Chapter 939

## Chapter 939

Jin looked up at Ayula once more.

Jin looked closer to inspect and noticed that hundreds of golden threads of authority, extending from Ayula’s entire body, were connected to the light Jin had left for Lani.

And he sensed that Ayula no longer possessed the same strength as before. Jin had a hunch what choice Ayula made.

“Lady Ayula, could it be…?”

[“I couldn’t maintain my existence from the moment I decided to save these two. It’s too dangerous for a god like me to intervene so extensively in the human world without consequences,”] Ayula replied.

Death.

Ayula had sacrificed herself to save Dante and Hedo. When Paellito’s sword struck both of them, Ayula had summoned them to her own realm.

Many immortals in the world could use summoning or perform space jumps without significant limitations. However, it’s a completely different matter when a god does something like that to save someone.

Dante and Hedo only understood Ayula’s sacrifice by listening to their conversation.

“La-Lady Ayula!? Are you saying that you chose to die to save us?”

[“Yes, Emperor of Swords Dante Hairan.”]

“I am… I am a knight of the Empire! Knights always fight for their convictions and are willing to die for them. But you, a god, gave up your life for someone like me and Sir Hedo?”

Dante’s joy at being able to see Jin and his comrades again was immediately overshadowed by the shock of Ayula’s sacrifice. Dante almost shouted as he spoke.

“If I and Sir Hedo disappeared, eventually someone else would take our place. But what will happen to the Holy Kingdom if you disappear and the order you oversee, Lady Ayula? I… didn’t know a god could leave all this behind and save me…”

[“Don’t you dislike it so much?”]

“Yes. If I could…!”

[“Haha, there’s no turning back now. So, don’t get so upset, Emperor of Swords. Well, your argument seems adorable, but think about how I would feel if you hated me so much?”]

“I… share the same feeling as the Emperor of Swords, Lady Ayula. Of course, I’ve never trusted you as much as others, and even my lady’s and my comrades’ lives are more precious to me than yours. However, the choice you made… I don’t know, maybe the Emperor of Swords, but I wonder if my life would really be worth more than yours. May I ask if you could have avoided your death if you had only saved the Emperor of Swords?”

[“Yes, I could have avoided it. I would still exist as a god if I had only saved the Emperor of Swords.”]

“Then, I would dare to say that you should have saved only the Emperor of Swords…”

Jin remained silent, not knowing what to say.

[“Jin, Dante, Hedo. Children, listen. I helped you and saved you because I was convinced that you have more to do in this world than I will in the future.”]

“How could we have more to do than you, Lady Ayula?”

[“Emperor of Swords, I am a god.”]

Ayula fixed her gaze on Dante.

[“And gods refer to immortals bound by destiny. Thus, even though most gods have much more power than mortals, they cannot transcend destiny.”]

—“[Unlike mortals, immortals are bound by destiny. That’s the weight of immortality.]”

Jin remembered what Ameris had told him the day he first met her.

[“A while ago, you asked what would happen to the Holy Kingdom and the order of peace I oversee if I disappeared. I’ll give you the answer. The Holy Kingdom will rise again with the power of humans. And they will pray for peace every day as always, even if I no longer hear their prayers.”]

Ayula’s voice trembled for a moment when she mentioned that she could no longer hear those prayers. The goddess was mourning.

[“But, does that mean that the very concept of peace will disappear from the world? No, it won’t. I used to believe it, and everyone else did too. But not anymore. Even if I disappear, someone like you, who has fought so fiercely for peace, will continue to protect it. In a way, you’ve fought for peace with more passion than I have, as I simply existed only in the name of peace.”]

Ayula gently moved her wings to caress the heads of the three.

[“So, it’s worth sacrificing immortals like me a hundred or a thousand times for people like you at this moment.”]

Dante shed tears, and Ayula’s remaining authority shone brightly in them. Ayula laughed, as if she found that feeling commendable.

[“This would have explained my choice. And now I have little time left. I hope you can help me achieve what I’ve decided to do until the end.”]

Dante and Hedo stopped talking about Ayula’s sacrifice, as they would only waste the little time she had left.

“We’ll help with whatever, with whatever.”

“What should we do?”

[“First, Dante and Hedo, there’s nothing more to do for now. Soon, Lani will awaken due to Jin’s decision, so you must focus on her recovery. You will have a lot to do once you’ve recovered.”]

“Jin’s decision…?”

Jin knew what that meant.

“Now it’s my turn to make a decision, like Sir Ron did in the past, right, Lady Ayula?”

Ayula nodded.

Just as Ron saved Jin with the Genesis Knight Light when he was on the verge of death during the Sword Emperor Castle War, now it was Jin’s turn to save Lani.

[“I couldn’t save Lani while trying to save those two. In that moment of sadness, I felt that you left the Genesis Knight Light for her.”]

Jin had thought that the light was maintaining itself when Lani became transparent.

However, there was no doubt that it was something Jin had left behind. As soon as he ascended to Genesis Knight, what he unconsciously desired most was the survival of his comrades, and the light remained for Lani, who was by his side.

[“You know, Jin. You can still reclaim this light and claim it for yourself, if you want.”]

“By doing so, the Genesis Knight power I gained will become complete again.”

[“Yes, but you won’t make that decision.”]

“Of course not. I’ll save my friend.”

Objectively speaking, Lani was just a Holy Queen with exceptionally strong divine power.

She possessed tremendous healing abilities, but it couldn’t be said that she was worth more than breaking the integrity of the Genesis Knight power that Jin had obtained.

But, in Jin’s opinion, saving Lani was more valuable.

Clearly, he needed people, not strength, to transcend the destiny that awaited him and the world in the future.

“I can always regain my power. Besides, I’m still the Genesis Knight even if I lose so much. My choice would still be the same even if I lost everything.”

Ayula imagined a scenario where Jin retained the Genesis Knight power without saving Lani.

She isn’t Az-Mil, and Az-Mil couldn’t see the future of the Genesis Knight perfectly either. But, she undoubtedly believes that Jin would end up like the corrupted Paellito if he did so.

However, it’s hard to imagine Jin ending up like that.

[“Haha, honestly, I was a little worried about what you might say. Wouldn’t everything fall apart if you make a different decision? So, I said beforehand that I could save Lani thanks to you. Of course, it’s not that I didn’t trust you.”]

“You were aware of the unique demonic nature of the Genesis Knight, weren’t you?”

The demonic nature.

Ayula hadn’t worried about Jin, but about the demonic nature he would now bear.

[“Maybe you’ll even overcome that. Now that I think about it, I can’t even imagine you becoming a monster because of that demonic nature.”]

Jin approached the light that was connected to Ayula’s authority. The light pulsed like a heartbeat.

Ayula didn’t need to give him specific instructions; Jin could manipulate the light naturally, like a newborn life that breathes and moves without being guided.

Jin gently held the light with both hands, and it gathered in an upward form between his palms.

Soon, the light took human form and became Lani.

Lani had no consciousness; she was simply in a deep sleep. Ayula embraced Lani tenderly.

[“She’ll wake up tomorrow. I can say goodbye to this girl too, as I won’t have disappeared by then.”]

Resurrection is only possible with Numerus’ tears.

At this moment, Ayula was substituting those tears with her remaining body, her will, and the Genesis Knight Light that Jin had given.

The group looked towards Ayula, who had noticeably darkened since Lani’s resurrection.

Lani would be very sad.

However, she wouldn’t be overwhelmed by grief. She is the one who will rebuild the Holy Kingdom again and fight to protect peace.

“Now, I have one last thing to do before I go.”

Ayula spoke as she landed on the ground. Her voice no longer resonated like that of a divine being; she had completely lost her divine status.

“Jin.”

“Yes, please speak, Lady Ayula.”

“What do you fear the most?”

Jin responded without hesitation despite the sudden question:

“I fear that, despite having gained such immense power, incidents like what happened today in the Holy Kingdom may happen again. I’m afraid of not being able to protect the people I should and prevent the deaths of those I love.”

Not being able to protect those he cares about and not preventing their deaths… that was still what terrified Jin the most.

Jin would surely succumb to his demonic nature if such an incident happened again.

“It’s inevitable that more tragedies will continue to happen if such enormous battles continue. You probably fear that more because you understand it better than anyone.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll show you a way to alleviate that suffering, even if it’s just a little.”

Jin’s pupils dilated.

“W-what… is there a way?”

“Why are you so surprised? You’ve always agonized over the deaths of innocent and defenseless people. You’ve endured all of that without resting for a moment every time you fought, and that determination was fundamental to forging the Genesis Knight authority you’ve obtained.”

“Ah…!”

“I just checked one of the characteristics of the authority you gain after reaching Genesis Knight, before losing my divine status. One of them is… regeneration.”

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