Humanity

"I think I've discovered something..."

Lilith turned around, and Truman's brow twitched. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Every living being seems to possess a trace of divinity within them. But why do they have divinity when it's so weak?"

Before Lilith stood a... humanoid creature woven entirely from flowers and grass.

Its body, woven entirely from grass, was extraordinarily nimble. It leaped from Lilith's hand to the ground and began gesticulating wildly. At first glance, it was rather amusing.

"When I was an Ancient God, I never paid attention to creatures below the level of a Demi-god. Now, though, I've made some different discoveries."

Lilith's eyes lit up. For the first time, Truman saw a different light in them.

Was it curiosity?

Truman wasn't sure, but it probably wasn't a bad thing for Lilith.

"This really isn't good for me." Truman stepped forward and kicked the humanoid creature away.

"If divinity exists within every living being, what about humanity? I've realized my understanding of humanity was too simplistic."

"So I think I need some points of reference."

Lilith reached out and plucked a blade of grass beside her. The wreath on her head shimmered, and the grass suddenly writhed and came to life, even gaining a certain degree of "soul."

"Are you planning to give these things true souls and life, so they can act out what humanity means for you?"

"What do you think?" Lilith looked at Truman.

"I think you should take a look at what these things really are." Truman sighed softly and withdrew the Dream Phosphor from the castle.

This was a castle he had built, one that suppressed a certain maddening essence. That was why the mutations caused by Lilith had spread without inflicting mass casualties across the territory.

But once he withdrew the Dream Phosphor, that madness was no longer restrained. It erupted in an instant.

The "objects" to which Lilith had forcibly given life through her Authority of Life underwent horrifying mutations.

The maid who had led Truman into the castle suddenly swelled up. Severed limbs and rotting corpses burst from all over her body, tearing through her robe and spilling into view.

Her own form kept changing. She was a Werewolf, a vengeful spirit, and a Marionette, all at once, bearing the traits of each creature.

The "humanoid creature" Truman had kicked aside collapsed completely, becoming a grotesque mass of flesh that writhed constantly, carrying the fragrance of flowers, trees, and grass.

The blade of grass that had just been given a soul turned into a writhing mass of fleshy tentacles.

More horrifying still, countless blood-red eyes, each attached to tentacles, crawled out through the cracks, shrieking madly and chaotically.

They danced frantically, their bodies flailing as they radiated chaotic madness. Even Truman felt the urge to destroy them.

Even Lilith felt disgusted after a glance. This was what she had been suppressing all along, even before meeting Truman—the essence of this world.

"Humanity in the broadest sense may not need to be sought in humans. But these things, whose very essence is madness... they must be the last thing you'd want to see."

"You gave them life and crude souls, but you know these things can't become true living beings." Truman did his best to hold back, but he was still disgusted.

"Purification!" Truman drew sunlight from outside into the castle.

This was the Kingdom of the Sun God. Without the barrier of the Dream Light, these filthy, evil things would never have been able to survive here.

"Ah!" Nearly all the Monsters wailed under the purifying sunlight, unable to resist.

Only the stitched-together Monster formed from the Marionette trait seemed capable of resisting.

But Truman merely glanced at it, and the "Marionette" became a Marionette. It emerged from a pile of ashes.

"You must make sure your actions don't cause trouble for others."

Truman walked over and sat down in front of Lilith.

"These things are insignificant to you and me, but for ordinary humans, they're a calamity."

"Your investigation into humanity and divinity is probably right." Truman offered his judgment based on his understanding of the world's true nature.

Lilith's eyes lit up, and she stared intently at Truman, waiting for his answer.

"Everything possesses divinity, which comes from the Original Creator." Truman shared some conclusions from the future. "As for humanity, you'll have to find it yourself."

"What I can tell you is that it's possible."

In the future, two little wolves would succeed at it.

"But at the very least, as your friend, I hope you can show restraint and discipline while pursuing your curiosity." Truman offered his sincere advice.

"Desire, restraint, and discipline..." Lilith mused. "Is that what humanity means to you?"

Truman froze. He remembered that he had once said desire was a part of humanity.

"All right. I agree, for the sake of our friendship." Lilith nodded softly.

"...All right." Truman nodded softly. He let the Dream Phosphor fall once more, suffusing the castle and blocking out the sunlight.

It took him some time to restore the Dream Territory to normal and save the people who had been contaminated by the Marionettes.

Truman departed amid the believers' prayers and thanks, then went to find Sasrir.

"You've also seen the Scroll of Civilization. So what are you going to do next?" Truman asked directly.

He was an extremely unusual Angel in the Sun God's Kingdom. He possessed a territory of his own, as well as followers belonging exclusively to him, and could even speak so freely with the Right Hand of God.

"The right future will arrive." Sasrir had no other emotions on his face, and was willing to share the plans for the future with Truman.

Truman was also one of the few people who didn't care about his status.

Truman nodded lightly. The future recorded in the Scroll of Civilization would come to pass. That could mean there were still several centuries before the Ancient Sun God's true war to reclaim his Authorities.

"Good. If anything comes up, you can come find me. I'm going to enter the Book of Dreams."

"Enter?!" Sasrir's pupils contracted, and his expression turned grave.

"Mm, enter! I don't know when I'll return." Truman smiled faintly. His exploration of the Book of Dreams had made great progress.

"Be careful." Sasrir had long suspected the Book of Dreams was something like a Sefirah.

From his own perspective, was entering the Chaos Sea really so easy?

Even he could only use the power of the Chaos Sea with the help of the Blasphemy Slate.

Sasrir said nothing more, offering only a brief warning.

Truman smiled and nodded.

Then he returned to the base of the Statue of Dreams, merged completely with it, and leaped into the Book of Dreams within a dark space.

Truman's destination was the depths of the Sea of Dreams, a wondrous place beyond words, like the gathering of every living being's dreams, desires, and aspirations throughout time.