Brain bloom

6: Others are optional.

However, I think we should disqualify anyone who wants a photo of themselves in drag as a prize.

Volume 1, Chapter 241: The Car Crash

Once the magic took effect, Mori's consciousness vanished—

I don't know how much time has passed.

She seems to have woken up.

I've experienced something similar before.

Right now, her situation is like waking up every morning, her consciousness awakening. But there's a bias; it's more like the feeling she gets when summoned by the dandelion. There's a sense of melancholy, like struggling to wake from a long slumber.

The key question is, where is this?

She forced her eyelids open and began to observe her surroundings—

She was standing, surrounded by a strange environment, everything ambiguous, without color, without end or beginning, and without any buildings or shapes.

"...What's going on?" she muttered, full of confusion.

The enemy's magic... Yes, she was fighting in the ruins, trying to escape. But then she thought, "This is bad," and before she could unleash the power of her true god, she was summoned to this godforsaken place?

Thinking the worst, could it be... that I died again?

Is this the afterlife? Are characters awaiting rebirth? No, Mori doesn't believe the world is that wonderful. There's another possibility: a miracle has occurred again, and he's been summoned elsewhere by someone from another game world.

But she didn't want to leave...

Fortunately, that didn't happen.

Because the spiritual energy structure in the surrounding air was the same magical structure that Mori had observed before, originating from some unknown system. In other words, this was a world constructed by the spirit monster using magic, and she was not dead yet.

Thinking about it this way, Sen Shi felt much more at ease, and his mind became clearer.

That formless magic was clearly not spatial, but rather mental, or perhaps an extremely realistic illusion. This world was also constructed. Either it was meant to torment her, or it was a place for mental battles—that's how it's portrayed in various works.

As long as you're alive, everything is negotiable.

The Pope's relics are missing, which Mori feels regretful about; it seems he couldn't keep up with this world.

But that wasn't the worst part. Everything about her, except for her clothes—her weapons, baggage, and ornaments—had vanished. The branches on her head, however, remained intact…

She tried to use magic, but the elements of this godforsaken place were completely unresponsive to her will. Even healing spells, which could be used at will, became incredibly difficult. She was unarmed, possessing nothing but a system panel and her attributes.

To increase their fighting strength, Mori plucked a strawberry leaf.

When it leaves its host plant, it withers rapidly and turns into a highly poisonous dead leaf.

"Bring it on! I'll treat you to some leaves!"

"..."

"If you want to fight, come out here!"

"..."

"Let me tell you, you'd better be a pretty young girl or something, otherwise if I beat you to death later, no one will feel sorry for you!"

It was quiet everywhere.

Perhaps she was wrong? This was an extremely long spell, imprisoning her in loneliness and torment. If that was the case, then it was truly the worst. Having become accustomed to this noisy world, she no longer wanted to live a solitary life.

"The Four Seasons?"

"...A person?" Mori was stunned; the sudden voice was a little frightening.

However, it is a comprehensible, pure common language.

She looked in the direction the sound came from and found it was the soul of a human. The man looked quite young, with pale skin and reddish hair, similar in race to the people of the Peda Empire in the game.

But why here?

"When I was alive, the people of the Land of Flowers were all very kind," the soul's voice was low, carrying a sorrowful tone like the sea breeze. "But now, kindness is useless."

"What's the meaning."

“We are all sacrifices, abandoned, even unearthed,” said another man who had also appeared suddenly.

Immediately afterwards, more souls appeared and gathered in front of Mori.

They had nothing in common, as if they came from different eras, countries, and regions. Mori thought of the Soul Monster's body, which seemed to be woven from countless souls.

Mori had initially thought that these souls were all dead. But now, thinking about it, that idea was wrong. Because souls don't truly "die," they only "vanish without a trace," and Mori himself had witnessed the disappearance of souls.

She guessed the origin of these souls.

“Were you devoured? And… slaves of the gods?” she asked.

Some people nodded, confirming Sen's statement.

Mori's face darkened, for the traveling souls... this race that dwells underground, had likely committed many atrocities. They had somehow abducted laborers from the surface to dig the earth for them, and even their souls had been reduced to this state...

"Shouldn't the slaves of God be immortal?" Mori asked again.

One of them forced a smile and said, "Yes, but that comes at a price. It takes a hundred people to provide one slave of God, and we... that's the price."

"The body became the price, but the soul was preserved... Did you know that the soul can be squeezed for power?"

Mori was stunned once again, not expecting such a complicated story. But her situation was not optimistic either, so she had no choice but to try to communicate with these victims.

"You've come to devour me? I thought there would be more terrifying enemies, but it turns out you're all victims..."

"Weren't you already devoured?"

"Yes, you've joined us."

These spirits nodded one after another, some even retaining a bit of a sense of humor, and greeted Mori with "welcome".

Mori simply lowered his head, looking at the boots he was standing on on the floating ground, his mouth and heart both deathly silent.

Unbeknownst to her, she had a major mishap...

She's become food for the monster, and is currently being digested in its otherworldly belly. She's only able to retain her body because she still has some use to it. Once the monster returns to the settlement, it will spit her out and then capture her.

Either become a slave to the gods, spending hundreds or thousands of years digging through the earth; or, like these people, have your body torn into pieces and shaped into a monster, your soul imprisoned there.

Where is this place?

“Inside the monster,” a seemingly wise soul replied, “a strange… world. I had some knowledge of magic in my previous life, but I completely don’t understand this kind of thing. In addition, magic cannot be used here, so I’m warning you, don’t dream of escaping.”

"Stop struggling. Every time someone gets swallowed up, they can't accept reality."

"Numb yourself."

The souls began to speak in stilted tones. They were all victims who had been imprisoned here for who knows how long, and had probably long since grown accustomed to this endless prison.

"I urge you to start praying; at least you still have the strength to pray now."

"To whom? Who hasn't prayed?" someone scoffed. "But it's never worked."

The word "prayer" entered Mori Toki's heart.

Like blood flowing into his heart, and being enveloped in a hot and warm sensation, it began to beat again. Mori felt as if he had come back to life. Yes... at least he wasn't dead yet.

"If you wish to pray, pray to the coffin bearers."

Who is that?

"I've never heard of such a god." These souls, who died in history, looked at each other in bewilderment.

"It's a new god built with money over the past century; perhaps it's somewhat effective?" As he finished speaking, Mori bestowed the title of "true god" upon his own soul.

Volume 1, Chapter 242: God and Freedom

There isn't much time left for Mori.

Entering the state of a coffin bearer normally requires a large amount of money and mental energy. However, her baggage was not with her, and it contained coins and mental energy potions.

Therefore, she wasn't really sure if her choice would go smoothly, and even less certain what this deity, which seemed to be specifically designed for growing flowers and plants, could actually accomplish.

Can it fight? How can it fight? How long can it fight?

But all the doubts that filled Sen Shi's heart vanished in the next instant, and she got the answer she wanted.

With the title bestowed upon her, the power of divinity began to permeate every cell of her being in a thunderous and earth-shattering manner.

Suddenly, Mori felt her vision broaden considerably, as if everything was merely a plaything. She had become powerful, while the world within this monster seemed so insignificant.

It is fundamentally insufficient to contain a true God.

"……Correct."

Gradually, Mori's mind calmed down, and his previous unease vanished.

"It's not about what I can do."

With a sigh, Mori silently raised his hand and, with a casual, effortless movement, grasped the "magical structure" of this world itself.

"Rather, it's about what I'm going to do."

She tore this world apart.

It's like tearing the wrapper of a candy through a serrated edge.

It's just that Mori couldn't find the serrated edge before entering the true god state.

Previously, only a few hundred souls had come to welcome Sen to join them. This was because those who had been devoured had long since become accustomed to this recurring cycle. Monsters always devour others, and others always grow accustomed to the torment, becoming one of the numb souls.

But now, those souls that have turned to ashes and whose spirits have died are gradually gathering together.

Thousands, then thousands, then tens of thousands.

Countless souls were stunned by this scene. Before their eyes, the beautiful Four Seasons Girl, who seemed soft, sweet-voiced, and with lush foliage, had actually done such a thing.

She showed them the real world.

"Let's go."

Mori said it wasn't about those indifferent souls.

It was about herself.