Ch.119119. From Now On (End)

The campfire time had passed, and quite a while had gone by.

Of course, this didn’t mean years had passed, just that everyone had gone to their quarters for a short rest.

“…”

I had wanted honesty, but I didn’t expect this level of frankness.

“…so what are you going to do now?”

“…”

“Absolute One.”

“How many children would you like?”

“Absolute One!”

Unable to contain herself any longer, Black Sun shouted, making me flinch as I turned to look at her.

“What? Why. What.”

“Is this the time to be joking around? What do you think will happen if you arbitrarily break down the boundary between Constellations and Believers…! They might challenge our authority later…!”

“Oh come on, that won’t happen, so don’t worry about it.”

She’s still completely clueless about our kids.

No, for someone who has lived her entire life as a Constellation, this might be difficult news to accept.

“You don’t need to worry. They’re capable of handling themselves.”

This will be the first and last time they show such honesty.

From tomorrow, they’ll return to being Believers again.

‘That’s a shame.’

Nevertheless, I couldn’t help feeling a secret disappointment.

“…You’re not thinking something strange, are you?”

Black Sun perceptively checked my expression and asked.

“I’m not. I’m really not.”

Feeling oddly guilty, I said that and turned away from Black Sun to lie down.

“Absolute One. Sometimes I fear you.”

“Sometimes?”

“Ah, no… in a different way.”

A different way?

As I half-listened to her words, Black Sun continued speaking.

“The boundary between Believers and Constellations is absolute. No matter what they do, they can never reach us, and we can’t reach them either.”

“…”

“So, if you truly love the Believers, don’t give them any hope.”

Was it like this in the game Ragnarok too?

I thought about it carefully.

It was an ordinary character gacha game.

You would choose Believers you liked, develop them, and enjoy various services that fueled your collection desires.

Of course, in a purely gentlemanly and wholesome way.

“Hmm.”

Should I just let this opportunity pass?

I couldn’t say Black Sun was wrong, but I didn’t want to admit she was right either.

Soon, I faced my own honesty.

“I don’t want to.”

“…Huh?”

“I’ll handle it myself.”

“W-what do you mean you don’t want to? Absolute One! You can’t!”

“What now?”

“I’m telling you, you really can’t do this! If you’re going to do it, do it with me instead!”

“Excuse me?”

This time I truly felt like I’d been slapped.

When I turned to Black Sun with a dumbfounded expression, I could see her with a determined look on her face in the eerie moonlight.

Having made such an outrageous statement, she seemed to realize she had made a mistake—

Her face turned bright red as she avoided eye contact.

“What are you doing?”

“W-what!”

“No. What did you just say?”

“If you’re going to get involved with a Believer, it would be better with me since I’m a Divine Manifestation body and there wouldn’t be any problems! Think about the issues the world would have to deal with because of your rash actions!”

“It goes that far?”

I suddenly became aware of my position.

“Of course! You are, you are…”

The same answer I’ve heard so many times it’s become tiresome.

“That’s not the future I want.”

“…?”

“I want to give Believers freedom and coexist with them.”

“B-but.”

“It’s just because it’s your first time.”

Black Sun was flustered.

For someone who had lived her entire life maintaining a wall between their existences, approaching Believers must feel uncomfortable.

“But I’ll accept your feelings. Thank you.”

It would have been satisfying if the atmosphere had been a little better.

Her sudden confession attack caught me off guard.

“…!”

Black Sun seemed to belatedly realize what she had done and vanished from her seat in alarm.

「Child of the Lost Star: Absolute One.」

“Oh. It’s been a while.”

Hearing the welcome name, I immediately responded.

Child of the Lost Star, or Star Child for short.

After sealing the last Past Remnant, he became quiet and then disappeared.

Of course, that doesn’t mean independence from my domain.

I won’t allow escape.

「Child of the Lost Star: I’ve been busy managing the flow of stars.」

“What flow of stars?”

「Child of the Lost Star: Even though the world has found peace and the Past Remnants have been sealed, evil always finds a way to resurface.」

Star Child continued with a lengthy explanation.

“So what are you saying? Give me a three-line summary.”

「Child of the Lost Star: ….」

「Child of the Lost Star: I’ve increased the number of children in preparation for the future.」

“Ah, Holy Swords?”

「Child of the Lost Star: Yes.」

“That’s good.”

More Holy Swords means more Heroes.

It means more means to keep other Constellations in check.

Of course, this doesn’t apply to me.

Star Child and I have long been on friendly terms.

“Nothing else special going on?”

I was about to call him since I hadn’t heard from him in so long.

I was glad he voluntarily brought news.

「Child of the Lost Star: This is a personal question, but.」

“What.”

「Child of the Lost Star: Will you take Black Sun?」

“What’s this about now.”

「Child of the Lost Star: You wouldn’t pretend not to know at this point, would you? What feelings she has for you.」

“…..”

I thought it might be the case, but was it that obvious? Or perhaps he noticed because he’s a Constellation who’s close by.

“I don’t know either.”

「Child of the Lost Star: …What?」

“That’s for her to figure out.”

I don’t want to force feelings.

I will always remain standing right here.

Coming closer is entirely up to her.

That too is freedom, and a lesson Black Sun should rightfully learn.

「Child of the Lost Star: You frighten me sometimes.」

“Only now you say that.”

「Child of the Lost Star: Even though we’re both Constellations, your way of thinking is completely different from ours.」

Is this a compliment?

Since he’s saying I have anti-Constellation thoughts, it must be a compliment.

I half-listened to him and looked at the landscape where dawn was breaking.

#

I feel that my relationship with the Believers has grown stronger.

But I think there’s still a long way to go.

To protect themselves from those bastards calling themselves evil gods—

They needed to learn to assert themselves, just like Heroes.

I’ve been quite busy lately.

I visited the Regalium Kingdom to give a speech.

I went to cities and villages affected by the evil gods to provide direct support.

There were still so many flaws in this world.

The Past Remnants had tap-danced on an already creaking and staggering world.

“Busy, busy~”

If I weren’t a Divine Manifestation body, I would have collapsed from overwork long ago.

But I’ve gained a lot too.

Constellation friends, and closer relationships with other Believers.

I think I’ve passed through all the truly hectic procedures that used to leave me breathless.

The risk of the world resetting, the rampage of evil gods from the past, and the checks from other Constellations.

‘I’ve really done enough at this point.’

That doesn’t mean I’ll just sit back and watch future threats.

However, I wanted to establish a foundation for this world to stand on its own.

“Absolute One!”

“Yes.”

I embraced the visitor who came running from afar.

Our strategy team ace who’s been working hard lately.

“Is work going well?”

“Yes! It’s going well, just as you said, Absolute One!”

“That’s good.”

I need new hands to take over the work I’ve been handling.

Instead of taking the long way around, we were in the middle of creating them ourselves.

Namely, the birth of Constellations.

Unlike the others who have been rotten to the core since ancient times, the Constellations we create will have clear discipline from the start.

They’ll be work-specialized, pure-hearted Constellations.

‘It’s still too early though.’

These expectations might be premature, but it should be better than before.

“Phew.”

After taking a refreshing breath, I looked down at the world from the hidden realm with my visitor.

“If only one of them would take the bait.”

I was starting to get bored, and at this timing, I could certainly play with other Constellations.

“What should we do now?”

“There’s plenty to do.”

I grinned at the visitor who looked bored.

Asking for work first—truly worthy of being an ace.

‘While I can use you.’

I planned to make good use of her.

The visitor is happy to have someone to play with, and I’m happy to have someone to work for me.

We both had advantages for each other.

“…”

For a moment, I thought about my three favorite Believers.

‘When should I hold the ceremony?’

This should be legal by now, right?

Black Sun’s watchful eyes are quite burdensome, but…

“Huh?”

Suddenly, a good idea came to mind.

Come to think of it, didn’t Black Sun say something about taking her instead?

‘She made the first move.’

Since things have come to this, I added advancing my relationship with Black Sun to my plans.

“That’s good?”

I suddenly feel like my mind has opened up.

Why am I only having this thought now?

Perhaps my subconscious hatred for Constellations was secretly at work.

In fact, this kind of mindset was what I needed most.

A life of repaying those who care for me.

What a blessed life—or rather, divine life.

“Visitor.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s continue to do well together.”

If I take good care of her, the only foreign deity, we will surely overcome any hardship.

“Yes! I’m counting on you too, Absolute One!”

Looking at the brightly smiling visitor, I couldn’t help but smile as well.