Chapter 383: Lightning Didn’t Fall From the Sky (4)

“Sophistry. If you went through all this trouble just to spew this kind of nonsense, I’ll be disappointed.”

I doubted my own ears.

The Thunderarch—who had, just moments ago, been wrestling with human dilemmas—suddenly cast away all hesitation like a bolt of lightning and transformed into the “Thunderarch” once more.

As if she was no longer even human.

“Replacing one’s flesh with something crafted by another human—that is the Second Anathema, the Sin of Grafting. Even the most blasphemous mages tread carefully around the Homunculus Dilemma—and you’re telling me to just stand by and watch? Should I allow every human in the Fallen Dominion to fall into the grasp of the Golden Lord? Should I let them discard their dignity as humans?”

Her head trembled.

The lightning coursing through her body gathered once more—but something about its direction felt off.

A brilliant yellow halo formed above her head.

It flickered unstably, buzzing with an unsettling, electric hum—something too erratic to be called angelic.

“It would be better for humans to live in suffering their entire lives than to become something lesser.”

Her power and arrogance made her look no different from an angel.

If there was any distinction, it was that instead of summoning an angel’s form, she was using her own body as a conduit, forcing herself to become one.

The irony of it all—she, of all people, lecturing about human dignity, when she herself was the least human among them all.

“You, of all people, are the walking contradiction here! Your entire body is made of the Golden Lord’s crops! Yet, you get to wield that power freely while denying it to others? That’s called kicking away the ladder after you climb it!”

“That is exactly why I must be special. If I am not, then humans will begin to covet my body and power instead of revering it. They will flock to consume the Golden Lord’s filth, seeking to remake their bodies. If every human were to attain my strength, the order of the world would crumble like a child’s plaything!”

Her hair floated upward, curling around the electric halo.

For a moment, she looked like an angel about to give divine punishment—but at the same time, a mere puppet controlled by the ring above her head.

Her hair, now spread like wings, fluttered up and down.

With lightning-infused eyes, the Thunderarch glared at me, as if she had just received a divine revelation.

“Do you truly believe that humans can afford to discard their dignity, King of Humans?”

Seriously?

At this point, even the rocks rolling down the street would recognize me.

Why not publish it in the papers while you’re at it?

Claudia, being right next to the Duchy of Mist, lacked proper shrines.

The Thunderarch herself had never seen a shrine, never studied theology, or even known that it existed as an academic discipline.

Yet now, after receiving a revelation, she stood as the most devout believer of the Sanctum.

The chosen one, an instrument of fate.

“You’re part of the Crusaders, aren’t you? Tch, I wasted my breath.”

The Crusaders—the direct military arm of the Sanctum—are chosen by fate.

No one ordered them to become part of the Crusaders.

And they themselves never volunteered.

They lived as ordinary people—until, one day, they suddenly realized the truth.

That they were always a part of the Crusaders.

That fate had chosen them.

That only the Sky God could comprehend and accept them.

It didn’t matter how they acquired their power.

Or what they had believed in before.

Or what they had worked so hard to protect.

The moment they realized it, they followed the revelation.

“And yet, the King of Humans, whose duty was to protect human dignity above all else, has forsaken it. You should have disappeared a long time ago.”

Wow.

That’s a hell of a thing to say to someone.

Like I had a choice about being born.

Or a choice about disappearing.

I snapped back.

“You lot are the ones who keep slapping strange titles onto me, but King of Humans doesn’t mean what you think it does! I don’t command humans like some tyrant giving orders—that’s a concept humans invented!”

These people expect so much from me, but there’s nothing I can do for them.

At my core, I am the King of Beasts.

I represented humanity back when they were still beasts—when they were nothing more than animals.

If anything, I am shaped by humans, affected by their collective will.

I may be called a king, but in reality, I’m just a figurehead—a servant bound to an unpaid, lifelong duty.

Compared to that, you human kings have it easy.

At least you can change humanity however you please.

Which is why you got rid of the King of Humans in the first place, isn’t it?

“You insist that ‘humans must be like this’—that they must preserve their ‘dignity,’ but tell me, where is this ideal human you speak of? Because I’ve never met them. What even is dignity? Is it some emergency food supply you’ve been hoarding? Because if it is, I’d appreciate it if you shared it with me.”

I spoke from the bottom of my heart, without a single lie—but the Thunderarch, clearly taking it as mockery, shot back with the same sarcasm.

“So you don’t care what happens to humans—whether they fall into disgrace or not. How fitting. You truly are a barbarian.”

“Whether they fall into disgrace or not—they’re still human. At least I don’t deny that.”

“And if their cities fall? If morality collapses? If order crumbles? If everything that protects humanity suddenly vanishes—then what will remain?”

The Thunderarch swept her arm outward.

This time, her lightning-infused fingers turned toward the crying children.

She pointed at them and shouted with raw fury.

“The Golden Lord—that cursed Divine—shattered the order of the Golden Empire! That is why tragedy has taken root in this land! Power too great to be controlled should never be accepted! If it has the power to destroy the world, then it must never be seen, be spoken of, or even be remembered! If the alternative is death, chaos, war, and despair— then it is better buried and forgotten forever!”

That was their way of preserving order and permanence.

Build it up painstakingly—then erase anything that might topple it.

A method the Sanctum loves.

“The Golden Lord was human. A single, ordinary human.”

Of course, this wasn’t something I could ever accept.

“Just because they’re too powerful to the point of changing the world with their presence… If you call someone a ‘Divine’—if you mark them as taboo and forbid all thought of them…”

Denial, Anathema, Taboo.

Things that actually existed, but are now blocked from even being thought about.

That’s the reason you call them Divines…

Even so—

“It doesn’t really matter, because you, too, are human, and I cherish the will of humans!”

For a split second, hope flickered across the Thunderarch’s face.

“Then—“

“But still, I  must know because I am the King of Humans! You might want me to forget, but that’s no different from telling me to never think of a pink elephant!”

A pink elephant?

As if I could just erase that from my mind after you’ve told me about it.

If you really wanted me to forget, then maybe you shouldn’t have told me about it in the first place.

No—actually, that wouldn’t work either.

To avoid something, one must first know it in detail.

“So, this is a deadlock.”

“Not really! This was quite an entertaining discussion. It’s unfortunate that our views are parallel and irreconcilable, but now that we’ve confirmed that, why don’t we just part ways?”

“…That would be best.”

The Thunderarch let out a sigh, shaking her lightning-wreathed wings ever so slightly.

She’s coming.

A flash of lightning filled my vision.

The Thunderarch launched forward, faster than a gust of wind or a lightning strike, and clasped her fingers around my throat.

I barely had time to react before my body slammed through the desk behind me.

We crashed into the wall as a thunderous impact shook my bones.

The sharp taste of iron spread in my mouth, blood seeping from my lips.

Holding me firmly by the neck, the Thunderarch glared down at me, her eyes brimming with killing intent.

“Did you really think I was just going to let you walk away?”

Damn it.

She’s fast.

Even though I knew she was going to attack, I couldn’t react in time.

I coughed, pain throbbing in my ribs as I forced out a response.

“…Cough… I expected interference… But I didn’t think you would come personally.”

Even Mind Reading couldn’t help.

She didn’t even know she was part of the Crusaders herself—how the hell was I supposed to know?

If you’re going to have an identity crisis, at least sort it out ahead of time!

“You should have brought your allies with you instead. Your foolishness has led you to your own death. Stripped of your power, you cannot overcome any obstacle.”

“Y-yeah, I guess so… After all, I’m… just a normal human…”

The grip tightened.

I choked, gasping as my vision blurred.

I clawed at her arm, but it felt like I was grasping solid steel.

My struggling fingers couldn’t even make her budge.

She was born a Thunderarch, raised as a Thunderarch, and had forged herself into a Thunderarch.

She was, quite literally, a steel-hearted tyrant.

｢Such a pathetic sight… Is this really the King of Humans? Let me end your suffering. I suppose I should make it look like an accident—a death by electrocution will be easier to explain to his comrades.｣

I felt the lightning surging through her hand.

A sharp, tingling sensation crawled up my throat—like carbonated bubbles bursting inside my veins.

It felt as though ants were crawling all over my body.

But even iron-clad tyrants… are still human.

｢…Even with my hand wreathed in lightning, he’s… fine?｣

Don’t be so surprised.

I grasped the Thunderarch’s arm and slowly moved it aside.

Her lightning-infused grip was impossible to break through conventional force.

She could wield lightning like an extension of her body, controlling it with the finesse of Qi Arts.

But if physical strength wouldn’t work—

Then perhaps lightning itself could.

She was born with it, raised by it, and her body had adapted to it.

For her, being electrocuted was like playing in water—it was simply natural.

She had learned to feel the flow of lightning—and at some point, she grasped it in her hand.

Her Unique Magic—Thundergrasp.

I took her arm—and along with it, I seized her lightning.

Lightning must always flow.

It is not a stagnant force—it is a current, a river descending from the sky to earth.

It must keep moving—until it reaches the sea.

People think of lightning as an instantaneous blast of power.

But at its core, it is simply a flow.

And if the Thunderarch could grasp it—then so could I

.

– Crack.

I grasped the Thunderarch with her own power.

Her arm, which could punch through steel and withstand collapsing towers, was now slowly being forced back by my grip.

Her eyes widened in disbelief.

Sensation returned to my tongue, and now that my throat was free, I finally spoke again.

“Even against you… my odds are still about fifty-fifty.”