Skyler’s figure appeared outside the top guild of the Human Continent—a square, tall building surrounded by many others.
It was situated directly across from the bustling city that housed the Royal Castle.
Guild members in training or casual attire were gathered outside in silence, many of them floating mid-air as they stared at the cracked sky stitching itself back together.
He did not notice the Queen or the familiar tall man with purple eyes among them—the man who was using the last of his strength to mend the sky, even as the cracks across his body grew more pronounced and blood slipped from his lips. Queen Elizabeth’s icy eyes were red-rimmed as she watched her husband give his all, yet couldn’t help him.
Her fists clenched. If it were up to her, she would have dragged him back to the castle to rest. But he would not listen. He wanted to help the people she ruled. Funny enough, she did not care much about those people.
She only cared about his well-being.
The Queen’s senses tingled as she felt a familiar presence nearby, prompting her to turn. Her eyes immediately locked onto the running ash-brown-haired youth. Why was he here? Shouldn’t he be at the Academy?
Elizabeth had been watching him perform at the Gala earlier on a massive projection screen in the castle with her husband—his battles had been nothing short of flawless.
But then, everything spiraled into chaos.
Her husband disappeared without a word, heading straight for the top guild, and she had no choice but to follow after him.
"Hmm?"
She watched quietly. Without pause, Skyler Thorne—her grandson, whom she had only met just two months ago—rushed into the top guild’s main building. If only she knew he wanted to confirm just one thing: who had reached the status of a Divine Being.
"I am feeling strangely uneasy."
She muttered, looking away—only to notice that Damien had also seen the boy rushing into the building. His usually smiling purple eyes had hardened as he mouthed to her.
’Go after him.’
She was taken aback but shook her head.
"No... you’re more important."
Meanwhile, after entering the building, Skyler rushed toward the lift immediately.
But when he saw it would take too long to arrive, he turned and sprinted up the stairs, simply disappearing toward the top floor.
Mentally, he desperately hoped the person who had attained the status of Divine Being wasn’t Argon Steel—anyone but the number one Light of the Human Continent! After all, his body would break down after ascending, incapable of bearing the weight of divinity!
"I swear, if he somehow got his hands on the treasure Max was meant to absorb to become Eldoria’s first Divine Being—and used it... we’re all doomed! Doomed!"
He finally came to a stop at the top floor, heading straight for the lone wooden door in a corridor lined with steel ones. Luckily, with nearly every guild member outside, no one noticed him—let alone stopped him.
Well, aside from the powerful receptionist on the top floor—but even she merely made a quick call upon recognizing who he was.
After all, as a prince, he at least had the privilege of going wherever he pleased.
Not to mention, Skyler knew Argon wasn’t the sole leader of the top guild. One of the Queen’s sons secretly sponsored the guild and held equal authority. He was the same man who had delivered the news of Eldoria finally clearing the 51st level of the Battle Royale to Alistair Thorne: Nox Thorne.
That truth, however, only surfaced publicly much later in the story—after Argon’s death, when Nox took over the guild, only to hand it over as a gift to Jenny, hoping she would recruit Max Hales and the rest of her team.
"Tsk, he has so many children, but no... he had to give the guild to Jenny like a noble fool and spark a war among his own."
He shook his head at the thought of how his cousins would have exploded with rage upon seeing their father hand the guild over to Jenny—someone they barely even knew.
"My dear cousins would’ve absolutely lost their minds the moment they found out."
Finally, the image of Alisha and George’s sour faces lifted his mood. After all, Alisha Thorne was on his blacklist. That princess had the nerve to call him a beggar, despite his undeniable charm and handsomeness.
Skyler stopped in front of the wooden door. His breathing was steady—almost too calm—but his sweaty palms showed just how on edge and genuinely nervous he truly was.
He reached for the little handle and turned it slowly. So slowly that it didn’t even make a sound. He wasn’t planning to barge in.
He just wanted a glimpse.
Just one peek, and he would leave.
He knew it was risky—if Argon saw him right now, things could go very wrong.
But he had no choice. He had to confirm it with his own eyes: was Argon truly the one who had ascended to a Divine Being? If the answer was yes, everything would change.
Skyler would have to abandon his current plans and prepare to face the calamity that would descend upon their universe within a month. No, this calamity didn’t come in the form of beasts, spirits, or even immortals—it was Chaos itself, a dark force born from the living essence of the God of Extinction.
Not to destroy, but to enslave. Its purpose was clear: to conquer and offer unclaimed universes as spoils to the God of Extinction—so only he could exploit these worlds as instruments in his pursuit of supremacy.
After all, all the gods were at war. In the end, they would all disappear into oblivion—except for the Three Thousand who would ascend the Thrones, and their sole ruler.
Skyler had no idea why the Higher Beings were involving the lower universes in their war. Maybe it was to feed them the illusion that everyone—even the weakest—had been given an equal chance to ascend the 3,000 Thrones. There was likely a deeper reason, but it was never revealed in original story.
But one thing was sure: Argon Steel was going to collapse soon after his ascension.
Argon’s body, already pushed to its limits by Divine Sight—a powerful skill he had gained from the Battle Royale—couldn’t endure any further divinity. It was only a matter of time.
Skyler’s grip tightened on the door.
"Please don’t let it be true! There were so many other Lights who went with him and cleared the 51st level—any one of them is fine, but not him! He will be no help when the Chaos comes, despite being strong!"
He whispered to himself as his blue gaze slipped through the narrow opening—only to witness exactly what he had feared. It looked like Eldoria was truly doomed this time—worse than in the last timeline.
Skyler staggered back, dazed.
’Should I have let Max stay the protagonist and stayed out of this story? I am really not ready to take responsibility for my actions—I can barely commit to my sleep schedule!’