Lord of the Truth

"...Raaahhhh\\~\\~!!"

The moment the guttural roar tore through the air, the entire atmosphere seemed to shift—growing denser, heavier, as if the world itself had decided to hold its breath. The surrounding specters didn't just *notice* Wade—they *locked on* to him. Their twisted forms turned in perfect, unnatural unison, the suddenness of the movement making the very air feel like it rippled.

The confident smirk Wade wore faded ever so slightly as a shiver slid down his spine like a thin blade of ice. There was no mistaking the intent in their movements.

They were watching him—not with eyes, for most had none—but with an instinctive, predatory focus, as if his very presence called to them. It was the look of starving wolves who had just found a lone, fattened calf, and there was nothing in their demeanor that hinted at hesitation or mercy.

The killing intent spilling off them was thick enough to choke on. It rolled toward him in tangible waves, like water surging through a collapsing dam, battering at his composure. Their mouths split wide, skin stretching to grotesque proportions, opening far beyond anything natural. From within came noises that were not simply sounds but *assaults*—discordant, alien screeches that wormed their way into the bones, sounds that could make the hair of even the bravest warrior whiten prematurely.

"Raaahh!!" The shared cry rose to a deafening pitch. Then, without warning, dozens of fiends lunged forward as one.

They didn't circle or test him; they didn't wait for the weak to hang back and find an opening. Every single one of them surged ahead in an unbroken tide, forming a suffocating wall of bodies that closed in on him from all sides.

"Kikiki, come and make your deaths quicker!"

Wade's eyes glinted dangerously as he moved, spinning his thumb and middle finger in a deliberate, unbroken arc around his body, the gesture as fluid as it was precise. "Divisor Thread."

In that instant, the air at his fingertips fractured, birthing something that was both blade and not-blade—an edge so impossibly fine it seemed to shimmer in and out of existence. It gleamed with a suffocating light, its presence alone pressing on the chest like a weight.

*Shrrrhh*

The crescent-shaped blade burst outward in every direction forming a full circle, a ring of annihilation cutting through the battlefield. The moment it left his hand, Wade's expression shifted. "Ah, oh..."

This was no weapon for flesh and bone. It was crafted to sever the very threads of space itself. And what could be a more fitting target for such a cut than space?

Against soldiers, it would have wiped them out in the blink of an eye. Against beasts, it would have carved them into nothingness. But here…

"Raaahh!!"

The specters looked briefly down at their forms, saw the crescent pass through them without resistance—and kept coming, utterly unfazed.

The nearest specter thrust its clawed hand toward him. "Raaa—"

"Say goodbye!"

A faint edge of irritation colored Wade's tone; being made a fool of before His Majesty was something he would not tolerate. With a sharp motion, he lifted his palm and struck before the creature could touch him.

*Crack!*

The space the specter occupied shattered as though it were brittle glass, splintering into perfectly identical cubes.

In the space of a heartbeat, the creature was split into ten separate parts, each one locked away in its own miniature spatial prison, like insects trapped in crystal.

"Oh, that's the *Distant Rend* strike—he executed it well!"

Robin's lips curved into a faint smile. It was a strange, almost surreal satisfaction to watch techniques he had personally forged being used right before his eyes.

But then his smile faded into puzzlement. Something was wrong.

The fragments inside the cubes began to twist and warp, their edges blurring. One by one, each fragment reformed into a smaller specter identical to the original, each one radiating the same hunger and malice.

"Ahahaha!"

Robin's laughter broke across the field, rich and amused, as if the scene before him was both absurd and fascinating.

"What?!"

Shock struck Wade like a physical blow. His instincts screamed a single command, and he obeyed without question.

*Woosh!*

He leapt over fifty meters into the air, the sudden rush of wind cutting away the oppressive stench of the horde below. From up here, he could see the black tide of specters writhing and climbing over each other in their frenzied attempt to reach him. Had he stayed even a moment longer, one of those grasping claws might have brushed the back of his head—an outcome that every fiber of his being told him would have been disastrous.

Wade pointed sharply downward and clenched his fist. "Hmph."

*Step*

His boots met nothing but air—and yet he stood as though on solid ground.

The *Spatial Solidification* ability, a fourth-stage technique of the Major Law of Space.

Though flight was impossible in the Middle Belt, this allowed him to race across the sky as if it were a stone bridge beneath his feet.

He raised his hand and opened his palm. Behind him, a massive transparent sphere coalesced, bending light and space alike around its surface. It expanded, compressed, then expanded again—each pulse making the air quiver.

Then, with killing intent radiating from every movement, Wade hurled it downward. "Dimensional Rain."

*Swoosh, swoosh*

The colossal sphere ruptured, scattering countless smaller orbs—each one a precise, deadly fragment of compressed space.

*Boom, boom, boom!*

The ground below erupted as the spatial droplets struck, the shockwaves breaking stone and cracking earth. Within moments, the entire area was carpeted in precision strikes, and every specter in range was peppered with dozens of impacts.

Yet still —*swoosh*—

The swarm did not break. Hundreds more surged upward, clawing their way toward him with mindless persistence.

***Boom boom boom!***

The earth beside the mountain exploded in violent bursts, each detonation sending shards of stone and clouds of dust into the air. Every patch of ground where a specter had stood was struck mercilessly by the unrelenting rain of dimensional droplets. The impacts carved deep scars into the terrain, splitting boulders and flattening jagged ridges.

Not a single specter escaped—each one was pelted with dozens upon dozens of the shimmering projectiles, their twisted forms jerking and writhing as the compressed spatial energy bit into them.

And yet —*swoosh*—

With mindless determination and a stubbornness that defied reason, hundreds more specters clawed their way upward, weaving through the falling droplets, leaping over the corpses of their kind. They moved with the single-minded hunger of predators that knew nothing but the hunt, their malformed limbs propelling them toward Wade in a grotesque rush.

"Yaaahh!!"

"What?!"

The cry tore from Wade's throat as his instincts kicked in. Without a second's hesitation, he turned and sprinted across the hardened air beneath his feet, the sound of it ringing like muted stone under each step. His mind was already racing ahead of his body, mapping out the battlefield, calculating angles, and hunting for his next decisive move.

…From a rocky outcrop not far away, Robin watched in silence for a moment, his sharp eyes reading every movement in Wade's stride. Then, a faint, amused chuckle escaped him.

"Heh~ Alright, I've seen enough."

Straightening, he let his voice carry clearly over the chaos: "Use Dimensional Eye!"

"What?!"

The single word burst from Wade in disbelief, and even Malik and Latania exchanged startled, questioning glances.

*Dimensional Eye*— the very name carried weight. It was a refined and dangerous technique, one that released a delicate but far-reaching ripple through space, probing every fold and corner of the surroundings.

Among Space Division Guards, it was revered as an elite scouting method, far sharper and more precise than the blunt sweep of soul sense. It didn't just *find*—it *exposed*.

But to use it in a time like this... What would he try to find?! They are all there, coming at him!

"...Fine."

Though skepticism still lingered in his eyes, Wade turned his head slightly, letting his focus shift. His pupils flared, flooding with a silver luminescence that reflected the fractured light of the battlefield.

*Ooooh…*

The world around him changed. The space itself seemed to breathe and stir, faint ripples spreading outward like the gentle undulation of summer waves over a glassy lake. The shift was subtle, yet in that subtlety lay danger—every hidden detail, every anomaly, suddenly lit in sharp relief.

And then—"Haaah'~"

The nearest specter convulsed, a guttural cry ripping from its throat before its body burst apart.

*Bang!*

Instead of dispersing into the air like mist, its form recoiled inward, compressed by unseen forces until it solidified into a glimmering emerald, slightly larger than a grain of sand. The gem fell in a slow, deliberate drop to the exact spot where the creature had stood, glinting like a prize torn from the void.

"Wha--?!"

Wade's face froze in shock, but only for a heartbeat. Excitement flooded in to replace it, burning bright in his eyes. His lips curled into a grin, and his voice boomed with renewed energy.

"Haha! Now we're talking—come on!!"

***Bang! Bang!***

Emerald after emerald rained down as Wade swept the Dimensional Eye across the pursuing swarm, striking target after target. His retreat was no longer an escape—it was bait. Every backward step was calculated to pull more of them into range, luring the mindless horde into the snare of his precision strikes.

"Latania, go collect the emeralds."

Robin's voice cut through the noise, his brows tilting ever so slightly toward the battlefield where emeralds were now falling like a shimmering downpour.

"If they attack you, don't panic. The Fundamental Law of Waves can dismantle them with ease. Find the counter-wave to their output, amplify it, and send it back at them. Their fragile bodies won't withstand the backlash."

"Understood."

Without even the faintest pause, Latania let go of the wheelchair. Her movements were sharp, decisive, without a hint of hesitation, as though she had been waiting for the order. She strode toward the chaos with the calm of someone certain of victory.

*Bang! Bang!*

As emeralds piled into her hands, she didn't limit herself to collecting them. Every time a specter drew close, her strikes cut them down with clean, merciless efficiency. To her, it was nothing more than clearing debris while performing the main task—each kill as casual as snapping a dry twig.

"...."

Malik's gaze lingered on the scene, his mind replaying his own encounter with these same creatures—the exhaustion that had clawed at him, the desperate retreat, the way he'd been forced to call upon his soul force just to survive their assault. And now, in stark contrast, here was Wade, dismantling them one after another with frightening precision, and Latania cutting down any that slipped through.

He let out a long, controlled breath, and then leaned slightly toward Robin.

"Your Majesty… do you have any advice for me as well on how to deal with them?"