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Chapter 119

A powerful presence filled the room. It was almost unbelievable that this small mass of flesh could be its origin.

Even Yeon-woo, who was relatively accustomed to the experience of his body freezing, could feel it. It was as if the air surrounding him had solidified into the shape of his body.

Turning his eyes around to take in the surroundings, he noticed Killian was in a similar situation.

With a wry smile on his face, was Claire recalling her experiences of fighting a God?

And in the case of Claire, who had fought against a God…

Thwack!!

In an instant, dozens of golden lines were woven through the air. The sight was reminiscent of a star map, but it transformed into a bloody scene in the blink of an eye.

The flesh of the creatures clinging to the walls fell to the ground, scattering blood like fast-growing vines.

“I knew it would be like this.”

Boom.

Amid the pouring blood rain, Claire slammed her Aura Blade onto the ground.

The aura she summoned allowed not a single droplet of blood to splatter onto her body.

Before the severed chunks of flesh could even touch the floor, they bounced upwards from the impact and turned to ash in the air.

“Feeling stronger than expected, you two should dodge well. It looks like we might need to use our training here.”

With those words, Claire gripped the hilt with both hands and twisted her body dramatically. She swung her sword, as if wringing out its power.

Thwack!!

What kind of sound would it make if a green monster threw a truck into a building? A thundering roar echoed, and the colors in her sight split in two.

Amber and flesh tones. The two colors were sharply defined against a blaze of golden flames.

It was Claire’s Aura Blade. Not even a God could intrude upon the grand self of a master-level Aura user, which stood as a barrier.

However, even with that defense, Yeon-woo wasn’t safe yet.

The divine entity was still swelling ominously and could reach toward them without needing to cling to the walls.

“…You’ve received the nun’s training too, right, Killian?”

“Of course, Candidate.”

Killian nodded with an expression of unwavering determination and calmness, at a level unseen before. The presence of the God was still overwhelming.

It pressured them and kept them from moving. Yet, both Killian and Yeon-woo lightly swung their weapons.

Interestingly, there was something scarier for those two than the God itself.

*

As the battle began in earnest, Tae-oh found himself endlessly bored.

His shadow arms were not yet skilled enough for fighting, and the shadow magic hardly posed a problem without his control.

Moreover, when the battlefield was constructed in a way that prevented any other monsters from coming in, there was no need for stealth; Tae-oh simply watched from the sidelines.

Shar was connected to Yeon-woo’s mana itself and was busy moving around, though.

Thinking back, Tae-oh realized he had changed a lot. At first, he thought it was enough just to be able to sleep in a warm place.

But how was it now? Not only did he wish to sleep beside his father’s heart, but he also hoped he wouldn’t be bored. It was quite a surprising thought for Tae-oh himself.

His dad, who had really fulfilled what he wished for, he felt nothing but gratitude toward him.

Still, he was growing more greedy. He wanted to meet his mother, whose image he could only confirm through the memories his dad had given him, even though they shared no blood. He also wanted to be of help to his dad.

As for his father’s regression… honestly, it was a bit difficult for him to understand, but that was that.

Just as Shar had said long ago, when desires increase, the urge to grant those desires also grows, leading to extreme thoughts. Yet, Tae-oh’s thoughts remained calm.

A child simply wanted to do what they could.

It was an event that could only be described as amusingly ironic.

Here, where Dragons, Returners, Acolytes, and Godslayers had gathered, the one most knowledgeable about the alien god was a mere young spirit.

To Tae-oh, the God before him felt different from his biological father.

At the very least, it was a minimal display of power control that could threaten the opponent. It was acting as if it wanted to declare its hostility.

If his biological father had said, “Demon King of Moryo,” what would he have done?

Due to a fragment that broke away from the monster, the Doppleganger, Tae-oh clearly knew.

“If it felt uncomfortable, it would have killed everything.”

Boom! It would simply burst, wiping everything including his subordinates that acted as extensions of him, off this structure.

“…I think I can understand.”

Somehow, he could sense that the God wanted to die. He had once thought similarly.

Lying next to Yeon-woo’s heart, now a father, he wished to sleep there forever, undiscovered.

Yeon-woo swung his spear.

Snip, severed flesh fell on top of Yeon-woo’s shadow. The battle was chaotic. No one was looking at Tae-oh. Claire’s strike shook the building. With a snap, the shadow devoured the flesh.

As he watched the scene unfold with the air ripping apart, the God let out a low sound.

The God, who saw everything, could not look even a hair’s breadth ahead without eyes.

It could only see through its followers or view the scene projected at its will.

Without eyes, it had no eyelids. Erasing the scenery reflected before it was impossible for a God.

He vaguely understood how it was connected. He clearly saw the shadow of the child swallowing his fragments.

[You’re not in your right mind. You know what kind of being your true self is, and yet, you want to engulf it.]

[Hehe, how delightful.]

The young dark spirit smiled awkwardly. It was truly a young spirit, a pitiful child not even a year old since its birth.

The God decided that it wouldn’t need to take the child’s life.

After all, the God never truly wanted to kill anyone. The humans who broke through to the fourth floor had to die out of necessity.

Someday, if his mind were to wear down and disappear, and the instinct stirred to break free, it would need something to hold it back.

Despite the severe unfavorable odds, if it couldn’t cut through that, it wouldn’t be able to kill itself either.

For those who had already died, it was an unfortunate truth, but they had stepped out of line and, sooner or later, would meet their end in the same manner.

‘Still, what incredible luck.’

To be able to encounter such a brilliantly shining star after just four encounters.

Although unseen, an overwhelming aura and a radiant mana emanated. Just feeling the threat of life made one instinctively want to counter it in some way felt almost euphoric.

It was the first time since that day when everything was lost that he truly felt alive.

[Why do you want to die?]

The energetic God was asked so boldly by the young spirit.

With wide, shimmering eyes of a dark hue, it began to stir memories of a distant past…

No, no! Don’t remember! You mustn’t remember!!

Shaking off nonexistent thoughts, he wiped his mind clear. If he started to recall the scenery, he would have no choice but to silently observe it.

[If you do not wish to die right now, keep that mouth shut, little one.]

The God warned kindly. It remained still. It purposefully didn’t wield its power. It understood that this was the way to reach calm.

[But I’m so curious. Why do you want to die? I promise I won’t tell Daddy.]

The God let out a hollow chuckle. It was truly a bright expression, asking such trivial questions. A child who brought back so many memories.

[Do you wish to die?]

[I already said I don’t want to die.]

Even as it strangled its neck until it was hard to breathe with its divine presence, the spirit answered calmly.

It reacted as if it had never even been choked. Whether a spirit or not, if it had been strangled with divinity, it should have faced death, yet here it was unfazed.

[…Child, is your contractor treating you harshly?]

The God asked with the intention to kill if needed.

The child’s contractor seemed to be the weakest among them, so even facing the fairy before it, killing it wouldn’t be difficult.

[No, he’s kind and gentle. Want to see?]

Of course, it wasn’t enough to judge just by words, but the child began to retrieve pieces of memories as if showing off its toys.

Memories of being given a name and hugged warmly, memories of being bought delicious food, playing with toys alongside its contractor, and seeing its contractor looking at it with warm eyes while playing with a puppy.

With such evidence shown, the God had no choice but to believe. Letting out a sigh without realizing it, the God stirred its divinity in response to the gregariously babbling spirit.

[Enough, enough! You can stop showing me. You can stop talking now. My head is starting to hurt.]

[But I have more to show….]

With a tone like a puppy that had just been told they must return home after a walk, Tae-oh’s voice turned dismal as he put the memories back in. Only then did the God’s nausea settle.

Having never felt tired since birth, for some reason, he felt fatigue today.

As the God calmed, it met the sparkling gaze of the spirit. That look seemed to ask if it truly wished to know.

[What was it you wanted to ask again?]

[Ah! Why do you want to die?]

Judging that it was better to quickly answer and send it away rather than let it keep talking, the God began to slowly articulate its thoughts.

A mix of white and black divine energy flickered before them.

Invisible, inaudible, unspeakable, imperceptible, untouchable, the God always lived in hell. The tragic drama of a fleeting emotion played on a loop in its mind.

It reflected on the moment when its love was slightly tilted toward one side, which should have loved all things.

The audience was only one. An innocent young spirit. It was too harsh a story for a child, yet fitting to send it away. Thus, the God decided.

*

While fighting the tentacles coming at them back to back, a slight pain developed in the left arm where the sleeve had been completely torn away. It was the level of pain one would feel from a hot steam burn.

As Yeon-woo whittled away the incoming tentacles with the spear’s recoil, he glanced at his left arm. Something resembling a tattoo was being etched there.

Hastily looking around, he couldn’t see any tentacle performing laser surgery on him.

“…Olari?”

“Eh, what’s that, Candidate?”

“If I knew, would I be asking?”

He rushed to ask Shar, but Shar, while admitting she didn’t know well, replied that there was no sign of an attack.

If it was not an attack, then what was it? A curse? Tae-oh might know about that, so he called for him.

‘Tae-oh? …Tae-oh?’

Where did this guy go?

(To be continued in the next episode.)

 

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