Chapter 46:The Broken Crown of Immortality

The sky was still torn open.

Even after Lucifer left the battlefield behind, the fractured dimension above the five kingdoms kept bleeding chaos—monsters spilling through like the world itself had forgotten how to stay whole.

Below, the kingdoms were holding. Barely.

Above, Lucifer was already moving.

"You really just skipped the emotional damage part and went straight to murder again."

Chirin sounded exhausted.

Lucifer didn't even slow down as he flew through the collapsing sky corridor.

"Emotional damage is overrated," he replied.

Chirin clicked his tongue.

"Can't believe you slept with your brother's future wife."

Lucifer raised an eyebrow.

"He's not my real brother."

"That's your defense?"

"She wasn't 'his' either. She was forced into it. And abandoned the moment immortality showed up."

A pause.

"I just gave her something better than being a political tool."

Chirin groaned.

"You call everything 'giving something better' when you're involved."

Lucifer smirked slightly.

"Because I usually am."

Below them, the battlefield below the sky crack was still alive.

Princesses, knights, and rulers were fighting side by side.

And surprisingly—

They were winning.

"Look at that," Chirin said. "They're actually holding their ground without you."

Lucifer glanced down briefly.

Raven was leading formations like she had been born for war.

Meng was cutting through flying beasts like frost given form.

Even Mia was stabilizing injured zones.

Lucifer hummed.

"Good. That means I can stop babysitting."

Chirin sighed.

"Your girls are terrifyingly competent."

Lucifer shrugged.

"I don't expect anything less."

Then he accelerated upward.

"Now we go end the source."

The higher they climbed into the fractured realm, the worse reality became.

Gravity shifted.

Space bent.

And then—

A storm of monsters hit them.

Lucifer didn't even slow down.

Guns fired. Clairvoyance locked targets before they moved. Bodies dropped before they understood they were dead.

Chirin muttered, "This is getting old."

"Then stop watching."

A sudden impact hit Lucifer from behind.

He twisted mid-air.

Dodging just in time.

A blade cut through the space where his head had been.

A familiar presence stood behind him.

Leo.

Leo

"So you finally came," Lucifer said casually.

"I've always been here," Leo replied coldly. "I just stopped acknowledging your existence."

Lucifer sighed.

"Still dramatic, I see."

Leo's grip tightened.

"Draw your sword."

Lucifer tilted his head.

"For what?"

"We finish this. Right here."

Lucifer smiled faintly.

"As you wish."

Steel screamed against steel.

Two brothers collided in the broken sky.

Lucifer moved like a predator refined by chaos—fast, precise, unpredictable.

Leo was different.

Heavy. Controlled. Unyielding.

A collision of inevitability and rebellion.

Blades clashed.

Force met force.

For a moment, neither moved.

Then—

Leo pushed forward.

"You always hide behind tricks!"

Lucifer blinked.

"And you always mistake effort for intelligence."

He vanished.

Haste.

Dismantle followed.

Strike after strike landed—but Leo endured.

"Is that all?" Leo growled.

Lucifer exhaled.

"No."

Clairvoyance fired.

Weak points revealed.

Bullets pierced armor gaps.

Leo staggered.

For the first time.

Lucifer stepped in close.

"Now you're just predictable."

Leo roared and swung—

And hit air.

Lucifer was already behind him.

"Goodbye, brother."

One clean line.

Severance.

Silence followed.

Leo fell apart mid-air before vanishing into the collapsing realm.

Chirin exhaled.

"...He was strong."

Lucifer didn't look away.

"He was the hero type."

"And you?"

Lucifer smiled slightly.

"I'm the result when heroes don't matter anymore."

Ahead of them—

The Fountain appeared.

Not a fountain in the normal sense.

A massive cup suspended in reality, filled with liquid light that never spilled.

Corpses surrounded it.

Kings. Soldiers. Dragons.

All failed attempts.

Chirin went quiet.

"...That's a lot of death."

Lucifer nodded.

"And still not enough to stop them."

Then he paused.

Something worse had already arrived.

A massive shadow fell over the field.

And from it—

The final presence descended.

The Dragon King.

Dragon King

Standing over the remains of the human ruler, chewing casually like the world was nothing more than food.

He spat the head aside.

"Tasteless," he muttered.

Then he looked at Lucifer.

"So. Another challenger."

Lucifer stepped forward slightly.

"I'm not a challenger."

A pause.

"I'm your ending."

The Dragon King laughed.

"You humans always say that before dying."

Lucifer tilted his head.

"Good thing I'm not human."

The Dragon King struck first.

Space shattered under his fist.

Lucifer dodged—but barely.

Even the air itself felt heavy.

A second strike followed.

Then a breath of fire.

Lucifer countered with bullets and precision cuts, but the Dragon King adapted instantly.

Too fast.

Too strong.

Lucifer's chest was pierced mid-exchange.

He was thrown back.

Blood in the air.

Chirin shouted, "Lucifer!"

But Lucifer was smiling.

Barely.

"Perfect..."

Chirin froze.

"Perfect?!"

Lucifer stood slowly.

"This is exactly what I needed."

He poured everything into regeneration.

His body rebuilt itself instantly—stronger than before.

The Dragon King narrowed his eyes.

"You're still standing?"

Lucifer wiped blood from his lip.

"Barely started."

The fight escalated.

Sky collapsed further.

Mountains cracked below.

And then—

Lucifer stopped dodging.

He waited.

Just once.

The Dragon King closed in.

"Foolish."

That was the opening.

Lucifer activated everything at once.

Raging Tempest

A full circular slash.

Space itself split.

The Dragon King's head separated from his body in silence.

For a moment—

Even the realm stopped moving.

Chirin whispered.

"...You just gambled your life."

Lucifer exhaled.

"Big risk."

A faint smile.

"Big reward."

System alerts flooded his vision.

KING SLAYER — ACTIVE

REGROWTH EVOLUTION COMPLETE

7 STAR / 9 CIRCLE REACHED

Lucifer glanced at the Fountain.

Then drank half.

And offered the rest.

"Your turn."

Chirin hesitated.

"I'm a sword. I drink blood, not nectar."

Lucifer chuckled.

"Then evolve."

A pause.

"...You're unbelievable."

Chirin absorbed the remaining essence.

And for the first time—

The sword felt alive in a way beyond purpose.

When the chaos finally settled, they stood alone above the ruined realm.

Lucifer lay back slightly, staring at the broken sky.

Chirin muttered, "You know this is insane, right?"

Lucifer closed his eyes.

"Yeah."

A pause.

"But it worked."

Silence.

Then Chirin spoke softer.

"...Don't disappear on me."

Lucifer smirked.

"I was never planning to."

And for the first time in a long time—

The world didn't feel like it was about to end.

Just pause.

Before the next war.