Circle of Inevitability

Lumian stood at the quarry cave's exit, wanting to work with Mr. K to take on Perle, but unsure of how to proceed.

Past experience had shown him that without godhood, any action against an Overseer would only come back to haunt him, without affecting the demigod at all.

With his golden mask removed, Lumian could only remain in place, considering what items he possessed that might be useful and effective. He was left with no option but to watch the fight between Mr. K and Perle unfold as a mere spectator.

At the same time, he scanned the area, looking for a way to utterly destroy the existing mirror world.

Anthony kept his posture and continued drawing on the blank painting album, which was missing a page.

His current subject was to be Madam Magician.

As he observed Mr. K's movements and listened to each slash, Lumian sensed a slight corruption creeping into his mind.

It surprised him that Mr. K could hold the Overseer at bay to some degree, unafraid of her accusations and armed with a means to harm her.

Lumian silently hoped that even if Mr. K couldn't defeat Perle, he would at least be able to drive her off.

Mustering strength from his waist and core, Mr. K swung his upper body as he descended, bringing the dark broadsword down on Overseer Perle's head for the third time.

Perle remained motionless, not using any Mirror Traversal-like ability to evade, nor rolling to the side. She stood firm beside the jutting rock, her body turning pitch-black and dissolving into a constantly dissipating shadow.

The dark, enigmatic broadsword plunged down abruptly, silently cleaving the shadows in two.

The shadows rapidly encircled the protruding rock, perpetually moving and merging once again. They writhed, striving to reassemble Overseer Perle's form.

Where the Sword of Darkness had cut through, the shadows struggled to form proper connections, barely managing to stack together into a humanoid shape riddled with cracks and misaligned parts.

Mr. K sprang up, ready to swing the dark broadsword gripped in the gaping crack of his mouth.

Suddenly, his body shrank rapidly, the cold black armor encasing him vanishing.

He reverted to his original form, dressed in a black hood and matching robe.

The precariously assembled shadow gradually shed its black color, revealing human skin and a vivid red dress inch by inch.

…

In the shadowy cathedral at an undisclosed location, the mercury giant serpent phantom hanging in midair slowly faded away.

The Reboot was finished.

Perched on a black wooden armchair, Loki abruptly thinned and shrank, transforming into a paper figurine.

The paper figurine and chair then crumbled, disintegrating into dust.

Loki materialized in a far corner of the cathedral. Magician, appearing to still be airborne, quickly conjured an alternate self behind him.

As Loki reached into the void to pull out an assistant, his jet-black eyes suddenly shifted to blue.

The blue rapidly stained black, then reverted to blue, the two colors continually alternating.

Loki was paralyzed, unable to summon an aide, allowing Magician to stretch out her right hand and grasp with all her might.

The dark void warped, swallowing Loki. Then, the two shattered into fragments, ultimately buried in a bottomless abyss.

Throughout this, Loki's body instantly became ethereal, unreal, as if he were a projection or puppet that had been swapped at some moment.

Hermit, Judgment, and Magician simultaneously heard a regretful sigh and witnessed the shadowy cathedral itself turn ethereal and slowly disintegrate.

It, too, seemed to be a projection.

An aged, ethereal voice then echoed from the distance.

"My wish is for all the demigods present to be lost for three minutes."

The shadowy cathedral fully collapsed, and darkness engulfed the surroundings, devoid of starlight or boundaries.

…

In the special mirror world, realizing Mr. K could no longer maintain his godhood-enhanced half-giant state and Overseer Perle was close to returning to her human form, Lumian's first instinct was to shape-shift into a shadow being and flee through the growing rift in the mirror world to find other allies.

However, he was unsure if Mr. K had employed any mystical items upon entry, and whether Shadow Transformation alone would allow passage through the mirror world's fissure.

As Lumian watched Overseer Perle's face gradually come into view, her eyes and nostrils both vertically misaligned, a sudden realization struck him.

I, too, can wound an Overseer…

If Mr. K can do it, so can I!

My fate is intertwined with Termiboros. To a degree, we can be considered one. I've long known I possess a fake angelic level!

The powers and items I wield won't hold godhood and can't touch an Overseer, but I should be able to do it myself.

I will become my own weapon!

These thoughts raced through Lumian's mind as a slightly manic grin spread across his face. His blood seemed to boil, as if set aflame.

In a flash, he disappeared and reappeared before Overseer Perle.

His eyes had already taken on an iron-black tint, revealing a few pale spots that marked Perle's vulnerabilities.

One such spot was just below the left side of her face!

Before Perle's shadows could fully reconstruct the Overseer, a multitude of incandescent white flames burst forth from Lumian's body.

Like a rushing current, they poured out from Lumian's eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, skin, and pores, completely enveloping him, transforming him into a raging inferno.

Let's do this!

Let us burn as one!

Let us explode together!

Lumian, now one with the blazing white flames, swung his right fist at Perle's left cheek.

Perle's vertically-misaligned eyes betrayed a flicker of confusion before understanding dawned.

But it was too late for her to protest or react. She had not even fully returned.

Bang!

Lumian's right fist collided with Perle's left cheek, caving it in.

As he struck, a ghastly wound appeared on his own chest and abdomen, but it was quickly consumed by the blazing white flames.

Perle felt the pain, but it was not a mortal blow.

At that instant, Lumian's face, wreathed in blazing white flames, displayed a sinister and frenzied smile.

It actually works!

I can truly use myself as a weapon to strike an Overseer!

Boom!

He detonated his right arm, using the incandescent white flames he had pre-injected to make it explode.

His right fist, propelled by a fierce, blazing white wave of flames, pierced Perle's left cheek and penetrated her skull.

Cull!

Crack! The special mirror world, with its dark barrier and numerous cracks, let out a shattering sound. It rapidly disintegrated and fell apart.

Lumian's head took an invisible blow, his skull caving in and teeth falling out.

Deprived of his right arm, he was hurled through the air, his entire body wreathed in blazing white flames.

His face twisted in agony, yet his eyes shone with elation.

Success!

He beheld a horrific, blood-red wound on the left side of Overseer Perle's face. Within the wound, a pale-white fog intermingled with the grayish-white brain. The shattered fist had ripped it asunder and set it ablaze.

As the blazing white flames faded, Overseer Perle's remaining right eye dulled, and her body slowly crumpled.

The cage imprisoning Franca and Jenna quickly disintegrated.

Mr. K, observing this, nodded approvingly.

Lumian is like me!

The fighting style is quite alike!

The only shortcoming is that he did not loudly praise the Lord during the final blow.

At the same time, Lumian's head buzzed, and he nearly blacked out. He collapsed to the ground, on the verge of losing consciousness.

He managed to stay awake only because he had undergone significant digestion of the Reaper potion. It felt as if he had completed another massive cull by the ancient tomb during the Dream Festival.

Wh— Lumian was initially thrilled, but then he forced himself to stand, shocked and suspicious.

He knew the digestion must have resulted from his Culling of Overseer Perle, but shouldn't a demigod suffice for him to fully digest the Reaper potion?

Lumian extinguished the incandescent white flames burning within and without. With his left hand, he retrieved the healing agent and Lie earring obtained from Jebus from his Traveler's Bag, all while examining Overseer Perle's corpse.

Just then, the special mirror world completely collapsed, and they found themselves back in reality, inside the quarry cave with a fixed mirror world entrance.

Next to the protruding rock where Perle had stood, there was no corpse or white fog to be seen.

Lumian spotted an oil painting hanging on the corresponding rock wall.

The painting looked torn and ruined, but one could faintly discern that it had once portrayed a woman in a red dress.

Perle?

We weren't facing the true Overseer, but a painted figure she created using a Pixie pathway item?

This oil painting grants the depicted demigod a short lifespan, but no freedom of movement?

Is that why Perle never budged and always took the attacks head-on?

Amid his bewilderment, Lumian drank the healing agent Jebus had procured from the Great Mother's followers to ensure he would survive past 6 a.m.

At that moment, Perle's smiling voice resonated from the depths of the shattered oil painting.

"I didn't anticipate my painting person failing.

"But no matter. What's important is that the vortex is about to manifest. It won't be long before you're officially consumed.

"Everyone will be caught up in it…"

Perle's voice gradually faded into the depths of the oil painting, thwarting Mr. K's attempt to track her through teleportation.

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