The sky cracked open.
Golden light poured out—
Endless.
Blinding.
Absolute.
The System Administrators froze.
Their forms flickered violently.
"WARNING—"
"UNKNOWN ENERGY SIGNATURE—"
"REALITY INSTABILITY—"
Kaizen stood at the center.
Silent.
Radiating power that didn't belong in any system.
He exhaled softly.
"…Guess I can't avoid it."
For the first time—
He removed his hands from his pockets.
"…Monarch Form."
Silence.
Then—
The world changed.
Light erupted from his body.
Not outward—
But everywhere at once.
His hair shifted—
Black to white-gold.
Flowing like light itself.
His eyes—
Burned like miniature suns.
Behind him—
A radiant halo formed.
Massive.
Spinning slowly.
Like a star given shape.
His coat dissolved—
Reforming into armor of pure light.
Elegant.
Divine.
Untouchable.
The sky turned gold.
Clouds vanished.
Reality bent around him.
Inside the guild base—
Every member dropped instantly.
"…I can't… look at him…"
"…That's… our Guild Master…?"
Even the S-Rank Guild Masters—
Trembled.
"…That's not a human…"
"…That's a god…"
Above—
The System Administrators began to distort.
"THREAT LEVEL—"
"UNDEFINED—"
"CONTROL LOST—"
Kaizen opened his eyes fully.
The world went silent.
"…You shouldn't have come."
The Administrators reacted instantly.
"INITIATING FINAL ERASURE."
The sky tore open again.
The massive system weapon reformed—
Larger.
Denser.
More violent.
It fired.
A beam descended—
Capable of deleting existence itself.
Kaizen didn't move.
The beam struck him.
Silence.
Then—
It disappeared.
Not blocked.
Not resisted.
Absorbed.
The Administrators froze.
"ERROR."
"ENERGY REDIRECTED."
Kaizen raised his hand slightly.
Light gathered.
"…My turn."
He stepped forward.
Reality rippled with each step.
"…You rely on the system too much."
The Administrators attempted to retreat—
They couldn't move.
Space itself locked them in place.
"…Let me show you something simple."
Kaizen snapped his fingers.
snap
The world paused.
Not frozen—
Obeying.
The Administrators' bodies began to distort.
"ERROR—"
"FORM COLLAPSING—"
"DATA—"
Kaizen looked at them calmly.
"…Skill Steal."
Everything stopped.
Then—
Their power…
Was ripped out.
Streams of golden code—
Mana—
Authority—
All of it—
Pulled into Kaizen's hand.
The sky dimmed.
The Administrators screamed—
For the first time.
Not in words.
But in collapsing data.
Kaizen glanced at the energy.
Unimpressed.
"…Too complicated."
He squeezed his hand.
The power compressed.
Shrinking.
Condensing.
Until—
It changed.
A small wooden sword.
A thin straw.
And…
A single worn sandal.
They dropped into his hand.
Silence.
The Administrators—
Were gone.
Not destroyed.
Not erased.
Converted.
Kaizen looked at the items.
"…Better."
He swung the wooden sword lightly.
SWOOSH
The air split.
Mountains in the distance—
Cut clean in half.
"…Hmm."
He slipped the sandal onto his foot.
Perfect fit.
Then took a sip through the straw—
From nothing.
"…Convenient."
Below—
Absolute silence.
The guild members stared.
Frozen.
Broken.
"…What… is he…?"
No one answered.
Because no one could.
Above—
Kaizen stood alone.
Radiant.
Untouchable.
Then—
He sighed.
"…This is why I don't like using this form."
The light began to fade.
Slowly.
The sky returned to normal.
His hair darkened.
His armor dissolved.
Back to—
Kaizen.
Ordinary.
Lazy.
Calm.
As if none of it happened.
He looked down at the battlefield.
"…Now where were we?"
The three S-Rank Guild Masters—
Still frozen.
Still shaking.
Their fight…
Didn't matter anymore.
Far beyond reality—
Something awakened.
Not the Administrators.
Something higher.
"…He interfered."
"…Again."
Silence.
"…Prepare observation."
Back at Sunrise Cliff—
Kaizen yawned.
"…I just wanted a quiet day…"