On Hiatus: God's Personal Reasons-Chapter 196: #Owner of the World in a Box (3)

-Kyaaaaah!

A dragon spanning hundreds of meters roared at Il-Ho.

“Haha! Come at me, monster! Muuuuuscles!”

All his muscles bulged, and he leaped toward the dragon. It looked like an ant fighting a dinosaur, yet the former seemed to be winning. The dragon’s wings were torn apart, while its skull was smashed by Il-Ho’s fist.

Il-Ho screamed victoriously in the air, “Hahaha! What do you think, Monster! God Yu Il-Shin, are you watching? I dedicate this victory to—”

Suddenly, the dragon’s carcass beneath his feet disappeared as if it had never existed in the first place.

“Huh?!”

Thus, the world of void swallowed Il-Ho whole.

He let out a sigh. “Another illusion?!”

BBC had once conducted a 48-hour darkroom experiment. As more time passed, the participants began seeing hallucinations. The brain was constantly working even when there was nothing to process. When it was exposed to limited visual information for an extended period of time, it would create its own information. Trapped in a void, Il-Ho’s brain began creating its own enemies.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

-Krrr!

Suddenly, an angry howl rang in his ear once more. Startled, Il-Ho turned around to see the evil fiend he had fought to save Fairy Queen Aran and Fairia—the One Who Dwells in the Ugliest Filth.

-You lowly ant! I will make sure to exact my revenge this time!

“You bastard! You must be the real deal!” Il-Ho flexed his muscles once again, charging into battle. However, it was just another hallucination.

Il-Ho repeatedly fought imaginary enemies, but instead of training, it only harmed his body. Time passed for him in an agonizing fashion.

“Ugh...”

After getting beaten to pulp, Il-Ho floated in the void. He’d sprinted thousands of kilometers in an attempt to escape from this hell, but to no avail.

He couldn’t even summon the soul armor because he had to clear the Trial of Void by himself. Il-Ho was getting mentally worn out.

-Kyaaaaaaah!

The hallucinations jumped on him once more. But when he didn’t react, they passed through him in a blur. Just then, a thought came to his clouded mind.

Who...am I?

Thanks to the grace of God Yu Il-Shin, he was granted the honorable name Il-Ho, access to the Tower of Warriors, and the ability to defend his fellows from the wicked empire...

Il-Ho’s eyes fluttered open. His lifeless, hazy eyes tried to look at himself, but all he saw was pitch-black darkness. He couldn’t even catch a glimpse of the muscles he’d worked so hard to build. This trial made it feel like everything he had done so far was for nothing.

Swoosh, swoosh!

“Ugh!” Il-Ho shuddered at the pain, feeling as if he was being gnawed by bugs all over.

Even though it should’ve been a hallucination, he could still feel the pain. At this rate, he’d go insane—or maybe, he was already halfway there. The sensation of being devoured by the void, of losing himself, was much more terrifying than any other enemy he’d ever faced. There was only one person he could put his faith in.

“Lord...Yu Il-Shin...” Il-Ho tearfully called out. But would his prayer reach him?

Just then, a small miracle happened.

Ding!

[A portion of God Yu Il-Shin’s innate power, Blind Eyes of God, has been shared with Il-Ho, God Yu Il-Shin’s apostle and warrior.]

“W-what’s this?” Il-Ho’s vision had been illuminated instantly. The first thing he saw was his homeland, Antrinia. Then, he saw Anty, now a dazzling, four-heads-tall beauty.

-Now, everyone! Let’s work harder!

The citizens of the Gayami Nation worked diligently under her command, creating a large and beautiful golden statue of God Yu Il-Shin.

-Brothers, do you believe in God Yu Il-Shin?

-Yes, we believe! God Yu Il-Shin, puck puck!

The response from the hundreds of millions of followers rumbled like thunder. But Akdol was seen shaking his head, letting out a yawn.

What a pity!

Il-Ho felt the urge to use his muscles at the sight of his faithful fellows.

Ssss!

His vision changed once more. Now, he saw a cute baby holding a small dumbbell in each hand instead of toys. Oh the baby’s back was a pair of tiny wings, evidence of her fairy lineage.

-Aboo! Aboo!

Seeing Fairy Queen Aran sweating profusely with the dumbbells, a smile crept up on Il-Ho’s face.

If I had been lifting weights like that since I was young, I’d probably have more muscles.

Whichever the case, early education was everything.

Yeah, as long as you keep training like this, you will surely become a queen with great muscles, dear Aran.

What a shame! Il-Ho would proudly pat her head if he were with her.

-Aboo?

Still with her dumbbells in hand, Aran looked up, scratching her head.

Sss—

Il-Ho’s vision changed once more.

Freed from her curse, the Great Cosmic Alliance’s most beautiful, starry-eyed blonde gazed at a hologram with disapproval. It showed potential actors for the movie she was planning for productions. Some of them had colorful feathers like peacocks, while others had mysterious fins and tentacles—each with their own charms to show off.

-Are these the actors being considered for Warrior Il-Ho’s role?

The alien with three eyes and three pairs of arms nodded.

-That’s right, Your Majesty. Is there someone to your liking?

-They’re all terrible, all of them pale in comparison to him.

-But Your Majesty, they are all great and renowned actors from our Great Cosmic Alliance.

Her eyes sank.

-Indeed. No one is as good as him. It can’t be helped, we’ll have to use CG for everything that involves Warrior Il-Ho.

-Understood.

Esméralda continued in a queenly manner.

-Director Filtekus Chikiria, You must portray Warrior Il-Ho’s martial prowess and the greatness of God Yu Il-Shin for all the subjects of the Great Cosmic Alliance to see.

The alien director’s third eye glinted with ambition and passion.

-Leave it to me, Your Majesty. I will risk my century-long directorial career to ensure The Legend of the Great Cosmic Hero becomes a huge success!

Although Il-Ho wasn’t sure what a movie was, the fact that Esméralda was working hard for God Yu Il-Shin boosted Il-Ho’s morale. He looked at her with warmth in his eyes.

I see that you’re doing well. Be at ease, most beautiful queen in the universe.

Ssss!

Il-Ho’s vision then changed once again. He was looking forward to who it’d be this time. Would it be someone else whom he missed dearly?

-Mr. Yu, the Hunter War is only a week away now.

-Yeah. Time flies.

-Do you think I’ve...grown stronger?

-Of course. You should be able to enter the quarterfinals easily now.

A man smiled gently as he stroked the nervous girl’s hair. The girl blushed and smiled sheepishly.

-Ehehe, I’m sure of it now because you said it, Mr. Yu! I’ll see you tomorrow then!

-Yeah, be careful on your way home. Say hi to your older sister for me.

Hot tears trickled down Il-Ho’s face. Even though the man looked ordinary, with no trace of his former majesty or terror, there was no way Il-Ho wouldn’t recognize him. It was God Yu Il-Shin. After sending his disciple away, God Yu Il-Shin remained in the training room, drawing the Demon Lord’s Heavenly Sword, which was slung on his waist.

-Let’s get started then, shall we? Please teach me your ways, sir.

Thus, God Yu Il-Shin began his sword dance.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

Starting with the Demon Lord’s defeated martial arts, then moving on to the techniques he had learned from various grandmasters while training in All-Cutting Heavenly Sword’s territory.

He is truly amazing.

Il-Ho watched in fascination as God Yu Il-Shin performed until the rising morning sun pierced through the night’s darkness. It was only when sunlight streamed through the window and glinted off his sword that he finally stopped.

-Haa! Huff! Puff!

Drenched in sweat, God Yu Il-Shin slumped to the ground. After looking around with exhaustion in his eyes, God Yu Il-Shin picked up his phone from the ground.

-Is he not done yet...?

With deep worry in his eyes, God Yu Il-Shin muttered to himself.

-Il-Ho, I’m sure you will be able to overcome whatever trial you are facing right now. Make sure to return safely.

Alas, God Yu Il-Shin...!

Tears trickled down Il-Ho’s face.

I will make sure to live up to your expectations...!

Il-Ho’s eyes, clouded by the Trial of Void, burned with determination once more.

Tzzz!

A strange noise rang out as if jamming his vision, Il-Ho’s view changed again.

-Hm hm~

A mysterious figure appeared before him.

W-what’s that?

Il-Ho couldn’t make out their face. A strange darkness—like the one in this trial—swirled where their face should have been.

-Hmm hmm hmm~

The figure hummed a melody, bowing toward the box in front of them. It was a transparent, two-meter-long box that held a collection of puppets. The puppets were as small as ants, but each of them were so finely crafted that even their expressions could be clearly seen with a magnifying glass.

Il-Ho swallowed hard—he recognized one of the puppets.

-Eliminated so early on, what a waste.

The figure flicked his index finger at the fragments of the smashed puppets located in the corner of the box. They were Apostle Johan, Gustav the crocodile, and the heads of the Three Martial Associations—enemies that God Yu Il-Shin had fought with before.

-Well, nothing to fret about. There are still plenty more in the box. Let’s see, which is better this time?

The person glanced at the puppets of the elf, Kang Woo, the Sung sisters, and the hideous creatures before picking up the Ant Emperor puppet. He then placed it in front of the Yu Il-Shin puppet. The person’s face, made of darkness, parted to reveal a gnarly smile and teeth.

-Kekeke. I’m looking forward to this. Will you please us again this time?

Chills traveled down Il-Ho’s spine. Just who was that strange person? Are they God Yu Il-Shin’s enemy? Just then, the strange person looked up into the air.

Friedrich Nietzsche once said this: When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you.

The mysterious figure smirked at Il-Ho.

-Don’t you look forward to this as well, Apostle of the Lowly God?