Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Under normal circumstances, Velber 02 had the intrinsic ability to absorb all forms of energy, even magical and divine. She used it as a stimulant to increase the size and density of her body, greatly increasing her physical power and durability in exchange for a severe reduction in speed. The only caveat to this [Magic Energy Absorption] was that it was unable to absorb 'pure energy' without any intent behind it. She needed her opponents to use carefully developed skills, abilities infused with the knowledge their civilization had cultivated since its inception.

When any kind of sapient life developed or used a magical ability, even on the divine level, there was no practical method to completely remove their intent from it. This, in a way, tainted the energy that was being used, shaping it according to the user's will so that it would enact an unnatural result. In essence, techniques, magecraft, magic, and even divinity were all methods of subtly influencing the natural order of the world. If left unchecked, those that developed knowledge and techniques would eventually grow into the Universe's most terrifying parasites, consuming everything in their path for no better reason than finding a 'greater meaning' that simply didn't exist.

The Umbral Star was one of countless 'cleaners' that roamed a specific region of the Galaxy. It had the singular purpose of eliminating all intelligent life before it gained the ability to proliferate further than its host world. It, like other Stars of the same designation, saw sapience as the most threatening thing to the continuation of life within the Universe. Thus, like eliminating a parasite or treating an infectious disease, it created antibodies in the form of Anti-Cells. These were civilization-destroying entities that, in their final stage of evolution, could even rival the power output of a sun. Then, once their duty was completed, they would self-destruct, destroying the knowledge and techniques they had absorbed so that such dangerous elements would no longer exist.

In the past, Sefar had been defeated just as she was about to enter her sixth evolution, granting her an amount of energy roughly 1/10th that of Sol. She was only one stage of evolution away from her mature formed, granting her a power rating of roughly 380,000,000 and allowing her to completely wipe out all sapient life on Gaia. Instead, just as she reached a critical stage in her development, she suffered grievous injuries from the God of War, Mars, before ultimately being defeated by the proto-type that would eventually serve as the foundation of the Holy Sword, Excalibur.

Now, once again, Sefar was facing against a form of energy so pure that it seemed to touch at the origin of all things. There didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason behind the skill her opponent was using, almost as if it wasn't a technique at all. Instead, he seemed to simply be 'exploding', a sudden and spontaneous phenomenon that emulated the event that ushered in the creation of all things. It was a completely 'unreasonable' ability, something that sapient life should have never been allowed to infringe upon...

With her amber-eyes now having turned the same ashen-grey as the rest of her body, Sefar looked toward empty space, incredulity that only thought in her mind as she watched her enemy 'create' a new body from nothing. At the same time, her own had already started to flake away, and, if not for the fact they were in a virtual space, she would have already been deleted entirely. Instead, she was able to see the birth of a being formed from a light so brilliant and pure that she couldn't help but reach out with her destroyed limbs, muttering, "Beau...tiful..." as her body turned to dust.

Though his body hadn't completely reformed, Vahn's intent had remained intact even after the self-destruction of his vessel. This allowed him to hear Velber 02's final words, causing a small amount of confusion to spread through his mind before vanishing entirely moments later. He had other things to worry about right now, chiefly the 'screaming' sword that he had tossed into a sub-space pocket to ensure its protection...

Seeing the blade tremble with enough force that it was warping slightly, Vahn adopted a sad smile on his face as he attempted to coax it, saying, "Until you awaken, I have to take precautions to make sure you aren't endangered. Do you have any idea how devastated I would be if you were to die as a result of my own carelessness...?"

Even after nearly forty years, Vahn still felt a small amount of guilt whenever he recalled events like the destruction of Skoll V2 and the death of Scáthach. He even suspected it was thoughts like those that prevented his power from growing even faster, much like 'heart demons'. They were just two of the most notable instances of his power running wild, so, until he could master his current power, his progress would always be limited by his own fear and trepidation. The only way around this seemed to be pitting himself against powerful foes, using them as a whetstone to further hone his skills while simultaneously increasing his strength.

Perhaps sensing the genuine concern in its wielder's voice, the Asauchi calmed down rather quickly before releasing a gentle hum in response. This eased some of the tensions in Vahn's body, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief as he ignored the several kilometers of emptiness around him, pulling out an oil rag to polish his cherished companion...

---

After defeating Velber 02 in a rather anti-climactic fashion, Vahn had confirmed his suspicions about the Nasuverse. It was still a Tier 5 Record, but, due to the restrictions of the Root System, there were very few enemies that could actually push him to his limits. His Source Energy allowed him to hit way above his weight class, and, due to his designation as Type Omega, the most powerful entities in the Root System simply couldn't go all out against him. Many were even his lovers, making it impossible for him to push himself beyond his limits for fear of accidentally killing people he cared about...

With these realizations, Vahn decided to finally initiate Phase Four: absorbing Gaia into his nascent Realm and simply leaving the Nasuverse. This wasn't just the physical manifestation of Gaia, either, but the entirety of the planet. The planet was currently considered his territory, so, while his domain wasn't nearly large enough to subsume it, he could interface with the Planetary Bounded Field itself to ensure the success of his plan. He had already tested this by overwriting the Virtual Reality Marble created by Da Vinci, allowing him to pull 'everything' inside into his Regula Mundi, even Tier 4 and 5 beings.

Vahn had taken special care to ensure that Akasha and her superiors were unaware of his plans, even going so far as to keep Fenrir in the dark. If his intentions were discovered, there was little doubt in his mind that they wouldn't resort to extreme measures. They could even try to forcibly extract one of his lovers, or, even worse, one of his children. If that were to happen, he would have no choice but to use a [Dimensional Anchor] to seal the Record. Then, until he had become stronger enough to link the Records, he would have to live with the guilt of his failure for thousands of years...

After fleeing from the Record of Danmachi, Vahn had more than his fair share of regrets. It had been nearly a hundred years since his departure, and, though he was undoubtedly on the cusp of reaching Tier 5, reaching Tiers 6 and 7 would likely take a monstrous amount of effort. The only way he could reasonably achieve them was by entering higher-tiered Records, so, after mentally preparing himself for the lectures to come, Vahn found himself seated atop the Leviathan, waiting until the end of his birthday celebration before calling Gaia, Tiamat, and Alaya to his side.

Though Tiamat was a bit of an exception, Gaia and Alaya were Omnipresent within the Planetary Bounded Field. Even if they weren't manifested in their physical bodies, they constantly observed his every action, never tiring, never distracted. There wasn't a single action he had done outside a few unique circumstances that hadn't been witnessed by them, compelling him to remain cautious for nearly a hundred years. Now, it felt like a substantial weight had been removed from his shoulders, bringing a sincere smile to his face as he caressed the three adorable women and said, "I have not been fair to the three of you..."

With more than enough time to mature mentally, Tiamat was the first to show concern, a worried expression marring her beautiful face as she rebutted, "Don't say that...you have always treated the three of us well. Even now, I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to meet you...my heart is filled with pleasant feelings each and every day..."

Nodding her head in agreement, Gaia adopted her ever-radiant smile before taking things a step further and giving him a firm hug as she added, "Before I met you, I was always afraid. Now, for the first time in my life, I have real friends. I have lived a fuller life in these few years than the billions I have existed for previously. Even if I had billions more, I would never be able to properly express the gratitude I feel in my heart..."

Feeling Gaia's calming aura flood into him, Vahn couldn't help but release a lighthearted laugh as he reciprocated her hug. She had been a blessing in all of their lives, and, according to Da Vinci, Gaia's happiness had effectively transmitted through the entire Planetary Bounded Field. Now, flowers and crops grew aplenty, and, though there was an ever-increasing number of monsters, there were also a growing number of Elemental and Nature Spirits that proactively aided people. As a result, people, in general, were becoming much happier and healthier than they had ever been...

With a growing smile on his face, Vahn turned his attention to the youngest of the three sisters, the ever-haughty and slightly tsundere Alaya. She was the only one who seemed to read more into what he had said, asking, "Are you done playing around...?"

Despite the 'serious' look on Alaya's face, Vahn could see an almost imperceptible purple hue on her pale-blue cheeks. She was significantly less honest than her two elder sisters, but, after nearly ninety-five years together, Vahn could read her like an open book. He knew she was growing excited, and, if he turned on his View Affection, there would undoubtedly be an incomprehensibly large volume of pink aura violently coiling around his body.

Instead of answering Alaya's question, Vahn just gestured to both her and Tiamat, pulling all three of the sisters into his embrace. He wanted them to feel the love he had for them, but, most importantly, at least for the time being, he needed to create a 'gap' in their mentalities. It would take virtually no time at all for Akasha to forcibly rewrite their coding, so, before the ever-present observers could act, he sincerely stated, "I love you all..." as he released a sealed version of himself from deep within his Soul, Regula Mundi already active...

---

Ever since elevating Vahn's status to the highest priority by Termina Nasu itself, more than half of the System Administrators had been transferred to observe and analyze his behavior. There were, quite literally, thousands of people working in conjunction with one another, some assigned to watch over Vahn himself while others were assigned to observe and analyze his creations and progeny. Many of the less-important systems had even been shut down or paused in order to allocate more staff, with the most important task being the analysis and reproduction of the mysterious energy produced by Vahn himself.

The ultimate goal of Termina Nasu was the reproduction of Proto Root: Project Eden, the primordial state of all things before consciousness. At that singular point, before time itself, everything existed simultaneously. It desired to return to that point, back when 'everything' was a unified whole, perfect and stable. It believed there was no higher purpose for consciousness than to achieve that absolute state of order, as, for that single yet seemingly eternal moment, all things were equal, unblemished, perfect, and unified.

In the pursuit of that absolute state of perfect, Termina Nasu had spent an unquantifiable amount of time creating variable Systems in an effort to reproduce the Proto Root. It had been doing this since before it had obtained awareness, and, no matter how many times it failed, it had never waned in its desire to pursue that original state of being.

Now, for the second time in the passage of a seemingly endless amount of time, Termina Nasu was watching alongside the extensions of its will, observing one of two anomalies that had ever existed. It wanted nothing more than to understand their origin and the powers they could wield, especially those possessed by the second entity: Vahn Aldrnari Mason. He had a unique form of energy that seemed to be the closest thing to the Proto Root that had ever existed. They were eager to see what he would create with this energy, and, because of it, Termina Nasu had allowed him to run rampant within the Root System: Akasha.

Seeing Vahn overcome obstacles and perform feats that shouldn't have been possible had awakened the excitement that had long-since faded from nearly every resident of the Outside. For some, it had been trillions of years since they even blinked, much less express an emotion. Now, however, several thousand sets of eyes had simultaneously widened in shock as their target had simply 'vanished' into nothingness. This wasn't an exaggeration, either, as the very space and time that had existed in the area around Gaia, extending all the way to the orbital field of the Moon Cell, had ceased to exist. The only thing left behind was a gaping void that nearly collapsed into a black hole.

From the centermost terminal, which had been elevated like a heavenly throne, Akasha had the most notable expression of all. Her status had been upgraded considerably as a result of being the one to process Vahn, and, more-so than even Termina Nasu itself, she had taken an interest in his life. In her own way, she had grown attached to the curious anomaly, and, though her requests were frequently denied, she often advocated for greater freedom on his behalf. She had even started to believe that the act of monitoring him was wrong, as it was undoubtedly skewing the results.

For a brief moment, Akasha felt a small amount of vindication, followed by an urge to lambast those who had ignored her warnings. Even if Vahn was gone from their sensors, she knew for a fact he was still alive. Her instincts told her that, even if she destroyed the Root System in its entirety, he would, somehow, continue to live on. Thus, while everyone else was beginning to panic, a sincere smile that didn't escape the notice of Termina Nasu briefly appeared on her lips...

---

Located within an unfathomable void where even the Laws themselves couldn't reach, a single figure could be seen sitting atop an unbelievably ancient stone dais. At a glance, this figure seemed to be formed from the same material as the stone dais itself, but, as if its previous state had been nothing more than an illusion, it spontaneously appeared vibrant and full of life. It was almost like the Laws had been breathed into existence the moment the figure exhaled a sigh of relief.

After confirming the existence of two tiny marbles located deep within the confines of his Soul, Vahn couldn't help but release a sigh of relief. He found it a little strange that they were smaller than even the memory fragment of Eva, but, rather than mull over the reasons for this, a radiant smile spread across his face as he looked around at the 'familiar' void. To his surprise, he actually found two small spheres orbiting around him, which, upon closer inspection, actually seemed to be perfect copies of Gaia and the Moon Cell...

Before Vahn could ask, Sis explained, (*Remember, this place is a personal Dimension created by The Path itself. It is the location of your Soul, the place your true self resides while exploring the various Records. Now that you have taken Gaia and the Moon Cell into your Soul, it is only natural that they appear here. Enkidu and Eva's memory fragment are bonded to your Ego, so, unless you subsumed them entirely, they would never appear here.*)

Hearing Sis' explanation, Vahn had a lot of questions, and, unlike the last time he entered this place, he was clear-headed. Fortunately, Sis was well aware of the thoughts running through his mind so, without him needing to ask, she explained, (*The amount of time you can spend in this place is not unlimited. If you remain too long, you would begin to lose your sense of self as your power grows exponentially when in direct contact with The Path. At your current level, you would be able to stay for around eight hours without any sequelae. As for your concerns regarding those inhabiting Gaia, they do not experience the flow of time in this place. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that Time does not exist at all. The only thing propelling it forward is your observation of its passage...*)

Vahn was a little surprised that his time was limited in a place where the Laws of Time didn't even exist, but, rather than question it, he simply nodded his head and began focusing on more important tasks. He had saved up a phenomenal amount of Karma, and, after departing the Record with Gaia in tow, he had also completed the [Gaia's Champion] Quest. This afforded him an additional 1.5 billion OP and a variety of Unique items, one of which would come in handy the moment he entered a new Record and tried to access his Realm. As a result, Vahn couldn't help smiling as Sis began a detailed explanation of what exactly his Karma could be used for...

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[Quest: Gaia's Champion]

Rank: SS

Completion Grade: S

Objective(s): Protect Gaia until departure from the Record.

Optional Objective(s): Increase Rapport between Gaia and Alaya(1,038,392/100), Increase Rapport between Gaia and Tiamat(3,993,519/100), Help Gaia make Friends(43/10), Summon Grand Servants to protect Gaia(2/7).

Rewards: 1,500,000,000OP, Gaia's Loyalty permanently increased to 'Eternal Loyalty', 1x[Emblem of the Guardian God], 1x[Tri-Force of Wisdom], 1x[Tri-Force of Courage], 1x[Tri-Force of Power], 4x[Pendant of the Earth Goddess]

[Emblem of the Guardian God]

Rank: Unique

Use: An emblem that grants the user the protection of Gaia, the Primordial Goddess of the Earth. So long as Gaia lives, the recipient cannot be harmed by anything with origins derived from the Earth.

Restrictions: Vahn Aldrnari Mason

[Tri-Force of Widom]

Rank: Unique

Use: Grants the user incomparable wisdom, leading them to always make the correct choices in their actions. For those descended from Gaia, this item also grants them immeasurable magical might, the ability to heal others, and the ability to commune with all creatures.

Notice: Can be fused with the [Tri-Force of Courage] and [Tri-Force of Power] to grant a single wish.

[Tri-Force of Courage]

Rank: Unique

Use: Grants the user incomparable courage, allowing them to overcome all adversity, no matter how great or small. For those descended from Tiamat, this item also grants them immeasurable resistance to all forms of magic, mental manipulation, and negative status ailments.

Notice: Can be fused with the [Tri-Force of Wisdom] and [Tri-Force of Power] to grant a single wish.

[Tri-Force of Power]

Rank: Unique

Use: Grants the user incomparable power, allowing them to reign supreme over all other entities. For those descended from Alaya, this item also grants them invulnerability, vast physical strength, and a functionally limitless amount of magical power.

Notice: Can be fused with the [Tri-Force of Wisdom] and [Tri-Force of Courage] to grand a single wish.

[Pendant of the Earth Goddess]

Rank: Unique

Use: A pendant bestowed to those cherished by Gaia. So long as the recipient shares similar feelings, this pendant will protect them from harm within the confines of Gaia's domain. Those with powerful bonds may even use a small amount of Gaia's power, greatly increasing their regeneration when in contact with the ground.

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Title: Departure

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Remove the pestilence o_o...!','Akasha ain't so bad after all...?','Vahn basically just yeeted himself from existence xD...')

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