“Huff… huff… You… monster,” Alreis panted heavily. “You really were strong! Lasting a full three days against me before falling.” She gazed at the lifeless Colossal Beast before her.

Though victorious, this creature had been truly invincible without invoking the power of time. It forced Alreis to drain nearly all her magical energy to finally bring it down.

Alreis kept panting, her face flushed deep crimson. Paired with her slender frame, the sight was dangerously suggestive—though she remained utterly unaware.

“I offer you my respect, monster. You are the strongest opponent I’ve faced. I may meet mightier beings someday, but this battle… rare is the fight that stirred me with such exhilaration and joy.”

“Therefore, in the name of the Alreis who has passed, I honor you—and bestow a name: ‘Death Wyrm.’ A life that brings death… it suits you perfectly.” With solemn reverence, she guided blades of space to carefully dissect her worthy foe. At last, within the Death Wyrm’s remains, she found a grayish-white orb. The immense power radiating from it inspired quiet awe.

After a moment’s study, her small hand made a slight gesture. A rift tore open in space—a personal storage dimension she’d carved for her belongings, capable of holding nearly anything.

She glanced once more at the Death Wyrm’s corpse, then waved again. A patch of desert silently caved inward; the remains sank deep into the earth. The highest honor she could offer a fallen adversary.

“Hmm. Done.” Alreis composed herself. “Time to seek the next worthy opponent.” The thought of future battles brought another flush to her cheeks. Just how thrilled was she, really?

In the days that followed, Alreis journeyed far and wide, relentlessly seeking immensely powerful creatures to challenge.

Soon, kingdom rulers found their plans shattered. Nations offering sacrifices to such beings suddenly sensed their targets locked in fierce combat with an unknown force. When silence fell, only hollow husks remained.

Other kingdoms, after months of planning to eliminate a Colossal Beast, arrived to find only a shattered lair—and a corpse riddled with wounds.

“Who in the world could slay these Colossal Beasts?!” the Ascendant Sovereigns cried in terror. The evidence pointed unmistakably to a lone human. Yet none among them could single-handedly defeat, let alone kill, such a beast. Whoever did this could just as easily erase them—the rulers of the world. Unthinkable.

Worse, the precious grayish-white orbs within the beasts had vanished. To the Ascendant Sovereigns, those orbs were hope itself—the key to advancing their power.

Thus, the Ascendant Sovereigns convened.

“Flame Master,” Storm said calmly, a gentle breeze swirling around him as he faced the man wreathed in fire, “wasn’t your friend Magnet Emperor slain by a Colossal Beast in the desert?”

“True,” Flame Master replied flatly. “But what’s it to you… Storm?”

“None of my concern,” Storm continued, unmoved. “Yet someone swore to avenge Magnet Emperor. Pity—the very target of your oath is already dust. What’s left to fulfill?”

“…” Flame Master fell silent for seconds. “I’ll find that person. Even if it costs my life, I’ll challenge him. At the very least… I’ll reclaim that beast’s orb.”

“Flame Master, don’t act rashly,” interjected a soft, fluid voice. The speaker’s body shimmered semi-transparent—a clear wielder of water.

“Exactly,” chimed a melodic, velvety voice. A stunning woman stepped forward. Unlike Alreis’s slender frame, her voluptuous figure drew immediate attention—though the Ascendant Sovereigns remained utterly unmoved.

“Blessing of Life?” rasped Darkness, shrouded in black mist, voice gravelly and genderless. “Did you ‘enhance’ this nauseating form using your life-giving powers?”

“Darkness,” Blessing of Life shot back, voice still silken, “you shadow-dwelling, genderless wretch—watch your tongue. Think the light-wielding Sovereigns here would hesitate to erase you before another word?”

Darkness opened their mouth… then fell silent.

“Enough. Cease this bickering.” The voice cut through the tension. Violet lightning crackled around Thunder God—the sole warrior honored with a divine title. He had summoned them; only he commanded such universal respect.

“Let’s address the nameless warrior,” Thunder God stated bluntly. “We stand at the world’s pinnacle. Empty words waste time. Does anyone have insight?”

“Find him. Fight him. Simple,” Flame Master declared, flames licking violently around him.

“I disagree,” Blessing of Life countered. “We estimate his strength. Artifacts from The Chaos may help us *counter* beasts—but facing one head-on? He *killed* it. Plainly: Thunder God, strongest among us… can you defeat a Colossal Beast in direct combat?”

“…Defeating one? Perhaps. Killing it? Absolutely not,” Thunder God admitted after a pause.

A subtle tremor passed through the room. This unknown warrior surpassed them all. And Thunder God… had he already *fought* one? The gap between them widened.

Silence settled. None wished to provoke a killer. They carried too much—their honor, status, their people’s trust. Such was a Sovereign’s burden.

After a long hush, Blessing of Life spoke, voice low and measured: “Since no one decides… I have a proposal.”