in another dimension—
there was nothing.
No sky.
No earth.
No stars.
No light.
No darkness.
Only an endless void stretching infinitely in every direction.
A world where concepts themselves seemed absent.
Silence ruled here.
Absolute silence.
Even time felt meaningless.
At the center of this endless nothingness—
two figures stood facing one another.
One sat upon a throne.
The other stood before it.
Rio slowly raised his head.
His golden eyes had long vanished.
What remained were eyes darker than the abyss itself.
Eyes that reflected absolutely nothing.
His hand tightened around the hilt of his sword.
Ryūsoku.
Once a brilliant golden blade.
Now—
it had transformed.
The blade was completely black.
Not black like metal.
Not black like shadow.
It looked as though a piece of the abyss itself had been forged into a weapon.
The darkness surrounding it seemed endless.
Hungry.
Alive.
Across from him—
the Sovereign sat casually upon his throne.
One leg crossed over the other.
His masked face tilted slightly.
Amusement lingered within his gaze.
"Oh dear brother."
His voice echoed endlessly throughout the void.
"I understand your instability."
The Sovereign rested his chin upon his hand.
Then chuckled.
"But to fight me?"
The sound echoed throughout the empty world.
As though the void itself was laughing alongside him.
His gaze remained fixed upon Rio.
"Is that your wish, Rio?"
Silence.
The Sovereign repeated the question.
Softer.
Almost gently.
"Is that your wish, Rio?"
The moment those words entered his ears—
Rio froze.
His body trembled violently.
CRACK.
The black blade nearly slipped from his grasp.
Then—
he fell to one knee.
"NGH—!"
Both hands immediately grabbed his head.
Pain.
Unimaginable pain.
Memories.
Voices.
Hatred.
Despair.
Everything collided inside his mind simultaneously.
The chains binding his memories had shattered.
The pain was enough to tear apart his very existence.
The Sovereign simply watched.
Silent.
Patient.
As though he had expected this outcome from the very beginning.
Rio's breathing became ragged.
The black blade trembled beside him.
Then—
slowly—
he stood.
His head remained lowered.
Yet the pressure pouring from his body had changed completely.
The endless void around them began trembling.
CRRRRRRRRRRACK—
Space itself fractured.
The darkness beneath his feet shattered like broken glass.
Then—
Rio raised Ryūsoku.
For the first time—
the Sovereign's smile widened.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
A slash erupted.
Black.
Endless.
The attack devoured everything in its path.
Reality split apart.
The void itself was torn open as the blade descended toward the throne.
Toward the Sovereign.
Toward the man responsible for everything.
And for the first time since awakening—
Rio finally attacked.
...
The Sovereign laughed.
Not a restrained chuckle.
Not a small smile.
A genuine laugh.
One that echoed throughout the shattered void.
Before him—
the black slash capable of tearing apart dimensions approached.
Reality folded around its path.
Entire sections of the abyss vanished into nothingness.
Yet the Sovereign simply smiled.
Then—
he reached into the void itself.
And pulled out a sword.
A golden blade.
Ancient.
Beautiful.
Perfect.
The moment it appeared—
the broken dimension stabilized.
As though reality itself recognized its owner.
The Sovereign slowly raised the blade.
"That's more like it."
SHIIIIING—
A golden slash erupted forward.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The two attacks collided.
Black.
Gold.
Chaos.
Order.
The impact shattered everything.
Entire sections of the dimension collapsed instantly.
Cracks spread endlessly across the void.
The collision alone created storms powerful enough to annihilate worlds.
Yet neither attack gained ground.
Then—
Rio vanished.
The Sovereign's smile widened.
"There you are."
CLANG!!!
The black blade appeared beside his neck.
The Sovereign blocked effortlessly.
A shockwave exploded outward.
Before the shockwave could even settle—
Rio attacked again.
And again.
And again.
Each strike carried enough force to tear mountains apart.
Chaos erupted from every movement.
Every swing distorted reality.
Every step shattered space.
The Retainer of Chaos no longer resembled a human.
He resembled a natural disaster given form.
Yet—
the Sovereign matched him perfectly.
CLANG!!!
CLANG!!!
CLANG!!!
Their blades collided thousands of times.
The dimension itself screamed.
Rio's attacks became faster.
More violent.
More unstable.
Chaos poured endlessly from Ryūsoku.
Black flames erupted across the battlefield.
Fragments of destroyed realities appeared and vanished around them.
Still—
the Sovereign laughed.
"Do you remember, Rio?"
CLANG!!!
Their blades collided once more.
"The first day I taught you how to hold a sword?"
Rio answered with another slash.
The void split apart.
The Sovereign casually sidestepped.
"Hahaha!"
The Sovereign's eyes gleamed.
"The very sword trying to kill me..."
CLANG!!!
"...is the sword i taught you."
He suddenly accelerated.
For the first time—
the Sovereign attacked.
BOOOOOM!!!
Rio was launched through several layers of shattered reality.
The moment he stopped—
he rushed forward again.
A roar escaped his lips.
A roar filled with hatred.
Filled with pain.
Filled with countless years of suffering.
Chaos exploded.
The black blade descended.
The Sovereign met it head-on.
The collision illuminated the entire void.
"That's it!"
The Sovereign laughed louder.
"Come at me, dear brother!"
"Fight!"
"Rage!"
"Destroy!"
The black blade became a storm.
A hurricane of endless destruction.
Rio attacked relentlessly.
No defense.
No hesitation.
Only annihilation.
Only chaos.
The Sovereign met every strike.
Their battle transcended skill.
Transcended power.
The two brothers tore apart dimensions with every clash.
Golden light.
Black chaos.
The two forces consumed the void.
Neither willing to retreat.
Neither willing to stop.
And somewhere amidst that endless battle—
the Sovereign continued smiling.
Because he knew.
This wasn't a fight.
This was an awakening.
And every clash brought Rio one step closer to becoming what he was always meant to be.
The Retainer of Chaos.
...
As the two collide in the endless abyss.
The Sovereign's laughter slowly faded.
Not completely.
Just enough.
The manic grin beneath the silver mask remained.
Yet his crimson eyes had become frighteningly calm.
Their blades remained locked together.
Black chaos.
Golden light.
Neither side giving an inch.
The shattered void trembled around them.
Then—
the Sovereign spoke.
"Rio."
For the first time since the battle began—
his voice held no amusement.
No mockery.
No laughter.
Only a single question.
"What's my name?"
...
The words echoed throughout the abyss.
Rio froze.
His blade stopped.
The chaos pouring from Ryūsoku faltered.
The Sovereign's smile widened.
"What's my name, Rio?"
Silence.
The void became still.
Rio's black eyes trembled.
Because he realized—
he didn't know.
Not truly.
The Retainers called him Sovereign.
The world called him the ruler of Oblivion.
His Elder brother.
The man who stood above everything.
Yet—
he had never once heard his name.
Not once.
The Sovereign slowly lowered his sword.
His gaze never left Rio.
"Do you know?"
Rio's fingers tightened around the blade.
Fragments surfaced.
Memories.
Broken pieces.
A blonde-haired figure.
A hand reaching toward him.
A laugh.
A sword lesson beneath falling snow.
A promise.
A brother.
But the face remained blurry.
The name remained hidden.
The Sovereign took a step forward.
Then another.
His voice became softer.
Almost gentle.
"Come on, Rio."
"You've remembered your suffering."
"You've remembered your hatred."
"You've remembered your despair."
His smile grew stronger.
"But have you remembered me?"
CRACK.
Something shattered within Rio's mind.
A chain.
Then another.
Then another.
Countless black chains wrapped around his memories began breaking apart.
The abyss trembled violently.
The Sovereign simply watched.
Patiently.
Waiting.
Then—
he asked once more.
A final time.
"What's my name, Rio?"
For the first time—
a flicker of emotion appeared within Rio's black eyes.
Not hatred.
Not rage.
Not chaos.
Recognition.
A memory surfaced.
A blonde-haired young man laughing as he placed a wooden sword into a child's hands.
A voice.
Warm.
Proud.
Protective.
"Come on, Rio."
"Again."
Rio's pupils contracted.
His entire body trembled.
And for the first time since awakening—
he whispered.
"Aet-"
The Sovereign's eyes widened slightly.
The grin beneath the mask slowly returned.
"That's right."
The abyss shook.
And the final chain binding Rio's memories began to crack.
...
Inside the abyss—
Rio Barnes and Rio Valen stood silently.
The endless darkness stretched infinitely around them.
Neither spoke.
Neither moved.
Because both of them understood.
The end was approaching.
Only a single chain remained.
One.
Just one.
The countless black chains that had imprisoned them for so long had already shattered.
And now—
the final chain slowly cracked.
CRRRRACK—
The abyss trembled.
The moment it did—
something appeared.
Both Rios immediately raised their heads.
Their pupils contracted.
An ancient crown floated before them.
Slowly spinning.
Silently watching.
An endless onyx crown.
Beautiful.
Terrifying.
Timeless.
The moment it appeared—
the entire abyss froze.
Even the final chain stopped breaking.
Then—
a voice echoed.
Neither male.
Nor female.
Ancient.
As though it existed before time itself.
[The Crown of Eternity.]
[Hm.]
[It seems interference was required after all.]
The crown continued spinning.
Its endless black surface reflected countless shattered worlds.
Countless lives.
Countless possibilities.
Then—
the voice spoke once more.
[Rio.]
[Do you truly wish to understand what you are?]
Silence followed.
The final chain trembled.
The voice continued.
[Once that chain breaks—]
[You will be reborn.]
[Not as Rio Barnes.]
[Not as Rio Valen.]
[But as the calamity the Sovereign wishes to create.]
The darkness around them stirred.
The crown slowly descended.
[Therefore.]
[I shall offer you two choices.]
The abyss became silent.
Even fate itself seemed to pause.
[Submit yourself to the Sovereign.]
[Accept the role prepared for you.]
[Become the calamity.]
The first choice faded.
A second appeared.
Far darker.
Far older.
[Or...]
For the first time—
the voice hesitated.
As though speaking forbidden truths.
[Wait.]
[Wait until the proper time arrives.]
[Wait until you discover the truth.]
The crown's rotation slowed.
Its endless black surface reflected another figure.
A blonde-haired young man.
The elder brother.
[The truth behind you.]
[And your elder brother.]
Rio's eyes narrowed.
The voice laughed softly.
A laugh carrying countless ages.
[Do you truly believe there can exist a being capable of controlling souls?]
[Existence itself?]
[Reality itself?]
The abyss trembled.
[No, Rio.]
For the first time—
the voice sounded almost pitying.
[Neither you nor your brother belong to this world.]
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even the final chain stopped moving.
[You were brought here.]
Rio's pupils contracted.
The voice continued.
[This is not the first time the wheels of fate have turned.]
[This is not the first time the world has ended.]
[This is not the first time the Sovereign has stood before you.]
The onyx crown glowed.
Ancient memories hidden beyond countless lifetimes stirred.
[This is not the first time you have met me.]
The crown slowly stopped spinning.
[And this...]
The voice became impossibly ancient.
[Is not the first time this exact phenomenon has taken place.]
CRACK.
The final chain fractured.
And for the first time—
fear appeared within the abyss itself.