Ch.205The Emperor’s Past

# Chapter 205: The Past of the Celestial Emperor

I had shown a small measure of sympathy toward the Celestial Emperor, but not without reason.

What did it mean to live in an era when the Pioneer Empires and now-extinct ancient civilizations were still active?

No joke—we’re talking about super-massive planetary system annihilation weapons that could literally destroy “stars,” not just planets.

Swarms of nanomachines and fleets that didn’t discriminate between organic and inorganic matter.

Planet Killers that could obliterate worlds in a single strike.

All manner of grotesque strategic weapons as numerous as stars in the sky.

It was an era when not just Type II but Type I perpetual motion machines were utilized, casually violating the laws of thermodynamics and physics.

One needn’t look far for evidence—just consider Levia, still orbiting the Mother Planet Ka’zan.

Even accounting for the fact that Leviathan-class vessels weren’t ordinary ships but specially constructed flagships meant to lead ancient civilization fleets…

Their insane armor materials impervious to any existing weapon, main cannons capable of pulverizing the Extinction Core that had been the size of a small moon…

When you consider that items of similar or slightly lower caliber were being “mass-produced” during that era, from the Celestial Emperor’s perspective, the situation must have been truly hopeless.

However, my sympathetic feelings were soon thoroughly crushed.

“But it was truly fortunate that the civilization I descended upon shared the same purpose as myself.”

“The same purpose?”

“What else but the determination that this reality is merely a game, and the expression of will to return to the true ‘reality’?”

“…”

“Ah, the joy I felt then—truly the prime of my life.”

At the Celestial Emperor’s words, I recalled the ancient civilization ‘Baltaum’—a nation that existed only in the game’s lore. They had determined that their world was merely virtual reality and attempted to destroy the entire galaxy in order to transform reality.

‘So that’s what it means to find kindred spirits.’

And regardless of what I was thinking, the Celestial Emperor continued his story.

—————————————

To summarize his long tale, it was truly an absurd story.

“Wait… so you started a war to destroy the galaxy just to achieve this so-called ascension?”

“You understand perfectly.”

Hearing him proudly admit to attempting reality alteration (explosion), I felt my common sense trying to escape my brain.

“With the support of their civilization, I was able to assist in the war against the entire galaxy and create reality-piercing devices and dimensional fracture bombs, but…”

“…”

“Unfortunately, those damned Pioneers refused to accept our noble cause.”

“…Isn’t that obvious?”

If I were in their position and encountered lunatics rampaging about needing to kill the galaxy and all life for their deranged purpose…

Wouldn’t I also agree that these bastards needed to be annihilated by any means necessary?

As if reading my thoughts, the Celestial Emperor, wearing Riel’s face, spoke with irritation.

“Thanks to that, I and the ancient civilization Baltaum had to fight a lonely battle against those damned Pioneers—the Ethernia Holy Empire and their allied forces—and their utterly cowardly surprise attacks.”

“…”

“Even the Ten-Ron Federation, who normally minded their own business, interfered with our sacred journey.”

“…”

“And so, after tens of thousands of years of battle, our lonely fight ended with Baltaum’s destruction.”

“…”

“Those damned Ethernians.”

As I silently listened to the Celestial Emperor, I couldn’t help but think how terrible these bastards must have been for even the Ten-Ron Guardians, who never left their territory, to get involved.

“But Baltaum’s destruction did not mean I would give up.”

‘For fuck’s sake, just give up already.’

“Although the reality-piercing device that I and Baltaum created as our final solution was destroyed by the Ten-Ron fleet, and the dimensional fracture bomb was seized by those Ethernians…”

“…?”

“Since all that knowledge remained in my head, on the day Baltaum fell, I performed a spectacular escape, evading Ethernia’s pursuit squad.”

My eyes narrowed at his shameless boast about running away, but the Celestial Emperor showed no negative emotion whatsoever.

“The problem was that Ethernia’s pursuit was so thorough that I couldn’t execute the quest to move on to the next world—I could only keep fleeing.”

“…”

“It was truly a lamentable time. Whenever I tried to control a suitable small nation to progress the quest… not long after, the country would be incinerated along with its planet by Ethernia’s pursuit squad.”

The pursuit squad’s obsession with destroying planets was extreme, but equally remarkable was how the Celestial Emperor managed to survive and continue his escape.

At the same time, a question formed in my mind:

‘Why is there no mention of Ethernia pursuing the Celestial Emperor now? If they were still after him, the Saint from before would have told us something additional.’

According to the Celestial Emperor, Ethernia Holy Empire’s pursuit squad had tirelessly worked to capture and kill him for tens of thousands of years, regardless of whatever disguise he took.

But then, as he swung his legs from the table, the Celestial Emperor delivered a shocking revelation:

“…But even such pursuit eventually comes to an end.”

“Hmm.”

“Although I have no intention of explaining the process in detail, to put it simply… I fell in love with the captain of the pursuit squad that was chasing me at that time.”

“…What?”

I stared at him, thinking too much of the middle part of the story had been skipped.

But the Celestial Emperor, ignoring my look, wore a wistful expression on Riel’s face as he reminisced about the past.

“She was truly remarkable in every way… With her by my side, I could abandon all my lifelong goals and dreams.”

“…”

I was taken aback by this sudden love confession, but as the Celestial Emperor continued, I began to understand how the situation had unfolded.

————————————-

“That time whispering sweet nothings with her was… the greatest period in my life since being possessed into this game.”

Summarizing his passionate love story, the situation was truly dramatic:

1. After forming a marital bond with the pursuit squad captain, the Ethernia Empire learned that the Celestial Emperor had abandoned his obsession with the galaxy explosion ending and stopped sending pursuit squads.

2. However, Ethernia Holy Empire didn’t want to leave a dangerous element like the Celestial Emperor nearby, and likewise, the Celestial Emperor had no intention of living near Ethernia, which had destroyed his Baltaum and tried to kill him.

3. Their interests aligned, and Ethernia agreed to stop sending pursuit squads while the Celestial Emperor left the eastern region and moved to a planet in the outer regions of the western galaxy, where he would live quietly.

‘…Hmm.’

Through the Celestial Emperor’s story, I came to understand how the Holy Seveli Empire where I currently resided came to be.

“So, the Holy Seveli Empire began as a community formed by Ethernian species who followed the Empress?”

“Correct. Additionally, I personally modified the primitive species originally inhabiting the planet and forged them into a single race.”

I began to understand why Ethernia’s Saint had been so friendly toward us.

“Thus, I was enjoying the golden age of my life with my beloved on this rural planet in the western galaxy, but…”

“But what?”

“…Not long after the game’s starting point, around when Arthraia was born, my beloved departed from this world.”

“What?”

“Even I, who had mastered countless medical technologies while traversing parallel universes, couldn’t determine why the Empress died.”

“…”

“But as I felt the warmth fading from the Empress’s hand, I was able to realize the truth.”

“…”

“That this world is still just a game, a mere illusion.”

“…”

“And that I must proceed with the quest given to me, clear the game, and walk the path of ascension.”

After he mentioned the Empress’s death, I noticed his voice gradually becoming emotionless, and I decided to point something out.

“Then why did you treat Arthraia, the Empress’s daughter, so harshly?”

Even if his mistreatment of me and others was “deliberate” as he himself admitted…

Arthraia was the fruit of his union with the wife he claimed to love.

Moreover, as the Celestial Emperor himself had told me from the beginning, she was “a being without the limitation of lifespan.”

Given how strongly the blood of the “dragon” manifested in Arthraia compared to vermin like Alexander, she was truly his blood relative.

In response to my question, the Celestial Emperor casually leaned forward on the table, supporting himself with both arms, and said:

“Because Arthraia played a decisive role in her death.”

“…”

“If that child had never been born, my love would not have left my side so meaninglessly.”

“…Do you really think that’s an acceptable thing to say?”

And my words didn’t end there.

“What about the empire? Have you also abandoned the Seveli Empire that you and the Empress built together?”

I burst out in indignation, remembering all the hardships I’d endured because of him.

But facing my reaction, the Celestial Emperor simply replied with an indifferent expression:

“What happens to the empire is no longer my concern, now that the Empress is dead.”

“…”

“Not just that—I realized that the empire and indeed this entire galaxy are merely sacrificial lambs for my goal.”

“You sick bastard.”