Chapter 4 — The Watching Eye

It simply watched.

The way someone watches an insect resting on a leaf.

The way someone watches an experiment that is about to begin.

Or perhaps...

About to end.

The silence did not last long.

The Hero was the first to act.

His instincts were screaming.

Something was wrong.

Terribly wrong.

But there was a simple explanation for it.

Or at least, an explanation his mind could accept.

"This must be some kind of Demon King's magic!"

Before anyone could stop him...

He leaped.

His body soared through the air above the plaza.

His sword shone brightly.

Runes appeared along the blade.

Magic gathered around him.

It was one of his most powerful attacks.

The technique that had defeated countless demon generals.

The technique that had destroyed fortress walls.

The technique that had changed the course of entire battles.

"Disappear!"

He unleashed the strike.

A gigantic arc of light shot toward the heavens.

Higher.

Higher.

Higher.

Everyone watched.

The magic pierced through the clouds.

Continued rising.

And continued.

And continued.

For several seconds.

But something was wrong.

It never seemed to get any closer to the eye.

Never.

It was as if the distance between them remained exactly the same.

The attack began losing power.

Its light weakened.

Weakened.

Weakened.

Until it vanished completely.

Without ever touching that thing.

Without ever even coming close to it.

The Hero landed once more on the balcony.

His eyes wide.

"No..."

His voice faltered.

"No..."

He stared at the sky.

"My attack didn't reach it?"

"Impossible..."

"That's impossible..."

No one around him answered.

Because they had all seen it.

The Hero's most powerful attack had disappeared without ever getting close.

On the other side of the continent...

The Demon King watched the same scene.

His expression remained serious.

"So it isn't an illusion."

He stepped forward.

His wings unfolded.

His magical power erupted.

An overwhelming pressure spread throughout the castle.

Even his generals instinctively retreated.

The air trembled.

Space itself seemed distorted around him.

Then he raised a hand.

"It doesn't matter what it is."

A black sphere appeared above his palm.

Far larger than any spell the Hero had used.

Far more destructive.

Far denser.

"Let's see how it reacts to this."

The spell was fired.

A black beam tore through the heavens.

Tens of kilometers of clouds were scattered in its wake.

The energy surged upward.

Higher.

Higher.

Higher.

And then...

The same thing happened.

The magic continued traveling.

Continued advancing.

Continued approaching.

Yet it never arrived.

Never.

It was like trying to reach a star.

Or a dream.

Or a concept.

The energy began to dissipate.

Its intensity faded.

Until it vanished completely.

Without ever touching the eye.

The Demon King remained motionless.

For the first time...

Speechless.

Then the fear began.

True fear.

Because something had become clear.

If the Hero could do nothing...

And if the Demon King could do nothing...

Then who could?

Some people began crying.

Others ran.

Others simply stood frozen.

Unable to process what they had just witnessed.

Then the eye moved.

Or rather...

It seemed to move.

Its eyelid slowly began to close.

The Hero immediately raised his sword.

The Demon King prepared another spell.

Everyone expected an attack.

An explosion.

An invasion.

The end of the world.

But none of those things happened.

The eye simply closed.

Slowly.

Until it disappeared.

The distortion in the sky vanished with it.

And in that instant...

Everything became dark.

Not like night.

Not like a cave.

Not like a room without light.

It was different.

Very different.

Light itself simply ceased to exist.

Everyone went blind.

Instantly.

The Hero could not see his own hand.

The priests could not see one another.

The soldiers could not see their weapons.

The citizens could not see the ground beneath their feet.

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Screams spread everywhere.

"What happened?!"

"I can't see!"

"Light a torch!"

"Am I blind?!"

People began reaching for one another.

Trying to confirm that they were still there.

That they still existed.

That they had not disappeared.

On the opposite side of the continent...

The exact same thing was happening.

The Demon King used sensory magic.

Attempting to locate his subordinates.

And he succeeded.

They were still there.

He could still sense them.

Still hear them.

But he could not see them.

No one could.

"Some kind of visual obstruction spell?"

"A curse?"

"A divine ability?"

The theories emerged one after another.

But none of them made sense.

Because no known magic possessed such a scale.

None.

Not even among Heroes.

Not even among Demon Kings.

Not even in legends.

And while the entire world descended into panic...

While millions of people struggled to understand what was happening...

The entity watched.

Silently.

This planet truly is interesting.

Far more interesting than the previous one.

I can sense countless civilizations.

Countless cultures.

Countless species.

Some humanoid.

Others not.

Some advanced.

Others primitive.

Some living in war.

Others in peace.

The entity's thoughts continued.

Winged beings.

Scaled beings.

Creatures covered in chitin.

Marine species.

Subterranean species.

A considerable diversity.

Far superior to the last world.

For a brief moment...

Something akin to satisfaction appeared within its thoughts.

Perhaps this one will last longer than the previous ones.

And then...

It continued watching.

While none of the inhabitants of that world could comprehend that the darkness surrounding them was not magic.

Nor a curse.

Nor an attack.

It was merely the shadow of something far greater than the world itself.