On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons

Chapter 48: Even God Had To Get Things Done Personally At Times

“Cough! Cough!”

I landed a clean hit, and Cheol-Du staggered backward.

“Huff huff!”

Cheol-Du gasped for air, the corner of his lips torn and bleeding slightly. Despite that, he was still standing.

“Huh? Why didn’t he fall?”

Gosh, this is so embarrassing. I tried so hard to act like a legit malevolent god!

Was massacring over twenty million of the imperial troops not evil enough?

“Yu Il-Shin?” Cheol-Mi pondered about my name for a while, then exclaimed in delight, “Ah! It’s you! Johan put a bounty of ten billion won for your capture!”

With gleaming eyes, Cheol-Mi wildly licked her lips with her snake-like tongue. She stared at me as if I was a golden pig standing right before her, “Ohoho, just my luck! You’re mine!”

[Silently Crawling Nightmare fumed, claiming that you are hers.]

Excuse me, Ms. Nightmare stalker, you’re overstepping the line here.

Sword Demon was still gasping for air as he mustered, “Haa, haa! Mr. Sword God, please, don’t let your guard down. They are the top three in the assassin circle... and Johan’s drug has become much stronger than before, so use your sword now...”

Seemingly having heard Sword Demon, my backpack began rustling on its own.

Rustle rustle!

I frowned at the response. Hey, did you think I would really use you?

The recent evolution also upgraded the frenzy, so I’d never use it. Even when it was still a kitchen knife, the self-proclaimed Sword God already drove me crazy.

“Aaarghhh!” Cheol-Du roared like a beast, “Bastard! How dare you! You’re not even the Sword Demon! How fucking dare you?!”

“Cheol-Du Oppa?!”

Wooong!

A dazzling white aura enveloped his fist.

“Arghhh! I’ll kill you! I’ll absolutely kill you!”

“Wait, Oppa! You can’t!”

Cheol-Mi tried her best to stop him but Cheol-Du was faster.

Ding!

[Cheol-Du used the skill Rock Smash.]

My appraisal skill activated on its own, evaluating his skill.

Since it’s called Rock Smash, is it for crushing rocks? Wouldn’t that be great for mining? Just as I thought that, Cheol-Du swung his fist toward my head.

Craaaack!

The disconcerting sound of bones shattering rang in the air. Of course, it wasn’t from my head. I did a Skill Share earlier just in case something like this happened.

Ding!

[You have activated Skill Share for Strong Body with Gayami’s Aspiring Warrior, Il-Ho.]

Il-Ho, you stone—no, steel-headed punk.

Again, I was the one who got punched, so how could he suffer from a fractured bone?

“Arghh! My hand! My hand!” Cheol-Du screamed while clutching his broken fist.

I watched him with mixed feelings. For a while now, I had to look up at him because of our height difference. But thanks to Skill Share, I no longer had to. Then, I tried punching him in the gut again.

Puk puk puk!

“Uuuooorgh!”

Like a folder, Cheol-Du bent down ninety degrees, shuddering as if he had been zapped, before finally collapsing.

No way, was Il-Ho really stronger than I am?

Just as I was mulling over this in all seriousness, an angry cry came from Cheol-Mi.

“You! How dare you hit Cheol-Du Oppa! I'll never forgive you!”

Riiiip!

Cheol-Mi ripped the bottom half of her qipao, revealing her curvaceous body and snow-white skin. Despite how unbecoming it was, I found myself gawking at her like any normal guy.

Sssss!

Ominous aura spread from the skull tattoo on her thigh, and black, snake-like scales covered her entire body.

Flicker!

Akin to how a snake would swallow prey larger than itself, Cheol-Mi opened her jaws wide open. Then, a firework erupted within her mouth.

My eyes appraised it.

[Cheol-Mi used the skill Imoogi’s Breath.]

“Kyaaaa!”

Along with a scream that sounded like death, Cheol-Mi unleashed a firestorm.

My view was dyed red. Given my cynical tendency, the special note for Cheol-Mi’s flames was quite high. Still, since I’d recently been training my body using Il-Ho’s skill, I felt that I could at least withstand her flames.

“Cough! Cough!”

The same probably couldn’t be said about the dying Sword Demon behind me.

Raise—

I raised my middle finger at Imoogi's Breath.

Don’t be mistaken, it's not a “fuck you.”

“Convicting Middle Finger of God.”

Click!

A small black flame appeared from the tip of my middle finger. Obviously, I couldn’t stop her with just this. It might come off as random, but I believe that ingenuity was my strength as a writer. Then, I placed my glowing middle finger on my thumb.

“Proliferating Thumb of God!”

It jumped toward Imoogi's Breath.

My first time using the Proliferating Thumb of God in real life was on a Hanwoo. Back then, I had a theory that the skill could only be used on organic items. Suddenly, I got curious. What if I used it on top of my other skills? That was what led me to try it out this time.

The results were as per the current situation:

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!

My small black flame multiplied rapidly with rhythm. Like piranhas devouring a bleeding beast, it swallowed Cheol-Mi’s firestorm in an instant!

“W-what?”

Cheol-Mi's eyes widened to an extent that seemed impossible. By that point, she was surrounded by my black flames, about to get burned.

“Kyaaa! Save me!” Cheol-Mi screamed, covering her face with her arms.

Snap!

At that moment, I snapped my fingers, and the black flames disappeared without a trace.

“H-huh?”

Slam!

I followed up with a strong punch to her stomach, just like with Cheol-Du. A malevolent god’s fist didn’t discriminate against gender.

Puck!

“Kya!”

Like a folder, Cheol-Mi also bent down, collapsing to the ground shortly after.

Now, both siblings were unconscious, foaming at their mouths.

“Heave-ho.” I canceled the skill sharing with Il-Ho.

Sssss—

Like air escaping from an inflated balloon, my body soon returned to its original state. Alright, time to tie them up. An item caught my eyes when I was browsing God's Shop before.

-----

[World-Binding Snake's Rope (Mid-tier God)]

Category: Common consumable item

Price: 100,000 Gcoins

-----

I chose “purchase.” My accrued 100,000 Gcoins disappeared, replaced by a set or ropes made of snake-scales.

-----

[World-Binding Snake's Rope]

Description: Made of the scales of the Snake of Destruction. Imbued with power that could seal the magic and power of those bound by it.

Special note: Extremely tough

-----

I wasn’t a killer, so I used the extremely light yet tough rope to tie up the siblings. I’d hand them over to the police later.

“A-as expected of Mr. Sword God...!”

Still, where did this burdensome feeling come from? Then, I found Sword Demon staring at me in admiration.

“You’re unarmed, and yet you’re so strong! Your body even transcends the average human! I truly admire you!”

The fanatical gaze from the former bloodthirsty killer deeply disturbed me. Having read his mind, I knew the full extent of his admiration toward Sword God.

At the same time, I was the one who told him to attack what turned out to be the largest organization in the underworld. As a result, he lost his right arm, the livelihood of a swordsman. And yet, he still looked at me, his master, with the eyes of a Dobermann.

Honestly, it pricked my conscience a little.

“Haa. Hold still.”

“Huh?”

I pointed my ring finger at him. This would be my first time using this skill in real life—on a person, too. Would it really work?

“Ring Finger of the Healing God.”

A flash of white light enveloped Sword Demon.

[Calculating the causality rate of the healing target: Sword Demon...]

[A follower of Low-tier God Yu Il-Shin. Also a member of an 8th-ranked lower race. An insignificant existence that wouldn’t affect the rules between gods and the world.]

Ding!

[You paid 1 Gcoin for the healing.]

Before my eyes, Sword Demon’s wounds healed rapidly, and color returned to his face. Although his right arm wouldn’t regenerate, all of his injuries disappeared, as if he had consumed a High-grade Potion.

Sword Demon looked at his own body in bewilderment. Then, he slammed his head against the ground, tears streaming down his face.

“Waaaah! Mr. Sword God! To bestow such a miracle upon me, your grace is immeasurable!”

This man here was quite the historical maniac. Gosh, it just feels so weird.

I could heal a person in real life for just a measly Godcoin? I mean, it was great to be able to heal someone for a steal, but something felt off... Anyway, if I’d known it was going to be this effective, I’d have used it on Sung Mi-Ri! Once everything had been settled, maybe I should visit her at the hospital.

Then, I turned to Sword Demon, “If you feel okay now, let’s go.”

“What? Where are we going?”

I pointed to the chained-up siblings and said, “To where their master is.”

That was actually part of the reason why I came to Sword Demon’s aid. I thought it’d lead me straight to the Brilliance Guild. Though in reality, I ended up stumbling across the weird siblings, Cheol-Mi and Cheol-Du.

“I-I’m not doubting your strength, Mr. Sword God. But still, it’s too risky! Not only are we outnumbered, their leader, Johan, uses unidentifiable, bizarre abilities!”

“Mr. Sword Demon, can’t you just do as I say?”

“I-I’ve crossed the line! Please forgive me this once, Sword God!” shuddering, the pale Sword Demon nodded obediently.

Goodness. What have I done to get this kind of response from him?

I glanced at my reflection in the window.

Wow, that’s definitely the face of a notorious malevolent god.

I mean, I was kind of pissed off. I had a ten billion Korean won bounty? I shuddered, imagining the bounty hunters going after my family or even Sung Mi-Ri to collect it.

Hence why I decided to go there instead. I was determined to end this today.

***

“This is the place, Mr. Sword God.”

With Sword Demon’s guidance, we arrived at Wuwon City. This new city used to be under the spotlight for a while, as there were talks of relocating the capital there. However, about a decade ago, a catastrophic rift opened up, reducing it into a ghost town. Abandoned buildings lined up on the streets like a graveyard.

Just in case, I decided to cover my face with a paper bag. I had even poked eye holes on it.

“Wait a minute.”

Sword Demon was staring at me for some reason.

“Why? Do you need to cover your face too?”

“Ooh, what an honor, Mr. Sword God!” he exclaimed, then bowed deeply as he received the paper bag.

How was THAT an honor?

Anyway, the pair of suspicious-looking men wearing paper bags soon arrived near one of the abandoned buildings. There was a secret underground entrance, barred by a sturdy, pristine iron door that contrasted sharply with its dilapidated surroundings.

Bam bam!

I knocked on the door, since it was basic manners.

Creaaak!

The CCTV camera attached to the door turned toward us.

-Who is it? If you’re a follower of Apostle Johan, show me the mark!

So, it had a speaker attached too. I tried to put on my best, nicest smile. Well, it was pointless anyway, since I had a paper bag on.

“Hello. I’m from Yu Il-Shinism, here to preach to the scumbags.”

Sometimes, in this modern age of endless competition, a god had to take care of things personally.