I, the Rock King Emperor with 21 billion in power, have joined the chat group.

"Have something to eat to fill your stomach."

Kyosuke Takasaka glanced at him, then looked at the food on the ground.

Then he touched his stomach and said, "Okay, I am a little hungry."

.......

Silent clouds and mist obscured everything.

A white halo briefly illuminated the earth.

Niels opened his eyes.

Before him lay a land he had never seen before.

Birds chirped and sang. It was a refreshing morning.

"Hoo ah ah... Ugh."

Niels sat on the roof of the orphanage he had built, suppressing a yawn.

Then, with slightly teary eyes, he looked around.

The familiar street scene retains its familiar appearance.

The greenery visible in the distance is Adam's family's collective farm; the low building in front is the chapel; and the colorful brick roofs scattered around are all cheap apartments; the red flags fluttering in the wind on the edge belong to the Adventurers' Guild.

The Guild is evidence of this; further on, on the other side of the irrigation canal, lies the entire central urban area of ​​Cooma.

Several chimneys were emitting smoke.

The people living in this world are preparing breakfast.

Yes. People are alive. They begin their activities in order to live through this day.

Of course, they couldn't possibly be actual residents.

The land perished long ago along with the Emwiht, the people who once thrived there.

According to historical records, this happened more than five hundred years ago. In the center of the human empire at that time, in the area of ​​the royal city, an invader named [name missing] appeared.

They were incredibly powerful, numerous, and swift. They gradually eroded the world at a speed no army in history had ever accomplished. In just a few days, several of the major city-states that made up the empire vanished.

It wasn't just humans that were wiped out. They indiscriminately devoured everything on earth—plants, animals, insects, Eif, and even the various hostile races. As if the mere existence of anything was a sin, they devoured it all.

The real land is now a desolate wilderness ravaged by gray sandstorms.

The few survivors, guided by the great sage, fled to the floating islands in the sky. There, they established a long and enduring civilization. But for the race with no survivors, even the path to the sky remained unopened.

"Oh, great sage!"

Niels asked the great sage Swan Kandel beside him, somewhat as if he had just realized something.

The old man, who originally had white hair, regained his handsome appearance from his youth.

"How do you feel when you see such a beautiful land again, great Swan Kandel, the sage who gave wisdom and life?"

Do you miss this kind of land?

"of course."

The handsome young man nodded slightly, facing the wind as he looked at the illusory distance, his eyes blurry with tears: "Of course I miss it, and that's precisely why I'm working hard to restore such a view."

Chapter Thirty-One: The Little Star God (This chapter contains excerpts from the light novel.)

"This is probably the domain of demons," Niels said softly, looking around at his surroundings.

The great sage Swan Kandel nodded knowingly.

As a former adventurer, he knew about demons, even though he had never seen one.

The term "demon" refers to a spiritual race that specifically tempts noble people to corruption. They use every means to seduce humans, causing them to abandon self-control or beliefs. One such method is this kind of mental attack using dreams.

"They map the target's memories and then create a dream world that is incredibly similar to reality for the victim. The sole purpose of this is to make the target a complete resident of that world. Be careful, though; if the target completely loses the will to escape, the opponent wins in that instant."

Niels lay on his back on the ground, speaking calmly.

The great sage Swann Kandel naturally understood this basic principle, but this was not the aspect he did not understand.

"So, the reason this dream is exactly the same as the land before, and is located in the orphanage you established, Nils, is because this demon's target..."

"They probably want to use this scene to make me succumb. No, perhaps that's not the case." Niels stroked his unshaven chin, a thoughtful expression on his face.

In fact, that was indeed an effective attack for him.

Just like now, his heart was about to melt from the longing and yearning... However, he was, after all, a god who had survived from human history, and naturally he would not succumb to such a simple despair.

He continued his analysis: "As a demon, this being is the creator of the world. Besides attacking us directly, it can do whatever it wants with memories as its material. The demon race of the past specifically used this tactic to lure people. They also had many tricks up their sleeves. (Aeshma)"

It will cause characters to die constantly, the Demon of Strife will come to claim lives, and the Demon of Wealth (Mammon) will give people large amounts of money or gems. Of course, the ultimate one is the Demon of Lust (Succubus), that guy is really something else, hehe..."

"A pervert??" The great sage Swan Kandel's eyes widened, revealing a slightly envious look: "That's quite something."

"Hehe, you know what I mean."

Niels grinned.

The two men, whose combined length exceeded the length of human history, chuckled lewdly at each other.

Only then did we begin to discuss the actual content.

Niels patted the roof of the orphanage building beneath him, his voice solemn: "Although we don't know the enemy's true identity, their target is most likely me. Otherwise, they wouldn't have built such an orphanage."

“However, it’s strange that we shouldn’t be within the influence of the [Primordial Moon-Sighing Beast]?” The Great Sage Swan Kander frowned slightly. “Could it be that the [Primordial Beast] is affecting us right now?”

“I don’t…” Niels began, but his words faltered under the watchful gaze of the great sage Swann Kandel.

“Alright, I know.” Niels shook his head slightly. “Of course I know what the original beast of Sighing Moon looked like. I also know who she really is.”

"So now we've locked onto our target, right?" The Great Sage Swan Kandel grinned. "The First Beast of the Moon wants us to stay here, which means our physical bodies are still safe."

"Find it, kill it, and then we'll search for the remains of the Star God Lu Aike."

Niels frowned slightly, then sighed, "Alright, alright."

"Grandpa Niels!!!"

"Master Niels!"

The sudden sound interrupted Nils's reflections.

Niels's gaze shifted downwards, and he saw the small girl and her dead disciple standing beside her.

William Kmeethieu and his daughter, Elmeria Dufner.

According to him, the first beast of the Moon was Elmelia Dufner, the first beast in human history.

He looked at the little girl in front of him, his expression suddenly becoming firm.

No matter what, a decision has to be made!

.......

Inside the small but sturdy enclosure, a child is taking a light nap.

The so-called barrier is a small world that is independent of the outside world. From the time that child was born until now, he has never left the barrier.

"Because the existence of the Star Gods is too immense. Just your appearance alone is enough to overwhelm the hearts of all living beings in the outside world."

These are the words spoken by the child's family member, Black Candle.

"Your parents, in order to survive on this land, mostly shattered their souls into tiny fragments. But we don't want you to follow the same path. You are our last master. We hope you can always remain this way."

These are the words of Honghu, who is also family.

"We, the three Earth Gods, exist to guide you Star Gods. Now that most of the Star Gods have left this ship, we exist solely for you. I will offer you everything of my body and spirit to forever protect you from any external enemies. My Lord, Eluk Hawkesden."

These were also the words of Cui Ding, who is a family member.

From the moment that child... Ailuke became conscious, these three people have always stayed by her side, gently supporting her, teaching her various things, and fulfilling her all sorts of wishes.

However, there is only one thing that is off the table.

No matter what, the three of them refused to allow Ai Luke to leave the barrier that had nurtured her, and refused to let her see the world outside the barrier with her own eyes.

One time, the jade nail went missing.

Then, even the black candles disappeared.

Even when Ailu asked them where they had gone, Honghu refused to answer.

"They'll be back right away after they've finished their duties."

Honghu only said these things vaguely before turning her gaze away.

Ai Luke had also thought about this in a daze.

However, her desire to think further was too naive; even her naivety was too immature.

Soon after, even Honghu disappeared, leaving Ailuke alone in the small barrier.

She was neither worried nor confused, but simply felt incredibly bored within the narrow confines of the barrier.

The boring time lasted longer than initially expected.

Within that barrier where neither sun nor moon existed, the child waited blankly for his family to return.

I've played with all the toys inside the barrier.

The doll just broke little by little because it was played with roughly.

To avoid further damage, Ailu decided to place the doll near the wall.

She thought to herself, "I'll definitely fix it when Cui Ding comes back."

On this day, the outer shell of the barrier was suddenly broken, making a loud noise.

What's wrong? Ai Luke wondered.

That was clearly not Black Candle and his group; the earth gods wouldn't make such a racket when entering and exiting the barrier. So, who could it be...?

The answer immediately appeared before Ai Luke's eyes.

Humanity.

He was sixteen years old.