Above a ruined temple, amidst shattered thrones and floating debris, two beings stood face to face.
Goetia, in the form of Solomon, gazed at the human before him. His eyes—once filled with authority and boundless wisdom—were now hollow, stripped of purpose.
"I have lost my power. I am nothing more than an old man, with barely five minutes left to live. And yet... now, at the end, I finally understand humanity. A king who is, at last, truly a king."
"I no longer act out of rage or vengeance. I can feel joy. Sorrow. Shame."
"I do not hate the man who broke me."
"But I will kill you. And though my body is at its limit, on the verge of collapse... you will not stop me. In this battle, my flesh will fail—but I feel no pity, no regret. Now that death comes, I can finally say... I have lived."
"As the void closes in, devouring all... honor me as your greatest rival. Fight me to the very end."
"This... is my one and only reward."
His voice was worn, eroded by eternity—yet it still carried the arrogance of a Beast of Humanity.
---
In his final clash with Ritsuka, Goetia's body crumbled piece by piece. Still, he fought. Until nothing remained. Until he vanished from the world entirely.
---
The void.
All was over.
Goetia drifted in emptiness. He felt no time, no space. Even thought was laborious—perhaps because his Saint Graph was broken beyond repair. Or perhaps... this was simply what it meant to die.
"A human life is so fleeting... and yet, so strangely magnificent."
That was his last conscious thought before dissolution.
Then—a voice, genderless and vast, echoed through the void.
"Find a new purpose, my child... one that makes you truly alive."