Gourmet Gaming-Chapter 1297

“If Helenia came out of Hell and invaded the Land of the Gods, then hundreds of millions of people would die once again,” Belson countered. Just like usual, he made the most rational and objective judgment. “Considering the situation, we believe we have made the ideal decision.”

Minhyuk’s chest swelled in anger, his breathing turning ragged. Although he understood the decision with his head, his heart could not accept it. He just could not understand why they did not even have a shred of reluctance for exchanging the death of a single God of Death for the lives of millions. He could not understand why these people did not hold any love for the God of Death.

On his way here, he had listened to the stories from the people of the Land of the Gods. And at this moment, he finally realized that the God of Death was alone.

–Hell? I think this is a good opportunity. Both Hell and the God of Death will disappear together, no?

–I just don’t understand. Why do the dead have to be given a place to stay?

–The God of Death has always been a threat to the Land of the Gods, no? If he could be buried with Helenia in Hell, it would be a win-win scenario for our land.

Minhyuk recalled his meeting with the God of Death. From how he sounded, the awkward words he had muttered back then seemed to be the first words he had uttered in months. Minhyuk could feel the sadness emanating from him, who had lived all his life under the disgusted gazes of the world.

Minhyuk said, “I’ll go alone.”

Minhyuk was an immortal. Even if he died, he would just come back to life. There wouldn’t be much damage to others even if he died there.

Belson shook his head and said, “The Absolute Gods can only block the path outside Hell. The God of Death is the only one who can block the path from the inside. And right now, the God of Death has blocked all routes from inside Hell.”

“...!”

Belson sounded very sorry when he said, “He already knew that no one would come to save him. Ah, there’s one. He knew that a certain someone would come to save him...”

Aide Belson stood up and patted Minhyuk on the shoulder.

“He must have done this to stop that certain someone from entering Hell.”

That certain someone was none other than Minhyuk. God of Death Louis had blocked all paths to Hell from the inside for fear that Minhyuk would come to save him and die in the process.

When the realization set in, it was as though he was doused in cold water. His wildly thumping heart, his breathing, which had grown ragged, slowly calmed down, along with his heated head.

“Is there a way to get in?”

The Absolute Gods looked at him.

“Even if there is, we won’t tell you. Nonetheless, as of the moment, there’s no path open.”

‘There’s no way...’

At that moment, Guardian God Obren entered the conference room.

‘As expected...’ Obren thought, a bitter smile on his face. He knew that things would turn out like this.

Minhyuk and Obren walked out of the conference room together. Obren turned to him and spoke.

[As of now, there’s no way to break through Hell.]

Obren also gave the same answer as the other Absolute Gods.

[But I know that a fool like you will try to find a way regardless of the method.]

Obren cared for and also understood Minhyuk the best. Minhyuk might not have known the truth, but he did. After all, he had lived longer than the other Absolute Gods.

The God of Death was alive. And based on Helenia’s character, she had a far better relationship with the God of Death than the God of Death had with the other Absolute Gods. Regardless, the God of Death stopped Helenia even at the risk of extinction because he knew that she would attack the Beyond the Heavens Empire.

If it were the usual Obren, he would not try to find a way. And if he found a way, he would pretend he did not know about it. After all, Minhyuk was very precious to him. However, this time was an exception.

[There’s one and only one way. It’s not going to be easy. There’s even a chance of you dying. I believe that you have a higher chance of failing. Will you still choose to do it?]

Without any hesitation, Minhyuk said, “Of course.”

[As expected, you’re a fool.]

‘And that’s why I love and care for you,’ Obren thought, swallowing the words back into his stomach.

[The way is...]

***

Hell’s Emissary Verak, a Beyond the Heavens Empire member, was one of the few players who could cross through Hell freely. He even avoided the God of Death as much as possible because he thought that he would either die or get tortured if he encountered the man.

One day, he encountered the God of Death holding an unknown seedling and a watering can. His eyes immediately spun as he thought, ‘I’m going to die a useless death!’

Then, the God of Death said...

–Follow me.

He flinched and cowered but still followed behind the God of Death. Then, he watched the God of Death remain silent for an entire hour as he carefully planted the seedling in his hands. Only after he had planted the seedling and gently patted the soil on top of it did he turn to Verak.

–...What’s a friend like?

Verak was flustered. Why was this man suddenly asking him what a friend was? How could he not know? Then, he realized that the God of Death had lived a very long and lonely life. Despite living for a long time, he had no friends.

–Speak your mind. Be honest.

The God of Death had been speaking kindly. Verak, who unconsciously twisted his words, could not help but tremble. He thought that his limbs would be ripped apart and he would be torn to shreds if he did not speak honestly

–I don’t think there’s anything special about it. Friendship is... greeting each other on the street, asking if the other has eaten when you meet, or asking them to hang out with you if you’re bored. I think that’s what friends are like.

–...Do you have to eat together? Then, are you only friends if you go somewhere and hang out?

–I see, you’re a very frustrating person to talk to, huh?

–...

–...

Verak, who had unknowingly spat what he was thinking, felt his life flash before his eyes. He hurriedly calmed himself down and tried to explain it.

–You don’t necessarily need to say out loud that you’re friends. You don’t have to go and be like, ‘From today onwards, we’re friends,’ or something like that. You’ll know that you’re friends if you’re with him.

–I see. If that’s the case, then I have one.

A peculiar smile appeared on the God of Death’s face. The smile looked so strange, creepy, and hair-raising that Verak thought he would die if he stayed there longer. So, he hurriedly fell to his knees.

The God of Death looked at the kneeling Verak and asked...

–Do you have to do something for your friend?

–Y... you can! Honestly, I don’t think you need to do anything grand. You’re friends, so they will appreciate whatever you do for them!

–It does not need to be anything grand?

–Because friends can always make mistakes. And although it’s nice to do something for your friends, you should know that the human world is not as beautiful as you might think. Betrayal can happen at any given moment between friends. An example could be when you’re eating a meal. Friends can separate because of a little argument or grow apart as they age. Although creating friends is something very grand and dear, it can also be casual. Of course, many have very close friends, but most of the time, there are only a few in one’s life.

–I don’t understand what you’re talking about.

The God of Death held out a fruit to Verak. At this moment, Verak thought that the God of Death was sweeter and more considerate than most people.

A few months after that incident, Verak met with the God of Death again.

Bang!

A colossal lightning bolt fell with a wave of Helenia’s finger and struck the God of Death.

[The God of Death is the master and the owner of Hell.]

[Your body is being recreated.]

[You can recreate your body after death a total of ten times. You have seven chances left.]

[If you use up all your chances, you will disappear and face extinction.]

Verak still believed that friends were not that great. After all, seeing friends break up at any given time was commonplace for him. He had experienced a friend’s betrayal himself. Because of that, Verak lost trust and no longer believed in friends and friendship.

The God of Death was different. The God of Death immediately ran toward Helenia despite the bombardment of magical attacks raining down on him. The attacks sent his left arm flying, his face distorted, and even his bones crushed. But the God of Death held his scythe tightly and continued to run. Helenia’s dainty hand stretched out and pierced through his chest. Despite all of this, the God of Death remained firm and unshaken. He was able to cut down Helenia with his scythe one time.

Verak knew that the friend that the God of Death was talking about was Minhyuk. That was why he could not understand why the God of Death acted like this.

‘You’re an NPC and he’s a foreigner, you should know this...!’

Hundreds of black and sharp teeth appeared all over the God of Death’s body, biting down on Helenia, who still had her hand through his chest.

“UGHHHHH!”

Verak watched the God of Death use the rest of his strength to try to inflict damage on Helenia, even though the mage was squeezing his heart. He wanted to shout at him and say, ‘This is just a game to him!’

He felt like the God of Death was being cheated. After all, would Minhyuk even be willing to sacrifice for him the same way he was sacrificing for Minhyuk? The answer to that was no. It was impossible. Why? Because there was no way for Minhyuk, the Supreme, to do something like that for someone else.

Verak believed that the God of Death was a fool. He did not have any friends before, so he was easily fooled by the word "friend." Verak looked at him and pleaded silently, ‘Stop this! Surrender to her, and she might leave you be!’

Regardless, the God of Death did not surrender. At that moment, his loud voice rang in Verak’s ears.

[The seedling that I have planted has grown very big. Go to Hell’s Abyss and take that tree. I will make a small gap in that place to bring you back to earth. Give that tree to Minhyuk.]

“...”

Verak recalled how the God of Death tried to smile kindly as he handed him fruit. The God of Death’s kindness had broken all of his prejudices against the god and allowed him to see through his thoughts and fully understand him.

He must have been lonely and having a hard time. After all, there was no one in the world who loved him. Perhaps he even thought it was meaningless to continue living like this. Even so, Verak understood why the God of Death chose to continue living.

The problem was that Verak could not do anything for him. He stared at the God of Death as the man nodded at him. The God of Death only had one eye left from the onslaught of the attacks, but he still understood what the man conveyed from his gaze.

Verak hesitated for a brief moment. Although the Abyss was located in Hell, it was a different place, separate from Hell.

‘The Abyss is home to terribly strong monsters and the cruelest and ugliest prisoners to have ever lived on earth. And the Abyss? It has no end.’

Someone said that the players should never enter the Abyss, no matter what. Although it was only a prediction, they said any player who dared to enter the bottomless Abyss might be trapped inside that place forever.

Verak believed in the kind and amiable God of Death. The god must have found a way for him to get out safely. So, Verak ran with all his might toward the tree that the God of Death had planted. The moment he obtained the tree, he dashed toward the Abyss.

“...What the hell are you doing?” Helenia chuckled, her eyes filled with mirth as she watched the God of Death, whose body had already been recreated, stop her.

A loud explosion erupted behind him, yet Verak did not look back.

‘He’s a fool. I can’t believe he wants to give his only friend this Seaweed Tree.’

Verak, who found the situation ridiculous, could not help but cry. Yes, he, who found the God of Death pitiful, could only cry his heart out for him.

‘Minhyuk doesn’t even care about you.’

So, he would just run for this for the God of Death’s sake. He would run for the sake of this man, who would turn around and fight for a fleeting thing like friendship that could easily break with a single mistake.

Verak looked back at the God of Death when he arrived at the entrance to Hell’s Abyss and was about to jump into the bottomless pit.

Rumble!

Something was rumbling and roaring from the depths of Hell's Abyss, the dark and bottomless uncharted land no player should ever enter.

“N-No?” Verak stuttered in denial.

He had already given up on friends after his friend betrayed him repeatedly. His friend had discarded their decades of friendship and was blinded by greed, choosing to disappear with his money.

As the sound grew closer, Verak saw a figure fighting desperately to emerge from the depths of the Abyss.

“Ha-hahahaha... You two are crazy! The Death God, who chose to give up his life, and you, who climbed up from that place, you both are crazy!!!”

As mentioned before, Hell and the Abyss were two different places. Nonetheless, as a Beyond the Heavens Empire member, Verak could locate his guild master through their guild chat window. And what he saw was...

[Guild Master Minhyuk is entering Hell through the Abyss.]