Under the beautiful night sky, where the galaxy emitted a bright glow, a vast field of soft, dense grass stretched endlessly.
The grass beneath was as plush as a luxury carpet, and although the sky above was filled only with starlight, with no moon in sight, it didn’t feel dark at all.
It was a strange space, just the grass and the night sky.
In this space, Golden Reapers began appearing, scattered across the field, lying on the grass as if exhausted.
As soon as the Golden Reapers, who had been lying down with their eyes closed as if dead, opened their eyes, they stood up with a cheerful "Yay!" pose.
This place was the Mini Reaper Valhalla, where the fallen Mini Reapers temporarily stayed.
At least for today, this field was exclusively for the Golden Reapers, who often sacrificed themselves in suicidal attacks.
At the center of the field, two large doors stood open, and beyond one of them lay the bright and warm Mini Reaper Garden.
The Golden Reapers had clearly been here many tis before, as they looked at each other with knowing smiles, as if saying, “Oh, we died again.”
An unusual mix of Mini Reapers began arriving in the field filled with Golden Reapers.
The Black Reapers had never been to Valhalla before, but they quickly rose with familiar expressions, looking around as if they already knew what this place was.
Seeing this, the Golden Reapers sprawled gloomily on the grass.
They wanted to explain this place to the newly arrived Black Reapers, so they slowly approached, only to sulk when the Black Reapers seed indifferent.
As more Reapers started arriving, a variety of Mini Reapers appeared in Valhalla.
A Blue Reaper, too cold and in pain, shivering under its oversized hat.
A Red Reaper, looking completely bewildered.
An Orange Reaper, with its eyes tightly shut, rolling around the ground like a spinning top.
Seeing these newcors, the Golden Reapers ran toward them, smiling brightly.
Rembering the confusion they felt the first ti they died, the Golden Reapers hurried to comfort the others, making sure they didn’t experience the sa shock.
“It’s okay!”
With warm, reassuring smiles, the Golden Reapers shared their gentle encouragent and explained the situation.
Once the confusion subsided, the Mini Reapers gathered in a circle on the field, waiting for sothing.
Though this empty world of only sky and grass was boring, the Mini Reapers sat patiently, knowing sothing was about to happen.
When the galaxy above ford a circular ring of light, the Mini Reapers suddenly stood up and started running.
“Mom!”
They rushed toward a Gray Reaper who was lying flat on the field.
Cold.
A freezing chill spread from the center of my body, like my flesh was freezing solid.
Once that bone-chilling cold I never wanted to feel again subsided, I could finally recognize my surroundings.
All I saw was an endless expanse of darkness, stretching out as if the world itself had died.
If even a small piece of flesh remained, my vision wouldn’t have been consud by this darkness—I could’ve regenerated.
But for the first ti, the world had turned completely black.
Am I… dead?
I couldn’t tell, since I couldn’t see my own destruction condition.
I really should’ve checked the destruction conditions of the others sooner.
The Golden Reapers were probably fine, but even though I felt like the others were okay too, there was a faint sense of unease.
I’d made the mistake of not checking the conditions of the other Mini Reapers because the Golden Reapers hated having theirs read.
It’s making nervous for no reason.
My darkened vision began to brighten.
It was like looking up at the sky from deep underwater—light shone from above the surface.
In the distance, I could see a crowd of Mini Reapers gathering beyond the surface, forming a circular mass.
Golden Reapers, Black Reapers, Blue Reapers, Red Reapers, Orange Reapers.
All the Mini Reapers I’d brought with were there.
Thank goodness.
It seems their destruction conditions are linked to either the destruction of the garden or my death.
I could float up to the surface and wake up, but I stayed subrged, lost in thought.
What should I do about the Angler Reaper?
Neither phasing nor spatial manipulation worked, and I felt stuck.
It must be the power of the 'Eye,' but I couldn’t think of a way to get close to it.
Ah, if only I had the Cult Leader’s ability to nullify powers, I could coat my hands in white fire and beat the Angler Reaper senseless!
I imagined pounding the Angler Reaper’s head and made mock punching motions underwater.
While I was lost in thought, I caught sight of the familiar ring of light hanging in the night sky beyond the Mini Reapers.
I’d seen that light ring countless tis, but suddenly, I had a strange certainty.
“I think I can put that on my head.”
With that ring of light, I felt like I could fight the Angler Reaper.
I swam toward the surface.
As I rose, I felt a wave of emotions wash over .
“Mom, wake up!”
“Mom, are you hurt?”
The Mini Reapers poked at my cheeks, looking down at with worried expressions.
“It’s Mom!”
As I sat up, the Mini Reapers clung to , their faces lighting up with joy.
“Are you all okay too?”
There was a brief mont of silence.
Then the Mini Reapers gleefully clung to , saying, “Mom is so kind!”
Now that I thought about it, I had never really worried about the Golden Reapers, even though they kept launching themselves into suicide attacks.
They always smiled so brightly as they threw themselves into danger, I guess I just took it lightly.
The Golden Reapers must have felt cold and hurt too!
Feeling grateful, I pulled the Mini Reapers close and hugged each one, thanking them.
The Mini Reapers, as if they had already forgotten the cold and fear, laughed and bead with happiness.
I didn’t want to die again, but they didn’t seem to mind, still laughing so cheerfully.
“Alright, let’s go.”
After petting all the Mini Reapers, I stood up.
Looking at the two large doors in front of , I reached out toward the 'Eye' hanging in the sky.
As soon as my hand touched it, the ring of light, like magic, fell into my grasp.
In its small form, it looked like an angel’s halo.
I placed the halo on my head and walked slowly through the door, back to the place where I had died, where the Angler Reaper was waiting.
As soon as I crossed the large door back into the battlefield, an unexpected wave of searing pain engulfed .
It felt like red lightning was crashing through my brain.
My entire body felt like it was being torn to shreds.
Like in the dream, my skin turned black, and the yellow flas started to burn bright red.
The halo was the problem.
It was like plugging a 110-volt device into a 220-volt outlet.
It felt like my circuits were frying under too much voltage.
“Kew.”
The Angler Reaper, seeing suddenly reappear, took up a stance despite its exhausted appearance.
Gritting my teeth, I reached out and grabbed the space around us.
Screech!
A loud, grinding sound echoed as the very fabric of space began to tremble and distort.
The space, which had once been as pliable as pudding in my grasp, now resisted, screaming as if it was being torn apart.
It was the clash of the 'Eye' that made all attacks miss versus the 'Eye' that nullified all powers.
Crack.
As the clash ended, one of the Angler Reaper’s arms was ripped off, as if a giant monster had taken a bite out of it.
How about that!
I forced a smile through the pain, grinning mockingly.
Your power to make attacks miss is nullified now!
But the Angler Reaper didn’t seem to care at all, still maintaining its calm stance, ready to attack again.
It seized the opportunity and charged at , swinging its massive blade.
Without even breathing, the Angler Reaper exploited a gap in my thinking and was suddenly right in front of .
But I didn’t move. I simply spread my arms wide, waiting to receive the attack.
The Angler Reaper’s giant blade struck my neck precisely, but nothing happened.
My head wasn’t cut off, nor did my body disappear in a white fla.
Of course, because the blade’s white flas weren’t powered by the 'Eye.'
The glow that once allowed the blade to cut through physical immunity faded the mont it touched .
“This is what nullification looks like.”
I grinned and folded my arms around the Angler Reaper, pulling it into a tight embrace.
And then, I grabbed the space around us, ensuring there was no escape.
You won’t be able to phase through this.
The Angler Reaper desperately stabbed at with its elbow, which had transford into a sharp spike, but it couldn’t pierce through my physical immunity.
“You can’t hurt anymore.”
Its fists, feet, and elbows struck my blackened skin again and again, but it was useless.
Unless it had a special ability like space-cutting, it couldn’t penetrate my immunity!
As the Angler Reaper grew more frantic, I began crushing the space around us, focusing on its struggling form.
Screech!
The clash of these powerful 'Eye' abilities caused a deafening noise, sending shockwaves in all directions, violently shaking the surrounding space like crashing waves.
Even as the space distorted around it, the Angler Reaper didn’t stop thrashing, using every limb and even trying to bite .
It was a desperate, savage struggle.
But then, the grinding noise stopped, and a huge explosion echoed across the battlefield.
Crack.
As the explosion faded, a heavy silence settled over the area.
The space was cracked and fractured like shattered glass, and in the center, the Angler Reaper stood still, gazing up at the ceiling.
And it was smiling faintly.
It was a strange expression, so unlike the furious, relentless attacks it had unleashed earlier.
It looked… relieved.
And almost… nostalgic.
The Angler Reaper, though exhausted, wore a peaceful smile.
In its final mont, the Angler Reaper looked down at and softly cried.
“Kew.”
And then, the space around it began to collapse.
Its body shattered like glass and disappeared into the void beyond.
As the broken space returned to normal and the fierce energy dissipated, only the remains of the Angler Reaper were left behind.
Floating quietly in the air was the halo, glowing softly.
Now that I had t the destruction condition, I slowly reached out for the halo.
As my hand touched the warm light of the halo, the 'Eye' responded.
A sudden pulse of light spread outward, and the power bound to the halo was released, shooting up into the sky in a brilliant flash.
The halo disappeared.
The Angler Reaper, which had caused so much trouble, was finally defeated.
With a sense of relief, I tossed the halo that had rested on my head to the ground.
It transford into a flash of light and shot into the sky, while my blackened skin returned to its original color.
Finally, it was over!
I savored the feeling of victory, calling the Mini Reapers to join .
“Mom is strong!”
“So strong!”
As the Mini Reapers cheered and I lay down on the ground, they piled onto my stomach, rolling around in joy.
But that smile the Angler Reaper had shown at the end… what was it?
It was a smile filled with a strange sense of longing, and for so reason, it lingered in my mind.
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