“Ahhhk! Help!”

“Don’t do this!”

Kwahng!!

Eden was a utopia without any taint. It was a place made for their father, the most beautiful land with a long history.

The Eden that had been laboriously created for their sleeping father was turning into a field of blood.

Of course, it wasn’t because another force had invaded them. The monarchs hadn’t invaded them either!

“You guys can all die!!!”

“Ahhhhk!!”

The angels’ encampment was being destroyed by an ally. Moreover, this being was one of their commanders!

“Gabriel-nim! Why are you— Ahhhk!”

Kwahng!!

This heavenly land had been filled with fruits, but it was now covered with ice. The water of life turned into a flood, sweeping away the angels.

This was the ability of ice and water, which belonged to Gabriel, one of the five archangels.

Kevin’s white clothes and white-blond hair were mottled with blood. He looked like an asura.

The angels, who had been in tears after seeing the return of their commander, either bled or died.

Kwahng!!!

At this point, the high-rank angels ground their teeth.

“Damn it! He’s lost his mind!”

“He should be using that power to protect our father’s subjects! What are you doing?”

They had already been under great pressure because Lee Gun had changed the coordinates of the ark. Their forces had suffered great losses, yet this bastard was adding more to the figure!

“Stop him from using his power! At the end of the day, his divinity was forfeited!”

“That’s right! He shouldn’t be able to use his most important abilities!”

At that moment, the angels grabbed their throats as they opened and closed their mouths. It was as if they couldn’t breathe. They felt as if their heads were submerged in a fishbowl. 

The angels struggled in agony. The moisture in the air had been extracted and placed around the faces of the angels.

[Purification]

It was the power of an archangel, which was supposed to wash away anything impure.

When this power struck the angels, most of them died as their heads exploded within the water.

Kevin clenched his hands as he watched this sight. He almost sighed as he ridiculed them. “All of you’re corrupt. You’re so rotten that you cannot be purified. You cannot be saved.”

“Corrupt?! You’re the one who made Father’s land like this, yet you dare say…!”

Kevin’s eyes flashed as if those words had left him dumbfounded.

“You sucked the blood dry from the colonies to make this land!”

“Kuh-huhk!”

When Kevin chased after them, they knew they were overmatched. They quickly looked for their supreme commander.

“Michael-nim! Where are you, Michael-nim?”

“He said he needed to visit somewhere to recover from his wounds— Kuhk!”

“Michael won’t be able to come here.”

They froze when they looked behind them.

Kevin seemed unconcerned as he laughed. “While his opponent is the idiot Pushover, Michael went directly toward a monarch. Only an idiot would do that.”

The angels gnashed their teeth.

“Are you looking down on Michael-nim, bastard?”

“How dare you say he’ll lose to a monarch who reincarnated as a human?”

Kevin snorted. “He was able to eat me. That immature bastard won’t be able to do anything against the monarch!!”

Once again, the angels’ screams rang out.

“Whatever. I’ll exterminate all of you, including your father!” Kevin let out a cold smile as he raised his sword.

The enraged angels cussed at him.

“You crazy bastard! You’re an archangel!”

“Fuck off! I shed that title a long time ago!!!!”

What the hell did he just say?!

Kevin’s face became stormy when he recalled the soul’s memories. “Archangel?? I kept my chastity for several dozen years in the Virgo temple! That’s enough!!”

“W-What?”

“The archangels have to keep their chastity too!! Both can fuck off!”

“??!”

What the hell was he saying? He wanted them to fuck off for that reason!?

“This is a holy and noble work!”

“If you keep your chastity for ten thousand years, you develop a special ability!!”

“You guys better shut up!!”

The dumbfounded angels looked at Kevin.

On the other hand, murderous intent appeared in Kevin’s eyes. Of course, this wasn’t the only reason for this murderous intent. When he had regained his memories as an angel, he recalled something crucial regarding the Virgo temple.

Gabriel was in charge of records related to fertility. This was why he had encounters with Virgo. He would occasionally receive commissions to find Constructs who had broken their chastity. This was why he knew the secret of the Virgo temple.

Of course, Kevin didn’t mind that Virgo had chosen him as her Zodiac Saint. She hadn’t picked him knowing he was Gabriel, and he was a human now.

The problem was…

- Hey, horny goddess.

- What?

- You told me this before. If the Virgo Saint doesn’t keep their chastity, they will immediately get a heart attack and die, right? That was why I desperately dodged anyone of the opposite sex. For the past twenty-five years, I wasn’t even able to hold the hand of a woman.

- That’s right.

- You want to die?

- What are you talking about?

- I won’t die even if I don’t keep my chastity!!! You want to die!!!

Kevin had lost his mind when he realized the goddess had cheated him.

He remembered the truth and shouted, “It’s fine. You guys can all dieeeeeeee!!!!”

“Ahhhk! The archangel has lost his mind!!!”

“Give me back my 3,325 years!!”

Kevin went on a rampage, and the angels died as they screamed.

* * *

“Let go!”

Hugo grabbed Michael by the hair.

Michael glared at Hugo. How dare a dirty and lowly being lay a hand on him? 

“How dare a beast like you do this—”

Michael was about to tell Hugo to let go before cutting off Hugo’s hand. However, he was unable to do so.

“Koohk!”

A fist flew toward his face, and an unimaginable strength hit him.

Puhk!!!

Michael almost lost consciousness. The blow was powerful enough to crush his face. However, Michael couldn’t feel the will to fight behind that power. It was like someone swinging to crack open the hard shell of a fruit. It was an unforgiving power!

Michael had felt this before.

‘Monarchs…!!’

It was chilling as it showed how they felt nothing in front of life, oozing arrogance.

Michael cursed as blood started to splatter everywhere.

‘He awakened as a monarch?!’

However, there was another more pressing matter.

‘This bastard caught me!’

Michael was in his holy spirit state, where he could pass through everything. No one should be able to touch his body. So what was going on?

At that moment, Michael almost lost consciousness.

Bbah-gahk!!!

After sending a fist toward Michael’s face, Hugo kept his grip on Michael’s head. He slammed the head down on the ground as if he were breaking open a coconut.

“Kuh-huhk!!!”

Michael groaned as his head was broken open. Blood spilled on the floor. He trembled as if he had been paralyzed, glaring at Hugo with bloodshot eyes.

‘Bastard…!’

Hugo laughed; his eyes flashed as though to say he expected more.

Michael ground his teeth. It was true that he had come here to purposefully provoke Hugo. He planned on making Hugo lose his humanity by dragging out his true instinct.

The archangel planned on reverting Hugo to days when he indiscriminately hunted down gods and humans. This would mobilize the other gods to hunt this bastard down!

Of course, it didn’t matter if his true instinct didn’t come out. Michael wanted to break Hugo’s mind so that he would kill himself.!

‘This bastard…! He didn’t go berserk or self-destruct!’

As if he was reading the look in Michael’s eyes, Hugo scoffed. “My mental state is not fragile enough to break from that, idiot. Do you think I’m an elementary school student or something?”

“…!”

“In fact, Gun’s mental attacks are worse.”

That was the truth.

He had suffered it when he served Lee Gun as his student.

While his house had fallen, Hugo used to be a young master from a rich family. So he had a fragile mental state. 

This was why Lee Gun had used force to break and rip apart Hugo’s mental state. In fact, someone with a normal mental state couldn’t stay close to Lee Gun.

Hugo had a mental breakdown only two times. First was when Lee Gun had ground up monsters to make porridge for himself; at that time, Hugo had been unable to eat for a week. The second was when Lee Gun had died.

Hugo showed the whites of his teeth as he laughed. “You’re an elder god, right? Then you must have never been beaten to an inch of your life, right?”

“Wait—”

Michael screamed.

Bbah-gahk! Bbah-gahk!

While being beaten to a pulp, Michael tried to use his ability.

‘Damn it! Why can’t I use my ability?’

The reason was simple.

‘Damn it! I have recovered enough from the wounds suffered by Wind…!’

That wasn’t all.

‘Could it be…!’

He was sure of it. Hugo was using the power of Endless Change.

Wind, Underground, Flame, and Endless Change—among the first-generation monarchs, Endless Change had secretly entered the Divine world. His ability had allowed him to violate even the Primordial god.

Endless Change was aptly known as a mimic. He could perfectly copy the appearance, movement, and speech of the gods. He never had his own true appearance from the start, like Confusion.

Moreover, he could use the abilities of the gods if he ate certain gods. It was beyond copying at that point.

And only one being could completely neutralize Michael like this…!

‘Father!’

Michael glared at Hugo with bloodshot eyes. “Could it be? The Great Spirit of Eden…!!”

Hugo looked very satisfied when Michael raged. He knew what would humiliate and anger the angels the most. “Why do you think your snobby father hasn’t awakened even now?”

“…!!!”

“Yes. I already ate your father. The tasteless parts were used to make a monarch.”

“What did you just say?!”

“I can’t believe you guys still haven’t recognized your father.”

“What…? What are you….”

“Your Father was turned into a monarch. He invaded the Divine world and ate you guys. You guys still haven’t realized that?”

Michael turned pale as Hugo laughed. As a first-generation monarch, Endless Change was able to dupe even the Primordial god. Michael’s father, the Great Spirit of Eden, had also been trifled with using cheap methods.

Still, Michael had never expected his father to turn into a monarch! It was inconceivable, but Hugo being able to suppress his power gave credence to his words…!

Michael, who had come to shake Hugo’s mental state, had his mental state destroyed by Hugo instead. He was barely able to break himself out of the stupor. “Do… you really think I’ll believe that? Father is in Eden…!”

“Yes. The one you guys are feeding is a fake. It’s a medium connected to the territory of the monarchs. You guys have been providing nutrition to the monarchs, whom you detest.”

“…there is no way…!”

“Let me pose a question. Who among the monarchs is your father?”

Finally, strength drained out of Michael’s body. His pupils shook as if he had let go of his sanity. “I’ll…have to confirm it…”

Hugo’s eyes flashed. He wasn’t going to let Michael run away. He stabbed Michael.

Michael glared as he tried to kill Hugo, but it was useless. “Kuh-huhk! That asshole snake god…!!”

Michael’s mental state was shaken, which caused his defense to drop.

Hugo had been aiming for this.

Kwah-jeek! Bbah-ddoo-doohk!

Michael vomited blood as he fell to the ground. 

Hugo also slumped to the ground in exhaustion.

Koohng!

“Oohk!”

The thick smell of blood had permeated the house, and Hugo gritted his teeth. His instinct made him want to eat Michael’s corpse. The thought kept invading his mind.

‘Damn it!’

In the end, Hugo extended his hand. He had a feeling that if he ate this, he’d never be able to come back from this. However, he was having a very hard time holding himself back since it was a high-rank god.

‘Just this once.’

Kwahng!

“!”

Hugo flinched when an item fell to the ground. It was the new family picture that he had taken alongside Lee Gun.

At that moment, he wondered what he had been thinking.

Poo-hahk!

Unexpectedly, Hugo didn’t aim for Michael’s flesh. He extracted only Michael’s Divine status.

[EXP is headed toward the Serpent Bearer temple.]

[Achievements have been offered to the Master.]

Hugo’s hands stopped shaking. “Quickly… I have to clean the house before Jiwoo and the kids get here.”

He let out a sigh. Looking miserable, he squatted to pick up Michael. It seemed he planned on getting rid of Michael, as if nothing had happened here.

Slam!

“!”

Hugo let out murderous intent when he felt an unfamiliar presence. He turned his head. “Who is it?”

However…

“…Jaewon?”

“H-Hugo-nim.”

How long had he been here?  

Lee Jaewon had turned pale from shock. It was for no other reason. “He said Hugo-nim is a monarch…. What was that conversation about?”

Hugo bit his tongue. Lee Jaewon seemed to have heard the conversation between him and Michael.

At some point, Lee Jaewon had realized Hugo was fighting Michael, so he intended to barge in. It was then that he had heard their conversation. He had frozen in place.

“Hugo-nim.”

“Ah… That chicken bastard was lying.”

“But….” The light in Lee Jaewon’s eyes didn’t change.

Lee Jaewon was a clever Zodiac Saint, who was quick on the uptake.

In the end, Hugo said as if he had no choice, “Do not speak about this to anyone else. This is especially true for Gun.”

“What…? Lee Gun-nim?”

Hugo wondered if telling Lee Gun everything was the right way, but he became somber. He was sure of it.

Despite their current situation, there was something that couldn’t be denied. He was a monster, and if Lee Gun found out…

‘Gun will kill me!’

He knew better than anyone else that Gun was ruthless toward monsters.

Lee Jaewon finally came to his senses at that moment. He asked, “D-Does that mean… the Great Spirit of Eden was really turned into a monarch…?”

“No. I just made it up on the spot.”

Hugo wasn’t sure of it, but he had a vague memory of what had happened. He had just pieced together half-truths.

“I had to break this bastard’s mind.”

Since he knew everything, Hugo placed a rag in Lee Jaewon’s hand. He was telling Lee Jaewon to help him clean before Gun could see it.

Lee Jaewon slowly started to mop up the floor.

* * *

He was inside a building run by the Leo temple. They had received the Serpent Bearer temple’s permission to do so.

[Are you sure this is ok, Master?]

His Constructs’ voices came from his shadow.

[Are you sure it’s ok to let the Virgo Saint leave like that?]

Just when it had looked like Lee Gun was going to get rid of Kevin, he had surprisingly let the Virgo Saint leave.

This was why the Construct worriedly said,

[He is someone who will betray Master. Moreover, he’s an archangel. I’m sure he’ll bring the Great Spirit of Eden and his troops for revenge…]

However, Lee Gun merely laughed. “Ah. It’ll be fine.”

[What do you mean, it’ll be fine?]

“You guys didn't notice it. He was being monitored by the angels. The angels acted as if they had just come to bring Kevin, but they had been there for a while.”

[!]

Yes, they had detected angels that couldn’t trust Kevin yet.

At the same time, Lee Gun had picked up something from Kevin. This was why he had the latter purposefully leave. Lee Gun had a feeling it would be fine if he let Kevin handle Eden.

That was why Lee Gun left the hospital to carry out a task. Of course, this didn’t mean he was free of all worries.

[Where are you, my precious Creator?]

Lee Gun had heard a gloomy voice. It was for only a moment, but he became leery. This was why he had distanced himself from the hospital.

‘Well, the voice is gone now.’

Anyway, that wasn’t important right now.

“Lee Gun-nim. Why did you call us here….”

The new Zodiacs Saints stood in front of him.

Lee Gun smirked as he looked at them. “Why else would I call you here? I have a task for the new Zodiac Saints of the earth.”

“!”

“Before I get to that, come out.”

“What?”

Lee Gun’s red eyes flashed. “Don’t feign ignorance. You sent the new Zodiac Saints since you wanted to do this in the first place, right?”

“L-Lee Gun-nim?”

“I know one of you is him.”

“!”

“The treacherous Great Spirit of Ennead.”