Chapter 799: The Late Dish (1)

Avaritia was undoubtedly powerful.

But perhaps because he was such a powerful being.

He could not properly grasp the strength of beings weaker than himself.

Just as a human does not know the exact size of an ant, and finds it difficult to determine which ant is stronger than another.

Because he was far too great a being, he could not properly grasp humanity’s potential.

And that potential.

“You’re...... far stronger than he thinks.”

The extent he had vaguely imagined.

Had already been surpassed by an immeasurable margin.

=.......=

What I had done was, in the end, nothing more than cooking.

It was merely healthy, wholesome food capable of awakening that potential.

Even so, he had tried to deal only with me and paid no attention to the other awakened.

This was the result.

CRRRRUMBLE.......

Our light went beyond merely contending with his.

Now, it had begun devouring his light.

=Your danger has already surpassed my imagination.=

As he looked at that light.

Avaritia seemed to sink into thought.

=And...... if, as you say, even your potential surpasses my imagination.=

Before long.

He opened his mouth as though he had reached a decision.

=Then we must eliminate you by any means necessary.=

Those who grew stronger by devouring other worlds.

I could not stand together with such beings, and he knew that as well.

And it seemed...... he had noticed one more fact.

=No matter what price must be paid!=

That I.......

Could never form a good relationship with beings like them.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

'That is.'

Avaritia’s light.

The direction of the light that had been moving to prevent itself from being devoured by ours changed.

It had already reached high into the sky in order to observe this world.

But now, that light went beyond merely touching the sky.

It was heading even higher.

'......The Demon Realm.'

When he stopped time and spoke with me.

The Demon Realm had already drawn close to our world.

Only now was I able to properly understand the structure of that world.

Countless worlds connected to the Demon Realm.

Those worlds belonged to allies who had chosen to stand together with the Demon Realm.

Worlds belonging to those who had resolved to survive by invading other worlds together.

That was why those worlds could be so prosperous.

But, come to think of it.

'......They said the Progenitor of the vampires came from a low-ranking demon.'

And.

The place I had seen in the Progenitor’s memories had not been so rich and beautiful.

Even though the Progenitor had clearly come from the lower ranks of the Demon Realm, she had lived in a hellish place where endless survival was forced upon her.

The reason was simple.

'The prosperous worlds I saw...... strictly speaking, were not the Demon Realm.'

They were merely worlds connected to the Demon Realm.

Worlds that had decided to stand together with them.

'Even Avaritia’s world...... was named after its creator, Avaritia.'

Separate worlds, each with its own name.

And.

The true Demon Realm.......

The world called Hell existed separately.

That was.

'......That red wasteland.'

Countless worlds.

A vast, barren, red wasteland connecting those worlds.

'That place itself.'

A ridiculously enormous space created by devouring countless worlds.

And absorbing the remains of those destroyed worlds.

'Hell.'

An endless world containing power greater than anything else.

A place overflowing with nothing but desolation and pain, screams and sorrow.

That was the true nature of [Hell].

And now.

RUMMMMMMMMMMMMMBLE!!!

Avaritia’s light surged toward the sky.

When that light reached the red wasteland.

The vast wasteland.

[Hell].

Was approaching our world.

CRRRRUMBLE!!!

Naturally.

Even for Avaritia, such an absurd act was not something that could be done easily.

What existed here was not his true body, but only his soul.

There was no way he could forcibly connect the Demon Realm to this land while inhabiting another being’s body.

That was why.

“You.......”

Right now.

Avaritia’s light.

The essence buried in its deepest depths.

“The size of your soul.......”

That soul.

Was rapidly losing its light.

He was shaving away his own power.

Even if it meant inflicting grievous wounds upon his own soul.

'To eliminate us before we become a great threat in the future.'

He.

Was trying to connect the Demon Realm to this land.

I frowned and raised my head.

Then I looked at the red wasteland.

The red wasteland was steadily drawing closer.

And only after it had come closer did they become visible.

'......Thrones.'

Positioned in the middle of the wasteland.

Absurdly enormous thrones.

[Warning!]

[A tremendous gaze is watching you!]

Sitting arrogantly upon seven thrones.

Those who looked down upon this place.

=.......=

=.......=

=.......=

=.......=

=.......=

=.......=

I could feel the gazes of transcendents bearing immense power focusing upon me.

No.

To be exact.

'Not all of them.'

Among those seated upon the gigantic thrones.

One had their head lowered deeply.

Wearing a crown of yellow clouds, with a gigantic sun behind him.

A being holding a spear of light and a sword of dark radiance.

'Avaritia.'

His true body was there.

Its size was far too immense.

So immense that even from this absurdly distant place, I could see its form clearly.

It felt as though, if that true body merely pressed one finger against this world, our world would crumble meaninglessly.

Except for the former Jade Emperor who had been inside Mirinae, there was no being comparable to him.

......And there was more than one such monster.

'There are at least six more monsters equal to Avaritia.'

Six beings equal to Avaritia besides Avaritia himself.

And there were likely countless divinities who had joined the alliance but were not permitted to sit upon those thrones.

I recalled how Mirinae’s world had been destroyed.

The Yellow Dragon and the Jade Emperor possessed immense power.

And the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts was a world protected by countless immortals.

The reason that world had been destroyed was not because the immortals were weak.

'It was because they were invaded by far more enemies.'

Countless allies who had chosen to stand together.

That number itself was the power of the Demon Realm.

When innumerable beings, each transcendent in their own right, gathered and joined forces, there truly was no answer.

But.

“What are you.......”

I looked back at those gazes directed toward me.

The great transcendents, and those seated upon thrones that looked down even upon those transcendents.

And spoke while glaring at them.

“What the fuck are you staring at, you bastards.”

The great transcendents.

Their expressions twisted ever so slightly.

***

Those seated upon the thrones.

The expressions of those who had been glaring down at this place with arrogant postures twisted.

Beings incomparably more powerful than me openly revealed their displeasure.

But.

'So what.'

They were the ones who had struck first at a side that had been minding its own business.

And now they were trying to descend directly upon this land.

There was no way I could speak politely to beings like that.

Of course.

Cursing at those bastards would not solve the situation.

If that Demon Realm connected to this land, the enraged transcendents would come to devour our world with their faces twisted in fury.

To stop that.

'......I have to stop Avaritia.'

More precisely.

I had to eliminate the light dragging the Demon Realm toward this place.

Our light was already overwhelming his.

If enough time passed, his light would eventually be pushed back and extinguished by ours.

But the Demon Realm would reach this place before that happened.

Eliminating all of his light in our current state was...... impossible.

To somehow shave away that light faster.

'I’ll have to strike the main body.'

The main body inside that golden energy.

I had to strike the body inhabited by Avaritia.

But.

It had merely grown weaker compared to our light.

That golden light still contained the power to manipulate laws.

The moment anyone stepped into that golden light.

That being would fall under the laws Avaritia controlled freely.

Even we awakened, who possessed the Legion’s light, could not do it.

Ignore the light that manipulated laws and enter it?

Across the entire universe, there would be very few beings capable of such a thing.

“Go.”

......Right.

If there were beings capable of that.

They would be exceptionally rare even across the entire universe.

For example.

Beings born for the purpose of invading other worlds.

Beings that ignored the laws of those worlds and gnawed away at the barriers surrounding them.

Beings that had brought countless worlds to collapse in that way.

Because their very essence lay in invading other worlds.

They could remain free even from powers that manipulated laws.

As far as I knew, only one race fit that description.

“Chancellor.”

SPOT!!!

=......!=

Had Avaritia been in perfect condition.

He would have instantly noticed the beings intruding into his light and crushed them immediately.

But not now.

He was pouring all his strength into connecting the Demon Realm to this land.

It required so much power that even his soul was weakening by the moment.

That was why.

=Could it be.=

Life-forms born with the purpose of entering any world and destroying it.

Those insects.

He realized too late...... that they had entered his domain.

=How dare.......=

The chancellor of the insects, wearing the form of a goblin.

And the intelligent zombies accompanying that chancellor.

=Insignificant...... insects......!=

The attack of those insects.

SHWAAAAK!!!

Split Avaritia.......

No.

Split the human-shaped body.

***

CRACK!

From within the split flesh.

The form of an insect was revealed.

FLUTTER-FLUTTER-FLUTTER!!!

A gigantic insect thrashed wildly.

Its countless legs moved grotesquely.

“We apologize for being late, Prince.”

Toward that insect.

The zombies inserted something.

......Because they had been inside Avaritia’s light.

It had been impossible to deliver it before now.

But every awakened being in this world had tasted it once.

So that thing, too, had to taste it.

“Please eat.”

My cooking.

No, to be precise.

[A collaborative work by a Demigod-Class War Chef, an Orthodox Chef, and an Intermediate Survival Chef.]

It was a dish made through the combined efforts of me.

And every other chef.

I watched the scene and thought.

'......It has been some time since I received the request.'

Somehow, the dishes for the other guests.......

The dishes for the awakened throughout the world had ended up being served first.

But in the first place.

If we were considering who had arrived first, it was that one.

After all.

'It was not a request with a deadline.'

That dish had been ordered personally by that thing.

A fate in which they destroyed other worlds, only to eventually face destruction themselves.

A request to create a dish that could save its kin, who had been born into such a fate.

[A Banquet for the Insects]

Created solely for those zombies.

An unprecedented original dish.

FWAAAAASH......!

At last.

Reached the guest.