As Felix blinked his eyes open, they were assaulted by an intense unnatural brightness, forcing him to squint for a moment.

When he regained his focus, he found himself standing on a vast silver metallic floor with walls that stretched up and out into an immense cubic expanse.

Their reflective surface gleamed under the harsh, omnipresent light that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.

The sheer size of the space was overwhelming as if he were trapped inside an endless metallic labyrinth.

Yet, this wasn't the most shocking part.

"Where am I?" "The hell? How come there are so many people!"

"I knew it was too good to be true to be summoned by the Empress herself."

As Felix looked around, his heartbeats quickened at the sight before him. All around him, stretching out as far as he could see, were people!

Millions of humans were scattered across the massive hall...Each person standing alone, separated from those nearby by an invisible boundary.

It was as if a field of unseen barriers surrounded them, preventing anyone from moving or interacting with another.

Although all of them were talking at once, there wasn't any irritating chit-chatter. Felix was more than capable of hearing the ones next to him talk to themselves, making him understand that no one had a single clue what was going on.

'What does the Empress want with this many people."

Felix murmured as he tried to take a step forward, but the invisible walls responded, subtly guiding him back into his designated space.

Knowing that it was useless, he started scanning the faces of the people around him. What he found surprised him to the core.

'Is everyone here famous and possesses a high social status in our galaxy?'

Questions raced through his mind as he scanned the vast sea of silent faces. He found famous scientists with achievements capable of covering entire walls.

Famous businessmen, who he considered giants in the markets and held assets worth much more than the entire Alexander Kingdom.

There were even scholars and celebrities mixed in here and there.

Of course, what truly captured his focus were the kings and emperors of the strongest empires in the galaxy.

'Why are they here? And why the hell was I invited to such a gathering of stars?' For the first time in a long while, Felix truly felt like he was in a place he didn't belong, surrounded by millions yet isolated.

Fortunately, he wasn't left dwelling for too long on answers as the moment the summons concluded, a massive slice of the front wall slid open, exposing a long bright corridor.

From the corridor, the Empress of The Metal Race stepped forth in a humanoid form, resembling a feminine cyborg with expressionless features.

She resembled any other metal race, confusing plenty of people, who had never seen her true form before.

One of the kings bowed his head respectfully as he inquired, "Empress O15XL, to what do we owe the pleasure?"

When the rest of the humans heard him call the Empress by her Ai name, their expressions immediately turned solemn, knowing that they were in the presence of her majesty.

In an emotionless manner, Empress Emily made a shushing motion with her finger, forcing the chatter to die out forcefully...It was like they were muted live.

"Listen and watch in silence." She said expressionlessly as she manifested a massive display before everyone.

Everyone lifted their heads and focused on the screen that came to life, displaying a surreal distorted landscape in the void.

Inhabiting this void were two unimaginable entities that seemed to defy logic. Their presence alone was overwhelming to the point, that it cast a weight upon everyone's souls through the screen!

A chilling silence engulfed the crowd as everyone's eyes moved from one entity to the other, scanning them whole.

The first entity was a colossal pitch-black horse-like creature. No one knew its exact size since there was nothing in the void to use as a comparison, but their instincts screamed at them that it should be a million times bigger than even the largest of galaxies.

They didn't know why they felt like this, but it just happened.

It moved with an eerie elegance, its six legs stepping silently, causing each motion to release a rippling shadowy trail.

Across its massive body, thousands of vortex-like eyes opened and shifted, spinning endlessly, each filled with an abyss that seemed to gaze into the watchers' very souls.

Upon its head sat a dark crown adorned with six spikes, each one surrounded by hundreds of halos.

'What is this monstrosity...'

'I can't stare at it straight...It's just on a screen, why can't I do it...'

'How marvelous...Is this some new species discovered recently?'

Whether it was a king, a scholar, or a businessman, the watchers shivered without exception...Felix included.

It wasn't just fear; it was a much deeper...A primal chill that clawed at their hearts, like an instinctive recognition of something beyond their comprehension.

But as terrifying as the horse-like entity was, it wasn't alone.

Nearby, another presence captured half of the screen. Its form was distinctly humanoid but just as dreadful.

This entity had no discernible facial features, just a smooth, featureless face that made its existence all the more unsettling.

But what truly drew every eye were the seven brilliant cores embedded in its chest, each one glowing with a holy brilliance that pushed back against the darkness.

These hearts thumped in perfect harmony akin to a well-oiled instrument, releasing beams of radiant light that seemed to purify the very atmosphere around it.

Above its head rested a crown too...But, this one was adorned with four stars, each one glowing faintly and surrounded also by countless circular halos.

The holy light clashed with the oppressive darkness of the horse-like monstrosity, and for a brief moment, it felt like balance.

But, Felix and the rest had their hearts skip a beat as they witnessed the whole scene.

The featureless entity was crucified!

Its arms were spread out, bound in place against a tall and dark pole made of skulls.

the morbid structure was twisted and hideous as each skull was etched with expressions of pain and despair...The pole rose into the void like a twisted monument.

Felix's breath caught in his throat, a sense of helplessness and despair washing over him like he watched the crucification of the most important being in his life.

Every single human shared his expression, as everyone stood frozen with eyes wide in horror.

They felt like they would rather have themselves crucified in place of that featureless being, even when this was the first time they saw him.

The horse-like entity took a step forward, its vortex-like eyes all converging on the crucified figure as if to drink in the sight of its suffering.

The featureless entity hung motionless, its head bowed and its seven hearts' light remained unwavering.

Suddenly, out of those dreadful eyes emerged black claws, each one was sharp, intangible, and dripping with dark energy.

The claws twisted and extended, reaching out toward the glowing and brilliant hearts embedded in the chest of the crucified entity.

One by one, the claws pounced forward, ripping each celestial heart out in a vicious manner!

With each heart torn from its chest, the radiant glow of the featureless being dimmed, the holy light fading into the overwhelming darkness that surrounded them.

As the hearts were torn away, the pitch-black entity voiced with a deep rough voice, using a language unknown to the human watchers...A language that seemed to resonate through the void itself.

But even though the watchers couldn't understand the original words, they heard a voice dubbed in their minds, translating the entity's speech.

"After a struggle that lasted for more than ten billion years, I have finally prevailed..." The featureless entity raised its head at last, causing the dimming light from the remaining hearts to cast a faint glow on its smooth emotionless face.

Despite its dire situation, there was no fear, no pain, only a calm that seemed to transcend the situation entirely.

"R'vaelor, if using a replica of the chains of the Great Order is how you consider a victory," It said with a calm dismissive tone, "Then so be it."

R'vaelor, the monstrous entity sneered, its maw twisting upward, exposing dark fangs.

"Azzorus, you know damn well, a victory is a victory..." He replied, the translated words gushing with contempt.

Azzorus, the featureless entity gazed at his enemy with an air of indifference and then spoke, "I agree, a victory is a victory, but know this...There will come a day when you will regret those same words..."

A faint smile broke on his face as he finished, leaving R'vaelor to break into mocking laughter. The sound of it was so guttural, that it seemed to echo endlessly through the void, carrying an unmistakable arrogance.

"*I am Supreme R'vaelor..." He announced coldly, "I have no concept of regret."

As he said this, a final much larger claw materialized from the eyes and plunged at Azzorus' chest, leaving three long gushing wounds on his chest!

The wounds were deep to the point that they struck the central heart and the two other hearts on its sides, leaving a lasting mark on the left heart!

As all the hearts were taken out, the remaining glow was extinguished in an instant, Supreme R'vaelor ignited a dark flame on top of his palm.

Without an ounce of hesitation, he threw it underneath the crucified Supreme Azzorus. The dark flames instantly grew intense, consuming Azzorus' body in a blaze that seemed to incinerate not just the surface but his true essence.

'...'

'...'

'...'

The watchers stared in horrified awe as the light was engulfed, reducing the mighty being to nothing but ashes...

Within moments, there was nothing left but the seven hearts floating in the void without any purpose...

Supreme R'vaelor raised his head, his thousand vortex-like eyes shifting to the seven hearts in satisfaction and a hint of melancholy.

"The games won't be the same without you, farewell old rival."

As he said this, Supreme R'vaelor turned around and disappeared through a vortex of dark energy, leaving behind the seven wounded hearts.

Instantly after, a melodious voice resounded across the void with a certain solemness.

"In The Battle of Twilight, Supreme R'vaelor has emerged victorious...Universe N057 ascends a step to The Blessed Isles.'

Following the announcement, a pillar of celestial light descended, illuminating the darkness with an otherworldly glow.

As the watchers turned their eyes upward, a figure emerged from within the blinding brilliance, plummeting with absolute grace.

The angelic being, seemingly cast down from the heavens, had twelve wings, six on each side, all glowing with a brilliant white light, their feathers gleaming like falling stardust.

His body bore angelic features, elegant lines, and sculpted limbs, clothed in silvery and formless robes that quivered as he descended.

But, his face struck fear into the hearts of all who saw it. He had five eyes adorning his face, each one arranged in an uneven almost chaotic pattern that seemed to follow the viewers no matter where they stood.

And in the center of it all, a single lip formed a disconcerting line. A motionless, expressionless, adding to the sense of wrongness.

As the being descended near the seven hearts, he voiced again with the same melodious tone, "In the Battle of Twilight, Supreme Azzorus has perished. Universe N309 has descended a step to The Blighted Grounds.'

Silence prevailed on the battlefield, seemingly like the angelic being was addressing the populace, but at the same time, there was no response.

Yet, he continued.

"As per the rules imposed by The Great Order. Once a Supreme perishes in the Battles of Twilight, it will be a permanent death."

"Thus, unless Universe N309 appoints a new Supreme to participate in Supremacy Games, it will forfeit automatically each game until it falls off The Blessed Staircase.'

Soon, the angelic being looked directly into the camera seemingly gazing into Felix's eyes and the rest. Then he uttered, "Universe N309 is twenty steps away from The Blighted Grounds."

"I was your Game Master Solarius." He constructed a prayer posture and voiced reverently one last time, "All Praise to The Great Order."

The moment he was done speaking, the screen turned pitch-black, reflecting the sea of humans all gazing at its surface with stunned and stupefied expressions.

Everything they had witnessed and heard was simply incomprehensible in their minds as they had no idea what had just happened.

Yet, before they could even wrap their minds around such insanity, Empress Emily waved her hand and manifested seven glass containers, each one holding one of the hearts displayed on the screen.

The moment Felix and the rest of the humans' eyes landed on those hearts, Empress Emily uttered emotionlessly, "We are Universe N309."