Chapter 798: That’s Wrong

They were people who had continued fighting without despairing even after destruction.

But when that sea began approaching to devour them.

When they realized that the cause lay with themselves.

For the first time, they fell into deep despair and lost all further hope.

But.

[The Legion stands with you.]

Those people resolved to fight again and held on to hope.

Not long after destruction, radio waves had crossed over from beyond the sea.

A message from the Legion telling them that there were others alive besides them.

After the sea began pursuing them, they could no longer hear it, and while they were despairing, thinking that every other world must also have been submerged beneath the sea.

That Legion was still standing strong.

And that one day, they would come find them and stand together with them.

Because it had declared so through that System.

'If I can force those things back for even a single day here.'

During that one day.

There would be at least some possibility that the Legion might come to this land.

{Insolent one!}

{You dare cut down his descendants with the power of our great Father!}

{Blasphemy, blasphemy!}

That possibility was not high.

But he thought that if he could buy that one day with his own life, that would be enough.

That was why.

{That blasphemy.}

{Repay it by becoming a living sacrifice.}

Before he knew it, they had completely filled the space around him.

The beings of the deep sea rushed at him to tear out his throat.

Even while looking at them, he was able to remain calm.

'I can still fight a little longer. A little more.......'

And so.

Prepared for death, he fought his final battle.

His body gradually grew exhausted, and the power he had received from the Master of the Deep Sea ran wild as though it would burst his body apart.

Soon, an attack from a deep-sea monster that had targeted his exhaustion rushed toward him.

An attack so sharp that he could not avoid it in time.

At the very moment when it seemed impossible to avoid suffering a fatal wound from that attack.

“......Hah!”

The monster that had been about to launch that attack.

Its body burst apart.

Then.

“......What!”

The man who saw that sight.

Yamato shouted in shock.

“What are you doing instead of running away!”

The reason he had been able to fight without fearing death.

It was because buying a single day through his sacrifice would increase the possibility that the others might survive.

But now.

“Say something that makes sense!”

“That’s right......!”

The comrades he had told to flee.

The last survivors remaining in this land were not running away at all.

Instead, they were pouring down from the towers built atop that mountain.

“You expect us to leave you to fight alone, Brother, and survive by ourselves?”

“Even if we survived like that, we’d only have nightmares every day. I can’t live that kind of life.”

BOOM!

“I’d rather die.”

“......!”

They, too, were people who had received power from the Master of the Deep Sea.

People who slaughtered monsters with strength superior to awakened of the same level.

“Like you said, if this land is taken, there will be no hope. Even if you stop them alone, the time you can buy will be one day at most.”

“......The Legion might come during that day! If we all fight here and lose, we’ll be wiped out!”

“That could happen. But.”

His comrades gave faint smiles as they spoke.

“Throwing a comrade away like that and betting on the probability that the Legion will come...... still feels a little wrong.”

“Waiting for the Legion isn’t bad either, but.”

BOOM!

“Rather than that. It’s better to fight directly and survive.”

“.......”

At those words, Yamato let out a hollow laugh.

Then, wiping a hand down his face, he steeled his resolve.

“......If that’s the case, then there’s no helping it.”

The last survivors remaining in this land.

Thousands of humans made their decision.

......Then.

{Foolish.}

Something enormous crawled up from the depths of that deep sea.

A gigantic eye glittering within the water.

A being that looked like the other beings of the deep sea had been enlarged several thousand times.

A gigantic shape hidden within a tsunami worn like a veil.

{You should have quietly become my people.}

The Master of the Deep Sea.

The source of the power wielded by the survivors of this land, and the culprit devouring and swallowing this land.

Enraged, the Master of the Deep Sea revealed itself.

“......Let’s go.”

The last remaining land.

They would protect that land somehow.

Not by waiting for the Legion’s help.

But directly, with their own strength.

And.

With that resolve firmly made.

At the very moment when they were about to charge at that transcendent being.

Rustle.......

“......Hm?”

Above their bodies.

A small and warm light settled into place.

[You have consumed food!]

[Stat-Increasing Potion containing the care, soul, and memories of a Demigod-Class Chef]

From inside their mouths.

A refreshing flavor spread out.

***

{......Impossible.}

Avaritia’s essence was that of an invader.

He was not a resident of this land.

As a great being, his vision was originally extremely wide and vast.

He had even glimpsed the future of this land from beyond and interfered with it, which said everything that needed to be said.

But.

“You must have thought I would be the only enemy.”

While focusing on the battle with me.

Avaritia’s light had remained only on this land.

“You saw my Authority and thought that all you had to do was defeat me.”

{.......}

“Without even looking anywhere else.”

His vision had been focused solely on me.

Thanks to that.

{......Did you deliberately narrow my vision.}

When I completed my cooking.

He had failed to notice...... what was happening elsewhere.

That was no longer the case.

When Avaritia’s light reached the sky.

His vision once again took in this entire world.

—This power is......!

Across the sea.

Those fighting to defend the last handful of remaining land.

—With this power, we can fight.

—Even if our opponent is the Master of the Deep Sea......!

Those who had prepared themselves for death.

Were instead driving back the sea that had tried to devour them.

—Batar...... did I finally die? Is that light the light of heaven?

—No. I can see it too. I’m not the kind of person who would go to heaven...... so we must still be alive.

A deep and dark space.

Those trapped there, unable even to see one another’s faces, waiting for death.

A light settled before them, and their bodies began to recover.

—This light...... this is!

—The Legion, this is definitely the Legion’s intervention!

—......Everyone, take up your weapons! We can win this war now!

They had survived for many years in a land of bitter cold.

But because of the betrayal of humans who worshipped demons, they had been driven to the verge of destruction.

Their final suicide force began slaughtering the enemies that had swarmed in.

—......This is.

—There’s no doubt. It’s the Legion Commander’s light!

—What in the world has that man done......!

—Keep breaking through! Our destination is not far now!

Those advancing south through a curtain of dark light.

—W-What is this light.......

—Look. It isn’t only us. The same light as ours is shining in the distance too......!

—That direction is...... where the Alafs are!

—......Those non-humans kept their promise and came to meet us!

—......Let’s go! We can do it now!

Across the sea and beyond the continent.

Across high mountain ranges, in the middle of the ocean, over bitterly cold ice, and across scorching deserts.

This world.

The battles taking place throughout this entire planet.......

No.

—With this power.

—We can win!

What filled this world.

Was the sight of victory.

Originally, something like this would have been impossible.

Cooking that targeted all of humanity, the entire world.

There was no way people I did not know and had never seen could be made targets of [Five Loaves and Two Fish].

That was still the same even now.

But.

'I can see them.'

What had changed was not the limitation of [Five Loaves and Two Fish].

It was my power.

By recovering the vital energy I had lost, obtaining a body befitting my status, and gaining a dragon’s inner core...... I had become able to take all the survivors of the world into my sight.

'This is the vision of transcendents.'

And.

If they were visible within my sight, and if my will could reach them.

I could make them targets of [Five Loaves and Two Fish] as much as I wanted.

{Even so!}

But.

Avaritia’s voice still seemed filled with doubt.

{This is impossible with nothing more than a potion containing such paltry power!}

......And, just as he said.

“I suppose that’s true.”

This light right now.

Could not have been made possible by the [Stat-Increasing Potion] alone.

—Ghk......!

—General, are you all right!

—Call a healer!

Within the scenery visible far away.

Someone among those fighting a fierce battle was wounded.

No matter how much of the [Stat-Increasing Potion] they had consumed, its effects could not be absorbed all at once.

It was impossible to prevent wounded people from appearing at all.

—......No.

But.

The wounded person spoke with an expression of disbelief.

—There is...... no need for a healer.

—What are you saying! You just suffered such a serious wound......!

—A wound?

A wound that should clearly have been fatal.

Even though the enemy’s attack had cut through the skin and blood had burst out.

—Are you talking about this?

—......!

That wound was healing at an incredible speed.

It was not only the wound.

—I’m not getting tired.

They did not grow tired to a strangely unnatural degree.

—......I dodged that just now?

To an extent that even they themselves could not understand.

They maintained their best condition and movement.

The reason that was possible was.......

Well, it was not thanks to me.

[Trait - Great Teacher]

[If there is a disciple who has attained enlightenment through your teaching.]

[You will become able to use one of the traits or skills possessed by one of them in a ‘deteriorated’ form.]

A chef who had once been outstanding.

But after destruction, had fallen into despair upon realizing that his cooking could no longer easily save others.

[Disciple - Howard Jin]

[Borrowed Trait - Ingredient Management]

The power possessed by that chef.

It was thanks to the power of that very guy who had been suffering like hell helping with the cooking at that fortress until a little while ago.

The awakened beneath my gaze.

All of them were people who had resolved to live together.

Then they were people who would surely join the Legion someday.

[Ingredient Management(Deteriorated)]

[Ingredients under the chef’s management are maintained in what the chef considers to be a high-grade condition.]

They were people who would eat my cooking.

So it was no different from them being under my management.

From the moment my sight reached them, and from the moment they did not reject my cooking.

All the awakened in this world entered beneath my protection.

A being comparable to a god.

Beneath the protection of a [Demigod-Class Chef].

{Even so!}

Still, he shouted as though unable to understand.

{It is impossible to emit this much light!}

And just as he said.

“That’s also true.”

There was still more than that.

—Memories are flowing into my head.......

—......Do not be wary! Accept the memories!

—Use the techniques within the memories!

The [Stat-Increasing Potion] spread to all awakened.

Among them, I had sprinkled a special sauce on the dishes made for awakened outside the Legion.

[Chef’s Special Sauce]

A skill that could turn intangible values such as emotions into a sauce and add them, rather than ordinary cooking ingredients.

One of the earliest skills I had obtained among all my skills, and at the same time, a powerful ability that did not fall behind any other skill I possessed.

That was why...... I had put many things into this sauce.

[Stat-Increasing Potion containing the care, soul, and memories of a Demigod-Class Chef]

Care.

Soul.

And memories.

Those fighting in distant places beyond the continent.

A change appeared in the movements of those who continued their desperate battle while savoring the cooking.

[Fushimi Yamato]

They fought while using their skills as awakened.

And the supernatural abilities they had obtained, which even I could not fully understand.

—......Is this how I do it?

But now...... within those movements.

[Martial Arts]

[S - Taegwang One-Light Blade Lv.1]

SLASH—!

The mysterious principles of martial arts.

Began to be applied.

I had cooked and eaten the dragon orb Mirinae had given me.

That dragon orb had been something built up by a being who had once been mortal through endless martial arts training.

The memories and training of that once-mortal being were contained within it in full.

That’s right.

'The martial arts he knew as well.'

Originally, [Special Sauce] had been limited to containing fragments of emotions.

But as the realm of its owner, me, rose higher, the things that could be contained within it also increased.

That was why I had put memories into it.

'My profession is chef.'

The survivors of this world whom I had seen.

Countless humans, each with their own lives and individuality.

'Matching the tastes of each individual...... is a basic skill, after all.'

I placed a different [Special Sauce] into the cooking directed toward each and every one of them.

Countless different people.

In order to hand every last one of those intensely individual people...... the optimal martial art that suited them best!

'My cooking.'

The [Stat-Increasing Potion].

'Howard’s trait.'

[Ingredient Management].

'Mirinae’s memories.'

Martial arts.

As all of those things melted into the bodies of awakened throughout the world.

FWAAAAAAAAASH!!!

Our light grew stronger and stronger.

'The light we emit is originally the light of the awakened.'

Even if those awakened were not on this battlefield right now.

If the power of awakened far away grew stronger.

If they fought and won, increasing their control over this world.

If they stepped upon more territory...... and brought the power within it under their influence.

[The power of the System is rapidly growing stronger!]

The power connecting all awakened.

The power held by the [System] grew even stronger.

[The influence of awakened over the world is increasing to an extreme degree!]

A battle between transcendents who manipulated the laws.

The control over this world used as a weapon in that battle.

FWAAAAAAAAASH!!!

The Legion’s light shone with blinding brilliance.

Golden radiance and dark light.

That immense light.......

CRRRRZZZZT!!!

By the Legion’s light.

Was being brutally destroyed.

{Even so!}

Even while his own light was being destroyed like that.

Still.

He shouted as though unable to understand.

{Even if you learn nothing more than that paltry cooking! Nothing more than the protection of an insignificant creature like you! Nothing more than techniques from a fallen world!}

“.......”

{It is impossible for your light to contend with mine!!!}

At those words.

I gave a faint smile and spoke.

“That one.”

Until now.

I had thought his words were not wrong.

Nothing more than cooking, nothing more than my protection, nothing more than martial arts.

Just as he said.

Each one of those things alone should normally have been unable to reach him.

“Sounds a little wrong.”

{......!}

That did not mean.

That I thought everything he said was correct.

“It’s true that each one alone would not be able to reach you.”

But.

We gathered all of those pieces.

We held the greatest power that those still alive could obtain.

Then.

“Our light can reach you.”

Our power.

The potential held by the awakened of this land.......

“Is far stronger...... than you think.”

Because compared to what he believed.

It was something far greater.