Episode 1039 Fate
Primitive animals and plants, including giant reptiles and bizarre vegetation, lost their forms and scattered into sea foam.
It collapsed as if there had been a cataclysmic upheaval in the sky and the earth.
The vast ocean now covered the space beneath our feet, and the little land remaining floated upon it like small boats, drifting through the void-filled depths.
It was the result of a clash of forces.
The Mujeohae model garden, presumed to be closest to the host’s actual residence, has been destroyed. No one will be able to call this landscape a garden anymore.
“……The sky beyond the sky.”
Tearel lay on a very small island, soaking wet. He leaned roughly on the edge. His legs were submerged in the cold deep sea.
A thick fog settled over the sea.It was sea fog.
She dropped the hand she had stretched out toward the empty sky with a transparent blue tint.
I have never once thought that my magical level was lacking. After all, potential transcendents are few and far between—like a handful of sand in a vast desert—and among them, the geniuses who awakened as transcendents were few and far between.
Regardless of personal opinion, Thearel was genuinely powerful.Especially in water.This miniature garden, rooted in the sea, was a space where Thearel could unleash his maximum magical abilities as the transcendent of the ocean.
Even so, all they could do was partially ‘detain’ Bloodia’s movements. Undefeated. Without Deus, Tearel would surely have died.
I don’t like it.
It appeared that two massive groups had been waging a long war behind the scenes unknown to the world. Their names were Destiny and the Resistors, respectively.It was a world Thearel did not know.It was unpleasant.He felt uneasy, as if he had become a puppet unaware of the world outside the stage, and ever since he heard that he was actually a puppet assigned the role of the Apostle’s Adversary by the will of the First Demon King, he had been seething with anger.
The rebellious spirit against external forces is the essence of the transcendent.
If it weren’t for my nature, I would have wanted to kill the First Demon King or ruin his plan, but honestly, it was a delusional impulse. Seeing the true power of the 8th rank, I suppose my imagination was shut down?I could not picture in my mind the realm of the 9th rank, which only one person in history had ever reached, nor the strength that symbolized the First Demon King.
“I honestly don’t like it.”“…….”
Deus stuck his staff into the ground and lightly loosened his shoulders.Although traces of battle were clearly visible all over his white robe, he had destroyed the space itself, yet all he showed was that his body had simply loosened up to some extent.
Deus raised his gaze.
“The Arcadium is finished. We cannot leave for the continent yet, but since the Host will interfere, Bloodia won’t be able to do anything anymore. Not here.”
The moment the opposing Bloodia and Deus clashed their breaths and super-level magic for the second time, the miniature garden came to an end, and Bloodia vanished.
───[If it weren’t for ‘you,’ I would have torn that octopus’s head off first. Tsk.]
Leaving behind words like this.
“Get ready to go out.”“There is nothing to get ready for.”
Tearel looked up with only his eyes while lying down.
“But Host and Bloodia are both Apostles, aren’t they? Why are they keeping each other in check? Aren’t they on the same side?”“Because Host is a neutral.”“A neutral?”“He is neutral because he is not bound by good or evil, and he does not take sides entirely with anyone. The principle behind all of Host’s actions exists only in new knowledge. Do not try to understand Host with your head. Unlike us, he is closer to a conceptual being.”
Just as Tearel was about to ask what that was, Deus stopped him.
“You have heard too much information at this Arcadium. Take time to digest it. If you do not take steps, the confusion will only increase.”
To put it bluntly, it meant that he would no longer provide information. It seemed as though he had drawn a line, saying that his role as a teacher ended here.
“Always be mindful of ‘taboos.’ Ask Verden about taboos.”
Deus, noting that the Arcadium had truly come to an end, did not use his authority as the third guest of honor and pronounced Verden’s name directly instead of Asher’s.
Tearel spoke to Deus, who was about to leave for somewhere.
“Tell the First Demon King.”“…….”“That he will pay the price someday.”
Whatever the reason, the First Demon King interfered with the ideals that Tearel pursues. Of course, I have absolutely no intention of denying those ideals, but neither do I intend to overlook the fact that he tried to manipulate me at will.
Deus was infinitely close to the First Demon King… … surely a resistor among his closest confidants.He was not angry at him.The object of his hatred was the First Demon King.Tearel, a seasoned adventurer who had seen it all, was good at making such distinctions.
“…He said he would endure the resentment, but perhaps your mind might change once you learn the whole truth someday.”“That won’t happen. You don’t even know what it feels like to be a puppet.”“Don’t limit the world with your meager experience.”
Deus retrieved the white staff and turned his head slightly.
“I, too, am an ‘adversary of the Apostles.’”“……!”
Deus soared straight up and vanished into the mist. The lingering scent of magic faded. Soon, his presence vanished.Where could he be going when he says he can’t leave the Arcadium right away?
So he was an adversary, too.
Tearel, who had no intention of tracking him, tilted his head as he looked in the direction Deus had disappeared. Then, he raised his arm and spread out his five fingers.
“Then who is the adversary again?”
The only Apostles Thearel recognized were Host, Bloodia, and the Old King. I tried connecting Deus to Bloodia or the Old King.It felt like something didn’t add up.
“Since the former king is on the undead side, is one of the gods of the Luas Theocracy the adversary? Bloodia is a dragon, so… … a dragon… … huh? A dragon?”
Tearel paused.
I counted on my fingers, trying to imagine who Bloodia’s adversary might be. The being most suitable to be Bloodia’s adversary flashed through my mind.
* * *
An island slightly larger than the land where Tearel is located is being pushed by the gentle waves.
The fourth distinguished guest – Feldianne spent time leaning against a tree. He was thinking about the summit he had to attend as soon as he reached land.
“I could have just gotten by without clashing with the Fourth Apostle like this. I almost died right there and then while just watching.”
Deus appeared from beyond the sea fog.
“You shouldn’t have followed me.”“How could I just sit still with such a rare sight in the background, hoho. Anyway. I feel good too, seeing that Lord Deus seems relieved.”
Feldianne stretched. He ran his hand through his hair. His whole body was wet, having fallen into the sea once as the earth shattered into pieces.
“As a result, Lord Verden has obtained Draven’s soul. Well, it is not the best outcome, but it is a satisfactory result as the second-best. After all, the information obtained from Draven will surely be put to good use by Lord Verden in the great war against the Old King.”
It was Verden who reached the end of the Arcadium, but since the third game ended in a draw, neither side lost knowledge to the other.
In a sense, it was the closest thing to the best ending.
All information unfavorable to the former king fell into the hands of Verden, who opposes fate, but he could not obtain the knowledge sealed by taboos.Bloodia also attempted to secure Draven’s soul to conceal the information but failed. In a sense, Host’s selfish thirst for knowledge had a positive effect on the side of the resistors this time.
“Since Lord Verden can by nature never harmonize with fate, it would be to our advantage to empower Eon. Whether in the short term or the long term… for Lord Verden is also the ‘Captain of the Ark.’”“Do not forget.”
Deus gave advice.
“Verden has not yet made his final choice.”“But if he rejects fate, there is only one option. Even if he maintains his ideals, attains divinity, and walks the true path of a god.”
Feldianne exaggeratedly raised one arm to support the sky.
“In a world without destiny, only the last resistor is the ‘only alternative.’”
Even if beings including the Apostles of Fate were insane, Feldianne ardently supported the ideology of Oldark, who had returned from defeat in the Battle of Fate.
* * *
Life dies but does not perish.This is because there is a soul.Even if the body decays and crumbles, the spirit of the being residing in the body does not disappear. That immaterial substance does not scatter but sustains eternity beyond it.
There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.
In a rural village engulfed in the signs of war, the children taught by Draven were sacrificed. They were the students who had called Draven their teacher.Devastated, he prayed to the True Cross of the Luas religion, hoping that the children would find peaceful rest by the side of Luas.
However, through the desire to manipulate souls obtained ‘fatefully’—the animus—he saw the truth. The disciples could not go to Luas’s side.The children were suffering beyond death to an extent that could not be expressed in words.
There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.
Realizing that the doctrines of the Luas religion were false, he was filled not with despair, but with rage. If even innocent and pure children could not go to Heaven, who could possibly go?
Through Animus’s power, he discovered a talent for dark magic that he himself was unaware of.It was the beginning of a new transcendent being.
At first, he killed only those who slaughtered the innocent, just like his disciples. Fresh corpses became good subjects for his black magic experiments.As talent, experience, and study combined, he became a sorcerer. The enlightenment of the sorcery became a fragment of ideals, stripping hesitation and ethics from his heart.
He wandered the frontiers, committing repeated murders.He killed everyone while concealing his identity.
Dignity was a luxury.
To become radically stronger, I had to abolish countless deaths. I felt guilty. Whenever I felt like I was about to collapse, weighed down by guilt, I repeated the truth to myself.
There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.
Even before mastering black magic, reason and nature were always directed toward a single purpose, so Draven awakened and became a transcendent being in just a dozen years.
An idealist who dreams of the liberation of the soul.
He realized that to achieve an immortal world, a massive force, not just one person, was needed, and so he crossed over to the ‘Kingdom’ of Xerion. Thiswas because he had heard rumors that the First Prince of Xerion had achieved a series of victories against neighboring nations when the three forces of transcendent beings were divided into the Western, Central, and Eastern continents and waging war.
A growing nation.
It was quite suitable for Draven to build a nest. He planned to expand his power in the turbulent times by ruling the Kingdom of Xerion from behind the scenes.
And, I met Prince Xerion I – Akand Linigea Tain Xerion.
I understood the moment I first saw it.
Cannot win.
The foolish people around him regarded Akand as a valiant first prince, but to Draben, Akand was truly an executioner of death.He was convinced that Akand could complete the immortal world. He pledged his loyalty. Draben decided to make Akand a tool for his ideals.
It was the prelude to the war of the transcendents.
There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.
Draven personally traveled across the continent to recruit talented individuals like Lunesica, and served Akand from the closest proximity as the glory of Xerion.
Thus, the Kingdom of Xerion finally became the Empire of Xerion, and Akhand thrust the fangs he had kept hidden into the Transcendents.
The war of the transcendents unfolded.
The blood shed by the living formed a river, and corpses became mountains. The undead legion assembled by Draven severed the heads of the innocent and displayed them.The half-closed eyes of the children, who had been crying out for their teachers and parents, stared into the void.
There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.There is no heaven.
Draven did not hesitate. He did not stop even when Arkhand was shattered and sealed away.He concluded that without Arkhand, he could not achieve his ideals after the fall of the Empire, and he decided to regard him as the representative of those ideals.
It was only after 800 years that Arkhand was resurrected.
He willingly cast aside his life even with the path of destruction right before his eyes. He had entrusted the ideals of the Transcendent One. This was because he trusted that Arkhand would complete the immortal world and liberate all souls.
There is no heaven!
Even if you live a righteous life and die, you will only suffer forever.
The current legacy is worthless.
So Draben took the lives of all people.
For if we could gather up all meaningless lives and erase that world where souls suffer, then finally, every life would gain a definite meaning.
Draven sought to build hope for the future by feeding on the despair of reality. In doing so, he intended to atone for the numerous sins he had committed.
The transcendent being who caused extreme damage to the continent was, truly ironically, an altruistic being. He was a seeker who selfishly sought to save all beings.
Let us end life.For the sake of this world.
That was the path Draven had walked.
Infinite – Fate
Verden’s infinite magical power turned into a dark purple. A power that rejects life. However, it was fundamentally different from Draven’s magic.
Infinitely pure… … .
If Draven was corruption, thenVerden was purification.
Draven had never seen such brilliant magical power. It might be the difference in their lives. If Verden had been born just 800 years earlier, Draven would have made him king instead of Akand.
I never thought it would actually be possible.
Draven laughed heartily, engulfed in a shiver. This was his last chance. May his own choice, entirely free from the influence of fate and resistance, be the right one.
“You have understood my life, but your depth is still lacking, so the level of the magic itself is unstable. Moreover, this is your first time learning black magic.”“All you need is time.”“However, there is less time than you think. You must perfectly recreate my magic for Lunesica.”
Draven activated the magic circuit with the false body.
Mado
As the burden placed on the body he received from the host, it gradually began to deteriorate. Regardless, he further strengthened his magic.
“Then…… let’s begin.”
The magic of destiny resonates.Two souls reacted to each other.
The transmission of magic.
