The Chains Beyond Fate

As I bound my soul to his, I came across something I shouldn’t have seen. I finally knew the true purpose of my beloved.

The endless void trembled.

The silver-haired girl floated alone within the darkness between worlds, her pale fingers shaking as ancient memories surged through her soul like violent tides. Around her drifted fragments of countless lifetimes—battlefields drenched in blood, kingdoms rising and falling, heroes praised by millions before dying beneath lonely skies.

And at the center of every memory—

him.

Always him.

Her beloved.

His soul has already undergone a thousand reincarnations, and he has always died as a "hero."

Her voice sounded hollow.

Broken.

Like someone who had watched eternity itself become a prison.

The stars around her dimmed one after another as unbearable truths surfaced from the deepest corners of existence.

He was chained by an existence greater than all.

A pressure beyond divine authority filled the void.

Even the Gods she once cursed...

were insignificant before that existence.

It watched silently beyond reality itself.

Ancient.

Boundless.

Unreachable.

He who possessed the most powerful human soul, was chained to calamity.

The girl’s eyes slowly lowered.

Every reincarnation.

Every era.

Every world.

Whenever disaster approached—

his soul would appear.

He would reincarnate to a time when he is most needed, when the people would need a "hero."

The cycle was absolute.

Cruel beyond words.

Adam appeared when the heavens themselves descended into chaos.

Azrial Runious was born during endless dimensional wars.

Rein emerged during an age where corrupt mana consumed kingdoms.

Mayank appeared amidst the war between humans and evil spirits.

Eddy descended during the purge of winged races and ancient bloodlines.

He faced the Universal Emperor itself.

Every single life...

was crafted for suffering.

No matter the reincarnation, no matter what he chooses, my love is always chained down by the name "hero" and he dies with the name.

Tears slowly rolled down her cheeks.

She remembered every death.

Every final smile.

Every exhausted gaze beneath blood-red skies.

How cruel is his fate...

The surrounding void distorted violently.

Something greater than the Gods themselves has him following this path.

That truth nearly destroyed her.

Because there was no enemy to kill.

No throne to overthrow.

No god to curse.

Only an incomprehensible force governing destiny itself.

And her beloved...

was its chosen sacrifice.

I wanted to save him, I wanted to free him.

The girl’s blue eyes sharpened with determination despite the sorrow consuming them.

So that was the time I choose to be his enemy in order to save him.

The stars flickered crimson.

If being loved by the world chained him...

then she would make the world hate him.

If being a hero trapped him...

then she would turn him into a villain.

Even if he hated her for it.

Even if history cursed her forever.

She would accept it.

I needed to remove either his link to the term "strongest" or "hero."

The first memory surged forward.

Azrial Runious.

The Vampire Emperor.

The Blood Monarch.

The incarnation born for war itself.

That proved difficult to do with his next reincarnation, Azrial Runious.

A faint bitter smile appeared on her lips.

This reincarnation was literally the embodiment of victory itself.

The memories around her erupted into endless battlefields.

Giants roaring beneath shattered mountains.

Wild dragons blotting out the skies.

Entire armies collapsing under crimson moonlight.

And standing at the center—

Azrial.

Long black hair stained with blood.

Red eyes glowing like a demon king.

Laughing amidst endless slaughter.

I opposed him as the master of the Giants and wild dragons, but to him it was nothing more than a warm up.

Her expression darkened.

She remembered challenging him with everything she possessed.

Ancient beasts.

Forbidden armies.

Catastrophic magic.

None of it mattered.

Azrial crushed every obstacle like an unstoppable force of nature.

Even while facing extinction-level threats—

he smiled.

As though battle itself gave meaning to his existence.

So I needed to try again.

The next memory surfaced slowly.

Rein.

The quiet reincarnation who carried both Chaos and Serenity within his soul.

The next reincarnation, was Rein.

The girl’s gaze softened painfully.

He truly was finding a place to die.

Unlike Azrial—

Rein never sought glory.

Never sought victory.

Never sought power.

He merely wandered endlessly...

looking for somewhere peaceful enough to finally rest.

I tried to oppose him as an evil sorceress trying to take over the land.

Dark castles appeared around the void.

Burning kingdoms.

Corrupted lands.

She had become a monster for his sake.

Yet every time I saw him struggle, every time I did evil my heart would feel like it was breaking.

Her voice trembled.

Because Rein...

was gentle.

Even toward enemies.

Even toward her.

He tried to save everyone despite being exhausted by life itself.

So I kept on telling myself that, this was an evil, I was willing to do for the sake of my love.

The girl clenched her trembling hands tightly.

For him I will become something he hated the most, for him I will become an enemy to oppose.

A broken laugh escaped her lips.

I couldn’t think of any other way to save his soul.

Still in the end I have failed in this reincarnation.

The memories shattered again.

And then—

came Mayank.

The dragon-blooded hero.

The reincarnation born amidst hatred.

The next reincarnation Mayank, at first I couldn’t locate his soul.

For the first time in eternity—

she lost him.

This was the first time I couldn’t locate his soul. So I wasn’t sure if I reincarnated properly.

Fear consumed her back then.

True fear.

The fear of losing him forever.

So as I was reincarnated as the strongest demon, I became the demon lord.

A lonely castle appeared within the darkness.

A throne surrounded by demons who looked toward her with trust and reverence.

At first I told all my people not to harm the humans, so that we may live in harmony.

But humanity betrayed that hope.

That was when the humans reacted violently.

Flames consumed villages.

Soldiers slaughtered demon children.

Kings preached hatred beneath holy banners.

Seeing that we demons looked like we have weaken, they started attacking us.

The girl’s eyes turned cold.