chapter 63: Return from the Ashes – The Heart of Worlds

Where… am I?"_

Xiao opened his eyes to a strange realm, silent… devoid of time.

The sky above was entirely white—no sun, no moon, no stars.

The ground beneath him was warm ash, pulsing gently as if alive.

He was alone… or so he thought.

Then the voice came.

A voice he had known since birth, yet never heard.

_"Xiao… you've surpassed the truth."_

He turned slowly, and saw a mysterious figure—not divine, not human.

It felt like an idea, a presence older than creation itself.

_"Who are you?"_ Xiao asked.

_"I am the Origin."_

_"Origin of what?"_

_"Of everything."

"The curse, the blood, the fate—even Xiao himself."_

Xiao froze for a moment… something stirred within him.

Not pain—realization.

The entity spoke again:

_"You weren't created to fight… but to choose. That is why you survived."_

_"Now, you must make the greatest decision."_

_"What decision?"_

_"Which world you preserve… and which you let perish."_

_"What?!"_

Suddenly, the sky revealed nine worlds—each collapsing into chaos.

Fire, screams, shadows, frost, wailing souls.

_"Not all can be saved,"_ the entity said.

_"Your choice will reshape balance… and bring an end to the age of the curse."_

Xiao stood, his heart pounding.

_"But… millions of lives?"_

_"No one escapes the choice—not even the gods."_

Silence fell.

Then… Xiao saw images of his mother, his sister, his friends… he saw Esther.

He saw Heim fighting alone in the world of shadows.

Xiao spoke:

_"I won't choose who dies… I'll do something different."_

For the first time, the entity smiled.

_"Then the real story begins…"_

A gate appeared before Xiao, unlike any he'd seen—crafted from his own blood, his regret, and his dreams.

He stepped through…

And suddenly, found himself standing atop the ruins of Niflheim, wind tearing through his robes.

The world was breathing anew… but it was not as it had been.

Esther ran to him, tears on her face:

_"Xiao! You… came back!"_

He embraced her—for the first time, without pain.

_"Is it all over?"_ she whispered.

But he didn't answer.

He looked up to the sky, where Odin's lone eye still watched.

Xiao whispered:

_"No… there's still more to be done."_

And there… the final chapter of the new destiny began.