Chapter 556: Inevitable

Damian’s crimson eyes tracked the extended hand, that palm offered upward like salvation wrapped in darkness.

His breathing remained steady despite the weight of the offer pressing down on the dreamscape around them.

Then he spoke, his voice emerging quiet but carrying clearly across the rooftop.

"A few days ago, a mysterious being came to me."

The words fell into the silence like stones dropped into still water.

"He gave me a choice, an offer to return to the life of Alessio and undo everything that had been done to me."

Damian’s gaze lifted from the hand to where the Hooded One’s face should be.

"He told me he had the power to rewrite what the Beggar had written, to unmake what had been made of me."

His head tilted slightly, the movement deliberate.

"I’m almost certain that mysterious being was the Beggar himself who manipulated my life in the first place."

A pause, letting the statement settle.

"After all, who else could have possessed that kind of power? Who else would care enough about my choices to offer such a thing?"

His hands remained at his sides, fingers spread slightly.

"You are wise and old, ancient beyond what I can comprehend. Surely you can clear up this misunderstanding for me."

The question emerged calm and direct.

"Who do you think that being was?"

Silence crashed down between them like a physical weight.

The Hooded One remained perfectly still, that extended hand frozen in place.

The city below flickered, lights wavering as if the dreamscape itself was holding its breath.

Then the hand lowered completely, withdrawing back beneath the cloak.

The figure’s head turned away, looking out at the night sky.

"There is no one else in this universe with that kind of power."

The words emerged as barely a whisper, doubled voice carrying weight that made each syllable feel heavier than mountains.

Damian’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes tracked every micro-movement of the shrouded form.

’So the mysterious being really was the Beggar.’

The thought settled with cold certainty.

’Or at least, that’s what the Hooded One believes.’

He took a breath, organizing his thoughts before continuing.

"You are similarly a powerful mysterious being yourself."

He gestured vaguely at the Hooded One’s shrouded form.

"And you have also come before me with a choice, with an offer that promises everything I could possibly want."

His hands spread slightly, the motion almost helpless.

"But if the Beggar’s choice had his own manipulation involved..."

His crimson eyes found the void beneath the hood again.

"It makes me wonder if yours does as well."

The question sat between them, sharp and weighted.

The Hooded One’s form shifted fractionally, becoming heavier and more oppressive.

Damian’s next words came slower, each one chosen with deliberate care.

"The fall of the Bloodworth family..."

He paused, letting the words hang.

"Was it orchestrated by you in the first place?"

Boom

Thunder tumbled overhead, distant but present.

"It would make perfect sense, wouldn’t it?"

Damian’s head tilted back, looking at the clouds gathering above.

"After all, my Grandpa defeated your precious disciple Envy when he was just a Demigod."

His gaze dropped back to the Hooded One.

"That must have stung. Must have made you question everything you’d taught the being who was supposed to be invincible."

He took a breath, his hands settling back at his sides.

"And for some reason, if your goal is truly the end of my world, if you really want humanity to burn..."

His voice gained edges despite remaining quiet.

"Then how can you not remove its strongest protector first? How can you just stand aside and watch as he grew stronger?"

Another pause, heavier than before.

"How can you allow the one being who proved Demon Rulers can be beaten to continue existing?"

Silence spread between them, thick and suffocating.

The Hooded One remained motionless for several heartbeats.

Then the doubled voice emerged, quiet but carrying weight that pressed down on everything.

"Your world is coveted by every race across the universe. All of their ancestors have passed down different versions of so-called prophecies..."

The words came out measured and deliberate.

"Their Seers and their chosen ones had been killing your blood for years, long before I ever turned my attention toward your grandfather’s existence."

The Hooded One’s hands emerged from beneath the cloak, spreading wide in a gesture that encompassed everything.

"To destroy your family, to break the Bloodworth lineage completely, to ensure no protector could ever rise again..."

The voice became quieter but somehow carried more weight.

"That was the ultimate goal of the entire universe."

The declaration hung in the frozen air between them, carrying implications too vast to fully grasp.

"I didn’t need to orchestrate anything."

The doubled voice became quieter.

"I just needed to step back and watch the inevitable unfold."

Silence fell around them, absolute and crushing.

Damian stood there, his expression unchanged, processing the magnitude of what had just been confirmed.

’Prophecies... Looks like I was right all along.’

The thought settled like ice in his chest.

’The massacre wasn’t as simple as the Patriarchs’ betrayal. Every race was somehow involved.’

His breathing remained steady despite the revelations piling up.

Tap Tap Tap

Then he moved, his boots carrying him across the dreamscape rooftop toward the table where he’d eaten his final meal as Alessio.

The setup remained exactly as he remembered it, down to the placement of the empty plates and the discarded napkin.

His hand settled on the table’s edge, fingers pressing against wood that felt real.

"When I stood here the last time..."

His voice emerged quiet, almost contemplative.

"I was a ruthless man to whom morality was worthless."

His gaze tracked across the empty plates, seeing beyond them to memories that belonged to a different life.

"I had destroyed millions of lives without hesitation or mercy."

His fingers curled slightly, nails scraping against wood.

"I left many wives without husbands, children without their fathers, mothers without their sons."

The words came out measured and calm, stating facts without embellishment.

"All of them crying for loved ones who would never return, mourning deaths I had ordered or caused or allowed."

His hand lifted, settling on the chair Alessio had sat in during his final meal.

"Standing here again today, after experiencing a new life, after being given a second chance I never asked for or deserved in the first place..."

He pulled the chair out slowly, the legs scraping against the rooftop stone.

"All I can feel is the weight of every innocent life I have taken."

He sat down, his movements deliberate and controlled.