Episode 101. Because I'm the Supreme Being
The Supreme Being stared blankly at Beloveye and Laurent, who sat before him.
He noticed Bercheria calling for Beloveye and Dipper and immediately summoned them, but Dipper had already departed for the imperial palace and didn't hear.
Fortunately, Beloveye had responded and was here.
Beloveye had been by the Supreme Being's side for quite some time, though not as much as Lacrahan.
However, due to his blunt personality and inscrutable nature, he wasn't close to the Supreme Being.
More precisely, the Supreme Being didn't like him.
Rumors even circulated that Beloveye's presence in the Garden of the Gods was so disturbing that he was named the Sea God and banished to the human land. He said there was a reason why inflexible people were pushed to the outskirts.
"I repeat, my demands are not yet complete, Beloveye. Even now, it's not too late to drive a wedge between Lacrahan and Bercheria. That's how we protect both the human lands and the heavenly world."
“The end of humanity?”
Laurent abruptly stood up and shouted, and the Supreme Being slowly turned his head towards Laurent.
“Yes?”
A smirk spread across his lips.
“No! I haven’t even sat down as Emperor yet! What are you going to do if humanity is already destroyed?”
The Supreme Being suddenly frowned and clicked his tongue.
“Human.”
Laurent sat back down, his shoulders hunched at the laughter in the Supreme Being's voice.
“The world doesn’t revolve around everyone’s circumstances. It’s inherently arbitrary. It may sound ridiculous, but humans are the ones living in this world. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Laurent was in no mood to distinguish between right and wrong at the moment.
He simply felt a sense of injustice.
In the Der'Ansis Empire, Lauren was beloved by all the people.
So he had always been excited about what he would gain. He had longed to marry Bercheria because he knew what she possessed would be of use to him.
But humanity was disappearing before he could even sit in the position he had dreamed of.
He had to prevent that, no matter what.
Laurent frantically snatched up the vial.
"Should I feed this to Bercheria?"
The Supreme Being rested his chin on his face, expressionless, and looked at Laurent.
"Yes. Just feed it to her. Then the other children with different roles will take care of the rest."
Beloveye glanced at Laurent for a moment, then quickly averted his gaze.
He always acted like an outsider, unattached to any particular position.
That irritated the Supreme Being.
"After hundreds of years, it seems this guy has finally found his proper owner."
The Supreme Being muttered, as if grumbling, and looked at Laurent.
It was the wine that first passed from Lawrence's hands to Princess Lilian.
After that, Bercheria, who had regained her past, still remembered the Supreme Being subtly pouring her some.
Every moment, the wine failed, failing to fulfill its purpose, but perhaps it was all for this moment.
"Don't worry. At least I'm close enough to have a glass of wine with Bercheria."
"Good."
The Supreme Being tapped the table and stood up eagerly.
"Laurent. If you succeed, I promise a befitting reward."
"Reward?"
Laurent blinked, startled by the unexpected question.
A reward from the Supreme Being?
Just hearing the word made his heart race.
"Are you really going to reward me?"
"Of course. I should at least give you that much. Don't you, Beloveye?"
"..."
Beloveye simply turned his head away instead of answering.
Having parted ways with Lacrahan and returned to her room alone, Bercheria had difficulty falling back asleep.
Despite the mountain of tasks she had to tackle when dawn broke, her mind remained uncluttered.
It's safe to say that all her thoughts began and ended there, and Bercheria's life began there and continues to this day.
During her stay in the tower, Bercheria felt lonelier than anyone else.
The cramped space and her angry mother's whipping were painful, but she couldn't overcome the loneliness of the day she realized she couldn't connect with anyone.
Then, a small egg rolled into her arms.
Bercheria felt as if she had gained the world.
Having something to rely on temporarily lifted her loneliness. When Muha emerged from the shell she'd been carrying, Bercheria was overjoyed, knowing she would no longer be left alone in the world.
Even after Muha, having learned the law, left the tower and disappeared, she held onto the hope that they might meet again someday.
But in the end, even Muha was being taken away by Lawrence.
"Ha."
Bercheria, perched on the edge of the bed, let out a long breath.
Knock knock.
There was a knock.
"Lacrahan?"
She rose naturally and walked toward the door.
With the sun still not up, only Lacrahan could come to see her.
Bercheria opened the door abruptly and froze in surprise when she saw the visitor's face.
Because the person standing at the door was none other than Laurent.
“Laurent!”
Laurent brushed back his red hair and smiled unpretentiously.
“It’s a little late, Bercheria.”
Laurent felt his heart race at the sight of Bercheria’s beauty, which he had forgotten during their brief separation.
“Laurent. What are you doing here?”
Laurent glanced around, as if unconsciously aware of the outside world, then nodded inward.
“May I come in?”
Bercheria nodded and cleared the way.
She scanned Laurent’s body as she walked into the room, but the lizard-like Beloveye was nowhere to be seen.
“Didn’t you come with Beloveye?”
Laurent shook her head.
“Something came up. I came first.”
“I see.”
“This is similar to the room I stay in.”
Laurent said, casually sitting down on the bed.
“I’ve been to the Periat royal palace many times, so I’m familiar with it. I’m also acquainted with Emperor Gerard.”
It was a story Bercheria hadn't heard.
"Have you ever met Emperor Gerard?"
"Of course."
Laurent smiled, her lips curling smoothly.
"Plus, I know how to coax him. He's a predictable person."
To Bercheria, this was perhaps the most tempting thing to say right now.
Laurent and Kelita, who were interfering with Lacrahan, were also under Gerard's command.
"Would you like to hear my story?"
Laurent smiled and tapped his side with his hand.
Bercheria stared at him, still.
"Let your guard down, Bercheria. All I want is a temporary drinking buddy."
Laurent pulled out a wine-sparkling bottle and waved it in the air.
"While you drink this, I'll tell you all you want."
The Supreme Being stared blankly at Beloveye and Laurent, who sat before him.
He noticed Bercheria calling for Beloveye and Dipper and immediately summoned them, but Dipper had already departed for the imperial palace and didn't hear.
Fortunately, Beloveye had responded and was here.
Beloveye had been by the Supreme Being's side for quite some time, though not as much as Lacrahan.
However, due to his blunt personality and inscrutable nature, he wasn't close to the Supreme Being.
More precisely, the Supreme Being didn't like him.
Rumors even circulated that Beloveye's presence in the Garden of the Gods was so disturbing that he was named the Sea God and banished to the human land. He said there was a reason why inflexible people were pushed to the outskirts.
"I repeat, my demands are not yet complete, Beloveye. Even now, it's not too late to drive a wedge between Lacrahan and Bercheria. That's how we protect both the human lands and the heavenly world."
"I completely understand why you're so opposed to Lacrahan and Bercheria..."
Beloveye trailed off, glancing at Laurent, who was sitting next to him.
Laurent, born with red hair, possessed an innate ability to understand the language of the gods.
This was a characteristic of Kings who had long ago lived in communion with the gods, but the inevitability of royal blood also led to a desire for power. This was also a drawback.
When he received his mission from the Supreme Being, Beloveye exploited Laurent's personality to entice him into marrying Bercheria. If Laurent and Bercheria, the prospective Emperors of Der'Ansis, were to marry, they would effectively become the most powerful people on the continent.
If he wanted, uniting the three nations wouldn't be difficult.
"Beloveye. As the Supreme Being, I'm giving you another chance. So this time, stop using mere humans to pretend to listen to me and just to listen to me."
"Hmm."
Beloveye crossed his arms and gazed at the Supreme Being.
As a being who protected humans, he had some degree of control over their free will, even more so than the Supreme Being.
Of course, he couldn't manipulate them like puppets or coerce them into doing anything, but he could quietly persuade them if he wanted to.
"Even so, I doubt it would be easy for me to approach Lacrahan and tell him to give up Bercheria."
The Supreme Being glared at Beloveye and then placed a sleek bottle on the table where they were sitting.
"I never asked you to be so blunt."
Laurent and Beloveye gazed at the bottle the Supreme Being had placed down and the wine sloshing within.
The Supreme Being, keeping his gaze fixed on Beloveye, pushed it closer to Laurent and said,
“You don’t have to say anything else. Just feeding this to Bercheria will solve the problem.”
“Are you talking to me or Laurent?”
“Of course!”
The Supreme Being smiled, slightly turning his gaze from Beloveye to Laurent.
“I’m talking to you, Beloveye.”
Laurent instinctively shrugged as their eyes met the Supreme Being's gray eyes.
The aura of the god was beyond the capacity of a mere mortal like him.
Beloveye narrowed his eyes at the Supreme Being acting childishly.
The Supreme Being's gray hair, which had seemed somewhat dark just moments before, was now closer to white.
He couldn’t understand what that meant, but even he knew that the Supreme Being wasn’t a perfect being.
People thought that the name Supreme Being alone made her a perfect being, capable of doing and ruling anything.
That was also because the Absolute God had designated himself as an absolute being.
Even though Bercheria and Lacrahan knew how to kill gods and were an eyesore.
There were times when he wondered if it was worth going this far when the Supreme Being hadn't even stepped forward to kill them.
But if all of this was because the Supreme Being was anxious about exposing his own weakness, then it made sense.
He was so absorbed in presenting himself as stronger than anyone else that he feared the weakness behind it being exposed.
“Beloveye. I’m telling you this because you seem to have forgotten for a moment. I know and see much more than you think.”
“...Is that so?”
“Of course. Because I am the Supreme Being.”
“I see.”
“If we fail to stop Bercheria and Lacrahan, what awaits us at the end is the end of humanity. Do you know what I mean?”
“...”
“This is not my personal problem.”
Laurent was surprised by the threatening, low voice of the Supreme Being.
Beloveye trailed off, glancing at Laurent, who was sitting next to him.
Laurent, born with red hair, possessed an innate ability to understand the language of the gods.
This was a characteristic of Kings who had long ago lived in communion with the gods, but the inevitability of royal blood also led to a desire for power. This was also a drawback.
When he received his mission from the Supreme Being, Beloveye exploited Laurent's personality to entice him into marrying Bercheria. If Laurent and Bercheria, the prospective Emperors of Der'Ansis, were to marry, they would effectively become the most powerful people on the continent.
If he wanted, uniting the three nations wouldn't be difficult.
"Beloveye. As the Supreme Being, I'm giving you another chance. So this time, stop using mere humans to pretend to listen to me and just to listen to me."
"Hmm."
Beloveye crossed his arms and gazed at the Supreme Being.
As a being who protected humans, he had some degree of control over their free will, even more so than the Supreme Being.
Of course, he couldn't manipulate them like puppets or coerce them into doing anything, but he could quietly persuade them if he wanted to.
"Even so, I doubt it would be easy for me to approach Lacrahan and tell him to give up Bercheria."
The Supreme Being glared at Beloveye and then placed a sleek bottle on the table where they were sitting.
"I never asked you to be so blunt."
Laurent and Beloveye gazed at the bottle the Supreme Being had placed down and the wine sloshing within.
The Supreme Being, keeping his gaze fixed on Beloveye, pushed it closer to Laurent and said,
“You don’t have to say anything else. Just feeding this to Bercheria will solve the problem.”
“Are you talking to me or Laurent?”
“Of course!”
The Supreme Being smiled, slightly turning his gaze from Beloveye to Laurent.
“I’m talking to you, Beloveye.”
Laurent instinctively shrugged as their eyes met the Supreme Being's gray eyes.
The aura of the god was beyond the capacity of a mere mortal like him.
Beloveye narrowed his eyes at the Supreme Being acting childishly.
The Supreme Being's gray hair, which had seemed somewhat dark just moments before, was now closer to white.
He couldn’t understand what that meant, but even he knew that the Supreme Being wasn’t a perfect being.
People thought that the name Supreme Being alone made her a perfect being, capable of doing and ruling anything.
That was also because the Absolute God had designated himself as an absolute being.
Even though Bercheria and Lacrahan knew how to kill gods and were an eyesore.
There were times when he wondered if it was worth going this far when the Supreme Being hadn't even stepped forward to kill them.
But if all of this was because the Supreme Being was anxious about exposing his own weakness, then it made sense.
He was so absorbed in presenting himself as stronger than anyone else that he feared the weakness behind it being exposed.
“Beloveye. I’m telling you this because you seem to have forgotten for a moment. I know and see much more than you think.”
“...Is that so?”
“Of course. Because I am the Supreme Being.”
“I see.”
“If we fail to stop Bercheria and Lacrahan, what awaits us at the end is the end of humanity. Do you know what I mean?”
“...”
“This is not my personal problem.”
Laurent was surprised by the threatening, low voice of the Supreme Being.
“The end of humanity?”
Laurent abruptly stood up and shouted, and the Supreme Being slowly turned his head towards Laurent.
“Yes?”
A smirk spread across his lips.
“No! I haven’t even sat down as Emperor yet! What are you going to do if humanity is already destroyed?”
The Supreme Being suddenly frowned and clicked his tongue.
“Human.”
Laurent sat back down, his shoulders hunched at the laughter in the Supreme Being's voice.
“The world doesn’t revolve around everyone’s circumstances. It’s inherently arbitrary. It may sound ridiculous, but humans are the ones living in this world. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Laurent was in no mood to distinguish between right and wrong at the moment.
He simply felt a sense of injustice.
In the Der'Ansis Empire, Lauren was beloved by all the people.
So he had always been excited about what he would gain. He had longed to marry Bercheria because he knew what she possessed would be of use to him.
But humanity was disappearing before he could even sit in the position he had dreamed of.
He had to prevent that, no matter what.
Laurent frantically snatched up the vial.
"Should I feed this to Bercheria?"
The Supreme Being rested his chin on his face, expressionless, and looked at Laurent.
"Yes. Just feed it to her. Then the other children with different roles will take care of the rest."
Beloveye glanced at Laurent for a moment, then quickly averted his gaze.
He always acted like an outsider, unattached to any particular position.
That irritated the Supreme Being.
"After hundreds of years, it seems this guy has finally found his proper owner."
The Supreme Being muttered, as if grumbling, and looked at Laurent.
It was the wine that first passed from Lawrence's hands to Princess Lilian.
After that, Bercheria, who had regained her past, still remembered the Supreme Being subtly pouring her some.
Every moment, the wine failed, failing to fulfill its purpose, but perhaps it was all for this moment.
"Don't worry. At least I'm close enough to have a glass of wine with Bercheria."
"Good."
The Supreme Being tapped the table and stood up eagerly.
"Laurent. If you succeed, I promise a befitting reward."
"Reward?"
Laurent blinked, startled by the unexpected question.
A reward from the Supreme Being?
Just hearing the word made his heart race.
"Are you really going to reward me?"
"Of course. I should at least give you that much. Don't you, Beloveye?"
"..."
Beloveye simply turned his head away instead of answering.
***
Having parted ways with Lacrahan and returned to her room alone, Bercheria had difficulty falling back asleep.
Despite the mountain of tasks she had to tackle when dawn broke, her mind remained uncluttered.
It's safe to say that all her thoughts began and ended there, and Bercheria's life began there and continues to this day.
During her stay in the tower, Bercheria felt lonelier than anyone else.
The cramped space and her angry mother's whipping were painful, but she couldn't overcome the loneliness of the day she realized she couldn't connect with anyone.
Then, a small egg rolled into her arms.
Bercheria felt as if she had gained the world.
Having something to rely on temporarily lifted her loneliness. When Muha emerged from the shell she'd been carrying, Bercheria was overjoyed, knowing she would no longer be left alone in the world.
Even after Muha, having learned the law, left the tower and disappeared, she held onto the hope that they might meet again someday.
But in the end, even Muha was being taken away by Lawrence.
"Ha."
Bercheria, perched on the edge of the bed, let out a long breath.
Knock knock.
There was a knock.
"Lacrahan?"
She rose naturally and walked toward the door.
With the sun still not up, only Lacrahan could come to see her.
Bercheria opened the door abruptly and froze in surprise when she saw the visitor's face.
Because the person standing at the door was none other than Laurent.
“Laurent!”
Laurent brushed back his red hair and smiled unpretentiously.
“It’s a little late, Bercheria.”
Laurent felt his heart race at the sight of Bercheria’s beauty, which he had forgotten during their brief separation.
“Laurent. What are you doing here?”
Laurent glanced around, as if unconsciously aware of the outside world, then nodded inward.
“May I come in?”
Bercheria nodded and cleared the way.
She scanned Laurent’s body as she walked into the room, but the lizard-like Beloveye was nowhere to be seen.
“Didn’t you come with Beloveye?”
Laurent shook her head.
“Something came up. I came first.”
“I see.”
“This is similar to the room I stay in.”
Laurent said, casually sitting down on the bed.
“I’ve been to the Periat royal palace many times, so I’m familiar with it. I’m also acquainted with Emperor Gerard.”
It was a story Bercheria hadn't heard.
"Have you ever met Emperor Gerard?"
"Of course."
Laurent smiled, her lips curling smoothly.
"Plus, I know how to coax him. He's a predictable person."
To Bercheria, this was perhaps the most tempting thing to say right now.
Laurent and Kelita, who were interfering with Lacrahan, were also under Gerard's command.
"Would you like to hear my story?"
Laurent smiled and tapped his side with his hand.
Bercheria stared at him, still.
"Let your guard down, Bercheria. All I want is a temporary drinking buddy."
Laurent pulled out a wine-sparkling bottle and waved it in the air.
"While you drink this, I'll tell you all you want."
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