Chapter 231

“Well then, the filth has taken off for now.”

The Goddess of Life lightly flicked her palm, and the large fly perched on it hastily flew away.

Originally Zeus, the fly had no idea what he once was and would go on living as the king of dirty insects.

“Hmm… What should we do about the rest of the gods? Hmm…”

The Goddess of Life looked around at the motionless gods surrounding her and gave a small nod.

While Zeus, the ringleader in forcibly making Rychlen a god, had flown off as a fly, the other gods weren’t entirely blameless either.

They too would face punishment.

“Hmm… If I wipe them all out here, the plan will be completely ruined. Ugh… There’s nothing to be done.”

With that, the Goddess of Life lightly snapped her fingers. Dozens of figures appeared simultaneously.

All were dressed as pilgrims of the Temple of Life.

“Human…?”

“It can’t be that humans came here uninvited.”

“Did the Goddess of Life summon mere humans? What could she possibly use them for?”

The gods frowned at the sight of the pilgrims appearing around them. Just humans? What could she possibly intend to do with them?

But…

“Though this wasn’t part of the plan, let’s get to work. Imprison each god in their respective temples.”

“Yes!”

The pilgrims shouted in unison and began grabbing the nearby gods.

“What, let go! How dare you mere humans!”

“Just because you’re human doesn’t mean you have any insight.”

At those words, the pilgrims began revealing their power.

“Huh!”

An overwhelming magical energy, unmatched even by lesser gods, erupted from the pilgrims. And not just one or two – dozens of them radiated this immense power, causing alarm among the gods.

“This is… what exactly…?”

“I didn’t summon mere humans. These are all dragons who follow me.”

“Dragons…?”

To the gods, dragons were creatures whose existence was only rumored, rarely seen directly. All they knew was that dragons possessed great physical strength and magic, but few had ever witnessed one firsthand.

Most dragons either served as pilgrims at the Temple of Life or secluded themselves in their territories. The few that did act as gods kept their distance from others.

Thus, most gods only knew dragons through records, unaware of their true might – how their pure power could rival that of gods.

Even during the Esir’s downfall ten years ago, when dragons unleashed devastating attacks during Ragnarok, only Hermes and Mars witnessed it directly. Most gods failed to grasp the full extent of dragon power.

“Now then, everyone, let’s begin.”

At the Goddess of Life’s command, the dragons started moving, carrying away the immobilized gods.

Soon, all the gods were relocated by the dragons.

“Now then.”

The sole remaining Rychlen faced the Goddess of Life as she spoke.

“I prepared a rough plan, expecting various variables, but I didn’t anticipate it collapsing this completely.”

“Plan…?”

“That’s right. Your sudden move completely wrecked everything.”

The Goddess of Life began lamenting while looking at Rychlen.

“The original plan wasn’t like this. I intended to gradually pressure the gods over time, mobilizing dragons and other forces for war like with Esir, then trigger Gigantomachy to dismantle the faith in Olympus’ gods…”

“Is this my fault?”

“Your fault… Hmm. It wasn’t entirely your mistake to stab yourself with a dagger coated in poison, though the whole puppet king thing was problematic.”

“But… I didn’t want to become that kind of ruler.”

“Hmm, fair point. Though they did summon you earlier than planned. We were supposed to have a few more days…”

The Goddess of Life sighed.

“Well, what’s done is done. Unfortunately, we’ll have to cancel Gigantomachy. I’ll have to handle the resulting faith gap myself, which I really didn’t want to do.”

“Faith gap?”

“Just something that exists. Don’t worry about it; it’s none of your concern as a human.”

The Goddess of Life examined Rychlen’s body carefully.

“Let’s see… No serious wounds. Good. You should be fine to return as is.”

“Return…?”

“With things like this, there’s nothing you can do here to help. Besides, things will be chaotic here for a while dealing with the gods. So it’s best if you head back.”

“But… Gaia…”

Hearing that name, the Goddess of Life chuckled.

“Gaia, huh? It’s been a while since anyone called me that.”

“…”

“Right. Hades told me your human life was satisfying enough. Has that changed?”

Rychlen nodded at the Goddess of Life.

“As expected. If you’re content with your life, that’s fortunate. Well then, you should head back. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“But… Gaia…”

“But? Did you change your mind about becoming a god?”

Rychlen quietly shook his head, still having no desire to become a god.

“Ah, if you wanted to be a god, you would’ve already become one. So then, looks like the throne of the King of Gods will remain vacant for now.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Not your fault. It’s those troublesome gods who caused all this.”

Rychlen couldn’t respond, sensing the hidden regret in her words.

“Then… Hmm. If I send you back as is, you’d probably record everything that happened here. Hmm… Perhaps I need to make some minor adjustments.”

“Gaia…?”

“Don’t worry. It’s nothing serious. I just need to make slight adjustments to your memories. Not much, just a little – only the part after you attempted to stab yourself.”

Looking somewhat troubled, the Goddess of Life explained. Rychlen nodded understandingly, knowing she saved him from becoming a god.

Truthfully, he’d do anything for her.

“So… It’s fine. Just those memories.”

“Right. Thanks. I’ll just pause time briefly, make some edits… Actually, maybe it’s better to rewrite it so you stabbed yourself, suffered fatal injuries, and I revived you after punishing the gods.”

Saying this, the Goddess of Life smiled faintly.

“Considering your personality, you’d likely write about this anyway, and it wouldn’t take long for humans to spread the story. This way, we can reveal the arrogance and selfishness of the gods… Then, by showing how I saved and revived you, redirect their faith toward me… Hmm… Wait, no. Damn it!”

As she methodically explained, the Goddess of Life suddenly furrowed her brow and began venting frustration.

“Using fragments to divide tasks, minimizing external activities, successfully redistributing faith among other gods… Now I have to undo all that?! Ugh!! I don’t want to be buried under all this work again!!!”

Shaking her head while muttering incomprehensible things, the Goddess of Life left Rychlen scratching his head.

Though unclear on specifics, he sensed she’d endure considerable hardship due to this plan unraveling.

—

“Thus, the Goddess of Life revived Rychlen after he took his own life and severely punished the other gods. That’s the general story.”

“Rychlen’s records match this mostly. They mention being revived by the Goddess of Life after death.”

“Anyway, I think that concludes the main points. Hmm… Is there anything I missed?”

After thoughtful consideration, the Dragon Priestess turned to me.

“While the story makes sense, I don’t see how it relates to hiding Baal’s name.”

“Oh… Right. We were discussing why Baal’s name was concealed.”

Realizing she’d forgotten, the Dragon Priestess gave an awkward smile.

“The reason for hiding Baal’s name… Let’s say it’s to await his eventual return.”

“Return?”

“To prepare for the day Baal’s soul returns. Not immediately, but after experiencing dozens or hundreds of lives and achieving satisfaction… Wouldn’t it be possible for him to reclaim his divine position?”

The Dragon Priestess gazed into the distance as she continued.

“Though his name was obscured and buried by those troublemakers… We believe he’ll return someday. When that soul returns, we want the world to know there was once a King of Gods.”

“When preparing a surprise party, imagine someone spoiling it beforehand. That’s what I mean. Do you understand?”

“Ahh, I see…”

My shoulders felt heavier suddenly. Or rather, the air grew oppressive.

“Simply put, it’s like ruining a surprise party by blurting it out beforehand. Understand what I mean?”

“Yeah, I get it…”

“Good! Fortunately, you seem to understand. Therefore…”

The Dragon Priestess flicked her finger and caught something floating in mid-air.

A familiar fragment of a stone tablet.

“I’ll take this.”

“That’s…!”

I frantically searched my pocket, realizing the piece inscribed with Baal’s name was missing.

How could she take something from my pocket like that…?

“Discussing Baal is prohibited. Honestly, even if you neatly presented this to an academic society… I doubt you’d survive unscathed.”

“That’s…”

“Or do you want to risk everything, publish despite the danger, and have it all buried with you?”

At her words, I shook my head. Her strong wording implied she’d personally ensure that outcome.

“Well, I’m not a villain. In exchange for taking this… I’ll give you a small gift.”

She pulled something from her robes and tossed it to me.

A transparent shell made of crystal.

“What is this…?”

“A magic conch shell, as often mentioned in stories. Grants three wishes.”

“Magic conch shell… You mean those aren’t just fictional?”

At my question, the Dragon Priestess smirked.

“Stories originate from originals. Most tales come from real sources. Anyway, in exchange for this tablet, I’ll grant you three wishes. Anything I can fulfill, except impossible requests. Since you dug so deep into Baal’s truth, I thought it best to reward you properly. Accept it honorably.”

“Good grief… A real wish-granting conch shell… Wait, how do you have this…?”

When I looked up at her, the Dragon Priestess had already vanished.

Why does she possess the magic conch shell? Could her true identity be…?

Shaking my head to clear such thoughts, I slipped the conch into my pocket and left the room.

First, I need to talk to Huang Dong-gyeong. Even if I give him one of my three wishes, we need to settle this matter through discussion.