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."

distort and warp, and suddenly, I found myself in a cosmic background filled with stars and planets

of it all. I felt weightless as if I was standing on nothing at all. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before, and I couldn't help but be

"Are you surprised?"

to reality. I turned to face him, nodding my head

I'm surprised. Where have you

I had seen how he had managed to send me here, I never felt a thing, unlike when I

are considering that you have

the white glow

is

slowly reached his

join

***

Boom―!

shake, and the mountains were pushed down to the ground.

the cloudless azure sky, and hordes of dark humanoid creatures rushed out

them! Don't spare any of

"Arkhh!"

the tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of elves who were standing on the ground behind the

flew in the air, impaling many of the

of them regenerated in the blink of an eye and continued to charge at the humans. Even if they succeeded in killing themselves, new demons would appear from

that were heard throughout the area gradually became higher pitched, and it wasn't long before the elves began to

In the distance.

"What a pitiful sight."

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

so many have to die today… A pity, a

shook his head

figures. An elderly one and

at

their gaze, Jezebeth turned his gaze and smiled

taking place over there don't appear to be having much of an effect on the two of you at all. Is this how things normally work with you Protectors?... Do you only

Jezebeth was unconcerned by this development. He was enjoying

had seen this scene many times in

reason that he

two of you are waiting for reinforcements… thinking that the five other Protectors will come to your aid soon

to the side and peered off into the distance. His expression remained one of

five… Four, I

at the scene in the

It's still

both hands behind his back, his hair was

Swoosh!

two Guardians started to move, and their silhouettes began to blend in with the surrounding area. They vanished for a moment and then reappeared right in front of

silver-armored elf, who had his rapier drawn and pointed toward his neck, showed no sign

of insignificant size, and at the

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