Chapter 359

“For one, I…. understand your words.”

Ruber had a surprisingly calm voice.

“However, there are several things we foolish humans… need to know in order to complete the mission the God of the Sun has bestowed upon us, so would it be alright if we ask?”

[Go ahead.]

“Michael…. Even before the outsider crossed over to this world, black magic remained in history. What is the difference between then and now?”

The God of the Sun answered without hesitation.

[That originated from our world. Since I can return all dead things to nothingness, I could return corpses revived by magic to nothingness.]

“…Like Ghouls rising while half-rotted, and eventually stopping their movements as time passes?”

[Yes. But this time, sorcery from another world is intertwined, so I cannot lay my hands on it.]

Marianne’s added comment helped my understanding.

Jiangshis…. only stop attacking when you repeatedly cut them so they can no longer move. They did not naturally rot and disappear. I calmly asked again.

“But previously…. when you came out to meet us, didn’t you easily dispatch them?”

[That is only possible when they are very close to my domain. The domain where I can directly manifest and roam around is not that wide. I couldn’t burn down the house just to catch a few bugs, could I?]

That is also true.

Didn’t they say the hastily born sun was too hot, so it completely burned the earth that was born first? I had heard the story that he hastily moved to hide the heat in the west because of that.

Even if parts of myths are true and parts are false, it wouldn’t be completely wrong.

Ruben asked again.

“Are you perhaps aware that the ninth god has captured several humans?”

[Yes.]

“What must we do to save them with human strength?”

[For one, once you kill the Ninth…. no, put him to sleep, you will be able to bring out what is inside his domain. Then you should be able to save them.]

“How can we resolve the corrupted Mana imbued in their physical bodies?”

[If you bring them into my domain, I can do at least purification for them. That is not a difficult matter in the slightest. As long as you dispatch the Ninth…]

The God of the Sun whispered in a sweet tone.

However, isn’t it a cumbersome matter to bring that many people back and forth to this desert? Since we are doing a big task on his behalf, I felt he could easily help out with such a small matter.

So I didn’t hesitate and asked straight away.

“Do we really have to bring them here?”

[I cannot go, can I?]

“…Even though sunlight reaches everywhere.”

[No. Since I cannot burn down five thousand to save a hundred.]

“…”

While I was out of my mind doing a vain question-and-answer, Ruber asked again in a calm tone.

“Do you perhaps know how many lives are needed to tear the world?”

[Well…. that depends on the size of the soul. It doesn’t depend on the number. The total amount of Mana is all that matters…. It seems that is also the reason the Ninth is trying to pick and capture only humans with large souls.]

Humans with large souls.

The God of the Sun continued in a critical tone.

[That guy is slightly out of his mind, so he never does anything meticulously. It seems he wouldn’t bother capturing petty guys, so the number of lives doesn’t matter much, leading child.]

“…Then, would gathering divine relics perhaps be helpful to us?”

Hmph, the God of the Sun snorted. Pollen poured out again from the flower on top of the Makrir’s head.

[Sora must have told you that story. The god of the Oasis, that stupid thing.]

“…”

Just because a god curses a god, we couldn’t follow suit and curse him. We just listened.

[Divine relics are things the First bestowed to take care of humans, so if you take them all out at once, the balance is bound to collapse. If you use all the power of the divine relic your father is holding right now to kill the Ninth, how do you plan to handle the overflowing Mana?]

“…You mean.”

[It would be good to have about two or three that don’t have a big influence. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] I heard that the divine relics of Yulan and Biban are roaming around the world these days. Do not touch the others. Anything beyond that is excessive greed.]

“Why is that again?”

[Humans resemble the Ninth, so they have a lot of greed. Would they easily try to give up the treasures they hold in their hands. Besides, child, didn’t you inherit the blood of a leader. If the divine blood of another Empire tries to snatch away holy relics, wouldn’t a lot of blood flow in the world?]

Ruben sank into thought and became quiet. Then Hugh Benson subsequently opened his mouth. It was something I had wondered about countless times, but because my mind was absent with other thoughts now, it was a question I couldn’t put into words.

“…Currently, we suspect the 1st Prince of the Cieron Empire and a Young Lord of a Ducal family as followers of the ninth god. [Read on RanaTranslations🌸] Could you give us advice on that?”

[Uum…. I do not memorize the names of humans who do not believe in me one by one. However, our Fourth might know. Among us, that guy is the only god who memorizes all the names of humans.]

“When you say Fourth.”

[The God of Records and Lakes, Gano Pumpkin. Since that guy’s hobby is taking human form and roaming around Empires and Kingdoms. I heard he also wrote several books. I don’t know if he is still using that name these days, but….]

“…Gano Paquin?”

[Ah, right. Paquin. Paquin must be right.]

The two among the group who read the most books were utterly shocked. I wandered for a moment not knowing the reason. I belatedly realized the reason at the sound of Marianne screaming in a high voice.

“Is he the Gano Paquin who authored ‘The Birth of the First God’, ‘The Favoritism of Six Gods’, and ‘The Boundary Between Man and God?”

[Yes. Although the glorification is excessive, it is not a bad book.]

“Th-then, where is that person right now?”

[Well…. Somewhere?]

Just as the god of the Oasis wasn’t certain of the ninth god’s location, the God of the Sun also didn’t pinpoint and know the locations of the other gods one by one. A long explanation followed that since they are on a world where each other’s powers are thickly mixed, he cannot specify and pinpoint any one location among them.

“But, the Oasis…. said the First Goddess went to the Demonic Realm.”

[It seems the First gave the Oasis a hint before she went. Among us, that guy is about the only one who feels sorry for and cherishes the Ninth.]

Since the Demonic Realm story came out, there was something else I was curious about.

“What on earth is in that Demonic Realm?”

[….]

The god didn’t answer for a moment.

Everyone in the group looked at the God of the Sun nervously. The Makrir’s roots twisted from the left to the opposite side. If it had been human form, it would have been a shape similar to fixing one’s sitting posture.

[…When you make a world, naturally…. residue is bound to be created.]

“….”

[Originally, the right thing to do is properly organize it and reuse it elsewhere, but everyone wants to do the work of making the world…. they don’t want to do such clean-up work.]

“….”

[That is, when cooking…. similar to pushing fruit peels or eggshells to one side. Since I am in the southwest, it’s natural for the northeast to be cool…. Since we piled it up there so it wouldn’t rot, it became a bit too much.]

“…”

[Now it’s piled up so much that it’s daunting to even touch it. Still, I thought we blocked it well with mountain ranges so it wouldn’t overflow, but because the Ninth gathered the trash there and burst it…]

It was an unexpected statement.

Saying that if the gods had properly cleaned their rooms on time, this wouldn’t have happened.

I was dumbfounded and couldn’t open my mouth.

I didn’t know the reason the other children were quiet, but I thought they might have received similar impressions as me. I made desperate efforts not to let out a sigh in front of the god. Everyone sank deeply into their own thoughts.

Then the god let out a couple of dry coughs and asked.

[Do you have anything more left to ask?]

A chilling silence pooled. There was nothing more left to ask now.

At that time, among the mercenaries, John, that big and quiet guy, mumbled and opened his mouth.

“I, I perchance.”

His usually refreshing voice trembled like a baby goat. How much the guy had chewed on it, his lower lip was swollen puffy and thick like a thumb. His tanned, sun-ripened cheeks were flushed so red they almost looked black.

The guy asked as if mumbling.

“…I, we…. I, offered prayers. Perchance…. I wonder if you were listening….”

[Hahaha!]

The God of the Sun laughed loudly.

[Of course, I cherish all the children who come all the way here and act politely. John, I remember you. You are a very brave and cute child. I have made efforts to lower fine sunlight on your path ahead, and to warmly heat your nights.]

“…Th-that is.”

[Thank you truly for coming to visit and pay respects several times, John.]

Then John cried his eyes out.

He was so touched he cried until both his plump cheeks were completely soaked in tears. He prostrated himself on that spot, bowed, and sobbed. Watching that sight, the other guys also began to sniffle one by one, and the disrespectful feelings I had toward the God of the Sun faded a little.

I didn’t even dream that a guy called a god would remember the names of the mercenaries one by one.

Right, didn’t he say the reason he came and settled in this desolate desert was to avoid harming other creations? This guy was less crazy than the ninth god, and cherished humans more than the third god. Just knowing a god standing on the humans’ side was a huge achievement.

Listening carefully to the story, Leon and John were exceptionally devout among the Cieron mercenaries, where it is common not to believe in gods. So it seemed the God of the Sun had lowered affectionate blessings every time they prayed and came to kneel.

Learning even the fact that the God of the Sun agonized together with him every time Leon’s axe fell east or west, Leon and John acted almost as if they lost their minds from being touched. Seeing the guys crying and laughing, yellow pollen was poured generously around the head of the loudly laughing God of the Sun.

The God of the Sun, whose mood improved to the fullest from Leon and John’s aegyo that wasn’t aegyo, showed great generosity one more time.

[I was already concerned because there are many dirty guys outside. I will give you a room to stay in until you leave again. Eat and drink my fruits and sap, and rest comfortably. For the moments the sun has risen high, no one will be able to harm you.]

The entire group politely bowed and moved following the baby Makrir’s guidance.

At that time, I was tickled inside because I had one thing I was extremely curious about.

The god’s fruits and sap… are they elixirs?

It was exactly the time I felt a new elixir was needed, since Ruben and Benjamin’s Dantians were almost ripe anyway.

I was greatly thrilled, and my mood was elevated.