Leveling with the Gods

C448

As in a movie scene, the battlefield suddenly came to a halt.

And at the center of it was the sole enemy on this battlefield: Shub-Niggurath, with Foolish Chaos standing behind her, the one who had stabbed her.

"Black Woods Bitch..."

His voice resonated eerily through the woods.

In the faintest whisper, the greatest strength was concentrated.

Black Woods Bitch.

It was like the only thorn that could irritate Shub-Niggurath.

"Seeing you say that, it seems you've finally made a decision."

"Didn't you know from the beginning? And then you accepted the proposal."

It was true.

Shub-Niggurath accepted Foolish Chaos's proposal. She hurriedly brought her own body here and swept the world as Foolish Chaos suggested.

All to obtain Foolish Chaos's 'name.'

"Surely, you knew it was a trap from the beginning. Yet, you jumped in here."

Crack.

A crack formed in Shub-Niggurath's body pierced by Foolish Chaos's arm.

"Because you ignored them."

Staring at Shub-Niggurath, Foolish Chaos opened his mouth.

"You did better than I thought. You wounded Shub-Niggurath's own body, reduced more than half of the Black Woods' goats, weakened her power."

Foolish Chaos's gaze turned towards Vishnu, who stood there with a stunned face.

"Beyond that, you even erased one of Shub-Niggurath's names... it couldn't be better."

Zzz, zzz~

It was at that moment...

Shub-Niggurath's pupils began to tremble.

"You..."

Cracks spread all over Shub-Niggurath's body.

"You said you would give me your name when this is over, right?"

Woosh-.

Foolish Chaos's figure slowly faded like a mirage.

"I will make sure to fulfill the promise when this ends. However, only if you can survive here."

Before Foolish Chaos disappeared, his eyes met YuWon's.

At that moment...

Both remembered the conversation they had in the same room.

"I will catch Shub-Niggurath."

"Her?"

YuWon's proposal unusually surprised Foolish Chaos.

He cultivates chaos in this Tower. That's why all his plans were designed to bring the tower to collapse.

But only one.

Among the things he truly wanted, there was a goal opposite to the tower's collapse.

"It bothers you too, doesn't it? Shub-Niggurath. She's the only one outside this Tower who opposes you, Foolish Chaos."

YuWon's words about capturing Shub-Niggurath sounded very appealing even to Foolish Chaos's ears.

"But how?"

"It will be difficult between us two."

"Do you want me to help you?"

"Yes."

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"To believe or not to believe is your choice."

In the face of YuWon's words, Foolish Chaos fell silent for a moment.

YuWon had known for a long time that Foolish Chaos and Shub-Niggurath hated each other. But unless interests align and there is no special stimulus, Foolish Chaos would never show his fangs towards Shub-Niggurath.

That's why YuWon had to provoke him.

He was movable enough. He had to say that he could catch the Queen of the Black Woods.

"Are you trying to use me to catch her? It seems obvious."

"Honestly..."

YuWon shrugged.

"You have two things to do. First, lure her. It must be on the Reconciliation Day organized by Odin. It won't be possible to catch her unless it's that day."

"The first one isn't difficult. I have a card she can't refuse. What's the second?"

"The second is to take away one of her names."

The conversation stopped for a moment. If YuWon could see inside the cloak, he would be sure that Foolish Chaos would be twisting his expression right now.

"That's really difficult."

Shub-Niggurath's name was actually three. And none of those names were easy to handle.

A name that leads a great army of goats: The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young.

The most powerful entity: The Goat Who Gives Birth to Madness.

And even the Perverse Fertility Deity residing in the belly of The Goat Who Gives Birth to Madness.

-Shub-Niggurath is not one. She is the Black Woods that rules, the sheep offspring she leads, the giant billy goats, and even the woman emerging from the belly of that goat. They are all Shub-Niggurath.

-But...

-To snatch those names, there are several conditions. You must go through the sheep offspring and dominate The Goat Who Gives Birth to Madness...

-Our task is to weaken it. It will be difficult, but eventually it will happen.

-And what if I don't move until the end? Or if I wait until you both die as much as possible?

-Do as you please. I can only trust you.

-You're spouting nonsense without feeling it, aren't you?

-Caught me, didn't you?

They didn't trust each other. YuWon only considered Foolish Chaos as insurance, not an essential component.

Despite that, the reason he involved him in this was one.

At least, he saw the opportunity to catch Shub-Niggurath with minimal sacrifice.

'Friends are close, enemies even closer.'

Remembering a line from a movie he watched a long time ago, YuWon looked at Foolish Chaos.

'That's right.'

With this, all the pieces of the puzzle he had prepared fit perfectly.

Swish~.

Foolish Chaos disappeared.

-You... you...!

Zzzzz...

Like a glass mirror about to shatter, Shub-Niggurath, covered in cracks, burst into a scream full of bitterness.

-Ni####...

The Black Woods screamed in response to the name Shub-Niggurath uttered.

Swish...

Foolish Chaos, who had disappeared before everyone realized, seemed to have no intention of getting involved further in this fight. YuWon looked at Zeus, who was covering one ear and frowning at Shub-Niggurath's scream.

"Ask those two for help."

"Those two?"

Odin and Hercules, who had not yet been freed.

Confirming those two, Zeus asked, perplexed.

"Are you passing the ball to me?"

"One of them is your son. And it probably won't be as difficult as before."

YuWon nodded slightly as he observed Shub-Niggurath, who continued screaming without stopping. Although she seemed quite upset about being a victim of Foolish Chaos, she didn't show much interest in Odin and Hercules, whom she had captured.

Of course.

She had already lost two of her three names. The Goat Who Gives Birth to Madness was defeated in the battle against Vishnu, and the other lost name was unknown.

But it seemed enough.

Zeus soon nodded in response to YuWon's request.

Now was the time to save Odin and Heracles.

"So be it."

Zeus also knew that Foolish Chaos would move in the end. In that, YuWon and Zeus agreed.

But it seemed that YuWon had another move up his sleeve.

Crack!

With a thunder, Zeus's figure disappeared from the place. Vishnu also moved, not showing when he moved.

The fight was reaching its climax.

And at the end of all this...

Silently...

YuWon's eyes turned to Danpung, who had been silent in both words and actions.

"Are you angry?"

Bending his knees, he sits down, meeting the gaze.

In response to YuWon's question, Danpung nodded slightly.

"Abba."

"Why are you so angry?"

"Abba, I don't know..."

A hesitant pronunciation. Despite the question of whether he was angry, the answer seemed calm.

But YuWon could feel it.

Since the encounter with Shub-Niggurath and the appearance of Foolish Chaos, Danpung had been getting increasingly irritated.

"You can stop holding it back."

"Abba, no."

"Why?"

"Abba in danger."

Although it couldn't be sure if the previous word was "dad," it could still understand the word 'danger.' It seemed that the concern was for himself.

"It's okay."

YuWon stroked Danpung's head as if telling him not to worry.

“What's dangerous, what else can those guys we left behind be?”

"No, Abba."

"I won't ask you why you're angry with that guy."

Swoosh-.

While cautiously stroking his head, YuWon calmed Danpung's anxiety.

"I won't ask who you are either. Even if someday your fangs turn against me, I won't blame you."

From the moment he first saw the Predator. And from the moment he decided to use that power, YuWon had always been prepared.

He didn't know if those fangs would someday turn towards him. His end might not be much different from the other Outers devoured by it.

But despite that, YuWon chose.

"So lend me your strength."

In this fight he considered he would never win, he decided to use the power of this young God.

While Shub-Niggurath screamed, looking for Foolish Chaos.

Thud-!

Craack-!

Vishnu and Zeus helped Odin and Hercules escape. It wasn't as difficult as they thought, maybe because Shub-Niggurath's mind was occupied elsewhere.

"What the hell happened here... wasn't that guy our enemy?"

Heracles, freed from the bindings, looked at Shub-Niggurath, who was furious, spinning and shouting.

Throughout the forest, numerous goats howled to the rhythm of her screams.

Certainly, Foolish Chaos was the one who created this situation.

He used Zeus to provoke the Gigantomachy and planned the Ragnarok through Surt. Not only Heracles but also Odin knew that behind all the big and small things that happened in the Tower, Foolish Chaos always had something to do with it.

But even so, that guy, who did all that, extended a hand to help in this fight.

"Zeus."

Odin looked at Zeus.

From a distance, his expression was no different from YuWon's. Rather than being surprised by Foolish Chaos's impulsive action, he seemed relieved.

"You knew, right?"

"I told you in advance."

"How?"

"Since the day that guy came to see me, I've been planning for this moment."

Zeus's gaze turned to the side.

"It seems that guy also planned it the same way..."

Zeus's voice, which agreed with YuWon's thoughts, stopped halfway.

'Where did he go?'

Until recently, he was in that place. He asked himself and Vishnu to rescue Odin and Heracles, and asked for a little time.

But that doesn't mean he's the type of person who would come here and run away.

While Zeus's attention turned to YuWon seeking answers, another surprised voice resonated in his ears.

"She disappeared."

It was Odin's voice, who was also looking for Yuwon. But the target he said disappeared wasn't YuWon.

"What else does he plan to do?"

"Her energy also disappeared."

Vishnu, anxious, and Heracles, raising his strength once again and keeping watch around. They couldn't see the existence that should clearly be there.

Shub-Niggurath, who was mad with anger, had vanished from the face of the earth.

KO-FI