Beyond existence.
Beyond the countless layered realms.
Beyond the drifting oceans of stars and the silent voids between universes.
There existed a place that very few beings in creation could even perceive.
A suspended dominion in the cosmic abyss.
A palace that floated within stillness itself.
The Realm of the Absolutes.
It was not a universe.
It was not a dimension.
It was something older — something that existed before the first laws of reality stabilized.
A colossal palace stood at its center.
Its architecture was impossible.
Titanic pillars stretched endlessly upward into a dome that held galaxies frozen like ornaments in glass. Time itself moved strangely here — sometimes slowing to near nothing, sometimes flowing like a raging river.
Inside the palace sat ten thrones.
Each throne belonged to one of the Absolute Beings.
The first existences born from creation itself.
Each of them possessed power capable of erasing entire multiverses effortlessly.
They were not gods.
Gods were merely phenomena compared to them.
They were laws given consciousness.
And among them sat the one who had orchestrated everything that had recently begun unfolding across existence.
Agoth.
The being burned from the First Light.
The architect of the coming convergence.
For ages they had ruled their realm in silence.
But now…
Something had arrived.
A presence.
An immeasurable darkness.
Not ordinary darkness.
This was something far older.
Far heavier.
Far more absolute.
The moment it appeared outside the realm…
Every Absolute being felt it.
Inside the palace, the ten beings opened their eyes simultaneously.
One of them — Xenon — rose slightly from his throne.
His form was made of pure crystalline energy, his body composed of shifting geometric structures that constantly rearranged themselves.
His voice echoed across the palace.
"Something approaches."
Another Absolute, Elaris, narrowed her luminous eyes.
"That aura…"
A third Absolute slowly spoke.
"It feels like the end of stars."
Agoth remained seated.
Silent.
But even he felt it.
The pressure.
The darkness.
A presence that did not belong to the structure of creation.
And then…
The footsteps began.
Step.
The sound echoed through the palace halls.
Step.
Slow.
Unhurried.
Confident.
The Absolutes listened.
Each step carried a pressure that warped the space within the palace.
Step.
The pillars trembled faintly.
Not from fear.
But from recognition.
Someone had entered their domain.
Someone powerful enough to ignore the laws protecting the realm.
Step.
The footsteps continued.
Then the figure appeared at the entrance of the great chamber.
A man.
Tall.
Calm.
His long dark hair moved slightly as if stirred by invisible winds.
His crimson eyes glowed faintly with an endless abyss of black light.
His presence alone made the space around him ripple like fragile glass.
Ashura Bellet.
The Sovereign of Black Light.
The being who sat outside the cosmic ladder.
The entity who governed death, rebirth, and balance from the Palace of Twelve Shadows.
He walked forward casually.
No fear.
No hesitation.
His hands rested loosely behind his back as his footsteps echoed across the immense floor of the palace.
The ten Absolutes watched him.
Their expressions were unreadable.
Ashura stopped at the center of the chamber.
He slowly looked upward.
The Absolutes sat high upon their elevated thrones, gazing down upon him.
Ashura tilted his head slightly.
Then he spoke.
His voice was calm.
Polite even.
"I'd appreciate it if you all remove yourselves from such high places."
The chamber grew silent.
Ashura's eyes glowed faintly.
"I don't like being looked down upon."
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then one of the Absolutes scoffed.
Xenon leaned forward on his throne.
His voice carried the arrogance of something that had existed since the birth of reality.
"Preposterous."
His crystalline form shimmered with cosmic energy.
"Who do you think you are?"
The moment those words left his mouth…
A voice whispered behind him.
Cold.
Dangerous.
Filled with restrained violence.
"How dare you speak to my sovereign with your foul mouth."
Xenon's entire body froze.
Slowly…
Very slowly…
He turned his head.
Standing behind his throne was a towering armored figure.
Black armor trimmed with gold.
A sword forged from pure annihilation resting at his side.
A single eye glowing through the visor of his helm.
Armageddon.
The living embodiment of destruction.
The Eternal Executioner.
The being who had slaughtered armies of Outer Gods.
And he was standing behind an Absolute.
For the first time in ages…
The Absolutes moved.
Every single one of them rose from their thrones.
Power erupted throughout the palace.
Reality itself trembled.
Yet Ashura simply sighed softly.
Then…
He lifted one hand slightly.
His body rose slowly into the air.
Floating above the chamber.
Above the Absolutes.
Above the thrones.
Until he was suspended in the sky of the palace dome.
Now…
They had to look up to see him.
Ashura folded his arms behind his back.
His eyes gazed down upon them calmly.
"That…"
He said softly.
"…is where you should be."
Silence filled the chamber.
The tension became suffocating.
Every Absolute radiated power capable of destroying entire multiverses.
Yet the man floating above them radiated something else entirely.
Authority.
The kind that could not be denied.
The kind that existed outside hierarchy.
Then suddenly—
Agoth spoke.
His voice echoed across the chamber like distant thunder.
"Enough."
The other Absolutes went silent.
Agoth slowly stood from his throne.
His form was majestic and terrifying.
Golden cosmic energy flowed around him like liquid sunlight.
His eyes burned with ancient intelligence.
He stepped forward.
Looking up at Ashura.
For a moment…
Neither of them spoke.
Two beings who existed beyond ordinary existence.
Finally, Agoth spoke.
"Ashura Bellet."
His voice was calm.
But beneath it was curiosity.
"And here I thought you would ignore my invitation forever."
Ashura's expression remained unchanged.
Agoth continued.
"Tell me…"
His golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"Why did you turn down my invitation?"
The chamber waited for Ashura's response.
Ashura tilted his head slightly.
Then he spoke.
"Didn't Silas already tell you?"
His voice was calm.
Unbothered.
"I was never under anyone."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"And I won't ever be."
The temperature in the palace seemed to drop.
Ashura continued.
"Don't bring that up again."
His gaze slowly moved across the Absolutes.
Then he continued speaking.
"I know you sent portals to Earth."
The Absolutes remained silent.
Ashura's voice carried faint disappointment.
"You weakened the barrier protecting that world."
He looked directly at Agoth.
"I understand your reasoning."
His tone was analytical.
"It creates opportunity for mortals."
"A stepping stone."
"An evolution."
"A battlefield for those chosen by Earth's gods."
He paused.
"But…"
Ashura's eyes turned cold.
"You still broke the balance."
The air suddenly grew heavy.
The pillars of the palace began to tremble slightly.
Ashura slowly raised one hand.
Black light began to leak from his palm.
Not ordinary darkness.
This was the Black Light of Authority.
The power that governed death and rebirth itself.
The power that stabilized entire realms.
Ashura's voice echoed through the palace.
"So I am here…"
The black light expanded.
"…to enforce law."
BOOOOOOM.
A pulse of black light exploded outward.
The moment it touched the palace…
Cracks appeared.
Thin fractures spread across the walls.
Across the pillars.
Across the floor.
Across the structure of the realm itself.
The Absolutes' eyes widened slightly.
Not fear.
But something close.
Because they understood something instantly.
This was only a portion of Ashura's power.
And yet…
Their realm was cracking.
Armageddon stood silently beside Xenon's throne.
His sword slowly unsheathed with a metallic whisper.
His voice echoed calmly.
"Shall I begin, my sovereign?"
Ashura looked down at the Absolutes.
His eyes glowed like endless night.
And the cracks in the palace continued spreading.
The confrontation between the Sovereign of Black Light and the First Beings of Creation had finally begun.
And the outcome…
Would decide the balance of existence itself.