There were a lot of things that Frey wanted to ask when he finally got to meet God. Questions from 4,000 years ago.
However, Frey put aside his numerous questions. First of all, he had to confirm whether the being in front of him was truly god or not.
âAre you Dauns?â
[You could say that.]
Frey felt like he was standing in front of Lord. However, the entity in front of him had basically denied being Lord.
Frey thought so too. They looked similar, but his aura was not the same as Lordâs.
[Iâve long wanted to meet you.]
âYou say that like youâve known me for a while.â
[Oh. Of course I did. Itâs impossible for me to not know you. You are the third candidate! You donât know how thrilled I was when I first sensed your presence.]
Dauns smiled brightly.
Frey furrowed his eyebrows.
âThe third candidate?â
[Unusual events require swift action. Thatâs why I came here personally. Congratulations, you are the first human to meet God face to face.]
Frey couldnât figure out what Dauns was trying to say.
This wasnât because he couldnât understand him. Instead, it was because Dauns didnât seem to pay any attention to his words.
âI am a Wizard.â
[So?]
âThis means that unless I witness something with my own eyes, I will not be able to believe it.â
[Now that you mention it, most Wizards are atheists.]
His smile didnât go away as he said these words.
[So? You want me to prove that I am God? Haha. What a blasphemous guy.]
ââŚâ
[But it makes sense.]
Frey was speechless.
âHe doesnât feel like a god.â
This thought couldnât help but appear in Freyâs mind the more he heard Dauns talk. His attitude was careless, and he spoke freely.
It was at that moment that Dauns started laughing and nodded.
[Everyone always expects us to have an outrageous attitude. Naturally, itâs not hard to live up to those expectations. I could show the image of an absolute being who transcends the world. But I donât. Do you know why?]
Frey didnât answer this question.
Instead, his expression hardened.
âWas reading the thoughts of other people without permission one of the things you wanted to show?â
[It makes it easier for me if I can understand what the other person is thinking. Like this. Donât you think that itâs more likely for me to be God now?]
He truly did have a slight thought like that.
After all, even if he had formidable insight, it wouldâve been impossible for Dauns to tell Freyâs inner thoughts. This was naturally since Freyâs mental power, which had been tempered by his numerous hardships, far surpassed that of normal humans.
He couldnât confirm whether this being before him was God or not, but that was certainly something that mortals couldnât even hope to imitate.
âYou said âusâ before. That means there are multiple gods.â
[WellâŚ]
âAre you proclaiming yourself as God without having a firm grasp of your identity? Iâm starting to doubt who you are now.â
Freyâs snide remark only made Dauns shrug.
[Not even the most eloquent speakers could ever hope to properly explain the word God, but fine. Iâll answer your little question. Every âGodâ that exists in this world refers to me.]
His statement seemed vague at first glance, but Frey could see the truth behind his words.
âDonât tell me this isâŚâ
Dauns laughed.
[Haha. You truly have transcended mortals. I canât believe you managed to guess my identity after such a simple clue.]
ââŚI see.â
Frey sighed.
âSo you are the âlawâ.â
The Law of the World. Or its will.
The huge chunk of energy from which the Demigods fell. That was the identity of the being in front of him who called himself God.
âIs this Dauns?â
When Frey had asked this question, heâd replied that âhe could say thatâ.
He wasnât lying. But it wasnât entirely true either.
This existence was the very source of divine beings.
It was clear now that all the religions on the continent, and the various gods they believed in, were all derived from this being.
However, this didnât answer all of his questions.
Instead, the biggest question still remained.
[But⌠he said the will of the world had no consciousness.]
These were Rikiâs words, and Frey didnât doubt them.
Dauns nodded.
[You probably heard that from the beings you call Demigods. Itâs not entirely wrong.]
âWhat?â
[Hmm. How should I explain itâŚ]
As he said these words, he held his chin as if he was thinking deeply.
This caused Frey to feel even stranger. This was because such an attitude felt too human.
Frey didnât believe in God, but he thought if He existed, He would be an absolute, perfect, and omnipotent being.
However, this being standing in front of him seemed far from that.
[To put it in a way that you would understandâŚ. Right. You can say that Iâm usually absent.]
Just before, Frey had been able to guess his identity with only a small hint, but now, he had no idea what he was thinking.
Frey asked back in a soft voice.
âAbsent?â
[Because Iâm busy. I canât afford to control everything in the world. I just set the laws so that it wouldnât fall into the depths of destruction. After that, my style has been to leave it unattended.]
âThatâs irresponsible.â
[Hmm. Thatâs true. So I will not try to argue with you.]
This was said in a very uncaring tone.
Looking at him with a solemn gaze, Frey said.
âWhat about the prophecies that you give to the Great Medium? Is that also part of the laws you set?â
[Itâs more efficient than telling them the solution after the incident has occurred. Because, the best way to stop a disaster is to prevent it. Sometimes, such people are born. Those who can feel my presence more clearly. So itâs possible for me to show them what dangers the continent will face ahead of time.]
God did not directly inform the Great Medium about the dangers of the continent. If the âlawâ which always monitored the continent detected a threat beyond a certain standard, it would send a warning to someone like her.
That was the truth of âGodâs revelationsâ.
What kind of expression would the Great Medium have if she heard this?
Frey had this thought for a moment, but he pushed it aside for even more important questions.
âYou must be aware of the current situation in the continent.â
[Right.]
ââŚThe Demigods have revealed their fangs. They are thinking about using a metal called Illuminium to avoid the lawâs punishment and subjugate the mortals.â
[Thatâs right.]
It seemed he already knew all of this.
Frey clenched his fist.
âThen do you plan to just watch them do that?â
[You said it yourself. They are avoiding the lawâs punishment. Therefore, thereâs nothing I can do.]
For the first time since they started talking, Frey became truly angry.
âSome religious people believe God will only give humans trials they can overcome.â
Dauns had a hint of interest in his voice.
[Thatâs a pretty plausible statement.]
âThen why are you not making a move? Is it because you think the continent needs to face such a bloodbath? Or is it that you think it will not reach the level of a disaster?â
[Thatâs a very human opinion. Donât try to force your thoughts upon me. I have no intention of getting involved in this world I created.]
Frey became speechless for a moment.
This was because Daunsâ voice had become serious for the first time. The playfulness that heâd displayed so far was no longer visible.
[âDaunsâ is revered as the God of Creation in the island country Hitume Ikar. Right. I am the God of Creation. I created everything in this world. Do you understand? Everything. Not just the humans. Even the Demigods were created by me.]
ââŚso whether itâs the Demigods or the humans, they are things you created. And thatâs why you wonât choose a side?â
[I created this world a very long time ago, and in that time, many species have appeared and disappeared. Whatâs interesting is that few of them failed because they failed to adapt or failed to evolve. Most of them went extinct at the hands of other species.]
âDoes that mean that it is now the humansâ turn?â
[That might not be true. Huhu. This is how it is. Iâm not sure how to make you understand. I donât care about what is done or how many species are destroyed. All I care about is the world itself.]
ââŚâ
The moment he heard those words, Frey couldnât help but feel that this being might actually have been God.
After talking for so long, Frey was now able to grasp a bit of what the other was thinking and his mindset.
This, in itself, was amazing as even the Great Medium, who had been alive for hundreds of years, had been seen through by Frey immediately. However, despite their lengthy conversation, he was still unable to fully understand the other.
Instead, the more they talked, the more questions he seemed to have. It was clear that the root of their thoughts was completely different.
ââŚwhy did such a busy being like you decide to reveal yourself to me? Does it have something to do with the candidate thing you mentioned before?â
[As I expected, youâre easy to talk to.]
Playfulness returned to his voice.
[Listen closely. There are three worlds in the universe. They are closely connected because they are âneighbouring worldsâ, and itâs possible for them to interfere with each other as long as certain conditions are met.]
ââŚby neighbouring world, do you mean the Demon World?â
[Right. Exactly. Hmm. But have you ever heard of the Celestial World?]
The topic was sudden, but Frey shook his head without being shocked.
âThis is my first time hearing about it. But I assume you are referring to Heaven.â
Frey knew a bit about Heaven as he had been interested in the afterlife. It was said to be a paradise to which only the souls of those with good characters could go after death.
A world where you could feel fullness and restfulness just by staying still, without ever experiencing boredom. Where you could have all kinds of fruits, foods, and alcohol.
That was the definition of Heaven that Frey knew.
[The Celestial World and Heaven are different. Then Iâll change my question. Do you know Angels?]
âThey are the inhabitants of Heaven.â
[Thatâs not it. Well. Itâll take too long for me to explain little by little, so listen carefully. In the past, I created three worlds in this universe. The Mortal World, the Demon World, and the Celestial World.]
ââŚâ
The Mortal World referred to the world to which Frey belonged. The Demon World, also called Hell, was the land of the Demons. But this was his first time hearing about the Celestial World.
âMoreover.â
Why was he suddenly telling him this?
Frey wondered this, but he didnât open his mouth. After all, this being could read his thoughts, so he probably knew what Frey was thinking about already.
âIâm sure my questions will be answered if I continue listening to him.â
Freyâs prediction was correct.
[Just like the Demon World, there were six great beings who watched over the Celestial World. To be precise⌠there were supposed to be. The Celestial World. That would have been the case if this world, which I had put the most effort into, didnât have a fatal flaw.]
Dauns spoke in a sad voice and slowly shook his head.
[âŚthis âflawâ eventually led to the destruction of the Celestial World, and the mighty souls that belonged there were sucked into a vortex of will. And as I said, I was busy, so I couldnât afford to pay attention to it at that time. This vortex of will then spat the souls out of the Celestial World. Unable to return to the Celestial World, these fallen souls fell to the Mortal World.]
Frey felt a chill down his spine. It was as though a bolt of lightning struck his head and traveled down to his feet.
What heâd heard before and what he was hearing now combined, and he was naturally able to draw a conclusion.
ââŚno wayâŚâ
[They are outcasts. For whatever reason, they were kicked out of their own world. Thatâs why itâs not strange that they mistook themselves as fragments separated from the will of the world because they lost their memories when they fell to the Mortal World. So itâs not completely wrong.]
Frey looked at him with wide eyes.
He didnât get chills anymore. Instead, they were replaced by a suffocating feeling.
[The Demigods were originally the beings who were supposed to rule over the Celestial World. And the one you call Lord is special among them. It is possible for him to hear my voice directly through space and time. If it wasnât for the setbacks, I would have favoured him more than anyone else in the universe, and I gave him a special name as proof of this.]