The Chief God's Misguided Praise
The aftermath of the Great Forest War left the Divine Realm in no better state. Granzoa had already departed for the Middle World to fulfill the terms of her contract, and nine of the highest-ranking gods seated at the Round Table were locked in open confrontation. The other Upper Gods had fled in haste the moment the sealing barrier on the Main God-Slaying Spear was lifted, rushing back to inspect their temples and followers. In truth, they had simply wanted to escape before any stray lightning struck them while the Round Table teetered on the brink of civil war.
The Chief God of the God Realm examined the Karma Contract the black mage had signed and nodded with evident satisfaction.
“Our new War God truly lacks greed and is admirably honest. Even when he could have demanded half the Divine Realm, he settled for nothing more than a pretext for reconciliation. As Chief God, I am genuinely delighted to welcome such a tolerant and humble Highest God into our ranks.”
“……”
The faces of the surrounding Highest Gods hardened, yet the Chief God remained oblivious, lost in his own sentimental reverie. The God of Knowledge pressed a hand to his forehead while the Beast God tilted his head in confusion. The Primordial War Gods wore faint frowns, clearly wanting to speak but knowing it was not their place.
‘This is hardly the first time something like this has happened. Only the target has changed—from a demon god to the black mage.’
‘The Chief God’s schemes have never harmed the Divine Realm, only helped it. Best to stay silent.’
The Chief God continued praising the black mage with a bright smile.
“His consideration for the hostage Granzoa, and his ambition to pass the position of Chief God of the Divine Realm to his direct descendant, was truly moving.”
The God of Knowledge desperately wanted to say that was absolutely not the case, but he held his tongue and merely patted his chest lightly. The Beast God eagerly chimed in.
“Indeed! If it is his child, one must raise them to aim for the pinnacle. To declare such grand ambition before the entire Divine Realm is truly remarkable.”
Fire sparked in the eyes of the Highest Goddess who had been pushing Granzoa as the Divine Realm’s successor.
‘That is clearly not what happened. And whose child, exactly? What nonsense is this toward a virgin goddess!’
‘We sent her as a hostage to the very enemy who tried to destroy the Divine Realm, and now this? How can he flatter so shamelessly without reading the room? At this rate, they’ll ship him off to the battlefield.’
As the Highest Goddesses’ eyes narrowed into daggers, the God of Knowledge raised his divine power and glared at the Beast God in warning. But the Beast God, often called the Chief God’s pet, remained oblivious.
“Seeing how he volunteered for the heavy responsibility of a Highest God, knowing Granzoa is struggling with her plummeting karma and that my unworthy son has made the war difficult… and even offering to manage the Middle World as well. I was truly moved at the time.”
“Your son is still young and unsuited for the harsh battlefield. With that level of power, the Boundary should pose no problem. Hahaha!”
“……”
“……”
Everyone fell silent after witnessing the mutual back-patting. Yet the Chief God and the Beast God remained absorbed in their own world.
‘Does he not even remember the black mage’s dumbfounded, furious expression earlier?’
‘Does he not recall the black mage shouting that the entire divine race is composed of elegantly mad lunatics?’
‘Well, he probably took it as a display of manly spirit. I would have cursed too, in the black mage’s position.’
Scratch, scratch. Unable to endure the worsening atmosphere, the God of Knowledge dragged his nails across the table.
‘I am truly going insane. I cannot even tell if those two are joking or serious.’
The surrounding Highest Goddesses closed their eyes, attempting to retreat into another world for a moment.
‘Those two will handle all the drumming and dancing anyway.’
‘I only managed to send them away by using the former War God’s weakness as an excuse because I could not stand the sight of them. Now even that pretext is gone.’
‘Once the new War God takes charge of the Boundary, the Chief God’s chest will swell with even more wind, and he will commit even more absurd acts.’
‘I wish the other Divine Realms and the Demon Realm would see what our Divine Realm is really like.’
‘I heard the strange Divine Realms are simply a mess?’
The black mage’s cry of “elegantly mad lunatics” had actually been rather mild. Thanks to the overwhelming number of followers and strong vitality on the Main God Star, the Divine Realm had not yet gone bankrupt—otherwise its reputation would have been far worse.
‘Even so, we were pushing Granzoa, who is acknowledged despite her vicious temperament, as the next Chief God.’
‘After this incident, her karma has nearly hit rock bottom, endangering those around her.’
‘It remains a mystery why that deranged Chief God always secures a majority whenever a divine position election is held.’
Even the Highest Goddesses who had been cursing together would secretly support him with more than half their votes if he ran, making them curious about the secret to his popularity. Of course, they all knew the fundamental reason, yet it was strange that even goddesses unaware of the facts supported him.
“Even at the very end, he considered the Divine Realm’s karma and gripped the spear tightly, declaring he would educate my unworthy son as well. How could I possibly fail to show consideration? My son has finally met his match this time. I look forward to seeing how much he will grow by overcoming this ordeal.”
“He will not disappoint Your Excellency’s expectations. I eagerly await the day when your son displays the dignity of a true War God.”
When the misunderstanding reached this level, even the Highest Goddesses grew bewildered.
‘It looked like he was threatening us with the position of War God, did it not?’
‘Can it really be interpreted that way?’
‘I do not know. I am tired and dizzy.’
As the Highest Goddesses’ heads began to nod sleepily, the God of Knowledge, an ally of the Chief God, could no longer endure it. His face flushed as he spoke.
“O greatest of Chief Gods. With so many matters to attend to, it seems the practical affairs must be handled by those of us who do the actual work. I believe we should conclude this meeting.”
“Is that so? I have been keeping busy gods occupied. You have all worked hard. I must go reassure my startled wife.”
The Highest Goddesses glared at him, their eyes shaped like axes.
‘Is it not your fault that your consort is startled?’
‘She collapsed because of your endless positivity, even after your son was killed and sealed inside the spear.’
‘No matter how much it was a child you only raised without giving birth to, and even if he can be restored without loss later, a mother still feels shock at her child’s death.’
The Highest Goddesses’ expressions had grown nearly expressionless, as they saw no point in speaking further. Oblivious to the mood, the Beast God quickly followed the Chief God.
“I shall bring fine drinks and food to comfort her.”
“Oh! Let us go together. She will be truly delighted after so long.”
Thud—! Thud—!
Once the Chief God and the Beast God had departed and the door closed, the God of Knowledge continued with difficulty.
“There was no other option. Among the Highest Gods, there is no one else who can simultaneously manage over a billion High Elf followers and nearly a hundred billion elves while replacing the War God. We risk being pushed back from the Boundary due to insufficient vitality otherwise.”
“We know.”
The former War God’s incompetence had nearly caused them to be driven from the Boundary, forcing them to deploy the Beast God, another Highest God, while the Highest Goddesses who supplied divine power remained unable to move. In their attempt to capture the black mage—who had accumulated massive negative karma—to replenish the Divine Realm’s lacking divine power, they had nearly lost the entire Middle World and seen the Divine Realm suspended. The power of a Main God possessing dimensional authority truly exceeded imagination.
“Since the black mage’s combat ability is certain, we can assign him full responsibility for the Boundary, supply him with divine power, and restore the front lines. This is an opportunity born from misfortune.”
“By sacrificing Granzoa to that lustful demon?”
Whooooom—!
A murderous divine power filled with killing intent erupted among the Highest Goddesses. There was not a single god unaware of the rumors that the black mage had gone beyond being a lustful demon in the Demon Realm and was now being called a lustful god. The Succubus Queen, the pinnacle of all succubi, had reportedly declared she could not endure him.
‘The black mage is the worst kind of lustful demon. How much must Granzoa, who insists that goddesses and High Elves alike must remain pure, despise him?’
‘Even in the midst of that desperate battle, he diligently gathered women and took them away, did he not?’
‘Even though free love is commonplace in the Divine Realm, this has gone too far.’
‘Moreover, if an hostage with no rights is subjected to such treatment… Thinking of Granzoa nodding at the prisoner exchange proposal with an ashen face makes my chest feel heavy.’
The Highest Goddesses had no intention of cooperating. Yet the God of Knowledge’s eyes also blazed with killing intent, unable to endure the stagnant conversation. He too was one of the Primordial Gods who had fought and survived through endless ages. Having been struck to the brink of annihilation and regenerated multiple times, he would not be cowed by the Highest Goddesses’ aura.
“Then release all the goddesses currently on standby into active service. I will take responsibility and restore Granzoa to her original position. Do not forget that male gods continue to die and regenerate on the Boundary even now.”
Shhhhhh—!
The God of Knowledge’s killing intent pressed down on the Highest Goddesses, creating a brief standoff before it halted. Since the stalemate with the Substitute Gods, the Divine Realm had always existed along such parallel lines. The conflict between male gods who wished to deploy goddesses in combat and female gods who sought to exclude them from war—claiming that producing divine power and giving birth to new gods was more efficient—now threatened to escalate into civil war.
“Goddesses produce the Divine Realm’s divine power and give birth to new gods. Do you not understand the pain of childbirth?”
The once-unquestionable argument of childbirth now faced sharp criticism in this crisis.
“Goddesses who have never died and regenerated at the hands of demon gods would not know the pain of war. The noble and great black mage called the former War God a parasitic brother-in-law, and I completely agree. It was infuriating to see the War God, of all people, siding with the goddesses while wearing makeup and reeking of perfume like one of them.”
“Your words are quite harsh. You were also born of a goddess, yet you speak of makeup? That is gender discrimination.”
“Silence! My mother is not one of you. At the very least, she never dismissed male gods who risked their lives fighting outside as dirty and crude. She treated their wounds and encouraged them—she never called them guard dogs for staying home. If I discover who said such things, I swear I will annihilate them.”
The gods at the Round Table had split into male and female factions, on the verge of dueling. However, while there were only eight Highest Goddesses, there were over a hundred Primordial Highest War Gods overflowing with combat experience, so the goddesses knew they could not be easily subdued and maintained only a standoff. Though the goddesses held higher divine rank, the Primordial War Gods—who lived in constant battle—were prepared to die together if necessary.
“It does not matter what kind of being the black mage is. A strong god is more helpful on the battlefield than you. That is why I recommended him as both a Highest God and the War God. Everything will be judged by karma, not by you, so do not interfere in any way.”
The God of Knowledge’s thick killing intent filled the Main God Temple, driving the Highest Goddesses back.
“Remember that the Beast God’s anger at being insulted as a guard dog is not his alone. If the current Chief God were the God Emperor, we would not have forgiven you.”
In an instant, the killing intent vanished. Exhaustion beyond measure settled on the God of Knowledge’s face after pouring out his intense emotions.
“The will of the one who became Chief God is a world of freedom and equality where all may be happy, so we merely follow.”
“There will be no support for this War God. However, there will also be no interference.”
“That will suffice. There is no tolerance in the Karma Contract he oversees. When we attempted to exploit loopholes, the Divine Realm nearly collapsed and a Highest God of Main God rank fell to the Middle World.”
“……”
“If such an incident occurs again, this opportunity will not be granted. Remember that, peaceful goddesses. Heh.”
The God of Knowledge’s sneer echoed through the space before fading. The Highest Goddesses shook their heads and vanished into space one by one, leaving the Round Table in a chilling silence.
Meanwhile, the noble and great black mage finished organizing the battlefield and teleported near the Great Forest in a dazed state. Feeling his head rattling with excessive worries, he headed toward the Survival Magic Tower.
‘Somehow I became a Highest God, but my followers have always been the High Elves who fought among themselves. Though divine power flows to me from my appointment in the Divine Realm, it is of no help to a black mage like me, so I redirected it to the Cosmic Tree inside the tower. The divine power of light does aid the Cosmic Tree’s growth, after all.’
Support from the Divine Realm was minimal, and the problems were enormous. The greatest issue was the sharp decline in vitality flowing from faith in the High Elf Empire.
‘I declared I would destroy the High Elf Empire’s archenemies and all their divine nations, and summoned dozens of stars. If I am now their new racial god of the light faction, even I would find it absurd.’
At least by slaying the Demon Kings and annihilating most of the dark mages, his karma had become “extremely good,” maintaining the status quo.
‘Roughly ten percent of the faith remains intact? For a black mage like me to become both the elves’ racial god and the War God, and still maintain this many followers is truly miraculous.’
Upon becoming the elves’ racial god, all knowledge of the elves flowed to him.
‘Even the High Elf Queens, who hold papal authority, seem confused by the situation. Originally, there must have been plenty of apostates. Still, there are over a billion elf fanatics. Now I understand why Granzoa, the racial goddess, aimed for the position of Chief God.’
The black mage truly had no desire to associate with the Divine Realm. He had assumed the Divine Realm, like the Middle World and Demon Realm, operated on class and meritocracy, never imagining it was an organization overflowing with dreams and delusions.
‘Even after rising in rank, there are no rights or privileges. Looking at Granzoa’s case, one mistake and it is over. Yet I personally wrote into the Karma Contract a clause about becoming one of the Divine Realm’s Highest Gods.’
Having become a Highest God, he now had to accept and manage the High Elves—his former enemies—as followers, and fulfill the role of the War God he himself had sealed.
‘Managing the Middle World is a bonus? This is insane.’
If he neglected his duties out of sheer unwillingness, he could already envision the harsh consequences the Karma Contract would bring.
‘I am truly going mad. Just let one of them cross my path.’