Chapter 77: Final Success! God of Stories! Lord of the Multiverse! Yggdrasil!
『 A lonely figure shuttled through repetitive time, until cycles spanning several centuries.
Repeating, learning, constantly repeating, constantly learning.
Witnessing the separation of close friends, witnessing the destruction of everything, the eyes of the god were filled with fatigue and sorrow, though he didn't know when it started.
But that glimmer of hope always remained; Loki believed he could save everything! 』
『 .....』
〜Myriad Worlds livestream Chat〜
[ Kaname Madoka (Puella Magi Madoka Magica): "Isn't this just like Homura… enduring loneliness and constantly repeating the same things through countless despairs?" ]
[ Homura Akemi (Puella Magi Madoka Magica): "As long as it's for you, Madoka, anything is worth it!" ]
[ Dr. Clef (SCP): "I never thought the God of Mischief and Lies, who is said to have brought disaster to Asgard, would have such a humane side~" ]
[ Doctor Strange: "The current Loki is equivalent to half a Time Stone." ]
[ Shokuhou Misaki (A Certain Magical Index): "This is only half?" ]
[ Ancient One: "Indeed, legend has it that if a user's power is strong enough, they can even manipulate time and causality. This allows the gem to be used as a weapon, plunging enemies and entire worlds into infinite time loops. The Time Stone can also slow down or speed up time, or even freeze it." ]
[ Fang Yuan (Reverend Insanity): "Another Spring Autumn Cicada?" ]
[ Thor Odinson: "Hmph, at least this time he didn't disgrace Asgard!" ]
[ Odin Borson: "My son, I am proud of you." ]
[ ..... ]
〜Marvel Cinematic Universe, Earth-????〜
Time Variance Authority—
"Can it really succeed?"
Loki watched his own figure on the screen, constantly shuttling through the same time, for centuries.
He never thought that he, a god of mischief, would one day reach such a point. He was the God of Mischief and Lies.
The one hated by everyone, and who hated others even more…
"…Don't mess it up,"
Loki lowered his head, clenching his fists. At this moment, he had never felt such an urgent desire.
—
〜Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation World〜
"Everything is predetermined, nothing is up to man."
"Fate does not shift according to human will. No matter how hard we try, how much we strive, what ultimately decides everything for us is still fate."
A figure in the darkness silently watched all this, without sorrow or joy.
—
〜A Certain Magical Index World, Academy City〜
"Although this Loki didn't seem pleasant at first, he's becoming more likable now."
The Railgun Quartet said in unison.
"Yeah, Mr. Loki was so weak at first, it felt like even a level 0 could bully him. Now he not only mastered time-slipping but also endured such prolonged loneliness. He's truly amazing,"
Uiharu Kazari said with an expression of admiration.
"Yeah, he was clearly a bad guy,"
Misaka Mikoto agreed, biting her straw.
Perhaps this is how it is: a good person doing a thousand good deeds isn't necessarily remembered, but a bad person doing one good deed makes people change their perception of them?
—
『 Several centuries later, Loki truly returned with perfectly mature multiplier components, before the Time Variance system was repaired.
The mission began. This research, which cost Loki centuries, finally allowed Variant Kang, holding the multiplier, to arrive before the Temporal Loom!
Loki calmly and composedly directed everything.
Every step was within his expectations.
The terrifying raw time energy devoured everything. Even wearing a specialized protective suit, Variant Kang struggled to move, his consciousness blurred.
But thankfully, at the last moment, Variant Kang successfully inserted the multiplier and launched it into the Temporal Loom!
The multiplier successfully activated, and Variant Kang safely returned to the control room.
Everyone's faces were filled with wild joy and the elation of surviving a disaster. They succeeded!
They finally did it, the infinite multiverse was saved! 』
『 .....』
〜Myriad Worlds livestream Chat〜
[ Natsu Dragneel (Fairy Tail): "That wasn't easy. Although it looks simple, just thinking about Loki looping for centuries sends shivers down my spine." ]
[ Ghost Rider: "This might be the convenience of controlling time. Time is supreme, not just a saying. If it doesn't work once, you can try again. Of course, without a tenacious spirit, you'll eventually destroy yourself on the journey through time." ]
[ Thor Odinson: "Hahahahaha! My good brother, you actually saved the multiverse! From tonight onwards, you are my pride!" ]
[ Tony Stark: "Thor, didn't you say that if you ever called Loki brother again, you'd…" ]
[ Thor Odinson: "Woof!" ]
[ Spider-Man: "Uncle was right, the greater the power, the greater the responsibility. Loki, you did it." ]
[ Beyonder: "I say, isn't it a bit too early to celebrate~? Is it really over?" ]
[ Kiana (Honkai: Impact Third): "What do you mean?" ]
[ Mei (Honkai: Impact Third): "Of course it's a happy ending! The destruction of the infinite multiverse is such an oddly universal conclusion, isn't it? No way you actually think it's over, right? An ending like that would just be far too boring." ]
[ ..... ]
〜Rick and Morty World〜
"What the hell, they want to control an infinite thing to stop it?"
Rick glared, cursing,
"What a bunch of idiots!"
Just doing useless work!
—
『 Viewers of Myriad Worlds 』
Everyone nodded in agreement.
If the infinite multiverse was saved so easily, then this crisis would be too ordinary. Loki merely learned time-slipping; at best, he's equivalent to those time races born with favor.
One could even say he's not as good as the Time Stone in a drawer.
Also, if everything was truly resolved so simply, then what was Conqueror Kang's purpose?
He knew everything, arranged everything, then drew Loki in and had Sylvie kill him. What was it all for?
To watch a good show?
And before he died, he said he had crossed that threshold, and at that point, the Sacred Timeline began to branch chaotically.
This means something significant must have happened then. Who would handle that matter?
A multiplier? That's a bit too ridiculous.
And at this moment, a sudden change occurred on the screen!
.....
『 "Wait, these readings are wrong!" O.B.'s face turned pale.
"What? What's wrong?" Loki was stunned, looking incredulously at the alarming readings on the instrument.
The expansion rate of the multiverse timelines… far exceeded the system's processing rate?!
The timeline was duplicating, expanding at an unimaginably fast speed!
Loki was bewildered and dazed. His head throbbed, and despair surged within him.
It was a matter of scale—
The raw time energy could never cope with an infinitely growing multiverse.
They couldn't deal with something that was infinitely expanding, like trying to divide by zero… no matter how much processing power they added, it would never be enough, it would always fail.
New timelines would inevitably branch out like the current one; this was destined to happen.
The timeline again couldn't bear the pressure, exploding and devouring everything—
"I'm sorry…" Variant Kang said bitterly.
"…" Loki said nothing, just looking at the desperate people before him, as if remembering something, his figure instantly vanished from the spot.
Still returning to the past, but the difference was— 』
『 .....』
〜Gurren Lagann World〜
"Did he finally realize?"
The Anti-Spiral murmured.
Indeed, to prevent the universe from collapsing, one must return to the very beginning, ensuring no time branches ever appear.
That is, the birth of the infinite multiverse, the moment Sylvie decided to assassinate He Who Remains!
—
〜Type-Moon World, Fifth Holy Grail War Worldline〜
"Can it really be done? Changing the past to prevent everything in the present and future from happening...."
Red A said with a bitter smile.
Wasn't that exactly his situation?
Because of his past dream of becoming a hero of justice, countless timelines of the Heroic Spirit Emiya were born.
But now, he wanted to kill the human known as Emiya Shirou, yet he couldn't do it no matter what.
Besides, wasn't it said before?
Why not travel back to before the criminal committed the crime and wait?
If one went back before an event to wait for it to happen, it could lead to even more severe branched timelines!
Thus making it impossible to reset the event with a reset, leading to truly branched timelines.
"It's still fruitless,"
Red A shook his head.
—
『 "Sylvie, stop!" Loki's figure reappeared, now blocking He Who Remains!
Loki told Sylvie everything: about the multiverse chaos after his death, the collapse of the timeline, the destruction of everything.
But no matter how Loki tried to persuade Sylvie, she always moved towards the fate node of killing him.
She wouldn't listen. Sylvie wouldn't listen to anything. All she wanted now was to achieve her so-called free will and utterly kill He Who Remains before her!
Loki stopped her again and again. Countless traversals made Loki realize that to resolve the current situation, he had to kill Sylvie!
But the feelings in his heart prevented Loki from acting, forcing him to witness the cycle of history again and again. 』
『 .....』
〜Myriad Worlds livestream Chat〜
[ Deadpool: "Shit! Loki, why can't you just kill this damn woman?!" ]
[ Aizen (Bleach): "Claiming to fight for free will, yet ultimately a god controlled by selfish desires." ]
[ Sakura Haruno (Naruto): "But Sylvie is really pitiful. Because He Who Remains targeted her, she suffered various injustices in her fate since childhood. Her resentment can't dissipate, so it's only natural for her to want to kill He Who Remains, right?" ]
[ Eren Yeager (Attack on Titan): "Then don't use the excuse of free will to carry out your selfish desires! For everyone's free will, the result is to let them die? That's too ridiculous!" ]
[ Laura Stuart (A Certain Magical Index): "So Loki really can't do it? This seems to have turned into a plot of sacrificing one person to save the world~ What should he do?" ]
[ ..... ]
〜Marvel Cinematic Universe, Earth-616〜
"Damn it!"
Thor's face also showed a hint of ferocity.
Loki was too lost at this moment. He couldn't let go of his feelings for Sylvie, yet he also wanted to save this world.
And what angered Thor the most was that He Who Remains just stood by, watching coldly like a spectator.
"Bastard, don't let me meet you!"
—
『 Repeating again and again, Loki finally couldn't bear it. He questioned He Who Remains, why he just stood by and did nothing!
This time, He Who Remains paused time, leaving only Loki and himself free to move.
Then, He Who Remains told Loki everything.
It turned out that from the very beginning, he had planned this progression, including the collapse of the timeline, Loki's time-slipping, and now the necessity of returning to stop the end of everything.
In despair, Loki no longer held anything back, revealing his current predicament.
He Who Remains smiled, unsurprised. He explained to Loki that the so-called raw time energy system overload was not a problem at all, because after the timeline expanded and collapsed,
The system would automatically delete all parallel universe branches except for the main universe.
Although this would destroy the Time Variance Authority, what did it matter?
As long as He Who Remains was at the end of time, everything else was minor. In the stacked multiverse, all Variant Kangs were about to strike, further accelerating the timeline's collapse.
This meant that no matter what choice Loki made, he would face the complete deletion of universe branches!
Then everything would return to Kang's absolute rule, everything would return to the starting point.
"I… I will destroy your power," Loki said grimly.
He Who Remains smiled. This meant that all the friends, all the family Loki cared about, everyone he loved and who loved him, would no longer be safe.
It was still the same question: kill Sylvie and return to normal, or provoke a multiversal war— 』
『 .....』
〜HunterXHunter World〜
"Just kill a woman and be done with it!"
Meruem frowned impatiently.
Loki now had no choice. The only choice was to kill Sylvie and return to normal.
—
『 Viewers of Myriad Worlds 』
Unlike the previous Emiya Shirou, everyone now saw clearly.
It was Sylvie who, to achieve her own free will, was willing to let the entire multiverse be destroyed. She was an enemy of the multiverse; the disaster was created by her. And Loki was the savior of the multiverse!
Next, what would Loki do? Although they asked, everyone already had an answer in their hearts.
Loki would definitely kill Sylvie to prevent the multiverse from being destroyed.
.....
『 Time slipped again, and Loki returned to the moment he first met and talked with Mobius.
He asked Mobius about the time of the first pruning mistake, and Loki finally came to this answer: Duty is a burden, not glory—it cannot be escaped.
Loki nodded silently, then saw Sylvie at the moment of the timeline's destruction again.
The same question was placed before Sylvie: kill her or let the timeline be destroyed.
Sylvie directly told Loki that, rather than repeating the cycle and exploiting the free will of the universe, it was better to take a chance!
Even if they lost everything, they could still see new hope!
"If there's hope… to replace it with something better," Loki murmured deeply.
At this moment, he made up his mind completely.
He went back once more to the moment right before Variant Kang was about to head to the Temporal Loom. Loki etched everyone's faces into his mind, then resolutely walked into the end of time. 』
『 .....』
『 Viewers of Myriad Worlds 』
Countless people stared at Loki in a daze.
Wait! What is he trying to do?! Damn it! Could it be…
Everyone seemed to have thought of a possibility, looking at Loki in disbelief!
.....
〜Marvel Cinematic Universe, Earth-???〜
The Celestials, Living Tribunal, Adam, Beyonder, the God Race, and so on, all looked at Loki with strange expressions at this moment.
Is he going to… bear everything?!
—
『 The shouts of the crowd didn't stop Loki for a second. He opened the door of time and walked forward resolutely.
The terrifying time, radiation fiercely tore at Loki's body and soul.
Loki's form began to change continuously. With every step, Loki's divinity underwent violent and terrifying transformations!
"Ah!!!" He spread his arms, separating the entire multiverse. Countless timelines were separated.
The infinite multiverse plunged into endless chaos, indistinguishable between day and night, time and space. A dead silence would descend here!
Loki utterly destroyed the time-variant energy, meaning the timeline would be on the verge of extinction, and the entire multiverse would soon perish!
But at this moment, Loki fearlessly grasped each individual branch of the multiverse.
Giving them life again!
Light reappeared at the end of the multiverse's cracks!
Loki looked back one last time. He stepped through the time staircase of the multiverse. Loki entwined all the universe's branches, all the endless causality!
ALL INTO HIS HANDS!!!
Stepping onto the throne that symbolized the Lord of the Multiverse—
The God sat upon the throne, entwined with the free will of the entire universe. Loki decided to sacrifice himself to become the temporal center of the Multiverse!
Only to give all life a chance—
A chance to have free will!
Countless timelines transformed into roots, finally weaving into a massive World Tree, the fate of everyone in the infinite multiverse! 』
『 .....』
『 Viewers of Myriad Worlds 』
Countless people felt their scalps tingle and their eyes split with shock at this scene!
Countless people suddenly realized!
So that's it! This is the glorious mission! This is true free will!
Loki, the God of Stories, the Lord of the Multiverse, was born at this moment!
.....