Crack, crack!
Ethan's skin began to fissure and break apart.
From the fractures, a radiance belonging uniquely to him burst forth, illuminating the world with the warmth and brilliance of the breaking dawn!
Ethan raised his hand, watching his skin peel away in shimmering flakes. This was not a forced hatching; it was a butterfly breaking free from its cocoon. His current human body could no longer withstand this supreme, divine power. It needed to be completely reshaped.
"Once everything is ready, I must hold an art exhibition of my own," Ethan said enthusiastically, staying true to his original passion. "How could I only let the world witness supreme art just once? They need to see it every day, to yearn for it day and night!"
And this time, possessing the authority of a god, he would create an absolutely incredible art exhibition.
"Hum hum hum I'm really looking forward to it" Ethan hummed a cheerful little tune.
Crack, crack. Crack, crack.
His physical shell fractured inch by inch.
Ethan narrowed his eyes, feeling an endless torrent of power surging from deep within his body, breaking through the limitations of his mortal flesh. He was filled with anticipation, his mind bursting with ideas for new paintings. He wished he could start painting right this second; there were so many pieces he wanted to create.
Just as Ethan had always believed, whether he became a god or not made no real difference to him. It simply meant he could now promote his art completely according to his own whims.
Just as Ethan was filled with expectation for his ascension, a sudden, piercing coldness tightly gripped his wrist!
?!
Startled, Ethan looked down abruptly, meeting a pair of serene blue eyes. Except right now, compared to the usual tranquility of those eyes, they were burning with fury.
"Are you trying to leave me behind again, Ethan?" Luna said, emphasizing every single word.
It was the first time Ethan had ever seen such immense anger on that fair, gentle face. He didn't even know how she had managed to catch up to him.
His wrist was gripped tightly enough to hurt. Ethan scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly, "No way! How could I? I'm just leaving for a short while to reshape my physical body, organize my newly acquired powers, and sort out this divine authority stuff. I'll be back—mph!"
Ethan's words were suddenly cut off. To be precise, they were "plugged up."
Ethan's breath hitched, his eyes widening slightly as he stared at the blonde girl right in front of him, feeling the warmth of their mingled breath. The softness pressed against his lips was so forceful, as if she wanted to pour all of her pent-up emotions entirely into it.
Amidst the moisture of the kiss, Ethan sensed an aura he had never noticed before—
Luna was the high-ranking servant who had helped him time and again, [The Girl in the Mirror]!
Crack!
Ethan's face shattered into pieces.
His skin dissolved into specks of light in midair, and the warmth on his lips vanished. Only those cobalt blue eyes remained until the very end, staring at Luna, wide and perfectly round.
"...Idiot."
Luna pursed her lips. Her usually detached and airy face was now overcast with a shadow of sorrow. Tears welled in her blue eyes, and her lips trembled as she murmured reproachfully, "Don't leave me all alone. I get lonely too..."
It was only because of her family's easygoing and detached nature that she had always buried her negative emotions deep in her heart, turning a blind eye to them. In truth, ever since her mother's accidental death, Luna had always been incredibly, deeply lonely. No one wanted to associate with the "eccentric Lovegoods." Until she met Ethan, who was just as eccentric.
Luna reached out, catching a tiny fragment floating down, and pressed it tightly against her heart. Looking up at the sky where the radiance was ascending, she murmured, "I'll wait for you to come back, Ethan."
"—Luna!"
Hermione and the others caught the falling Luna. Looking down at the unconscious girl, Hermione pursed her lips and couldn't help but mutter, "Poor crazy girl."
At the same time, she was also a "lucky crazy girl." After all, out of countless admirers, she was the only girl who could not only keep up with Ethan's train of thought but was also as powerful as him.
The sun and the moon shine together. In The Starry Night, if there were only the night sky and the stars, it wouldn't be considered a complete masterpiece.
"[And so, Harry Potter asked anxiously, 'So, what do we do now? Where did Ethan go?']"
"[Hermione replied firmly, 'We wait. We wait for the day Ethan makes his grand entrance, bringing with him his brand-new creation.']"
"[Death was destroyed, and destiny could no longer bind anyone. From then on, despite a period of unrest, the wizarding world gradually restored peace under the protection of the Enlightenment Society and Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.]"
"[Hermione became the new Minister for Magic, actively promoting the reintegration of werewolves into society and the redevelopment plan for Knockturn Alley—though some criticized her, saying she was 'righteous to a fault.']"
"[Dumbledore officially retired from Hogwarts, with the deeply trusted Harry Potter taking over as Headmaster. Vanishing along with Dumbledore was the former Dark Lord of a generation, Grindelwald.]"
"[Ron became a Ministry Auror, and the Weasley twins continued their booming joke shop business; many foreign wizards had already come to place orders with them.]"
"[Once society stabilized, Sirius traveled the world, living out his days as a carefree rogue. Meanwhile, Lupin worked closely with Minister Granger to actively promote employment opportunities for marginalized individuals.]"
"[Professor Snape finally took up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor once more, becoming the first professor in history to break the curse and serve two separate terms.]"
"[His only grievance might be becoming colleagues with Neville Longbottom—the latter being the new Herbology assistant. Meanwhile, Neville's parents were actively undergoing treatment, and their health was steadily improving.]"
"[Miraculously, no one sacrificed their life in this great war; instead, countless people found salvation and a new lease on life.]"
"[The wizarding world became more stable and harmonious. Pure-blood families no longer held absolute power, and the Malfoy family lived a life that, while 'meager' compared to before, was at least peaceful and honest.]"
"[Fairness and justice descended upon everyone. From then on, they all lived happily ever after.]"
"Alright," the woman closed the storybook, looking at her son with affectionate exhaustion. "The story ends here—a happily ever after."
"But, but!" The boy tugged at his mother's hem, asking eagerly, "Where did that big Demon King Ethan and his good friend Luna go?"
"It's getting very late, son. You need to go to bed—"
"Oh! Mom! Please!"
"Alright, alright," the woman said with feigned helplessness, holding up a finger. "If you promise to be a good, non-mischievous boy for the next week, I will—"
"I promise, Mom! I promise!"
"Hehehe~"
The woman's eyes crinkled with laughter as she patted her son's head. Reopening the storybook, she cleared her throat and began reading once more:
"[One day after the great war ended, people were astonished to discover that a magical art museum had quietly appeared on the street.]"
"[No one knew when it was built, or who its owner was. The location of its appearance was never fixed, as if it had grown legs!]"
"[People could only see a tall, slender man in a black suit standing at the entrance to welcome guests. It was said that once you were caught by him, you would be forced to enter this terrifying art museum!]"
"[Sometimes, a blonde girl could also be seen accompanying the man in the suit.]"
"[Everyone who emerged from the art museum would have hazy memories and even suffer from nightmares. Only one person, upon exiting, wept as he claimed he had seen his deceased parents.]"
"[Consequently, many people, harboring all sorts of intentions, went in search of this horrifying yet unique art museum. However, it never opened specifically for anyone, always maintaining its veil of mystery.]"
"[It is said that this art museum, run by those familiar faces, still appears from time to time before those who have lost their way.]"
"[Waiting... to swallow its next guest whole...]"
"The Biography of the Benevolent God of Art, Ethan Vincent, The End~"
The woman closed the book and breathed a long sigh of relief.
She grumbled to herself: This storybook is supposed to be a fairy tale, so why is there so much bizarre content inside? Some of the plot points, especially that "Benevolent God of Art," gave even her, an adult, goosebumps.
Ignoring her struggling son, she firmly nudged him toward bed, scaring him by saying that if he didn't listen, the God of Art would come and take him away.
"Mom, Mom!" the boy cried out one last time, asking longingly, "Is there really a wizarding world and that magical art museum?"
"Oh, son, those are just made up in storybooks," his mother said a bit impatiently. "Alright! Now, you need to go to sleep! Otherwise, I won't take you to your grandparents' house in the countryside next week!"
The son hung his head, walking back to his bedroom in disappointment.
So magic is all fake, just made up in storybooks... Ethan and his wonderful art don't exist either... the boy thought to himself.
——Until two weeks later, when he stood in a golden wheat field in the countryside, looking up blankly at a massive building that had suddenly materialized in the middle of the field.
Crows flew across the wheat field.
It was as if a rendering error had occurred in the world's textures. The modern building stood abruptly amidst the shimmering golden stalks of wheat.
Creak.
The grand doors slowly swung open.
A tall, slender man dressed in an exquisitely tailored black suit, sporting slightly wavy black hair and an incomparably handsome face, was smiling down at him with cobalt blue eyes.
Beside him stood a fair, slender blonde woman. Her gentle and serene demeanor instantly made the boy think of a lake elf from the storybooks.
The man bowed elegantly, showing not a shred of disdain despite facing a mere child. Looking up, the corners of his lips quirked upward as a voice as rich and mellow as a cello flowed from his mouth:
"Welcome to my 'Past, Present, and Future' Art Museum."
"I am Ethan Vincent, the creator of this establishment and an artist."
"Welcome to your arrival."
———The End of the Main Story!