MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

The Demon King did not resist. He simply watched in silence, his eyes glimmering faintly as the Mirror Dimension folded into being.

He could tell exactly what was happening, Anthony was dragging him into another layer of existence, but still, he did not act.

There was no urgency in his movements, no spark of resistance. He merely floated with his hands behind his back, as though he were a guest politely allowing his host to arrange the scenery.

His gaze swept across the newly woven reality, scrutinizing it with a calm curiosity. The Mirror Dimension stretched before him in its infinite stillness, an exact replica of the Blue Planet he had just left behind, down to the smallest details.

The forests were still there, the great oceans gleamed, mountains rose in their silent grandeur, and deserts sprawled endlessly beneath a barren sun. It was all familiar.

But it lacked locomotive life.

Descending gracefully from the sky, Azrath Kaelthar Morvanyx Doomrend's feet touched the earth, the ground itself trembling faintly beneath his weight, as though acknowledging the presence of its new master.

"Impressive," he said at last, his voice carrying both amusement and approval as he observed the layered reality.

"Thank you," Anthony replied. His calm smile returned as his own boots touched down, his demeanor composed and unshaken.

But his expression shifted instantly. A warning flared in his mind, his senses screaming of danger before the attack even arrived. Without hesitation, his body flickered to the side, his form blurring as he dodged.

A fist tore through the space he had just occupied. The sheer force of it obliterated kilometers of the Mirror Dimension's landscape, flattening mountains and erasing valleys. The shockwave rippled outward like a tidal wave of destruction.

But Anthony's precognition screamed again, more violently this time. His eyes widened as he saw another punch already on its way, this time aimed straight for his gut. It was as though the Demon King had predicted his very evasion, anticipating him with absolute certainty.

The fist connected.

Pain erupted across Anthony's body, a searing agony as though his insides were collapsing.

The impact hurled him backward like a ragdoll, his form streaking across the mirrored sky before crashing violently into a distant bungalow-like structure. The building crumbled instantly, its rubble cascading down over him in a cloud of dust and shattered stone.

The Mirror Dimension itself seemed to reel in disbelief, as though the very reality struggled to comprehend what it had just witnessed: the great Anthony struck so brutally, so decisively.

Slowly, the debris shifted. Stones tumbled aside. And from the wreckage, Anthony rose. His steps were steady, his movements deliberate. With one hand, he brushed the dust from his face, a faint smile tugging at his lips.

He could not remember the last time he had been struck. Nor could he recall the last time dirt and stone had dared to cling to his body. For an instant, nostalgia burned in his chest, not of pain, but of challenge.

He could have used Infinity to prevent the blow. But this was his chance to test against the man who called himself the Demon King.

And he would not squander it. That did not mean, however, that he was reckless. If he sensed true life-threatening danger, he would activate Infinity without hesitation.

His eyes locked on the figure standing before him, hands calmly folded behind his back, as though he had not just shattered kilometers of space with a single strike.

With a blur, Anthony moved. His body cut through the air like lightning, his fist arcing toward the Demon King's head with ferocious speed. The ground cracked beneath the momentum, the air screaming as it was torn apart by his force.

But the Demon King merely lifted a single finger.

One finger.

The punch, which could have crushed stars, stopped cold against that finger as though striking an immovable wall.

Anthony's eyes widened. For the first time in a very long time, he was stunned. Normally, he was the one halting others with effortless superiority. Never had the roles been reversed.

'He's stronger than me… and faster,' Anthony thought. 'That's why I couldn't dodge the second punch, even though I saw it coming.'

"I am certain you recognize the futility of what you are attempting, Anthony," Azrath Kaelthar Morvanyx Doomrend spoke, his tone steady and unhurried. His finger remained pressed against Anthony's fist, effortlessly halting its momentum as though it were nothing more than air.

"I see a man of courage and love before me. A man prepared to lay down his life for his planet."

"You can save the pitch for the next person you want to recruit," Anthony's voice cut sharply, his body flickering backward as he severed the exchange. His calm returned, his tone even.

"I'm not fighting you to save this planet. I'm fighting you because you came here for me. The two are not the same."

Anthony was no saint.

Yes, he had visited orphanages. Yes, he had stormed the Forsaken Cult's strongholds to free innocents from torment. Yes, he had occasionally saved strangers. But good deeds did not define him. A good heart did not mean he would throw away his life for the sake of the world.

No. Between this planet and his life, Anthony would always choose himself. Himself, and those closest to him.

"I think you misunderstand something, Azrath Kaelthar Morvanyx Doomrend," Anthony said. Another curse rippled through his body at the utterance of the Demon King's name.

"I am not some noble warrior who battles evil for the good of mankind. I do not fight for peace. I do not chase childish ideals. Good and evil exist together, side by side, two halves of the same scale. And now, you and I stand upon that scale. One of us must fall. Which of us it will be, that is the only truth that matters."

For several moments, the Demon King stood silently, his expression unreadable. Finally, he spoke.

"…I see. I have misunderstood you. This is no grand crusade. No noble cause. It is simply a battle to the death." His tone shifted, cold and final. "Very well. From this moment onward, I will move with intent to end you once and for all."

Anthony chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You will be the one to fall from the scale today, mister Demon King. And I look forward to meeting your true body when this is over."

He was about to activate another ability when the system chimed.

[Ding]

[??? has decided to make things interesting by acknowledging the River of Time's request]

[??? says you should put more effort into this, and perhaps avoid being punched next time]

[??? says he is cheering for you from nothingness]

[??? wonders aloud if he should don a cheerleader uniform]

[??? declares this is the perfect time for a reunion]

[??? says he expects Absolute Cinema from this battle]

[??? has vanished]

[By the Authority of ???, the River of Time's request is acknowledged]

[The system forcefully summons the Time Based Celestial, the River of Time's favored Child: Aaaninja Chronisynth Eternos]

Suddenly, the Mirror Dimension quaked. Space warped. Time itself screamed. Particles of temporal energy swirled with maddening intensity, consuming the battlefield in a storm of inevitability.

And then, a rift split open. A tear in the Mirror Dimension, stitched not by quantum law but by the will of time itself. From within, a man stepped forward.

He emerged with calm grace, his presence paradoxical, both absent and overwhelming, both nowhere and everywhere.

His white hair shimmered faintly, cascading like strands of starlight, resting upon his head as though it were a crown bestowed by Time itself.

His eyes, however, drew all attention. They were not eyes but clocks, irises that ticked with infinite precision. Within them glimmered the spectrum of the rainbow, each color etched with numbers, each number turning in silent synchrony.

Aaaninja Chronisynth Eternos had arrived.