"H-heh… Fuck..."

Adam struggled against the invisible force pinning him to the bedrock, his flesh tearing apart as he tried to get up. But even buried halfway in stone, even with his body crushed against the earth, he managed to raise both hands. Specifically…

…two middle fingers pointed straight at Mikhail's perfect face.

"Fuck... you," he gasped through gritted teeth.

[The Administrator, Mikhail, is confused about this impossibility. No one can go against the wish of the Universe.]

Mikhail's three eyes darted frantically, its perfect marble face beginning to crack with uncertainty. Its wings, which also seemed to have a hundred eyes on them, fluttered and blinked wildly.

[WARNING. If N/A does not become a Champion, Administrator Mikhail will perish through the Universe's wrath.]

[Administrator Zyhael finds this situation hilarious. Zyhael is pleased that Mikhail took over this Dome instead of Zyhael.]

[The other Administrators are curious about Mikhail's next plans.]

[The Administrator, Laphael, examines N/A with a hint of recognition.]

Mikhail's mouth opened, revealing its teeth—no. They didn't look like teeth at all; they looked like needles, if anything. Perhaps similar to what a blue whale has. And then, with a hint of what seemed to be panic painting its face, Mikhail once again pointed its palm toward Adam.

[The rebirth process will be repeated. N/A must comply.]

The light slammed into Adam again. This time the heat was worse—stronger. His nails burned and melted instantly, his veins turned black, his bones turned to ash, his flesh dissolving and rebuilding endlessly.

Adam's scream tore across the desert, but throughout all of this… he kept his middle fingers raised.

[ERROR. ERROR. REBIRTH PROCESS FAILED.]

Mikhail pointed his palm again. The light struck him again.

[ERROR. REBIRTH PROCESS FAILED.]

And again. It was as if the light was eating Adam now, consuming him only for it to vomit him back out—the light was rejecting him as much as he was rejecting it.

[ERROR. REBIRTH PROCESS FAILED. The Universe's time might be limitless, but its patience is not.]

Mikhail's statue-like face began to crack, literal fissures appearing in the perfect skin. The Administrator's wings beat frantically, eyes blinking wildly.

[The Universe is unhappy.]

The announcement screamed across reality itself, causing the very air to vibrate. Mikhail's form shuddered, and for the first time, the Administrator showed genuine terror.

"H-heh…" When Adam saw this, all the pain he felt vanished, and all he could think about was the Administrator's face.

Mikhail descended, no longer floating but crashing to his knees beside Adam. The perfect being's hands shook as he reached toward his own forehead.

[Mikhail is in deep pain with his eye plucked.]

With a wet, tearing sound, Mikhail tore his third eye from his skull. Golden ichor poured from the wound, turning the part of the bedrock it hit into liquid. The Administrator then grabbed Adam's head with one hand, forcing his jaw open.

"No—" Adam tried to resist, but Mikhail's strength was absolute.

And with his resistance completely useless, Mikhail shoved its large hand into his mouth. The eye slid down Adam's throat… and then it grew its own limbs and started crawling deep inside him. It burnt everything it touched.

[UNAUTHORIZED OVERWRITE. WARNING]

[OVERWRITE: APPROVED. Planet: SS4E's fate is being rewritten.]

Adam's body began to convulse violently. His spine arched impossibly, bones snapping and reforming. His muscles tore themselves apart and knitted back together. It was as if every cell in his body was being rewritten at the molecular level.

Mikhail watched this for a moment, golden blood still trailing from its forehead. It stood up and then took a step back before vanishing completely, leaving Adam alone on the bedrock.

Adam's body began to bloat, swelling like a balloon. His skin stretched tight, veins bulging black beneath the surface. And then—

He exploded.

Chunks of flesh and bone scattered across the desert. Blood painted the sand in a wide circle. For a moment, there was only silence and the smell of copper.

Then the pieces began to move. Crawling back together, reforming, rebuilding. Adam's body regenerated from the scattered remains, pulling itself back into human shape.

"Ha…" He gasped, thinking it was over. Relief flooded through him for exactly three seconds. "Is it—"

Then he began to vomit.

Chunks of flesh poured from his mouth—not his own flesh, but pieces of… whatever. Eyes rolled across his tongue. Fragments of bone scraped his throat raw. The taste of blood and bile filled his mouth as his stomach turned itself inside out.

He couldn't stop. The vomiting continued endlessly, his stomach caving in as more and more poured out. His flesh began to shrink, pulling tight against his bones until he looked like a skeleton wrapped in paper-thin skin.

And then… everything calmed down. His flesh, once again renewing itself.

[Mikhail was successful in his task. N/A, although not reborn, has become a Champion and is now deeply connected to the Game more so than all the Champions in the universe. Congratulations, N/A—You are now a Champion. Or in the case of your planet, a Hero.]

"My name..." Adam wheezed. "My name is Adam! Not... Not Applicable!"

[The Universe agrees. Adam. The Universe is disappointed it couldn't grant Adam its original gifts, but Mikhail's solution might prove to be even better. The Universe, and all the Administrators except for Mikhail, are looking forward to your fate, Adam.]

"W…what did you do to me?!" Adam screamed, trying to swat away the words. But unlike before, the words didn't go away and persisted in front of him. "What did you let me eat?! What… what was that?!"

[Please wait. As this is the first time this has happened, the Universe asks for your cooperation to be patient.]

Adam stared at the floating words, confused as to what exactly happened to him. What had changed? He doesn't really feel any… different. But then—came the next words that appeared in front of him and screamed into his ears.

[Success! Now converting excess contribution points into Status Points.]

"H… huh?"

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