Confronting the Mad God

My mouth went bone-dry. Cold sweat poured down my body like rain. My heart pounded so hard it hurt. My body was straight-up screaming at me to run the hell away from that thing.

Fuck, this was embarrassing. Had I ever been this scared before?

Maybe ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠when I first came to this world and faced Yuna one-on-one. Or when I first saw Frostia descend. But the pressure crushing me now was on a completely different level.

I glanced around. The preliminary round participants who'd regained their confidence torturing Poseid looked confused, like they had no idea what this sudden appearance was. That made it even creepier. They weren't terrified because Nanar was properly containing his power.

But I could feel it. Having reached the level of divine power, I understood exactly how absurdly powerful this chief god Nanar was.

They say ignorance is bliss. Poseid had been right next to this bastard for so long—how the hell did he have the balls to claim he'd be the only god in this world?

"Hmm."

Nanar, still scratching his cheek, hadn't changed form like Poseid. He remained in Makia's appearance. More precisely, a golden silhouette identical to her floated over Makia's body. When I'd seen the main body before, it had just been a human-shaped mass of light that you couldn't tell was male or female.

"Whoa. Dre. You can see my true worth now, can't you?"

"......"

"Amazing! You're already on the verge of becoming a god just by crossing stages. You're really interesting, you know that?"

I didn't answer. No, I couldn't answer.

[KRRRRAAAAAAAHHHH!!]

"......!!"

A tremendous power surged from deep in my chest. Malakia—the being with the violent, powerful karma of poison and darkness, like an abyss—roared.

Malakia. His soul, which had been unconscious, had awakened. Even when I'd attacked Poseid, he'd unconsciously lent me his power. Now, just sensing Nanar's presence, he'd woken up.

[Nanaaarrrrrr!!!!]

Black killing intent flowed from my body and formed the shape of a black dragon. At the same time, I felt a huge chunk of my Runar being consumed. What the hell was this lizard doing? I couldn't even finish the thought—Malakia's power was just that overwhelming. Maybe this attack would actually drive that bastard back.

There was one more being of immense power.

[Kwangshin!!]

The water dragon, almost as furious as Malakia, spat out water to set Rius down before charging at Nanar with its massive body.

Honestly, both of them were far stronger than Poseid had been just moments ago. Even fighting just one of them would've been... yeah. The auras the black dragon and water dragon gave off were deep and powerful.

This was the dragon race. The apex of the ecosystem.

"Hmm."

"......!"

What the—

At some point, Nanar was standing right in front of me.

"Hee. I heard your eyes were sharp, so I wondered what you looked like... Not bad. I like it. Yeah."

"......"

What happened to the two dragons? I couldn't take my eyes off Nanar, but I sensed the situation through my energy. The water dragon and black dragon had lost their power and collapsed, dissolving into water and black poisonous smoke respectively. He took them both down? When?

"Hm? Ah. I used a time-series technique! You must not have noticed because you used up quite a bit, right?"

What kind of cheat was that?

"Why are you..."

"Here? I was just about to explain."

Tap. Tap.

I allowed him to pat my shoulder because there was no hostility. But even if there had been hostility, even if I'd wanted to stop him... could I have?

"I'll answer any question you have. Ask away. For example, how the Hero used his authority on the Lord of Light yet the Lord still avoided it and schemed, or what that imprint I left on you actually was?"

"......"

When I didn't answer, Nanar laughed cheerfully and made a thoughtful sound with a bright expression.

"Your first question was why I came, right?"

Nanar smiled brightly with Makia's face. I'd seen her smile before, but the content was different, so the impression was completely different. Those eyes were still beautiful, but before they'd been literally beautiful eyes. Now they radiated a dangerous kind of beauty.

"Obviously I came to meet you and talk. Last time, the Dragon God and All-Nist... and your unknown power got in the way, so we couldn't talk, right?"

"You're persistent."

"Ahaha! I hear that a lot!"

Pat pat.

Nanar, who'd patted my shoulder, clasped his hands behind my back. Since it was Makia's body, the appearance alone was breathtakingly cute, but right now... it just looked like a monster pretending to be human.

"See? I'm ready to answer anything! Ask whatever you want!"

"N-Nanar..."

"...Ah."

A weak voice. The chief god reacted as if he'd just remembered.

"Whoa~ Poseid! That was a disaster."

"...H-Heal me."

"Yeah, yeah."

Wooong.

With a single gesture, Poseid—who'd been torn apart by my ruin attribute—was cleanly regenerated. So this bastard had come to take Poseid's side after all?

Then I'd just have to beat him down again. But when I raised my sword, Nanar tapped it and slowly lowered it. I'd reflexively tried to slash him, but then I realized—if I tried to cut him now, I'd die.

"Ahaha. Wait a sec, Dre."

"...Bullshit."

Poseid, his body restored, sneered at me.

"Kuhuhuhuhu... You still... don't get the situation...!"

When I glared at him in irritation, Poseid flinched. This bastard was getting cocky just because his backup showed up.

Thinking back, Poseid had always talked like there was someone behind him. Goddamn it. I'd thought he was the villain from a sequel episode in novel terms, but I never expected him to actually appear now.

Loveheart was the same. Whether she was empty-headed or cunning—I was betting on the former—but she was my assigned goddess. Even if she couldn't say the name due to some restriction, she should've told me there were two gods contracted with her. Instead, she'd referred to them as "that guy" and "him" during our conversation.

Probably "him" was Poseid, whom she could call casually. The "that guy" she'd spoken of with clear hostility must've been Nanar. The god Loveheart had mentioned contracting with was definitely this bastard. Even that empty-headed bitch wouldn't have been fooled by an idiot like Poseid.

"Nanar... Kill this bastard quickly and return my children to me."

"And if you get them back? Are you going to punish the children who returned?"

At my sarcastic remark, his expression hardened. It wasn't anger so much as the look of someone whose sore spot had been poked. This bastard was hopeless. He was the one who'd offered them as sacrifices while playing on emotions, and now he wanted to attack them for trying to survive by moving to Mangshin inside me? This guy really had no answers.

"Quickly! I need to restore my divinity. According to the contract..."

"Poseid."

Nanar called him softly.

"Contract?"

"...Yes. You and I made a contract. According to that contract, I descended here before you and..."

"Then why did you do something that wasn't in the contract?"

Nanar cut him off.

"......Th-That..."

"While you were descended, you built your temple... and if you gained followers, you thought you'd become like me?"

"N-No..."

Poseid backed away hesitantly. The participants, who'd raised their weapons in tension upon seeing his revival, couldn't make sense of the strange situation. I was no different. I'd been thinking I'd have to use my "trump card" since I'd have to fight both of them, but...

"N-Nanar. I..."

"According to the contract, I said I'd cover the causality you consumed, and I also explained Makia's uniqueness. Compared to the causality you originally had to pay, it was an extremely generous situation, so I understand your greed. But didn't you go too far?"

"...There was no other choice."

Hah, what a bastard. Even now, he wouldn't admit he was wrong. ...No, he'd apologized after getting beaten to a pulp, so this was just a bastard who couldn't read the room unless he got hit.

"Well, it's fine. That level of consumption is nothing compared to the causality I've gathered so far."

"......!"

Poseid's face showed shock. But at Nanar's next words, his face twisted.

"I figured you'd do this anyway."

"What?"

Nanar laughed casually.

"I gave you some good information, and you showed me exactly what I expected."

"...Didn't you tell me to win Dre over?"

"I did? But someone as greedy as you, who has nothing to show for it, someone who's already been trampled by me yet still doesn't know his place—there's no way you'd stay still, right? You're so easy to predict."

"...You bastard, how dare you... use the Water God Poseid!!"

I was sure I hadn't even blinked so I wouldn't miss Nanar's movements. But Poseid was now sprawled out with holes all over his body, in an even more gruesome state than before.

"Huu... huk...!"

"Go back, Poseid. If you go back, I'll slowly consume you."

"Huu...!!"

Shwaaak.

Poseid dissolved into water and disappeared. His summoning to this world had been canceled. Before the silence could settle, Nanar made a fuss.

"Whoa! Sorry! That trash wasted our time! Sorry sorry!"

Sorry, my ass.

"Did you send that bastard?"

"Hm? I clearly told him to win you over?"

"And you gave him all kinds of information so he'd fight me. You said it yourself, so what's with the excuses?"

"Ahahaha! I brought Poseid in because I thought you'd win!"

I snorted. And said what I was really thinking without filtering it.

"Bullshit."

At my answer, the chief god blinked. Tension rose. I gripped the sword hilt hard enough to break it and prepared for an attack.

"Uuuuugh~~"

"...?"

Nanar trembled and made an moved expression. What the hell? I was staring at him in disbelief when he sniffled and pretended to wipe tears with his fingers.

"No, really. It's been so long since someone treated me like this. Even the highest-ranking gods who could be considered my equals are mostly well-mannered, so it's been forever since I got cursed at."

"Are you a masochist?"

"Maybe! That sounds good! Next time, should we try sadism? Masochism? That?"

This crazy bastard. Even calling him crazy didn't land properly.

"...E-Excuse me..."

"Hm?"

It was the blonde, glamorous priestess who'd approached. Cardinal Rafnir. She'd originally worn a mask of benevolent and pious expression. But now... she had the fresh, excited look of a girl in her prime. As a member of the Holy Kingdom and a priestess, she must've figured out what the being before her eyes was. Glancing over, I saw Mari, who'd been sitting a bit away, also had a confused expression. She hadn't received Kaits's pre-regression memories yet, so this was her first time seeing an actual god. And she probably never expected to see Nanar, whom the Holy Kingdom worshipped.

"H-How dare this insignificant one ask..."

Rafnir knelt and pressed her head to the ground. Then Nanar approached her.

"Hey!"

I raised my sword to stop him, but Nanar smiled and waved his hand as if to say it was fine, then bent down in front of Rafnir and lifted her chin with his finger.

"A-Aaaaah...!"

Rafnir just trembled with an expression like she couldn't believe such happiness was allowed. And Nanar spoke in a gentle voice.

"Ask away."

"...A-Ah... I-I'm sorry! Asking! How dare a mere believer ask! I-I chose my words poorly...!"

"You didn't choose poorly, Rafnir."

"......! Y-You know my name...?"

"Of course. You prayed every day, all the time. That my name would become more widely known, that the Holy Kingdom would be peaceful, that the world would be happy, that Mullin would return... Without missing a single day."

"A-Aaaaah...! L-Lord Nanar!!"

"Yeah. That's me."

Kwang!!

Rafnir slammed her head into the ground with shocking force. Blood splattered and the floor cracked, but Rafnir didn't stop—she kept banging her head.

Nanar laughed and pointed at her with his finger, as if to say, See? This is what happens when they see me. This son of a bitch. He could've stopped Rafnir anytime but just left her alone. What a piece of shit.

"This insignificant servant greets the god!!"

"Insignificant? Devout believers like you are rare. Come on, stand up."

And Rafnir's head was cleanly restored—actually, it was even more solid than before she'd been injured.

"Aaaaah...! A divine miracle!!"

Rafnir stood up groveling. Mari just swallowed and didn't show any reaction...

"Mari."

"!"

Mari's body trembled at Nanar's call.

"You were watching too. Or rather, I should say you observed quite closely."

"Hey."

"?"

Nanar turned his head at my call.

"Stop messing with the innocent kid and get to business."

"Ahahaha! Casual speech?! I like it! The familiarity is great! Dre!"

Nanar smiled brightly as if he'd never been interested in Mari and spun around with a little jump.

"Where were we? That your attitude is very fresh? Look. My believers are kind, but they're not fun..."

"H-How presumptuous!"

Kwang!

She slammed her just-healed head into the ground again. Without even looking, Nanar regenerated her and wrapped her in light so she couldn't kneel anymore.

"I don't care, but you seemed to dislike it."

"......"

"What was it you asked earlier...? Hmm... Ah. Why I incited Poseid? Like I said before, I definitely thought you'd win. Yeah."

Nanar circled around me, making thoughtful sounds.

"It's embarrassing to say it myself, but I'm quite an impulsive god."

"So?"

"At first I just wanted to talk to you, but then I also wanted to see you fight, and I was curious how far you'd go against a divine being? If you're too weak, there's no conversation, so I needed a god with decent divine power. And one you had a grudge against. That was just Poseid."

If this continued, I'd keep getting swept up in his pace. If so, I'd ask questions.

"What was the story you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wanted to tell me from before?"

"That's mean! You don't want to talk to me so you're trying to end it quickly?? I really wanted to talk to you! Can't you take it slow?"

"Ah, fuck, seriously."

"Ahahaha!"

Instead of Nanar's roaring laughter, anger came from an unexpected place.

"How dare you!! Do you know who this person is and still act that way!!!"

Rafnir was pretty, but her pretty face was now twisted like a demon. Did I know who he was? Yeah. So I answered.

"Nanar."

"...!! H-How dare you speak the god's name so casually...!"

She'd called him that herself.

"If you're someone who might become part of the Hero Party, if you're someone who'll take the Sword position, you should show the proper respect!"

"Ooh?! What's that! The Sword of Light? Interesting story!"

The moment Nanar opened his mouth, Rafnir hurriedly bowed her head. Watching this was kind of fun.

"The Sword of Light is like my spokesperson, similar to the Hero. You want to be my spokesperson? Dre."

"I refuse."

"Aww, don't be like that... Ah, I asked what I was curious about with you, right? Before that, let me say one thing."

"What."

"The reason I made you fight Poseid wasn't just for fun."

"......"

This bastard was messing around again.

"First, what I'm curious about is—did you fight Gaia?"

".....?"

Gaia? Someone had vaguely mentioned it to me before...? Given that it's a goddess name from mythology, it must be a divine being.

"How would I fight someone I've never even met? I don't even know who that is..."

"Eek? You're lying, right?"

Nanar suddenly thrust his face forward. Since it was Makia's face, my heart skipped a beat without thinking.

"Does it make sense that you don't even know who your patron god is?"

"...What are you talking about."

Then I realized. The divine beings weren't reacting at all right now. The system wasn't working. ...From the moment this bastard Nanar descended, intervention became impossible?

"Hmm... I'll hear about that later. The reason I tried to make Poseid or other divine beings fight you was, like I said, because I wanted to see you fight and your potential... and also because I thought you might still have 'Equality' left."

"......"

"The other gods are Inlis. Ah, the one contracted with me. She's still incredibly strong, you know? Since you fought someone like that, I figured you'd naturally use All-Nist's authority, Equality. The reason no one noticed Equality activating was because you used it within the Mind Realm... or so I thought?"

My mouth went dry again. I gripped my sword tightly.

"Inlis is still my contractor, right? I can roughly tell what happened to her... but something felt off. It seemed like she lost not because of skill, but something else, and it was clear she didn't use her authority."

Nanar ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠responded to my sharp gaze with a bright smile and continued.

"And given your uniqueness, I thought there was a high chance Equality remained."

"You were afraid of Equality."

It was a remark that scratched at his pride. But Nanar laughed.

"Yeah. That's right."

A refreshingly honest affirmation.

"All-Nist is scary in many ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ways~ No matter who I am, when I descend to the present world, I can't use my true body's power as is. If I get hit by your Equality in that state... I thought there was a very high chance I'd end up like Poseid, getting beaten by you instead. You're strong, after all."

I gripped my sword hard. Then Nanar tilted his head, going "Hm? Huh?"

"...Ah, this. Did I just admit out loud that I came here thinking I'd fight you?"

Ching!!

Severing Sword, maximum speed.

I unleashed the fastest sword strike I could—and sunlight-like radiance covered heaven and earth.