ack in Haruto's original world, seven years earlier—
A vast white luxury house stood atop a forested hill, its wide windows gleaming in the morning light. Next to it, a large in-ground pool shimmered quietly.
In the gazebo overlooking the hill, ten-year-old Haruto sat alone at a table, his small frame swallowed by the chair. His white hair hung over his eyes as he stared down, silent.
Across from him sat his older sister, Hoshika, her sharp golden eyes softening with concern. Her long white hair, tied neatly into a ponytail, swayed gently in the breeze.
"You should have gone to Mother's funeral," she said gently, her voice calm but firm.
Haruto didn't look up. "Why?" he asked in a quiet, almost numb tone.
"To say goodbye," Hoshika replied. "When you attend the funeral, you bid Mother farewell. You grieve… then you keep living. There will be moments when her absence hits you like a blow to the chest, and you'll weep again. But as time passes, that pain softens. Mother is gone, Haru. But you're still here. So live—don't give up on life… my stupid little brother."
Haruto's shoulders trembled. Tears slipped silently down his cheeks as he clenched his fists.
Hoshika stood and wrapped her arms around him tightly.
"I miss Mother… so much… Why did she have to leave me all alone?" Haruto choked out, his voice breaking.
"She didn't leave you alone," Hoshika whispered. "I'm here—your big sister who loves you more than anyone. And Reika… and little Yuna too. We're still here."
Two Days Later — Night
Haruto stood by the front door, calmer now. Hoshika appeared beside him, dressed in a black evening dress with star-like white specks. A slit on her right leg revealed flawless pale skin. She twirled with a bright smile, her long hair flowing freely.
"So? What do you think, Haru?" she asked playfully.
Haruto stared for a moment, speechless, making her tilt her head in confusion.
"Is it… not to your liking?" she asked softly, her smile faltering.
Haruto chuckled faintly and shook his head. "No. I was just trying to find the right words to describe this beauty."
Hoshika's face lit up with joy. She leapt into his arms, hugging him tightly.
"Such a smooth talker~ You're going to be popular with the ladies one day," she teased.
She kissed his cheek with her soft pink lips. Haruto quickly pushed her away, flustered.
"Hey! Don't kiss me," he muttered shyly.
"Huuuuh? My little brother's grown up now? Doesn't want his sister's magical kisses anymore?" she joked.
"Hey! Can you two stop playing around? The car's waiting," Reika called, standing nearby. Her long white hair framed sharp black eyes; she wore her school uniform neatly.
"Big sis! Big brother!" Yuna chirped, clinging to Reika's hand. Her silver-white twin tails were tied with black butterfly ribbons, her large ice-blue eyes sparkling with innocence.
"Hi, Yuna~" Hoshika said warmly.
Haruto knelt to meet her gaze. She wore a blue and white sailor-style dress with frills, ribbons, and gleaming heart-shaped buckles. Her layered skirt fluttered like butterfly wings, and her cat-ear headband added a whimsical charm.
"Wow… Princess Yuna looks beautiful," Haruto said with a smile.
"Yuna knows," Yuna replied proudly.
"Hey! You're calling another girl beautiful right in front of me—cheater!" Hoshika exclaimed in mock anger, lightly hitting his chest.
"What are you talking about? We're brother and sister!" Haruto shot back, laughing.
On the Road
Hoshika drove the car. Yuna sat comfortably on Haruto's lap in the back seat, with Reika beside them. The city came into view: a sea of moving cars, glowing lights, and towering buildings piercing the night sky.
"Auntie might keep us waiting a bit," Hoshika said, eyes on the road.
"Why would Auntie invite us for dinner this late?" Reika asked, puzzled.
"It wasn't Auntie—it was Uncle," Hoshika replied.
"Uncle? Ugh… I could've stayed home," Haruto grumbled.
"Same," Reika added flatly.
Hoshika glanced at them through the rear-view mirror, frowning. "Huh? Do you two hate him or something?"
"Yes," both Haruto and Reika answered in perfect sync.
"Really… both of you?" Hoshika muttered, still driving as the traffic light turned green.
Haruto glanced down. Yuna had fallen asleep in his arms, her soft breaths steady. He looked up through the window—and froze. Headlights. A truck barreled toward them at full speed.
"Big sis! Look out!" Reika shouted.
Hoshika turned left. Blinding light filled her vision.
The crash hit like thunder.
The truck slammed into their car, sending it rolling violently down the street. Glass shattered. Screams echoed. The world blurred.
Haruto's eyes fluttered open. Yuna lay unconscious in his arms. Reika's head bled heavily; she too had blacked out.
"B…Big sis…" Haruto whispered, trembling.
"Haru… are you alright?" Hoshika's voice was weak, shaking.
"Yes," he replied quickly.
"And the others?" she asked faintly.
"I think… they're unconscious," he said, trying to keep calm.
"I see… That's… good," she whispered. Her hand pressed against the wound in her neck, blood pouring through her fingers.
"Sis… no…" Haruto's voice cracked.
Hoshika's hands slipped from her neck. Her golden eyes dimmed.
"Sis—SISTER!" Haruto screamed. No response.
"Please… don't leave me too…" he whispered, his consciousness fading.
People rushed toward the wreckage, shouting.
Before he blacked out completely, Haruto caught sight of a man dressed in black watching from a distance. Their eyes met. The man grinned wickedly.
Haruto's lips moved soundlessly.
"I'm going to cut you up," the man mouthed back, translating.
He turned and walked away, the streetlight glinting off a dragon tattoo on his wrist.
Darkness swallowed Haruto's vision.
Hoshika died in the car accident.
Yuna fell into a coma.
Reika wasn't seriously injured — she would live.
And Haruto… he survived, but something inside him broke. He became cold. Emotionless.
---
In a dark room, a single light illuminated a table at the center. On it lay a man — naked, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap like prey awaiting a butcher.
"I told you I'd find you," Haruto said coldly.
He stood before the restrained man, who bore a dragon tattoo on his wrist. Haruto, now fifteen, radiated a chilling maturity that belied his age.
The man's lips trembled, eyes wide with fear and despair.
"If you scream, you die. If you cry, you die. And if you lie… it won't just be you who dies," Haruto warned, turning toward a smaller table lined with knives of all shapes and sizes.
"Isn't your wife six months pregnant?" he added casually, picking up a long, sharp blade. "It would be a shame if she were to just… die."
"P-Please… d-don't hurt her…" the man begged, voice shaking.
"I-I'll tell you who hired me!" he stammered desperately.
Haruto's eyes narrowed, suppressing the flicker of emotion within.
"Yeah… I'll tell you. Just let me go. I won't tell anyone about this," the man pleaded.
Haruto's expression remained unchanged — ice-cold.
"I'll let you go. Promise," Haruto said calmly.
The man hesitated, then finally spoke.
"Y-You won't believe it… it was Ren Satoru."
"Yeah. I know," Haruto replied flatly.
The man's eyes widened. "What…?"
Haruto raised the knife above his chest.
"For not lying, you saved your wife's life… for now," he said, driving the blade down.
"Nooo!" the man screamed — then silence.
---
Later, at Haruto's home, he sat on the couch beside his sister, Reika. The TV was on. A news report showed a photo of the same man, Miguel Vernel, the one Haruto had just killed.
"Thirty-one-year-old male, Miguel Vernel, was found dead at his wife's front door. His body was cut into fourteen pieces, wrapped in Christmas paper," the reporter said gravely. "Let's hear from the homicide detective."
Reika rested her head gently on Haruto's shoulder.
"I don't understand why people kill each other," she whispered softly.
Haruto turned his head slightly toward her.
"T-There are many reasons why people kill," he said, looking back at the screen.
"Sister…" he added quietly.
Reika tilted her head up, confused. "What's up?"
"I just wanted to say… you don't need to be afraid anymore. I'll protect you and Yuna, no matter what I have to do," Haruto said.
Reika blinked, surprised, then leaned against him again.
"I… I should be the one saying that," she murmured. "But okay. Tell me something, brother — is something wrong? You've been off lately."
"Yeah… I am afraid," Haruto admitted.
"Me too… I'm sorry for being a useless sister," she whispered.
Haruto pulled her into a gentle hug.
"You're not. I would've lost myself if you weren't here," he said softly.
He rested his head on her shoulder.
(Something is changing… I… feel emotionless. Even so, I still love you — Reika, Velmaria, Hoshika, and Yuna.) Haruto thought to himself.
In the Akashic Archive — a realm beyond space, time, and causality — all knowledge exists simultaneously. Past, present, and future are not separate timelines here; they are already written data, inscribed into the infinite shelves of existence itself.
Hoshika floated silently through the endless expanse. There was no ground. No sky. Only towering bookshelves stretching in every direction — above, below, to the sides — like an infinite cosmic library suspended in the void. Countless scrolls and tomes drifted through the air, glowing faintly as if whispering secrets to one another.
She looked around, scanning shelf after shelf, her brows furrowing in irritation.
"Tch." She crossed her arms and looked away, clearly annoyed.
Closing her eyes, she focused inward. A soft, rainbow-colored light began to emanate from a single shelf nearby. One book, pure white and radiant, began to glow brilliantly amidst the endless rows of forgotten knowledge.
> Pathfinder Insight — Activate.
Hoshika had invoked one of her sub-skills. By focusing on her desired objective, the skill would manifest a perceptible thread of guidance toward it.
When she opened her eyes again, a thin, rainbow-colored line extended before her, like a luminous thread leading through the shelves.
"She arrived at the glowing bookshelf, existing both as if she had always been there and as if she hadn't
But someone was already holding it.
A tall man stood before the shelf. His hair was golden and wild, his sharp blue eyes gleaming with amusement. He wore a suit-like outfit, black with intricate gold designs. The air around him exuded a divine presence.
"Is this yours?" the man asked casually, holding up the glowing book.
"Yes… it is," Hoshika replied coolly, narrowing her eyes slightly.
He extended the book toward her with a sly smile.
"I'm the God of Creation. Nice to meet you," he said, his tone almost playful.
Hoshika accepted the book without hesitation.
"Yeah, nice to meet you too… but why is a god here?" she asked, her voice firm and curious.
The man chuckled lightly. "I've noticed someone whose Creation Power rivals my own. So, I came to see who it was. Who would've thought—we're looking for the same person."
Hoshika's expression flickered in surprise.
"Really, now? So what are you planning to do… since you've found him?" she asked sharply.
"I'm going to take his power… or just kill him, of course," he replied with a wicked smile.
Before he could even blink, Hoshika flicked his forehead.
In an instant, his upper body disintegrated into motes of light, spreading apart from his lower half — erased from existence so swiftly that not even a scream escaped.
"It was fate that we met… even though I'm not bound by it," Hoshika murmured.
The white book in her hands suddenly burst open, unleashing a blinding golden light. Five golden pages materialized out of the void and were seamlessly added to the Book of Haruto.
"With this, I can view my brother's entire story… as a reader," Hoshika said softly, closing the book with care.
A faint smile touched her lips.
"There's no doubt… he's my brother. I'm glad he inherited at least a drop of Narrative Immunity. I should keep this with me—just in case a being with higher Authority over the Akashic tries to take it. That weak god couldn't even read someone's story," she scoffed, hugging the book tightly against her chest, as if afraid to ever let it go.
"This is all I can do to keep you safe," she whispered. "It hurts that I can't meet you in person yet… but I'll protect you from the shadows. I don't want you to see… what I've become."
Her voice trembled faintly at the end. She looked up into the endless starless expanse of the Archive.
"Oh… Mother," she said softly, as if speaking to someone far beyond reach. "I hope this is the right choice."
In Haruto's room, he sat in a chair before a mirror desk. Behind him, Tsukasa gently brushed his hair.
"Tell me… how much has my student grown?" Haruto's eyes remained closed, calm as always, voice measured.
They have all learned to wield five to six of the basic elemental magics, my Lord," Tsukasa replied coolly.
Haruto's brow furrowed. "Why do they struggle to grasp all seven elements? I had mastered them before becoming the Spider King."
(Granted… Seraphina made it easier than it would be for most.)
Tsukasa paused her brush. "Humans occupy the lowest tier of their hierarchy."
Haruto murmured under his breath. (Hierarchy…) His gaze lingered on the scene, evaluating, measuring the positions of all involved.
Golden symbols shimmered into existence around Tsukasa as her voice resonated clearly with authority.
> "The Human Hierarchy represents the evolutionary path of humanity. There exist eleven classifications: Humans, Demi-Humans, Awkward Humans, High Humans, Saints, True Saints, Demi-God Humans, God Humans, and Divine Humans. Only Humans and High Humans are born through physical means, such as gestation. The others arise through evolutionary guidance. Human evolution is exceedingly improbable—approximately a 0.0001% chance of successful progression. Over time, individuals forget the potential latent within them, losing awareness of the evolutionary path that lies ahead."
(That's reassuring… yet how do humans endure in a world crawling with monsters?) Haruto's mind reached out to Seraphina, his tone calm, deliberate, and unreadable.
The golden symbols glowed softly.
> "The reason humanity endures is the Holy Maiden. She bears the title 'The Last Hope.' During critical events, she protected humanity and other species from near-total annihilation. Master… you too must grow stronger. She was the one who eliminated the former Spider Emperor."
A subtle lift of his brow accompanied a restrained smile. (Interesting… I would enjoy that, yet I cannot spare the time.) Haruto's composure never wavered, though a hint of amusement lingered in his gaze.
> "I was correct in saying you should grow stronger. However, it appears you are not yet prepared. Master does not yet comprehend the power he possesses. To resolve this, you must create a realm in which time flows differently from the outside."
(Very well… it will aid the others as well.) Haruto thought silently, rising to his feet with measured grace.
Tsukasa lowered her hands, her eyes unflinching. "Are you departing, Lord?
"Yes… allow me to show you something." Haruto turned toward her, extending his hand with quiet purpose.
"My hand?"
Tsukasa hesitated for a moment, then slowly placed her hand in his.
The moment she touched him, it felt as if they were being pulled into a black hole. When Tsukasa opened her eyes, the world around her was completely white.
"What is this?" she whispered.
Haruto, a few steps behind, pressed against an invisible barrier.
Haruto's voice remained even. "It's a realm I just created… though it seems small." He grasped her arm, and in a single motion, they jumped. Darkness swallowed them, and below hovered the white cube—the very spot they had just occupied—isolated in the infinite space.
Haruto's gaze remained calm, unblinking. "I intend to create a realm where my people can train… a space where they may spend hours within, yet mere seconds elapse beyond its bounds."
Tsukasa turned toward him, tilting her head slightly. "I see… though it seems rather small?"
"The size isn't the problem. I have Infinite Manipulation. I can turn zero into infinite—or infinite into zero. It works on stats, growth, potential, damage… almost anything," Haruto said casually, as if it were an everyday ability.
Tsukasa's eyes remained steady. "I did not anticipate such a thing… yet it is consistent with our Lord's capabilities."
Haruto smiled faintly. "Really… do you want it?"
Her eyes widened slightly. Before she could respond, the Divine System silently granted her the skill Infinite Manipulation.
"You don't need to worry," Haruto said. "I duplicated the skill for you."
Tsukasa's voice was low, measured. "Thank you."
Haruto extended his hands toward the cube. It floated between his palms, shrinking slightly. Then, spreading his arms wide, the cube expanded infinitely, swallowing up the surrounding darkness.
Tsukasa scanned the expanse, her gaze unwavering. "The scale… appears infinite
"Yep. But there's no space," Haruto replied.
Clarify. Do you mean up and down?" Ask Tsukasa
Haruto turned to her with a gentle smile. "Exactly. Now… what should I make the ground out of?"
"You seek my response?" Tsukasa paused for a fraction of a second, her posture unchanged, as if awaiting clarification.
"Why not?" Haruto said with a shrug.
Tsukasa's fingers rested against her chin for a moment. "Then… a dark, night-blue ocean as the ground. Walkable."
Haruto nodded, smiling. "Perfect."
Haruto stomped his foot. The night-blue ocean spread outward, faster than light, swallowing the white ground beneath them.
He looked up. The blank sky turned black in an instant.
"Is this to your liking?" he asked.
It is acceptable… but the sky seems empty," she remarked, her posture unchanged, calm as ever.
A wave of his hand, and stars sprinkled across the black expanse. A gray moon appeared, hovering silently.
Haruto raised his hand toward it. It expanded, every crater and ridge visible, reflected perfectly on the ocean below.
Tsukasa rotated on her heel, eyes methodically tracing the expanse above.
"I'll put this in too," Haruto murmured, holding a small, spinning galaxy in his palm. With a flick, he threw it upward—the stars immediately rearranged into the proper formation, seamless and infinite.
He turned to her. "Tsukasa, you're a martial arts master. How about a little spar? Test your control with Infinite Manipulation."
Tsukasa nodded once, her expression unreadable, acknowledging the point.
In zero time, she vanished and reappeared behind him. Haruto turned his head slightly; she froze midair, realizing he could track her even at infinite speed. Before she could react, she reappeared in front and landed an uppercut to his stomach. The force destroyed the moon, leaving a gaping void where stars had once shimmered.
Haruto smirked, blocking her punch with his bare hands.
"Glad we're in a realm. Outside, you'd have destroyed a universe," he said casually.
(Lord Haruto is incredible… even infinite strength couldn't bypass him…) Tsukasa thought, excitement sparking.
She lunged again and again. The air between them fractured. Fists became blurs, each strike carrying infinite strength.
Haruto didn't flinch. His palm met her punch as if catching a feather. A concussive shockwave rippled outward, but his stance stayed calm. Infinite power, stopped.
He stepped inside her guard. Snap! Elbow to ribs, redirecting momentum. She twisted midair, leg sweeping toward his knee—he leaned back, flicked his forearm, then struck her chest with a palm. She blocked, arms rattling from the force, and flew backward.
She regained her stance, eyes blazing. "I won't lose!" She blitzed forward again—a storm of fists and elbows, all infinite, faster than sight. Jab, cross, uppercut, spinning hook— universe could crumble from a graze.
Haruto flowed through the assault. Step, pivot, slip. Strikes he didn't block he redirected with surgical precision. He caught a fist midair, twisted her, sending her spinning past him—recovered instantly for another strike.
Knee, elbow, palm—a hurricane of motion. He intercepted, deflected, countered. Each attack neutralized. Infinite speed meant nothing against inevitability.
Finally, she dropped to one knee, panting. Haruto's palm hovered near her shoulder. Calm. Unshaken.
"Infinite speed alone won't make you invincible. Learn control… precision," he said.
Her fists closed once, a rare spark—recognition, not giddiness—flickering behind the usual calm. "Next time, I will get you," Tsukasa said, each word deliberate
"Then stand up. The lesson isn't over," he replied, offering his hand.
Tsukasa grasped it. Haruto pulled—she collided softly into his chest.
Her cheeks flushed, eyes wide.
"Huh… why are you red all of a sudden?" he asked, confused.
Tsukasa gave him a gentle push, turning her back to shield her face. Through the small gap between her fingers, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, she murmured quietly, "Just… a little warm."
"Let's get back," Haruto said as shattered moon fragments drifted past them.
(Why would she lie…?) he thought, curiosity flickering beneath his calm exterior.