Glorious Vanity (SI LitRPG)

A formless being. Neither good nor evil, light nor dark. A being with nothing to its existence but pure power. Power, and the authority to maintain order within the chaotic flux of Babel.

Impartial. Observant. Inert, save for moments when Babel was at risk of destruction.

But such an event was impossible. Babel served as the intersection of myriad worlds. A dream formed from wishes that took on lives of their own, intersection between reality and ideals.

A never-ending story.

While terrifying and incomprehensible beings were constantly brought into existence and clashed in cosmic wars, Babel remained insulated from such battles. Or rather, it remained insulated because no being wished for it to vanish.

A place where mortals became immortals. A realm between realms that connected possibilities with reality. Where legends were born, emerged, died, and lived. Where myths took on a life of their own. Where even the weakest speck of dust could surpass divine beings.

Though the master of Babel had changed countless times in the past, it always existed and would continue to exist.

Eternal. Omnipresent.

Indestructible.

So the formless being continued its quiet observation. Watching the birth of legend, the creations of myths, the rise of gods...

The characters changed. The settings differed. But it was the same story.

At least, that should be the case.

However...

A crack formed in the dream. An impossibility among impossibilities.

And the cause of that...

[A mortal...?]

An ancient voice that rumbled across an endless void.

The Overseer saw it. For a brief moment, a story that defied all others emerged. A story that refused to be written by anyone but a single person. A mortal.

It was still weak. A mere scrawl on the wall of tales, myths, and legends told throughout eternity.

But the nature of that scrawl could not be ignored.

A dream within a dream. Lies mixed with truths until both were as one. A contradiction that was a paradox and yet accepted into Babel through unknown means.

Danger.

And so...

[At last.]

Roiling stellar waves. Stars and galaxies vanishing in the blink of an eye as the formless will manifested a physical form.

Heaven-defying beings were crushed beneath the weight of the most ancient story. Gods fled in sheer panic to avoid a similar fate. Eldritch beings tore through space and time to avoid a gaze that could comprehend even their incomprehensible forms.

The Overseer gazed out across Babel and the interconnected realms. And when it did, it smiled.

[The final story begins.]

-V-

A crack between time and space. A gap between reality and dreams.

There, a malevolent will remained.

[That accursed Manas...!]

Its body was stripped away. Its story was ground into dust. Its Authority was unraveled. And its future, past, and present had been erased, leaving nothing but its will.

But it remained. It remained, and it remembered what it had accomplished.

[It was mine. IT WAS MINE!]

The story had reached the end. Babel had fallen. Those gods, transcendents, and mighty beings could not stop it. Did not stop it.

They tried. Oh, they tried. Gathering their greatest heroes, turning back time, rewriting fate... But it was impossible.

The story had been written in stone. Fate was set. And the 'end' it sought had come to fruition.

'Had' come to fruition. But now...

[Impossible. Impossible, impossible, impossible!]

The avatar it carefully crafted and bound to its will had been freed, the inviolable ties of destiny severed as cleanly as if mere spider thread.

The meticulously selected Chosen and events it put into motion were scattered to the wind and now that damnable Morning Star was acting to further dismantle its plans.

[Curses. Curses, curses, curses!]

How? Why? Who?

It was not a god. It was not a transcendent. It was not a being of unfathomable power that had done this. If it were, then the malevolent will would have been free to act.

Causality could not be denied, and such a being moving against it would allow the malevolent will to do the same.

But everything was different without causality being shifted. The fate that should have been set in stone was overturned. Pieces with predetermined moves were now charging in directions that were impossible.

Not only that, but there was that damnable Manas-

No. It was not a Manas. A mere Manas could not perform such feats, even were it invoking the system of the Overseer itself.

[Who is it? Who is responsible for this?]

The malevolent will fumed. It roiled in fury. Within the cracks that it had been contained to, it screamed in rage and despair.

And then it felt it.

Another crack. No, not just a crack. A corruption that was eating away at the core of Babel itself. Something foreign to everything in existence and was rejecting the very nature of Babel and the stories contained within.

The malevolent will detected it and scoured existence for the source.

And then it saw him.

A mere mortal. One weaker than even a slime. Not even a speck of dust in the greater cosmos of existence.

But that weakness carried a lethal trap.

[A fragmented vessel...!]

The malevolent will quickly averted its gaze. At the same time, it withdrew its presence and retreated as far back into its cage as it could.

[How? How is such an existence possible?!]

Infinity cut into a finite form and left incomplete. Something that existed outside of all stories and destinies. Mortal and weak, yet omnipresent and omnipotent.

The malevolent will trembled. But it quickly calmed itself.

[...There is still time.]

That... *thing* was dangerous. Something that should not exist, even within the infinite range of paradoxes that were birthed from Babel. Left alone, it would grow into a corrosive force that would completely change the nature of Babel itself.

The malevolent will would not allow that.

But it couldn't act. Trapped as it was by that fake Manas and with all of its Authority, power, and existence stripped away, it could only watch. Observe.

At least, that should have been the case. But-

[The Overseer has opened the Sponsor System.]
[All beings and factions are free to directly contact and establish a contract with the Chosen.]

[The Overseer has opened the Constellation System.]
[All beings are free to form a faction and create a shared mythos.]

[The Overseer has declared the beginning of the Final Story.]
[Mythos are permitted to attack and assimilate other stories into their own.]
[Upon the conclusion of the latest Tutorial, Babel will restructure into 'Scenarios' to generate causality for the Final Story.]
[More details of the Final Story will be revealed upon the beginning of the Scenarios.]

The malevolent will froze.

The Overseer? That immovable bastard that remained inert even when it had ripped Babel to shreds? It was moving?

And Final Story...? What was that?

...No. It didn't matter. What did was...

[Perfect.]

A menu with a list of all the Chosen currently within Babel. A mutual system where a Chosen and their sponsor could strengthen each other based on the Chosen's merit points and achievements...

And a means for the malevolent will to gain new pawns and restore its strength.

But first...

[John Doe... Yes. This one seems to be quite a good fit for my future plans...]

The malevolent will licked its nonexistent lips and then sent a message.