When Gods Die, Worlds Perish

Ailin glanced at the three statues of Meritellie through the semi-transparent panel and took a deep breath.

"Whether we can break the Evil God's curse depends on this."

As his thoughts raced...

Suddenly everything went black.

A strong sense of weightlessness washed over me, as if I were high in the sky, being pulled down by gravity.

It plunged straight into the deepest part of the bottomless abyss.

"Where are we going?" Ailin felt a little uneasy.

The place I visited last time in my dream was right there in an instant, my vision went black.

But now.

He felt like he had been falling for almost two minutes, but he still hadn't reached his destination.

Just then.

"Pfft~"

A powerful impact struck in an instant.

However, before he could even feel the pain, the Witcher was submerged in some kind of liquid.

It was still pitch black before my eyes, as if I had a Big Stone tied to my body and had been thrown into the sea.

But he was very familiar with this feeling of immersion.

The first time I saw the Great Eye Evil God in Viscount Hudson's abandoned mine was just like now.

At that time.

He only managed to escape thanks to the Goddess Meritellie's Amulet given to him by Vesemir.

"Could this be some kind of special space?"

"The so-called realm of gods?"

The thought of that big-eyed Evil God filled the sinking demon hunter with a vague sense of unease.

The darkness that seemed to be creeping in from all directions gave people a strong sense of crisis.

It was as if countless dangerous and covetous gazes were attacking from all directions.

but.

Before he could think it over carefully...

"Shh~"

The sound of the wind blowing through the wheat fields suddenly rang in my ears.

A rich, pleasant plant fragrance filled the air.

At that moment, he suddenly realized...

The fall suddenly stopped at some point.

He stood on the soft soil.

"Um?"

In a daze, the Witcher remembered how to open his eyes.

gold.

What comes into view is an endless golden ocean, and upon closer inspection, it turns out to be full of ripe, plump ears of wheat.

The bright, warm light resembled a golden, precious brocade spread across the endless plain.

A refreshing breeze is blowing.

The wheat fields rippled like golden waves, bringing with them the rich fragrance of sunshine.

Where is this?

The witchers were stunned by the magnificent and bountiful scenery before them.

Wheat typically ripens between mid-July and September, but we've only just celebrated the May Festival.

"Breaking into someone's home and asking the homeowner where they are?"

A playful, childlike female voice suddenly rang out from less than three steps to the right.

Who's there?

When did it appear?

The Witcher was startled and turned around in horror. His right hand instinctively reached back to pull Elsa out, but he grasped nothing.

Take a closer look.

A pretty young girl with a gentle smile was standing beside him, looking up at him.

He wore a pure white silk dress and a wreath woven from green leaves and branches on his head. His bare arms and neck were as white and delicate as mutton fat.

But what Ailin found most unbelievable was His pair of divine golden eyes.

"Who are you?"

A question escaped the mouth of the demon hunter.

But the next second...

"Full of divinity..." Ailin murmured.

"... The maiden will guide you safely to the land of harvest, the place of abundance..."

The requiem that played at Arland's funeral this morning came to mind.

"A place of harvest... a land of abundance..."

He glanced at the golden, surging waves of wheat, then at the girl in front of him.

"Looks like I don't need to answer questions like 'Who am I' anymore." The girl smiled meaningfully.

"Mei... the Goddess Meritellie ..."

The witcher swallowed hard, his throat dry, as he thought of the girl's claim of "breaking into someone else's home."

That's outrageous.

so...

"Communicating with the gods" means kicking open the "door" of a deity's house and forcibly communicating with the deity without their consent.

No wonder it costs a hundred Experience Orbs...

It's no wonder they warn of the extremely high risk of encountering deities...

Leaving aside the gods, this is something that would be hard for any ordinary human being to tolerate.

The Witcher nervously withdrew his right hand from Elsa's grasp.

Only then did he realize it.

Although his body was not the sphere he had entered the dream, the clothes he wore, which looked like they were made of linen, were still dyed with similar vibrant colors as when he entered the dream, and he had not brought his leather armor or dual swords with him.

The one who communicates with the divine is not the real body, but rather a manifestation of a certain consciousness.

"That's right, I am Meritellie." The girl put her hands behind her back and tiptoed slightly, as if trying to make her eyes level with the witcher's when she spoke.

However, no matter how much you try to stand on your tiptoes, the height difference is still difficult to overcome.

This seemed to discourage the girl who had tried several times.

Although it's unclear why a deity would make such an unsteady move.

However, Erin's childlike behavior still made Ailin relax his tense nerves, which had been strained by the sudden encounter with a powerful deity.

He thought for a moment, then tactfully squatted down, lowering his body slightly. "I apologize, Goddess Meritellie, I did not mean to... um... pay my respects in this way."

"It's alright..." The girl seemed quite satisfied with his actions, and patted his right shoulder gently in a mature manner.

Seeing the girl's smile, a mixture of divinity and childishness, which was extremely contradictory, Ailin was pondering how to ask her to remove the Great Old One's Curse when...

"Sizzle~"

A burnt, foul stench emanated from my right shoulder.

The witcher looked in the direction of the sound.

A plume of black smoke slowly rose from where the girl had struck.

At the source of the black smoke, a red dot, exuding an extremely evil and chilling aura, trembled and brightened.

It felt like being burned and purified.

A dull, intense pain, synchronized with the trembling of the red dot, emanated from the depths of his soul, causing Ailin to involuntarily groan and clench his teeth.

fortunately.

This intense pain was unbearable, but it only lasted for a short while before gradually fading away.

Then.

A feeling of refreshment, as if a heavy burden had been lifted, arises spontaneously.

Ailin knew.

The Great Old One's Curse had plagued him for half a year, preventing him from approaching the portal or using spatial abilities like blinking...

From this day forward, it will disappear completely.

He... is free.

The next second.

"Ding ding ding..."

The system notification in my head sounded like the school bell ringing to signal the end of get out of class.

This should be a system message about the Ade Gais Gate Fragment.

However, Ailin ignored it. He looked at the smiling girl in front of him and sincerely expressed his gratitude:

"Thank you, Goddess Meritellie."

He had thought that after meeting the goddess, he would need to complete some trials or missions.

Unexpectedly, the Goddess Meritellie was so decisive, removing the curse from him as soon as they met.

"After all, this is what I promised you!" The girl chuckled and patted Ailin's right shoulder again. "You saved the humans of Arland for me, and I will remove the curse from you."

"It will also save people from constantly whispering in their prayers that I'm untrustworthy and that my Divine Power has declined to the point of losing its ability to influence reality..."

The Witcher looked extremely embarrassed and apologized repeatedly.

Embarrassed, my toes curled up, and I almost dug out an Ancient Sea Fortress from the fertile soil.

Who would have thought that the whispers we murmur before and after prayers could actually be heard by the gods?

Especially when this deity has not appeared in the world for hundreds of years, and even a single sentence can be transmitted intermittently.

We can only be thankful for the Goddess Meritellie. Although she seems a bit unreliable and not as solemn and dignified as the gods we usually imagine, she seems to have a pretty good temper.

Otherwise, if the Eternal Flame were to hear these words muttered by the Witcher in later generations, it would be considered blasphemy and he could be burned at the stake.

But then again...

If the cult of Meritellie is truly like the eternal fire depicted in games and novels, excluding dissidents and committing all sorts of evil.

He dared not stay in the icon room, which was closest to the gods, for long, let alone use "divine communication".

The girl didn't seem angry at all. After teasing him a few more times in a playful manner, she waved her hand and looked up at the sky.

Ailin followed His gaze.

The boundless golden wheat fields were so captivating that he hadn't even noticed the sky above this divine kingdom.

Looking up at that moment, I was immediately captivated.

Stars, moon, and sun shone brightly in the sky, while a hazy Milky Way stretched across the heavens, a sight of unparalleled magnificence.

"But what you said isn't wrong either..." the girl suddenly said.

Then, in a moment of distraction, the girl transformed into a pregnant woman with a large belly.

"Hmm?" The Witcher tilted his head to look at those loving eyes that seemed to be filled with liquid gold.

"I have indeed deteriorated to the point where I am about to lose touch with reality..."

The Witcher was taken aback by what he heard.

What does it mean when a deity and reality, whose existence depends on faith, lose contact with His believers?

When the question suddenly popped into his mind, he was instantly terrified, as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

God fell!

Deities like Meritellie, born of faith, may simply perish once they lose contact with their followers.

Is it really my right to hear such big news?

The Witcher tensed up again, his throat went dry, and he didn't dare to utter a sound.

As he looked away, unable to bear looking at the pregnant woman any longer, he noticed something strange.

The surging golden waves of wheat are ripe and ready for harvest.

But as far as the eye could see, there was no one, not even a single living creature.

After he discovered this.

The once vibrant life suddenly seemed so thin and false.

If the gods are real, what about those who, after death, are guided to the land of harvest and abundance?

Where did they go?

"Pfft~" The pregnant woman noticed Ailin's nervous expression, and immediately stroked her protruding belly, smiling gently with maternal instinct.

"Don't be afraid."

He gently patted the Witcher on the shoulder again.

Feeling the force on his right shoulder, Ailin twitched the corner of his mouth and gave an awkward laugh.

Something seems amiss.

Having completed the task of removing the Great Old One's Curse, he now actually craves a bit more good luck so he can go back and open the treasure chest.

but.

The goddess just lifted your curse, and you disappeared without a trace.

That's rather ungrateful.

Therefore, the witcher could only listen patiently and look for an opportunity to say goodbye.

"I awoke from faith, and humanity shaped everything about me. Life and death are meaningless to me."

The pregnant woman looked back at the sky again:

"My purpose is to satisfy humanity's desire for bountiful harvests, reproduction, health, and wisdom. The world has also granted me the authority to satisfy the desires of all living beings."

"But now..."

The pregnant woman paused, then continued:

"Although I can still hear the prayers and desires of the believers, I am getting further and further away from them, and my strength is getting weaker and weaker."

"Why?" the Witcher asked curiously.

The Northern Continent has the largest number of followers of the Meritellie Church, and although the number has fluctuated due to war, it has never decreased significantly.

After all, in times of war, the majority of those who die are men who are soldiers.

Women will only be affected.

Therefore, there is no reason for such a deity to have Divine Power to the point of—as "He" said—"divine fall".

But after experiencing the dreams of "Ailin... Ailin..." every night for the past few days, and the fact that Ianna hadn't heard any oracle for a long time when she first came to the temple.

He had to admit that it was true that the Goddess Meritellie's power had weakened.

"When my power first began to decline, I thought it was because humanity's desires for bountiful harvests, reproduction, health, wisdom, peace, and prosperity had been satisfied, and they no longer needed a god like me..." the pregnant woman continued.

"How is this possible!" the Witcher couldn't help but interject.

Even in the previous life, when material resources were so abundant, the first point could not be fully achieved.

"Indeed, as you said, it is impossible at least for now, especially given humanity's current thirst for war."

The pregnant woman nodded.

"But at that time, humanity had just completely taken control of the entire continent from Ion Siddi, and there had been a long period of peace."

"So I misjudged this point and thought that I was no longer needed by humans, so I deliberately disappeared from human life."

"And..." the pregnant woman suddenly smiled, "After I disappeared, I found that their lives were as usual, without any change, and even better than when I intervened in reality."

"This made me even more certain of my judgment at the time..."

"Human beings have never needed a god."

"They are not toddlers who are just learning to speak, and they do not need a superior 'mother' who interferes in everything they do."

"They are already adults, so I have completely let go."

He recalled what Ianna had told him about the arrangements made after the gods disappeared.

Ailin had to admit it.

Meritellie was indeed a great deity, at least a thousand times better than those Western gods of my previous life who only knew how to do this and that.

However, every story has a twist.

The same goes for Meritellie's.

"But..." He said.

Just as the two words were spoken, the pregnant woman suddenly transformed into a hunched old woman in front of the Witcher.

He was wearing a black knitted robe, with a worn-out Waist Pouch that herbalists often carried around his waist, and a full head of silver hair.

Wrinkles were etched on his face by the sharpest knife and axe in the world, time.

His face was gloomy and weary, yet he had a pair of wise, golden eyes.

He glanced at the Witcher, pointed to the horizon where the sky met the wheat fields, and said in a hoarse, magnetic voice:

"I was deceived."

"I am blinded by my unpredictable fate, by the inevitable end and death that all living beings are destined to face..."

"Gods will die, and all things will perish..."