The True Emperor

An abandoned house in a remote place.

Everyone had lit a campfire and sat together for dinner.

Joestar used Purple Hermit again. The result was no different this time: the red dot representing Mista was still drifting erratically.

Dawn took a sip of water and accepted the roasted meat Hewitt handed him, but his mind was occupied with a question.

Mista had said that everyone would bear the consequences of his actions. Judging by what had happened to the assault squad, it was clearly a series of attacks.

If they completely severed those causal ties, would Mista's interference stop working?

After all, Mista didn't fuse with the Insect Arrow twenty-four hours a day. The only time he had ever used his ability was during the previous cycle.

Dawn thought it should work. Requiem's abilities were certainly powerful, but they weren't without weaknesses.

Even Silver Chariot Requiem, powerful enough to alter billions of years of evolution for life on Earth, had a fatal weakness.

Of course, when facing a being with its own consciousness like Golden Experience Requiem, finding a weakness would be incredibly difficult.

Mista's death rewind was ridiculously overpowered. Perhaps he didn't even need a target and could activate it at will.

But inflicting causality definitely required a target. That window between resolving the causal ties and Mista activating Requiem again would give Dawn and the others a chance to find him.

"Looks like we'll have to eliminate this world's Diavolo and Risotto, who still hasn't shown his face."

Dawn muttered to himself and took a bite of roasted meat.

Then he told everyone his theory. Their eyes lit up, and Dio set down the wild deer whose blood he had drained and nodded, agreeing it was worth a try.

"The sun's about to set. We'll make our move tonight. Purple Hermit will find Diavolo's hideout, and I'll take him out."

Dio grinned viciously. With his muscular build and sharp fangs, he hardly looked like someone willing to drink animal blood.

He looked more like a pure-blooded vampire who fed on humans.

With their plan settled, everyone continued resting.

In the blink of an eye, the sun sank below the horizon.

The moment the sun disappeared completely, Dawn suddenly felt a chill, as if a savage beast had its eyes on him. The back of his neck prickled.

Diavolo's voice sounded in his mind.

"He's close."

"This feels familiar. It's me, from another world."

Diavolo's voice was low as he said, "I can feel how curious he is about me, and how much he loathes me."

Dawn glanced at everyone, gave Hewitt a look, then got up and quietly left the house.

Hewitt understood and rose to follow him.

"King Crimson!"

Diavolo activated Time Erasure and quickly spotted a figure in the bushes several dozen meters away.

Red hair speckled with black, sharp fangs, a burly build, and a black sleeveless fishnet shirt.

The familiar outfit let Dawn identify the newcomer at once.

"Vampire Diavolo."

"Time resumes."

Diavolo was also examining his parallel-world counterpart. After a moment, contempt showed in his eyes.

"You've lost the dignity of an emperor and become someone else's underling. What a clown."

The vampire Diavolo realized he had been exposed and rose unhurriedly, his own gaze just as disdainful.

"You counterfeit. Is this some kind of Stand ability that can imitate others? Whatever the case, you've offended an emperor's dignity."

The vampire Diavolo spread his arms and looked at Dawn with unruffled composure.

Dawn, meanwhile, was a little troubled. According to the rules of the JOJO World, contact between counterparts from parallel worlds would cause them to annihilate each other.

Then again, this so-called parallel world was a Hypothetical Universe created by [Stand: Beyond Imagination: If].

Once its creator left, the Hypothetical Universe would automatically return to nothingness. Would the rule about counterparts annihilating each other still apply?

Dawn thought annihilation was unlikely. The Hypothetical Universe created by his ability was fundamentally different from a parallel universe.

"Diavolo, go meet him."

Dawn decided to see what would happen.

"Gladly."

Diavolo grinned, and King Crimson appeared, nearly three meters tall and radiating an immense sense of oppression.

The vampire Diavolo's pupils shrank slightly. Sweat began to bead on his forehead, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Tch. A pathetic imitation. You can't even get King Crimson's height right. Watch closely. This is the real thing."

The vampire Diavolo summoned his Stand. A 2.2-meter-tall King Crimson appeared. He lifted his chin and stared at Dawn.

Side by side, the vampire Diavolo's Stand immediately seemed undersized. It had already lost out in sheer presence.

"I'm curious. Why are you alone? Where's Tobio?"

Diavolo said coolly, "How can the Emperor of Darkness be alone? Even reduced to this, even without a body, I still have Dawn as my other half."

The vampire Diavolo burst into laughter at that, his behavior verging on madness.

Wiping away tears of laughter, the vampire Diavolo sneered, "I'm not some rat-like Emperor of Darkness. I've been a loyal supporter of Lord Kars since birth.

"Lord Kars gave me the title of emperor. As for this Tobio you mentioned? He never existed in the first place."

Diavolo snorted, visibly displeased.

"Time Erasure."

Diavolo didn't want to waste any more words. He erased time and directed King Crimson toward the vampire Diavolo.

The vampire Diavolo was still laughing wildly, completely unaware of the disaster about to befall him.

King Crimson raised its fist before the vampire Diavolo, put its full strength behind it, and unleashed a simple yet brutal punch.

"Time resumes."

Diavolo thought to himself. As time returned to normal, the terrifying gust of the punch stung the vampire Diavolo's face.

A sharp sonic boom pierced his ears, sending pain through his nerves.

The vampire Diavolo's pupils lost focus and his hair stood on end. At the last possible moment, he activated Time Erasure.

Bam!!!

The terrifying fist still landed on his face. The vampire Diavolo screamed as he flew backward, his jaw shattered and his skull covered in cracks.

Thud!!!

The vampire Diavolo hit the ground and skidded. Both arms twisted grotesquely as he went, and he only came to a stop after crashing through a tree.

"Why...? I clearly..."

The vampire Diavolo crawled across the ground, staring at Dawn in shock and confusion.

Diavolo began to taunt him.

"You ignorant worm. We both have Time Erasure, yet you didn't even consider whether I could attack you. What gave you that kind of confidence?"

Diavolo directed King Crimson forward. After Dawn's upgrade, its range had increased dramatically.

King Crimson grabbed the vampire Diavolo by the head and lifted him up, slowly tightening its grip.

The vampire Diavolo immediately used Epitaph, only to see a scene that filled him with despair.

"Two-Faced Emperor is the true emperor. You made three fatal mistakes."

Diavolo spoke coolly.

"First, you were far too arrogant and lacked an emperor's composure.

"Second, what I've experienced these past few days has taught me that Two-Faced Emperor is the true emperor, and you are not."

"Third..."

Diavolo had been about to say, "You picked a fight with me," but Dawn's face suddenly flashed through his mind, and he quickly changed his words.

"Third... you picked a fight with us."

King Crimson abruptly tightened its grip. The thing in its hand burst apart, splattering filth over its palm.