Ubermensch – Chapter 181

Chapter 181

The Destroyer wasn’t looking at the First Mason.

Rather, he was using the blessing of stealth to hide himself from the First Mason’s sight.

Only someone who had ascended to the level of a god could see through the stealth cast by a god.

Therefore, the incarnation of Nodens, who was sitting on the Explorer, knew that the Destroyer had spoken to him.

The Destroyer’s fragment had been waiting.

Not for the First Mason, but for the incarnation of Nodens.

“Were you waiting for me?”

“Yes. I was.”

The Destroyer’s fragment and Nodens’ incarnation looked at each other.

“How did you know I would come?”

“If the Lord of Time falls to me, who else would he ask for help? You are the only being stronger than him, and stronger than me.”

“Originally, I planned to send Oztalon.”

“Oztalon is a pure, noble, and righteous god. That’s why it’s easy to know what he’s thinking. I just have to remember when I was still human. When I was still in the 28th century.”

The Destroyer’s fragment smiled a twisted smile.

“Was that Oztalon’s principle? Not to sacrifice the many for the few, nor to sacrifice the few for the many? Just by thinking about that, it’s really easy to figure out how to handle Oztalon.”

The Destroyer’s fragment scoffed.

“Sacrificing the many to save the few, sacrificing the few to save the many, and even…choosing not to choose either and sacrificing oneself, aren’t those all choices? Is there anyone easier to read than someone who makes the same choice in every situation?”

“Indeed.”

Nodens’ fragment nodded in understanding, his face expressionless.

“As long as there are people to save, Nodens cannot abandon them. And since he cannot wait 6 billion years while the Destroyer is active, he will eventually have to leave The Origin…”

“…And there is only one god who can wait 6 billion years in his place.”

“The only being who has already waited 6 billion years.”

“Nodens.”

The Destroyer’s fragment looked at Nodens’ incarnation.

“No matter how far the First Mason goes, he is destined to return to Earth. So, I just have to wait on Earth. For the First Mason…”

“…And for me, who is protecting him, to return.”

Nodens’ incarnation had an interesting expression on his face.

“Interesting. Destroyer.”

It was… a smile as twisted as the Destroyer’s fragment’s.

“Are you saying you used the Destroyer’s main body as bait to lure out Oztalon?”

“Yes.”

“And the real plan… was for you, the fragment, to make direct contact with me, the incarnation?”

“Yes.”

“But there is one flaw in that plan.”

“What is it?”

Nodens’ incarnation looked at the Destroyer’s fragment.

“You are no match for me.”

The Destroyer’s fragment only possessed divinity, but his divine power was at the level of a mere mortal. If he wanted to, he could destroy him with a snap of his fingers.

“Your power is no match for mine. Your fragment cannot defeat my incarnation, and your army cannot defeat my main body.”

“No, I’ve already defeated you.”

“What do you mean?”

“One sentence. Just one question is enough to defeat you.”

Nodens’ incarnation looked at the confident Destroyer’s fragment with interest.

“What is it?”

The Destroyer’s fragment opened his mouth.

“You…”

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The moment Oztalon arrived on Earth in The Origin, what he saw was the First Mason crying out in grief.

‘Nodens…’

The one who would become Nodens would live in solitude from now on. He would lose his human form, and even his human heart. In the near-eternal solitude and silence, only the strongest power in the universe would remain.

But along with compassion, there was also a sense of relief.

‘The Destroyer’s fragment did not touch him.’

It seemed that the Destroyer’s fragment had failed to cause Time Trouble. Of course, Nodens’ incarnation would have to keep watch for a long time to come, but it was reassuring that he was still safe.

This was because the First Mason would now become Nodens.

The strongest being in the universe, whom the Destroyer could not even approach.

“…”

At that moment, Oztalon realized.

That a being who should be there was nowhere to be seen.

‘Nodens’ incarnation? Where is he?’

Only then did Oztalon see the two gods.

Nodens’ incarnation, and someone with their back turned.

A white-haired giant with a silver arm.

“…The Destroyer’s fragment!”

The moment Oztalon took a step, he had transformed into the War God, equipped with his two-handed hammer and heavy armor.

“Destroyer!”

The moment Oztalon swung his hammer.

Clank.

Nodens’ incarnation reached out and grabbed the hammer.

“Nodens! What are you doing?”

Nodens’ incarnation remained silent, his head bowed. The Destroyer’s fragment scoffed without even looking back.

“You’re late. Oztalon. You’re too late.”

“…What?”

“You’re late. You’re already late!”

At that moment, Nodens’ incarnation looked at Oztalon.

His face was twisted with madness.

“Noden… s?”

“I am not Nodens.”

‘It’ was not Nodens. It was not the Mad God of Good. With its face filled with twisted malice, it was no longer a being that could be called a good god.

“I am the oldest god. Born here and now by a cursed question, but the oldest and most powerful God of Chaos.”

Crack. Crack…

The Lion’s Great Hammer was slowly breaking apart.

A divine artifact wielded by a god. And the Lion’s Great Hammer, held in the hand of Oztalon, the strongest intermediate god, was breaking?

It was something only the three greater gods could do, even if you searched the entire universe and all dimensions.

In the midst of a raging storm of divine power, Oztalon roared.

“Nodens! Come to your senses! You are Nodens’ incarnation!”

“You are wrong. I am not an incarnation, nor am I Nodens. I am the one who stands at the opposite end of him.”

Crash!

As the Lion’s Great Hammer shattered, Nodens’ body began to be consumed by madness and chaos.

“I am the Mad Demon God, Azathoth!”

“Damn it!”

Oztalon reached out and pulled the Destroyer’s fragment towards him.

Grabbing the Destroyer’s fragment by the neck, Oztalon shouted.

“You! What have you done?!”

The Destroyer’s fragment was laughing madly.

“I just asked a question! I just asked a question he didn’t want to hear!”

“What question did you ask?”

“I asked if he was bored!”

“What?”

“I asked if he wasn’t bored fighting me, if he wouldn’t rather fight Oztalon!”

“…!”

“Didn’t you know? You didn’t know! You didn’t understand a single bit of what Nodens was feeling! That’s your downfall. Noble god! It’s your mistake for not paying attention to your surroundings, lost in your righteousness and complacency!”

The Destroyer’s mad laughter proclaimed victory. Ignoring Oztalon, who was filled with dismay and defeat, the Destroyer’s fragment looked at Azathoth.

“Have fun, Azathoth! The universe is your playground, and everything that exists exists for you!”

As the Destroyer’s fragment laughed madly, the dimension began to shatter. A god too immense to be contained within a single world. Azathoth, the pinnacle of chaos, was breaking The Origin.

“Well then, see you later. Oztalon! If you can survive this!”

The Destroyer’s fragment disappeared with a scoff.

No. It wasn’t just him that was disappearing.

In Azathoth’s madness, everything was crumbling.

The First Mason who was wailing, the Explorer, and Earth.

And the solar system, the galaxy, and the star clusters.

He was disrupting the boundaries of everything that existed within the physical space called the universe, turning it all topsy-turvy.

“This… This can’t be possible!”

Oztalon was also a god, but he was a god that existed within the laws of physics.

‘What about Time Trouble? What about the laws of physics?’

Countless questions came to mind, but the answer to all of them was right in front of him.

Azathoth. The god of evil gods. The Demon Sultan.

In the boiling universe, all laws and rules were being rewritten for a single mad god.

And…

The terrifying Azathoth laughed.

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Thinking about it, it wasn’t something he couldn’t have anticipated.

The Destroyer, with his infinite army, was outnumbered.

He had to face the Lord of Time and Nodens alone, and that meant he couldn’t move as he pleased.

So, the Destroyer tried to recreate the pantheon of evil. The Cthulhu Mythos.

As a first step, he tried to create the most famous evil god, Cthulhu.

Then, he should have anticipated that the next step would be to create the most powerful evil god, Azathoth.

And if he had been a little more observant, he would have noticed the cracks in Nodens’ heart.

Having existed in an infinite wait, he had become a being that others could not understand, and only the Destroyer, who had experienced the solitude of being an absolute being, understood Nodens’ heart.

He realized Nodens’ true feelings just by the fact that Nodens had reached out to save Oztalon.

That Nodens, who had been ‘playing’ with the Destroyer, wanted to ‘play’ with Oztalon more than with the Destroyer.

The Destroyer had become the Destroyer because he had gone mad, and Oztalon had become the Protecting God because he was noble.

But Nodens didn’t become Nodens because he wanted to.

He just happened to become the most powerful being as he lived.

He became a good god only because the Destroyer, the one who would ‘play’ with him, was an evil god. If a good god had been the one to ‘play’ with him, he would have become an evil god.

So, the Destroyer made Nodens face his desire.

He made him a little more honest with himself.

And that was how it was born.

The Mad God of Evil, born from the desire to play with the Protecting God and everything he had protected.

Azathoth.

‘I should have noticed.’

The universe was boiling over with malice.

Sinking endlessly into the bottom of malice…

Sinking…

Sinking…

Sinking…

A single strand of thought, which was once Oztalon, lamented.

‘I should have… understood Nodens’ heart…’

Thus, Oztalon sank into chaos.

For the same reason the Destroyer had fallen.

For the sin of not understanding others.