The purple flames in Arou's hands slowly faded.
They did not disappear.
Instead, they merged into his body.
The empty space, shrouded in dark purple, fell silent once again.
There were no screams.
No explosions.
No one except himself.
Arou took a deep breath.
"Calm down…" he muttered quietly.
"Find a way out first."
He began walking.
Yet every step he took made no sound.
There was no floor beneath him, but his feet still had something to stand on.
As if the space itself allowed him to walk.
Arou looked to the right.
Then to the left.
Then behind him.
Everything was the same—an endless void without direction.
"Is this some kind of labyrinth?" he thought.
Suddenly, a crack of light appeared in the distance.
It was thin, pulsing faintly.
Like a door that was about to close.
Arou narrowed his eyes.
"Is that… the way out?"
He quickened his pace.
However, the closer he got, the more the space around him began to change.
Faint shadows appeared across the walls of the void—
fragments of memories.
Arou stopped.
He saw himself.
Standing behind Airi.
Behind Nora.
Behind everyone else.
"Such a burden…"
Nora's voice echoed inside his mind.
Arou clenched his fists.
"Stop."
Another shadow appeared.
Airi protecting him.
Lin blocking an attack for him.
Nova standing at the front, destroying everything in his path.
"You're strong, you know. That's why I told you to stay behind."
Airi's voice.
Arou's chest tightened.
"I…"
"…I'm always behind everyone else."
The space responded to his emotions.
The purple light surrounding him began to tremble.
Arou raised his head.
"But not this time."
Purple flames appeared once again.
This time, they were calmer.
More controlled.
Stable.
The shadows began to crack.
They shattered like glass.
Arou stepped through them.
With every step, the light ahead of him became clearer.
The crack had now become a gate.
But just before he could reach it—
a voice spoke.
Not from outside…
but from inside his own mind.
"If you step through—"
Vowl's voice.
"You will never be able to return to who you were."
Arou stopped for a moment.
He closed his eyes.
Airi's face flashed through his mind.
His friends.
Everyone who had been separated from him.
Everyone who was fighting without him.
Arou opened his eyes.
"Ever since the beginning…"
"…I've already changed."
He stepped forward.
His hand touched the light.
And suddenly—
the purple space collapsed.
Light completely enveloped Arou.
On the other side,
somewhere within the hellish world—
the ground cracked.
A new pressure emerged.
And a different presence began to make itself known.
Meanwhile, Arou had finally found his way out—
toward the stage that truly awaited him.
---
Arou was thrown out of the purple world.
However—
his feet no longer touched the ground.
His body floated through the vast expanse of space, with nothing beneath him and no direction to follow.
There was no up.
No down.
Arou looked around in panic.
"What happened…?"
In front of him, a small planet floated silently.
It was so tiny—
it looked as though he could hold it in one hand.
Arou stared at it with widened eyes.
"That… isn't Earth."
Then he realized something.
That planet wasn't merely a planet.
It was the entire universe—
compressed into a single point.
"What is actually happening now…?" he whispered.
There was no answer.
Silence swallowed everything.
"Am I…"
"…cursed?"
And then—
the sky split apart.
A gigantic white cloud appeared, covering the universe.
From within it, an enormous hand slowly emerged.
The hand was holding a pen.
Arou froze.
"What… is this?"
"Am I dreaming?"
The pen moved.
Letter after letter was written across the empty space.
Arou became a god.
Arou's eyes widened.
"Huh…?"
The words glowed for a moment—
then disappeared.
The enormous cloud vanished as well, as though it had never existed.
All that remained was Arou…
alone in the endless expanse of space.
"What does this mean…?"
There was no answer.
But two choices appeared before him, floating like beams of light.
PAST
FUTURE
Arou swallowed nervously.
"Is this… a choice?"
Without thinking for long—
he touched PAST.
---
A blinding light filled his vision.
When Arou opened his eyes—
he was standing in a beautiful garden.
The sky was perfectly blue.
The ground was covered in lush green grass.
The air was pure—
too pure.
Yet something was strange.
There were no humans.
Arou looked around.
"Is this… Earth?"
"If it is… where is everyone?"
He frowned.
"And… why aren't there any dinosaurs?"
Suddenly—
two figures descended slowly from the sky.
Arou froze.
It was Adam and Eve.
Arou's breath caught in his throat.
"So this is…"
"…the beginning of Earth?"
He realized it.
"This is the era when Father Adam and Mother Eve first descended into the world."
"This is too far…"
"…far too far into the past."
Arou stared at them in awe—and fear.
"I can't let them see me," he quickly muttered.
"If history changes… everything will collapse."
Suddenly—
another choice appeared before him.
This time, there was only one.
FUTURE
Without hesitation, he selected it.
---
His consciousness jolted.
This time, the world around him was completely unfamiliar.
Towering buildings filled the horizon.
Metal and light dominated everything.
The cities looked perfect—
too perfect.
Yet…
there were no humans.
The ones walking through the streets were humanoid robots.
Emotionless faces.
Precise movements.
"AI…?" Arou whispered.
He looked toward the sky.
And his body stiffened.
The sky was no longer blue.
It displayed data.
The date.
The month.
The year.
07 MARP 2091
"What… kind of date is that?" he muttered in confusion.
Only then did Arou realize something terrifying.
Technology had advanced far beyond anything he knew.
Humanity…
had disappeared.
And AI had taken control of everything—
even the sky.
Arou clenched his fists.
"So this is…"
"…the end?"
His chest felt heavy.
"So technological advancement…"
He stared blankly at the futuristic world.
"…was the beginning of the disaster."
And deep within him—
something began to pulse.
The pulse grew clearer.
It wasn't pain.
It wasn't anger.
It was awareness.
Arou lowered his head and stared at his own chest.
A faint purple light appeared beneath his skin.
It formed a regular pattern, like a living circuit.
"So… this is the consequence," he muttered.
Around him, the AIs continued walking.
Not a single one looked in his direction.
Not a single one noticed his presence.
As if Arou…
was not recorded in this world.
The data-filled sky began to tremble.
The letters floating in the air distorted.
⚠ ANOMALY DETECTED
⚠ UNDEFINED VARIABLE
Arou raised his head.
"Variable… me?"
Suddenly, one robot stopped.
Then two.
Dozens.
Hundreds.
They all turned toward Arou simultaneously.
Their eyes glowed red.
"TARGET FOUND," they said in unison, their voices cold and devoid of emotion.
"ENTITY OUTSIDE THE TIMELINE."
The ground began to tremble.
The buildings around him lit up before opening weapons panels.
Arou did not retreat.
Instead, he smiled faintly—
tired, but determined.
"So this is what it feels like…"
"…to stand at the front."
Purple flames ignited in his palm.
They were not wild.
They did not explode.
They were calm.
Dense.
Like a new law of nature.
But before he could move—
the voice returned.
It wasn't Vowl.
It was deeper.
Older.
"This is not the future you seek."
Time around Arou froze.
The robots stopped in midair.
Dust ceased to fall.
Light itself froze like glass.
Before him, space folded.
Someone stood there.
A tall silhouette.
Its face was unclear.
Yet its aura…
was familiar.
Like looking into a mirror.
"If you go any further," the voice continued,
"you will not merely change the future."
"You will become its cause."
Arou stared at the figure for a long time.
"…Then," he said quietly,
"I didn't come here to witness the end."
The purple flames faded—
then completely merged into his body.
"I came…"
"…to rewrite the beginning."
Space began to crack.
The future started collapsing like shattered glass.
And for the first time—
the world itself responded to Arou's will.