Chapter 213

Fortunately, thanks to Sabriel buying time, the other Apostles were able to intervene and subdue Media. It was also largely thanks to Sabriel shattering Media’s cognitive manipulation ability that they were able to subdue her.

After being bound, Media’s limbs were twisted to the point of being unrecognizable, and even her bodily freedom was taken away. Strangely, despite her gruesome state, Werner was laughing, completely unharmed. Of course, the one who had done this was Persephone, Sabriel’s older sister, Hadaesu’s first daughter, and the Apostle of Time.

After reducing Media to a pitiful state, Persephone held Werner in her arms, muttering incantations as if gathering power.

Seeing this, the Apostle in School Uniform spoke up.

“Hey, we’ve already subdued the intruder. Why are you needlessly gathering power?”

“How foolish. Do you really think I’m afraid of some mere human girl?”

“What? Are you challenging me to a fight right now?”

“Please don’t interrupt me while I’m gathering power. And as a piece of friendly advice, I suggest you watch your mouth from now on.”

The Apostle in School Uniform drew his sword and caused a commotion, but the Large Apostle, holding a spear, stopped him.

The older Apostles among them knew exactly why Persephone was gathering power. And they were all sweating nervously.

“So, what did the God say about punishing this girl?”

“Ah, because of the fate-sharing magic she cast on the Young Master, the judgment has been postponed.”

“This is bad. This damn brat isn’t the real problem here.”

“We’re just followers, so there’s nothing we can do… but seriously, what do we do now?”

At that moment, as if to heighten their fear, the sound of footsteps echoed from afar. Those who understood the gravity of the situation froze, and some barely held back from fainting.

Despite their fear, a cheerful humming could be heard from outside.

“Ah~ Those damn monster brats ruined the flowers, so it took me a while to pick new ones. I also bought a new toy for the Young Master, so I hope he’ll understand~.”

The joy in that humming was matched only by the immense terror that was about to unfold.

Hadaesu opened the door with a blissful smile and took in the scene before him.

His two beloved sons were now charred corpses, unrecognizable to the naked eye. And his most cherished daughter was scattered across the room like minced meat. Even their souls had been torn apart by Media, leaving them unable to even pass on to the afterlife. If not for their clothes and accessories, it would have been impossible to recognize them.

Of course, the clueless Apostle in School Uniform grabbed his shoulder.

“Where have you been? You’re so incompetent…”

“Shut the hell up, you bastard.”

The Apostle in School Uniform flinched at the murderous tone in his voice as Hadaesu walked toward the pile of meat in the center of the room.

Step by step, slowly.

One step.

“Now.”

Another step.

“Immediately.”

Yet another step.

“Explain.”

He stopped and pulled out a necklace from the pile of meat. It was the necklace he had given to his most cherished daughter as a gift.

“Who did this?”

Persephone pointed at Media, who was tightly bound, and smiled. His fist moved to obliterate Media without a trace. If the Old Apostle in a tailcoat hadn’t restrained him with chains, both Media and Werner would have been killed on the spot.

The Old Apostle used all his strength to pull him back with the chains, trying to calm him down. But like an ordinary person trying to stop a charging bull, he was slowly being pushed back.

“Calm down. I understand how you feel, but this is the God’s command. The judgment has been temporarily postponed. After the matter is resolved, you can carry out the execution yourself. Please, calm down.”

“What does that matter?”

The Large Apostle, holding a spear, also stepped in to stop him.

“Calm down. You’re too emotional right now. Didn’t Sabriel worry about this side of you? Please, for my sake, calm down. You’re in front of the Young Master Sabriel cared for. Just calm down a little. I’m angry too, but please, calm down.”

At those words, Hadaesu looked at Werner and realized that he and Media were bound by fate-sharing magic. Realizing he had almost killed Werner, he tried to calm down. But just as he was about to, someone poured oil on the dying flame.

“Why are you so angry? You have plenty of children. Losing one wouldn’t even be noticeable, right?”

The Apostle in School Uniform sneered, mocking the situation.

“Hey, you crazy bastard!!!”

The Large Apostle tried to cover his mouth.

“What? Did I say something wrong? Honestly, the one who died was weak, so she got killed by a mere human. What a pathetic father. How could someone like that even become an Apostle? It would’ve been better to make that girl over there an Apostle instead…”

The Large Apostle punched the Apostle in School Uniform in the face. If he had kept talking, who knows what would have happened.

“Please, pretend you didn’t hear what he said! I’ll thoroughly educate this guy! It’s my fault for neglecting the education of the younger Apostles! If you want to kill someone, kill me!”

Of course, the fact that the Large Apostle could only cover one mouth was the beginning of the disaster.

The female Apostle in a raincoat and the male Apostle with glasses also didn’t understand the situation.

“It’s not like he’s wrong, is it? Dying to a mere human is just pathetic.”

“Well, it’s true that she died in a ridiculous way. From what I know, you have children stronger than her, so I don’t understand why you’re so angry.”

It was over.

That was the conclusion reached by the Apostles who truly understood the situation.

“Haha… I see. So, the God values his own children more, so he postponed the judgment, and my daughter, who died fulfilling her duty, is being insulted like this… I see. I understand so well that my mind is clear now.”

Hadaesu swung his fist. The power behind it was incomparable to before. If Persephone, the Apostle of Time, hadn’t used the power she had gathered over two hours to create a thick time-stopping barrier, the planet they were on, along with the surrounding Apostles, Media, and Werner, would have been obliterated.

“So, it seems you’ve chosen to stand in my way. Do you think you can withstand the next strike?”

Persephone smiled quietly and answered in a resigned voice.

“No, if you swing your fist again, we’ll all die for sure.”

As the eldest daughter, she knew better than anyone how dangerous the situation was. That’s why she was willing to sacrifice their lives to appease his anger.

“You understand well. But now that I think about it, you did well to stop me. It would be troublesome if you all died.”

He turned his back and left, saying,

“You need to stay alive to deliver my declaration of war to the esteemed God.”

Everyone was shocked and asked,

“Did you just say declaration of war?”

“Father, what are you…”

“Pretend you didn’t hear that. It’s not too late now. Please, take back those words.”

“Please, for the sake of this old man, endure those reckless words. If the God hears them, he will severely punish them. Please, calm down. This old man begs you.”

“Think carefully about the weight of your words. Do you not realize how many lives will be lost if a war breaks out?”

Hearing the last words, Hadaesu chuckled.

“Weight? I don’t know. I’ve lost too many heavy things today to understand. What, I have many children, so it’s fine? Think about the weight of your words? Don’t talk nonsense. There’s only one reason I want to tear your mouths apart. It’s to make sure the God hears my words clearly.”

He cut off the long hair he had grown with his cherished daughter and declared,

“God. I believed in and followed your indecisive justice. But if you will protect even the demon who took my daughter, then I will consider you my enemy. Therefore, I declare. I will take my subordinates and children and strike you down. Let’s see how well your indecisive justice and followers can stop me.”

And so, the rebellion war sparked by Hadaesu, the Apostle of Dreams, resulted in countless deaths, with most of the Apostles and even Werner’s mother, the God, suffering injuries that would take thousands of years to heal.

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“That’s how it happened. Taking advantage of the chaos caused by my rebellion, that human named Media escaped from prison and kidnapped you, jumping into the Gate of Reincarnation. Though the fate-sharing magic was likely broken during the reincarnation…”

Hadaesu knelt down as he spoke.

“If I hadn’t rebelled, another Apostle would have intervened and handled the situation. If that had happened… your son wouldn’t have died. What I did for my child… ended up causing you great harm. I am truly sorry.”

He sincerely apologized to me.

“……”

I was too shocked to say anything. The story he told me was that shocking.

“If you wish for me to die, I will end my life. But before that, there are things I must pass on to you.”

“Things?”

“Items left behind by my daughter, Sabriel, and your son, Damian.”