Chapter 316: Winged Heavenly Being Subjugation (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 316: Winged Heavenly Being Subjugation (4)
Isaac stared momentarily at the Eternal Prison that filled the sky.
There was no time to be swept up in emotion. He immediately reverse-summoned Daikan and bolted toward the elevator.
Please…!
While Om held off the Nether King, he had to reach that elevator at all costs. Against an opponent of that caliber, Om could only buy him a few seconds at best.
Please, just a little further.
Before he knew it, Isaac was nearly at the elevator leading down to the Icy Lake.
Boom!!
“…!”
The Eternal Prison shattered in an instant, and the Nether King reappeared.
Amidst the deafening roar, a primal chill raced down Isaac’s spine.
He was too late.
When he looked up, an enormous arm woven from the Nether King’s mana was already descending. It was the limb of a god wielding absolute authority—[Heaven’s Hand].
The Cloak of the Radiant Wolf sensed the impending doom and deployed an ice shield.
CRASH!!
“Ugh!!”
[Heaven’s Hand] slammed into Isaac with the weight of a mountain.
His body was hurled through the air, skipping across the ground like a stone before crashing into the dirt.
He blacked out for a heartbeat but forced himself back to consciousness. The frigid air bit at his skin. The elevator was right there. He had to reach it.
Using his remaining right hand, Isaac clawed at the earth, struggling to manifest his [Ice Sovereign] wings once more.
“Kugh!”
Suddenly, a heavy boot crushed Isaac’s waist into the ground.
It was the Nether King.
[Ice King, I must deliver judgment upon thee for disrupting the order.]
Frost Dragon Hilde attempted to blast the Nether King with ice magic, but the dragon was instantly snared by another [Heaven’s Hand] that manifested out of thin air.
Isaac quickly reverse-summoned the Frost Dragon to save her.
The whistling wind and his own ragged, wet gasps were the only sounds filling Isaac’s ears.
“Ah, this is driving me crazy…”
He couldn’t see a way out. He couldn’t outrun a god.
The elevator was right in front of him, a gateway to safety, yet it felt a world away.
[I see. Thy name in the world of the living was… Han Seong Ho, was it?]
“…!”
Isaac’s heart nearly stopped. Hearing his previous life’s name from the mouth of a deity sent a shock through his system.
[The entity within thee is known as Ozma, I see. Hast thou truly reached the level of a transcendent?]
Ozma. The name of the mysterious monster dwelling within Isaac’s essence.
[Thou hast been mimicking the game system of thy world to sustain thyself. However, even that ‘game’ is likely the handiwork of Stella.]
He was referring to ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱.
The truth the Nether King spoke was a suspicion Isaac had long harbored in the back of his mind.
Allets…
The director of ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱ had gone by the name Allets.
A-l-l-e-t-s.
Spelled backward, it was Stella.
He had once dismissed it as a simple tribute to the fairy in the game. But after being thrust into this world and surviving countless trials, his suspicion that Allets was actually Stella had hardened into a cold certainty.
[I weigh the balance of life. I possess eyes that peer through existence for the purpose of judgment.]
To the Nether King, seeing through Isaac, Ozma, and the very nature of the system was a trivial task.
[Thou art deeply compassionate. Thou hast performed many virtues, lived by the laws of man, and shielded the innocent. Hadst thou lived a natural life, thou surely wouldst have ascended to a place of peace.]
The Nether King slowly closed his eyes and reopened them, his voice dropping into a soft, somber monologue.
[For one such as thee to be unjustly swept into a god’s game, only to meet such a tragic end…]
The Nether King allowed golden mana to swirl in his right hand.
[Poor mortal. I shall remember thy name.]
Han Seong Ho.
That name began to echo through Isaac’s fading consciousness.
Ah, that’s right…
He had just been an ordinary guy.
Though he had tried to survive the reality forced upon him, he had realized the truth long ago. How could an ordinary person like him handle all of this? It was almost funny.
I knew it… I knew it all along…
The heroes in novels and movies, the indomitable mindsets they possessed—those were just stories. Because of those exemplary tales, even as the crushing weight of responsibility threatened to snap his spine, Isaac had forced himself to mimic the image of a hero.
He was a good actor, after all.
Since he had been thrown into this mess, he had no choice but to play the part of the brave hero to survive. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to bear the burden for a single day.
But still, I’ve made it this far.
Now, the thing that terrified him most was the temptation to give up. Even as his mind wavered, his body screamed in protest against the end.
At that moment, a system window flickered into existence before his eyes.
[Would you like to use the unique trait [Divinity]?]
[Yes] / [No]
Isaac stared at it, dazed.
[Divinity].
If he used this, he might be able to stand against the Nether King. He might actually survive.
Clinging to a desperate shred of hope, Isaac’s trembling right arm reached toward the [Yes] option.
Didn’t he say this system was Ozma helping me…?
He analyzed the Nether King’s words. It was exactly as he had suspected. Ozma had been assisting Isaac by mimicking the mechanics of ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱.
He still didn’t fully grasp the mechanics or the "how" of it, and much remained shrouded in mystery, but…
One thing was certain: if he activated [Divinity], he might solve the immediate crisis.
[Activation Conditions]
■■■■■■■■ ■■■■
The blurred [Activation Conditions] surfaced in his mind. At this point, did the conditions even matter? He was seconds away from death.
“…”
Suddenly, a visceral sense of unease washed over him. Isaac froze his hand.
One question gave birth to another.
Why is Ozma helping me? What kind of being is Ozma? What is she, really?
He forced his oxygen-starved, hazy brain to grind out an answer.
— The one who sealed the Evil God will be helping you.
— But if you want to live, trust nothing.
The warning left by the Primordial Ice Sovereign, Veronica Aslius, flashed through his mind. Then, he recalled a private conversation he’d had with Dorothy.
— The thing with many eyes inside me, Stella’s first kin… You’re talking about Ozma, right?
— Yes.
— Dorothy, do you know what kind of person Ozma was?
— Hmm…
— You don’t have to strain yourself.
— Sorry… honestly, I don’t really know. She’s from a long time ago. But I think I remember Stella mentioning something about her. What was it? I think…
Isaac’s arm slowly dropped.
— I think she said that even though she was her kin, she wasn’t someone you should trust easily…
[Divinity] must not be activated.
Even if he lost his life. Even if everything ended here, he would not trigger it.
Static…
As he made that resolution, the Status Window glitched with heavy static, and countless eyes began to peer through the screen.
Now, the picture was clear.
As if demanding a decision, the multitude of eyes filling the Status Window glared at Isaac.
You used me… you damn bitch.
With Isaac’s realization, the blank spaces in the Status Window finally filled in.
[Activation Conditions]
Physical Body
Even without the fine details, Isaac could infer the rest.
If he had been granted too much power from the start, Isaac’s mortal vessel would have shattered. So, Ozma had been feeding him power in increments, allowing his body to adapt and grow stronger.
Potential enhancement, rapid growth—it was all a process of tempering the vessel. Simply inflating his stats didn't mean he could handle the output immediately.
Perhaps "distributed experience" worked the same way.
Now that I think about it… is something like ‘distributed experience’ even possible?
The world he thought was a game turned out to be reality. Yet the game system remained?
That was the anomaly…
Only then did Isaac realize the possibility he had overlooked. There might never have been such a thing as distributed experience.
The levels were ultimately just numbers displayed by Ozma. She could manipulate them at will. In ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱? That was a game. It was natural for players to feel a sense of progression.
In reality, there was no distributed experience; the students were likely just growing at their own natural pace.
Think about it. Did the students who "leveled up" by defeating enemies ever show a sudden, dramatic spike in power? No, they didn't.
Besides, I’m only here because of Stella’s plan.
He was someone who knew the "scenario" through the game. His possession of this body was likely a calculated move by Stella, the director.
So Ozma had been granting him the power to grow in the direction Isaac, the player, chose. Scenario completion rewards, achievement bonuses—they were all gifts Ozma bestowed upon Isaac, using the framework of ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱.
Ozma had prepared "plausible reasons" to feed Isaac power while avoiding suspicion.
He remembered Malrog the Envious. The Status Window had initially identified that demon as human, preventing [Hunter] from activating. What was once incomprehensible now made perfect sense.
In the game, the protagonist Ian couldn’t see the Status Window. The only one who could perceive it was the player. That was why the player believed Malrog was human, only to be blindsided by the twist.
It had followed the game’s script to the letter. It was all a charade to mimic the familiar interface for Isaac’s benefit.
What about [Hunter]?
Whenever Isaac tapped into extreme power through traits like [Hunter]… he could use the “Skill Tree +10” effect to cast unlearned magic without even calculating the formulas.
That was because Ozma was using Isaac as a medium to directly manifest her own power.
The reason my stats maxed out at level 100… was it because that’s all I could handle without my soul being overwritten?
Even if Ozma was using him as a medium, there were limits to what Isaac’s soul could endure. In the Fictional Hell, Isaac had reached EX-level stats, but that was only possible because it was an illusory world where the laws of reality were suspended.
The [Ice Sovereign] he gained there persisted because it was a truth he had realized while experiencing the peak of power. That was why, the moment he left the Fictional Hell, his stats plummeted and he could no longer sustain the [Ice Sovereign] form.
In the end, if the Status Window and the system aren’t objective… then what are they? Something that mimicked a game system… yeah, it’s a ‘Covenant,’ isn’t it?
The "Covenant"—the same type of soul-binding contract Isaac had made with others, which activated when two wills aligned. The way Ozma had been funneling power into Isaac was likely a form of this Covenant.
It was a contract disguised as a "Status Window." Gaining stats and assigning them was how the contract was being reinforced each time. Having been conditioned by the game, Isaac understood the abilities he would gain and aligned his will with the system’s prompts.
It had happened so naturally.
That’s how she deceived me… and once I fully believed the Status Window was my own power…
In the end, the "Status Window" that had earned his absolute trust would betray him.
— Offer your body.
In accordance with the covenant, it would claim his perfected vessel. Ozma’s goal was resurrection. She wanted to hijack Isaac’s body to become human again.
And Stella?
Stella, the Star Fairy, had made Ozma her first kin. Furthermore, Stella was the director behind ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱. In other words, Stella created a game to familiarize a candidate with the journey to defeat the Evil God.
Among the humans who played that game, the system was designed to deceive the chosen one, just as it had deceived Isaac. Ozma followed that blueprint and took the form of a Status Window.
It was a collaborative trap between the fairy and her kin.
Did Ozma go along with Stella’s plan just to steal my body…
Questions remained, but Isaac was certain of his conclusion.
It felt as though time had slowed to a crawl. Isaac let out a dry laugh at the realization that he was nothing more than a plaything for the gods. It was a laugh of pure, bitter self-mockery.
[Would you like to use the unique trait [Divinity]?]
[Yes]
[Yes]
[Yes]
[Yes]
[Yes]
[Yes]
The notification windows began to spam his vision, turning aggressive.
You’re going to die here anyway.
Everything you’ve suffered will be for nothing.
Are you really going to give up on everything?
Isn’t it better to choose the lesser evil than the absolute worst?
Are you not even going to make one final effort?
He did not select [Divinity].
Why? The reason was simple.
Because fuck you, that’s why.
In the notification windows flooding his sight, the countless bloodshot eyes glared at Isaac with murderous intent.
Foolish bastard.
“Eat shit, you bitch…”
Isaac closed his eyes and let out a weak, hollow chuckle. His face was a mask of blood and exhaustion.
Damn bastards.
Fuck the Evil God, and fuck everything I’ve been put through.
You can all burn in hell for all I care.
Isaac continued to curse them silently in the dark of his mind.
Then, the Nether King’s power descended.
SZZZZT!!!
BOOM! CRACK!
[…!]
Suddenly, a jagged bolt of purple lightning shrieked through the air toward the Nether King. The lightning branched out like a web, repelling the King’s divine magic.
Startled, the Nether King retreated, dodging the relentless barrage of lightning.
Isaac didn’t even have the strength to be shocked. He simply realized that the impossible had happened. He pushed himself up slightly and turned his head, seeing a holy, pure white figure standing before him.
A warm, familiar sensation enveloped his entire body. Isaac’s eyes widened. He had felt this presence before.
[Why dost thou oppose me…?]
Even the Nether King sounded taken aback.
[For one such as thee to be here now, thou must have set out the moment the Ice King appeared. Thou hast chosen to stand against me without a shred of hesitation? Inconceivable. Why…!?]
The Nether King’s voice turned menacing.
An unexpected confrontation. Suddenly, a memory surfaced in Isaac’s mind.
Michelle. She was a character who had never appeared in ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱. Isaac recalled Saintess Bianca Anturaze mentioning that Michelle had used a strange power to deal with the corrupt adults.
That girl in the red cloak had likely been saved by the pure white figure standing before him now.
— May the blessing of the Incarnation be with you.
It was a story Isaac knew well.
Once, there was a witch who lived in a house made of candy. To lure in lost children wandering the forest, she had built her home out of sweets.
The witch loved children. She wanted to protect them. She had devoted her entire life to the study of magic, all to save children in peril.
One day, Hansel and Gretel came to the Candy House Witch. The witch tried to save the two children, who bore the sacrificial mark of the evil dragon, but tragically, she could not save Hansel.
In the end, the witch was falsely accused, gaining infamy as the “Great Witch of Heaven’s Wrath” who committed atrocities against children. She was executed immediately.
As she died in the arms of Gretel, the child she loved… Isaac finally understood the emotion she must have felt.
Rage…
It was only natural. The Candy House Witch must have been furious. Her blood must have boiled, her teeth ground together, and tears of overwhelming fury must have fallen. She must have wanted to strike down the wretched adults who profited from the sacrifice of children.
Thus, she called herself the “God of Wrath.”
“The Incarnation…”
She must have named herself the Incarnation. She was the overseer of the Midheaven Realm, appointed by the Nether King, known to history as the Great Witch of Heaven’s Wrath.
She nodded at Isaac, a silent command for him to run.
WHOOOOM!!
Isaac immediately snapped his [Ice Sovereign] wings open and took flight toward the elevator. He was close. He could make it.
[Step aside!]
The Nether King, who valued his subordinates, hesitated to strike the overseer of the Midheaven Realm. However, the Candy House Witch stood her ground, unyielding.
[So that is the path thou hast chosen. If thou truly seekest to defy me, I shall respect thy resolve.]
The Nether King, his face contorted with rage, summoned multiple [Heaven’s Hands]. The Candy House Witch met him with a blitz of purple lightning.
The two beings clashed, the collision of their mana shaking the very foundations of the realm.
The Candy House Witch was a transcendent being. She could hold her own against the Nether King, if only for a moment.
As the titans battled, Isaac threw himself into the elevator.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
Blood leaked from his wounds, and a fresh wave of agony surged through him.
Rumble!
The massive elevator doors began to slide shut, emitting a bone-deep chill. The view of the battlefield narrowed. Through the closing gap, Isaac saw the Candy House Witch being overwhelmed.
Her arm was torn away, her leg severed. She lost half her body to the King’s wrath, yet she continued to fight.
“Why… why are you helping me?”
Isaac felt the warmth spreading through his veins. The soft, weathered voice of an old woman echoed in his mind.
— How could I stand by and do nothing when someone risks their life to protect so many?
The doors were almost shut. Isaac watched as the Candy House Witch began to fade away under the Nether King’s onslaught.
Before she vanished completely, she turned her head toward Isaac. He caught a fleeting glimpse of an elderly woman with a hooked nose.
There was a gentle smile on her lips.
— Give my regards to Gretel.
The overseer of the Midheaven Realm, who had broken the laws of the afterlife, vanished into light.
The Nether King had suffered a grievous loss, but there was no time for grief. He lunged toward the elevator. [Heaven’s Hand] formed a massive fist and struck.
Whoooosh!!
An impenetrable shield of ice enveloped the elevator. As the realms of control shifted, the [Heaven’s Hand] collided with the ice shield and was neutralized, sending a violent shockwave through the chamber.
The doors were sealed. It was over.
Light erupted from the floor as the elevator began its thunderous descent.
[…]
The Nether King stood in silence.
The lowest level of the Nether, the Icy Lake, was governed by another. Even the Nether King had no authority there.
He stared at the spot where the elevator had been, then turned to the place where the Candy House Witch had dissipated. The only sound was the mourning wind.
He had upheld order, but destroying his own subordinate with his own hands left an indescribable void.
At the very least, Isaac was on the brink of death. He would likely bleed out in the elevator long before he could attempt to cross the Icy Lake. Even if he survived the trip, he wouldn't last against the monsters of the lake or its guardians.
But if Isaac were to overcome the impossible and meet the overseer of the Icy Lake…
[…That would be dangerous.]
A human capable of shattering the order of all things might be born.
For a long time, the Nether King stood alone, looking up at the hole pierced in the sky.