Chapter 8 – The Rules Change

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Back in the days when I hid my power and masqueraded as a human, I heard several rules passed down from people.

Most of them were methods of surviving in the shelters. Even though the world was broken, an unspoken order had taken root among the survivors.

However, no one could tell how the world had changed.

A bizarre sky where the sunlight that used to illuminate all things had been dyed black. On a land where even time had faded, there was only one law.

The Black Sun did not rise immediately after setting.

And the moment I, who had risen to divinity even if only halfway, felt an unfamiliar gaze, I realized the truth.

The fact that there was a cooldown time for the Black Sun, and that even this was not an established rule.

However, perhaps past experiences meant a lot, even in the midst of hurriedly preparing for evacuation and packing bags, there was someone who argued against those words.

“Re, Reverend one.”

“Are you asking why I think the Black Sun will rise again immediately?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Are you also curious about the reason for preparing for evacuation?”

“That, too.”

It was the drunkard Ad, who had been exchanging silly small talk with me until now.

It seemed he came over when his hands were free while Bartol was checking the children’s conditions with his returned divine power. Ad was fidgeting among the people rushing about in confusion.

Ad was not the only one who was curious. The ones who did not speak or turn their heads were also focusing their hearing.

Seeing these reactions, I inevitably had to ponder severely on whether I should tell them here or not. Where the Black Sun of Last Comet originated from, and how the world ended up being ruined like this.

The sayings ‘ignorance is bliss’ and ‘honesty builds mutual trust’ took turns coming to mind.

It was probably not… a matter to simply gloss over.

At the point where I perceived everything in my surroundings and understood most of it, I had already significantly broken away from the shackles of a human. This was the first crossroads deciding what kind of divinity I would be reborn as.

Will I bestow the comfort of ignorance, or inform them of the cold, hard truth.

“Because the Sun God is alive.”

I chose the latter.

“…The Sun, God?”

“Right.”

The sun was the master of all things.

At least for living, breathing existences, their lives were mortgaged to the sun. Even confirming each other’s faces was impossible if the sun did not allow it.

The frail starlights of the century merely twinkled while hiding behind the sun’s might, and the moon was a celestial body barely tolerated just to take the sun’s place.

The existences of heaven, humans beneath them, and even existences of other worlds dared not covet the world reigned over by the sun. A truly great celestial body that received the praise of all creation just by its existence.

That was the sun.

Therefore, when the sun lost its light, people thought heaven had lost the battle.

“The Sun God… is alive?”

“Mmm. He is alive.”

“But.”

I could guess what words would follow next. They would question why the sun lost its light then. And they would not know how demons could cross the boundaries of the world.

Unfortunately, people’s expectations missed the mark by a long shot.

The reason Last Comet was classified as a dark fantasy game was not solely because of this gutter-like atmosphere.

“No. You have grasped the cause and effect incorrectly.”

It was not that heaven lost the battle and lost its light.

“Heaven lost because the sun was dyed black.”

“Is that not the same thing….”

“Who would dare to dye the sun black?”

“Well, the demons.”

I conveyed the truth toward Ad, who still could not understand and strung out the end of his words, and toward the people who had grasped the cause and effect incorrectly.

“It is the Sun God. The master of the Black Sun is still the Sun God.”

It was something I brought up after making my own resolve.

But as expected. Even though I delivered a shocking truth, it was rare for anyone to believe it.

“Then, no. No way. No.”

Starting with Ad right in front of me.

Unable to believe my words, even though I was a full-fledged god despite being a half-baked one, he babbled incoherently.

To agree would mean acknowledging the Sun God’s change of heart, and to deny it would be to commit blasphemy against a god. The other people panicking was also the same.

“Mmmmm.”

“Huh, wow. It seems I… have really grown old. Did I hear that correctly? It feels like I was losing my mind.”

It started from groaning sounds and went up to sounds of blaming oneself.

They were murmuring while setting down even the bags they were carrying. It was the moment a pungent, smoky smell tickled my nose.

Distrust.

Of course, my role was done just by giving them the answer they wanted to hear.

Whether they believed it or not, what was more important was saving even one more of their lives.

“If you do not want to believe it, do not. Just finish preparing for evacuation.”

“Th, that is.”

Nevertheless, there were still people hesitating. It was the same for Ad. Rather than returning to Debra’s side whom he had barely saved, he feared moving away from me.

Aside from this, countless thoughts were transparently felt borrowing the form of hearing.

‘Would it not be better to stay by His side?’

‘Why is he so persistently trying to send us away.’

Phew….

A sigh came out first. I could understand why benevolent gods were rare in mythology.

Humans were tiresome.

They were tiresome even when I was the same human, but after the difference in power became clear, it was even more tiresome. Seized by suspicions, they were wary of goodwill, arbitrarily jumped to conclusions, judged as they pleased, and tried to shift the blame.

However, it was only natural. One could not help but become cautious about unfamiliar things.

After repeating this fact in my mind, my heart felt a bit more at ease. I kindly explained the reason to them.

“Originally, a demon on the level of Taxculi would not come just to eat a few dozen people.”

“Is that so?”

“When the angel who was here used divine power, they caught the scent and chased after it. The reason I hid my power all this time was out of concern that mighty demons would notice the divine power and chase after me.”

Only then did Ad’s eyes go round.

“Then.”

“Since they know I am here, they will swarm the Bell Tower from all directions.”

*

The number of people at the Bell Tower was by no means small.

Eighty-four people. It was a sizable number in a ruined world. Naturally, the evacuation was to take place in two separate groups.

Because people were needed to look after those whose mobility was still impaired and to gather the remaining supplies.

“Move quickly, hurry!”

“What are you dawdling for! Hurry!”

I wondered if these were really the people who were dawdling while looking around everywhere unable to focus just a moment ago.

Standing at the top of the Bell Tower and looking down, quite a lot of thoughts came to mind. As soon as they realized this place was dangerous, they left without hesitation.

Even though it was exactly the same dying world beneath a sunless night sky whether the sun turned its back on the world or whether heaven was defeated and collapsed.

Someone might have considered that sight unsightly.

But that was a matter of course.

No one could dare to look down upon the life of a living being that wished to enjoy its own life for even one second longer.

When placed in a situation where one had to sacrifice others to survive, the mere fact that they hesitated was enough to receive absolution.

I once again formed [Hands] and saw off the departing group.

“Do not trip in the dark. Do not worry because I will be watching over you until the moment you arrive at the Mansion.”

The words of a god were truly mysterious.

I could convey my will to people even from a place this far away.

Then, people knelt toward the hand that was moving while scattering golden particles beneath the dark night sky. As if that was not enough, they bumped their foreheads to the ground while looking up at the top of the Bell Tower where I was standing.

The sight, which would not have been visible even with glasses when I was a pure human, entered my eyes intact.

“Be glorified, O God of the Bell Tower.”

“I shall pray for your victory.”

“And if He should be defeated, let me die before the light disappears.”

One guy was spewing weird nonsense under the guise of prayer, but I generously let it slide.

He probably never imagined I would be listening to his actual voice from this far away. It was also partly thanks to pity and fondness wrapping my whole body, rather than annoyance and anger.

Presently, when the people who finished praying stood up and moved, I began the escort in earnest.

Countless Corpse Demons still remained in the ruined city.

They were not monsters to miss the living moving in a group. And they were not monsters clever enough to veer away from predictions either.

Geureureureuk…

They scraped their rotting, tattered throats with bloody phlegm and lunged hungrily coveting life.

Every alleyway became filled with lunging Corpse Demons. Some were entirely pushed up to the roofs, and then fearlessly crossed between the roofs just like that.

Among them was also Tehen, whom I had met earlier.

That friend who had his front teeth smashed and covered his mouth every time he spoke.

We were not exactly close, but we were not harsh enough to leave each other to suffer endlessly either.

Furthermore.

“Here, here they come!”

“Do not panic! God will protect us!”

I would not abandon those who believed in me either.

This time, I separated my left hand and right hand and drew different shapes respectively. One with a circle, and the other with a large triangle made up of four smaller triangles.

-Protection miracle, Barrier.

The one manifested first was the Barrier.

It was the most basic, but it was a miracle whose utility was infinite depending on what skills you level up.

It was useful for buying time.

Above all, the miracle that would be manifested next had perfect synergy with the Barrier.

-Bestowal miracle, Stability.

Stability was the most cost-effective miracle even among the bestowal miracle class, which could be thought of as enchantment magic.

If the target was a person, it maintained their calmness in any situation and delayed the spreading or worsening of wounds and poisons. If the target was an object or a miracle, it was specialized in increasing durability or extending duration time.

Of course, what I stabilized was the barrier surrounding the refugees.

The lunging Corpse Demons… had to be dealt with in another way.

“Even when things had come to this point, it still would not tell me what my Divine Name was.”

If it was not ‘Journey’, then what on earth was it?

I had pretty much exhausted all the Divine Names that could possibly come to mind. If it did not appear even though I met all the acquisition conditions, it was clear that it was not my Divine Name.

It was a matter truly baffling enough for me to spit it out as a soliloquy.

Amidst these distracting thoughts, I moved the hand that had only been wrapping around people until now. Since I decided to use the power of a god, dealing with Corpse Demons was simple.

I just had to swing it and sweep them away.

Kwa-deu-deu-deu-deuk.

The moment divine power possessed physical force, the Corpse Demons could no longer even let out an echo. They were crushed finer than powder upon contact and melted into the air.

Just like wiping off a thick layer of settled dust with a wet dishcloth, the Corpse Demons could not leave behind any trace whatsoever.

No, they were worse than the dust stuck to a dishcloth.

Because there was no way the dust of Corpse Demons would remain on a hand made of divine power.

…Gulp.

The prayers, the wailing screams, the sobbing groans, all ceased.

Only the sound of swallowing saliva down their throats vividly reached my ears.

The Corpse Demons that had become a ravenous pack of beasts and pushed forward ceaselessly also began to falter from a certain moment.

Even so, the refugees did not move because they were overwhelmed.

“Move. Head toward the Mansion.”

Only after these words did they advance again.

I continuously batted away the lunging Corpse Demons with the hand and crushed them all.

While repeating that, the Corpse Demons finally learned an important fact.

Geureuk, geureuk, geureureuk.

The Corpse Demons, who put hunger and madness at the forefront, felt more fear.

Instead of lunging, the bastards were distancing themselves from the divine power as much as possible and fleeing. Tehen, who had run in the very front, had long since died and turned into dust.

The first escort was successful.

The refugees safely reached the Mansion, and the people who came out to greet them wondering what was going on were all equally surprised.

Particularly, the astonishment Madam Hwen showed naturally brought out a laugh.

“That young man did it?”

It felt like returning to my childhood days when I would play a mean prank and burst into laughter when the other person found out.

However, the second escort could not take place.

…A gaze was felt.

Accordingly, the few remaining torches on the streets were being swallowed by shadows one by one. I struggled this way and that trying to shake it off somehow, but it was useless.

The torches merely stated that they were here, but could never illuminate their surroundings.

On the day the oil-soaked cloth fully scorched away, it fell to the status of a faint light that would be extinguished limply.

At that moment, the echo in my head, which had been repeating the same sound like a broken tape for a while, was heard distinctly.

[Survive.]

[Flee from the ones who will kill you, or survive.]

When I heard these words and turned my head, what I saw was the Black Sun that had already begun to rise.

Keo-heuk, Cough, geureureuk.

Kek, ke-hek, eo-heok.

The pitiful monsters repeating the moans they spat out at the moment of their deaths.

=The Holy Mother of Stillborns decrees.=

=She commands to bestow eternal life unto the dying.=

And countless demons crawling across the roofs.