Meeting Those Problematic Women (3)

As if time had stopped, none of the beings gathered in the garden moved. Only the warm breeze passed between the group.

The bright pink-haired goddess who had boldly introduced herself as Mors flushed crimson like her hair.

I was also too angry to speak for a while, huffing.

“Where did you sell off whatever sense you had as a god? You a lolicon pervert?”

“I- I! How rude! How dare you…”

“Sitting there saying the same shit. Aren’t you disgusted? Then drop your divinity and slither into the ‘Battlefield of the Gods.’ For someone like you I’ll even take off the ‘settings’ and go all out. You! You’ve never once thought about what a representative is or what pain they go through, have you? They’re your slaves, your creations? Cut it out. You bitches are creations to the creator just the same.”

“I- Iiik…!”

Mors bit her lip, blushing red in anger and unable to continue. Whatever—there are matters that need solving before dealing with some crazy god.

Enough venting—full of built-up stress and emotion—now to the main point.

“Naruan!”

Flinch.

“I’m saying—it’s not because that tiny thing annoys me. It’s not because it’s senseless. Of course it’s not particularly sensible… That tiny thing! It’s absolutely not because it keeps throwing itself at me because it likes me!”

“…What.”

“I don’t know what sweet talk got them appointed as a representative. I don’t care. But if you appointed them as a representative you should’ve explained the basic rules, right? If you couldn’t say it at contract time, you should’ve when they visited the Garden of Gods in their first year. What did you do to the kid? They’re not that dim, so what did you do to make them a complete childish fool?”

Perhaps it was the accumulated irritation over Naruan. I tried to speak calmly and rationally, but as I talked I couldn’t help getting riled.

“…Sufficiently! She gets stronger.”

What kind of bullshit is that. A ball of fire swells up in my chest.

“What? Ha! Is my meaning that hard to get? Or is it that gods—whether Serpens, Amor, or you creator-worshippers—are hopeless? Who said I was arguing who’s strong or weak? Huh? Do you even know Naruan’s state now? You’re the responsible god. If someone offers Naruan candy she’ll follow like puppies. Hell, she doesn’t even need candy. If she is wandering alone and someone lies that I’m calling her, she’ll scamper over and get killed or kidnapped. So what the hell is all that about?”

The other goddesses’ expressions asked without words: Really?

Under those focused gazes, Mors dropped her head and answered in a shrinking voice.

“That… might be so, but it’ll get better over time.”

“Get better? Ha, really! You put your faith in just ‘possibility’?”

“How dare you call it ‘just’!”

Mors snapped her head up angrily.

A normal man might coo and ruffle her hair at that expression.

But to me, the person involved and the victim, it only stoked my anger.

“Ha! Really. It’s irritating. Believing in crap like that… The creator must be exasperated too. Hey, you. Have you ever died?”

“…What?”

“Have you died? You’re a God of Death, so you’ve probably experienced death, right? Have you died?”

“…No.”

It’s frustrating.

Previously I had never met gods other than Ludicer.

Most of what I knew came from rumors among legion members, and I remember them spitting and explaining just how immature the responsible gods were each time.

But I hadn’t expected it to be this bad.

“Then what about the pain Naruan experiences when dying?”

“……”

“That tiny thing, that one who goes around all day with ‘Kimana’ on her lips, who is only just coming of age—what about the pain, the fear, all the filthy, negative emotions she experiences when she dies?”

Mors fell silent.

No—it’s not just Mors. The other gods, all except Ludicer, fell into deep thought.

To them, representatives are just this much. No different from children making stag beetles fight each other.

In fact, Ludicer’s earlier reaction was unusual—a god worrying about her representative.

Of course, Naruan does need to experience death to grow stronger.

But shouldn’t the responsible god explain how one becomes stronger through experiencing death, what Immortality’s weaknesses are, and what it feels like if you face death with more care?

Especially since they threw them into this damned ‘Battlefield of the Gods.’

Besides, haven’t I already experienced death once? The feeling when you die—it’s indescribably filthy.

“Want to try dying once yourself? You must’ve figured out who I’m with, right?”

“You think you can do anything to me with just Deicide and Destruction?”

Whether out of stupidity or stubbornness, that’s the kind of ridiculous answer I get.

“It’s impossible right now, but I think if you hole up for about thirty years it could be doable. If not, hole up for fifty. You might not know, but I’m Hazel’s comes, so my lifespan’s been hugely extended. So if I hunker down in the Spirit Forest or the Ice Wall region and train for a hundred years, couldn’t I deal a decent blow to a god’s rank?”

“….”

Deicide and Destruction are both weapons and techniques capable of wounding a demon god.

Of course, it was possible because transcendent beings Biosis and Thalis possessed that art, but I have my own advantage.

They each had their own abilities, but I’m planning to possess both abilities on my own.

If I plunge into the ‘Battlefield of the Gods’—the best environment—for a century, who knows. Maybe I could even achieve unification.

So it’s entirely possible. Not that I actually want to.

“If you’re a god you should be meeting Naruan and talking to me right now, right? Don’t play games—educate them properly. You may call your representatives slaves, but on the world I lived in there were plenty of histories where slaves revolted and overturned nations. If you don’t want to smear the face of the creator you love and serve loyally, do this right.”

“…Alright.”

Mors answered reluctantly.

But since she gave her word, I believe she won’t lie. She’s a god, after all.

Having dealt with the biggest problem—Naruan—I called the guardian of the next troublemaker.

“And Genesis.”

“Yes, Kim Han?”

“What is Mae Young-ryeong?”

“Hmm…?”

She pressed her lower lip with her index finger and put on a cutesy expression. Once again she had the ‘I know nothing’ face. Is this a trend in the divine realm these days?

“Have the gods gone mad? You… are you a Heavenly God-class?”

“No, I’m not!”

“But where are you showing off that ridiculous flair! Cut the bullshit and answer. That one’s not normal, right?”

“It’s a matter between me and my contractor.”

“Is that so? Fine. I’ll have Mae Young-ryeong expelled from the legion. Since she’s your creator-line representative, we’ll let the techniques she ‘inherited’ slide as roughly a repayment for the Talent Orb.”

“There’s no such rule…!”

Genesis furrowed their delicate brow as if they were the victim and began to argue.

“There’s no such thing. If Mae Young-ryeong suddenly changes during a battle? If she goes mad while we’re standing by for a critical operation and starts acting out? Will you take responsibility? How will you take responsibility? If we all die because of that, do you possess the revival power even the creator doesn’t have? Will you still say there’s such a rule then?”

These so-called gods have a built-in skill to rile me up every time I meet them.

They may speak politely or with honorifics, but their actions are no better than crazy bitches or whores—it’s all the same.

“It won’t happen.”

“Ugh… I really want to grab the creator by the collar. Can’t I meet him, seriously!”

I roughly scratched the back of my head, irritation surging.

For a while I jumped in place and let a stream of curses out. If I didn’t, my hands would tremble and I’d probably hurl every swear at Genesis. Hell, I might even draw a weapon and swing it.

It’s agonizing when my head and heart reach different conclusions.

My rational head tells me to hold back and calmly explain the rationale, but the anger swelling in my chest urges me to explode everything right now.

“What kind of rudeness is that…!”

“You’re the one without manners. You live without thinking, right? Because you’re gods you think you can just let one or two thousand humans or similar species die and be reborn? Huh?”

“…When did I ever do that…”

Ah, now it’s clear. This woman is truly the worst. I didn’t think there could be someone worse than stupid Ister.

She plays the victim to the end. ‘I didn’t do anything wrong,’ ‘How could you say such terrible things,’ ‘I know nothing’—that’s her shtick.

“Fine, okay. Got it. Then I’ll do as you want: I won’t kick Mae Young-ryeong out of the legion and I’ll treat her as a comrade as usual. But swear a divine oath that if Mae Young-ryeong puts the legion in danger, you will also be annihilated.”

“…What?”

“I said so now act?”

“….”

Genesis’s expression changed completely—gone was the fake victim look, replaced by a blank face.

And Aetas, who had been watching the situation with interest, made a clapping motion with his hands though they didn’t meet.

Ludicer smiled proudly at me, and the other gods smoothed their furrowed brows and looked between Genesis and me with intrigued expressions.

“You can’t, right? Of course you can’t. Even the creator won’t rashly assert the future. If you look at the demon realm and the heavenly realm, she can’t predict the future either—so how could she assert anything here in the ‘Battlefield of the Gods,’ where multiple gods vie for power? When it was merely a matter of slave representatives you might confidently say there’s no way, but the moment your own life is at stake you won’t open that worthless mouth carelessly, will you?”

Gnash—

“You woman, enough of the false modesty. Drop the act and grit your teeth. To me you have the exact temperament of Amor—completely different on the outside and inside. How did you end up on the creator’s line? Does the creator really not know you? If so, that’s disappointing. Stop the nonsense and either spit out what’s going on right now, or choose between that and expelling Mae Young-ryeong from our legion.”

If Genesis really wants to protect Mae Young-ryeong’s secret?

Then of course they’d have to tell her to resign from the legion and urge surrender immediately after the four-year training period ends—if their desire to protect her is 100% pure.

“Aetas is exactly right.”

“…?”

“You really! You’re obnoxious and aggravating.”

“You’re not getting any compliments from me. Answer?”

“…Sigh. You said you wanted to know about Mae Young-ryeong?”

“Yes.”

“It can’t be helped.”

Of course. As suspected, she doesn’t want the title of the first god of a representative to surrender in the ‘Battlefield of the Gods.’ This woman is definitely hypocritical, two-faced, and dangerous.

“Tsk. Kim Han, Aetas said you can view quantified information of other beings by Ludicer’s power—true?”

While talking about Mae Young-ryeong, information about me was suddenly brought up. Spreading important info about another representative like that?

Even if it had been something scattered around because of my gullibility in my previous life, in this life it was important information that shouldn’t be known.

Aetas avoided my glaring gaze and acted nonchalant.

“Anyway, whether gods or humans, those with loose tongues are just…”

“What do you mean ‘just’!!”

Ignoring the snappish Aetas, I turned my gaze to Genesis and answered that way.

“Then, Kim Han, have you ever seen someone whose luck is negative?”

“What?”