Record of Ragnarok
In a different world, a different universe, a different place where time shouldn't have advanced fast enough for Allen to notice any difference between the moment he left and the moment he returned, something happened that should never have happened.
With Poseidon's defeat at the hands of Satoru Gojo and Shiva's defeat at the hands of Allen Walker, the third round of Ragnarok was about to begin.
Brunhilde bit her fingernail.
Allen had taken so long to return, despite saying he would be back in the blink of an eye, but two hours had already passed without any sign of him.
Under the constant pressure from the gods, she was reaching her limit.
"Those bastard pigs can sit around doing nothing for thousands of years, but they can't wait even two hours?!"
"Sister, calm down. You'll ruin your beauty," Goll said.
The youngest Valkyrie was terrified to see the distorted expression of rage on her older sister's face.
Brunhilde froze, then flashed Goll a beautiful smile.
"What did you say?~"
Goll immediately turned pale. Brunhilde's smile was even scarier than her angry face.
"I'm sorry!" Goll cried as she stepped back. "I just think maybe Brother Sigurd... I mean, Brother Allen ran into a tough problem and couldn't come back. But I also think he trusts you to lead everything, so you should have more confidence. After all... you're his wife."
Goll's words left Brunhilde stunned. This time, she smiled calmly, full of gratitude.
The beautiful woman with green eyes and black hair stepped forward and announced that the matches would continue.
Unlike the original timeline, in this world the Ragnarok matches were decided just before they began, and each side had the opportunity to change its fighter if it felt it was at a disadvantage.
Of course, the proud gods would never replace their champion because of a human, so this was basically an advantage only for humanity.
As usual, Heimdall took the stage and theatrically announced the gods' representative.
"The Nemean Lion, the three-headed watchdog of Hell, Cerberus… The brave hero who defeated it with his bare hands… Completed the 12 labors he was given… A DEMIGOD WHO ASCENDED TO GODHOOD!! The one who brings light to Heaven and Earth! The messenger of justice… His bravery… is unparalleled! HERACLES!!!"
The gods' side erupted in cheers, while despair spread through humanity's side. How could it not? To them, Heracles was also a hero, a legendary human who had once walked the earth, yet now he stood fighting to destroy humanity.
The gods mocked humanity mercilessly. Even their greatest hero had chosen the gods over mankind. Victory in this round seemed inevitable, especially with Allen absent and unable to cheat by bringing humans from other worlds or making up identities for himself to fight.
Goll turned pale, while Brunhilde remained silent. She considered Heracles an older brother, but since he had chosen that side, she would show him no mercy. After all, the man she loved had entrusted everything to her.
Heimdall allowed the gods' taunts and humanity's despair to settle before announcing humanity's representative.
"Humanity's representative for the 4th round. There he is! August 31st, 1888 A.D…. The monster suddenly appeared in the scary darkness. WE'RE TREMBLING IN FEAR! AN EVIL AMONG EVILS!! Feeding the pitch-black darkness in his heart. His name is… humanity's most famous… MURDERER! JACK! THE! RIPPER!!!"
Humanity was stunned. Remember, the audience wasn't just a handful of people, but humans from every era, from ancient times to the modern age. Many had no idea who Jack the Ripper was, but simply sensing the darkness emanating from the tunnel below was enough to tell them that this time they would not be represented by a man... but by a monster.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the corridor as everyone waited for Jack to appear. However, something felt strange.
"...?" Brunhilde frowned.
Jack was taking far too long to come out. It was odd. By now he should have already met with his sister Hlökk and completed the Volund.
"Sister!" Goll shouted.
Brunhilde turned and saw Hlökk emerging from the tunnel.
Hlökk should have been in the arena preparing for the battle. Without a Valkyrie assisting humanity's champion, victory against the gods would be impossible.
"What are you doing here?!-"
Brunhilde's words caught in her throat when she saw Hlökk's ghostly pale face.
"Sister?! Are you okay?!" Goll exclaimed.
Hlökk grabbed her head and collapsed to her knees, trembling.
"Th-That... that's not Brother Sigurd..."
Brunhilde froze for a moment and was about to rush toward the waiting room when she stopped after hearing the crowd erupt.
Heracles, already standing in the arena, stared ferociously toward the tunnel while sweat poured down his body. It wasn't just humans and gods—even the world itself seemed uneasy and terrified.
*Steps*
"Could you all be quiet... you're giving me a headache," a familiar voice said.
A young man emerged from the tunnel.
He had jet-black hair, wine-red eyes, pale yet healthy skin, a well-built body, and a tired expression.
"S-Sigurd?" Heracles asked uncertainly.
He looked like Allen. He sounded like Allen. But he didn't feel like Allen.
Heracles had met the gods of the Underworld, Hades, Hela, Nyx, the Goddess of Darkness herself, yet none of them had ever made him feel the same overwhelming danger, insecurity, and vulnerability as whatever stood before him now.
"Sigurd? Is that what that bastard calls himself in this world?" "Allen," mocked. A moment later, he tilted his head and smiled at Heracles. "I'm not him. Call me Void."
"What are you?"
Heracles was a hero with an indestructible body, an undefeated champion among the gods, a legendary being who had achieved the impossible and ascended to divinity.
At this point, he could face anyone. Even if he wasn't the strongest god, he wouldn't be defeated easily. That was why the gods were so euphoric and why humanity was so desperate.
"...?" Hercules opened his eyes.
It lasted only an instant.
Heracles, who could react even to attacks traveling at the speed of light and withstand powers capable of destroying the world, couldn't understand what had happened. Yet he instinctively sensed that something had occurred.
It lasted only an instant... not even that.
Not even the gods of speed or time could react.
Before anyone understood what had happened, Heracles' body split into pieces and scattered across the arena. Even his soul was erased—not because he had lost the match, but simply because that thing willed it.
"How weak," Void said with a bored expression, the only one still breathing calmly. "I'm too weak... I'm not even trash compared to them. At this rate, that bastard or Lucifer will kill me..."
The young man, who shared Allen's appearance but had black hair and crimson eyes, looked over both the gods and humanity. For a brief moment, he wanted to wipe them all out and destroy that world—not out of hatred, contempt, or any particular purpose.
Simply because he felt like it.
However, when his gaze landed on Brunhilde—or rather, on the necklace she was wearing—he abandoned the thought.
He raised two fingers, sliced through space itself, opening a portal, and stepped out of that world with the same bored expression.
"..."
There were no comments. No speeches. No further interactions.
To him, nothing in that world was interesting enough to deserve his attention.
Once the portal closed, everyone could finally breathe again.
It wasn't evil.
It wasn't cruelty.
That thing was an entity made of pure power, a being so overwhelmingly powerful that it could erase the world with a single thought.
Yet the words it had spoken remained etched into everyone's minds.
That creature considered itself... weak.
"Sister?" Goll whispered, on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Brunhilde recovered faster than everyone else thanks to the pendant around her neck, which emitted a faint glow.
[Are you alright? What happened?]
Before Brunhilde could answer, Lenalee's (System's) voice echoed inside her mind through the pendant.
"Y-You are..."
[Yes, it's me. The entity that's always with your husband. Now tell me, Valkyrie, what happened?! For a moment, I was about to pull you out of that world because of the danger!]
"W-Well..."
After hearing Brunhilde's words, the "awake" part of Lenalee was filled with rage.
[Damn it! That bastard is still alive—and now he's free?!]
Brunhilde had a lot of questions, but at least she understood that that thing wasn't Allen, so she felt relieved.
Lenalee told her that as soon as she could get in touch with Allen, she'd tell him what happened and not to worry—that thing couldn't defeat Allen… for now.
Brunhilde nodded and, worried, went to check on Jack's room, only to find a river of blood in the hallway.
Void showed no mercy to Jack the Ripper.
....
...
....
*One Piece*
The sea became calm once they left the Devil's Sea fog behind. It almost felt like two completely different places, making everyone realize just how strange the Grand Line truly was. It was as if only here the world's rules were different—twisted, altered, or perhaps influenced by someone... or something.
Allen's next destination was Sabaody, but he decided to take things slowly. After all, once he arrived, he expected to be hounded by Marines, pirates, and bounty hunters. In this world, fame always came with a target painted on your back.
Of course, with a bounty as high as his, anyone foolish enough to come after him would have to be either incredibly strong... or incredibly stupid.
He decided to enjoy a peaceful morning and walked toward Robin's cabin. After knocking, he entered and found her completely immersed in books at her desk.
Whenever Robin entered that state, it was difficult to get her attention, so Allen chose not to disturb her and simply lay down on her bed.
Since Robin often did the same in his bed, he had every right to treat hers as if it were his own.
Half an hour passed before Robin finally put down her books and looked over at Allen, who was lying there with his hands behind his head as though nothing in the world could worry him.
Robin smiled, stood up, walked over, climbed onto the bed, and lay down beside him.
"Did you discover something important?" Allen asked with a smile.
Robin nodded, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.
"I think the gods were real."
"..."
Allen glanced sideways at Robin.
She had mentioned this to him before. She had discovered it back in Skypiea, specifically from the Poneglyph there, though she only fully understood it after translating and carefully analyzing every line in her notes. Allen hadn't paid much attention... or perhaps he simply hadn't wanted to.
According to the inscription, there were four gods.
Sun God Nika.
God of the Earth.
God of the Rain.
God of the Forest.
"Do you really believe that?" Allen asked.
"Yes. I think those gods truly walked this world in the past, and that they're connected to the Void Century," Robin replied enthusiastically.
"Robin..." Allen interrupted.
Robin stopped talking, then laughed softly.
"Sorry. I forgot you don't like gods."
"It's not that I don't like them. I'd just rather they stayed in the past."
"Why?"
"Because their existence would mean that, for better or worse, humanity's future depends on their whims and decisions. What would be the point of everything I'm doing if the future has already been decided by a bunch of higher beings fighting a war that no human could ever interfere in?" Allen said.
Robin remained silent.
Allen's words made sense, reflecting a harsh truth.
If gods truly existed, then humanity's fate—whether good or bad—would ultimately lie beyond the control of ordinary humans, and that was something Allen refused to accept.
"I'm sorry," Robin said softly as she leaned against him.
"Don't worry." Allen laughed as he wrapped his arms around her. "Even if gods or demons exist, I'll kick their asses to prove I'm above them!"
"Haha~" Robin laughed at Allen's adorable arrogance.
Silence settled between them, yet it felt strangely comforting. Robin's eyes reflected only the young man before her. There weren't enough words in the world to express how much he meant to her.
Slowly, they kissed.
Their tongues intertwined as they lost themselves in the moment.
'Since when?... Since when did this man become the most important person in my life?' Robin thought as she savored a happiness she had never believed she would experience. 'Since when has there not been a single day... a single hour... a single minute... without his face appearing in my mind?... Since when did I fall in love with him?'
Allen, meanwhile, could almost physically feel Robin's emotions.
She didn't need to say a word.
He already knew her heart beat for him, and he wasn't afraid to return those feelings. Deep down... he never wanted to lose her again.
(Ten minutes passed)
[Sorry to interrupt, but there's trouble on deck.]
"What?" Allen pulled away from Robin, who was breathing lightly as she caught her breath.
He regretted having to leave, but the understanding woman smiled warmly and gave him one last kiss on the forehead before sending him off.
....
Allen stepped onto the deck only to be greeted by an unbelievable sight.
The entire sea was filled with massive whirlpools rising into the sky like giant serpents.
"We've got trouble!" Nami shouted while steering the ship.
Allen walked toward the bow, visibly irritated.
He didn't care if the Sea God himself was angry.
How dare he interrupt his time with Robin?
The girls looked at Allen's sour mood, and several of them simply shook their heads, already knowing the reason.
Allen stood atop the figurehead, raised both hands, and plunged them into the air as if space itself were a sheet of fabric.
Then he pulled downward, distorting space.
Skill: Shima Yurashi.
Something utterly absurd happened.
The sea split into enormous sections that rose to different heights. It almost looked as though the ocean had transformed into a giant, uneven staircase.
Unexpectedly, the currents forming the whirlpools came to a complete halt.
When the sea returned to normal, only a gentle storm remained, posing no threat.
The girls stared at Allen in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Doll, Gion, Kalifa, and Perona had pale faces.
Technically, this monster was their enemy.
And now they were completely at his mercy.
It was true that Allen hadn't harmed them and treated them like honored guests, but every one of them knew they could never escape him, no matter how hard they tried.
A little while later, the skies cleared, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Look!" Conis shouted.
"This is..." Vivi gasped.
"That's right. It's the Red Line." Hina lit a cigarette and offered one to Doll, who accepted it.
Nami, Nojiko, Uta, and Kaya were the most astonished.
It felt like only yesterday they had first encountered that colossal wall of stone.
Now they had officially crossed half the world.
Allen, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes with a mocking smile.
Being here meant two things.
He was standing at the entrance to the New World...
And he was very close to Marine Headquarters and the Holy Land of Mary Geoise.
[Don't be reckless. We have no idea what's hiding in that place! At worst, you'd have to fight the three Admirals, Garp, and who knows how many hidden monsters all at once.]
"I know."
Allen wasn't stupid.
Nor was he naïve enough to believe that the Celestial Dragons' security depended solely on the Marines.
That would be absurd.
There had to be another force—something powerful enough to allow them to tyrannically rule the world for eight hundred years without ever being overthrown.
'Even so... I'm finally here, you bastards who call yourselves gods!' Allen thought.
....
At the very top of the Holy Land, Imu slowly opened their eyes and gazed into the distance. A moment later, they quietly closed them once again.