Episode 276
276. The truth faced
Ryumin, who pulled Michael out of the wall, slapped his cheek.
“Hey, wake up. hey. “I have to ask you something.”
Even if I grab his shoulder and shake him, he won’t wake up.
Looks like he fainted properly.
I clicked my tongue briefly and wondered how to wake him up.
‘Should I at least cut my wings?’
As if reading his cruel thoughts, Michael groaned and came to his senses.
“Woke up?”
[omg!]
The enemy is looming right in front of your nose.
Michael, embarrassed, reflexively summoned his sword and swung it.
Huh-
It was quite fast, but from Ryumin’s perspective, whose agility stat alone exceeded 2 million, it only seemed as slow as a turtle.
“It looks like you just woke up and haven’t come to your senses yet.”
Huh-huh-huh-
Michael’s sword cuts through the air with a sharp sound.
A desperate attempt to kill the opponent.
“Then we have to make it clear.”
Ryumin, who had been dodging, suddenly took over Michael’s back.
“Who is the sky?”
I grabbed the wing ridge and ripped it off.
Pap deud deuk-
[Off, off!]
A pain that is unfamiliar to the Archangel No. 1.
Michael, who was forced to endure the pain, aimed at Ryumin behind his back.
Huh-
This time too, it only cut through black space.
“Your wings are beautiful.”
Before you know it, the person in front of you is behind you.
Puddeuddeuk-!
[Keuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!
Even though all of his wings were torn off, Michael used his divine power to fight back.
“Do you want to use technology?”
It’s scary to hear those words in my ears.
Whoops!
[Wow!]
Michael was thrown into the wall like a cannonball.
Crumbling-
“I controlled my strength this time.”
Ryumin spoke leisurely, but none of it reached Michael’s ears.
He was barely able to come to his senses while coughing up golden blood.
[Keueuuu… … .]
Michael, who was drooling, came to his senses when he heard a voice again.
“Once more?”
Michael was startled by the sound he heard in his ears and took a step back.
Seeing the black scythe approaching so close, I felt like I was dealing with a ghost.
“Do you want to keep trying?”
[…] … .]
“I don’t recommend it. Because then you could die.”
[That means… … Does this mean you won’t kill me if I don’t attack you?]
Ryumin smiled.
“I saw you doing it.”
[…] … .]
Michael couldn’t bear to attack his opponent, who was still relaxed.
‘Are you saying you’re strong enough to deal with someone like me with ease? … ?’
There is a saying that a cilantro recognizes a cilantro.
However, Michael could not even guess the strength of his opponent.
All I know is that I can kill my opponent as much as I want.
‘The bugs… … Was it me, not him?’
Although they fought briefly, Michael knew that he was no match for him.
No, you could even call it a fight.
Instead of just grazing, I was hit one-sidedly and even fainted.
Therefore, we know that further attacks are meaningless struggles.
It just earns you a beating.
Perhaps sensing a change in mindset, the corners of Ryumin’s mouth lengthened.
“Have you decided to admit it now?”
Michael nodded.
[You are stronger than me. So much so that I can’t even guess. How can humans become so strong?]
“Your angels gave you the blessing of the system.”
[Even so, this doesn’t make sense. There has never been anything like this in history… … .]
“So you’re saying you haven’t done this to humans before?”
[…] … .]
Michael did not deny it.
Even if I denied it, I couldn’t fool Ryumin, who could read my inner thoughts.
“Unlike other archangels, you know something, right?”
[…] … .]
Ryumin crossed his arms as he watched Michael exercise his right to remain silent.
“say it. What are you angels doing to humans? “What is the purpose of participating in the survival game?”
And I glared at him like he was going to kill me.
“You’ll have to tell me quickly. “If you don’t want to be left behind.”
* * *
Several races coexist in the universe.
Among them, if we had to choose only the intelligent ones, we could narrow them down to five.
Gods, Elyos, Demons, Dragons, Humans, etc.
Elves, dwarves, and other races are not included.
Because it was a created race that did not exist in the beginning.
[The fantasy world that serves as the stage for you humans is a created world. Of course, all the races and monsters that exist within it are creatures created by God.]
“under… … Are you saying it was really an NPC? Equipped with AI so advanced that it can read your thoughts?”
[NPC? AI? I don’t know what you’re talking about.]
“I’m just talking to myself, so don’t worry about it and just keep going.”
[As you may have guessed, the most superior of the five races are the gods. They have the power of creation as well as the power of destruction, capable of destroying all creation. Of course, the Elyos, Demons, and Dragons have no choice but to cater to the wishes of those gods.]
Ryumin nodded and listened intently.
This was the first time in 100 episodes that I learned such advanced information.
[Gods in such an absolute position often felt bored because they achieved everything easily. Maybe that’s why he wanted to play a game.]
“game?”
[He wanted the Elyos and Demons, who usually had bad feelings, to fight each other. They said they would take care of the race that fought and won. From the gods’ point of view, it was a kind of entertainment. That was the beginning of the First Heavenly Demon War.]
There was confusion in Michael’s voice.
It was because they were reminded of their situation, reduced to entertainment for the gods.
[The Elyos and Demons fought each other to the death. We already didn’t get along well, and since the gods were watching, we couldn’t help but fight. The winning race was also rewarded with the protection of the gods. but… … .]
Michael’s voice was drowned out by emotions.
[For the gods, it seems like it wasn’t fun for the balance to be tilted to one side. Perhaps they were dissatisfied with the winning race winning next time, so they decided to change the rules.]
“how?”
[It was decided to give the race that lost the war the opportunity to use humans as mercenaries. I hoped that humans would act as a variable that could change the outcome of victory or defeat.]
‘Humans… … As a mercenary?’
[But humans were a ridiculously weak race, with only a large population. Compared to the Elyos and Demons, they look like bugs.]
When the word bug came out, Ryumin’s expression turned cold.
Michael, who did not miss the change in expression, noticed this and spoke carefully.
[…] … After thinking about it, the gods eventually developed a system. So that humans can become stronger and play an active role as mercenaries in the Battle of Heavenly Demon.]
Ryumin, who couldn’t hear what he heard, asked with a puzzled look on his face.
“So what you’re saying is that the whole reason for designing the round and setting up the fantasy world was a training program to raise players for war?”
[So to speak.]
“under… … .”
Ryu Min sighed in despair as he faced the shocking truth.
“Then it was a lie to say that an angel created the system.”
[The system is a product created by God. Angels have no authority to touch or tamper with the system. In order to win the next Heavenly Demon War, I just find a human planet, put it in a survival game, and take on the role of guide.]
“To put it simply, they put us humans into this damn game of death to raise mercenaries for their own use. Why are they treating us humans like bugs when they are creating their own side?”
[that… … .]
Michael, who had been hesitating whether to speak or not and was looking at everyone’s thoughts, opened his mouth at the sight of Ryumin’s sharp eyes.
[Each angel may think differently… … I guess it’s because I don’t like the fact that you, who were as insignificant as insects, are chosen by the system and stand on equal footing with us… … .]
“… … “That’s just the reason?”
Ryumin was not angry.
Don’t fellow humans discriminate and look down on people because of their different skin colors?
The reason angels hate humans was in a similar vein.
[Well, it’s not like angels really hate humans. As evidence, didn’t the guides always speak respectfully to humans?]
“Do not lie. “Who do you think doesn’t know that the system forces us to speak respectfully?”
[…] … .]
“Was it a lie to say that your wish will be granted if you complete 20 rounds?”
[That is not a lie.]
“really?”
Michael was taken aback as Ryumin’s body oozed murder.
[Well, it’s true. That is certain because it is set systematically and is a reward provided by God for humans.]
“So, the race that lost in the Battle of the Heavenly Demons has continued to attack planets with humans, create players, and use them as mercenaries? “Not only your Elyos, but also your demons?”
[Well, that’s right. We couldn’t help it either. Because the gods were obsessed with winning and losing to the point of betting on our war and hoped so.]
‘Would you even bet?’
The Elyos, who put billions of humans into a massacre program just because they ordered it from above, were angry, but what was most angry was the attitude of the gods.
‘To relieve your boredom, you start a war, predict victory or defeat, and even make bets?’
All creatures were playing like chess pieces under the hands of the gods just for fun.
“Are you talking about the Battle of the Heavenly Demons that takes place over 18 rounds?”
[That’s not it. The 18 rounds of war are a rehearsal for the war to come later. Could it be said to be some kind of friendly match?]
“The real war starts after 20 rounds.”
[yes… … .]
“Do you think the humans who survived until the 20th round will act as mercenaries as requested by your Elyos?”
[You will have no choice but to run. The system will ask you to do so.]
“After the war ends? “What happens?”
[I don’t know that either. So far, there are only a handful of people who have beaten 20 rounds.]
“So that means it exists.”
[There were, but I never heard what happened to them. The only ones who succeeded in conquering round 20 were the humans raised by demons. Trust me. It’s true.]
When I read his thoughts, it wasn’t a lie.
“Okay, I’ll believe it. “Then why are you targeting me?”
[That is, in order to correct the order of the heavenly world… … .]
“Stop f*cking with me. “The real reason.”
[…] … What would be the point of saying this? It’s all in vain.]
Michael spoke as if he was sighing, but Ryumin finally asked.
Because I needed to know everything that was going on.
[The demon archduke Plunictos made a claim to the gods who supported the Elyos. He was accused of violating the rules by saying that he used the Devil’s Resurrection Book arbitrarily and even killed the incarnation.]
“Breaking the rules?”
[A rule that there should be no interference between the Elyos and the Demons before the Celestial Demon War occurs. However, due to using the Book of Resurrection, the demons lost one of their means of attack.]
“So, why did you use that?”
[I knew it would succeed… … . Offer your soul as a sacrifice and Plunictos will be satisfied with that. But now that I think about it, it was a mistake.]
Michael lowered his head as if reflecting.
Ryu Min, who didn’t care whether that was the case or not, urged me to keep talking.
[They said that if I didn’t bring you in before the 18th round, they would start a war. It’s a violation of the rules, so we have nothing to say. It is obvious that if a war breaks out now, the Elyos will be defeated. It is a bonus to incur the wrath of the gods who are looking forward to the Elyos.]
“That’s why you chose to take me with you rather than lose the war.”
[okay. I never imagined you would be this strong… … .]
Ryumin, who heard the whole story, nodded.
I roughly understood the situation.
[What are you going to do with me now? Are you going to kill me?]
“well.”
Ryumin had no intention of killing Michael right away.
‘There is no benefit in killing him.’
Because I killed fewer angels, I don’t have enough stacks to use the devil’s blessing.
If you kill it, you will be able to complete the Soul Binding quest, but you will not get a huge amount of gold or stats.
‘What do we do?’
Ryumin, who rubbed his chin and thought for a moment, made a suggestion.
“I’ll save you. “Why don’t we do this instead?”
