Chapter 2 — A New World

"Let us see the next one."

The enormous eye remained open.

Silent.

Watching the endless expanse before it.

There was no longer any life within that star system.

Yes, there was no life left on the nearby planets.

Nor upon the moons orbiting the distant gas giants.

The entity knew this.

Not because it had searched.

Not because it had analyzed.

It simply knew.

The same way one knows where their own arm is.

Or where their own heart rests.

Life possessed a presence.

A signature.

Something impossible to describe.

And it could feel it.

Near.

Far.

Weak.

Or intense.

Its gaze slowly shifted.

To one side.

Then the other.

As though examining possibilities.

Then its voice echoed through the void once more.

"Hm."

The enormous eye moved.

Fixing itself upon an invisible point within the darkness.

"It appears there is another inhabited world in that direction."

The entity remained motionless for several moments.

As if calculating something.

Or perhaps merely deciding.

"It is far away."

"Very far away."

The eye continued staring at the same point.

"But that does not matter."

Its tone remained unchanged.

Neither excited.

Nor tired.

Nor interested.

Merely stating a fact.

"I will arrive there soon."

The long tentacles began to move.

At first slowly.

Then faster.

The countless extensions scattered throughout space started retracting.

Drawing inward.

Coiling.

Compressing.

The immense mass of darkness became smaller.

More compact.

Denser.

The eye closed.

The tentacles vanished.

And once again, the entity assumed a form resembling a squid.

A black squid.

Suspended within the void.

Then it moved.

Slowly.

So slowly that it appeared motionless.

But only at first.

Its speed increased.

Little by little.

Steadily.

Without explosions.

Without flashes of light.

Without any display of force.

It simply accelerated.

And continued accelerating.

The planets of that system were left behind.

The moons disappeared.

The asteroids became blurs.

The stars stretched.

Transforming into lines of light.

Then rivers of light.

Then something impossible to distinguish.

The entire universe seemed to slide around it.

Galaxies.

Nebulae.

Star systems.

Everything passed by.

Everything was left behind.

And the entity continued forward.

Faster.

And faster.

And even faster.

Until the very concept of distance seemed to lose meaning.

Then...

After a period impossible to measure...

It began to slow down.

Gradually.

In the same manner it had accelerated.

The rivers of light became stars once more.

The stars returned to fixed positions.

Planets appeared.

Moons.

Asteroids.

Comets.

A new star system.

Unknown.

Silent.

Ancient.

The black squid slowly drifted through the system.

Passing a frozen world.

Then a gas giant.

Then a chain of barren moons.

Until it finally found what it was looking for.

A planet.

The entity stopped.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then its form began to unravel once more.

Black tentacles expanded in every direction.

Long.

Countless.

Stretching across the void.

The eye opened again.

Watching the distant world.

Silence.

The entity observed.

For several moments.

Perhaps seconds.

Perhaps days.

Perhaps something in between.

Then it spoke.

"Hm."

The eye remained fixed on the planet.

"This world possesses a significantly greater concentration of life than the last few I have encountered."

The tentacles moved slowly.

As if responding to the entity's thoughts.

"Interesting."

The eye narrowed.

"I can sense countless different lifeforms."

"Not merely a few dominant species."

"Not merely a single ecosystem."

"Far more than that."

The entity continued observing.

"Is this world more suitable for the emergence of life?"

"Or has it simply had more time to develop?"

The enormous eye remained fixed upon the planet.

For several moments.

No sound existed.

No movement beyond the tentacles.

Then the entity spoke once more.

"It does not matter. I will discover the answer soon enough."

And for the first time...

It began approaching that world.

The entity watched.

Silently.

High above the heavens.

Far beyond the clouds.

Far beyond the stars visible from that world.

None of the lifeforms below could perceive its presence.

None of them could even imagine they were being observed.

But it saw them.

All of them.

The creatures of the oceans.

The creatures of the skies.

The creatures of the forests.

The mountains.

The deserts.

The swamps.

And above all else...

The civilizations.

This world was different.

Very different.

The number of lifeforms was incomparably greater than that of the previous planet.

An immense variety of living organisms existed here.

Countless species.

Bacterial life.

Parasitic life.

Insectoid life.

Animals.

Mammals.

Humanoids.

And even some humanoid species that appeared to be mixtures of several different categories.

Some resembled insects.

Others resembled mammals.

Some possessed reptilian traits.

Others bore avian characteristics.

Many had humanoid forms.

But few were completely human.

Some possessed antennae.

Others had wings.

Some were covered in scales.

Others in fur.

It was a diverse world.

A complex world.

Perhaps the most complex world the entity had encountered in a very long time.

Its gaze swept across entire continents.

Oceans.

Mountain ranges.

Kingdoms.

Cities.

Until it stopped at one of the most densely populated regions of the world.

Civilization there appeared particularly advanced.

Great walls surrounded vast urban districts.

Roads connected distant settlements.

Cultivated fields stretched as far as the eye could see.

At the center of the city stood a monumental structure.

Part castle.

Part temple.

Part fortress.

Its towering spires dominated the horizon.

Within it...

Three humanoid individuals lacking fur, scales, or claws were engaged in verbal conversation.

"The Hero has returned from his latest expedition."

"How did the border operation go?"

"Was the mission successful?"

The two subordinates watched the man before them attentively.

His attire was far more elaborate.

Long ornamental robes covered his body.

In one hand, he carried a silver metal scepter.

The man remained silent for several moments.

Then he nodded.

"Yes."

"The reports indicate that the operation was successful."

"The demonic forces have been driven out of the region."

One of the subordinates let out a sigh of relief.

But the superior did not seem satisfied.

Quite the opposite.

His expression remained grave.

"That is not enough."

He rested the scepter against the floor.

"We cannot allow the demons to continue attacking our border villages."

"Every incursion costs lives."

"Resources."

"Time."

The other subordinate crossed his arms.

"The Demon King continues to expand his influence."

"Even after so many defeats."

"It seems they simply refuse to retreat."

"Because they do not intend to retreat."

The superior answered immediately.

"They are preparing something."

"I am certain of it."

The room fell silent.

Eventually, he continued.

"Gather more adventurers."

"I want the best available."

"Mages."

"Knights."

"Mercenaries."

"It does not matter."

"Form a support contingent for the Hero's next expedition."

"The sooner we pressure them, the better."

One of the subordinates hesitated.

"Do you believe the Hero can advance all the way into demon territory?"

"Perhaps."

"Perhaps not."

The man sighed.

"Even the Hero has limits."

"He cannot fight forever."

"Even if he could defeat the Demon King's entire army alone, he would still need to rest before confronting the Demon King himself."

"Otherwise, he would face the Demon King exhausted, while the Demon King remained at full strength."

"And the Demon King would undoubtedly take advantage of that opportunity."

"The Hero must replenish supplies."

"And recover his strength."

His expression darkened.

"And the Demon King knows that."

"He will not simply sit and wait."

No one responded.

The truth was simple.

Killing the Demon King was easy to say.

Surviving long enough to reach him was the difficult part.

The superior then turned toward one of his aides.

"Regarding the Hero."

"Yes?"

"The Hero's party is gathered on the upper terrace, correct?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then let us go."

"I wish to hear the full report directly from him."

The three men left the room.

Without realizing.

Without even imagining.

That far above the clouds...

Far beyond the blue sky they knew...

A single colossal eye was observing every word.

Every movement.

Every thought.

And for the first time in a very long while...

The entity seemed genuinely interested.

"They appear to possess a highly developed system of communication and spoken language, unlike the previous planet. Here, they seem capable of conveying information clearly through verbal interaction."

"I have encountered several worlds like this before, though the similarities usually end there."

"Hero..."

The voice echoed only to itself.

"Demon King..."

"While these humanoids were speaking, they repeated those words many times, expressing significance, respect, concern, and fear."

The enormous eye remained fixed upon the city.

"Curious concepts."

"These humanoid lifeforms repeat them frequently. They appear to hold considerable importance."

A brief silence followed.

"But what exactly do they mean?"