1.
The volcano painted the world red.
Krrrrrr-
Lava poured from the top of the mountain. The river of lava gushed uncontrollably like a carbonated drink that had been shaken as it moved to the thick forest that surrounded the mountain. The green terrain was set ablaze in an instant.
Countless races cried out.
"I'm just your guide."
With the disaster as her backdrop, the Lady yawned.
"You all are different. You are the guardian constellations for these children. You are the ones who decided to open the next floor, and you are the ones who chose the races you will take care of in the future. So do your best."
"Even if you tell us to do our best… We don't know what to do."
The Crusader frowned. She kept looking back and forth between the primitive races and the volcano. Her impatience was clearly visible on her face.
"We have no way to interfere. We can't talk to them. They can't even see us. There's no way for us to make them evacuate."
The Vice Guild Leader of our Tower's Civil Militia Guild was a kindhearted person. Even if this was her first time seeing these races, she still wanted to help them.
My other companions were the same. In general, they were all feeling impatient. This was because the lava was flowing towards the primeval forest even at that moment.
"Mm."
I couldn't bear to see this, so I stepped forward.
"My Lady. Before we started this stage, you gave us [Race Points]."
"And?"
"I doubt you'd give them to us for no reason. You must have given them to us because there was something we could do with them."
I spoke calmly.
"As our guide, please tell us what we can do with our [Race Points]. Please be as concise and clear as possible."
"..."
The Lady smiled brightly. Her eyes seemed to be saying 'that's the right answer.' When they saw her reaction, my companions also looked up. They noticed the validity of my point.
"Aha… I suppose we can use them to buy items or technology."
"We'll use our points too! Please tell us what we can do with our points!"
"Hah."
The Lady shrugged slightly.
"Is this what they meant when they said the stage clearance was different depending on if there was a quick-witted warrior or not? Well, the Death King is right. This is also part of my job as a guide."
Srrrk!
A notification window appeared in front of our eyes.
[Welcome to the Civilization Store.]
The hologram contained a long list of products.
+
[Oracle Message] – 20 points
[Animal Possession] – 40 points
[Dream Appearance] – 100 points
[Prey Search] -5 points
[Search for a Bronze Ranked Settlement] – 80 points
[Clan Rank General (Draw)] – 100 points
[Invention of Bronze Rank Technology (Draw)] – 1,000 points
ㆍ
ㆍ
ㆍ
+
'Okay.'
The real game started now.
Up until now, I'd been following a 'strategy guide' using everything the Flame Emperor had gone through in the past. The Flame Emperor occasionally talked about how he cleared a stage during his interviews, and my collection of interviews was nothing short of a strategy guide.
I remembered this strategy guide quite vividly.
'But that doesn't mean I know the strategies in detail.'
I knew there was a [Civilization Store].
However, I didn't know exactly which item to buy to overcome the current difficulties. Now, I had to rely on my own strength and use my own brain to figure it out.
'How do I make the goblins head to the safe area? Should I buy [Oracle Message] and try to communicate?'
I pondered to myself.
Suddenly, the Crusader opened her mouth.
"I have a question. Is an [Oracle Message] sent directly to the race?"
It seemed the Crusader was thinking about the same item I was. Maybe we all were. As if she expected this question, the Lady nodded lightly.
"Mhm. That's right."
"How are the messages delivered specifically?"
"It's something you all have experienced before. It's the same way the constellations deliver messages to you."
The Lady twisted her hair with her fingers.
[The Lady Who Walks Through the Mirage gives you an example.]
A voice rang out in my head. It was a voice message.
"You've experienced this many times before, haven't you?"
"As I said, you will experience what it's like to be a constellation. Oh, by the way. [Oracle Message] is a single-use item. Even if you buy one, you can only send it once, so be careful. Only one person will receive your message! If you want to send more, you'll need to buy more."
The Crusader nodded.
"Understood. I'd like to buy an [Oracle Message]."
The Lady smiled in an ominous way.
"Huhu. And no matter what happens, you won't get a refund."
As soon as I saw the Lady's smile, I knew something was wrong.
But the purchase had already been completed.
The Crusader looked down at the race she'd selected, the Ocean Race. The Ocean Race was made up of mermaids. The mermaids floundered in the river, unsure of what to do.
"The lava is flowing from the east… they can't go south."
The Crusader muttered to herself. Even in the middle of an emergency, she did her best to stay calm. After identifying the mermaid who seemed to be the leader of the Ocean Race, she declared the oracle she intended to send.
"[Swim west with all your might!]"
Burrr!
The mermaid leader leapt out of the water.
-Kkau? Kkaukkau?
Startled, the mermaid splashed the water's surface with her tail. From her perspective, God's voice had suddenly rung out in her head. Naturally, she'd be surprised.
But the mermaid's reaction was strange.
"...huh?"
The mermaid didn't swim west. Instead, it simply spun around in one place. Even though she'd used valuable points, the Crusader had been ignored. She stared at the mermaid with a blank expression.
"Wait, this isn't right! She isn't listening to my oracle!"
"I wonder."
The Lady pretended to not know anything as she leaned her head against her pillow.
"You wouldn't say 'yes, understood' just because you heard the voice of a constellation, would you? Maybe that's why."
"What…?!"
"Maybe it isn't. By the way, there isn't much time left. If you don't do something, your races will all go extinct on the 31st floor, won't they? Then, your Tower attack would end here too."
Even if her words were cruel, the Lady was right.
Krrrrr-
By now, the lava had already reached the foot of the mountain. Not only the lava, the boulders that were sent flying by the eruption were all dangerous. If even a single boulder was to land within the tribe, the damage would be severe.
'Why? Why didn't the oracle work?'
I rolled the problem around in my head.
'Did the Lady lie to us? No. It was unlikely that the Tower guide would intentionally deceive us. She wouldn't tell us the whole truth, but she certainly wouldn't lie. Could it be that the mermaid didn't understand the message?'
As I pondered, my eyes were drawn to the goblins scurrying below.
-Kerr!
-Kerk! Kerrrk!
The goblins howled. All of the primitive races were shocked by the rocks raining down from the sky like meteors.
"...."
Suddenly.
"Ah."
I realised something.
Something that was incredibly obvious.
"There wasn't anything wrong with the oracle!"
"Mm?"
"There wasn't anything wrong with the oracle, Crusader! The problem is with them!"
I turned to look at my companions as I said this. Everyone was looking at me. Among them, the Crusader had her head lowered as if she was contemplating buying another [Oracle Message].
"What do you mean, Death King?"
"Don't buy any more messages. It's pointless."
"You'll have to tell us why…"
"Naturally! It must be because their [language] hasn't been completed yet!"
The Crusader's eyes widened.
"What did you say?"
"They are still in a primitive stage. How could they understand if you told them to [run west with all their might]? Do they even know where [west] is in the first place?"
"Ah, indeed!"
"Yeah! Maybe it's a problem with the translation. That might not be a part of their [vocabulary]!"
It was only then when the Crusader understood the loophole.
The eyes of my other companions also widened. My point was correct. Compared to these primitive people, our language was much more developed. Even if they wanted to understand it, they couldn't.
"…Oh, my God. Then, the oracle is really useless, isn't it?"
The Black Dragon Master had a defeated expression on her face.
"They might understand if we told them [Go that way], but we have no way of telling them where [that way] is… I'm not sure how to get those children to understand us."
"No. There must be a way."
The Tower wouldn't deceive them.
It would never prepare a stage that was impossible to clear.
With that confidence filling me, I looked at the [Civilization Store] once again.
+
[Oracle Message] – 20 points
[Animal Possession] – 40 points
[Dream Appearance] – 100 points
[Prey Search] -5 points
[Search for a Bronze Ranked Settlement] – 80 points
[Clan Rank General (Draw)] – 100 points
[Invention of Bronze Rank Technology (Draw)] – 1.000 points
+
And…
Came up with a strategy.
For how to get the primitive people to the safe area without the use of language.
"My Lady!"
"Mhm."
"Can I look for any animal I want with [Prey Search]? For example, if I want a tiger, would it search for the nearest tiger?"
The Lady nodded.
"Mhm. It's possible. There aren't any tigers in this world, but it would search for an animal that is the most similar. However, you cannot directly possess a member of a primitive race. For that, you will need a higher tier item."
Okay.
A picture was drawn in my head.
"I would like to buy [Search of Prey]."
Not understanding what I was trying to do, the Black Dragon Master tried to stop me.
"Death King? Why are you searching for prey in this situation…"
"I will explain in a little while!"
Time was of the essence.
[Purchased 'Prey Search'.]
[5 points have been deducted!]
[You currently have 95 race points.]
A bronze card appeared in my hand.
After getting the card, I turned to the Lady.
"My Lady. Please search for the most uniquely colored, fleet-footed, and large animal in the area. A white deer or a white lion. Or even a black horse. It doesn't matter!"
"…heh."
The Lady's eyes glowed as if she found this interesting.
"The conditions are a bit vague. But fine, I'll find it for you. You're still beginners. I won't be too strict with you."
The Lady flicked her fingers as she said this.
Then, the card in my hand melted.
[Your 'Prey Search' has been consumed.]
As the card melted, it became light bronze powder. This powder then took the shape of an arrow and moved as though it had a will of its own. When it finally stopped moving, I found that it was pointed towards a large bush, under which lay a large beast
It was a lion with white fur.
Fortunately, it was also quite close to the goblin village.
"I would like to buy another item from the store."
I spoke without hesitation.
"I'd like to buy [Animal Possession]."
Messages appeared in front of me again.
[Purchased 'Animal Possession'.]
[40 points have been deducted!]
[You currently have 55 race points.]
In an instant, my precious initial funds had been almost halved. But it didn't matter. I had to save the goblin tribe as soon as possible because the lava could destroy the forest at any moment.
"Ah!"
When he saw this, the Heretic Questionner immediately realized what I was doing.
"I see! Everyone, possess the most conspicuous animal you can find!"
Following me, the Heretic Questionner quickly purchased [Prey Search] and [Animal Possession].
"Primitive civilizations worship mystical-looking animals. It's a very basic form of religion! Ahahaha. If a 'white lion' or 'black deer' appears at a moment when it seems the world is about to end, they would take it as a sign from God!"
As I expected, the Heretic Questionner quickly understood my actions.
"By possessing a mystical animal, we can directly lead them to the safe area! Even if we don't say anything, they will follow us! You really are incredibly smart, Death King!"
"Ah."
"Truly…"
"Everyone, hurry up!"
My companions all bought the same items I did.
With these companions by my side, I pointed at the white lion and used my [Animal Possession] card.
"I choose to possess that animal."
Shaaaa!
My consciousness shook slightly and became dark as if a light had been turned off.
Then, when I opened my eyes again, I realised my perspective had changed.
"Grrr…"
My voice—no, the growls of a beast came out as I opened my mouth. I looked down at my sharp claws that easily sank into the soil beneath me. Beautiful white fur seemed to mask the ferocity of this wild beast.
"Grr! Grrr!"
'Good, just as I planned!'
I raised my heavy body. The body of a lion was nothing like that of a human. It was really strange to walk on all fours. But as I kept moving forward, I eventually encountered the goblins.
'Using my aura… isn't impossible, but it would be extremely difficult. The blood flow was too different.'
Thud! Thud!
I raced through the forest. I stepped forward with the lion's front paws before following with the back paws. My four-legged movement was still awkward, but the lion's running speed was quite fast.
'Oh.'
It was amazing.
'This is better than I expected.'
The smell of smoke from the burning wood.
The smell of the fresh, blooming flowers.
Then, a stench from nearby reached me… This had to be the odor from the goblins. It smelled like soybean paste stew that had gone bad after being left overnight in the sweltering heat of summer.
'Ugh. This race even smells ugly!'
Eventually, I arrived at the goblin village. The strong stench made it very easy to find.
-Kerrk!
-Kerr, kerk!
The primitive goblins were still wandering around aimlessly. The little goblins clung to their mothers and wailed, and even the older goblins banged their heads on the ground (in a gesture I didn't know the meaning of) or stomped their feet.
They were so flustered that they didn't even notice the white lion that was approaching their village.
'They really are a poor, pitiful race.'
I stood tall before the entrance of the village.
"Kroooo!!"
And roared at the goblins.
-Kerk?!
-Kerp! Kerr?!
The goblins erupted. Those who had been banging their heads against the ground scrambled to their feet, only to fall on their faces again. The wails of the young goblins became even sharper.
'Wow. Great job, great.'
From the goblins' perspectives, the earth suddenly began shaking, fire appeared in the sky, and now, a demonic beast had appeared in their village. They must have felt like the world was coming to an end.
"Grrrr!"
I waved my tail and stomped on the ground. Then I turned my head.
'Follow me. Guys! Follow me!'
Of course, these guys were goblins. They looked like goblins, and they were as smart as goblins. So even if a mysterious animal did appear in front of them, they wouldn't follow it. They just continued to look at me from a distance, scared.
'In that case.'
I took out my secret weapon.
"Grrrrk!"
A strange sound came from my mouth. It wasn't the growls of a lion, nor was it the words of a human.
I used [Goblin High Society].
The goblins, who had been filled with fear, pricked their ears.
-Ke-, kerk?
"Grrr! Grrrk!"
-Kerrr…?
The goblins looked at each other. Then they began to mutter among themselves. I didn't understand their chattering, but it must have been something like 'what is he saying?', 'I don't know, but it must be something amazing…'
I stomped my front paw again.
"Grrrk! Grgr! Gorgork!"
'Follow me, my children! Quickly!'(1)
Rustle. Rustle.
The goblins began standing up one by one.
'Good. Good job. That's right! Good job, my children!'
I snorted.
No matter what anyone said, goblins were a race that had managed to become bipedal. So even if they were a little dumb now, it was still possible for them to one day create a brilliant civilization!
"Gar, Gorrtk…!"
'Come on, follow me!'
I made a graceful u-turn before trudging into the forest.
The goblins hesitated for a moment before they began to follow me. There was a bit of a scuffle at the beginning to decide who would be in front, but in the end, all of the goblins in the village began to follow me as if they were in a trance.
Then.
Boooom!
Not long after I led the group out, a huge boulder from the volcano smashed into the village. The explosion was so powerful that the ground shook.
-Kerrr?!
-Kru! Kerp, kerrk?!
The goblins all collapsed in shock. Soon after, they all realised that something terrible had happened to their home and that they had only managed to escape the disaster by a hair's breadth.
[The last settlement of the Goblins has been destroyed!]
[You must now lead them to a new settlement.]
The goblins all stared at me, stunned.
There was a hint of cuteness in their dull expressions.
"Grr."
'Huhu.'
I, who was in the body of the white lion, snorted.
"Kekerkker."
'You should be grateful.'
Then, I strutted off while proudly displaying my handsome figure.
-Kerr…
-Ke-, kerkker!
The atmosphere of the goblin group suddenly changed. The beings who had followed me with fear and wariness before now followed me proudly.
-Kekerkker!
The goblins began to chant.
-Kekerkker!
-Kekerkker! Kekerkker!
'What are they saying…?'
I thought I could understand what they were saying, so I was a bit relieved. However, I had no idea what they were saying now.
It was at that moment when the Tower's voice appeared in my head.
[The beginning of a religion!]
[The Goblins have created a primitive religion!]
Huh?
[Your race is the first to develop primitive religion in this world!]
I blinked.
[From now on, the Goblin Race will follow the 'White Lion Religion'.]
[You are the first to receive this achievement!]
[You have received 500 race points!]
What the hell… is this…?
I looked back at the goblin group with a strange expression.
-Kekerkker! Kekerkker!
The goblins continued to shout their strange chant. I was so dumbfounded that I couldn't even snort.
'Do these guys really think of me as their God?'
Kim Gongja.
That was the moment I became the God of the Goblins.