Meanwhile...
Yue laughed hysterically as Allen introduced himself.
"Hey, did he just say Allen Stolen?" Yue burst out laughing. "Hilarious—an NPC with a full name!"
She kept laughing while pointing at the crystal orb monitoring Allen and his companions.
Suddenly, Fujimiya smacked her head.
"You dumb goddess, stop laughing and help me out here."
"Help with what?" Yue replied lazily.
"Are you stupid or what? Look at this girl—some of her organs are damaged!" Fujimiya snapped, showing Olivia to Yue.
"Alright, give me a moment. I'll heal her."
Yue walked over to Fujimiya.
"You're still the dumb goddess I've always known… Yue," Allen muttered, staring at the ceiling.
Fujimiya and Yue were both shocked that Allen realized he was being watched.
"Yue? Who's that? My name is Amaterasu, you idiot," she replied quickly.
Allen turned to her with a cold look.
"Sorry, but I don't want to remember a woman with huge boobs like you."
"You bastard!"
Amaterasu unleashed her dark magic and hit Allen directly.
"Take that," she declared, pointing at him. "That spell is called Sunrukai—it can easily erase multiple continents."
The magic transformed into a sphere and exploded instantly.
But as the smoke cleared, Allen emerged without a scratch.
"This ship's pretty sturdy, huh?"
Amaterasu stood frozen, shocked that Allen was unharmed.
"You… How are you still alive?" she asked.
Allen smirked.
"Let me introduce my skill. It's called Fiction Remains Fiction—but I Have Everything."
> SYSTEM: Analyzing enemy data...
Strengths: World-ending attacks, battlefield advantage, deception, immunity to erasure, darkness magic that overrides all elements except light.
Weaknesses: Instant death, reality bending, light magic.
SYSTEM: Analysis complete. Win rate: 100%
"Quite the high score, huh?"
Suddenly, Amaterasu stabbed Allen from behind.
He coughed up blood.
> SYSTEM: Reactive Evolution +1
Adaptation +1
"Damn it…" Allen pulled the blade out of his body.
He summoned his sword.
"Guess I have no choice but to get serious now," he said.
"Serious?" The atmosphere turned tense. A dark aura engulfed his right hand as a sword materialized.
"If you want a sword duel, I'll give you one."
Allen took a battle stance.
They clashed, blade to blade.
Allen remained defensive while Amaterasu kept striking relentlessly.
"Keep dancing for me, missy."
Clang—Allen blocked another attack, her blade nearly grazing him.
"You could die here, you know," Allen taunted.
"Oh really? Then look down," Amaterasu said with a smirk.
Allen looked down—only to see a black spike stabbing into his face.
But it didn't end there. Amaterasu leaped back and threw her sword into the air. It split into three parts, forming a triangle.
She performed a hand seal.
"Darkness Regret Technique: Curse Law 8.0 - Pyramid of Damnation."
The swords turned into a mass of energy, morphing into a pyramid. Spikes protruded from all directions—inside and out—before the structure began to shrink.
Amaterasu walked up to the tiny pyramid and picked it up.
"I didn't expect it to be this easy."
Suddenly, cracks appeared on the pyramid.
"What the—"
Without warning, a mysterious slash struck Amaterasu. Her body fell, but Allen caught her gently before placing her down.
Without a word, he walked away.
---
Elsewhere...
That… is me? Lying on the floor, covered in blood.
"A dangerous fight for a mere copy," said Megumin as she carried me to a strange place.
She placed the body inside a glass tube.
Inside the lab, several other tubes housed the Seven Great Disciples and various experimental creatures.
Megumin approached one corrupted creature, placing her hand on the glass.
The creature responded by mirroring her gesture.
"Big sis…" the creature muttered unclearly.
Megumin paused, lost in thought.
"I'll save you, little brother."
---
Back to Allen's POV...
Merie was toying with the UNOs she had just defeated.
Allen arrived and surprised her.
"Yo."
He sensed something.
"What's wrong?" Merie asked.
"Where's… the other me?"
"We split up to gather intel."
Suddenly, an alarm blared.
Mechas surrounded them from all directions.
Merie gave Allen a buff.
She nodded—she was still capable of fighting.
Allen glanced at the machines.
"Die," he commanded.
All the mechas collapsed instantly.
> SYSTEM: Cooldown 5 hours (can be reduced by combat or evolution).
They continued exploring the ship.
Allen checked every room, but despite their efforts, they couldn't find him.
Allen closed his eyes.
> SYSTEM: Welcome to the Outer Narrative Structure.
"Is… he still alive?"
> SYSTEM: Searching… Complete.
He is dead. The culprit is right behind you.
Allen opened his eyes.
Two women stood there, holding Merie hostage.
"Allen… run," Merie cried out.
One of the women stabbed her in the throat.
Merie collapsed—dead.
"Who are you?" Allen demanded.
One woman answered, "My name is Kamui."
"Call me Megumin," said the other.
"And who are you, intruder?" Kamui asked.
"I'm Allen Stolen."
Without warning, the two women teleported Allen to Mars.
Kamui threw Merie's lifeless body onto the ground.
She coughed—barely alive.
---
To be continued...