Surviving without God

Vwoooosh!

Dimona’s stealth spec-drone glided soundlessly through the citadel. The device, darting between corridors and room doors, finally locked onto its target and adjusted its height slightly.

“Is that... no way...”

“Yes, we found it!”

A muffled burst of excitement escaped the platoon members and rescue team watching the screen. What they had found was the “Link” — the device Gunther had hidden somewhere in the depths of the citadel right before he was subjected to brainwashing. This item, gifted to Gunther by Dimona and costing her several thousand gold, was no ordinary communication tool. In this place, which had become a graveyard of magical technology, the “Link” served as the channel through which she could carry out “Hack.”

The drone carefully hooked the device and moved through the citadel again.

The machine reached the underground prison, steeped in the smell of damp stone. There, exhausted knights languished in confinement, speaking in voices full of despair.

“...I don’t even know how much time has passed anymore.”

“These last few days, it’s been suspiciously noisy outside. Those monsters are clearly planning something...”

Their combat strength was exceptional. For some reason, their brainwashing had been delayed, and their minds remained clear. However, the magical shackles completely sealing their hands and feet had robbed them of any options. All they could do was helplessly replay the worst possible scenarios in their heads in impotent fury.

“...Huh?”

At that moment, Albern’s eyes flashed.

Psh-sh-sht—

A small piece of metal dropped onto the prison floor with a strange sound. Before the jailer could turn around, Albern instantly covered it with his body. The other knights immediately understood.

A short silence. Then, as usual, they all began lamenting and sighing, imitating their routine despair. Outwardly, it looked as though nothing had happened.

Werner of House Camaril, representing the kingdom’s intelligence division, whispered so quietly he was almost inaudible:

“It’s a Link.”

“What?”

“A communication device.”

Albern turned toward the wall, choosing an angle invisible to the guard, and carefully pressed the Link to his ear.

Psh-sh-sht—

[...No answers or questions are required. From this moment on, I will transmit instructions one-way. If you wish to survive and save your homeland from Luthien’s grasp — obey.]

A voice altered by a mechanical filter. Albern swallowed and instinctively nodded.

[We are attacking the citadel to rescue our comrade. When the time comes, we will neutralize the shackles. Be prepared to assist.]

***

Yuria and Remesia were in a state of utter confusion. Yuria’s eyes widened at the fact that Remesia had embraced her. Remesia herself looked frightened and guilty — she had broken the rules of Audrey House for the first time, rules she had always followed as immutable law.

Dominic quickly calmed them down.

“You two, stop. Don’t overthink anything, just listen to me.”

Dominic had always played the role of the “older brother.” The girls, barely emerging from their panic, focused on his explanation.

Meanwhile, Gunther was occupied with something entirely different.

[Just now... what did you do?]

[Who the hell are you?]

[That power, could it be...]

[Isn’t that the might of that One-Eyed Crow? Why is it here?!]

The voices of the evil gods, which had gone silent the moment he entered Audrey House’s basement, now came pouring out like a flood. Gunther was now completely certain of their true nature.

Of course they were evil gods. Higher beings that had been drawn to Gunther in the future, fascinated by the horrific atrocities he committed under the effects of brainwashing. Powerful gods capable of perceiving the reversal of time and parasitizing his consciousness even in the past.

“At minimum... Official level. Since neither the Ruler of the Oceans nor the One Who Flies Ahead of the Wind managed to follow me.”

But they did not belong to Luthien.

The proof was that their voices had been blocked here, in the basement where the authority of the Seven Evil Gods dominated. And the moment that authority dispersed for an instant under the effect of “Deicide,” they manifested again immediately.

“Yes, it all fits.”

The picture had become clear. Because of his trait, Gunther himself could not form contracts with gods. Even while committing evil and accumulating dark Karma under Remesia’s control, he had never been directly tied to the faction of the Seven Evil Gods.

That was exactly why evil gods outside Luthien had begun circling him. After all, not every dark entity in this world had joined the Theocracy. There existed far older beings who had ruled over “evil” long before Luthien began swallowing the continent. Hadn’t there been scenarios in the main story where the hero received their aid?

“Good... this is even better.”

Gunther slowly inhaled. The escape plan from Audrey House was finally taking on a clear shape.

It was time to move to the next step.

“For now, all of you return to the residential wing and ask no questions.”

It was obvious from the girls’ faces that today’s incident would not leave this room for at least the next few days. Yuria couldn’t communicate with anyone anyway, and despite her shock, Remesia still hadn’t let go of Yuria’s hand. Gunther could rest easy.

“And one more thing, Dominic.”

Dominic turned around. Joy from the reunion was written on the boy’s face, but questions and confusion were frozen in his eyes. Gunther knew exactly the cause of that confusion and intended to eliminate it immediately.

“I have a request for you... something only you can do.”

At that moment, Dominic’s expression changed. Personal doubts and emotions, not yet spoken aloud, quietly withdrew. Only duty and responsibility remained in the boy’s eyes.

He answered in a calm voice that had not yet fully matured:

“I’ll do anything, Teacher.”

.

.

.

Gunther thought about Dominic.

Dominic Wolf. The protagonist of the original game Forgotten God.

This boy had been able to become the main character of a game with absurd difficulty for two reasons.

First, unshakable virtue.

Second, overwhelming innate talent.

He was a vessel of such scale that thousands of gods longed to contract with him. In the game, this brilliant gift manifested as the ability to change into any available class.

So naturally, the One-Eyed King had extended a hand toward him as well. Of course, not through a direct contract — the Seven Evil Gods would have noticed immediately.

But one thing had to be remembered: the One-Eyed King was a deity capable of transmitting his authority indirectly, provided Grand Crow paid the price. That had already been obvious during the initiation ceremony of Night Raven, when new recruits were granted skills.

In other words, the hypothesis that Dominic had received the One-Eyed King’s power in some form was entirely sound. It was probably why he had been able to approach Gunther while bypassing Audrey House’s surveillance.

“And that authority is most likely stealth.”

According to myth, the One-Eyed King lost his eye at the hands of the Seven Evil Gods while attempting to steal “all truth.” The authority he developed — “to know, yet not be revealed; to see, yet not be recorded” — had been his original power. Dominic, in this timeline, must have received part of that might.

...But Gunther knew. Dominic’s true value in the main storyline was not limited to divine favor or universal talent. In this world, there was a trait only he could possess.

Godslayer. Instigator. Signaler.

The “Godslayer” trait had passed to Gunther due to the interference of the ◇ entity. However, it could not be denied that Dominic still retained the right and potential to awaken the power of Godslayer in his own style.

Gunther had confirmed this at the exact moment he activated “Deicide.”

Bzzz-z-zzt!

“...Ah.”

When the scarlet flash swept through Seren Mayra’s chapel, neutralizing all divine power, Gunther’s gaze had been fixed on Dominic.

The boy, holding his breath, stared at the spectacle. It was the face of a bird that had never flown seeing one of its kind take wing for the first time. Fragmented emotions instantly converged at a single point, awakening a deeply sleeping instinct. A possibility he had never dared believe in... for the first time gained the weight of reality.

Yes. This power was meant to belong to Dominic.

The might of the Savior, capable of returning this world from the hands of the gods back to humanity.

And even if history had twisted and he now stood in the grasp of an evil god, Dominic’s noble foundation had not changed. Of that, Gunther was certain as he looked at the student before him.

“...You want me to use the power you used, Teacher?”

“You can do it. Trust me.”

Dominic only needed to see “Deicide” once to grasp its essence. He was nothing like Gunther, whose version of the skill was weakened and could only be used once in a lifetime.

And Dominic’s “Deicide” was the final condition needed to escape Audrey House.

Bzzz-z-zzt—

Gunther smiled faintly as he looked at the scarlet light blazing before him.

“See. I told you you could do it.”

Dominic did not smile. He merely stared with wide eyes at the new possibility in his hands... at the power of the Savior.

And for the first time, he secretly wished that this power would one day be used for good.

That the day would come when it saved someone’s despair.

For the first time, he quietly dreamed of a bright future that had not yet arrived.

***

Crunch, clatter-clatter—

Cheonmae’s head rolled across the snow.

The vivid crimson at the severed neck created a grotesque contrast against the pure white plain. But people’s gazes did not linger on it for long.

A far denser and clearer scarlet light had already seized the sky.

“Half-Day Arrow.” The final shot Cheonmae had fired with every ounce of her strength melted away without a trace inside that red radiance.

“That can’t be...”

“Ah...”

The platoon fighters and the rescue team stared in fascination at “it,” which had suddenly appeared above Barkel Castle.

Ryan muttered in a dry voice:

“The devil...”

Tarsha slowly shook her head.

“No. More like a deity.”

Boom — boom —

The scarlet radiance of “Deicide” pulsed like the heart of some living being. Every time the waves of that light spread, they were pressed lower... and lower into the earth.

What name could be given ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) to this phenomenon?

A red star?

A bloody apocalypse?

The man who had summoned that light gazed indifferently at the ground. His warmthless stare seemed to whisper to every living thing at his feet:

“This is the end.”

Click—

The deafening silence was broken by the sound of an umbrella opening.

A woman in a wolf mask slowly stepped forward. The shadow of the umbrella fell over the defeated Cheonmae, shielding her from the blood-red light in the sky. Only then did Cheonmae’s spilled blood become clearly visible.

Looking at it, the woman spoke in her usual emotionless voice:

“Everyone prepare for battle. Our opponent is the Hierarch of Light.”

But to that, she added:

“...Please, give it everything you have.”