Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: The Mother's Sacrifice
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―If you want to save everyone, offer your mother as a sacrifice.
That evening, after receiving the unbelievable—no, unthinkable—demand from the god.
Her grandfather Terenser and her granddaughter, the shaman Pibiola, sat at the desk with heartbroken expressions, maintaining silence.
No one dared to break that silence.
How many Kanps could possibly hand over their mother... their own daughter?
"Grandfather..."
"......"
The two Kanps were waiting for Helena—the mother.
Even if they didn't want to say it, they had no choice. The god wanted the mother as a sacrifice. And if they did, the god would grant the miracle of resurrecting everyone who had died.
There was a reason they had no choice but to relay it exactly as stated. The god had threatened that if they didn't speak, there would be no mercy.
After that, they had secluded themselves in the room, claiming they needed time to think—that was the current situation.
"......Pibiola."
"Yes......"
"If we don't offer the sacrifice, what happens? Did the god mention anything about that?"
"There was nothing like that. It just said to offer Mother to the temple as a sacrifice."
"Really, nothing at all?"
"Yes. But......"
If—
What would happen if they refused the god's demanded sacrifice?
It was easy to infer just from what Dtamuk Thinking Army had done so far.
The god had killed Kanps who went against its will without a second thought.
The Kanps followed the god's words like slaves, gripped by fear. The very idea of defying it was unimaginable.
So, if they refused the sacrifice this time—
—They would die.
Someone else would fall victim to divine punishment and lose their life.
"Hic......!!!"
Pibiola couldn't continue, tears streaming down her face.
Why was this happening?
If she thought back to her first encounter with the god—when she had prayed to save her mother, who should have died in that accident...
Was this the price for defying proper cause and effect?
"......"
The perceptive Terenser faced Pibiola's tears, realized something, and let out a deep sigh.
And—
"Responsibility...... will be mine to bear."
"......Pardon?"
"We'll offer Helena...... as the sacrifice."
—Bang!
Pibiola slammed the table without realizing it, shouting in agitation.
"G-Grandfather! How can you say that...... She's your daughter! My mother, but your only precious daughter!!!"
"I know. But if we don't offer that child to the god...... everyone, including you, could be in danger. Besides, hasn't the god publicly promised to 'resurrect everyone'? If we refuse for no reason and end up with no miracle, dying pointlessly—that would truly be a dog's death."
"But—"
At that moment.
"I feel the same way, Pibiola."
"Mom......?"
Turning around, Helena had emerged from the room at some point.
Helena drew a gentle curve at the corner of her eyes, her expression remarkably serene.
"......Pibiola. Thanks to you performing miracles through the god, this mother of yours was able to continue a life that could have ended at any moment. If death is inevitable...... isn't avoiding a meaningless one the right path?"
"......!"
As she spoke those words, tears fell from Helena's eyes.
Terenser averted his gaze from Helena. He must have been boiling inside more than anyone.
And Pibiola—
bit her lip, unable to say a word.
As the shaman, she knew better than anyone how cruel the god truly was.
Without a doubt, refusing the sacrifice...... would lead to greater sacrifices. That's why she couldn't bring herself to tell her mother, "You mustn't."
"Don't cry."
Helena embraced Pibiola, who was sobbing with heaving shoulders, and gently patted her back.
"Thank you for praying for Mom back then. Someday, when you fulfill your lifespan and return to the spirits' side...... I'll be there waiting to greet you first. Got it?"
"......I'm sorry, Helena. If I could go in your place, I would have......"
"It's fine, Father. As I said earlier, this life was owed to the god and Pibiola anyway."
Pibiola thought.
—O God.
If this unstoppable torrent is your will, please, have mercy.
Pity us.
Please love us...... like the spirits do.
Offering a prayer that would never reach, she bid farewell to Helena in her embrace.
* * *
The next day.
"......"
Under the gaze of many Kanps, Helena—the one chosen as the sacrifice for the god—cautiously made her way toward the temple.
One, two—after a few steps, she placed both feet on the altar for the offering.
Pibiola knelt right there.
Then, closing her eyes, she addressed the god.
'God.'
<<[Pibiola. Have you made your decision?]>>
'......Yes.'
<<[Will you offer your mother Helena as a sacrifice for the god?]>>
Unpleasant noise began echoing in her head again from the proxy's words.
She knew she had to answer yes...... but the words wouldn't come.
At that moment—
"O God!"
Terenser, kneeling beside her, looked to the sky and shouted.
"We offer my daughter Helena as a sacrifice for the god! And henceforth, we Kanps pledge to eternally serve the will of the great Sole God Dtamuk Thinking Army! So please, grant us a miracle! Show mercy to our pitiful kin who fade without receiving your teachings!!!"
He must have noticed Pibiola was in a panic and couldn't speak.
Did those words reach the god?
<<[The god says it understands your Kanps' intentions well.]>>
A response from the proxy came into Pibiola's mind.
And—
"—Kyaaaah!!!!"
As Helena's scream rang out, Pibiola squeezed her eyes shut.
An intense heat, far beyond ordinary flames, scorched her cheek fiercely.
From that, she realized what had happened.
Her mother Helena's body...... was on fire.
Her entire form burned within the flames.
She cried out in agony continuously.
The gathered Kanps, witnessing the horrific sight of their kin being burned alive, bowed their waists in unison, invoking the god's name and begging for mercy.
Some shed tears, some despaired, some harbored shameful hope that their own dead family might return—
—O Dtamuk Thinking Army.
If you watch over everything from the heavens, please have mercy.
Grant us your miracle.
To us who can do anything for you, please give your love—
How many minutes passed like that?
Realizing Helena's screams had stopped, Pibiola cautiously opened her eyes.
Before her...... was her mother, reduced to pitch-black ashes.
'Urgh......!!'
Pibiola quickly bowed her head.
She had considered that the flames might be so hot no corpse would remain...... but facing it in reality was worlds apart from imagination.
"O God! We have offered the sacrifice for you! So please, to us, to us Kanps, grant the great Dtamuk Thinking Army's miracle......! As promised, resurrect our kin......!!!"
Terenser shouted loudly toward the sky once more.
And—
<<[The god has words for you.]>>
'......Yes?'
<<[Soon, the god's oracle will resound for you all.]>>
The god's oracle...... its voice would be heard?
As Pibiola wondered what that could mean and tried to ask—
[Iya~ So shooting balloons not only roasts Kanps with fire but lets me talk to the kids too? Total god game!]
—What rang out was a frivolous laugh.
A voice so sleazy it was impossible to associate with a 'god'.
"Wh-what......?!"
"Who's that!"
Toward the bewildered Kanps, the quick-witted Terenser shouted.
"Don't panic! It's the god! Dtamuk Thinking Army's voice!"
"What......!"
"D-Dtamuk Thinking Army......!!!"
[How's the smartest head among the Kanps some geezer on his last legs? Ha.......]
At that moment.
'......Huh?'
A thought flashed through Pibiola's mind like lightning.
—Wait a second.
I get that this is the god's voice.
But, didn't it just say...... 'shooting balloons roasts Kanps with fire'?
What does that......
Aren't balloons the term for the god's power?
Which means—
[The great Sole God Dtamuk Thinking Army is greatly disappointed in your Kanps' moral sense! No fuck, even if the god said to offer her, you really sacrificed your own mom...... This for real?]
......What?
"G-God! That statement—"
[Anyway! You did offer the sacrifice, so gotta revive 'em, right? But hey.]
What followed again was laughter.
Clear mockery. Giggling like dangling false hope, a noise scraping at the mind.
[Reviving these shit game Kanps is impossible no matter what!]
At those words, Terenser's eyes bulged.
"......Pardon? God, what do you......?"
Impossible no matter what?
Before he could even ask why say that, Dtamuk Thinking Army—
[But hey, I did get the sacrifice...... so gotta do something, right?]
《Ahh! Dtamuk Thinking Army! 200 balloons!!! No way! The world's flipping! Somersaulting mid-air, the world flips! Uhahaha~~~!!! 200 balloons! Real talk? Thanks~! 200 balloons! Ah! Of course possible! With balloons, what's impossible? Total wipeout's tough due to lack of power, but exactly as many as given—resurrection possible! Ah! Thanks~!!》
[Can't revive, but killing works, right?]
"!!!!"
[So die!!!!!!!]
—That was the last of the god's voice Pibiola heard.
* * *
Rustle, rustle.
The next scene showed this.
Over half the elves died.
Heads exploding, heart attacks...... anyway, dying in needlessly gory ways.
Completely random, without any criteria.
It felt like those early comic panels—before I started sponsoring—full of unpleasant, overly detailed gore, so I scrolled past quickly.
The characters in the story didn't seem to notice...... but from the content, it looked like only 200 balloons' worth were killed, so Pibiola and the other elves survived.
'......This should be enough.'
I averted my eyes from the comic and carefully organized the content in my mind once more.
I see.
That's how Pibiola's continent ended up in such a mess.
I cautiously lifted my cup and sipped the cola.
The fizzy sting lightly stimulated my mind.
'Let's see.'
I scrolled up and checked the final sponsorship scene again.
200 balloons.
In this world, 1 balloon is 1,000 won, so roughly 200,000 won spent.
Yeah. This was what I was curious about.
Curious enough to request the author for the next chapter.
My lovely, pretty-faced, plump-thighed-for-lap-pillows, massively busty, angel-hearted cute wife Eirene-chan had gone out of her way to be kind to Pibiola, yet I still wanted to hear her story—to confirm exactly how much Dtamuk Thinking Army spent on this bullshit.
A bit embarrassing, but I was genuinely pissed at the annoying villain 'Dtamuk Thinking Army' created by the author—steam practically coming out of my ears.
Even if the elves were fictional from his perspective, no need to spend money tormenting them like this.
If they did something wrong, maybe, but this was excessively cruel.
'Probably all designed by the author to make me feel this way, huh?'
The more you hate a villain, the better crafted they are—feeling the author's power here.
And over-immersion is an otaku's virtue, right? That's why I'm still spending money on this comic.
Anyway.
Since this comic is made via sponsorships, there must be a reason for this plot.
Confirming how much the villain Dtamuk Thinking Army spent was crucial for future developments—
—Seeing the number with my own eyes, I couldn't help but sneer genuinely at the villain character.
—Dtamuk Thinking Army.
You—
Only shelled out 200,000 won?
One Plain Fact.
That guy's total donations so far are less than a single rabbit.