One-way traffic

"Try to blast out those swarms of insects hiding in the shadows. Of course, it doesn't matter if you kill them all. As long as you achieve what I've described, it doesn't matter either way."

"…Yes."

Jibril knew she couldn't disobey orders, so she didn't intend to say anything.

And so, this extra individual of the Skywing species, this girl, had no choice but to bury her anger at Azriel being beaten to the point of near death deep in her heart.

Artes rested one hand on his chin, watching Jibril leave the hall.

"You may all step aside. I have some personal matters to attend to now."

"--yes."

He also sent the other Skywing girls away.

About half a minute after the door was closed—

"Are you even going to eavesdrop on my conversations with my subordinates?"

"—Oh dear?"

A delicate voice came from a corner of the hall.

A figure that no one noticed, not even Jibril, emerged—a purple figure.

She exudes a unique aura, like a dazzling butterfly.

"We've been discovered~☆ So, when did it start?"

"Is it really necessary to dwell on a mere matter of time after I discovered your existence?"

A statement that sounds completely nonsensical and ambiguous.

But the girl knew exactly what the other person was trying to say.

The moment he arrived here—no, perhaps the moment he came into this world—the tall man before him was already aware of his existence.

"Truly worthy of being called the 'strongest,' the embodiment of the concept of war, the God of War, Artesius."

"There aren't many who can remain so leisurely in the temple after learning of my fame."

The girl's figure was quite ordinary, barely reaching 160 centimeters in height, yet she still managed to ignore the overwhelming aura surrounding her and the voice that shook the very fabric of time.

This demeanor is just like a girl from next door casually coming over for a visit—casual and simple.

"So, you can probably guess why I'm here, right?"

"Of course... after all, isn't it you, the woman, who told me that kind of thing?"

The purple-haired girl smiled, covering her mouth slightly.

"God of War, do you really want to fight a human who can rival you?"

"Hahaha! Precisely because the opponent is human, precisely because the opponent is a monkey whom I should consider the 'weakest,' I should be even more eager to fight!"

"Is that so...? Then what if I told you that the real 'strongest'... might very well be what you call the 'weakest'?"

"Then I still won't be surprised at all."

The God of War spoke calmly.

"But unfortunately—even if the person you mentioned could fight me, the 'strongest' will always be me."

"…oh?"

"This isn't a matter of strength. The reason I'm the 'strongest' is because the concept of 'strongest' is inherently mine."

Because it is the "strongest", it is the "strongest".

It doesn't matter how much strength you have. Even if Althu unleashed a desperate attack that cost him his life, leaving him with less than one percent of his full power, so what?

No matter how much strength changes, or what limitations species have, he will always be the "strongest," he is the very embodiment of "strongest."

"You will be at war soon."

The purple-haired girl finally said what she should have said long ago.

"Next, the forest elves and the goblins will create two opposing forces, and then they will choose to unite."

"And then they'll go to war with my Winged Race faction?"

"At that point, you'll probably have to unleash your own 'Divine Strike' to negate all of this... but don't worry, even if you do nothing, those guys won't hurt you."

"That's how it should be, because I am the 'strongest,' how could those ants possibly—"

"No, no, that's not what I meant!"

Seeing the war god in front of her seemingly getting carried away with his self-pity, she quickly interrupted him with a smile.

"What I mean is, 'certain people' will come and solve all this for you."

"By then, you will neither exhaust your power to unleash 'Divine Strike' nor have to confront the combined attack of the Forest Elves and Goblins. At that time, you will have maintained your peak strength."

"Isn't this the perfect opportunity to confront the 'human' you've been waiting for?"

So that's how it is. The God of War suddenly understood everything.

He could certainly figure out what this woman was thinking; she intended to use him, and even everything in the world.

Normally, the God of War's pride would not have made him submit.

He will show no mercy here and crush it completely with the most powerful blow.

But he curled the corners of his mouth into a smile.

"Hahahahaha——!!!"

The laughter of God caused a tremendous distortion of time and space.

The mere leak of such emotions has already caused the world to cry out in sorrow, which gives one a glimpse into just how powerful this man truly is.

"What good will it do you, monkey?"

"Oh dear? I never said I was human, did I? Don't jump to conclusions!"

The purple-haired girl made a gesture resembling the movement of her eyebrows or eyes.

"Anyway, they have their own little thoughts, and it's none of your business, right?"

“I sensed something unparalleled within you, a power as solidified as an abyss. If it were you, you might become one of my formidable rivals…”

"I don't have the same wild fighting desire as you men, so I just want to do what I'm prepared to do."

She waved lightly, as if saying goodbye.

"This is your only chance to show your face, so you won't see me again next time."

Just treat me as your fleeting dream, the god of war of this world.

—This world.

After confirming the true meaning of this word again, Alteshu realized that the woman had disappeared.

It's not a disappearance in time or space; you can definitely perceive that level of movement yourself.

Instead, they left completely from the giant encyclopedia called "The World".

"This world... If only I could be born in another world!"

He is called the God of War because the more he fights and the more wars break out, the stronger he becomes.

Althue craves battle, and even more so, he craves a true opponent worthy of his own.

But the reality is that in this world, he is the undisputed ruler; he is the "strongest" in the truest sense.

and so.

If, at this moment, someone told him that there were other "strongest" things—

"Then let's wait and see."

God regained his composure, transforming all his previous excitement and agitation into anticipation for future developments.

It doesn't matter who the opponent is.

As long as that woman can become my rival, that's fine.

“I will wait for your arrival, ‘weakest’… no.”

He rested his hand on his chin again and said in a deep voice.

"Another 'strongest'."

Chapter 561 The Black and White "Queen"

Humans do not have the same right to survive in this world as other races.

However, even so, all the humans in this world are still working hard for all of this.

Days after the settlement was hit by the aftermath of the monsters' battle, they gathered together.

Humans who should have been living a life of mere survival, unfairly treated by this world.

About 170 people gathered together.

"It seems that the situation is much more complicated than we thought."

Although those sitting here are human beings, they are all people who were once considered dead in the past few days.

They are "ghosts".

They do not exist in this world, yet they exist in everything.

Within this extremely small and impoverished base, there was Riku, along with Shubi who was by his side, and a total of 179 ghosts.

The meeting has begun.

“We have always thought we have completely figured out the monsters’ whereabouts, all their secrets, things, numbers, and even who their main fighters are. We know it all.”

"Yes, that's how it should be..."

Everyone couldn't help but recall that scene from before.

The settlement was on the verge of collapse and destruction.

Suddenly, a figure appeared on their side and saved everyone.

Regardless of what Rick thought after that, it certainly brought about a very significant change for the people in the settlement.

Some say that those weren't human, but merely soldiers sent by other races to toy with us.

Some say that it is humanity, an existence we have never discovered, a true hero capable of fighting against those monsters.

Some people say that it is a god, a god belonging to us humans, which proves that we humans are not mere insects, but gods protected by humans.

Rick completely forgot about all of this.

"Regardless of whether the being who saved us that day is human or not, he will absolutely not be included in our plans."

Rick didn't have any good feelings towards the person who had helped him and his group.

But at the same time, he showed no disgust whatsoever.

I don't know if it's human or some other being. If it really is human, if it really is one of their kind—why hasn't it appeared for so long? Why hasn't it appeared before their kind even once in so long?

There are just too many points of doubt.

Instead of worrying about such a huge and unstable factor, it's better to focus on what you truly care about.

"I think I've said everything that needed to be said."

Before the meeting began, Rick had already prepared himself mentally for the "ghosts" before him.

Next, they will prepare plans to challenge the monsters that once destroyed their civilization.

The near-impossible task, coupled with the terrible environment in this apocalyptic world, made everything seem like a pipe dream.

It's just that impossible, like a child's wild idea.

—All 170-plus people were prepared to keep Rick company.

"So, I don't want to say any more about the principles that everyone already knows... All I have to do is play games."

Everything is ready.

Having thoroughly investigated all the intelligence so far—Rick, as the leader of these ghosts.

He took his first step on the chessboard in front of him.