"You've been waiting for me for a long time? Am I that important to you… or is it that I'm important to this world itself?"
In Noah's golden eyes shimmered the reflection of all beauty—not merely his own, but the collective beauty of the entire Teyvat Multiverse.
The ultimate emotional resonance of humanity's love for beauty.
Before him, however, the beauty in Madokami's eyes reflected only her perception of the world's beauty.
For in truth, this world was not beautiful at all—perhaps only fragments of fleeting, transient beauty remained.
Such a world was, by its very nature, a form of hell.
The current Madokami had already been stripped of her humanity by Homura Akemi; what stood before him was absolute divinity.
At Noah's words, Madokami showed no trace of surprise—only raised her hands gently to her chest.
"Both are important… whether it's to me, or to this world."
"The moment I sensed your existence, I felt your beauty—and the beauty of the world you come from."
"As you can see, the world I dwell in is tragic, even though I tried with all my strength to save it."
"At most, I could grant people fleeting happiness, but the final outcome never changed. All I could give was a beautiful dream."
"Beyond that dream lies hell."
"Realizing that my actions changed nothing, I fell into endless despair myself."
"So… I hoped someone might come to save this world—and perhaps, save me as well."
"I'm sorry. I've been selfish."
Guilt flickered in Madokami's eyes.
She had become a god, yet in doing so, had seen the ultimate truth.
All she had done was move from one box to another.
The final outcome had never changed—it was merely wrapped in a different form.
Perhaps she had only saved the magical girls by allowing witches to exist differently.
The world itself remained trapped in unending despair.
Noah stepped slowly toward her. Madokami gazed at him with guilt, as if ashamed to transfer her hope onto another, but she had no other way.
"I am not an absolute divinity," Noah said softly, "so I am not absolutely selfless."
He raised his hand slowly toward Madokami's cheek. She did not flinch—absolute divinity knew not shyness.
"Therefore, if I am to save your world, I must receive an equivalent price. Do you accept that?"
The warmth under his palm felt like the embodiment of salvation itself.
Mmm… the scent of a magical girl—how nostalgic, he thought faintly.
At the same time, he transmitted the concept of world integration directly into Madokami's consciousness.
He could, of course, bestow upon this world the two great Truths—Ouroboros and Kabbalah—allowing it to evolve naturally into a stable multiverse.
But that would make him a selfless saint—and he had no intention of running such a losing business.
If he were to intervene, the cost had to be everything.
And besides him, even if eons passed, no other Super-Primeval God would ever arrive.
"Let this world merge with mine. Two worlds united, their Truths intertwined—becoming one, to correct all that is broken."
The moment Noah's words fell, the entire multiverse went silent.
It was as if every will within it had frozen.
That silence was only the calm before the storm.
Then came the cries of terror from the countless fragmented wills.
[No! You can't do that!]
[If we merge, we will cease to exist!]
[Kaname Madoka, do not agree!]
[O Creator from beyond, you must not!]
[—]
Countless voices roared forth.
A brief flash of cold light passed through Noah's golden eyes. Behind him, the Book of Narration manifested once more—its invisible power rippling outward, rewriting certain concepts across the multiverse.
The chattering voices of the multiversal wills gradually faded, until only faint, indistinct murmurs remained.
"The Multiversal Will… how greedy it truly is. Whether in the Tree and Sea, or here—it's always the same."
"They desire salvation, yet refuse to give anything in return. They want to grasp salvation with empty hands."
The multiversal wills only ever wanted him to bring resources—to invest—and in exchange, they would offer him nothing more than a Sovereign's seat.
And even that so-called sovereignty the wills offered was only nominal—authority valid within the multiverse itself.
Beyond it, in the greater realities outside, such power would be utterly meaningless.
They certainly had a lofty opinion of themselves.
Yet this multiverse was already so distorted, its will so pathetically weak, that aside from its endless chattering pleas, it could do nothing at all.
It couldn't even stop Homura Akemi from tearing apart the Law of Cycles and turning into a demon.
Madokami returned to her senses; of course, she had heard every word of the multiversal will's desperate cries.
But she thought rationally about what lay ahead.
To merge two worlds—though the other would take precedence—would mean that all universes would be restored to normalcy.
Every universe would finally meet its most beautiful future.
That much was undeniable.
Perhaps she would lose some of her freedom—but if it meant every universe and every soul could embrace that perfect future, then her own fate was insignificant.
Moreover, in such a beautiful world, she felt a deep, genuine happiness.
"I am willing," she said softly. "I am willing to give everything—including myself."
"What is your name?"
Madokami's hand rose to cover the one resting gently against her cheek.
"Noah," he answered. "Creator of Teyvat, the Heavenly Principle… the Super-Primeval God."
"Then please… begin."
The Law of Cycles behind Madokami shone brilliantly as the surroundings began to change.
All dimensions began to ascend.
Until finally—they reached the point of absolute convergence.
This was the Eternal Unknown, the layer of Multiversal Narration.
A place of pure white—where all things existed as pages within a colossal book.
The book turned continuously, its countless words shifting and reforming.
New stories were born. Old stories faded into obscurity.
Until, at last, the book reached its final page.
Here, the foundational logic of this multiverse revealed itself.
Two lines of that logic had been blotted out—upon the erased section, distorted handwriting appeared:
"This is the place I arrived at when I became the Law of Cycles. I don't know what this place truly is."
"At that moment, instinct told me I could rewrite the world once. So I changed the fate of magical girls becoming witches."
Madokami floated above the great book, and Noah gazed at her in quiet astonishment.
She continued speaking softly.
"But after I changed it once, I could no longer do anything."
"Later, when Homura tore away a part of me and became a being equal to myself… she rewrote it once more."
Noah returned to his senses.
How surprising.
He had thought Madokami was merely a Lawbearer—yet she turned out to be half a Sovereign, or rather, a substitute Sovereign.
At the moment she became the Law of Cycles, she had unified all Truths into one, forming a Composite Truth. That trait alone was the mark of a Sovereign.
In that instant, she had become an existence with neither beginning nor end.
The only reason she hadn't fully ascended to Sovereignhood was due to interference from the Multiversal Will—and because she bore the majority of causal forces herself, she was unable to complete the process.
However, within that single instant, she retained the right to modify the world once.
"This place is the origin point at the lowest layer of a multiverse's Narrative Plane," Noah said calmly. "Here, anything can be rewritten, anything can be created."
"It is also known as the Book of Narration. Whoever holds it becomes the Sovereign of that multiverse—the true master of all within it."
Behind him, the Book of Narration from Teyvat appeared, pages turning slowly—each line of text a beautiful story.
Though sorrow wove through those stories, all sadness would ultimately find redemption at its end.
Madokami's golden eyes widened slightly. From the Book of Narration, she felt endless warmth, beauty, and compassion…
Compared to the vast tome beneath her feet, it felt indescribably gentle.
The book beneath them was filled with despair and grief—its words steeped in hopelessness, with only faint fragments of beauty hidden in its corners.
Those small traces were the lingering tenderness of civilization's dawn—before the age of despair began.
Even that faint tenderness had been tainted by the civilization that created Kyubey.
"How beautiful…" Madokami murmured, pressing her hands to her chest. "Please, save this world of despair, O Sovereign of Teyvat."
Noah spread his hands lightly. "I am not currently the Sovereign of this world, nor its Lawbearer. I cannot directly perform assimilation."
"Therefore, I will need your help—to entrust me with all the Truths of this universe."
As one who had transcended Lawbearer yet had not reached full Sovereignhood, Madokami understood immediately.
"To retrieve the human aspect that Homura tore away—and to bring Homura herself into it as well. Only the complete Law of Cycles can entrust this world to you."
"I understand."
Madokami turned her gaze toward the world that Homura had reconstructed.
Though Homura was now an existence equal to her, her power had been torn from the Law of Cycles itself.
That fragment alone had been enough to reconstruct two-thirds of the world.
But it had cost Homura everything—and the result was fragile, unstable.
She could not directly intervene in the world Homura had rebuilt.
"Yes," Noah said quietly. "Only the complete Law of Cycles represents the totality of this multiverse's Truth."
He looked toward the reconstructed world.
Homura Akemi had torn away twenty percent of the Law of Cycles' power, ascending into a being equal to a god—a demon.
That, too, was causality.
Homura's ability to transcend time had allowed her to repeatedly return to the past to save Madoka—and every return created a new parallel universe.
Each attempt, each failure, gave birth to another world.
Through countless loops, countless universes were born.
Thus, the two of them bore the karma of innumerable universes.
It was that burden that allowed both to ascend as Super-Primeval Gods.
This outcome was inevitable—an absolute constant across all timelines.
Every Super-Primeval God was a constant—a Truth unto themselves.
Homura had witnessed Madokami's birth and understood the despair she bore—the ultimate despair of countless universes meeting their ends.
She only wished to save Madoka—to return her to a time of innocence and happiness.
To create a world where Madoka could smile once more.
It was a friendship that transcended all things.
Noah understood—between Madoka and Homura, there was no romantic sentiment, only a bond of pure friendship and mutual salvation.
It was like that between the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata and Lesser Lord Kusanali… or between Raiden Ei and Raiden Makoto.
"You cannot interfere directly with the reconstructed world," he said gently. "And besides, that world is far too fragile to withstand interference."
Behind Noah, the Book of Narration radiated a soft, gentle light.
He extended the binding force of the Teyvat system and applied it upon Madokami.
Madokami offered no resistance.
After all, she was a quasi-multiversal Sovereign—if she had even slightly resisted, even Noah himself might not have been able to restrain her.
This was the first time Noah had ever exerted his power upon a being of nearly equal level to himself.
Madoka, though not as powerful as him, was not far behind.
After all, she possessed an immense number of Truths—seventeen in total, even if half of them were incomplete.
Her divinity began to retract, defying the foundational logic of this multiverse as it condensed—gradually taking on the appearance of an ordinary goddess.
Her aura and her thoughts ceased to affect the fabric of reality on a macroscopic scale.
Madokami looked down at her own hands. "Have I returned… to how I once was?"
In her golden eyes, faint traces of human emotion began to return.
Madokami had once been human. Even as an absolute divinity, when her power was suppressed to a human level, her emotions slowly resurfaced.
However, since Homura had torn away her human aspect, she could not completely recover.
"Now," Noah said calmly, "you can go find your friend."
Madokami nodded earnestly. "Mm. Homura will definitely agree. That beautiful world… it's her greatest wish."
In the next instant, their thoughts synchronized.
Both appeared simultaneously on Earth within Homura's reconstructed universe.
It was the same city where Madoka and Homura had first become magical girls.
The city was flourishing—streets vibrant, people smiling everywhere.
Yet, the sky above was dim, as though washed in gray.
The familiars born from human negative emotions coexisted peacefully with mankind, and no one thought it strange.
Children chased the familiars playfully, their laughter full of innocence.
However, the world's order was fractured and chaotic—utterly anarchic. The only remaining semblance of order operated solely upon individual cognition.
The magical girls, their memories rewritten by Homura, had lost their original powers.
Madoka, in her human form, was now a transfer student who had just returned from America.
It had been a year since Homura and Madoka had reunited.
At this moment, they were chatting and laughing together—talking about girlish tips for shopping at the mall.
Then suddenly—Homura's entire body trembled. Her pupils quivered violently, and she instinctively clutched her face with one hand.
"She… she's here… and someone else… someone I don't recognize… has entered the world… What… what is happening…?"
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