Overgeared

The first time he opened his eyes, he was standing next to two other beings. Those two beings were Rebecca and Yatan, and they were in space. Everywhere he looked, he saw small lights, and those lights were stars.

Hanul naturally understood this. He took all the knowledge and information in his mind for granted and learned it.

One day, Rebecca made a blue planet, and she dedicated her life to that planet. He helped her with the creation of nature and all the life that blossomed there. He gave her a lot of advice while watching humanity establish their civilizations.

When Yatan felt sorry for those who died, unlike Rebecca and Hanul, he decided to build hell, and Hanul supported him.

Many years had passed since then.

Eventually, new gods were born because of humanity’s worship. Rebecca had also created other gods and angels.

Suddenly, everything was gone—the blue planet, the angels, and even the gods. In the vast universe, only Hanul, Rebecca, and Yatan remained. Everything was silent, and Hanul was very shocked.

For the first time, he realized that something was wrong. However, he couldn’t afford to be hasty with his theories. Yatan looked so sad about destroying the planet that Hanul didn’t want to blame his old friend.

He firmly believed that this was the only time this would happen. However, that was not the case. This event repeated several times. Many things didn’t make sense anymore. It turned out that Rebecca had been behind Yatan’s destruction of the planet. Beings called old dragons appeared and criticized her.

Once Rebecca re-created the blue planet, the old dragons intervened and slowed the development of the planet. In the process, they inevitably confronted Hanul. Hanul was already dissatisfied with Rebecca and Yatan, so he was unhappy with how things had turned out.

Rebecca, Yatan, and the old dragons—why did they bother him every time and made him sad?

The only one Hanul could reach out to was Martial God Chiyou, who suddenly stood side by side with the Gods of the beginning one day. He didn’t perish, not even when Yatan had destroyed the planet. He always sneered at the Gods of the beginning and the old dragons, as if he was special or something. Thus, Hanul asked him for help.

I think I am going to go crazy like this.

Please help me prevent the destruction of this world.

At some point, the old dragons went on a rampage, and they devoured the angels and gods created by Rebecca. For the very first time, Hanul saw Rebecca crying. She had destroyed countless beings. Even the gods and angels she created were slaughtered. Yet she took pity on the gods whom Trauka was devouring.

That was when Hanul started hating Rebecca.

Rebecca, whom he couldn’t figure out despite knowing the principles of the universe from the moment he was born, became a being made out of pretenses and lies in Hanul’s eyes.

Why did she keep destroying the world? Even though she had witnessed the birth of countless beings, had she never felt even the slightest bit of affection or sympathy for them?

[No. She must have a reason for doing this.]

One day, Rebecca could no longer stand the hatred in Hanul’s eyes every time he looked at her and told him the truth. She said that this world was just a lower dimension created by higher-level beings for entertainment. The moment a singularity occurred, everything would be completely destroyed and only suffering that was worse than death would remain.

It was shocking to hear Rebecca say this, but Hanul had already been suspecting this since the birth of the old dragons. Since dragons already knew everything from the moment they were born, they resembled the Gods of the beginning. They made Hanul question things. He wondered if all the things he took for granted were ultimately for someone’s convenience.

Were his and the universe’s existences a result of a higher being’s desire for entertainment? Hanul tried his best to dismiss this theory. However, Rebecca had told him the truth, and he could no longer ignore it. He could either accept it or deny it.

Hanul picked the second option.

Chiyou told Hanul, [I will help you because you seem to be at a disadvantage. However, anything that threatens you might become a threat to me one day, so I will do my best to keep them alive. Remember, I am only helping you right now because there is a possibility that one day you will kill me.]

Hanul just needed to get rid of Rebecca. No, he just needed to stop her from destroying the world. If he did that, then something would happen to the world, something that he didn’t know. And once that happened, he might achieve peace in a different way than what Rebecca had imagined...

With such hopes, Hanul earnestly rebelled, though he lost to Rebecca. He then fled to the East Continent with Chiyou’s help.

And now—

[Chiyou...!]

Hanul’s desperate cry woke Chiyou up, who was not really paying attention.

Remember, I am only helping you right now because there is a possibility that one day you will kill me.

Chiyou recalled what he had told Hanul at some point. He found a reason to help Hanul.

Jingle.

There was the clear sound of bells. A silver sword light appeared on Chiyou’s side. This was the afterimage left behind after Chiyou had drawn his sword incredibly quickly.

Chiyou was entirely focused on Grid. The Annihilation energy was gushing from the tip of Grid’s sword. That purple energy completely destroyed the target, no matter what that was. It could devour Hanul at any given moment since he was so badly injured, even though he had turned into light.

Hanul and Chiyou made eye contact. Hanul’s voice trembled with fear as he shouted Chiyou’s name again.

[Chiyou...!]

He hadn’t even shown fear when he lost to Rebecca.

[Haha...]

Chiyou laughed. He watched as Grid stabbed Hanul in the neck and let go of the sword he had been holding in his hand. Hanul scowled when he realized he had been betrayed. He once again shouted Chiyou’s name.

[Chiyou!]

[Look at you now. You don’t deserve to kill me,] Chiyou replied calmly.

Hanul felt hopeless. To appease Chiyou, he had created the yangbans, gained false worship, embodied Rebecca’s light...

He realized that all his efforts had been in vain. He also realized his mistake. Since when did he want to be acknowledged by Chiyou?

[I...! I’m only doing this for those with fleeting lives...!]

“......!”

For the first time, Hanul was crying out in Grid’s direction, but it was too late. Grid already had his sword at Hanul’s throat. Defying the Natural Order and Twilight, shrouded in the Annihilation energy, were about to cut off the head of a God of the beginning with unprecedented power.

The light that had been staining Hanul turned dark. In addition, a pure mist-like white aura rose in the air. Grid remembered that Braham and Zik had told him that King Sobyeol had the power to take away other people’s abilities. They said that the power of King Sobyeol was as white as snow.

King Sobyeol was Hanul’s child. In addition, Hanul had already embodied light. Therefore, it was entirely possible that Hanul could also take away other people’s abilities.

‘Don’t tell me...!’

Grid had a bad feeling about this, and he was rarely wrong about his hunches. Just as he was slashing his enemy’s throat, Hanul’s power as a God of the beginning overpowered the Annihilation energy. The energy which was making Grid’s sword glow purple suddenly disappeared. No, it didn’t just disappear. Hanul’s white energy devoured it.

Cough!

Grid’s vision flashed red as he coughed up blood. The unbelievable notification windows were constantly being updated. They kept telling him that his armor, made from the skin and scales of the Fire Dragon Trauka, had been greatly damaged.

Stagger...

Grid stepped back and lowered his gaze helplessly. There was a big hole in his red armor, and blood was gushing out of it. His abdomen had been blown away.

[Your organs are massively damaged.]

[Severe internal injuries have inflicted bleeding, slow, and decreased concentration.]

[Your attack power and defense are greatly reduced. Skill casting has been increased...]

He kept gaining negative status effects. Hanul’s thoughts crept into Grid’s mind as Grid was losing his focus.

[The Annihilation energy is truly great.]

Grid slowly raised his head. Hanul slowly flew into the sky while emitting purple energy.

[It was a mistake to lose sight of my original intention. At some point, I even forgot why I was fighting. I even lost myself.]

Hanul looked at Grid. There were no worries or doubts in his eyes. He was a God of the beginning, so he no longer needed to rely on Chiyou. He clearly knew what he had to do next. Therefore, he didn’t cling onto the power of light he had taken from Rebecca. Instead, he unleashed his own power.

Just as he took away the light from Rebecca, he also took away Grid’s Annihilation energy...

Of course, his purple energy was incomplete. It trembled dangerously, like it could go out any second now. However, that was enough. The essence of the Annihilation energy was the power to assure destruction. It was still incomplete, but it was powerful enough to destroy an individual, even if that individual was Grid.

On top of that, Grid was seriously injured. The fierce battle with Hanul had been by no means one-sided. Grid had also been on the verge of death when he was about to win. The sudden change was definitely intimidating to Grid.

[Only One God Grid, I have finally come to respect you. I will use this great power that you have for the sake of a future I have never seen.]

Hanul’s declaration had a tremendous impact. It had a ripple effect that could turn the world upside down. This was a critical moment that would have serious consequences, so Grid’s epic naturally responded.

[Only One God Grid is writing the thirty-first epic.]

[The epic starts with the declaration of Hanul, a God of the beginning, who gained the power of Annihilation.]

Hanul’s divine voice preached throughout the world.

[The weight of my responsibilities overwhelms the weight of yours.]

[I, not you, am the one who can use this power more advantageously.]

[Unlike you, I will remain in this world forever and protect everyone.]

Hanul concentrated the purple energy that he had stolen from Grid in his hand until it finally took the shape of a sword.

[I will use your death as the starting point to punish Rebecca and create a world that has never existed before.]

Hanul’s declaration resonated in the minds of everyone in the world. It was an indirect indication that Grid was in trouble. Soon, Grid would die...

People who had this gut feeling were frustrated. They swore, screamed, or cried.

[Grid, don’t forget.]

Just then, a new voice intervened in the epic. Both Hanul and Chiyou were surprised. They knew who this voice belonged to. The others soon found out as well. The epic was being updated.

[I still believe in you.]

[Please.]

[Please, save us.]

It was the voice of Rebecca, the Goddess of light. In her world where nothing else but green light existed, she sat with her hands folded and prayed to Grid. The moment which only Grid and Rebecca remembered was being transmitted to everyone through the epic.

[He is the one who became the faith of the highest God of the beginning.]

Rooooar!

The unexpected development of the epic made Hanul impatient. He could no longer preach his intentions. Hanul was a God of the beginning who easily persuaded others due to his authority to issue wide-area quests. He decided that he was at a disadvantage, so he needed to end things quickly.

Therefore, he completed the sword and quickly swung the Annihilation energy.

[He is another light.]

The epic redefined Grid. Just then, light gushed out of Grid’s body. It was so bright and divine that it was on an entirely different level from the light Hanul handled. It also had a subtle purple hue.

[This—this is ridiculous...!]

Hanul couldn’t even finish his sentence, let alone swing his sword.

Flash!

Grid stabbed Hanul. He had been driven by instinct, not reason. He was now incredibly fast since he turned into light. He was faster than he thought he would be, so he had acted based on his instincts.

This one move—

[......]

Hanul looked gloomy. He stared blankly into the void. His Annihilation sword, which had sliced through the place where Grid had just been standing, dissipated.

[The God of the beginning, Hanul, has been extinguished.]

A huge ash pillar, like nothing anyone had ever seen before, rose.

Flop!

Grid fell forward helplessly. His consciousness sank into a deep abyss. This was the price for moving at the speed of light, which was something that a player couldn’t handle.