Chapter 423: A Problem From Above (6)

“What about it?”

[Even though you’re this kind of tras-no, human, you didn’t deserve that…]

‘What the hell are you saying? I’m fine.’

Honestly, I really was.

I could understand that something had happened on Earth, causing the people who managed it to give us over, but it was a little difficult from my point of view to think of it as sad and unfortunate.

To put it bluntly, I didn’t feel anything.

If she were to say something about being abandoned by my parents, it would be worth crying about, but I was abandoned by the Earth, not by my parents.

The scale was so great that it was difficult to say from where to mourn.

‘God is a god, after all.’

Their perspective was different from humans. Compared to the beginning, when she was going crazy, she now seemed very quiet.

Noticing that she was answering my question seriously, the statue in front of me began to look slightly different. As I was lost in thoughts, I heard Benignore’s voice again.

[I’m glad if you think you’re fine… Anyway, that’s what happened. I-it’s a bit sad from our point of view.]

“It can be seen that you accepted refugee. Well… Should I be grateful?”

[You don’t have to. It was an unavoidable choice for us as well.]

“Hmm… So you mean something is wrong with Earth right now?”

[There has always been a problem there. The same is true for this world, but… If you are asking if there is something different from usual, the answer is yes. But I can’t tell you the details. That place is out of my jurisdiction, to begin with. Besides, they want to hide themselves over there…]

“Hmm…”

[Hmm… Wait a minute. If you’re worried about your sister, you can rest assured. Rather…]

Yulha had a personality that would keep her alive even if left alone in Antarctica, so I wasn’t really that worried.

“No. I’m actually okay about Yulha.”

[So the questions end here?]

“I have one more.”

[What?]

“Kim Hyunsung. Does this also have security?”

[Partly. There are parts I don’t know. But there is something I can tell you. What exactly are you curious about? The first round?]

“The reason he returned. And what on Earth is Altanus who brought Kim Hyunsung back?”

I could say that was the main question, and it was the one I was most curious about.

Seeing how she became quiet for a while, it also seemed to be hard to answer.

As I slowly patted the statue on the shoulder, I heard her voice again.

[The reason he returned was that Altanus wanted it.]

“…”

[Altanus is a god and a manager like us. And she was also in charge of Kim Hyunsung.]

“As expected. Where is Altanus? Can I meet her?”

[No. It’s impossible.]

“Why?”

[Altanus no longer exists.]

“Ah…”

[She is dead. No, to say that she has disappeared would be more appropriate. She paid the price for turning back time. But we are taking over that will.]

‘Is that so?’

Thinking about it for a bit, it was only natural.

Creating forced quests and giving down classes also required divinity. I couldn’t even imagine how much divinity it would take for a god to perform a nonsensical and ridiculous miracle like time regression.

It wasn’t just that it affected the sky, but it completely turned back time.

Perhaps Altanus was likely a higher god than Benignore. If she were common, that wouldn’t have been possible. I never imagined that Benignore, who had been hiding part of herself in the statue, could turn back time.

‘Tsk.’

[Altanus loved the man. And… She also sympathized with his life. After a lot of thought, she sacrificed herself to turn everything back. Of course, I tried to stop her back then, but… I respected her. No god can probably make that choice. That feeling is a common value among us.]

“Can you tell me what the first round was like?”

[You already have a rough understanding about it due to the special human named Yuno Kasugano. I don’t know in detail, either.]

“You can’t remember the first round either?”

[Yes, and no. I can’t remember everything, but I do remember Altanus’s will.]

“I don’t know what Altanus’ will is. It’s not something I can accept. You can’t see the black world that Yuno Kasugano can see?”

[Don’t make fun of human possibilities. She is special. The same goes for the human named Jung Hayan and Cha Hee-ra. Human possibilities are endless. Right now, you alone with the Mind’s Eyes… no, actually, it’s nothing. Of course, some of us can see the black world you’re talking about, but there are limitations too. Managing dimensions is a lot more complicated and difficult than you think. If we really could have solved everything, Altanus wouldn’t have brought Kim Hyunsung back.]

“Possibilities?”

[Yes, possibilities. Altanus must have seen it too.]

“You guys aren’t perfect either, huh?”

[Right. We’re not perfect. Remember that well, my proud Honorary Cardinal Lee Kiyoung. We’re not perfect either. We’re imperfect. It’s just the place where we stand that’s different from those on the continent, but we’re not very different either. Never forget that we’re not perfect.]

“There is no need to emphasize that much. I think I can already tell that just by looking at you. Rather, you seem to have vaguely avoided the question. Goddess Benignore, what I’m curious about is the reason that Kim Hyunsung returned. Saying it’s Altanus’ will isn’t what I want to hear. Tell me exactly what threat there was and what made him return. In short, the reason for failure.”

[That doesn’t have security, but I still can’t tell you the answer. It would be better to listen to or watch Yuno Kasugano or Kim Hyunsung. One thing I can tell you is that you are right.]

“What?”

[There is a threat. What Kim Hyunsung is preparing for is for that threat. And I- I hate to admit it, but you, you have been… d-doing well…]

“Hmm. As expected. For that, I’ll accept the compliment gratefully. By the way… I feel like I didn’t hear much more than I thought…”

[I-I can’t help it. I really can’t help it… Do you think I don’t want to tell you? I want to get comfortable too!]

“Oh, I’ll ask one more question.”

[Ugh. You have a lot of questions. Now I, too—]

“That’s obvious. I was dragged in without knowing anything, and I got caught up in something without knowing anything. Wouldn’t you be the same? Anyway, the question. Can we… hmm… go back to Earth?”

[You want to go back?]

“No, not really. I’m just curious about it.”

[Impossible. You are the residents of this place now. You can’t go anywhere else.]

“I’m a little disappointed now that I heard it.”

Of course, my disappointment wasn’t that deep. If anyone asked if I had no attachments, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t.

But what could I do with something that had already happened?

I couldn’t even openly complain that I couldn’t return to Earth. I couldn’t believe it completely, but it seemed that Earth itself had thrown us out, and Benignore and the others accepted us.

As I looked up at the statue, I could see Benignore still shedding tears of blood.

[T-This is inevitable. It’s like a sign. I already stopped crying.]

“What sign? A sign that the continent’s base is falling apart?”

[Kind… of.]

‘Fuck.’

“Anyway, if you restore your divinity, everything will return to normal, right?”

[Basically, you’re right. Oh, anyway, this time I want to say…]

“Out with it. I don’t know what it is, but… is it serious?”

[It’s a bit serious.]

‘What the hell is it?’

The way she talked showed that she was indeed worried about something. However, after a while, her voice began to be heard again.

[M-maybe. Quest creation has stopped for unknown reasons. Haven’t you… heard about it?]

“What? I think I did.”

[It’s something related to that.]

“Wouldn’t it be obvious that the creation stopped since you’re like this? That’s… no… fuck…”

[I-I’m sorry. My…]

“S-Stop bullsh*tting. Fuck.”

I bit down on my lips that instant.

It was so ridiculous that laughter popped out of me. it was something that could be deduced by even an elementary student.

She couldn’t create quests because she was now out of divinity.

I could understand that. It was something I was already expecting anyway. The problem was that Benignore wasn’t the only one suffering from that condition.

Well, in the case of others, they were in a better situation than her, but it wasn’t much different.

We were all one family aboard a sinking ship.

When I started feeling anxious, I heard Benignore’s voice once again.

[The minimal system such as class or tutorial dungeon will be maintained, but… legendary-grade dungeons and some heroic-grade dungeons… will be blocked. A-and all the raid monsters that were sleeping will be s-sealed…]

“Why block that? Why will you block that… Why block…”

[That’s because some dungeons are dangerous. Think about the museum. S-So, that kind of dungeon… To use your words, they need to be monitored by gods. We have turned some places into dungeons, but many dungeons were created naturally or because of cracks. Not only will the humans who enter them be in danger, but if the raid fails or if a problem arises, it will be impossible to fix it. We don’t want to block them either, but this is something that we have to do…]

‘Fuck…‘

The problem had become a little more serious.

It became even worse when I looked at the current situation. I wanted to applaud very, very much that humanity had united as one.

However, if that was the end of it, the worst outcome would remain a possibility.

They would become stronger as they fought.

There was no room for denial.

Humans were able to grow stronger in the first round because they had time to fight among themselves. I wasn’t complimenting stupidity back in the days when they cut open each other’s throats.

Rather, it had gone to show that through conflict, it was possible to improve.

The threat Kim Hyunsung was preparing for existed. I was expecting it, but it was time I heard it from Benignore.

‘Is there no other choice but to block the dungeon?’

It was no different than blocking the growth road.

Heroic-grade and legendary-grade dungeons were the places special personnel went to. The confusion when such places became inaccessible would be indescribable.

If they blocked even raid monsters, the situation would be even more serious.

All processing factories that worked based on monster corpses would be closed, and the dormant workforce would be forced to roam the streets. It was safe to say that the armed forces and the economy would end up getting heavily damaged.

Supplies were sold because of dungeons.

Because people were entering dungeons, merchants could make money.

That system had already been established too deeply.

To exaggerate a little, it was comparable to a situation in which petroleum had disappeared from modern civilizations.

‘It’s going to be a complete mess…’

Of course, the sales volume of Made by Lee Kiyoung potion would also drop.

‘Kiyoung Coin decreases in value.’

“Sh*t…”

‘The value of the Kiyoung Coin shuts down!!’

“Damn.”

‘Let’s go with Mirror Lake!!!’

This was admittedly an exaggerated reaction, but it was only natural for the situation to remind me of a situation I didn’t want to imagine.

Whether or not she knew about my confusion, I had no choice but to shout at Benignore, who was getting on my nerves again.

[A-And… for the time being, the creation of quests on all continents will be stopped. I-I don’t know when it will resume…]

“…”

[…]

“Hey, you crazy troll!”

My voice was filled with sincerity.