WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ The World After the Fall ◈

Chapter 132: Episode 19. War of the Six Gods (5)

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Boom! Boom! Boom!

Blows landed in a steady rhythm. Justice’s vision shook wildly in every direction. He could not remember the last time he had been beaten this badly.

Had it been when Andersen kicked him for borrowing her trust?

Or when he had been caught trying to make one of Ethan’s Dolls his Vicegerent?

[Justice! What are you doing?!]

The booming voice from the warship brought Justice back to his senses.

What was happening?

He could not make sense of the situation. He did not even understand why he was being beaten.

Amid his spinning vision, Justice heard the voice of his Sanctuary.

「DefinitionDefinitionDefinitionDefinitionDefinitionDefinitionDefinition」

The Sanctuary was giving him an order. It pointed at Jaehwan, who was raining punches down on him.

「Define that one.」

Justice shouted and grabbed Jaehwan’s arm.

[All conditions for ‘Definition’ have been satisfied.]

[The power of the law-type Setting, ‘Definition’, manifests.]

Justice’s Setting, 「Definition」, could only be activated when he made direct contact with a target’s soul within his own Sanctuary. That was how it was supposed to work.

[The target is an entity you cannot ‘Define’.]

[W-why not?!]

Jaehwan looked down at Justice with indifferent eyes.

“So the crow was right.”

Cold sweat beaded on Justice’s forehead.

He thought he knew what Jaehwan was seeing.

“Even gods are nothing more tha Vicegerents of their Worldviews.”

Justice cried out as if having a seizure.

[What nonsense are you talking about?!]

Justice barely escaped Jaehwan’s grip and swung his beloved sword wildly.

[Rakers! Galateon!]

At his command, artillery fire shot down from the sky and struck Jaehwan head-on.

Even if 「Definition」 did not work, there was no way Jaehwan could withstand the warship’s bombardment. Jaehwan did seem to be struggling against the barrage.

Still, the battle was not going in Justice’s favor.

“Defeat the Alliance bastards!”

Endless waves of Ethan’s Dolls rose and fought against the Alliance forces. At the heart of the battlefield stood Ethan Cart, supplying World Power to the Dolls. The trust that was constantly being converted into World Power dyed the surrounding air silver.

While Justice spent five hundred years enjoying himself in the Alliance, Ethan had prepared for this war alone.

Justice snapped at Ethan, who was smiling smugly.

[Do you already think you have won?]

“Justice, stop this. Please, come to your senses.”

A Moya Moya Crow was flapping its wings in the air beside him.

“You’ve done enough already, you bastard.”

Andersen.

“Do you really think Ethan is fighting you seriously?”

Justice’s eyebrow twitched.

“Do you think Ethan, who knows every one of your abilities, would let you beat him so easily?”

Ethan Cart, the King of Crows.

The strategist of the Revolutionary Army and a ruthless perfectionist.

Truthfully, Justice knew it too. That Ethan would never fall so easily to his Setting.

「“What a pathetic god. Lazy, incompetent, full of inferiority. Is passion your only virtue?”」

Ethan had always looked down on him.

Ethan, who mocked him by bringing up the God of Definition.

「“Still, the world probably needs gods like that too.”」

Even though Ethan was using a different Doll from five hundred years ago, that irritating smile had not changed.

Justice spoke through clenched teeth.

[Do you still think you are the ‘heroes’ from five hundred years ago?]

“Five hundred years ago or whatever. Do you think we care about that now? Justice, do you really not understand?”

[……]

“Did you really come all this way to fight us?”

[I.]

“You said it yourself earlier. You would guarantee my life and my Followers’ lives. You did not come here to fight, did you?”

When Justice fell silent, Andersen continued.

“You came because you learned I had returned to the Tower, and you wanted to protect me from the Alliance. I know. You are a fucking coward, but you were kind too.”

[……]

“But I’m sorry, I can’t accept your offer. We’re going to fight the Alliance.”

[You will lose, Andersen.]

“Maybe. That’s why I’m saying this.”

Justice looked at Andersen’s crow Doll. No matter which Doll she inhabited, no matter which Vicegerent she was with, Andersen’s expression never changed.

Even after five hundred years, she was still shining.

“Justice, help us.”

[The destruction of this Worldview is imminent!]

Lava was overflowing in the distance.

[Soon, this Worldview will disappear completely.]

Justice watched the wave of lava rushing toward them.

Andersen continued.

“I don’t know why you betrayed us. No, I won’t ask. So at least now…”

[The reason I betrayed you was.]

Why Justice had betrayed his former Companions.

Many had asked him that question. Yet the answer he had always given suddenly would not come to him. He did not know whether he had truly forgotten it, or whether he had made himself forget.

An injured Doll collapsed with a painful scream after being struck by the Alliance’s attack.

[I forgot.]

“Hey!”

Justice must have had a reason. Even if it had not been grand or admirable, there must have been something he wanted to do in this Tower badly enough to be called a coward.

Justice slowly bent over and checked the face of the Doll that had just fallen.

As expected, it was a face he knew.

「“No matter what anyone says, I like Justice-nim’s Worldview. Someday, everyone in this Tower will know your Worldview.”」

Maybe there were words he had wanted to hear, scenes he had wanted to see.

There must have been something he wanted to Define over the long years.

Then five hundred years passed.

Only one Definition remained within him now.

「The God of Definition ‘Justice’ is one of the ‘Metaverse Six Gods’.」

Justice raised his head and looked at Andersen.

[You will die if you go to the upper floors.]

Brilliant wings of light spread from Justice’s back, and his divine form shot into the sky.

[So why not use the Exit Bell here?]

Justice vanished into the warship’s hatch in an instant.

A moment later, another ‘Supermassive Door’ began opening in the air.

Ethan frowned.

“That coward is really going through with it.”

Additional Alliance great warships were being summoned to the sixth floor.

There were now three warships, 「Nebula」, waiting in the sky.

That was enough military force to start a Holy War not only in 〈Metaverse〉, but even in the 《Abyss》.

Soon, the gunports of the three great warships opened. Enormous amounts of World Power gathered in the barrels of the main guns as they began charging.

Ethan muttered.

“「World Bombardment」.”

“Do you know that Setting?”

“Five hundred years ago, half the Revolutionary Army disappeared to that barrage. Three minutes at most from charging to firing. We do not have much time.”

“Jaehwan-nim! Ethan-nim!”

During a lull in the bombardment, Runald, who had been fighting the Alliance members, ran toward them.

“Are you all right?”

Runald reached Jaehwan and supported him. Jaehwan was pretending to be fine, but Runald could vaguely sense his condition.

“It is time to choose.”

Ethan looked at Jaehwan, Andersen, and Runald.

“I will give you the conclusion first. With my current ability, I cannot withstand that bombardment. No matter what we do, we will only disappear with this world.”

“Is there really no way?”

Ethan nodded.

“Andersen. You have worked hard enough. I will tell you where there is an Exit Bell nearby.”

Three minutes until the bombardment.

Those three minutes were the time Justice had given them.

Just as Ethan had given Justice an opportunity, Justice had given them one as well.

“You spoke as though we could overcome anything, and now you are giving up here?”

“Reality and ideals are different. We can try again. It is better than all of us dying meaningless deaths here.”

“Then you all leave. I have to go up.”

“You do not know how terrifying those weapons are.”

He knew Awakened Ones were powerful. Yet their enemy had three massive war machines. The difference in combat power was not something a single god’s World Power could overcome.

Jaehwan did not yield.

“There is a way. I just lack World Power.”

Jaehwan opened and closed his fist as he checked his remaining World Power. He still had some left, but not enough.

It was only natural. He had had almost no chance to recover World Power while climbing 〈Metaverse〉 without rest.

Jaehwan tightly gripped the hilt of Solitary Unbowed.

It was a technique he had never used in actual combat.

But if he succeeded with it, it would produce far greater power than firing World Stab repeatedly.

Jaehwan held out his hand.

“Give me your trust.”

Ethan looked at Jaehwan’s confident expression as if he were fed up with him.

“Sorry, but I used all of it earlier.”

“You spent everything you had gathered over five hundred years already?”

“Of course. I activated a Sanctuary large enough to cover the entire sixth floor.”

Jaehwan frowned.

Could he use that technique while short on World Power?

There was no helping it. He had to try.

The World Power gathered in the warships’ barrels was growing denser. There could not have been even thirty seconds left.

Sanctuary Manifestation.

「The World After the Fall」.

The power of Destruction bloomed around Jaehwan. Corpses and pools of blood appeared throughout the area, and the giant eye in the sky raised its eyelid.

Andersen shouted as if refusing to be outdone.

“Runald, take out all the trust you have! You stole a bunch from those Alliance bastards earlier, didn’t you?”

“Oh, you saw that?”

Runald and Andersen gave Jaehwan their trust. It was immediately converted into World Power and flowed into Jaehwan’s mouth. It was only a small help, but better than nothing.

Ethan muttered.

“You really intend to fight.”

“Of course. Take out your trust too. You must have some emergency savings hidden away. If we die here, it is all over anyway!”

Ethan gave a bitter smile.

Maybe, deep down, he had thought this was enough.

[The God of Flash ‘Rayray’ worries for the Revolutionary Army’s safety!]

[The God of Fate ‘Minerva’ says it is impossible to face that!]

They had wounded the pride of the Metaverse Six Gods. They had not taken revenge for five hundred years ago, but they had given the gods of 《Little Brother》 a fresh shock. They had proven that they were still standing.

Even if they stopped here, no one could blame them.

[The God of Flames ‘Ignis’ tells Jaehwan to run away quickly.]

Yet Jaehwan still did not run.

Of course he did not. This was not his destination.

Jaehwan’s eyes asked Ethan a question.

Are you really going to stop here?

The cry of a crow rang out from somewhere.

Ethan looked up at the sky without thinking.

The giant eye that occupied the Worldview’s sky. A few crows were flying around it.

They were not his crows.

“There are crows in this world too.”

Rumble.

In the distance, the warships’ guns were aiming at them.

Ethan spoke.

“I will lend you my world.”

Jaehwan turned to him in confusion. Ethan added,

“I have never succeeded at this even with my Companions, but you might be able to.”

At that moment, the warships began firing.

「World Bombardment」.

A barrage capable of wiping out an entire floor of the Metaverse began.

At almost the same time, Ethan’s World Power moved.

Sanctuary Manifestation.

「Graveyard of Crows」.

Ethan’s Sanctuary and Jaehwan’s Sanctuary met at their boundary.

Then, in an instant, Ethan’s Sanctuary opened that boundary.

Crackle!

Blinding sparks engulfed Jaehwan and Ethan. Ethan coughed up silver light.

“Ethan!”

Despite Andersen’s worried voice, Ethan did not give up.

It might have been a reckless attempt.

A technique that had never succeeded even five hundred years ago.

A Sanctuary was created from a god gazing upon the world through their unique perspective. A world shaped by prejudices and stubbornness accumulated over a long time.

The very idea of connecting two completely different Sanctuaries was absurd.

Still, Ethan did not stop.

“Ethan! Stop!”

Black flames caught on Ethan’s body.

Jaehwan’s Worldview was a world born to annihilate every world. Ethan’s world was no exception.

The giant eye in the sky looked down on Ethan.

His legs would not stop trembling.

Ethan stretched a trembling hand toward the sky.

If I am given another chance to fly toward that sky.

The next moment, a terrifying light burst from Ethan.

Andersen and Runald both shut their eyes for a moment against the pouring radiance.

When they opened them again.

“No, no…”

Ethan melted into the beam of light and vanished without a trace.

The merciless bombardment that poured down from the sky swept over them next.

“Goddess!”

Runald hugged Andersen’s crow Doll and rolled across the ground. Deafening explosions swept through the battlefield, and nearby Dolls burst apart.

This was the end. It had ended this meaninglessly.

Yet Runald’s small back remained unharmed even as the bombardment continued.

Since when had it been there?

A massive shadow covered the boy.

It was a tower.

The tower was protecting them from the bombardment.

Crows cried somewhere nearby. When Runald looked up, thousands of crows were spiraling around the tower.

“Ah…”

Even Andersen, who had lived for thousands of years, had only heard stories of it in legends.

Two Worldviews with different values and different beliefs connecting.

Sanctuary Bonding.

That miracle was happening before their eyes.

At the top of the tower, Jaehwan stood atop a giant crow.

“Branch.”

The crows of the ruined world began flapping their wings toward the sky.

Footnotes:

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