Becoming a God in "Ragnarok"

The game known as Ragnarok—or, in other words, the War of the Gods—boasts a worldview centered ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠around the battles of constellations who interfere in the human realm, a fitting motif for its grandiose name.

It was a famous game that anyone in the know had already heard of, and I was one of its avid players. Both in terms of its systems and pure entertainment value, it was solid enough that I had plenty of fond memories of diving in deep.

"...Ah."

When I opened my eyes, all I could see was a pure white world. And the instinctive thought that hit me upon facing it was that I was no longer a human existing on Earth.

It felt like I'd completely escaped the constraints of space and time. Was it a sense of omnipotence? Or euphoria? A surging confidence that I could achieve anything, create anything, filled me up, putting me in a pretty damn good mood.

"...Huh?"

What floated up in front of my eyes were familiar message windows... and some that weren't. They bobbed right in my field of vision. What the hell? Some unidentified message windows.

I waved my hand at them, shooing them away, but they stubbornly hung there, insisting on their presence until I acknowledged them.

"..."

Judging that ignoring them wouldn't change anything anyway, I just proceeded with the messages out of habit.

No, agree my ass. Is this even okay?

"Fuck."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

In the end, I had no choice but to agree to the window's prompt. Then numbers started climbing from 1 on their own. I waited anxiously for a while until they hit 100, and a clear tone rang in my head.

This time, there was a meaningful change. My body, which had been floating formlessly somewhere, began to take shape bit by bit, and my senses started returning.

First came my hands. Five neat fingers on each one greeted me warmly.

...Feels like my skin got even paler?

Smoother skin, maybe? The difference from before was stark. As I watched my feet form slowly too, the space around me began to shift.

"Whoa."

Despite the nonstop inhuman situation, no fear crept in—just pure curiosity kicking into overdrive.

Next to appear was a planetary shape, like a perfect replica of Earth.

"Wow."

It was so vivid, like viewing a real planet through an ultra-HD camera from deep space.

Ron. My brand-new nickname, freshly force-changed. Along with that awkward-ass title, more windows popped up, explaining the situation.

Around the planet that looked just like Earth floated countless star clusters. I knew what those were.

Constellations.

Beings who bestowed transcendent power on humans in exchange for worship. Thanks to the lunatics who insisted their god was the one true truth, the game's main storyline progressed.

True to its title Ragnarok, those who inherited divine power went on rampages. My role here wasn't much different. As a player, you built your religion, managed your devotees. Starting as a Baby Constellation, you gradually expanded your influence.

Of course, there were countless trial and error moments. The established constellations' forces were formidable, especially the nasty ones. You were already busy sneaking around to recruit devotees, and then trolls showed up, making the difficulty sky-high.

But still.

I pulled it off. It's a game, after all. Made to overcome the challenge and clear it, right? Even the devs encouraged that ending.

Having gobbled up the entire main storyline with satisfaction, I claimed my due reward and became the greatest god.

Next came a vast holy war scene. Amid devotees in splendid robes, my religion's emblem flew high. I'd just slapped on some random design, but seeing it treated so grandly even pumped me up with nonexistent pride.

"...Ooh."

The production values made it feel so real, stirring my heart fiercely. It was just like the real thing.

"...Huh?"

"What?"

Holy War. I get what it means now. Just a bunch of fuckers who hit rock bottom turning it into an XP grind event.

But daring to pull troll shit in my cleared world? Unforgivable.

"Punish them immediately."

Time to play the game for real. Life got too busy lately to check in, but I'm not heartless enough to abandon my devotee kids like that!

After all we've been through! I even placed cute devotees and mascots in the religion! Built affinity with the cute ones! Recruited rare cute devotees from elsewhere!

"The ultimate religion."

Yeah. I'd built my utopia, the greatest religion.

"Got it, okay."

With this level of immersion, I could totally treat it like reality, like my own business, and grind hard.

"Send me back now."

So, this hyper-real AR could wrap up its job here.

"I said I got it. I'll go back and play hard, okay?"

No response came.

—Hello? I asked alone in a place no one could hear, but of course, no answer returned.

A inexplicable anxiety belatedly crept up.

"Hey."

Or hey, you guys? Whoever tossed me into this nonsensical space, just let me out already. If you normalize me here and now, I could laugh it off as a prank.

"..."

And so, until I accepted reality, I was forced to remain trapped in that goddamn white void for what felt like an eternity.

# A space far removed from Earth, an entirely different world.

Dianon. In this battlefield of the gods, where countless devotees resided.

"...Ah."

A devotee who hadn't abandoned her god yet clasped her hands piously with unwavering faith.

Before her stood a massive statue, the symbol of the church. Their god, whose exact form was unknown and who exerted no direct influence.

And her god. The Constellation.

The woman was exceedingly beautiful. Had she not entrusted herself to the church, she might have lived a tiresome life hounded by countless men. Her red ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hair cascaded neatly to her waist, and at the end of her divinely blessed proportions was a heavenly visage humbly offering prayers.

Once more, the woman was exceedingly beautiful.

But her life hadn't been as blessed and smooth as her appearance. Without her Father God, she would have endured a far grueling, arduous existence.

Thus, she vowed to hold only her Constellation in her heart, giving her affection to no other.

Lisia. She plunged into bitter self-loathing for failing to even preserve the name by which to serve her Constellation.

She harbored no resentment toward her Lord God. She firmly believed this catastrophe stemmed solely from their own arrogance and hubris.

Even as vile forces stole the church's name and her Lord's existence, Lisia saw it as yet another trial testing her love and faith.

But.

"Father God, my love, my everything."

Lisia swallowed her anguish and boldly proclaimed the dire crisis befalling the church.

"I yearn to behold you. I wish to embrace you so fully that I lose myself in rapture."

"Please, guide this pitiful lamb on the path."

With her meager life alone, she lacked confidence to weather the coming storms steadfastly. Devotees' trust waned daily, precariousening the church's position. Perhaps it was only natural since they'd forgotten the Constellation's name.

Yet Lisia didn't give up. She prayed for that radiant moment to return once more.

Father God, grant deep enlightenment and inspiration to the devotees again.

Deliver light once more to a world blinded and deafened.

"I believe fervently."

And the object of that worship was much closer than she imagined.

Observing Lisia vividly through the system's aid was Kwon Sihan—no, the man who had become the Lord God Ron.

"...That's Lisia?"

He couldn't not know. Lisia was the special priestess he'd personally appointed in the game.

But that was real. A real, living person.

"She's fucking gorgeous, insane."

A living, breathing woman with the lifelike vibrancy he'd dreamed of. The character he'd raised like his own child had become a full-fledged priestess, worshiping him.

That alone made him want to flip in excitement, but one thing nagged at him.

"...Why does she look so sad?"

Lisia exuded a haggard aura, on the verge of tears.

Faith Value. Low faith from devotees triggered penalties that shaved off various stats. Lisia was in critical condition right now.

Checking her status window for details showed her Faith Value had dipped below 20—a hopeless state.

No, this wouldn't do. The main faith operations in the game were Revelation and Holy War.

"What the fuck."

And the situation was bad. Opening the map confirmed red dots swiftly closing in outside the prayer room. Way too many for her to handle alone.

...Daring to touch my devotee?

Irritation surged in a corner of my heart. I immediately manipulated the menu, touching 'Lisia's name.

—BOOM!

At that moment, the hostile forces burst into Lisia's space.