The Pillar of the House 2

I may have cursed him inwardly as a parasite that only eats, but Biin wasn’t being entirely serious. At any rate, Yogur-tosoth was indeed the most important commander among the Dessert Legion commanders.

As the First Legion Commander, Yogur-tosoth had served for a long time as the Dessert Legion’s ultimate decisive weapon.

Although Chaltteoggua’s arrival had pushed him back slightly in pure combat rankings, when it came to mystical attacks Yogur-tosoth remained overwhelmingly first. Especially since Chaltteoggua could only handle one-on-one duels, Yogur-tosoth’s wide-area destruction capability was still utterly irreplaceable.

Above all, the spell Yogur-tosoth’s Majesty that inflicted extreme pressure on enemy worlds during the dimensional passage phase would likely be milked all the way until Biin’s elimination. A single blast from it would obliterate any enemy morale or strategy.

His defensive ability ranked at the very top by general standards, even if the comparison was against Shuc-rimmurath or Chaltteoggua. He possessed high stamina and an abundance of defensive and survival spells.

His support capabilities were equally formidable. While Nyaltartep specialized in that field, it suffered from somewhat lacking mobility and self-survival strength. Yogur-tosoth, by contrast, boasted powerful personal survivability, could deploy wide-area protective magic at will, wielded all manner of spells centered on the space-time attribute, and seemed capable of using every kind of magic imaginable.

In the mystical phase, his separate physical ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠abilities? Sturdy body, excellent mobility, and strength high enough to pummel Wafflach-Nacha with pure physical force alone.

What he clearly could not do was “dueling.” And weakening-type effects—curses, poisons, diseases, seals, and the like. Weakening enemies was Wafflach-Nacha’s domain. Still, it wasn’t as if he were completely incapable of them.

But none of that mattered. Yogur-tosoth possessed high enough intelligence to manage the ecosystem in Biin’s stead, and his breadth of knowledge was vast.

Having passed the Ruler’s Test, he could mentally command countless entities like a true legion commander. This had made directing the Gamchi and various beasts during the dimensional passage phase far easier—all thanks to Yogur-tosoth.

He was simply an overpowered character. Irreplaceable. There was truly nothing he could not do.

Yet Yogur-tosoth himself felt rather dissatisfied with that fact.

“Oh. Brother. What brings you here?”

Chaltteoggua had been leisurely sparring with his “subordinates” before turning to face him. Those subordinates. The other four commanders had each gained followers, yet not a single one had come to him. The conch crabs had gone to Shuc-rimmurath, the elephants to Nyaltartep, and the ascetics had been split between Chaltteoggua and Wafflach-Nacha.

“I came to drink nectar from the Nectar Well. What other reason would there be?”

“Can’t you simply drink cream?”

“Nectar tastes the best.”

To be honest, he had come because the level of the subordinates that fellow commanded irritated him. Why had none of them chosen him as their master? What exactly was lacking in him?

Of course, the ascetics were mostly combat fanatics, so Chaltteoggua had suited them better… Still, since he had come all this way, he ought to at least put on a proper show.

“If this is your territory, I have no choice but to drive out your subordinates.”

“Ah. Understood. After all, this is a confrontation between legion commanders.”

“You insignificant creatures over there. Try to block this.”

The signature spell detonated. The powerful magic twisted the surrounding space-time, sweeping every direction while laden with madness, beauty, terror, and fighting spirit. Even the flying ascetics could not endure a direct hit; they barely managed to block it by forming a combined defense formation.

“Ugh…!”

The Mihun tribe ascetic was a full level 10, yet he had clearly not expected such a gap against Yogur-tosoth. Realizing that the First Legion Commander of the Dessert Desert truly operated on another level, he muttered bitterly.

“It is comparable to the killing intent emitted by Lord Yeondan-u…”

Yogur-tosoth felt his insides twist. Wait, my secret ultimate spell is only on the level of that guy’s ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠killing intent? Then again, Yeondan-u was currently challenging the level 15 ascension test. In a way, it was an enormous compliment.

The current reality was that all five Dessert Legion commanders plus roughly half the legion would have to charge together just to barely restrain something similar. (Even then, with their weakening-type mystics still somewhat insufficient, the odds of Yeondan-u overwhelming them remained far higher.) So there was no need to feel too upset.

Still, what could he do? Killing them for no reason would only diminish his own dignity. Yogur-tosoth savored the nectar with relish, then floated lazily into the air and flew away.

“I need to be the best…”

His arrogant personality flaw continued to trip him up.

Of course he was already the best! Biin knew it, Yogur-tosoth knew it, the Angel knew it—everyone who understood the Dessert Desert knew it.

Yogur-tosoth was the most important piece. Even Yeondan-u would naturally designate him as the most threatening opponent among the five commanders and attempt to eliminate him first.

However, he was not “the best in every field.” Looking back at the strengths listed earlier made that clear.

In the end, his durability fell short of Shuc-rimmurath’s.

His importance in support roles and the main plan fell short of Nyaltartep’s.

His pure combat power fell short of Chaltteoggua’s.

Compared to Wafflach-Nacha, who crossed into enemy worlds from the very beginning and rampaged freely, Yogur-tosoth’s space-time magic was somewhat limited and required the Sugar Lumps’ assistance.

Yogur-tosoth was irreplaceable precisely because he could do all of those things while still possessing his own unique strengths. He was not a perfect upward-compatible version of every commander.

It could not be helped. Anyone who plays the game knows that an entity capable of doing everything is either an overpowered cheat that excels at everything or a mediocre jack-of-all-trades. Positioned correctly, such a being could become a versatile supporter or an all-rounder that fills every gap.

Yogur-tosoth felt like the latter. Because he could do so many things, his strengths had become scattered.

On top of that, whenever anything happened or Biin needed something handled inside the world, he would always order Yogur-tosoth to research magic and take care of it himself. As a result, his focus had grown even more dispersed.

“I should at least be the second greatest being…”

Yogur-tosoth seemed deeply displeased by this. Being entrusted with work was good; it meant his competence was highly valued. He even felt a tremendous sense of superiority from the fact that he could accomplish what the god himself could not.

Yet if things continued this way, he would cease to be the First Legion Commander—the greatest commander—and instead become nothing more than a versatile support who could handle anything. In other words, little more than a rear logistics officer. That role suited Nyaltartep far better.

He needed a greater mission.

“The owner of the Nectar Well is Abhojuth, and that fellow truly sustains the entire ecosystem. That is why he was not even granted a commander title, despite being the single most critical entity.”

He felt a twinge of envy toward Abhojuth. If he himself was the “greatest,” then Abhojuth was the “most important.” The greatest could be replaced, but the most important could not.

Even while assisting Wafflach-Nacha and Shuc-rimmurath in managing Creamland, reorganizing newly acquired lands according to Biin’s clone’s orders, Yogur-tosoth’s discontent refused to fade. The Sugar Lumps’ worship was simply not enough.

In that regard, Biin had spoken to him at exactly the right moment.

“Ooooh! I will definitely accomplish it!”

This was truly a vital task. Creating a point that could replace the Nectar Well… In other words, ensuring Abhojuth would not remain the single most important entity in the world.

In other words, Yogur-tosoth could secure a domain and dignity befitting the First Legion Commander, command vast armies, and firmly establish himself as the god beneath the god—the undisputed second-in-command…

Then even the other commanders, who seemed somewhat lacking in intellect, would look up to him. Wouldn’t even that rude Nyaltartep, who still had not apologized for his previous discourtesy, prostrate himself?

Just imagining it improved his mood. Yogur-tosoth immediately set out to carry out this critical duty bestowed by the creator.

Now then, how should I approach this?

The creator had implanted the relevant knowledge directly into his mind. It was information regarding “spirit life forms” and “artificial spiritual realms,” neatly organized and edited by the god of another world known as Sesaisa. As always, the compilation showcased refined explanations and scholarly inspiration. Yogur-tosoth swiftly absorbed its contents.

“The objective is… my own army. The creation of a First Legion composed of spirits and the establishment of a spirit base.”

True to his high intelligence, he quickly defined the final goal and rapidly mapped out the process to reach it.

Before the disaster phase, Yogur-tosoth decided to create a spirit legion. Thus, above the Space-Time Boundary where his altar stood, he contemplated while receiving the Sugar Lumps’ worship.

In truth, spirit life forms already existed within the Dessert Legion—beings formed more from spiritual flow than physical matter.

These entities called [Milk] became [Yogurt] when [Syrup] was added. They could use magic, assisted ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Yogur-tosoth in repairing the spiritual realm, and lived around the heavenly Creamland.

When [Milk] was placed into [Dough], it became [Bread], which could evolve further into [Dark Limb].

At first glance there seemed to be many, yet there was a catch.

“Neither [Milk] nor [Yogurt] is particularly strong.”

That was Yogur-tosoth’s assessment. They never stepped forward as the legion’s main force. They were nothing more than auxiliary troops. The magic sugar lumps were his true subordinates.

Why was this the case? The answer was simple. The [Milk] that served as the foundation for all spirit life forms in the Dessert Desert was simply too weak.

Biin had named them Milk simply because they were white, blurry, water-like spiritual bodies… They literally possessed the harmlessness of actual milk.

They could only assume form by possessing something else and were pitiful spirit life forms with zero independent survival ability. That was [Milk].

“The creator knew nothing about spirit life forms. Even with information, his knowledge is woefully insufficient compared to material-world life. In that case, simply evolving these spirit life forms should make them tremendously stronger…”

How could it be done? According to Sesaisa’s data, spirits were beings in which will resided within flows, diverging into different types according to the direction of that will. In other words, it was a taxonomic classification corresponding to the subphylum-class-order-family-genus system of the biological group known as spirits.

It was not so different from biology. It was simply too unfamiliar to Biin, not conveyed through the concept of genes, and capable only of interacting with flows emerging from inanimate objects.

Thus the goals narrowed to several points.

First, create powerful spirits. The existence of predators appeared effective. Predators that consumed spirits could further function as predators in other worlds.

Second, to achieve that, enough spirits must be produced for those predators to feed upon. Currently milk increased its numbers slowly through limited self-replication. A mass-production process was required.

Third, the increased spirits must not build an independent ecosystem and live apart; they must exert direct power in the material world and become clear members of the Dessert Legion.

That brought him back to the original goal—what could be called Yogur-tosoth’s long-cherished wish.

“Climate life form. I declared I would create one during the sixth collision, yet even after four collisions I still have not succeeded. Thinking about it now, I understand. It was not that I was incompetent, merely that investment was insufficient. Now that my knowledge has been reinforced and I may use unlimited resources, I can create it as much as I wish.”

Yogur-tosoth loved that he could fly. The pleasure of soaring through the sky while others crawled on the ground, freely bombing them from above!

Unlike the jellies born from sweet nectar that dug through the earth, his dairy products—spilled across the sky and staining it a dirty white—would conquer the enemy’s heavens.

So how to accomplish it? The Nectar Well possessed a god fragment, but he had none. Although many god fragments existed in this ecosystem, none possessed the exact function he desired.

“Hmm…”

As Yogur-tosoth pondered, he realized that within his world the Space-Time Boundary and Constellations were his domains. In addition, he had claimed all the mystic terrains Biin did not know how to utilize well—Mirage, Ultra-High Magic Pressure Zones, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the rest—as his own territory.

While thoroughly studying and researching them, Yogur-tosoth reached a rather strange conclusion.

“Come to think of it, with the current terrain, wouldn’t it be easier to create space-time controlling spirits than climate-controlling ones?”

The climate of the Dessert Desert was almost uniformly monotonous, whereas space-time related mystics, terrains, and even authorities were far more abundant. He himself had begun with climate magic as his focus, yet space-time types had become his primary field.

Yogur-tosoth decided to gather a massive amount of space-time magic power and attempt something with it. The levels of the Constellations and Space-Time Boundary were extremely high. Many other terrains were also connected to the Macrocosm. It did not seem impossible.

In other words, strictly speaking, Yogur-tosoth had not truly understood what the Macrocosm was. It was a realm far beyond his comprehension.

He simply believed he could visit the Macrocosm and return without issue. Thus, without much thought, Yogur-tosoth—who had gathered an enormous quantity of space-time magic power—fired it toward the Macrocosm connected through the Constellations. He intended to draw as much cosmic power as possible to accomplish something.

In truth, he should have drawn celestial magic power normally. After all, the macrocosm that normally only connected after round 29 was largely empty and received no guidance.

But… something strange occurred.

Yogur-tosoth’s body began to be drawn upward into the lofty cosmos.

“Eh, ehhh?”

Yogur-tosoth was sucked into space, pulled along by the space-time magic power he himself had emitted.

Biin stared at his vanished First Legion Commander with a dumbfounded expression and demanded an explanation from the Angel. Meanwhile Yogur-tosoth, sensing the flow of the great Macrocosm, was drawn somewhere.

Where? To a settlement existing within the Macrocosm.

How could a settlement exist in this uninhabited zone connected during round 29? Because a mythic-grade trait existed in the game that shattered that very premise.

The owner of that trait was the Holy Emperor of Utopia, Terasion.

“Eh.”

The citizens of Terasion, who had been experimenting with space-time magic power on the satellite constructed in space, were thrown into panic by the sudden appearance of a colossal monster.

Terasion himself, who managed the cosmic settlement, was stunned.

Yogur-tosoth, abruptly dragged here, was equally bewildered.

And then, moments later…

Half the residents fainted on the spot. The other half collapsed, soiling themselves in terror.

Terasion, who had believed no one could touch him in space and had therefore excluded all military forces, keeping only civilians on his most critical colony, suffered a catastrophic meteor strike that shattered his carefully built settlement.