Dimension #42-000 was a world where elves formed the absolute majority of the population. Tonight, its residents suffered from collective insomnia—all thanks to a group of outsiders who had severely agitated the already sensitive elves.
Having already been completely subjugated economically by the Committee, the planet's government obeyed the sudden notice without a word of complaint. The Ancient Race's demand was to use this world as a midway stopover for their Battleships. The fleet's final destination was the fanatics' dimension bordering Dimension #42-000, and this place had been chosen as a stepping stone for their march.
As a result, the elves of Dimension #42-000 witnessed an overwhelmingly massive combat fleet at the Terminal.
However, instead of crossing over to the next dimension through the Terminal immediately after resupplying, the Battleships increased their altitude, broke through the atmosphere, and moved into outer space.
Why on earth?
A scene that hinted at the reason soon unfolded in the night sky.
“Look up there!”
“Is it a lunar eclipse?”
“No, the moon is still there. What in the world is that? A shadow is blocking the constellations... instead of the moon!”
Blooming in irregular shapes, the darkness punched holes in the night. Unknown objects appeared just outside the atmosphere, but instead of reflecting sunlight like satellites, they absorbed it completely. From the surface, it looked as if black blotches were erasing the stars.
“Just what is going on up there?!”
The citizens took it as an ominous sign. To the elves, notorious for their distrust, their own government was already unreliable, and the Committee was even worse. Even when they defied government orders and secretly sent spirits up to investigate, barriers blocked them from advancing.
The government, having received absolutely no information, was equally anxious. There was no way they had accepted the Committee out of trust. Because they had been forced to submit to overwhelming power, their fears remained entirely intact.
The main culprits who had agitated every elf regardless of class—the forces dispatched by the Committee—were currently conversing in outer space.
“Captain, are those the ones? The ones Endelion prepared as spare bodies?”
Inside the command and control room of a Kavite Battleship, the one asking the question was a young adjutant. The captain standing nearby replied as if he had asked something obvious.
“Yes. Ordinary tentacles would never voluntarily come out to a dimension this far away. It's a dimension where the concept of forced conscription doesn't even work, after all. We also have the concept that involuntary labor is for sinners, but it's even worse for the tentacles. That's why they sent those ones instead.”
The screen they were watching displayed the scenery of space.
Over a hundred tentacle monsters floated helplessly in the black void.
The adjutant knew that, strictly speaking, those beings weren't Endelions. But they looked exactly the same. It was inevitable, since their genetic information was identical.
If one had to find a visible difference, it would be the shackles they wore. It was a barbaric device that an Endelion would never inflict on its own kind.
The adjutant gave a slight shudder, his brown fur trembling.
“Regardless, seeing beings that look exactly like the Ancient Race suffer like that is a bit chilling.”
Every single one of their twenty-six tentacles was locked in heavy restraints. Woven from metal-fiber chains, they firmly secured the radial tentacles to the center of their bodies. In human terms, it was akin to putting splints on the limbs and neck. Bound like this, they couldn't freely swing or twitch even a single tentacle. It was a harness meant for beasts or monsters, rather than people.
They had been stored in the cargo hold in a Polymorph state from the time they left their homeland until they reached this dimension. The allied forces of the Kavite and Todd, having taken custody of them, released the Polymorph after ejecting them into space.
The stains blocking the starlight that the elves had witnessed were exactly them.
=Save me... I'm scared. I want to go back.=
=It's so tight. I can't move. Someone, please take this off!=
=Mom... Dad... I miss you. Please save me...!=
The restraints bent the ends of the tentacles into bizarre shapes. The captain and adjutant watched as the bridges of those restraints docked and anchored onto the Battleship. The tentacle monsters made contact with the combat vessels, as if wrapping around them from above. If an Earthling saw it, it would remind them of a kraken capturing a fishing boat with its sucker-covered legs. However, the ones caught here weren't the ships, but the monsters.
The role of those forcibly tied to the ships was to chant the infused dimensional Jump Magic. The restraints also served the function of preventing them from arbitrarily detaching themselves from the ship's surface.
The tentacles continued to plead and sob. The liquid flowing from their eyes froze instantly in the cryogenic temperatures of space. Hail-like debris drifted around them.
“I'm hearing strange mental waves. Do they have parents too? I thought they were cultivated through artificial insemination.”
The captain kindly explained. The two looked to be of a similar age at a glance, but the captain was several times older than the adjutant. It was because he had already swapped into young bodies multiple times.
“If they use a method similar to ours, a small number of volunteers—true Endelions—would have acted as parents to raise a large number of them. It's been proven that using mechanical nannies slows down brain development or causes disabilities. Naturally, one would be bothered if their spare body had even the slightest flaw.”
“Ah, is that so?”
“Originally, regardless of race, the childhood of those raised as spare bodies isn't much different from a normal member of the Ancient Race. They are simply raised isolated from others. They even receive high-level education to improve brain function. They grow up thinking the place they live is the real world.”
There was no such thing as the factory-style breeding that some people imagined.
The beneficiaries wanted their new bodies to be nurtured in the most natural and healthy way possible.
They hoped the bodies would grow up happily amidst manageable stress—mainly stemming from advanced education—without being tainted by negative thoughts or madness. As a result, they aimed to maintain a clean brain and nervous system.
Then, when the designated day arrived, the donors would be shipped out while asleep. There was no fear or pain even in their final moments. Their souls were separated from their physical bodies without them even realizing it.
- Docking of all 167 ships complete.
The artificial intelligence announced that preparations were finished.
A total of 167 Space Motherships were mobilized, combining the forces of both races. There were also 167 ‘bodies’ that would hold them one by one and perform the dimensional jump.
A new screen appeared in front of the Kavite captain. It was the commander from the Todd side. The captains representing both races set aside their age-old resentments and exchanged businesslike words.
A moment later, the two simultaneously gave an order to the artificial intelligence. It was a command that only executed with both of their authorizations.
- Injecting the drug.
Sharp drills sprouted from the points where the restraints touched the skin of the tentacles. They spun rapidly, grinding through flesh and digging deep.
In the vacuum of space, screams could not echo. Instead, they shrieked through mental waves. It was an unimaginable pain for children raised in a comfortable paradise. Their flesh was torn, thousands of holes were pierced all over their bodies, and the drug was pumped into them.
The telepathy blasted out simultaneously by the 167 entities was akin to a mental attack. Unable to withstand it, the adjutant stumbled for a moment. But it only lasted a second. The screams soon subsided, and the monsters' eyes took on a hazy glow.
The captain smiled and said.
“You've witnessed a sight you might only see once in a lifetime today.”
“...Ah, is that so?”
The adjutant mumbled fearfully.
“So it's true that the drug works on the Ancient Race as well.”
“Yeah. The tentacles developed a technology that works even on themselves. That fact was already proven through their princess.”
“Ah!”
What he had just seen was the procedure originally administered to prisoners sentenced to penal labor.
“All battalions, prepare for the jump.”
The blood of those monsters also contained the genes of the Endelions, who were terrible cowards and extreme self-preservationists. Faced with the fear of crossing dimensions bare-bodied, ordinary threats wouldn't work on them.
However, the moment the drug was injected, a voice echoed in their minds. That resonance temporarily masked their fear.
Light slowly spread from the tentacles' bodies. That flash seeped all the way into the command and control room. Strapped tightly into his chair, the Kavite captain reviewed the goal of this operation.
‘Cooperate with the Todd to arrest Asif-666, but if we find a fragment of Asiph-1, smuggle it out as secretly as possible. If we can get our hands on even one piece, it could become the Key to finding the rest!’
The fact that the fragmented Asiph-1 had already resurrected into something close to a complete form was something they couldn't even begin to guess yet.
Flash!
Anchored to the tentacle monsters who had half-lost their reasoning, the fleet crossed dimensions.
*
Dimension #77-102, Elahu-Praga Church Headquarters.
The crowd gathered at the Cathedral of Resurrection fell into chaos. Above their heads appeared objects that shouldn't be there, in a state they shouldn't be in. Moreover, there were far too many of them.
After the blue flashes vanished, the things covering the sky were massive Battleships whose individual sizes required units of kilometers to describe.
The Committee's technological prowess vastly exceeded this place's level of civilization. With their power, fighting back would mean certain defeat. The believers felt terror churning in their chests. Prayers flowed out from everywhere.
“Oh, God. My light, my truth, my salvation.”
“Look down upon us, avatar! Let these stormy waves of anxiety be calmed.”
“Beneath your shadow, let us dream happy dreams free of worldly desires, oh God!”
“Pray. Pray to God!”
No such scene was recorded in their scriptures. The Prophet had not foreseen a day like this. The believers could only kneel and pray helplessly.
“No, that's...!”
Meanwhile, a completely different emotion boiled in Dell's heart. Overcome with rage, she roared.
“Mother, just what are you...!”
Reflected in her eyes were her kin, pinned and anchored to the Battleships.
Other Endelions didn't treat them as people. But Dell opposed that ruthless categorization. In her eyes, they were equally people. Seeing their sizes, Dell felt a fury that nearly made her lose her mind.
“They're all... children who aren't even adults yet!”
They had been chosen because their sunk cost was lower than mature individuals raised until right before shipping. They were still too young to be shipped out soon, but old enough to be injected with Jump Magic. They had been dragged here, their bodies bound to the ships like sinners nailed to crosses.
Looking at their lifeless eyes, Dell realized the children weren't in their right minds. Ironically, Dell couldn't tell if that was a misfortune or a blessing. Because they had just crossed dimensions with their bare bodies.
It was an agony hard for even an adult to endure—a pressure that crushed the body. Dell had gone through it by her own choice. She had overcome her instinctual fear and done it for Cain.
Then what about those children?
“Insane... It's completely insane!”
In the children's pupils lay afterimages of terror that the traces of suggestion couldn't completely cover. They had just experienced hell. Because their bodies were less developed, they must have felt a more horrific pain than Dell had. Even so, it seemed they couldn't resist. Imagining the pain they must have helplessly accepted, Dell couldn't control her anger.
Just then, a voice echoed from the Battleships.
- Attention, residents of Dimension #77-102. Immediately hand over the criminal you are hiding to the Committee! If you refuse, we will resort to physical force!
As if to prove it wasn't an empty threat, a ripple of blue light began to surge in front of the leading Battleship. Someone among the believers recognized it.
“Photon Cannon!”
Their top priority was the recovery of Asif-666. That was why, instead of attacking the cathedral right away, they first demanded the handover or surrender of the criminal.
However, the believers didn't yield to the threat. Falling into a trance, they chanted prayers and sang hymns.
The Grand Patriarchs looked at the Pope on the balcony and the avatar standing on the spire with trembling eyes. Their God had clearly said it.
That there was no need for them to worry about those beasts.
Right then.
Flash!
An intense pillar of light burst out from the Cathedral of Resurrection. It was the same flash as the day a hole had been torn in the sky.
“Oh, God!”
“Guide us. Open a path for us to overcome this hardship!”
Immediately after, the sound of prayers cut off everywhere. And the souls overlapped and wavered over the priests' bodies. Losing their strength, they couldn't stand straight and staggered, or briefly lost consciousness before waking up. This was also a phenomenon similar to what had happened during the Feast of Resurrection.
That light burning Divine Blood attracted the surrounding souls. Even the living souls were swept up in the phenomenon.
But who was it calling now? The priests couldn't understand.
“E-everyone, pull yourselves together! Be careful not to get completely swept away!”
Caught in the suction, their souls separated from their bodies, but the connecting links were not completely severed. Their flesh was an entirely paired companion that had been with their souls since birth. The bodies served as sturdy anchors, pulling the souls back. Accustomed to out-of-body experiences, the priests skillfully found their own bodies and dove back in.
However, that was not something possible for everyone.
*
“What is that?!”
Astonished voices erupted in succession from the Battleship's command and control room. The captains couldn't take their eyes off the cathedral's flash. The artificial intelligence warned them.
- Unquantifiable large-scale Talent reaction! Please be careful!
The Kavite captain muttered with a stiff face.
“These crazy bastards... Did they hoard physical Talent here? How on earth?!”
He didn't know the reason, but his judgment was fast.
It was a clear declaration of resistance.
“Damn it! Blow that whole place away right now...!”
The captain couldn't finish his sentence.
“Captain?!”
The adjutant rushed over in fright. He extended his villi and antennae, helping the collapsed captain up from the floor.
Though the captain was incomparably older, having swapped bodies multiple times, he looked no different from the adjutant on the outside. That meant he was far too healthy to suddenly lose consciousness like this. Because of that, the adjutant couldn't understand what was happening.
“Captain! Captain!”
A distinct sensation traveled through his antennae. The adjutant realized the expected reaction from the other party was completely absent. It was a phenomenon that made him doubt his own five senses.
Only after checking again and again did the adjutant mutter in disbelief.
“...He's dead?”
The captain's body had stopped breathing, its pulse had ceased, and even the microscopic electrical signals throughout its body had completely vanished.
Yet to the eye, there wasn't a single wound.
The adjutant soon realized. He hadn't seen it because his attention was entirely on the captain, but similar things had occurred all across the control room.
The captain, vice-captain, navigation officer, communications officer, particle cannon officer, operations officer, computer control officer, and other higher-ups had all collapsed. Having noticed the anomaly, the artificial intelligence was blaring alarms throughout the ship. The system announced that the life signs of everyone who had just collapsed had vanished.
‘They all died? Just like this, without any warning?’
Including the adjutant himself, those still alive were only a handful. Frantically looking around, the adjutant noticed what they had in common.
‘...They're all my age!’
The survivors were individuals classified as youths by the Ancient Race's standards.
They were so young that they hadn't yet experienced a single body swap.
‘Why did only we survive?’
At that moment, a new screen popped up in front of the adjutant. The artificial intelligence spoke to him.
- Transferring command of the ship to you. Awaiting orders!
“What?!”
The adjutant was horrified.
It seemed this mass sudden death wasn't a phenomenon confined to the control room. All the veterans among those aboard the ship had just died.
The Kavite who suddenly had to take on the captain's role felt his entire body stiffen with fear and tension.
“No, how could this happen to our ship...!”
He still didn't know.
He had yet to realize that this phenomenon was currently replicating itself exactly the same way in the other Battleships.
*
It was a time when the Ancient Race members over a certain age were dropping dead without a single scratch.
The ground was a crucible of frenzy.
“Oh, God! Oh, primordial race!”
Their trembling figures from a moment ago were nowhere to be found. They were looking at the sky with completely changed expressions.
The scene captured in the priests' eyes looked, at first glance, like missiles and laser beams pouring out in thousands of streams from over a hundred Battleships, leaving long trajectories behind.
A downpour created by vivid light.
It drew parabolas, slashing through the air. It descended, splitting the sky into thousands of pieces.
“It's raining down! It's raining down!”
But that was an optical illusion caused by confusing material and immaterial sight. The priests knew. What created each and every one of those trajectories were souls. Hearing that fact, the believers went wild, tearing at their skin.
Divine Blood governed the relationship between body and spirit. The pillar of light created by burning it was a lighthouse that called to souls.
To put it another way, it was a weapon that could forcefully rip an opponent's soul from their body according to the user's intent.
The rainstorm of souls pouring down from the Battleships swirled like a tornado, creating waves. At its center was the Cathedral of Resurrection, specifically its sharply soaring spire.
Standing atop it, the God embraced the tempest of souls.
Sucking in the souls, Minjun shoved them into the burning furnace of Talent. Then, the phenomenon Alext had warned Ha Eun-seong about occurred. Minds touching an unmanageable massive amount of Talent would instantly collapse. It took only a split second for the souls to turn into wraiths.
The Ancient Race members who had been commanding, operating, and preparing for battle just moments ago were dragged here without knowing why, lost their reason, and broke down.
At this moment, Minjun had become something like a furnace that mass-produced crazy ghosts.
=There are Kavites among them too.=
Watching the process of perfectly fine souls being reprocessed into wraiths, Asiph-1 asked, unable to hide his doubt.
=Why aren't you using that method? You said there was a “bomb” in the Kavites' genes. It would be simpler to detonate that.=
A question of why he was going out of his way to consume the Talent gathered by the order.
The creator answered drily.
‘Not every Kavite is gathered here right now, so we can't let them find out about it already. It would be troublesome if they hurriedly wiped the traces from their genes.’
Next, the creator gave an order to Asiph-1, because the souls of all the enemies inside the Battleships had not yet been extracted.
‘There are a few survivors left inside every ship.’
Both the Kavite and the Todd had reduced their numbers significantly compared to the beginning, but they weren't annihilated.
The souls of those who had never swapped bodies were being held tightly by their flesh. Every single one was a healthy body brimming with vitality. By the Ancient Race's standards, they had a long time left before they needed to swap. Thanks to that, their bodies were acting as a safety mechanism, preventing the souls from being forcefully torn away. Since they didn't have spare bodies ready right next to them like prisoners, the connection was solid.
Even if the survivors lacked experience, it was enough to operate the Battleships with the AI's help. Minjun didn't like that.
=Ah!=
Hearing the creator's instruction, a bright smile spread across Asiph-1's face. It was a laugh tinged with anticipation and excitement. At this moment, fragments far older than his memories as a cooking utensil began to assert themselves in his mind.
=It's been a long time since I've played this “big”.=
Asiph-1 threw both of his arms wide open toward the sky. It was a posture as if he were trying to embrace all the Battleships above, and everyone riding or tied to them. With his arms stretched high, the Pope spoke with his mind and voice simultaneously. His commanding eyes flashed.
=“Listen!”=
That voice reached the minds of the targets.
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