Esper Harem in the Apocalypse

In the midst of the ethereal colorless realm, the girl, ever calm and deliberate, shook her head. "No, we're not doing a reset," she firmly declared, her voice resonating through the stillness of the boundless space.

The boy, equally determined but fervently convinced of the necessity of their action, persisted. He pointed to the ever-blooming life tree, a symbol of their current predicament. "Look around you," he said, emphasizing the vibrant blossoms that adorned the once-decaying tree. "This reality is trapped between the end that will never happen and the existence that refuses to begin. Rudy's clever trick has bound us here."

He approached her, imploring her to understand. "There is no other way. Reset is the only option."

The girl listened intently to the boy's arguments and explanations, maintaining her air of unshakable serenity. She then responded, "The reset won't change anything, and the cycle will continue as it always has."

But the boy, now determined more than ever to mend this eternal dilemma, disagreed. "No, this time, I'll do something different. I'll fix it," he declared with unwavering confidence.

With a hint of weariness in her tone, the girl countered, "You said that the last time, remember?"

However, the boy's pride swelled as he proclaimed, "I fixed what caused us to reset the last time. I'll find a way to ensure this doesn't happen again."

The girl, her expression one of eternal patience, retorted, "There will always be something that could require a reset."

Shrugging off her pessimism, the boy insisted, "But that doesn't mean we give up. It's not your decision to make. The final call rests with the mother universe."

He turned to the girl and proposed, "Go ask for the mother universe's permission. Explain the situation to her."

The girl closed her eyes, her form turning into an unmoving statue, mirroring Rudy's inert state. In this trance, her consciousness transcended into the realm of the mother universe, where the profound wisdom of creation resided.

While she was there, her physical body remained still as stone, and the boy watched with a mix of curiosity and concern. The moments stretched on, making him anxious.

Eventually, her eyes fluttered open, and her body reverted to its normal state, no longer locked in the statue-like stillness. The boy couldn't contain his curiosity any longer and asked eagerly, "What did the mother universe say?"

The girl's expression, however, was a complex blend of annoyance, frustration, and sheer exhaustion. With a heavy sigh, she replied, "The mother universe agreed to the reset. She told me to do whatever is necessary to fix the reality, so that it can flow as it should."

The boy couldn't hide his triumphant grin. "See? I told you," he remarked, urging the girl to initiate the resetting process. He was all for moving ahead with the reset and getting this endless waiting over with.

But the girl, instead of responding immediately, gazed contemplatively out into the cosmos, her expression holding a sense of nostalgia, her eyes fixated on the universe she had watched over for countless millennia.

"What are you doing?" the boy asked with curiosity.

She continued to stare at the stars, at the galaxies, the living beings and the wonders of the universe. With a contemplative tone, she said, "I want to take one last look at the state of reality. This is a one-in-a-lifetime occurrence, and I'll never see it again."

Finally, she turned her attention back to the boy. "Okay, let's do this," she declared, determined to set the reset in motion. She raised her hand, ready to invoke the colossal power needed for such a task.

After this brief moment of reflection, she turned her attention back to the boy. With a resolute expression, she announced her intention to reset the entire reality.

The boy, however, reached out to stop her, arguing that there was no point in resetting the reality from the beginning when it would all unfold the same way once more. He had another plan.

"Why don't we reset from the moment Rudy discovered his powers in school?" he suggested. "We don't have to go all the way back. We can make small changes from there, and I promise this time it will work."

The girl shook her head, her face displaying her exhaustion with the idea. "I've reset to that point a thousand times already," she replied. "I don't want to do that all over again."

The boy was persistent. "But if we wait for eons for reality to flow naturally, it'll end up in the same state we've been in. Let's make those changes. Trust me, it will be different this time, and it will be worth it."

The girl considered the boy's proposal for a moment, and after some contemplation, she nodded. "Fine, this is the last time we reset," she declared, ready to take action.

The girl contemplated the idea of a reset. It was like starting a new game entirely if they reset the entire reality. But what the boy was suggesting was something different. He wanted to restart from a specific checkpoint, a phase or state of reality that had a significant impact on the entire universe, just like an apocalypse.

The girl's curiosity grew as she asked, "So, what will be our reset point or checkpoint this time?"

The boy thought for a moment and then replied, "The apocalypse Rudy caused – the last time it was the zombie apocalypse initiated by TA that affected many realms. We'll pick Rudy's apocalypse this time."

It was akin to loading an old save file in a new game and starting from a checkpoint. It wasn't the beginning of the reality but a pivotal moment in its timeline, setting the stage for an array of possibilities.

The girl was intrigued by the idea but pressed for details, "What kind of changes are you thinking of making?"

The boy paused to choose his words carefully before answering, "I want to add someone to Rudy's life, Janet. And this time, I want to let Rudy's maturity take its course. Don't limit his mentality."

The girl feigned ignorance, saying, "I have no idea what you're talking about. What's wrong with Rudy's mentality?"

The boy was resolute, making his point clear, "In previous resets, you've always tampered with Rudy's mindset. You've artificially held him back, probably because you thought he was too smart."

The girl responded defensively, "Well, his intellect can be overwhelming. What's wrong with wanting to give him some time to mature?"

The boy countered, "Because Rudy's unique. He has the body of an 18-year-old, the memories of a 32-year-old, and, for the most part, the mentality of a 13-year-old. This time, let him grow naturally. Don't nerf his potential."

They were now ready to reset the reality from the chosen checkpoint, armed with the intention of making significant changes that would impact the course of the universe.

The girl was ready to initiate the reality reset to the selected checkpoint when a lingering question piqued her curiosity. She paused and turned to the boy, her voice calm but inquisitive, "Why, out of all those thousands of years, did you suggest a reset after 51,000 years, when you could have proposed it earlier? Specifically, after just 100 years of the apocalypse, say around the time the world tree started to bloom, indicating that the reality was healing, rather than withering."

The boy's smile was somewhat wry as he responded, "I was waiting for all of Rudy to die."

The girl's brows furrowed as she tried to understand his cryptic statement. "Waiting for all of Rudy to die? What does that mean?"

He explained, "I wanted to wait until all of Rudy's harem members, his children, and descendants had passed away due to old age. I didn't want to remove them from existence by performing a reset while they were still living their lives. But now, they've all lived their lives and left this reality behind. I couldn't care less. Now they await their reincarnation"

The boy explained, "Reed and Mary, Rudy's children, will be born again once the reality is reset. I didn't want them to lose their existence when they still had life left to live."

The girl nodded, understanding his sentiment. She remarked, "Reed and Mary were the saviors of this reality. They played a significant role in preserving it. They're true heroes. Reed became extraordinarily powerful, capable of even facing off against a Lord single-handedly. The fake gods feared him, and he became a force to be reckoned with."

As the girl initiated the reset, a sequence of perplexing events unfolded. Reality seemed to blur and shift. Colors swirled like a whirlpool, drawing everything into a vortex of change. The boy stepped back, not wanting to disrupt the intricate process.

In the colorless realm, where the universe's threads intersected, two colossal cosmic hands materialized, their energy gently cradling Rudy's lifeless form. The hands, gleaming with an otherworldly light, carried Rudy as if he were a precious gem.

Amidst this cosmic spectacle, an ethereal voice resonated throughout the universe, echoing in every realm, [Arise, my child.]

Rudy's statue-like form trembled, and slowly, he began to awaken from his eternal slumber. The cosmic hands lowered him to the ground, and as he touched the colorless realm, life surged back into him. It was a moment of rebirth, of new beginnings, as the universe welcomed Rudy back into the flow of existence.

—

-

.

"...fr… one… get…"

Rudy's ears twitched as he heard a voice after a long time. He opened his eyes, knowing well that he wouldn't be able to see. However, when he opened his eyes, he found himself in the classroom of his high school.

"...!"

Surprised, he fell off the chair, and everyone's attention was diverted to Rudy, looking at him with confused and curious looks on their faces.

"Rudy. Are you okay?" Rize asked with a concerned look on her face.

Rudy stood up, fixed his chair and sat down. He glanced around the room and looked at everyone's faces, completely baffled and unable to comprehend what was happening.

'Is this real?' he wondered.

===

A/N- Rudy thinks he died after the supergene experiment and woke up in the past. But of course, everything will go differently now that he has his original maturity of an 18 year old, and the apocalypse is different.

Also, if anyone is interested, I have started a new novel named, 'Re: Rise of the Strongest Hero in the Apocalypse'.

It is a story of Reed, Rudy and Maria's son, and the story is set in the same universe, except it happened after Rudy started the apocalypse and turned into the Shadow Lord. Everything that happens in the story is after 16 years of the apocalypse.

The novel has 14 chapters so far but all chapters are around 3000 words long. This novel will have long chapters only. I would appreciate any form of support on that novel.