Chapter 208

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“…It seems things have been quite busy while I was away.”

The Commander of the Celestial Corps, the God of War, rested his chin on the round table and spoke.

Having spent several months traversing the demonic lands, he had been completely cut off from news within the country. 

His communication device had been damaged midway, making it impossible to receive updates. Moreover, the demonic lands were a place where human logic didn’t apply. 

Communication devices only worked near the borders. The further he ventured into the demonic lands, the more useless the device became.

Upon his return, the God of War witnessed the descent of the Devil Gods and immediately reviewed all the events that had occurred during his absence.

The massacre of the researchers. The cherry blossom festival incident. The underground exhibition hall incident in Sector 6. The Family extermination operation. 

The more he read about these major incidents, the more his head began to ache.

He had somewhat anticipated the descent of the Devil Gods.

Five years ago.

He had suspected that a Devil God might have infiltrated during the Great Catastrophe.

There was no clear evidence or proof. It was just a hunch.

Given the scale of the dimensional rift, it wasn’t impossible.

He had scoured every corner of the human territories. Even after searching repeatedly, he found nothing, so he turned his attention to the demonic lands. 

He combed through the demonic lands like hunting for a rat… but he never expected them to choose possession of a human body. 

They must have swallowed their pride quite a bit. How desperate they must have been.

It was an efficient method. If they hid within a human body, even the four seasons—let alone him—would have a hard time finding them. 

He had searched for five years without finding a trace, and he had begun to wonder if he was being overly paranoid. The God of War tapped his temple lightly.

“…So, what should we do now?”

The headquarters of the Celestial Corps.

The meeting room was empty except for the God of War.

The other captains were too busy cleaning up after the Family extermination operation to spare a moment.

In the quiet silence, the God of War organized his thoughts.

The damage had been surprisingly minimal for a direct confrontation with the Devil Gods.

There had been no casualties among the Celestial Corps during the Family extermination operation. There were injuries, but none were serious. Most would recover after some rest and return to duty.

None of the captains had been incapacitated. In a time when every capable individual was precious, this was truly fortunate. 

Five years ago, when Jin, who had been in charge of the 7th Division, died, it had taken a long time to fill the vacancy. Losing another captain would have been disastrous.

‘Even though Kallad sustained some injuries… it’s nothing to worry about.’

He had clashed with another Devil God, the girl in the red fox mask.

It seemed he and Karma, the 4th Division Captain, had a tough fight.

They managed to sever Astaroth’s arm, which was quite an achievement.

Two captains taking down a Devil God… had they grown stronger in my absence?

‘Those two brats… no, even for them, it must have been tough.’

The Devil God probably underestimated them and paid the price.

Given the arrogance of the Devil Gods, that was highly likely.

Especially Karma, who had transplanted the body parts of the demonic beast he had slain.

If used properly, he could have dealt a serious blow to a Devil God.

“…It’s no longer the time to keep secrets.”

He sighed briefly and half-opened his azure eyes.

The invasion of the Devil Gods had been a long-standing concern.

The gods of monsters.

The pinnacle of otherworldly monsters.

The world was under the protection of the four seasons. Even for a Devil God, crossing over was extremely difficult, and even if they succeeded, only a handful could do so. 

If only a few came, the God of War alone could handle them. Even if multiple Devil Gods descended, with the captains assisting, they could manage. 

What truly worried the God of War was something else.

‘The origin of the Devil Gods.’

What are the Devil Gods?

If the gods protecting humanity are the ‘gods of the four seasons.’

Then the gods protecting the monsters are the ‘Great Ancient Ones.’

In the past, the four seasons had slain the Great Ancient Ones and torn their corpses to pieces.

The remains, torn into 72 fragments, gained new life and became the Devil Gods.

‘Merely knowing about the Great Ancient Ones drives humans to madness.’

An old, ancient existence swimming in the sea of stars.

Even without witnessing it directly.

The moment one becomes certain of its existence.

The human ego collapses, unable to endure.

That was what the God of War feared most.

That was why he had strictly controlled the existence of the Devil Gods.

He was wary of any information about the Great Ancient Ones leaking out.

‘Even supernaturals with mental barriers are no different from ordinary humans in the face of “it”. They would simply go mad.’

At least the captains would be fine.

Even the vice-captains could endure to some extent.

But anyone below that would undoubtedly collapse without resistance.

It was a secret he wished to keep hidden forever.

He wanted to strictly conceal the existence of the Devil Gods, who carried the lineage of the Great Ancient Ones.

He wanted to eliminate even the slightest possibility of their existence being revealed.

But now, that was no longer possible.

The Devil Gods had invaded.

The secret could no longer be kept.

Hiding information in the face of the enemy.

What could be more foolish than that?

Even if he wanted to keep it a secret, at the very least, the captains needed to know.

“Perhaps I should have told them sooner.”

The God of War smiled bitterly, as if mocking himself.

But he shrugged, as if to say there was nothing he could have done.

After all, they were all too weak.

He couldn’t trust them to have his back.

At least the captains were somewhat reliable, but even they seemed like mere protectees when facing a Devil God. 

They couldn’t even handle one Devil God alone. It took three of them to take on one Devil God—how inefficient.

“Today, I miss you all the more.”

The God of War leaned back in his chair.

His exhaled breath mingled with the silent air.

He scratched his head and blinked his azure eyes.

The God of War—no, Yoo-seong—murmured with a bitter expression.

“Iris. Michael.”

Comrades who had once fought alongside Yuseong.

Partners who had once been everything in his life.

Heroes who had once stood against Baal together.

The Chosen One, Yoo-seong.

The Blessed Saintess, Lucille.

The Pinnacle of Humanity, Iris.

The Godlike One, Michael.

The two had left his side long ago.

Lucille was no longer in a state to fight alongside him.

In the end, only Yoo-seong remained.

Lucille often apologized for not being able to fight by his side anymore. But she didn’t know.

Even if she couldn’t fight back-to-back with him, just having her by his side was a great comfort.

In her presence, he could be “Yoo-seong” from those days, not “Mars, the God of War”.

“Lucille…”

A deep shadow of concern fell over Yoo-seong’s face.

Her condition, possessed by the Devil God Belial, was far from good.

He couldn’t expel the Devil God from her body. The Devil God’s soul was shattered. The fragments of the shattered soul had embedded themselves like thorns into Lucille’s body and soul. 

Even Yoo-seong couldn’t interfere recklessly. Carelessly trying to remove them could damage Lucille’s soul.

Why had the Devil God’s soul been shattered?

How had the shattered soul ended up in such a state?

Yoo-seong had more than a few questions.

“That ring…”

The silver ring that had burst out of Lucille’s heart.

They could only speculate what kind of interaction that artifact might have caused.

“She definitely wouldn’t have stabbed it into her own heart…”

The woman in the Red Fox Mask had kidnapped Lucille.

From what Johan had said, her name was Ereshkigal, a demonic beast.

Given the circumstances, she was likely a subordinate of the girl in the Red Fox Mask, Astaroth.

“Ereshkigal, a subordinate of Astaroth, kidnapped her, and she appeared as a vessel for the Devil God, Belial…”

What a headache, damn it.

Thinking things through wasn’t usually my job.

But there was too much to worry about, and it was making my head hurt.

Yoo-seong sighed deeply and scratched his head.

His jet-black hair and shimmering golden strands swayed.

Thinking of Lucille naturally brought to mind a certain boy and girl.

“Eugene.”

The new Chosen One.

Still inexperienced, but his potential surpassed even mine.

If he could fully awaken after undergoing the process of incarnation.

He would undoubtedly bring change to the stagnant flow.

“Alice.”

A monster of talent.

A girl who reminded him of an old comrade.

A true “genius” he hadn’t seen in a long time.

She could either reach the pinnacle of humanity.

Or become something akin to a god.

Either way, she was a girl with a promising future.

“…Is this also fate?”

After all, causality is often inherited through bloodlines.

◆

Late at night, long after visiting hours had ended, Eugene was still sitting in the hospital room.

It was a significant privilege, likely due to the God of War’s influence. 

Eugene gazed at the hospital bed with lowered eyes. 

The room was dark, with the lights turned off, but the faint light was enough for Eugene.

On the medical bed lay two girls. One with radiant golden hair, as if woven from gold thread—Lucia, the girl Eugene had searched for so desperately. 

She was sound asleep, her body sinking into the soft mattress.

Beside her, Alice was leaning against the bed, breathing steadily. Despite being seriously injured from the battle, she refused to leave Lucia’s side.

Eugene was also covered in blood, but he now had super regeneration. All his wounds had healed. Occasionally, phantom pains made him shudder, but it was bearable. 

Did Lucia feel this way every time she was injured? Even after the wounds healed, the pain lingered. Eugene’s gaze shifted to the sleeping Lucia.

They had rescued Lucia.

The girl he had to let go of that day.

Through desperate efforts and the help of many, they had saved her.

But Eugene’s expression remained troubled. Lucia’s body had been taken over by a Devil. The aftermath left her unconscious. 

The God of War had assured him that all necessary measures had been taken, but Eugene couldn’t relax. 

No matter how much he told himself she would be fine, anxiety crept up his legs.

“Sigh…”

Negative thoughts kept chaining together, so Eugene tried to think of something else.

His gaze shifted from Lucia to Alice. She must be uncomfortable sleeping like that. 

Blinking his blue eyes, Eugene slowly stood up. He approached silently, careful not to disturb Alice, who had fallen asleep as if she had passed out from exhaustion. 

He gently picked her up. She was light and small.

The hospital bed was quite spacious. There was plenty of room for two. Eugene laid Alice down next to Lucia and covered her with a blanket. 

Alice stirred slightly and then snuggled into Lucia’s embrace, as if it were familiar. Watching Alice hug Lucia’s waist, Eugene let out a short laugh.

“…”

Memories from a few hours ago flashed through his mind.

He recalled what happened after rescuing Lucia.

The Commander of the Celestial Corps had sought out Eugene and Alice. He told them they had innate talents. And that he would personally help them blossom those talents. 

In other words, he was offering to take them as his disciples. It was an incredible proposition.

The God of War didn’t take just anyone as disciples, and those who received his teachings all became formidable figures.

A prime example was the 7th Division Captain, the God of War’s direct disciple.

Eugene recalled the relentless barrage of attacks he had seen from Kaen.

Though he prided himself on becoming stronger, he wasn’t sure if he could withstand her onslaught.

But what troubled Eugene wasn’t that offer.

Under normal circumstances, he would have been shocked speechless, but what followed was even more startling.

“Your talents are likely heavily influenced by your bloodlines.”

Supernatural abilities aren’t inherited, but potential is passed down through blood.

If an ancestor was an exceptional supernatural, their descendants were more likely to awaken with great talent.

Arin was like that, wasn’t she? With a father who was a captain and a mother who was a vice-captain, Arin was an outstanding student.

“I know your ancestors. Especially you, Alice. I could tell just by looking at you.”

He added that he had been unsure about Eugene at first.

Only after observing him for a while did he become certain, letting out a hollow laugh.

“Even after several generations, the resemblance is striking. The talent too—it must be a case of atavism.”

For Eugene, it wasn’t that interesting.

What did it matter who his ancestors were?

He never had a family except for Yui, and he never even saw his parents’ faces.

If they passed down great talent, he was grateful, but he didn’t feel much connection.

“Eugene, I looked into your background. You had a younger sister, right?”

But the War God’s next words made Eugene’s eyes widen.

“Have you ever wondered why your sister Yui and Alice look so alike?”

Yes, he had thought about it.

How could he not?

Yui and Alice looked astonishingly similar.

If Yui had survived and grown up, wouldn’t she have turned out like Alice?

Eugene had thought about it countless times.

That thought kept making him see Yui in Alice.

“I heard Yui was also a talented supernatural… well, it makes sense.”

The War God looked at them. His calm, lake-like blue eyes held them in his gaze. 

For some reason, Eugene felt a strange familiarity. Blue eyes. Those blue eyes felt oddly familiar. 

Eugene soon realized the source of that familiarity.

“About 150 years ago.”

“Before I was called the War God.”

“Before I founded the Celestial Corps.”

“When I was called Yoo-seong, not Mars.”

The God of War spoke.

The shocking truth.

“I was married.”

“Descendants who looked just like me and my wife were born.”

“You are their descendants.”

“In other words, you are of my bloodline.”

Why did Alice and Yui look so alike?

Eugene finally understood the reason.

 

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Obsidian-like hair.

Blue, azure eyes.

Eugene and Yoo-seong are often described similarly.

Their names are similar too!

So it’s not a coincidence that Alice and Yui look alike.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
So could the original ending be classified as Sweet Home Alabama?

Either way, in the realm of anime, the blue haired girls always lose in romance.

Looks like in this world, blondes are the one losing to blue hairs, heh.