Chapter 62: Bbeomnyi Deus

Pope’s Office in the Sacred Kingdom

The pope’s eyes trembled as he stood before the saintess, whose face was stern.

“Kenyon. How could you…?”

The letter came from Kenyon, who had once been known as Paladin, but had now changed his name to Kanion. 

In the letter, he wrote of his decision to worship the true god, not Deus, but GM.

The pope found it hard to believe that Kenyon had sent this letter. 

Kenyon, the most devout among the paladins, had once led the Holy Knights into Rudera. 

How could someone like him choose to turn away?

Was he truly to excommunicate him?

“Do you now understand why I said GM is such a dangerous and evil entity?” the saintess said as she placed her hands on the desk.

“But GM saved the sick across the continent with the [Miracle Potion]. How could an evil god do such a thing…?”

The Sacred Kingdom had never seen GM as a negative force. 

After all, Deus himself had ordered them to retrieve hidden items from that world. 

Believing that Deus thought favorably of GM, the Holy Knights had been actively dispatched.

The pope had thought GM to be a god of virtue, one with a close relationship with Deus.

“It was all a lie! GM merely disguised himself as a bringer of blessings while hiding his true intent to bring ruin to the continent.”

He had lured faithful servants of Deus away with whispers of the devil and led them astray.

Could GM truly be an evil god?

“If that’s true… then why did Deus command us to retrieve the hidden items? Didn’t he want us to be actively involved in Rudera?” The pope’s voice wavered.

If GM were truly an evil god, then Deus wouldn’t have given such orders. 

Wouldn’t he have sent a warning instead?

“Perhaps Deus is unable to communicate with us due to GM’s interference, or maybe he’s too preoccupied with keeping GM in check to manifest his divine will on earth,” the saintess suggested.

“Then…”

Was the command to retrieve the hidden items not meant to be taken literally?

“Was it a warning?” the pope murmured, falling deep into thought.

The saintess observed him closely before speaking again.

“You’ve seen everything that happened during the tournament, haven’t you? You know what transpired.”

“The coronation of GM’s chosen king. The ceremony to appoint his apostles.”

“Exactly. He gathered people from across the continent to show off his power and crown a king. It’s as if he declared his intent to conquer the continent, disrupting the order the gods have established.”

Hearing the story from Eclesia, the pope clenched his teeth.

“Yes, alright, Eclesia. Can you tell me more about the future you’ve seen? The one you experienced?”

At first, the pope had dismissed the saintess’s tale as a mere delusion or a mistake. 

But now, he began to hear it differently.

What if all of this was truly going to happen?

Could it be that Deus sent her a vision to warn them of what was to come?

To reveal GM’s true identity as an evil god and alert them to the dangers he posed?

And we…

A hum filled the room as divine energy gathered in the pope’s hands.

The holy army would prepare for a sacred war, a crusade against the evil god.

“Urrrrgh! Thiiiiis is the beeeeeesttttttt!”

The First Floor of the Tower of the Labyrinth

In the top-floor suite of a lavish hotel, a woman reclined in a massage chair sold at the Labyrinth Shop, enjoying the vibrations with a relaxed expression.

Before her was a massive holographic screen.

Outside of Rudera, she was revered by all as Deus. But here, she was nothing more than a light user indulging in the game’s content.

Having found great enjoyment in betting on the tournament, she was now free from the constraints of Labyrinth Coins and could indulge in all of Rudera’s offerings to her heart’s content.

As a result, she had become so deeply immersed in pleasure that she had forgotten to log out of this world.

Bang!

The door to the hotel room suddenly burst open.

“Hey.”

A brown-skinned woman with a scowl on her face stood beyond the threshold.

“Uhhhhhh, Aliaaaa… Looong tiiime nooo seeeeee…” Deus greeted her from the vibrating massage chair with a slurred voice.

Alia, frowning, strode into the room and switched off the massage chair.

Click.

Bzzzz….

“Ahhhh, that felt sooooo goooood,” Deus groaned as the massage chair stopped, and the backrest lifted her into a sitting position.

“…What brings you here all of a sudden?” she asked.

“What do you think? Are you not paying attention to what’s happening outside?”

Usually, she spoke with dignity to her followers and angels, but in front of her old friend, Alia, the informal tone of her pre-divine self slipped out.

“Outside?”

“Do you not realize the chaos we’re in right now?”

“Chaos?”

“Ugh… What kind of god are you?”

Alia rubbed her forehead in frustration as she watched Deus, who had become a dullard after indulging in the game’s pleasures.

“Deus doesn’t know.”

“Your religion, the Church of Deus, and my own, the Church of Alia, are shaking like mad! Divine power isn’t manifesting!”

“Divine power? …Why?”

“Ugh! Because all that divine power is going to GM!”

“…Ah, I see.”

“‘Ah, I see’? Do you even know how big of a problem this is?”

Alia pounded her chest in frustration.

“It’s a huge problem… My followers no longer believe in me and have turned to GM… But…”

Deus mumbled dreamily, her face still dazed with pleasure.

“Isn’t it fine…? This world GM created is so much more fun than that boring divine realm… I’d rather just stay here and live off what GM gives me…”

She picked up a nearby ice cream, scooped a spoonful, and placed it in her mouth.

“Mmm, delicious.”

“You idiot! We gods exist through the divine power born from faith! If the divine power disappears, we won’t just lose our strength, we’ll vanish completely! The gods of the beastfolk disappeared because they were forgotten by their followers! We’ll vanish too if things keep going this way!”

“Ah, I see…”

“‘Ah, I see’? What do you mean, ‘Ah, I see’?!”

Alia stomped her feet in frustration.

“All your carefully nurtured followers are disappearing! One of your paladins, Kenyon, the one I had my eye on! He’s gone over to GM too! Even the most devout of your followers has turned away!”

“…Kenyon…? Oh… I remember him…”

Before discovering the paradise of Rudera, she had devoted herself to raising her followers to stave off boredom.

She had performed miracles for her followers and cultivated her religion as much as her divine power allowed.

As a result, Deus had become the most revered god on the continent, with the Sacred Kingdom built in her name.

Among her followers, she cherished the saintess and the paladins the most.

And Kenyon had been her favorite paladin.

“…He’s no longer needed.”

Now, he meant little to her.

“I find more joy and excitement here in Rudera than in nurturing followers in that dreary divine realm. Whatever happens, I don’t care. In fact, it might even be a good thing. If someone like him believes in GM, GM will grow stronger and create even more fun things for us.”

Alia was speechless as she watched Deus, who had been ruined by the pleasures GM provided.

“No. I understand now.”

Deus’s eyes bore down on Alia.

“You’ve come to deceive me, to turn me into an anti-GM.”

An anti-GM – one of those who slandered GM and sought to depose him from his position as the ruler of this world.

The dullard from moments before was gone, and Deus now exuded the aura of a wise goddess.

“Deus…”

“Do not call my name so carelessly, you foolish and ignorant anti-GM.”

Deus raised her little finger. 

On it was a red ring.

It was the Red Pass, granting access to the many pleasure facilities on the first floor of the Tower of the Labyrinth.

“Every day was a dream before I knew Rudera.”

Unlike the dull heavens, Rudera was filled with pleasure. 

Already intoxicated by the dopamine this world provided, Deus had no intention of leaving Rudera.

“…Oh, Deus.”

Alia’s mind began to blur as she wished for this situation to be nothing more than a nightmare.