No Rest for the Hero God
It was a shame to waste the chance to grow stronger in the Otherworld War, and though dealing with his own direct subordinates left a bad taste in his mouth, the Magic God of Dimensions hurriedly activated Coa to handle both matters before anything unmanageable could occur. Yet it refused to move at all. The Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family had already predicted his actions and blocked them. The Magic God of Dimensions was not the only one who had analyzed his opponent's personality and behavioral patterns.
You predicted my moves? No way—! Even my future self, a Creator God-level Magic God, can't predict my own actions and decisions, so how? More importantly, Coa and the Dimensional Authority won't budge! Did the Origin of the Mage God suppress them directly? Are you really planning to go all out over a mere Main God? That's not right—! I don't even have to join the war, so just take her away already!
Once she was out of sight, the Main God of the Main Universe would lose all interest in her. Before the situation could escalate any further, he gestured urgently to Himejina, signaling her to drag Riasna out of there. Himejina, who had roughly grasped what kind of existence the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family was and what his temperament entailed, quickly moved to pull Riasna away. She understood that there was nothing more terrifying than an entity possessing absolute power who acted without hesitation, even if no malice was involved.
But Riasna, who had shown no reaction until now as if she had completely given up on life, shook off the hand and swiftly knelt before the Origin of the Mage God. She dropped to both knees and bowed her head in a posture that could only be described as desperate pleading. Himejina, who had chased after her in a panic, felt the gaze of the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family and immediately prostrated herself beside her in the same submissive stance.
"Thank you so much. But I have no idea what I should do now. The one I longed for so deeply already has a partner and even concubines, so what am I supposed to do? Please, help me."
Uwaaaaah! Help with what, exactly?
From the Magic God of Dimensions' perspective, the situation was enough to draw out a scream on its own. No matter how much permission the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family had received to intervene with the 499th Creator, the control of Truth that forbade interference in the Main Universe and Absolute Realm still imposed clear limits. Even so, with an interesting situation unfolding right before his eyes, the Origin clearly wanted to intervene directly and was searching for solid justification. This, however, amounted to handing over full authority and telling him to do whatever he wanted.
You fearless fool—! Do you even know who that person truly is? Power is only part of it. He knows no giving up and will use any means necessary to turn the impossible into reality. Don't you understand how terrifying the Origins of the Wind Family are, entities that even the 10 Mainstays can't touch lightly? So please, don't consult such a fearsome being. Don't ask for help! It's your new life, so deal with it yourself! Not just you—everyone around you won't survive this—!
Having been entangled with the Origins of the Wind Family and suffering bitterly for it, his accumulated experience allowed him to roughly predict how this would unfold. Yet contrary to his fears, the gentle voice of the Origin of the Mage God reached them.
"Do not worry. The Wind Family is the foremost expert in problems that arise from such marriages. Believe in the power and traditions of my family, which has successfully conducted more than five million supremely perfect and happy wedding ceremonies. I will handle everything properly according to the laws of the Wind Family."
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
After being deceived into marriage by the Feminist, everyone had only criticized her. Yet these were the first infinitely kind words she had ever heard. Riasna bowed her head repeatedly in a daze, expressing her gratitude. She might not fully understand the disposition of the Origins of the Wind Family, but she at least seemed to know that as an Eternal Being equal to a Creator, his assistance would make the impossible nearly certain.
She had no idea, however, that the process of turning the impossible into reality would be anything but easy. From the Magic God of Dimensions' own experience, that process was blood-curdlingly difficult—a forced progression so relentless that even if one wished to die, one could not. It was only natural that it would be an unbearable level for the Main God of the Main Universe. If it were only difficult for her, he could ignore it, but experience told him that the intervention of the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family could never have such limited impact. He did not tolerate giving up on help once received, and if the recipient proved insufficient, he would mercilessly drag everyone around them into it as well.
Damn it all—! If she can't endure the resolution process, those around her will be affected too. What am I supposed to do about this? The expansion of correction targets would make me—the Main God of the Divine Realm—the very first victim?
Wondering how to clean up this mess, the Magic God of Dimensions turned his head to observe the unfolding situation. Seeing Riasna rejoice and express endless gratitude made his stomach twist again. It reminded him of the forced training from his past. The thirty thousand years spent with the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family, who refused to accept surrender and drove one endlessly toward the goal, still made him shudder to this day.
You naive fool—! Truth grants rewards and punishments together for the sake of fairness. Knowing that, you still eagerly accept help from the Wind Family Origins, blood relatives who worship that very principle? Reject it right now and run—! Can't you see what this means for my situation?
The matter concerning Riasna had already been taken over by the Origin of the Mage God himself, and since she had accepted it, it was now beyond his ability to influence. For the moment, he needed to focus on the Main God Temple, where he could still intervene.
Damn it—! I know I have no right to say this, but why does it look so pathetic? Is this how I looked to others when I charged forward without considering the future, all for the sake of compensation? I don't even know anymore. I'll just do what I can.
The war situation was shifting once again. The Main God Lords, who had been locked in a back-and-forth exchange with three or four newly promoted Creator Candidate gods and the main goddesses of the Goddess Blood Alliance, now took the damage head-on. They forcibly shook off their opponents and began charging toward the dimensional gate.
The sudden attempt to break through the encirclement left the Creator Candidates and Main Gods flustered as they tried to stop them, but the battle gods from the other Main Divine Realms desperately held them back from behind, forcing them to let the Lords pass. Above all, they could not halt a breakthrough executed by superiors who cared nothing for their own bodies. Of course, even the Main God Lords could not emerge unscathed; they sustained considerable injuries, but they still reached the dimensional gate.
Having discerned the Main God Lords' intentions, the Magic God of Dimensions let out a low sound that mixed admiration and mockery.
"Hoo? As expected of the Main God Lords, gatekeepers of the Creation Realm. No matter how strong their authorities may be, makeshift Creator Gods cannot suppress them easily. And in this situation, dealing with me first—the one promoting them—is indeed the correct answer. But isn't it too late? If you had done this three minutes ago, you might have had a chance. Now? Definitely not."
With confidence, he raised his right hand and stroked the Divine Spirit Purgatory embedded in his forehead.
Kukukuk—! If they all gather like this at once, it's perfect for me. Nine of them, so it'll end in exactly nine seconds.
The number 29 shone brilliantly there once more. This was time that could only belong to the most radiant Hero God. In peaceful times it would be far too short, but in a war like this, it was more than enough to completely turn the tide. It was the moment he felt once again that choosing power had been the right decision.
"Even after using nine seconds, twenty seconds remain."
That was plenty of time to deal with an additional twenty Creator Gods. Yet he sensed something strange. He had been resting with everything he had in the seat of glory without doing anything, yet not even a single second of the time limit had recovered. There was not even a hint of restoration.
Why is the time recovery so slow? Shouldn't it recover if I rest quietly, like stamina or divine power?
The Main God Lords, desperately charging to execute him—the core of the Troop of Creation God—were still not true threats. With that question in mind, he examined the now-understood authority of the '99-second Hero God' in detail. He could not grasp its fundamental composition, but he could read the kind explanatory phrases written as clearly as a guide.
"If you wish for the limited time to recover, work diligently. No matter how many good things you consume while resting, it will never recover. Contribute to the development of Grandfather Truth's karma. As a Creator God of the divine race, recovery will accelerate if you receive praise and faith through the development and expansion of the universe."
Huk—! It's Truth's karma again?
It meant comfortable recovery would never be possible. Moreover, having become a Creator God Main God Lord and reached absolute good, the karma laws he had stopped paying attention to had resurfaced. Without contributing to the karma of development, time recovery would not occur. The problem was that the contributions of a Main God and a Creator God were on entirely different scales. For a Creator God who oversaw a regional universe and managed dozens of divine realms ruled by Main Gods, reviving one or two divine realms would never be enough to raise his contribution. At minimum, he would need to create an entire Creator God-level divine realm or produce powerful Main Gods capable of assuming the role of Main God of the Divine Realm.
Anticipating what that would require, a groan escaped him naturally.
"Hmm—!"
His thoughts grew complicated as he realized he would need to revise his future plans for the Hero God's time recovery, but he could accept the logic. Regret came flooding in as well.
I shouldn't have spent those sixty seconds so easily out of the original ninety-nine. Just how much development will I need to contribute to recover sixty seconds? And as expected of Truth's bloodline. As the 99-second Hero God, it demands I create more than I destroy? No special treatment without an equal price, as always. Still, considering the power it grants, it is certainly fair. And if resting doesn't restore the time….
The power of the '99-second Hero God,' which consumed every possibility a Creator God possessed in a single instant, was indeed tremendous. But the time limit was too short and recovery too difficult, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. Yet from his current position as a Main God Lord, it seemed perfectly reasonable, so he had no choice but to accept it.
He stamped his foot against the seat of glory within the divine realm and rose to his feet.
"Then there is no longer any need to remain seated here."
Thud—! Thud—!
The floor of the Main God Temple rang out and caved in wherever his feet touched. The burden placed on his body while maintaining the Troop of Creation God was immense. As the Origin of the Mage God had said, it was an authority requiring the highest level of power and computational ability even in the Absolute Realm. The price of manifesting it in the Main Universe transferred directly to his body, making movement nearly impossible. He offset that burden using the talent and physical ability gained through the Dimensional Authority granted by the Origin of the Mage God from the Wind Family. Of course, because it was external assistance forcibly suppressing the strain rather than his own power, even a simple foot stomp inflicted massive collateral damage on his surroundings.
Rumble—! Rumble—!
Crushing the shattered fragments of the round table beneath his feet, the Magic God of Dimensions strode toward the wall where the dimensional gates converged. Any fragments of the table that flew up during his advance were completely pulverized and vanished the instant they neared him. With tremendous higher authorities activated and clashing throughout his body, the act of moving itself had become a lethal weapon.
Fighting spirit and killing intent poured from the Magic God of Dimensions like a storm, shaking the very air of the Main God Temple. A high-ranking Main God Lord belonged to the elite even in the 499th Master Universe. When nine such opponents charged at him with full power while enduring injuries, he could barely contain his excitement.
"I will not waste the precious time of the Hero God—which must be exchanged for tremendous positive karma—on mere Main God Lords. However, to these noble Main God Lords, even if they are lower in rank, I, the one who stands first in hierarchy, will face them directly."
Until now, as a weakling and mercenary god, the Magic God of Dimensions had always charged at the strong using any means necessary. He had earned the stigma of cowardice for it, yet still achieved victory through sheer tenacity. Now, experiencing the attacks of the weak from a superior position as the strong for the first time, his voice—brimming with killing intent—left the Main God Temple, resounding throughout the entire divine realm and reaching the challengers.
"Show me everything you can do for the sake of victory. Overcome this trial as I once did! If you can surpass the wall that is me, that is."
At that moment, the Main God Lords emerged from the dimensional gate. Blood poured from the wounds they had sustained under the Creator Candidates' attacks, yet they landed safely on the floor.