Episode 1180 Verden – 1
“So, Nekhbael heard about my divinity after all… … No, no.”
Verden’s intuition reacted.
It was much earlier than that.
Even before engaging in battle with Nekbael, Arkhand was aware of his divinity. He was certain. The fellow’s unwavering black eyes spoke of it.
Since when?
It must have been before the war.
Island in the Hiaremar Inland Sea.
Because that was the only time Verden showed Akand that fragment of the god—a physical symptom that even he himself was unaware of and dared not control—was shown to him.
Nevertheless, Akhand showed no signs of responding strategically. Even the retinue of the Apocalypse appeared completely unaware of this.
‘If used properly, they could have caused at least some animosity between the Luas Theocracy and me. Why…’
That was the first question.
The second question is the cause of the world’s destruction currently being shown in the Apocalypse.
Finally, the third question was the promise that, depending on the outcome of this decisive battle, the taboo regarding fate—the mission of the Sixth Apostle bestowed by ‘you’—would be revealed.Verden, with his way of thinking, found it difficult to understand with what intention this sudden, bizarre act of betraying fate was intended.
however…….
The Great War.
The passage about the war mentioned by Arkhand. There must be a clear answer to the ultimate purpose of the war of the Transcendents that he started after becoming an Apostle.And the key to that answer lies in none other than Arkhand’s own death.
Boom!!!
Akhand prayed as he plunged the [Magras] he had captured in reverse into the ruined world.
“If my father stands in my way, I will kill him; if a god stands in my way, I will kill the god.”
From within and without, a presence of immeasurable stature blossomed.
“I, the Sixth Apostle—Arkhand. As a human who has received the Gospel, I will exterminate all life in this Last Land and complete the penance of death.”
The final move.
Rest: Descent into the World
A miracle, possible only in the Citadel’s audience chamber across all continents, was activated. A ‘foul ash’ much closer to darkness enveloped the entire body.Fragments of the ancient king’s armor, shattered to the limit, fell down one by one.
As the divine power began to take shape, it replaced the lost left arm.The same energy permeated the Dragon Sword as well.
Akand grabbed the cold handle with both hands, lifted it diagonally, and bent his knees while tilting the blade downwards at an angle.
“Come, evil god who shattered fate.”
The dark gray eyes that believed themselves to be right stared directly at Verden.
Gray… … .
I felt a sense of kinship with Akand. However, it was an unpleasant feeling, like looking at a counterfeit—essentially similar yet ultimately different.
“Is this the ultimate miracle of using oneself as kindling to manifest power beyond one’s limits? If I just stall for time, it won’t last long and will self-destruct.”
However, it is not a power that can be dealt with half-heartedly in such a manner. Above all, it has not walked such a lukewarm path.
As an apostle of God, Akhand defined Verden as an evil god.
At this moment, the logic of strength was no longer everything. It was elevated into a clash of pure ideals against ideals, and a scene where old rules and a new order stood in opposition.
The First War of the Transcendents ended incompletely, andthe Second War of the Transcendents is finally on the verge of completing its narrative.
It is certainly not an illusion to feel that this is a miniature version of the match of destiny, interrupted in the very distant past and awaiting resumption, as well as a kind of rehearsal.
That’s right.
This position is currently being held by the Sixth Apostle Akhand, who is acting on behalf of God by borrowing His power───
The prelude between me and ‘you’.
[Einber] and [Interis] beat with sincere divine will. The flow of
A god who voluntarily abandons freedom to pursue ideals.
In the process of calming the rampage of magic, he became closer to a true god who had been corrupted more than before, and he emitted a ‘pure ash’ from his body and soul, which even took faith as nourishment.
Divinity: Descent
A gray halo of light, unlike the power of rest, mixed with no impurity.
Thump… … Thud… … .
Rain began to fall on the ruined world. An anomalous phenomenon occurred that could not exist in that fixed space, which was nothing more than an illusion embodied by the Apocalypse.
Akand looked up at the sky.
Raindrops fell from the pale gray clouds covering the entire sky. No, upon closer inspection, they were ash in the shape of raindrops.The ash dust, which was no different from the residue left at the end after all things had burned up, seeped into the future land where no life had survived.
Deeper, deeper… … .
Life sprouted in the eternal wasteland. Translucent beings made of blue magic pierced through the surface and crawled out.
They were not gods.They were not apostles.They were not soldiers.They were not believers.
Everyone was weak.
[Ahhh… …]
Those without ears, with their eyes and mouths sewn shut, sobbed as they repeatedly groped at Akand’s legs. It was a desperate and powerless touch, yearning for even the slightest glimmer of salvation.It would have been easier to shake them off than to trample on a bug, but he did not do so.
O God,I ask you.
Who pushed them into despair, making them long for salvation so desperately?Who made them unable to dare see, hear, or speak?
Akand already knew the answer.
It was this world.
Reduced to a sacrifice of fate, shunned by the resistors… … the outcasts abandoned by the whole world, rendered helpless on their own.The abandoned shed tears through their forcibly closed eyelids. Those whom Akand had killed waited for a helping hand from him, unaware that he was the one they had killed.
“The salvation of fate is the correct alternative. Even if I were to return, I can say with certainty that I would repeat the same time again and again. So, get out of the way.”
[Ahhhh…]
“Get out of the way…….”
Akand firmly turned his back on them, but he could not push them away. The wave of the abandoned soon became a tide that soaked the parched bridge.
Before he knew it, Akhand was standing in the middle of an endless blue sea.It was a vast ocean.His feet were standing proudly below the surface, but beneath them was the infinite abyss where no degree of depth existed.
Rumble.
A thunderous lightning strike of destruction raged wildly. The form of the World Tree repeatedly appeared and disappeared above the clouds, becoming imprinted on the retina.
Gray sky.Blue sea.Dark red trees.
Gray tears that fell from the demonic eye of God comforted the landscape of destruction.
“That kind of feeling isn’t allowed to just anyone.”
Dark gray tears spread from the Eye of Power manifested by Akand.It was influenced by the realm of a god that exists and will simultaneously become real. Through this, it became clear what kind of concept of god Verden is.
The god of the abandoned…….
A god was born who vowed to care for the dropouts abandoned for their own reasons.Not a natural god born of the dropouts’ faith, but a divine status incomparably noble, lofty, and sublime, established by a former weak human who forsaken a freedom that would never be granted again and voluntarily assumed responsibility.
Akand burst into laughter.
He is on a completely different level from Oldarc. It was so absurd that I burst out laughing. Neither his character nor his justification could compare to the primordial wizard.
‘You’, are you watching?
Unlike Oldarc, there is a being here who confronts the original sin you committed, seeks to condemn it, and finds his own answer.The blind and fanatical apostles and followers would not dare to fathom his value. He was right. There is no one more fitting for a great war than this.
“Just as I appear to you, I must seem like a henchman of evil. Of course, I do not deny it. However, the distinction between good and evil is meaningless in the face of the apocalypse. Nevertheless, if one were to weigh good and evil, I am a necessary evil.”
Akand said in a low voice.
My existence had meaning.
Crack, the apocalypse was shattered.
The stone containing the galaxy of the universe shattered into pieces and scattered into the sea.The destroyed world and the divine realm intermingled, eventually becoming a space of nothingness. A battlefield of emptiness where no terrain exists, a void of nothingness.
Verden looked down at Akand with eyes that had turned gray from blue. The magic circle embedded in his right pupil rotated slowly.
God of the Abandoned.Destroyer of the Cycle.
|Arkhand|
It was the voice of the Absolute. Although infinitely imperfect compared to ‘you’ and Oldarc, I could sense a fragment of the Absolute. My vision blurred for a moment, and the
“……!!!!!……!!!……!!!!!”
If you harbor negative thoughts, you will collapse.
Therefore, Akand sharpened the blade of his will toward only one thing: the mission of the Sixth Apostle, and furthermore, the true human heart that did not reject the mission.
If so, prove it.
In the primeval age where fate did not exist, judgment was solely the right of God.
Believers, without exception, feared the judgment and its aftermath that were close to the unknown, but Arkhand was different from such intelligent beings.He was not deceived because he clearly knew what he believed and how he acted.
“How could I refuse?”
Akand scattered the light of his power. There was no need for such ridiculous trickery. He leaped forward defiantly and brought down [Magras] with all his might.At this, the light in Verden’s eyes flickered.
Two powers clashed.
─────────!
Akand, having plummeted to the ground, performed a fall break and continued his offensive without a moment’s pause.However, before his sword energy and miracles could even reach him, or even before he could advance a few steps, he was stopped in an instant, and the distance returned to its original state.
The fighting style has returned to its original form.
Although Verden probably didn’t intend it, it bore a striking resemblance to Oldark’s methods seen in ‘your’ past memories. It must mean that while there may be countless branches, they ultimately lead to a single ultimate truth.
‘magic…….’
Verden’s fundamental nature is that of a wizard.
If you do not perceive the magic, you cannot reach it.
* * *
“Verden…….”
Indren, who witnessed Verden through the presence of Akand—or more precisely, through ‘your’ eyes—felt tears welling up in his eyes without even realizing it.
“Are you saying Verden is that god? Like Luas or you…?”
=Isn’t it beautiful?=
‘Your’ deep will reacted as if deeply moved by Verden’s sacred realm. Although the ideal she envisioned remained unchanged, the path Verden had chosen to walk made her reflect on many things.
“Beautiful… even though he’s an enemy?”
Indren flinched. He shuddered at the foreign sensation of ‘your’ fingertips embedded in his eyeball. However, there was no significant pain.Rather, as he became accustomed to it, the pressure of being crushed by a divine power seemed to subside somewhat.
=Verden shattered the shackles of fate. Whether intentional or not, it is true that he is a traitor who disrupted the eternal cycle. However, I am grateful to him more than I am angry at him.=
“Why…….”
=It is because I extinguished Oldark’s power source. Even if it is just one.=
No one could have predicted Verden’s feat of erasing both the power source of the Bohemian Magic Tower and the Wheel of Fortune from the world.It was the beginning of all change, and the birth of the one who would one day become a god.
Indren parted his lips.
He was unsure whether he should ask this question, but rather than fear, he immersed himself in intellectual inquiry like a wizard, and in the process, he did not hesitate to be reckless.
“What is the power source?”
Feldiane mentioned the taboo and could not answer… Sadly, it seemed that ‘you’ were in the same situation.
“Even I cannot reveal the true nature of the power source to the outside world. It is the same as Oldarc being unable to explain the source of destiny. However… …”
Indren waited for the next words.
Only altruistic beings can truly shed tears.
Indren was reflected in ‘your’ tears of blood.
=Oldark is one who does not shed tears=
