The Usurper of Divine Favor

But those anxieties quickly vanished. The Fortress of Pantheon hadn't been built just for show.

Flash!

A holy light erupted from the very center of the fortress. A waterfall of radiance! The colossal light spread so brightly that it even dispelled the darkness radiating from Nevuchadnezzar.

"Aaaagh!"

"Urgh!"

The ghouls leaping into the fortress's moat melted the instant they touched the light. They didn't just die or collapse—they were instantly unsummoned! It was a purification so absolute that even Nevuchadnezzar couldn't resurrect them.

The Legendary-grade Death Knights and giant undead monsters fared no better. Though they didn't melt instantly, they realized that dying under these conditions meant they could never be resurrected. Terrified, they began to flee.

Wait, what?

Tae-hyun paused mid-celebration. He had assumed only the Archisus Church would receive rewards, but the other churches housed within the fortress were getting rewarded too. It made his stomach twist with jealousy!

Ugh...

But those notification windows were just the beginning.

An entirely unexpected outcome!

Persuading the churches of the Central Continent, dragging out their paladins and priests, and constructing the fortress to prepare for battle—Tae-hyun had spearheaded all of it. His hard work hadn't been in vain. It was all coming back to him now. The gods knew exactly who had done the heavy lifting!

Titles poured in from every single church Tae-hyun had dragged into this. And it didn't stop there.

"..."

[...]

Despite the actual churches existing, Tae-hyun had bypassed them entirely to snatch the gods' favor for himself!

Hmm. I feel like I just got scammed...

It felt like he had gained almost nothing while saddling himself with a massive headache!

In truth, the titles of being chosen by the gods didn't grant much. They provided bonuses when using skills related to each deity, but since Tae-hyun wasn't a paladin or priest of those orders, he barely had any such skills. He did gain the qualification to visit each church and attempt to usurp them, but...

One glance was enough to tell these quests were of absurd difficulty. Honestly, attempting them now would be like throwing eggs at a boulder. Unless the church NPCs had completely lost their minds, there was no way they would say, "Oh, welcome, Pope of the Archisus Church—the one who constantly exploits us! Please take over our church as well and lead us to greatness!"

In the end, all he had gained was a meaningless qualification and...

Are you mocking me?

Sure, they were honorable, but they were useless... Honestly, stealing them would have been much easier! Rather than being chosen and acting like a good guy, it felt far more comfortable to just seize their Authorities, conquer their churches, and rebuild them from scratch. Of course, the latter option was overwhelmingly unhinged...

"Whoaaaa!"

The undead army melted away like snow before the fortress's light, and the survivors retreated toward Nevuchadnezzar. The remaining players erupted into wild cheers.

Nevuchadnezzar was still alive and well, and the overall situation hadn't changed... but the battle just now had been utterly overwhelming. On top of that, the rewards poured in with every single clash. No player could witness this and not get incredibly hyped.

Currently, almost every personal stream in Pandemonium Online was broadcasting the bloody battle between the Fortress of Pantheon and Nevuchadnezzar. With every single clash, countless viewers chattered and analyzed the situation.

Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon were huddled together, deep in thought.

"Setting aside the fact that Nevuchadnezzar is stronger than expected, it's a relief the fortress is also much tougher than we anticipated," Tae-hyun said.

"Agreed," Lee Se-yeon replied. "At this rate, I think we can just hold out indefinitely."

Both Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon had initially been skeptical about a war of attrition. No matter how many weapons they had stockpiled and how well-constructed the fortress was, clashing continuously with endlessly summoned undead would eventually wear them down first. But looking at the fortress now, it truly seemed capable of holding out forever.

"But... why isn't he coming?" Lee Se-yeon asked.

Her question carried a double meaning. First, Nevuchadnezzar! Usually, when a commander sent wave after wave of minions only to have them blocked, they would step up themselves. And someone of Nevuchadnezzar's caliber had more than enough reason to take the field. If he simply walked up to the fortress, cleared the moat with magic, and shattered the walls, the tide of battle would turn instantly! If he then began frantically summoning elite undead right in front of the gates...

Just thinking about it is terrifying.

A mage who had reached the absolute peak of his craft joining the fray directly would be an absolute nightmare. Yet, Nevuchadnezzar remained stationary. Of course, fighting in close quarters carried risks... but who wouldn't take that risk in his position?

"Something must be wrong with him," Tae-hyun muttered.

"Right?"

In truth, both of them wanted Nevuchadnezzar to approach the fortress. If he came close, the fortress might get trashed and the battle would become incredibly fierce, but it would also present a counter-opportunity. Yet, Nevuchadnezzar refused to budge from his spot, doing nothing but endlessly summoning undead. It was completely different from what they had anticipated!

"...I think his summoning inside that dungeon might have caused a problem," Tae-hyun said.

"?"

"I was too distracted earlier to pay attention, but when Nevuchadnezzar was first summoned, a notification popped up saying he was afflicted by the Curse of Hunger. He was fighting so vigorously that I assumed it didn't affect him much, but thinking about it now..."

"...!" Lee Se-yeon's eyes widened. "Why are you only telling me this now?"

"Because I had a lot on my mind?"

"Are you really the type of person to get distracted by things like that?"

"I'm only human, you know."

"...Sure. Right."

"Was it just me, or was your reaction a bit delayed there?"

"You're imagining things. Anyway... does that mean he can't move?"

"That's what it looks like."

Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon stared at each other ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠before turning their gaze back to Nevuchadnezzar. Was this a good thing or a bad thing? On the bright side, they didn't have to worry about getting slaughtered or having their fortress pulverized by a rampaging Nevuchadnezzar. On the down side, it made defeating him rather awkward. How were they supposed to kill a guy who just sat there turtling?

"Wait. When is the other guy coming?" Lee Se-yeon asked.

"Ah. That."

The "other guy" she referred to was, of course, Emperor Uipoatl.

How and when should they summon Uipoatl? Honestly, Tae-hyun had expected Uipoatl to come charging at him, screaming, "You traitorous dog!" the moment he set foot in the Asbian Empire. After all, Tae-hyun had dragged his feet for so long and broken his promises. He had even heard rumors that Uipoatl had dispatched subordinates to hunt him down!

However, landing elsewhere and sneaking in seemed to have worked, as Uipoatl remained completely oblivious. He hadn't made a peep even while the fortress was being built! By this point, even Tae-hyun was starting to feel bewildered.

Even for a fallen empire that was recently resurrected, isn't his reaction time way too slow? Well, I suppose they were a complete mess to begin with...

With various tribes rebelling and expressing their hatred for Uipoatl all over the place, the Asbian Empire wasn't exactly running smoothly. There was a reason Uipoatl wanted to recover his strength as quickly as possible. Without overwhelming power, the empire could never be reunited!

Classic tyrant thinking. Right?

That definitely sounded like an insult.

Since there was still no reaction even after the fortress was fully constructed, Tae-hyun had taken matters into his own hands. He had sent messengers to Uipoatl. Surely, even if Uipoatl hadn't fully recovered his strength, he would fly into a rage and come running!

"What did you tell them to say?" Lee Se-yeon asked.

"I just told them to provoke Uipoatl."

"...To whom did you give this task?"

"The Power Warrior Guild members."

"Archisus is the one true god, and Uipoatl is just a dead emperor! Believe in Archisus and go to heaven!"

"What? You're still worshipping a corpse? Are you guys seriously worshipping *that*??"

The Power Warrior Guild members gleefully set fires and threw bombs right in front of the palace. It was an act of sheer, unadulterated audacity! Only players who possessed absolutely zero fear of the death penalty could pull off such a stunt.

"Serve His Majesty Kim Tae-hyun, the true successor of Archisus and the wise ruler of the Atali Kingdom! Not some smelly corpse!"

"Hey! Uipoatl! Come to the Heart of the Sand! Oh, wait, are you too dead to make it?"

"Uipoatl is a chicken!"

The Power Warrior Guild members shouted excitedly. Naturally, the response was instantaneous.

Such was the power of their provocation that it dragged Uipoatl right out of his palace! Though he had been cooped up inside due to his unrecovered strength, he could no longer contain his fury. Leading his subordinates, he burst out of the palace.

Rumble!

Uipoatl leaped onto a chariot drawn by four ghostly steeds and charged toward the Heart of the Desert with his troops. The Power Warrior Guild members watched him go, looking utterly bewildered.

"Huh? He's leaving without killing us?"

"Yeah, right?"

"...So, he should be here any minute now," Tae-hyun said.

"I hope he gets here quickly."

Only Uipoatl's arrival could break this deadlock!

"Wait, Nevuchadnezzar's army is..."

"They're heading somewhere else?!"

The players inside the fortress began to murmur. Nevuchadnezzar's massive undead army had stopped marching toward the fortress and was instead dispersing in other directions.

"...Looks like this place is going to be a popular hunting ground for a while," Tae-hyun remarked.

"Yeah, no kidding."

The barren Heart of the Desert, which had once held absolutely nothing, was rapidly transforming into a prime hunting ground that would soon attract countless players.