Chapter: 181
Maybelle, who was pretending to be asleep.
She had her eyes closed, but her ears had been twitching a little for a while.
Ella, who was petting her head, seemed unaware of this. However, she couldn’t fool my eyes.
“I can’t believe you’re asking my daughter that. Isn’t it too heavy a question for her to choose?”
At my words, Ella looked quite anxious.
But, you know.
“This child is no longer the little girl she was when you broke up with her.”
I said, watching Maybelle’s ears quiver slightly.
“You’ve left her with that rural priest for quite a long time, yet you still think of her as a child.”
Ella seemed to be struck by my point, trying to say something but then closing her mouth again.
“True, she was a child when you parted ways. But I understand that your memories hold on to the little Maybelle. Still, a lot of time has passed, and she’s already at an age where she can discern things reasonably well.”
“Well, that’s true…”
“Now that she’s no longer a child, shouldn’t you let her make her own judgment?”
Ella couldn’t refute my words.
No matter how much of a parent you are, you can’t just choose your child’s fate.
As an adult who has already embarked on the journey of life, I can give guidance, but I can’t live that life for her.
So, the choice must be Maybelle’s own.
It has to be.
“And if Maybelle refuses such a choice… what will you do?”
“Um… whatever. Nothing really changes.”
I’m not going to force her! You! Become a god!
Even without a god for the rat beastmen… it probably wouldn’t make much difference.
I would just crush the head honchos of the scheming rat beastmen and snuff out the conspiracy to annihilate Armen, wiping out all the rituals to become a god as if they never occurred.
As a result, the rat beastmen, with their future now uncertain… it’s a bit sad, but I can’t favor just one race.
I’ve already done quite a bit to favor one side.
“I don’t know what will happen to the rat beastmen who have no god. They’ll have to find another way to survive, or live like slaves, looked down upon by other races. I can’t think that far ahead.”
It’s a cold truth, but it can’t be helped.
As the God of Life, I can’t continue to favor just one race.
In the past, I acted biased due to my inexperience and lack, but… now, I’m trying to cut down on such behavior.
Ah, is this a bit biased too? Since my aim is to protect Armen, regardless of what happens to the rat beastmen…
Well. I don’t care! I’m going to ignore it! Call it irresponsible, but! Whatever! The rat beastmen are the bad ones!
I’m not omnipresent or omnipotent! I ended up spreading life and became a divine-like entity, but I’m not all-knowing!
I’m just a silver dragon with a bit more power than other beings!
So, I’ll just follow my heart! Yes! That’s easier!
Whatever consequences that choice brings, I’ll leave it up to my future self! Please take care of it, future me!
While my heart became a bit lighter with such thoughts, Ella’s expression began to harden.
“Does that mean… you, the Dragon Priestess, are abandoning the rat beastmen?”
“Well, isn’t the one trying to commit the wrongdoings the rat beastmen themselves? And you also whisked away Maybelle to sabotage their ritual.”
“That’s… true, but…”
What? Now that you mention the destruction of your race, do you feel a pang of conscience? If you felt that way, you shouldn’t have thought of sneaking away your daughter.
It’s quite contradictory. Your position as a mother trying to protect her daughter conflicts with that of a member of a race on the brink of destruction, and now you seem unable to let go of either.
When facing death, your decisions were clear, but now that the situation has turned weirdly beneficial because of my being, do you want to save your race too?
Such irony.
But perhaps this contradiction is just the desire for life.
A yearning for something better. That can’t be denied.
Thanks to the improving situation, all the preconditions have probably changed.
“Anyway, I have no intention of directly doing anything about your race’s future. Let me make that perfectly clear. All I’m doing is turning the ritual upside down to make Maybelle a god.”
Well, who knows, I might completely recreate the god of the rat beastmen if I put my mind to it.
But, such things are starting to sound a bit tedious.
“Then, can’t I take on such a heavy responsibility?”
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
“What?!”
What, why?
Why do you look at me with that incredulous gaze when I say I don’t want to?
In the first place, it was Maybelle who woke me up, and it was Maybelle who made me accompany her with quite an interesting story.
In such a situation, giving the position of god to someone other than Maybelle? I really don’t want that.
“My proposal is quite simple. Either Maybelle becomes the god of the rat beastmen, or the rat beastmen shall have no god. There are no other options.”
It’s a harsh statement, but what can I do?
I don’t want to.
Seeing her understand the firmness of my intention, Ella was momentarily speechless.
“What… are you?”
“Uh?”
What? You’ve been calling me the Dragon Priestess this whole time, and now you’re questioning my identity?
“I definitely think you are the legendary Dragon Priestess, but what you say cannot be sufficiently explained by that. It feels as if you have personally crafted the god of this world.”
Hmm… well, it’s really hard to say it’s something the Dragon Priestess can do.
I can’t say for sure what current legends about the Dragon Priestess entail, but she was seen as a partner of the hero and a representative of the Goddess of Life.
After all, she was merely a representative of the god.
For such a being to create a god at will? That would be ridiculous.
“Who are you… really?”
I smiled faintly.
“You don’t need to know.”
I have no intent to explain, nor is there any need for it.
“You just need to know me as the Dragon Priestess. Nothing else is permitted. Sharing with others is forbidden. Whatever you think about my identity, keep it to yourself. Understood?”
Ella nodded slightly, a look of disbelief on her face.
Good. It seems we’re more or less organized. So, now…
“Maybelle. Stop pretending to be asleep and get up.”
At my words, Maybelle, who had her eyes closed, twitched slightly.
Seeing Maybelle move, Ella seemed to finally realize that Maybelle was merely pretending to be asleep.
“Maybelle…?”
“You must have heard most of the conversation. Now I’ll ask for your opinion. Maybelle, what do you want to do?”
At my question, Maybelle slowly opened her eyes and rose from her lying position.
Looking at Maybelle, Ella had a worried expression, but it wouldn’t change much regardless.
Thus, Maybelle opened her little mouth.
“I…”
Slowly but surely, Maybelle began to express what she desired.
“I don’t really know. I don’t know what’s right and what’s wrong. But…”
“But?”
“If I become a god, I can smash the ones who made Mom like that, the ones who killed Dad, right?”
Maybelle said this in a low voice. The emotions she harbored… were resentment and anger.
A flame directed towards those who had shattered her family.
“I honestly don’t know about becoming a god or a race’s future. But one thing seems clear.”
A firm emotion. Seeing Maybelle with an unwavering determination, Ella’s expression turned to one of sorrow.
“I don’t want to leave those who troubled my family alone.”
Revenge. A very simple yet intense feeling.
For Maybelle to possess such an emotion, there would be no alternative but to take action.
“Please tell me. What can I do?”
As I looked at Maybelle saying this, I couldn’t help but smile faintly.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
What happened afterward… um, do I really need to explain everything? If I set my mind to it, there’s almost nothing I can’t achieve.
Simply put, I smashed everything to pieces. That was basically the summary.
First, to broadly categorize what I did to interfere with the rat beastmen’s ritual, I can divide it into four major actions.
First, I placed barriers all over the constant water supply of Armen to prepare for any unforeseen dangers.
Second, I incited most of the rat beastmen to steer their collective thoughts in the desired direction.
Third, I subdued the masterminds behind the conspiracy of the rat beastmen and locked them in a room with no escape.
And lastly… I utilized their ritual against them, allowing Maybelle to manifest divinity. That would summarize it.
Well, even if she manifested divinity, it doesn’t mean she becomes a god right away; she now exists as a living being with the essence of a god… if I had to pick the closest term…
Let’s say “Incarnate God?” It’s a bit awkward to use, but I can’t think of a better term.
Anyway, that feels like a reasonable way to explain it.
At present, she feels like a human with godly powers, but after death, she’ll ascend to become a genuine god.
Having obtained divinity, Maybelle said, “Um, this feels a bit overwhelming…”
“It’s something you need to endure as a god.”
Looking down at the numerous rat beastmen bowing their heads and prostrating themselves, I wore an awkward smile.
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