Chapter 196: The Mercy of God (1)
BGpRyVwThe Liquor of Anecdotes.OAONP
VJ8A technique that melts humans to create giants.HztAB
r8SDVIn the idea of merging multiple individuals into a single one, there was no space for the dignity of life.K35QX
9LTbruLiving beings reproduce and expand their descendants.seTFjo
EdE1a0But the technique of Heaven went in the opposite direction to that natural structure.jzxMIW8
ZefMpvHThrough the life record, the life expectancy of the faithful was controlled, and when the population increased, they were integrated as giants to keep the number stable.QIvjbd
0ROIf that was the will of Ra, then the Liquor of Anecdotes was the central system that sustained Heaven.kE2DMg
9ipyvShirone and the others gathered around the table to discuss.btd2
0XXWvXeAfter witnessing the cruel thinking of Heaven, the tension was more intense than ever.FDqjW3
TrrThe first thing was to decide what to do about Peophe.PNCV
rXXxIf she reported them to her superiors, Kanya’s house would not be safe either.OF2i
sGwqC“We have to leave now. Peophe will bring more reinforcements.”8GPh
cIYKanis supported moving.72FUB
UTNuPeophe was not particularly strong, but she was only one year old.qWV3aS
nYKrPUSThey did not know what abilities other fairies might have, so it was better to avoid combat.yk5dP
VgsZLD“There is no need to worry so much. Shirone is a Nephilim. According to the law, Nephilim are not subject to it. A fairy cannot harm him.”1yoXT2
o2OBKanya, as a believer, firmly believed in the law.kByniJs
xVNBBut no one answered.He3Uy
RrkrSince they arrived, they understood that a Nephilim was not omnipotent.16Cm
3g4cJZ3He was free from the law of Heaven, yes, but precisely because of that, interfering with it provoked more violent reactions.iD65L
BDq0oX“Shirone, you decide. We will follow your will.”AZeHTW
7fgAmy gave him the choice.sc0I5U
o9zPFrom Heaven’s perspective, heretics were an impurity.fdRaxr
jNLZI0wIf they wanted to try something, they could only use Shirone as the main figure.i1qT
aFiOWc“It will be better to spend the night here. I do not think Peophe will betray us. She has no reason to. Besides, we have the metagate. If the worst happens, we escape.”rTTFj
4j6JShirone trusted Peophe.PrT
wNHpShe was eccentric, but she reduced Kanya and Lena’s sentence to one year.rfNRNN
uEH33eShe did not seem like someone who, having enough intelligence for self-criticism, would let emotions worsen the situation.wcgOK
AVCCtLWhat truly worried him was Kanya.YzG
HWFeYtBTomorrow, her mother would receive the Liquor of Anecdotes.ACI
OfOSG2For a human being who had lived obsessed with individuality, merging with others was terrifying.Iixe
YAo“Now I understand why you did not want to talk about the Liquor of Anecdotes. But Kanya, do you really accept it like that? What I saw…”WlQ7m
dj4U“I know. It is unfair. I know it too.”l9zM
pzy3LzKanya admitted it easily.urjRM
5TZ3zFor someone who until recently had called it a sacred technique, it was a strong statement.5nH
OIRz9But Shirone did not find it strange.ZKSd
WcnFaith and emotions are not the same.b2Vo
5nl“I am not stupid. If I said I never doubted, I would be lying. But what does that change? If you do not believe in God, you die. If you believe, you obtain eternal life. There is no choice.”3FqUa
10TJOFor the first time, Kanya pronounced the word death.qVQ6jk
3iumJdShe knew that death existed even in Heaven.aCXW
XTb086“If you are going to stay, I will prepare a place for you to rest. Come.”qRyR
jzQHHQWhen she pressed a button on the panel, a side section of the building opened and another structure flew over and connected with the house.BhVQZ7
bH2AShirone and the others looked at it in surprise.BFWiP
lExKanya explained that most families possessed several units.cBUo
yKoSV“Hehe. The meca like to receive guests.”Vy3EM
As9JhItHer smile hurt Shirone.CmEm
iuZIh***Q5p
UQRThat night, Kanya and Lena shared a bed.E8tUxEj
P51Their hearts were beating so strongly that they could not sleep.MzLJzG
P8l3dBThey did not cry.mW4xu5
bUwdMeUEach waited for the other to start first.Yvv
82MtPifAfter turning around for a while, Lena turned over.OZXLGS
jMkfQb“Sister… tomorrow Mom will no longer be here?”IQgdnPu
mPqKanya looked sadly at her younger sister, who would lose her mother at such a young age.C5pk
dw5She gently stroked her hair.wuY
ngRhnThen Lena said something unexpected.J7cC3yA
SsIpvC“If it is Shirone… I can give him to you.”oeT1
8ltUbKanya slightly frowned.zYzQkXp
KbXdThere was surprise on her face, but also something touched by truth.23un
q8JV8“What are you saying? Shirone is a Nephilim. How could I share my life with someone like that?”kBHM0yA
5gj4f“But you would never go out with a heretic. And someone like Shirone you will never find again. This is your opportunity. You have to take advantage of it.”sdSJwpt
ddXKanya held back her tears.vbl
paBnR8tShe understood her sister’s heart perfectly.3f3M
jiodTomorrow their mother would no longer be at home.6u3
3IwoqGLena wanted to fill that emptiness with a new family.FXp
bFOIj“Hehe… but you also like him, right? If Shirone were my husband, you would not be able to stand it. You would be jealous of me every day.”GxG4
gxjqH“No! I am serious! If it is you, I can give him up!”dkwu
xzFKHKanya smiled.Ip6f
pMMIap0Both knew that nothing would happen with Shirone.XBGtu
IgA8VIt was just a nighttime conversation between girls.90KRV
UwvLena curled up like a cat in the rain.wyTvd
3vfu1gKanya hugged her and kissed her forehead.L0S5m
hwGDV“Do not worry, Lena. For me, you are the only one.”WM8
XR98BhqLena’s eyes slowly closed.sdF
Tk82KThus passed her final night.UPoU9v
MmKa***TUL5At
jVVedhShirone and the others were resting in the room that Kanya had prepared for them.jiUwM
dYdrMxVToo many things had happened in a single day.7jsSH1b
KYVNot even among friends did conversation flow.ow0
iaZ0ZEach one was lost in their own thoughts.1Po
84lTess pretended to cry and said,1M72nD
ih5nh“What if we go back now? Too much has happened in just one day. Honestly, this is exhausting.”ILrD2r
Tx7tEveryone was thinking something similar.hu59sNL
IcJy7RtHow many battles had they faced in barely twelve hours?9sLbd
rs5And each enemy was absurdly powerful compared to the original world.9BbBVB
6FbfLZIt was not only the fatigue.b8Y
60p2q6kThe secrets of Heaven seemed endless.606c
SLYargThe overload of information made them dizzy.84S
d8nzbdKanis spoke.9QOGbG
L0wbBU“We cannot. We have come this far. Arin and I must go to the Seventh Heaven, Arabot.”3jfz4AN
gLAcdIf they had only wanted to visit Shamayin as tourists, they would not even have tried to come.PSbG
u8jYiJOnce in Heaven, they could not recover the metagate.6HUx0
r0IBThe price of the ticket had been, literally, an ancient artifact.JN1
RkeAmy hugged her pillow and turned around.bh3NE
LJb“But Arabot is where God lives, right? It must be the hardest place to enter even in Heaven. How are we supposed to get there?”eoQm4BW
PZnIMT“I will take care of it, so do not worry. If you are afraid to go, stay here waiting.”ysg
NA3X5“Oh, really? Now you openly despise us? What if we just go back first?”MWqD
YrD8f“That would be even worse. If we activate the metagate here, the memory resets. It is single-use. If we stay, there would be no way to return.”T9B4aBO
Cl9ZhAmy hit the floor with the pillow and sat up abruptly.uy5P3Id
PsqOb2t“Huh? Does it really work like that? Then if we want to return, we have to take you with us, right?”Dw3lv7
Fs5ax“Of course. You had not understood that until now, pumpkin?”F0S
93rN0“Pumpkin? Have you ever seen a pumpkin as beautiful as me?”yoVGCu
5lB3“Yes. I think the one attached to your neck is one.”cvC5xm
NCSAmy ground her teeth.JpSyw3
qWLwShe did not know whether it was a compliment or an insult, but Kanis had silenced her.DitR
ab2Shirone hugged a pillow and sat down.EsG
OzO9O“I also do not intend to go back yet. But Kanis, we must use the metagate at the right moment. If we have other things in our heads besides surviving, we will hesitate at the decisive instant.”QlLq
HAyQv“Bah, I already know that. Leave it to Arin. If the situation really becomes dangerous, we leave without caring about anything.”E69
JGF“But there is something that worries me…”MzzAM
mLJTess lay on her side, resting her head on her hand.Hb9
2cBH1The curve of her body, from head to toe, was overwhelming.i6jFt49
qvo9WgZ‘She is an adult…’Scr3dy
5dTA‘Tess is an adult.’pgS
WFMoq5The gazes of the younger ones focused on her, but Tess, accustomed to it, paid no attention.qOXIwq
lTIhFBm“Here, how do they control life expectancy? Does a god who can manipulate it at will really exist?”NkmBYRt
MebrsEveryone became thoughtful.d9VIT
phhQg“I think it is magic. When we fought against Sister Marsha I felt something similar. It seems that for magic nothing is impossible.”OV6
b6huCsWithout a doubt, Clay Marsha’s ability surpassed imagination.QI1
3sgOwMqBut Amy, who had fought alongside her, shook her head.ZdQ
UAY“Hmm irregularities outside the norm. Reducing life might be possible depending on the price and conditions. But eternal life? No magic can extend life. That exceeds the human limit.”hu3
aZA“Oh really? I feel like there must be some method… hmm.”gEsfw
585GkijArin spoke then.cgR5v
SE8ewLw“Why does everyone see it so critically? Maybe Ra really is a god. He might not have created the world, but at least he could be a being close to divinity.”rCHhOVN
Crf“That is also strange. If he were truly a god, why would he need names to manipulate life expectancy?”sK8
cvaKxsVAs Amy said, the name is only a designation created by humans.ZPbz0Ya
Y0FLnThinking that an entity dependent on human language is divine made no sense.SnaF
lJP96iShirone intervened.LcX
au76hFn“Besides, does the Liquor of Anecdotes not seem evil to you? Whatever the reason, it treats human life as an object. Maybe Ra is only adjusting life expectancy to administer Heaven. The very idea that a god administers the world sounds absurd.”J4Ht
MNOf7His friends noticed Shirone’s negative tone toward Heaven.TwIoX3
hKFGood and evil are human concepts, changing according to the environment.LkoovSJ
Q2NiCyMaking a value judgment required extreme caution.PnjvlGq
7nITess said,VQn
aRMo“But we cannot do anything. It is the life they chose, their culture. And religion is an idea with an absolute position within a culture.”uhNc
cPpmO“It is not religion. We ourselves said that Ra is not a god.”tw3Ikv
E46“That does not matter. Even if he is not a god and is a dictator, it does not matter. Ra controls life expectancy. What is more important than that in a religion?”4RG6S
gJB6hShirone seemed to want to respond, but finally remained silent.G4h
OB1uWBAmy, watching him, understood that he was still searching for a way to save Kanya’s mother.yB7itlV
mBAw4She liked that part of him.S1Nvuc
xPUzAqjBut now they had to be cold.iuK
zmOG2O“What do you plan to do, Shirone? Tomorrow the Liquor of Anecdotes will take place. As Tess said, it is the decision of the faithful. We cannot intervene just because, according to our standards, it seems unfair.”R19NH
N5va“But Miro said she denied the law.”2Qa3IZR
WFEzo“Shirone, that is…”NyF
Lj3“I know. I am not trying to justify myself with her words. It is just that I am starting to feel something similar. I think now I can understand her a little.”UE9Y
OpHHe remembered what he heard in Nor’s Refuge about Miro.WYS5C
7C9WJyuEven though she denied the law, the old man’s mother said she did not hate her.KUx
o3SIf the faithful were nothing more than beings who obey Ra, how should that be interpreted?hMG
UbBWhat did Miro see and feel in Heaven?LpS
pdmiOakThe only certain thing was that tomorrow Shirone would also have to choose.GBp
K16d8Perhaps Miro was not wrong.2ALMk
m7sAe***DzBki
vWpjgNKFirst Heaven, Shamayin.FRF5Y
5virUDepartment of Administration of the Faithful, Branch 73 of the Fairy Realm.zXWaz
HzxEThe department where Peophe worked was located on the outskirts of Shamayin, near Purgatory.A2B
ormOIn the gigantic tree called the World Tree, hundreds of houses rose, and among them small fairies flew like larks.QpF
tCX86y8Peophe went deep into the World Tree.qxa
NFC3The residence of the department chief was much smaller than a human house, but for that same reason it appeared delicate and luxurious.TyNjG
e80N7mWhen she entered, the chief, Igirin, was sitting with her wings folded.fTWbg4c
9AguShe wore dark makeup around her eyes, and on her cheeks a design of golden vines shone.CW1AV
S1IShe was a fairy born from authority.g1fDG8
MfJ4But beyond that, by age she was an adult unreachable for Peophe.cCpFH
Xbm8oq9And her beauty made even other fairies admire her.65rf
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