Chapter 60

Chapter 60. The Astral Sovereign of the Void

The pillar of light gradually subsided.

The demonic energy that had been raging like a storm across the Demon Realm washed away as if it had never existed.

I stood still and observed the being that had appeared before me.

It was immense.

But there was no way I, a Mage, wouldn't recognize what that was.

'An Astral Sovereign.'

Watchers who touch upon the primordial stars.

Distant eyes that observe the world from beyond the laws of the universe.

Of course, this wasn't its true body.

It was merely a projected phantom -- nothing more.

Had the true body descended in person, it would have been hundreds, thousands of times larger.

Moreover, if an unprepared mortal were to look directly upon an Astral Sovereign's true body?

Unable to withstand its overwhelming Caliber, their eyes would go blind or their soul would burn to death.

Given that Park Hayan and Park Jihun behind me were staring slack-jawed yet perfectly fine, it was clear this was a phantom.

However, they are fundamentally observers.

They do not carelessly meddle in reality, the Demon Realm, or even the Tower of God.

They simply reveal themselves like this, once in a great while, under very specific circumstances.

They are called the beings closest to truth.

And they have been known to bestow transcendent knowledge -- or miracles of equal measure -- upon those who prove their worthiness.

'I had little connection with them in my previous life, but.'

And yet, a phantom of an Astral Sovereign had now appeared before my eyes.

【I am the Watcher who governs the Void.】

A heavy voice drove itself directly into my mind.

That alone felt as though my brain would burst.

【I have briefly descended to this wretched land to confirm the being that so greatly stirred the Void.】

......Stirred the Void?

I stroked my chin and thought for a moment.

What was the cause?

Could it be the result of punching through the Incomprehensible difficulty and hitting '9,999' -- an Unprecedented Jackpot -- on the die?

Or was it connected to the fact that I'd maxed out Talents like Null, Void, Emptiness, and Zero to their limits when I first created my character?

Either way, my trajectory -- one that had thoroughly shattered the system's specifications -- had clearly piqued its curiosity.

The Watcher of the Void looked down at me.

From within formless pitch-black darkness.

Only two enormous eyes gleamed piercingly.

And then.

【Impressive.】

It showered me with praise.

【To have drawn my gaze and even summoned me in person. It means the Void Talent you possess is truly exceptional.】

Greed dripped from the Watcher's voice.

【Come with me.】

"......"

【Come with me into the Void and be reborn as 'Void-born.' Then you shall be well able to ascend to the seat of a Watcher.】

I quirked an eyebrow.

An Astral Sovereign personally selecting someone and taking them into the Void?

Unheard of.

In all the literature from my previous life, I'd never once encountered such a tale.

The Watcher of the Void continued in a coaxing tone.

【Accept. Then you shall leap beyond the innate limits of mortals in a single bound.】

"......"

【Even the pathetic gods festering in their little corners shall grovel at your feet and look up at you in trembling awe.】

An enticing proposition, no question.

A transcendent station that would let me look upon the gods as beneath me.

But.

......Being reborn as Void-born ultimately means ceasing to be human.

Becoming an Astral Sovereign requires casting every human emotion and reason into that gaping void, whittling them away.

Above all, time was the problem.

How many long, grueling years would it take to become an Astral Sovereign?

A hundred years? A thousand? Ten thousand?

'The Earth would've been destroyed a hundred times over in the meantime.'

My reason for fighting is clear.

To devour the gods and protect the world.

To trample the arrogance of gods in a human body.

The answer was already decided.

"I refuse."

Short and absolute.

【......You refuse.】

The Astral Sovereign's voice sank to a frigid depth.

The space around us rippled as if it would crack apart on every side.

【You dare reject the hand I have offered?】

"I do."

【Fool. You would cling to that trivial husk of yours, embrace your pitiful innate limits, and die with them?】

I tapped the Great Sage's Staff against the ground.

"Trivial? Me?"

I scoffed.

This body is an Unprecedented vessel, forged by housing the Absolute God Force Majeure and pouring in 100 million Soul Points.

"My Innate Potential is far higher than your precious Void-born's limits."

I shrugged with unshakable confidence.

Truly, an attitude of supreme arrogance.

To behave this way toward an Astral Sovereign -- a being that even gods regard with deference -- was something one should never, under any circumstances, do.

One misstep and I could be annihilated on the spot.

But I was sure of myself.

'The Astral Sovereign of the Void covets me.'

It absolutely cannot kill me.

More importantly, my reason for this posture was simple.

'Astral Sovereigns bestow greater gifts upon those who prove their worth.'

Accepting what an Astral Sovereign offers at face value?

That isn't proof of anything.

It's compliance. Submission.

Settling for a trivial gift and giving up.

What I want is true proof.

A declaration that I will not settle for a reward this meager.

【KAHAHAHAHA!】

The Watcher of the Void erupted in mocking laughter.

【Do you even comprehend the drivel spilling from your mouth?】

"Crystal clear."

My gaze didn't waver in the slightest.

【Very well.】

The Watcher's eyes glowed ominously.

【Then let us make a wager.】

"A wager?"

【If your Innate Potential is truly higher than that of the Void-born.】

The Astral Sovereign of the Void dangled a sweet yet lethal lure.

【I shall open the 'Celestial Vault' to you.】

The Celestial Vault.

A name I'd never heard before.

Even when I'd reached the heights of Archmage in my previous life.

Not once had I encountered the term, not even in passing.

"What is it?"

【The Celestial Vault is a treasury where I have gathered treasures collected personally, wandering the stars and the endless Void that spans this universe.】

Deep pride saturated the voice.

The moment I heard that explanation.

Outwardly, I kept my composure, but inwardly, I swallowed hard.

'Insane.'

Beyond estimation.

The Mythic Grade or Ancient Grade equipment obtained in the Tower of God?

Certainly, those were exceptional.

But these were treasures personally collected by an Astral Sovereign on a universal scale.

A different Caliber entirely.

They would be on an altogether different plane from every reward I'd obtained thus far.

【If your Innate Potential surpasses that of our Void-born.】

The Watcher's eyes blazed.

【I shall open the doors of the Celestial Vault and grant you the chance to take away a single item of your choosing.】

An extraordinary offer.

A single item of my choosing.

I didn't know what was inside, but there was no doubt it would contain something that wouldn't just give wings to my growth -- it'd strap on a rocket.

But nothing in this world comes free.

"What if I lose?"

To my question, the Astral Sovereign of the Void answered matter-of-factly.

【Death.】

Short and blunt.

I die.

Since the Astral Sovereign itself had spoken, there would be no possibility of survival.

"......"

I fell silent for a moment.

'Innate Potential.'

There's no chance my innate makeup is lacking.

The 100 million Soul Points I'd been given at character creation.

I'd used those points to max out every Talent, every attribute, every branch of natural law and Magic to the cap of 10,000.

On top of that, I'd achieved the Hidden Piece 'Unprecedented.'

Thanks to that, I'd been able to max out things that couldn't be raised through ordinary means -- Racial Value, Innate Potential, luck, and the like.

The problem was that my opponent was the Astral Sovereign of the Void.

Being Void-born meant one could ascend all the way to the seat of an Astral Sovereign.

In other words, their Innate Potential was incomparable to a human's.

It was highly likely they could look down on most gods from above.

But what's done is done.

I'd come this far; refusing now wasn't an option.

I slowly nodded.

"Fine. I accept the wager."

The words had barely left my mouth.

DING!

['The Watcher of the Void' wishes to examine your 'Innate Potential'.]

[Do you consent?]

[Note: The base Innate Potential of the 'Void-born,' who walk the Void, is '150'.]

[Note: A human's limit is approximately '10'.]

'......150.'

I checked the values and narrowed my eyes.

Humans are a mere 10 or so.

And the Void-born start at 150 as a baseline.

I rubbed my chin at the staggering gap.

'Honestly, I'm curious myself.'

What my own number actually is.

I'd never seen the precise magnitude of this absolute metric -- the size of one's vessel called 'Innate Potential.'

It wasn't a stat that appeared in the Status Window as a normal value.

And so.

'I consent.'

I fixed my gaze on the system window's accept button and projected my will.

Then.

DING!

[Consent granted.]

[Beginning measurement of subject's Innate Potential.]

FLASH—!

Golden light erupted from my body.

The Astral Sovereign of the Void fixed its gleaming eyes on me and looked down.

Numbers appeared in the Astral Sovereign's eyes.

Starting from 0, they began to climb rapidly.

Tick-tick-tick-tick-tick!

10.

30.

50.

50 was breached in the blink of an eye.

The Watcher of the Void flinched almost imperceptibly.

【......Oh. Not bad.】

A leisurely voice.

But the numbers had no intention of stopping there.

70.

100.

150.

【150?】

150 -- the limit of the Void-born.

Before the number had even touched it, it punched straight through.

Without a shred of resistance.

As effortlessly as a bullet tearing through a sheet of paper.

But this was only the beginning.

The rate of ascent was accelerating.

300.

500.

1,000.

Figures that dwarfed the Void-born's limit of 150 into insignificance.

【This cannot be......! Such a value cannot exist in a mortal body!】

The earlier arrogance was nowhere to be found.

And regardless.

The numbers kept shattering digit barriers at a maddening pace.

10,000.

50,000.

99,999!

Tick-tick-tick-tick!

【What in the--!】

The Astral Sovereign screamed.

And then.

BEEEEEEEP!

A piercing mechanical screech tore through the air.

The numbers, which had been climbing at a frenzied pace, froze in midair.

【......?】

The Watcher of the Void held its breath.

I, too, narrowed my eyes.

To be precise, the numbers hadn't stopped.

......They were being erased.

The figure 99,999 flickered like a screen riddled with static, then its pixels fractured and evaporated completely from the air.

One by one, every number vanished.

Nothing remained.

【Hah. Hahaha!】

The Astral Sovereign of the Void let out a relieved, hollow laugh.

【See, that could not possibly be right! It must be an error......!】

But the Astral Sovereign's words never found their end.

In the empty space where the numbers had been erased.

......Golden characters began to inscribe themselves. Slowly. Unmistakably.

What emerged was not a number, but a word.

【......What?】

Upon seeing it, the Astral Sovereign of the Void could do nothing but shudder.

The word seared into the Astral Sovereign's retinas.

[ Immeasurable ]