Chapter 144: Here Lies Godhood
2:00 PM, Paradise, Royal City.
In the inner city, the plaza beside the grand palace was already packed with people, shoulder to shoulder in a bustling crowd.
Although from the very beginning, a proclamation had been issued within the Royal City — that this time, the Eternal Blessing would cover the entire Royal City, and the citizens need not scramble for the Underworld King's protection —
Still, the citizens who came to attend the Holy Rite were pushing forward by any means necessary, trying to get closer to the high platform where the ritual was being held.
The reason was simple…
First, many speculated that being closer to the sacrificial altar might grant them a deeper level of blessing.
The second reason—
Was that many sincerely wished to see, with their own eyes, the true face of the Wise King.
After the old king went missing — most likely having perished — and even the palace vanished along with him in a great upheaval…
This kingdom of the Underworld should have plunged into chaos in a very short span of time, possibly even tearing itself apart.
However, this new king had swept away all obstacles within just half a year and ascended to the throne.
Then, in less than three years, he had revived this once oppressive Paradise with newfound vitality.
The title of Wise King was not just the slogan of some fervent supporters, but a heartfelt truth spoken by countless citizens.
…
“His Majesty Rast has appeared!”
Someone suddenly shouted, setting off a wave of commotion among the crowd.
Countless pairs of eyes turned simultaneously toward the high platform—
And then, all of them saw the black-haired, black-eyed young man who stepped calmly out from the splendid palace.
Though his attire was exceedingly simple — just a pitch-black robe, without even wearing a crown — compared to the servants accompanying him, his clothing was plainly less ornate.
His appearance was far younger than most of the crowd had imagined — he looked only around twenty years old.
This sharply contrasted with the image many had formed of the Wise King — an older, middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, based only on his reputation.
And yet, strangely—
When this black-haired, black-eyed youth stepped out from the palace and stood upon the sacrificial high platform, not a single soul questioned his identity.
It wasn’t even a matter of doubt — not the slightest trace of suspicion ever arose.
Though his features were soft, carrying the dreamy charm unique to youth, his expression was serene, and without uttering a word, he exuded an unshakable authority.
“The Holy Rite begins now.”
Behind the black-haired youth, the loyal attendant solemnly proclaimed to the crowd gathered below the platform.
In the next moment—
From the palace, and from the altar where the ceremony was being held—
A dusky glow began silently spreading outward.
It spread rapidly, expanding in all directions.
In no time at all, it engulfed the entirety of the Royal City.
That was the domain of royal authority, known as Kingship.
Buildings of the Royal City, its residents, the sky, the earth, the ocean… everything within sight was enveloped by that solidified dusk and its majestic sovereign radiance.
Though the city held hundreds of thousands of people, at that moment, it became utterly silent.
Amid the golden haze of royal authority, only one figure remained visible — the black-haired, black-eyed youth standing above all — becoming the very center of the world.
…
Grey blended into the crowd at the plaza, carefully using her hood to conceal her form.
Around her, almost everyone’s eyes gleamed with a fanatical light, their expressions utterly devout.
They all closed their eyes, solemn in demeanor, placing themselves within the radiance of Kingship’s domain — becoming loyal subjects under the blazing royal will.
But in Grey’s eyes, a silver-white sheen was quietly swirling, allowing her to see through the eerie phenomenon, grasping the full truth of what was happening in the Royal City.
Within the Royal City, its inhabitants could largely be divided into two categories.
The first were those who had come to Paradise from the outside world and had stayed only briefly within the Underworld — they had not yet been fully assimilated, still retained human bodies, and remained beings of flesh and blood.
Bathed in the golden-yellow domain of Kingship, the reverence and admiration these humans held toward the Wise King…
All transformed, under spiritual vision, into countless illusory points of light — manifestations of the Power of Faith — constantly flowing toward Rast.
The second category were the true residents of Paradise — the dead who had long been assimilated within the Underworld.
Their lives had already ended, but due to being corroded by the power of Paradise, they had been transformed into undying spirits, eternally wandering this kingdom of the dead.
To the ordinary eye, these deceased were indistinguishable from humans of flesh and blood — they looked completely real, within arm’s reach…
But in truth, they existed only due to traces of power spilling from the Remnant of the Death God beneath Paradise — they were dead, sustained temporarily by that remnant force.
They were phantoms lingering within the Underworld, seeming alive, but in reality, they had long lost their fate and their future… and once they left the kingdom of the Underworld, once they were cut off from the remnant power of the Death God—
Then what awaited them was an end as fleeting as morning dew — when the sun rose, all illusions and phantoms would evaporate and vanish into nothingness.
And now, in Grey’s spiritual vision, among the dead mixed with the living, their symbolic “Flames of Existence” were flickering unsteadily in the golden domain of royal authority.
The presence of these deceased was growing weaker, swaying as if they could disappear completely at any moment…
Correspondingly, atop that high altar where the Holy Rite was held, an overwhelming and oppressive aura was condensing.
There, the faith-light of countless living souls was gathering, while at the same time, the Flames of Existence from countless dead were being siphoned away…
Under such tribute, something terrifying was about to be born.
Watching all of this, Grey quietly let out a heavy breath.
It seemed… the intelligence she had obtained from Chief Sisel was indeed accurate.
This new king of Paradise, under the guise of a Holy Rite, had gathered all the citizens of Paradise within the Royal City—
And what he sought, was not some noble act of granting eternal blessings to the people.
But rather— a grand sacrifice.
Using the faith of all the living in Paradise, and the very existence of the souls of the dead, as offerings to open an ancient path to the divine realm.
All of it, only to truly ascend the divine throne.
In Grey’s eyes, that mysterious radiance quietly faded, returning to calm.
This was a type of supernatural ability used for detection — enabling her to see everything occurring through the lens of spiritual sight.
Originally, as the bearer of the unique Higher Sequence 「Fate」, Grey should never have been able to possess supernatural powers.
After all, according to Chief Sisel’s theory, an overly dominant Higher Sequence would suppress a transcendent’s inner mental landscape… if nothing unexpected happened, then relying on her own ability alone, Grey might never have awakened her mental world, and would remain a so-called “powerless one” her entire life.
However, at this very moment, Grey was able to wield different types of supernatural abilities with ease and precision.
Her Spiritual Vision quietly deactivated, but at the same time, the dusky glow of Kingship surged around her—
Yet the domain of Kingship seemed to meet some kind of obstruction near her, and quickly dissipated without affecting Grey in the slightest.
All of this was due to the power of the ember she had obtained three years ago.
It was the legacy passed down from Chief Sisel — the fire inherited by generations of Shoreguards.
After three years of effort, Grey had truly mastered the mighty force known as 「Fate」, as well as the inheritance of that ember.
If not for this, she could never have survived time and time again in those perilous missions with almost no chance of life.
“Big Brother Rast…”
“So this is what you’ve become?”
Grey looked up toward the figure on the towering altar, who looked down on the masses with indifferent eyes, and whispered to herself.
This was the first time in three years since that night of betrayal in the rain that Grey saw Rast once again.
Upon the high altar worshiped by the masses, his appearance and figure had not changed in the slightest — exactly the same as the youth who had once saved Grey from a hopeless cycle in Frostwater Town.
And yet, in this very moment—
That once so familiar silhouette now felt unbearably distant.
The boy’s jet-black pupils reflected the blazing sun above the dome, as though molten gold.
He stood atop the sacrificial high platform, gazing down at all beings, his expression utterly calm, yet emanating a majestic authority as vast as a mountain.
Never before had Grey felt that this youth’s figure appeared so unattainable.
At this moment, Grey couldn’t help but recall the indifferent words Rast had spoken to her at their parting.
“Time is long enough to change many things.”
“Sincere ideals of the past, when corroded by time, will eventually wither into the dust of emptiness.”
“You, who have not endured the wear of time, are not qualified to empathize with me.”
…
“So this is what you pursue, Big Brother Rast?”
“To gain power, you’d betray faith and loyalty, you’d strike down your own companions.”
“Even going so far as to sacrifice an entire nation, to offer all of Paradise as tribute…”
“All for the sake of ascending that so-called divine throne.”
“I once saw you as the direction I pursued, the meaning of life, treated your ideals as my own, and devoted my whole existence to chasing them.”
“But the ideals you hold now — I cannot resonate with them, and I refuse to accept them!”
A fleeting confusion flashed through Grey’s emerald eyes.
But it quickly faded, replaced by an iron-hard resolve.
She didn’t move, silently lying in wait among the crowd, quietly watching the Holy Rite continue.
She knew clearly — now was not the time to act… though Big Brother Rast seemed wholly immersed in the ritual, this was precisely the moment when he was most alert.
With Big Brother Rast’s intelligence, he surely anticipated that the Shoreguards might send someone to disrupt the ceremony.
Though it looked like there were no precautions, he must have hidden means prepared against any would-be saboteurs.
Besides, from the Gravekeepers’ side, that legendary Noah of the Bounty Sequence was also very likely watching in secret.
To act rashly now would be no different from courting death.
The Shattered Coast defenses were already under threat, and the entire Shoreguard organization had to divert attention there — this time, only she had been able to come to Paradise, without Chief Sisel to back her up.
If she wanted to shatter Big Brother Rast and the Gravekeepers’ plot… she had to endure, she had to be patient.
She had to wait until the moment the Holy Rite fully completed, and the path to the divine throne was truly opened.
That would be the critical point when upheaval exploded — whether it was Big Brother Rast or the secretly lurking Gravekeepers, the moment the key to the divine throne fully manifested, they would throw their entire focus into it, and no longer be able to spare attention elsewhere.
Of course, this long wait was tormenting — every moment dragged like a year.
But Grey understood — if she wanted to fulfill her heartfelt wish, even if she had to break that youth’s legs, she would drag him back to the Shoreguards.
Then, she no longer had the right to act on emotion.
She had already waited three years for this humble wish — even returning from hell for it.
So now, she didn’t mind waiting a little longer.
…
Present World, Arcane Tower.
“Damn, Rast’s acting skills are seriously on another level.”
“Look at him, just look… with that kingly presence and performance, he could totally win an Oscar or something, right?”
“How come I feel like his portrayal of the Underworld King is more imperial than Allen’s?”
In front of the light screen, Dean Silver stuffed small dried fish into her mouth one after another with her tail, happily munching away.
While eating, she mumbled with her mouth full toward Ophelia, “Seriously — this guy’s acting is kinda terrifying, huh.”
“Hey, Little Tina’s little sister, aren’t you worried at all that your sister might get conned out of money and love by this guy’s acting?”
On the other side, the mercury manifestation that took the form of a petite girl had been ignoring the snow ferret that treated the Arcane Tower like its personal camping ground.
But when she heard the last sentence, a flicker of human-like light passed through the eyes of Ophelia’s avatar.
“Elder Sister may be stubborn… but someone who can truly deceive her intuition shouldn’t exist.”
“That’s why… gulp gulp... I really don’t get you sister-complex types.” Dean Silver gulped down a piece of dried fish stuck in her throat with a sip of fizzy drink, then rubbed her fluffy belly in satisfaction.
Sure enough, watching a livestream needed snacks and soda to be perfect.
Snack time, bliss.
“This isn’t some ‘sister complex.’”
“Someone as radiant as Elder Sister deserves to be followed by all.”
“Those classmates at Starfall University who failed to see Elder Sister’s brilliance and only knew how to mock her — they are the ones who are pitiful and laughable.”
Ophelia murmured her thoughts aloud.
But soon, her gaze sharpened, and she turned her eyes back to the screen.
Within the light screen, atop the high platform—
Countless starlights were slowly gathering.
Then, they solidified into substance.
“The ancient path to the divine throne—”
“Has opened…”