ALL NOVEL Chapter 47
I can see the flustered appearance of the [Musician].
The first sense of discomfort came from the [Sculptor] and the [Conductor].
The [Sculptor] spoke with a clumsy tone and had a doll-like posture, while the [Conductor] looked so disheveled that one could call him a corpse.
If it had just been after the first battle, I might have accepted it.
Even if they survived, having taken a barrage of missiles, it’s more than reasonable that they wouldn’t be in their right minds.
However, if they still haven’t recovered after quite some time, then that’s a different story.
[Michelangelo Buonarroti]
[Joseph Haydn]
These names, bound to be eternally recounted as long as humanity exists, are coordinates that gather [Thoughts] and [Faith] simply by their existence.
Even if the once powerful [Clown] who gathered [Faith] is gone, given this much time, they should have recovered to at least a normal level, if not fully.
The second discomfort came from the [Musician].
The man who first appeared with an arrogant, noble atmosphere now bore a crazed expression, half-mad.
What was most puzzling, however, was the [Divine Realm].
The [World] reflected the essence of [God].
A distorted and twisted landscape, akin to that expressed by a drug addict’s vision.
It was certainly a powerful [World]…
Yet, I distinctly remembered that the [World] he showed in the Vatican that day was a much heavier, somber reality.
Of course, I couldn’t be sure because I only caught a brief glimpse…
The [Divine Realm] is the result of projecting [God] into the [World].
It is the essence and foundation of [God]—the very source, the entirety of it.
It serves as the core that ensures I remain who I am, unchangeable.
I didn’t realize this when it was merely theoretical, but now that I have become [God], I could understand.
That cannot be changed.
Even if one were to alter it, if it changes—the very foundation upon which everything one has built rests—[Musician] would inevitably lose everything amassed throughout his life.
Once this thought crossed my mind, the broadcasts of survivors relocating to Busan flashed through my memory.
The sound of music faintly beginning after people collapsed.
But truly…
Did people really collapse after hearing the [Musician]’s performance?
Though the [Musician] controlled their bodies and turned them into zombies, that only proves he brainwashed them; it doesn’t prove he was the cause of their initial collapse.
So, perhaps those who moved to Busan encountered ‘something’?
Leaving the [Sculptor] and [Conductor] in such states.
The [Artist] hidden away somewhere.
The ‘something’ that ruined the [Musician].
And now, I, with senses expanded from becoming [God], gaze into the space where Jung Seong-min resides.
They’re fighting.
Probably against a ‘something’ far more dangerous than the [Musician].
“Detective work… I really hate troublesome things.”
The situation is tangled.
If only it were a simple revenge plot of the [Artist], I’d be more at ease.
“Don’t you think so?”
[Salieri]?
*
[Antonio Salieri]
The famous genius [Mozart]’s teacher and a great court musician, possessing wealth, fame, and honor—another genius.
However, his reputation has become somewhat peculiar in modern times.
An average genius who was jealous of the prodigy.
The second guy who envied Mozart.
And—
The one who killed the god of music.
He is a figure with many stories…
Yet, they are all nonsensical rumors.
It’s only understandable because, although overshadowed by the genius of music, he was a figure who achieved far more success compared to Mozart.
After all, Mozart was notoriously known for being a disaster in life; he wasn’t given due respect considering his talents.
“Salieri poisoned Mozart out of jealousy” became widely accepted after his death…
But obviously, that’s groundless nonsense.
There was no reason for Salieri to do so, and even if it were truly a poisoning, given Mozart’s disgraceful behavior, many must have wanted him dead.
Still, it was rather absurd that Salieri was continuously brought up as a likely suspect.
But ironically, this nonsensical rumor became accepted as fact for a long time.
In an era still steeped in superstition and underdeveloped by modernity,
Almost everyone around the world accepted that falsehood as truth.
Salieri, who envied Mozart.
Salieri, who loathed Mozart.
Salieri, who poisoned Mozart.
And,
Salieri, who plagiarized Mozart’s compositions.
“If that thing I’m fighting right now can wipe people out in an instant, leaving even the [Sculptor] and [Conductor] in a state akin to corpses….”
Why was the [Musician] still intact?
Was it because he is [God]?
No, that can’t be true.
From the position of a [God] and with the same senses, I understand.
That ‘something’ isn’t a type of [God] one can evade.
Even now, I honestly don’t have confidence.
No matter how I think about it, that can’t be something I can overcome simply by stats.
The fact Jung Seong-min can engage with that isn’t because he is strong.
Of course, it’s true that he has become remarkably stronger compared to before…
“Is it… cutting through [Causality]?”
The successor of the Alliance Leader, who inherited his techniques.
Merely a human, yet he ascended the world’s pinnacle as a [Godly Entity].
Well, he appears to act almost instinctively now.
Anyway, geniuses…
“Well, whatever happens over there….”
Even [God] can’t escape [Death’s Causality].
It’s probably a curse that grants [Death] the moment you come face to face with it.
How did the [Musician] dodge that absolute [Death] which even the [Sculptor] and [Conductor]—perhaps even the [Artist]—could not avoid?
The answer is surprisingly simple.
“There was never a concept of death in the first place.”
The reason the Alliance Leader coveted Han Yu-seong so much.
An anomaly that never disappears, has no substance, and remains above the world as long as humans exist.
[Ghost Stories]
“Funny, isn’t it?”
The one who is still entirely alive gave birth to a [Ghost] that bears his name and face because of the tales circulating in the world.
Strictly speaking, this entity isn’t even Salieri.
He, too, was a person worthy of longing for eternity like any other [Artist], yet he died as a human.
There are even records stating that the members of the [Alliance] held a funeral for him, leaving no room for doubt.
Thus, this being’s essence is the story of ‘Salieri who killed Mozart’ which roamed around the 18th century, materialized as an [Abnormality].
[Ghost Story – Salieri]
He is not even a being worth considering to be a [God], let alone [Devil].
Unlike the original Salieri, he has become a ghostly version formed from ugly jealousy and twisted greed that the world has spread.
Since he envied Mozart, he assumed that name.
Despising his pitiful origin as a [Ghost Story], he coveted and imitated his noble [Divinity].
It wouldn’t have been difficult, considering there were stories that said he ‘plagiarized Mozart’s compositions.’
That audacity to steal the powers of the [God of Music] allowed this entirely fabricated [Ghost Story – Salieri] to imitate even the [Divinity] of [God].
“Yet even up to that point, Salieri was still alive.”
The original from which he stemmed.
Ironically, this entirely fabricated [Ghost Story]’s influence was unavoidable as the original was still alive.
The dignity of a court musician.
The pride of an artist.
The demeanor of a noble.
All of it was shaped by the influence of Salieri, who preserved his essence throughout his life.
Strangely, though he emulated Mozart, a bizarre version of [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart] who followed Salieri’s demeanor was born.
That is the [Musician].
“So how does it feel to have your mask removed after hundreds of years? Is it refreshing?”
The [Musician]…
No.
[Ghost Story – Salieri] merely trembled at Han Yu-seong’s words.
And it’s understandable, as even the [Musician] was in confusion now.
What is he?
[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart].
That is his name.
No, or is it?
[Antonio Salieri]?
Or just Salieri?
Am I a [Ghost Story] or just a human?
Han Yu-seong’s words were undeniably close to the answer.
But it wasn’t the perfect answer.
Surely, it must have been that way at the start.
A [Ghost Story] transformed by ugly jealousy.
But due to the living original’s continuous influence and an extended period living as [Mozart] while absorbing [Faith],
Errors started occurring.
Loss of identity.
Clearly beginning as a [Ghost Story – Salieri], but after feeding off [Mozart]’s divinity, his actions truly mirrored Salieri.
There were no issues when he was the [Musician].
He only had to be [Mozart].
However, on the day he faced that witch…
The mask of the [Musician] shattered.
Problems that had been hidden for centuries began resurfacing.
He felt something was wrong within himself, but he didn’t know what it was…
But once his identity was pointed out by Han Yu-seong, confusion accelerated.
Who am I?
I am Mozart.
The god of music.
Salieri?
Isn’t that right?
Was I Salieri?
No, that doesn’t seem to be it either…
“Ah.”
The confusion from being a [Musician] ceases.
Creeeak—
The timeline rewinds.
What exactly is my problem now?
It’s mixed.
It’s no longer pure.
Not a [God] nor a [Ghost Story], just a murky something.
How do I resolve this?
“I need to go back….”
In that moment, piano keys began appearing in the fiery sky of the [World].
As if [Musician] was trying to do something, Han Yu-seong attempted to extinguish the piano keys with fire…
Ding—
Ding ding—
Ding—
As they burned, the slowly resonating sound of music spread throughout the world.
“This is…?”
Returning.
The destroyed city.
“Reversion?”
Only for a few hours.
That much was enough for the demolished site to recover.
However, that power was merely an indirect effect caused by the outflowing strength.
The force intensified around the fallen [Musician] and Han Yu-seong.
Minutes.
Hours.
Days.
Years.
Decades.
Centuries.
It returns.
The hands of the clock.
The overflowing [Divinity] that had dominated his body dissipates, and the body reverts back.
The increased power from enhanced stats fades away, transforming him back from a superhuman to a human.
From an adult to a baby.
And…
….
…….
For a moment, the world falls silent.
All sounds cease into utter stillness.
Within it, a silhouette rises.
“Ah….”
A beautiful voice resounds in the quiet world.
“I feel like my head is clear now.”
[Musician].
No.
More pure than that.
The original form.
[Death] who killed [God].
An affirmation of another form of [Death] recognized by the world rises.
With that overwhelming presence, the gazes of all those fighting across the lands converge…
And then…
“Guaah!”
In an instant.
The head of [Salieri], reborn at the original point, plunges back into the ground.
“Indeed.”
I truly agree.
“It’s been such a long time!”
This feeling of power surging through my body.