Chapter 180 Even the Almighty is New to Being a Dad Chapter 181
Absolute Dad 181
[You have made the greatest contribution to the annihilation of Athena, the divine being of the Olympus Star Cluster.]
[You have absorbed a portion of Athena's divine power.]
[The divine beings of the Olympus Star Cluster are enraged.]
[Many of the divine beings belonging to the Olympus Star Cluster now regard you as an enemy.]
Familiar status windows popped up one after another before his eyes, and a portion of Athena's divine power gradually flowed into Kang-jun.
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
Then, status messages indicating that his "level" had risen—something that hadn't happened in a while—began appearing in rapid succession...
[You have acquired the EX-grade authority, "March Toward Predestined Victory," previously held by Athena of the Olympus Star Cluster.]
Just like when he had annihilated other divine beings before, he was able to seize and claim the authority of the one he had just destroyed.
[March Toward Predestined Victory]
Grade: EX
Description: Opens a massive dimensional gate in the sky, using divine power as a catalyst to rain down weaponized constructs like a storm.
Characteristics: This authority can be fused with other authorities or reinterpreted to evolve into new authorities with limitless potential.
As Kang-jun read the description of his newly acquired authority, he let out a small, involuntary sigh of amazement.
"Fusion and reinterpretation, huh..."
The EX-grade authority he had stolen from Susanoo of the Takamagahara Star Cluster, "Calamity," had also undergone reinterpretation and evolved into a new authority.
[The Arrival of Ruin]
Originally, "Calamity" had allowed him to expend divine power to summon natural disasters—lightning strikes, typhoons, tidal waves—across any region he desired.
But after its reconstruction, "The Arrival of Ruin" now unleashed pitch-black lightning wreathed in inextinguishable hellfire, towering waves tainted with poison and blood, and typhoons laced with razor-sharp killing intent.
In short, it had become far more powerful.
Unlike the original "Calamity," which had merely channeled divine power, this reconstructed version had adapted to his own nature, amplifying its strength exponentially.
True, it now required not just divine power but also vast amounts of black magic to activate—but for Kang-jun, whose reserves of magic were as boundless as the ocean, that was hardly a concern.
'Then this new authority I just acquired...'
It seemed to imply that he could either fuse it with another authority for optimal use or reconstruct it into something entirely new.
"This is incredible."
When he finally snapped back to reality and looked behind him, he realized just how overwhelmingly powerful he had become.
He couldn't even remember the last time he had felt this sense of accomplishment from growing stronger.
In fact, he had long since lost track of what he even needed to do to become stronger.
It had been ages.
Not just the feeling of growing stronger, but the realization that there was still a path forward—it had been so long since he had felt that.
"There's still a way to go..."
To Kang-jun, the very existence of that path felt like a reward in itself.
There had been a time when he thought he no longer needed to pursue martial strength.
He had already reached a level of overwhelming power where no one could possibly rival him.
No matter how strong his enemies were, they would fall within mere exchanges.
And so, he had grown weary.
He believed he had already reached the pinnacle—there was no reason left for him to grow stronger.
But now, he had a reason.
Things he wanted to protect had appeared.
And he wanted to protect them without fail.
"Daddy!"
The words Athena had uttered just before she shattered into polygonal fragments kept ringing in his ears.
"This world is nothing but ■■■■'s—"
She had said it clearly.
"—■."
Kang-jun refused to believe this world was merely ■.
Did that mean the emotions he had been feeling lately were nothing but illusions?
Were the things he wanted to protect nothing more than mirages?
Impossible.
And so, before the ■■■■ who had declared it would awaken in the near future could rise from its deep slumber and make its move...
"Power..."
He resolved to amass overwhelming strength—enough to protect everything without fail.
Ding!
Just then, another system message appeared.
[All conditions have been met. Hidden Piece activated.]
[Hidden Piece: The Narrative of Olympus' Predestined Day of Destruction ■■■■■■]
You have realized that the divine beings of the Olympus Star Cluster intend to steal your epithet and offer it to ■■■■, the master of the Cthulhu Star Cluster.
To ensure your survival and safety, you must bring about the predestined day of destruction for the Olympus Star Cluster, which now regards you as an enemy.
If you successfully guide ■■■■■■ to fruition, the narrative of this world will advance toward the "next word" under your leadership.
Kang-jun frowned slightly as he read the sudden system message.
[A portion of the word being constructed for the Hidden Piece has been revealed.]
Ding—!
『■■■■■■』
The word began to change.
『Gi■■■■■』
After staring at the indecipherable characters for a moment, Kang-jun exhaled and began gathering his power.
Just as it had always been, the things he didn't understand would naturally become clear with time.
"Alright, I'll wait."
It was time to return to his daily life.
The things he wanted to protect.
The things he would protect, no matter what.
"She might be sulking because I'm late."
Back to his ordinary, everyday life.
The moment he stepped out of the gate, he checked the time—several hours had already passed.
Knock knock.
Kang-jun hurriedly made his way to the udon specialty restaurant North Sea Udon Shop at the edge of the residential district, gently knocking on the door before stepping inside...
"Kang-jun, you're finally back..."
For some reason, Jeong Pil-sang looked like he had aged several years in just that short time, but he still greeted Kang-jun warmly.
"You look a lot more haggard in just a little while."
At that, Jeong Pil-sang blinked. "A little while...?" he muttered in a voice that sounded like it had been dragged through gravel.
"Felt like days to me..."
It seemed he had been thoroughly tormented by the "Endless Calculation Game" while Kang-jun was away.
But...
No matter how he thought about it, there was no way the game could have ended already.
"So, is the game over?"
Jeong Pil-sang slowly shook his head from side to side...
"Not a chance..."
Just then, Seol, who had been sitting at the counter in the distance, spotted Kang-jun and shouted brightly.
"Another customer came, Daddy!"
Then, counting on her tiny fingers one by one, she muttered, "That makes five now, right?"
"Phew."
She wiped her forehead and sighed softly.
"Phew, I'm so busy..."
At a glance, it seemed even Baal and Dibaldo, who had left the gate earlier, were now suffering under Seol's "Endless Calculation Game."
Baal and Dibaldo, visibly exhausted as they stood in line at the counter, looked at Kang-jun with hopeful eyes.
"Immortal, you here to save us?!"
"My liege, I knew you would come!"
Jeong Pil-sang also turned his head sharply to glance at Kang-jun...
"Where's Bong-gu?"
At Kang-jun's question, Dibaldo answered indignantly.
"He made up some excuse about delivering the captured cultists and rescued hostages to the Bureau and ran off!"
Baal nodded in agreement.
"That coward isn't worth associating with anymore!"
Kang-jun nodded.
"Lucky him."
Then, without hesitation, he walked to the very end of the long line in front of the counter and added,
"Sorry, but I'm not here to save you."
"Then...?"
"Looks like I've been caught too."
Everyone slumped in despair...
"Should we just run?"
"Freedom..."
"I'm quitting this job!"
The "Endless Calculation Game" showed no signs of stopping, continuing relentlessly until Seol finally wore herself out.
The next afternoon.
—Last night, an A-rank gate that appeared near the residential district of Bangbae 1-dong went berserk, pulling dozens of nearby citizens inside...
—In an official press conference, Director Seo Do-cheol of the Bureau announced that a rescue team led by Korea's A-rank Hunter, Filial Son Kim Bong-gu, successfully suppressed the incident...
News reports about yesterday's gate incident were being broadcast one after another.
"Daddy!"
Seol, who had just returned from daycare, called out to Kang-jun as she opened her backpack and carefully pulled out a piece of paper to hand to him.
"Teacher Sunny said to show you this."
Kang-jun took the paper from Seol and muttered quietly.
"A parent-teacher letter..."
He skimmed through the contents.
[Snow White Daycare Weekend Farm Program Notice]
In short, they were planning to operate a free weekend farm using unused land within the daycare premises.
—This program was designed to give children the opportunity to learn about the importance of ecology and the environment...
—Parents are asked to bring seeds or seedlings for their children to plant and nurture when dropping them off tomorrow...
—Recommended varieties include morning glories, kidney beans, sunflowers, etc...
Kang-jun glanced at Seol.
"Seol, it looks like you'll get to grow plants or trees in the daycare's garden from now on."
"Oh, yeah! Teacher Sunny said I gotta tell Mommy and Daddy what I wanna grow!"
Kang-jun tilted his head.
"What do you want to grow, Seol?"
Seol hummed in thought for a moment.
"Pretty flowers are nice, and big trees like this are good too. Or sweet fruits and yummy vegetables..."
She seemed to have a lot of things she wanted to grow.
"Hmm..."
Kang-jun pondered as well.
"Our Seol's garden should be the most amazing one..."
Wasn't Seol already a major landowner with a 700,000-pyeong (approx. 2.3 million square meters) corn farm in California?
Back when they were eating pizza together, the moment she said, "I like corn," he had impulsively bought her the entire farm.
"Alright, Daddy's decided."
"Huh?"
"Let's show them how it's done."
With that, Kang-jun immediately called someone.
As soon as the call connected, he got straight to the point.
"I need you to retrieve something I entrusted to the private vault."
On the other end, Kazan immediately asked,
—Which one...?
Kang-jun answered without hesitation.
"If I remember correctly, I entrusted a sapling of the World Tree to you."
The scale of the weekend farm had just expanded dramatically.