Leslie's head pounded with agony, which made him confused given his current state.

Through the pain, his eyes opened, revealing a never-ending emptiness. He glanced down at his body and saw nothing there. As if he were nothing but a ghost.

The ache he felt now made more sense, though. It wasn't his head pounding with pain. The awful feeling originated much deeper, from Leslie's very soul!

It wasn't as overwhelming as consuming that strange eye, yet it gave him an unnatural eeriness. A powerful shiver ran across the space and his soul, just from recalling that horrible experience.

However, he remembered dying, but as he glanced around this ceaseless void, his confusion only deepened. The space looked nothing like the Limbo Sera and Lucy described.

There was no bright light anywhere, only emptiness. No space nor time seemed to exist here, yet the lingering warmth suggested this wasn't always the case.

At some point, maybe an eternity ago, this void wasn't empty. It held objects of great magnitude, yet something or someone must've thoroughly destroyed the place, leaving not a single particle intact.

Leslie floated in the void, still glancing around and thinking about what might've happened. An infinity must've passed by, or maybe just a mere moment. Either way, eventually, a powerful ripple echoed across the emptiness.

It shook Leslie to his core, bringing his attention to the object rapidly approaching his position.

The concept of distance got destroyed in the void as well, meaning he couldn't discern the object's actual place. However, it also meant he saw the object's true form, regardless of how far it actually was.

A bright, glowing crimson eye, staring with the purest essence of Destruction... The exact eye Leslie swallowed an eternity ago...

Its size, like its distance, remained a mystery. It might've been gigantic or tiny as an atom. It even could've been infinitely large, but for Leslie it stayed indiscernible.

The eye's hollow, powerful gaze aimed at Leslie. Its bored and ageless pupils widened a bit as if curious about the lone Demon.

The gaze pierced through physical and metaphysical barriers, seemingly staring past reality into dimensions way past Leslie's understanding.

An unknown time passed under the eye's gaze, but eventually, its pupil returned to its normal, hollow state, making Leslie wonder what just happened.

Though the void had no air and Leslie had no ears, he still heard as the floating crimson eye spoke in a powerful, overbearing voice.

"You found a loophole... Impressive but not unexpected..." said the voice reverberating through the destroyed space.

It felt like the words physically touched Leslie's soul, pushing their meaning into his spirit. The voice didn't quite speak a language. It was closer to ancient waves, which carried meaning straight into his soul.

Leslie himself had no clue how to answer, or if the eye even desired him to respond. In fact, he lost the thread of reality long ago. This all felt like a fever dream. He expected to wake up at any moment, yet the nightmare continued as the eye spoke again.

"You are too weak yet... My powers, even just these partial specks, would instantly dismantle you, but... Maybe I could help... Place you on a path leading to nothing but ruin and destruction... Would you want that?"

Since the eye asked a specific question, Leslie tried answering, or at least asking questions of his own. However, he had no mouth and couldn't transfer his feelings like the eye.

He thought about these questions, though, which seemed to be enough for the eye to understand.

"You do not need to know what reality we currently exist inside, nor who I am... These answers would only frighten you and bring unwanted attention..."

A chill moved through the void, and somehow, Leslie's soul felt a bit colder. He stood in an unfathomable space, speaking with a being high above his understanding, and yet... Even this creature seemed to fear something...

The silence didn't last long, or maybe he spent years waiting. It didn't make much of a difference though, as the eye spoke again.

"Destruction is a necessary part of reality... A world without Destruction is doomed to perish, same as a world where only Destruction exists... Balance is the key to Change... I ask you again... Do you wish to follow this path paved by someone else?"

An answer still didn't come to Leslie's mind. Instead, his next questions regarded the person the eye referred to.

"You know who I talk of... She's quite cunning and smart... She hid her intentions well, yet her luck will eventually run out... Be it a month, a year, a decade or millennia, it will happen... Do you want to help her or escape the trouble she pulled you in?"

Now, Leslie had a clear idea who the eye referred to. He only knew a single person who kept secrets and didn't reveal her hand to even her friends...

However, Sera couldn't have been behind this meeting. She was powerful, but compared to this being before Leslie, she was nothing...

Doubt surfaced in Leslie's mind, both towards this being's intentions and towards Sera. His trust shook for a moment, but he could question her later. For now, he needed to decide...

"Yes, this path will lead to immense power... Enough to cause a shift in reality's balance... Not yet, though... The path takes a while... You need to Evolve more before taking even the first step... I can give you a slight push though..."

Somehow, while the creature's voice held power beyond Leslie's recognition, it also carried a strange sincerity. It held no actual emotion, yet he knew this being wasn't trying to trick him.

Still, he hesitated. Whatever this being talked about, it would lead to unforeseen consequences, which caused the slight hesitation.

But while Leslie couldn't think of the answer properly. The idea of more power swayed him more and more.

Currently, the tournament would end soon, but the war would continue. Until Victor is out there, a constant threat to millions of people is waltzing around, waiting for the moment to strike.

The eye seemed to consider this second-guessing as an answer, regardless of how Leslie actually felt.

"Very well... Your path is decided, but you must reach its end or only the void awaits you... Also, since you will follow the path of Destruction, I suggest trusting the Angel Monarch... She will help you, guide you along the journey towards your new fate..."

With that, Leslie felt a strong pulsing pain inside his soul. He couldn't see it, yet he knew that a strange mark had appeared within its depths...

It depicted an ever-changing contained explosion. An infinite fiery picture, forever expanding and shrinking... The Mark of Destruction...

As the pain became worse, the feeling began returning to Leslie's limbs. He closed his eyes as his head burned with agony, and soon light shone through his closed eyelids.

His suffering lasted only a bit longer, and as his thoughts began flowing once again, his eyes fluttered open. Two beautiful women stood above him, both looking confused and concerned.

However, as Leslie groaned and sat up, they both breathed a sigh of relief.

"What happened?" he asked while trying to make sense of the strange dream he had.

Faith and Bea glanced together worry still etched on their faces. Eventually, the more talkative of the pair explained...

"Well, you ate that weird eyeball, even though we tried to stop you. Afterward, you dissolved until not a single atom remained of your body, then with a bright flash of light, you reappeared. It also seems like you Evolved, so congratulations, I guess?"

Leslie scratched his face while staring at Bea. His crimson eyes must've revealed a great deal of his own confusion and anxiety, since she soon asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen? Also, why did you eat that eye?"

He just shrugged, then tried climbing to his feet, but a sudden dizziness made him unstable and Faith needed to catch him.

"I'm... I'm not sure..." he said, his voice trembling from uncertainty. "Something came over me, and I couldn't stop myself from eating it... As for what I've seen... I'll tell you later... First I want to ask a few questions of Sera!"

Finally, confidence returned to Leslie's voice as he recalled his cunning friend's secret.

Bea also caught his shift in tone, but her expression stayed concerned, yet Leslie knew him for decades. He could tell when she was keeping secrets.

It didn't surprise him that Bea knew more about Sera's hidden affairs. They're close, spending most of their time by each other's side.

It would've both been a hassle to keep secrets from a partner, and Bea was probably the only person Sera fully trusted... or maybe there was another reason Leslie didn't know about...

The eye did say he should trust Sera, but... First he wanted some straight answers from her!

"Fine, but put on some clothes first! The drones were knocked out from Shiva's attack, but new ones are already being sent to showcase your victory! I suggest hiding your privates before that!"

Leslie nodded and pushed himself away from Faith. Both women dissolved into either the shadows or the surrounding nature, leaving Leslie alone and naked.

He summoned his armor, which felt much lighter than before, as if its weight had entirely disappeared.

With confident steps, he approached the nearest elevator platform, while the female announcer happily revealed his victory.

He went down the elevator, a troubled expression growing on his face. However, before he reached the ground floor, the surrounding darkness grew thicker, absorbing his entire body.

Only an empty elevator made it down...