Meteos slowly opened his eyes after what felt like a very long time of slumber and was greeted by the same eerily beautiful starlit expanse that had accompanied his bizarre and very much lucid dream experience—

“Hnnggg……… huh, wha—aaaargh!? Everything… hurts…!” he cried out in agony. It was the first of a series of painful screams that echoed through this ethereal scape.

Vividly etched in Meteos’ mind were the remnants of that fight, wherein each move, every blow, and the emotional turmoil of his elder doppelganger—the uncertainty now lingering as to whether this was but a figment within his dream—surfaced with the force of an unstoppable deluge. Memories surged forth, inundating his mind. With a sudden surge of pain and nausea, Meteos violently thrashed in his supine position, as if every sinew and bone within his being had shattered. Even with Rogue’s power, how could his soul endure Kagaseo’s beatdown for so long? Was his resolve to reincarnate truly so unyielding? What’s even the drive? The Sin of Envy?

But if he did not, the only other option was a fate worse than death…

Yes. Now that their memories seemingly merged, Meteos now recognized his post-reincarnation self and the one who transformed into Rogue to fight a god as one unified entity. The two distinct aspects of his being intertwined, as if the missing fragments of his soul’s journey had now been unveiled. Oh, and the alleged fact that the existence of mortals serves as entertainment purposes for those so-called higher beings caused him so much distress within a span of a few seconds. The pain coursing through his body seemed to intensify in response to this, exacerbating his suffering to an even worse degree.

‘That bastard paleface… to think he would dump this unnecessary existential crisis on me!’

Amidst the rasping cadence of his breath and the tormented cries that escaped his lips, Meteos inwardly seethed at the instigator of it all. However, as one who had long held reverence for the entity known as “Kagaseo” in his world—the August Star of Heaven—discomfort gnawed at him when considering the cursing of that god’s supposed name. Instead, he settled for a derogatory term used by the natives of his world to denigrate the Light-Winged Devils who happened to be just as pale as that Star God.

“If you think that you’ve died in your sleep and ended up in an afterlife again, don’t worry. This is still your Angel Fruit-induced dreamspace. You’re still dreaming.”

Kagaseo’s voice nonchalantly commented as the Star God’s face peered down at him from the corner of his vision.

“You…!”

“Yo,” the paleface smirked while making a mock salute.

“What… do you want… with me?”

“The hell you’re asking me for? It was the fruit that brought your consciousness to my turf. I simply come around to check—and mess around with things that come here… Nah, I’m just kidding. As the god who reincarnated you, I took the opportunity to bring you here to talk. Think of it as like a revelation that prophets receive in their dreams.”

“What’s even the point…? Anyone who consumes the Angel Fruit is said to forget their dreams—”

“I’m a god, you idiot, and this is just a dream. Why do you think my blessing should be denied by a fucking fruit?” Kagaseo retorted in irritation.

Meteos held his tongue. In his fury, he almost forgot that he is in the presence of this Kagaseo, who in spite of how annoying he is, is still a god. It’s normally unwise to badmouth one, even if said god is an asshole.

“Also, can you stop screaming? It’s noisy.”

“Rrrngh…!” Even the motion of moving his fingers hurts. However, Meteos complied. “Then… why do you make me… suffer this way…?”

“Oh, yeah. I hear that one of your kind’s wisemen once say that ‘misery builds character,’ or something along those lines. That’s why before granting you reincarnation, I played as the Heel to your Face to see if it’s real,” Kagaseo shrugged half-heartedly, frustrating the human even more.

“…What did you say!? Too much misery will reduce a man to an empty shell of his former self! There’s a reason why those ‘wisemen’ don’t end up ruling the world for all the words they were spouting!” Meteos angrily yelled in rebuttal.

“Says the man who endured suffering and earned reincarnation,” Kagaseo flippantly reminded the fight between the two of them as Glare-X and Rogue. “But to be fair, back then your soul didn’t remember anything that happened between your first death and rebirth. Now, here’s a question: are you going to be reduced to an empty shell with the pain you are feeling now?”

“No way,” Meteos answered right away despite still in pain as he glared at the god. “You heard me say that I will pursue my dreams, happiness, and ideal world. It’s almost a decade passed since that time… There’s no way this pain will discourage me from accomplishing them…!”

“Well, that’s good for you then. But do remember that it was nothing compared to the hardships that some get to experience. It’s those things that will make lesser men wish they die.”

The reincarnator craned his head to stare at his hand, which was shaking from the intense pain, and sighed heavily at just how true that statement was.

“I hate you so much.”

“I don’t care. But our fight did accomplish something. As a reward, here’s a divine power to heal your pains. I call it ‘Handwave,’ hehehehe.”

And with a literal handwave from Kagaseo, Meteos could feel the intense pain vanish in an instant and immediately shot up to his feet. Just to make sure, he clenched and unclenched his fists several times, stretched, and then successfully performed his martial arts routine that he learned from Robin without feeling any discomfort in his body.

“Impressive,” he murmured as he relaxed from a stance. In addition, now that he was freed from the torturous feeling of pain, he realized that his voice and body took the form of his twenties just like Rogue he watched earlier.

Kagaseo was rubbing his nose with his finger, clearly basking in the praise if his shit-eating grin is any indication.

“So… we’re cool?” he asked.

Meteos gave the god a long stare before grumbling bitterly, “Whatever. Gods be like gods, what’s a mortal like me has to say about it?”

“Good enough for me!”

A sigh.

Kagaseo suddenly walked off, prompting Meteos who was unsure what to do to follow him and managed to walk by his side. They spent several moments seemingly wandering aimlessly in this fantastic, but featureless dreamscape, before someone spoke.

“……Speaking of which… A ‘Heel,’ huh? I certainly did not expect a god to be into professional wrestling,” Meteos deadpanned as he recalled Kagaseo’s words of his twisted reasoning.

“Hey, pro wrestling is the soap opera for men. That, and good genuine fights of all kinds are something that I greatly enjoy.”

In the previous timeline, this industry was embraced by the younger Milishian generations who lived in an era of widespread Japanese influence and was given the nickname of ‘redneck anime.’ Starting as a practice of match fixing among the wrestlers, it then evolved into a form of theater as the public found scripted matches to be more entertaining and accepted it as performance art. This transition ushered in a wave of melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunts, all interwoven into the wrestler’s performances. In Meteos’ second life, during the early 1610s, professional wrestling had not yet gained widespread popularity within the Holy Empire. However, it would inevitably flourish even without his personal intervention.

Now, a ‘Heel’ is what a wrestler who portrays a villainous character whose role is to be booed by the audience is called, while the heroic protagonists that they antagonize are called ‘Faces.’

“…So you intend to kill me or not!?”

“I’ll leave that to your interpretation. Feel free to speculate!”

“It does feel as real as it gets… That fight was an actual violence instead of a simulation of violence…”

“So, Roguerider, how it feels being a Face?” Kagaseo asked again with a grin. To Meteos’ horror, it feels like he’s dealing with Robin’s antics.

“Great…” he protested. “No way. I don’t see myself as a Face, ever.”

“Oh, come on! Who knows, maybe you could be the protagonist of your own storyline! And I’m not saying that it’s limited to the wrestling kind, maybe there’s a story with you as the main character circulating around in the higher realm, who knows.”

With a flourish, Kagaseo winked much to Meteos’ bewilderment, but he shook his head and denied his words.

“Utter nonsense. What protagonist? What storyline? Even as a reincarnated person, in the end, I am just an engineer. What’s so interesting about my life? Oh, my misery, right? That’s what the higher beings like to watch if your words were to be believed.”

“But you were a masked Pal Chimera captain, and before you were reborn, your soul becomes a Kamen Rider. In their original world, the bearers of that title are heroes for many children,” Kagaseo offered.

“Yes, yes, watch as whatever they are will throw those overused ‘laughs in blah blah blah’ comments again.”

The young man scowled. Meteos already grew as a person to become someone capable of tolerating insults. But his best friend once died in a Pal Chimera. Regardless of the circumstances, he will never forgive anyone who desecrates his friend’s place of death with their verbal excrement, not unlike animals.

“Oh, you’re right on the money for that part! The higher beings see you and your country especially as losers that deserve nothing but three thousand suns dropped on your asses. Ever since they see you and branded you a collection of monkeys and pigs, no good deed will redeem your reputation in their eyes, it seems. I even have the recording of an entire chat log of higher beings mocking you if you want to see—”

“No, thank you. Just one higher being already caused me so much stress, why should I involve myself in more of their shenanigans?”

“………!”

“Hm? What now?”

Thinking this as just another one of his antics, Meteos raised an eyebrow as the Star God suddenly stopped in his tracks. However, when looking at his face, Kagaseo was frowning. He briefly stared at the distance with a look of resentment before turning toward Meteos with a sigh.

“Roguerider… earlier in the fight, I indeed refer myself as one of the higher beings… but that specific part was just a Heel gimmick. From now on, refer to me as a ‘god’ or ‘deity,’ even a ‘bastard’ would be fine, but never a ‘higher being,’ do you understand?”

“……Uh. Fine, then. What is it? I sensed that no love was lost between you and them, but I’m unsure what. So you’re really a rebellious god after all?”

“Actually, it is related to your reincarnation. We’re almost there.”

The god led Meteos through the dreamscape until they spotted a small structure in the distance. As they got closer, its shape became clearer to Meteos.

Nestled amidst this strange realm, like a precious gem sitting in the palm of the universe, stands a small cottage. Its walls of weathered cobblestone stand firm against the ever-shifting tides of the subconscious. A humble thatched roof crowns the structure, casting gentle shadows that dance gracefully upon the façade, bestowing an inviting warmth upon all who chance upon this ethereal sanctuary. Surrounding the cottage, a garden bursts forth in a kaleidoscope of hues and fragrances, an iridescent tapestry woven by the divine hands of slumber. A symphony of flowers sways in harmonious unity, their petals an artist’s palette, vivid strokes of crimson, azure, and gold. Each bloom emanates an intoxicating perfume, their scents intertwining to create an olfactory symphony that wafts gently through the air.

At the heart of this magical oasis, a bonfire crackles with life, its flames reaching skyward, devouring the darkness that lurks beyond the cottage’s confines. As embers dance gracefully, their ethereal glow illuminates the dreamscape, casting a soft, flickering light upon the surrounding landscape. Shadows sway and twist, forming intricate patterns upon the ground, like fleeting whispers of forgotten stories waiting to be discovered. The cottage’s fence, an intricately carved lattice of dreams, separates this sanctuary from the barren void of the dreamscape. Under the constellations of dreams, it stands as a beacon of respite and solace, seemingly offering a sanctuary for weary wanderers of the mind, beckoning to Meteos to step in.

“…It’s beautiful,” the silver-haired human remarked upon reaching the fence. “What is this place?”

“A sanctuary I built for someone who is currently suffering, come.”

“………?”

Kagaseo looked over his shoulder at the human and gave him a solemn look as he replied. His voice was quiet, an abrupt change from the boisterous Star God persona he carried since their first meeting, which made Meteos unnerved but at the same time intrigued. He followed Kagaseo in crossing the threshold of the cottage and stepped into the tranquility of this place. Inside, a hushed stillness enveloped the space, punctuated only by the crackling of a lit fireplace. The room was decorated with simple furnishings, and the walls were adorned with tapestries depicting serene landscapes and celestial scenes.

As their footsteps grew quieter on the polished wooden floor, Meteos noticed a bed in the corner of the room. On the bed lay a woman, her fragile form enveloped in a soft blanket. Strands of emerald hair, mingled with patches of unnatural white, cascaded over the pillow, framing a deathly pale complexion etched with pain and deeply furrowed brows as if she was tormented by unseen forces within her dreams. The woman remained motionless, her chest barely rising and falling, giving the impression that she was lifeless. Meteos couldn’t help but feel as though he was observing a corpse before him.

“I’m back.”

Meteos’ gaze followed Kagaseo who approached the bed with a grim look and knelt, gently placing a hand on the woman’s forehead. When the slumbering woman didn’t respond in the slightest, the young man winced, wondering what is the nature of this woman and what kind of illness caused this. After some time had passed in silence, Meteos dared to approach the Star God and asked him a question.

“Is she… a deity?”

“Yes. Do you remember the six comets that fell from the sky that evolved your Zombie Buckle during our fight nine years ago?”

A flashback played within Meteos’ mind about what was revealed to be quite a divine intervention. Back then, he remembered hearing Kagaseo mentioning someone, but the name that the god shouted eluded him.

When he saw the human nod, Kagaseo continued. “Those reinforcement Zombie Buckles were made from her divine power. It was because of her kindness that you’re able to survive the bout and reincarnate. You better be damn grateful to her for that!”

Meteos frowned at the revelation while still gazing upon the sleeping goddess. So even with the aid of a deity, he was still barely able to match Kagaseo, especially considering he intentionally weakened himself with that armored suit.

“…Very well. A deity intervened to save my life with her miracle. It’s only natural that I should extend my humblest gratitude to her,” he readily agreed. “Come to think of it, it didn’t occur to me until now, but may I ask her name?”

“That’s right…” Kagaseo’s eyes widened slightly at Meteos’ question. “A genuine miracle like yours can only happen if the deity and mortal resonate with each other. Those Raise Buckles were her resonation with your soul. In that case, you should be able to remember her name without fail!”

‘I wonder what kind of miracles are not genuine if you worded it that way—’

“Now, say it! Listen carefully and repeat after me!”

Kagaseo rose to his feet and stepped forward to stare the human in the eyes. It was for the first time since they’d met that Meteos felt the sheer divinity and a different kind of pressure radiating from his presence. Here, the self-proclaimed Star God truly feels like a god. Almost faltering, Meteos swallowed before meeting the god’s gaze and nodded, feeling the gravity of the matter.

“She is ███████, the ███████ ██ █████████ and the ███████ ██████ of the █████ ████.”

For some reason, Meteos’ mind almost went blank when Kagaseo uttered those words, as if a malevolent fog was threatening to cloud his mind with ignorance. As he struggled to recall those words, he felt something inside him twist uncomfortably and the world around him grew strangely hazy the more his mind struggled.

“She is— she—gaaah!” he groaned, clutching his head at the sudden pain.

“You must remember! She almost sacrificed what’s left of her powers to save your life! Now it’s your turn to save hers! She is ███████! REMEMBER HER NAME! ███████!”

“I know…! But for some reason I can’t remember that name…!”

“Fight it! You are Roguerider, right? The rebel who desires to fight your fate!? Stay true to your resolve! Fight the pain and say her name!”

Kagaseo’s encouraging voice echoed inside Meteos’ mind loudly while the fog within his mind began to lift, allowing him to regain clarity and finally recall it, his eyes slowly widening.

“Hrrnnggg… AARGH…! I see it now… she is… she is Astarte…! The Goddess of Fertility… and the Blessed Mother of the Elven Race…!”

The Star God’s expression broke into a relieved smile, also the first time Meteos witnessed it, as his words were repeated by the human in front of him. The same tolling of bells as that time was echoing again from outside this dream cottage, marking a second time that a miracle was occurring right before his eyes.

“Good work. That’s right… her name is Astarte. Remember that even if it’s the last thing you do!”

“Right… I still owe her gratitude,” Meteos nodded shakily before composing himself. Then he stepped closer to the slumbering goddess, Astarte, and kneeled.

“O divine Astarte, as I kneel before you, I am overwhelmed by the magnitude of your benevolence. As I recall the abyss that threatened to swallow me whole, I am humbled by your divine intervention. May your dreams be adorned with the whispered prayers of the grateful, as they ascend to the heavens like incense. For in this moment, as I pour my soul into words unheard, I extend my eternal gratitude, for you, have bestowed upon me the gift to persevere and survive.”

The solemn prayer seemed to have an effect on Astarte’s expression, her furrowed brows began to relax and her breathing became normal.

“Ah… look at her,” the human gasped.

“Yeah. I got to give it to you, that was a lovely one.”

“…Thank you. But I merely followed my faith. If there is a god who has my back, then that god will have my altar. And as I understand, there are two gods who literally helped me… though one of them seems to be too annoying to be prayed to.”

“Hmph,” Kagaseo snorted. “If you’re done, meet me outside. There’s something I wanted to talk about.”

“Is it okay to leave her like this?”

“Don’t worry, Astarte is strong. If she were awake, she will tell you not to worry about her.”

Kagaseo turned on his heel and exited the cottage while Meteos continued to look at Astarte. After a while, he finally got up from his kneeling position after giving Astarte some kind words and followed the Star God. Finding him sitting by the bonfire, Meteos sat on a bench across from him. As the embers danced with life, they reflected the starlight from the sky as the fire blazed brightly.

“What is it that you wanted to talk about?” Meteos questioned.

“……It has been many millennia since a mortal uttered Astarte’s name so reverently in a prayer,” Kagaseo said in almost a whisper. “Those were trying times. First, her name was gone from the memories of the universe, then she became unable to remember who she is, and with each passing day, she slowly lost her divine powers. She is on the brink of ceasing to exist as a deity. The only thing left is her feelings of unconditional love for those… helpless, vulnerable little lifeforms that inhabit this backwater planet in a corner of the universe. She could not remember who they are, nor she can create new memories about them, but every day, I see her stare at the same planet with her loving gaze. It was the one thing that kept her going despite her suffering… but it was very painful to watch.”

Meteos listened in silence until he decided to ask again.

“Is that what happens to deities who are forgotten by the mortals?”

Apparently it was not the case, as Kagaseo shook his head.

“Deities don’t need mortals to exist, it’s the mortals who need them. As for the question of why your prayer is able to alleviate some of Astarte’s suffering, when a mortal performs a prayer with utmost sincerity, that prayer is capable of reaching the realm of the divine, resonating with a deity, and transforming into positive energy to be used either as a source of rejuvenation or shield against negative forces that threaten the god. Gods invest in this by blessing the mortals who worship them, which in turn will entice more mortals to pray to that god, thus creating a cycle.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?” Kagaseo asked back.

“In my world, your other name, the August Star of Heaven, is not known as a deity, but rather a phenomenon revered by my people as the work of all gods. Therefore, when we pray, we did so by keeping that in mind. Does this affect you too?”

“Well, yes. Even though you don’t know about me as a god, it’s the name that counts, which is why Astarte losing her name will have dire consequences. I also made an investment in you by means of reincarnation, by the way.”

“Tsk. Lucky bastard,” Meteos muttered under his breath, but the Star God heard it and smirked.

“Deal with it, kid.”

Meteos’ eye twitched, but he pondered Kagaseo’s words before asking again.

“So a god is required to be benevolent toward mortals in order to obtain more power?”

“Not necessarily. That kind of relationship is just one way of doing it. There is another, an abomination that I despise with every fiber of my being.”

“I see. Could it be… it’s one of the ‘higher beings’’ machinations that play upon the mortals’ misery?”

“Correct. Misery’s potency is barely a minuscule when compared to the sincerity of a prayer, but it’s much easier to harvest and it’s very intoxicating. The higher beings that stole Astarte’s powers have reached the point that they will do everything to taste more misery, including creating many forms of entertainment where they get to watch your kind suffer. And in your world, the higher beings call it Nihonkoku Shoukan.”

Meteos frowned. “Summoning Japan?”

“That’s right. Nihonkoku Shoukan itself is just one season of the ‘Civilization Annihilation Games’ or CAG that takes place on your planet during your first life, in which the higher beings steal the archipelago country of Japan from planet Earth and dumped them in yours. Whatever Japan do on your planet, the higher beings will milk all the misery from everyone: the summoned, the destination, and the planet they left behind, and snort them like drugs. Astarte becomes like that because she was being used as fuel for Nihonkoku Shoukan. The reason why they didn’t simply kill her is because the horrible process of slowly losing her existence is also a form of misery that the higher beings enjoy and laugh at. I managed to snatch her from the CAG’s management team and hide her in this place, but many other gods aren’t so lucky.”

Meteos’s face contorted in shock and disgust. “…Just as I thought that they can’t be even more cruel… an abomination, indeed… What are these higher beings, really? Are they still the same as deities?”

“They are. From now on, we will use that term to differentiate them from the deities in regard to their treatment toward mortals.”

“Understandable.”

A fragment of his soul once harbored envy so hard towards Japan that he wished that they never come to this world, but he stomped that feeling down to instead embrace profound gratitude for their unforeseen arrival. However, when the revelation reached his ears that Japan’s transference in his first life stemmed from the sadistic delight of unseen entities reveling in the ruination of mortal lives, that same sentiment resurfaced, albeit this time driven by sympathy. Wondering how Japan is not collapsing the moment the transference happened considering their nature, Meteos was now greatly conflicted about everything.

Kagaseo idly noticed Meteos’ change in emotion and continued.

“In Nihonkoku Shoukan, they propped the state of Japan as the Face, the protagonist. However, they also need to establish a storyline, choosing who will be the Heel, and whatnot, for the show.”

“I think I understand this part. Let me guess, the ‘storyline’ begins with the Ravernal Empire, and Gra Valkas is summoned to my world because those higher beings think that the natives are not enough as antagonists for their… their… show?”

“Correct again.”

“Damn it all!” the human cursed. “Do the gods of this world do nothing? How could they let such a travesty take place?”

Kagaseo heaved a long sigh.

“Normally the higher beings are retards who sought for instant pleasure without much thought, but if just one of them is capable of advanced thinking, things will turn out dangerous. What if I tell you that one of such higher beings totally deceived the entire pantheon and allowed the entire season to kick off?”

“Can you elaborate?”

“Sure thing. Let me start with the beginning of everything. Roguerider, do you know who the Ravernals really are? About their origins and the reason they came to your world?”

“No…? As far as I remembered, they have forgotten everything about the time before their first arrival in my world,” Meteos carefully answered.

To be honest, Meteos himself was baffled upon learning that the Light-Winged Devils have completely shed their past before arriving in his world. Within the significant timespan between their arrival and the time when they start invading their surroundings, they apparently did not attempt to record their own history or anything else. Instead, they simply focused on doing whatever they felt like in this world.

However, one sentence surfaced in his mind.

“We will never yield; we will never rest; we will never relent, until you, their creations, and them, are eliminated from existence.”

Back then, he assumed that ‘them’ refers to the gods and wondered why they loathed the gods so much, but with Kagaseo’s revelation, the phrase might mean something different.

“However!” he shook his head and abruptly stood up. “The fact remains that the Ravernal Empire raped my world and continues to see us and anything that isn’t them as animals until the very end.”

“Fair,” Kagaseo acknowledged. “But I would appreciate some degree of open-mindedness from you too. Then, shall we start?”

He joined Meteos in standing up, raised his hand, and with a swift motion, swept it through the air. The moment his fingertips moved through the dreamscape, the air around them seemed to vibrate with a newfound intensity, and a soft hum filled the atmosphere. Meteos watched as the dreamscape seemed to shift and bend before his eyes. The cottage and the crackling bonfire dissolved into a blur of colors and shapes as if they were being transported to another world, but the chaos of swirling colors gradually subsided and the distorted shapes settled, giving way to a breathtaking sight.

…………

Year █████

███████████

Standing suspended in what appears to be outer space, before them lay a planet unlike anything Meteos had ever seen. It was a world of clear green crystal-like surface that glowed, with floating landmasses that seemed to orbit its core also made of the same crystalline material.

“This planet is…”

“Long ago, before the Light-Winged People arrive at your world and become the Ravernal Empire, they were known as the Malakh, a race of humanoid beings who lived on a planet called the Land of Light, Attarsamain. They were unlike the Ravernals in that their magic power is far more potent that their light wings always manifest from their backs. The most powerful Malakhs could manifest multiple pairs of wings if they seriously tap into their mana. Their last ruler, for example, was known as the ‘King with One Hundred Wings.’ By harnessing the magical energy that flowed through the streams underneath their planet, similar to your planet’s, they transformed their planet into a Land of Light, a peaceful technological utopia, and were about to embark on a project of colonizing other planets in their star system.”

Meteos was further fascinated by the vision that showed the life on Attarsamain. Technological wonders far more advanced than the Ravernal Empire and what even 22nd-century Japan could ever hope for filled the landscape. As the scene unfolded before him, Meteos also got to witness the society living their daily lives… just like humans. An uncomfortable feeling bubbled within the human’s heart as he stopped by the vision of a Malakh family playing something like a ball game. They looked no different from the people of Ravernal—pale skin, white lustrous hair, and bright eyes, but their expressions are far softer and kinder. This was where he felt that their light is truly benevolent.

“What a realm of difference… Maybe if the circumstances aren’t so horrible, our species could be friends,” he muttered, observing a young girl with light wings smile happily while her parents cheered.

Angelic.

“Well, the Malakhs did indeed stand at a higher level than the Earthlings in both civilization and wisdom. If a conflict were to erupt between them, they will win against Earth without breaking a sweat. But maybe in an unrealized timeline, they will realize that with their great power, comes great responsibility, and they will use their advanced technology to become the defenders of their galaxy. The Malakhs were just that benevolent. They have achieved their ideal world. But of course the higher beings didn’t like that. ‘Their existence is a filthy fiction that impedes on realism,’ they say. They can’t accept that such a benevolent existence is capable of existing.”

“…You seem to know a lot about those kinds of higher beings.”

“Yes, that’s right. When I rescued Astarte, I encountered many of them who blather about those things before dying by these hands,” Kagaseo muttered darkly, sending shivers up Meteos’ spine.

“A-anyway… what a shame… In the Ravernal Empire, even the young children turn into monsters who screamed genocide at the sight of a sentient being that isn’t them… What happened to this world?”

“Look up.”

“Hm? The sun?”

He followed Kagaseo’s finger and squinted at the sky where the sun was. It began to shine brighter and brighter, casting a blinding light that enveloped his entire vision. Meteos instinctively shielded his eyes, but just as quickly as the light appeared, it abruptly vanished, leaving behind the darkness.

“The sun… it’s gone!?”

The vision around them moved to depict the reaction in Attarsamain about eight minutes after the star it was orbiting suddenly blinked out of existence. Moments after the lights go down, chaos started to creep in. As the darkness enveloped the planet, Meteos could sense the panic and confusion that swept through the Malakh civilization. He could see light-winged people hurriedly scrambling around with expressions of fear and uncertainty. The glowing crystal cities of the planet were quickly lit by artificial lights in a desperate attempt to provide illumination against the darkness, while the people struggled to comprehend the sudden absence of their life-giving sun.

Without the sun as the anchor point of the star system, Attarsamain was immediately ejected out of its orbit and became a rogue planet, drifting aimlessly through space. The topic of ‘what if the sun disappeared’ was one of the many subjects Meteos and his circle of scholars talked about, but they never expected it to actually happen any time soon. And now he was standing here, getting his answer in the most horrible way possible.

“…This is one of the past seasons of the CAG. The higher beings interfered with this world and stole Attarsamain’s sun. Just like how they used Astarte, many gods were sacrificed as fuel to allow them to pull this off. And in order to impose their idea of ‘realism,’ the show’s management made it so that the initial flash disabled specific technologies that will allow the Malakhs to escape by venturing into outer space. They were basically made to be stuck to their planet. The sheer number of sacrifices they made back then caused those retards to quickly run out of fuel, but the show must go on… so management experimented with multiple formats to keep the audience and sponsors entertained.”

“………”

The vision continued to unfold, with the Malakh civilization of Attarsamain grappling with the devastating loss of their sun. In their desperation, with using a spaceship now becoming impossible, various proposals were put forth to ensure their survival. Some suggested constructing massive artificial light sources powered by the planet’s magic power to replace the sun’s illumination, but it became increasingly clear that this solution will kill their planet even faster, so it was not sustainable in the long run. Amidst the chaos, a group of powerful Malakhs argued using their magic instead to teleport to another planet as the best bet for their survival and start their civilization anew. While it posed significant risks and uncertainties, after a period of experimentation by teleporting chunks of Attarsamain’s landmass to their moon, the Malakhs ultimately rallied behind this idea and chose the floating continent Latistor as the part that would be teleported.

However, to perform such a massive teleportation, the energy required would be immense. And even with the planet’s magical energy, there was only enough magical energy to transport a fraction of the population. Out of the eight billion Malakhs inhabiting Attarsamain, seven billion would have to be sacrificed to power the teleportation.

“How this ‘season’ ends?” Meteos turned to Kagaseo.

“The audience watched as the Malakhs were faced with that agonizing decision and were expecting them to realize the implications and give up on the plan in misery. So when the Malakhs cast aside their doubts and actually performed the teleportation, the audience was furious and demanded that this ‘lack of realism’ be corrected at once.”

“What did those animals say…!?”

First, they reject their existence as ‘unrealistic,’ then they dare to steal an innocent civilization’s light and call their desperate attempt to survive as ‘lacking realism.’

Animals.

“The CAG’s management placated the audience by planning a ‘sequel’ for this season, which also doubled as an opportunity to keep the show going,” Kagaseo stated.

“…Nihonkoku Shoukan?”

“Yes. This would become one of the foundations for the Nihonkoku Shoukan storyline. However, the management still took measures and tried to reduce the Malakhs’ numbers while Latistor was still traveling in the realm between dimensions. It was a brute force move, but they had the thought of masquerading as gods worshipped by the Malakhs as they attacked them to further manipulate the situation. When they arrived at your planet and adapted, the now Ravernal Empire encountered creatures who worshipped gods. Fueled by their resentment and desire for revenge, they felt ashamed of their past devotion toward the gods who supposedly betrayed them and declared their intent to conquer the planet and eradicate all the gods. Your world’s pantheon, which has nothing to do with the Malakhs’ suffering, was understandably furious and dropped what you and your people call the August Star of Heaven to protect their planet.”

“And then they escaped to the future, yeah,” Meteos felt his knees becoming weak from the torrent of revelations and lay down on the invisible floor with a loud thud. “Meanwhile the time between will be filled with the history of the affected natives and the arrival of the show’s protagonist… Then, if Astarte is the native god of my world, how did she fall into her current state?”

“One of the CAG’s management made contact and ‘offered’ to help the native gods in punishing the Ravernal Empire. It started subtly, but it culminated in the act that robbed Astarte of her power, manipulating her love for this world to make her sacrifice herself and summon the Emissaries of the Sun God. That higher being’s name is Shamash, the Deceiver.”

With wide eyes, Meteos jolted upward in shock.

“The Easterners’ Sun Goddess!? Wha—dammit. How do I even start digesting all this information!?”

“I don’t know, Roguerider. Compared to some, you are rather calm for someone who was receiving this kind of info dump.”

Meteos groaned.

It can be argued that the remnants of the Malakh civilization, the Ravernal Empire, fought for their justice. But they fought against the wrong entities, while the natives also have their own justice in the face of Ravernal invasion. People can draw immense strength from their hearts, and justice never leads the heart astray. However, people have different concepts of justice, and when two rival ideologies of justice collide… it will bring about endless war and suffering.

Just like what the higher beings intended.

“Star God Kagaseo.”

“Yeah?”

“Am I correct in assuming that you want me to remember this dream in order to help Astarte?”

The Star God affirmed with a nod and made an offer. “If it feels too much for you, I can always make you forget all of this. Then you can wake up feeling far more refreshed than usual and life not burdened by the fact that there’s someone out there who toyed at your suffering.”

Hearing this, another frown appeared on the human’s face. “But what about Astarte? You said earlier that the memories of her are erased from the universe. With no one to remember her, she is in danger more than ever, right?”

“He who increases knowledge increases sorrow, Roguerider. Are you certain?” Kagaseo warned.

Meteos closed his eyes, let out a deep sigh, and plopped down on the floor again.

“You know, while we having this talk, I had a growing suspicion that the fight between you and me and this second life is your roundabout way to help your fellow god.”

“………”

“I have lived my life as best as I could, not knowing its purpose, but drawn forward like a moth to a distant moon. And here, I discover a strange truth. That I am only a conduit for something that eludes my understanding. Who are we, who have been so blessed to share stories like this? To speak across dimensions? I have so many questions, but maybe you will answer all the questions that I will ask. Maybe you will be the one to make all this suffering worth something in the end.”

Kagaseo gave the human a soft smile that Meteos didn’t see and sat down next to him.

“A rebel, huh…” he chuckled.

“Then, what about you? Why did you even want to help her in the first place?”

“Astarte desires an ideal world, that of love and peace. And my ideal world… is her ideal world… I will never forgive anyone who tramples upon her feelings. From now on, everything that you do in your world, any inventions that you make, any good deed, it should be used to circumvent the forgotten memories about her and help Astarte.”

“……I see.”

“So, ready for the next part?”

Meteos nodded, and Kagaseo waved his hand again to shift the surroundings.

…………