It was not related to the entity that Damien chased, but his own family.
A massive white board lined with gold descended from the heavens to meet him. It was backed by a holy light that almost formed a mirage of angel wings and made one feel the weight of the entire universe.
Right, the Firmament Board could not be reached by anyone who could not bear this pressure.
When Damien saw it, he immediately knew what to do. He raised his hand, and the world's energy naturally formed a brush in his grasp.
He raised it to that board, to the position underneath the one occupied by his surname.
His father was only ever able to leave four letters on this board while enduring its pressure. He was not able to completely immortalize himself in the cosmic core of the True Void Universe.
Damien was different.
The pressure he felt was massive, but it was not overwhelming.
This board represented the entirety of the cosmos, but that was merely Existence, wasn't it?
He had surpassed the bounds of Existence alone, so he showed no fear in its presence.
He raised that brush with a delicate hand, pressing it against the surface of the board. It shook, receiving his touch. An electrical current was shared with him through it, another form of pressure that tested his worth.
Damien accepted it without a fight. He was at that level now where every form of energy was beneath him.
With slow strokes, he etched himself into the world.
The name "Damien Void" was placed onto that board one letter at a time, becoming an eternal part of its existence.
Damien felt a massive aura covering him. It was not from the board this time, but a product of his own body's interaction with this cosmos.
He and it were eternally bound from this moment forth. It would become his greatest strength, and he its greatest Legend.
The board understood quickly that it was late. Damien's unexpected growth made this interaction shorter and easier than it was meant to be.
But, even that was fate.
Even that was contributing to the great Legend of this cosmos.
Dante received his physique around this time. The mystical ability to remain immortal through reincarnation was truly only possible to attain through equally mystical means.
Damien didn't receive anything like that.
Instead, in that moment when the Firmament Board returned to its position beyond perception, he felt a sense of wholeness in his body.
He was complete. It was that kind of feeling.
He remembered this sensation well. The last time he felt it was back in the Human Domain. Still, both that moment and this one were defining for him.
'This is a mark of completion. My foundation has been completely built.'
With the two Crowns and the Firmament Board's blessing, Damien could finally take up that task.
He could merge Existence and Nonexistence, reaching that final point.
With his support system so developed, it would be easy for Damien to reach the next level, right?
That was a very, very wrong assumption.
Plans had been made among the highest authorities of the world. The moment to take the fight to the Dark God had been decided.
Damien had some time before then. He was planning to use that time to completely surpass the Dark God so that everything could be solved swiftly, but that was nothing more than a pipe dream.
How could it be so easy to do something impossible?
The Worldwalker's method simply couldn't be replicated.
His body naturally merged the two. Like Damien, he seemed to be someone with an intrinsic connection to the Void.
However, the Worldwalker's connection was something more primal. It ate his personality and ate his ambitions, turning his everything Void.
Damien had a close connection to the Void, but the Void itself regulated that connection so that he would always maintain his individuality.
Did it learn from the Worldwalker's story? Regardless of the reason, it was true that it wouldn't give him its loyalty so easily.
'I want to talk to someone about it, but who can help me?'
This was a path that nobody else had walked, right?
He was now at a point where, in this world, there was no one other than him.
'This is a path I must walk without anyone by my side. They help me purely by being present. That is enough.'
How could he burden anyone else with his thoughts?
To contemplate Existence and Nonexistence, these forces with such grandiosity that just listening to his explanations would destroy the minds of most, was to accept that nobody and nothing could ever be at the same level.
'No, even the fact that the Dark God exists is lucky for me.'
It was a selfish thought, but that didn't affect its veracity. If not for the Dark God, then what would Damien possibly be doing with this amount of power?
He never took the time to truly think about the scale of what he could do, but if he wanted to, then with just a thought…
'...I could turn this entire cosmos into ash.'
Nobody knew what it meant to be a true Supreme.
And nobody could be allowed to know.
'My first step is already decided.'
The thoughts he had when he faced the records. He could start by turning them into reality.
A metaphysical construct without true form, a coagulation of energy that manifested itself as a familiar holographic window…
Damien envisioned it perfectly and executed it. His energy moved, and for the first time, the owl and the mist met eyes.
Their presences entwined. They did not truly become one, but they mirrored the force of the Void merely by standing next to each other.
The two of them became the so-called "system" that would manage Damien's power from now on.
Those two entities were practically apostles of their concepts. Though Damien could control both concepts to a great extent, they would be able to better manifest his will.
Besides, when the two Crowns became one atop his head, the mist and the owl became a part of his power.
The system window that Damien created was not blue like the color of pure mana. It was a murky gray color, a sign that the two concepts within were not wholly merged.
Nevertheless, the window existed for but a moment before disappearing.
Its physical manifestation was only necessary for communication between him and the concepts. It was a way to give them more physical presence so they could expand their dominion.
What really mattered was the "counterside" that Damien created. In a way, Existence and Nonexistence could be considered his own shadow.
'A system that is meant to evolve me until I reach the Void…the Void Evolution System? No, that's stupid. It's just a sum of its parts. It's not even a real thing.'
With strange and completely unnecessary thoughts filling his mind, Damien put away his subtle worries and troubles.
Perhaps it didn't come easily, but he was confident in achieving it eventually.
There was no need for him to rush.