Silence stretched between stars.
Then Silas spoke.
"We were sent here," he said evenly, "to tell you that an Absolute Being named Agoth wants you to work under him."
For a heartbeat—
Nothing happened.
Then Ashura laughed.
Not loudly.
Not cruelly.
Just… amused.
"Oh," he said, rubbing his chin, crimson eyes gleaming. "So it was those fools."
The Black Light around him stirred, like something pleased to be acknowledged.
"The same ones who tried to probe me from across realities?" Ashura continued. "Bold. Stupid. Mostly stupid."
He looked at the Sovereigns again—this time not as guests, but as equals caught in someone else's game.
"Is that really why you're here?" Ashura asked softly. "Because I know something Agoth doesn't seem to grasp."
His gaze locked onto Silas.
"You—all of you—could fight the Absolutes to a fault. Win? Maybe not cleanly. But you'd take them with you."
The void felt heavier.
Ashura stepped forward once.
"My assumption," he said casually, "is that Agoth took something from you. Something you need. Something valuable enough that you'd rather follow orders than burn his realm down."
Yamamoto's flames flickered.
Julius's grip on causality tightened.
Nar's darkness pulsed once, irritated.
Ashura spread his hands.
"But this?" he continued. "This is also an opportunity."
The Black Light answered him.
Kuroha manifested in his hand—silent, perfect, final.
The moment it appeared, reality screamed.
Space bowed.
Time stuttered.
Perception fractured.
"I won't work under anyone," Ashura said calmly. "Never have. Never will."
His voice dropped—gentle, dangerous.
"I've known about the Absolutes for a long time. For me, it was never if… only when."
The Black Light surged outward—not attacking, not expanding—claiming.
"I will go to war with them."
The words landed like judgment.
"You can take this chance," Ashura continued, eyes burning softly, "to reclaim whatever was stolen from you."
He raised kuroha slightly.
"Or," he added, almost cheerfully, "you can fight me now and be subjected to my domain."
The void trembled.
For a long moment—
No one spoke.
Then Silas sighed.
A long, tired sigh.
"…You've seen through everything," he admitted, rolling his shoulders. "And yes. I did consider it."
He glanced at the others. No one argued.
Silas looked back at Ashura and smirked.
"So we'll take this chance."
Ashura's smile widened—not predatory, but pleased.
"Good choice."
He dismissed kuroha, the Black Light calming instantly—as if violence had never been an option.
"Go back," Ashura said, turning away. "Tell Agoth I'll pay him a visit."
His voice carried absolute certainty.
"Soon."
The Sovereigns didn't hesitate.
One by one, they withdrew—vanishing into folded reality, their thoughts heavier than when they arrived.
Only silence remained.
Ashura stood there for a moment longer, gazing at Earth-10 below.
Then he turned.
A black portal bloomed behind him, and he stepped through.
The throne hall welcomed him like a living thing.
Ashura sat upon his throne, Black Light coiling lazily around the pillars, the dominions resonating with his presence.
He leaned back slightly.
A smile crossed his face—slow, knowing, dangerous.
"…Let's have some fun."
Far away—
Agoth shivered.
And the war that would shake the Absolute Realms had just been set in motion.