Chapter 299: The One You Feared
Aldin didn't see it as a big problem. She did feel something like a scratch in her heart since she had thought to herself, ‘this will be enough,’ but that was just a matter of emotions.
The old gods treated Aldin like a servant, but they wouldn't pick on her over the death of an Angel. Despite her being the lowliest among them, she was still a god.
'Besides, it's just one of many Angels that failed.'
If one fails, send two. If two fail, send three.
'...No. That's a stupid thought. If one fails, send ten next. Why increase by one?'
Aldin used the system to check the Angels in the old gods' storage, one by one. Most of the Angels were either wandering unmanaged inside the enclosure or in a hibernating state. Each had its owner, but those owners, the old gods, mostly lost their affection for the Angels.
The trend of creating Angels had passed tens of thousands of years ago. The old gods had loved them in the past, but now they had likely forgotten even the names they had given to the Angels. They probably didn't even remember having Angels.
'Of course, it would still be better not to get caught touching someone's belongings.'
Although conquering Avartin was Aldin's role, the authority she borrowed through the system was limited. Due to past events, the old gods didn't trust her, a sinner. Therefore, Aldin had no choice but to resort to cunning methods.
'They probably don't care anymore.'
Aldin looked at a handful of Angels taken out from another old god's system window and then shoved them into her own inventory.
"Aldin!" Just at that moment, she heard a voice calling her and held her breath.
'Was I caught?'
Aldin turned toward the voice and sighed in relief. It was Kenile Av Enen, who wasn’t someone of high status. Kenile spread his wings and hovered gently in the air, making a landing on Aldin's Sky Castle with the tip of his foot.
Aldin's Sky Castle was messy and unorganized, so Kenile, his aesthetic sense offended, showed a contemptuous expression to Aldin.
Aldin politely asked, "What brings you here, brother?"
"My system is down again."
Aldin thought, 'Fool.'
After the software rot, system errors had increased, but many of them could be easily fixed by someone skilled with the system. Despite that, Kenile couldn't solve even such simple errors on his own and always bothered Aldin with it.
"I'll take a look."
"Hurry up."
Before Aldin even started, she heard Kenile's urging and began checking the errors in Kenile's system window. However, contrary to Aldin's expectation, this time the error wasn't simple. Aldin followed the standard troubleshooting procedures in sequence.
Kenile watched from behind and said, "I know what you’re thinking. You think I'm a fool who messed up my own system again, but as you see, it's not. The error occurred before I even touched it."
"...I didn't think that, brother. And after the software rot, the system has been full of errors. It's not your fault."
"Oh, that’s correct, right? There seem to be many system errors, perhaps because it hasn’t been long since we all woke up. I should tell Father it needs a check-up."
Aldin internally clicked her tongue. She had urgent tasks to deal with, yet she was dragged into these personal matters.
'And what does you waking up have to do with the errors? I've been the one sporadically awake, maintaining the system.'
Aldin hid these thoughts, almost resolving Kenile's issue. Meanwhile, she found something strange about all this.
'There's definitely a fault in the system.'
Aldin considered various possibilities. It could be an extension of regular minor errors, or perhaps it could be the software rot the old gods feared accelerating.
'...Maybe.'
Aldin knew Nebula had been involved in the system in a way similar to the evil gods. However, as far as Aldin has checked, the only thing Nebula could change was a single line in the system's script. That was less significant compared to the evil god, who managed to seize control of the second moon, Loom, from the old gods.
Moreover, Nebula was in a Fallen state. He didn’t possess power equivalent to a god.
'Let's finish this quickly. Once Nebula is dead, there won't be much to worry about.'
Aldin resolved Kenile's issue. "Brother, it's done."
"Hm? Oh."
Aldin followed Kenile's gaze to the sky. "What are you looking at?"
"Oh, up there in the sky..."
Kenile pointed to the void between the Sky Castles. For some reason, it was tinged with red light. Aldin first thought it was the sunset, but then realized the sun was rising from her right.
Kenile was puzzled. "What is that?"
Aldin wasn’t puzzled. Instead, she habitually checked the system window quickly. Aldin was looking at a system window related to the previous game, which most of the old gods didn't even know how to open. Aldin's eyes widened.
[Player List
...
Bolt
Chistka
Hegemonia]
Aldin muttered, "...Hegemonia?"
Kenile turned to Aldin. "What did you say?"
Suddenly, the world turned red. The brightening red light in the void exploded, and something appeared from that point. The sound of a drum being struck harshly echoed from somewhere.
Aldin said to Kenile, "It's an attack!"
"An attack? From whom? Mortals?"
"No, players...the new gods."
"What are you talking about? Didn't they all Fall?"
"There were some who did not Fall. I will stop her. You must quickly inform Father..."
Kenile made a disdainful expression. "I won't do that. Handle it yourself."
"Pardon?"
"Your face says it's your mistake, so take care of it yourself. I can't be caught up in this and end up like you."
Aldin was dumbfounded. It wasn't the time to argue over who was right or wrong. Aldin had personally chosen all the players for the game, and she knew about Hegemonia. She had even watched Hegemonia play throughout the game.
If Nebula had elegance, Hegemonia was barbaric. In Aldin's view, both were equally skilled. Only Nebula had a strategic advantage. To Aldin, if she had to fight one of them, the real monster she didn't want to face would be Hegemonia.
"...Then at least hurry and run away. I will speak to Father myself..."
"I don't want to do that either. You have a duty to protect us. If our Sky Castle gets even slightly damaged, you better be prepared."
"Brother!"
"Are you trying to talk back?"
Aldin wanted to scream.
The other old gods in the Sky Castles quietly peered into the void at the loud clanging of the gong.
Aldin controlled the system window, picking up the Angels from her inventory. The Angels, once items in her possession, regained their original texture and size, transforming from static entities to living beings breathing in the void as soon as they left Aldin's hand. All sharing the name of Angels, beings with wings, beings trapped in hard white eggs, and beings resembling giant wheels floated in the void between the Sky Castles. The Angels guarded against the red light, as Aldin intended.
'Just need to delay for a moment. Once Father grants me authority again, I can make them Fall.'
However, unless Father called her, Aldin had to go through several procedures to meet Him. Aldin hesitated but decided breaking the protocol would be less painful than not. The moment Aldin floated into the air toward the highest Sky Castle, the gong sound abruptly stopped.
-You know me.
A figure in armor stepped out of the void. Despite the ominous foreshadowing in the form of fierce flames rising between the heated armor and the horned helmet, this being was alone at the moment. Without a mount, the knight looks somewhat pathetic.
Aldin, flying into the void, felt a bit of hope from Hegemonia's appearance.
'Right, she was sealed. If nothing has changed, her Divinity level must have dropped by at least ten. She's probably just able to use the Hierophany skill now. Normally, she would have embellished her surroundings with her overflowing Domains, but she couldn't.'
The Angry One approached, staggering through the void.
-I am the being you all feared.
Kenile burst into laughter at those words. He mocked the pathetic, ungodly appearance despite the solemn declaration.
However, the other old gods, including Aldin, were all under a misconception. For a player, efficiency was always key. Unless there was an excess of levels, Domains, and Faith points, one had to decide what to choose and what to sacrifice when using costly skills like Hierophany.
Hegemonia knew her choice was not wrong, having learned from countless games.
'And levels, after all...'
Hegemonia raises her sword. Her target was already set. All players had to brace themselves when facing the Angry One. Hegemonia didn't forgive provocation against her.
'Can be increased by filling XP points.'
None of the old gods saw Hegemonia move. They didn't see her rush toward Kenile, or raise her sword to strike. Hegemonia had used Skip.
What was observed was the moment Kenile's upper right and lower left halves separated. Space Cut disregarded even a slight gap in Faith levels. Hegemonia coldly checked her XP points rising.
The body of the old god known as Kenile Av Enen tumbled to the ground, and blood flowed to the edge of the Sky Castle before trickling down. A silence spread among the old gods.
-I am war.
***
At Pollivia, in the secret command room of the Itimo Building, a communications officer reported to Vasen, "General. The Angry One has been observed."
"Where?"
"...In the high-altitude, twenty-two interconnected Sky Castles."
"Ha, insane. Hitting the head, are we?"
While saying this, Vasen lightly tapped the desk with both hands. He wore a satisfied expression and didn't seem too surprised.
Vasen said, "Men, we now synchronize with the God of War. Are the preparations for destroying the floating crystals ready?"
Hwee-Kyung looked at the portable terminal and replied, "A total of 125 major cities done, so about 90%."
"That's enough. Let's finish this."
Hwee-Kyung operated the terminal. A single button press was enough.
Vasen looked at Dordol and asked, "What about the missiles?"
"Ready, General."
"Why wait? Fire."
Dordol nodded. Then they opened the sealed glass cover and pressed the red button. This signal reached the numerous satellites orbiting the planet Avartin, then relayed to missile bases and nuclear submarines across the Empire. Each base's missile launch commander immediately executed the order.
Rocket launch technology, built under the guise of the moon-facing plan, had become intercontinental ballistic missile technology. And the tactical nuclear warheads, hidden under the guise of evading environmentalists' attacks, were loaded onto these missiles.
The missiles launched, targeting the 72 Sky Castles covering the entire expanse of Avartin.
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