After having gone far enough from the clearing where everyone was resting at, Ryner checked his surroundings. There was nothing but trees and more trees. Once he made sure there was no one around, he released his powers. Black smoke enveloped him and dispersed outwards in an instant. The skin of a human was gone and what stood there was a monster.

A double-edged sword materialized in his hand and he swung it down. The bluish, semi-transparent blade cut through the wind and at that moment, space broke. Multiple cracks appeared in front of Ryner like damaged glass. They spread until an audible shattering sound echoed and the pieces were blown off before disappearing. A hole in space was left. It was filled with white light and what waited on the other side could not be seen, but Ryner knew where it led.

He calmly walked through it which flooded his vision in light. Once it receded, he floated in a place similar to outer space. There was no earth and there was no sky. Although he could see clearly, it was dark and filled with dots of light like the night sky. Auroras would appear and streaked through this dimension like shooting stars.

Ryner put a hand to his chest and his fingers slowly sank into his black-clad body. He needed to do this as soon as possible so that he could start his second game with Alice.

“Guh…!” [Ryner]

Groaning in pain, his fingers continued to dig deeper until they went completely inside his chest. He pulled his hand out as gently as possible while laboriously breathing. Then, gritting his teeth, he ripped out what he had grabbed.

“AAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!” [Ryner]

Letting out a blood-chilling scream of agony, he clutched his chest with his other hand and fell to his knees. He gasped for painful breath, enduring the maddening pain that was ravaging his very core deep inside of him. It was worse than having his insides burned and messed with while he was still alive. It was worse than any form of torture he had undergone before. That was how it felt like to rip a part of one’s soul.

Looking at his hand, there was a chunk of black smoke grasped in his fingers. It was semi-solid like some sort of pudding and had the shape of a deformed sphere. But, the sides swayed and dispersed in the air, just like the hem of his coat.

“Urgh… Argh… Kuh… Wow that hurt.” [Ryner]

He stayed down to catch his breath for a while. Afterwards, staggeringly getting up, Ryner materialized multiple guns that floated around him and had them shoot in different directions. Just like with his sword, the shots suddenly impacted the air in front of them and caused cracks to appear before tearing a whole through space.

The being with white feathers for hair began to tear the chunk in his hand into pieces, yelling and groaning in pain every time. He threw them in the portals he created and once they passed through, the cracks mended themselves and closed the holes. His soul fragments were now sent to different worlds where they would complete the objectives given to them. The body they would inhabit and the location of their “birth” would be taken care of by Alice just like they agreed on.

“*Sigh* Finally… Now, time to meet the gods.” [Ryner]

Wiping his forehead, he shot another hole through space and had his guns dispersed like smoke. He went through the glowing portal and arrived at his destination. It was where the gods watched over the world from. It was a completely empty white space that seemed to extend forever.

“You’re late.” [???]

A man’s voice greeted him right away in a calm tone. In front of Ryner was a handsome god in a white and green robe who was reading a book while sitting at a table. He seemed to be in his late twenties, but that didn’t say anything of his real age. He had blonde hair with a long lock on the right side of his face that reached his chin. His eyes were jade green and stared straight at the new arrival without wavering. The serene aura he gave off made one feel like they were before a vast and still forest.

“Iparus, huh. If you’re here, then the gods in charge of this place don’t want to meet me.” [Ryner]

“Very few wish to even see you. Shouldn’t you have gotten used to dealing with me by now? Anyway, you’re late. You were supposed to come here right after you were born in this realm.” [Iparus]

After saying that, Iparus went back to reading.

“Does it matter? Time passes by quickly for you all, so even if I came here a year later, you wouldn’t have waited for long. You probably wanted me to come a bit later so that you could keep reading anyway.” [Ryner]

“That still doesn’t mean that you should wander the world with the curiosity of a child and neglect meeting us.” [Iparus]

Ryner crossed his arms and spoke in a displeased tone.

“I can’t be so carefree like before anymore because of some problems that you guys brought up, so consider us even with this.” [Ryner]

“Problems?” [Iparus]

“Let’s stop the pleasantries and get down to business. You know what I mean.” [Ryner]

Iparus closed his book and threw it to the side. It flew in the air and faded away. Despite the sharp eyes staring at him and the fact that he was alone with a monster that slaughtered both worlds and gods, he didn’t show any fear at all.

“You don’t change at all. You’ll willingly kneel down to a human king, but you act so disrespectfully towards a god.” [Iparus]

“That’s because we’ve already established that you guys are my enemies. I won’t get anything from kneeling, so there’s no need to put up a front. Now, tell me.” [Ryner]

Ryner walked forward, even if there was no floor, and arrived right in front of the god sitting at the table.

“Why is my fortress a planet all of a sudden? Messing with my-” [Ryner]

“PARASITE!!!” [???]

A deep, booming and enraged voice reverberated in this dimension. A huge man with bronze skin appeared above them out of nowhere and charged straight at Ryner. His fist, which was wrapped in deep red, violent flames, hit its mark at blinding speed. The flames surged outwards and rapidly turned the white space into hell itself. It could easily engulf an entire city. The intense heat would have melted steel like butter and turned anyone to ash in an instant.

Just as they suddenly appeared, the flames receded, letting the owner of such terrifying power see if his target was killed.

“I don’t have any life force to waste on you, Edum.” [Ryner]

His huge fist was blocked by a sword that had a cracked blade from which a white, glowing fluid seeped through like light. The weapon was held vertically down with the left hand. Ryner had his left foot in front and his right foot behind him to stabilize himself when he stopped the attack.

Edum wasn’t surprised to see that that monster was still alive, but he didn’t think that he would come out of it unscathed. He tried to push the sword away and his muscles that covered his topless body bulged as a result. Even though he was easily two meters tall, he couldn’t make the small monster budge one inch.

“Leave, now.” [Ryner]

The words washed over him like cold water. A dark brown left eye and a golden right eye stared at him from behind the sword. They were cold, sharp and emotionless. They made the god take a step back which got him even angrier. His long red hair that was like a lion’s mane raised and began giving off heat before turning into raging flames. His red eyes were also aflame and filled his eye sockets with furious fire.

“I’LL KILL YOU, YOU DAMN PARASITE!!!” [Edum]

Edum raised his other fist that was clad in his signature element But, before he could bring it down and deliver divine judgment, Ryner had already pointed his gun at him which had cracks around the muzzle. The black firearm in his right hand fired a flash of blue light at the vengeful god. It completely flooded the tall body and sent him flying over the horizon, drowning out his flames and extinguishing them at the same time.

“YOU PARASIIIIIITTTEEEE!!!” [Edum]

Edum rolled back on his feet and went on the attack once more. He turned into a flaming bullet and aimed for his hated enemy.

“Enough.” [Iparus]

Iparus, who had escaped the surprise attack, appeared in front of Edum and said in a calm, but strong voice. Edum stopped his charged just as he was about to hit him and his flames receded. He breathed deeply and glared at the blonde-haired god.

“Why was this kept from me? Why did no one tell me that the Parasite would show up here?!” [Edum]

“Because you would attack him right away like you did now.” [Iparus]

Iparus answered without fear as he stood before a huge, middle-aged man that was practically made of muscles and embodied the very picture of a fierce god.

“HE DESTROYED MY WORLD! HE AND THE OTHER PARASITE! WHY ARE WE LETTING THEM LIVE?!” [Edum]

Edum bellowed and pointed at the anomaly that stood a fair distance from him and was watching the events unfold.

“You know why, Edum. It was decided that we would let them fight. We will only move when Ryner loses.” [Iparus]

“I DIDN’T AGREE TO IT!” [Edum]

“Most of the gods did. You can’t overturn this decision by yourself.” [Iparus]

“WE SHOULD JUST KILL THOSE PARASITES! WE CAN HANDLE-!“ [Edum]

“Edum.” [Iparus]

“…Tch! DAMN IT!” [Edum]

Iparus’ tone increased in intensity, telling Edum to shut up. It implied that he shouldn’t say anything unnecessary. The silent pressure was to remind him not to divulge any of their secrets.

The god with the fiery mane gritted his teeth, swore and murderously glared at Ryner. Then, he disappeared inside a portal similar to Ryner. It didn’t have any cracks and looked like a round hole filled with light. He didn’t punch a hole through dimension, he ordered it to open.

“I apologize on behalf of Edum.” [Iparus]

Once he was gone, Iparus turned around and went back to Ryner who was waiting with his arms crossed.

“Forget it. That wasn’t unexpected. I figured he’d show up. I just want my answer. Why did the gods in charge of this realm use my fortress as a core for that planet?” [Ryner]

Ryner dismissed his apology with a wave of his hand and urged him to answer his initial question. He had already predicted that that huge god would stalk him here. He was like a mad hound.

“… That construct was made with an enormous amount of life force, the very essence of life. They said that you only left it there in some other realm and that it was a blasphemy.” [Iparus]

Iparus said after sighing.

“So they went and used it to create a world that could sustain life.” [Ryner]

“Correct.” [Iparus]

“Is that it? They just wanted to put all that life force to use?” [Ryner]

“That life force was stolen from other worlds. They only reacquired it and put it to good use. At least, that was what they told me, but I think they really just wanted to spite you.” [Iparus]

Ryner stayed silent for a while when he heard that immature and idiotic reason. The gods had used his fortress as a base for their world to draw on the life force that was stocked in its core. They didn’t care that it contained dangerous creatures, tools and equipment. There weren’t any grand or complicated reasons. They just wanted to steal his stuff and make him mad.

Iparus had dealt with Ryner for many years, so even if the abnormal creature’s face remained cold and impassive, he could tell that he was quite angry. In fact, he was right. Ryner felt like hitting a god.

“… What about the War Puppets and weapons I left there?” [Ryner]

“There are earthquakes focused on every entrance to keep people away from them, courtesy of the gods. But, once the mortals became brave enough to venture inside, they thought they should let them do what they want. Your weapons were a good stimulus for their creative minds. It made them wonder how they worked and had them research the depths of magic. Your War Puppets pushed them to become stronger and reach new heights.” [Iparus]

Ryner wanted to hit a god.

“… What about those summoned to that world? They gave the humans that summoning magic, didn’t they?” [Ryner]

“Since the nature of that world was abnormal, the gods in charge thought that it was better to have people from other worlds put their knowledge to use. The heroes are a safety measure. They are there to deal with the creatures that you made, in case they ever went to the surface. Unfortunately, that doesn’t apply to the truly powerful ones that reside deep within the core. Even with their large mana pools, ordinary mortals cannot defeat them. But, those things probably won’t ever be seen.” [Iparus]

Ryner decided to hit a god.

“Also, some souls were allowed to retain their memories from their past life.” [Iparus]

Ryner blinked his eyes when he heard that last sentence. Not just the summoned heroes, there were also reincarnators in that world.

“Doing that could bring in dangerous knowledge.” [Ryner]

“Yes, you’re familiar with that, aren’t you? But, they decided so and they are the ones in charge of this realm. It did allow the mortals to discover new inventions that improved their lives.” [Iparus]

The blonde-haired god counted on his fingers.

“Plumbing system, glasswork, printing press, clothing, infrastructure, agriculture… Also, synthetizing materials like polyester, improving medical knowledge… All of these made great leaps thanks to otherworlders who were born with their past memories intact or were summoned as heroes. Living conditions were improved by bringing scientists, cooks, farmers and others specialized in different fields. You can’t deny that.” [Iparus]

“… Yeah, you’re right. I can’t. But, what will you do if someone brings in unwanted inventions? What if someone gets a big head and stirs up trouble?” [Ryner]

“You’ll have to ask the ones governing this realm for that.” [Iparus]

Hearing Iparus’ answer, Ryner closed his eyes and exhaled.

“You gods don’t change either.” [Ryner]

He muttered under his breath, but Iparus heard him quite well.

“Ryner, the troubles you faced because of a few gods was-“ [Iparus]

“Was not your fault or anyone else. I know. Not all of you are pieces of trash like them. But, I’m just being honest with my feelings.” [Ryner]

Ryner interrupted Iparus when he tried to remind him of this fact because of the wrath and disappointment that he heard in his voice. When he saw his expression, he knew that there was no point in pushing it. Ryner wouldn’t hear anything he had to say.

“*Sigh* I’ve told you all that I was tasked to. Now, one of the gods wants to meet you.” [Iparus]

“Hooh, I thought they sent you because they didn’t want to deal with me?” [Ryner]

“He said that he wanted me to do the boring explanations so that the two of you could have a fun conversation. He’s quite an eccentric. Would you like to meet him?” [Iparus]

Iparus asked Ryner as he raised his hand to the side. A round portal appeared, leading to the god that wanted to talk to the one know as a parasite. Ryner looked at Iparus quietly for a moment and went through the gate.

Right after he left and Iparus’ tense shoulders relaxed, another person came in the white room.

“Ryner?” [???]

A womanly voice called out. Iparus turned to the new arrival. She was a beautiful woman in her late twenties with fair skin. Her soft, long hair that reached her ankles was white and purple at the end. The white part was half-transparent and would reflect the light of the sun which gave her a shining radiance. The corners of her gentle blue eyes drooped slightly and her seductive figure that mortals would fantasize about was covered by a purple dress with light blue linings. In her hands was a T-shaped golden staff with a crescent moon on top.

Confirming who she was, Iparus closed his eyes and sighed again. If Edum was keeping an eye out for Ryner and found him, then it was only natural that she would too.

“He’s already left.” [Iparus]

The god with jade eyes told her what she wanted to know.

“Iparus, where did he go?” [???]

She asked in a gentle, worried voice.

“I can’ tell you, Uta. You know you’re not supposed to get too close to him.” [Iparus]

“But…” [Uta]

“Besides, that man has never accepted your kindness. He doesn’t want anything born out of a god’s pity.” [Iparus]

“I-It’s not just pity… Not anymore.” [Uta]

The goddess, Uta, clutched her staff to her plentiful chest and sadly looked down. She bit her lower lip as she pondered whether she should voice out her question. Iparus had always been neutral and he was the one that would interact with Ryner the most. Perhaps, he felt the same way as her. Making up her mind, she gazed at the blonde-haired god that had made a table and chair out of thin air.

“… Shouldn’t we tell him?” [Uta]

She didn’t tell him what she meant. He already knew. All the gods already knew. That was what Edum wanted to say back then and that was why Iparus stopped him.

“There is no need. We’ve all agreed to keep it from him.” [Iparus]

“But, we will have him fight for us.” [Uta]

“He accepted to do us a favor when he made that deal with us gods, did he not?” [Iparus]

After sitting down, a book appeared in Iparus hands. It turned to the page he had stopped at before by itself.

“Even so, I think he has the right to know.” [Uta]

“That would only put another burden on him. You understand, don’t you?” [Iparus]

Uta opened her mouth to say something, but closed it and fell silent. Despite favoring Ryner to the point that it made her rush here and forget her duties, the goddess had a good head on her shoulders. She understood why it was better to keep this truth from him. That man already carried a mountain of burdens, enough to crush him completely. Yet, he refused to let any of them go.

While Iparus was reading, Uta, after a moment of silence, finally nodded.

“… Yes. For now, we shouldn’t tell Ryner about the others like him… Not yet.” [Uta]

“Nice to finally meet you, Ryner. I am Motyx-buerg!” [Motyx]

Right after introducing himself, the god with the suspicious smile got punched in the face. He traced an arc in the air before falling down.

“Why the hell did you guys take my stuff without permission?” [Ryner]

Ryner, satisfied after punching a god, asked in a cold voice.

“Owowow! What a harsh greeting! I never thought I’d meet a mortal who’d punch a god right away!” [Motyx]

Motyx got up like nothing happened and dusted his clothes with a smile on his face. With dark purple hair and deep blue eyes, he was a good-looking man that wore a black vest over a white work shirt and black pants.

“I’m not a mortal anymore and that’s what you get for touching other people’s stuff.” [Ryner]

“Come now! Iparus already explained it to you, right? So, let’s talk about something else. I wanted to meet you once. I couldn’t greet you sooner because of some circumstances, but now-!” [Motyx]

“No. I just came to hit you. Bye.” [Ryner]

Just as Ryner turned around to leave and materialized a sword, Motyx raised his hand and called out to him in panic.

“Wait wait wait! Let’s talk for a bit! I wanted to speak to the one that’s called the Parasite and has been waging war with some creature he let loose in the world! Ah! Wait! Don’t break through dimension! Listen just a bit! I’ll tell you something good! I didn’t mess with everything in that fort you built!” [Motyx]

Ryner, having already made a portal to return, stopped and looked over his shoulder.

“… What?” [Ryner]

“While my associates were busily creating the world, I was in charge of scouting the inside!” [Motix]

Motix began to explain, happy that he managed to keep him from leaving.

“I had to make sure that there was nothing excessively dangerous. Ignoring some of the really strong creatures you made, I went around and destroyed things that mortals of our realm shouldn’t get close to.” [Motyx]

“So, you’re the culprit.” [Ryner]

Remembering the destroyed terminal that would have made his life easier, the being clad in black raised his sword ominously. The portal behind him had closed by itself.

“That’s true, but I didn’t break everything! Why do you think you’re flying ship is still intact! Among other things!” [Motyx]

The dark purple-haired god hurriedly kept talking to avoid another hit. So, Motyx told Ryner he destroyed some structures like the terminals, but left others intact. As such, not all of the terminals were destroyed, so Ryner could still find a working one. However, the perpetrator had no idea where they were, so he had to look for them by himself.

When the monster asked the god why he did it, he was told “It’s more fun like that!” which resulted in Ryner staring at him menacingly. Motyx didn’t do his job properly because he thought it was more interesting to let some mortals find these dangerous objects if they could reach them. In other words, he neglected his duty as a divine being and sought enjoyment by watching over the world.

Moreover, he didn’t hate Ryner. He was interested in the monster. So, while the other gods might have turned his fortress into the core of the planet that supplied the necessary life force out of hate, Motyx did it because he thought it was fun.

That was why the rogue hero, Dan, had the ability to control others. The summoning magic created by the gods gave unique skills to some. Motyx, thinking it would be amusing, interfered during the summoning and randomly gave one of them the powerful ability to submit others to their will, which ended up being Dan.

He was a god that was bored and wanted to have fun. He was a dangerous existence.

“Ok, now it’s my turn. You were a human before. How did it feel like when you turned into what you are now?” [Motyx]

“Awful. I’ll be going.” [Ryner]

“Already?! After everything I told you?! Wait! One more question! You’re battling the other Parasite right now, right?! Which one between you two is stronger?!” [Motyx]

A sword appeared in Ryner’s hand and he swung it down which opened a rift in space. Motyx didn’t physically hold him back, but he kept questioning him.

“Ah, sorry. That was a bad question. If you lose, then the Parasite will get to do what it wants with the world you’re living in, right? So, you can’t lose once and you haven’t eithe-waaaaiiit!” [Motyx]

The golden-eyed man proceeded to leave, walking closer to the portal he had just created. This prompted Motyx to talk even faster.

“You’ve always been winning, so us gods don’t need to fight it! Then, doesn’t that mean that you’re stronger?! Yet, you haven’t managed to kill the Parasite after all these years! Why’s that?!” [Motyx]

Ryner stopped when he heard that question and Motyx slightly relaxed.

“The two of you live on life force and can steal it from entire worlds. But, you aren’t immortal. If you force the Parasite to burn through all of her life force, then she’ll die. So, why haven’t you? You’re always winning against her, so you might as well-.” [Motyx]

“The rules of our game state that when our life force drops below a certain level, we lose. When that happens, the loser can replenish his powers and decide when the next fight begins. The level that declares your loss also lowers, so the more you lose, the closer you get to death. Alice will die eventually.” [Ryner]

Ryner said in a tired tone, surprised that a god would be asking him this. They should already be aware of the rules that were set up between him and Alice.

“I see, I see! But, what’s with that weird rule? You let the loser challenge you after it regained its powers. Wouldn’t it be better to just kill it right away? Are you really trying to kill-?” [Motyx]

“I promised myself that I would kill Alice.” [Ryner]

He interrupted Motyx and spoke in a low and cold voice.

“I always keep my promises.” [Ryner]

Before the portal closed again, he crossed it and disappeared in the light, leaving the bored god by himself. Once he was gone, Motyx dropped his head dejectedly.

“Aw, I didn’t get to ask him if he liked my little creation. A huge green tree with absorption powers based on his. Even the mortals call it a parasite. I wonder if he would feel honored.” [Motyx]

After exhaling, he straightened his back again and smiled suspiciously.

“Oh well, I’ll ask him next time. I made a bunch more of various sizes too. Wonder how he’ll like them.” [Motyx]

The bored god muttered as he looked forward to the entertainment that the monster could provide him in the near future.

*Author* Got some things I need to do, so chapter production will slow down. I'll still aim for a weekly release.