In a dreamlike cosmos, Hikaru and Tierra floated, observing everything around them.
It seemed that an explosion had occurred, and from it, a red light was born, spreading across the universe.
"My birth."
That was the Light of Destruction in its original form.
What it represented was chaos, war, destruction, annihilation, conflict, the root of all strife in the universe, a being born of that first explosion.
Originally, it was a fundamental rule and logic of the universe. It dispersed its power into things capable of destroying other life, then reclaimed and destroyed them again.
At first, it had no so-called consciousness, no current sense of "self."
Everything changed when, more than a decade ago, humans suddenly connected universe to universe, dimension to dimension. It absorbed the power of war and invasion from spirits and parallel universes, rapidly expanding and thus forming its current "will."
Living beings were too vile.
That was its thought.
It quickly adapted to the convenience of thought and used its vast power to guide beings who sought destruction to expand and create more power.
After all, it was too easy.
Its only issue was that while its power was immense, so immense that only one or two others in the universe could match it, it was too large, too dispersed. It needed a proxy to act on its behalf.
The phantom of the Light of Destruction slowly appeared before Hikaru and Tierra, towering and vast, shaped like a pure being of radiant shadow. Planets and galaxies looked tiny beside it.
It loomed and spoke:
"Amaki Hikaru, you are the first human to make me entertain the notion of reflection."
"Reflection?" Tierra frowned. "Gods don't reflect."
The only thing she ever reflected on was why she lost to Sophia and the Zefraath.
"Since gaining consciousness, I have wondered why I was born."
Then Hikaru understood.
So that's it.
If the Light of Destruction had been like its original form, a mechanical law executing destruction and invasion, then it wouldn't have had so many chaotic, irrational thoughts.
However, because this world's Light of Destruction had developed its own mind, it began to think.
Who am I? Where did I come from? What am I here for?
As a god of the universe, its awareness came later than the existence of humanity, so it was full of confusion and doubt.
"When you used destructive power to create immortal rebirth, I must admit, in that moment, I wanted to annihilate your dimension entirely," it said. "But then I wondered... perhaps I didn't understand after all."
Even with cosmic-level power, even able to replicate humans or read their history in an instant, it was still lost in this respect.
Like the white dot in a yin-yang symbol, surrounded by black, it didn't understand the balance of the world.
Naturally, no one in the universe could teach it.
In the past, it acted on instinct, needing no thoughts. Now, with a mind, came trouble.
"The laws of the universe forbid me from rebelling against them." Even it wouldn't defy cosmic law.
Losing meant losing. The defeated in a Shadow Duel must pay the price. That's the rule!
The most fundamental law of the universe, even a creator god couldn't change it.
"Looks like you still have a lot to think about as a god," Tierra laughed.
To be honest, she was quite happy today.
Her chosen champion, using (some of) her power, had just smacked down a cosmic-level god.
More importantly, when it came to philosophical debates, even if no one was convinced, if her champion won, then she was right, and Light of Destruction had to reflect on her words.
Just like now.
Light of Destruction looked at Tierra in silence.
After a long pause, it spoke again.
"I will resurrect your friends," it said first, referring to Aster and Sartorius. "And then..."
It slowly raised its right hand. Light flowed from its body, like ribbons, entwining around Hikaru and connecting to Tierra.
A card descended with the light, gradually taking form.
Tierra looked down at her hands in shock.
Within the light, she felt it, a long-lost sensation of life.
"No way..."
She clutched her hands, the body of Winda making her feel suffocated.
At the same time, the light around Light of Destruction visibly dimmed.
"Amaki Hikaru, is there anything else you desire?" it asked again.
"...You must have distributed your power to many other beings: Spirits, dark monsters, and the like."
"I will not reclaim my power," it replied. "That exceeds the scope of this duel's compensation."
Hikaru smirked.
As the loser, it had already offered an incredible gift, but what he asked now involved its responsibilities and authority.
Anyhow, its duties, its instincts, would not let it stop.
"However… as a concession, until I fully comprehend things, I will no longer willingly grant my power to Spirits and humans. But I will not obstruct any who seek destruction."
That was fair.
Hikaru nodded.
Unless one truly defeated the Light of Destruction itself, it would never stop.
Even if beings seeking disaster didn't get power from it, there were countless other sources across parallel worlds and Spirit Dimensions. In that case, it's better to keep Light of Destruction as the known option. At least Hikaru understood it.
What remained were other minor details. Hikaru wouldn't waste this chance. As long as there was time to ask and Light of Destruction knew, he would ask everything.
And so, he obtained clear intel:
In other worlds, there were two more agents of Light of Destruction.
"Two?" Hikaru was startled.
This count obviously didn't include Sartorius. So besides Yubel, there was another?
Who knows how long passed…
Regardless, to humans, it was merely an instant.
Hikaru's consciousness returned to the top of the Society of Light's tower. He heard groaning as Aster slowly woke. He saw Sarina rushing to help her brother.
Only the new card in his hand reminded him that none of it was a dream.
He looked down at the card.
[Infernoid Tierra].