Asem held up a finger, offering a "bonus" piece of information.
"By the way, that old geezer Rizevim actually managed to establish communication with one of them before he died."
"What?!" I shouted, reeling from yet another bombshell.
"The world is called 'E×E'—Evie Etwalde. It's a world locked in a struggle between machine lifeforms and spirits. It's split between the Good God Lecetras, who governs the spirits, and the Evil God Melvazoa, who rules the machines. And Rizevim, of course, made contact with the machine side."
"Of course he'd pick the side that sounds like bad news…"
"Exactly. Rizevim sent them all sorts of data. Not just about this world, but the information about Ast-Arde he pried out of me."
"Meaning those machine-side bastards know about our world and Ast-Arde now."
"Worse. He sent them technical data on dimensional rifts and teleportation. He even added a taunt: 'Come and get us if you can, losers.'"
That damn old man… Even from the grave, he was a mass of pure malice. He really intended to drag everything into a war, even if it meant bringing in other worlds.
Asem sighed. "By the time I noticed, it was too late. I have to hand it to him—I called Rizevim a third-rate villain, but in this one regard, he was top-tier. A top-tier idiot."
"So that's what you meant. When you said we were 'out of time'…"
"Yes. Eventually, they will make contact with our two worlds. And they won't be coming in peace. If my calculations are right, they'll arrive in a decade or two. Honestly, he really threw a wrench in my plans."
A decade or two… even for a human, that felt like the blink of an eye. It felt like only yesterday I was a kid. For supernatural beings, that amount of time was practically instantaneous. And at the end of that instant, a cross-dimensional war was waiting.
Suddenly, a realization dawned on me.
"I see… So that's it. That's why you gave us three days, and why you went to the trouble of building this massive world-scale stage…"
Asem nodded before I could finish.
"As expected of the Hero. You're quick on the uptake. This entire battle is a rehearsal. A practice run for the inter-dimensional war that's coming. There are other reasons, of course, but that's the big one."
Asem began descending the stairs from the altar.
"Defense alone won't win a war. You have to know how to go on the offensive, which means crossing dimensions into the enemy's territory. Knowing the enemy is coming, how much counter-force can we prepare in a short time? How well can the different factions cooperate? This fight is just a lesson. The real thing will be on a much larger scale. That's why…"
Asem stood before me, his eyes turning so cold I felt a shiver run down my spine.
"You all need to be able to overcome this level of absurdity. If you can't, we're all in trouble."
"...!"
The pressure lasted only a second, but the aftereffect lingered. Was that Asem's bloodlust? It was a world apart from his usual playful attitude. Apophis had been right—Asem was on a completely different level.
A while ago, I would have been paralyzed with fear. But now…
"Oh? You're not as rattled as I thought," Asem noted. "I put a lot of weight behind that. Most people would have fainted—or their hearts would have just stopped."
"Killing someone with just a look is insane. But I'm not backing down. I can't back down."
"And why is that?"
"It's simple. I came here to stop you. I've had too many things entrusted to me on the way here. I can't afford to get scared and run away now."
Light had entrusted everyone's future to me. My family, my friends, and my rivals had paved the way for me to get here. I was standing here because of the people I loved and the people who believed in me.
I closed my eyes, and their faces flashed through my mind. I could almost hear their voices.
In that moment, a fire ignited within me. A rainbow-colored flame surged and overflowed from my body. My armor began to crack, unable to contain the sheer volume of the evolving power. Shards of the armor shattered and dissolved into the air, leaving me standing before Asem in my true form.
"The power of the Innovator," Asem whispered. "That glow in your eyes, that aura… I can feel it. Countless lights are shining within you. So this is your evolved state."
Asem smiled as he looked at my rainbow radiance. Unlike Rizevim, his voice sounded genuinely excited. The rainbow aura burned hot and fierce, fluttering the red haori I wore over my clothes.
Asem looked at the garment and blinked in surprise. "I didn't think you'd come dressed like that."
"I guess not. My old gear was trashed. My mom made this for me."
"You have a wonderful mother."
"Yeah, I do. But it's not just her. My dad, Miwa, Alice—everyone's feelings are woven into this. I'm telling you now, Asem. I'm stopping you."
"Fufu… Good. The Hero facing down the Demon King. This is even better than I imagined."
A shroud of dark, iridescent energy enveloped Asem. The aura was thin and the fluctuations were small, but the sheer pressure he gave off skyrocketed.
We both took a step forward. Then another. And another. We stopped only when we were within arm's reach.
"Asem, you still haven't fully answered my first question."
"Oh? Did I miss something?"
"Don't play dumb. What's driving you? What do you see at the end of this fight? I want an answer."
"You're getting demanding, Hero-kun."
"Don't sweat the small stuff."
"I'd hardly call that 'small.' But fine. I don't feel like talking anyway. If you really want to know… ask me with your fists. Isn't that how you've always done things?"
"Hey, don't make it sound like I'm some thug who solves everything with violence."
"Am I wrong?"
"You're half-right and half-wrong."
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