Creative Talent

"Ah."

Kim Jihun opened his eyes. What he saw was the familiar ceiling of his own room. The house that had clearly been blown away in the battle with Alquinoa was restored exactly as it was—even down to the tiny stains in the corners.

He shivered once more at the power of Asrie that he could feel anew.

'She definitely turned back time to restore everything.'

Asrie was a high creation god. She possessed incredibly powerful abilities that allowed her to manipulate matter, space, and even time.

Kim Jihun shivered anew at Asrie's power.

To get up from his bed, Jihun propped himself up on his upper body. Unconsciously, he reached out to the side, and something soft came into his grasp.

-Squish.

It had a fluffy, quite soft texture.

Puzzled, Kim Jihun gripped it again.

-Squish.

This was his bed. There shouldn't be anything with that kind of texture here.

Wondering, Jihun turned his head to the side, and there it was.

"..."

Asria.

"Ah," Kim Jihun muttered, looking down at his hand's position. Shamelessly, he had been clutching Asria's breast.

In that instant, Jihun yanked his arm back in startled panic.

"Why is she here?!"

Goosebumps prickled across his entire body. Just yesterday, she had been emanating void energy to capture him, and now she was lying in the same bed.

But then he remembered Asrie's words.

-She's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠neither a god nor a Ma-shin. She's become an intelligent being with a divine body.

"Neither a god nor a Ma-shin..."

Only then did Kim Jihun relax. He recalled yesterday's events: her attack, Asrie repelling her, and him providing the essence of divine power to awkwardly revert her from Ma-shin status.

Kim Jihun examined Asria lying beside him. She was an incredibly beautiful woman. Gray wings, deep gray hair streaked with silver. And facial features identical to Asrie's stunning ones. Such a beauty was lying right next to him. And though unintentional, hadn't he even groped her breast?

Jihun's face flushed red with embarrassment.

In that moment, Kim Jihun began to agonize.

'Should I touch it once more?'

Her perky breast entered his field of vision. Through the thin white silk-like fabric, that subtle protrusion like a little peak kept nagging at him. What lay beneath that thin cloth? That thought alone swirled endlessly in Kim Jihun's mind.

-Gulp.

Kim Jihun swallowed unconsciously. And he reached out his hand.

Slowly, cautiously, his hand approached the defenseless Asria's breast.

The moment his hand was about to touch her breast—

"What are you doing?"

"Wah!"

Kim Jihun jumped at the sudden voice and yelped. He whipped his head toward the source.

There sat Leila in a chair, staring at him with a look of utter disbelief.

Kim Jihun fumbled for an excuse.

"Oh, uh, there seemed to be some dust!"

As he spoke, he patted the innocent blanket.

Leila sighed deeply at his pathetic display.

"If you're that interested in a woman's body, just tell me. I'll let you touch anytime."

"O-okay... Huh? What?!"

While Jihun reeled from her unexpected words, Leila turned her gaze to Asria lying on the bed. She took in the gray wings and hair.

Leila said, "You really are... either too soft-hearted or just a total pushover."

She sighed again. Even to her, Kim Jihun seemed frustratingly dense. She liked him, of course, but she wished he'd fix that spineless side.

Yet at the same time, she thought,

'But if Jihun weren't like that, could I have survived the void?'

In a way, wasn't she the biggest beneficiary of Kim Jihun's indecisive, others-first—pushover, as some might call it—personality? He'd saved his enemy, protected her even as the void overwhelmed him.

So Leila just sighed and said nothing more. It was precisely because of that personality that she liked him.

Instead, she changed the subject.

"Anyway, groping Asria's chest the moment you wake up? You like breasts that much? Want to touch mine too?"

"Ugh!"

Teased by her words, Kim Jihun's face burned red as he fled the room.

Leila ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠watched him go and muttered once more.

"Can't even take it when it's offered, you idiot."

Half of it was sincere.

...

Kim Jihun stepped outside his house. The familiar scenery greeted him: rundown homes, dingy surroundings, the usual neighborhood view.

He gazed at it all with nostalgic eyes.

'It's really all back.'

During Alquinoa's assault, half of Seoul had been swallowed by the void and erased. But Asrie had wielded power far ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠beyond it, reversing time to restore what was lost.

Kim Jihun felt anew the sheer magnitude of Asrie's strength.

"A high creation god, huh."

He pondered. Asrie was a god in the truest sense—omniscient, omnipotent, wielding unimaginable power beyond human comprehension. And he was the one she'd taken interest in, nurtured.

Suddenly, Jihun felt profoundly alien to himself.

'Am I human or not?'

He'd always considered himself human. Born to human parents, raised by them. He ate, slept, acted like one, held human values.

Yet his unique talent—Creation Talent—had turned him into a god. Gathering divine power and creation force, he'd reached the rank of low-level god.

Raised in human society with human values, but wielding divine power. What should he call himself? God? Or human?

Jihun couldn't say.

...

"I've become a mid-level god?"

Kim Jihun said in astonishment.

Leila replied, "Yeah, that's right. I shared my divine power with you. So be grateful!"

Jihun stared at her, dumbfounded.

According to Leila, while he slept, she'd bestowed her precious innate divine power, awakening him as a mid-level god.

Leila looked smug as she gazed at him.

But her unconditional kindness weighed heavily on Jihun.

"Don't be so good to me. It makes me feel bad if you're the one taking the loss to help me."

"Well, that's my choice. You risked your life to save me in the promotion battle. This innate divine power? It's nothing compared to what you did for me."

Right after saying that, she suddenly pressed her lips to his.

Leila's wicked tongue ravaged Kim Jihun's mouth. It stroked his cheeks, tapped his teeth, then intertwined with his tongue. Her tongue invaded, plundering him.

'How is her skill getting better every time?!'

Leila had kissed Jihun a few times before. But her technique now was no joke. Each time she'd explored his mouth, her skill had improved by leaps and bounds.

After a brief kiss, Leila pulled away. Smiling in satisfaction, she wiped the saliva from her lips with the back of her hand.

Then she declared boldly to Jihun.

"And don't feel burdened. Just accept it. I like you, that's why I come see you. If I'm doing it because I want to, why feel bad about it?"

"Still..."

Despite her words, her kindness burdened him. He'd saved her life, sure, but he hadn't expected her to give up her innate divine power too.

Watching him, Leila made a proposal.

"Fine, if my kindness burdens you that much, do one thing for me."

"...What?"

Kim Jihun tensed. For her to give up her innate divine power so readily, her request had to be something huge, he assumed.

But her words deflated him completely.

"Kiss me."

"What?"

He couldn't comprehend. She'd handed over her innate divine power, and all she wanted was a kiss?

But Leila's expression was serious.

"Whenever I push, you just reluctantly accept. I want to feel a kiss you give me."

She pouted coyly and gently grasped his chin. Then she whispered in his ear.

"Don't tell me you're scared to take the lead?"

Her breath moistened his ear. The soft exhale tickled his eardrum, sending chills down his spine. A sharp pleasure raced up his back to his scalp.

Losing reason for a moment, Kim Jihun smashed his lips against hers.

-Smooch!

He thrust his tongue in, stirring her mouth wildly. His kiss wasn't delicate but passionate, and Leila closed her eyes, savoring it.

'This is it.'

With eyes shut, Leila thought.

...

-Rumble!

Vast divine power sliced through the Boundary. Brilliant creation force followed in its wake.

Soon, planets and stars bloomed across the Boundary, illuminating the surroundings. A beautiful, majestic sight.

The golden divine power blended with creation force to enact galaxy-scale creation on a massive scale—grand and vast, proclaiming this as the true work of gods.

Cross, the high creation god who had cast this immense creation, nodded and fixed his gaze ahead.

"Feels good to be back at the front lines after so long."

Cross. He was the principal of Allei Low-level School, where Kim Jihun had attended.

His reason for coming to the front lines—the foremost battlefield—was simple.

'Never thought I'd be spurred to action by a low-level god.'

He murmured wryly and raised his golden greatsword. Empowered by his divine force, the blade hummed with a pleasing resonance. He smiled.

He'd come to regain real combat experience after ages.

Gods flocked around him—combat gods, creation gods alike. Rare sight of a high creation god at the front lines drew them in.

A mid-rank creation god asked, "Isn't that Cross?! What brings you here? Aren't you the principal now—no more front lines?"

The mid-rank creation god knew Cross; long service at the front meant many familiar faces.

Cross chuckled heartily.

"While managing the school, I saw a low-level god's exploits and my blood boiled. Made me feel too complacent. So here I am, back on the battlefield after ages."

"Whoa! Even you, a high creation god, got fired up? Now I'm curious about that low-level god. What happened at school?"

"During the promotion battle..."

Cross slung his golden blade over his shoulder and began recounting: the void's assault, the human-origin low-level god's struggle, protecting a high creation god's direct descendant.

His tale centered on Kim Jihun's feats, so the gods who heard the details marveled.

"Incredible. A mere low-level god using creation against the void?!"

"A human-origin low-level god, no less?!"

"I've heard of that intelligent-being low-level god too. From the planet Asrie manages, right...?"

"Amazing."

Impressed by Jihun's exploits, they buzzed among themselves.

Cross smiled, pleased as principal to hear his student praised.

Other gods chimed in.

"What a promising creation god seedling."

"When's he joining front-line combat? Bet he'll grow fast like you back in the day."

"Why not report to the 'higher-ups'? Get him marked for focused support."

Rumors of Kim Jihun began spreading further.