The bustling courtroom slowly quieted down, a strong itchiness crawling over every inch of their bodies.
The hundreds of torches brightening the courtroom flickered violently, as if trying to escape from something.
The atmosphere grew unnaturally tense. Sebastian stayed on the ground, unable to process what he was experiencing.
Radhaan, Astreus, and Christopher spread their senses over the 150 kilometers surrounding the artifact, trying to detect the source of the threat. But they found nothing.
And then—
It happened.
Not a sound.
Not a word.
Not a scream.
But something slipped.
Every candle and torch in the room died, complete darkness swallowing the courtroom.
The ceiling cracked—not the one above them, but the one above existence itself. As if something that had been sleeping far below the bones of the world… exhaled.
Every soul present forgot how to breathe. As if frozen in time.
A single thought repeated in their heads,
Death had arrived.
Not just their death.
The world's death.
Existence's death.
Not as a figure. Not as magic. But as a presence.
Johan raised his head slowly, his blue eyes as hollow as black holes, glowing in the darkness.
He glanced towards Leor. It was a glance, not filled with hatred or sadness—but just curiosity.
"Beughhh!!"
White-yellowish liquid escaped from Leor's mouth. An uncontrollable vomit covered every bit of his worn-out clothes, making him all sticky.
His heart trembled as if it had been stabbed a thousand times.
Blood pooled from his eyes and nose. Johan hadn't attacked him; his body, on its own, felt like it was being disintegrated.
Like a man who dies from poison simply because he believes he was bitten by a snake, even when he wasn't.
The world flinched.
Astreus—the man who could freeze time itself—took a step back, whimpering with what little voice he had left.
"Ice dome."
Thousands of thin layers of compressed ice surrounded his body in a perfect sphere, sealing him from all sides.
It was not out of will or desire. But out of pure, primitive instinct. The ice thickened on its own, and even that still felt insufficient to Astreus.
Radhaan vanished in a flash of invisible light—only to reappear against the far wall of the courtroom, arms raised. Not in readiness, but in defense. Struggling to breathe.
Selene's sword dropped.
Her lips parted. Her pupils shrank to pinpricks. All the determination she had moments ago vanished.
Christopher immediately grabbed her, taking cover behind a distant pillar, panting hard.
The chantings of Justice had stopped long ago. Every last person was horrified beyond reason.
Knights vomited. Screamed. Hundreds stood from their seats, some collapsed without knowing why. Others died on the spot, overwhelmed by fear.
Leonard's grip tightened on the throne, his hands bleeding from how hard he clutched it.
In that chaos, everyone understood one thing.
This was not magic. This was not power—
This was Death.
A cosmic fact. A principle. A force older than any god, religion, man, time, or even the universe itself.
Johan wasn't threatening. He wasn't smiling, yelling, or even moving.
He just existed.
And that was too much.
"Let's leave… Sebastian," Johan's lips moved.
The pressure on Sebastian's body lifted completely. He greedily swallowed every bit of air he could.
Even without the weight, his body still trembled.
"...Master, what are you?"
The rational Sebastian would never ask this. The words escaped on their own.
"It doesn't matter. What matters is… I am betraying the Aurelian Empire. Are you willing to follow me or not?" Johan said, his cold voice making even men like Leonard and Radhaan stare deeply at the floor.
Not daring to look him in the eyes.
"Wait, Johan! We can discuss some things. I promise I'll protect you—as long as you stay loyal to the Aurelian Empire!" Leonard finally mustered the courage to speak. But his voice quivered, careful not to offend Johan.
Even in this state, Leonard's mind calculated the benefit of keeping such a powerful ally at his side.
"I… shall," Sebastian replied, bowing slightly. A bit hesitant to leave his home and son, but knowing this now seemed like the only option. He would likely be executed for treason anyway.
"Leonard."
Leonard felt a chill down his spine. He didn't dare look up, preparing his mind for incoming death.
"You also see the meaninglessness of all this, don't you…" Johan said calmly, brushing the soft fabric of his white shirt, which felt more like a dog's fur. It helped him stay calm.
"Of what?" Leonard asked through trembling teeth. It was the first time a subordinate had called him by name—but he didn't argue. He was genuinely intrigued.
"Of your life. Your goals. You want a peaceful world by uniting every nation under your flag?" Johan's voice softened.
"You're misphrasing it. I just want to create a world without war. Doesn't matter who rules it," Leonard replied, his voice calmer now. Like a friend speaking to another before a long journey.
"You have a beautiful daughter. A kind wife. Good friends. Why not spend time with them instead? You do realize, as long as humans exist, peace will be impossible." Johan yawned, motioning Sebastian to prepare the spell. Sebastian nodded.
Leonard's eyes widened slightly, but then he spoke with firmer resolve.
"I am the King. I must put the Empire's interests before my desires, my life, my will, and my emotions. I must make sure the Aurelian Empire continues—"
"You will die. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe in a year. Maybe in ten. Or maybe in fifty—laying in that soft bed, filled with regrets, surrounded by children who hate you, a once beautiful wife now old and grumpy—"
Johan cut Leonard off, leaving one final piece of advice for the man this body once considered a friend.
Leonard looked down at his hands, unsure how to reply. It made sense. He had pondered the same questions. But—
He had killed too many in the name of this goal to abandon it, no matter how much regret followed.
His morals were bound to the reason—or the lie—that he was ending wars. That it was all a sacrifice for the perfect world.
But his mind grew uncertain, unsure of what to believe.
He had grown up with Johan—from academy days, to long nights strategizing wars, to sending men to die together—
Johan had always been by his side, from the age of two. Always more mature, more rational. And now it felt like Leonard had just been mimicking that—mimicking the man who always won by suppressing emotion.
And win he did.
Leonard had become the King of the strongest human empire. Strong men bowed to him. But in that process, he had lost himself—
And now also a partner and a brother. Johan.
Leonard stayed silent, staring at the floor.
Meanwhile, Radhaan—still conscious, with a clear mind—grew determined. His eyes distant in thought.
'Johan can use the Goddess of Death's power. Maybe from the seal on his forehead…'
That was the conclusion he reached.
He had an artifact said to be the sword of the Goddess herself—the one she used against the Goddess of Creation, Ymir.
It had the exact same presence Johan now carried. He had tried to wield it once, but it never unsheathed, no matter how hard he pulled.
That was also why he'd adapted to Johan's presence faster than the rest.
But even so, he didn't yet have the nerves or strength to fight literal death.
Johan's eyes shifted to the black-haired man on his knees, looking lost.
"...Erwin, take care of the children you have left… Osman would want the same." Johan tried to find the perfect words, but this was all he managed, feeling unworthy to speak after what they'd all seen.
"And… I am sorry." He finally said the only words that made sense now.
Erwin wasn't even paying attention anymore. His face looked like someone experiencing ecstasy from overwhelming emotion.
It was not normal for the always-stoic man. But at Johan's words, something snapped.
He instantly wiped the tears that came—but they didn't stop.
His breathing grew ragged. Clutching his golden robe, he remembered—he had never even mourned Osman. He had just cursed Leor, mindlessly.
He tried to curse Johan too, but all that escaped were whimpers and sobs.
'If only Osman had gotten love from me, he wouldn't have been caught up in my problems… by bullying that monkey. If only I had been a better father…'
He blamed himself.
He had convinced himself Leor was morally upright—someone who'd never hurt the innocent. That realization only deepened the regret. He had never been a good father.
And now, he would never become one to Osman.
Suddenly—
Sebastian and Johan floated into the air, solemn expressions on their faces.
Everyone still conscious—Christopher and Selene behind the marble pillar, Astreus inside the ice dome, Radhaan at the edge, Leonard on the throne, and Leor, drenched in vomit—watched in silence.
No one tried to stop them.
Selene's lips parted, as if to curse Johan—but then stopped. She just watched.
Seeing her face, a soft, unconscious smile broke on Johan's lips. A smile straight from the heart. Like when meeting someone special.
Selene lowered her head, biting her lips, repeating Leor's name in her mind.
But the image of that white-haired man, smiling, kept creeping in.
'He is not Dad. He was 'father' after mother's death. Now he is Johan.'
She repeated the phrase over and over, shutting her eyes tightly. Not wanting to see that fake fatherly face again.
With a quick motion of his shaky hand, Sebastian cracked a large hole through the ceiling of the colosseum-like courtroom, finally letting sunlight pour inside, illuminating the courtroom's centre podium.
Warm sunlight hit Selene's face. She slowly opened her eyes.
Only the broad backs of Sebastian and Johan were visible. The sunlight blinding the rest of the sky.
But their bodies shielded her from the sharpest rays.
Tears slipped down her cheeks. Her breathing turned to sobs.
Slowly, their backs faded into the sky, swallowed by the light. The sun pierced her eyes—
But she didn't close them.
As if silently hoping…
Hoping that those broad backs would return—
To protect her eyes from the sharp sunlight once again.