[The jury vote regarding the Divine Trial of 'Divine Twilight' has begun!]
People always looked for gods in times of need.
It didn't matter whether the god was the Great Jade Emperor or Buddha. The list went on—Odin, Shiva, Ahura Mazda, Allah, or even the ancestral god of one's family. The god they usually believed in would come to mind first. They would pray for help attaining the things they wished for.
However, if that 'god' ended up in a crisis… Who would they look for then?
[Compiling the votes.]
[Compiling the votes.]
…
[Compilation is complete. The result will soon be announced.]
[The result of the vote…]
* * *
The rushing waves crashed roughly against the rocks. 'Divine Twilight' gradually dispersed the fog in his mind while listening to the sound.
'Where am I?'
The unfamiliar scene before him made him squint. A gloomy gray sky, a river that flowed with black water, a dark beach, and an almost-collapsed ferry slip—he had never seen his surroundings before in his entire life.
'Huh? I died, didn't I?'
In truth, the word 'annihilated' would be more accurate. After all, the concept of death only applied to mortals.
'My divine class, essence, faith, and rank… They've all been downgraded by force. My divinity has been severed, and my divine power has disappeared too. But… Why haven't I gone mad?'
He had been trying to open his system window for some time.
[Unable to open system window.]
[Unable to open system window.]
[The system connection is unstable in this world. Please contact an administrator for more details.]
Or…
[Access permission denied.]
Only such messages popped up.
Ever since that day, he had been unable to open the screen that had once accompanied him everywhere he went. It was a bit frustrating.
Just as he was wondering about his next move, however…
[Someone is approaching.]
Swish, swoosh!
Out of nowhere, a boat appeared in the midst of the river and floated toward him.
Rattle!
The boat smoothly docked at the ferry slip. On it, there was a boatman wearing a straw hat and a middle-aged man wearing a fancy ceremonial suit.
"Divine Twilight… Are you Lee Chang-Sun?" the middle-aged man called out.
At that moment, the eyes of 'Divine Twilight' widened a bit.
Lee Chang-Sun was his real name, which he had long since buried deep in his heart.
"Father, Lee Jo-Myung. Mother, So Yu-Ha. Born on December 25th, 2001, in the Republic of Korea, on planet Earth. Your name means 'a bright and generous person'
The middle-aged man continued to read out the things listed in his notepad, and 'Divine Twilight'—no, Chang-Sun—felt his mind starting to blank out.
"In 2027, you ended up on the planet 'Arcadia' for an unknown reason, and became a 'star' after a series of tribulations… Ironically, despite your name, you killed hundreds of deities in 'that' conflict. Just reading about it gives me goosebumps, fiend," the middle-aged man said, shaking his head. However, there was no sign of terror on his face.
"Then, you got caught and were put on trial. Based on the records, I should be looking at the right person. Are you not going to answer…?" The middle-aged man paused, taking an unnecessarily deep breath in the middle of his sentence.
Whoosh!
Chang-Sun abruptly sank into a low crouch, then in the blink of an eye, chopped at the man's throat with his hand.
[Initiating attack.]
It was clear that the man would lose his head if he did nothing. However, he quickly drew his sword and deflected Chang-Sun's attack to one side.
Clash!
Ads by Pubfuture
[Due to your revoked status, this skill is currently unusable.]
[Substituting with skilled hand-to-hand combat.]
However, Chang-Sun did not stop attacking. Like snakes darting forth to snatch prey, his hands continued unleashing a coordinated flurry of attacks.
Bam, bam, bam!
Each of his blows was powerful enough to mutilate part of the man's body.
After blocking Chang-Sun's attacks consecutively for some time, the man broke out into a cold sweat, leaping backward and landing on the surface of the river far away from Chang-Sun.
Bang!
The man's landing sent a spray of water high into the air. He looked perplexed, shaking his head in astonishment as he exclaimed, "Huh? What the…! Has your divine essence really been taken away? How can your attacks be this powerful even under the restraint of Divine Steel?"
Chang-Sun was known as a fiend among the deities of Arcadia, but the man had taken this mission too casually. Now, he was regretting it.
Meanwhile, Chang-Sun's face crumpled. The moment he took a few steps to attack the man, a restraining device made of steel chains had appeared to subdue him.
Clang, clunk!
He was well aware of what they were.
[Currently under a restriction. Unable to move without permission.]
Divine Steel shackles.
They were a restraining device capable of turning even a deity with supreme authority into a being less powerful than a mere mortal the moment it touched them.
They were also the device Chang-Sun had worn during his divine trial. He had assumed the device was gone because he couldn't see it anymore. However, it seemed he had been wearing it the whole time; it had just been invisible to the naked eye.
Due to the restriction, Chang-Sun could no longer move. The only choice he had left was to glare at the suspicious people in front of him, asking, "Who are you?"
The man heaved a sigh of relief, then slowly bowed. He said, much more politely than before, "Sigh, if I knew things would turn out this way, I would have started with the self-introduction. I apologize. I am Yool, the top-rank reaper of the Underworld."
Chang-Sun squinted heavily and asked, "Underworld? Is this the land of the dead, then?"
"Correct. You are looking at the River Styx, and this man is Charon the Boatman."
Pulling his hat over his eyes, the boatman nodded.
"I heard that a deity who underwent a divine trial couldn't avoid being annihilated. What am I doing in the land of the dead?" Chang-Sun asked.
"Well, it is because you are under our jurisdiction," Yool replied.
"Jurisdiction?" Chang-Sun repeated.
"Yes. It is a bit of a complicated story… We can talk about the details while we walk. There is a man who brought you to this place by invitation," Yool explained, smiling slightly.
* * *
"You see, Arcadia is totally different from Earth, the world you originally resided in."
Swish!
Every time Charon rowed with all his might, the boat slid quickly down the River Styx.
Chang-Sun listened to Yool, watching the water ripple gently across the bow of the boat as it moved through the water. It was hard to see through the opaque waters of the Styx. He asked, "Is it related to the jurisdiction thing you talked about?"
"Of course it is. People live and die according to the death lists—lists in which people's lifespans and fates are written down. However, who could have known? The death lists can only be used in the places where they were written," Yool responded.
"…"
"At some point, one of them managed to escape, vanishing without a trace."
A beam of light shone before Chang-Sun's eyes, surrounded by the ripples of distorted space.
Ever since that day, the system window had filled one of his eyes
"If a single list goes missing, it causes a lot of trouble… We put in a lot of effort to find it. As it turns out, it ended up in a very strange place," Yool explained.
"Was that Arcadia?" Chang-Sun asked.
"Yes. It drove me crazy. I assumed the owner of that list would just live longer than an average human, but no one could ever have guessed you would become a deity like that!" Yool replied, bitterness evident on his face as he continued, "On top of that, you made too much of a mess there…To hush things up and bring you back, we had to pay a hefty price."
"…"
Memories of the many twists and turns of fortune he had endured coursed through Chang-Sun's mind.
'Earth...'
He had left his hometown so many centuries in the past that he could barely remember it. To be honest, he had remembered the name 'Lee Chang-Sun' only after Yool said it to him. That alone showed how little longing he had left for the life he had lived on Earth.
Thus, he only became more curious about why they were looking for him. Though he wasn't sure what kind of price they had paid, one thing was for sure—if they had revived him, there had to be something they wanted from him.
He asked, "Why did you go through all the trouble of bringing me here? It would have been better to let me be annihilated over there than to claim me like this."
Yool shrugged and replied, "Who knows? I was just following orders."
"Then who's your boss, the one who made this decision?" Chang-Sun asked.
"Thanatos," Yool replied in a solemn tone. "He is the head of Tartarus and Erebus. Some people refer to him as the King of Underworld."
Chang-Sun nodded.
If Thanatos oversaw the four phases of human life, he had to be in a pretty high-ranking position. He no doubt had a lot of power.
"We have arrived," Yool said.
Before anyone knew it, the boat had arrived at a ferry slip next to the river mouth. It was much bigger than the one they had departed from. Souls were lined up on it, leading all the way inside a grand palace.
"It would take at least 49 days if we headed that way. Follow me. We are going to take a different path," Yool said.
Chang-Sun followed after Yool and quickly bypassed the line.
The reapers in charge of the line saluted Yool simultaneously.
* * *
After they passed the crowd, Yool used a skill Chang-Sun recognized as Space Folding. Many places flickered into view and disappeared.
[This is the 'Burning Hell'.]
[This is the 'Freezing Hell'.]
...
[You have safely passed all of the Ten Hells in the land of the dead.]
A pit of fire with souls trapped inside appeared, followed by a forest densely filled with frozen trees.
Most of the souls trapped in the hells were ordinary, but there were some celestial beings among them as well.
"What is that?" Chang-Sun asked.
"Oh, right. You were a fighting deity before you became a fiend. That must be why you are interested," Yool replied.
"It just caught my eye," Chang-Sun said.
"They are the 'fallen stars'," Yool said.
"Fallen stars?" Upon hearing the unfamiliar phrase, Chang-Sun tilted his head sideways in confusion.
'Star' usually referred to beings who shone brilliantly, and thus decorated the sky beautifully. Alas, they were very prideful. If they fell, they would generally choose annihilation rather than to remain in such a pitiful state.
"Judging the sins of the dead is not Tartarus's only job," Yool explained.
"Then?" Chang-Sun asked.
"We also seal demonic and evil deities who push the world into a crisis in the abyss," Yool continued.
Chang-Sun's eyes widened a bit. He asked, "Why haven't I heard about that before?"
"That's understandable. It would ruin Heaven's image, so why would they blabber about it?" Yool replied.
"Hmm…" Chang-Sun mused.
"Those people were sentenced to labor, either because their sins were considered light offenses or because they were almost finished serving their sentences. Of course, that labor would not be easy either," Yool explained.
On some level, Chang-Sun could grasp why Heaven stayed vigilant against the Underworld and tried to not talk about it. He could also guess what kind of deal the Underworld had made with Arcadia.
"Right this way," Yool said as they finally arrived at their destination after their long walk.
Before them stood a towering castle that soared endlessly into the distance. They passed through its dark red gate, then crossed the main road where several officials busily came and went. In the innermost area, they reached the castle's entrance.
"I, the top-rank reaper Yool, have brought 'Divine Twilight' safely to this place as you have ordered, sir."
『Enter.』
A deep, resonant voice rang out as the front gate opened, and a strong wind blew. Chang-Sun's expression stiffened reflexively as the wind swept over him.
[Immense energy overwhelms you!]
Whoosh!
Chang-Sun had heard stories about the King of the Underworld, but it was beyond his wildest expectations. Wasn't the King of the Underworld one of the highest-rank stars?
The darkness writhed, looking almost as if it wanted to devour him.
[The eyes in the darkness are observing you.]
Death was a power feared by all living beings, even deities. Just then, it had bared its brutal fangs.
Even if he were to fight after regaining his status, Chang-Sun wouldn't be able to guarantee the outcome.
That was why…
Badump!
Badump!
'…I think this will be fun.'
Chang-Sun could feel his heart beating for the first time since he entered the Underworld.