Chapter 412: Eighty-Ninth Floor, Demigod (5)

Kireing murmured in the darkness, unable to see even a single step ahead. Just to top things off, his sense of direction had begun to fade as well.

The only thing protecting the hundred or so resistance members was the blue-gold domain Kwon Su-Hyeok had created. Within it, the ground and buildings could still be seen.

Just beyond the edge of that domain, thousands of tiny devils stood, clearly poised to attack.

The tension born from their hostile intent was palpable. Thankfully, they couldn’t cross the domain’s threshold. The space inside remained calm and peaceful, thanks to that, albeit only by a narrow margin.

Should I be laughing or crying?

Kireing had marched here boldly to resist the controllers and reclaim their rights, yet found himself utterly powerless. It made him want to cry.

Kwon Su-Hyeok was here, though, so there was still hope. That alone was a relief, but he wasn’t sure if he even deserved to feel relieved.

Sounds of battle echoed faintly through the darkness. Small bursts of metal clashing rang out repeatedly.

Though he couldn’t see it, Kireing imagined Kwon Su-Hyeok fighting. All he had was a dagger. It was, at the very least, an appropriate weapon for dealing with miniatures.

Every now and then, a flash of lightning would flare in the distance, revealing his position.

Kireing prayed that Kwon Su-Hyeok would win.

Damn it.

Even so, it wasn’t strange that a dark sense of doubt crept into his mind.

If he were to be honest, the giants were the outsiders in this situation. Ever since encountering the tinies, their entire race had been forced into slavery by a single powerful being.

Now, yet another transcendent entity was fighting on their behalf.

These events all centered around the giants, but they themselves had no part to play. They stood removed from it all.

We are too weak.

Kireing thought bitterly.

Just those brief afterimages from the flickering light weren’t enough to grasp how the battle was unfolding.

Unfortunately, things clearly weren’t going smoothly for Kwon Su-Hyeok. The golden domain protecting them wasn’t extending outward in a straight line as it had before.

Kwon Su-Hyeok, who had once summoned thousands of bolts of lightning to strike across the city, couldn’t unleash his full strength in this darkness and its immense pressure.

If something goes wrong...

Kireing shook his head to banish the negative thought. Whether he liked it or not, Kwon Su-Hyeok was their only hope. Even if they had only met a day ago, recognition and respect didn’t have to be determined over time. The person themself mattered more.

To Kireing, Kwon Su-Hyeok was a being of immense strength and someone who possessed deep, resolute thought.

That had been clear from the beginning. During their conversation, Kwon Su-Hyeok had only taken a moment to recognize the underlying resignation in Kireing’s voice. He had shown understanding. Just as Kwon Su-Hyeok had glimpsed into Kireing, Kireing had done the same to him.

At that moment, Kireing saw in him the qualities of a leader greater than himself.

Boom—!

Heavy shocks echoed through the darkness nonstop. The resistance members groaned lowly as unspoken concern filled the golden space.

However, soon after, the atmosphere beyond the unseen darkness began to shift, and the oppressive air began to lift.

A flash of blue-gold light flared like a burst of lightning.

That was the beginning.

Suddenly, the light surged and began to violently drive back the darkness, much like a light at the end of the tunnel blooming from within the dark. Though that domain wasn’t as vast as the one they currently stood in, it was incomparably more powerful.

The golden light surged forward.

It happened in an instant—a single, fleeting moment.

Before the giants could even blink or register what was happening, a golden line pierced directly through the dark.

Kwon Su-Hyeok stood at the end of that streak.

The darkness, which had seemed to swell outward, vanished in an instant. The giants’ vision returned.

From within the unbroken golden domain, Kireing could see the demon impaled at the end of Kwon Su-Hyeok’s axe. A creature no larger than a fingernail hung limp and lifeless on the horn. The stunned expressions of the resistance members all locked onto Kwon Su-Hyeok.

It had all happened in the blink of an eye. Only now did the resistance begin to process what had just occurred.

Kireing was already convinced that if they were to live their lives safely, they needed a transcendent force to protect them. Someone like the god Kwon Su-Hyeok had spoken of. Although thinking about it, Kwon Su-Hyeok also came to mind. Perhaps the god had sent him to entrust them to his care.

Lightning spread through the now brightened sky. Among the miniatures tumbling from above, Kwon Su-Hyeok turned to look back at them.

To Kireing, he was a giant in the truest sense of the word. Larger than them, not in size, but in presence.

As emotion overcame Kireing, Kwon Su-Hyeok smiled and asked, “What are you waiting for? I just took back your homeland. You should be cheering.”

A beat later, the giants erupted into thunderous chees. Though it only included about a hundred voices, it was enough to fill the entire city.

***

The battle ended with Deruope’s death, but that didn’t mean every controller had perished. Many had either been knocked out or out of range.

They didn’t resist, however. Or more accurately, their will to live had vanished. Every one of them simply lay there, eyes vacant.

Deruope claimed to have created both the giants and the tinies. It had likely crafted the tinies first, modeling them after itself. Moreover, that would explain the stronger affection it held toward them.

Perhaps it had created the giants for the sake of the tinies, prompting the Primordial God to punish Deruope.

To the tinies, I had just slain their creator, their god, their source of confidence. Witnessing their god’s death had likely shocked them beyond anything I could imagine.

In the meantime, the members of the resistance, led by Kireing, fiercely interrogated the remaining controllers. Unfortunately, I hadn’t obtained enough information from Deruope.

They weren’t exactly cooperative. Nor did they know much. Still, my assumptions hadn’t been wrong. Deruope had instructed the tinies to remain hidden in the underground city. Since they could only travel during the day by controlling a giant, the center of the giants’ city contained a gate that connected to the underground city.

There is no way the Primordial God wouldn’t have noticed their escape if they were still alive.

Perhaps Deruope had been overly cautious. Also, I didn’t know how long it had been sealed underground. In any case, it hadn’t been the most sane. For someone who dared to mock me, it had been far weaker than me.

Even if it had sensed the Primordial God’s disappearance, it wouldn’t have had the courage to confirm it for itself. It would have been far more worried about potentially being discovered.

Still, judging by the fact that Deruope asked me about the Primordial God, it suspected something,

Without absolute certainty, it hadn’t acted rashly.

Perhaps the tower had sent me before Deruope could become even stronger.

When looked at in that light, the tower felt almost benevolent. There was plenty of evidence pointing toward it guiding my growth. Trial after trial centered around helping me gather faith and grow my divinity.

After a short while, the previously-controlled giants—whom I had knocked out—began to stir and rise back to their feet.

Now wasn’t the time for celebration, however. Most of them were in tears, overwhelmed by the shock.

They had lived lives entirely devoid of control, forced to endure a traumatic existence day in and day out. Many were no different than a newborn, having gained control over their body for the first time in their lives, except they had to immediately come to terms with the scars their memories left.

Doppy and I cast large-scale stabilization and healing spells, but I don’t know if that is enough.

Even with those things, it would take a significant amount of time for them to heal. In truth, even with the passage of time, I wasn’t sure they could ever truly recover.

The resistance members ran around desperately, trying to care for everyone, but there were simply too many people who needed help. It was impossible to console each one individually.

All they could do was gather everyone and explain the current situation. In an effort to raise spirits, they spoke hopefully about the future.

In that process, they naturally mentioned me, causing tearful eyes to turn toward me.

It feels uncomfortable.

Calling the emotion I felt toward them pity didn’t suffice. Their gazes overflowed with gratitude and sorrow, and facing them was difficult.

However, I met their eyes as best I could.

These people had suffered for decades and needed someone to lean on. I hoped I could at least offer them some small measure of comfort.

Afterward, Kireing approached the others and asked what should be done about the controllers. Some argued they should all be executed. Others suggested sealing them once more in the underground realm they had inhabited.

The consensus leaned heavily toward the former, however. After all, the recent disaster had originated from the tinies trapped underground.

With Deruope gone, the threat they posed had technically vanished. No one could guarantee what the future held, though.

Near the end of our conversation, Kireing softly asked me, “You said a god sent you, right?”

I paused and hesitated to respond.

Now that I had cleared the trial’s main obstacle, I didn’t need to maintain the illusion of a god I had created for diplomacy’s sake. Although the Tower of Ordeal would seem divine to them, in truth, it was nothing of the sort.

Before I could sort through my thoughts, Kireing added, “Is it so strange... for us to hope that god continues to watch over us?”

That sealed my decision.

“To be honest, I lied. A god didn’t send me.”

Kireing’s eyes widened in shock. He opened his mouth slightly, lips trembling. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but couldn’t quite figure out what to say.

I took a steady breath before explaining, “Something quite similar to a god sent me. I came here because of its request.”

Calling a trial a request wasn’t fully accurate, but I couldn’t think of a better way to describe it obtusely. As always, speaking honestly about the tower and its trials was off the table for me, and this would be easier for them to understand.

There was a faint glimmer of hope in Kireing’s eyes. “I see. Then, will that being continue to care for us? Or will you take its place?”

“I’m not sure. But for now, I’ll be returning to where I came from.”

Disappointment flickered across his face.

This world had belonged to a demigod, which explained why it didn’t have a god. Now that Deruope was gone, I wondered if the tower would begin to manage it. It seemed unlikely. Even Seorden’s forest had been left untouched until I had arrived.

Just then, my thoughts reached further. Considering Seorden’s forest’s previous situation, I began to understand why the tower had sent me here.

The Tower of Ordeal is connecting me to the traces of the Primordial God. A privilege it grants to challengers, perhaps?

It could be. Kalain had visited Seorden’s forest for a trial, too.

Still, I couldn’t be certain. Although we had traveled to the same floors, our trials were different. At the very least, the tower had acted more favorably toward me.

Kireing interrupted my thoughts, “Do you go around doing this kind of thing in many worlds?”

“If you are talking about saving people, yes. Though it is about more than that.”

Even if I saved people along the way, the tower was built to create gods. Especially in my case, most of the trials I faced felt more like a process for acquiring divinity.

To be honest, if I were the tower, I wouldn’t have structured things this way. One look at Deruope and the other gods told enough of a story.

It was true that power was necessary to protect and oversee a world, but power alone wasn’t enough—a sound mind was also required.

Of course, my concept of a sound mind came from what I had learned on Earth. On a cosmic scale, who could say how that standard would change? If I had been born elsewhere, I wouldn’t think the way I do now.

Still, this is who I am.

The tower also didn’t seem all that different from me, judging by how it placed restrictions on conflicts between gods. Instead of trials that merely tempered strength, I felt it absolutely needed trials that examined the mind.

Not that it was my place to decide since I wasn’t the tower.

Kireing studied me for a moment. “If the one who sent you won’t care for us, then can’t you stay and watch over us yourself?”

Based on my earlier deductions, I had expected this question. It felt just like the situation surrounding Seorden’s forest.

Even though a demigod had owned this world, it had belonged to the Primordial God before even that.

The tower seemed to be offering anything related to that god to me. It wasn’t such a bad thing. While it would mean greater responsibility on my part, it was something I could bear.

I smiled as I answered, “Yes. If you and the others are alright with it. I may not be able to stay here all the time, though.”

Kireing smiled back, his face alit with joy.