Lord of the Truth

BAAA!!!

"Fa... Father?!"

The instant Richard's feet touched the platform, his entire body collapsed as if the very concept of strength had abandoned him. His knees slammed to the floor with a dull, lifeless thud. He didn't even flinch.

His hands trembled uncontrollably, eyes wide and vacant, mouth slightly open but no words emerging. His mind could not—would not—process the horror he was seeing.

"AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"

Zara's scream pierced the air like shattered glass. It was shrill, raw, and full of utter disbelief. Before anyone could catch her, her body slumped over, unconscious—completely overtaken by grief.

"...!!!"

Theo, Billy, Amon—every companion who had fought beside Robin, every soul who had ever trusted him, every comrade who had seen him as invincible—all of them sprinted toward the platform like people possessed.

And then they stopped.

Mid-step.

Mid-breath.

Mid-heartbeat.

Even Holak—the ancient, unshakable warlord who had laughed through battles that turned cities into ash—took a step backward.

His eyes darted across the skies.

For the first time in lifetimes, he wasn't grinning.

For the first time… Holak was afraid.

Because what Juri had returned to the platform… wasn't a man.

It wasn't even a body.

It was remnants.

There, lying in a silent, grotesque stillness, was a brain, stripped of its skull—bare, glistening, pink-grey matter exposed to the air.

No bone. No skin. No face.

A single heavily-damaged spinal cord dangled from the brain's base, its nerves frayed and torn, like the last threads of a fraying rope.

At the end of that cord, were the navel should be, was a bizarre organ—twisted, unrecognizable, a malformed replacement where his pelvis should have been. It was unclear whether it was even human anymore.

From the brain stretched a faint, almost invisible artery, connecting directly to a heart.

That was all.

Linked by frail spinal cord.

Shrouded in a fragile golden aura, battered and cracked.

This... was what Juri had brought back.

"Father!!"

Richard's cry rang out like a blade through silence.

Without a second thought, he slammed his hands onto the remnants and poured his life essence into them, desperate to flood the fragments with healing, with warmth, with hope.

There had to be something—anything—left to revive. Some spark of will, some faint heartbeat buried deep in that twisted ruin.

"Oh no…"

Aro, who had still clung to a sliver of hope after Haros' cryptic words, now buried his face in his hands.

Despair consumed him.

There was no miracle.

There was no escape.

Only devastation.

"....."

Only one man stood still among the broken.

Only one did not scream, or cry, or gasp.

Caesar.

He was frozen—absolutely motionless.

His eyes locked onto the exposed brain of his father, and for a long moment, his face showed nothing.

But then, slowly, something else surfaced—a fury so cold it burned.

It wasn't loud.

It didn't roar.

It seethed.

His skin began to lose its color, fading rapidly into a frosted pallor as if every cell was freezing from the inside out.

He stared at the remains for two full seconds—silent, unmoving.

Then, at last, he turned away.

And with military precision, he raised his hand into a final salute.

"To all of you... serving with you has been the greatest honor of my life. Every moment, every battle, every bond... I will carry it with me.

From this moment forward, command falls to Richard. Then Sakaar. Then Peon. Then Theo.

After that... you're free to choose your own path.

farewell."

"W-What...? Wait—"

Some on the platform barely managed to react, their minds still reeling from shock.

But it was too late.

SWOOOOSH!!!

Caesar shot into the sky like a meteor, a waterfall of black flames exploded from his body.

SHWALAAAAAAA!!!

People dropped to their knees.

Their souls cried out.

6%... 8%... 10%...

Caesar raised his gaze skyward, his eyes now glowing pure, dull white.

In his hand materialized the Dark Halberd, he cried, "One hour… I will be taking at least one hour of your life today! Face me if you dare, Bitch!"

11%... 12%... 13%...

"Caesar!! ...Look here!"

At that very moment, a thunderous cry tore through the silence below.

It was Richard's voice.

A single shout that echoed across nearly a quarter of the planet, slicing through the atmosphere like a blade forged from grief and hope.

Even Caesar, consumed by his rising fury and unconscious power, was forced to pause.

He blinked, turned, and looked down.

His gaze followed the line where Richard's trembling hand pointed.

"What do you want?! I'm about to—...what?!"

And then he saw it.

What Caesar witnessed stole the breath from his lungs.

Below—at the very center of the platform, surrounded by generals, kin, and the stunned masses—was the shattered remains of Robin.

But now…

Something impossible was unfolding before their eyes.

The scratches that marred all golden body parts—wounds so deep they symbolized complete destruction—were now vanishing.

All of them.

Except one.

The largest wound, a deep gash along the exposed brain, still lingered... but even that was healing.

Slowly.

Visibly.

Undeniably.

"No... this can't be real..." Caesar murmured, his voice barely audible as his pupils shrank.

And then—

WHOOSH!

A massive, blazing green object pierced the horizon from the west, traveling at a velocity that made even seasoned warriors feel time slow.

FWAAAAAA!!!

In a single heartbeat, it hovered high above the capital—a colossal, living star of green flame.

It was the Greenland Sun, that same celestial force which had pursued Robin across skies, continents, and dimensions.

And now… it had returned.

TSSSSSSSSHHHHH...

And then…

It began to rain.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Gentle, radiant green droplets began falling from the great star, descending like tears from the universe itself.

Each droplet shimmered, pulsing with raw energy—divine, pure, and filled with something that transcended mortal comprehension.

They fell upon the golden remnants.

And then—

TZZZZZZZ---!!!

The final wound on the brain began to heal—not slowly this time, but with blinding speed, as if the very laws of biology had been rewritten.

"Everyone, get back! Something's happening!!"

Richard's voice cracked with urgency as he sprang to his feet, using every ounce of strength to pull his uncle, the generals, and anyone nearby away from the center.

His face was illuminated—not by light, but by hope.

TZZZTTT!!!

And then—suddenly—the gash across the brain sealed completely.

Silence.

Heavy. Suspended.

Time itself seemed to freeze.

Then—

TZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTTTT---!!!

Bones began to emerge.

A skull took shape from the light, forming with surgical precision. The spinal cord regenerated, nerves and tissue forming like rivers of life. Vertebrae stacked into place with bone, then muscle, then skin.

In an instant, a ribcage erupted into form.

Lungs, heart, liver—organs bloomed between the bones like seeds returning to soil.

The arms and legs came next, molded from nothingness. Muscles flexed as fingers grew, each digit gaining flesh, detail, and identity, until even the fingerprints had returned.

What had once been scattered fragments—mere remnants of a soul—was now becoming a whole, living body.

Robin.

...Tens of thousands stood in stunned silence, unable to speak.

Above them, the woman in black, her once-cold eyes now wide, stupefied.

Even Juri, the spirit of the planet, stood motionless, her body trembling.

Below, Raina had forced her way through the crowd.

She stood at Robin's side, breathless, witnessing something sacred.

And then…

Amidst all of it…

Robin's eyelids twitched.

"...Urrghh…"

He groaned. A low, tired sound—like a man waking from a dream that had nearly killed him.

Slowly… deliberately… he opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was not the sky, nor the faces around him.

It was the blinding green light of the Greenland Sun, still glowing above him like a watchful god.

He squinted.

"Tsk, tsk~ Still here? Get back already, I can't take another hit anyway..."

His voice was dry, sarcastic… but alive.

He raised a hand—shaky but deliberate—and with a simple motion, the massive green sun began to shrink.

Smaller.

Smaller still.

Until it became the size of a single grape, then floated forward—

—and vanished into his forehead.

"Heh~"

Robin chuckled, then winced.

He closed his eyes, gently rubbing his brow.

"Tsk Tsk~ I guess rebuilding a body from scratch gives a bad headache..."

Then he looked up again, finally taking in the world around him.

His brows furrowed.

"I need to get back to the—hmm?"

He paused.

His eyes moved across the crowd.

Across Caesar, Raina, Richard, Juri, the generals, the soldiers, the civilians… all of them staring at him in silent disbelief.

"All of you... why are you here?"

He tilted his head slightly.

"...And why are you looking at me like that?"