On the other side, Wincent stood alone at the edge of the ruined plaza. The white aura around him pulsed in slow, rhythmic waves, each beat sending faint tremors through the shattered stone beneath his feet. The God Hand hummed softly, its crimson veins now laced with threads of violet and gold, remnants of the energy he had absorbed.
He raised his mechanical arm and watched the light dance across its surface. His fingers flexed slowly, then clenched into a fist. The air around him warped, bending inward as if drawn toward the arm itself.
A faint smile crossed his lips.
"Just a little longer..."
His voice was quiet, almost reverent.
"Once this settles... once the last piece falls into place..."
He tilted his head back, gazing up at the burning sky. The fires had begun to die down, but the smoke still curled upward in thick, twisting columns, painting the clouds in shades of ash and ember.
"...I will become invincible."
