Myths Reawakened

“Haha, as if I’d believe you.”

Elian dismissed the Horseman of Pestilence’s answer. She knew better than anyone who Elohim was and where he came from, so Pestilence might fool someone else, but not Her.

“Whether you like it or not, it’s the truth,” Pestilence said calmly. “I used to be called Elohim.”

Elian’s face tightened. “Fine, Elohim, now Pestilence, the head of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, tell me what’s going on with Wayne, the Astral being. His ability and existence are almost identical to yours. Is he part of your plan?”

“Wayne...” Pestilence thought for a moment before speaking slowly, “I’ve been watching the Chosen Land, and I have noticed his existence. Based on my observation, he is a vassal of the ancient god on Dragonheart Island. Like the vassal in the Frozen Land, Thoggua, he is a variable who shouldn’t exist in the prophecy.”

“So? The two of you aren’t one person?”

“No.” Pestilence shook his head, meeting Elian’s gaze. “We both know what’s going on with the world outside the box, and we both know how powerful the ancient gods are. The box prevents us from the outside world, but not from the ancient gods—not even their gaze.”

Elian fell silent.

Pestilence continued, “You once sealed Thoggua, and now, you’ve become stronger. It won’t be difficult for you to seal Wayne.”

(?_?)

Are you even hearing yourself?

Speechless, Elian complained, “Open your eyes and take a good look. He’s corrupted four goddesses—Darkness, Death, and Light have all become his vassals. The Divine Realm of Nature has been occupied by him, too. I alone cannot seal him.”

Pestilence could hear the unspoken message. He said bluntly, “Corruption isn’t absolute. If Wayne can corrupt them, I can, too. That doesn’t matter. Even Wayne’s existence doesn’t matter. The final judgment cannot be reversed. The day the Four Horsemen descend will be the day he meets his doom.”

Elian’s eyes gleamed with anticipation when the Final Judgment was mentioned. She dispersed Her thoughts and said in a low voice, “An uncontrollable variable has changed the future. The war between Heaven and Hell hasn’t broken out, and the war between the goddesses never happened. War as a concept exists only in the Chosen Land, which isn’t enough to awaken the Horseman of War.”

“War is supposed to bring Pestilence, Famine, and Death. Without the Horseman of War, the other three Horsemen cannot descend. That’s the order Elohim has established for the ritual. Now that War cannot wake up, tell me, when will the Final Judgment come?”

“The order can be reversed,” Pestilence said. “Or let’s say minor adjustments can be made.”

“What?!” Elian frowned deeply as She stared at Pestilence. “Are you really Elohim?”

“I was,” said Pestilence. “War hasn’t awakened because Wayne interrupted the process, preventing War from spreading from the Chosen Land to the Divine Realms. Goddess Elian, you’re not yet the true Horseman of Death. You can start the War of Faiths in the name of Nature and accelerate the awakening of the Horseman of War.”

“But I’ve lost the Divine Realm of Nature...” Elian’s face darkened. “Wayne has corrupted the Divine Realm of Nature, and he holds its Authority. If you told me earlier that such a variable existed in the human world, I would’ve turned things around before it was too late.”

“How? By killing him?” Pestilence shook His head. “You fear the ancient gods and would never have done anything to Wayne. The most you would’ve done was seal him like you did Thoggua. The ancient god on Dragonheart Island seems interested in Wayne. With the Final Judgment on the horizon, it would be unwise to seal Wayne now and draw the ancient god’s attention. Only once I become an ancient god can I reject those ancient, ineffable ultimate lifeforms.”

Elian’s face stiffened further. “Elohim lied to me. He told me that Life was the ultimate truth, but... it should be the ancient gods.”

“No, the old me didn’t lie to you. He learned the truth during his evolution, and you did, too. However, you gave that up, didn’t you?” Pestilence said. “You were Nature’s Sovereign and had already gone down the path to become the Goddess of Nature. Lacking the courage to face the ancient gods, you chose to be the Goddess of Life, taking the safer route. Elohim almost gave up once. At the risk of insanity, he went down the path of Astral evolution. He took the risk and benefited because of it. He deserved it.”

Seeing Elian resentfully opening Her mouth to say something, Pestilence added, “Moreover, you’re going in the right direction now, and it’s a safer path. All roads lead to the ancient gods. You have an eternal life to explore the truth of life, slowly approaching the ancient gods and becoming an ultimate being.”

“The path is too long...”

“It is not,” Pestilence disagreed. “The next era will be yours. That’s what the old me promised you. After the Final Judgment, I’ll become an ancient god and leave the box, while you’ll be the pioneer of the next era. You can be the Goddess of Life or the Heavenly Father. It’ll be your choice to make.”

“There is no competition on the path to the ancient gods, only success or insanity. We are not rivals. Observe the ritual closely so that you can reboot mythology at the end of the next era, prophesying the Final Judgment.”

“Will the ritual succeed?”

“It will.”

“I mean, what if Elohim doesn’t become an ancient god after the Final Judgment?”

“That’ll never happen!” Pestilence said decisively. “If I fail, you’ll fail, too. Go. Start a War of Faiths. The ritual requires the Horseman of War. They must descend first.”

***

Hell.

Heaven, the First Abyss.

A sacred cross stood in the heart of the pure white world. Pride, known as the biggest bad in Hell, stood in front of the cross. Dressed in a white robe with radiant blond hair, he looked just like Mikhael, the Viceroy of Heaven.

Warm Holy Light shone down from the sky. Basking in the radiance, Pride felt like his soul was going to descend.

“Look what you’ve done!” A fist reached out from the air and slammed into Pride’s face. He widened his eyes, staring at the incoming fist dismissively.

Viceroy Mikhael was going to attack him in Heaven, the First Abyss in Hell? How laughable. Facing such a weak punch, he wouldn’t even have to dodge—

Bam!

(?╬▔皿▔)==O))#)`?゜)

Time slowed. Pride’s face distorted part by part. His eyes became uneven in size, his face, left with a fist print, rippled outward, and his neck elongated toward the right side as he flew into the air.

The next second, time passed normally again. Pride quickly spun three thousand and six hundred degrees in the air, landing in a difficult posture that would earn zero points.

0(:3)～_(?」∠)_

Who am I? Where am I? What just happened? Is this Heaven?

Pride struggled to get up, but failed three times, the world spinning around him. His thoughts had turned into a mush, and he couldn’t even see the attacker.

It was a formidable enemy! One he had never seen! Hell must hold on, so he immediately sent for reinforcements.

His dizzy head settled somewhat after he sent the SOS signal. Hovering back up, he shook his heavy head and managed to focus his eyes and get a clearer look.

(▔皿▔)

Wayne bared his teeth at him.

“Oh, it’s the Anointed One from Heaven—no, the Lord of Deceit from Hell...” Pride’s eyes widened, and his expression turned fierce. “Are you out of your mind? Why did you sneak up on me? This is Hell, not your Heaven. Are you starting a war?”

“Bastard, who do you think you are, speaking to your leader like this?!” Wayne furiously threw another punch.

Pride tried to dodge it, but the gap in their power was too great. Not even Mikhael himself would be Wayne’s match now, much less Mikhael’s replica. He couldn’t even cry out before he was pinned to the ground and beaten up.

It was workplace bullying!

Such was work. Fresh graduates might not know the truth, but the head of the mother company could use violence against the head of a subsidiary just because he didn’t like him, and the head of the subsidiary couldn’t even fight back.

“Trying to dodge again?”

“Try it then!”

Pride was completely helpless against the overwhelmingly more powerful opponent. In no time, he was completely cooked.

Following a swirling light, Mikhael charged into the First Abyss fiercely. He would like to see who was bold enough to challenge him by attacking his replica. That would be a slap to the Viceroy of Heaven, He Who Is Like God, the strongest angel, and the right side of the divine throne, Mikhael!

Seeing the attacker, Mikhael unclenched his fists and schooled his expression. Even his eyes cleared.

Ah, the Anointed One. This is fine, then.

The workplace bullying continued. Seeing his main body, Pride extended a shaky hand to call for help. However, Mikhael just crossed his arms and sneered. The Lord of Pride wasn’t good enough to seek his help.

Ha, you deserve this!

Punches and kicks resounded in a chorus. When Wayne finally stopped his abuse, he stomped on Pride’s deformed body and stared at Mikhael coldly.

“Great Anointed One, what happened?” Mikhael asked tentatively. “If Pride has offended you, please know that it has nothing to do with me. I’ll take over once you’re tired of hitting him.”

“Pride has not offended me. You did, my dear Viceroy!” Wayne scoffed. “Viceroy of Heaven, He Who Is Like God, the strongest angel, the right side of the divine throne, and he who is only second to one, Mikhael, I’m beginning to suspect your loyalty to Heaven.”

“Impossible!”

“Then let me ask you this: are you loyal to the Anointed One, or the Heavenly Father?‘

“The Heavenly Father has decreed that the Anointed One will be His successor,” Mikhael said vaguely. “So my loyalty should lie with the Anointed One.”

“How loyal of you.” Wayne huffed, waving in the air and fetching a bloated, suited man.

Watching closely, one would be able to identify Forest from the Julian family; only he had become bigger. It seemed that he had fallen off the stairs, making his face comically swollen.

It had nothing to do with Wayne. Mikhael was the one who did this to him. Displeased by the ruckus his replica stirred up because he wanted to go to Heaven, Mikhael had beaten him up.

It was difficult to be the Viceroy of Heaven’s replica. Not only did they get beaten by their main body, but they also had to shoulder the blame for their main body and receive a beating from the Anointed One.

Wayne looked at the three Mikhaels and said coolly, “I’m dissatisfied with my current viceroy and am considering making adjustments. One of the three of you will become the new right side of the divine throne.”

Pride: (òωóゝ∠)

Forest: (ó?óゝ∠)

Mikhael: ∑(O_O;)

Mikhael’s composure broke. He hurriedly said, “Great Anointed One, this subordinate has worked diligently for Heaven and forewent sleep and food while drafting the new Sacred Tome. I’ve shed blood for Heaven and demonstrated loyalty to the Anointed One. Even putting aside my achievements, I have made a genuine effort. How could these two vermin compete for the seat of the Viceroy of Heaven with me?”

He tried to summon his replicas back, but Wayne cut off the connections between their thoughts with a wave.

Really, Great Anointed One? Are you serious?

Mikhael lost his calm when he realized that Wayne wasn’t acting. He spoke at rapid-fire speed, “If you’re unhappy with the New Testament, I’ll go and punish Reza at once to make sure that he won’t act out again. I’ll make sure to create a satisfactory version for you as soon as possible.”

“This has nothing to do with the Sacred Tome.”

“Great Anointed One, one of these two is a capitalist, while the other is Pride. Both are a hundred percent demons who don’t deserve to go to Heaven, much less take on the glorious mantle of the viceroy.” Mikhael glared daggers at the two replicas. “Taking on a mantle that doesn’t fit oneself will only lead to death. They’ll meet their demise soon.”

The threat didn’t intimidate Pride and Forest at all. They could enter Heaven if they became ‘Mikhael’. Then they would be allowed to openly stand in the Holy Light and enjoy the worship of countless angels. In that case, they didn’t care how short their lives would be.

Even if they would die the next day, it would be worth it!