On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons

Chapter 23: Human, Do You Believe Mr. Yu Il-Shin?

I was watching a replay of the National Assembly Building’s incident, where the S-rank Drake had emerged, on Newtube. Even though it was recent, the video had already hit two million views. Despite being an edited version taken by a citizen on-site, the quality was still relatively good, thanks to the advanced technology.

Scenes of Thunder Emperor, who arrived at the scene first, played on the screen. She was fighting hard against the Drake on her own, stabbing it with a lightning spear.

But soon, the difference between their levels became apparent. Her attacks didn’t do much to the Drake. She momentarily let her guard down, resulting in her getting hit by the Drake’s tail, slamming her against the wall of a building.

When I saw that, I clenched my fist. That monster could easily destroy a building as if it were a sandcastle. Would Thunder Emperor be all right?

— Kyaaa! Save me!

The defeat of Thunder Emperor turned the citizen’s hope into despair. They fled from the scene, their screams reverberating in the air.

Flash! Rumble—

Just then, a deafening thunder roared, followed by a flash of lightning that struck the collapsed building.

Trudge trudge.

Thunder Emperor emerged from the wreckage unscathed, with electric currents all over her body. She put down the empty bottle of potion I had given her earlier, subsequently getting into the ready position of a 100m sprinter at the starting line.

Flash! Rumbleeee!

With another roar of thunder, she charged toward the Drake. In the blink of an eye, she arrived in front of the monster.

-Kieeeeek!

As the Drake screamed, Thunder Emperor plunged her lightning spear into its chest, leaving a gaping hole. Comments quickly appeared in real time.

└Wow, I almost peed my pants watching this! Wasn’t Thunder Emperor too strong? Isn’t she just Thor at this point? How is she a B-rank?

└She’s an A-rank now, why are you still saying that she’s B-rank?

└Wah, this is my first time hearing her voice. It’s giving me earworms! Doesn’t she sound quite young?

└There are rumors that she’s S-rank Hunter Sung Mi-Na’s younger sister.

└Nah, that’s bull. They’re not similar in any way.

└You guys are talking about similarities when Thunder Emperor hasn’t done a single face reveal.

└You can see it just by comparing their figures. Sung Mi-Na is a wall.

└Yep, convinced.

└Guys, who’s the ‘Mister’ she mentioned in her interview?

└Based on her recent development, he must be an S-rank Hunter. Right, I heard that there’s an S-rank Hunter from Russia naturalizing. Maybe it’s him?

└Whoever it is, he must be super powerful if he could mentor Thunder Emperor.

Tap!

I shut the laptop.

That ain’t me. I’m in no way related to this incident. I’m not even registered as a Hunter to begin with. The netizens seem to be joking as well.

“Thank you for the food. Still, this restaurant sure is wonderful. They even do delivery at this hour. Hehe, how nice.” Thunder Emperor remarked.

Of course, a Chinese restaurant that offered 24-hour delivery was every writer’s best companion.

Despite being caked in dirt, she still looked adorable. The black bean sauce all over her mouth didn’t dull her smile.

Ugh, the perk of being extremely good-looking...

“Hic, Mister. I am dying of hunger... please feed me...”

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Just thirty minutes ago, Ms. Sung Mi-Ri came back to me looking like a beggar. Seeing that she hadn’t had a single meal after the emergency dispatch, I took pity on her. Thus, I took it upon myself to order black bean sauce noodles even though it was past 10 p.m.

Anyway, hanging out alone with a teenage girl at this hour wouldn’t look good.

“Now that you’re done, why don’t you go back home? I’m sure your family is worried.”

Hearing my words, she became sullen.

“No one’s going to worry about me.”

“I doubt it. How can your parents not be worried when they have such a beautiful daughter like you?”

“Both of them passed away fifteen years ago during the Abysm Dragon incident...”

That incident was known throughout Korea. Fifteen years ago, an SSS-rank gate appeared in our country, from which the worst monster known to man emerged. The Abysm Dragon.

We managed to overcome it by a narrow margin only because of the aid of the entire world. By that time, millions of lives had perished, leaving an everlasting horror that was still talked about to this day.

I wanted to console her, yet I couldn’t think of anything to say. Apparently, it was a feat beyond me. Despite the general fantasy about writers, behind that facade was just a dreamer seriously lacking in social skills. I pushed through the discomfort.

“D-d-do you want mine? I’m still feeling quite full...”

I felt myself breaking out into a cold sweat as I handed her another bowl of unopened noodles with black bean sauce.

“...Okay.” She still looked gloomy.

“Have some of the pickled radish, too.”

“...Okay.”

“Do you want dumplings? They are super crunchy.”

“Okay.”

Her mood improved when I tried feeding her more food. Was it just me? Either way, seeing her eating heartily also made me feel better.

“Is there anything else you want?”

“Please accept me as your student.”

...I thought she had given up on it.

“Like I said, you’re sorely mistaken. I’m really just a normal guy.”

“No! You’re incredible! Because of your potion, all of my injuries were gone! I was also full of energy! Normally, I wouldn’t be able to defeat that monster on my own! I’ve never seen a potion that amazing before!”

...Those eyes again.

It felt as if she’d believe any crap I spouted. She’d probably believe me if I said that fermented soybean was made of mugwort.

I looked at the empty potion bottle she brought back. That’s weird. When I downed it, it was just a Bacchus-F-flavored potion. Did the effects differ by person?

Anyway, what matters the most right now is how to persuade this teenager to go home.

Ding!

[The levels of the other party’s favor and trust have met the minimum threshold. If they speak the following keyword, they can nurture faith in you.]

[Faith development keyword: Believe in Yu Il-Shin.]

A strange message appeared on God-Maker. What? Favor and trust levels? Did the game confuse itself as a dating sim for teens?

Still, I couldn’t just shrug it off when it mentioned the nurturing of faith. Could I gain Godcoins like with the Saintess? I was honestly a bit tempted.

There was no saying I wouldn’t be attacked by the army ants in the future. Back then, I had planned to throw God-Maker into the river. But during the last attack, some of the ants emerged from thin air instead of my phone, rendering that idea futile. In other words, even without God-Maker, my safety was still up in the air.

It’s best if I can get my hands on more Godcoins. Next time, I should purchase an OP power.

Carefully, I said, “Ms. Sung Mi-Ri, I have a favor to ask.”

“Sure! Feel free to speak! I’ll do everything within my means!”

“No, it’s nothing extreme. Can you just repeat after me?”

“Okay!”

Wait, she’s not suspicious at all? I began saying the keywords.

“B-believe in Yu Il-Shin...”

Ugh, I’m feeling embarrassed saying it out loud.

But Sung Mi-Ri yelled it vigorously without a hint of hesitation.

“Believe in Yu Il-Shin!”

And God-Maker reacted to it.

Ding!

[Faith development is successful!]

[Congratulations. Sung Mi-Ri is your first follower on Earth.]

[Current faith accumulated: 1,102]

Messages of her becoming my follower appeared. Unlike my expectations, Godcoins did not appear. Instead, another weird menu appeared.

[A new menu, ‘Skill Share,’ has been created.]

Skill Share?

-----

[Skill Share]

The relationship between a god and a follower is inseparable. As the faith increases, the god gains divine powers, while his followers obtain more blessings.

Since you are still a young god, there are no proper blessings to give. Nevertheless, like how water flows from the higher to the lower, strength is applied in the same way. You may lend your followers a portion of your power.

Amass strong faith! And you will get stronger in return!

Current possible Skill Share party: Sung Mi-Ri

-----

“Pfft.”

The text may sound convincing, but let’s not forget the fact that I had been tricked a few times. This time was probably no different.

Without thinking too deeply, I decided to test it out.

“Skill Sharing, Sung Mi-Ri.”

Pzzt! Pzzt!

Sparks began appearing on my right hand, and...

“Huh?”

Flash!

Rumble—Boom boom boom!

The ceiling disappeared, and I was left staring pathetically at the cloudy sky of Seoul.

“Wow! Mister! You can manipulate lightning, too? You're indeed amazing!”

What's this? I'm scared...

Ding!

Clang!

[You have been rewarded 30 Dark Gcoins.]

Black Godcoins began appearing on my phone.

Why would I get coins out of nowhere?

***

The universe was immensely vast. Amongst the countless planets, some held the miracle of life just like Earth. The inhabitants might be as great, similar, or even lesser than humans. And amongst one of those miraculous stars, there was Antrinia.

An emperor reigned over the planet, seated on the throne and draped in a red veil. Then, he spoke to his subjects, who bowed to him from underneath.

—So, has the malevolent god received my envoy?

A half-human, half-insect locust dressed magnificently bowed deeper.

“The Foreign Minister, Kataka, has departed with the finest beauties in the empire, along with the highest quality ether equal to their combined weight. On top of that, we also have the stood surety for the 999th divine throne. We obtained it from the shrine that the empire worships in His Majesty's name. Surely, that would be more than enough to satisfy a third-rated malevolent god?”

“Yes. It may be the last seat, but it’s still above the stature of a subpar malevolent god.”

The five million troops, including General Kamiri, that the empire lost to the demon were just the tip of the iceberg. If it meant gaining a formidable monster under their belt, those were worthy sacrifices. Afterward, the emperor would be able to use the monster as an arrow in the upcoming great war.

“Keke, soon, the true face of the malevolent god will be revealed to me.”

The emperor, notorious for being iron-blooded, thought that he had shown great favor and mercy. Never would he have imagined that a mere malevolent god would reject his offer.

The emperor had everything figured out. By eradicating the lowly and uncivilized black tribe, the Saintess and the Berry of the World Tree would fall to his hands. He’d spare the malevolent god if it submitted to the empire. And in exchange, the monster would obtain the position of a god and a treasure from the heavens.

Surely, no greedy malevolent god would be able to reject such an offer? At least, that was what the emperor and all of his subjects present believed.

Creaaak!

Just then, the door to the great hall opened, and a messenger stormed in with all its might. A grasshopper wriggled its antenna.

“How dare you make a fuss before His Majesty!”

“Something bad has happened! The ruthless malevolent god has killed the emissaries!” the messenger screamed in fear.

“W-what? Preposterous! How could he kill His Majesty’s emissaries! We even offered a seat and ether! Truly the vilest of all malevolent gods!”

Since faith and ether were treasures that could enhance godhood, even the most arrogant of gods coveted them like a ravenous beast. The grasshopper couldn’t wrap his head around the malevolent god’s actions at all.

“I-it's the truth! The malevolent god didn’t pay the emissaries any heed! He sent a bolt of lightning without warning, instantly decimating everything!”

“H-how is that possible!” the grasshopper turned grim.

Ssss!

Cold frost emanated from the emperor, who sat behind the veil that covered the great hall.

“Grasshopper, were you the one in charge of this?”

The grasshopper flinched, falling to his knees.

“Hyii! Your majesty! Please have mercy on...!”

Puck!

In the next moment, a needle silently shot through his heart.

“For disturbing His Majesty, pay with your life.”

The voice belonged to Killerbee, one of the Ten Swords and the most skilled swordsman in the empire. And yet, he was nowhere to be seen. Killerbee delivered inescapable death with utmost stealth and nonchalance.

“Aaargh!”

The grasshopper’s body melted like ice cream under the sun, leaving no remains. The rest of the subjects cowered in fear. Only death awaited those who disturbed their emperor. Such was the law of the steel-blooded empire.

“Aaargh! That impudent malevolent god! In the five hundred years since I ascended the throne, this is the first time I have suffered such humiliation!”

Rumble!

The earth quaked along with the emperor’s fury.

“I command the entire continent! Bring me the head of that insolent malevolent god! By the honor of your emperor and the divine throne worshiped by the empire!”

“We heed your command, O’ Mighty Demigod and Ruler of the Empire!”

The royal decree for the subjugation of Yu Il-Shin rang through the continent and to the gods worshiped by the empire.