A cold wind howled through the void as Jin stood alone in the eerie silence of the dark realm. Shadows slithered along the blackened walls, and the dying blue flame of the lanterns flickered in haunting rhythm. As the chains that once bound Duskhavan faded into nothingness, Jin felt the ancient presence dissolve—but his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
A memory returned. A voice. A promise.
The world around him blurred into the void of his mind, and Jin recalled the moment when Zenex reached out telepathically.
"That creature you saw… that was my master," Zenex said with a grim tone. "The killer of two legends—Sinhaan and Visvat."
Jin remained silent, his fists clenched.
"I know it's dangerous, Jin. But I'm not forcing you. I just… I don't want you to become a slave like me."
Jin asked, "If I'm a slave now, why hasn't your master taken control?"
Zenex replied slowly, "Because my consciousness still exists. I've been shielding you all this time… but I'm reaching the end of my tether."
Jin lowered his head.
"Then don't hesitate. Tell me what I need to do."
"If you enter the Dark Realm, find a way to obtain Nihola. Use it to change the fates of the two heroes—Sinhaan and Visvat. They deserve another ending."
"Who are they?" Jin asked. "What's their connection to you?"
"You'll understand… in time. I'm not related to them. But I'll show you something instead."
Zenex showed him a vision—of a ruined future.
A sky cracked by entropy. A planet engulfed in decay. Two figures clashed amidst the crumbling remnants of stars. One was Jin, older and battle-worn. The other... something far worse. The battle ended with a snap. Jin disintegrated—erased from existence. At his feet, the corpse of Steve, Jin's son, lay cold and lifeless.
Jin gasped as the vision ended.
"What was that?! Why was I… and my son—?"
Zenex spoke softly,
"That's a possible future. You cannot stop him alone. Use Nihola to rewrite the outcome of their fates. They might be your only hope."
Jin's eyes narrowed. "How does Nihola help?"
"It alters endings—not rewrites them, not dominates them. It creates a new finality and untainted beginning, Secure anyone's fate. And once you use it... destroy it. That's the only way to keep the cycle from being abused."
Jin blinked.
"Couldn't your master use it?"
Zenex let out a dry, bitter laugh.
"He believes he can dominate the end without needing help. He never feared the end… until now."
The vision faded.
Now, standing in the desolate realm after Duskhavan's erasure, Jin lifted Nihola. Its core pulsed like a dying heart. He exhaled slowly.
"So… he really could dominate endings. Even in his current state, he could wipe out a sacred planet without effort."
But Jin clenched his hand around the artifact.
"I'll keep my promise."
He activated Nihola. A deep hum resonated in the void. The artifact glowed with spectral light as its will awakened.
"Speak the names of those whose endings you wish to alter. Or speak the names of those whose fate you wish to secure," the artifact whispered.
Jin closed his eyes and spoke:
"Sinhaan. Visvat."
Then a deeper memory surfaced—Lia. Her fate. Her manipulation. Her death.
"And… Eleanor. Secure her fate, untouched by divine interference."
Nihola shone brighter, as if responding to the sincerity of his plea.
And then, as if a new chapter had just been written in the book of fate, the light dimmed and the void returned to silence.
Jin looked down at the artifact, recalling Zenex's last words.
"When you use it… destroy it."
Without hesitation, Jin summoned his divine flame and shattered Nihola into fragments. They scattered like stardust and vanished into nothing.
Before leaving the Dark Realm, Jin turned one last time.
"People speak of dominion over the end. Of owning fate. Of becoming gods through endings…"
He paused, his voice quiet.
"But Nihola was never made to dominate. It was born to alter. Not to rewrite. Not to defy. Not to escape."
He looked up, where the realm's sky was a void without stars.
"Every beginning… must have an end. Life must meet death. Destiny must meet closure. Even the one who wields the end cannot avoid his own."
Jin turned away, his silhouette fading into the black mist.
"I destroyed Nihola… to protect that cycle."