The words vanished in an instant.

But I kept staring at the sky for a while, clenching my teeth tightly.

'So he’s healed enough to start looking for me now.’

Was I too late, or was that bastard recovering too fast?

Letting out a sigh, I flicked my fingers and withdrew the Abyssal Sea.

The water that had filled the city drained away as though holes had suddenly opened beneath the ground, and every citizen was left wearing a stunned expression.

"What in the world just happened?”

"Peh, is this seawater? This stuff is ridiculously salty.”

"Idiot, who knows what’s in that?! Spit it out!”

No one had died, and the rain clouds had completely disappeared.

I managed to stop that guy once at least. As I let out a relieved breath, a sharp headache suddenly slammed into me.

"...?"

Ever since becoming an Outer God, I had become completely immune to physical pain. So when that sudden agony hit, to the point that I had to grab my head, my legs immediately gave out beneath me.

"Wha—...Ugh."

Dropping to my knees in the muddy ground, I hurriedly tried to understand what was happening.

Did poison from the rain somehow mix into the Abyssal Sea?

...No. I had diverted all of it away. My control wasn’t crude enough for such a mistake to happen.

"Don’t get greedy."

A disappointed voice rang out beside my ear.

Nightchaser, taking the form of young Linmel again, was looking down at me. Apparently she’d come out without me noticing.

"Just let it go. You have to pay the proper price."

"...Let go of what exactly?”

"Your world. Even gods can’t escape certain laws.”

Her words sounded vague, but something clicked from those words.

I closed my eyes and deliberately tried not to think about the Abyssal Sea. After calming myself for a while, the headache gradually faded.

When I opened my eyes again, the Abyssal Sea visible through my right eye had become slightly blurrier.

"You should’ve just swallowed it all.”

"Are you crazy?”

I wiped at my mouth and stood up.

Only after experiencing it firsthand did I understand what that pain had been.

I manifested the Abyssal Sea far too suddenly.

If I had to draw a human analogy, it was like barely finishing an Ironman triathlon. That was how intensely I had moved. And there was a price one had to pay for moving that much.

For gods, the only currency was territory.

If I’d simply absorbed those cities, those humans, wizards, and all those lives into the Abyssal Sea and expanded my domain, there would’ve been no issue, but—

"Tsk, kind of feels like a waste.”

I’d done the opposite. I’d spat them back out. I’d moved without gaining anything in return.

It was only a very small amount, but with the final battles against Great VOid not too far away, even that little bit felt precious.

Nightchaser rested her chin in her hand and watched me before speaking in an unusually serious tone.

"You’re really going to have to start preparing if you’re planning to fight Great Void over territory. Surely you’re not planning on solely relying on your world as it is and that measly talent of yours, right?”

"Prepare how?”

"Subjugate other worlds.”

"You’re telling me to fight Outer Gods again?”

"There’s a much easier method. The Fallen. They are worlds themselves. Just swallow them and you can expand your domain without having to fight Outer Gods directly. Why do you think Great Void’s been cultivating them?”

"Hmm..."

I found it kind of annoying how she talked about Fallen like some kind of summer health tonic, but the logic itself was sound.

Considering that Linmel was still busy fighting them, there definitely seemed to be plenty left.

As I spent some time recovering, someone approaching from a distance entered the range of my Tide Sense.

"Hah, Jern! There you are!”

"Ah. Linmel.”

Apparently she’d been looking for me. Linmel came running over, covered head to toe in mud, making a huge fuss.

“I started looking for you the moment the world began to flood! I figured it had to be you… Are you okay? You’re not hurt, right?”

"I’m perfectly fine. Don’t worry.”

I deliberately answered cheerfully. Only then did she finally relax and let out a sigh of relief before immediately smacking her cheeks as if to remind herself this wasn’t the time for that.

"Right! Sorry to spring this on you, but I think something came up that needs your help!”

"Needs my help? What now? Did something else attack?”

As far as my Tide Sense could tell, there wasn’t any problem besides the rain. I tilted my head in confusion, to which Linmel rapidly shook hers.

"The Princess said she needs to use your face, Jern!”

"?"

"Come on, hurry!”

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Frowning, I followed Linmel back to the capital. Apparently an Imperial Order had already gone out, because most of the citizens who hadn’t fainted had gathered in the plaza, looking like drowned rats.

"...Where in the world are we supposed to run to this time?”

"Haah..."

The atmosphere was just as damp and heavy. Listening casually through Tide Sense, it sounded like people were assuming they’d have to abandon the capital once again because of another bizarre disaster.

Honestly, I understood how they felt.

The overturned mountains, the scar across the sky, and now sudden flooding.

None of these were things ordinary people could be expected to endure.

Even Knights trained their whole lives to fight couldn’t battle against natural disasters.

A sense of helplessness filled the entire plaza. The only person in the square not drowning in despair was the woman standing on the palace balcony.

"Hmm, ahem…Can everyone hear me?”

Sharmia cleared her throat while amplifying her voice with magic. There wasn’t much tension in her voice, nor the dignity expected from the ruler of a nation.

"Sorry. It’s my first time using magic like this…It doesn’t seem to be working all that well, but please listen for a moment. Ahem.”

She gave another small, self-conscious cough and finally got to the point.

"To be honest—the Empire has witnessed its own destruction.”

"..."

"..."

Silent shock spread through the crowd.

Everyone had already known it deep down. But no one had expected those words to come directly from Sharmia’s mouth.

"The roads we’ve relied on have collapsed too badly for carriages to travel anymore, and over half of the fertile land that gave us grain has rotted away. The old capital, with its thousands of years of history…is now nothing more than a witch’s nest.”

Even so, Sharmia continued speaking calmly.

"Scarlet Abyss. The group of Fallen had been planning all of this for far longer than we ever imagined. And in truth, those plans had already been completed a long time ago. They already possessed the power to shape this world however they pleased. They simply thought there was still more they could squeeze from us, and so they raised us like livestock in a pen.”

"...This is bad."

Feeling the unrest spreading around us, I frowned.

Sharmia was revealing every hidden truth she’d kept buried.

Telling people things like this would only create confusion and despair. And this information would soon spread to every survivor settlement as well…

I had no idea what she was thinking, but I was just starting to wonder if I should stop her when she bowed her head.

"From now on, things that cannot be fought with swords and spears will continue approaching us with hostile intent. To be honest, I don’t know whether we’ll be able to stop all of them.”

"D-dammit…Why did all this have to happen while I’m still alive…?"

"..."

Some people cursed through clenched teeth. Parents pulled their children close.

And as even the Knights started loosening their exhausted grips around their sword hilts, Sharmia smiled softly.

"So I’ve decided to place my hope in another existence. Jern, would you please come up here for a moment?”

Only then did I realize what she’d meant by using my face. I immediately twisted my face and started backing away.

But Linmel had already blocked my escape route. Even managing to deceive the senses of an Outer God, she dragged me forward and gave me a wink.

"Who is that guy?”

"I kind of feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before…”

Standing there awkwardly in front of a crowd full of confused people, I felt Sharmia pat my shoulder before dramatically gesturing toward me.

"Even if I introduce him as Jern Apsandil—you probably wouldn’t recognize the name, right? This is the person who flooded the city just now.”

"...?"

"Ah, don’t be alarmed. ‘Lord’ Jern only flooded the city in order to protect everyone.”

Sharmia calmed the startled citizens while introducing me as though I were some priceless treasure.

"And although I called him a person, that’s actually incorrect. This person isn’t human, but—”

"Your Highness, is this really necessary? Can’t you just find a stand-in or something?”

I quickly whispered into her ear, and she whispered back.

"I'm sorry, Jern, but humanity right now needs hope. They need something they can believe in. Someone greater than an ordinary human like me.”

"..."

"If you really dislike it, I’ll stop. May I continue?”

“...Please keep me being put on display to an absolute minimum."

She wasn’t wrong. This suffocating atmosphere needed something to overturn it.

And logically, I knew I was probably the most suitable option.

As if she'd expected that answer, she smiled gently and continued.

"He’s a god from another world. An Outer God.”

"A god…?”

"??"

The citizens titled their heads at the word 'God,' unable to accept it immediately.

Naturally. To anyone looking, I looked completely human. There was no way to tell from appearance alone.

Letting out a sigh, I raised one hand.

"No need to hold your breath.”

I’d used quite a bit of power just now, but for just this much…

"...Ah."

Some noticed a shadow falling over their head and looked up.

The thing above was no longer the sky. Something enormous was swimming through the void instead. No light remained around it, and a deep, heavy cry that seemed to shake the ears echoed through the Abyssal Sea.

In the end, my words hadn’t really gotten through. The citizens, who had only glimpsed the Abyssal Sea for around 10 seconds inside a massive air pocket, simply stared blankly around them as if they’d forgotten how to breathe altogether.

Thinking they’d start fainting if I showed any more, I quickly restored everything. The sky returned.

"...Wow, so that’s what it looks like.”

Even for Sharmia, this was her first time seeing the Abyssal Sea from so close.

Even she, who had experienced countless deaths, couldn’t help but blink in shock. As for the plaza, despite being filled with people, it had gone so silent it was hard to believe there were this many gathered here.

Sharmia lightly clapped her hands to regain everyone’s attention and continued.

"As some of you may already know—This person possesses the same nature as the leader of Scarlet Abyss, the Empire’s enemy. The same kind of being that shattered the capital and overturned the mountains. If I’m going to place humanity’s final hope in someone, I want to place it in him.”

The citizens’ reactions diverged sharply.

Some looked at me with fear, unable to bear looking any longer. Some looked relieved. Others looked hopeful. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Maybe it was because they feared enemies too incomprehensible to understand, that they could also place faith in someone equally beyond understanding who claimed he’d help them.

As I was thinking that walking around the streets from now on was going to become an absolute pain, someone surprisingly bold used the crowd as a shield and shouted out a question.

"Th-then what do you want in return for helping us?”

"..."

The citizens all suddenly wore expressions saying, ‘Wait, that’s actually a good point.’

Apparently none of them believed a being like myself would help humanity for no reason. I glanced toward Sharmia. She looked slightly caught off guard, apparently not having considered this far ahead, but a playful smile spread across her face.

"No need to worry about that. I offered up something incredibly precious to persuade Lord Jern…”

"...Half the Empire’s population?”

“N-no."

At the grimly realistic guess, Sharmia hurriedly shook her head and wiped at the corner of her eyes.

"The thing I offered was myself.”

"What?"

"I sacrificed myself and barely managed to persuade him. But for everyone’s sake, it couldn’t be helped, so please don’t worry too much.”

"..."

Watching the citizens’ faces slowly fill with emotion…

I clenched my teeth and seriously began considering whether I should make Sharmia fall, hunt her down like prey, and expand my territory using her.