The Author's POV

The tension in the room was palpable, thick enough to cut through with a knife. Waylan's smile vanished in an instant, leaving behind a stoic expression devoid of any emotion.

His clear eyes began to cloud over, and in just a matter of seconds, they turned pitch black. But upon closer inspection, they were much more than just a dark void.

As I gazed into his eyes, I could see the reflection of the entire cosmos staring back at me.

The swirling galaxies, the shining stars, and the infinite expanse of space were all contained within Waylan's eyes.

"Is this your answer?"

Waylan's voice boomed across the room, carrying with it an ancient quality that made the powers within my body tremble.

I felt a sudden pressure crash onto me, and I struggled to keep my footing. Despite the weight bearing down on me, I refused to falter and stood my ground.

"Even after I conceded and allowed you to work with us, you still choose to work against us?"

Waylan's gaze was cold and unforgiving, and I knew that I was in deep trouble.

"Arrogant."

He spat, and the cosmos within his eyes began to expand, slowly creeping up the walls of the room.

I watched in seriousness as the stars and galaxies began to envelop everything around me, slowly but surely.

Even in the face of such overwhelming power, I remained composed/

"Arrogant, huh?"

I managed to gasp out, struggling against the immense pressure that threatened to crush me.

"Would knowing that I'd get disposed of after serving my usefulness count as me being arrogant? …Rather, instead of arrogant, shouldn't you be saying something along the lines of self-aware?"

I was no fool.

The information that Ryan had sent me coincided with everything that I had managed to figure out myself, and I knew that Waylan wasn't someone who'd spare someone that had lived up to their usefulness.

He couldn't fool me, and I knew that he needed to die, regardless of whether he'd eliminate me after.

'He needs to die regardless.'

I thought to myself, my resolve hardening with each passing second. His existence was something that needed to be eliminated to have any chance at the third cataclysm that was soon going to come.

"Self-Aware?"

Waylan looked at me with a calm expression, musing over my words very carefully. It wasn't long before he shook his head.

"You're the last thing from self-aware. If you were self-aware, you'd know which side to join."

I found myself in a cosmic

on nothing at all. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before, and I couldn't help but be in awe of the spectacle

"Are you surprised?"

voice cut through my reverie, pulling me back to reality. I

surprised. Where have

to send me here, I never felt a thing, unlike when I was with portals. It

you can't tell where we are considering that you have 'his' power, but that

me, and the white glow that emanated from his

important is

his hand toward

you join me, or

***

Boom―!

mountains were pushed down to the ground. The entire area was filled with the sound of screams of agony, and there was a constant flow of

magnitude were scattered across the cloudless azure sky, and hordes of dark humanoid creatures rushed out

them! Don't spare

"Arkhh!"

toward the tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of elves who

impaling many of the demons that were rushing their way,

in the blink of an eye and continued to charge at the humans. Even if they succeeded in killing themselves, new

became higher pitched, and it

In the distance.

"What a pitiful sight."

across Jezebeth's face was not consistent with the compassionate words

many have to die today… A

shook his head

were two elven figures. An elderly

at Jezebeth without

his gaze

all. Is this how things normally work with you Protectors?... Do you only care about

silence, but Jezebeth was unconcerned by this development. He

very long time, and although he had seen this scene many times in the past... He knew... that this was the very last time he'd see

reason that

for reinforcements… thinking that the five other Protectors will come to your aid soon

the side and peered off into the distance. His expression remained

mind five…

eyes lit up with something as he kept looking at the scene in the distance, but he eventually

yet… It's still a

he turned his attention back to the other two Protectors. While he had both hands behind his back, his hair was blowing in front of him, and his eyes, which had

Swoosh!

in with the surrounding area. They vanished for a moment and then reappeared

toward his neck, showed no sign of holding back as the slash shattered the

made everything in the far distance appear to be of insignificant size, and at the same time, the carefree expression that had been on

a large magic circle―the size of a car―appearing above her staff. A terrifying fluctuation burst forth from the