Of course, just because you were born as the god of the sky doesn’t mean you can become the king of the gods.
Gods are generally high in self-esteem and refuse to bow to others.
Ah, I’m an exception. I’m irregular like that.
“Therefore, just because you were born as the god of the sky doesn’t mean you can become the king of the gods.”
“Why not? If you’re a god of the sky, aren’t you above everything? Wouldn’t that make you fit to be king?”
“It’s not as simple as that. You can’t just become a king because of a good birth. Kingship is established when others delegate all responsibilities and duties to you.”
Of course, there are various processes involved, like persuading others or forcibly taking power through strength. But fundamentally, that’s how power works.
It’s not like some strange woman lying in a pond handing out swords makes you a king.
“Hmm… I don’t get it!”
“Yeah, it’s understandable not to get it.”
You’re still just a kid. Naturally, you wouldn’t understand these complex political matters.
“Let me explain it this way. A king is someone recognized by others, right?”
“Mm… Yeah! Recognized as a king!”
“But what if a lot of people refuse to recognize you as king?”
At my words, Baal pondered for a bit before brilliantly declaring,
“Crush them with force!”
Hmm. Is raising you to be a king of the gods really the right call?
If I’m not careful, he might end up as a terrifying tyrant.
No, no. Let’s trust in the power of education. If I teach this precious child well, he could become a great king, right?
Anyone can walk the right path with the proper guidance.
“What if there are beings stronger than you, and you can’t crush them with force?”
After reflecting on my words for a while, Baal admitted,
“I don’t know!”
He gave up trying to answer.
“What should I do then?”
Seeing Baal’s innocent face asking me this, I couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
Even if he’s a god of the sky, he’s still just a child.
“In that case, you’ll have to persuade them.”
“Persuade?”
“Exactly. Persuade.”
If you can’t overcome them with force, the answer is to persuade them with your words.
Of course, just demanding the position of king of the gods won’t work either. You’ll have to be really good at convincing them.
“For example.”
I conjured a small piece of candy in the air and handed it to Baal, saying,
“Let’s say you have a candy like this.”
“Candy…?”
“It’s sweet food.”
By the way, it was grape-flavored. Candy is always grape-flavored, right?
“Can I eat it?”
“I just made it as an example, so hold on for a bit… No, I mean, hold on to it.”
“I want it!”
Before I could finish, Baal popped the candy into his mouth. Ugh…
Well, the candy was just an example. Let’s keep explaining.
I ignored the fact that Baal’s cheeks were bulging with candy and continued.
“Imagine you have a candy, and someone says they really need it.”
“Mm.”
“That someone is weaker than you, so they can’t just take it by force. In that situation, they might come and talk to you.”
“Talk?”
“Yes, talk. They might say they’ll give you something in return for your candy.”
At my words, Baal nodded slightly.
“That’s what persuasion is – using words to change someone’s mind.”
“Mm… No! I won’t give it!”
Baal suddenly shouted.
“No, I was just using that as an example!”
“So, you’re not gonna take the candy?”
“Nope, you can keep it all to yourself.”
“Yay!”
Baal cheered with a bright smile. Hmm.
Well, it doesn’t really matter.
“Anyway, that’s how persuasion works – using words to sway someone’s opinion. Got it?”
“Mm… Kinda!”
“Well, even just a rough understanding is better than none.”
It’s better than him understanding nothing at all.
“You’re still young and weak. In that state, just claiming to be the king of the gods might make other gods dislike you.”
“Dislike?”
“It means they don’t like you.”
Hmm. Since Baal is still so young, I should use simpler words.
If I make it too complicated, he won’t understand.
“Especially since my kids have existed since ancient times. Just shouting out that you’ll be the king of the gods might make them dislike you.”
“Hmm… So I can’t do that?”
“Yeah, you can’t.”
Shamash may be close to the sky because of her light element, but the other kids aren’t the same.
“So, you’ll have to go and persuade the other children one by one.”
“Hmm… Can I do it?”
Baal looked a bit worried. Seeing that made me smile and say,
“I’ll help you, so don’t worry too much.”
Even though I’d be the most suited for king of the gods, I don’t want to actually do that.
If I just push this child forward to persuade them, they probably won’t understand what I’m saying at all.
Besides, there should be someone overseeing the gods.
In this age where gods are being born everywhere, if nobody steps up to manage them, it will soon turn into chaos.
“Alright, let’s go. Let’s go persuade the other kids.”
“Okay! I’m counting on you, Gaia!”
Gaia, huh. Feels super awkward, but it’s refreshing too.
And so, I set out with Baal to persuade the other children.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
In this world, gods are everywhere.
There weren’t as many in the past, but thanks to this age overflowing with faith, gods are all over the place now.
There’s a mountain god hanging out on a little mountain, a water god flowing around in a small stream, and even a god residing in a giant tree at the entrance of a human village, protecting it.
This is truly the Age of the Gods.
Natural entities are gaining faith and awakening their young divine selves.
Of course, to earn faith as a god, you need to be either huge or respected enough to get it from humans.
Hmm. So does that mean humans and animals can’t receive faith because humans don’t worship other humans as gods?
Well, even if humans did get faith, they probably wouldn’t know how to use it well. A human becoming a god…? That’s about the size of it, I guess.
Anyway, I digress.
In this world, gods are rampant.
And no matter how small they are, they are stronger than humans.
The gods, born with the same power, can wield that power however they like.
Even a god born in a tiny stream can sprinkle water on people passing by.
If we let these gods run wild, the world will be a mess.
They will fight with neighboring gods, cause chaos, and hurt other humans — that’s just how it goes.
To prevent such a scenario, there has to be someone to manage the gods.
There had to be.
It would have been just fine if I weren’t the most likely candidate for that task!
No! I’m already swamped with work!!!! Listening to humans’ prayers, extending the lives of the needy, managing newborns, checking the workload in the Afterlife, helping out when things pile up, leaving clear marks on Cloud Whale’s back when he slacks off, mediating between races, running various events for the Lizardmen, giving subtle warnings in dreams to prevent serious problems with humans, keeping tabs on the Dwarf-Elf war, occasionally visiting the Beastmen gods for fun, stopping Sylphid from sweeping away everything with a typhoon, and comforting Shamash who complains about working so many pointless trials, even getting startled when I visited the giant god and found an even bigger giant!
The other kids aren’t slacking entirely, but they’re all so caught up in their own little worlds… that I end up handling most of the issues that arise between different races or outside their scope!
At this rate, even three bodies wouldn’t suffice!
In this situation, they want me to manage all these gods?!
Are you out of your mind? Am I supposed to do that?!
“Thus, I plan to bestow the position of king of the gods upon this child, so he can manage the other gods.”
“Huh?”
“I was curious about why you suddenly summoned our avatars and what you were talking about… the position of king of the gods, you say.”
My kids. Shamash, Ifrit, Thetis, Sylphid, Sagarmatha, Yggdrasil.
These are gods born as self-aware natural phenomena, existing even before the Age of the Gods.
They looked at Baal and me with puzzled expressions.
Alright. Time to start the persuasion! If I can just convince these kids, the rest will fall into place!
“I am the god of the sky! Baal!! The one destined to become the king of the gods!”
Baal shouted, while grabbing my hand.
“And I will be Gaia’s partner!”
Oh dear, this is going to be a handful.
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