Chapter 45 – The Abyss Stirs

The very air cracked. The weight of Erebus’ presence bore down like an unseen force, suffocating, relentless. The abyss itself writhed, as if rejecting the entity’s existence.

Ren staggered. His breath felt shallow, his limbs heavier than steel. It was as if every muscle in his body refused to move. The Void Monarch System flickered erratically in his vision.

[Warning: Unstable Abyssal Interference Detected.]
[System Authority Overridden.]

Override?

Ren’s heartbeat thundered. He had been pushing through impossibilities for so long, clawing his way up from nothing, yet now—

Something was suppressing even the System.

Erebus’ hollow eyes bore into him.

“You were never meant to sit upon the throne, child.”

Ren’s vision blurred. His fingers twitched, trying to summon his blade. Nothing.

Erebus took a step forward. The ground cracked beneath its weight, shadows spilling into the void like ink seeping into water. The very Abyss recoiled from its presence.

Ren’s mind raced. He had to move, had to—

A whisper.

"Not yet."

Ren’s body moved on its own. A blinding flash of gold erupted around him as a sigil appeared beneath his feet.

An ancient rune. One he had never seen before.

Erebus halted.

Then—

The world shattered.

Ren felt himself ripped from the abyss, the last thing he saw was Erebus’ expression.

It wasn’t anger.

It was amusement.

Then—

Darkness.

When Ren’s eyes opened, he was no longer in the Abyss.

He was somewhere else.

The sky was broken, flickering between twilight and midday. Jagged mountains rose in the distance, floating like shattered remnants of a forgotten world.

And standing before him—

A man clad in white, golden energy radiating from his very being. His piercing eyes locked onto Ren’s, analyzing, measuring.

“You were thrown out.” The man’s voice was calm, yet carried a weight of authority.

Ren clenched his fists, trying to steady himself. “Where the hell am I?”

The man tilted his head slightly.

“At the edge of time.”

Ren’s breath hitched.

What the hell did that mean?