Divine Realm

Domain of the Demon God

A woman, covered in black magic, rose from a black bathtub.

“…Hmm?”

Her magic eye turned yellow.

‘Aow, you idiot! This is the right way!’

‘Oops. Sorry. I got excited thinking about meeting the commander again….’

Through her divination, she saw several gods shrouded in a dark magic veil at the edge of her realm.

They were wandering around, seemingly lost, searching for something.

‘…Is this the divinity of sacrifice?’

The woman felt the divinity forged from the concept of sacrifice emanating from them.

In the Divine Realm, there is only one entity that embodies the concept of sacrifice: [The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth].

This dude was notorious for his laziness, to the point of not even creating subordinates…

‘This is it. No doubt. Just follow me quietly this time.’

‘Alright, I get it…!’

“This is interesting.”

The woman, having nothing but air to cover her, rose from the bathtub.

Magic coalesced around her body, forming clothes.

“Gods who should not exist.”

The woman’s figure shimmered as she folded space and flew away.

With her presence completely concealed, she stealthily trailed them.

To the arrogant woman, even a group of lesser gods was hardly a threat, so she had nothing to worry about.

*

“It’s been a while, General.”

Paladin Dave greeted Ren with a sharp posture.

“What’s up? Why has your face gotten so chubby? Have you not trained since becoming a god?”

Elementalist Darin was meddling with Ren’s face, uninvited.

“This feels weird. I, who served a god, have become a god alongside the General!”

Priest Gregory was examining the territory of the Church of Sacrifice.

Among them were also Advanced Mercenary Hans, Great Swordmaster Colin, Mage Christine, Knight Florence, Spearman Ingrid, Dark Sorcerer Jeffrey, and Mage Engineer Collins.

No change at all.

They were just as Ren remembered them back then.

The most dependable and reliable comrades.

They had all ascended as lesser gods and resurrected together.

“Everyone…!”

It was hard to contain her emotions.

With the sloth that had imprisoned her for centuries vanished, a wave of overwhelming joy began to wash over her.

“I didn’t expect our commander to be this happy.”

“Even after all this time, you’re still like a child. We have to take care of you, after all.”

But that joy quickly transformed into guilt.

Guilt over the sins she had to bear for a lifetime.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth contorts her face.]

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth seeks forgiveness.]

“No, why are you apologizing again?”

The heroes knew well why she felt such guilt.

After spending hundreds of years as a god, a high god no less, she hadn’t even erected a single monument for them.

When they first learned this fact, they felt betrayed.

However, during the resurrection process, they realized it hadn’t been her will that caused it.

It was the sin and concept of [Sloth] that someone had embedded into her, blocking her.

“General, do you know? The reason we were able to resurrect was thanks to you.”

“…What do you mean?”

“It happened in the process of you conquering the concept of [Sloth]… but it might be a long story, so we’ll continue later. What we want to say is that none of us blame you.”

“Hahaha! That’s right, Commander! We died because we loved you! There’s no way we could blame you!”

“Still as stubborn as ever.”

[The Spirit of Sacrifice pokes the cheek of the Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth with a finger.]

“…Everyone.”

So warm, those comrades.

How long had it been since she felt such an emotion?

The realm of sacrifice, which had been cold for centuries, was now filled with loud, lively sounds.

“Ah, so you put our names in that game, huh?”

“…I hoped the world would remember you.”

“Haha! That’s so touching, Commander!”

“Hey, hey! That’s the face of a commander who’s embarrassed!”

“Do you all want to get beaten by the general again?”

The atmosphere was just as raucous as it was in their previous lives.

Memories of that time came rushing back.

“Hehe.”

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth smiles at the atmosphere she thought she’d never feel again.]

“…”

“…”

Then, the male heroes suddenly went quiet.

“…Oh no, our commander has truly become a goddess… she even has the looks of a real goddess…”

“D-Don’t say that…”

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth slightly turns her head in embarrassment.]

“…Wow, seriously. You’re too much. So, this is what it means to be a female genius. I can’t let this go, ugh!”

“Whoa!”

[The Spirit of Sacrifice hugs the Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth from behind, grabbing her two peaks.]

“Gentlemen, please turn your heads away.”

[The Magician of Sacrifice glares at the men with a contemptuous expression.]

[The Mercenary of Sacrifice dumbly blushes.]

[The Great Swordsman of Sacrifice swallows hard.]

After a long time of playful banter and chit-chat, they lost track of time.

“How fascinating. I’ve never heard of a medium called a game before, but are you saying that our portions that appear in that game are imprinted in the memories of countless players every week? That this memory is the driving force behind our resurrection?”

“It seems so.”

“…But if that’s possible…”

[The Spirit of Sacrifice pauses.]

“Doesn’t that mean the one who creates the game can churn out whatever god they want…?”

…?

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth ponders deeply.]

!!!

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth’s eyes widen.]

The reason all ten heroes were able to resurrect was thanks to the girl of dreams and her apostle’s great efforts.

Through the game they operated, the memories of the heroes were engraved in the minds of the continent’s people, and their perception and faith skyrocketed.

If this game were to be abused, one could possibly resurrect gods at their own whim or turn fallen heroes into gods.

A power akin to that of a creator god, surpassing ordinary divine statuses.

But her interest was not in the greatness of this ability.

‘What would happen if other gods found out about this!’

If it were known that the concentration of divinity and faith could resurrect the dead and even turn them into gods, numerous gods would surely rush to the girl of dreams and her apostle.

As beings willing to do anything for divine power, it would surely not end well.

No matter how noble they pretend to be on the outside, they would surely lose their minds in front of such power.

“Did you all… meet other gods on your way here?”

If that happens, they could be in danger.

“No, we didn’t meet anyone.”

[The Spirit of Sacrifice shrugs her shoulders.]

“We didn’t want to come into contact with others since we didn’t know what this Divine Realm was like, so we sneaked around. After becoming gods, Jeffrey’s area-wide invisibility ability became ridiculously strong, so we used that to sneak here.”

[The Spirit of Sacrifice notices the awkwardness of the Dark Sorcerer of Sacrifice, who is scratching the few strands of hair left on his head.]

‘No one knows about their existence yet.’

Now that the story of the ten heroes has spread because of the existence of the [Akashic Archive], if other gods were to meet them, they might learn about the power of dreams.

Am I fortunate that only I know about their existence?

Thud

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth kneels down.]

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you doing this again?”

“General?”

“Commander, your apologies are enough. You are our benefactor…”

“No. Even if that is the case, I fell into sloth and did nothing for hundreds of years; I didn’t even inform you of your deaths or make any effort to resurrect or find you. As the leader of the special ops team and a general, this is a sin that is hard to forgive.”

“General…”

“You’re still the honest general, huh?”

“Sorry, but I think I’ll have to trouble you again.”

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth bites her lips.]

They now deserve to be happy.

Now that they have finally broken free from centuries of shackles, to be told to live locked up again…

It was far too painful and regretful.

“Can you explain it in detail?”

“Our savior…?”

The heroes fell into thought after hearing Ren’s explanation.

“After finally being resurrected, it’s truly hard to hide in a corner, avoiding the eyes of others.”

“But we are the commander’s subordinates and sword!”

“We were resurrected by your existence, Commander, as subordinate gods. We can command without asking, we do not need to request this of you.”

Despite being part of a corrupt kingdom, they were ready to sacrifice their lives to save humanity—the ten special operators.

They all had one common trait; they had volunteered for the special mission because they were fans of Knight Ren.

“More than anything, we can’t put our benefactor in danger!”

“…You guys…!”

Just as Ren’s face was about to become wet with tears of emotion.

“Glad to see that you’re all smart thinkers, I guess.”

“Who’s there!”

Ren quickly drew her sword and swung it, sending a blade of holy energy towards the shadow.

Whoosh!

Swoosh!

The swiftly flying sword was blocked by the magic barrier that appeared before the man’s outstretched hand.

“…That’s quite a merciless response without mercy in your hands. If I weren’t me, and just an ordinary god, I might have died.”

“You are….”

Why is that man here?

He is known to be the most famous god for never leaving his realm.

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth tenses, gathering her energy.]

“Nice to meet you, [Sloth]. Or should I call you [Sacrifice] now that you’ve overcome it? Don’t be too guarded. I’m just like you.”

“…What?”

Clack, clack, clack.

A woman in a nun’s outfit popped out from behind the man.

“…No way. Saint Kate…?”

While enjoying the [Akashic Archive], Ren recognized who she was immediately.

And she could understand why he said that they were alike.

“Right. My goal is the same as yours.”

[The Angry Mage Engineer Who Casts Off Rage smiles.]

“I came here to protect my benefactor.”

*

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

Rustle.

“…What time is it…?”

I woke from a crazy vibrating device while having a fun dream.

Rubbing my sleepy eyes, I picked up the device.

“Who on earth would contact me at this hour…?”

As I picked it up, I felt something was off.

This wasn’t the device I usually used as the academy student, Rian.

This was the device connected to the Divine Realm through the power of the Star Lord.

That device was ringing like crazy.

Could it be that other gods sent a proposal after seeing Orpheus’ episode succeed?

I thought this was a reasonable possibility and picked up the device and opened it.

“…?”

But only two Star Lords were displayed on the screen.

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth and Angry Mage Engineer Who Casts Off Rage]

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

Messages continued to flow from the two Star Lords.

[The Angry Mage Engineer Who Casts Off Rage declares that he will protect his benefactor, as he has fulfilled every wish.]

-> Angry Mage Engineer Who Casts Off Rage feels infinite gratitude towards you.

[The Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth asks if there’s a way.]

-> Sacrifice Who Overcame Sloth feels extreme gratitude towards you.

But it was different from the usual communications with them.

It seemed they didn’t know that I was seeing their condition.

Moreover, for some reason, I could also see their inner thoughts in message form.