On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons-Chapter 250: #New! Tower of Gods (2)

Back on Earth, in Seoul, South Korea.

Ruuumble!

There was a flash in the sky. Citizens who thought it was a natural phenomena looked up and yelled reflexively, “Oh! It’s Thunder Emperor!”

A figure sped across the building’s rooftop. Despite being a B-rank Hunter, she belonged to one of the rarest category Hunters in the world—Lightning Combat-type Hunters. Since her potential was deemed relatively high, she became popular among the people, earning her the title Thunder Emperor. Of course, her captivating figure also made up part of her popularity.

Watching her zap across the city center like a bird made people wonder, Was there some kind of emergency in the area?

Flick flick!

Upon arriving home, Sung Mi-Ri changed out of her tight insulated suit and into a set of teddy bear pajamas. In just ten seconds, she’d wrapped up her face-cleansing routine and teeth brushing.

“Hm, hm, hmm~”

She laid down in bed, humming. Even though it was still early in the evening, she’d made thorough preparations—blackout curtains, eye mask, and an aromatherapy candle. She’d been enjoying sleep immensely lately.

I hope I can see him in my dreams again tonight...

With a shy, hopeful wish, she drifted off to slumber.

***

Within the boundless white space was a massive, deep rift seemingly left by a giant sword.

“Finally!” Sung Mi-Ri cheered loudly, looking around her. “Is he not here today...?”

Her shoulders slumped dejectedly.

Riiiip!

Then nearby, a part of the air warped, and a young child with antennae poked his head out.

“Oh? You’re early today.”

“Teacher!” Sung Mi-Ri lit up as she ran to the child.

Yu Il-Shin, with his arms crossed, looked up at her with worry. “You didn't skip lessons just to come here, did you?”

“No, I didn't! I came here immediately after classes!”

“Are you telling me the truth?”

Sung Mi-Ri's eyes widened in surprise when Yu Il-Shin stared skeptically at her.

“Oh, Teacher! You've grown taller and your proportion has changed as well!”

Originally, Yu Il-Shin was tiny—no bigger than an ant—like a two-heads-tall Lego figure, but now, he’d evolved dramatically. He was almost three-heads tall!

Yu Il-Shin snorted, puffing out his chest. “Fufu. So you’ve noticed! My friend, Emperor, lent me quite a number of followers, allowing me to evolve! At this rate, I might be able to regain my former appearance in no time! Like they said, keep your friends close!”

Sung Mi-Ri blushed slightly, wriggling her fingers.

He’s so cute!

As much as she’d love to pull him into a tight hug and nuzzle his cheeks hard, but she had to suppress the urge. After all, this wasn’t a normal dream!

Sung Mi-Ri recalled the day when she first met him.

“W-where am I?”

She remembered falling asleep in her room, and yet, when she opened her eyes, she found herself in an unfamiliar space. What looked like moths fluttered around her.

“Eeeek!” She screamed in horror, thinking they were some sort of bugs, and reflexively unleashed her lightning skill.

“Ah! Stop, Mi-Ri!”

The unexpected and urgent response stopped her. What she thought was a monster was in fact a cute little child with a pair of beautiful wings.

“M-Mr. Angel?”

“Release Skill Sharing, Buttor.”

Now without wings, the child landed on Sung Mi-Ri's shoulder. He observed her quietly, then sighed softly.

“You're still a B-rank, huh?”

“Huh? How did you know that, Mr. Angel?”

Yu Il-Shin sighed softly yet again and began telling his story.

Apparently, he wasn’t an angel, but a god named Yu Il-Shin. And although Sung Mi-Ri probably couldn’t remember, he was also her teacher in her previous life. His story was outrageous, but since it was a dream and the child was extremely cute, she nodded in excitement and listened intently.

“The other followers were still S-rank, so I'm not that worried about them. It's you who I'm worried about. Although I can't teach you for long, do you still want to practice?”

“Yes!” She shouted eagerly.

She didn’t believe a single word of what he said, but Yu Il-Shin was kind of cute. Cute things were the only truth in this world—to her, at least.

“Oh, before we start, can you repeat after me?”

“Pardon?”

“Say, ‘I believe in Yu Il-Shin.’ While you're at it, say it out with utmost sincerity.”

Again, since he was cute, it wasn’t a difficult request. Like someone raising a cat, she carefully stroked his head as she said the line out loud, “Hehe, I believe in Yu Il-Shin!”

Then, a miracle happened.

Even though her abilities were at a stand still, she became an A-rank Hunter as soon as he trained her. According to him, S-rank was also within reach. All of this was possible because of her cute and dazzling teacher!

Suppressing her urges to pat him, Sung Mi-Ri asked, “What are we going to learn today?”

“Um, how about a short run to warm up first?”

“Okay!”

Ruuuumble!

With a flash, Sung Mi-Ri sprinted with all her might. Meanwhile, Yu Il-Shin pointed his index finger at her.

“Crushing Forefinger of God.”

The chains on the Lightning Beast within her shattered. Just like in his previous life, Yu Il-Shin had been working on unsealing her power. The only difference was that he helped her to slowly adapt to her newfound power. After her seal was nearly undone, there was only one thing left to do.

It’ll take time before she gets used to it, but with her capabilities, she’d be able to achieve the same rank as in my previous life.

Thus, Yu Il-Shin called out to her, “Look closely at what I’m about to do, Mi-Ri. Skill Sharing, Sung Mi-Ri’s Thunder God!”

Pzzz!

Lightning sparked all over Yu Il-Shin. At a glance, it looked identical to Sung Mi-Ri’s, but they soon turned red.

“Make this your next goal, got it? Hyaaa!”

Ruuuumble! Baaam!

Cloaked in With the crimson lightning, Yu Il-Shin moved along with the rumbling thunder.

“Wow...”

Ant Emperor's training room, which was originally a vast white space, was dyed red like autumn foliage and sunset by his lightning.

A sudden thought came to her. People called her Thunder Emperor, yet she felt unworthy of the title. The real Thunder Emperor should be her teacher instead.

Her heart pounded excitedly.

I want to become stronger and be like him one day!

It was also a prelude to the birth of one of the best Hunters of South Korea.

-Mi-Ri! This is our last lesson. It'll be hard for us to meet for the time being.

Just then, Yu Il-Shin's words rang in her ears a bolt from the blue.

“Huh? W-what do you mean, Teacher?!”

-All preparations are completed. I don’t know if it’ll work out, but I couldn’t stand by and watch the world end. I’ll try my best to prevent the end of the world this time!

Sung Mi-Ri couldn’t understand a word he was saying, but she could tell he was saying goodbye and that he was heading into something dangerous.

“Teacher, please don't go!”

-Don't worry. I'll definitely be back. And next time, we won’t be seeing each other through your dreams, but in person. So you must get along well with your older sister, you hear? She might have a nasty temperament, but she meant well. I believe she loves you the most in this world.

Tzzzz!

At the same time, the past memories—both those Sung Mi-Na had sealed and from Yu Il-Shin’s past life—played out in her mind like a movie. Although the method was wrong, her older sister had risked her life to save Sung Mi-Ri. Sung Mi-Ri’s resentment and misunderstanding vanished without a trace.

-See you later. Say hi to Mi-Na noona for me, won’t you?

Sss...

The sky that was dyed a beautiful red gradually waned, and Yu Il-Shin’s figure disappeared along with it.

Waking up to reality, she cried out, “Mr. Yu Il-Shin!”

***

“Ha!” Sung Mi-Ri’s eyes flung open.

The disappearing dream brought back reality into her vision. The first thing she saw was her deeply worried older sister gently wiping the sweat from her face with a hand towel.

Like a child caught red-handed in the middle of a prank, Sung Mi-Na blushed a bright red, before she began to nag.

“You come straight home from school instead of messing around with Hunter stuff, which is great—but why are you already asleep? Shouldn’t you be studying for the exam...”

Before Sung Mi-Na could finish her sentence, Sung Mi-Ri hugged her older sister and buried her face in her arms.

“Geez. You’re not a child anymore. Did you have a nightmare? It’s okay, I’m here, don’t be scared,” Sung Mi-Na complained, but still gently patted Sung Mi-Ri’s back.

Sung Mi-Ri stayed that way, feeling her older sister’s touch while bawling her eyes out.

***

In the castle of Antrinia...

“Have you said your final goodbye, Noble One?” Arachne asked.

I opened my eyes. I was still seated on the magic circle of dream ritual.

“Yes. It's all thanks to you.”

All of my followers on Earth were precious, but Sung Mi-Ri was special. Not only was she my very first follower in my previous life, she’d also saved my life on a couple of occasions.

“Let's go. Everyone is waiting for you.”

“Alright.”

The last homework that was tugging at my heartstrings was finally resolved, and now it was time to leave.

“Waaaah! Ruler of the great Iron-blood Empire! Long live His Majesty!”

“God Yu Il-Shin, His Majesty’s close friend and symbol of peace! Puck puck!” “May the friendship between His Majesty and God Yu Il-Shin last forever!”

In the square, the empire’s subjects and my Gayami children shouted, greeting both the emperor and me. Over a billion of them had gathered, most of which were my followers. I also had more followers across the whole empire. This was all thanks to Ant Emperor, who was draped in finery and had a haughty pose.

“Subjects of the empire, honor my friend Yu Il-Shin as you have honored me.”

Moreover, thanks to him, I could amass enough Godcoins to purchase the Tower of Gods from God’s Shop.

“Hic, hic! Lord Yu Il-Shin, do you really have to go?” Anty wiped her tears, tightly clutching Akdol’s egg that I’d given to her.

I wiped her tears with my sleeve. “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”

“Don’t you worry. Everything will be fine.”

“Saintess! Please don’t worry! I will risk my life and protect God Yu Il-Shin!” Il-Ho shouted with vigor and reliably pounded his chest, which had grown muscular from his consistent training.

Il-Ho was as dependable as always.

“Alright, let’s begin, Yu Il-Shin.” Ant Emperor urged.

“Okay!”

I took a deep breath, then looked at the list on God’s Shop.

-----

[New! Tower of Gods]

An upgraded version of Tower of Warriors. A tower of penance and trials condensed over eons.

Cost: 10,000,000,000 Gcoins

-----

The description was similar to the Tower of Warriors from my previous life, but the price was a staggering 100 billion Godcoins—two hundred times the original price!

It took me some time to gather, but I finally did it today. As for those who would enter the tower, it would be me, Ant Emperor, Il-Ho, and the Ten Swords—all of whom were formidable warriors from my past life! Although the tower sounded bogus, with them by my side, I had nothing to fear!

“Everyone’s ready? Let’s go!” I yelled. “Purchase! Tower of Gods!”

Ruuuuumble!

The ground split open, and a white, giant-sword-shaped tower was summoned on the square.

“Wooooow!”

“Such divine aura!”

Unlike the gloomy Tower of Warriors, this tower was both majestic and beautiful, its sacred aura leaving everyone in awe. Everything was going so well.

Ding!

[Emperor’s entry has been denied.]

[Malevolent beings are barred from the sacred Tower of Gods.]

“Huh?”

...Until this darned message appeared!