Chapter 219

The beautiful girl who was forced to become the ruler of the Tokyo area at only sixteen, the third generation of the Holy Emperor, raised her head and looked out the window at the sky, which had turned an unnatural shade of blue. She could hardly believe her eyes.

"Why is the sky like this?" she muttered.

She was certain that this was not a normal phenomenon. Even the most powerful weapons she had seen in documentaries could not cause such a complete change in the sky's color.

The Holy Emperor turned to the old man beside her. "Assistant officer, have you ever seen such a sight in all your experience?"

Tendo Kikunochei shook his head, snapping out of his daze. "I'm sorry, Holy Emperor, I have never witnessed anything like this. In myths and legends, such celestial events were said to be manifestations of the gods, or warnings from heaven—but that was always dismissed as superstition."

He hesitated, then added, "However, Holy Emperor, regarding the Bill of Rights for the Cursed Children—I must say—"

In his mind, giving those cursed children the same rights as ordinary people was naive. Maintaining order in various regions now depended on channeling people's emotions against the Cursed Children. Without that, the people would direct their anger toward the ruling class instead.

There was no way he could allow the "Bill of Rights for Cursed Children" to pass.

Just as people were looking up and murmuring about the changes in the sky, the entire planet was enveloped in the power of Barbatos.

After completing this, Barbatos began to reveal his holiness to the world.

His projection appeared in the sky above every area where humans lived. A cyan light shone over the center of every city.

"What is that? It's glowing!"

"Look! There's a glowing figure in the sky! What's going on?"

"Is it some new kind of weapon developed by the government?"

As people exclaimed in confusion, the presence of divine energy filled the air.

Though humans had no prior knowledge of gods, upon feeling that power, they instinctively knew what it was—a god.

The Holy Emperor looked up at the glowing figure above, her face filled with shock. "A god..."

Tendo Kikunochei's face twisted in disbelief, his voice cracking as he whispered, "A god!"

He had just dismissed myths and legends as nonsense, and now a god had appeared before them.

The people were either kneeling, praying fervently for blessings, or staring up with mouths agape. Even the blind could feel the presence of the divine.

A little girl with a cloth tied over her eyes clasped her hands and prayed. On the outskirts of Tokyo, a group of young, ragged children stared in awe at the figure in the sky.

One of them, a little girl, tugged on the pant leg of an older man beside her. "Elder, is that the Lord God?"

Matsuzaki, a kind-hearted man who had taken in abandoned children, quickly pulled her down to kneel. "Children, kneel quickly and pray to the god for blessings."

Though he could barely feed the children, Matsuzaki ensured they at least did not starve. He took care of them because he could not bear to see them suffer. Now, with a god revealed before them, all he wished was for the children to be fed and cared for.

On the top of a building, a man in a red tuxedo and clown mask looked at the sky, a girl with short blue hair standing beside him.

"A god! There really is a god in this world!" He opened his arms, laughing. "Hahaha, great god! Have you finally tired of this terrible world?"

The little girl beside him tugged on his sleeve, her red eyes filled with curiosity. "Dad, what's a god?"

In a hospital, a disheveled woman with long purple hair stood at a window, looking out at the sky. She wore a lab coat over her clothes, her eyes filled with disbelief. "A god..."

She was once one of the Four Sages, known as the most brilliant mind in the country and responsible for the "New Human Creation Project." She had never believed in the existence of gods—and yet, one had appeared.

Why had this divine presence arrived now, and not when the gastroenterovirus had first emerged?

Just as people around the world were looking up with a mixture of awe, hope, and skepticism, the figure of Barbatos spoke.

"People of this world, I would like to introduce myself here."

"My name is Barbatos, the God of Breeze and Hope. I have come to save this world by divine will."

Barbatos sensed all the human cities on the planet, and his initial seriousness turned to pity.

Everywhere, humans were abandoning, harming, and even killing young girls—girls who were pure-hearted, innocent, and kind.

Human civilization was deteriorating, and its values were twisted beyond repair. The information from Lord Tianli had hinted at the necessity of purging this world. Initially, Barbatos had hesitated, wondering if perhaps there were more innocents than his lord had estimated.

Now he understood: this was a civilization in collective decay, and unless the corrupted parts were entirely cut away, all of humanity would fall into darkness.

According to Lord Tianli's standards, 70% of humanity in this world would need to be purged.

When people heard the divine proclamation, they reacted with fervor.

"The gods have come to save us!"

"Thank goodness! Pray that the gods wipe out all the gasterozoans!"

"Yes, bring back the old world!"

"Why didn't the gods come sooner?"

Half of these voices carried anger, questioning why the gods had not saved them earlier. Barbatos, hearing them, understood why Lord Tianli remained so cold.

He could sense depravity among humanity that far exceeded the corruption of Mondstadt's aristocratic era.

With a sigh, Barbatos continued:

"Humans, I shall wipe out the gasterozoans from your world."

Before the people could begin to cheer, he continued:

"However, though gods love humanity, our love is not unconditional. Only those with pure hearts will see the new era."

"The rest shall be wiped out along with the gasterozoans, by the will of Heaven."