The Gods Descend

Beneath the twisted purplish-red sky, the earth had become hills of pulsating flesh.

Amid this silent, despairing requiem, an enormous Raven, black from head to toe, quietly stepped out from the shadow of a toppled giant obelisk in the distance.

Its feathers gleamed with a metallic sheen beneath the sickly light of the evil god. Its eyes, deep as the darkest night, coldly watched Karina and the others destroy themselves.

And watched that "Ian crystal."

This duplicate carried his memories, his magic, and his unyielding will. It was enough to perfectly play the role of "Ian"—to fight, to wear the enemy down, to probe the evil god's limits, and even to "sacrifice" itself. Of course, Ian was more focused on the ultimate evil god hovering in the sky, radiating the oppressive aura of "perfection."

The evil god's perfect form, composed of countless tentacles and lumps of flesh, floated between heaven and earth.

It had "perfected" itself. It was "god."

It radiated an oppressive force that promised the end of all things.

Yet even this evil god, which had already "perfected" itself, failed to notice the Raven in the shadows. After shedding its embryonic form and its shell of truth, goodness, and beauty, it had also lost certain things—including the ability to sense the aura of "fate." Naturally, this prevented it from perceiving the Raven's presence.

Likewise, it could not realize that the one who had been fighting it all along was merely a duplicate Ian had created through Transfiguration. How should one put it? This was perfectly normal, even setting aside its belief that it had grasped fate and would become the new fate.

Just in terms of pure perception alone, the evil god had discovered Ian once before. How could Ian possibly allow it to discover him a second