Chapter 73 – Gathering Power as One

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Bakumsia was a city quite close to the capital.

According to Ryugen’s testimony, it was such an important transportation hub that a well-maintained road from the capital was specifically laid out to it.

Befitting a city that thrived to the extent that dozens of carriages passed through a day, there were also many accumulated supplies.

The problem was that they were unorganized and scattered haphazardly.

It was to the extent that the people who went out to look around the vicinity complained with pale faces.

“I-I simply can’t walk around.”

“It’s incredibly ominous!”

If it were someone trying to play tricks because they didn’t want to walk around, I could have noticed it by the taste and smell of the emotions they harbored.

However, this was a stench akin to what you’d find in a sewer. It was the stench of fear.

Even under the night sky where stars had risen, I couldn’t forcibly push people who were appealing with this level of anxiety.

“Anniel, Ceciel. I will personally go and look around. Guard the people nearby.”

“Yes, yes!”

“I obey, Godfather of Stars.”

And as a result of looking around myself, I could see where they were feeling the anxiety.

Excluding the messy interior landscapes, everything felt like it was stuffed and preserved exactly as it was.

And very unnaturally at that.

A bedroom with a wardrobe and floor left without any scratches, except for a smashed bed.

A dining table with spoiled food left intact on plates, with only a single broken candle.

A window frame cleaned spotlessly, unlike the dusty wooden floor.

At times it looked like someone had been staying there, yet it also felt like people had left a long time ago.

The more I looked around Bakumsia, the stronger the unpleasant feeling became.

It was clear that an artificial adjustment had been made.

In my heart, I wanted to ignore Bakumsia and set out on our journey, but…

I couldn’t do that because of the wailing sounds that welcomed me as soon as I returned from scouting.

“Oh my, didn’t you get a blister on your foot?”

“Let’s see… man, it got one and already popped. Roughly wipe it and rest.”

“Yeah? Then I really need to lie down a bit. Ugh, lying down with the ground beneath me sure is comfortable.”

Even if it wasn’t people with blisters on their feet, everyone was exhausted.

It was because they had walked on the open ocean for nearly two days, at the shortest estimate.

We also needed new supplies to replace the pieces of cloth ruined by the sea breeze.

But the biggest of the problems we faced was the lack of sleep.

There wasn’t just one or two people nodding off while sitting blankly.

Only the intensively trained vigilantes or soldiers were holding out, but even they still had hollow complexions.

Then, as I passed between the vigilantes glaring with their eyes wide open while holding their spear shafts.

“The shift rotation period is too long. At this rate, the burden added to one person will become too great. Sentries need enough rest.”

“I only counted the people who can hold out to some extent. These are all the guys who can endure without dozing off right now.”

“It would be better to let them sleep in short, broken intervals instead.”

“Hah. How are you going to measure that time? Drawing lines on a torch works once or twice, do we have a ruler to measure the length or what?”

Under a tent in the plaza, I met Hwen Achrat and Ryugen, who were racking their brains over the same problem.

Since I was still hiding my identity, they didn’t notice me.

To help them overcome the drowsiness overtaking them, I intentionally spoke with my presence still hidden.

“You don’t have to be too tight. We’ll settle down for a while and search the neighboring areas.”

“…Huh? Gasp!”

“S-Star Creation-nim. When did you arrive?”

Fortunately, the effect seemed good.

The half-closed eyes of the two people opened so roundly that they were bloodshot.

It looked like their concentration had reached its peak.

Having succeeded in my mischievous prank, I fully revealed myself and calmly explained the future plan.

“The opponent is the Dream-Shedding Eye anyway. If we cannot advance to the capital within a single night, it is better to prepare calmly. Given its disposition, there is a high probability that the survivors are also perfectly alive, so it will be worth searching.”

“That’s a relief. If the number of people just increases, shift rotations will become ample.”

“Hmm. I was worried because we had too few people, but this takes a load off my mind.”

“However, there is something to be concerned about.”

The two replied with bright voices.

However, I didn’t just affirm their optimism.

Great Demons each had their own ambitions.

The Holy Mother of Stillborns wanted to create a world of the dead, and Blood-Soaked Mud threatened the living to recall its forgotten appearance and be reborn as a complete lifeform.

The Dream-Shedding Eye was a bit more modest than these. In a way, you could call it petty-bourgeois.

Because its goal was to extort the flesh of the living and enjoy a life.

Naturally, the survival rate itself was higher compared to the territories ruled by other Great Demons.

However, to the question of whether it was better than other territories, I couldn’t help but wave my hand in denial.

“Some of the survivors will have already had their flesh extorted. We must classify and observe them.”

***

Among horror stories featuring monsters as the main characters, there was this trope.

The cliché that the monster that harmed humans was disguised as a human and hiding among us.

Even if it was not a visual medium, you just needed to think of folktales from long ago about ghosts luring people with human voices.

The Dream-Shedding Eye and its subordinate demons also fought in a similar manner.

In front of the gathered crowd, Bartol trembled as he recalled the Book of Demons, a must-read for priests, for the first time in a while.

“The Dream-Shedding Eye is a very wicked demon. It makes people have a series of nightmares. Since everyone’s fears are diverse, it’s also difficult to figure out a general omen.”

The demon we were facing this time was hard to resolve by me fighting alone.

It was a demon that could only be dealt with if the people were aware of the threat.

This was the reason Bartol gathered the people and delivered a sermon.

Hwen and Ryugen, Shek and Nesaro also hardened their faces among the audience.

“A person who continues to suffer from nightmares ends up thinking this, out of exhaustion: ‘I wish I wouldn’t dream of anything at all.’ This is the very moment the demon approaches.”

*Gulp.*

Nesaro, who was listening intently as if his eyeballs would pop out, swallowed his saliva and shot his hand up.

“W-What does the demon say…?”

“It depends on what kind of demon it is and what situation you are in. However, there is testimony that they commonly emphasize coziness and comfort. To give you the most representative example… ‘Do you wish to find relief without anyone chasing you?'”

When there was someone reacting, the speaker got excited too.

Bartol pointed at Nesaro with the side of his hand and spoke in a much more stern voice than usual.

“It was a proposal handed to a malicious debtor. He accepted the proposal, and only with the help of Watching Death after having his flesh extorted, was he able to give this kind of testimony.”

“Oh… my goodness.”

“After finishing his testimony, he was dragged to the abyss according to his contract with the demon. To the very place he thought he had barely escaped from.”

Even after that, Bartol endlessly shouted about the dangers of the Dream-Shedding Eye.

If you have a nightmare, notify your surroundings immediately even if the content is unpleasant; do not listen to any voice in your dreams; always keep the starlight nearby, etc.

Repeatedly emphasizing that these were really important matters, he even looked desperate.

The listeners also rubbed their arms, feeling chilled.

“Wicked, so wicked.”

“A bastard who prevents people from sleeping and then snatches them away!”

“Even those tax collectors who extort taxes wouldn’t do that. Geez…”

“That’s why they’re called demons. Are demons demons for nothing? Stay wide awake and listen closely to the priest’s words.”

Sometimes a little tension was important.

Perhaps thinking the people had enough vigilance, Bartol raised both arms.

“If you have a bad dream, let’s inform the surroundings first! Everyone may go now!”

But they weren’t people to disperse right away just because of that.

As soon as the words fell, people were gathering around the podium.

“Priest, are there any other things to be careful of?!”

“Priest, our kid is still babbling, so he can’t speak well…”

“Priest, this is a really, really important question! What if a lustful demon steals my chastity…”

“Sheesh, you idiot.”

Except for the man who got hit on the head while asking a nonsensical question, they were all reasonable worries.

In the end, Bartol couldn’t move because he had to deal with the flocking people one by one.

Fortunately, the survivor representatives led by Hwen were relatively free.

Except for Nesaro, who was deep in thought, they were laying out complaints one by one.

“It’s similar to the methods of torturers. Perhaps the torturers got their inspiration from demons.”

“There was a reason the old man was shuddering. It’s truly vicious.”

“That’s what I’m saying. Mothers with children must be very worried. …I wonder if Debra’s mom will be okay?”

I approached them and revealed myself.

And before the representatives could panic, I brought up my business first.

“You must have understood the danger of the Dream-Shedding Eye. We can’t drag out the time too long, but it’s not an opponent we can catch just by being pressed for time. We will make Bakumsia a temporary settlement, so take action immediately.”

It was the time for the settlement life they had longed for.

***

After the heavens were defeated, the Great Demons had been wary of only one thing for a long time.

The descent of the Sun God.

Even for the Great Demons who had divided the world among themselves, the Sun God, the original master of the world, was a tricky opponent.

It was natural, since he was a being they could barely face only after placing countless constraints on him.

He was an opponent they could only plot against after harvesting all human souls and devouring even their other brethren.

For that day, fighting their brethren to eat more souls was a matter of course.

In the midst of this, the god who created stars was born.

At that moment, the Great Demons all harbored the exact same thought.

‘He’s a tricky opponent, but someone else other than me will defeat him.’

…It was a misjudgment.

The Great Demons were underestimating the power the Sun God possessed.

And they also underestimated the power possessed by Star Creation, the god who created stars.

The price for turning away and saying ‘serves you right’ when the Holy Mother of Stillborns urgently requested rescue was beyond imagination.

The capital, Abenstraum.

In the audience chamber of the palace where only gloomy shadows dwelled instead of glory, the Dream-Shedding Eye was letting out a groan.

[…The sole antagonist who stands against the sun.]

It realized too late the reason why the Holy Mother of Stillborns and Blood-Soaked Mud gritted their teeth and tried to kill Star Creation.

A god born from the envy for light and from the remains of the defeated in an already lightless world, knowing the tragic end of defeat, obsessed over complete victory and did not compromise.

And a unique birth was bound to have a unique disposition.

Star Creation was different from other gods.

Not only in the strength he possessed, but also in his will to choose to fight back instead of yielding to the Sun God.

However, what the Dream-Shedding Eye feared more was another being.

The eyeball stuck to the mirror sighed upon seeing the slowly approaching shadows.

[-Even so, it is nothing in front of the Sun God’s persistence.]

Bare skin with only scale marks left, emerald-colored pupils embedded at the end of a long, milky-white body covered in foul slime.

Cooling Breath.

As the price for challenging the Sun God, it was a dragon that had all its boasted scales and wings torn off and was smashed into the ground.

Now, except for its brilliant gem-like pupils, it had an appearance resembling an earthworm, where not even a trace of a dragon could be found.

[Received a revelation, from the Sun God. Stop, the challenger.]

Even from the illusion that came to the palace, one could feel its once beautiful memories and its current wretched downfall.

In contrast, there was also an illusion that came exactly in its still-shining appearance.

A being draped in a robe woven from silver thread over a physical body sparkling silver-white like smoothly shining metal.

[The ruler of the world, the master of all things is preparing for his rightful return. Make way for his coming. Blessed is the one who serves as they have been burdened with a mission. Shabby workers, praise him. Sing of his broad generosity for giving you the chance to serve, and rejoice in your blessedness.]

The second-in-command of the Celestial Church, Serving Moon.

The one who any demon smashed into the abyss or the underground would have cursed at least once was now standing on the demons’ side.

The Dream-Shedding Eye felt a shudder as it sensed the Sun God’s thoroughness contained in their remarks.

-The Sun God had sent a revelation down to all three remaining.

A revelation to stop fighting among themselves and to defeat Star Creation.