Chapter 83
Chapter 83
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: A God’s Change of Heart
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'Hmm...'
I was staring at the final panel of Ares praying to me for a long time.
It was strange.
For some reason, seeing the results of the sponsorship made me feel different from what I had initially imagined.
After reading the short comic depicting Ares's past, I could tell.
Even though he wore a smiling face, he was the type who could stab not only his mother Eirene, but also his sisters Yuria and Linea if necessary—
And even go as far as sacrificing the lives of the nobles cooperating with him to achieve his 'greater cause,' regardless of his intentions. He was someone with extremely dangerous ideology.
It just so happened that the religious order's methods aligned with his greater cause for now—creating a world for everyone—so he wasn't doing anything about it yet.
Among those, Eirene's existence was particularly antithetical to Ares's ideal world. The very concept of her as the Empire's Empress must feel like an impurity to him.
In the world line where 'Eirene gets a proper education,' it was none other than Ares who used her as a sacrifice for the new era, which confirmed it for me.
The method I used to sway such an Ares—
Was to create a being who completely understood him.
For a hot-headed young man consumed by a desire for recognition and considering dangerous means, it was like fulfilling his wishes and quelling his discontent.
By letting him taste, on a temporary basis, the friend from his ideal utopia, making him desperate for more.
In a way, this was my own form of 'proper education' for Ares, born from the sentiment of 'How dare you touch Eirene?'
It might have been a bit too harsh for Ares—but on one hand, there was me thinking, 'This is just a comic, not reality.'
Besides, Ares was a character I had just met, while Eirene was one I had grown deeply attached to.
When it came down to taking sides, it was obvious—I simply had to side with Eirene and act accordingly.
In fact, I hadn't anticipated that the nun I sent would end things with Ares on an awkward note right as the term expired...
Anyway, I thought that seeing him go 'Wah wah, I won't have strange thoughts anymore, I'll live nicely, please let me meet Sister again' would give me a dopamine rush, honestly.
You know those satisfying scenes in comics or webnovels, right? I sponsored with that exact vibe in mind, like 'Ares, you punk, dare defy a god? Taste some plain facts.'
'I thought it would be fun at that level.'
So.
And that level was—
'It doesn't seem that fun.'
It was truly strange.
Even seeing Ares begging, I felt no joy or dopamine surge.
Far from it, I just thought... 'Is this really the right thing to do?'
I gulped down some cold water.
Of course, from my perspective, Ares's ideology was hard to accept.
Even if his greater cause was the right path, I believed deciding who to sacrifice should be left to individual autonomy.
How many people would hear 'You shouldn't exist, so die here for everyone's sake' or 'For everyone's benefit, you need to make the big sacrifice and die here' and respond with 'Ah, I see. My birth was the problem from the start. If it's for the greater good, I'll die cleanly without regrets. Yap.' and face death calmly?
And yet, I couldn't help but feel bothered.
By the sight of him kneeling and praying to me.
It felt like I was imposing far too harsh a punishment on someone who had only harbored such thoughts without taking any direct action yet—
In other words, pity.
Right now, I was genuinely feeling pity for a comic character.
For the guy who might kill a character I liked.
It might be that I was over-immersed, even though it was just a comic...
But as a god, shouldn't I prioritize enlightenment over mere punishment like 'proper education'?
'At this rate, in a few months, I'll start delusionally thinking I'm a real god without realizing it.'
I let out a chuckle and reached for a cigarette, then stopped.
In fact, I was already two weeks into quitting smoking.
Why? Because I thought a god couldn't be swayed by something as trivial as a cigarette.
...The thought that I was already playing the 'god' role so faithfully made me chuckle dryly again—
'Alright. Time to change direction a bit.'
If I just sent another temporary nun via sponsorship like this, wouldn't it be meaningless if Ares didn't fundamentally change his thinking?
Rather than thinking his ideals were wrong and needed fixing, I wanted to show him how an absolute 'justice' that he never doubted could turn cruel depending on the situation.
[ Please Donate : How did you like this chapter? ]
[ Please Donate : Igugwoden-nim's 'Divine Power' seems to have succeeded in changing Ares's heart. ]
[ Please Donate : At this rate, we might see Ares kneel before God's plain facts and fall into faith. ]
[ Igugwoden : Author. ]
[ Please Donate : Yes? ]
[ Igugwoden : It's a bit funny for me to say this myself, but... ]
[ Igugwoden : It seems the god made a misjudgment. ]
[ Please Donate : What do you mean, Igugwoden-nim? ]
[ Please Donate : Igugwoden-nim is the Sole God, perfect in all things. ]
[ Please Donate : A misjudgment by Igugwoden-nim is simply impossible. ]
[ Igugwoden : Nah lol, even gods can misjudge sometimes. ]
[ Igugwoden : If it's a mistake, just correct it. ]
[ Please Donate : Correct the mistake... ]
[ Igugwoden : Anyway. ]
[ Igugwoden : The original plan was to keep teasing him with these temporary sponsorships to win Ares over, right? ]
[ Igugwoden : Like, I'll give you a friend occasionally, so don't act out... that kind of vibe. ]
[ Igugwoden : I'm canceling that. ]
[ Please Donate : That's fine, but... are you sure? ]
[ Please Donate : As I mentioned, Ares is a long-term threat to those receiving God's love, including Lady Eirene. ]
[ Please Donate : Even if not now, we can't rule out the need for divine intervention someday. ]
If the story progressed and Ares targeted Eirene's life?
That would be the end of Ares's life that day. At least, as long as I, the god, was overlooking the world.
I knew that. Still...
I was the type who believed people could change.
[ Igugwoden : After seeing the comic, ]
[ Igugwoden : It looks like Ares has awakened to love. ]
Honestly, the biggest reason I felt pity was that Ares seemed to genuinely fall for the nun I sent, truly smitten.
I had thought her nun outfit would keep it at the level of a 'pure male fantasy best friend,' but I was completely wrong.
Well, love is an important value, isn't it?
If we call that a plain fact, then Ares had already reached a plain fact on his own, in a way.
[ Igugwoden : If this 'love' emotion takes root in him, ]
[ Igugwoden : I think he might reconsider his feelings about his greater cause. ]
[ Please Donate : Reconsider...? ]
[ Igugwoden : Hmm... how to put it. ]
[ Igugwoden : I think being indifferent to someone's sacrifice is possible only because you don't have anyone you love. ]
[ Igugwoden : Falling in love originally means becoming vulnerable, after all. ]
[ Please Donate : Loving someone makes you vulnerable. ]
[ Igugwoden : Yeah, that's not a bad thing. ]
[ Igugwoden : Only those who have been vulnerable can empathize with others' vulnerabilities. ]
'Whoa. Igugwoden.'
Even as I said it, it felt like middle-school syndrome vibes rising...
But amusingly, feeling myself immersed as the god and spouting these lines boldly was far more enjoyable than watching Ares grovel.
[ Igugwoden : Anyway... since he's already grown fond of the nun, ]
[ Igugwoden : Let's utilize this in a different way. ]
My original plan was this.
To keep him longing for the nun continuously, and cut off the divine power the moment he showed disloyalty, manipulating him to my will.
And the direction of change—
Was to give him time to think, including properly ending the inevitably temporary bond with the nun.
'It might not work out perfectly.'
In fact.
The easiest way might be to just send Erin now and have her snap the Holy Scripture—
But since we've come this far, I wanted to create a world where they could feel the efficacy of God's existence without forceful divine input.
Because that would be a bit more fun, right?
Clicking away all the time gets boring fast.
[ Igugwoden : Is that okay? ]
[ Igugwoden : Sorry for suddenly changing the story direction again... ]
[ Please Donate : Don't say that, Igugwoden-nim, it hurts. ]
[ Please Donate : Not 'is it okay,' but command 'do it this way.' ]
[ Please Donate : As long as divine power is granted, we will follow Igugwoden-nim's will no matter what. ]
I was about to say just upload the pre-drawn next chapters—
'Nah.'
Instead, I decided to add a bit more cost for the redrawing—
And slowly placed my hand on the keypad to enter the amount.
* * *
As always, at a specific time—
Exactly three knocks, knock knock knock, in the same rhythm.
It had become a familiar sound, one you couldn't help but notice immediately, like a habit.
Excitedly opening the door, there would be Karen, neatly dressed in her nun habit, smiling at him like sunshine.
"Prince! Hello! Shall we chat with Big Sister again today?"
"Yes, sounds good. Big Sister."
In truth, their chats were nothing special, mostly idle talk.
With only brief mentions of religion in between.
Even then, she artfully avoided talks of doctrine.
The content was limited to things like how much the Igugwoden Cathedral had changed, or how Eirene and the imperial family members along with many retainers were testifying to God's plain facts.
Inversely proportional to the brevity of conversation moments—the time spent playing games with her grew longer.
She had said all this was just part of the process of learning 'plain facts.'
Honestly, he still didn't fully get what that meant... but Ares was happy as long as he could do something with her.
"Ahh! I lost again... I can't win."
"No. This is a game I taught you the rules for... I'm more experienced, so I'm better at it inevitably. And Sister is amazing at chess anyway."
"Really? I don't think it's that impressive, but hearing praise from a wonderful person like you, Prince, makes me happy!"
Her hehe laugh as she said that was still vivid in his mind.
He had no choice but to admit it now.
That her smile had shaken his heart, even if just a little.
Was she an outstanding beauty? Honestly, no.
Her looks were far from lacking—cute enough that many would call her so—but
The problem was that Ares had grown up surrounded by women with imperial DNA like Eirene, Linea, and Yuria.
His stepmother Eirene, whose beauty was unparalleled in the Empire, cold and sharp-tempered, instilling fear in many.
After converting to the Igugwoden Church, her femininity blossomed manifold, making men forget even her age in her increased beauty.
Yuria and Linea, daughters of the previous emperor, resembling such an Eirene.
With sisters and stepmother of such immense beauty as benchmarks, the bar for beauty naturally rose high.
But setting aside appearances—
No man could resist someone who didn't mock his tastes, accepted him wholly, and understood even his secret hobbies.
Ares too, despite his radical ideology, was just a man.
After snapping harsh words at her like an accusation that day, Ares always thought.
That he wanted to apologize for his slip-up now, and thank her for bringing color back to his life.
Even if her approach to him had ulterior motives, it didn't matter.
That didn't make everything he gained from her, every moment together, a lie.
He believed there would be a chance someday.
She had come to him every day at the set time, after all.
He had taken it so for granted—
* * *
—Taken it so for granted.
'......'
Lying in bed, Ares spent the whole day sprawled without going out.
After that day, he had prayed several times—but no response from the god.
Of course, there wouldn't be. Prayer was one-way. Even Erin, known to commune with god, only claimed so verbally; it was obviously one-sided...
For him, who never believed in religion from the start, would a god now show mercy?
Even if he were god, he wouldn't bestow plain facts on such a disbeliever.
Burying his face in the pillow, Ares thought.
'...Maybe it's just a roundabout way of saying we can't meet.'
In truth, the nun using the name Karen didn't want to reunite with him.
Knowing that, the Saintess had blocked their meetings with vague words out of consideration—
That explanation fit everything.
If so, he had no intention of seeking her out relentlessly.
He just wanted to apologize for getting angry at the end. Say sorry.
Yeah.
Next time he saw the Saintess, he'd ask her to pass that on at least.
And then, just forget and live on. Even if he wanted to see her so badly... if she didn't want to see him... he'd give up.
Give up.
Give up...
'......'
When he came to, his pillowcase was wet with tears.
......I want to see her.
I want to chat about nothing again.
I want to play chess and laugh together.
I want to learn more from Sister... from Big Sister......
――Knock knock knock.
"......!!!!!!"
He bolted up.
Hearing someone knock, Ares shot to his feet as if struck by lightning.
This sound... could it be...?
'Big Sister...?!'
Rushing to open the door, what greeted him was—
Brown hair, brown eyes.
A distinct mole near her mouth, even in faint color.
The nun in her slightly side-slit habit, dressed neatly... the vanished nun.
"...Hello, Prince. Long time no see."
And in that moment.
As if an explosion spell detonated in his head—
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[ Igugwoden : ( Sponsorship /
10,000 won
/ Prepaid 3x the 3,000 won, 1,000 won bonus ) ]
[ Igugwoden : I'll tell you what to do from now on. ]
* * *
—Ten thousand won sponsorship hurray!
—Ten thousand won sponsorship hurray!
Composed of words incomprehensible to mere creations, the god's 'providence' that no creature could fathom—
Boom boom, boom—exploded repeatedly.
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