Frustration coursed through Edward's heart.
His awe and affection slowly morphed into a deep desire to win.
Desperation clutched his heart deeply, and his bloodshot eyes clearly depicted his disbelief at his own loss.
Something like this shouldn't have been happening!
"Aries, do something! Help me!" Edward shouted, his powerful voice quaking the space around him.
~I am sorry, Edward. But with the current disconnect we have, I won't be able to aid you any longer...~
Those words shattered Edward's heart, and the crouching despair that slowly enveloped him slowly began to consume his very being.
'N-no...' His thoughts whispered to him. '... I can't lose now.'
Not yet! He hadn't gone all-out yet!
Yes... what else hadn't he done yet? There had to be something he was yet to try.
"No matter what you do, I will win." Jared's voice annoyingly rang in his ears, and his muscles trembled the more he heard his taunts.
'I... I am not weak. Not anymore! NOT ANYMORE!!!'
>VWUUUUUUUUUMMMMMM!!!<
There was one final thing he could do. It was exempted from the fight because it was going to shift the balance one way or the other, but Edward could no longer see any other way out.
This was his ultimate path to victory—the only one he had left.
"Martial Zone..." He whispered.
"Hey, Edward, what are you—??!" Kuzon's distant voice was silenced by the special dimension that swallowed both Edward and Jared, transporting them to the special realm Edward created through his Martial will.
'I won't lose... not yet!'
Despite Jared mentioning despair, Edward felt perfectly fine. He no longer felt the crushing weight of such negative emotion on him, but rather it was the opposite.
Edward never felt more alive!
"Oh? We're back here again. This Martial Zone of yours... it's amazing." Jared's voice echoed in the vast expanse that surrounded them.
The nebulae that occupied the sea of space. The glittering stars around. The brilliant contrast of both light and darkness.
Edward knew his Martial Zone was beautiful.
"You don't seem too bothered. None.of your Arcanas will work in Martial Zone."
This was a world made by him. It functioned according to his own rules, was manifested according to his will, and the concepts within were all established by him.
No one was allowed to alter anything.
"Your Magic will also be limited. In contrast, I will be able to do anything I desire within this space."
An immeasurable incorporeal swords appeared instantly, all larger than the single massive Mind Blade he had summoned back during his fight with Jared.
Their numbers were overwhelmingly staggering.
And yet... despite all of this, Jared merely broke into a smile.
"I am well aware." He simply uttered.
'Where is this hubris of his coming from??' Edward found himself constantly confounded by Jared's line of thought and his arrogant words.
It infuriated him to no end.
"I have trained for hundreds of years just for this moment. I am far stronger than I was before, and in this Martial Zone, I am absolute!'
What could Jared possibly do against those odds?
"Absolute, huh? That's an interesting proposition..." An insulting laughter proceeded from Jared's lips.
"Why don't we test that out?"
"What will you do? Make another Arcana? You have something else that can combat this, huh? Is that it?!" Edward bellowed out, his realm quaking as a result of his rising rage.
"Not exactly." Jared's response was short and simple.
"Then—"
"I don't need to make an Arcana to stop you. Frankly, it takes too much Aether, and I'm almost out..."
That was even more good news! It only made sense that after doing so many impossible deeds, Jared had finally reached his limits.
'But if that's the case, why is he telling me all of this?!'
What was his angle?
"That's why I'll show you something instead. Once you experience it, I'll let you decide."
"Decide what? Who wins this battle?" Edward abruptly responded.
"No. Whether you're really absolute."
"Tch! You..." Edward's teeth grated with each other, causing the blades he created to intensify n power and double in size.
"... This is the end!"
The blades lunged at him with perfect speed, each packing enough power to utterly obliterate him.
"I agree. It is the end..."
Edward felt like he was suddenly thrust into a world where time was still.
The blades he launched towards Jared were seemingly stopped in motion, and so was Jared.
Everything was still, including him.
'W-what is...'
"Your Martial Zone is lovely, but why don't I show you something more interesting?" A voice echoed from all across the Martial Zone Edward dominated.
It sent shivers down his spine, and he trembled at the sudden authority that assailed him.
"It's still incomplete, but..."
Edward felt his Martial Zone being overwritten at a rapid pace, and everything around him being swallowed by something bigger—greater than himself and everything he knew.
"... Primeval Magic..."
Edward's eyes widened at the new world that he was forcefully thrust into, his entire body entirely overwhelmed by the infinite expanse that overrode his senses.
"... [Great Sage's Archives]."
Gone was the Martial Zone he had crafted with meticulous detail, now reduced to a minuscule speck amidst countless galaxies that stretched out before him.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he beheld the breathtaking beauty that unfolded in every direction.
Endless nebulae swirled in vibrant hues, cascading across the cosmic canvas like ethereal brushstrokes. Stars, each one a brilliant jewel, dotted the celestial expanse, their radiance illuminating the vastness of this new world.
The dimension stretched out endlessly in every direction, a seemingly infinite multiverse housing countless universes within its embrace. Stratas and layers intertwined, forming a tapestry of existence that defied comprehension.
Edward's gaze swept across the celestial expanse, his eyes tracing the interweaving threads of universes that stretched far beyond his line of sight.
He witnessed galaxies upon galaxies, sprawling across the cosmic canvas like luminescent tendrils. Colors danced and swirled, painting the backdrop of this unfathomable dimension with a kaleidoscope of cosmic energies.
The boundaries between universes blurred, allowing glimpses into other dimensions that coexisted in harmonious chaos.
Edward witnessed realms of ethereal beauty, where landscapes defied earthly logic and imagination ran wild.
Forests of crystalline trees flourished under starlit skies, their branches whispering secrets of ancient wisdom.
Mountains rose like sentinels, their peaks brushing against clouds of swirling stardust.
In another dimension, he witnessed a cityscape of shimmering towers, their architecture defying the constraints of earthly materials.
A cacophony of sounds, both alien and familiar, filled the air as beings from countless worlds mingled and coexisted, celebrating the diversity of existence.
Edward's gaze roamed across the immense panorama, his previous creation relegated to a mere collection amidst the grandeur that surrounded him.
The Emperor's Domain, Ainzlark Academy, The Nether Cult's Headquarters, all of them now stood as individual structures among countless other vast dimensions and realms that formed just a fraction of this extraordinary tapestry.
But amidst the splendor and majesty, his attention was drawn inexorably towards the center of it all.
There, an imposing figure loomed, dwarfing everything else in its presence. Edward felt an inexplicable pull, as if the very fabric of this dimension bent towards this immense being.
As he approached, he realized that even the scale of his new surroundings was irrelevant in comparison to the sheer magnitude of the entity before him.
He felt smaller than an ant, a mere speck in the cosmic scheme of things. The being turned its gaze upon him, and Edward felt a mixture of trepidation and awe coursing through his veins.
A smile, warm and enigmatic, stretched across the being's countenance, radiating a sense of unfathomable power and wisdom.
In that instant, Edward recognized the entity before him.
It was Jared!
"Welcome to my domain." The voice echoed, and at that moment, the final vestiges of the will to fight vanished from him.
"I told you, Edward. The one who stands at the top is the one who initiates change." Jared's voice danced in Edward's ears, irresistible, yet soft.
Edward finally understood Jared's words from earlier. He could finally comprehend why Jared couldn't accept the proposition he made about him being absolute.
Compared to the tiny speck of dust that was his Martial Zone, Jared's [Great Sage's Archives] constantly grew and evolved, and was vaster than anything he could ever comprehend.
It was infinitely changing and growing.
There was no longer any doubt in Edward's mind as he finally admitted his loss. He couldn't deny it any longer.
'The absolute one... is Jared.'
*
*
*
[A/N]
Thus concludes the fight. What did you think?
I mean, Jared was always going to win against Edward, but did you imagine it to be to this degree? And now it seems Jared has access to Primeval Magic.
... AND HE HAS NO CONSTELLATION!
I have a new novel ongoing, and I would really appreciate your support.
The title is "Only I Can See The End"
Please support me by checking it out. Thank you all.
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