0. Epilogue>The ruler of the 13th, 27th, and 94th dimensions, Emperor Keuraktan, grew bored when there was nothing left to toy with in the dimensions he possessed.
And while looking here and there for somewhere to visit for fun, he grew curious upon discovering a neighboring dimension by chance.
Keuraktan used his
But that was from the perspective of ants; to an Absolute like Keuraktan, it appeared endlessly lacking.
Moreover, not a single powerful being was visible in that neighborhood. The ones calling themselves humans were busy simply trying to survive, and no absolute ruler, or absolute powerhouse, overseeing them could be seen.
There were fellows called presidents or kings, and they were fairly strong to a decent degree, but they were far from claiming to be Absolutes.
Having observed this, Keuraktan decided.
He wasn't enthusiastic to that degree, but he thought he should at least possess more than that
It seemed to be because a single race dominated without any miscellaneous species. Keuraktan, who had been humming, saw a man suddenly appear before him and took interest.
A man with a sword of dazzlingly mixed gold and silver sheen at his waist trudged toward Keuraktan, swinging his scabbardless sword loosely with each step. And beside him, a female of this race stuck close with an expression of amusement, walking alongside.
Seeing the pair of humanoids approaching, Keuraktan thought things were working out nicely. If he ate their brains, he could easily obtain all sorts of knowledge.
At that moment, energy began arranging itself neatly around the man standing in Keuraktan's path, and the laws started to twist.
And Keuraktan, who had examined this dimension through Kopaten, knew very clearly what the man was doing now. The human male was attempting the study called Translocation, as it was known here.
But from Keuraktan's perspective, it was merely laughable. Judging by the man's level, he was clearly not upper-tier even by this place's standards. It wasn't as if his opponent necessarily had to be someone like himself. The Translocation this fellow was attempting was at a level that most ordinary humans here could use.
Keuraktan spoke to the man through a mental wave and watched with amusement as the man struggled here and there, trying to complete the Translocation.
Soon, as if his preparations were complete, the man shouted fiercely toward Keuraktan and activated the Translocation.
"Hup! Compression!"
Pshhhhh<…Is that all? Khahahahaha!>
Keuraktan found the man before him absolutely hilarious. He had prepared so diligently for a Translocation that anyone could do, only for it to misfire; the twisting energy flew off entirely into the air, and not a single strand of distortion manifested in reality.
The man before him spat out curses as he looked at Keuraktan laughing joyfully.
"Damn it… I failed again."
Then the human woman beside him spoke with a smile.
"Sian, why don't you give up now? You've trained for a thousand years; if it doesn't work, it doesn't work."
The man made a hurt expression at those words.
"Please don't be like that. I truly thought I would succeed this time."
"Huheuheu… Nope, nope. I told you, you really have no talent. Ragaope said so too."
"Come to think of it, it's been a while since I last saw him. What has he been up to lately?"
"They say he's throwing a party to commemorate his third marriage. And this time he's also holding a publication event for
"Goodness… Just how long is he going to milk that story…….."
"Why? He appears as the protagonist, the savior of humanity. Serin loves that story so much, too."
"Oh my… I told you not to get so close to Mr. Ragaope, you…….."
Keuraktan stretched his finger toward the pair and issued a
But nothing happened. The pair he had commanded to die stood perfectly fine, exchanging banter with each other and continuing to ignore Keuraktan.
Keuraktan was bewildered by this anomaly.
The world here wasn't rejecting his power. The Edict he had commanded had clearly manifested as intended. It simply hadn't worked on those two.
Only then did Keuraktan feel that something was terribly amiss.
While Keuraktan was flustered, the man finally looked at him as if their conversation had ended, watching Keuraktan try this and that. Then he asked via mental wave.
When Keuraktan asked back, baffled by the sudden question, the man repeated with an annoyed expression.
That attitude made Keuraktan's blood boil even amid his confusion. This brat was putting on airs just because one authority hadn't worked. It seemed he had some trick, but he was making a grave mistake.
His specialty wasn't the Edict. He used the Edict often because it could easily sweep away lowly beings; what had made him the ruler of three dimensions was his incomparably powerful body and the close-quarters combat technique based upon it.
Keuraktan clenched his fists with a crunch and shouted as he swung at the smug face before him.
Kuaaaah!
The space his fist passed through tore like paper and crumpled, and the fist struck the face of the man called Sian squarely.
Tak.<…Hm?>
Startled by the completely unexpected sound, Keuraktan was momentarily taken aback, and the man, Sian, looked at Seutil beside him and spoke.
"He says it's a massacre. Please write that down. Hhew… Why is it that every visitor is so cliché? That Lucifer guy was like that, and that Kekiru guy too… Domination, conquest, hellish tribulation… The words differ, but…….."
"Well… The ones who come here all have similar goals. Sian, but we don't know this guy's name."
"Hm? Come to think of it, I didn't ask his name."
And Sian asked the bewildered Keuraktan.
Feeling the situation growing worse, Keuraktan roughly pulled back his fist and swung at the man once more. Kuaaaah!
Tak!
But the result was the same. As Keuraktan fell into panic, looking at his captured fist once again, Sian calmly looked at Seutil beside him and opened his mouth.
"He says he is Keuraktan, Ruler of Three Dimensions. Please write that down."
Seutil wrote something on a semi-transparent object that appeared in the air, checked the already-written list, and spoke as if amused.
"As expected, keeping things organized is convenient. So many come in that it gets complicated if I don't. Oh… by the way, are these titles all similar? That Kekiru guy last time was going on about being the ruler of three dimensions or something."
"But it's nice that he's not putting on airs. That Lucifer fellow last time was going on about 666 or whatever and got beaten up crying. Three is quite modest."
"Right. Let's see… Year 3041… November 7… Keuraktan… Purpose: Massacre… Oh, but if the purpose is massacre, it's seven days."
Seutil flipped through the semi-transparent paper floating in the air, scribbled something, then checked the list below and spoke to Sian.
At that, Sian made an expression of extreme annoyance.
"Ugh… I have to do this for seven whole days."
"But it's better than having to do it every time they come. You know that if we don't beat them for seven days, they won't stop coming."
"Huu… That's true."
"Or just go out and wipe them out."
"…I'll pass. I like home."
Having finished speaking, Sian drew the sword that had been dangling at his waist. The sword emitted an incredibly beautiful radiance from the harmonious blend of gold and silver, but seeing Sian swinging it about freely in the air, Keuraktan felt goosebumps spread across his entire body.
He tried to pull his fist free from the man's left hand, but it wouldn't budge, as if trapped in a crushing dimension. And looking at Keuraktan like that, Sian muttered.
Wham!
Before the conversation even ended, the gleaming blade struck Keuraktan directly, and soon it began tenderizing his entire body evenly at a tremendous speed.
Unable to even scream, Keuraktan despaired as he was pummeled, realizing the meaning of the seven days mentioned earlier.
And simultaneously, he realized one more thing. Why no one had invaded this place that seemed like unclaimed territory.
It wasn't that they hadn't invaded. Lucifer and that Kekiru guy too—they had invaded beforehand and been beaten up and kicked out just like him. They had simply been too ashamed to tell anyone, so a virtuous dimension ruler like himself hadn't heard the rumors and had been hooked just like this.
The countless lists visible far in the distance proved the number of dimension rulers who had dipped their feet into this antlion's pit.
Feeling his mind grow hazy, Keuraktan prayed for time to pass quickly. And he resolved inwardly. 'Keuheuheu… I can't be the only one to suffer this. I absolutely won't tell anyone……..'
The thought of those who would be hooked and follow after him brought laughter bubbling up. And watching this scene, Sian frowned and thought to himself. 'What the… Is he a pervert? I'll have to add a few more days.'
Someone who laughed while being beaten couldn't be normal; in that case, he would have to be beaten more to never think of barging in here again.
Sian changed the re-education schedule from seven to ten days in his mind, then muttered inwardly once more. 'Huu… The world is just too vast… and there are too many guys who need a beating.'
The 1174th Dimension, named after the castle of the great calamity beast dwelling there: Dimension Name