Silence.
Once I made my declaration, silence consumed everything.
I saw my doppelganger close his eyes as he inhaled deeply. The fact that he heard me out, and was currently not speaking, showed my words somewhat had an impression on him.
Perhaps he—
"Are you done?"
"What do you mean?" I responded, not expecting a response so soon.
"I mean, are you done spewing all that idealistic bullshit?"
"Ahh..." It seemed I raised my hopes a little too high.
This was someone who would wipe out an entire race in his pursuit for his desires—someone who had spent over a hundred years down this path.
'He's not going to change that easily.'
"What you're essentially saying is 'be nice to people, and treat people well, instead of looking out for yourself.' That's stupid!"
It seemed he was deflecting my ideals, rather than critically analyzing what I just told him. There seemed to be a cognitive dissonance somewhere within him, but he preferred to ignore it rather than face it head on.
I knew deep down this version of me didn't want to be evil.
'He wants to be recognized too, doesn't he? Recognized for his achievements.'
"Unlike you, I actually have no room for distractions. I will keep pursuing Magic to it's utmost limits. I will abandon anyone who stops me or stands in my way, that's true, but only fools would even try that."
Seeing this person this way ached my heart in more ways than I could say. Perhaps it was because these could have so easily been my words.
'No, Jared. Stop trying to immerse yourself too deeply. You're different people.' I cautioned myself, maintaining my cool.
"Do you know what that makes me? It makes me superior! I'm not like everyone else. I'm smarter, I'm stronger... I'm better! I am better than them!"
His gaze went to the Outers, and then to me. He seemed to be enjoying every moment of it. At this point, I couldn't really tell which one he'd rather be.
A hero or a villain.
"I don't care about useless people. If you don't have what it takes, then beat it. I worked tooth and nails to reach where I am. I gave it my all, suffering and enduring for my sweet reward. You think I'm going to let everything go now? You think I'd leave everything I've toiled for just because you told me to?"
Yes... I was too optimistic. These sort of things took time.
'And with time...' I smiled a little, glancing at Jane, whose face depicted how touched she was by my words.
'... You'll understand.'
I just had to give the seeds enough time to germinate.
"I suppose it's time we ended this now." I said, calmly ending the conversation there.
"Indeed. Considering how I know you're me, I'll be going all-out. Since you're a Hero who has saved your world countless times, this should be the best approach."
I nodded gently.
"You're right. You should hold back."
I wasn't going to hold back too much either. To make this fight as meaningful as I wanted it to be, I had to show this Jared the truth.
"Kindness is not the same as weakness. You can be strong, and at the same time... you can love others."
"Shut up!" Jared snapped, his face now twisted in rage and disgust.
It seemed he had gotten enough of my supposed 'bullshit.'
"[Elemental Chamber]!"
The moment he said this, all the major elements converged on him, swirling around to form the same model I used.
"[Dark Mage Mode]."
His body became.more engulfed in darkness, and a dark mage cloak covered his body, with a twisted staff held in his hand.
Several dark orbs appeared around him, and his power swelled considerably.
"[Original Magic: Ultimate Power]."
It seemed his power skyrocketed even more the moment he activated this Magic.
It just kept rising indefinitely.
'Is this like Serah's [Invincible]?' No, there seemed to be a difference.
His power seemed fluid and malleable. Almost as of it was constantly adapting and shifting.
It took me a few seconds of analysis, thanks to my Magic Items and my immense sensory abilities—as well as Spellcraft, to finally comprehend what his Magic was all about.
'I see. [Ultimate Power] allows his power to keep increasing, while also maintaining a constant state of flux. This gives him the power to use any Magic he understands, with no restrictions and requirement.'
His energy would easily switch to the attribute, eliminating all forms of casting time or requirements.
He could probably use Original Magic of it was simple enough for him to understand and easy for his power to mimic.
"This is the very pinnacle of power. No, it's beyond it. This power far transcends Nine-Star Magic." He declared to me. "This is the result of my dedication and unyielding determination!"
He was right. This right here was 'Peak Level' Magic.
Even my Magic Item wouldn't protect me from his Spells anymore.
According to this world's standards, he could be considered a deity.
'He's very strong...'
In a world like this, his powers had transcended what anyone could hope to achieve.
However... this was simply the case of a frog in a well.
'I'm at the Transcendent Level. This isn't even a challenge for me.'
And perhaps it was time for him to know the simple truth.
"[Grand Elemental Chamber]. [Grand Fusion State]. [Mage Mode]. [Martial State]."
And finally...
"[Original Magic: Great Sage's Memoir]"
My body radiated immense light, and my transformation was concluded in an instant.
Emerging from the brightness that surrounded me, contrasting the darkness before me, I kept my gaze constant and resolved my heart.
'I just have to show you... how wrong you really are.'
*
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[A/N]
It's finally time for them to Duke it out one last time.
Just so you know, even though we've gotten to a climax, this is nowhere close to the end of this Arc.
There's still a lot... and I mean A LOT!
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