The Burden of Absolute Favor
The war in the Otherworld was already a nightmare in itself. Being sent there as Jinri's stand-in? The danger level defied imagination. The Magic God of Dimensions couldn't possibly refuse now that his future self, the Grey Absolute, had taken on the task unilaterally. If he turned it down, he wouldn't just be cutting ties with his own future—he'd sever every connection with anyone who knew about this. No one wanted to deal with a being who only engaged in one-sided, unfair transactions.
He had learned all too well that the higher one climbed, the more ruthlessly others discarded you the moment you stopped being useful. As he leaned toward accepting the role of Jinri's proxy, doubts about the reward for this insane request began sprouting like weeds.
Is the Origin of the Dimension Clan really worth risking something this dangerous?
No! The request is already nearly complete. Doubting and regretting now will only cloud my judgment. I can think about all that after everything is over.
He remembered the beings who had hesitated in battle while carrying out the Mercenary God's missions, their minds filled with questions. That thought snapped him back to reality.
Battles worthy of the Mercenary God's involvement are brutally harsh. Even if you bet everything, survival is barely possible. Those whose sense of purpose blurs and whose focus wavers all end up defeated and dead. Regret is a luxury only the strong can afford. Ordinary beings are already struggling just to look straight ahead.
Clench—!
He had completed ninety percent of the impossible task: obtaining signatures from the 10 Mainstays on the Sword of Ruin and Soul that belonged to the Wind Family. Since this was ultimately a request from the Wind Family and the sword would go to their blood relative, the Origin of the Dimension Clan, there was no way the Sole Dragon God Emperor would refuse. It was practically already a success.
At some point, the Black Flame Absolute seemed to have grown tired of their exchange of curses. The Grey Absolute approached and checked the name of the Golden Absolute on the Sword of Ruin and Soul, letting out a small gasp of admiration.
“Ha—! You managed to get the signature of the Golden Absolute, the biggest obstacle, this easily? As expected, the position of Lord God and your ‘Absolute Good’ karma were a big help. I am grateful for your kindness, Daeshin.”
Watching the Grey Absolute bow his head lightly in greeting, Daeshin smiled gently.
Even though they call him the mad grey of the Absolute Realm and fear him, he still knows how to repay kindness? I’ve discovered another side of the sage. This is why I can’t stop helping him.
Stroking his white beard with his right hand, Daeshin spoke.
“There may come a day when I ask a favor of you, so consider this a debt. That aside, your present self—the Magic God of Dimensions—seems completely unprepared for the dispatch to the Otherworld. Is that really alright? To go there, we must reconstruct both our bodies and our divine spirits. With only 10 billion in innate divine power, you’ll drop below one million. Do you have a plan?”
When beings from the Absolute Realm or the Main Universe entered the Otherworld, their divine power fell to one ten-thousandth of its original strength. Because the world’s very composition was completely different, they had to reconstruct not only their physical bodies but the structure of their divine spirits as well. Their authorities would plummet too, much like how a spiritual being’s power dropped by ninety percent upon entering a planetary barrier. The danger was so severe that an ordinary spiritual being without any countermeasures would have its very existence threatened the moment it arrived.
At those words, the Grey Absolute smiled with confidence and answered.
“Our authority is Dimension. Since it is the power to create and manage our own independent worlds, we face no restrictions even in the Otherworld. On the contrary, because there are no karma laws there, we can become even stronger.”
“Oh? The authority of dimension is world creation? I see. Then there should be no problem. However, the issue of vitality supply and the ruling class will still be troublesome. There are quite a few powerful beings there as well.”
If vitality wasn’t replenished while divine power was consumed, even the mightiest being would eventually die or be extinguished. No matter how infinite one’s authority, maintaining a body and using that power would eventually reach a limit. This was the decisive reason spiritual beings could never defeat eternal beings. Of course, the 10 Mainstays had extended that time almost to infinity, but unless one became an eternal being, the limit was unavoidable.
In the Otherworld, where one had neither connections nor believers, that consumption would be even more extreme. Yet the Grey Absolute simply laughed lightly.
“Heh—! Have you forgotten who the Wind Star belongs to?”
“Oh—! That’s right. Then there’s no issue.”
If the Wind Star guaranteed infinite vitality, then the vitality problem was solved. Although the Magic God of Dimensions himself could only output up to 100 billion at full power, the situation changed completely if he possessed a Creator Great God who held the Wind Star.
The Black Flame’s Creator Great God, Seongmyeol, had already proven its might by annihilating the highest-ranking clan of the Black Flame race in a single strike. The Grey Absolute’s confident words put a firm period on the matter.
“Just the combination of the Magic God of Dimensions and Seongmyeol, the Creator Great God of Black Flame, is enough to destroy the Otherworld. And if any problems arise, I can simply join in as well. There is no issue in terms of raw power.”
“Indeed. With the dimensional authority that breaks the constraints of inevitable re-enactment, plus the Magic God of Dimensions’ mobility and Seongmyeol, the current state of the Otherworld should pose no real threat.”
Even in the worst-case scenario, if the Grey Absolute stepped forward and activated the dimensional trinity that had even driven back the Black Flame Absolute, the Otherworld would have no way to resist. Daeshin nodded in satisfaction, now fully convinced why Jinri had accepted the dispatch of the Magic God of Dimensions.
No matter how one looked at it, sending a mere Creator God from the Main Universe as Jinri’s proxy had felt excessive, but this level of firepower was practically overkill.
“If this matter concludes smoothly, Jinri will have one less burden. We’ll gain a bit more breathing room as well. In that case, I suppose I should offer even more goodwill.”
At the appearance of yet another extremely vague and ominous statement paired with the word “goodwill,” both the Grey Absolute and the Magic God of Dimensions stiffened.
Daeshin had lived far longer than the Golden Absolute and operated a force several times larger than the territories of the other 10 Mainstays. Although his personal strength might fall short of the Golden Absolute or other clans, the overwhelming numbers and unified power—especially given how the divine race grew stronger with greater numbers—meant no one could ignore him.
Operating such a colossal force made Daeshin formidable in a way that had nothing to do with raw power or knowledge. The more favors he gave, the heavier the burden became. Moreover, seeing even the Golden Absolute—who had openly despised and ignored the Grey—willingly sign without conditions simply because it was Daeshin’s request made them feel as if they were sinking deeper into a swamp.
No matter how much they appreciated the goodwill, they felt they should refuse at this point, but since they were the ones in need, there was nothing they could do. In the end, both remained silent, simply staring at him. Daeshin nodded and continued.
“The Sole Dragon God Emperor will never sign the Sword of Ruin and Soul. Whether it’s that sword or anything else, he will never tolerate anything that damages what belongs to Jinri. As Jinri’s son and successor, his pride is everything. For someone who lives solely to be a filial son, this is something that must never happen. Even if the one asking is from the Wind Family, he would beat them half to death. Other beings wouldn’t even survive. There has never been a single being who directly expressed doubt or denial about Jinri’s authority to the Sole Dragon God Emperor and lived to tell the tale. Even among the 10 Mainstays, anyone who directly spoke ill of Jinri, challenged his authority, or even suggested such a thing to the Sole Dragon God Emperor has always died. In the past, several of the 10 Mainstays made verbal slips about Jinri in front of him and were killed, leaving their seats vacant. The reason the Golden Absolute and Black Flame Absolute signed so easily is because they know this fact. If you two asked the Sole Dragon God Emperor to sign the Sword of Ruin and Soul and damage it, he would kill you on the spot. Jinri may tell others to speak casually and even challenge him, but when it comes to himself being directly affected, it’s a different story. Everything Jinri says to the Sole Dragon God Emperor is like touching his reverse scale. I’ll leave it to your imagination how a filial son who only wants to live as a devoted child would view beings who dare speak rudely to his father and challenge him. The 10 Mainstays are Jinri’s disciples, so they are exceptions here, but even that is sometimes precarious.”
“!!!”
The sudden revelation that merely mentioning filial piety toward Jinri and asking the Sole Dragon God Emperor to sign would result in immediate execution left them speechless. And the next words left their mouths hanging open.
“The Origins of the Wind Family know this as well. Unless they are confident they can overpower the Sole Dragon God Emperor by force, they would never ask for any signature on the Sword of Ruin and Soul. It would probably require at least two of the 10 Mainstays to risk their lives in a joint attack, which would be a good way to sow discord among them, but no one would go that far just for a signature. That is why I considered this request impossible. Whoever it is, they are aiming for quite a variety of effects. There are many things that seem utterly trivial yet are fatally effective at breaking the current stability. A truly excellent strategist, but still quite young, it seems. Because they rely too much on ordinary common sense and standards, they have many blind spots when it comes to understanding special situations and the relationships between unique beings. The Sole Dragon God Emperor’s filial piety is thorough to the point of obsession, but nothing is perfect in all things, and exceptions always exist.”
“……”
As Daeshin looked at the Grey Absolute with a warm, pleased gaze, the latter—feeling the pressure—grabbed the Magic God of Dimensions and shoved him forward. It was clear he was saying he would no longer get involved, so the Magic God of Dimensions should handle it himself.
This doesn’t sound like it’ll end with ordinary words. This is really troublesome. I need to disappear at this point, but the problems just keep coming.
If the current Magic God of Dimensions’ wish was to research magic through the Wind Star, then his future self’s wish was a comfortable end. However, if he couldn’t finish what he had started as the Grey Absolute to take revenge on the Black Flame Absolute, even erasing himself would be pointless.
Jinri would simply revive me and force me to work anyway.
Since Jinri was extremely strict about compensating for losses, the probability of being given even more work was high. Therefore, any matter serious enough for Daeshin to speak at such length was something he wanted no part of.
Of course, for the Magic God of Dimensions who had been suddenly thrust forward, this was utterly absurd.
“Hey—! Weren’t you my eternal ally? Is this how you treat your own side?”
“This is a request you unnecessarily accepted. Still, I’ve done as much as I can. Besides, after all this, the reward is only the Origin of the Dimension Clan from the Main Universe? It’s ridiculous and doesn’t even motivate me. The past has already been rewritten, so I can’t do any more than this.”
Come to think of it, the 8th-circle past self who had cursed the Black Flame Absolute after being tricked by his own words into thinking he was his mortal enemy had disappeared. At some point, the past had been restored.
“Huh?”
Yet there was no change within himself. When his past self had been summoned by the dimensional trinity, he had clearly been defeated by the Black Flame Absolute, which had left him with a fear of close combat and weakened him. But this time was different. He had been hit several times but still saw a chance of victory, and later even had enough leisure to hurl insults.
Since I’ve overcome the problems of the past, I should have become even stronger.
In that case, his close-combat ability should have been strengthened to some degree, yet nothing felt different. Seeing his questioning expression, the Grey Absolute clicked his tongue.
“Tsk tsk—! Give up on the dream of getting stronger so easily. I injected the exact memory of being brutally beaten by Black Flame and restored it. If we clumsily strengthen close-combat authority with our half-baked talent, our magic and divine power will suffer relatively. My main focus as the current Grey is magic, and your main focus as the Lord God is divine power. If that balance breaks, you won’t become the Lord God—you’ll still be rolling around as the Mercenary God. And if your improved close-combat ability lets you suppress the High Elf Queens in the past, Granzoa would descend directly or the goddess lords of the Divine Realm would come to finish you off. There’s no way around it. Living like that was the best choice in the past as well. If you change even the slightest thing about the past before entering the Divine Realm, you won’t become the Lord God, so don’t even dream about it. For now, maintaining the past as it is remains the optimal path.”
“……”
The words were so realistic and obvious that he had nothing to say. And seeing that his future self had even noticed his plan to strengthen the past in order to become stronger in the present and had given him a warning, it seemed this was indeed reality.
Daeshin, who had paused during their conversation, waited until the situation seemed to calm before speaking again. This time, he gave only a short conclusion.
“If you resolve the matter of the Dragon God race’s revival, he will do anything for you. It has always been his habit. Since it is such an impossible task, even the Wind Family that issued the request seems to have given up.”
Whoosh—! Clench—!
The moment he heard those words, the Grey Absolute grabbed the shoulder of the Magic God of Dimensions, who was trying to flee, and refused to let go. The Magic God of Dimensions struggled desperately to break free, but the gap between the 14th-circle future and the 11th-circle present was simply too vast. In the end, he could only protest with his mouth.
“Hey—! Let go—! Even the Sole Dragon God Emperor has failed for 500 billion years! What the hell do you expect me to do about it?”
“Then what do you want me to do if you run away? Take responsibility for the mess you caused like a proper Lord God. Besides, I’ve already laid some groundwork for the Dragon God race’s matter while getting you into the ranking battle, so it might be possible.”
“Huh?”
“Therefore, as the future qualification of the Magic God of Dimensions, I accept the request for the revival of the Dragon God race. In return, I ask that you please sign here.”
Swish—!
Before anyone realized it, the Sword of Ruin and Soul had been taken from the Magic God of Dimensions’ hand and was now in the Grey Absolute’s grasp. The moment the sword was thrown toward the Sole Dragon God Emperor, a scream-like cry burst from the Magic God of Dimensions.
“You son of a bitch from the future—! What the hell are you doing? You’re taking on a request with nothing but the Origin of the Dimension Clan as compensation? This is something even Jinri’s successor, the Sole Dragon God Emperor, has practically given up on—!”
“It’s all for you. You’ve become the Lord God, so take this chance to obtain the Origin of the Dimension Clan as well. Let’s become a Hero God who overcomes any hardship and adversity to rise to the top. Honestly, isn’t that what every child dreams of? Most give up or die trying, but maybe you, now that you’re the Lord God, can do it. Puhuh—! Puhahahahahahaha—!”
“Stop laughing—! Are you pissed off that I became the Lord God? Take it back right now!”
“It’s already too late. You should never have accepted a request from the 10 Mainstays with nothing but the title of Lord God. Kahahahahahahat—!”
At the mention of the Dragon God race’s revival request, the Golden Absolute and the Sole Dragon God Emperor momentarily stopped their battle in shock. They approached, stared at the Sword of Ruin and Soul floating before them, then turned murderous gazes toward the Magic God of Dimensions and the Grey Absolute. They looked ready to slaughter them at any moment, but Daeshin blocked their killing intent and shook his head.
“……”
The Sole Dragon God Emperor stared at Daeshin’s face for a moment, reading his intent, then let out a long sigh.
“Huu—! ‘The body, hair, and skin are received from one’s parents and must not be damaged—this is the beginning of filial piety.’ Even a single strand of my hair must be cherished, yet here I am in a situation where I must damage an object bearing my father’s name. This is all due to my own foolishness. However, since the matter of my mother’s race, the Dragon God race, is more urgent, I have no choice but to do this.”
The Sole Dragon God Emperor then took out a brush thickly coated with black ink from his robes and wrote his name in tiny characters beneath Jinri’s.
“110th Han Ryu-ho”
The Sword of Ruin and Soul, now bearing the perfect signatures of all the 10 Mainstays, vanished and reappeared in the hands of the Origin of the Dimension Clan. Seeing this, the Magic God of Dimensions felt the world go dark before his eyes. At the same time, he felt the qualification and authority of the Origin of the Dimension Clan being granted as compensation. Even the dimensional authority exclusively for the Magic God that had been promised was transmitted perfectly.
The request is complete, but I feel no joy whatsoever.
In exchange for success, he had been saddled with the absurd missions of acting as Jinri’s proxy in the Otherworld and reviving the Dragon God race. It was simply ridiculous.
“Kahahahahahahaha—!”
The only sound that reached his ears was the loud laughter of his future self, who seemed to be enjoying this immensely.