Chapter 347: The King Who Kills Others, The God Who Kills Himself - 3
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 347: The King Who Kills Others, The God Who Kills Himself - 3
A person can't choose how they're born. The same goes for the King of Humans. Are kings and generals born of a special seed? I just opened my eyes one day and happened to be the King of Humans.
You might think being the King of Humans is something special, but a king without a kingdom is just a lunatic who believes he's a king. And what about a King of Humans who has lost all his power? Just an ordinary lunatic who happens to be a little better at human things.
So I tried to live an ordinary life, doing odd jobs and getting by.
The problem is, the world wouldn't leave me alone, and I ended up getting stuck among special people. And since man is an adaptable creature, I adapted. But my fundamental nature hasn't changed.
And now, a Saintess suddenly shows up to warn me. Says she'll deliver divine punishment with her fists if I'm not careful. It's so unfair. It makes no sense! Why should I be the one beaten to death?!
A surge of emotion welled up inside me. I shouted, my voice full of indignation.
“What am I supposedly trying to do? I was just trying to live a normal life when I got swept up in all this weirdness!”
“Are you trying to deny that you meddled with the Divine’s Designation inside the Abyss?”
“Divine's Designation? What's that? Something you eat? Who on earth told you I touched it? Have you been inside my head? If anything, I'm the one who wants to have a word with the Sky God! I was suddenly captured and thrown into the Abyss—where was my free will in any of that?!”
“Stop playing innocent! You conspired with Sorcerer Lankart to—!”
Feruel, who had been about to shout in anger, suddenly covered her mouth and mumbled.
“…No. It is foolish to converse with a barbarian! I will not be deceived!”
“Deceived? You call the plea of an innocent lamb deception? Since when did God become so heartless?”
“Do not defile the name of God! Your actions have already made everything clear!”
“I'm telling you, it wasn't me. I think we have a misunderstanding. Why don't we talk it out?”
“There is no need!”
“Why not? Doesn't the scripture say that the ability to converse is the noblest power given to humankind? If it's so noble, we should make good use of it.”
“It is also what demons use best! I have no need to speak with you!”
Feruel kicked off the ground and leaped. It looked like a light tap of her foot, but her body shot into the air. In an instant, she was back at the entrance to the street. She pointed a finger at me and said.
“This servant of God will withdraw for today. But do not forget! There are always eyes watching you!”
“How creepy, always watching. Are you a pervert? If you're going to keep watching me like that, why don't we just lay everything bare and have an honest talk? There are plenty of empty houses here, we could just go inside one and…”
Feruel clamped her hands over her ears and ran without a backward glance. I called out desperately, but her ears, covered by the holy gauntlet, let none of my words through.
Tch. A shame. It was a chance to read more of her thoughts.
My mind-reading is limited to humans. The Saintess is human, so I can read her mind. But I can't directly steal a glimpse of the future she has seen. Just as the existence of truth in the world doesn't mean every human can see it.
Besides, the Saintess of Steel's foresight is special, making it even more difficult.
That's why I needed to draw out information through conversation... She's been well-trained.
It strikes me again how unfair the world is. I, with no power of my own, have to use my wits and every trick in the book just to scrape by, while people like her are born with destiny on their side. And then they target me, someone who's done nothing but get caught up in their mess.
An irresistible force. For me, it's literally like a natural disaster.
But the fact that she came to warn me in person... I can be certain, can't I?
That the Golden Lord is also a Divine.
After mulling it over for a moment, I calmly started walking down the street again. I think someone warned they'd kill me if I spread chaos, but what does it matter? I don't even know what constitutes chaos, so how would I know what the landmines are?
Just then.
The darkness stirred. A figure darted out from the building shadows, its red eyes glowing as it scanned the area. Radiating a grim aura, Tyr approached me. Her lips were pressed into a thin line, her glare fixed on the spot where something had been. She was so terrifying it made the hair on my arms stand on end.
“Oh, Tyr. What brings you all the way out here? I thought you said you hated the sunlight and were staying in your room?”
“I felt something… unpleasant…” Tyr murmured in a chilling voice.
“A terribly grating sensation led me here. A feeling that we cannot live treading the same earth. It was as if something was screaming at me to trample it, kill it, and take its blood… Hu, did you not see anything here?”
I had. The Saintess had just warned me. If Feruel had left just a moment later, I might have found the answer to the childish question: who would win in a fight, the Saintess or the Progenitor?
Hmm. I am curious... but I can't stand watching them fight for weeks just to find out. I looked around and played dumb.
“There's no one here but me right now. It's not me you're talking about, is it?”
“O-Of course not! It was a distinctly unpleasant sensation, of a different kind from you or the others. Are you certain there was nothing?”
“I didn't really feel anything. Maybe someone came by and blessed me? What should I do? Tyr, could you wash it off with your darkness?”
“W-Wash?”
Tyr hesitated for a moment. What's the big deal? It's just a little darkness.
‘My darkness is a part of me. To wash a body with it… He says it without knowing, but it is a little embarrassing.’
“Wait a minute. On second thought, a blessing is a good thing, right? Never mind. Let's just leave it.”
“Stay still.”
Darkness swirled and enveloped my body. Tyr's darkness brushed past me like the wind, with no real sensation, but having just read her thoughts, it felt strangely intimate. It was just a feeling, though, so I could ignore it.
Being cloaked in darkness might blind the eyes of ‘fate’ for a moment... but it wouldn't last long.
No reason to waste time. Let's go.
“Tyr, shall we go for a little walk? I know you dislike the sun, but I can hold a parasol for you.”
“What?”
Startled by the unexpected suggestion, Tyr gave a small cough and held out her hand.
“I am not particularly inclined, but for your sake, I shall accompany you. Lead the way.”
“You should look forward to it. I'll make it an unforgettable memory.”
“Hehe. So confident. What could you possibly show me to warrant such boasting?”
I gently took her hand, accepted the parasol, and stood by her side with a smile.
“A cornfield.”
Closer to a reed than a tree, yet brazenly growing tall, sucking the life from the soil to bear fruit it hides away in its pockets—corn is surely a greedy creature. Though not as greedy as the humans who steal and eat it.
As we approached the cornfield, a man raised his hand and shouted.
“Halt, right there. This area is managed by the Dominarch's Drum Trading Company. You are not permitted to approach any further.”
“Oh, sir. I haven't eaten since yesterday. I'm so hungry, I was just hoping to take a single ear of corn. There's so much here, surely one won't be missed?”
I put on my most pitiful expression and approached him. But the man waved his hand, unfazed by my convincing performance.
“If you're going to pilfer, do it like a Dhole and stick to the outskirts! This central area is off-limits to anyone not from the Drum Trading Company—!”
“Monopolizing the food supply! You filthy bourgeois! Die! Knockout Chop!”
Having closed the distance, I struck his neck with the edge of my hand. Caught by the surprise attack, he coughed violently and glared at me.
“Cough! Keuk! You coward…!”
Oh, he didn't go down in one hit. How troublesome.
“Knockout Punch! For your information, I'll keep hitting you until you're unconscious. Please pass out quietly.”
I explained kindly as I smacked him in the head. The good guard from the Drum Trading Company, who had been ordered to protect the cornfield to prevent anyone from turning into a homunculus, finally collapsed from the repeated blows.
‘Keuk… This bastard… Just you wait. Once I catch my breath, I'll call every member of the company! You won't be leaving here in one piece!’
Bring them all. That's what I was hoping for.
I elegantly parted the cornstalks and continued to lead the way.
“Tyr, let's go.”
“Hu. It seems he is still conscious.”
“Leave him. There's no need for you to dirty your fine hands with such ugly business. I'll take care of it.”
“Hehe. I'll leave it to you.”
Laughing cheerfully, Tyr followed me through the cornfield. Every time a corn leaf was about to brush against her head, I would gently push it aside, scoring points. Pleased by my small gestures, Tyr covered her mouth and smiled.
“Shall I pick one for you?”
“I cannot eat it, but let us have a look.”
I snapped an ear of corn from its stalk and peeled back the layers of husk. No matter how delicately it was wrapped in its thin clothes, to a human, it was merely a frail resistance that stoked the desire for conquest. I tore off each layer crudely and revealed the hidden flesh within.
The kernels were plump. The corn was the very picture of an ideal harvest.
“A bountiful harvest.”
“The kernels look like they're about to burst. Well then, shall I have a taste?”
Freshly harvested corn is sweet even when eaten raw. I took a large bite of the Golden Lord's corn.
As expected, it tastes amazing. It's on a completely different level from the Military State's Chimera Beans. Those sacrificed flavor for practicality, but this is incomparable in both quantity and taste. If it weren't for the Golden Lord's curse, that is.
As I was savoring the taste, Tyr cried out, her face pale.
“Hu! Did I not tell you not to eat it!”
“A little is fine. It won't be digested even if I eat it now, and my body, being that of an outsider, is made of things from outside the Fallen Dominion.”
“But…”
“I said it's fine.”
In fact, I need to eat it to resonate with the Golden Lord, even if just a little.
Facing Tyr's worried expression, I chewed the corn thoroughly and swallowed. My indiscriminate stomach began the process of digestion without even identifying what it had just consumed. True philanthropy.
Swallowing, I gave my honest opinion.
“It's delicious, but we'd better eat it quickly. Corn loses its flavor once it's harvested.”
“But it has not been harvested yet.”
“It might as well have been. The Golden Lord is an alchemist. To create this much corn, he would need ingredients. Just as corn sucks nutrients from the soil to bear fruit, the Golden Lord must have drained all the life from this land.”
The soil was completely dry and crumbling. It was a dead land, beyond barren. Magic is the power to accelerate phenomena that exist in the world, and alchemy is the magic of transmuting matter.
The Golden Lord probably used alchemy to unleash in a single moment all the mechanisms a corn plant would undergo over several months.
“They're still on the stalk, but they're no different from being thrown on the ground. Not even Chimera Beans would grow in a land like this, with no water or nutrients.”
Hector couldn't be unaware of this. So why hasn't he harvested it yet, when he should be rushing to do so?…
I know why. I read his thoughts. I also know what he needed a day's time for.
Tyr looked around and murmured.
“A truly incomprehensible being. What in the world is this Golden Lord?”
“Tyr. Do you know about the Divine?”
It was an unexpected question, but Tyr didn't question me, instead thinking seriously. Rummaging through her memories, she recalled something and answered.
“The Divine… I have heard of them. They are the beings the Sanctum tries so desperately to eliminate.”
“You've never seen one, have you?”
“I have searched, but their nature is difficult to grasp. The descriptions are vague, like trying to catch a cloud, and everyone says something different.”
“Then let me tell you. A Divine is a god who has reached a great truth.”
“Hmm,” Tyr responded, a small but clear reaction. Her reactions weren't big, but they were good. It made explaining worthwhile.
“And they are also human.”
This time she was slightly surprised, but she didn't interrupt, showing she was ready to listen. She really is a good person to explain things to.
“Tyr, I told you about Unique Magic before, right? A Unique Magic is an extension of one's own Spiritual World.”
“I know.”
“But there are two ways it can be extended: an extension of the target, and an extension of the Spiritual World itself.”
I held up a finger.
“Usually, when the Spiritual World is related to an object or its function—for example, when it's embodied in a specific tool like Maximilien’s gears—it's an extension of the target. The scope of application is narrow, but the mage gains powerful dominion over the functions of that target.”
In this case, the Unique Magic loses its power if the target is altered. I once sealed Maximilien's weapon by inserting small gears between his own.
Only I can turn it against him by touching the target, but… it's not easy with this humble body of mine.
“If the Spiritual World is related to a phenomenon, it's the opposite. When changing the rules within a certain area, you can't exert such powerful dominion. Instead, the rules themselves are changed within the space the mage controls, applying to everyone.”
Rocket and Peru are examples of this. Rocket turns steel within a certain range into explosives, and Peru accelerates the decay of all matter. It's difficult to designate a specific target because what they're changing are the rules.
My ability is ambiguous in these cases, too. Even if I steal their power, I can only slightly add to its tendency, not nullify it.
“However, no Unique Magic can directly alter another person's body. Another's body is a microcosm, completely separate from the world. It is, in itself, the most powerful Unique Magic, and Qi promises complete protection over that microcosm. If mana is the extension of the Spiritual World, you could say Qi is the extension of the body. That's why it's difficult for a Unique Magic to directly affect armor or weapons clad in Qi.”
“So that is why the knights of old could fight on equal footing with wicked mages.”
“Yes. The legends that say Qi repels magic aren't wrong.”
A lecture on Qi and Magic, Advanced Edition. Tyr was fascinated by the theoretical details that would have bored an ordinary person.
As expected, mature students are the best. They know how precious learning is.
“‘Cannot affect another's body,’ you say… Those were your words when you explained the Homunculus Dilemma.”
“You remember it perfectly. That's why I said only the dead can be transformed by another's mana. Even if they don't die from it, a body that has lost its resistance can die at any time.”
“Then what does that have to do with the Divine? Are they beings who have overcome that limit?”
I shook my head. For a Divine, such a trivial thing isn't even an issue.
Of course, you could use a Divine's power to kill a single human and achieve that result, but that would be like using a butcher's knife to kill a chicken… no, like executing an ant with a guillotine. A complete waste.
“But there is a certain kind of Unique Magic. The Spiritual World of the human who possesses it is unique to them… but at the same time, it is also a great truth that permeates this world. Since such a truth exists with or without the Unique Magic, its power resonates with the world itself.”
Not life and death, but the standard that divides them.
Not dignity, but the faith that supports it.
A Divine tramples upon the small hopes that humanity has desperately tried to protect.
“The target of its effect is all of creation. The range of its effect is the entire universe. There is no time limit, even if the user dies. Because it existed before they were born, and it will continue for all eternity after they are gone.”
Something that existed before humanity. Something that exists regardless of humanity.
“That is a Divine. A mage who has reached godhood.”
Before a great truth, even humans, who pride themselves as rulers of the earth, are nothing but a passing breeze.
And… faced with truth, humanity encounters a new dilemma.
“So, that leads to a new question. If humans are also a part of this world… what if they are just one of the many things in creation that follow the great rules?”
I walked slowly, parting the cornstalks. Tyr followed behind me as if mesmerized. After passing through several rows of corn, I sensed that I had arrived in some kind of unseen space.
This is it.
The Golden Palace where the Golden Lord resided… was this very cornfield.
“What is a body?”
The moment I pushed aside the next cornstalk, a sharp blade flew at my neck.