The World I Was Supporting Was Real - Chapter 58



58. I’m a God, You Know.

No matter how many times I checked, the monsters weren’t even picking a fight, they were maintaining an incredibly courteous demeanor.

—Even though the monsters’ words were nothing but shrieks to Erin and the other paladins.

And, the expressions on the soldiers’ faces shown in the panel…

Sweating buckets, they looked absolutely terrified.

The monsters’ art was so detailed and terrifying, it was easy to understand why.

It wasn’t just “terrifying.” The depictions were so vivid, it made me wonder if the artist had always been this good at drawing creatures.

Honestly, if something like that showed up in my dreams, it’d be the worst nightmare imaginable.

Even Ophelia, Luca, and Linea, my companions who’d walked the path of a knight, wore heavy expressions, clearly feeling intimidated by the monsters.

Actually.

Since it’s just a comic, personally, I wanted to see Ophelia’s action scenes just once.

Luca and Linea were both outstanding knights—they’re said to have skills revered even among knights. If they could just slice through a few monsters here and put on a grand show, I’d see her in a new light, too.

Even if she had such a low intellect that she couldn’t even memorize a single simple fact, she’d effortlessly take down high-level monsters so vicious they scared everyone else?

That’s the gap moe right there. A predictable, but delicious cliché.

There’s nothing quite like a musou to easily show off a paladin’s cool feats.

That’s all I was expecting from this scene.

Some hardship is fine, though. God’s always watching over them, so what’s the problem?!

Okay. The problem was—

In my eyes, I saw the monsters’ extraordinarily gentlemanly true intentions.

[Iguogwodon: Wait a sec]

[Iguogwodon: Next round, we’re getting into combat?]

[PleaseGiveMeMoney: That’s correct]

[PleaseGiveMeMoney: Perhaps are you planning to clean up the monsters directly using ‘Divine Power’?]

[Iguogwodon: The opposite]

[Iguogwodon: Can you halt the fight for a sec? Does that need power too?]

[PleaseGiveMeMoney: Since Erin, who is already sufficiently synchronized with you, Iguogwodon-nim, exists, conveying a message of that extent shouldn’t be difficult]

[PleaseGiveMeMoney: Is there by any chance a problem?]

[Iguogwodon: Problem or not, the monsters don’t want to fight, you know?]

[PleaseGiveMeMoney: ?]

What now?

I downed a cup of cold water I’d already poured.

[Iguogwodon: I’m talking about the lines in the brackets]

[ I_GUO_GUO_DUN : You’re saying you don’t want to fight ]

[ GIMME_MONEY : Ah… ]

[ GIMME_MONEY : I_GUO_GUO_DUN-nim, can you perhaps hear the monsters’ voices? ]

“Ha!”

The author’s incredibly brazen reply made me chuckle involuntarily.

You’re acting like that, after typing all the dialogue yourself?

Even a dog at a school learns to recite poems after three years.

After doing so many 1:1 roleplays with this crazy author who gets so immersed it’s mind-boggling, I’ve now gained a certain confidence in my own WWE performance.

Let’s go, I dare you.

[ I_GUO_GUO_DUN : Yeah ]

[ I_GUO_GUO_DUN : I can hear the monsters’ voices ]

[ I_GUO_GUO_DUN : And they want to talk, not fight ]

[ I_GUO_GUO_DUN : If you’ve become a god, shouldn’t you listen to even the story of a mere monster? ]

[ GIMME_MONEY : Understood ]

[ GIMME_MONEY : The will of the god must be fulfilled. I will relay this to Erin-yang immediately ]

So, the fight’s been stopped for now, right?

Good. I am God. The one and only God, I-Gwo-Gwo-Dun. That’s just a plain fact…

After a light self-brainwashing, I carefully placed my hands on the keyboard.

[ I-Gwo-Gwo-Dun : So, the monster’s voice sounds weird to Erin and those paladins, right? ]

[ GiveMeMoney : It’s not so much weird as… terrifying, I think is a more accurate description ]

[ GiveMeMoney : They’re only holding up because of their training, a normal civilian would be terrified just by the pressure alone and just collapse, becoming a helpless victim to the monster’s horrific actions ]

[ I-Gwo-Gwo-Dun : No, no, I mean, the monster doesn’t want to fight right now ]

[ GiveMeMoney : You did say that for sure… for a monster to not want to fight, well, I can’t help but be surprised ]

[ GiveMeMoney : All the demons we’ve seen so far were extremely ferocious and hostile towards humans… ]

[ I-Gwo-Gwo-Dun : Well, putting that aside ]

[ I-Gwo-Gwo-Dun : Yeah ]

I don’t know the details exactly, but –

The monster wanted to communicate. That was clear in the parentheses.

Some problems were resolved by triggers far simpler than you’d think.

Communication was a prime example. A tangled mess, seemingly impossible to unravel because of a lack of it, could be easily smoothed out just by talking things through – *that* was the true power of communication.

So, no matter how monstrous it looked.

Even if it had an unpleasant and frightening voice.

If you wanted peace, you had to offer a chance to talk, didn’t you?

[GiveMeMoney: Directly interfering with monsters affected by the continent’s magic… ]

[GiveMeMoney: It’s possible, I think…]

[LeeGweoGweoDeon: *I think?*]

[GiveMeMoney: Well, like I said, with divine power, nothing is impossible.]

[GiveMeMoney: It’s just a matter of how much power is needed depending on the situation…]

So, it was gonna be expensive, then.

Granting the authority to naturally communicate with monsters was probably difficult within the world’s lore.

Setting a high price wasn’t something I couldn’t understand.

[LeeGweoGweoDeon: How much do you think you’ll need?]

[GiveMeMoney: To change the world from the roots up and enable smooth communication between monsters and humans, I think we’d need approximately ₩326,650 worth of divine power.]

[GimmeMoney: This is a matter that shakes the very foundations, so it required a great deal of power, making it difficult to speak of carelessly]

Well… It *is* a bit pricey.

It’s not like I don’t have the money.

But if it were for kids I’d already grown attached to, like Erin or Eirene, or even a plate of Holy Knight – well, that’s one thing.

But to coldly spend it on a monster I just met? That’s a sum I’m a little hesitant to burn through.

[GimmeMoney: In that case, it would require about 2,500 won of power per sentence]

From noble mtl dot com

[GimmeMoney: However, it will likely be delivered only to those with a strong belief in the divine]

That, I could definitely pay.

But… is this really the best way?

I scrolled back up to look at the monsters again.

They were still horrifying. Honestly, they possessed a hideous appearance that inspired zero positive feelings.

But what would everyone else think?

How would a Saintess who insisted on communicating with hideous monsters be received?

Wouldn’t some ridiculous rumor start, about the Order being in cahoots with monsters, spouting some nonsense about God’s something-or-other?

Of course, it’s not like there’s *no* way to put a stop to all of that.

If they get on my nerves, a quick sponsorship button tap would do the trick. Forcing my will, point-blank, wouldn’t be impossible.

But.

Is that the kind of “good world” that Erin, who always prays to me, saying, “Thank you for creating a good world,” “Thank you for having compassion for us and sharing straightforward facts,” is hoping for?

Above all, I wanted to give Linea an answer to her worries.

Even if it’s just to win over her, who still doesn’t trust Erin, I figured there might be a slightly better way than just pushing forward relentlessly.

If there’s truly no other way, then so be it, but at least looking for one wouldn’t hurt, would it?

They might think I’m pointlessly taking a harder, roundabout path.

Even so, if that path is better, shouldn’t I take it?

After all— I *am* a god.

[Iguogwodeon: So, it looks like the Demon Lord has probably appeared, since I heard the monsters saying something along the lines of “the Demon Lord wants to talk.”]

[Iguogwodeon: From what I heard the others say earlier, it seems the Demon Lord doesn’t necessarily appear just because a Saint appears, right?]

[Iguogwodeon: So, could we look into the Demon Lord’s side first?]

[GiveMeSomeMoney: You speak of the Demon Lord?]

[IguGwodun: Yeah. He’s awakened, right?]

[GimmeMoney: I’ll check immediately]

If I could figure out what the Demon King was thinking when he said that, maybe I could find the answer there –

Thinking that, I probably spent about 20 minutes or so.

While I was zoning out, a notification popped up saying there was new dialogue.

[GimmeMoney: It seems, as IguGwodun said, the Demon King has opened his eyes.]

[GimmeMoney: You can really hear the monster’s voice… Should I really call you IguGwodun, I wonder?]

[IguGwodun: ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Yeah whatever]

[IguGwodun: Observe and tell me about the Demon King]

[IguGwodun: Like how you showed me the Saint Knights’ stories before, just like that]

[IguGwodun: You can do it, right?]

[GimmeMoney: Of course, IguGwodun]

[GimmeMoney: I also greatly sympathize with your cause, IguGwodun]

[GimmeMoney: However, it may take some time, so please understand.]

‘Sympathize with my cause? Man, this guy’s always sucking up to me in a new and different way.’

Time, well, it’s like drawing a new one-shot comic.

If it’s not something I had prepared beforehand, it’s gonna take time, obviously.

[Ygweogweodon: Yup, it’s ok, it’s ok)]

[Please give me money: Then, please wait just a moment]

This time it took much longer than 20 minutes.

Because the smartphone alarm went off right around the time I was finishing up shutting down my computer, eating dinner, washing dishes, and showering, getting ready for bed.

[Please give me money: xcqw.wo.to ＜＜＜ As requested, this is the result of observing the demon king. Please confirm ]

‘Nice.’

Let’s see what kind of situation prompted them to say something like that.

Thinking that, I opened the link to the one-shot comic the artist sent.

* * *

—Demon King.

It was, unexpectedly, birthed much earlier than anticipated.

The magic power, strengthened by the influence of the divine love—authority— given in a much larger amount than usual, drastically accelerated the time of the demon king’s descent.

As soon as the demon king was born, he could feel the will of his predecessor.

No, in a way, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it was born carrying the will of its predecessors.

The being, destined to oversee all demons, the first thing it confronted upon gaining consciousness—a single conclusion.

“Humans will not tolerate our existence. Dialogue is absolutely impossible.”

Simultaneously with confronting that conclusion, records of the past seeped into the Demon Lord’s mind.

Records, records of its kin, born far earlier than itself, those who had to bear the burden of Demon Lord before it did.

Most of those memories were horrific, filled with blood, but—its mental fortitude was strong enough to absorb those memories without flinching.

And so, the Demon Lord, capable of logical thought from the very moment of its descent, pondered the legacy that countless previous Demon Lords had passed down, thinking.

Could it not be different?

Even if the history with humans has been a terrible record drenched in blood, if they are intellectual beings capable of conversation, wouldn’t it be possible to talk to each other?

This was the first thought of the Demon Lord, descended to the mortal realm much faster than usual due to the influence of divine power.

Was it the influence of the divine love poured down in such abundance?

It was a truly frivolous thought for the leader of demons, the Demon Lord, to entertain.