aira summoned her shadow-laced wings, dodging spears of light from two twin Executioners.
Aether activated the Beelzebubb System — runes crawling up his arms.
"System Activate: Gluttony Phase I — Devourer's Maw."
He absorbed one Executioner's lightning bolt into his palm, redirecting it into the earth. The ground cracked. A crater formed.
Aira meanwhile whispered, "Shadow Reign: Lotus Bloom."
Dark lotuses exploded beneath the angelic squad, tearing one of them into pieces. Blood rained from the heavens.
But they weren't winning. The Executioners weren't normal enemies. Every time one was struck down, they reformed from light, their essence nearly immortal.
Seraphon raised his blade again.
"Activate: Judgment Core – Third Seal of Heaven."
A massive cross-shaped symbol spread across the sky. Reality itself tilted.
Aether fell to one knee, coughing blood. "It's… sealing my system…"
Aira screamed, "They're suppressing the contract!"
Their soul resonance flickered.
Aether looked at Aira — and saw fear. Not of death. But of losing him again.
He stood slowly, ignoring the pain, ignoring the blood. He looked at Seraphon and growled,
"If you want balance, I'll give you mine."
He accessed the deepest part of the Beelzebubb system. The part even he feared.
"Sacrifice Protocol: Authority Burn – Level One."
[Warning: You will permanently lose an ability. Continue?]
Confirmed.
Aether screamed.
A black vortex erupted from his chest, and a skill orb shattered — his [Infinite Regeneration] was burned out of his system.
In return, the chains of heaven binding his soul were shattered.
"New Skill Unlocked: Gluttony Burst — Divine Erasure Mode."
Aether moved faster than light.
He punched through an Executioner, devoured the core of another, and crashed into Seraphon with enough force to split the atmosphere. The Executioners tried to reform — but this time, their essence faded instead of returning.
Their immortality had been devoured.
Only Seraphon remained.
Wounded, breathing heavily, wings torn, he hovered above Aether and Aira. "You've… become something the heavens can't record."
Aether walked forward, each step leaving behind cracks in the ground. "You tried to erase us. Now we'll erase you."
With one final strike, Aether and Aira combined their soul resonance — light and shadow entwined — and destroyed Seraphon's core.
The golden rift above snapped shut.
The sky returned to normal.
But Earth… had changed.
People had watched from afar. Survivors of outer invasion, oppressed humans, elves, beastkin — all had seen what happened.
The news spread like wildfire:
A boy with a trash class and a fallen elf killed heaven's champions.
A love that defied fate.
A system that devoured gods.
In a world ruled by guilds and divine law, a new legend had been born:
The Devourer and the Fallen Star.