— — — — — —
"Time to wither."
The Herrscher of the End unleashed her power, filling the entire space with the force of decay. The air itself seemed saturated with death.
Rimuru only arched an eyebrow, completely unfazed. This so-called power couldn't touch his star body in the slightest.
"Devour!"
Several miniature black holes spun into existence around him, sucking in every trace of that decaying energy. Their pull grew so strong they even threatened to drag the Herrscher in as well.
Herrscher of the End immediately warped several kilometers away, trying to escape the black holes.
But Rimuru wasn't about to let her get off that easily. He shifted through space just as quickly, hunting her down. If he caught her, she'd be nothing more than meat on a butcher's block.
And so, in this boundless imaginary space, the two clashed in a high-speed chase.
"Rimuru-sama, let me help!" Diablo suddenly appeared beside the Herrscher, claws slashing out to interrupt her next teleport.
"Perfect chance." A sharp gleam flashed in Rimuru's eyes.
"Spatial Lock!"
The air froze. He sealed the surrounding dimensions, cutting off her ability to teleport again.
"Damn you!" The Herrscher's rage was laced with panic—her instincts screamed of danger.
"Why are you people helping them?" she demanded. "Humanity is meant to evolve! The weak who refuse change should be abandoned. That's the law of nature!"
Rimuru sneered. "People like you make me sick. Stop trying to decide other people's fate. 'Natural law,' 'inevitable history'—don't use those as excuses to toy with lives. If progress means blood and cruelty, then it isn't worth having."
He smiled faintly. "As for why I fight? For a better world. Honkai—your end is here."
The miniature black holes whirled tighter, merging into his left hand. Gravity burst forth in waves so intense the space around him began to tear.
The black hole itself flickered faintly, almost invisible. True black holes can't be seen; their pull swallows even light, leaving no reflection for the eye. That unseen, inexorable hunger was the most terrifying power of all.
The Herrscher's face twisted in fear. She couldn't understand how this man had obtained such a monstrous ability.
"Die!" She gathered every shred of Honkai energy, ready to risk everything on one final strike.
On the battlefield below, people watched in shock as all the Honkai beasts and Zombies began dissolving into pure energy, streaming upward into the sky.
"What in the world…?" Otto stared, unsettled.
"Ohh! Looks like the Herrscher's cornered. Rimuru is really something." Whitebeard rumbled with a knowing grin.
"… don't you dare lose, Rimuru." Kevin's hand clenched Judgment of Shamash so tightly veins stood out, showing the turmoil in his heart. "Humanity shall defeat the Honkai."
"Come on! Defeat the Will of Honkai!" Valkyries, warriors—every soul from the Honkai world prayed for the same outcome.
"Final End!"
The Herrscher unleashed nearly all of her remaining power—more than ninety-nine percent condensed into a single blow. Space shattered. Death, creation, life, ice, fire, gravity, reality—every kind of energy surged together in a cataclysm meant to unmake the world itself.
"Pathetic thrashing." Rimuru's expression never wavered. He thrust forward the nearly invisible black hole in his palm.
The two powers collided. There was no thunderous crash, only a silent deadlock.
But a black hole's true strength isn't destruction. It's endless consumption.
Slowly, inevitably, it swallowed. The more it devoured, the stronger it became, the faster it consumed.
In less than a minute, it had swollen several times larger. The Herrscher's apocalyptic attack collapsed into it, then the void lunged for her directly.
"No… impossible! I cannot be defeated!" Her scream echoed with despair as the black hole coiled around her form.
"Now you'll finally pay for your crimes." Rimuru's voice was calm, almost cold.
"Why? Why do you help those weak humans? Why fight me? I did nothing wrong! I am Honkai! Everything I've done was for them!" The Herrscher—or rather, the Will of Honkai itself—knew it was over. The devouring force pinned down her very soul. There was no future but death.
"Spare me the lies." Rimuru's disgust was sharp. "You call this 'for humanity'—and then destroy them? Did you ever ask what they wanted? Your hypocrisy is revolting."
And then it was finished. Honkai was gone. Devoured. Erased.
Rimuru pulled the black hole back into himself. The vast energy flowed into his body, feeding the growth of his star body. The sheer amount startled him—it was almost half as much as his own reserves. Still, the Herrscher's control had been sloppy; if she'd known how to wield that power properly, the fight might've dragged on far longer.
"Rimuru-Sama, it seems it's finally over," Diablo said with a satisfied smile.
"Yeah. Thanks, Diablo-san. If not for you, this would've been a lot messier." Rimuru stretched lazily. He was exhausted. Once they got back, he planned to sleep for days. Processing that much energy was going to take time.
"Serving you is my greatest honor." Diablo bowed slightly, eyes gleaming with devotion.
"Then let's go tell everyone the good news." With that, Rimuru spread his wings and descended.
On the ground, the waiting crowd turned as he landed.
Kevin. Otto. Kallen. Welt. Theresa. Himeko. All of them already guessed the outcome—but they still held their breath for his words.
"Everyone," Rimuru said solemnly, "Honkai is gone. From this day forward, it will never plague this world again."
Cheers erupted.
"We won! We did it."
"Honkai is finally over! It's… it's really gone."
"We can finally rest. No more fighting… no more deaths…"
"Everyone… your sacrifices weren't in vain!"
"Our children will grow up without fear."
Cheers, sobs, and laughter blended together. Some clung to each other and wept, some raised their weapons high in triumph, while others simply collapsed to the ground, staring at the sky as though seeing it for the first time
For so long they had lived in the shadow of Honkai—fighting, bleeding, sacrificing everything just to see another sunrise.
Now, at last, that nightmare was gone.
The world was free.
After endless years of struggle, despair, and loss—Honkai was truly, finally over.
.
.
.