Episode 958 Cumulonimbus (3)
[God, God.]
The small demons each held Verden’s hands and repeated the same word over and over. Sincethey were not high-ranking demons with deep intelligence like Hadras, communication was difficult and their reasoning abilities were rather low, but their intentions were clearly conveyed.
They are just like children.
Demons follow Verden whenever he walks through the darkness of the rift between worlds. He stroked the head of a grotesque demon whose mouth was torn from ear to ear.The fellow grinned broadly, revealing the hundreds of teeth inside his mouth.
It is not dirty.It is not disgusting.It is not repulsive.It does not cause any discomfort.
Just as it must have been for the former Verden, after realizing his divine power, he felt a deep affection from the demons here.The surrounding demons, instead of shedding tears upon seeing Verden, smiled.
I just got up from my seat for a moment to clear my thoughts, but this is troublesome.
Was it because he sympathized with the devil? It was to the point where it was difficult to forcibly pry away the pitiful devils from both sides who were fiddling with Verden’s hands.
God, Savior.
A half-demon rescued from Rendibhar’s special prison had attached itself to my leg. The wounds from severe torture appeared to have already healed.What should I do?Now, it is not easy to even walk properly.
[Go away… … .]
At a single word from Hadras, the demons slowly vanished into the darkness. Disgruntled glances flew toward Hadras, but not a single demon dared to question the Legion Commander’s order.
[Now that I have found someone to turn to for the first time… … I crave God’s attention whenever I have a spare moment… … Despite the Devil’s strict hierarchy… … I cannot be controlled… … I feel nothing but remorse… … .]
I don’t mind. Because I understand.
Verden walked side by side with the old devil.
“On the current continent, demons are regarded as symbols of evil incompatible with humanity. The exact opposite of how I feel. Was it like that in the past as well?”
[It was no different from the present… … However, the label of evil itself is not unfair… … The nature of the devil… … attempts to attack other beings indiscriminately… … and since it is a fact that it particularly causes harm to humans… … such actions of the devil… … are undeniably evil… … .]
The devil is a negative being.He acknowledged that the devil’s purity is evil.
“Is it the same thing as the resentment of an abandoned being?”
Hadras bowed his head slightly, once again admiring Verden’s understanding.
[All demons are terrible illegitimate children that even the Creator, ‘you,’ did not want… … so they do not know how to be loved by others… … nor do they know how to love others… … .]
Having been showered with contempt and murderous intent from every being since birth, the devil has no choice but to live consumed by jealousy, hatred, and rage.
[Most unintelligent demons… … act solely on instinct… … while high-intelligence demons… … are not governed by instinct… … and can make rational judgments depending on the situation… … however… … the magnitude of their hatred… … is no different from that of lower demons… … .]
Are you still hating, too?
[always…….]
but.
[It’s not like that anymore… … Because I no longer had to just pour out my resentment… … .]
Hadras let out a low, drawn-out laugh like mist settling in a deep valley. It sounded like the carefree laughter of a child boasting of a brilliant life to the parents who had abandoned them.
Verden asked.
“Then, what category does the devil I saved belong to?”
Hadras paused for a moment.
[Did you know… … .]
I merely sensed that it was somehow different from ordinary demons. I didn’t pinpoint anything precisely.
Half-human, half-demon. He was clearly a demon, but it was strange to call him a complete one. This wasbecause, if you focused very closely on his voice, the distinctive sense of strangeness found in the voices of Hadras or other demons was not transmitted to the ears.
[That child… … is an incomplete devil… … not just a devil, but half-devil… … less twisted, less distorted… … and therefore a deformed being who reveals the essence of a devil more clearly than a devil… … .]
“In other words, because it is ambiguous, it is close to the essence…….”
Verden was lost in thought for a moment, then stared at the surrounding darkness.
One could contemplate what the devil, a byproduct of fate, truly is, but Hadras stated that he could not speak of it as it was already a forbidden realm.Only various conjectures are possible; one cannot be certain of the correct answer.
As already decided, questions come later. For now, I prioritize the divine realm.
Even though he has awakened his divine power thanks to the demons, he shows no signs whatsoever of returning to the inner world where Alpha and Hiante are waiting.
It must mean that it is still lacking.
A sensation of something within reach yet elusive… Verden absolutely had to seize the next level. For it would be meaningless if he could not wield divine power with force.
The problem is time.
Is there a possibility that the traitor who returned to Rendibhar will track us all the way here?
[This is the shadow of the crevice… … Since light does not reach, they dare… … not invade… … If they had… … I would have been exterminated long ago… … .]
I see.
Since Hadras, who has lived in the rift of the world for a very long time since the truce in the War of Destiny, says so, you may lower your guard and focus.
[As God desires… … .]
Verden disappeared into the darkness once again to meditate. He was already manipulating the shadows of the crevice at will, like a demon.
Hadras, who had stayed in his place until Verden’s figure and presence had completely vanished, soon moved in the opposite direction and parted his lips.
[Cranbel… … .]
[Yes, Lord Hardras.]
A high-ranking demon with four arms appeared, wearing a beast skull.
[Before long, a traitor will lead his forces… … and invade this place… … .]
[yes?]
Cranbel hesitated.
[To think a traitor is coming… … Even if it is him, he cannot set foot in the shadows of the crevice, can he? It has always been that way.]
[It’s not that we couldn’t… … it’s that we didn’t because there was no need… … We are weeds that grow back no matter how much we are trampled… … and moreover… … the traitor prioritized… … watching reality… … .]
Hadras closed his eyes.
[Thanks to hastily leaving the traitor’s territory… … we bought time… … but… … he will eventually come… … to annihilate the one and only God who understood us… … the destruction of the Wheel of Fortune… … is akin to shattering their raw scales… … so the traitor… … will not give up… … .]
Cranbel looked down at the floor stiffly.
[Our God… … It is not yet time to deal with traitors… … He must still ascend higher… … He cannot take risks… … Therefore… … Cranbel… … When that time comes, you… … serve our God… … .]
[… … .]
[Our God… … is connected… … to the main body… … unlike us… … will be able to easily escape the rifts of the world… … so … guide Him… … as I instruct… … while concealing the situation… … so that God does not worry.]
A small echo rang out from inside Cranbel’s beast skull.
[What will you do about Lord Hadras?]
[The moment the traitor invades this shadow… … he will attempt to advance unhindered… … what we need is… … a little time… … for God to safely escape the gap… … .]
Hadras flung his eyelids open, flashing a ruthless glint. The killing intent of the Archdemon Legion Commander radiated toward the first king of the human world who had cast aside resistance.
[I will stop the traitor.]
* * *
27 steps
* * *
Alpha strictly guarded Verden, who was deeply immersed in meditation within his inner world. Having become almost one with the silent world, he was like a stone statue.
Snap, snap.
Hiante came out of the forest and walked alone on the sandy beach where the sea of magic waves.
“Although he became a true god by belatedly realizing his divine power, elevating the divine realm requires not only his own self-cultivation but also the immense role of the believer. This is all the more true for a faith that has just been born.”
God is a being created out of necessity.I stood at a crossroads of choice.
The first believer must prove through a ‘trial’ that they have not lost the reason for embracing this faith. If they fail, the opportunity for the trial is given to the next believer, but it is a natural progression that their ascension to divinity is delayed accordingly. What decision will your believer ultimately make?
Her instep was buried in the white sand.
Separately, having finally ascended to the throne as a god, the being in whom a part of God dwells reaches new possibilities that transcend the present. As an ‘apostle’ of the new god.
A low voice.
The meaning of finally being together, not alone.
Hiante gazed at the vast sea.
“Verden, which ‘possibility’ will you move toward?”
* * *
23rd step.
* * *
Raging snowstorm.
Light spills out from a hut situated on the boundary between the living and the dead in the blue mountain range. Smoke rises from the chimney.
“Ho, ho.”“Hooo.”
Renard and Faye blew on the hot cocoa warmed by the stove. Although it could have felt stifling since it was the cabin where Jose had originally lived alone, the young siblings actually felt a soft, cushiony sense of stability.The fact that they were sitting in chairs with their legs crossed excitedly was proof of this.
Haenel, the daughter of Count Banah of the Ternetia Federation, held a warm teacup and looked at the statues made by Jose.I was talking about the work that adorned the small shelf in the cottage.
‘beautiful.’
A statue modeled after an ash-haired god.Small statues surrounding the god.A background of the creation of the world sculpted against the wall of a shelf.
It looks just like a scene from a myth.
Verden of Eon.
The transcendent being who saved Faye and Haenel from the Blood-Crying Plague, and the new god that Jose serves… … My heart is swelling with emotion.It feels like I am being drawn into a vortex.
‘……ah.’
Haenel reached out his arm without realizing it, but quickly withdrew his hand.He felt it was disrespectful.
“Haenel-nee.”“Huh? What’s wrong, Faye?”“It’s cold outside, will you be okay, sir?”
Rattling.
The window is shaking.
The notorious cold of the Blue Mountains permeates the cabin. Visibility is extremely poor.Despite the weather, Jose climbed the Blue Mountains alone without hesitation, carrying new tools he had acquired in the city of Bradel.
While saying you follow your heart… … .
Of course, since they say they don’t stay outside all the time but go back and forth to the cabin periodically, we will probably be able to see them again in a few hours.
“Mr. Jose, you’ll be fine. Because you’re Jose.”“Right? Because you’re a middle-aged man!”“Of course, since you’re a middle-aged man!”
Renard and Faye did not doubt Jose’s safety in the slightest. Haenel, sharing their sentiment, gazed out the window at the unfamiliar scenery. Thesnowstorm poured down ceaselessly. Her face was reflected in the window.
Anyway, did I pay too much attention to keeping warm?
Haenel suddenly stroked the inside of his throat. He felt his body warmer than usual.
It’s a bit hot.
* * *
Eon’s airship lands at the dock of the Iderat Confederation. Below, high-ranking officials of the Confederation were waiting with their hands clasped.Not only were they visibly nervous, but some even appeared restless.
You look desperate.
With the enraged Ruas Theocracy slowly approaching, the Iderat Confederacy must defend itself at all costs.If it fails, it will be shunned by the Light of Humanity.
To overcome difficulties, the assistance of powerful forces is indispensable.To them, Isabella was an important figure whom they had to bring in as an ally to support the alliance at all costs.
Melard said.
“The situation seems worse than expected. Caught between the Allied Nations and the Theocracy, resolving the conflict must be no easy task.”“Please don’t scare me too much…….”“Hoho, I’m very nervous, too.”
She stood on the deck with Hares by her side.
Even so, please do not let the burden weigh you down on your own.
Whoosh.
The seaplane docked.
Because we are all shouldering the responsibility for this diplomacy together.
Melard encouraged Isabella maturely and went down the stairs. Then, Eon’s wizards disembarked from the airship with discipline.
“Phew.”
After taking a deep breath, Isabella finally stepped off the deck.It was time to step onto the stage of diplomacy.
It was then.
Piing───
A faint ripple rose in Isabella’s left eye, and her vision wavered. It was sudden, truly sudden, so she couldn’t even react.However, there was absolutely no pain.
A fleeting moment.Magic power that quietly focuses.
Soon, the golden eye, Hyungan, engraved with the transformed magic circle of the Reverse Heaven, opened. At the same time, objects that had appeared scattered regained their clear focus.
What? Why the sudden…
Isabella tried hard to hide her bewilderment, then suddenly looked around. Everyone at the Confederate’s dock came into view.
Hyungan visualizes the essence.
The pure white something that had been shimmering inside the living being’s body is taking on a concrete form. An immaterial entity existing beyond the physical body.
After reading the manuscript of the ancestor of the Deiros family at the royal castle of the Akenad Magic Kingdom—focusing on the power of the endless byproduct of negativity that turned her into a demon—the soul she had perceived began to become clearly visible.
A soul bound by chains.A free soul.
Souls were broadly divided into two types.
