At a time long foregone, when the woman who referred to herself as an unidentified corpse to Kaito still went by the true name she had already discarded now.

How many years would it be in numbers? At least over a billion, maybe even over a trillion, they were memories of a day too far away…… but they still linger without fading in the slightest.

———-No, you can’t! For me, for someone the likes of me…… Nebula-sama mustn’t come to an end!!! Please, return me to my original world!!!

The Destruction God of the Apocalypse…… The phenomenon of the “End” itself, manifested into some sort of monster, an unstoppable despair against which countless Gods and numerous worlds could do nothing but vanish.

When it appeared in the world she created, she had already prepared to meet her end. And so, she went to bid farewell to the one she revered the most…… the Ultimate God in both name and reality, standing at the pinnacle of countless World Creators.

But, however, the Ultimate God…… Nebula didn’t let it happen. With her power to encompassing everything, Nebula took over the role of Creator God to the world created by ●●●●● to herself, transferred all the creatures of that world to other worlds under her control, altered history so that they were “originally born and raised” in those worlds, and she declared that she would fight the Destruction God of the Apocalypse…… Shallow Vernal.

Nebula is the Ultimate God, known as the pinnacle among the World Creators, both in name and reality. ●●●●● herself also believes wholeheartedly that Nebula is the most powerful being.

Ahh, then why is she…… ●●●●● screaming as she clings to her with tears in her eyes? Even though she could have waited and believed in the triumph of the being that she sincerely reveres with a confident smile on her face……

……No…… She knows. The truth, that is……

Why did Nebula replace her, the original World Creator? If all she wanted to do was to overthrow Shallow Vernal, she shouldn’t have bothered to do that.

Why did Nebula even alter the history of the creatures of that world and transfer them to other worlds? If they were in the way of the battle, there were plenty of ways for her to go around this without going through all that trouble……

……Yes, she knows. No, she’s sure of it. That the mistress whom ●●●●● respects from the bottom of her heart and places all her trust in…… in this battle against Shallow Vernal…… She herself is sure that she can’t prevent the end of her story…… that she can’t resist Epilogue. And yet, knowing all that, she declared she was going to face the end alone on behalf of ●●●●●……

That is why ●●●●● was appealing so desperately. She told her she was the one who had to disappear, that she and Nebula were beings of different value…… but Nebula circled such an appeal with a strained smile.

———–Fool, I am Absolute. You are under my protection, so never in eternity shall you ever get ahead of me. Even if what stands before us is only our end…… Even if it’s only for a few seconds, know that your end will come only after my end.

After saying these usual Nebula-like words, she gently stroked ●●●●●’s head with a smile.

———–However, there was one statement I could not overlook, so I must correct it.

———–A statement…… you can’t overlook?

———–You are my subordinate, my servant, part of what constitutes the Absolute that I am. Saying things like “for the likes of ○○”, there’s no being whose value is lower than the others. You will always be my pride. For this reason, such words that undermine my pride…… Even if you are part of my pride, you are to refrain from making such words.

To Nebula, who speaks of her, who is nothing more than a servant and someone under Nebula’s patronage, as someone she’s proud of as if it’s a matter of course, considering her a part of herself, ●●●●● continues to nod while endlessly shedding tears.

To such a ●●●●●, Nebula took off the faintly glowing necklace she was wearing around her neck and handed it over.

———–I leave this with you.

———–This is…… the necklace Nebula-sama always wears……

———–It’s not that big of a deal, okay? It was just the first thing I made when I became self-aware. I was just wearing it without much thought, and it seems a fragment of my power got mixed in it, so it always glows faintly, but it has no other effects. However, since I have worn it for so many years, I do feel somewhat troubled by the thought of it breaking, so I will leave it to you. Keep that and wait for my return.

———–……Yes, I will definitely…… take care of it.

———–Yeah, I’m counting on you. Well then……

Entrusted with the task of “holding onto something that must not be broken”, ●●●●● was no longer able to follow Nebula. Since she had received what was likely the final order of the one she reveres….. Since she was told to wait, she could only wait.

After seeing off Nebula as she disappeared, ●●●●● held the necklace in both hands, as if she was wrapping it around, and continued to pray desperately. Extremely hoping for a miracle to happen…… Ahh…… but alas…… at the very least, at that moment, her wish didn’t reach her.

How much time had passed? After a short while, the pale light emitted by the necklace Nebula entrusted to her…… quietly dissipated.

[……Ahh…… Ahhhhh……. Uaaaaaahhhhh……. AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?!?]

The meaning of the extinguished light of the necklace, in which a fragment of Nebula’s power resides…… Yes, the great Ultimate God whom ●●●●● revered from the bottom of her heart and pledged absolute loyalty to has now met her end. Taking ●●●●●’s place, that is……

<Afterword>

? ? ? : [A- A sudden seriousness!? ……Arehh? Where’s Senpai?]

Makina : [She said “Seems like it’s going to be a leisurely meet-and-greet for a while, so I’m going to go sleep for a while”.]

? ? ? : [……I see……]

T/N: Sorry I’m late, I was kinda getting addicted exploring in that new gacha. Playing as the keqing-like sephiroth kinda drew my attention.