Chapter 291: Chapter 289

Whoosh—

A silent rage dwelled in the chilling wind. It was the anger that Sirka felt. The title of 'high elf' was a legendary feat passed down through oral tradition among ordinary elves. They were the most outstanding guardians among their people. Those who grew and grew, an honorable name given only to the great elves who were even considered candidates for the next Monarch. But look at them now. Their true nature lost, eroded by Elvenwood and the spirits. And there were 3,000 of them.

"...There were this many?"

A chill ran down her spine. Sirka felt something that had been stuck in her chest loosen. This emotion had been building up little by little in the depths of her heart every time she encountered high elves while searching for Elvenwoods with Suho. But the moment she faced 3,000 of them at once, The thread of reason that barely held Sirka together finally snapped.

"...There were this many." Sirka's lips muttered those words over and over again.

Wasn't it absurd? That so many elves were still alive. And not just ordinary, but high elves... How had they lived until now? The young elves. The babies who lost their parents in the war and struggled to survive. In the sanctuary that lost its king, abandoned and neglected in the harsh cold, they had to worry about survival from the moment they learned to walk.

'When I was young, I thought it was natural...' All those times flashed through Sirka's mind like a revolving lantern. The harsh cold from birth. Young elves who had to learn to walk on ice from the moment they were born. There was a time when Sirka thought all those moments were her destiny. She thought it was just a normal... trial they had to go through because they were born as ice elves. ...Yes, there was a time.

'But it wasn't.' She realized it wasn't normal. Cha Cha. It was after meeting her that she realized something she didn't know. The existence of parents. That natural and warm something...

That they, who were still young and weak, were beings who needed to be cared for. She learned it through her. And only then could she see...

The empty space the adults left.

The absence of the grown-up elves who should have protected and raised them, instead of Cha Cha.

Well, at least... It was okay until then. There was no other way, was there? What could she do? The adults all died in the war. But now it seemed like that wasn't the case.

"So many..."

Really, there were too many. Seeing with her own eyes that the high elves, who should have been leading the way and protecting the children who would be the future of their race, were still alive... It was only natural for her to be this angry.

Whoosh—

The chill that started deep within Sirka's heart began to spread in all directions. Its momentum, which was unhurried at first, accelerated rapidly and became as harsh as when the Spirits of Frost were just born from Alfheim. This wasn't because she dominated the Spirits of Frost. She felt...

Intense resentment.

Pure betrayal.

She had to become the guardian of the tribe at a young age and protect her friends. And the high elves, who abandoned their duties and fled from the war, appeared before her like this. Or rather, if they were going to appear anyway, they should have appeared in a grand and dignified manner. But they were corrupted by Elvenwood and the spirits, tainted by the power of the Outer Gods, so pathetic... To appear in such a wretched state,

'How could she not despise them?'

'How could she not truly look down on them?'

"Spirit Cavalry."

Crackle—!

The Spirits of Frost, whose domination she had just completed, gleamed at Sirka's command. Not just spirits, but the nightmare of the elves, the winter itself, transformed into the form of an incomparably solid Ice Golem, compressed and condensed before Sirka's majesty, and rose with a giant body.

Rumble—!

Marching with them, Sirka personally vowed. To those unsightly high elves. That she would become their winter.

"My name is Sirka."

That she would personally show them all the pain they had suffered.

"I, the legitimate successor of the King of the Snow Folk, the Monarch of Frost, Sillad, declare." She proclaimed.

"On my grandfather's honor..."

'Spirit Armament'

Crackle—!

That rage swirled and firmly armed Sirka's entire figure. Her full-body armor gradually grew in size.

"I strip you all of your qualifications as high elves. No, first of all, you don't even have the right to be elves..." A chill permeated every word Sirka uttered, filled with suppressed rage.

Whoosh—!

"Just die." Sirka became winter.

* * *

Yangpyeong.

A secluded valley somewhere in that small country called South Korea, covered in fog.

VOOOOOM—!

Suddenly, the 'Mouth of the Void' opened in the empty air. And what it spat out was none other than the Apostle of Paradise.

[...Is this the place?]

The Apostle of Paradise, who closed the Mouth of the Void to conserve energy, frowned and looked around. He couldn't see anything because of the thick fog. But still he smirked. How ironic.

Yangpyeong. To think that all of Sung Suho's weaknesses were gathered in this place. Laughter escaped his lips. Even he couldn't go just anywhere. The only places he could access by crossing the dimensional gap using the Mouth of the Void were those where the Outer Gods' power reached. That was why he was still trying to spread the Outer Gods Cult throughout Earth. But ironically, this place, Yangpyeong, was where the Cult was hidden. Of course, it was gone now.

– But I heard it was recently discovered and destroyed by the Korean Association. – The words that Yuri Orlov said when he handed over the information suddenly came to mind. But it didn't matter. Especially in this place, Yangpyeong...

[Because the meteorite fell here.]

The Apostle of Paradise walked through the fog with a meaningful smile.

Splash. Splash.

The footsteps of the Apostle of Paradise, treading on the ground damp from the fog, gradually disappeared into the mist. In the direction he was walking, there was a 'meteorite.'

Meteorite. This Yangpyeong was the land where a fragment of a star from outer space crashed. Finding Sung Suho's family and either killing them or taking them hostage was something he would do later. Looking back, the process of infiltrating this dimension while hiding from the sight and senses of the Shadow Army in outer space was extremely difficult and complicated. Currently, all paths leading to this dimension from outer space were tightly guarded by the Shadow Army.

But how vast was the universe? Even they couldn't monitor all the meteorites that literally were as numerous as like 'stars' in the universe. The method he attempted was to hide in a meteorite and escape the front line. But there were also tricky conditions attached to this. First of all, it was impossible for an apostle with too much power. Even if they hid in a meteorite, their presence was too great, and they would be immediately discovered by the Shadow Army. But even then, sending an apostle who was too weak was pointless. What could a weakling do even if he safely arrived here? So this was the strategy he devised: Fragmenting his power.

– To solve the tricky problem of dimensional travel, my 'main body,' which has vast might, fragmented its power and personality and sent it to this world.

– You fragmented your main body? Then you were originally one being?

– Yes. Those fragments crossed outer space, hidden in numerous meteorites. And I am one of those fragments.

Yuri Orlov, who heard this story before, had to rack his brains to understand it. It was a natural reaction. For an ordinary human living in this barren and insignificant universe to understand the ability to fragment one's existence just by hearing it once was impossible. So Yuri Orlov, who barely grasped the situation, just asked for the conclusion,

– So you're saying you have to find other meteorites?

– ...Yes. The meteorites that were sent would have arrived not only on Earth but also in other dimensions in this universe. As I find them and absorb the other fragments within, I gradually regain my original power.

– How do you find those meteorites?

– 'We' are already looking for each other. Even if we don't know where we are, since we have the same goal, we'll eventually meet.

– Then what can I help you with?

– There seem to be many religions on this land. Create a religion that worships our gods, Itarim, among them and spread it widely.

– Oh. You're saying to create a cult?

– That's a blasphemous expression. You've already experienced my divine power, haven't you? Anyway, that's enough. Those with Itarim's divinity can recognize each other, so...

– Are you saying that you're going to merge with each other just like that?

– That's something we can decide after we meet. We can 'merge' anytime. But since even our personalities are fragmented, if we decide it's better to act separately, there's no need to become one again. The important thing is to not be discovered by 'him.'

– Who is 'he'?

– ...You don't need to know.

The Apostle of Paradise continued to walk through the fog, recalling the conversation he had with Yuri Orlov. The reason he didn't answer Yuri Orlov's last question was trivial. Because the Shadow Monarch, whom he feared and was wary of, happened to be the same 'human' race as him. If Yuri Orlov knew that fact, he would surely become arrogant, and he didn't want to see that unsightly reaction.

[Hmm. I'm sure the meteorite was around here...]

The Apostle of Paradise searched for the meteorite. He was sure it was nearby, but it was difficult to pinpoint the exact location when he got this close. It was because he absorbed most of the power hidden in that meteorite when he found this place before. At that time, it was the early days of establishing the Outer Gods Cult, so he entered a nearby Gate, captured demons, and built a factory to research stardust. And he left a tiny bit of power in the meteorite for that research. But he wasn't worried even though he couldn't find it after searching for some time. A meteorite from outer space was just a rock after all. Even if the Outer Gods Cult was destroyed, no one would care about the meteorite. Besides, the fact that he could already connect a dimensional gap to this place was proof that the meteorite still existed here.

[Found it.]

The Apostle of Paradise, finally finding the remains of the meteorite that arrived in Yangpyeong, grinned, revealing his teeth. And he absorbed the last remaining power within.

[...Huuu. Good.]

He had an ecstatic expression as he slowly melted the fragment of power that merged with him into his body.

Crackle.

As he sucked out even the last remaining drop of power, the meteorite finally crumbled. But even then, this rock was useful. The material that made it up was from the dimension where the Apostle of Paradise lived, so it was the medium that reacted best to his power. In some ways, it was an even more suitable fertilizer for 'divine power' than the starpiece.

[Grow.]

Whoosh—

As soon as his words fell, the 'fruit' he was holding began to take root in the damp ground at a terrifying speed, using the meteorite as fertilizer.

[Sprout and bear fruit.]

SWOOSH—!

The Apostle of Paradise. The fragmented personality and ability from his main body, true to the 'name' he gave himself, was to turn this planet into his own paradise...

[Sung Suho. This Yangpyeong, where your family is gathered, will now become my flowerpot.]

He smiled meaningfully and began to gradually contaminate Yangpyeong, turning it into a new terrarium. However, there was one fact he didn't know. And the answer was in the words he once said to Yuri Orlov.

– Those with Itarim's divinity can recognize each other...

The moment the Apostle of Paradise arrived in Yangpyeong through the dimensional gap.

The moment he used his divine power to sprout a new Elvenwood in Yangpyeong,

'His' father, who had been living in this land, sensed that presence.