Chapter 152: They Didn’t Find Me...

"Heh... Hahaha... Hahahahaha! They’re finally gone, those bastards!... I escaped!... They didn’t find me!... Hahahahaha!"

Those hysterical bursts of laughter erupted from the throat of "Author-san"—an entity who appeared to be in a wretched, utterly unstable mental and physical state!

He was lurking inside his pitch-black apartment on Planet Earth—an apartment shrouded in complete, abyssal darkness due to the strict, heavy sealing of the curtains, windows, and doors with duct tape.

Now, suspiciously enough...

"Author-san" pounced like a madman, tearing away the insulating adhesive tape that barred light from entering or leaking out, before flinging his large window open with unprecedented fury and hysteria!

"Hahahahaha!... I’m free!... I’m finally free!"

His mad laughter soared into the open air, utterly unconcerned with the ruin, devastation, and panic consuming the streets below! Ambulances wailed, and people rushed out of their tilting homes in sheer terror following the most violent earthquake to ever strike the inhabited planet. As a result, passersby on the street sneered at the sight of that weird man standing on his high balcony, laughing at the top of his lungs in the middle of a global crisis that called for no joy or mockery!

"Author-san" could hardly believe his survival... After the most agonizing, terrifying day he had ever endured in his entire life, he could finally catch his exhausted breath and relax after the crushing psychological pressure he suffered just from knowing that "Extreme Reader" and that "Terrifying Woman" were on the surface of Planet Earth at the exact same time!

He never expected those two to have the audacity and tracking capability to descend upon Earth and search for him at his own home!

That was precisely what his trembling mind and traumatized thoughts had fabricated; "Author-san" had been devoting his time to drafting a new, innovative blueprint for his upcoming literary plotline. Yet he had been caught off guard by the colossal cosmic earthquake that shook the foundations of the entire Earth moments ago!

When he focused his high sovereign senses to trace the true source of that unnatural quake, his heart nearly shattered from terror upon discovering a crushing, royal purple aura—the direct cause of all that dimensional turmoil!

He was struck by absolute panic and dread; he believed with absolute certainty that his former loyal reader and that "Purple Empress," having finally reunited and reclaimed their legendary power, were coming on an inevitable vengeful crusade to finish him off for everything he had done in the past after attempting to put them to sleep!

He could have easily forged a dimensional portal and vacated Planet Earth at any given second. Yet when he glimpsed through his foresight that purple spear hovering in the center of the sky above his head, fear paralyzed him, crushing his ambitions of escape!

He cursed frantically in his trembling mind at the time:

’Damn it, damn it, damn it!... They’ve definitely planted magical sensors across every single inch of this cursed planet to trace my unique aura!... If I move a single centimeter of magical energy or envelop my body in a spell, they’ll be standing right over my head before I even step a foot out of this universe!’

"Author-san" couldn’t afford to gamble with death or annihilation. If he died or his physical body was destroyed, "Morzoth," the higher entity, would curse him and personally descend into the depths of eternal hell to drag his terrified soul out and inflict infinite torture upon it!

During those agonizing times when these critical events were transpiring around Earth, "Author-san" huddled behind his sealed doors, darkly recalling all the misfortunes and troubles that had encompassed his life ever since he assumed his duties...

"Author-san" had always been subjected to mockery and disdain by the "Cosmic Guardians Society" for being the weakest, most rebellious guardian in the history of all the vast universes!

Normally, the power of any "Cosmic Guardian" was overwhelmingly immense, turning the title of "Guardian" into a mere badge added to the person’s own greatness and renown... But in "Author-san’s" case, the exact opposite held true; the title of "Guardian" was the sole thing granting him prestige and authority that most members of the Guardians Council believed he didn’t deserve a mustard seed of!

The Supreme Entity "Morzoth"—who served as the former Cosmic Guardian—held a unique theory and belief. He reasoned that most guardians overseeing the "Intermediate Universes" (such as Universe 431) usually resided at the Almighty Level, possessing terrifying destructive energies that placed them at the absolute peak of that legendary tier.

Because they possessed such radiant strength, arrogance thoroughly consumed them regarding that great title, leading them to believe they had the right to demand ranks far higher than a mere "Cosmic Guardian"!

Therefore, Morzoth devised a risky yet clever logic: If he appointed a humble individual who belonged merely to the simple Heavenly Level—like "Author-san"—that person would undoubtedly be immensely grateful for the prestigious title and granted authority. He would exert his utmost effort to be a diligent, hard-working, and impeccably perfect guardian!

Wasn’t that sound logic?!

Yet... that was not at all what "Author-san" did!

Now, two severe warnings had been issued against him by the "High Council of Guardians"—leaving him just one final warning away from a humiliating expulsion and removal from office! An outcome that would compel Morzoth to intervene personally, tear his soul apart, and banish it into the deep void permanently with no return!

The first warning was slapped on him after "Author-san" dared to misuse his cosmic authority to spy on the "Records of Fate" for Universe 431... Not out of a pursuit for extraordinary power or grand dominion, but simply to steal future events and write an engaging fantasy novel based on them!

It was the absurdly foolish act in the history of the Council ever committed by a being granted access to the drafts of Fate itself; instead of utilizing them to ascend through power nodes and cosmic tiers, he used them to draft Chapters for an entertainment novel!

Ever since then, "Author-san" was stripped of that privilege, rendered completely incapable of viewing the Records of Fate ever again!

Because of that humiliating warning, the eyes of the High Council turned sharply and suspiciously toward Morzoth himself. This prompted Morzoth to issue a terrifyingly strict warning to Author-san, threatening him with absolute annihilation should he dare commit another act of stupidity! He barked at him in fury, gritting his teeth, stating that he had permitted him to pursue his literary passion despite his status as a Cosmic Guardian, but patience had strict boundaries that must never be crossed!

Due to this deprivation and strict surveillance, "Author-san" lost the ability to foresee future events or anything pertaining to Fate... Consequently, he began relying in his writing and narrative on whatever his weak shadow and fading memory could afford him, adding numerous elements from his personal imagination to patch up the gaps!

However, he was later shocked to discover that readers and followers were beginning to notice a multitude of plotholes and illogical developments within the novel!

The narrative plot seemed as if it were being forced and suspiciously engineered solely to serve the main protagonist, disregarding logical balance! Not only that, but the novel’s world, which was initially constructed in a cohesive and airtight manner, began giving off an alarming impression that the characters were behaving in ways completely contrary to their established core natures!

Most notably, the famous Yandere character—Lucy! It was as clear as daylight that she harbored zero feelings of love or belonging toward the character named "Hykes" in the manner and depiction described across the Chapters!

"Author-san" had no idea how to handle or fix this narrative absurdity; he began doubting the validity of his own memories and the accuracy of the events he had personally witnessed in the Records of Fate previously!

During that dark period, he placed the novel on an Indefinite Hiatus, feeling a total sense of helplessness, believing the novel had become useless and that the plot events no longer made any sense or held up to logic!

Yet he was utterly stunned when he encountered an extremely hardcore reader who was fanatically obsessed with the novel—and specifically with the character "Lucy"... A reader who appeared in the comments section daily, relentlessly demanding the release of a new Chapter for the story!

In that era, "Author-san" decided to outwardly abandon his old dream of becoming a famous author, choosing instead to focus on being a diligent guardian for his universe to avoid Morzoth’s wrath. He lost touch with Planet Earth, remaining completely oblivious to the details unfolding there...

However, in his rare moments of leisure, he enjoyed sitting down to read the comments and analytical theories written by that "Extreme Reader"; the reader analyzed every point and plothole in the novel in a breathtaking, profound manner! He was the sole reader in existence who genuinely believed and trusted that the novel’s world was no mere cliché fiction, but a tangible reality existing in other dimensions!

"Author-san" would carve out time from his schedule to reply to the Extreme Reader’s inquiries regarding the magic system, mana laws, and the dimensional structure of those realms...

Then one day, while "Author-san" sat lazily relaxing in his cosmic office...

He noticed through his cosmic sight that the events he had penned in his paused novel—the actual events transpiring in Universe 431—had begun to manifest and move in real time!

A demonic, crazy idea leaped into his mind... an idea that would flip the scales entirely!

What if... What if he transported that very "Extreme Reader" directly inside that world?! Into the real world of the novel?!

That reader, armed with his detailed knowledge and rigorous scrutiny, would undoubtedly become an extraordinarily dangerous enemy and a decisive rival to the main protagonist "Hykes"! Through this masterstroke, "Author-san" would obtain the greatest, most fierce literary plotline in cosmic history... and this time, driven by authentic, real events surpassing everything ever written before!