Episode 1078
Chapter 254: The Selves of the Sun God (2)
June 13, 1804 — Tower of Stories.
The dawn was deepening. Kelliac Ziphl rubbed his throbbing temples, trying to make sense of the whirlwind of recent events.
So many sudden changes had come crashing down.
The truth about the multiverse, the Demon God Assembly, increasingly powerful enemies, and even Loki’s recent threats—bordering on coercion.
Naturally.
Kelliac still felt no real sense of belonging to the “Unified Ziphl.” Sure, they had helped him strengthen his Demon God Stone and had pulled him through several crises, but according to Loki’s explanation, the Unified Ziphl was more like a higher authority that could turn hostile at any moment rather than an ally.
“Don’t make a mistake. If either of us slips up, the Demon God Assembly will erase this entire world. And under no circumstances should you meet the Unified Ziphl’s Kelliac in person. He only shares your name—he’s a monster on a completely different level. He’d devour you without hesitation.”
Of course, Kelliac couldn’t fully trust everything Loki said… but there was nothing to doubt either. At this rate, they were bound to become disposable pawns for the Unified Ziphl. They had already hit rock bottom once in hell, and now they were facing this fate again.
Just thinking about it left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Right now, except for a thousand years ago, Ziphl was practically the strongest. Yet even with that power, he couldn’t claim supremacy—and even then, it was only over a single world.
“Kelliac, my friend, what’s got you so down?”
“Yeah, it’s nothing but bad news all around.”
Ragal shrugged, watching Kelliac’s troubled expression. Even he, who had once easily manipulated Zito, felt unsettled seeing Kelliac so disturbed.
“There’s no way out, no matter which way we turn. Facing the Balmel Union without the Demon God Assembly’s support is nearly impossible—and even forming an alliance is out of the question. If we don’t follow the Assembly’s orders, we’ll be discarded. I never expected things to get this precarious.”
“Those Demon God Assembly guys… are they really that strong?”
“The moment they helped us strengthen our Demon God Stones, their power was proven. They just can’t reveal everything because of dimensional interference restrictions.”
“Tch. That interference is exactly why things are falling apart. If they’d supported us on time every time, the Sun God’s selves wouldn’t have fallen into the Balmel Union’s hands—twice now.”
First Brigitte, then Beltian and Nepdol.
The Tower of Stories knew all their selves had been seized by the Balmel Union. They simply lacked the resources to stop it.
“The Balmel Union will use the Sun God’s selves however they can—just like we’re using Elona.”
Elona Ziphl.
The self of destruction, harboring Malugia’s power, she was now Ziphl’s only real hope for a comeback.
“Right. According to the Demon God Stone’s calculations, Beltian is some kind of power source. Once the ship powered by it is completed, it’ll be much harder to track than now.”
They were truly trapped on all sides.
If there was one more hope besides Elona, it was Jin falling into demonization due to the ongoing civilian massacres—but even that seemed unlikely.
“What do you think, Ragal?”
“About what?”
“What we should do.”
“Oh… so you finally recognize me as an advisor, Kelliac! Then I’ll answer. Honestly… you’re right. We’re doomed. Loki and the Balmel Union are bad enough, but the Demon God Assembly is the real problem. Whether we break free from them or not, it’s a lose-lose.”
Ragal poured tea for himself and Kelliac, mimicking Kelliac’s tone.
“Loki and the Balmel Union are visible enemies—one threatens us with Demon God Stones, the other is just a bit stronger than us… but the Demon God Assembly? They’re a massive unknown. So maybe the best move is to take them out of this fight.”
“…You mean get rid of the Demon God Assembly?”
“Yeah. Excluding them from this battlefield might be the only way to find a solution. After all, when you decided to reclaim supremacy from hell, you never counted on their support, right?”
Kelliac nodded. He had only recently learned the truth about the multiverse.
“So first, we exclude the Demon God Assembly, and then it’s just the people of this world fighting among themselves. That way, at least we won’t be discarded at any moment. We might fall in battle, but at least we won’t be erased.”
“I wasn’t expecting much, but that’s oddly refreshing. But how do we block the Demon God Assembly’s interference?”
“Haha, that I don’t know.”
After a brief silence, Ragal cleared his throat and looked at Kelliac.
“But if we calculate with the Demon God Stone, maybe there’s a way. Dimensional interference definitely has huge limitations, so even though we’re weaker than the Assembly, we might be able to wear them down. But I’m just guessing.”
Just then.
Kelliac and Ragal suddenly felt a tremor. The Tower of Stories, flying through the sky, shook like a ship caught in a typhoon.
“An ambush!? The Demon God Stone showed no reaction!”
Ragal gasped, checking the stone. Kelliac hurried to the tower’s center with him to inspect its status.
“Elona Ziphl! What’s happening to you?”
As they reached the center, they saw Elona’s form changing.
Her hair was long to begin with, but now it was something else entirely. Golden strands shimmered like the exposed roots of a massive tree, completely engulfing the tower’s core.
The tree-like form at the base of the Demon God Stone was entwined with her hair, glowing like a golden pillar. The only thing not bathed in gold was Elona’s eyes—sparkling with colors like the flowing cosmos.
Meeting that gaze, Kelliac and Ragal realized at once.
“Malugia…!”
It wasn’t Elona awakening now, but Malugia’s self.
And that power was so immense even Kelliac couldn’t hope to control it. All the restraints designed to fuse the Demon God Stone and her were useless.
Cold sweat ran down Kelliac’s back.
If Malugia wished, she could destroy not only the two standing before her but the entire Tower of Stories.
“Brigitte’s words… were true. Malugia is only holding herself captive for us.”
Holding herself captive.
Facing the solar energy now radiating, they had no choice but to believe it.
“Kelliac, my friend, what the hell is this? What do we do!? Should we run? Hey, friend!”
As Ragal shouted, Kelliac strode toward Malugia.
“Brigitte promised to protect us, and now I feel no guilt for betraying her. What is your purpose in finally revealing your true form, Malugia?”
Kelliac’s voice was calm.
If she intended to kill him, she had the power to do so already. He was certain she had a special reason.
[Kelliac Ziphl.]
“Graaah…!”
Malugia’s voice echoed, and Ragal screamed, collapsing to the ground.
A crushing pressure unlike anything he’d felt even from Zito in the Demon Realm weighed down his entire body.
‘This is on a completely different level from any Sun God’s self we’ve seen or heard of…!’
Kelliac endured the unbearable pressure, facing Malugia.
[You are bold. You know I won’t kill you.]
“You need me here, after all. So how about you stop scaring me?”
Malugia studied Kelliac with interest for a moment.
[It’s strange. That a weak being like you seeks to rule this world… But I am trapped in contradiction as well. Though I have the power to reduce you to ashes in an instant, I need your hand.]
“Speak your wish. Malugia, self of destruction—do you only desire everyone’s ruin? If my family and I cannot be the sole victors of this world, then I will gladly join you.”
[First, the countless worlds that branched from you must be closed. The countless remnants born from your manipulation of history a thousand years ago.]
Malugia’s goal was ultimate destruction.
The Demon God Assembly of the multiverse was a huge obstacle. Even if she destroyed this world, if any other dimension still held a “world,” it wouldn’t be the end.
“A thousand years ago, we altered history and countless dimensions were born… That must have been very unpleasant. The world you painstakingly created was undone by us simply rewriting a few lines in the history books.”
[I was sealed and exploited many times across those dimensions. It was infuriating.]
“Ugh…!”
Suddenly, Kelliac grabbed his own throat.
Malugia gestured, and a pain like his neck was being cut off surged, blood flowing. But the wound only tore the skin—it wasn’t deep enough to sever.
Solar energy seeped into the wound, healing it instantly. The scar left behind was Malugia’s mark.
Kelliac’s life now belonged to Malugia.
[This is the price you pay for speaking without restraint. Now, I will go to find Kragos, another self of mine. After awakening him, I will fall back into sleep.]
“After waking Kragos, what should I do?”
[Do as you please. I have chosen you.]
“That’s a surprisingly satisfying answer…”
[Just remember one thing: in the end, what awaits you all is only oblivion. Eventually, everyone will perish, leaving no trace behind—not even a single speck of dust drifting in the wind.]