Chapter 148: The Silence of Gods

The world had gone still.

Not in peace. Not in death.

But in expectation.

The tenth flame had been born, and the resonance field around Rei now pulsed with a frequency unknown even to the system. It was no longer cataloged energy. It was identity made kinetic.

Rei stood before the council of neutral factions—fallen angels, dragons, remnants of long-dead spirits—each one sensing the shift.

"What are you now?" Azazel asked, finally stepping forward. His wings folded, eyes narrowed in thought.

Rei didn't answer immediately.

"I'm not a king," he said finally. "I'm a mirror. For what the world tried to forget."

From behind, Mireille appeared with a data scroll. "Resonance alignment complete. Flame count confirmed: ten. But something's changing—these aren't just individual spirits anymore."

Noira stepped into view. "They're combining."

Eirenne's eyes narrowed. "That means the system's preparing something big. Possibly a convergence protocol."

The sky responded.

Above Kyoto, a fracture widened. But it didn't break. It simply opened, and from it spilled visions. Not of war. Not of ruin.

But of gods watching in silence.

---

Pantheon Remnants – Realm Between Realities

There were once gods who ruled concepts before human thought could name them. Veyra had been one. But now, others stirred—none physical, none bound by existence.

They had watched Rei. From the first spirit to the last. They had remained silent, not because they feared him. But because they hoped.

And now, that hope had kindled.

A voice spoke—genderless, originless.

"He holds the tenth. The self. He has become what we could not."

Another chimed in.

"Should we test him?"

A pause. Then—

"No. We must warn him."

---

Message of the Forgotten Thrones

As Rei slept in the inner chamber of his shrine, the world dimmed. He did not dream. He was visited.

Ten thrones stood in the void. Nine were shattered. One remained untouched.

A figure sat upon it, faceless, infinite.

"You carry what we discarded," the figure said.

"Who are you?" Rei asked.

"We were what gods once feared. But we feared ourselves. So we locked our voices in fragments and scattered them into the future. You've gathered them. Not by command. Not by power. But by choice."

Rei clenched his fist. "What now?"

The figure stood.

"You will become what we could not be."

And then the void shattered.

---

System Alert

> [Warning: Integration Field Overload — Tenth Flame Detonation Imminent] [Sovereign Layer Stabilization Protocol Active] [Incoming Threat Signature: Vildras — Ruin-Class Fragment. Planetary Rupture Detected.]

---

Flame Academy – Emergency War Council

Mireille slammed her hand on the table.

"This isn't just another spirit. Vildras was designed to erase what Rei has become."

Noira nodded grimly. "A god-killer. But not of flesh. Of memory."

Eirenne's expression was blank. "If we lose this fight… he won't just die. We won't remember he ever existed."

Rei stood. His ten flames shimmered around him. And his voice carried not fear—but conviction.

"Then let's burn into the world something no one can erase."