Unrivaled in another world

[: 3rd POV :]

What Daniel was about to do was something unheard of, something no system, no faction, no observer across this world of existence could have accurately predicted.

Even the corrupted world beneath him seemed to sense it.

The skies of Virexia Minor churned violently, clouds thick with violet decay twisting into spirals of resistance.

Lightning, sickly green and unnatural, lashed across the heavens, not as a natural phenomenon, but as a reflex.

As though the planet itself was trying to reject something far greater than its suffering.

As though it feared him.

Daniel hovered in silence above the diseased atmosphere, his figure unmoving against the chaos.

Below him stretched a world that had long since lost its dignity.

Cities of advanced architecture pierced the surface like metallic tumors, glowing with artificial brilliance while veins of blackened mana pulsed beneath them like infected arteries.

Massive industrial towers exhaled toxic streams into the sky, their function disguised beneath layers of innovation and necessity.

From afar, it almost looked prosperous.

From within, it was rot.

The air trembled.

Not because of the storm.

But because Daniel exhaled.

"Go back to where you belong."

His voice was not loud.

It did not need to be.

It carried authority.

Absolute, undeniable authority.

The moment the words left his lips, reality responded.

The clouds froze.

Not slowed.

Not weakened.

They froze, as if time itself had been denied permission to move.

Then, like a command embedded into existence itself, the corrupted sky began to recede.

The violet-black clouds twisted violently, resisting, shrieking without sound as they were forcefully pushed back, layer by layer, peeled away from the atmosphere like parasites being torn from flesh.

The lightning vanished mid-strike.

The pressure lifted.

For the first time in decades, perhaps centuries, the sky of Virexia Minor began to clear.

Sunlight broke through.

It was weak.

Faint.

Unfamiliar.

But it was real.

Across the world, millions stopped.

In the lower districts, where the truth of the planet could no longer be hidden, malnourished civilians staggered through narrow streets, their bodies thin, their eyes dulled by exhaustion and quiet suffering.

They had grown accustomed to the sky being wrong.

To the air tasting like decay.

To the constant hum of extraction machines draining something they could never quite name.

But now…

The sky changed.

A child, no older than six, looked up.

"...Mama?"

Her voice trembled.

Her mother, frail and worn, followed her gaze.

For a moment, she said nothing.

Her lips parted slightly.

Her eyes widened.

"…Light?"

Elsewhere, in a crowded industrial sector, workers paused mid-labor.

One dropped his tool.

Another shielded his eyes.

"What… what is that?"

"That's not regulation weather pattern," a supervisor muttered, panic creeping into his tone.

"It's not scheduled! This isn't supposed to happen!"

But it was happening.

And it was spreading.

Across cities, across continents, across oceans choked with blackened residue, the sky began to clear.

The illusion was breaking.

High above, Daniel lowered his gaze.

What he saw disturbed him.

Not the corruption.

Not the technology.

But the acceptance.

Even as the skies cleared, many did not rejoice.

They hesitated.

They feared it.

Because to them, the corruption was normal.

Necessary.

Conditioned.

"This is what they've done…" Daniel murmured quietly.

Mika's presence stirred faintly beside him, her voice softer than usual.

"They didn't just corrupt the planet," she said.

"They rewrote its beliefs."

Daniel's eyes darkened.

Below, massive screens flickered to life across major cities.

Broadcast systems activated instantly.

A calm, authoritative voice echoed throughout the world.

"Attention citizens. Atmospheric irregularities detected. Remain calm. This is a controlled environmental fluctuation."

The message repeated.

Over and over.

"Controlled."

"Safe."

"Necessary."

Daniel clenched his jaw slightly.

"They're trying to suppress it already."

Mika nodded faintly.

"They can't allow the people to realize something is wrong. If the illusion breaks, the system collapses."

But even as the broadcasts continued, something irreversible had already begun.

There was mixture of hope, confusion, awareness and fear.

Deep beneath one of the largest cities, within a structure hidden far below the crust, a chamber pulsed with dark energy.

They were the Black Meridians, the true operators of Virexia Minor, or perhaps the culprit behind it.

Figures cloaked in refined darkness stood around a circular array, their forms shifting subtly, as though they were never entirely stable.

One of them spoke, voice distorted.

"…What just happened?"

Another responded, sharper.

"That was not a system fluctuation nor was it an error"

A third figure turned slowly.

"No."

A pause.

"…That was authority."

Silence fell.

Then...another one spoke.

"Who's behind it?"

"Unknown but there's a chance of it coming from an outsider or even an invasion"

"Invasion?"

"That doesn't sound good. We've been careful and hiding our tracks to evade the attraction from the major forces"

"Yet now, there's a force that are unknown to us...?"

"This is unacceptable. We have to remove the threat and every chances of our plan being reduce to ashes"

"We've been carrying this plan for thousands of years, and we can't let it rot to waste"

Those words carried weight.

Unregistered meant unaccounted for and it meant unpredictable and even dangerous.

Above them, data streams flooded into their systems.

Atmospheric cleansing.

Mana interference.

System override.

All without a traceable origin.

"…Impossible," one muttered.

"Not impossible," another replied quietly.

"…Intrusion."

The chamber grew tense.

"Trace it."

"We're trying."

"Then try harder."

But no matter how far they reached, no matter how deeply they scanned, there was nothing.

They couldn't find the lead of its signature, and there was no pathway or even entry point.

It was as though something had simply appeared.

Daniel stood above their world, untouched, unseen by their systems.

Beyond them.

"Found it."

The voice cut through the tension.

All heads turned.

A projection flickered to life and it showed a single figure.

He was floating and his eyes were gazing at them.

"So...that's where you are" Daniel spoke and the room fell silent.

"…That's him?"

"…That's the source?"

"…That's not possible."

"He's not emitting any measurable energy."

"He's not bound by our detection systems."

One of the higher-ranked members stepped forward.

"…Then what is he?"

No one answered.

Because none of them knew.

Back above the world, Daniel's gaze swept across the continents.

He could feel it now.

The corruption wasn't just environmental.

It was systemic.

It was embedded throughout the world and layered to every city.

They had invade every network and ervery structure, turning this very world into a machine.

And its people…were part of the fuel.

"They've turned an entire civilization into a resource pipeline," Daniel said quietly.

Mika's expression hardened.

"Yes."

He closed his eyes briefly.

Then opened them.

And this time, there was resolve and cold.

"They don't get to keep this."

"They aren't worthy to be rulers and they don't fit to be kings and such a thing should cease to exist"

Daniel declared and his words were not just mere words.

Daniel had yet to realize the full extension of his powers and some of them he hadn't explore to the fullest.

Because his words were heard by the Will of this world and by the Will of the Universe.

And such declaration had made both of the wills shudder in happiness.

The moment the Will of this World heard Daniel's declaration, its entire body which was the world shook in delightment.

And with its breath that it find difficult to breathe, the will of this world could only send a whisper so soft that not even a fly could hear it.

But with its desperation, plea and last hope, Daniel could hear it.

"Pleasse...Mister...save my children and this world..."

For a moment, Daniel raised his eyebrow as he never expected this moment to happen.

"Mika...you heard that...?" Daniel questioned.

"Yeah, and it seens like this world spirit is at the verge of destruction and its barely holding its own lifeline and I don't think it can last even a year"

"For a planet to desperately request help from me, I don't think I can dissapoint it any longer"

"Change of plans, we will immediately enter the 3rd phase" Daniel declared.

"As you wish"

Below, more civilians began to notice the change.

Some cried.

Some laughed.

Some panicked.

"This isn't normal!"

"Why is the sky clear?!"

"Is this a system failure?!"

"No—no, this is wrong—this is dangerous!"

Years of conditioning clashed with instinct.

And instinct was beginning to win.

Back within the Black Meridian stronghold, tension escalated.

"We have an unknown entity overriding planetary systems."

"Impact level?"

"Currently minimal… but increasing."

"Intent?"

"…Unclear."

The leader stepped forward, voice colder than the rest.

"No."

A pause.

"It's clear."

All eyes turned to him.

"…He's challenging us."

Silence.

Then...

"Deploy containment measures."

"Activate suppression grids."

"Prepare interception units."

Their voices sharpened.

Focused.

Controlled.

But beneath it all—

Concern.

Because for the first time in a long time…

Something had entered their system…

That they did not control.

Above them all, Daniel remained still.

Watching.

Learning.

Feeling.

This was his first step into conquest.

And already...he hated what he saw.

Not because it was weak.

But because it was allowed to exist this way.

Mika drifted closer, her voice quieter now.

"What will you do?"

Daniel didn't answer immediately.

His gaze lifted slightly.

Beyond the planet.

Beyond the skies.

Beyond the reach of this corrupted world.

"They think this is normal," he said at last.

"They think this is necessary."

His eyes hardened.

"Then I'll show them what isn't."

Below, the world continued to react.

Above, the enemy prepared.

And between them...

Stood something neither side truly understood.

Not a god.

Not a ruler.

Not a savior.

But something far more dangerous.

A king who had decided to act.