[Junia]


    The Next day.


    I again visited his room for the pure purpose of agonizing the bastard.


    He sat on his bed and motioned me to sit on the chair in front of him. “By the way, I have another method to accelerate my growth even further.”


    “Tell me!! It’s fun listening to wild theories.”


    Azrael smirked, his face oddly calm. “My theory? Simple. Absorb a planet''s core and assimilate its latent energy.”


    I froze, genuinely flabbergasted. “You’re kidding… right?”


    “Nope.”


    “That’s not just insane — that’s planetary collapse level insanity! You’re basically proposing the destruction of an entire planet!”


    He shrugged, a distant look in his eyes. “Yeah, I know. I''m like… 70% nihilist and 30% hedonist. Couldn''t care less if my life ends, but if I’m gonna die, I wanna know the limits of my potential first.”


    “…A nihilistic bastard with a cosmic energy obsession. Great, just what we need.” I rubbed my temples. “You’ve been thinking about this for a while, haven’t you? Got any ideas how you’d pull that off?”


    A twisted grin crept on his face, like a predator spotting prey. “Not yet. But once I hit Planetoid Rank, I’ll have a favor to ask of you.”


    I was intrigued despite myself. “…What favor?”


    “Simple. You’ll have to reactivate the portal for me.”


    “…The fuck!?”


    ……


    Seven days since Azrael showed up, and honestly? My life in the facility had become… interesting.


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Normally, my routine consisted of paperwork, creature dissection, spatial theory, and occasional sparring. Now? Half my day was spent talking or arguing with that insufferable bastard.


    He trained religiously, either working out or cultivating his so-called “cosmic cores.” During meal times, we’d banter or dive deep into insane theories — cosmic assimilation, dimensional collapse, latent genetic awakenings, you name it. It was stupidly entertaining.


    But… something about him gnawed at me.


    He wasn’t just reckless. He was desperate. Like he was running toward something… or away from it.


    And today, my curiosity finally won.


    ……


    I made my way to the portal room, fully expecting to find him drowning in his usual death wish behavior.


    There he was — cross-legged in a meditative stance, his entire body engulfed in cosmic energy so dense it almost looked solid. His skin shimmered under the suffocating pressure of the energy.


    “…Jesus.”


    He was condensing his seventh core — his supposed ‘last’ before breaking into Planetoid Rank. Six cores already shimmered within his body like pulsating stars. The sheer influx of energy was even making the portal react.


    But my gut clenched.


    The portal’s reaction wasn’t normal. Something bad was coming.


    And then it stepped out.


    A hulking, four-legged monstrosity emerged — a Rift Dweller.


    Its grotesque, hound-like body stood nearly 2 meters tall, covered in pulsating, tumor-like flesh with hundreds of unblinking eyes scattered across its body. Its exposed gums, lined with rows of razor-sharp teeth, dripped with corrosive saliva.


    “Oh fuck—”


    This was one of the monsters that decimated Europe. A peak Planetoid Rank nightmare. And Azrael was still a Mortal Rank — even with Absolute Control, he was screwed.


    I didn’t think. I acted.


    The space around me shimmered as I extended my arm, manifesting a spatial rift. In an instant, I was inside the dome with them, a conjured sword from my bracelet already in hand.


    I lunged. Fast.


    The Rift Dweller was faster.


    Its monstrous eyes darted toward me, and with a sickening crack, it moved. I barely registered the blur of muscle and teeth before my strike missed entirely.


    “Filthy bastard.”


    Gritting my teeth, I clasped my hands together. Space, in response to my command, bent. A 40-meter-wide spherical dome instantly formed, locking me, Azrael, and the creature inside.


    The beast thrashed against the dome, its strength causing massive shockwaves within the confined space. I immediately evacuated all personnel outside the dome — except Azrael, of course.


    The creature glared at me, recognizing the source of its entrapment. Its maw split open, and a deafening, otherworldly howl erupted, generating winds strong enough to collapse city blocks.


    I held firm.


    “Yeah… they’re awfully intelligent for ugly shits.”


    Snapping my fingers, I increased the gravity inside the dome a hundredfold. The creature immediately sank into the ground, cracking the facility floor as its own weight crushed it.


    It howled, struggling, and then — bam — it countered. The pressure of its roar disrupted my gravitational hold. Smart fucker.


    “Alright. Enough games.”


    I extended both my hands, my eyes glowing a pulsar-blue hue. The space around the creature fractured, transforming into a myriad of cosmic weapons — swords, spears, axes, hammers — all formed from pure spatial energy.


    “Die.”


    In a symphonic cacophony, the weapons hurled themselves toward the creature. It howled, conjuring winds strong enough to dislodge buildings — but it didn’t matter.


    Space. Warped. Reality. Crumbled.


    The creature was annihilated on an atomic level.


    The dome shattered, the floor caved in, and I stood in the middle of a massive crater.


    “…I’m the only one who actually causes less collateral damage,” I muttered sarcastically.


    The realization hit — I obliterated the floor and possibly racked up millions in property damage. “…Yeah, superhero life sucks.”


    Azrael, still sitting cross-legged, didn’t even blink. His energy was now suffocating, his seventh core complete.


    “…I condensed my seventh core.”