The original sky had been replaced by an inverted world — a world not only resembling a demonic domain, but one saturated with an overwhelming, violent aura.
This world was plummeting down, and with its fall, a shattering sound echoed like glass breaking under immense pressure — but in truth, it was space itself being crushed.
Even the air, as if compressed, had become heavy and difficult to breathe, but that discomfort paled in comparison to the terrifying momentum of the descending world.
Staring up at the sky, Yukino could only manage a bitter smile.
After all, she had just been an ordinary — albeit slightly above average — girl for the past sixteen years. Why had her life triggered such a series of unbelievable events?
Gods, evil gods, demon kings, the skeletal demon king — they had all appeared one after another. And now, the world was on the brink of destruction.
All the while, her powerless self could do nothing but watch. The feeling of helplessness was unbearable.
If… she hadn't called out to the skeletal demon king who was about to leave the world just now, maybe none of this would've happened?
What had she done?
"It has nothing to do with you."
A weak but gentle voice came from the goddess who seemed to be recovering a little — Ariadoa — whose hands were tightly holding Yukino's.
"You were just an innocent bystander dragged into this. I'm truly sorry."
Her voice was full of guilt.
"BOOM—!"
From the falling world, a towering mountain peak collapsed first, and massive fragments plummeted toward the world of [Yadetre]. Calling them fragments hardly did them justice — even the smallest piece was several hundred meters wide, crashing into the ground with thunderous impact.
At that moment, the world of [Yadetre] cried out in agony.
Then, above Yukino and Ariadoa's heads, a shattered mountain over a thousand meters tall began falling directly toward them.
Even before impact, the rushing air pressure from the falling mass was enough to nearly blow the two of them away.
Just as it was about to strike—
"First Destruction Technique (First Valkyrie) — [Shattered Break]!"
The God of Destruction, Valkyrie, was suddenly standing beside them. She extended a hand and grabbed the thousand-meter-tall falling mountain.
Astonishingly, despite being ant-sized in comparison to the mass, she held the mountain aloft effortlessly, stopping its descent entirely.
From the point of contact, cracks spread across the entire fractured mountain. The fractures extended into the air itself, like the very atmosphere was splintering, reaching up into the falling world above.
At the same time, visible silver divine energy surged from Valkyrie's body, spreading with the fractures and covering the entire sky.
In that moment, the descending world was completely frozen.
Now, Valkyrie faced a choice.
On one hand, countless lives across worlds were on the brink of annihilation. On the other, if the God of Violence, Merseys, were allowed to gain the Twisted Staff, the consequences could be catastrophic.
Logically, the second option should have been her priority — but in her actions, she chose the first.
"I must be crazy,"
Valkyrie muttered with a bitter smile, likely the result of spending too much time among humans and the unified divine realm — she'd grown too sentimental.
Ten thousand years ago, she wouldn't have hesitated to choose the latter.
The next second, Valkyrie glared toward the origin point of the threat — and the God of Violence, Merseys, emerged from the air.
At that moment, chains like venomous serpents lunged at Merseys, binding her instantly. But within a blink, those chains shattered like fragile ice, and everyone could only watch as Merseys reached out toward the chained sphere.
"Merseys…"
Valkyrie growled with fury, desperate to cut down that monster where she stood.
In response, Merseys turned and gave her a mocking smile, placing her hand on the chained sphere. In an instant, like a pile of blocks collapsing, the sphere unraveled. The crumbling chains fell but vanished before hitting the ground.
At the same time, the figure of the Undead King — who had been sealed inside — reappeared. Merseys instantly seized the silver staff and her body was enveloped in a miasma-like aura of evil spirit energy.
Even though Merseys didn't cast any technique targeting spiritual bodies, she still managed to touch the Undead King — because she herself was now in a spiritual state, lacking a physical form.
At that moment, realizing it was merely an empty shell, Merseys ruthlessly began devouring the Undead King's spirit. The miasma she emitted pulled in the spirit's energy and absorbed it into her body.
Merseys showed an expression of pure ecstasy, then extended her hand — fingers spread wide — toward Valkyrie. Her lips murmured something indistinct, and then she pressed her hand down.
The air — no, the space itself — began to distort. It resembled soft, transparent jelly that quickly surged toward Valkyrie.
"Shattered Break!"
Even without knowing what it was, Valkyrie's instincts screamed danger. She diverted some of her power — despite already restraining the falling world — and struck out with her other hand.
"What—?!"
It was completely ineffective.
No — more precisely, the incoming force contained a level of distortion that exceeded even her power of destruction. It consumed her attack and, in the next instant, engulfed her completely.
In a blink, everything in front of her wavered.
From the outside, Valkyrie looked like a reflection on the surface of violently rippling water — and then she vanished without warning.
Though Valkyrie disappeared, the falling world above didn't immediately collapse. Her remaining divine energy held it up — but likely only for a few seconds.
"Don't worry. I can't kill Valkyrie just yet. I've only banished her to the Twisted Space. When she returns, all she'll see is a grand fireworks display."
Merseys mockingly answered the furious gaze of the Goddess Ariadoa.
"Ariadoa, would you like to—"
Before Merseys could finish her sentence, her smiling face suddenly twisted as if startled.
Without hesitation, she withdrew the miasma that was devouring the other spirit and distanced herself from it — but their spiritual energies had already entangled, preventing her from fully escaping.
In simple terms, Merseys was now like someone stuck with super glue — struggling to break free.
Finally, the entity she believed to be an empty shell — a skull-faced figure — revealed a sinister expression and opened its mouth.
"Valhalla Gate."
This figure had been waiting for this exact moment — the moment when its prey had fallen completely into its trap — to bare its savage fangs.