"So bright... and so warm..."
Bronya felt the power flowing within her, murmuring to herself as she gazed at the vast sea of stars, now illuminated by specks of golden light that caused the entire cosmos to glow. For a moment, her mind was completely captivated by this radiance, unable to think of anything else.
She looked toward the golden-tinged horizon, her slightly dazed eyes reflecting Ron's current form—
The flames in the lantern held by the lamp-bearing god danced, the embers within growing ever fainter until the very last speck of gold flew away, vanishing to some unknown corner of the heavens.
The four deities surrounding him all fixed their gazes upon him, their expressions scrutinous.
As Aeons not entirely under the dominion of "Fate," they wished to reclaim the fragments of their Paths, but they had no desire to act solely at "Fate's" behest.
Since Ron had said they only needed to wait, they were willing to grant him a few moments...
After all, these four were not Aeons who had been completely suppressed by Fate, who had lost their reason and were entirely governed by the driving force of their Path.
After Ron had scattered all the light of hope from the lantern in his hand, the now-empty vessel seemed to lose all its divinity, looking like nothing more than a beautiful artifact.
But it was this very artifact, seemingly empty, that represented the Path of [Salvation] which Ron commanded.
Fragments torn from the four Paths of [Abundance], [Preservation], [Harmony], and [Remembrance] had formed this container, meant to bear the wishes of everyone in this sea of stars, and to carry almost all the power of Ron, the Aeon of [Salvation].
Now, having lost this grand wish of [Salvation], Ron's aura was still immensely powerful due to him having just sown hope in the hearts of all, but his strength was almost completely drained.
Even the Path itself, which should have possessed an endless supply of Imaginary Energy, had fallen into a state of temporary exhaustion because Ron had overdrawn its power so severely.
To restore it would require a very long time, waiting for the Spacetime Conduits to draw enough Imaginary Energy from the Imaginary Domain before the Path's power could be used on a grand scale again...
But Ron had no intention of waiting. He had already decided to relinquish his position as an Aeon; there was naturally no need to wait any longer.
He suddenly raised the Sword of Salvation high. The longsword shimmered with a golden-white light, exuding an aura of extreme sanctity.
Embedded in the silver-white hilt was a blood-red crystal. At this moment, under Ron's command, the deep crimson blood within the crystal began to flow, swirling into a profound vortex.
Even though Ron had nearly exhausted his Path, he was still the Aeon of [Salvation]... His withered vessel still held the will of [Salvation], and the blood of a god flowed in his veins.
And now, at Ron's behest, the Sword of Salvation greedily siphoned the power from his body. Golden-red divine blood flowed along the grooves of the hilt into the blood-red crystal, dyeing its crimson with a brilliant gold.
Ron's power waned once more, his body shriveling, clearly having fallen into an extremely fragile state.
But as he held the resplendent, radiant greatsword, his presence surged again, like a mighty tide crashing down from the heavens, overwhelming the entire world in an instant.
Though he was surrounded by four other Aeons, though he stood alone, his imposing aura at that moment nearly eclipsed the other four, a truly magnificent and powerful sight.
Watching Ron's actions, the Aeons' gazes grew even more intense.
Qlipoth of [The Preservation], who had lowered his giant hammer, raised it once again. The other three Aeons, equally cautious, prepared themselves to defend against the holy sword in Ron's hand.
It was no wonder they had suddenly become so wary. As a newly ascended Aeon, Ron's strength was far too weak and would not normally have been taken seriously by these ancient deities.
They were all veteran gods who had existed for an unknown length of time; Ron's power was truly not on their level.
But what they hadn't expected was that Ron had not only torn fragments from their Paths but had also torn a fragment from the Path of [The Destruction], weaving it together with his own Path to form a holy sword...
This holy sword was infused with a fragment of [The Destruction], and now it had absorbed nearly all the remaining life force of an Aeon.
If such a holy sword were to strike now, even veteran Aeons like them might be wounded by its blow...
But Ron paid their defensive postures no mind.
Although he had used this Sword of Salvation to drain every last drop of power from his body, leaving him as fragile as a candle in the wind, this sword was not meant to draw blood.
Ron brandished the holy sword, raising it high. Its light reflected the sea of stars, now illuminated by hope, and for a moment, countless wills of [Salvation] resonated with it.
Then, Ron plunged the sword downward, stabbing it directly into Jarilo-VI.
The holy sword pierced Jarilo-VI. The light on its blade and the crystal on its hilt resonated, gold and red intertwining before expanding evenly, transforming into a protective canopy of light that enveloped the entirety of New Belobog.
In that instant, every Pathstrider of [Salvation] standing on New Belobog was immediately and completely pushed toward the extreme tendency of the Path—"Sword of Salvation." Furthermore, their journey along the Path deepened, propelled further into its depths by the light.
And at that moment, Ron completely sundered his own Path of [Salvation].
The fragment of [The Destruction] and the primary concept of [Salvation] had just been infused into that holy sword. All that remained for Ron now was the lamp in his hand, which had already shattered...
"Ahem... My apologies for the wait, everyone."
He coughed lightly, giving a slight bow to the four Aeons who stood on high alert.
"Thank you all for your assistance. Now, it is time to return what is yours."
Ron gently held up the broken lantern. It no longer possessed the divine wonders it held when the flame of hope still burned within, nor did it have the exquisite appearance it had at the beginning.
But it was still the main body of the Path of [Salvation], the framework Ron had constructed by splintering numerous Paths...
Now, Ron looked at the broken lantern in his hands, felt the heavy pressure on his body, and saw the dark shackles of "Fate." He smiled silently and then, with a sudden exertion of force—
Crack!
The broken lantern shattered in Ron's hands.
In the next moment, the shattered fragments of the lantern transformed into different colored lights and were instantly reclaimed by the four Aeons, mending their damaged Paths.
Among them, [Remembrance] and [Preservation] vanished in an instant. [Harmony] lingered for a moment to place a brand on Jarilo-VI, while [Abundance] waved her hand gently, causing a misty rain of light to fall upon New Belobog.
Then, all four Aeons departed, leaving only Ron, whose overwhelming presence that had surpassed the four of them came to an abrupt halt.
He had not only personally sundered his own Path, but had also forcibly crushed the remaining framework composed of the other Path fragments that he controlled...
Ron had abandoned his Path.
Naturally, he was about to meet the end of his life.
In the past, Tayzzyronth, The Propagation, was besieged by the collective Aeons and abandoned [The Propagation] in order to survive.
Ultimately, having abandoned the Path, They were abandoned by the Path, reaching the end of Their life and marking the fall of an Aeon.
And so it was for Ron now... because of his decision to divide his Path and return everything, he would finally reach the end of his life.
Ron calmly closed his eyes in the sky. Compared to the hope he had just given to the entire sea of stars and the world-stabilizing holy sword he had plunged into Jarilo-VI, his death now seemed so peaceful. As if it were a natural conclusion, he closed his eyes and drifted down from the sky, as silent as a kite with its string severed.
He had given his absolute all.
Watching Ron fall from the sky, Bronya finally snapped back to her senses.
She scrambled to run in the direction of his descent, but the distance was immense; she would have to cross dozens of city districts to get beneath him.
Bronya was no superman. Although she had received abundant blessings from Ron, she couldn't possibly reach his side in mere seconds to try and catch him.
She could only run with all her might, sprinting through the ruined streets, watching helplessly as Ron fell from the sky, powerless to catch him or offer even the slightest bit of help...
But in the end, Ron did not smash into the ground and become a pulped mess of flesh.
A flash of white light appeared. Bronya focused her eyes and saw a woman she didn't recognize... a puppet?
She was treading on light, her expression cold as she looked up at the sky, having caught Ron. It was impossible to know what she was thinking.
The next moment, she stepped on the light again and vanished in an instant, gone to an unknown location.
---o---
The image on the light screen faded, and new text appeared:
[You completed your plan step by step, returning the fire of hope to its owners, temporarily illuminating the entire sea of stars;]
[You completely sundered your own Path. Except for the Path philosophies carved from other Aeons, you poured everything into the Sword of Salvation, plunging it into Jarilo-VI to eternally shelter New Belobog;]
[You completely abandoned your broken Path, crushing it and returning the pieces to their former masters.]
[You thoroughly exhausted all the power of [Salvation], burning the last embers of your life and using them where they were needed most.]
[Now, you have finally removed the crown of an Aeon... All the power from the apex of a Path is gone. You have fallen from the station of an Aeon, ultimately becoming a mortal—]
[Coldness and stillness begin to spread from your heart, gradually filling your chest.]
[You slowly close your eyes, falling helplessly from the sky.]
[Listening to the whistling wind in your ears, you feel a sense of恍惚, as if in this moment, you will become a gentle breeze and merge with this world...]
[But that is obviously impossible.]
[You fall from a great height, death spreading through your veins. The cold is about to consume you, and you are about to smash into the ground, turning into a pile of crushed flesh and blood.]
[But you are caught by something soft and warm.]
[You struggle to open your eyes and see Herta's smooth jaw—her expression is cold, but her body radiates a warmth unlike that of a puppet.]
[In an instant, a light envelops you both. You recognize it as the [Salvation] authority from your blessing, the radiant holy light of the Path of [Salvation].]
[The next moment, you appear in the sanctuary of the holy sword.]
The text on the light screen faded, and a new image appeared:
Bathed in light, Herta carefully supported Ron's body, the icy expression on her face melting away like snow.
She looked at Ron, clearly discerning his current condition.
His flesh, which could almost be described as "withered," had been squeezed completely dry, to the point where not even a single drop of blood could be seen.
The Imaginary Energy that should have filled his entire body had vanished. There was not a shred of life left in him. The fact that he could still barely open his eyes seemed to be only because he had just fallen from the position of an Aeon, and some lingering vestige of that station was tethering his life force.
But Ron was no longer an Aeon... Before long, absolute death would consume his body. He would be enveloped by death and then, in the cold, close his eyes for good.
The misty rain of light summoned by Yaoshi of [The Abundance] fell upon the land, slowly healing all who were injured.
But even the personal blessing of the Plagues Author, when it fell upon Ron, could not wash away the coldness from his body.
Herta knew... it was too late to turn back the tide.
So, she simply held Ron gently, looked into his slightly weary eyes, and said softly:
"...Is there anything else you need to entrust to me?"
"Don't treat it as a transaction... We've been friends for a long time."
But Ron just shook his head tiredly, forcing out the words:
"Just... just fulfill our previous deal..."
"For me... protect New Belobog..."
As he spoke, Ron's voice came to an abrupt end.
Herta watched as Ron closed his eyes, then gradually dissipated in her arms, turning into inorganic dust that was carried away by the wind. Her face once again took on a trace of coldness.
The image on the light screen faded, and new text appeared:
[Having abandoned your Path, you were unable to sustain your life. You ultimately died, turning to ash in Herta's arms.]
[She remained silent for a long time. Only when all the people on the planet had gathered under the shelter of the Sword of Salvation did she release the pile of ash she was holding and look at all the people of New Belobog—]
["I wasn't going to get involved, but who could say no to his request..."]
["I am Herta... From this day forward, this planet is under my management."]