When a God of Destruction Was Reincarnated in Tensura:

Guy Crimson opened his eyes, expecting to see the white void once more.

Instead, he stood atop a ruined landscape.

The world he once knew was gone.

The sky was black and crimson, torn apart by endless rifts, spilling chaotic energy into what remained of the Cardinal World. The ground beneath him was nothing but shattered stone and molten rivers, the remnants of cities and civilizations burned to nothingness.

There was no laughter. No voices. No life.

Only silence.

A silence so deep, so hollow, it gnawed at his very existence.

His breath was slow, steady—but his heart was hammering in his chest. This can't be real.

Then, he heard a voice.

"You failed."

Guy turned, and standing before him was Veldanava.

Or at least, a version of him.

The Creator of the Cardinal World, the one who had entrusted him with his purpose—to maintain balance, to prevent the world from descending into destruction.

But Veldanava's face wasn't warm like before. His golden eyes, once filled with wisdom and kindness, were empty.

Cold. Judging.

"You failed, Guy," Veldanava repeated, his voice void of emotion. "You were meant to be the balance of this world. The mediator. The one who keeps chaos at bay."

He gestured around them, to the ruined world—the Cardinal World that had fallen into chaos and ruin.

"And yet, look at what has become of it."

Guy clenched his fists, his mind racing. No… No, this isn't possible.

He had spent thousands of years doing exactly what Veldanava had tasked him with. He had kept the balance, ensured that wars never reached the point of total destruction, that none of the factions tipped the scales too far.

He was the strongest, the ruler of the Ice Continent, the Demon Lord feared by all.

There was no way this could have happened under his watch.

"...Who did this?" His voice was calm, yet sharp—demanding.

Veldanava stared at him.

"You did."

Guy's eyes widened slightly. "What?"

Veldanava stepped forward, and with a wave of his hand, the air shifted—memories, visions of the past, unfolding before Guy's eyes.

Cities burned. Nations crumbled.

A war that had lasted for centuries, growing worse and worse, with no one strong enough to stop it.

The Demon Lords fought among themselves, warring for power.

The Angels descended, slaughtering everything they deemed unworthy.

The dragons, once rulers of the sky, had perished, their bodies torn apart by endless battles.

And in the center of it all—Guy himself, standing motionless.

"...What is this?" His voice was cold, but his heart was racing.

Veldanava answered without hesitation.

"The moment you stopped intervening."

The words hit Guy like a punch to the gut.

"You had always been the balance, Guy. The one who maintained the world's order. But one day, you decided it wasn't worth it anymore. You let things take their course, believing that the strong should simply rule, that fate should decide the outcome."

"And so, chaos took hold."

Guy remained silent.

"You let the world destroy itself."

His eyes narrowed.

"...That's not me." His voice was firm, absolute. "I would never abandon my duty."

Veldanava simply stared.

"Wouldn't you?"

Then, the illusion shifted again.

A new scene played out before him—one that sent a cold chill down his spine.

Milim.

She was kneeling in the ruins, bloodied, broken. Her once unstoppable power had been drained away, leaving her frail, barely breathing. Her once-bright red eyes were dim, lifeless, filled with sorrow.

And she was looking right at him.

"...You let this happen," she whispered.

His heart froze.

The strongest Demon Lord, the one he had always seen as an indestructible force of nature, now lay on the ground like a dying ember.

"No," he said immediately.

But Milim just laughed weakly. A sad, broken sound.

"You always acted like you didn't care, Guy. That nothing really mattered to you. But you were always watching, weren't you?" She coughed, blood staining her lips. "And this time… you decided to stop watching."

The air was crushingly heavy.

He couldn't move.

"You failed," Milim whispered again, her voice fading.

And then—

She turned to dust.

A slow, painful, irreversible decay.

Just like the world around him.

Just like everything else.

No.

A raw, primal rage boiled inside of him. His fists tightened, his body trembling.

NO.

And then—

The illusion shattered.

Guy opened his eyes.

He was back.

Standing in the white void.

His heart was pounding. Sweat clung to his skin, but his expression remained unreadable, cold.

The twelve members of the Grand Order stared down at him, unmoving.

For a moment, no one spoke.

Then, Orion, the Arbiter of Balance, finally broke the silence.

"You have passed."

Guy exhaled, closing his eyes for just a brief moment.

The trial was over.

And he had won.