Return of the Shattered Constellation

“H-How…?” Vali asked with difficulty in a quivering voice, shocked by how Chang-Sun had overcome [Gaia's Curse].

Although Vali did not have the slightest idea of how it was possible, the more shocking part was that all of the tasks needed to succeed in the coup, which he had prepared very meticulously, had failed except for killing Durga. Behind Chang-Sun, familiar Great Celestials such as Cernunnos, Neptune, and Serket were visible. Of course, Chang-Sun’s subordinates like Sinmara and Jin were with him too.

‘Where are those idiots? Why are they here?!’ Vali believed that the reason behind the failure was his subordinates’ idiocy. ‘Yes, my plan was flawless, but it was those idiots who screwed up my great plan…! <Niflheim> was rotten to the roots in the first place!’

Vali did not think in the slightest that he could have miscalculated, so he thought that he would be able to take care of the chaos even though his stupid subordinates’ mistakes had resulted in such an outcome.

'Nastrond' was the only safe zone, so Chang-Sun and the others would not want to give up on the divine ground and fight against <Niflheim> until the end. Yes, Vali could use that fact to settle the situation as if nothing had happened. With that thought, he stood up and feigned composure despite his wobbling legs. He began, “This is…!”

Before Vali could finish speaking, Cernunnos menacingly strode forward and said, “Loki, you’d better explain this matter properly.”

“Sir Cer-Cernunnos, why don’t you calm down and listen to m…?!” Vali stuttered after stumbling back without realizing it.

“Who are you?”

“You’re getting in my way. Get lost if you aren’t involved. Grown-ups are talking!”

Vali pressed his lip, noticing that it was the same for Neptune, Chang-Sun, and the others. He finally saw the reality that everyone was looking at Loki and not caring about him.

‘L-Look at me…! I’m the one who is behind this, so you should listen to me!’

That was what Vali wanted to say, but he could not bring himself to say it after realizing his position in the world; no one would listen to him. Mere moments before, he had felt as if he had the entire world in his hands, but his pride was pulverized now.

***

『It’s that loser who started this disaster, right?』 Sinmara glared at Vali.

In contrast to Vali’s belief, someone was actually paying attention to him; it was Sinmara. She was ready to throw her ax at him, as he was the reason why Durga had died and Sinmara had been forced to fight fiercely.

However, Chang-Sun calmly shook his head. 『Leave him be.』

『Why?』

『He’s Kali and Gyeo-Ul’s.』

『…Well, you aren’t wrong.』

『And pathetic guys like him usually get their self-esteem from other people’s attention, so being ignored like this will only be a more insufferable humiliation for him.』

『I thought self-esteem came from one’s own ability. Ha! I really can’t understand how losers think.』

『Don’t try to understand. It’s not worth your effort.』

Jin interrupted. 『You know, those misters are really eager to get on your good side. Are you going to let them be, Master?』

Jin looked at Cernunnos, who was approaching Loki’s throne. Neptune was also striding toward the throne with an intimidating look. Although the two Celestials looked furious, Jin felt as if they were acting dramatically to gain Chang-Sun’s favor after he had gotten wind of them trying something funny.

Suspecting what the two Celestials were thinking, Chang-Sun walked toward them and said, “Cernunnos, Neptune.”

“Huh? Ah, are you going to handle this?”

Cernunnos and Neptune flinched, taking several steps backward politely and awkwardly.

“It happened while you were gone. We’ll take care of everything, so why don’t you rest and wait for us?”

“Yes, you don’t have to go through the trouble too.”

Despite the two Celestials’ attempts to dissuade him, Chang-Sun shook his head. “No, Tiamat and Durga trusted me with the job, so I should be the one to finish it.”

“In that case…!”

“Cough, cough! I guess there’s no other choice.”

Cernunnos and Neptune cleared their throats and stood down. When Chang-Sun slightly bowed to express his gratitude, the two Celestials’ expressions brightened as they took it to mean that Chang-Sun forgave them.

Chang-Sun walked past them and looked at Loki, who merely sighed for a long time. Chang-Sun said, “Loki.”

It had not been long, but it looked as if Loki had emotionally gone through a lot.

Loki showed his beautiful yet bitter smile. “It doesn’t matter whether or not I knew about everything beforehand. The people under my command did it, so it’s all my fault. I’ll give up everything I have, so can you please… spare the others?”

“I understand,” Chang-Sun answered, then clapped lightly.

At the same time, the sound of clashing weapons that had been filling the entirety of 'Nastrond' ceased.

[The <Jotunheim> Giants have ceased fighting in response to their ruler’s command.]

[The <Muspelheim> Giants have ceased fighting in response to their ruler’s command.]

[The <Alfheim> ascetics have stopped marching.]

“Ha…!” Loki exclaimed after seeing the response.

A disaster had taken place because Loki could not control his one <Society> named <Niflheim>, but those under Chang-Sun’s command obeyed him absolutely despite being in different <Societies>.

“I never had a chance from the start,” Loki murmured.

“Step down from your throne, and I won’t hold you accountable for the matter any further.”

“You want me to hand you <Niflheim>.”

“There’s no need for any more casualties. Besides, you already said that you’d give it some thought after the treatment of Lady Angrboda.”

“We were talking about an alliance back then.”

“No, it was subjugation at the time too.”

“I tried very hard to protect the independence of <Niflheim>, but… the <Society> is going back to its original form in the end.” Loki’s bitter smile deepened.

In truth, Loki had always sensed that there was no way to fight against the tsunami named Chang-Sun. Nevertheless, it had been his goal to hold out as long as possible, although that effort was meaningless now.

“Then, who are you going to hand over the empty throne to?” Loki asked.

“I’m thinking of Mr. Jörmungandr.”

“Jörmungandr…” Loki trailed off before asking another question. “What if I say no?”

“If so….”

Whooosh!

At that moment, Chang-Sun’s <Supreme Sacred Light> and <Darkness> circled him and combined, spreading throughout 'Nastrond'.

Whooosh, swoosh, swish―!

At the same time, Inferno Sights formed in Chang-Sun’s eyes and in the sky; an unfathomably enormous Giant soon looked down at the palace.

[Warning! Immense pressure is destabilizing the barrier of the Central Divine Ground ‘Nastrond’!]

[Warning! The Central Divine Ground 'Nastrond' is in danger of destruction. People in the area are advised to escape as soon as possible.]

[Warning! The Central Divine…]

…

“...I’ll have to use force too.” Chang-Sun looked at Loki with an emotionless gaze.

When Loki looked down, he could see goosebumps on his arms. ‘He can threaten me even without attacking me…? Unbelievable.’

Loki realized that Chang-Sun was already strong enough to defeat <Niflheim> on his own, but he felt as if not even Tiamat could do that. If he had to choose someone to compare… Odin? No, Chang-Sun was stronger.

‘Bestla.’ Loki remembered his master from the distant past.

Bestla had been just like this. The charismatic king could terrify her enemies with her presence alone and increase her people’s morale. Chang-Sun was already on a completely different level compared to Loki.

‘It’s a new generation. This must be what Durga and Tiamat talked about repeatedly. This kind of change isn’t something that can be stopped by force.’ Loki took a look around 'Nastrond' with plaintive eyes.

The soldiers of <Niflheim> were telling Loki that they could keep fighting, but they could not hide their terror and fatigue, their resolve crushed by Chang-Sun’s presence.

Thinking it was meaningless to hold out any longer, Loki voluntarily walked forward from his throne and kneeled down on one knee.

“I swear my loyalty and declare that everything of <Niflheim> is yours, new Bestla. Please guide the descendants of the Giants to a glorious path.”

[The Society <Niflheim> has declared their allegiance to the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’.]

[The Society <Niflheim> is now under the command of the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’.]

[Congratulations! You have successfully finished uniting <Muspelheim>, <Jotunheim>, and <Niflheim> after they split up and fell in the distant past for various reasons.]

…

[You have acquired the Title ‘New Giant King’!]

[You have acquired the Title ‘King’s Karma’!]

…

Chang-Sun turned in the opposite direction. Whenever they met his Giant Cataclysm Celestial’s eyes, Cernunnos, Neptune, and all the United Army Celestials either bowed or kneeled down on one knee, including <Society> leaders such as Minerva and Pabilsag.

[The Society <Olympus> has sworn their loyalty to the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’.]

[The Society <Nammu> has declared their allegiance to the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’.]

…

The other <Societies> who had been laying low bowed when they were left with no choice. Standing up to Chang-Sun right now would be suicide.

[All the <Societies> in the United Army have selected the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’ to be their Celestial King!]

[Congratulations! You have exclusive access to all Faith in Worldlines #801 and #802 as the new Celestial King.]

[You have acquired access to the option settings.]

[You have acquired authorization to manage the <System>.]

[You have come closer to reaching the level of an Emperor.]

…

***

After the chaos subsided, everything was smooth sailing. Following Chang-Sun’s instructions, <Alfheim> would take charge of transferring and punishing Vali and all the rebel leaders, and Jörmungandr became the leader of <Niflheim> after Loki stepped down.

The Three Demonic Creatures of <Niflheim> had been incarcerated by the rebels and been unable to help with the suppression, but they became despondent and sad after learning the whole story behind the incident. Although they had different mothers, the demonic creatures, Vali, and Narvi still had the same father. However, Vali and Narvi had betrayed them, and the demonic creatures’ father had completely lost his standing overnight. Nevertheless, Jörmungandr readily assisted Chang-Sun without raising any objection and greatly contributed to restoring order within the United Army.

At the same time, a special unit was quickly formed to subdue Tiamat, who was running wild after losing control of herself. With Chang-Sun as the special unit’s leader, the unit included Chang-Sun’s subordinates and key Celestials in each of their <Societies> such as Sinmara, Jin, Minerva, Mars, Neptune, and Cernunnos.

In other words, all the special unit members were influential and formidable individuals, which could result in the collapse of the United Army if the unit were to sustain major damage. However, Chang-Sun insisted on keeping the unit as it was because it was the only way to subdue Tiamat, who had awakened to the Mother Terra Celestial’s energy.

Time passed as the restoration and preparation progressed.

[‘Gaia's Curse’ has spread to 91% of Worldline #802!]

[<Extinction> has started!]

…

[‘Gaia’s Curse’ has started to affect Worldline #801 as well.]

When it could not be delayed any further, Chang-Sun and his special unit took action.