Die for Me, Please
Die for Me, Please
I was a man cursed with truly rotten luck.
Whenever happiness seemed to draw near, it fled from me in an instant.
The moment a situation showed any sign of improving, it inevitably took a turn for the worse.
My life had always been that way.
So I didn't even have the energy left to be angry anymore.
I simply... resigned myself to it.
When the goddess declared she would cast me into hell.
When she said she would obliterate my soul and the Authority within it together.
My first thought was that my time had finally come.
Well, then.
What kind of otherworld harem king was I supposed to be?
Lacking talent. A half-wit. A bastard like me, who knew nothing of the world and constantly got the short end of the stick—how could I ever deserve a happy ending?
And then, when I thought about the deeds the original owners of the Authorities inside my body committed with those very powers, as the goddess had shown me...
If I simply vanished, for the good of this world.
For Erpa.
For Iomene.
For Almene.
Wouldn't that be so much better?
It had been a short stint as a harem king.
That alone was more than enough for me.
A guy like me—when would I ever get to live in such luxury, surrounded by three beautiful women?
A few days of happiness were enough to satisfy me.
"Destroy my soul, quickly, before I change my mind!"
Still, an injustice was an injustice.
Fucking hell, who gave me something and then snatched it right back?
I was just starting to find some joy, so why did it have to suddenly...
And so, tears spilled down my face without me even realizing it.
Sobbing uncontrollably, I demanded that my soul be destroyed.
Soul destruction?
It didn't scare me.
For anyone native to this world, it would be terrifying, but for me?
It was nothing more than a ticket straight back to Korea.
So this was the right choice.
If my Authority was going to make everyone miserable, then it was better for me alone to be miserable and for it to all end.
Iomene and Almene.
Erpa.
They had all suffered so much.
I refused to let my Authority devour faith and run rampant, turning this world into those horrific scenes I had witnessed.
So I would simply return to Korea and be done with it.
My twenty-year otherworldly reincarnation—short, yet long—was ending so futilely, a damn boring conclusion.
I felt bitter and angry, but this was the best outcome.
"Now! Do it now! Right now!"
When I screamed those words while crying my eyes out, the goddess did not answer for a long while.
What was this?
You said you'd throw me into hell? You said you'd destroy my soul along with that ability?
Then do it right now.
[I cannot do so at this moment. Amael.]
At those words, my mouth fell open in sheer disbelief.
"You're telling me to live in perpetual terror, never knowing when I'll fall into hell, and then die?! That's too cruel! Even from your perspective, Goddess, eliminating me right now is the better option! So please, just do it now!"
The goddess let out a deep sigh at my outburst.
[I am too injured to do so. Amael.]
"Excuse me?"
[Three hundred years ago. As you just witnessed, the Celestial Realm, Hell, and the Evil God of the Abyss all clashed in the Heavenly War. The wounds I sustained then have yet to heal. Because of that, destroying your soul immediately is impossible.]
Wow...
Then what the hell did that mean?
Because you couldn't kill me right this second.
You were going to let me live my whole life on earth trembling in anxiety and fear, and after I died, you'd toss me into hell?
Were you a demon?
You called yourself a goddess, but your actions were no different from a demon's!
"I truly... I truly hate you. I resent you! This isn't a power I ever asked for! I don't even know why it's inside my soul! And because of it, people... fuck..."
After weeping in sorrow for a long while, I got to my feet.
"If you can't do it, then I'll find a way to destroy my own soul."
Fine.
If you can't do it, I'll do it myself.
A high-level curse.
You said getting hit by one of those could shatter my soul, right?
I would get myself hit by one and destroy my soul on my own.
"I truly, truly hate and resent you... but for your sake. For the sake of the Pantheon's gods. And for the sake of the humans of this world and the women I love."
I clenched my fist.
I truly wished this wasn't the end.
But now that I knew the true nature of my power.
Now that I knew it could grow stronger by feeding on the worship directed at me.
I had no choice but to destroy my soul and leave this world.
My plan from the beginning had been to destroy my soul and return to Korea anyway.
Only the reason had changed now.
No longer was it solely for my own sake.
It was for the women I loved.
For the countless humans who were sick, struggling, and suffering.
For the many, many sick, struggling, and suffering humans I had treated—so that I would never inflict an even greater agony upon them.
"I'll commit martyrdom. If I martyr myself, this all ends. Isn't that right?"
I murmured those words with a self-deprecating smile.
***
The Evil God felt so apoplectic with rage it was as if he might die from sheer frustration.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go?
He wanted to commit martyrdom?
Was that answer even remotely logical?
This man clearly had an intellectual deficiency.
Otherwise, the words "I'll commit martyrdom" could never have left his mouth in this situation.
No matter how you looked at it, wasn't this the moment he was supposed to resent the goddess?
He had just found women he loved; he was on the verge of grasping a sliver of happiness, and then a goddess appeared to curse him, declaring he could never be happy.
The normal reaction was to resent, to curse, to twist with anger, and to fall into corruption.
That was normal, and yet...
'What is wrong with this bastard? How is his head wired?!'
The situation was so absurdly off-script that the Evil God found himself momentarily speechless.
He racked his brain desperately.
'Think. My goal is to pit the Pantheon's good gods, who treasure this brat, against the demons of Hell. This brainless idiot is offering to sacrifice himself. So how can I use this to engineer that conflict?'
The Evil God, his mind working frantically, finally came up with a good idea.
[If that is your resolve, I shall assist you.]
The Evil God lowered his voice and once more mimicked the goddess's tone.
[The Evil God's Authorities could never destroy your soul. You know this from experience.]
Amael nodded grimly.
"The Fragment of the Evil God entered my body and was simply destroyed and erased."
[The Hellish Authorities within you are far too strong. However, that does not mean there is no way to destroy them. Everything can be undone in the place where it was created.]
"What do you mean by that?..."
[Not the Evil God's Curse, but the Authorities of Hell. A sufficiently potent black magic or sorcery could destroy the Authorities and your soul together. So, if you truly intend to martyr yourself for everyone's sake, you must do two things from now on.]
The Evil God raised two fingers.
[First, you must prevent the Authorities within your body from growing any further. Depart from those who worship you. Whether it is Hell, the Abyss, or the Pantheon. Divinities grow strong by feeding on faith and worship. Your Authority is no different. Thus, you must avoid it.]
That an Authority fed on faith was the truth. The Evil God needed to prevent Asmodeus's Authority from becoming more powerful than was necessary.
Furthermore, he could not allow this brainless, do-gooder idiot to perform any acts that would skyrocket faith in the Pantheon's gods.
And if the man fell outside the Pantheon's influence, he would be easier to dispose of should the need arise.
That was the reasoning behind his words.
[Second. Seek out demon worshippers powerful enough to destroy your soul and the Authority within it. Strive to have your soul destroyed by their black magic and sorcery. And so, for the sake of all humanity. For me and the Pantheon's gods. Commit martyrdom.]
He was demanding the man die for humans and gods he had never even met.
The normal reaction to such a statement would be fury and hatred, but...
"I was already preparing to leave, and now it seems I truly must go. I understand. I will depart from those who worship me. And I will endeavor to have my soul destroyed by black magic and sorcery."
Yet this fool was saying with a sorrowful face that he would obediently accept death.
A laugh of sheer incredulity burst out of the Evil God.
What kind of creature was this?
No matter how diverse humans were, wasn't this a degree of nobility that defied all common sense?
Was it that his idiocy had reached such an extreme that it appeared noble?
Or was he truly so good and kind-hearted that he was acting this way? By now, even the Evil God could scarcely tell the difference.
While the Evil God stood there flabbergasted.
He felt a rough intrusion attempting to force its way into his domain from outside.
It was undeniably the good gods of the Pantheon.
Unable to stand by any longer, they were attempting to interfere by expending their power, even knowing the ruined state of the Celestial Realm.
The Evil God felt a surge of irritation at their actions.
The aftermath of the Heavenly War still heavily lingered on him as well.
He was in no condition to wield his full Authority as he had in his prime.
In his prime, he could have forcibly brainwashed Amael or directly pried into his soul, but for now, meeting and speaking with him like this was all he could manage.
As was obvious, he could not long withstand the interference of the good gods either.
The conversation was now over.
Just as he was about to depart.
"Goddess. Is it truly impossible for you to simply destroy my soul now? No matter how I think about it, rather than waiting for me to clumsily martyr myself, it would be far quicker for you to dispose of me right this instant."
The dimwitted fool fired off one last line that made the Evil God feel as if he would die of a rage-induced stroke.
In truth, the Evil God wanted nothing more than to simply kill this bastard.
The man only held value if he acted according to the original plan—as a tool to instigate a war between the Pantheon and Hell's Demon Kings. A docile idiot so meekly babbling about martyrdom was an unpredictable variable.
Permanently erasing one of Hell's Authorities on this occasion wouldn't be a bad thing, but...
'Those blasted Pantheon bastards!!'
As he had said, the aftermath of the Heavenly War meant his own Authority was not intact.
There was no way a being in his position—reduced to struggling against the Pantheon gods' interference—could extinguish a Demon King's Authority.
[As I said, I am currently injured. Thus, destroying your soul and the Authority is impossible. I had intended to cast you into hell after recovering over time, but if you volunteer for martyrdom, it will relieve me of a great burden. Die for me.]
The Evil God made one final provocation to the Saint.
The line was the very definition of selfishness.
Die for me.
It was the sort of remark that, if heard by any other saint, saintess, or hero, would be more than sufficient to make them spew curses at Lilia and descend into corruption and darkening.
The Evil God prayed and prayed that Amael would likewise fall to corruption, but this idiotic, dim-witted, useless brat ultimately betrayed his expectations.
"Yes. I will do so."
Wearing a bitter, self-mocking smile, Amael gave that reply.
The Evil God genuinely wanted to crack open that human's skull and peer inside.
But doing so risked being struck down by the Demon King's Authority himself, so he had no choice but to abandon the notion.
[Go, commit martyrdom. For all of humanity and all the gods of the Pantheon.]
With that final line, the Evil God withdrew from Amael.
And as he did, he erupted in fury, thinking that in all his eons of existence, he had never seen such an ignorant, stupid bastard before.
As he pulled away, the Evil God could see the Pantheon's gods gazing down at him from the distant sky.
[You son of a bitch who deserves to be torn apart! What did you say to our treasure who bolsters our faith! If only the Celestial Realm were intact and I could communicate with the Human Realm more freely, I would tear you apart with my own hands and lap up your blood and entrails! You insect squirming about in the Abyss!]
Dulanear, the most intact of the Pantheon's gods—who had recently even generously sent down a Chosen—let out his usual barbarian-like roar, flinging curses at the Evil God.
[A day will come when the hammer of justice falls upon your head. Insect of the Abyss.]
Lopers, the God of Justice, wreathed in a halo like the sun, declared to the Evil God in a low and icy voice.
All the other gods as well.
Each of them hurled a line of malediction and curses at the Evil God.
It was such an utterly familiar sight to the Evil God that the moment held no surprise for him whatsoever.
[Fools.]
Did those creatures even know that the very treasure amplifying their faith was none other than the bearer of the Demon King of Lust's Authority?
Probably not.
The Evil God himself had only realized it after a fragment of his being was annihilated inside Amael.
Because of the overly powerful Authority of Lust combined with Amael's almost stupidly virtuous nature, those gods clearly had no idea of the true identity of the Authority dwelling within him.
However, there was a unique possibility that two of the Pantheon's gods alone might have perceived its true nature.
The Evil God looked toward those two gods.
A goddess, soaked in blood, so grievously wounded that her Divinity seemed ready to vanish at any moment without it being strange.
Lilia of Grace.
And another god standing quietly beside her, supporting Lilia.
Lupiel, God of the Future.
Especially Lupiel.
That one was dangerous.
There was a chance Lupiel had discerned the Authority residing within the Saint.
[Amael will die soon. That means the treasure who amplifies your faith will vanish. Serves you right, you whores and rent-boys. I played my hand so obviously, and all you can do is flounder because the Celestial Realm is broken and you can't properly interfere with the Human Realm!]
[I will flay the scalp from that bastard's head and gnaw on it! I will tear out his liver and lick it clean!!]
Dulanear thundered a furious shout, but the Evil God merely cackled, mocking them all.
[God of the Future. I have your prophecy to thank. That creature Amael. He was afraid. I simply prodded that fear a little. He will die before long. You will never again profit from this. You've played yourself beautifully! Haha!!]
At those words, Lupiel, who had been supporting Lilia, quietly stepped forward.
As he always had.
He wore a subtle, inscrutable smile as he looked at the Evil God.
[Will it be so?]
A low and tranquil voice.
But precisely because of that, it was a voice that inspired even greater dread.
Lupiel, God of the Future.
He was, as ever, a god whose thoughts were impossible to read.
[Just watch. You revolting, filthy bastards cavorting in the sky above. And you hideous demons of Hell as well. Someday, you will all vanish. And I!! I alone will remain and devour everything. The Abyss waits for you always.]
Cackling, the Evil God vanished into his own domain.
The Pantheon's gods, seeing the Evil God disappear, returned to their domains as well.
All but one.
Only Lupiel remained, watching the Evil God's retreating back, wearing that inscrutable smile without end.