<862 – Faith Meta (6)>
The World After the Ending, Volume 1.
The ominous energy emanating from that book was incomparable to the dreadfulness of the Dark Princess’s Dark Mana.
If Oknodie was a child leading a massive darkness engulfed in Dark Mana, then that ominous book was nothing less than a passageway leading to a profound darkness that should not exist in the world.
“What on earth could give birth to such a sinister being from that book?”
“This? Oh, it’s nothing special. I just called forth information about the post-ending phase and sealed it into a book for an indirect experience!”
“…”
“As soon as you open it, you’ll be whisked away to the hell after the ending! There are some pretty fun endings in there, so let me know if you want to take a look later. I’ll show you!”
“You’re measuring the odds of killing as casually as breathing. You’re openly plotting tools for God’s Killing while expecting me to open it?”
“Hehe. If you don’t want to, that’s fine!”
“There’s absolutely no way I’ll open it myself.”
Could that truly be the case? The expression on Oknodie’s face suggested otherwise, and for the first time in a long time, Man’s Representative felt a twinge of anxiety.
Even a man who had kept his ego intact while defying numerous gods felt a genuine fear as true catastrophe lurked just beyond a single book.
A girl who had peered into the world beyond the veil and brought possibilities into reality.
Which side should genuinely fear the other?
Right now, he could only feel relief that they had called a truce.
“If you’ve asked for a truce, you must have something you need help with. What are you hoping for?”
“Could you lend me a few unused demigods?”
While such a monstrous request was expected, the Man’s Representative never anticipated being asked to borrow gods.
“Gods are not commodities you can just pile into a shopping cart.”
“You can’t exchange pets either, right? Hmm. Or can you? Maybe you could back in ancient times? People were probably eating human flesh back then.”
“I did not!”
In the first place, it was the Dark Princess who wielded the absolute might of the Forbidden Book, not the Man’s Representative.
Moreover, this deal posed no risk to him. He hadn’t offered it first. Oknodie had asked for it.
The danger of the gods.
She was oblivious to this fact.
Being unaware allowed her to call and insult gods so nonchalantly.
While there are moments when a god cannot hear humans gossiping about them amidst the vast world and domains, gods whose only communication channel is through the Man’s Representative pay close attention, no matter how raucous the market is.
Awareness.
Contract.
Not all gods are like this, but the overwhelming majority of them make their existence known to be worshiped and acquire faith.
– What are humans so enamored with these days?
– Back in my day, just killing a few bug-like kin would make them jump up and offer me all this gold.
– There’s no need for that at all. When powers are 95% charged, 96%, 97%, you can raise the gauge little by little, and while they’re throwing offerings, the reckless ones will just off themselves, allowing you to reap all their faith.
– And when you reach 99%?
– You’d go to 99.1%.
– Oh, how clever!
Sharing tips about the never-ending infinite power loading bar, various other scams, favorable faith contract conditions, and atmosphere-setting tactics exchanged hands.
Since gods brag about similar things to each other, just keeping your ears open brings in a wealth of beneficial information.
– Providing humans with underwear as a blessing for your powers is cost-effective… Note that down.
– Especially if you give them underwear of the opposite gender, it’s even cheaper… That’s a strange tip. Still, it might come in handy someday. Note, note.
– Occasionally, when disciples make incomprehensible requests, get mad about the lack of offerings and ravage their residence, obliterating those troublesome ones… Hmm, isn’t that going a bit too far? But still, for now, note, note, note.
Even before the Temple of Demigods suffered a catastrophic collapse, there were gods whose nature made them introverted, with one disciple becoming a monk, priest, bishop, pope, and sometimes even a saint.
Such gods, secretly taking diligent notes while attending “Escape from Introversion: The Latte Lecture,” show the appearance of exemplary students.
Benevolent Deity and Evil God.
In-crowd gods and out-crowd gods.
With all kinds of gods actively engaging, it was natural for the gods who had been listening attentively to Oknodie’s outbursts to become infuriated.
– Release me, human. I shall crush the nose of that wretched creature!
– The Beast of the End. That one possesses the highest level of danger among our animal gods. Hehe. Let’s show them the knowledge accrued by gods over centuries.
– Take me along. I want to experience it closely.
The Man’s Representative recounted the names of a few nameless gods to Oknodie.
“Sioneira is the God of Mist; she’s the Old God that breathes alive within all the ignorance and illusion that clouds your vision.”
“Elios is a God of Light, robbed of his powers by the Solar God; the primordial light she holds will pierce your darkness with clarity.”
“Agratos is the Beast of the End. A colossus among beasts, he roams the world searching for prey to aid in an impending apocalypse.”
The Man’s Representative selected a wonderfully wicked combination of demigods to be handed over to Oknodie.
No human could know all of creation, so the existence of Sioneira could never again escape Oknodie’s mind after her awareness.
Every moment Oknodie felt ignorance and helplessness, the domain of mist would grow larger, and the territories and powers forcibly offered to Sioneira would expand.
As her might grew, Sioneira would indirectly pass on knowledge and powers that incite ever more mists, clouding both foes and Oknodie in ignorance.
The moment Sioneira’s power overshadowed Oknodie within the unending cycle of ignorance, she would no longer be free to live in the present.
The fog of delusion.
Trapped in an eternal dream prison, unable to escape, her flesh offered to the deity, begging for mercy, becoming a pitiful state of affairs.
Elios is not to be trifled with; he is the supreme god of light.
The primordial light bearer.
And Oknodie, who had achieved formidable levels through Dark Mana.
Merely irritating the god’s temperament could cause a tremendous amount of damage.
As they must bow to the will of the gods and offer sacrifices, without foreseeing significant damage from the start, one would inevitably be swept away further as time goes on.
Agratos.
The Beast of the End, even with the least amount of divine power, already holds immense influence.
If Elios can deal significant damage to the Dark Princess from elemental vulnerabilities, Agratos could possibly invade Oknodie’s inner world mercilessly, driving him to madness.
A beast that devours all living beings of a world.
Thus, how brutal could the existence called the Beast of the End truly be?
– Representative! Shall I really trample its spirit at will?
“Do as you please. If her mind breaks and only her body remains, then that could be useful in itself.”
The exuberant Beast of the End first manifested in Oknodie’s mind, making its presence known.
– Little One. If you do not want your soul crushed and shattered, offer me food at once!
“Well, as a training example, it’s not bad! Oh, by the way, everyone else, close your eyes! I can’t be responsible for what happens if you get swept away!”
Oknodie, while watched by the gods that dwelled in his spirit body, hastily opened the book.
The tool for achieving the achievement of God’s Killing was spontaneously opened by Oknodie, giving his inner gods a chance to witness!
In that bizarre method of usage, the Man’s Representative momentarily felt emptiness.
– Is this suicide?
No matter how immense the presence of the Old Gods was and how far-fetched ways to escape their influence, did it really have to resort to such extreme measures?
From the standpoint of having acknowledged their strength, wasn’t it a profoundly disheartening end?
That sense of loss was shaken off as Oknodie lifted his head back into position after opening the book wide.
“Hehe. It has been a while since I’ve tasted an achievement so delectable!”
The book, tinged with the ominousness of being capable of planting a true abyss, was closed, wrapped in a band without losing its grimness.
Nonetheless, the gods who had opened a channel with the Man’s Representative soon felt their presence vanish from Oknodie’s body.
[The Beast of the End God Agratos was consumed by [The World After the Ending: The Ascension of the Demon King].]
[Sioneira, God of Mist, lost all her curtains of ignorance within [The World After the Ending: The Final All-In on Intelligence] and has perished.]
[Elios, God of Primordial Light, has relocated to [The World After the Ending: The Hell of the Sun].]
Three ancient gods had vanished without a trace.
One was consumed, another destroyed while fleeing, and the last chose to migrate.
As a result, none of the three gods assigned by the Man’s Representative returned to him.
Oknodie had genuinely utilized the three ancient gods.
“See? Even the Old Gods can be manipulated so long as the right circumstances are set. If the God of Void is lured into suitable conditions, they can’t escape and will meet their end!”
“…When are you going to return Elios?”
“Why is someone who has lived so long in a hurry? If I was going to return him so soon, I wouldn’t have borrowed him from the start. Just wait a hundred years!”
This is just plain highway robbery.
The Man’s Representative couldn’t help but secretly praise his rogue disciple!
“See, you can handle this, right? This time, I genuinely plan to use him, so could you lend me just five gods who are willing to cooperate!”
“What do you intend to do with the borrowed gods… Are you planning to kill them all for your benefit?”
“There are the realms of the afterlife or prison I could use, but under suitable circumstances, there are some decent places even for the Old Gods’ residence.”
Oknodie proudly pounded the thick cover of the book, placing his hands on his hips and clearing his throat as he puffed himself up.
“The five obedient gods who come first, I’ll take responsibility and lock them in the Forbidden Book while raising them diligently!”
The Man’s Representative shivered at the cunning trick.
Despite concluding an informal truce, Oknodie was subtly calculating the angles for a kill, just as he himself was!
To steal the cooperative and powerful gods that followed the Man’s Representative as his allies!
To flex his power and announce that he has a foundation.
Having witnessed the outcome firsthand, no matter the process, it was undeniably enviable.
– Let our names be known to the Dark Princess.
– I will delve into the realms of the Dark Forbidden Book on behalf of your worries, human.
– Trust her.
Rather than quarreling without flavor in the shattered vessels of gods, the deities threw themselves into the dream of building their own house in that vast unknown Dark Forbidden realm, urging each other to establish a new residence.
The moment they were sent away, the contact and benefits with that god would vanish, and the Man’s Representative instinctively realized this.
[Entry Conditions: Send a videotape informing the Man’s Representative of a strong friendship with the new homeowner.]
To put it bluntly, the gods weren’t ones to refuse such conditions imposed by Oknodie.
The Man’s Representative, who had intended to casually name a few gods, suddenly panicked upon realizing that some gods’ presences had disappeared from within him.
“You just… mentioned the names of the nameless gods…!”
“Me? Of course I know the tier picks among the non-mainstream. If you know their names, you can make a contract, and there’s no way I wouldn’t have prepared for this!”
The Man’s Representative sank into despair, overwhelmed by the loss of the gods.
How many years did this set his plans back?
Would the day he accomplished his mission ever come?
Overwhelmed with desolation.
As Oknodie extended his hand to the dazed figure…
What?
To hold and rise?
Grinding his teeth, the Man’s Representative rebuffed Oknodie’s hand.
“Are you giving me poison and then medicine? I won’t hold your hand.”
“What are you doing? You still owe me the gods I loaned you.”
“What? The ones you just took are either gods or what?”
“That was taken by my own skill. Now you have to lend me the gods I can’t take!”
“…”
The Man’s Representative gritted his teeth and informed the Old God Thief Oknodie of the names of five Old Gods.
Now Oknodie’s prophecy book had transformed into an even more ghastly tool of divine killing, with at least one Old God bound to each volume.
