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."

world around me began to distort and warp, and suddenly, I found myself in a cosmic background filled with stars

as if I was standing on nothing at all. It was like

"Are you surprised?"

reverie, pulling me back to reality. I turned to

surprised. Where have you brought

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

we are considering that you have 'his' power,

the white glow that emanated from his body

is your

slowly reached his hand toward

join me, or

***

Boom―!

were pushed down to the ground. The entire area was filled with the sound of screams

scattered across the cloudless azure sky, and hordes of dark humanoid

Don't spare any of

"Arkhh!"

if not hundreds of thousands, of elves who were standing on

impaling many of the demons

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 behind and take the

pitched, and it wasn't long

In the distance.

"What a pitiful sight."

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

that so many have to die today… A pity, a

shook his head

elderly one and a younger one, both wearing shiny

at Jezebeth without

their gaze, Jezebeth turned his gaze and

two of you at all. Is this how things normally work with you Protectors?...

Jezebeth was unconcerned by this development.

and although he had seen this scene many times in the past... He knew... that this

this reason that he was rather chatty

the two of you are waiting for reinforcements… thinking that the

and peered off into the distance. His expression remained one of contentment as his eyes became fixated on

never mind five… Four,

with something as he kept looking at the scene in the distance, but he eventually shook

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

Swoosh!

started to move, and their silhouettes began to blend in with the surrounding

his neck, showed no sign of holding back as the

be of insignificant

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