Chapter 262

Chapter 262

“A dragon?”

At the message from her dear friend, the Association President, Dan Haera, tilted her head with a faint smile.

“It isn’t common for a dragon to become an evil god.”

[It’s not exactly rare either, though.]

“Right, and that’s the problem. This is going to be a headache.”

The nature of dragons that appear in each dimension varies. There are dragons closer to beasts, while others play the role of a sage, or even inherit the role of a god. But they all shared one thing in common.

In any dimension, dragons were called the messengers of gods.

“If it’s in such a state that a dragon could end up like that, then the hatred must be enormous. In no dimension does a dragon commit sins of its own and become tainted—if it reached the level of becoming an evil god... that’s quite...”

[A lot must have happened. The dragon, nature’s greatest advocate, became an evil god of all things. Something like being betrayed by all humans or abandoned by a god wouldn’t be enough to make that possible.]

“Exactly what kind of form did you say it had? You said a humanlike existence made up the dragon’s upper body?”

[It was like immature humans who couldn’t even reach adulthood were crushed together and stitched up. No, does ‘crushed’ not quite fit? It was like they were shattered here and there like pottery, or stretched out long like taffy...]

“Just hearing you, it makes me think more of an East Asian long-bodied dragon than a Western dragon. Hehe, you wouldn’t have had time to take a photo, right?”

[Just getting my guild members out alive was hard enough. I think I saw every curse I’ll ever see in my life there—there were so many kinds too.]

Seo Seohui had escaped the dungeon and was receiving treatment for his injuries.

Since it lived up to its name of ‘dream,’ there were no major physical injuries, but all sorts of curses had been plastered onto his soul, to a level he couldn’t endure without treatment. One of the curses Seo Seohui received was that his flesh rotted and decayed. The sound of bandages rustling echoed.

[As expected, fighting divinity is exhausting. Each one of those trivial existences hits humans like a massive blow. When you hear its voice, blood runs from your ears and your mind goes blank... wow, it was no joke.]

“The fact you didn’t die just from holding it in your eyes is something.”

[Right. Since its essence is a dragon, it wasn’t that threatening. It means it wasn’t traditional divinity that was fate and nature from the beginning. That alone let us confirm there’s a chance we can win.]

“If it’s manufactured divinity, then we have a shot too.”

Divinity was fate and nature, and in other words, history. As living history, they could measure its level by the time of mystery contained in their bodies.

And compared to traditional divinity—whose time could not even be measured—manufactured divinity was...

“It’s not the absolute worst.”

It was something human strength could handle.

“...Hm, should we restrict the collector’s participation?”

[Ah, that man... right... that was how it was...]

Bisavol’s name came up out of nowhere, but Seo Seohui agreed as if he understood.

[Guildmaster Bisavol can’t help himself when it comes to dragons.]

“His eyes are dragon eyes—of course.”

[Come to think of it, this evil god had an awful lot of eyes.]

“That’s even more ominous.”

[No, on the hands and arms, and the wings too... there were tons of golden eyes attached...]

Seo Seohui described the evil god he had seen.

[Maybe because it was a form made of many people fused together, it had an insane number of arms. There were so many wings too—so many you couldn’t think of them as normal. Like the branches of a huge, dried-up old tree, they bent and twisted, wrapping the whole enormous amusement park like a spiderweb... and as time passed, you couldn’t even tell where the roads were.]

“You got out, somehow.”

[It didn’t just cover everything—it practically made a labyrinth. But even if it’s a labyrinth, there’s always a path, right? I found a route and got out. Those countless hands kept reaching out to crush us, but it wasn’t to a level we couldn’t shake off.]

“If you say so...”

The Association President nodded.

“Should we set it as EX-rank?”

She meant the rank of the ‘Amusement Park of Dreams.’

“If we do that, citizens will be more alert too.”

[How is cooperation with the government going?]

“This incident’s victims are mostly city residents, so it hasn’t been that difficult. In the end, all we have to do is stimulate the sense of responsibility that remains in reality and poke at the desire to grow here.”

[And you even gave it a differentiator.]

“Of course the more diligent people are—the ones who wake up earlier—the more rewards they get.”

Because of that, they had to put in a lot of manpower beyond the official relief policy, but the situation was gradually improving. Citizens who had been reminded of what was truly precious to them were returning to reality one by one.

“On top of that, an image has formed that people who rely on the ‘Amusement Park of Dreams’ are truly pathetic, so there’s even less reason to be buried in dreams. You stepping forward so actively was a huge help.”

Citizens’ affection and trust toward Justitia was beyond the sky. Above all, Hunter Seo Seohui—who was loved the most—personally took part in this subjugation. It was inevitable that resentment toward the ‘Amusement Park of Dreams,’ which stood against him, would form.

[That’s why you didn’t throw away the ‘Symbol of Eternity’ title and all that, right?]

“I always feel grateful to you all for swallowing the annoyance and burden and working hard for me.”

[Don’t say embarrassing things... friends help each other at times like this, don’t they?]

“That’s what I’m grateful for.”

Dan Haera nodded.

“Now that it’s come to this, we need to seal or deal with the evil god quickly and close the dungeon’s door. If we drag this out longer, citizens who hesitated thanks to your fame and my handiwork will feel tempted by dreams again.”

Seo Seohui sounded troubled.

[You make it sound so easy, for someone who isn’t the one stepping in personally.]

“You can do it, can’t you? And besides, I think...”

Dan Haera recalled the little saintess she had seen once.

“...Mm, yes. The saintess who was said to be kidnapped doesn’t seem like the type to just take it lying down either.”

[Oh, do you think we can get cooperation from the Moon Lady Religion’s saintess?]

“That’s something the collector’s side will be able to judge far more accurately than me. He has very good eyes, after all. And the collector has expressed intent to participate in this subjugation, so the chances of success are quite high.”

[That’s really welcome news in the middle of this headache.]

Seo Seohui asked.

[What about Hunter Seo Gio?]

“Recently, he hasn’t been coming out of the Collection Merchant because his condition isn’t good. The collector hasn’t said anything either, and since he’s not on this roster, there must be circumstances.”

[I feel like I can already hear the subjugation force lamenting it all the way here. When I saw him last time, he looked quite healthy—could Hunter Seo Gio’s condition and this dungeon be connected?]

“That’s something we’ll only know if we look more closely, but it is a curious coincidence. Maybe he hid because he was afraid of this dungeon. If our guess is right and he died once and is maintaining life as mystery, the collector might have stepped in to stop him out of worry for family.”

[At the very least, he didn’t look like someone who’d hide because he was scared, so like you said, there must be circumstances. If we really feel short on manpower, we can drag Haewoon here too, so it’s not something to worry too much about.]

Seo Seohui laughed.

[See you later.]

“Yeah, and then...”

[Then I’ll try to coax Hunter Seo Gio too.]

“I hope that time comes soon.”

For Dan Haera, who always had to make promises, special emotions and memories were always necessary.

* * *

As you might expect, deaths began to pile up.

“That filthy evil god... our brothers...!!”

Those who reacted especially sensitively to it were the Moon Lady Religion and the Sun Religion.

“With that dreadful voice, it melted my partner’s brain! Ah, we absolutely must seal it. If we leave it like this, the evil god of dreams will reach out into reality again and ruin the world!”

“Only traces of the saintess remain—we can’t find her... where on earth could she be? Surely she hasn’t been eaten? Please, please, that can’t happen...!!”

“He is a traitor! He is rebelling against everything of traditional divinity. How could such an evil being be born? We must seal it!!”

The evil god melted human brains with song, tore people apart with hands that approached as if dancing, and made people weep tears of blood with those ecstatic golden eyes. Divinity was a threat by its very existence.

“But how? He—he will see us as toys... nothing more, nothing less. You all know it too, don’t you, how much that monster in life loved battle and blood...”

“To the evil god of dreams, this is nothing more than a prank. Literally, he’s playing at war. Just look at those gigantic hands that suddenly pop out and play with dolls—you can tell, can’t you!”

There were priests swept up in helplessness, too.

They were the ones most knowledgeable about divinity and mystery. They understood its danger and nobility all the better. And so the Sun Religion gradually began to approach the battle half-heartedly.

The Moon Lady Religion criticized the Sun Religion for that attitude.

“You cowards!”

“It wasn’t our war from the start!”

“Do you think you’ll be safe if we leave the evil god of dreams like this?!”

“I’m telling you it’s not that we switched sides for that reason...!!”

In the urgent situation, the Moon Lady Religion began to crumble more and more. Their advance and methods were extreme, and because they were not skilled at war, casualties only increased, and the priests fell ill and wasted away in those empty places.

Through all that tragedy, the bishop remained silent.

“Bishop, I’m sorry, but... at least, please eat...”

“I am busy and cannot respond. I will take it later.”

“It has already been more than four days. We understand the shock of the saintess’s absence is great, but if you also shut yourself away like this, who are we supposed to rely on?”

“I believe in you.”

She said it with a rare smile.

“Are we not proud disciples who serve the Moon?”

“Th-that... the bishop is right.”

“Have you perhaps thought all of this is unreasonable?”

“No. I am satisfied with our use, Bishop.”

“Is that so.”

The bishop murmured.

“Yes. We really are people like this.”

She faithfully carried out every duty she had as bishop. She arranged the faction’s deployment, tended the wounded, and set strategy for what was to come. But behind all of that, she was always absorbed in only one line of research.

The Moon Lady Religion did not find it strange. Their individualism, dyed deep into their souls, made that possible. If someone has something they want to do, give them freedom, and do not look at each other as strange. That was the Moon Lady Religion.

“...”

Even so, little by little, the Moon Lady Religion crumbled.

“—Listen, my friend.”

“...”

“Look here, look at me. All the knowledge you want is here. Shall I open the library of my luxurious castle for you? Do you want to see a wider world and all its mysteries? Yes, I will permit it. I will allow it. My friend, we’re close enough, aren’t we... don’t doubt me.”

“...Ah, ugh...”

“What’s wrong? Why? Is there some problem? My friend, are you going to abandon me? Ah, it hurts so much. I can’t breathe. Are you the same? Then I can help you. Hold out your hand to me, beg me, ask me for mercy and entrust your body to me.”

“S-stop. Please... please stop...!!”

“Stop? Stop? What should I stop? All of this comes from your weakness. Why does my voice feel like it’s only reaching you? What do you think the reason is? You accepted me, didn’t you. You were curious about me, weren’t you. I’ll help you—don’t suffer. My friend. My honorable, brilliant, wise friend...”

Into weakened hearts, the evil god’s whisper seeped in.

“Now, look. Look with those lovely two eyes.”

“...”

“Where, here, is what is precious to you?”

With the giggling, cackling laughter of a child, and the soft fingers that sweetly stroked their cheeks and napes, the touch that gently patted their heads—entranced by it. Dyed in ecstatic gold.

With their eyes dyed gold, people went mad.

“Bishop, Bishop. We must follow his will. He will grant us rest. Only he can guide us onto the right path... and place us into our teacher’s embrace...”

“Thank you for understanding my will.”

“Ah, if only we had known sooner. The saintess must already have entered the Moon’s embrace too, right? Led by that merciful, sweet embrace... by those gentle, warm hands... I envy her. I envy her, I...”

“...Yes, that must be it...”

The bishop gently held the priests who wept tears of blood in gold.

“We can become stars.”

That must be the Moon’s will within the dream.

* * *

“...”

And in all of this, the saintess had no intention of staying silent.

“...So could you please let us go?”

“Ahahaha, haha! Hahahaha!! Hahaha! Ha...! Haha!!”

“This is driving me insane.”

A prison of hands and arms that couldn’t even communicate. The saintess looked at Ather, who had been captured along with her.

“We can’t communicate.”

“Be grateful we aren’t being crushed to paste in this state.”

“You’re not wrong, but it makes me really mad. Mr. Ather, do you only know how to say the right thing?”

“I learned other things too, but I forgot them while I was in the thorn prison.”

“Look at you dragging up sensitive past trauma because you’re at a disadvantage.”

“I was able to become a royal palace librarian because I can do at least this much.”

“Your self-justification skills are really something...”

In the evil god’s grasp—or rather, trapped inside the Demon King’s castle—the saintess crossed her arms.

“Let’s see who wins.”

Let me say it again: Aram truly did not intend to stay silent even a little bit.

At the very least, shouldn’t we carry out the operation we worked so hard to prepare?

(Continued in the next part)