Scene 6:- Audience (+) - The Final Antagonist

Knock.

Null opened the door.

A familiar figure stood in the corridor, pure white hair falling neatly over white-and-gold vestments. Posture immaculate. Expression composed. Yet an unmistakable gravity settled in her calm, unreadable eyes.

"Pardon," Sora said, inclining her head slightly. "May I come in?"

Null blinked. "Saintess Sora."

She smiled faintly. "There is no need for formality. I am here on imperial business."

As he stepped aside, Null noticed another figure down the corridor, leaning casually against the wall, arms crossed, his expression relaxed to the point of arrogance. Kouki's gaze flicked toward Null—quick and sharp—then away, a dismissive "Hmph" escaped him.

Sora turned her attention back to Null and said. "His Majesty, the Emperor of Atlantis, has requested an audience,"

"With me?" Null pointed at himself.

"With both summoned otherworlders," she clarified.

"Both?"

"Yes." Her eyes lingered on him for half a breath longer than necessary. "Immediately."

Null nodded. "I understand."

Sora turned. "Please follow me."

They stepped into the corridor. The palace halls stretched long and white ahead, mana-lamps glowing softly along the walls.

Kouki pushed off the wall and fell into step on Sora's other side, hands in his pockets.

"So," he said lightly, "guess even failed summons get royal treatment, huh?"

Null glanced at him.

Sora spoke before he could reply. "The Emperor does not summon without reason."

Kouki clicked his tongue. "Yeah, sure. Still feels like a waste of time."

Sora continued forward, unhurried, her steps quiet. Null matched her pace without thinking.

"So, what does the Emperor want to ask us?" He said after a moment.

"That," Sora replied, "will be explained by His Majesty himself. But know this—an imperial audience is not a judgment."

Kouki snorted. "Easy for you to say."

His gaze lingered on Sora, then shifted to Null, sharper this time. 'Why is her tone different when talking to him?'

Suddenly, The distance between Null and Sora closed, whether by accident—or perhaps not. Kouki couldn't tell, but his jaw tightened at the sight.

"So you're really nothing special, right?" Kouki addressed him, fake friendliness seeping through his voice. "No blessing. No skill."

Null shrugged. "Seems that way."

"But," he added, "that doesn't really bother me."

Kouki's step faltered a fraction. "Tch."

The imperial hall doors loomed ahead—tall, heavy, engraved with sigils of rule and judgment. Sora turned to face them.

"From this point forward, speak only when addressed." Her eyes met Null's—with steady ripples—then shifted to Kouki, turning neutral again. "Follow my lead."

The doors began to open. And somewhere deep within the palace, power waited.

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The doors parted in silence. Light spilled out first. High, refracted beams from stained glass windows painted the marble floor in slow-moving colors: blue, gold, white. Each step forward felt heavier than the last, not because of gravity, but because of presence. Null felt it immediately. pure authority woven in every inch of the hall.

At the far end, upon an elevated dais, sat the Reigning Emperor. Emperor Thalassar von Atlantis—the Tide-Crowned Sovereign of Atlantis—rested one arm against the crystal armrest, his gaze now fully engaged.

Surrounding him, imperial retainers—robed nobles and court magi—took their places in a loose semicircle. At their center stood a man clad in silver-and-obsidian armor, his presence firm and unyielding. The Constable of the Imperial Guard. His cape, bearing the sigil of Atlantis in steel thread, fell straight down his back.

Sora stepped forward first, stopping at the prescribed distance. She lowered herself into a deep, flawless bow. "Your Majesty. I have brought the summoned otherworlders as requested."

"Step forward," he said.

Kouki did not hesitate. He moved with confidence, boots striking marble in a rhythm that drew attention. He stopped at the center of the hall and knelt, one fist pressed to his chest.

The retainers murmured, their whispers carrying: "Magnificent mana density."

"So young, yet harmonized."

"A sacred resonance. Unmistakable."

Commander Vaelor Rynd's eyes narrowed in appraisal.

"Rise,"

Kouki stood. The Emperor's gaze swept over him, lingering on the faint shimmer that haloed Kouki's presence "A sacred blessing of this caliber has not manifested since the founding of the Empire." A faint retrospection lingered in his tone.

"The First Emperor," one retainer said reverently.

"Chosen by the World itself," said another.

The Emperor nodded slowly. "In times of calamity, the world responds. Not with mercy, but with necessity." His eyes met Kouki's. "You bear a gift meant to stand at the center of history."

Kouki's chest swelled. He lowered his head with an egoistic smile. "I will not disappoint, I swear it."

"Well spoken." The retainers muttered in unison. Vaelor Rynd also nodded in approval.

Then, the Emperor's gaze shifted, and the hall's temperature changed like a receding tide.

"And you," he addressed him. "Step forward."

Null immediately did.

"So, you are the one without a blessing." the Emperor stated plainly, his eyes never leaving Null

Kouki's lips curled into a jubilant smirk.

Null met the Emperor's gaze and nodded once. "Seems so."

A murmur moved through the hall—too disciplined for open reaction, yet unable to suppress the shift entirely.

"Nothing?"

"Is the reading correct?"

"His existence should be Impossible."

The Emperor raised a hand. The whispers died instantly.

He studied Null with the same intensity he had given Kouki—longer this time. "You were summoned. You were acknowledged."

Null aligned with the flow of the conversation. "That's what they told me."

"And yet, the world granted you nothing." His tone is weighted with thoughtfulness.

"In Atlantis, we revere power, but we fear deviation." He gave a brief glance at Kouki. "A Hero is hope made manifest. But an anomalous summon..." He left the sentence unfinished.

Sora felt it. The shift. Praise had ended. Now, Judgment had begun.

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※

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—Within Null's mind—

'Wow.'

Null kept his face neutral, posture relaxed, even as the weight of the Imperial Hall pressed down on him from every direction.

'Hey.'

[Yes, Master.]

'Fantasy Omniscience. Quick question.' He queried with unreadable amusement.

[Query acknowledged.]

'Out of curiosity, how strong is this so-called emperor?'

Instantaneously, the Omniscient AI began calculating.

[Evaluating target: Emperor Thalassar von Atlantis.]

[Cross-referencing local power frameworks.]

[Applying Adventurer's Guild equivalency.]

Then—

[Result: SS-Rank.]

Null's eyebrow twitched slightly.

*SS? That's high, right?*

[Affirmed. SS-Rank denotes individuals capable of single-handedly altering national-scale conflicts.]

[Probability of successful engagement by subject against multiple S-Rank entities: High.]

'Interesting,' he thought. 'Let's try that thing.'

[Clarify: "that thing"]

'That sub-function of yours. Existential Perception. Let's go for a first trial run.'

'Activate sub-function,' he ordered with anticipation. »Existential Perception«

The world peeled. Not visually but Conceptually. The Emperor remained seated on his throne. But layered over reality, understanding impressed directly into Null's awareness.

[Existential Perception — Target: Emperor Thalassar von Atlantis.]

[Existence Classification: Sovereign-Type Entity]

[Designation: Human]

[Threat Index: ★★★★★★☆ (High—Conditional)]

[Vital Status: Age 94 (Biological Equivalent: Late 40s). Lifespan Remaining: Indeterminate (External Reinforcement Detected)]

[Core Attributes: Strength A+, Defence S, Agility A, Stamina SS, Intelligence A, Mana Capacity SS]

[Unique Abilities:-

1. Tide-Crowned Dominion — Passive Authority-Type Ability. Within Atlantis territory, Emperor Thalassar's mana efficiency, command authority, and perception are amplified. Subordinates receive morale and resistance boosts proportional to loyalty.

2. Sovereign's Edict — Active/Conditional. Spoken commands, when backed by will and mana, gain conceptual enforcement. Weaker entities may find refusal difficult.

Null exhaled. 'Damn.'

That was his honest reaction. 'He's not just strong, He's built to rule.'

[Indeed.]

[He is optimized for sovereignty, not conquest.]

'You really don't sugarcoat things, huh.'

[I do not possess a sweetening subroutine.]

'Figures.'

Outwardly, nothing changed. Null stood before the throne. Still looked like a boy with nothing special. The hall waited, judgment suspended in the space between breaths.

With exhalation, null spoke. "Your Majesty,"

"I am aware of my position, summoned, yet unblessed. A deviation, as you called it."

A faint stir rippled through the retainers. Kouki's smile sharpened.

"I hold no sacred gift," Null continued. "No magical blessing granted by this world." He slightly lifted his gaze "As such, I request permission to return to my home world."

Silence.

Even Sora's breath caught.

The Emperor regarded him briefly. Then shook his head. "Impossible,"

The word fell like a verdict. "To reopen a dimensional boundary requires an astronomical convergence of mana, spatial coordinate retrace relics, and numerous space/time mages."

One of the court magi inclined his head in grim agreement.

"Even a one-way return would drain the Empire's reserves."

His gaze hardened—not cruel, but distant. "Five years, at minimum... You are not worth that cost."

Kouki let out a quiet breath of amusement.

Null listened and absorbed every word. Then, simply nodded. "I see. I expected as much," The lack of bitterness caught the hall off guard. "

"Thank you for the clarification." He did not argue, plead, or protest the assessment of his worth. He simply took a half step back. Request withdrawn.

The Emperor studied him anew. Not as an anomaly or a burden. But as something harder to place. Sora sensed it—subtle unease. The kind born not from defiance, but from acceptance.

Chapter 6 - Scene 6:- Audience (+)