Chapter 24 – The One Who Shouldn't Exist
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Lucian stood in the smoldering remains of the Tower's second floor.
Ash and silence.
His breathing was ragged. His fists dripped with light and blood—his own, maybe. He couldn't tell. His eyes, however, burned.
> Neo. Riv. Luna.
Taken.
By something that shouldn't exist. He felt the tear in the bond. The moment their strings were pulled from the world.
And in that void, something awoke.
Not anger.
Not even vengeance.
Just clarity.
A predator's instinct.
The Book hovered behind him, scorched and stammering. "Lucian—listen. The Tower has protocols. You're about to trigger the Sovereign Lock. The next guardian isn't… mortal."
Lucian didn't respond.
He looked upward.
And jumped.
The rubble beneath his feet shattered as he launched himself to the third floor—without a gate, without permission.
Alarms screamed. The entire Tower rumbled.
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[Elsewhere | Ruined Civilization]
Time flowed oddly here.
It wasn't a place—it was what remained of one. A broken world of scattered memories and suspended collapse. Mountains floated sideways. Cities hovered upside-down. Oceans rippled in the sky.
And amidst the chaos, there was peace.
A silver-robed figure stepped quietly across the cracked marble of a forgotten palace. His glowing eyes scanned the trio lying in silence—Riv, Neo, and Luna—resting upon obsidian pillows surrounded by flickering runes.
He knelt.
"Stable," he murmured.
His voice carried the weight of eons.
"I am Aethros," he whispered. "Last Watcher of the Ruined Civilization. Caretaker of variables."
Riv stirred first.
She blinked, sat up—and immediately scowled. "Where's the psycho god?"
Aethros raised a hand. "Gone. His work is done—for now. You are safe here."
Neo groaned and sat up next, clutching his head. "Luna—"
"She's alive," Aethros said, gesturing to her. Luna lay still, but breathing—calmly.
Neo's eyes narrowed. "Where are we?"
Aethros stood. "Beyond the reach of the Tower. Beyond the gods who play with fates." He gestured at the floating fragments beyond the palace. "This… is the Ruined Civilization. My world. My graveyard. My shield."
Riv stood and frowned. "You saved us. Why?"
Aethros turned to her. "Because Lucian is breaking the laws of existence to reach you."
Neo flinched. Aethros stepped closer. "He's destroying floors of the Tower as we speak. That kind of emotion—love, fury—it reshapes the cosmos."
Riv crossed her arms. "Then why hide us?"
"Because they noticed," Aethros said softly.
Neo tensed. "They?"
"The ones above the Tower," he said. "The ones who made it."
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[Back in the Tower – Third Floor]
Lucian landed like a meteor.
The third floor didn't even have time to render its environment. He blew through it. Monsters screamed—then evaporated. The guardians of this floor never even reached him.
The Book fluttered behind him, barely holding form.
"Lucian—there's a limit—!"
"I'll find them," Lucian snarled, punching through a reality gate. "Even if I have to destroy the sky."
Suddenly, the walls went white. Then black. The Tower froze.
The Book shrieked. "NO—THE TOWER MASTER—!"
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[Unknown Realm – Tower Master's Throne]
He stood.
A tall, robed figure carved from bone and shadow. The Tower Master. Eyes like twin stars. A voice like rusted time.
"So. The Variable awakens."
He raised his hand. A golden window opened before him—showing Neo, Riv, and Luna resting in Aethros' world. He clenched his fist.
And a spear of annihilation launched toward them.
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[Ruined Civilization – Moments Later]
Aethros turned sharply. "NO—!"
He raised both hands—and time fractured. The spear stopped mid-air, frozen in a paradox bubble.
Then a
To be continued