The members of the GK Council thought of many ways to escape Fhtagn, but the seal formed by the concerted efforts of those entities was incredibly strong; they couldn't break it at all.

They could only stay in their dark prison and listen to nothing but Fhtagn's oppressive breathing. They could feel Fhtagn's breath sweeping across them over and over again. They couldn't do anything other than wait in despair until Fhtagn dissolved and absorbed them.

Despite their hopeless situation, the GK Council remained steadfast, and they began pondering the possibility of escaping the seal on them. They pondered for a long, long time.

They pondered for so long that time almost felt nonexistent for them. To pass the time, they observed the human souls flowing in through the seal. After two hundred years of observation and contemplation, the Light God suddenly understood why these souls were converging on Fhtagn and why those entities didn't allow Him to bring the humans away.

It turned out that the life and death of human beings were all contained in Fhtagn's single breath. The souls of the dead would return to him, and this was a long-established law of nature.

Those entities had no plans to disrupt that law, as they would most likely suffer serious consequences from disrupting the flow of Fhtagn's breathing.

There was an ultimate question within the IMF—why had those gods deliberately chosen to come to Earth—teeming with humans—instead of going elsewhere?

Upon pondering over that question, the Light God came up with a terrifying conjecture. The egocentric humans believed that everything revolved around them, but what if the truth was the opposite?

What if the gods hadn't deliberately chosen to come to Earth? What if they gave birth to Earth and humans were just mere bacteria growing on their creation?

The members of the GK Council attempted to deny that conjecture, but when They saw the souls flowing into Fhtagn, They were forced to admit that there was a high chance that their conjecture was true.

If I somehow manage to get out, I'm only going to take some of the humans out with me rather than every human being on the Subterranean Sea. That way, those things won't stop me.

Having made up Their mind, They began formulating an escape plan. Of course, They were still sealed, and they couldn't get out. Left with no choice, They could only stay sealed.

The only solace amidst the darkness was the constant stream of human souls flowing into Fhtagn. Those souls told them that the humans outside had yet to be annihilated by the hellish environment of the Subterranean Sea.

Just then, they found a ray of hope.

The Violet Light noticed a unique soul—the soul of a boy. He was dead, but part of him was still alive.

The seven lights converged, transforming into the GK Council. They used their power to connect to the boy's soul, marking their very first contact with the outside world since they were sealed.

"Who are you? How should I address you? GK? Can I call you God?" The blond boy's soul looked at the dazzling ball of light in the air with disbelief on his face.

"Of course, child. You can call me that."

"Your voice is so beautiful, God. I love hearing it."

"Thank you. Your voice sounds the same to my ears. However, I haven't spoken to anyone in a long time."

"God, you're great. I like you…"

"Why are you crying?"

"It's nothing… I was just thinking that if I had had this power back then… perhaps my mom wouldn't have died."

"God, is there anything you need my help with? I'll do anything for you."

"Actually, child, I do need your help. I am trapped somewhere at the moment. I need you to rescue me."

"Rescue you? Of course. God, I'll find a way to free you!"

With the help of the child named Lylejay, they finally found a ray of hope that could allow them to escape the darkness. They began making use of Lylejay to establish Their own foundation.

It was going to take a long time, but They were no longer in a hurry.

Thanks to Lylejay, they were able to learn about the outside world, and it colored the darkness of their lives amidst their imprisonment.

They had been waiting for so many years, and they didn't mind waiting a bit longer. They became very interested in a certain lunatic—Edikth's Chosen One.

They were curious about his background, and They listened to Lylejay's report about him as if They were listening to fairy tales.

The little mouse's story was particularly interesting to Them, so when the little mouse perished, They located her soul and promised Edikth's Chosen One to resurrect her in exchange for helping Them.

Of course, this was also Their way of making Edikth's Chosen One work even harder for Their goal.

Many things happened in between, but the seal was ultimately unlocked with the help of Edikth's Chosen One. Upon returning to the Subterranean Sea, the Light God felt a sincere, child-like joy upon sensing the fleshly bodies and souls of the Divine Light believers.

Their numbers were enough—enough to establish a viable human civilization. The Light God's will to protect humanity encompassed not just a select few but all of mankind.

Before They could make any move, there was something They needed to do. Their close proximity with Fhtagn for an extended period of time had given birth to another voice in Their heart.

The voice was making them feel anxious, urging them to conduct more experiments. They wanted to ensure that They wouldn't have any lingering connections with the Subterranean Sea, so the influence of any entities on Them had to be erased.

The Light God bent down, placed the Blue Light—K9—into the little mouse's soul before sending the little mouse to Edikth's Chosen One.

K9's memories stopped there. The Light God's thoughts became unknown to her, as she had been completely separated from the Light God.

Time rewound like a film tape, and K9's consciousness returned to her new divine body. The lifetime she had just experienced in the blink of an eye was assimilated by her consciousness.

She remembered everything, including her identity.

Charles looked up at the bleeding sun in the sky and asked, "Who are you?"

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"I… I am Nancy… I am K9 of the GK Council!"

"I… I am Lily… I am the gunner of the Narwhale!"

As soon as those two different replies resounded, the dazzling sun in the air became unstable.

Charles frowned slightly at the sight and quietly calculated the success rate of the contingency plan he had in mind.

"How... is it...?" Bandages asked his captain. He had just returned to the island.

"There was a bit of an accident. The experiment was supposed to involve only seven people, but eight people were involved instead. It turns out that K9 had always been inside Lily.

"I have no idea if this stowaway will introduce new changes. For now, let's just wait and see."

"Should... we go... help...?"

"They are all mixed together, and what can we do to help them? If I were to jump into the fray and win, then the newly born Light God would neither be Lily nor K9; it would be me."

Bandages fell silent and looked at the melting sun in the sky.

"Is there... anything valuable... in K9's... memories...?"

"No." Charles shook his head. "Those memories were false to deceive herself. It is full of contradictions. In fact, the memories of the GK Council members back then are all fake, including K9's memories."