>CLACK<


    >CLACK<


    >CLACK<


    Sounds of footsteps echoed in the deep, dark underground prison.


    Other than the cheap sets of luminous stones that served as a dim source of light, the entire ce was simply filled with cold darkness.


    In this silent and bleak ce, someone was walking.


    He easily passed through the defenses of the prison—a ce of maximum security, exclusively made for one person.


    Finally, he opened the double-doors that led to the massive expanse where the prisoner was jailed.


    Behind the solid bars, and having dense Magic Constraints that covered his hand and legs, was the most malevolent one in the history of the world.


    Jared Leonard himself.


    "You... why are you here?" His voice, devoid of much emotion or energy leaked out.


    His tired eyes stared intensely at the man who  was now taking a seat opposite his cage.


    "Hey, won''t you answer me? I''m taking to you..." A deep re slowly began to form as he uttered the man''s name, almost as though it was a curse.


    "... Neron."


    As soon as Jared spoke, Neron''s face broke into a small smile.


    "Rx. I was just trying to get a littlefortable before speaking."


    "Why are you here? Is it finally time for my execution? Is that it? You''vee to lead me to my death?"


    "No. Your sentence has been extended, so you won''t be dying anytime soon."


    Jared''s eyes widened as he heard this. A soft gasp escaped his lips and he expressed disbelief at Neron''s words.


    "Why? I don''t... I don''t understand..."


    "You should really be grateful to Jane. If it wasn''t for her, I would have already put you down."


    "H-huh...?" Jared''s face twisted even more in confusion.


    "She''s finally decided to cooperate with the project. Of course, in exchange for sparing your life."


    "W-what are you—??"


    "The both of you worked on a simr project together, but she''s a better expert. Plus, she''s more docile, and it''s easier to use her. You''re a higher profile criminal, so it''s best you take the brunt of public attention."


    Jared, hearing all of Neron''s words, was now swimming in a pool of ignorance.


    He had no idea what was going on.


    "The generator you two created was taken by your doppelganger. While I found it regrettable that I lost a tool to help me tap into dark energy, it wasn''t a total loss..."


    Dark Energy? Tool? Jared''s eyes widened as he looked at Neron.


    The man''s jet ck eyes was awfully cold. Completely devoid of any emotion other than pure objectivity.


    "The blueprint is avable, and Jane has the expertise to rebuild. Though, after considering all the factors involved, I''ve decided not to go down that route. One could call it a change of heart... or n?"


    "What are you trying to do? Get Dark Energy for yourself? Is that it? Now that you can use Magic, you want more power for yourself?" Jared''s voice echoed within his massive cell.


    A mix of both curiosity and a sense of satisfaction yed on his face.


    However...


    "Pfft. Puehehe... haha... hahahaha... hahahahahahahaha!"


    ... His words were met with nothing but ridicule.


    "Why would I do that? You think I''m like you? Power this, Magic that. All of that is useless to me."


    "What...?" Jared''s whisper faded as soon as it was uttered.


    "I want a world without Magic, Jared. A better world."


    More confusion was etched on Jared''s face. "Lies. How would Dark Energy aplish that?"


    "You don''t need to know. I also don''t need you to believe me. I just came here to vent a little, I guess."


    "What are you even... saying?"


    "Tapping into Dark Energy is too tedious. The process is too conspicuous, and the energy is too erratic—unpredictable. Especially in such arge quantity. I wouldn''t want to create even more conflict in my pursuit of peace." Neron smiled, raising a finger as he spoke.


    "So, I''ve decided to simply create my own version. A better, more stable version of Dark Energy."


    "H-how in the world...?"


    "Jane attempted something simr, and while it was inferior, it had some of the qualities of Dark Energy. That''s why it''s important that she''s with me. I''ll be requiring her expertise on this matter."


    Jared ground his teeth as he listened to Neron speak. He couldn''t take one more second of it.


    "You won''t seed! You don''t think I tried that? It doesn''t work! You need the actual thing! Anything else will be inferior!"


    "Says who? You?" Neron''s darkened eyes twinkled a little as he spoke.


    "I swear, you Jareds are all the same. You im to have such a great understanding of Magic, yet you limit yourselves in the most mundane ways. There are no ''can''t'' or ''shouldn''t'' in Magic. It defies all of those. That''s one of the prime reasons why it''s so dangerous."


    "You won''t be able to do it..." Jared still shook his head adamantly.


    "Really? Even after experiencing the actual thing and having enough samples to run tests and synthesize a better version? How close minded can you be?"


    Silence echoed within the room. Both Jared and Neron stared at each other until the former looked away.<novelsnext></novelsnext>


    A defeated expression yed on his face. Clearly, he had lost on all ounts.


    "How long... have you been nning this?"


    "Who knows? Maybe since I was little. Or maybe a few months ago. Time is a pretty strange thing, is it not?"


    "You''re crazy!" Jared barked in response to Neron''s calm words. "Magic is everything! Do you think this world will be the same without it?"


    "We''ll have to learn, then. Besides, that change is what I''m looking forward to. A without Magic... doesn''t that sound interesting? Is it just me that thinks this?"


    "... C-crazy..."


    "It''ll take some time to sort out the details, but I believe we''re on the right track. The other Outers are too busy, so there''s no one to interfere with my work. " Neron''s word''s ovepped with Jared''s insistent ramblings about how insane he was.


    "With the possibility of life outside this, there''s the chance that eliminating Magic here would make us vulnerable to alien life. It''s only realistic to expand my ns beyond the confines of this ce."


    "... Insane..."


    "But what about the other worlds? Surely they''re bound to be threats out there. What if the next visitor that visits from outside out reality has ill intentions? With our current Magic—or worse still—without Magic, we''ll be too vulnerable to fight back. You know what that means, don''t you?" Neron''s smile broadened even more.


    "... You''re... insane..."


    "I have to consider all the variables. To protect everyone and everything. To save as many lives as possible—not only in this world, but outside it—Magic has to be eliminated."


    "...C-crazy..."


    Neron rose from his position, his eyes staring straight at Jared who kept shivering as he murmured.


    "I will create a new world, Jared. A world where my family, and everyone''s families, can live in better peace and equality... a fair world."


    He took a step closer to Jared, his wide smile not disappearing from his face.


    "... And the creation of that starts from you and me."


    He passed through the bars that separated the two of them like the security measures were nothing.


    They almost felt like holograms at this point, fritzing and blurring in his presence.


    "You know, I''ve been thinking of how to make you suffer for all you''ve done this far, Jared. I thought about the worst kinds of torture, but  even those wouldn''t do justice to the people you''ve killed and the amount of evil you''ve wrought." In one more step, Neron grabbed Jared by the throat and raised him up, apletely different expression on his face.


    This time, it was of a cold,pletely numb look. It felt like he was an inanimate statue.


    "And then, I finally thought of it. The perfect punishment." Neron''s eyes turned blue as he spoke, and some strange energy began coursing through his body.


    "You said it yourself. Magic is everything. However, I think you forgot to add one word to it." And with that, Neron uttered them. "Magic is ''my'' everything. That was what you meant, wasn''t it?"


    At this point, Jared''s eyes widened in sheer horror.


    He must have known what was about to happen. He tried to beg or scream or do anything, but at this point his body wouldn''t listen to him.


    He waspletely helpless.


    "I promised Jane I would take your life. I never said the same about your Magic..."


    >FSHUUUUUUUUU<


    The strange energy coursed through Jared, filling him up from the inside out. It went through every nook and cranny of his body, purging every single ounce of energy that remained within him.


    And then, after a few seconds, the energy left him.


    The work was done.


    "Congrattions Jared..." Neron spoke, dropping the weakened Jared like a lump of meat.


    "... You''re now Inept."


    He once again passed through the cage, and it made way for him as if he was nothing but a ghost.


    "No... no... please no..." Jared''s whimper leaked out, but Neron couldn''t care any less about them.


    It was already toote.


    No... it was actually just the beginning.


    Neron''s smile returned as he left the prison and emerged from the dark underground into the light.


    His eyes saw the beautiful world that surrounded him, and his heart imagined the amazing ones that awaited him.


    The lost worlds.


    Everything was already in motion, and it was inevitable that it would eventually converge... just as he wanted.


    "All in due time."


    *


    *


    *


    [A/N]


    Will Neron Alter be returning? Who knows...


    In any case, I hope you all enjoyed the first portion of this Arc.


    We''re about to jump into Kuzon''s side of the story for a little. I promise you, it''s going to be good.


    Thanks for reading this far. Please this book needs your support, so I''d appreciate it if you continue to render your help.


    Cheers!