On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons

Chapter 63: Sword Demon, I Bestow You the Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword

[Additional targets: Il-Ho, Anty]

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[Quest: Low-tier God Promotion (In Progress)]

Followers of intelligent beings at S-rank and above with potential for transcendence: 3/10

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A new message appeared on God-Maker. At the same time, change also happened to me.

Tzzz!

A dazzling white light enveloped my entire body. I could feel myself rapidly getting revitalized. Apparently, their growth had affected me as well.

I’ll have to reflect on myself.

Il-Ho and Anty were originally ants, but they worked so hard. So I, as their god, mustn’t remain complacent. I suddenly felt ashamed for playing God-Maker to escape reality.

“Alright! I must face my problems head-on! Time to set things right!”

Suck suck suck!

But then, I saw Sung Mi-Na sucking on her thumb, sound asleep. Well, there goes my resolve. My headache also returned.

Fuck, how am I supposed to fix this? I can’t think of anything!

Despite combing through God’s Shop, I couldn’t find anything that would rectify the situation.

“Haa...”

Remember, in the olden times, people started a fire by piling rocks together. So, stop looking for it, I’d say.

“Hey, stalkers! You\'re all seeing this, right? How can I restore Sung Mi-Na to her original state?”

[Eternal Seeker says that a healthy body is a healthy mind. He suggests getting in shape immediately.]

Yeah, next.

[All-Cutting Heavenly Sword mocks you for caring so much about a girl nearing the end of her life. He casually suggests that you just sacrifice her for yourself.]

I didn’t expect much from you to begin with.

[Infinite Abundance says that you should work hard to earn good deeds and obtain more followers, become a High-tier God, and heal her with the Healing Ring Finger of God.]

Of course, I had tried that too, but the power only healed physical wounds and had no effect on mental trauma.

According to Lady Abundance, I could heal her if I was promoted to a High-tier God. Easier said than done, when I could barely advance to a Low-tier God right now. How long would it take until I became a High-tier God?

Again, dismissed.

Hm? Someone sure is quiet...

My memory was hazy, but I knew Night Rose activated after I’d lost consciousness.

“Would you like to say something, Ms. Nightmare?”

[Silently Crawling Nightmare makes an excuse, saying that there’s nothing she can do about something that has been eaten.]

“So? Just leave her like this? Is that what you’re trying to say?”

[Silently Crawling Nightmare stammers, revealing about a certain method.]

“Oh? Really?”

My face lit up, but hearing the method from her made me frown.

“...Sleep with her?”

What kind of bullshit is this?! Am I in an M-rated novel?!

***

Morning came early in the mountains. I woke to the melody of birdsong, something unheard of in the city.

Suck suck suck—

Sung Mi-Na was still fast asleep, sucking on her fingers.

“Aigoo, at least tuck yourself in before you sleep.” I draped the blanket back over Sung Mi-Na.

Then, her long eyelashes fluttered open, her drowsy eyes looking back at me.

“Where...you going?”

“I’ll go prepare breakfast for a bit. You’d like some food, too, right, Ms. Sung Mi-Na?”

“Mm, me likey...food...” Sung Mi-Na mumbled as she slowly drifted back to sleep.

When I first heard the method from stalker Nightmare I was shocked, but it turned out there was nothing sexual about it. Sleeping together would allow Sung Mi-Na’s memory, which I had devoured, to flow back to her through dreams, like water flowing from high to low.

In fact, I could already see some effects.

“Now, let’s check up on you. What’s your name?”

“Sung Mi-Na!”

“What do you like the most?”

“Mi-Ri! My little sister! She’s cute!”

“What do you hate?”

“Waaah... Flower... Scary...”

Thanks to my efforts(?), Sung Mi-Na’s mental age had developed from a toddler to a child. Although, it cost me my sleep.

I sighed and began browsing for articles on my phone.

It’s been three days since S-rank Hunter Sung Mi-Na suddenly went missing. Is this revenge from the remnants of the Brilliance Guild or the Black Market?

No comments from Hunter Association! Where is she?

Sung Mi-Na’s partner, S-rank Hunter Baek Yoo-Hyun, warns terrorists: Lay a finger on her, and you’ll learn the hard way why he was nicknamed Dragon Slayer...

Tap!

My phone screen froze. Ugh, getting a stable connection in the mountains was so hard.

As expected, the disappearance of South Korea’s most famous Hunter and celebrity was making waves on the internet. At this rate, I might get killed. I should lay low until Sung Mi-Na returned to her normal self.

Fortunately, the foothills of Jiri Mountain, where we were staying, was a notoriously dangerous place, making it a perfect hideaway. Despite the spotty connection, I still managed to send a quick text to her sister, Sung Mi-Ri, explaining the situation.

“Hya! Hya!”

I saw Sword Demon outside the cabin. He had been swinging his sword furiously since the wee hours of the morning.

Woong! Woooong!

Actually, calling it a sword would be quite a stretch. A ridiculously huge iron rod would be more accurate.

“Ah! Mr. Sword God, you are awake?! Greetings to you!” Sword Demon greeted, bowing toward me like a warrior.

Well, I’ve gotten used to it by now.

“How is your training? Is it going well?”

Hearing my question, Sword Demon’s eyes sparkled childishly. “Of course! The sword techniques you taught me are indeed majestic! Truly unconventional, shattering my preconceived notions!”

“That’s good to hear.”

I then looked at the booklet beside him.

The title on the cover was written in Chinese characters, which translated to: Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword. Demon Lord himself was a fearsome, important key figure commonly seen in martial arts novels. Lately, he’d been featured more often in modern fiction as well—at times working as a hunter, baker, restaurateur, amongst other popular occupations.

In novels, anyway.

“Hmm, I think I’ve been scammed,” I muttered.

[All-Cutting Heavenly Sword scowls, shouting who do you think he is!]

The stalker who sold me the Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword became enraged.

In truth, I never expected to be able to complete the Low-tier God promotion quest. Let’s face it. Did converting a billion or ten S-rank Hunters into my followers sound like a reasonable level of difficulty?

However, Il-Ho and Anty’s growth changed my mind. Hunters were labeled modern-day aristocrats, with S-rank and above considered superior to the rest. They were unlikely to become my followers. So, I decided to approach it from another perspective. What if I advance my pre-existing followers to Rank S?

Luckily, I had the perfect fanatic for this job.

The notoriously powerful swordsman! A veteran assassin! A high-ranking Hunter! The one and only Sword Demon, albeit he lost an arm recently... Since I had to hide here for the time being and focus on healing Sung Mi-Na, I decided to test my theory by training Sword Demon. With that in mind, I checked God’s Shop to see if there was anything that could help him.

[All-Cutting Heavenly Sword says he has some great items for a swordsman’s growth. He suggests you try them out.]

Then, a “New!” item appeared in the catalog. As I wondered what it was, my appraisal skill kicked in.

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New! [Sword Treasury Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword (Low-tier God)]

Category: Common Consumable Item

Description: Part of All-Cutting Heavenly Sword’s secret collection. A book of sword techniques left behind by a powerful man who spent his entire life seeking defeat.

Special note: Purchase now to receive a free Weighted Training Sword!

Price: 20,000,000 Gcoins

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What? Twenty million? The amount made me hesitate. But for any man who read martial arts novels, the words “Demon Lord” and 1+1 training sword were enough to make them impulse buying. But like all impulse purchases, I couldn’t help but feel cheated when I came back to my senses.

The training sword turned out to be a massive iron rod that seemed to weigh over 100 kg. I skimmed through the booklet, but it all felt like myths and mysteries to me.

Slash at the weakness, not the flesh.

To abandon is the ultimate of the sword.

Beyond humans, slash at the sea, the sky, and lastly, the god.

When I read the last line, I became certain.

Actually, my fist is stronger!

...It indeed sounded like a scam.

Quietly looking up at the sky, I said, “If it doesn’t work, I’m asking for a refund.”

[All-Cutting Heavenly Sword flinched and said it’s non-refundable.]

Oh shit, this bastard! No, this god bastard! My head hurts.

Alright, I shouldn’t rely on that Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword too much. Instead, I should turn to drugs with a long history and tradition.

“Please have some of this before you continue training.” I handed Sword Demon a set of the Blessing of the Growth God, the Bacchus-F, Protein, and Redbull.

Since Il-Ho had experienced tremendous results, I thought it’d be the same for Sword Demon as well.

Sword Demon looked at me with tears in his eyes. “Mr. Sword God! Your grace is immeasurable!”

This man watches way too many period dramas.

“I’m going to prepare breakfast now, so good luck on your training.”

“N-no! Let me help...!”

“Just help me by getting stronger.”

I’d keep my eye open for one more S-rank follower so I could bag that promotion sooner. I had a lot on my plate right now. In the real world, the Sung sisters were branded as sacrifices by the Abysm Dragon. Meanwhile, in God-Maker, the damned imperial army was after me and my followers.

I needed to muster every ounce of strength I had.

“I will definitely live up to your expectations!”

I left the overjoyed Sword Demon alone, and headed for the mess hall. The place was a short distance from the cabin and was equipped with a gas stove. I went ahead to prepare for a simple breakfast. Placing a pot of water to boil, I added some instant rice and curry. Lastly, I added stir-fried kimchi from the convenience store.

In the modern era, such was the normal diet for a naturalist. How did I get my hands on all these items, you ask? The answer was a no-brainer: the mess hall was fully stocked with them. Oh, right, I recalled hearing that Johan had set up a few such hideouts around the country.

After hearing about this location, Sword Demon set out to raid this place. He wanted to see if there were any S-rank items he could offer me. But in the process, he got attacked and nearly killed by Sung Mi-Na. Wait, none of this would’ve happened if not for Sword Demon!

Swoosh!

Just then, I heard a strange sound coming from the sky. I looked up and saw the sun shining brighter than usual. But, something was amiss. Why were there two suns?

The sun landed in the mess hall where I was in.

“Sword God! Danger!” Sword Demon panicked and flew in at me.

Bam bam bam!

The breakfast I was preparing disappeared along with the hall.

Bubbles—

It wasn’t the sun, but a man whose entire body was engulfed in flames, melting everything he touched like lava.

Still, I recognized that fiery red hair, or that admittedly handsome face. Above all, there was that great sword with the dragon sigil on it.

My appraisal skill activated.

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[Baek Yoo-Hyun]

A male human. Around for 26 years.

Special note: A fire-wielding user with potential for transcendence.

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Baek Yoo-Hyun. One of the best Hunters in South Korea, a Special Ability-type Hunter that wielded fire. On top of that, he’d recently earned the title Dragon Slayer after single-handedly conquering the catastrophic Dark Dragon dungeon.

“Hey.”

Clang!

He pointed the huge Dragon-Slaying Sword at us.

“Where is Mi-Na?”