Humans have often wondered… How was it so easy for the Outer Demons to invade Earth?

No matter how many researchers studied this topic and how much time and money was spent, no one on the planet could replicate the Outer Demon Gates. That was one of the main reasons why during the entire Outer Demon invasion, there was no significant conquest into the Demon Realm.

No one knew how to travel through the Gates, and everyone feared the repercussions of using them. Replicating the Gates was even harder, as no one had a clear view of how Spacetime actually worked.

But… For me, creating a Gate was easy.

With my Vampire Aspect fully awakened, I now understood the flow of Spacetime itself. I understood how the Outer Demons, or more specifically, the Goddess of Destiny, was able to create Gates connecting our two worlds. And more importantly… I think I understood why she had that ability.

Snapping my fingers, I smashed a portal open and confidently stepped through it as it closed behind me. Mine was different from the other Gates that the Goddess of Destiny opened. I didn’t need to keep the Gates open since I could move through Spacetime without help.

Moving through the void, I stepped into a wormhole and was tunnelled across the galaxy faster than the speed of light. I saw various stars and solar systems pass me by and even sped past some black holes on the way.

Even as someone who could control the Universe and likely witness the end of time, experiencing this wormhole phenomenon made my eyes sparkle with wonder. The Universe was a marvellous place with many beautiful phenomena occurring daily. Supernovas, collapsing stars, black holes and colliding galaxies.

It was like the entire Universe was a living, breathing organism, and we’re all cells in its vast system.

And just with everything that was alive… It would one day come to an end.

The expansion of the Universe was accelerating, and one day, galaxies would be so far from each other that the stars of the night sky wouldn’t reflect them all. The Universe won’t end with a bang but with a big rip. And once that happens… All life will cease to exist. Humans, Vampires, even Demons… We will all be subjected to eternal damnation.

So before that happens…

“I’ve arrived.”

Entering the Demon Realm was a simple affair. Stepping out from the portal of my own making, I cautiously examined the foreign planet with added interest. Oddly enough, the air composition was similar to Earth’s, and I didn’t need an oxygen mask to easily breathe. Taking one deep breath, I absorbed the atmosphere with a pleasant smile as a breeze blew my clothes and hair.

The skies were filled with fluffy white clouds, and the ocean’s water was the same blue I’d always remembered. Looking further, I could see green trees and plenty of interesting geographic features like mountains and valleys.

The Demon Realm… was eerily similar to Earth.

If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that my Gate failed and I had returned to Earth.

But my suspicions were soon corrected as sinister energy charged right at me.

A flaming ball of molten hot lava was hurled at my unsuspecting body, seemingly trying to take me out when I arrived. The flames were burning hot enough to make the Earth’s core feel cold, and it felt like the Sun itself was being thrown in my direction. If it was just one month back, I may have had trouble destroying that searing hot star and would have been forced to teleport away.

But now…

“Disappear.”

I pointed my finger at the fiery sphere, which disintegrated into atoms. As if it had never existed, the flames and heat that permeated my body were gone, and I was left with a distinct sense of satisfaction.

I had gotten far stronger than before; that was the most definite proof. And well… My very welcoming visitors felt the same way.

“That’s a fun way to welcome someone to your planet.”

I teased in jest as the two figures descended from the skies. A demonic humanoid wreathed in yellow and red flames that burned as painfully as the fires from Hell led the charge. Well-built and massive, the Outer Demon seemed more human than Demon, ignoring the fact that he had intense flames encircling his entire body. However, the most telling sign of his Demonic roots was the massive amount of magic power he hid within himself.

Eyghon, Cthulhu and Baishe couldn’t even begin to match the magic power this Demon possessed. Even if they combined their magic power pools, it would only be a fraction of this Demon’s power.

But alas, even though this Demon was likely the Demon Lord that all Demons served, my attention was on someone else entirely.

The second Demon that appeared… She was far more subdued.

Draped in white garb, she seemed like a Saintess or a Priestess that wasn’t meant to see the flames of battle. She was a support character in an RPG, a woman who would never willingly enter the battlefield even if a thousand swords were compelling her.

But at the same time… She was the Demon I was looking for.

“You must be Uriel, the Goddess of Destiny.”

“… Hegemon, we meet at last.”

“Hegemon… That’s how you see me in your dreams, huh?”

Uriel flinched when I eerily called out her nightmares. A cloth was wrapped around her eyes, not giving me a chance to see her full expression, but I could tell… The Goddess was rattled.

“If your sight can see the future, then you should know why I came here today.”

“… you wish to enslave the Demon Race.”

“Hoh? So that’s what your dreams are telling you, huh?”

Was that why the Outer Demons were so intent on killing me? Did I become a tyrant in the future? That’s why they wanted to end me before I was born? No, that makes complete sense. If I were the future Hegemon and the one who ruled the Universe, perhaps I would enslave the Demon race. Maybe I went one step further and enslaved the entire human race too.

But one thing was for certain…

“I see… In those dreams, what did I do to the Demon race?”

“W-What?”

“How did I enslave you? What did I do to you? I’m just curious… What did future me do to elicit such rage and prejudice?”

“Y-You…”

The Goddess of Destiny was unable to control her anger. Seething from her teeth, the Demon’s voice turned utterly demonic, like she was possessed by a higher power. Bleeding from her eye sockets, she unleashed an aura equally as frightening as it was despondent.

“You… Enslaved us all! Forced us into battles where we would die by the billions! Played with our descendants and forced us to do your bidding! We would be caged and toyed with for your entertainment as you pillage and conquer your way through the Universe! Our lives will be made into a living hell, and we will all be your subjects until the end of time! And you dare ask me if my rage is just?!”

Oh… No wonder she hates me so much.

If that was what her visions showed her, I could understand why she wished to kill me. But unfortunately, just like how I was played by the original timeline, so was Uriel.

“Uriel… I will do no such thing.”

“You bastard, how dare you try and-?!”

“Listen,” I sighed while rubbing my forehead. “Where does your power of foresight come from?”

“W-What?”

“Did you really think you could change Destiny and time with your own power?”

I stared at the stumped Demon Lord with a wry smile. I had this lingering suspicion ever since I’d realised all of reality was playing on a time loop. If the original timeline had been altered by future me, there was no way I wouldn’t have known about the Goddess of Destiny and her ability to change fate.

And as I thought about it, the power of foresight was essentially the power of Spacetime. The ability to see and alter the future, the ability of time itself.

Only one person I knew could give such an overpowered ability to someone else.

“Uriel, your visions are a lie.”

“There’s no way that’s true! You will enslave us! I saw it in my future!”

“You’re right; you saw a vision of my making. Well, future me, that is. I had to make you hate me to preserve the timeline and ensure that you would invade Earth and send an Outer Demon to kill me. Therefore, what you saw was a false vision. A vision catered to start the time loop and ensure my ascension.”

“W-What are you saying?”

“I’m saying your entire purpose, your life’s mission… It was just a big fat lie.”

Uriel nearly collapsed from the sudden revelation. The entire Outer Demon invasion of Earth was part of the timeline that gave birth to the Hegemon. There was no way Uriel would have known that.

“Ah, you might be right about one thing, though.”

At my change of tone, the woman’s ears perked up, seemingly intent on finding one last straw to grasp. But alas, I didn’t intend to rule the Universe as a tyrant or enslave the entire Demon race. However…

“I will put a suggestion in the psyche of all living creatures. That includes humans and Demons. ‘Do not harm Jin Valter, any of his four wives and anyone from the Valter House.’ That will be my first and final order to all of you.”

With my power to control everything in the Universe, making this slight change in their minds was a simple task. It didn’t matter if they were humans, Demons, Elves or Vampires. All of them would be compelled not to harm anyone from the Valter House.

“Whether or not you decide to serve under me, well… I don’t really care. As long as you don’t harm me or anyone I love, the Demon race will never be enslaved. This, I swear.”

“Y-You…”

Unable to hold back her emotions, Uriel exploded. Blood dripped down her eyes as her body collapsed like a broken puppet. The Demon Lord standing beside her grabbed Uriel by the waist and cautiously brought her to a safe place.

I did nothing to stop the massive Demon. After all, I didn’t see the Demon race as a threat anymore. They were just being manipulated by the flow of the Universe, a timeline that future me had created. But unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said about the Demon Lord.

“Jin Valter… My enemy…”

“Even after hearing all that, you still see me as a threat?”

“Am I to believe the words of an enemy? Even if you’re right, what’s stopping you from changing your mind in the future? What if you decide to betray our trust and enslave us all? You would have grown too strong by then for us to stop you.”

“…”

I see… So they wouldn’t believe me even if I extended my goodwill to them. That was the burden of the strong. As the one in power, they will always fear me. Even if I chose not to kill or enslave them, the mere threat of my existence was enough for them to fight.

If that’s the case…

“So be it.”