The journey did not stay peaceful for long.
It never did.
The group moved forward through a fractured region of space—one that looked… wrong.
The stars here didn't shine normally.
They flickered.
Like dying embers.
The ground beneath them wasn't truly solid either—it was made of floating black fragments, slowly drifting, constantly shifting, as if the universe itself had been shattered and left unfinished.
Kael frowned, gripping his flail tighter.
"…I don't like this place."
Luka exhaled slowly.
"…Good. Because I don't think this place likes us either."
Arelia's eyes narrowed slightly, faint ripples of time bending around her fingers.
"…Something is watching."
Eren didn't speak.
But his hand had already moved to his bow.
Arna stepped closer to Vicky, her mirrors quietly rotating around her.
"…Master… the space here is unstable."
Vicky stopped.
"…Not unstable."
He said calmly.
"…Disturbed."
The moment he said that—
The void screamed.
A deep, horrifying sound tore through the space around them—like something ancient waking up after an eternity.
Kael flinched.
"…Okay yeah—THAT didn't sound friendly!"
Suddenly—
The shadows moved.
From the broken fragments around them—
things began to crawl out.
Monsters.
Dozens at first.
Then hundreds.
Then—
thousands.
Their forms were twisted, unnatural.
Some had elongated limbs that dragged across the ground like broken puppets.
Some floated without bodies—just jagged mouths and hollow eyes.
Others—
looked almost human.
But wrong.
Their faces cracked, their limbs stretched unnaturally, their mouths whispering incomprehensible words.
Luka's expression hardened.
"…So much for a quiet walk."
One of the creatures lunged forward—
And that was enough.
"Move!"
Luka shouted.
In an instant—
he vanished.
Reappearing right in front of the first wave.
Two spears materialized in his hands—
sleek, glowing with a strange ancient energy.
"…Let's test these."
He spun—
"Dual Spear Art — Phantom Spiral Break!"
His body twisted with impossible speed, both spears cutting through the air like a storm.
The monsters—
were shredded.
Dozens of them split apart instantly, their bodies dissolving into black fragments.
Kael grinned.
"…Now THAT'S what I'm talking about!"
He slammed his flail against the ground—
BOOM!
The impact sent a shockwave outward, crushing multiple creatures instantly.
But that wasn't all.
The chains of his flail extended unnaturally, wrapping around a group of monsters.
"…Let's see how tough you are."
He yanked—
The flail smashed into them—
And something else happened.
The monsters froze.
Their movements slowed.
Their bodies began to decay faster than normal.
Luka glanced at it.
"…Your weapon…"
Kael smirked.
"…Yeah. It doesn't just hurt them."
"…It eats their time."
High above—
Eren jumped onto a floating fragment.
He pulled his bow.
"…Target locked."
Energy gathered around the arrow—
silent.
Deadly.
He released.
The arrow vanished.
Then—
appeared directly in front of a monster far away—
BOOM!
It exploded instantly.
Another arrow.
Another kill.
No misses.
Not even one.
"…Doesn't matter where you hide…"
Eren muttered.
"…I won't miss."
Meanwhile—
Arelia stepped forward calmly.
The monsters rushed toward her.
Hundreds of them.
She raised her hand slightly.
"…Slow."
And time—
obeyed.
The monsters froze mid-motion.
Not completely.
But enough.
Arelia walked through them.
Gracefully.
"…Disappear."
Her ring glowed.
And in an instant—
dozens of monsters—
vanished.
As if they had never existed.
Arna smiled softly.
"…My turn."
Her mirror appeared in front of her—
floating.
Glowing.
"…Come."
Several monsters rushed toward her—
And entered the mirror.
The moment they touched it—
They were gone.
Trapped.
Forever.
Arna giggled lightly.
"…So obedient."
Then she turned—
toward more monsters.
"…Don't worry… there's space for everyone."
"Don't get too comfortable!"
Aerito stepped forward—
his body igniting in crimson flames.
"…There are more coming!"
He raised his hand—
"Crimson Collapse!"
A massive wave of fire erupted forward—
Engulfing hundreds of monsters instantly.
Their screams echoed—
then vanished.
And at the center of it all—
stood Vicky.
Still.
Calm.
Watching.
The monsters began to gather around him.
Thousands.
Their presence twisted the space itself.
Arna noticed.
"…Master—!"
But Vicky didn't move.
His eyes—
glowed.
"…Enough."
A faint mark appeared on his forehead.
The air trembled.
The Rule of Code activated.
A voice echoed—
not just in their minds—
but in reality itself.
"Judgment Initiated."
The space froze.
Even the monsters stopped.
"Low-tier anomaly detected."
"Applying corrective law…"
The mark on Vicky's forehead shined brighter.
"…Name…"
Vicky whispered.
And the Rule answered—
"Law of Absolute Erasure — Silent Verdict."
For a single moment—
everything became quiet.
Then—
CRACK.
The space itself fractured.
And in the next instant—
Every monster—
Was gone.
No explosion.
No destruction.
Just—
erased.
As if they had never existed.
Silence returned.
Complete.
Kael blinked.
"…What the hell…"
Luka stared at Vicky.
"…That… wasn't normal."
Eren lowered his bow slowly.
"…They didn't die…"
Arelia finished his sentence.
"…They were removed."
Arna looked at Vicky—
with awe.
"…Master…"
The mark on Vicky's forehead slowly faded.
He looked at his hand.
"…That was…"
The voice answered calmly.
"A low-level law."
Vicky's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Low level…?"
He looked at the empty space around them.
"…Then what does a high-level one look like…?"
No one answered.
Because none of them wanted to know.
The journey continued.
But now—
they understood one thing clearly.
This path—
was not meant for the weak.
And whatever waited ahead—
Would be far worse.
To be continued...