Chapter 46
{{What’s going on, Isiris? I feel like your divine power has been fluctuating slightly for a while now.}}
A voice echoed in her mind.
It was the voice of her older brother, Ba’al.
In response, the Goddess Isiris replied with a smile on her lips.
{Heh… It’s nothing, really. I just used a bit of strength after quite some time due to a minor issue.}
{{A minor issue?}}
{Yes, it’s about the Orcs in our country. They collaborated with Seraphim to start an insignificant… rebellion, so I’m merely dealing with it. Ugh!}
{{Seraphim? What the… Hmm… No wonder it’s been quiet lately. It seems he’s reached out his hand to that place. If that’s the case, I’ll lend you some assistance.}}
{Ah… No, that won’t be necessary. His plan has already completely failed, and… Ugh! O-Our Orcs are on the verge of annihilation, and his influence has been entirely diminished in this land… Ugh!}
{{…If that’s the case, then that’s a relief, but… there’s a lot of interference in your voice. Is something bothering you?}}
{N-No. It’s just been so long that I might have overexerted myself a bit. There’s nothing to worry about.}
{{Is that so? Very well. But don’t get too carried away. It would be troublesome if you disrupt the plan by going too far.}}
{Don’t worry, Brother. There really is nothing to… Hrk!}
{{…Isiris?}}
Baal’s voice carried a hint of concern at the sudden tremor in her tone.
Isiris forced herself to maintain her composure and answered.
{N-Nothing at all… It’s just… the Orcs keep charging at me… Ugh!… I-I’ll contact you again later.}
{{Tch… Alright then. Enjoy yourself. I don’t want to witness your filthy hobbies manifesting in such ways.}}
Baal’s response was laced with irritation, as if he were picturing an image he didn’t want to recall.
Suppressing the trembling in her voice, Isiris spoke again.
{U-Understood… T-Then…}
With those words, her connection with Baal was completely severed.
Immediately after…
{Gahhhh… Hah… Hah…}
Gasping heavily, Isiris collapsed onto the ground.
And as the dark shadow loomed over her back…
Her body began to shake uncontrollably.
Cold sweat poured down her face as she— a goddess— displayed the emotion called fear.
Then, that being whispered in her ear.
[Well done.]
*
The Goddess Isiris.
She was a being who had been raised in luxury and never knew hardship.
As a god, she possessed a formidable body that would not even suffer a scratch from ordinary impacts.
She also had powers capable of easily dealing with tens of thousands of mortals.
Although she had played a role in the Great War in the past, her job had always been providing support from the rear with overwhelming firepower.
She had never been directly attacked or sustained an injury in battle.
Even in her petty squabbles with her brother Anumaeshi, she had rarely taken any damage that went beyond a mere playful spat.
However, at this moment—
Right after finalizing her ‘deal’ with the being before her—
She experienced something for the first time.
Pain.
A shock so powerful that it felt like her mind was being obliterated with a single blow.
{Ghhhk… Hah… Urgh…}
An excruciating blow landed directly on her abdomen.
A suffocating impact accompanied by a wave of nausea surged through her, leaving her on the brink of losing consciousness.
Amidst it all, a question welled up within her.
With a trembling voice, she directed her question toward Seraphim standing before her.
{W-Why?}
[Didn’t I tell you? I’m making sure we establish the proper hierarchy. Even if I’ve agreed to join hands with you, it’s not like I can trust you completely. Who knows what a traitor like you, who would betray her own brother, might do in the future if I don’t show you my strength like this?]
{That… That’s…}
A statement she hadn’t expected, yet one she couldn’t refute.
The Goddess Isiris felt herself falter, unable to come up with a response to the cold logic of his words.
Then—
{Gahhhhh!!!!}
Once more, an agonizing blow struck her abdomen.
With that impact, her body was thrown high into the air.
A chilling sensation gripped her throat as if it were being held by an irresistible force.
That same force then slammed her body into the sands of a desert located on the outskirts of the capital.
—Crash!!!
{Guh…}
Even though she landed on the soft sands, the searing pain remained excruciating.
Amidst all this, Isiris tried to get back up somehow.
No matter what logic that thing spouted, she couldn’t just sit there powerlessly and let herself be beaten.
With the thought that she had to retaliate somehow, she began to gather her Divine Power.
But then—
{Huh?}
Before she could even finish preparing, a chilling sensation struck her face.
And then—
—Crash!!!
{Urk!!!}
An excruciating pain shot through her face.
Her vision blurred.
Her mind reeled.
The Divine Power she had painstakingly gathered dissipated instantly.
She couldn’t even collect her thoughts enough to gather it back.
And—
The relentless onslaught continued without end.
{Urgh! Urgh!!!}
The one-sided beating continued without a shred of mercy.
Yet, Isiris could feel the subtle control of power behind each strike.
And Isiris was forced to realize what that meant.
Just as he had mentioned earlier about establishing the hierarchy, he had no intention of killing her.
Although each blow inflicted unbearable pain upon her, it stopped at just that—pain.
There was no attack that would cause her to perish or, by mortal standards, threaten her life.
In other words…
‘He’s trying to make me submit… To break me… To completely crush my spirit!’
It was humiliating.
Of all beings, he dared to humiliate her.
This was Isiris, who had ruled this land for centuries.
No matter how powerful he was, this was an offense that she could never forgive.
‘I won’t… I won’t yield… I won’t let such pain… break… me… Urk!!!’
Desperately trying to regain her composure, Isiris struggled to maintain her consciousness.
Although she couldn’t even call for help in her current state, she believed—
Soon, her brother, Ba’al, would notice something amiss.
He would sense her unstable Divine Power and come to her aid.
It was ironic that she was now relying on the very entity she had plotted rebellion against moments ago, but—
Right now, it was the only thing she could cling to.
However, even as she clung to this faint hope, the relentless pain continued to hammer her entire body.
Her unyielding resolve began to crack with each passing moment.
The pride she had built over centuries started to erode bit by bit.
And as a goddess, the fact that she couldn’t simply lose consciousness only made this torment more vivid.
Even so,
With the hope that her brother would reach out to her soon, Isiris endured the suffering to the best of her ability.
But then—
‘Wh-What?… Why… Why hasn’t he reached out yet?…’
She should have received some sign from Ba’al by now.
For someone of her standing, it was more than enough time for him to detect her fluctuating Divinity, yet there was no response.
And then—
‘Huh…?’
One fact that she failed to realize until now became apparent.
That fact was…
The moon and stars that were visible behind Seraphim, brightly illuminating the surroundings like broad daylight…
They had remained completely still since the beginning.
Like fixed points in the sky, unmoving.
The sight made Isiris think of one possibility.
‘Could it be…? Could it be… he’s manipulating time?’
She finally grasped the truth.
Now that she thought about it, one of the abilities of supreme gods like Ba’al was to slow down time in a specific region.
It was something Isiris could also do to a certain extent.
Realizing what this meant,
Isiris’s face was overtaken by despair.
{No… No… This can’t… This can’t be…}
Isiris, trembling in pain, began to be swallowed by despair.
Yet, in this situation, the only thing she could do…
Was to curl up and endure this never-ending agony.
It hurts.
It hurts so much.
It’s unbearable.
It’s excruciating.
Why… Why did things turn out like this?
She is a goddess.
A being more noble than anything in this world.
So why…
Why must she end up in such a miserable state?
‘I… I hate this… I hate this! Someone, please… Please save me…!’
Her mind, caught in the throes of intense pain, began to crumble.
The desire for rebellion.
Her dignity as a goddess.
All of it was turning to dust within this seemingly eternal suffering.
If there was anything she wished for now,
It was simply for this torment to end somehow.
How much time had passed like that?
{Cough! Huff… Huff… Sob… Sob…}
[…]
The hellish moment finally came to a halt.
Seraphim’s relentless attacks, which seemed as though they would never end, ceased for a moment.
Yet, the pain that continued to gnaw at her entire body remained.
In the midst of it all…
Heavy breaths escaped her lips.
And then—
{Sob… Sob… Sob…}
Tears began to fall automatically.
For the first time since her birth, experiencing true despair, she began to cry in agony.
{S-Sob… P-Please… No… No more… Please stop… I beg you…}
The anger she once held against the one inflicting this pain was no longer there.
The one-sided, unbearably brutal beating.
An experience so terrifying that she couldn’t even attempt to fight back, let alone call for help.
As a result,
The only emotion left within her…
Was Pure Fear.
{N-No… No more… Please… Sob… Sob… I can’t stand… I can’t stand the pain anymore… I’ll do anything… Anything you ask of me… Sob… Sob… Whatever you command… So… So please… Stop… Just stop…}
[…]
Isiris pleaded desperately, pouring out tears with all her might.
In response, that being…
Seraphim remained silent for a while.
Each passing second in that silence only intensified the overwhelming fear in her heart.
Even so, the only thing she could do was tremble in fear, waiting for his reply.
It was a sensation as if her mind was being devoured in real-time—a feeling she had never experienced, not even from her brother, Ba’al.
And then.
Towards the trembling Isiris.
Seraphim spoke in a calm voice.
[Very well. For now.]
A declaration that left room for uncertainty.
But Isiris didn’t have the luxury to worry about such nuances.
The only emotion she felt at this moment was pure relief.
The fact that this unstoppable violence had ceased, even if just for a moment.
Feeling genuine joy from that fact alone,
Isiris’s battered spirit automatically drove her to kneel before the being in front of her…
Before the “God.”
{Th-Thank… Thank you… Sob… I truly… I truly thank you… Seraphim… sir…}
The goddess Isiris, who had ruled over this land for hundreds of years,
Declared her complete surrender before a day had even passed in real time.
To Seraphim, the true god,
A being possessing absolute power,
To whom she could never compare.
—
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