Chapter 77
Chapter 77
Episode 77
Humans are beautiful because they can be hypocrites.
The phrase Yuriel had recited was written at the very top of Aiden's status window.
Aiden immediately turned his gaze to Siron.
"Step aside for a moment."
Though her footsteps seemed hesitant, she eventually moved away, walking weakly toward the opposite side of the lake.
Aiden shifted his attention back to the Saintess.
Yuriel was still staring blankly into the air, her expression and eyes tinged with bewilderment. That was the extent of her reaction—she wasn't overly shocked or frightened.
As a resident of a world filled with unknowns, she had some resistance to peculiar phenomena.
"Saintess."
Only then did Yuriel turn her head to look at Aiden. The method to close the status window was already imprinted in her mind.
Aiden spoke.
"It might be a strange question, but I must ask. What do you think of me?"
Immediately after, her face flushed with shame. What was the point of asking when she already knew the answer?
Yuriel lowered her head without responding.
Aiden lifted her up from where she knelt and pressed again.
"You must answer. What do you think of me?"
What did she think of him? Only one word came to Yuriel's mind. She answered in a barely audible voice.
"...A bad person."
It wasn't the answer he wanted, but Aiden couldn't deny it. A shadow passed over his face.
Yuriel shook her head.
"Don't make that face. It's not your fault. And it only makes me feel worse."
Her lips curled into a bitter smile. Looking at her, Aiden couldn't help but feel like a complete idiot.
He had taken all her kindness and consideration for granted.
He had forcibly taken her Divine Eye and treated her like a medical tool.
The same went for the power of resurrection.
It was clearly an exchanged ability, yet he acted as if it were his own without hesitation. And Yuriel had gone along with it.
If only that were the end—but it wasn't.
The person he had resurrected had to die again. Now that he knew Yuriel's feelings, Aiden couldn't help but deeply regret his actions.
No, had he been unconsciously exploiting her emotions all along? The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He must have noticed her strange behavior several times before.
In many ways, he was a despicable human being.
As Aiden bit his lip, a small hand gently touched his mouth.
"Stop blaming yourself, please."
Even now, she remained steadfast. Suppressing his complicated emotions, Aiden spoke.
"...This isn't the right situation, but there's something I must say."
Yuriel gave a weak smile. Whenever he spoke like that, a request always followed.
"I'm no longer the Saintess. I might not be able to grant your wish."
Aiden's chest ached.
"That's not it."
"Then tell me."
Aiden took a deep breath and answered.
"Saintess, do you... by any chance, consider me a god?"
Confusion flickered across Yuriel's face.
"...What? What do you—"
"You recited something earlier. That was my ability, and you've just awakened to it."
The status window was also part of his power.
Before he could finish speaking, Yuriel froze stiffly. Under the heavens, no two humans could possess the same divine ability.
Just as Zeras' Flaming Spear had transferred to Aiden, if Yuriel had awakened the status window, Aiden should have lost his.
Yuriel's face paled with shock.
"You're saying this phrase itself is the authority of a god? Then did I steal—"
"No. I still have it too."
The moment Yuriel recited the phrase earlier, Aiden had hurriedly checked his own status window.
It was still there. In short, both of them now possessed the same ability.
This wasn't a "transfer" of divine authority—it was a "bestowal."
Something only a god could do, and Yuriel knew the concept well.
Her thoughts tangled into chaos. Aiden spoke again.
"No need to overthink it. Do you believe I am a god? Just answer that."
Yuriel stared at him, her face drained of color.
"H-how could I possibly think of you as—"
She didn't seem aware of it herself.
But the phenomenon itself proved Yuriel's faith.
The only puzzling part was that Aiden wasn't yet qualified to hold a divine throne.
There was only one answer.
Someone at the level of a High God must have recognized Aiden as a deity. Vacheksar. Though he wasn't certain, Aiden had a strong hunch it was him.
Vacheksar must have noticed Yuriel's apostasy, yet he didn't strip her of her divine power. Moreover, he allowed her to awaken Aiden's status window.
Meaning, Vacheksar was demanding that Yuriel serve two gods.
Yuriel's train of thought had reached the same conclusion. Though her mind was overloaded, she managed to stay composed.
She channeled divine power into her fingertip, activated the status window, and spoke.
"...I possess the authority of two gods simultaneously."
The moment she said it, Yuriel gasped and covered her mouth.
Unconsciously, she had just referred to Aiden as a god.
Aiden replied calmly.
"It seems Vacheksar has recognized me as a deity. Of course, I'm still unworthy, so feel free to treat me as a minor, half-baked god."
She steadied her racing heart and spoke as calmly as possible.
"As you know, Vacheksar would never acknowledge another god."
"Correct. He proclaims himself the one true god and doesn't permit lesser deities."
"Then why would he—"
"You've read the Atlantean scriptures. What do you think was the decisive reason for their defeat against the demons?"
The battlefield where the Sun God, ruler of war, had fallen. There were many trivial reasons, but ultimately, one stood out.
Yuriel looked at him with dawning realization.
"Are you saying... it was because the Varantes faction had no divine beings?"
"Interpretations vary, but that's my belief."
Yuriel hesitated before continuing.
"If your speculation is correct, it means Vacheksar has broken his own taboo and begun appointing lesser gods."
"That's how I see it."
Aiden wasn't entirely sure either. Vacheksar's actions varied drastically depending on the timeline.
Sometimes, he wouldn't show himself even as the world crumbled.
Thus, this entire conversation was speculative and unbound by divine prohibition.
Yuriel fell into thought.
If the text she was seeing truly was a bestowed authority, it was definitive proof that Aiden was a god.
It also meant she regarded him as one. Divine abilities fundamentally responded to faith. Though not conclusively proven, that was the general rule.
Yuriel was utterly bewildered. There was no denying that Aiden had significantly influenced her principles and faith. But she had never consciously thought of him as a god.
Or so she believed—apparently, she was wrong.
Yuriel honestly examined her heart. She found herself selectively filtering Vacheksar's teachings, discarding values she deemed unjust. It was blasphemy—a mere human judging the righteousness of a god's will.
Unknowingly, her distrust of Vacheksar had been replaced by faith in Aiden.
Helping the weak, practicing tolerance, standing against malice—the values she cherished had been embodied in the world through Aiden.
He had leaped into the Flaming Spear to save a child, defended the Seirun tribe and the dregs of the Grand Duchy, and led the charge against evil more fiercely than anyone. That was who Aiden was.
At least, that was how she saw him.
The fragments of thought she had denied began falling into place.
Yuriel let out a quiet laugh and looked at Aiden. There was one last thing to confirm—the premise that would validate all these hypotheses.
"Can you prove it? That this power truly came from you?"
"I'll teach you how to use it."
Aiden immediately activated Yuriel's status window.
A flood of information—her abilities, stats, and more—spilled into the air.
Yuriel stared at him in shock. Aiden spoke calmly.
"I can see yours as well."
Flustered, Yuriel suddenly turned red and covered Aiden's eyes.
"W-wait a moment!"
As she pressed against him, a soft sensation brushed against Aiden's chest. He coughed awkwardly and took a step back.
"Don't worry. I won't read your thoughts."
She glared at him with teary eyes.
"You already did."
"I won't look anymore."
"No, ah—this is really too much. All of it."
Aiden replied.
"You are now my Saintess."
His answer to what he had seen in her heart.
Her ears turned crimson as she shot him a reproachful look.
"Stop reading me. Seriously."
"Starting now, I will."
With that, Aiden rearranged her status window, moving the psychological section to the very bottom.
There was so much information that it would take forever to scroll down to it.
He tucked away all the miscellaneous entries too—the origins and history of the Sachilia family, the rise and fall of her maternal lineage, Yuriel's upbringing, and other unnecessary records.
Yuriel, who had been sulking, quickly focused on Aiden's actions.
"...You're quite familiar with this."
"I've done it many times. More importantly, look at this now."
He gathered only the essential information—stats, abilities, and traits—into one place.
True to her status as a named character, each of her abilities was overwhelmingly powerful.
Yuriel murmured softly.
"'Hypocrite's Saintess,' 'Apostle of Annihilation,' 'Heretic's Devotee'...?"
The last one was related to the Godslayer. Aiden nodded.
"Until now, you must have used most of your abilities instinctively. That won't be necessary anymore. Each power and trait has detailed explanations—study them."
Yuriel calmly scanned the text. Then, suddenly, she looked at Aiden.
"I'm not sure how to address you now. Can I still call you as I have been?"
"It doesn't matter. I'm not even fit to be called a minor god, let alone possess a divine throne."
Only by Vacheksar's insistence had the world's logic bent slightly. Aiden hadn't escaped mortality, so he couldn't truly be considered a god.
He continued.
"Also, until the scriptures record this fact, we must keep today's events secret."
Yuriel swallowed her skepticism.
"If the scriptures acknowledge you, it would prove Vacheksar's will. But who knows how the Church will interpret it."
The monotheistic system was the foundation of the Varantes faith. Scriptures denying that could be branded as heresy.
A valid concern—the Church had sealed even the Atlantean scriptures for defiling divine authority.
Aiden replied indifferently.
"That's up to Vacheksar. I suspect he'll handle it discreetly. He must have done this because he wants something."
An intervention of this scale meant the Sun God had his own plans.
Aiden looked up at the night sky.
"Of course, there's no way to know his thoughts right now."
Yuriel couldn't help but be stunned. Him? Now it was outright blasphemy. Or was it different from Aiden's perspective? The thought crossed her mind, but Vacheksar's presence still loomed overwhelmingly large for her.
Glancing warily at the sky, she spoke.
"Aren't you afraid? He reigns supreme above all gods."
"By that logic, the Demon God would be at the top. More importantly, there's another being we should fear."
Aiden scanned their surroundings.
"Someone will arrive soon. Stay sharp."
It was best to clarify their relationship now—to avoid complications later.
Shortly after, Saya landed by the lakeside. She remembered Yuriel's scent.