Hueco Mundo… was never yours alone to rule as a Vasto Lorde.
Before Sōya Azashiro could speak, Lilynette and Harribel had already moved—weapons drawn, one to the left, one to the right, their blades resting dangerously close to Baraggan Louisenbairn's neck.
"…"
Baraggan looked at the two newly ascended Vasto Lordes before him. He said nothing, but the weight of the moment pressed on him. Somewhere along the way, Hueco Mundo had stopped being his unquestioned domain. Time changes all things… yet…
"You think the two of you can defeat me? "
"Defeat the one who has sat on the throne for a thousand years? "
"Many Vasto Lordes have been born in Hueco Mundo over the centuries. But do you know why there has always been only one sitting on the throne? "
"Allow me to enlighten you."
Baraggan slowly raised both hands. Even with twin blades poised at his neck, his face remained steady—the composure of a king who had never known defeat.
"…?!"
Lilynette and Harribel exchanged a glance. A strange unease stirred in their hearts. Instinct screamed that they needed to put distance between themselves and Baraggan.
"Decay."
With a quiet murmur, black mist began to coil around Baraggan, swallowing the air in suffocating waves.
In the same instant, Lilynette and Harribel leapt back—anything to avoid that malignant, deathly aura.
"Hahaha…"
"You feel it, don't you? That primal fear gnawing at you? "
"This is the power of Baraggan Louisenbairn, King of Hueco Mundo. The power… of a god."
Baraggan extended skeletal hands toward their retreating figures. His voice, calm and level, sounded less like a threat and more like a statement of absolute fact.
"…Gods aren't that weak."
Sōya Azashiro tepped past Lilynette and Harribel, ignoring their warning cries.
"Azashiro !"
"That black mist is dangerous — don't get close! —don't"
Both women reached out, hands gripping his shoulders, trying to stop him.
"Relax~ I'm invincible."
He turned and flashed them an easy smile, then walked right up to Baraggan, face-to-face.
"You…" Baraggan's eyes narrowed. For the first time in ages, something unsettled him. "I have never seen a Shinigami like you. Are you even one of them? Or something else entirely? "
"I told you—'Shinigami' is a profession, not a race. I'm not part of the Gotei 13, so I'm not a Shinigami."
Azashiro tone was casual, as though correcting a child's misunderstanding. Wearing a shihakushō didn't make someone a Shinigami—in the same way that being a Hollow was, in truth, just another chosen path. The roots were the same; only the career differed.
"…An amusing explanation. In all my years, I've never heard one so absurd. I almost feel reluctant to kill you. My palace could use someone with a sense of humor like yours. Serve me, and I may let you live."
"Let's talk about serving you later. First, how about we play a game, Baraggan~? "
Azashiro smiled, extending his open hand.
"Don't test my patience. Don't waste the rare mercy I've chosen to grant you."
"Let's make a bet," Azashiro proposed. "If you can harm me with your power, I'll submit to you and follow your every command. But if your ability has no effect… you'll work for me for a hundred years. Deal? "
"…You would have the King of Hueco Mundo serve you? " Baraggan's anger boiled over. Never before had a mere human—or anyone—dared such insolence.
"No, no…" Azashiro waved him off. "I'm not interested in ruling over you. Just a small favor, something that won't cost you much effort or dignity."
"Hmph. Very well. I'm no petty man. If you survive, I'll even accept subordination. But that is… if you survive."
"Then go ahead—use your power on my hand." Azashiro grinned, taunting.
"…Vanish."
Baraggan grasped Azashiro hand.
"Azashiro!"
"Lord Azashiro! "
Lilynette and Harribel's hearts clenched. They wanted to rush in—but his earlier words still rang in their ears. They chose to trust him.
Time flowed. Baraggan, King of Hueco Mundo, had never kept count of his years. From the moment of his birth, he had been invincible, his power absolute. Not a single Vasto Lorde had survived his ability… except once.
A strange Hollow had appeared long ago—immune to his decay, endlessly devouring. Neither could kill the other, and they stood as twin titans of Hueco Mundo until that Hollow vanished without a trace. Baraggan never learned its name, and he did not mourn its absence. In his mind, there had only ever been one true ruler: himself.
"Perish."
He could already picture it—Azashiro hand rotting away to nothing in an instant, not even hair left behind.
And yet…
"See? I'm fine."
Baraggan's empty sockets widened. His ability… had no effect. For the first time in his reign, he had met someone utterly beyond it.
"…Why?"
"I told you—my spiritual pressure is above yours."
Azashiro removed his blindfold. In that instant, a pair of ocean-blue eyes met Baraggan's—and with them came a crushing wave of spiritual pressure, vast as the sea, suffocating as the abyss.
"What… what overwhelming power…"
Before him, Baraggan no longer saw a man—but a giant holding up the sky, while he himself was nothing more than a fragile skeleton at its feet.