Sora flew back to his original spot. He searched several times, tapping into the infinite power he now wielded, yet couldn't find any hidden measures left by HOOH.
This puzzled him deeply, but at the same time eased his vigilance a little.
Maybe HOOH did have some countermeasure planned for me but didn't expect I'd kick it apart in one go.
Therefore, the backup plan had barely been activated when it got forcibly scattered several light-years away, near some distant planet.
Honestly, even Sora himself hadn't imagined the outcome would be quite this dramatic.
Initially, he'd only intended to teach HOOH a lesson—to make THEM feel pain.
As the saying goes, some people only behave after they've felt real pain. But he hadn't thought that, at the very end, it would turn into this sort of situation.
He'd directly shattered HOOH's Aeon body—likely something unprecedented since THEIR birth.
Yet Sora could also sense clearly that, though HOOH's Aeon body had broken apart, THEY still existed in this universe.
Through the perception granted by [Life Damashii], he felt that, at the final moment, a luminous spark of life had fled this place.
"Still, since THEIR Aeon body's already shattered, this place should at least intimidate THEM for a while."
After all, no one would fall for the same trick twice—especially an Aeon.
Each of THEM had lived for hundreds of Amber Eras; no matter how constrained THEIR consciousness by the Paths, THEY would still possess basic common sense.
Guess it's finally time to rest.
Realizing this, Sora relaxed his strained nerves.
The surging seven-colored wings gradually halted, dissolving into countless feathers drifting toward distant stars across the galaxy.
"Thanks, everyone, for your help," he said softly to the feathers.
[Life Damashii] could only make contact; it had been their own choice to come and aid him.
"No, no, no thanks needed! It's our honor to help you!"
"Big brother looked super cool just now! You have to come visit our planet sometime!"
"Sora-san, you're too kind. Without you, we might have ended up as cosmic corpses drifting through space. Helping you was the least we could do."
Farewell voices echoed in his ears, and he waved gently, bidding these newfound friends goodbye.
The seven-colored glow faded away, as if it had never appeared, and the overwhelming strength in his body gradually weakened.
Eventually, Sora disengaged his transformation, and the [Eyecons] popped out, separating completely.
[Mugen Damashii] and [Heisei Damashii] appeared translucent, seemingly exhausted.
Yet, [Superhero Senki] remained unchanged, even appearing slightly stronger. When flipped open, there were even several new figures within its pages.
Sora couldn't help but grin—he quickly noticed something peculiar.
All the other forms merged with you are exhausted, yet you alone became stronger?
Considering one strengthened while others weakened, it seemed [Superhero Senki] had absorbed their energy!
Wait a damn minute!
And you still claim you're not some trick left behind by the Flame Swordsman?!
Now that it was all over, Sora finally allowed himself to relax completely.
"Alright. Now there's another issue at hand."
Looking at the endless expanse of the galaxy before him, Sora felt a headache coming on.
I really should've waited until I got back to Tartaro before canceling the transformation.
Now how do I get back to my body?
Floating in this vast space, Sora began seriously considering the possibility of his soul crossing several light-years back to Tartaro.
After careful calculation, he concluded that the probability was effectively zero.
Unless the [Eyecons] regained their energy, or perhaps—
"Hey! You stupid, dumb idiot!" Titania's shrill voice rang clearly from behind.
Sora immediately broke into a sly grin.
If I just trick this bratty girl who never received any proper education… wouldn't I have my ride back?
Kekekeke…
Titania, mid-flight, suddenly felt a cold chill run down her spine.
What's going on? Don't tell me there's another enemy?!
...
Inside the Arbitrator Tribunal, everything was now quiet.
The Arbitrators had already assembled their forces, ready to visit the Masked Fools' gathering place to properly thank them for their generous 'repair fees.'
Thus, at this moment, only the eldest Arbitrator remained in the Tribunal.
Yet he wasn't idle either; he was busy applying countless layers of plaster onto HOOH's stone statue.
The footprint on the statue's forehead had already been completely filled and smoothed over by him.
After careful sanding and repainting, no one would ever realize there had been a footprint there before.
This was precisely the elder Arbitrator's moment to shine.
Having finished his work, he stepped back and admired the statue from below.
Now, the sculpture stood flawless, as if no footprint had ever marred it—as though it had always been this pristine from the start.
The more he looked, the more pleased he became with his handiwork.
"I've memorized every indentation, every chisel mark on this statue perfectly!"
Pride swelled in his heart—this was his devotion toward HOOH.
No one else could achieve this, and that's why he had become the eldest Arbitrator in this place!
Having completed all tasks, the Arbitrator began to clean up the mess.
But just as he was tidying things, a sudden noise erupted behind him.
Clatter, clatter…
The sound of stones falling rang out clearly, instantly dredging up his most unpleasant memory.
The last time a footprint appeared on this statue's forehead, wasn't it the same exact sound?
But no matter—he'd devoted himself fully to restoring it once; he could do it again!
With a heavy but resolute heart, he turned around—and was instantly stunned by the sight before him.
Black and white energies surged wildly from the planet itself, pouring into the statue. As this torrent continued, the sculpture of HOOH seemed to come alive, gaining some inexplicable spiritual presence.
The Arbitrator stared at the scene dumbstruck, jaw hanging open involuntarily.
Wh-wh-wh-wh-wh—what the hell is this?!
Only when the torrent of black and white finally stopped, and a gleam of consciousness flashed in the statue's eyes, did the strange phenomenon cease completely.
[POWER RESTORED ABOVE 20%. ESTIMATED FULL RECOVERY TIME… 237 AMBER ERAS.]
HOOH's consciousness manifested within this stone figure.
This statue was the closest object in the universe resembling THEIR original Aeon body, making it perfect material for reconstructing THEIR form.
Assessing THEIR losses, HOOH deemed this outcome acceptable.
However, the place where billions upon billions of lifeforms had gathered—THEY'd probably avoid casually approaching it for now.
This incident made HOOH keenly aware of just how terrifyingly powerful a united collective of sentient wills could become, capable of sowing chaos across the universe.
Indeed, Aeons possessed immense combat prowess, yet the true upheaval across galaxies was always triggered by ordinary lifeforms.
If the universal swarm disaster had only TAZZYRONTH but no ordinary insects, it might never have escalated into such a disaster.
Without millions upon millions of mechanical beings, the Second Anti-Organic War likely wouldn't have engulfed most of the universe.
Aeons, at best, served merely as catalysts. The true forces escalating events were always ordinary lifeforms themselves.
[AND REGULATING THOSE LIFE FORMS TO MAINTAIN EQUILIBRIUM IS EXACTLY WHAT EQUILIBRIUM SHOULD DO.]
This collapse of HOOH's Aeon body led THEM to an even deeper understanding of THEIR Path of Equilibrium.
Although this injury could be called the most severe since THEIR birth, the gains were also substantial, enough to balance out the losses.
This, too, was a form of equilibrium.
After organizing everything clearly, HOOH prepared to resume THEIR task of balancing, and to recuperate from the injuries along the way.
The most pressing issue now was to restore THEIR Aeon body as soon as possible.
Precisely because of this, THEY only now noticed the Arbitrator who was praying devoutly beside THEM.
Thoughts surged, and HOOH instantly understood all that had happened here.
The incident of THEM being kicked had spread across Galaxy Net; the Masked Fools had mocked; and the Arbitrators had gathered their forces to retaliate…
All these events became clear in a moment.
Normally, HOOH wouldn't have cared about these trivialities, since they had no connection with equilibrium.
However, after recalling the figure who'd deflected the blame, causing another to be kicked in the buttocks instead, THEY fell silent briefly.
Then, in the mind of the elder Arbitrator praying devoutly, a majestic voice suddenly sounded.
After hearing the voice, the old man raised his head in shock. He couldn't fathom why the Aeon he worshipped would make such a decision—but when he looked up, HOOH had already vanished without a trace.
Hastily, he pulled out a communicator.
"Cancel all actions against those Masked Fools immediately. This is an order directly from the Aeon!"
Although he had no idea why HOOH gave such an order, the Arbitrator obeyed nonetheless.
HOOH, observing from the dark void of space, nodded indifferently, preparing to leave.
But soon after, the eldest Arbitrator who remained behind noticed something odd on the floor.
Looking closely, it appeared to be the plaster he'd used earlier to patch up the footprint on HOOH's statue!
"Wait—if the plaster is here, then that means…"
Swallowing hard, the eldest Arbitrator seemed to realize something terrible, quickly grabbing the plaster and sprinting wildly out of the Tribunal.
"My Lord, don't leave yet! You forgot something important!"
He roared desperately, hoping HOOH would take the plaster to cover the mark on THEIR forehead.
He couldn't even imagine how awful it would be if HOOH appeared before everyone in the future, the footprint clearly visible.
Unfortunately, his shouts received no response.
Because at that very moment, a massive figure had appeared at the edge of HOOH's vision.
The figure was also an Aeon, and the enormous stone hammer in THEIR hand made THEIR identity abundantly clear—
QLIPOTH, the Aeon of PRESERVATION—though merely an avatar.
THEIR true self was still busy building walls. Such minor theft only required an avatar to handle.
HOOH saw QLIPOTH, and QLIPOTH also saw HOOH. The two stared at each other silently in the void of space.
[ROCKY, ROCKY! IT WAS BLOCKHEAD WHO DID IT! THEY STOLE ONE OF YOUR BRICKS!]
Beside QLIPOTH, another voice was quietly tattling.
[I TRULY DIDN'T EXPECT BLOCKHEAD TO BE SUCH A SHAMELESS THIEF, STEALING SOMETHING YOU PAINSTAKINGLY CREATED...]
That voice was thick with mournful regret, as if repenting for a friend who'd strayed down a dark path.
THEY should have disciplined THEIR friend properly, never allowing THEIR friend to stoop to such sneaky misdeeds.
[ALRIGHT, ROCKHEAD! I'VE THOROUGHLY CUT TIES WITH BLOCKHEAD NOW—CLEAN AND CLEAR!]
AHA drifted casually before QLIPOTH, but HOOH's attention fell directly upon AHA's buttocks.
A trail of seven-colored light was still vividly tracing patterns through space as AHA floated about.
It seemed this old friend had also learned a harsh lesson at the hands of that self-proclaimed "Kamen Rider."
[YOU COULD HIT THEM WITH YOUR HAMMER AND I WOULDN'T EVEN THINK OF STEPPING IN! JUST GO!]
AHA naturally felt HOOH's gaze upon THEM, and THEIR tone instantly turned bitter and furious.
Since Blockhead dared to trick AHA, how could someone with THEIR temperament simply swallow this insult?
So, AHA immediately turned to THEIR other best buddy for help, fully convinced that some good hammer-based education would set Blockhead straight.
Meanwhile, the Amber Lord's gaze rested firmly on the small footprint etched onto HOOH's forehead.
QLIPOTH's gaze flickered, noting AHA's buttocks tracing a vivid 'S' one moment, and an 'M' the next across space.
QLIPOTH already understood what had occurred, but as long as THEY could find whoever stole THEIR wall block, the rest was irrelevant.
QLIPOTH exchanged a brief glance with HOOH, and within an instant, they'd reached a silent understanding.
The Amber Lord nodded slightly, before THEIR body dispersed into countless fragments of stone, vanishing completely.
After paying a small price, HOOH had successfully dismissed QLIPOTH, and immediately focused attention on AHA.
[AHAHAHA! AHA JUST DIDN'T WANT TO SEE AN OLD FRIEND BECOME A CRIMINAL—THAT'S CALLED GUIDING A LOST AEON BACK TO THE RIGHTEOUS PATH...]
Laughing merrily, AHA slowly blended into the deep darkness of the universe.
How could HOOH not know the true nature of THEIR old friend?
AHA had only come here searching for amusement—precisely why THEY involved QLIPOTH.
HOOH's gaze deepened, waves rippling faintly within THEIR heart.
Just then, inside the Arbitrator Tribunal, the eldest Arbitrator—still holding the plaster and sighing helplessly—heard another sudden sound.
Eyes wide open, he instantly recognized the source of that majestic voice.
Hurriedly, following the voice's instructions, he reopened communications to everyone else.
"The previous order is void! Resume our actions against the Masked Fools immediately!"
"Haaah?! Ford, are you messing with us?"
Over the comm, one of his old friends was clearly frustrated by this abrupt reversal of orders.
He felt thoroughly toyed with.
"This isn't my doing—it's another revelation directly from the Aeon!"
Yet poor Ford was equally distressed. Who could've guessed the Aeon of Equilibrium would suddenly change THEIR instructions?
At the same time, confusion welled up in his heart.
Just what exactly had happened to cause things to turn out this way?