My Charity System made me too OP

The sky above flickered—a pulse of gold shuddered across the void as the final Recognition Duel began.

[Recognition Duel – Final Test: Tyrant of Flame-Bound Oaths]

Title: Ex-Archon of the Ninth Infernal Court

Combat Focus: Flame-Tether Combat + Break Logic

Arena Modifier: Burnt Domain – All terrain becomes volatile after 10 seconds of contact

Victory Condition: Survive and Subdue the Tyrant within 3 minutes

The barefoot man took another step forward.

His body steamed where the chains clung to his skin—self-forging flames leaked from the gaps in his arms, crawling over his chest and wrapping his spine like a second skeleton.

"Name's Rhogar," he said, voice guttural. "I was never meant to be a test. But I'm the price for walking into the upper thrones unmarked."

Leon didn't move.

But his Shell Reverb hummed—a low-pitched growl through the ground.

Rhogar cracked his neck, then grinned. "Show me why they keep whispering your name."

Then the world turned to fire.

The ground beneath them ignited—massive runes burst to life, each one a time-bomb. Leon leapt back as flames chased him. Not spread—chased. They moved like hunting hounds, burning logic and oxygen together.

Rhogar slammed both fists together and the air exploded.

Leon activated Tripart Echo instantly, layers of sound rebounding through the fire—but the pressure returned just as fast.

Rhogar was there, inside the echoes.

A chained fist slammed into Leon's gut and sent him skidding back across the burning stone. His ribs groaned—his coat caught fire at the edges.

[Time Remaining: 2:47]

Rhogar charged again—but this time Leon didn't retreat.

He met the fist.

Chain against flame.

The air cracked from the impact—but Leon kept pushing. He snarled and yanked the chain back—catching Rhogar's arm and twisting.

Flames surged up the chain—but didn't reach him.

They were absorbed.

[Shell Pulse Core Fragment: Active]

[Shell Resonance Level: 94%]

[Partial Conversion: Absolute Return Feedback]

Leon's voice was low now—measured.

"You're giving me fuel."

Rhogar's grin split wider. "Then burn bright, kid!"

Flames erupted beneath both of them—launching them high into the air.

Rhogar twisted midair, using his chains like whips to curve through the sky. Leon rotated as well, activating Karmic Loop as he flipped.

The past blows returned—but with upgraded force.

Rhogar took the hit to the chest—his body flaring white-hot, but not breaking.

"Abyss Flame doesn't fear time," he snarled, landing in a crouch. "I burn through past, present, future."

Leon didn't speak. He reached behind him—and summoned his core technique:

Shell Reverb: Echo of Origin.

And then, a new pulse.

[New Layer Detected – Shell Pulse Fifth Echo: Fracture Requiem (Unstable)]

[WARNING: Activating without full Sync may cause severe backlash]

[Do you wish to proceed?]

[Y/N]

Leon's pupils shrank.

"…Yes."

The moment he accepted, his body shook. The pulse didn't move outward—it folded in. Reality near him fractured, tiny crystal cracks forming in the air itself.

Rhogar halted mid-step.

"What—"

Fracture Requiem activated.

The battlefield split. Not by terrain, but by choice.

In one version, Leon was dodging.

In another, he was taking the hit.

In a third, he was already behind Rhogar.

And then—all three collapsed into one.

A single, perfect strike.

Chain through flame.

Absolute Return.

It was not loud. It was not violent.

It was final.

Rhogar froze—his flames stuttering. The impact rippled through the domain, silencing every burning rune.

He stepped back once.

Then smiled.

"…Heh."

He dropped to one knee.

Chains clattered.

[Victory – Leon Aetheren Wins Recognition Duel]

[Tyrant of Flame-Bound Oaths: Defeated]

[Recognition Acquired – 3/3]

[Upper Thrones Unlocked]

[New Title Earned: Flamebreaker]

[Fracture Requiem – 12% Stability Achieved]

Rhogar let out a breath of smoke and looked up at him, grinning despite the blood trailing from his mouth.

"Guess I am a good test after all."

Leon's breath was ragged. His body felt cracked inside—but he stood.

"…Yeah."

He turned to the stairs now revealed behind the center platform. No longer black stone. Now a translucent prism spiral, pulsing with resonant light.

His friends approached from the sidelines—Roselia smiling faintly, Naval nodding with quiet pride, Milim grinning like she was already itching to fight whatever came next.

Kael folded his arms.

"You've got all three recognitions," he said. "Now comes the part where even Ascenders start quitting."

Leon looked at the stairs, then back at them.

"Not quitting."

"Climbing."

And then, step by step, he ascended—toward the Thrones of Resonance.

Toward the next war.

The next secret.

The final echo.

The air on the Upper Floors was different.

Thicker. Heavier. Filled with pressure that could crush lesser Ascenders with just a breath.

Leon stood at the gate's edge, gazing into the wide horizon of the next zone—no longer a mere floor, but an expansive realm suspended within the tower's impossible geometry. Towering monuments of power pulsed in the distance, each one a symbol of the dominant factions that ruled this layer.

A colossal, spiraling structure of silver flame floated in the sky, orbiting a black sun. A city made of bone and gold crawled across the land like a living fortress. Floating islands shaped like swords hovered above a sea of broken stars. These were the domains of the Upper Thrones.

Leon had stepped beyond the point where most tower climbers stopped. Here, there were no easy fights. No tutorials. No rules.

His team—Naval, Milim, Roselia, Roman, and Liliana—stood behind him, silent. Even Milim, usually full of chaotic energy, was calm. Focused.

Roman adjusted his coat, eyes scanning the energy lines crisscrossing the terrain. "These aren't just arenas. They're entire nations."

"And every one of them is led by someone who could destroy continents," Liliana muttered.

Leon nodded. "Then we'll treat them accordingly."

From the sky, a shadow descended.

It was not a being, but a message. A giant glyph—burning with pure divine authority—etched itself across the sky.

THRONE WAR COMMENCEMENT SIGNAL DETECTED

QUALIFIED CONTENDER: FLAMEBREAKER – LEON

DESIGNATE YOUR DOMAIN OR BE CLAIMED BY ANOTHER THRONE.

Time Remaining: 168 Hours

"So it begins," Roselia whispered.

Leon raised a hand, and his aura surged—Shell Reverb rippling behind him in echoes. The Fifth Pulse, Fracture Requiem, shimmered faintly in his spine.

"No alliances yet," he said calmly. "We secure territory. We hold it. We make them come to us."

"Understood," Naval replied. "Should I begin boundary reconnaissance?"

"Yes. I'll handle the declaration."

Leon stepped forward.

The land beneath him responded.

A spiral of light erupted from the ground, forming a platform beneath his feet. Shell Reverb circuits ignited across the area as if the Tower itself acknowledged him.

Then Leon raised his hand again—and the signature of his existence was burned into the plane.

NEW DOMAIN ESTABLISHED: THE ECHO CITADEL

Ruler: Flamebreaker Leon

Position: Challenger to the Thrones

Across the entire Upper Realm, dozens—hundreds—of eyes opened.

Powerful lords. Monarchs of vast domains. Some ancient, some newly ascended. All of them turned their gaze toward the new threat.

Leon.

A pulse of cold wind swept across the citadel, but Leon stood firm.

"They'll come," Milim grinned. "They always do when someone new steps in."

"Let them," Leon said. "Let the tower shake. It's our time now."