The Epic Tale of Chaos vs Order Chapter 2

A decade and several years following the Crimson War of Extermination, the capital of the Great Star Kingdom, Neptuno, hosted a massive military celebration. The air was filled with the sounds of music, the explosions of fireworks, and the thunderous cheers of the crowd as battalions of soldiers dressed in blue marched through the streets.

Children sat perched on their fathers' shoulders to catch a glimpse of the passing troops, and every face in the audience beamed with pride as they offered respectful salutes to the men in uniform.

While many of the soldiers marched with heads held high and smiles on their faces, a significant number of them carried eyes that betrayed a deep, hidden sense of shame.

To the citizens of the Great Star Kingdom, the Crimson War of Extermination was viewed as a brutal but vital struggle to eliminate a race that sought to invade their lands and slaughter their kin. However, the soldiers who had actually served in the campaign understood the reality.

There was only one word that truly defined the Crimson War of Extermination.

Genocide.

The atmosphere shifted instantly as gasps of shock erupted from the onlookers; a lone young man was seen walking directly onto the pristine road where the military parade was underway.

.....

The intrusion itself was scandalous, as no civilian was permitted on that street during the march, but that was not what truly unsettled the soldiers and citizens of the Great Star Kingdom. It was the young man's physical appearance that caused a wave of horror.

He was a striking and handsome youth, possessing a fearless demeanor and a physique radiating with incredible vitality. Yet, it was his snow-white hair and blood-red eyes that sparked the immediate chaos.

It seemed impossible that a survivor of the Crimson People, the race thought to be extinct, would manifest in the heart of the Great Star Kingdom—especially during a parade commemorating the very war that had wiped his people from the earth.

With an air of calm, the youth walked down the spotless path toward the ranks of soldiers. As he passed, observers noticed two words emblazoned on the back of his garment.

RED KING.

A heavy silence fell over the area as many civilians struggled to process the surreal sight before them; they were the fortunate ones.

While the common folk saw only a boy, the soldiers felt as though they were standing before a natural catastrophe—an unfeeling engine of annihilation destined to crush everything in its wake.

Unable to endure the suffocating psychological pressure radiating from the Red King, a terrified young soldier instinctively raised his rifle and pulled the trigger.

“Boom.”

The Red King halted his advance the moment the shot rang out. Contrary to everyone’s expectations, the bullet did not pierce him, nor did it bounce away.

The small lead projectile hung motionless in mid-air, frozen less than five centimeters from the Red King’s temple.

Before the wide-eyed gaze of the military and the public, the Red King plucked the bullet from the air with his fingers, causing it to ignite with a brilliant crimson glow.

Locking his gaze on the soldier who had fired upon him, the Red King flicked the bullet forward.

“BOOOM!” An explosion resembling the discharge of a heavy tank cannon echoed as the Red King launched the crimson-lit bullet from his hand.

The sheer kinetic force of the projectile tore through the air, obliterating dozens of soldiers—including the one who fired—into bloody fragments.

“?AHHHHH!”

Screams of terror broke out at the sight of the carnage, but the panic was short-lived. The Red King pressed his palm against the pavement, sending a wave of crimson light surging through the earth for hundreds of meters in every direction.

That haunting red glow was the final vision for the soldiers and civilians before jagged earthen spikes erupted from the ground, impaling everyone instantly.

The Red King surveyed the slaughter with eyes devoid of emotion. This was merely the overture. He turned his attention upward toward the fighter jets beginning to swarm the sky.

The ensuing battle was nothing less than a collision between modern military hardware and the heights of supernatural power.

A rain of explosives, guided missiles, and armor-piercing rounds descended upon the Red King. He countered by summoning devastating fireballs, arcs of lightning, localized tempests, and corrosive acid rain, among countless other mystical arts.

Just as it had been during the Crimson Extermination War, where one side held overwhelming dominance over the other, the conclusion was never in doubt.

Neptuno, the crown jewel of the Great Star Kingdom—a metropolis of fifty-five million people and the pinnacle of the planet's military might—was reduced to smoldering ruins in under fifteen hours.

Only two living souls remained in the city, both suspended in the sky above the burning wreckage. One was a mask of indifference; the other was a shell of total despair.

Sunit the Great, having witnessed the total destruction of his legacy, could scarcely find his voice. His body was broken, and he remained aloft only because of the Red King’s iron grip on the back of his neck.

“Monster...”

The Red King shifted his gaze toward Sunit, acknowledging the first word the Star King had managed to utter since his capture.

“Monster, demon, a creature from the depths sent to ruin my holy kingdom!” The Star King shrieked with all his remaining strength, his mind clearly shattered by the loss of his empire.

The Red King merely shook his head at Sunit's accusations.

“Mysticism and folk tales. These are the crutches of the weak and the ignorant, used to explain phenomena that surpass their comprehension. By the third day after my birth, I could already interpret language and sense my environment. Within a week, I was speaking and calculating complex mathematics. Naturally, I concealed these traits from my parents, knowing that a being like myself would only breed terror in the hearts of commoners. On my first birthday, I felt the fundamental force that saturates every corner of this world. Before reaching the age of three, I had mastered its use to manifest elemental arts and temper my physical form.”

Sunit could not grasp the nature of the force the Red King described, but the youth required no understanding from him.

“You... you are a devil. God will surely strike down your profane existence for the sins you have committed against my subjects.”

The Red King remained unmoved, offering only another slow shake of his head.

“So, in your logic, decreeing the genocide of the Crimson People was an act of divine will, yet the destruction of your kingdom is an affront to heaven. Ah, I expected the sovereign of the world's greatest power to possess more depth, but you are simply another hypocrite.” Without another word, the Red King opened his hand.

“Ahhh!” The Star King of the Great Star Kingdom plummeted from the heights, his scream ending abruptly as he slammed into the earth, every bone in his body shattered by the impact.

Ten days prior to his fifteenth birthday, the Red King had dismantled the Great Star Kingdom, the global superpower responsible for the attempted erasure of his race.

Looking out over the decimated capital, the Red King recognized that he had become the most powerful entity on the planet, yet the realization felt hollow.

As the night faded and the first rays of dawn broke over the horizon, the warmth of the sun touched his skin, and a new, genuine ambition took root in his mind.

“This world is too small for me.” A smile finally touched the Red King’s lips as he looked past the atmosphere toward the vast, celestial bodies shimmering in the firmament.