Becoming a God Starts with Acting-Chapter 45: [Frog] - The Prophet’s Part (20)

The red light radiating from the magic array engulfed Gon, casting a glow on the faces of those standing around. Gon clutched himself, screaming in pain, "You can’t do this! So that’s why you came here—to destroy our village!"

Drake scratched his ear, his tone bored. "How long is he going to keep up this act? He was the one who wanted to put us on the sacrificial altar in the first place."

But looking at his pitiful state—tears and snot running down his face—it was as if Drake’s group were the real villains.

The red light from the magic array grew stronger and stronger until it formed a pillar of light shooting straight into the sky. Dark clouds churned, rolling in until the sky turned a blood-red hue. A black void emerged above, resembling a massive eye staring at humanity.

No—it was an eye. It squirmed and shifted, brimming with excitement and cruelty.

Gon was forced onto his back, lying on the ground, staring at that eye. He let out a desperate scream. "No, no!"

But no matter how much he screamed in despair, it was all meaningless now. The massive eye gazed at the sacrifice, its pupil contracting slightly. Then, as if something had grabbed hold of him, Gon was suddenly pressed down and yanked violently. His agonized screams echoed through the space, drowning out everything else. His body stretched unnaturally as streams of white light were pulled from him, draining him completely until he was nothing but a withered husk. His emaciated corpse hit the ground with a heavy thud. Even with just skin and bones remaining, the sheer terror on his face was etched deep into his twisted expression.

The moment he died, the sacrificial ritual came to an end. The sky returned to its heavy, oppressive gray, and the colossal eye vanished.

[He kept up the act until his last breath, even though everyone had already seen his true colors. Hahaha]

[Look at July—I bet she’s starting to waver, wondering if Gon was just an innocent human after all. Hahaha]

July was shaken. She clutched Alice’s hand tightly, her eyes trembling.

Alice looked at her and spoke softly, "That was a monster."

At that moment, Alice’s expression was eerily profound, even unnervingly cold—utterly different from her usual gentle demeanor.

July pressed her lips together. Just as she was about to say something, a childlike voice suddenly rang out:

"It’s raining. Why is everyone standing outside?"

The moment that voice faded, the raindrops—previously suspended in midair—suddenly came crashing down in torrents as if intent on drowning everything.

Everyone turned their heads. Through the curtain of rain, the child who had led them into the village stood under the downpour, holding an umbrella. Its eyes, devoid of any emotion, stared at them.

According to Gon’s account, this very child brought the frog deity statue to the village for the villagers to worship. As expected, there was something wrong with this child.

"It didn’t reveal itself as a monster just now. Everything about it seemed normal... but there’s no way it’s human. It’s likely a higher-tier monster," Damian assessed as he studied the creature.

Drake raised an eyebrow. "Whatever it is, we just have to kill it."

With that, he gripped his blade and stepped forward—just as the dungeon system’s notification suddenly rang out.

[Congratulations, humans, for completing the mission ’Survive the Sacrifice.’ Initiating dungeon closure.]

[09:58]

The bright red numbers in the air began counting down. Drake let out a furious roar. "What kind of damn dungeon takes ten minutes to close?!"

"Indeed, ten minutes is more than enough time for me to kill you all."

The child with the umbrella spoke again, immediately drawing everyone’s attention. This time, however, its voice had changed—it was no longer a single voice but a cacophony of countless voices layered over one another.

With his exceptional memory, Silas even picked out the voice of the older man who had welcomed them into the village on their first day.

The child smiled. Its lips curled unnaturally, and its narrowed eyes curved like crescent moons. The lifeless, dead fish eyes had turned a blood-red hue. Then, all of a sudden, it tossed the umbrella aside.

The umbrella was flung far away, and the child’s body was exposed to the rain.

Crack, crack!

The sickening sound of bones snapping echoed through the air. Its body twisted grotesquely, bulging in some places, sinking in others, as though undergoing a grotesque metamorphosis.

Its form expanded to an enormous size, its lowered head now looking disturbingly small. Then, it suddenly lifted its head, grinning at Silas and the others.

And then it spoke.

"You don’t seem too surprised... but this stage must still follow the script I’ve laid out."

The voice was unmistakably Gon’s.

Clear. Articulate.

And as they looked closer, the child’s face grotesquely morphed—transforming into Gon’s.

Gon surveyed the group with smug satisfaction before his gaze locked onto July, trembling in fear and shock. His grin widened.

"Especially you... Your reaction truly pleases me."

The moment it finished speaking, its mouth suddenly gaped open—only for a massive tongue to burst through its face, shooting straight toward July without warning.

She was yanked with such force that Alice, who had been holding her hand, was also dragged forward.

"Alice!" Austin roared, lunging forward to grab her hand.

July screamed in terror, her face consumed by despair. The only thing she could do in that instant was pry Alice’s fingers off her own—allowing herself to be pulled toward the monster.

At that moment, the creature had already opened its mouth wide. No... that wasn’t even a mouth anymore—it was a gaping rupture in its neck after its face had been torn apart.

The instant July was swallowed into that monstrous maw, and her body was ground into a bloody pulp.

A piercing shriek erupted from the monster as the dark sky above was slowly stained a bright crimson.

Boom!

A thunderous sound echoed as two massive rifts appeared in the sky. The cracks gradually widened, revealing two gigantic eyes staring down from above.

"Hahahaha! Hahahaha!"

Gon’s laughter was manic, unhinged. His voice had transformed entirely—it was no longer just his. Instead, it was a grotesque amalgamation of countless voices layered together.

If Silvanus wasn’t mistaken... those voices belonged to everyone from the village.

[At last, the moment has arrived! The strongest monster in the dungeon has appeared!]

[This was Gon’s stage all along. Countless people have been deceived by him, despairing in their final moments. But unfortunately for him, this time, the team includes Silas and the Prophet this time—it won’t be so easy to fool them!]

Reading through the flood of comments, Silvanus finally pieced together the true story of this dungeon.

There had never been a village chief named Gon.

Gon had always been the child who led humans into the village.

Gon had always been the one who brought the frog deity statue for the villagers to worship.

Just as he had claimed, after the villagers began worshiping the statue, everyone except for him had transformed.

Then, when his own younger brother succumbed to the same fate, he had broken.

Gon had desperately begged the deity to bring back his brother and his people.

And in exchange, he had split himself in two.

One-half of him remained an eternal child, forever leading the lost into the village.

The other half became the friendly, pleading village chief—luring outsiders into believing they could save this cursed place.

"If only you had just become the sacrifices! If only you had just become the sacrifices! I only needed five more—just five more!"

Suspended in the air, Gon’s screams were both furious and agonized.

Above, the enormous eyes in the sky widened—as if they intended to devour everything.

"But it doesn’t matter anymore! You will all be buried alongside my brother!"

The moment he finished speaking, his body underwent its final transformation.

His limbs twisted, morphing into the grotesque shape of a frog’s. His neck elongated, writhing unnaturally.

The two massive eyes in the sky vanished—only for Gon’s eyes to bulge grotesquely.

They swelled, protruding so far it seemed they might fall out of their sockets. The blood-red hue deepened—as if fresh blood might begin oozing from within.

"The deity has descended into his body." Silas’s voice was grim.

Drake’s expression darkened as well. He could feel it.

This monster... was powerful.

Extremely powerful.

His grip on his sword tightened. Across his arms, faint red dragon scales flickered into existence.

Alice clenched her fists.

A feeling of helplessness surged within her as she stared at the monster’s horrifying form. The image of July’s brutal death was still seared into her mind.

Can we... no...

Can I genuinely escape this dungeon?

At that moment, a cold hand suddenly rested on her shoulder. Alice flinched, her body tensing as she instinctively turned around—only to find Prophet gazing down at her, his eyes devoid of emotion.

Even in this dire situation, standing before Prophet made Alice instinctively steady herself.

"Y-You... need something?" she hesitated, her voice uncertain.

Without a word, Prophet slowly opened his palm.

Resting there was the pen he had been holding just moments ago.

Alice’s eyes widened in surprise.

Prophet met her gaze and, in a slow, deliberate voice, said—

"Use it. Draw the world you wish to see."