Time flew by.

It was unclear to me how much time had passed, but I was aware that there was not much longer to go before Jezebeth would show up here on earth.

Had it been before, by now, I would've been palpitating with fear over the prospect of Jezebeth coming, but at the moment, I was rather calm.

Nervousness stems from one's lack of confidence. If one wasn't confident in what they were up against, that'd be when one would start to feel nerevousness.

More than anything, I didn't have the time to even think about those matters.

"Your entire body is a mess. I don't understand why you'd let so many different types of energies roam inside of your body?"

I was currently being scolded, if one might call it that.

"When you made the decision to allow so many energies to enter your body, did the thought 'more is better' cross your mind?"

"No."

I shook my head, keeping my head low at the same time.

"…I just wanted to use methods that you wouldn't be able to predict or be familiar with."

The room fell into an abrupt silence as a result of my words, and when I looked up, I saw my own love in his eyes.

His face was as indifferent as it always had been, but for some reason, he had a look that seemed to be looking down on me.

"I'll have to praise you for that."

To my surprise, I was complimented rather than reprimanded.

It came as a bit of a surprise to me given that, ever since he began helping me, all he ever did was criticize everything that I did.

It brought to mind instances when we had been together in the Demon Realm. Back then, he used to treat me the same way that he did now.

He was a harsh teacher, but he was the best teacher I could ever ask for.

There was no one else who understood me better than he did.

"On more than one occasion, I found myself rather taken aback by the actions that you took. It's true that some of them were incredibly dimwitted, but there were also some that were admirable... having said that..."

He looked at me dead on in the eyes.

"The key word here is 'some', and that's on rare occasions. Do you really think I haven't tried everything in my pursuit of power? You think that I've never taken the path that you're currently undertaking? Scrap that nonsensical thought from you mind. Whatever you tried, I've tried it before…"

He pointed at his head with his index finger.

"…You've only caught a glimpse of my hell. Not the entirety of it."

"…"

I pursed my lips and didn't say anything at his words.

Deep down, I knew that he was right.

If there was anyone who knew the best path, it had to be him.

"It was as simple as following the story's plotline. I made it so that the only thing you'd be able to concentrate on is following the plot line, and yet... like a complete moron, you chose to deviate from the plot line that I designed for you to take advantage of."

I wasn't completely certain, but I thought I detected a hint of irritation in the tone of my other self's voice.

Clearly, he was dissatisfied with the choices that I made in the past.

I scratched the back of my head.

"Well… to be honest, I had to discard the plotline. The butterfly effect was getting out of hand, and…"

"Was it, though?"

I was stopped mid sentence and I felt a cold gaze fall on my face. I turned to look at him, and he continued.

"Did you really think the situation was getting out of hand?"

He cocked his head a little, staring intently in my direction.

"In my book, there is no such thing as things getting out of control. Everything is in my control, and what you think of as a butterfly effect, I've already factored in a long time ago... You should've just been obedient and followed the plotline like I programmed you to…"

"Eh…"

I smiled at him.

"Things worked out in the end, didn't they?"

"They only worked out because I made them work out."

His gaze stinged, and I turned my head away from him.

"It would have been much simpler if you had followed the plotline. You would have probably suffered less, and you would be even stronger than you are now..."

"Perhaps so... Even then, I don't regret my decision."

I muttered under my breath.

There were a lot of choices that I made, and I regretted none of them. Sure, in the end, those choices ended up being accounted for by him, but it helped me get out of that mentality that this world was merely just a failed novel that I wrote.

That…

It was probably the most important thing for me.

"It's good that you don't regret your decisions. If you had, I'd be rather disappointed in you."

Turning his head to look toward the sky, the other me looked back at me and pointed at the sword in my hand.

"We don't have much time. Start practicing again. So long as you carry out my plan, we'll be able to win this."

"Got it."

Sighing, I unsheathed the sword and got into a stance.

Taking a deep breath, I slashed.

Swoosh―!

***

Jezebeth sat upon his throne, his eyes closed in contemplation.

He could sense that the time was drawing nearer and closer.

While he was seated on his throne, his entire body would shake from time to time. He was unable to hold it in any longer; he wanted nothing more than to travel to earth and put an end to something that had been going on for many decades.

Rustle―!

Suddenly, the flap of a tent interrupted his thoughts, and Jezebeth's eyes slowly opened, revealing his crimson-colored pupils, which were stained with a purplish hue.

Turning his head, his gaze rested upon the demon who had entered the room.

The demon recoiled in fear at the sight of him and quickly bowed his head in submission.

"Your majesty, we're ready."

The demon said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jezebeth's lips curled into a smile.

"Are the Seven Patriarchs ready?"

"Yes, your majesty."

The demon replied.

"Good. Let us go."

With both hands resting on the armrest of his chair, Jezebeth helped himself up and stood up from his seat. His figure towered over the demon's, and he shivered even more.

Without another word, Jezebeth strode out of the tent and onto the field.

As he moved, separate components of his armor suddenly materialized from thin air and began to attach themselves to his body.

Rustle!

There, he was greeted with the sight of an army of demons kneeling down in front of him. They numbered in the millions and covered the large plot of land that stood before his very eyes.

"We greet his majesty."

The demons chanted in unison.

Jezebeth nodded in acknowledgement, his eyes scanning the assembled forces.

He noted the Seven Patriarchs, their presence imposing and formidable, and felt satisfied. They weren't as strong as him, but they were strong in their own right.

He could also feel a certain something coming out of their bodies, and his confidence soared.

"It looks like everyone is ready."

He said, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Slowly, his gaze fell on a certain someone beside him; he wore a white mask and had his gaze directed away from him. Jezebeth smiled at him before turning his attention back to the Seven Patriarchs.

"Get the pillars ready."

He ordered.

It was a straightforward instruction, but at the precise moment when he uttered those words, the Seven Patriarchs' eyes lit up with enthusiasm, and they smiled widely, exposing their sparkling white teeth.

"Understood, your majesty."

They replied in unison.

Their figures vanished from the spot with a soft beat of their wings.

Jezebeth's eyes lingered for a moment over the location where they had just been standing before he tore his attention away from it and started staring into the distance.

He closed his eyes, and a white glow spread from his body.

'Hmm, let's see how far they've gone.'

After a brief period of time spent with his eyes closed, during which he took in a keen awareness of the world beyond, he eventually opened them once more.

"It looks like they have almost made it to earth..."

He murmured to himself.

As he moved his hand forward, a bright white glow suddenly engulfed his entire body and spread outward toward the legion of demons that were present.

The area around them quickly became riddled with fissures that rapidly expanded in the air.

Cra...Crack!

The fissure grew wider with each passing second, and in less than a minute, more than ten distinct portals materialized somewhere inside the expansive land. They were the height of a mountain and reached all the way up to the sky above.

With a satisfied look, Jezebeth opened his mouth and softly spoke.

"Prepare for war."

***

"It's starting."

Angelica muttered, staring at the enormous portals before her. Looking around her, she secretly swallowed a mouthful of saliva and did her best to hide her nervousness.

At this very moment, there were a number of demons belonging to her clan surrounding her, and they all regarded her with suspicion... It was abundantly clear that she wasn't particularly welcome.

Even so…

The fact that they did not take any action against her reflected very highly on the standing her mother had.

"Get ready. We will soon be departing to earth."

A demon spoke beside her. Angelica didn't even bother looking to see who it was. It was one of her mother's servants.

'It's fine…'

She kept herself composed, a smile tugging on her mouth shortly after.

'I've already finished my preparations.'

"March forward!"

A thunderous voice resounded throughout, and the demons hastened to get to the portal in the distance. Angelica followed in their footsteps and launched herself toward the portal after her wings expanded.

Like that…

The Third Cataclysm began.