The Easiest Way to Steal Faith (1)
Boy, Gregory couldn't stand up from his seat even though he desperately wanted to. It felt like every female student in the room was staring right at him. Sure, he might've mustered some confidence thinking it was above average if he got hard, but pitching a tent right here? No way in hell. He'd been stuck, unable even to hit the bathroom.
But then.
The sun appeared. A blinding light that stole everyone's eyes, drawing every woman's gaze straight to him, making them all focus solely on him. Thanks to that, Gregory slipped up unnoticed. He finally made it to the bathroom and relieved the pressure that had felt ready to burst.
"Phewww...."
Gregory caught sight of it. That man's confident gaze. For a moment, the sheer size of that confidence made Gregory flush with embarrassment and a bruised ego.
But the way he looked at Gregory wasn't condescending, like eyeing some inferior being. It was more like...
—Hey, you could pull this off too.
An unspoken promise in his eyes: I can't say it now, but I've got the method, and you can achieve this too.
Gregory had no clue what that gaze truly meant, but one thing was crystal clear.
The special class. Whatever made it special, it was undeniably special—that's why they called them special admissions. No matter what anyone else said—
Whoosh...
"Ahhh...."
Gregory was genuinely grateful to that golden sun who'd saved him from what might've been an academy dropout-level crisis.
Esdinas of the open skies. In the original story, the final boss for the protagonist was the Demon King. But right now, I'm aligned with the demon realm, theoretically stepping into that Demon King's role.
In other words, I have to approach the surface world's inhabitants from the Demon King's perspective.
So, as the Demon King, who should I see as my enemies?
The adventurers and hunters who hunt demons on sight? The humans brainwashed over eons into persecuting demons as a core tenet of their faith?
'Obviously, the goddess.'
My true nemesis is the goddess. I wield demon realm power, sure, but above all, I must eradicate the goddess and the heavenly realm that brings apocalypse to this world.
There are two ways to do it.
One: Overwhelm them with raw power. But that means wiping out every race in the mid-world, which isn't our goal. It'd just paint us as the Blue Flame Apocalypse, and all we want is to live amid the civilizations humans have built on the surface.
So, option two it is.
"Let's steal their faith."
A full-on religious war, in other words.
"We take the faith they direct at the goddess for ourselves."
"Is that even possible?"
Chang Yeom suggested it, but I have no idea how.
"I know how to burn holy power, though."
"Trying to solve everything with brute force is fine and all, but you'll just end up a tyrant. In the game, steamrolling with levels and stats means missing all the events, right?"
"Do we need events?"
"Of course! You don't want the demon realm folks up here just fighting nonstop, do you?"
"Hell no."
While crashing in the demon realm, I'd gotten a front-row seat to demon daily life.
—Hyah-ha, time for battle!
—Conquer and triumph! Rip and kill!
—Fight?! Everyone, gather up!!
"If demons became the surface's ruling race, it'd turn into a brutal survival-of-the-fittest world of endless strife and combat, no doubt."
"An age of barbarism, you mean?"
"Exactly. A hellscape warzone where no one enjoys any culture."
Chang Yeom, a hell grand duke, didn't trust the demon realm's creatures one bit.
"Ever seen a demon farming strawberries or opening a café to serve folks?"
"Nope."
"If demons rule the surface, no culture survives."
It wasn't like demons yearned for human culture down there, but I was originally human, and once Chang Yeom read my memories, she started viewing it positively too—
"Maid outfits, swimsuits, nun habits, academy uniforms. You gonna ditch all that for demon realm rags... like Greco-Roman myth gear?"
"Absolutely not."
That's why we needed to ascend while preserving human civilization.
"Hence, steal their faith. Make them worship and follow someone besides the goddess—found a new religion."
"I'm no cult leader."
"No need for sermons. Convince them with miracles."
Chang Yeom ran her eyes over her full figure once.
"Bestow miracles even holy power can't touch, and humanity will revere you as a god for delivering what their old one couldn't. You'll be the first."
"Role-wise, I'm the Demon King, though?"
"Not conquering the surface as a demon realm invader—just purge the goddess's forces and bless humanity. Easy."
She placed a hand on my head, grabbing my hair and tugging it back.
"Grant reckless fools the miracle of growth."
"Ah."
I got it.
"For Binyu Group, the miracle of academy admission."
"Turn 30mm into 30cm."
"Exactly. The goddess's miracles regrow severed limbs or cure plagues, sure... but we target what holy power can't fix."
"And the place with the biggest impact..."
"Bread Academy. Esdinas."
Esdinas Academy gathers heirs to future crown princes, mega-merchant conglomerates, and budding heroes around age 17. Flip their faith from the goddess to another god, and that's a direct strike at her church—no better target.
"Not giving more to the haves, but granting the have-nots what they need—that's a true god."
And so.
"What kind of god? Hmm... Let's go with the Sun God, everyone can admire that."
"Why sun god specifically?"
"My taste."
I'd become the sun god granting miracles to surface humanity, per Chang Yeom's whim.
...Or so I say—no plans for a "Long live the sun!" cult or anything.
At Esdinas Academy, if I shine warm sunlight on the shadows, guide them to fight the goddess's apocalypse later...
That alone would massively help in the war against the angels.
And in that world.
The goddess would lose all influence here.
"Once we wipe her out someday, we'll look together."
Me too.
"For a way to get you back where you belong."
As Chang Yeom said, I'd return to where I truly ought to be.
'—That's what I thought coming in, but this is worse than expected.'
I attended the freshman welcome as the special class rep.
Every student gathered in the Hall of Courage doubtless wished for their own miracles, but right now, their desires bordered on greed.
The haves craving even more. Natural human instinct, of course. Wanting more wealth makes sense; bigger, stronger than others is baseline for humanity.
But.
'You can't just steal someone else's bigger-looking rice cake.'
I felt the desirous stares aimed at me. Intense greed to claim what I had as their own.
—If I could just suck that guy dry somehow, my mana pouch could hit 100 too...!
Even those already pushing 90% potential thought that. So what about the C-rank stragglers who barely scraped in?
'C plus Gold Sun's 'G' makes my mana pouch G-rank.'
They dreamed of that miracle. But miracles happen via plunder at heart.
Stealing a man's essence for yourself. In wuxia terms, Cauldron Plundering. Terrifying stuff.
So—
"Everyone's stares sting, huh?"
"......."
While scanning the prickly gazes on me, someone boldly plopped down beside me and spoke up.
A blond-haired, golden-eyed student in academy uniform.
"Who might you be...?"
I knew him, but first meetings mean playing dumb.
"Haha. Not even disguised, and someone doesn't know me? First time for everything. Or are you pretending?"
"What do you think?"
"I doubt you don't know. Either way, this seat's reserved for special admits."
"Gotta give a speech soon—figured I'd sit a bit first."
The blond golden-eyed youth pointed to a segment in the welcome ceremony program.
Student council president's congratulatory address.
"Julius here. Student council president."
"Nice to meet you."
"......."
Julius extended a hand, but I didn't shake.
"Hm, the handshake—"
"Sorry, Mr. President."
I kept eyes forward, not meeting his gaze, voice low.
"You coming this close has put me in a real bind."
"...Pardon?"
"Know this, President?"
I gestured between our faces.
"You and me—both handsome guys with great builds."
"...Embarrassing."
"It'll get worse."
I nodded back subtly.
"Now they'll start shipping us weirdly."
"Weirdly...?"
He glanced back, then turned to me.
Slick.
An angle others couldn't see. Visible head-on, but with no one on stage yet, only the president could spot it.
Flicker.
[Yaoi fanfics shipping you and me as gay hookups will explode.]
"!!"
Julius Keiar's face stiffened.
[Know about the unauthorized private club in the academy?]
"......."
He shook his head solemnly.
[The Rose Garden crew.]
Rose. His face paled.
[You just handed them ammo.]
"......."
[Here's how to fix it. Ask like this.]
Following my cue, his expression hardened briefly, then he raised his voice in resignation.
"...What talent got you into the special class?"
Stiff, guarded tone.
"Never heard of Red Sol Phoenix."
As student council president and crown prince, eyeing the mystery student warily.
'Good. That's the play.'
This guy was so upright he never noticed the rosy rumors his retainers and knights spread behind his back.
His middle name: Keiar.
Not gay, but an academy idol. Doomed to get shipped with the protagonist by the Rose Garden [Alpheus].
"I'm a swordmaster, but what kind of master are you?"
Thus.
"You'll find out soon enough."
The right path.
"[Harem Master] Phoenix."
Too righteous and good to know, but he had the judgment to pick between two options.
BL Alpheus victimhood vs. wary president grilling shady newbie.
Any sane person picks the latter. Julius Keiar's middle name? Keiar.
This man.
'One of the three great swordmasters.'
Not even an angel candidate, yet angel-level talent.
'The likable guy who backs the protagonist's harem full-throttle.'
Once emperor, he'd even rewrite imperial law to let his friend the protagonist build whatever harem he wanted. That good a guy.