The Villain has Perished



In a void of darkness where nothing existed, a round table appeared. The table had 7 seats and mysterious glyphs engraved on it. The glyphs emitted an ancient yet immortal presence.

"Begin the assembly."

Suddenly, a voice reverberated through the void. Following the voices, 5 figures appeared around the table.

"An assembly at this time? I'm busy, be quick about it!" said the 2nd figure.

"Yes! An assembly! I finally got an excuse to take a day off!" celebrated the 4th figure.

"Will you two please maintain some decorum? An assembly is a sacred occasion." scolded the 3rd figure.

"This is bad… this is bad… we are in trouble." muttered the 5th figure while chewing her nails.

"...." The 1st figure didn't speak and continued to gaze silently at others.

Shaking her head, the 3rd figure sighed and turned to the 5th figure who looked as if she had seen a ghost and kept trembling in fear.

She, the 3rd figure, said gently. "Why have you called for all of us, 5th?"

5th was a woman wearing a black blindfold over her eyes. She seemed to shrink when 3rd spoke to her. With trembling fingers, she tapped on the table with systemic rhythms and patterns, and explained.

A 3D image appeared over the round table. The image contained thousands, perhaps millions or even billions of spherical worlds. 

In the image, seven spherical worlds were shining brightly at the center of the cluster of innumerable worlds. Those seven worlds were slowly drifting towards each other and so were the other uncountable number of worlds.

"T-the last blessed was killed."

Bam—!

The 2nd hit the table and shouted. "He was killed!? And!? There is no way those damned Gods would let him die easily. Did you call the assembly for such a small matter?!"

"Eiek!"

At those harsh comments, 5th's figure shrank even further. Looking at her, one would think she was trying to shrink in herself and disappear.

"Yawn, my ears are going to burst, don't shout like that." Speaking his part, the 4th figure yawned and started dozing off again.

At the unreserved and harsh attitude of 2nd, the 5th's blindfold became damp. The 3rd scolded 2nd after seeing 5th on the verge of tears.

"2nd hold your horses, you are scaring 5th." 

"Shut up, you nymphomaniac! I'm busy as is with hastening the process of merging the multiverse! I don't have time for this!"

"Isn't there any better insult, or is your vocabulary limited to that level, angry bird?"

"You! What did you call me!?"

"Oh, it seems age is getting to you. Let me repeat, I called yo—"

"Silence" The 1st figure spoke.

At his words, 2nd growled but sat back quietly, while 3rd smirked to irritate and tease 2nd. However, 2nd could only stay silent and wait for the 1st to speak.

"5th, the threads of fate of the last blessed had not foretold his death, yet. Tell me, for what purpose does an immature death call for an assembly?"

Everyone looked at 5th. Although they had been acting unconcerned, they couldn't deny that they were curious as to why the fake death of the last blessed – Jae-sung – was important.

"I c-can't see the thread of fate of the one who killed the last blessed!" 

Silence. Complete and utter silence.

The 5th's words shocked everyone.

"If you can't see threads of fates, then Gods are involved. But why would Gods have the last blessed killed. It goes against their goals." said 3th.

In response, the 5th pinched the 3D image over the table. The image zoomed in at one of the 7 shining worlds at the center. She then continued. "Or maybe, it's 'h-him'. The last blessed is in the World of Sword & Magic. I think the Gods aren't involved and 'he' is the one doing something."

"Solomon" said 1st. "He might be scheming behind our's and the Gods' backs."

The 5th shuddered. These 5 figures were the ones responsible for the Coalescence, yet they couldn't shrug it off if the matters involved Solomon.

"What insolence! I killed that bastard with my own six hands! How can he do something 5000 years later!" The 2nd roared angrily. 

The 3rd placed her palm on her cheek and sighed. "It's not entirely impossible if it's him. Don't forget he was the one who entered the Tower forcefully in the past and massacred one-third of our champions."

Tower of Babel. Its residents were called Champions. They were the forces that belonged to one of the factions presiding over Round Table.

Before anyone could start trouble, the 1st relayed his intentions. "2nd can you hasten the Coalescence?"

"No…"

"We cannot interfere much until Coalescence begins. Although the Gods are in a worse position than us, we cannot sit back and relax. 

4th send one of the Tarnished to the World and see what is going there. 5th read the thread of fate of as many as you can, I want to know how many variables have emerged."

The man who had been sleeping opened his eyes slightly. "Ugh, more work?"

He snapped his fingers and an image of a young man appeared in the sky. The young man in the image had dark blue hair and bright red eyes. 

The 4th pointed at the image and conveyed lazily. "I have my hands tied with work. So, I'll have to use a candidate champion of mine instead of wasting time, searching for a suitable Tarnished. But in exchange, I want a holiday."

"Have you gone crazy!? Why would you ask for a holiday at such a crucial junction!?" 2nd was beginning to truly lose his patience.

However, the 3rd intervened to stop the dispute from escalating further. "2nd, a Tarnished is a warrior who failed the trial to enter the Tower, there is no shortage of them. But a candidate champion is different. They are precious talents who have cleared the trial and have yet to enter the Tower. In terms of potential alone, they are the cream of the crop of the multiverse. 

Losing a potential seedling like that is a great loss for 4th. So, let the 4th have whatever he wants in exchange."

2nd wanted to argue but before he could, 1st passed his judgment. 

"Very well, we will go with 4th's proposal. The assembly is adjourned."