The early hours of dawn, before the sun had yet to rise. There, along the eastern horizon, a crimson glow had just begun slowly smoldering to create a golden line that cut across the sky. The turning of the sky into a pale lavender was the herald of the approach of morning.

Babel was gradually awakening, ready to welcome the new day. Among them was Se-Hoon, who completed his routine body check before stepping onto his dormitory balcony.

“Phew...”

Se-Hoon hopped lightly onto the railing and took a step straight into empty air. Rather than falling, however, transparent steps formed one after another beneath his feet—stairs created through Ludwig’s power—to lead him upward.

Woong-

With each step, the scenery shifted as though he were leaping hundreds of meters at a time. Step by step, he reached a vantage point that overlooked all of Babel before long.

“...”

A massive artificial island dyed crimson by the sunrise, a pure white tower soaring from its center to beyond the sky itself, and a golden line stretching outward at the highest point he could see—that view stretched out in front of him.

“Personally, I think things looked cleaner before the Golden Ring appeared. What do you think?”

Appearing beside Se-Hoon as he silently took in the altered landscape, Ludwig calmly stood with his hands clasped behind his back.

“I think so too. The view did look cleaner back then,” Se-Hoon answered with a wry smile.

It wasn’t large enough to obstruct his view outright, but no matter where he looked at the sky, it always caught his eye. It was an irritation he hadn’t quite realized existed until now.

“In the past, no matter how hard you stared at the Towers of Heroes, you could never see their summit. It was oddly unsettling. Seeing that now, perhaps that immeasurable ‘infinity’ was what gave off that vague sense of discomfort.”

Ludwig stared at the bizarre tower that stretched endlessly into the pale purple sky.

“...”

Se-Hoon remained silent, just listening to Ludwig as he gazed at the same view.

“Se-Hoon.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Would you tell me what your wish is?”

The blunt question made Se-Hoon pause.

“My... wish, sir?”

“We’ve spoken many times in many places. Along the way, we have realized that our goals aligned to a certain extent, which allowed us to work together until now.”

Ludwig kept his gaze on the Tower.

“Unfortunately, you know as well as I do that such alignment will never stretch to the very end. A wish is something utterly unique—something that can never truly overlap.”

Even if three people wished to become wealthy, differences in detail would inevitably arise when it came to motivation, process, and outcome. Born of each individual’s synesthetic mindscape, those differences were the very reason the world could never stop colliding with itself.

“So I would like to hear what your wish is. I have a hunch that this may be the last chance I get to ask you about this.”

“...”

Last chance...

Was he saying that because the long war would end with the upcoming subjugation of the Demon Realms? Or because today marked the end of moments like the present, when there were times they could simply talk?

Se-Hoon faced the first Perfect One, the one who had lived for decades solely for humanity’s progress and victory.

“...To be honest... I don’t know,” he slowly said.

“Oh? That’s rather unexpected. I expected someone of your caliber to at least have a rough idea.”

To possess the power and enlightenment to ascend at any moment, yet be unable to define one’s own wish—it seemed almost contradictory. Naturally, Ludwig gave him a skeptical gaze, making Se-Hoon feel awkward.

“It’s just... until the Demon Force and Abyss of Demons are completely gone, I’ve always felt like having any personal wish would be meaningless.”

“Meaningless, you say...”

Ludwig fell into thought, turning Se-Hoon’s expression stiff.

Does it sound like I’m dodging the question?

Telling someone who wanted an answer before everything ended that there was no answer until everything was over... anyone would think it was an excuse. Still, Se-Hoon had spoken honestly out of respect for Ludwig.

It’d be awkward if this soured things...

Se-Hoon immediately began pondering how to elaborate, but Ludwig’s slow voice resounded before he could, “In that case, your wish must be something eternal.”

“...Sorry?”

“If it only gains meaning once the Demon Force and Abyss of Demons are completely erased—once the possibility of annihilation itself is gone—then it’s a wish that can never disappear. Isn’t that so?”

Ludwig’s inference struck Se-Hoon deeply, leaving him momentarily stunned.

“However, while you may not be able to define your wish outright, it’s still possible to infer the concepts it must contain. For you, the most fitting method would be... to consider how much you’re willing to take from others.”

“Take... from others?”

Ludwig nodded.

“Suppose your wish comes true, but in the process, the wish of the person who is most precious to you cannot come true. What would you do?”

Finding himself suddenly being taught a lesson in the open sky, Se-Hoon frowned. Still, he earnestly thought about it for a bit.

“I’d... try to make their wish come true as well, somehow.”

Although he knew it was a somewhat forced answer, it aligned closest with the path he had walked so far.

“That would certainly be favorable. Then what if it were the second most precious person? And their wish couldn’t be fulfilled?”

“That’s...”

Se-Hoon faltered at Ludwig’s follow-up question. Now he understood what “how much you’re willing to take” truly meant.

“Third. Fourth. Then fifth. As you exclude the things you cannot turn away from, eventually you’ll reach things that are acceptable to take. By sorting through them one by one, you’ll come to understand the shape of your wish.”

Instead of focusing on what his wish was or how to achieve it, he was being told to classify mentally just how much sacrifice he would permit. It was an efficient method... yet also frigidly merciless.

Se-Hoon looked at Ludwig with a complicated expression.

I knew he had a cold side even before the regression... but I didn’t think it went this far.

Noticing Se-Hoon’s gaze, Ludwig gave him a bitter smile.

“Of course, you might wonder what meaning a wish achieved in that manner truly holds. That too, though, becomes part of the wish itself. Either way, do not stop thinking.”

Refining the concepts to be included in his wish again and again, never stopping until he could one day define his wish.... Realizing what Ludwig was trying to convey, Se-Hoon nodded.

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

At his answer, Ludwig smiled gently and turned his gaze back toward the Tower. The silence settled once more.

If their conversation truly ended now, Ludwig would launch his assault on the Garden of Void to mark the beginning of the Demon Realm eliminations. Perhaps... it really may just be their last conversation. Thinking such, Se-Hoon continued their conversation.

“Then what is precious to you, Chairman?”

Ludwig silently stared at the Tower of Pristine in thought.

“In the past... I had many things to hold on to, much like you,” he slowly began.

Lowering his head, he looked out over Babel, bathed in the morning light.

“But now... only Babel remains.”

Was he reminiscing about those he had lost, or engraving Babel—now his most precious thing—into his eyes? Se-Hoon watched him for a long moment until it was time.

“We should get moving soon.”

“Is it already that time? Then shall we begin at once?”

“Yes. When you make your move, Terra will support you accordingly.”

“Understood. I’ll start the operation in one minute. Go prepare.”

“Okay. Then...”

Se-Hoon’s steps toward the central plaza paused, unsure how to say goodbye. In the end, though, there was only one answer that came to mind.

“I’ll see you again.”

Just because Ludwig had called it the last time didn’t mean he had to agree, right? That implication made Ludwig pause for a moment, then smile.

“Yes, take care.”

Woong!

Se-Hoon vanished in an instant through space.

“He moves through the Whitespace so naturally now.... At that level, I needn’t worry about what comes after,” Ludwig murmured as he watched Se-Hoon move.

He then turned back to gaze quietly at the scenery before him for a single minute. Now that his final concern had been shed thanks to their conversation, he slowly closed his eyes... then opened them again.

“...”

Ludwig looked down at the beautiful yet sorrowful sight of the blue-glowing star shining in the darkness of space. Slowly, he tore his gaze away to shift his view toward a floating island approaching from beyond the horizon above.

Swish-

Its size was slightly smaller than Babel, yet it housed a self-contained ecosystem: plants tainted by demonic aura and rivers snaking through its interior. Several structures likely built by the Demon Force were scattered across it. It was completely shrouded in a black static blooming across the island—the Void—that continually crushed space itself and made observation difficult even for Ludwig.

“...Ascension.”

Click- 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

At his quiet call, a golden keyhole appeared, spinning as it unlocked. Soon, the lock gave way to reveal a white aperture.

“Why do you call?”

Listening to that familiar gruff voice, Ludwig smiled.

“It seems it’s time to finish things.”

“...I see.”

The voice—Ascension—fell silent for a moment.

“So in the end, you’re leaving everything to that kid... Are you truly satisfied with such an ending?” it asked irritably.

“We entrusted it all to him by choice. Whatever the ending, I don’t believe we’ll regret it.”

“That’s just like you. Tsk... I don’t like it.”

The white rift moved as though Ascension were surveying the surroundings.

“Still... if that’s the only way out of this cramped place, it can’t be helped. Choosing to stay by your side was my decision... and I’ll respect your choice to trust him as well.”

“Thank you.”

“Just make sure you put up a good fight. It won’t be easy.”

With that, the white aperture closed and turned back into a golden keyhole that dissolved into the air without a trace.

“Whew...” Ludwig looked toward the floating island now close at hand: the Garden of Void. “...Shall we?”

Woong-

The space around Ludwig rippled like waves as the darkness of space began collapsing into a single point. However, as the compression got closer and closer to its breaking point, the Whitespace began leaking out—until it was forced out in one go to bleach the surroundings white.

Rumble!

The darkness, seemingly ready to devour everything, was wrapped in ‌pristine white. Compressed to its extreme, space was tangibly gripped in Ludwig’s right hand as its shape continued to change.

“...”

Ludwig stared at the overlapping of pure whiteness and darkness as it slowly formed a sword.

“A sword again?”

Ludwig chuckled. Upon conquering the Tower of Heroes, he no longer needed a sword to wield space at will. Yet whenever he prepared his strongest strike, it always took the form of a blade.

The reason? The sword of the woman who had granted him the knowledge of space and the footsteps left behind by a friend’s mentor—both were deeply etched into his synesthetic mindscape.

“The sword that once cleaved the sky... I’ll borrow it for a moment.”

Recalling Ha-Rin’s final strike, as told by Kwang-Soo, Ludwig swung the blade toward the Garden of Void.

Celestial Infinity Blade: Flower of the Interstice

Crack-

The massive floating island split cleanly in two as the void shrouding its interior scattered like blood.

RUMBLE!

The core of the Garden of Void—the Harbinger Shard—stirred in response. In the blink of an eye, the Void flooded the island and warped the interior. Then, from deep within, emerged grotesque beings that were neither human nor demon: the creations of the Watchers’ Transcendence, who had been hiding within the Garden.

Seeing them, Ludwig raised his sword once more—

[The Towers of Heroes have been reconstructed.]

BOOM!

The moment the system message appeared, the left half of the split Garden of Void was pierced by a pure white tower.

[The ‘Garden of Void’ is now open.]

Hundreds—thousands—of heroes poured forth from the Tower. In an environment where one couldn’t last even five minutes without spatial skills, they charged head-on and exploited the trial’s structure where death meant revival.

Rumble-

They were swept away by torrents of Void and the onslaught of Transcendence’s test subjects, erasing them without resistance—only to return once more through the Tower.

The battle unfolding before Ludwig’s eyes was utterly unlike the past war between humanity and the Demon Force.

“So the world really has changed.”

Laughing softly, Ludwig swung the Flower of the Interstice once more, ushering in the dawn of the Six Great Demon Realms’ elimination.