kscans

Chapter 51 - The Twilight of the Gods and the Kobito-san ~Prologue~

《We did not know.》

《That was our sin.》

A heavy haze drifted through the pure white space.

This was the celestial realm.

The worlds where gods dwelled were connected. Furthermore, places like the abyss and the chasm were common to all worlds.

Weaving through the gaps in the wafting haze, the gods of Arcadia looked down upon the world below.

Arcadia, eighty percent of which was once a desolate expanse of deserts and wastelands. A land covered in hard bedrock, scarce in water, with a narrow sea. A harsh world where what little greenery there was huddled by the water’s edge.

Newly born and only two in number, the young gods could create nothing more than a world like this.

A sad, lonely, cold land with extreme temperature differences. It was no environment for life to be born.

The power of gods comes from faith. A world is created, life is born, evolves into intelligent beings, and faith grows.

Only then can they truly wield their power as gods.

Still young and powerless, the gods of Arcadia lamented their weakness, grieved, and simply wept. Then, a single ray of light appeared.

Many gods visited Arcadia. They said they were gods from other worlds, come to celebrate the birth of a new world and new gods.

Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands. Seeing the countless gods lined up, the gods of Arcadia were speechless.

If there were so many gods, surely their worlds must all be magnificent.

As they gazed upon Arcadia, many of the visiting gods scoffed. It was too shabby a world, they thought.

It wasn't a voice, but a coarse, grating laughter that felt like a chilling caress.

In the midst of that vortex of ridicule, one of the gods proposed a wager.

I will give you the seed of life. If you can raise it successfully, I will grant you everything.

At the unexpected offer, the gods of Arcadia trembled with joy.

However, the god who proposed the wager, his sneer unwavering, declared further.

If you fail to raise it, I will have you return everything.

The gods of Arcadia hesitated for a moment, but then nodded deeply. As things stood, there was no hope for life to sprout in Arcadia. They were grasping at straws.

Clutching the small seed they were given, the gods of Arcadia sowed it in the earth.

The seed took root in the land and became a tiny creature that began to toddle around. The gods of Arcadia’s hearts pounded with excitement. Gazing down at them with a distasteful glare, the gods from other worlds returned to their respective worlds.

Only a few, the gods of a world called 《Earth》, looked upon the innocently joyful gods of Arcadia with pity.

As Arcadia grew little by little, the young gods became engrossed.

Is anything missing? Can they survive properly? Every day was spent watching over them with bated breath. When humanity was born after billions of years, the gods’ patience reached its limit. Normally, gods are not to interfere with the laws of the world. However, the newly born humans were so fragile, they looked as if they might die at any moment.

We must protect them.

Thus, the Masters’ forests were created, and the Masters, who received the gods’ power, broke the hard bedrock, summoned water, and spread wind and greenery. From here, the story began.

The story that would lead Arcadia to its ruin.

《We did not know the laws of the gods.》

《We did not understand that it was merely something borrowed.》

But now, they could not let go. Not their beloved children. The gods of Arcadia gnashed their teeth in deep regret.

It was around the time Frontier was founded, the golden ring was completed, and the legend of the Golden King was established over several thousand years. Only then did the gods of Arcadia realize the irreversible mistake they had made.

It was the fact that they had given Arcadia their divine magic.

The land, which had come to rely completely on the gods’ power, stopped growing altogether. The land that should have grown on its own became dependent on magic as it was filled with it, and its growth ceased.

Humanity, promised a bountiful harvest without any effort, stopped thinking. They lived in indolence, and the development of their civilization halted, stagnating and becoming corrupt.

The god who had made the wager appeared before the gods of Arcadia, who were crushed by the foolish reality they had created.

The wager was his win, he declared.

Arcadia’s humanity had not grown. The world had not grown. As promised, he would take everything, cast it into the abyss, and return it to its original state.

For him, it must have been a game with a predetermined outcome from the start. A cruel game to mock and toy with the newly born, young gods.

Gods are capricious beings.

Living for eternity, they were always starved for stimulation. As if turning over a card, they would give and take away with ease.

It was plain to see that the gods of Arcadia, ignorant of divine law, would excessively interfere with the humans to whom they had grown attached.

Gods are observers. They may offer advice, but they do not lend a hand. To do so would warp the world. Arcadia was warped, just as predicted. The life was borrowed from the start. Everything was at the whim of the god who proposed the wager. If he said he would take it back, he could easily do so.

It was a wager proposed with that in mind. To trample upon the struggling young gods.

The opponent held a winning hand of the highest order. The gods of Arcadia were powerless.

They gazed with despair at the cunning god who laughed boisterously.

However, several other gods spoke to them then.

It is not over yet, they said.

To the suspicious gods, the gods of the world called 《Earth》 spoke.

It has only been a few thousand years since humanity was born. You should watch for at least a hundred million years. It is too soon. You are doing this on purpose, are you not?

When pressed, the god who proposed the wager averted his eyes slightly, looking uncomfortable. Then, while still sneering, he agreed to continue the wager. It wouldn’t change anything anyway, he said.

Seeing off the god who spat those words and departed, the gods of 《Earth》 offered their help with a look of disgust.

By the laws of the gods, this would normally be unforgivable, but we will send humans from 《Earth》 as seeds. We will need them back eventually, but we will teach Arcadia a culture without magic. It is not too late. Create a country without magic and build a new civilization. That god has declared it. If they are raised successfully, he will grant you everything. This is a covenant that cannot be overturned. Once a Misaki is born, we win.

Then, with a hint of sadness, they proposed the disposal of the Masters who had been given magic.

The Masters’ forests are the root of magic. As long as they exist, humanity will depend on magic, and their growth cannot be expected.

Eventually, when the seeds grow and form a miniature garden, we will send a scythe for the harvest. A spirited scythe that will stir up the world and bring a new wind. We will grant that scythe the 《God’s Left Hand》 and the 《Devil’s Right Hand》. The powers of the gods that govern creation and destruction. We will have to get these back eventually as well, but they are power enough to move the world.

The god of Arcadia listened to the words of the 《Earth》 gods in a daze. It was a death sentence for the Forest Masters who had become magical beasts.

Though it was already over now, the Golden King had touched the Masters to create the golden ring. If the one who became the scythe were to touch them in the same way, the Masters, who possessed the gods’ magic, would be destroyed by the 《Devil’s Right Hand》.

To create them for one’s own convenience, and then to kill them.

Tormented by unbearable guilt, the gods of Arcadia borrowed the power of the 《Earth》 gods and created the miniature garden of Kilfan to avoid defeat in the wager.

The Kilfan sandbox to correct their mistake. When they descended to deliver the news, the gods told the Masters what had happened in the heavens. The voices of the gods, shedding silent tears as they apologized. The Masters listened quietly.

Ah, so we are a mistake. We are foreign elements that must be destroyed to set things right.

Their very existence denied, the Forest Masters nevertheless did not give up and continued to protect their forests.

The rest is known to all.

The people of Arcadia, who knew nothing of the gods’ will. But even without knowing, the gods’ true intentions were surely conveyed, and the people began to abandon magic and build a new civilization. The technology originating from Kilfan stimulated other countries, and in the last few hundred years, remarkable changes have been seen. Just as the gods had intended, the people of Arcadia were moving to break free from the boons of magic.

However, there is always someone who throws a wrench in the works.

《Chihiro-sama, why did you touch your left eye with your left hand?》

When she made her pact with Merda, she had asked the Kobito-san with a curious expression.

"Hmm? Well, it’s kind of like a superstition. The left side is said to be the holy hand. Because it’s the hand closer to the heart, or because the left hand is only for support and not used for destruction. It’s like a jinx for fortune tellers and curse masters, I guess."

The pact felt like a sacred ceremony. That’s why she touched the left side with her left hand, the little girl said.

The Kobito-san had no idea that this single act had saved the lives of the Masters.

The Forest Masters, who had been resigned to death, found new hope in the new Golden King. Knowing the will of the gods, they were unsure if they should welcome this development, but they could not speak of their covenant with the gods. In that case, they would be with this young king until the very last moment. They were already sentenced to death anyway. To do what they wanted, what they could, and go out in a blaze of glory was also an interesting prospect.

From here, the gods’ plans began to unravel.

Meanwhile, the god who had proposed the wager could not shake the feeling of unease rising in his heart. Victory in the wager was certain. And yet, why could he not quiet the turmoil in his soul?

If he had the borrowed life returned, cast it into the abyss, and filled that country with nothingness, that world would perish. Those foolish gods would have to create a world from scratch again. Though for a brief period, the faith they gained would surely make the next world the young gods created somewhat better than the current one.

Even if it was a game, gods do not do things that bear no fruit. In the end, it was a wager that also benefited the gods of Arcadia.

The faith gained from the borrowed life had undoubtedly become their power. All that was left was to have the borrowed thing returned. It had to be done.

It is forbidden for gods to interfere with the laws of the world. There is no future for a world like Arcadia, where the gods have bestowed excessive power. However, that also applies to himself, who gave the seed of life. He must recover the borrowed life and erase it in the abyss, otherwise he too would face punishment for violating the unwritten law of the gods.

This was a game with the fate of both their worlds at stake. A game where victory was assured. He should have held a magnificent hand that left nothing to chance, but if those cunning gods of 《Earth》 were to lend a hand, even the impossible might occur.

He did not think he would lose, but it would be wise to have some insurance.

They were originally lives from his world. The god who proposed the wager was able to interfere with the people of Arcadia to some extent.

And so he sent down an oracle.

To the now desolate country, Castrato.

"…An oracle. An oracle has descended for the first time in decades."

In a suspicious room in a corner of the Castrato royal palace, an old woman let the smoke from an incense burner curl around her fingertips and muttered as if in a delirium.

Upon receiving her report, a large crowd gathered in the palace hall.

In the hall, where the king and what appeared to be his chief retainers were lined up, the old woman opened her mouth wearily.

"A message from the gods. It says, 《There is a Golden King in Frontier. If you obtain the Golden King, magic and magical power will be restored》."

The old woman’s words sent a stir through the hall.

"The prophecy from decades ago was that a Golden King would descend. The likely royals were the golden-eyed first prince and the golden-haired second prince. Has one of them been recognized as the King?"

"No, I haven’t heard anything. If that were the case, they would come to the Master’s forest in the northwest of Frontier. Any word from our lookouts?"

"I have heard nothing. The first prince has purple hair, so the second prince is the more likely candidate."

"Guh… if only the kidnapping a year ago had succeeded…!"

"I hear they have taken in a new adopted daughter. It might be that child. She is said to be a distant royal relative."

At those words, the gazes of everyone in the hall focused on one spot.

There stood a woman with deep indigo hair and black eyes. She stood by the wall, her eyes thoughtfully lowered.

"If you had not failed a year ago, we might have had the Golden King in our hands by now. How pathetic."

The woman who bowed her head deeply was Cyril. The very maid who had hidden and raised Chihiro and plotted to steal her away. The king looked at the silently bowing Cyril with an expression of disgust and ordered her in a tone that made no attempt to hide his displeasure.

"We have not yet trained any new spies. It is risky to use you, whose faces are known, but there are no other suitable candidates. You will go with your former comrades and obtain the Golden King."

Castrato had many spies infiltrated in Frontier, but few were familiar with the inner workings of the royal palace. They had to press forward, even if it meant taking some risks.

"As you command."

Cyril answered curtly and raised her beautiful face. No one in the hall noticed the strange look in her eyes.

And so, the grand game entangled in the schemes of the gods quietly reached its climax, unknown to mortals.

At that time, the Kobito-san, who should have been at the very center of the storm, was sleeping soundly in Drago’s arms.

Oblivious to the schemes of gods and the conspiracies of men. The Kobito-san goes her own way today as well♪