The battlefield had quieted. Ruins smoked, embers floated through the air like silent fireflies, and three new monarchs stood side by side—each with their own banner, throne, and rising legend.
But peace never lasted long on the Multiversal Road.
---
It began with a vision—no, a memory. Lian collapsed to the stone floor of his throne room, gasping, as golden smoke poured from his eyes.
He saw it: a colossal throne of bone and crystal buried beneath an ocean of dead kings. A crown floating in midair, bleeding light. And a voice.
"I was the first… and I was betrayed. Find me."
When he came to, Jayce and Demist were already by his side.
"You saw it too, huh?" Jayce muttered, eyes darting.
Demist nodded grimly. "Same vision. Same voice. It's calling us."
A new prompt appeared.
---
[ Side Quest Activated: Grave of the First King ]
> Objective: Descend into the Hollow Cradle, hidden beneath the Tri-Kingdom Border.
Obstacles: Royal Wards, Unyielding Sentinels, Crown-Eaters
Warning: This area is semi-permanent death enabled. Damage suffered here may persist across worlds.
Reward: ??? (Unknown Talent Fragment + Throne Core Evolution Material)
---
The border between their kingdoms had shifted—revealing a spiral chasm where the earth had cracked. The road no longer ran straight. It twisted down, inwards, toward something ancient.
They descended.
---
Level 1 – The Gallery of Thrones
Rows of crumbling stone thrones lined the walls, each inscribed with the name of a dead ruler. Spirits lingered beside them, whispering long-forgotten decrees.
A wall of spectral fire blocked their path.
Jayce stepped forward first. "I'll handle this."
He snapped his fingers—and a hundred illusions appeared: past selves, twisted clowns, future possibilities. The flames lashed out, confused, trying to attack everything and nothing at once.
Lian moved through the chaos, using Fate Diver to bend time just enough to slip by. Demist plowed through, body wrapped in an energy shield powered by his castle's engine core.
Beyond the flame: a shattered hallway, and a door that pulsed with heartbeat-like thuds.
---
Level 2 – The Trial of Sovereignty
The moment they stepped through, reality froze.
A ghostly figure formed in front of them. Cloaked in gold-chained robes, its face was cracked porcelain.
"You claim to be kings. Prove it."
Three thrones appeared.
Each sat upon a massive circular platform that floated over a bottomless abyss.
Suddenly, three shadow-versions of the team emerged—twisted mirrors wielding their exact powers and talents.
Lian faced himself, greedy and arrogant. This version used Coin Implosion, a forbidden version of his talent that exploded every coin in use to deal devastating damage.
Jayce fought a joker-faced tyrant, laughing and crying, spamming reality-breaking illusions.
Demist faced a version of himself that never stood up—a coward who built walls so high that he imprisoned himself.
---
The fight was brutal.
Lian pushed himself beyond his limits, using a risky move—Double Cascade—which caused his multiplier to activate twice in a single moment. His coins surged like a tsunami, and the greedy doppelgänger shattered.
Jayce fell once, laughter breaking into silence—but got up with a grin and a punchline, and used his Comedic Disruption Field to collapse his clone's mental illusion field.
Demist didn't win through power. He won through endurance. He let his clone wail on him, taking blow after blow until he activated Iron Endurance Surge—then shattered the shadow with one massive swing of his siege-sledge.
---
[ Trial Complete – Gate Unlocked ]
[ Mental Fortitude +20 / Shadow Resistance +10 / Talent Cooldowns Reduced in Grave ]
They stumbled forward… exhausted but alive.
---
Final Level – Throne of the Forgotten
They entered a room of endless night, lit only by pale crowns floating in midair. The air shimmered. Time slowed.
There, in the center, sat a skeleton on a throne so large it broke through the ceiling. It wore no crown. Only a seal embedded in its chest.
It spoke with a voice that shook the world.
"I was the First King. The First Roadwalker. And I was betrayed by the System I created. You… will finish what I could not."
The throne began to rise. Bones formed armor. Ghost fire lit in its chest.
[ BOSS ENGAGED – The First King, Sovereign of Systems ]
> Class: Ancient Tier-Unknown Entity
HP: ???
Unique Skill: "System Rewrite" – Can disable and alter talents for 10 seconds
Phase 2 Trigger: Upon reaching 50%, summons fragments of broken worlds to assist
---
The battle was war.
Lian's talents were silenced for long stretches. He had to manually fight, relying on skill and quick strategy to keep ahead of flaming sword swings that cracked the ground like glass.
Jayce's illusions backfired—turned against them as the King rewrote their parameters mid-fight.
Demist was nearly crushed when a fragment of Earth itself slammed into the field during Phase 2.
Only when all three used their evolved vehicle parts in sync—Jayce's turret ice cream truck, Lian's golden coin barrage launcher, and Demist's fortress engine ram—did they bring the giant to its knees.
The King smiled.
"Remember… The road will end… where it began."
And then he dissolved into golden dust.
---
[ Grave of the First King Cleared ]
[ Rewards Granted: ]
> • Talent Fragment: "System Rewrite (Broken)"
• Throne Evolution Catalyst x1
• Vehicle Module: "Crown Stabilizer" – Negates 1 random debuff every 10 minutes
---
As they rose back to the surface, the land around them changed. The kingdoms began to merge, roads widening, people cheering.
The sky glowed.
And a new road formed ahead—one of black obsidian, spiraling upward.
The Road to Tier 6 had opened.
---