Looking north from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall, there’s a dizzyingly steep cliff on the right.
And there’s a long, gently sloping path going north.
Though the altitude doesn’t seem that high, seeing how the distant northern forest is clearly visible below, the main hall itself is quite high up.
And about halfway between that forest and the main hall entrance is a house.
I walk along the path where only weeds grow.
Seeing the stones worn beneath the path, originally many people used to pass through here.
The village ruins a bit further north from the house where I live was a place where people lived until just a few years ago.
But it was all destroyed when Heavenly Demon and Gu Seongyong fought there.
The survivors moved to civilian houses in the west, and the village was abandoned. So it’s being covered by nature while left deserted.
It’s a bit unsettling because there are too few people here.
It would be fine if just I lived here, but it’s not good for a child to live here.
After all, to live like a human, one needs to meet people, right?
But not right now. For now, it’s better to live here. Because the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is likely to be greatly shaken going forward.
Looking at Gu Seongyong’s memories, half of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult betrayed the Heavenly Demon. Maybe not half but all of them.
Looking at the conversations with hall masters that Gu Seongyong met secretly, there are reasons for that.
Heavenly Demon recklessly gave power in the cult to Jeonyang, and Jeonyang wielded it freely. It would be right to see this as discontent building up and finally exploding.
Of course, as a result Gu Seongyong died, and Heavenly Demon completely changed as a person!
Her gender changed, and skin color changed a lot. Who would believe she is that Heavenly Demon?
Moreover, this is a world that cannot understand the fact that a person’s gender can change.
I’m not sure what will happen to Heavenly Demon who’s now wailing in front of Jeonyang’s corpse.
I tried to predict the future.
The first person likely to know this fact is Gi Jacheon. He’s like the manager of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall.
He’s the first person to hear when Heavenly Demon gives orders, and also the person who can make future choices most quickly.
Above all, no one knows that Gu Seongyong made a harvester. That man didn’t talk about anything related to that at all.
It would be right to think he has ambitions?
Betrayal by someone right beside.
I’m looking forward to how Heavenly Demon will react. If things go well, warmth might come in large quantities.
Imagining such a happy future, I entered the house.
“Did you do well?”
“Choseol!”
At my greeting, Soo-oh ran over with a bright smile. When I caught her, she’s extremely happy. On the outside, we look like an adult and child. Though actually there’s only about 5 years difference!
“Didn’t you sleep?”
Soo-oh nodded. Since I left in the middle of the night and came back at night, dawn is approaching.
Staying up all night is bad for the body.
“Let’s sleep first.”
Though there’s a chance Gi Jacheon will visit at dawn, it’s lower than usual.
Because he’ll need to put out the fire in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall, and watch a woman of unknown identity acting as Heavenly Demon.
Whether they believe it or not, they’ll be busy.
I took Soo-oh to the wall near the kitchen.
It’s still warm here. But I don’t know where the real heat is coming from.
Anyway, I lay down there with Soo-oh.
Soo-oh fell fast asleep as soon as she curled up in my arms.
Right.
Though I can’t really empathize, it must have been quite an anxious situation for Soo-oh. Her guardian went to a burning building, and she was left alone at home.
It was definitely a bad environment.
By the way, I’m getting a modest warmth replenishment thanks to the living beings that lived in this house. Just by taking warmth, I’m massacring the small creatures around here.
Oh?
If I take warmth, could I perhaps make something like monster colonies too?
Of course, in the early stages I didn’t do it even though it was possible because I shouldn’t appear as a god who summons dangerous monsters.
But with the primeval forest visible to the north, wouldn’t it be fine since there are no traces of humans?
Hmm.
I’ll need to think about this more.
Monsters whose warmth I’ve taken don’t kill each other. Whether they gain the ability to see warmth after having their warmth taken, they target creatures with warmth.
And those whose warmth was taken have no warmth. Unless they lack warmth, they won’t fight each other.
But they’re pathetic creatures, so I don’t particularly want to make many.
They only seem to have a really faint sense of cold but complain about being cold.
Of course, since I take the warmth they steal from killing creatures, they’ll never get warm until they die, but.
And I wonder how long they’ll stay alive?
Since the sensations continue, I should watch and see.
As I’m organizing the surroundings in my head like that, light comes in through the window.
The long night has passed, and finally morning has come.
And Gi Jacheon is unlikely to come today.
It’s normally time for breakfast, but since Soo-oh fell asleep not long ago, I let her sleep more today.
My body needs rest too.
It was bad to jump down in a hurry to follow. I didn’t expect my abdomen would be completely crushed though. I managed to regenerate somehow.
So I have a fleeting thought that might be why Heavenly Demon saw it.
But since it ended well, let’s say all’s well that ends well.
* * *
Midday.
I ate a late breakfast-or-lunch with Soo-oh.
While we’re peaceful, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is extremely busy right now.
Heavenly Demon is claiming to be Heavenly Demon, and people are pointing swords at her saying she’s a monster.
Well, to the people of this area, a blue-skinned woman can only be seen as a monster.
It seems both Byeongil and Gapjae who are there know that person is Heavenly Demon. Gapjae is preparing to run away, while Byeongil is going around talking to people trying to tell them this person is Heavenly Demon.
But people ignore him.
Yes, even the hall masters are ignoring him.
But I know.
They’re ignoring while knowing the person before them is Heavenly Demon. Seeing killing intent flash by as if they could kill her here, they must think Heavenly Demon has weakened.
Then the Death Scroll Hall Master spoke to Byeongil.
Saying Heavenly Demon has clearly fallen to demonic ways.
He tells Byeongil to draw his sword, saying since their form is twisted like that, they’re no longer someone who can be called Heavenly Demon.
Seeing the purple hair, it shouldn’t be hard to notice I made her a harvester. But there’s no mention of that.
Rather, the hall masters order their subordinates to attack Heavenly Demon as if it’s an opportunity.
The subordinates take strange elixirs, then charge at Heavenly Demon with blood vessels bulging all over their bodies. They’re drug users after all.
But the drug users couldn’t even get close to Heavenly Demon.
From Byeongil’s view, without any preparatory stance for swinging a sword, suddenly a purple trajectory appeared in the air.
And following that trajectory, crushed corpses fly in the opposite direction from Heavenly Demon.
Shouts of “Heavenly Demon Divine Technique” can be heard from everywhere.
Heavenly Demon is looking at people’s faces one by one. Probably remembering them.
That’s when the Earth Management Hall Master shouted.
Isn’t it a well-known fact that the current Heavenly Demon can’t use the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique, and can you become the real Heavenly Demon just by killing Heavenly Demon and claiming the title?
Ah.
So that’s how they’re fabricating it. Then, no matter how much Heavenly Demon claims to be Heavenly Demon, she becomes someone impersonating him.
Hearing those words, Heavenly Demon Divine Cult people approach one by one with swords, saying they must avenge their enemy.
Of course, people running away can be seen here and there too.
The existence called Heavenly Demon seems surprisingly significant in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Come to think of it, Eunchun was like that too. No matter how much he wanted to rise up, he headed toward death saying he was someone who served Heavenly Demon.
I’m not sure if it’s this person’s unique sentiment or the power of religion.
Heavenly Demon versus Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
It’s an extremely funny situation. That’s when Heavenly Demon opened her mouth.
“I am the Heavenly Demon.”
Ah.
Heavenly Demon’s voice reaches here. Though it seems quite quiet, it came all the way here?
Soo-oh, who was helping me with dishes, got startled and clung to me.
I comforted Soo-oh while going outside.
But as soon as we went outside, Soo-oh let out a short scream and hugged my body. To my eyes, I just see the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ch-Choseol can’t, can’t see? There, something scary, is there.”
Soo-oh pointed exactly in the direction where Heavenly Demon is.
There really must be something only I can’t see. Not that Choseol can’t see, but something I can’t see. The sense of feeling qi or magical power.
Come to think of it, I couldn’t feel such things since the first world.
“Submit.”
Bang!
Something like a shockwave exploded.
No, how can a person release such oppressive force? But it seems it’s not just a simple shock. Soo-oh grabbed me and fell to her knees.
To think it’s this intense when we’re this far from where Heavenly Demon is.
“Obey.”
Clang!
This time a purple flash blazed. And five huge scars remained on the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall as if clawed by a beast.
Thud, boom boom.
The sound of wall and roof debris falling to the ground can be heard.
“Worship.”
And a deep, sharp cutting sound.
From the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult main hall to the forest, it literally split apart.
“I am the Heavenly Demon.”
As soon as Heavenly Demon’s words ended, people began bowing their heads and prostrating themselves before Heavenly Demon one by one.
“Ten thousand years! Ten thousand years! Ten thousand ten thousand years!”
Low cries like screams are heard before Heavenly Demon. Voices shouting while squeezing their stomachs.
“Heavenly Demon Divine Manifestation! All Devils Submit!”
Then in more relaxed voices, people shout. Now almost no one isn’t shouting.
“Divine Cult Invincible! Demon Way Rules All!”
Finally, everyone where Heavenly Demon’s gaze reaches buried their heads and shouted loudly. They shouted loud enough for their cries to reach where I am.
It ended quite simply.
“Well, let’s go in and clean up and exercise, Soo-oh.”
Soo-oh looks up at me while trembling.
“Choseol, aren’t you scared?”
I looked at Heavenly Demon looking down at people repeating words of praise over and over. I wanted a more destructive result.
How boring.
I turned my head back to look at Soo-oh.
“I guess it’s because I can’t feel anything.”
Since it’s strictly true, I returned to the kitchen and resumed the dishes I had stopped earlier.
I want civilization where water flows abundantly.