Ch.373The Path to the Blue Hole (1)

“My lord. Is your back alright?”

“Nnngh… It’s fine. Can’t exactly take medicine for this sort of thing, so I just have to endure it.”

Viktor was walking with trembling legs, dragging them awkwardly.

One-sided as it may have been, 1,300 repetitions in 24 hours was perhaps a bit much.

The Moon was showing off her dewy, radiant skin as if she were a brilliantly full moon, while the Sun was replenishing his strength by drinking cold water with honey to soothe his dried-out skin.

“What would you like for breakfast?”

“Something simple… no, actually, I need something hearty to regain my strength.”

“I’ll arrange for that, then.”

“Mm.”

Viktor had initially planned to have a light breakfast but quickly changed his mind.

Judging by his body’s condition, this wasn’t something that would improve after just a few hours of rest. The wiser choice was to fill up on nutrients and then return to bed to pray for his body’s recovery.

Viktor lay back down until the food arrived, wrapping his body in warmth. They would reach the Blue Hole in a few weeks, and if he wanted to see that most beautiful place with a sound body and mind, he needed to start taking care of himself now.

“Urrrgh…”

Lying down with his aching back, he couldn’t help but groan. Viktor briefly wondered what his subjects would think if they saw their Emperor moaning like this, but he quickly dismissed the thought with a hollow laugh.

After all, imperial household matters were not for subjects to interfere with.

Any such attempt would be considered blasphemous and disrespectful, immediately punishable by beheading.

“My lord. Your meal is here.”

“The door is open. Come in.”

The door swung open, and a hearty breakfast was laid out on the table.

Fried rice. Meat. Stew. A medicinal drink brewed with herbs. And a salad that seemed added out of guilt or courtesy.

Crunch. Crunch.

As Viktor tasted the tangy salad with its dressing, he felt the gentle vibrations of the Sky Warden.

Dining inside a vessel of 100,000 tons was always special. Due to the high altitude, the low air pressure dulled one’s sense of smell and taste, so the cooks had to season the food more strongly than they would on the ground.

Of course, the Sun God wasn’t affected by air pressure, but his experience as a former manual laborer had given him a preference for salty foods. Besides, compared to hospital food, this diet was practically a feast. As a result, he enjoyed his meal.

“Hmm… I should walk a bit.”

Perhaps it was his habit of eating light breakfasts. With his stomach now uncomfortably full, Viktor began to slowly walk around the interior of the vessel.

All around him was the sound of steel cutting through wind. What he saw was the color of clouds splitting against the gun barrels that lined up like whiskers.

“Peaceful, isn’t it.”

This peace wouldn’t last many more years.

Like it or not, eliminating the forces opposing him across the 13 continents was inevitable.

After completing his pilgrimage, he would have the legitimate right to establish a dynasty, and as the Sun God, he would have the authority to create a unified government encompassing all of humanity.

For better or worse, a unified government in this world meant an empire.

Lost in these thoughts as he wandered about, he gradually felt more comfortable as the contents of his full stomach moved into his intestines.

“Come to think of it, I’ve hardly explored the ship until now…”

And suddenly, Viktor realized he had never really walked around the Sky Warden.

Usually, he just went back and forth between the captain’s quarters and the bridge. He’d only visited the lower flight deck needed for shuttle use, the library where Simon stayed, and the workshop-cum-quarters where the dwarves resided. He had been using this massive 100,000-ton airship quite inefficiently.

Having realized this, Viktor felt strangely refreshed.

Wasn’t this place like an unexplored cave? With that thought, Viktor began to explore every corner of the ship, losing track of time.

The pipes on the ceiling, the wiring on the walls, and the ever-changing scenery outside the windows all felt remarkably new.

From front to back, back to front, top to bottom, bottom to top—as he moved his feet, Viktor felt an indescribable sense of fulfillment.

It was like an old man finding a childhood toy by chance and playing with it, reminiscing about the past.

When lunchtime came, the Sun’s recreation came to an end.

“Did something good happen? You look cheerful.”

“Hmm. Just remembering my childhood.”

“Ah, I see.”

Childhood, huh. It was a rather awkward statement coming from someone barely past twenty, but when the speaker is a god, the weight of the words changes.

Picking up his utensils to dine with his wife, Viktor expressed genuine gratitude for being able to have this little adventure today.

Whether he was offering thanks to himself, to the ship, or to the sum of necessity and chance, he didn’t know.

Even the master of humanity sometimes wants to pray to someone above himself.

His back had healed nicely. Viktor picked up his wife after the meal and made passionate love to her.

Not as intense as the previous night, but Viktor knew that women appreciate romance, whatever form it takes.

The Moon received the Sun, and that day, Raisha walked around subtly showing off her self-luminous skin.

“At that point, doesn’t she have more sunlight than body fluid?”

“Hush. Quiet.”

Seeing the self-luminous Moon, soldiers whispered behind her back, but priests cut them off, calling it blasphemy.

Regardless, Raisha’s current appearance had considerable academic value.

They had discovered that excessive consumption of the Sun’s bodily fluid (I trust everyone knows what this means) causes the whole body to glow like that.

*

The next day, Viktor didn’t leave the captain’s quarters all day. He even skipped meals.

Subordinates whispered that the Sun and Moon must be receiving divine revelation, and the priests began to fidget as if something had been foretold.

Officers and non-commissioned officers watched the captain’s quarters, but the door remained closed all day, and they prevented subordinates from entering carelessly.

If they truly were receiving revelation, even a knock could break their concentration.

However, amusingly, the reason the captain’s quarters remained closed was far simpler than what the mortals imagined—almost trivial.

“How about this one?”

“Gaaah! They’re all beautiful!”

The Blue Hole they would soon reach was, of course, the sea. The door remained closed because he was watching his wife’s bikini fashion show—something he hadn’t had the chance to see until now.

He had already informed the priests, but they couldn’t possibly tell anyone that the Sun was drooling while watching his wife in provocative bikinis inside the captain’s quarters. Their evasiveness created a highly suspicious atmosphere.

While it’s not a crime to look at someone in a bikini, gazing directly at the Moon in a bikini would cost one their eyes. The door remained closed because he wanted to monopolize that beautiful sight for himself.

It was a rather materialistic reason, but understandable.

What husband would want to share the sight of his wife in a bikini? Especially when they weren’t just any couple but the Sun and Moon—if ordinary people tried to look, they would be blinded by the overwhelming radiance before they could even utter a compliment. So it was also for the mortals’ protection.

As she tried on and modeled various bikinis, the captain’s quarters were bustling with activity, but the dazzling light muffled any sound from reaching mortal ears.

The soldiers’ limited imagination, failing to realize that the periodic flashes of light might be caused by the bouncing of her chest, actually protected them. The priests’ vague explanation that the divine couple was engaged in “very important business” shielded their minds from the disappointing truth.

It wasn’t exactly wrong. What would happen if the Sun and Moon weren’t getting along? The world would return to darkness, and another dark age would dawn.

BOOM!

An enormous burst of light suddenly poured through the cracks of the captain’s quarters’ door, and the unfortunate soldiers who had their eyes open suffered retinal burns, writhing in pain on the floor.

They were immediately escorted to the infirmary, and thankfully, prompt treatment ensured they wouldn’t lose their vision.

“What on earth… are they doing in there…”

To answer the soldiers’ question, the light that scorched their retinas was triggered by Viktor seeing his wife in a micro bikini.