Chapter 1322: Final Showdown
~TSSS~
As the tip of my finger touched [All Things], I felt everything around me stop.
Legris. Existence. Everything.
My eyes closed, and new ones opened entirely.
Right there and then. I had an epiphany that completely changed me forever.
I felt my entire self connect to every single thing in existence.
From the Roots of both Trees, to the Trunks, to the Branches, to the Leaves, to even the tiniest of particles.
I was connected to everyone and everything that ever existed, that was currently existing, and that would exist.
It felt like I lived all their lives, felt all they felt... knew all they knew.
All of that knowledge, spread across infinite realities, became mine.
Compared to being a Grand Constellation, my current state felt infinitely more powerful.
I was beyond Boundless.n-)/))-e-.(--/I-)n
I was beyond Primordial.
I was... beyond everything.
I had become Infinite.
*******
"Ack!"
Legris Damien was pushed back by the sudden rush of power that surrounded Jared.
He had been just a few inches further than Jared, but it was too late for him.
Jared now had all of the power and knowledge he sought.
"No... this wasn't how it was supposed to go!" Legris growled at Jared, his hatred simmering out of his blackened form.
He immersed himself in the darkness that he was, allowing the concept of Nonexistence to completely envelope his body.
"I don't care what you think you are, or what you have become!" Legris yelled, his blackened eyes widening in desperate fury.
"You're in my way! I'll destro—!"
"That's enough, Legris." Jared's voice suddenly echoed in the vastness of ORIGIN.
It felt like a multitude of people were speaking at the same time.
No, not just a multitude.
More like all of creation was speaking as Jared uttered the words that he did.
It was overwhelming.
"No... this isn't how it's meant to go! That power is mine! MINE!" Legris yelled.
"The one who should have it is ME!"
"It's over." Jared responded, his body now a cluster of indescribable light.
He had become a kaleidoscope of radiance, unable to be seen or perceived by anyone beneath him.
Not even Legris could properly decipher him.
He had transcended everything that could be said to exist or not exist.
"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" Legris yelled, his enigmatic presence overflowing from within him.
"IT'S NOT OVER! NOT UNTIL I GET WHAT I WANT!" Legris roared as he charged at Jared.
All the force of nonexistence flowed with him as he charged at the one he detested beyond anything else.
The one who had taken what was rightfully his.
"IT'S NOT OVER UNTIL I WIN!"
As he neared All Things Jared, however, he could feel his presence fading away.
'What's this? An attack?!'
No... it wasn't an attack at all.
All Things Jared had not moved a single bit from his position, and he had done nothing but warn Legris.
What was happening was simple—but it was too much for Legris to comprehend.
Jared's presence was enough to extinguish Legris, who was actively using all of his power.
It was not even a competition.
Jared slowly raised his hand as he stared at Legris.
"This is goodbye, Legris."
As Legris broke down even further, he cursed with all of his strength.
He clawed his way forward, desperately seeking even one tiny fraction of the power he was seeing another possess.
His body shattered, but he kept approaching Jared.
It was a pitiful display devoid of any pride or dignity.
He did so until he was face to face with the very personification of [All Things].
And then...
Jared's outstretched hand landed on his shoulder, and he once again opened his lips to speak.
"Farewell."
Before Legris could touch Jared, the last embers of his nonexistence were consumed.
His nonexistence was transformed into existence, and every form of his anomaly was unraveled.
All the nigh infinite layers that guarded his mortality were bypassed, and he was inevitably overwhelmed by the very power he craved.
"M-Magic... A-All Things... My D-Dream..."
Those words vanished the moment he tried to say them.
It was too late, and too early at the same time.
All of it came to an end at that point, thus starting a new beginning.
And so, Legris Damien ceased to be.
*******
There once was a boy.
He loved Magic to the point of obsession.
However, he was inept.
He was unable to have what he desired no matter how hard he tried.
He did his best to reach the verh precipice he was disqualified from, but it was all for naught.
Desperation pushed him to the forbidden.
He decided to defy the laws of nature, and the result ended with him in a strange space between existence and nonexistence.
A Limbo.
This was the start of Legris, and his Original Magic that no one else possessed.
[Who Am I?]
All variants—all versions of himself—had been affected by the sole decision of one.
They were all connected in the darkness.
They were one mind, with nigh infinite bodies—his own.
All of them were Legris, and Legris was all of them.
But they were all gone now.
They merged into one, and that one sought even more—he wanted everything.
It was a grand goal, but he could achieve it.
If he, as an Inept, could finally use Magic, then what was stopping him from achieving even more?
He failed the first time, thanks to Neron.
However, thanks to Neron's 'correction' of the forgotten timeline, he had his chance once again.
This time, he decided to be more subtle, to be more careful.
He would be perfect!
But in the end... he was defeated by the one he had deemed to be most irrelevant.
Legris had thought that if anyone could stand a chance at stopping him, it would be the one who did it the first time.
But he was wrong.
Jared, the talentless son of the Leonard Household, was the one to do it.
The conclusion was so absurd that it could make anyone laugh.
However, Legris was not laughing, even until his final moments.
He was empty.
He... had always been empty.
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Thanks for reading!
Much appreciation to you all.
In five or so chapters, the story should conclude.
Thanks for being with me on this journey, and please stick around for some news!