When the plot-skips players into the game world

It wasn't the first time he had stolen something — for a child with no guardian, if they couldn't steal or guard against theft, they would have long starved to death in some corner. But this was definitely the most dangerous attempt... Failing on land might cost him a finger, but if discovered on the ship, it would mean certain death.

——That was a meaningless life.

Yet it was precisely because of his sea experience that he had the chance to become a sailor on a freighter at such a young age. He asked for little pay, was silent and obedient, just the kind of person the captain liked — no trouble.

Later, his habitual theft led to the death of the second mate. Realizing his mistake, he stopped stealing, intending to focus on being a diligent and capable sailor.

And then... he was discovered by the "Sea Monster", implicating the whole crew.

But it couldn't really be blamed on Arsene... After all, even without him, the ship would have still been plundered by those pirates. The only difference was that because of Arsene's presence, the pirates were determined to teach them a lesson, and even after taking the captain's offerings, they still chose to shoot.

Luckily, with the captain being a Transcendent, they fought back and killed the pirates.

But only three of them remained.

On the sea, lacking medical resources, the two others quickly succumbed to their injuries.

Another crew member had already died. Only Arsene and the captain were left on the ship.

So, the captain passed on his legacy to Arsene.

"...Captain, I'm sorry!"

The young Arsene broke down, crying hysterically: "It's all my fault!"

He couldn't accept that all this happened because of him.

His mistakes led to the second mate's death.

And his existence caused the others' deaths as well.

"You are not to blame, Arsene."

The captain, wearing his blood-stained captain's uniform, lay on the deck chair.

He held an unlit pipe between his teeth, murmuring indistinctly: "Kids aren't wrong. Blame this damned world."

"No, I brought harm to the second mate..."

"He brought it upon himself, Arsene. I told you before, you can't hide mistakes... even if you can hide for a while, you can't hide forever. That bastard brought his own karma."

The captain sneered: "I'm the same. I'm not a good person either; it's just that when I was killing, you weren't on this ship yet..."

"Hey, on this sea, how many people have clean hands? If you don't kill, you'll be killed... In a lawless area, killing someone yields more than three trade runs."

He didn't look at Arsene, for he could no longer see clearly.

"Listen carefully, Arsene. You..."

The captain's words were never completed.

The pipe dropped from his mouth.

The wailing Arsene never knew what the captain intended to say.

And after that, he continued to live a meaningless life.

He wanted to earn virtue and do good, stealing from the rich to give to the poor, but the rich remained rich, and the poor remained poor; he wanted to join the Hawkeye Organization to fight for justice, to fight for humanity... but the tasks he received were to kill and steal.

People idolized the rogue Arsene, seeing him as a symbol of justice and rebellion.

Yet little did they know, he was fighting for those magnates — killing their political enemies and stealing evidence of crimes.

Later, he was captured by the Son of the Moon and made into a Blood Slave.

He endured the Charm Lock's binding through sheer will, using his reputation and speech to help other Blood Slaves regain their senses, and they decided to pursue freedom — only to be hunted down and die miserably.

That, too, was meaningless.

He lived a life of futility, becoming a man of no consequence.

Despite all his efforts, he rolled the stone from the summit only for it to tumble into the opposite valley.

However much he wanted to achieve something, fate mocked him endlessly. All his efforts were futile, and the more he struggled, the more counterproductive they became.

Is it his fault?

And now... He was fully armed here, seeking to confront the Blood Celestial Marshal.

He did not have much understanding of the Void, but what he knew was enough.

——If his body were occupied by the Void, he would replace "Dance Skirt" to become an even tougher enemy.

It must be noted, Dance Skirt had deleted her profession Level 1 power, while he neared the Fifth Power Level, with the legacy of the Stealing Heaven Secret Continuation!

Would his effort become counterproductive again?

In that instant, a sudden, fiery rage erupted in Arsene's heart —

——I refuse to die just like this!

Even if I were to die, I would never perish in defeat! Never become the puppet of an enemy...

Never again to be enslaved and commodified, seized by others, persecuting kin and friends, becoming a traitor aiding tyranny!

——Move!

Or at least——

Let me shatter!

In the moment when the void in Arsene's heart ceased, the time that had frozen him began to waver.

The stasis of time no longer had an absolute effect on him.

Arsene's skin turned crimson in an instant, with veins and tendons bulging from his neck.

The terrifying veins on his forehead popped out, and the blood vessels in his eyes suddenly burst, soaking in blood.

The entire world began to quake in his intense fury.

Like an earthquake, it gradually intensified, as if amplifying the sound of boiling water countless times, mixed with a severe ringing in the ears, as if placed inside the ear.

In the silent world, the rumbling gradually rose, becoming increasingly loud, filling the entire still world.

In the whole world, only Arsene had color—his skin filled with a near-purple dark red, as if about to be strangled.

In the next moment, this world suddenly shattered.

The dim yellow faded in an instant, time resumed its passage.

And Arsene, overflowing with anger, his limbs already completely shattered and bloody in the almost stagnant time.

The Son of Nihility did not attack him—in reality, he attacked himself. Like a person bound in shackles, struggling fiercely until completely breaking his limbs. Even more brutal than that...

Because Arsene couldn't move even an inch of his skin, he relied on his willpower to tear his entire skin apart, breaking his muscles.

His heart smoked with a hiss, like a machine on complete overload.

Just a few more seconds and he would suddenly die.

Precisely because of that near-boiling fury towards fate, the fragment of void could no longer blend into his body.

It was as if it hit a wall, suddenly bounced back. Even like a leech touched by salt, part of it was melted by Arsene's boiling emotions, becoming extraordinarily weak.

In an instant, Aiwass's Heavenly Light Spear pierced through it!

But because of this...

The Son of Nihility, without a physical form, was not shaken in the slightest by this attack.

It was not a Spiritual Body.

It was an Informational Entity.

Not even structured or filled like a soul, merely a "layer," a "texture" only.

At this moment...

The Blood Celestial Marshal suddenly charged forward!

——She grasped the fragment of void!

Because of sufficient void resistance, the Blood Celestial Marshal could not be fully invaded by the void.

Yet under the active fusion of the Blood Celestial Marshal, part of the Son of Nihility still seeped into the Blood Celestial Marshal's soul.

But rather than saying the Son of Nihility burrowed into the Blood Celestial Marshal's soul, it was better to say the Blood Celestial Marshal held the Son of Nihility, forcefully inserting it into her own body!

This utterly conflicting fusion caused the Blood Celestial Marshal's skin to shatter inch by inch. Black lines emerged on her face, collarbone, and back... The Son of Nihility clearly realized something and wanted to escape.

But it was too late.

And when the Son of Nihility possessed a body once more, it meant it was now correctly existing in the world.

Thus——

The Heavenly Light Spear did not pause for a moment and suddenly pierced through the Blood Celestial Marshal!

The light was extremely brilliant, rushing into the Blood Celestial Marshal's body in a flash.

Those lights illuminated from within the Blood Celestial Marshal, dispelling the darkness—they, like fractured porcelain, seeped out infinite light.

In that instant, Isabel hesitated.

She instinctively held Aiwass's hand—not to stop Aiwass, but out of an instinct to stand alongside Aiwass.

Like an "accomplice," she wanted to provide strength to Aiwass.

And Aiwass indeed felt the hesitation.

He exchanged a gaze with the Blood Celestial Marshal—just an instant's eye contact, and Aiwass understood the Blood Celestial Marshal's intention.

He did not pause for a moment, and completely unfurled his White Wings.

Triple rings—platinum, golden, and dark golden interlaced, began to spin rapidly—

"——Lost Paradise!"