Time.
Void.
Life.
Now, Skyler knew three Divine Elements.
Every time, he planned everything perfectly, yet the more flawless his plans became, the more unexpectedly everyone died. It was as if the damn trial was playing with his mind.
Whenever Skyler believed he had finally found the correct path to clear the trial, he would eventually discover that everything he had relied on was wrong from the very beginning. Again and again, he was forced to turn back time with the Wheel of Time.
And every time he failed, something big would change. Eventually, he even began wondering how everyone would die in the current timeline. No matter how much he helped them, they were never able to clear the trial. And the worst part, the thing that made Skyler want to kill everyone himself, was that unlike them, he wasn’t eligible to enter the Battle Royal because of his body.
If only he could enter, he was certain he could do what they all had failed to do!
The only level in the Battle Royal that he could force his way into through a crack was the one where the powerful artifact, the Wheel of Time, existed. However, the dark chamber containing the artifact was itself sealed by divine power, with no way out, making it impossible for him to leave.
The trial was probably laughing at him, watching him struggle in vain as his mind slowly crumbled. The only thing he gained from so many failures was knowledge of more and more Divine Elements.
But even that came at a price.
His lifespan began to shorten. With every new timeline, he could feel himself living less than he had in the previous lifetime.
Time.
Void.
Life.
Death.
Order.
Chaos.
Fate.
And then.
Origin.
It was in Skyler’s thirty-second life that he comprehended the Divine Element Origin.
It was also the life in which Skyler finally broke the restrictions of the Battle Royale, forcing his way in. The only emotion left in his bloodshot eyes was endless rage. He carved his own way through the Battle Royale as he climbed higher and higher.
He had only one goal.
Kill whoever stood in his way.
The Main System tried countless times to end his life, yet it failed every single time.
In the end, it even broke the Battle Royale’s rules, allowing the Gods and Higher Beings to descend into its lower levels to kill him. And after recognizing him as a big threat, they actually abandoned the Divine War.
How ironic.
Skyler remembered laughing as countless powerful Higher Beings pointed their blades at him. Those lofty existences he had once believed he could never reach had come to him of their own accord. Haha. The Divine War, which had raged for countless ages, had come to a standstill because of him.
One of them had even shouted in shock.
"You’re just a mere mortal! How could someone like you cause such chaos...?"
No one among those surrounding him could believe he had come so far despite having a body that couldn’t hold power. He had actually walked the Path of the Divine, a path that all believed led only to death.
Knowing that alone was enough to make them want to kill him because they knew that if he continued growing like this, the future they had calculated would change.
Yet, due to the power of the many Divine Elements protecting him, they all failed.
Skyler had smiled genuinely for the first time in what felt like an eternity. As he forced himself to his feet, he muttered.
"It’s time to end this play."
Yet, just as he was about to shatter the illusion—to kill them all and claim victory—the space around him suddenly fractured.
Cracks spread across the world.
Everything dissolved into darkness.
Then, a cold mechanical voice echoed through the endless dark void.
(Error...)
(You cannot eliminate those who won the Divine War, which concluded long ago.)
Skyler’s raised hand slowly fell.
Veins bulged across his forehead as his entire body trembled violently. He clenched his fists so tightly that blood dripped from his palms, his voice cracking as he shouted into the endless darkness surrounding him.
"Doesn’t that mean I won?!"
"I WON!"
"So send me back! SEND ME BACK!"
His roar echoed through the void, but at first, nothing answered. Then, at last, the cold mechanical voice rang out once more. But the answer made his vision go blank.
(The ??? is not satisfied.)
(Error... Restarting the trial.)
Skyler staggered back.
"No..."
The word escaped his lips in a whisper before erupting into a desperate scream.
"NO! YOU CAN’T DO THIS!"
Yet, despite his desperate screams, the world around him continued to change.
The darkness faded.
Before him appeared the same familiar scene—himself standing in the very place where his mother had slapped him before leaving. The place where it had all begun.
The same scene he had seen again... and again... and again. At that moment, Skyler nearly went mad. For the very first time, he simply wanted to kill himself and end it all.
At that very moment, a familiar message screen flashed before his bloodshot eyes.
(As compensation, the trial has provided the only person who still remembers with the location of the Mythic Spirit Pool. It can change your constitution completely.)
A pause. Then another screen appeared.
(The changes will carry over into reality.)
Skyler slammed his fist into the screen.
His voice was hoarse, almost broken.
"I DON’T WANT THAT!"
"JUST SENT ME BACK!"
But it was useless... Once again, every ounce of power he had gained was gone.
Ultimately, Skyler collapsed to his knees.
He remained in that position for a long time, uncaring of everything around him.
When he realized he had lost the will to fight, he forced himself back to his feet.
He didn’t go to find the Mythic Spirit Pool.
Because he was unwilling.
So unwilling.
It felt as if he had to do what the trial wanted... as though he had no free will.
Thus, he became rebellious.
Anyway, what was the worst that could happen?
He would die?
Heh.
He had already died so many times.
What difference would one more death make?
This time, he simply lived his life as though he were just another fake person in the trial, watching Max and those under him struggle from the sidelines. They looked desperate.
He didn’t help them, nor did he use the Wheel of Time after they died. He simply lay lazily beneath the sky, doing nothing.