Chapter 1116: The Other Side of Miss System

Back to half an hour ago.

Far from Draconic Deus.

In another universe where time flows at a different rate. There, there are many worlds, a sun and a moon that are dozens of times larger than the sun and moon in Draconic Deus or even most other universes.

There is also a realm called the Divine Realm, which is the dwelling place of the gods and goddesses. The gods and goddesses who live there are divided into two groups—the Holy Gods and the Titan Gods.

In the past, these two factions once went to war.

The outcome of the Divine Realm War was that the Holy Gods won, the Titan Gods lost, and were imprisoned and sealed away in special places accessible only to the gods.

The sole ruler of the Divine Realm today is the King of the Holy Gods, Jupiter Olympus. He is a lustful god and an extraordinary womanizer. He has more than 1,000 wives, yet he is still searching for new ones.

But let's set that aside.

*BZZZZZZT!!*

At the edge of the universe, a wall of light floating in outer space appeared. The light radiated an extraordinary intensity.

It was actually a portal—a kind of spatial ability or teleportation.

From inside the portal, four human silhouettes were visible. They were floating, and seemed unfazed by the lack of oxygen in space.

That was because they were not human.

The four of them were goddesses.

Each of them wore massive suits of armor, mechanical limbs that seemed to extend from their hands and feet, and mechanical wings.

"The universe is vast and has many worlds to destroy."

"That's not why we're here, Odin."

"Tsk!"

One of the goddesses scolded another.

Her figure was the very embodiment of the resilient Cleopatra described in history. She was a beautiful woman whose charm could make any man fall head over heels for her. Her skin was light brown; she had a slender yet curvaceous figure; her black hair was neatly cut in a bob; and her eyes were golden.

She wore revealing Egyptian-style clothing.

Her name is Osiris.

The goddess who was reprimanded is Odin.

A woman with shimmering silver hair, a quintessentially Nordic trait. Her icy beauty is something humans could never achieve; it is the crystallization of beauty possessed only by a god.

She wore armor that revealed nearly her entire voluptuous, fair-skinned body. The armor looked like claws clutching her ample chest, while diamond-shaped scales covered her crotch area like adhesive underwear. She was also seen wearing a black eye patch covering her right eye.

Odin clicked her tongue in annoyance.

She glanced at another goddess whose beauty surpassed that of the other three.

"Thanatos, you shouldn't mind if I take a little stroll to check just how powerful the creatures in this universe are, right?"

"Count me in! I want to gather data on the powerful beings in this universe!"

Just like Odin, another goddess with a childlike voice wanted more or less the same thing.

She looked younger than the other three goddesses, with a short, petite frame. She had tousled blonde hair, golden eyes, and beautiful white skin. Despite her small frame, she had a very large bust, which looked out of proportion with her tiny body. She wore a revealing Chinese-style dress with colorful scale patterns on the skirt.

Her name is Hokuto.

"You two…"

Osiris looked at Odin and Hokuto with a helpless expression. She also turned her gaze toward a goddess named Thanatos.

"Not right now. Odin, Hokuto, I don't have much time to spare to help you if you're in trouble. We—Deus Ex Machina—are here only to kill someone, and to make sure they can't escape."

Those words were spoken in a very clear and beautiful voice. But most beings far inferior to her who heard her voice and sensed her presence would tremble in fear.

Just seeing her appearance would drive people—especially men—crazy.

Thanatos is the leader of the other three goddesses and the founder of a group called Deus Ex Machine.

She is incredibly beautiful, with long blonde hair and blue eyes. On her forehead is a jewel-encrusted hair ornament. A white winged ornament adorns the side of her face. She wears a white one-piece dress, resembling the attire worn by Greek gods in paintings or carvings. There are statue-like wings on her back. And her legs resemble pillars. She bears a striking resemblance to the goddesses worshipped in the temples of the gods.

If any of the women in Eiji's harem—Master Liber—were to see her, she would surely find her familiar. She hadn't forgotten the figure of the woman she'd seen while using her divination ability on Eiji—an experience that had nearly cost her her life.

"You think I'm going to get into trouble…!? Just because of the creatures in this universe, Thanatos!?"

"I don't think I'd lose to anyone but you, Thanatos!"

"Huh? Does that mean you think you can beat me?"

"Mhm! Of course."

"You're way too confident! You've never even beaten me, Hokuto! Thanatos always stops the fight before I can hurt you and make you cry!"

"I won't cry, one-eyed woman!"

"What did you say, midget?"

Odin and Hokuto scowled; they were a little offended that Thanatos thought they weren't strong enough in that universe and needed her help.

The two of them also started arguing with each other, even drawing their respective swords. But that was nothing out of the ordinary for them.

Osiris was relieved; she was the only one happy that Thanatos had forbidden Odin and Hokuto from provoking a crowd that might cause trouble.

It was fine if it was in their own universe or the worlds they had created; they didn't need to worry about becoming too arrogant.

But in other universes about which they knew very little. She thought it was best to be cautious.

Compared to Odin and Hokuto, even though Osiris was also an arrogant goddess, she was the most level-headed among them.

"You two, that's enough." Thanatos said indifferently, like a god among gods.

In front of the three members of her group, she often came across that way.

"..." Odin and Hokuto immediately fell silent, even putting their weapons back into their respective inventories.

Osiris giggled.

"Osiris, you need to take this more seriously, too."

"Ah, sorry."

Thanatos turned her gaze to Hokuto and asked, "Hokuto, what's the exact location of the energy source you've analyzed?"

"Wait a moment."

A system interface floated before Hokuto's eyes; she operated it with just her thoughts.

Immediately, a red dot appeared on the holographic screen she was looking at.

"I found it! Our target is on a planet located fairly close to the moon."

Thanatos narrowed her eyes.

"Let's go there."

Hearing what their leader said, none of the three goddesses objected. Their figures were once again enveloped by a wall of light, and they immediately teleported to their destination.

Just for your information.

Before discovering the coordinates of this universe. At Deus Ex Machina's residence, Thanatos extended one of her mechanical arms into the void while seated on her throne.

That hand immediately grabbed someone living in the Draconic Deus universe and flung them into the middle of the room.

That person was a wizard named Mr. Magatsuchi; he was the one who told Damocles that Tohru was staying at Eiji's house. In the original work, it is true that the man did more or less the same thing. He possessed clairvoyance and told Damocles that his daughter was living with Kobayashi. He and Damocles were actually friends.

However, he shouldn't have been able to do the same thing to Eiji. He was only able to do it because someone amplified his clairvoyance with divine power, and that happened right as some of Eiji's wives were giving birth.

Before Mr. Magatsuchi could even catch a glimpse of Thanatos and the other three goddesses, he immediately fainted just from the aura they emitted.

While he was unconscious, Thanatos ordered Hokuto to track the traces of foreign energy belonging to the other party on his body.

Hokuto was the most skilled at this among the three other goddesses, and she quickly managed to track down the location of someone who seemed to have provoked their leader.

After throwing Mr. Magatsuchi back into the Draconic Deus, he himself had no memory of what had happened to him. He didn't even know that someone had manipulated his actions just a short while ago.

After all, he was just a very weak human in the eyes of the other party and Deus Ex Machina. Thanatos didn't kill him simply because he might be useful to her apostle.

That's why they're here.

Far beyond the atmosphere of a planet that appeared to be drenched and shrouded in darkness. Deus Ex Machina appeared again through the same entrance as before.

"Come to think of it, we still don't know how this person provoked you, Thanatos." Osiris was curious as to why their leader had come all the way out here.

She even brought them all along.

"This isn't the first time she's tried to interfere with the experiment I'm conducting. I've tried to settle things with her in the past, but she's too good at covering her tracks. Today is the day she'll meet her end."

Thanatos didn't explicitly explain how that person—or woman—she was referring to had provoked her.

Matters concerning 'that' were, so to speak, her personal business.

The intensity of the light in Osiris's golden eyes increased; she glanced at Thanatos with a strange smile.

Thanatos pretended not to notice.

"Heh! At least we'll be fighting someone who's pretty strong. That's good—I can have a little fun!"

"Odin, step aside! In this fight, my help is more than enough."

"Stop bragging, midget."

Odin and Hokuto were brimming with fighting spirit, but they didn't forget to taunt each other.

Osiris sighed.

At that moment, a woman's cold voice rang out from the planet ahead of them.

"How surprising. I didn't expect uninvited guests to show up today. And they seem to be goddesses from another universe. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Thanatos gazed at the planet—or, more precisely, at a woman who lived inside a temple and was standing in the courtyard.

She looked at her with a condescending gaze.

The other party had an arrogant smirk on her face.

"Stop pretending. That smirk on your face is proof enough that you're the one we're looking for."

"That's rude. We don't even know each other. Why are you hostile toward me?"

Nyarlathotep, also known as Naia, is the 7th of the Eight Great Goddesses—Naia, the Moon Goddess.

She is also an envoy or hostage from the Outer Gods to investigate the conflict between their group and the Holy Gods.

She could be called an Outer Goddess.

As a goddess, she is, of course, beautiful, and her appearance is quite well-proportioned. Naia has long white hair that shines like stars, smooth porcelain-like brown skin, and eyes like amethyst stones.

"I'm the one who should be asking why you've provoked me time and time again. Even though this is the first time we've met, your past actions are enough to make me want to erase you."

Thanatos wasted no time engaging in further conversation. Hokuto clearly sensed that the divine power Naia unleashed was the same as the trace of divine power they had discovered.

She extended her palm toward Naia and the planet she inhabited at the same time.

*BEAMMMMMM!!*

In an instant, a beam of red light millions of meters wide cut through the planet's atmosphere.

Seeing the sky above her turn red, Naia furrowed her brow. But soon, she burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! Just as I thought, the goddesses from other universes are more fun than the goddesses in the Divine Realm!"

Osiris: Is this woman crazy? Instead of immediately blocking Thanatos's attack, she's actually laughing?

The next second, just as Thanatos's attack was about to hit her, Naia finally moved. She swung her arm to the side.

Instantly, the attack—powerful enough to blow up her own planet—veered off in an extreme direction and instead blew up another planet in the distance.

*Boooom!!*

Thanatos ignored the explosion from the neighboring planet, raising one of her golden eyebrows. Her blue eyes glowed dimly as if she had analyzed something in an instant.

"You deflected my attack with telekinesis at that level? Not bad. No wonder you have the nerve to mess with me."

"You know what kind of magic I used? Hehehe… You're not bad either. I don't regret messing with you ever since I first saw you!"

Naia giggled. What she said left Thanatos confused because she clearly wasn't talking about the present. However, with a mind capable of thinking faster than any supercomputer,

She guessed that Naia might have seen her during her first visit to this universe. While she was building a good relationship with a goddess from this universe and learning how to make someone her apostle, Naia might have been watching her secretly and following her.

Thanatos's guess was correct.

Naia had indeed done that.

She even knew where Thanatos lived. In other words, she was acting like a stalker!

She has a playful personality and loves freedom and fun. Because of that, she has repeatedly tried to disrupt Thanatos's activities by targeting her apostle.

It took extra effort, but Naia was happy to do it.

"I understand. The three of you, don't let anyone interfere. I'll take care of this stalker myself." Thanatos gave orders to the other three members of Deus Ex Machina.

A blue light burst from her mechanical limbs, and a red light sword appeared in her hand.

Almost instantly, she closed the distance to Naia, who was on her planet.

"What…!? Thanatos, did you bring us here just to make sure no one else interferes with your fight?"

Odin gritted her teeth.

Hakuo scowled; she wanted to complain too.

But Osiris placed her hand on both their shoulders, "Odin, Hakuo, calm down. If anyone else tries to interfere with the fight between Thanatos and that woman, you can fight them."

"Hmph! That's true, but Osiris…! Stop trying to sweet-talk me—I'm not happy."

"I'm not happy either, but okay."

Osiris smiled without saying a word.

She was actually a pacifist who'd gotten caught up with those three women. If possible, she wouldn't even want to destroy the troublesome worlds they'd created just to rebuild them, as the other members of Deus Ex Machina do.

Odin is a battle maniac.

Hakuo really loves collecting data.

And their leader, Thanatos, is obsessed with experiments and wants to evolve even further than she is now.

She is truly the Machine God among them.

However, Osiris has realized something.

Thanatos seems to have changed since a few years ago. She likes to shut herself away in her quarters, and Osiris has no idea what she's been up to lately.

'Thanatos is clearly hiding something from us. And the woman she's fighting—she seems to know what it is.'

...

A few seconds ago.

On the planet inhabited by the Outer Goddess.

*SLASH!!*

A slash from Thanatos's laser sword, Keraunus, split Naia's temple atop the mountain peak. The mountain and the land stretching for tens of kilometers were also split apart.

However, the target managed to dodge the attack.

Naia suddenly appeared with a moon-like glow not far behind Thanatos and reached out her hand.

"It seems you've been underestimating me."

She tried to immobilize Thanatos with her telekinesis. Even so, Naia was stunned.

*SLASH!!*

In a panic, she teleported to the other side again. But this time, Thanatos's slash managed to cut off a few strands of her hair.

The laser slash, accompanied by sparks of red lightning, was magnificent and long. Not only were the distant mountains split apart, but the sky—enveloped in Naia's dark energy, which served as the planet's defensive layer—and the planets in the same direction were also split in two.

*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*

Countless people died in that attack.

Thanatos's expression was indifferent. With her mechanical limbs, mechanical wings, and a brightly glowing ring of light above her head, she looked like the most powerful Terminator capable of destroying the world with ease.

No, not a Terminator. She is a Machine Goddess.

"You're the one who's underestimating me. Your telekinesis won't work on me."

While Naia used her telekinesis to deflect her previous attack, Thanatos had already finished analyzing the magic and made herself immune to it.

"....!"

Naia was taken aback, but her expression quickly turned serious. Divine power surged through her body, and a silver aura enveloped her.

"How about this attack? Holy Moonlight!"

Ten giant magic circles appeared behind Naia, each firing a beam of silver light with enough destructive power to shatter a planet.

As the Moon Goddess, the moon itself serves as an additional source of power for her. It could be said that as long as the moon existed, she was the strongest of the six Great Goddesses. Only one other Great Goddess, the Goddess of the Sun, could match her.

The corners of Thanatos's lips curled upward.

The laser sword in her hand hummed, and its intensity grew stronger. She swung it horizontally and unleashed a colossal energy slash.

A red and silver explosion erupted, but the former immediately engulfed the latter, obliterating a third of the planet's surface in the process.

The explosion engulfed Naia and dealt her massive damage. The goddess's gown she was wearing was torn to shreds, revealing her voluptuous figure covered in wounds.

"Kuuugh! Impossible… My moon magic... you destroyed it so easily?"

Floating in space amidst the debris of the planet around her, Naia wore a grim expression on her face.

As she stared at the blonde Machine Goddess floating before her, fear began to show in her eyes.