I Became the Youngest Prince in the Novel

TL/Editor: raei

Status: ongoing

Illustrations: none

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At the end of the world, on the thrones of the gods, several deities who were already acquainted with Zion watched his battle with the Demon King.

"It's finally begun," Luminus, God of Light, muttered. "The pace is much faster than expected. I suppose he truly does defy common sense?"

Loki, God of Fire, watched the scene with interest. "Who do you think will win?"

"Aurelion, of course. Have you forgotten his achievements up until now?"

Akenidia, Goddess of Nature, answered matter-of-factly, though a faint glimmer of concern shone in her eyes.

Though rare, it wasn't unheard of for mortals to achieve divine status - perhaps once every hundred thousand years. But for a Demon King, it was different. Demon Kings were born bearing the fate of world destruction and granted immense power, but ascending to divinity by transcending fate was nearly impossible.

'He's truly an irregular.'

"No, the Emperor will win. We just need to prepare to pay our end of the contract when the battle is over."

"The contract's price..."

---

Just as Luminus murmured these words, a tremendous boom echoed as Zion's form was sent flying backward.

"I'LL TEAR YOU ALL TO PIECES!"

Wrath's earth-shaking roar filled the battlefield as the space around him began distorting wildly. His hood had fallen away, revealing his grotesque face - skin twisted like severe burns, eyes sewn shut with thread, nothing but nostrils for a nose, and a toothless mouth.

Though Wrath knew how hideous his face was and normally kept it hidden, he had a simple reason for removing his hood now. Only by doing so could he use his Authority of Wrath to its fullest extent. The shame of countless beings seeing his face became fuel for his rage, causing his power to surge uncontrollably.

The world around him rapidly transformed into his domain.

"None of you will leave here alive!"

The hero's party wasn't faring well against Wrath's overwhelming Authority. Like their battle with the Proxy, wounds covered their bodies. Yet unlike then, their eyes still blazed with light.

This time was different - Wrath's condition was deteriorating too. Unlike when the battle began, unhealing wounds now marked his body and his expression grew increasingly desperate.

Claire deflected tens of thousands of spheres with her Space-Time Sword as she charged forward, brilliant determination exploding around her. Their clash sent shockwaves across the battlefield.

"Tirian!"

"Already activated!"

The archmage's spell, which could distort even the world's laws after reaching the truth of existence, activated around Wrath.

Infinite Zero.

The space around Wrath dropped below absolute zero, the lowest temperature possible in reality. As his thoughts froze, Turzan unleashed his ultimate technique - Mountain Breaker.

The impact sent Wrath flying at supersonic speed. Before he could recover, Rain's lightning struck from above, perfectly piercing through his abdomen.

"Gah! How... how is this possible...!"

Wrath's voice was a mix of pain and confusion. Even with his Authority at maximum, he couldn't turn the tide. Despite possessing greater power and status, he was still losing.

"It's simple."

Claire appeared before him, cutting through time itself.

"We've fought countless battles against beings stronger than ourselves."

She had accepted her weakness and learned how to defeat the strong as a weak being through countless battles. The results were now blooming perfectly in this fight against Wrath.

"Time to end this."

Her sword cleaved through Wrath's body.

---

Divinity - the state of breaking free from the cycle of mortality and predetermined fate to forge one's own destiny as an immortal being.

The King's ascension to divinity had been purely by chance, occurring during his centuries of endless refinement driven by his singular obsession with defeating the Emperor. He had seized that chance and opened the path to divinity in an instant.

Yet the King had not taken that path, prioritizing defeating the Emperor above all else.

But now-

'Emperor.'

The King regretted that decision.

'Is this all you amount to?'

Deep disappointment filled the Demon King's eyes as he watched where Zion had been sent flying.

He knew it was already miraculous that the Emperor had regained so much of his past power in just two years while inhabiting a different body. But he had expected more. He had expected the Eternal Emperor Aurelion Khan Agnes, who had once devoured the entire world, to show him something far beyond his expectations.

That hope had vanished after their brief exchange.

'How disappointing.'

The King's form vanished and reappeared before Zion, who was embedded in the temple wall. The Abyss gathered in his extended hand, transforming into a sword through his traits of 'Chaos' and 'Change' that he had gained by transcending fate.

'Out of respect, I'll take your life quickly.'

Without hesitation, he swung the sword at Zion's bowed head. Just as it was about to reach Zion's neck-

Click!

A sound like something unlocking rang out.

The sword and the King's hand holding it simultaneously vanished.

As confusion filled the King's eyes at this incomprehensible sight-

"I have a question," Zion raised his head and swung Eclaxia horizontally, now just a hilt with no blade. "Why did you think this was all I had?"

The answer to this bizarre scene revealed itself in the next moment.

Darkness exploded from Eclaxia's hilt, forming a new blade. Though the King instantly created a shield of chaos with even stronger Authority than before-

The result was completely different.

The shield tore like paper upon contact with Zion's sword, which continued on to leave a long gash across the King's body.

"You know what?" Zion appeared right before the King, close enough to feel his breath, and grinned. "The me from back then never used my full power against you."

His sword plunged into the King again, causing a transcendent explosion of Black Star Force from the point of impact.

"No, I've never used my full power against anyone until now."

The intact Eclaxia had been proof. Though the Light-Extinguishing Sword, forged from a fallen meteor, amplified Black Star Force, it had limits to how much power it could channel at once. Since Zion reached 8 stars, it had actually been acting as a limiter.

Now with Eclaxia's blade gone and replaced by pure Black Star Force darkness, the conditions were perfect for Zion to use his full power.

"Guh... what is-!"

For the first time, Despair let out a pained cry. He tried to counter by transforming the wounded area into void space, but it was useless.

Authority Denial.

Zion's sword, denying the very Authority itself, dug deeper, beginning to erode the King's very essence.

"GAAHH!"

Screaming from the unimaginable pain, Despair barely managed to push Zion back by releasing all the chaos he had accumulated.

"That power back then... wasn't even your full strength?"

The King stared at Zion in disbelief.

Countless living tendrils of the Abyss shot toward Zion from the King. Just as they were about to touch him-

They vanished as if they had never existed.

Not only that, but Zion appeared right before the King, raising the pitch-black burning Eclaxia above his head.

'How...!'

Despair's eyes trembled. From his attacks vanishing to Zion appearing before him - none of it had been perceivable even to his divine senses.

Of course, this was natural.

Concept Denial - the highest form of denial possible with 8 stars of Black Star Force.

Using it, Zion had denied the very concept of 'the time when the Abyss's tendrils extended and the King's chaos pushed him back,' allowing him to appear before the King.

A barrage of strikes followed, each containing eight black stars that split the world itself, reducing everything they touched to nothingness.

The King could barely defend, completely overwhelmed. His earlier advantage had completely vanished.

Yet-

"Haha... HAHAHAHAHA!"

What burst from the King's lips wasn't a scream but mad laughter.

"Emperor! This is just like you. The one who brought me such despair couldn't possibly fall so easily."

Despite the turning tide and his life hanging by a thread, genuine joy filled the King's eyes.

"Yes, there's no need to hesitate any longer."

With these words, the King plunged his hand into his own chest.

A heartbeat echoed throughout the Abyss.

Everything changed.

The air, space, time, and the flow of the world itself began surging and focusing on the King.

Chaos amplified infinitely as his Authority soared endlessly. The world's laws completely distorted as the surrounding area transformed into a new world.

At its center-

"Emperor."

The Demon King 'Despair' had become something entirely different as he faced Zion.

He had just given up both his path to divinity and the possibility of reaching even greater heights. In exchange, he had gained an even more transcendent status and power.

This was his final trump card prepared specifically to face the Eternal Emperor.

"Please don't disappoint me."

The King, now fully a lesser god of this world, declared these words to Zion.

The entire world trembled and transformed at his words.

Zion watched the King with calm eyes.

Though the King's power had become incomparably greater than before-

CRACK!

Though it was now strong enough that even Zion couldn't guarantee victory, strong enough to suppress his very existence, a smile curved his lips.

This was the perfect moment to use 'that.'

Chronos's Fifth Question - the last of the Five Questions.

All of Chronos's Questions were fundamentally connected to time.

Time Fixation represented the present.

Time Reproduction and Time Theft represented the past.

Then what did the final remaining Question represent?

The answer had been determined from the start.

'The future.'

Is the future of all things predetermined?

This was the final question that Chronos, God of Time, had posed to humanity in the mythological age long past.

At that moment, as the last jewel in Zion's bracelet shattered-

Tick!

The sound of clock hands moving began echoing throughout the world.

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