65 Adventure (2)
(A/N: Notice! I have decided to move the plot with Oshi no ko after the group goes to Naruto)
(A/N: Oh, and I will stray from the canon too)
---Third Person's POV---
Tanya was bewildered.
Despite not being able to express her emotions, there are four figures surrounding her and Mary, who is currently in a very awkward position.
Somehow, these figures bantered against each other to the point it was chaotic.
"Hey! We're not here to fight, just keep quiet already!" (Rimuru)
"Rimuru! Tell this guy that the short girl is losing-nanoda!" (Milim)
"Admin-kun! Admin-kun! Tell this girl that Tanya-chan is going to beat her!" (Gojo)
"Milim, 'Tanya-chan is going to beat her'..." (Akihito)
"You! Don't join them, control the situation already!!!" (Rimuru)
It was rather chaotic...
Until finally, Existence X snapped.
『ENOUGH!!!』
The deity exclaimed. Tanya can almost imagine him gaining a vein on his head despite not knowing what his face looks like.
Immediately, clouds start to form...
*Thunder*
Then lightning strikes down on the Frozen timed world.
『You invaders, now I finally know why you didn't accept my sponsorship...』
Those words were directed at Akihito.
Exactly, Existence X was the same nameless deity who offered Akihito sponsorship in chapter 7!
(A/N: oi!!)
"Heeeh~ you still remember, eh? Are you listening to yourself right now? Why would I even become your apostle?" And finally, Akihito decided to answer his words with a question.
Yet... The deity still responded to his sarcastic remarks.
『Heh, it's obvious to know that... Or are you pretending because you didn't know or something? That "Nameless Deity" was me, you fool! Or should I call you by your name then...』
"Eh... Wait, don't-" For a second, Akihito wanted to stop him from saying anything else.
『I've never thought our meeting on my planet would end up like this... BALLSDEEP69!!!』
"---💢" Akihito's left eye twitched.
Sure it would be funny when Kikuoka-san said it, but here he has Rimuru and Gojo with him. In the presence of an uncontrollable variable and a slime that might take revenge somehow in the future, he was quite angry for having the being in front of him call his questionable name.
"This guy---" He held a vein from bursting on his forehead.
"Eh? Ballsdeep?" ×3
Then the members of the chat group can only raise an eyebrow at that name.
*Phew...* Akihito took a long breath in and out.
Before suddenly, his hands moved on top of the girl Mary Sioux, who is frozen in time.
"Soul Consumption"
Soul Consumption was a subskill of Yaldabaoth, a super-enhanced version of gluttony, which can devour the target's soul ignoring space-time.
『!!?? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?』
After a few seconds, the time suspension was lifted. Only this time... Mary Sioux's eyes were lifeless.
She dropped her soulless body to Tanya, who didn't bother to catch her, but used the opportunity to move away.
"Haa.... Haa... Who in the world... Are you guys?" The blonde girl who wears a military outfit panted and looked at the group.
『You bastards.... YOU ACTUALLY DARE TO STEAL MY BELIEVER'S SOUL!?』
"Haaaaa! SHUT YOUR PIE HOLE!"
Akihito narrowed his eyes and glared at the statue of an angel in the destroyed room.
Without any warnings, he snapped his fingers as a black flame arose from the tip of his finger. Soon after he threw it at the statue, eradicating it thoroughly.
Despite all they've said, "Gods" are still gods. This one, specifically... Is the God of the Bible, the one that gave the 10 commandments to Moses.
Gods protected humanity in the past from various disasters, helped those who reached out (with true faith) for them, and never hindered civilization's development.
On the contrary, the Gods wanted humans to seek the mysteries behind their workings and reach a higher level of philosophy and thus, welcomed scientific progress.
They expected mankind would evolve from mindless worship to reverent devotion. Thus, with greater understanding, they'd reach a higher-order of intelligence.
They use a system called the "Circle of Rebirth" to keep every soul alive, and in theory, the number of faithful individuals stable and their power as well. However, with the increasing number of atheists in a faithless world, the system is reaching its limits as inevitably the reborn individuals end up becoming atheists again, while the number of faithful individuals keeps decreasing.
In order to increase the number of faithful individuals in the world without directly imposing their will, they decided to teach words of prayer and give new miracles to the humans so that they can regain their faith in the Gods by themselves.
However...
"Humans are never your creations in the first place. You claimed their souls and harvested their faithfulness once they died, but are you really that blind?"
Akihito bared his teeth.
The thing that's making Akihito angry was not exactly that simple.
It's not how the gods made unreasonable demands for entertainment, not how the gods treat humans like livestock, and not because they treat humans like how humans treat ants.
In fact, Akihito tolerates all of those actions.
Humans' desires are far scarier than any gods can portray.
Humans breed livestock for them to eat; humans grow plants for food or housing, for clothes, for riches, for literally any materialistic things.
So why did Akihito raise his voice?
If he tolerates them, then why?
"You really don't understand humans at all, do you?" That, the question he wanted to ask, finally appears.
It was a question from a god who was born as a mortal, to a god who was born from mortals' desires.
Gods in general love their believers.
The Gods in this universe have the same hope: to have humans evolve from mindless worship to reverent devotion.
But what did they do wrong?
Well, simply... They didn't study human common sense enough.
Humans might go as far as calling an emperor or a leader a god, but when they meet an actual saint who performs miracles, they simply forget that humans are creatures that fear the unknown. No matter how many times they tell them, there will always be some idiot who won't believe it even after seeing it with their own eyes.
In the end, under the pressure of power, humans sacrificed them. The witch hunts that humans and crucifixions performed in the past seem to be something they've completely forgotten.
But there is one more thing they've forgotten: the gods had forgotten that there are humans who just wished to live peacefully.
Then how can the gods maintain their existence if they aren't allowed to harvest humans' faith.
*Swoosh*
And finally, the god revealed himself.
At the same spot where the statue burned to ashes, the figure of an old man manifested in his spiritual form. For the first time revealing a humanoid form to Tanya.
Tanya was silent in the whole conversation before suddenly the figure of a platinum blue-haired girl (boy?) splashed a full potion at her and pulled her out from the scene, including two childish individuals with him.
"You... are also a god. Tell me, 'O Outer God, why have you meddled with our territory?" The god asked in his rare humanoid form.
"You're still on that? You know what I am talking about... God of Reincarnation, the system of this world was flawed, yet you played their game... Are you still going to ask me what I am on about?" Akihito scoffed at him.
In truth, there was actually an easy fix for this problem.
Incarnations.
Yes, if these gods would've just tried their best to create physical bodies for themselves and lived for a couple of thousand years as humans, the restrictions on their fertility would be undone.
That would make them individuals outside of the world's system and allow them to exist without the humans' faith. Making them "A human with powers," then they can live for another hundred years to gain their divinity back.
The end product of that process would be a deity that was born from mortals that climbed up to power. Like me, who doesn't need a system to be considered a god.
The problem is... These idiots are too afraid to undergo that process.
Veldanava, whose divinity was stripped away, was eager to understand humans. He loved his wife more, but he was fascinated by the endless potential of humans.
Therefore, after discarding his role as a god, he actually planned to rise again in power. After all... there's no harm in having a power that can protect your family.
"There's actually no reason for us to argue... But the moment I look at your pathetic work, I just can't help but say it." Akihito finally calmed down.
The god of reincarnation in front of him was baffled at Akihito.
It may seem like their conversation is without any single context, but truthfully, they've been exchanging information from the moment they converse with each other.
Akihito (Sophia) sent information particles to the figure in front of him in order for him to realize this obvious solution. That was the reason why the god in front of him was able to understand him in a single glance.
"This... such a way... But, the risk is too great."
"Hmph, I knew you would say something like that."
After that, Akihito's plan went onto the second phase.
In reality, only those who have strong souls have the opportunity to reincarnate.
But due to this world's system born from the desires of its inhabitants... A cycle of reincarnation exists.
Gods are forced to use their powers to satisfy the system. And the fewer believers they have, the less power they possess.
The game was rigged from the start.
That is why it's better to leave the system and become an independent individual.
"I shall help you then."
"...How will you do that?"
"Oh, that's simple." *Snap*
And with a snap of a finger, Manas: Sophia began to work.
Magicules spread throughout the battlefield. For some reason, all mages in the vicinity were drawn towards the waves of huge mana that created a supernatural phenomenon on the warzone.
«Confirmed: Spiritrons have now been activated.»
Firstly, a unique trait of a world existed due to god's existence itself.
Which means it's also their fault the system is like that.
«"Cycle of rebirth" system has been successfully terminated. Terraformation of the planet will happen steadily and thoroughly. The world will now be listed as a branch world.»
"Impossible... an absolute synergy of the whole world... The whole ecosystem working together as one entity... To be able to change laws of the world easily like that... you, how powerful of a god are you?"
"Heh, you still don't get it, do you?"
The "God" has wide eyes.
"This is none other than the system designed by the Forgotten Dragon King Himself, rejoice... You can now see his benevolence."
.
.
.
"Understood, I and the gods will become administrators and live according to the world's will. I give you my thanks, outsider."
.
.
.
In reality, they too, had humane desires. When you're an entity that lived a thousand years you'd want a peaceful life or an entertainment.
None of them seemed to want to leave their throne. So despite Akihito's dismay, the gods in this universe stayed the same.
They just stopped making grand plans to involve humans in an endless cycle of battles and rebirth to harvest their faith.
As of now, the "spiritual realm" where the gods live was reconstructed by the Voice of the world, making it a realm like the Cardinal world's underworld.
The quest itself ordered Akihito and the gang to overthrow "God," but that doesn't mean Akihito wants to replace "God." Just like Rimuru, he deemed he had too much already. He won't bother having another world to manage.
That's why he introduced the Voice of the world to this universe and turned the gods into a simple superior race living in an alternate realm.
But there's this too,
*Ding*
[Silver Wing has joined the server]
That title was obviously Tanya Von Degurechaff.
"Oi... Who the hell invited her?" Akihito whispered while pointing silently at the little girl who's playing with her phone.
"Hm? Well, she said she's also Japanese, so I think it's fine." Rimuru stated thus.
"Rimuru you..." Akihito had a sour face.
The slime actually made another phone and gave it to her.
From his own experience, he asked his ultimate skill (or Great Sage) to make the smartphone, gave it to someone else, and anyone else holding that phone will be invited to the group.
So he just simply did it once he understood Tanya was a reincarnated Japanese.
"You're an idiot, aren't you?"
"Uwa--!?? Hey! That was uncalled for!"
Akihito pinched the bridge of his nose. Akihito worked so hard to not 'accidentally' invite any other members, but somehow... This happens.
Tanya herself has shown the trait that Akihito is familiar with, despite saying she has a strong will to live peacefully, she is too, a psychopath.
Akihito only wonders why there have been so many of his kind that he accidentally met.
That's it, she's a human.
Meaning her evolution won't be an easy one.
Unbeknownst to Tanya, Akihito sealed her access to evolve into a sage/enlightened.
That would be by removing "Universal Affinity" from the Compendium and replacing it with Magic sensing.
"Um... it seems like I have become a new member of this... 'group,' I'm looking forward to working with all of you." Finally, the girl bowed down to her seniors.
Akihito glanced at her for a second before saying:
"Yeah, don't cause any troubles."
He became indifferent to her.
But, his ire from Rimuru hasn't faded yet.
"Tanya-kun, would you like to see Rimuru in a bunny suit?"
"HEY!"
At last, there's not that much of a problem with the group.
.
.
.
"W-who are you!??" This is Mary Sioux, after Akihito ate her soul he threw her inside a homunculus that looks just like her.
Akihito didn't bother having a conversation with her; all he did was throw another homunculus dressed with normal clothes and dumped a soul inside him.
"Since you humans are so simple, I believe this will suffice." That soul was Anton Sioux, her father who died by the hands of Tanya.
"Father!? Is that you!?"
And Akihito simply walks away.
If somehow they were separated again from each other, then he won't come to help them. If they wreck havoc over a war that no one clearly asked for, that will be on Tanya.
So Akihito has decided to leave all the work to Tanya. End of conversation.
.
.
.
To be continued.
