Having traversed countless realms, can you possibly be as clever as me?

Or rather—Tsugumi has lost all patience with that wicked thing, and even if other things are complicated, she can deal with them later!

Now, let us draw back the curtain and let those who think themselves gods meet a miserable end!

Dawn breaks

After two hours of friendly spoilers, Kaji Ryoji and Katsuragi Misato finally understood exactly what monstrous things SEELE had done and the truth about this awful world!

"How could this be? We've worked so hard for so long, and the best result we've achieved is still..." Misato Katsuragi's eyes were glazed over, her teeth clenched, her face filled with ferocity.

She has persisted until now, driven by her hatred and desire for revenge against the apostles, and by a genuine sense of pride that she is saving the world.

However, Tsurugi now tells her that there is no way to save the world, nor is there any proud and great cause. All her actions have only brought about the destruction of humanity!

"Actually, Human Instrumentality is not as bad as people imagine, but for individuals, it is indeed not much different from death."

Tsurugi leisurely tidied the pages of the Bible in his arms, and said with a smile.

"After all, in such a collective sphere, those who maintain their individuality and complete themselves will leave the complete collective. And those who cannot maintain their individuality can hardly be called complete individuals."

Then, he looked at Kaji Ryoji. Compared to Katsuragi Misato, who might still have some doubts, Kaji Ryoji, as a triple agent, had already gathered a lot of key information on his own and now believed in the truth that Tsugumi had said.

"But before this, you weren't Shinji, were you?" Kaji Ryoji suppressed his complicated emotions and looked at Tsugumi with suspicion.

"You might be the 'Master' that Shinji-kun spoke of, so what exactly are you?!"

"So what if I say I am God?" Tsugumi looked at Kaji Ryoji, whose eyes held a hint of expectation, and laughed.

"What are you longing for? Do you expect me to change the past? Do you hope I can redeem your soul? Or... do you want to ask something else?"

He stood up and walked in front of Kaji Ryoji. Although he was controlling Shinji Ikari's body, he had an aura that could easily suppress him.

"Your soul is filled with regret. Let me see. Oh, self-blame and shame. Have you been tormented by this for over a decade?"

In an instant, Kaji Ryoji and Katsuragi Misato's vision blurred, and then they found themselves in an 'unfamiliar' place.

They saw a child covered in wounds kneeling before a group of...

375 >>

Before the grotesque corpse of a child, Kaji Ryoji wailed in despair and agony, his face ashen. Katsuragi Misato gradually noticed as well, and she was filled with disbelief.

"He is... empowered?"

"This is truly a tragic story that reflects the times," Tsurugi sighed, looking at the lifeless corpses of the children.

The story that unfolded around Kaji Ryoji was also the story of those whose lives were eroded and destroyed by the times. After the Second Impact, the world was on the verge of collapse...

376

Many cities were abandoned, with only homeless children and military bases remaining active, and Kaji Ryoji was a member of a small group of homeless children at that time.

Driven by hunger, the group of children had to rely on stealing canned meat and previously abandoned garbage from the military base to survive. However, when it was Jiaji's turn to steal canned food again, he was caught by the local soldiers who had long suspected him.

The actions of these UN forces, who were using 'disaster relief' as a pretext, were no different from those of military bandits. They cruelly tortured Kaji, forcing him to reveal the whereabouts of his friends, and then left one person to watch over Kaji while the others went off to "have fun."

As for what fun it is? The image of Tsurugi gently waving his hand quickly reveals itself.

A group of men in military uniforms surrounded a group of children and forced them to act as dogs and beat each other with cruel smiles. If they disobeyed, they would be shot.

But what good does it do to obey? What awaits these children is nothing more than more cruel abuse and despicable acts of humiliation and torture when they get carried away with playing.

Meanwhile, Kaji attacked the guard while he was distracted by complaining, and then escaped back. What awaited him were the corpses of the children who had long since died and were shot.

From that moment on, Kaji Ryoji, whose personality was originally as timid as the original Shinji Ikari, disappeared. In his place was a spy who vowed to uncover the secret and obtain the truth.

And this was just one of countless insignificant tragedies that occurred in a post-apocalyptic world following the Second Impact.

The illusion vanished in the blink of an eye, and they were back inside the small chapel.

Kaji Ryoji's face went from pale to ashen, and he finally gave a bitter laugh.

"I'm starting to believe you really are a god... May I ask you a question?"

"Two, I'll give the first one away for free. If I can retrieve the souls of these children, I'll send them to heaven," Dongjiang said with a smile.

"Then I can only thank you," Kaji Ryoji said softly, then took a deep breath and looked earnestly at Tsugumi.

"If heaven truly exists, can people like us go there after death?"

【...】

Even though he asked the question, Amsher knew perfectly well that no one could go to heaven, but he and everyone in SEELE were absolutely not qualified to go to the destination of the good.

They are destined not to go to the heaven of a kind soul, so all they can do is reign as kings in this hell.

I...don't know...where...my soul...goes.

But now...I must...release me...before He...comes.

Otherwise... you will only face... destruction.

The angel's words are no longer heeded; this warning has been repeated more than once this year.

Amsher left the place, dragging his already decaying body slowly back into the 'coffin'.

With eyes closed, consciousness begins to connect through the LCL solution flowing through the brain.

“All preparations are complete. The covenant with the seventeenth apostle has been finalized. His soul has merged with Adam’s embryo, and through the Kabbalah Tree of Life, we can complete our final union with this 'angel'.”

"That angel's power surpasses that of Adam and Lilith, and perhaps it can also affect us, allowing us to break free from our small human bodies, just like the possessed Takumi Katsuragi."

"Soon, we too will become gods!"

Having returned to the Throne of Souls, the elders of SEELE are now at odds with each other, but this time, their excited and fervent discussions are no longer about the Human Instrumentality Project.

"But this is the worst-case scenario, if it's confirmed that we can't retrieve Unit-01 and Lilith from Gendo Ikari and Shinji Ikari—"

Speaker Keel said in a cold voice

"Then let the world burn!"

The path to godhood is also a journey of slaughter! : 263. The Raigumi and the incapacitated Unit-01

At this moment, the situation is an absolute advantage for Tsurugi.

Even if she is temporarily unable to use her own body, this world itself poses no threat to Tsurugi.

Moreover, with Shinji Ikari under his control, it's as if he owns the vast majority of the world's power.

Although SEELE is theoretically the mastermind behind the scenes in this anime, the irony is that they never had any initiative from the very beginning of the story.

The fundamental condition for humanity to initiate Instrumentality is 'Lilith'. The Angels are vying for Adam, while humanity must protect either Lilith or her clone. However, the only Lilith clone that humanity can control has long been locked away.

Yui Ikari's choice to integrate into Unit-01 was undoubtedly a brilliant move that sealed everyone's fate. As long as she was still alive, Shinji Ikari would always be the one to survive to the end, no matter what.

Therefore, SEELE had no choice but to reluctantly hand over Unit-01 and Lilith, who was used as bait. It can be said that SEELE did not possess any of the conditions for launching the Impact.

If we had to pinpoint a trump card, SEELE's only remaining asset would be a replica of the Spear of Longinus.

However, this thing doesn't have the ability to cause an impact. It can be said that if Unit-01 had eaten any of the Angels and obtained the S2 Engine, it would have already grasped the basics of victory!

Therefore, Tsugumi had Unit-01 swallow the core of the Day Angel early on, ensuring that he always kept the formula for victory in his hands.

If we had to say something, SEELE wasn't entirely without options—the UN forces they dispatched at the end of the old theatrical version were their trump card, and their global military power, which they controlled, was their biggest asset.

Dongjiang had no intention of giving them any chance to turn the tables, and besides, he was already fed up with it.

Having already gained control over all the apostles, he was ready to end things after four months of deliberate patience.

Rae Angel Raemir lands in Tokyo-3.

After a four-month hiatus, the piercing sirens of Tokyo-3 have once again echoed through the city.

Soon after everyone in the city had completed their evacuation procedures, Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki, who hadn't been to work for four months, finally arrived, and Misato Katsuragi and the others were all in place.

However, the way Commander Misato Katsuragi looks at her superior right now is quite complicated.

"The Fifth Angel, Remiel—has it taken so long to arrive?" Fuyutsuki Kōzō asked gravely, staring at the slowly moving, transparent blue cube on the large screen.

"Deploy Unit 0 and Unit 2," Gendo Ikari calmly ordered.

"Yes—what about Unit-01 and the Third Child?"

“…Unless absolutely necessary, there’s no need to notify him.” Gendo Ikari replied after a moment of silence.

Everyone knows that Unit-01 and its third Child are the strongest and most reliable people. Although he was only fourteen years old, Shinji Ikari conquered almost everyone in NERV with his tough attitude.

But he was never one of us, harboring a strange hatred for NERV, and most importantly—the conditions he offered became more and more outrageous!

At first, they only wanted money and supplies, but later they wanted to promote their religion through global live streaming.

The latter result is now evident: in just four months, Escalia has become the world's number one religious group, and Shinji Ikari has been hailed as a god-like figure!

The direct result of this is that many national governments that were originally firmly controlled by the United Nations have become loose or even overthrown. A number of countries have already announced their withdrawal from the United Nations and established Papal States.

Such a thing happening in the 21st century, especially after a doomsday disaster, seems ridiculous and absurd—but it did happen.

And on his third attempt, Makoto Ikari...

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The conditions demanded by the heir were even more outrageous.

He wants Unit-01.

Such conditions were so unreasonable that even the religious followers within NERV who had converted to Tsugumi found them utterly absurd, let alone Gendo Ikari.

After all, Unit-01 is not only a treasure that saves the world, but also not NERV's property. Moreover, without NERV's maintenance, Unit-01 cannot even recharge!

Therefore, no matter what, NERV must achieve sufficient results this time without relying on Unit-01 and Unit-00.

"The main force for this operation will be Unit 2—"

"No, let Unit-00 be the main force in this operation, with Unit-02 providing support!" Gendo Ikari once again made a decision that was almost entirely arbitrary.

But this was not based on a commander's tactical judgment.

Saving the world from the Angels is important, but controlling NERV and all the power that can be controlled is even more important to Gendo Ikari!

It's clear that Shinji Ikari and Unit-01 were putting too much pressure on him.

Even though Shinji never joined NERV from the beginning, his status as Gendo Ikari's son naturally gave him a certain label.

But this is by no means a good thing, because Shinji Ikari's rebellion and hostility towards his father is so obvious, and if it is allowed to continue, it will lead to a serious decline in Gendo Ikari's influence.

Shinji Ikari has become the one who has broken free of the script, so he must support a character to replace him.

This was an outcome he absolutely could not accept.