At Rudger's words, Nirva let out a small laugh as if in disbelief.
"...Hehe. Even in this situation, you're still imagining possible scenarios in your head?"
Rudger was convinced by Nirva's attitude.
Whatever his intention for changing his mind, Nirva had chosen death at the last moment.
"Considering what you've done, death would be too generous. And there are things I want to hear from you."
"Things you want to hear? Are you trying to mock me while knowing everything? You puppet of Lumensis."
At the word puppet, Rudger glared at Nirva.
"I don't know what misunderstanding you have, but I am not a puppet."
"Kuk kuk. Most puppets don't realize that they are puppets."
"If you saw my memories, you should know where I come from.""Not memories, but dreams. And knowing your origin makes me suspect you even more."
Rudger's eyes narrowed.
"You couldn't read all of my dreams, I see."
"Sharp one. How could I read the dreams of someone who has none? I pieced together your information from fragments I gathered from those who encountered you outside. It was just a deceptive tactic to shake you, pretending I had read them."
-Cough.
Golden blood poured from Nirva's mouth.
"The fact that I, an apostle of dreams, couldn't read your dreams means you have divine protection. Considering your origin, I can only guess whose protection it is."
"Didn't you think it was from another god?"
"That cunning Lumensis could easily disguise his energy as that of another fallen god."
"This conversation is going nowhere. Why do you think I'm Lumensis' puppet?"
"Why, you ask?"
Nirva bulged his eyes and shouted.
"Because you ruined everything!"
This wasn't just the whining of a failed person or blaming others.
"When many gods disappeared in the past and humans only worshipped Lumensis, do you know how they were treated?"
Nirva spoke with chuckling laughter.
"Lumensis claimed to cherish humans, but hindered their development."
"Hindered their development?"
"Isn't it the same with you humans? You forcibly breed cute pets to create small cats or dogs that don't grow, right? Even if they have shorter lifespans and genetic diseases, you don't care. Lumensis is the same. Because he cherishes humans, he wanted them to maintain this form without developing."
"That doesn't sound right."
The time Lumensis had driven out other gods and reigned as the only god was quite long.
During that time, humanity had certainly developed.
Rather than the distant medieval era, society now resembled something closer to the modern era.
Moreover, recent developments in magical engineering, combining science and magic, had accelerated progress even further.
Some fields had even surpassed the science of 21st century Earth.
In a world experiencing such rapid development, how could he say development was hindered?
Nirva's words were full of contradictions.
As if reading Rudger's thoughts, Nirva chuckled.
It was unclear whether it was mockery toward someone deceiving him or lamentation about his own situation that left him vulnerable to such deception.
"Lumensis didn't castrate human potential for development from birth. He chose to gradually reduce it. But knowing that wasn't enough, he tried various ways to hinder the world's development. What do you humans call it? A contingency plan? One of them, you should know without me saying."
"...The Holy Nation of Bretus."
"Yes. Through obedient humans, he tried to make them organize his cage on their own."
"But it failed. In the end, the Holy Nation of Bretus couldn't stop human development."
"That's right. Humans struggling to evade the eyes of the Holy Nation appeared in every era and place. But was that really all? There are plenty of ways to stop developing humans. For instance, war."
War.
Rudger recalled various wars in human history.
But among them, one event stimulated his memory the most.
'The Kingdom of Delica.'
The Kingdom of Delica was the iron kingdom where Rudger had once operated under the alias James Moriarty.
The Steel Choir project they were secretly conducting was truly unbelievable when considering its purpose.
"Are you saying war was intentionally instigated?"
"You of all people should know, right? That's how it always works. Because humanity must not develop too much, they're made to fight each other. Just a little nudge, and they tear at each other's throats. Perhaps that's human nature."
Ironically, moderate wars contribute to scientific development.
But what if it's not a moderate war?
What if it's a war so large and fierce that all continents are engulfed in flames, leaving only ruins and ashes in its wake?
What if the Holy Nation of Bretus extends its clutches under the pretext of aid to those devastated continents?
How far back would human history regress?
"..."
Rudger was momentarily speechless at this shocking truth.
He knew this world was a cage, but it wasn't just that.
This intricately crafted cage didn't simply confine the bird.
To prevent the bird from even thinking about escaping the cage and flying freely in the sky, it cut off its wings.
How many feathers and how much blood had accumulated at the bottom of this cage where birds chirped?
Rudger found it difficult to imagine.
"I wanted to awaken the goddess and change the framework of that cage itself. Not a fixed world where development is blocked, but a world that can develop infinitely through dreams and imagination! And you ruined it!"
"...You're insane. Completely out of your mind."
"What kind of reaction is that? Do you find my cause so laughable? You, who are more faithful than anyone as Lumensis' puppet, should know..."
Nirva muttered before widening his eyes.
As if wondering why he hadn't realized this until now.
"Yes. So that's it...!"
A deep smile formed on Nirva's lips, as if he found this situation unbearably amusing.
"I've been making a big mistake. You're not a puppet. Rather the opposite, you're an inflection point!"
"Inflection point?"
"It means you're an entity that will bring change to this world. But it's strange. You should definitely have the role of a 'vessel,' yet why are you performing the opposite role? What is Lumensis doing?"
Vessel.
Nirva referred to Rudger as a vessel.
"The being who should be oppressing this world more than anyone is instead removing the restrictions of this oppressed world."
Rudger realized why Nirva looked down on humans so much, and why he was surprised looking at Rudger.
To Nirva, humans didn't appear as living beings.
Originally, life is born, grows, endlessly struggles, develops, and changes.
It evolves and progresses continuously as generations pass.
But the humans in this world were not like that.
Because the divine being called Lumensis was oppressing them.
How could one call a non-developing species life?
To Nirva, humans were nothing more than insects cherished by the detestable Lumensis.
But now a mutant had appeared before him.
It was nothing short of a miracle that someone who should follow Lumensis' will more than anyone was acting contrary to that will.
"What made you like this?"
"...Human desire, I suppose."
It was a brief answer, but also a sufficient one.
Nirva, forgetting that he was defeated and covered in wounds, burst into mad laughter.
"Kha! Khuhaahaha! This is a masterpiece! To think the Holy Nation of Bretus, which should serve Lumensis the most, was actually harboring different intentions! Ah, yes. This is humanity! This is desire! Truly, truly admirable! No wonder Lumensis worries!"
Rudger, with the bloodline of the Holy Emperor of Bretus and exceptional qualifications, was pushed out by internal power struggles and nearly lost his life.
It shouldn't have been that way.
They should have exalted Rudger and revered him as their next Holy Emperor.
"Those who pick up crumbs from their master began to grow dissatisfied, became arrogant, and eventually committed an irreversible act. What's funnier is that they still don't realize they've committed a terrible deed. How amusing is that!"
Nirva, chuckling in pain, exhaled with a sigh.
"Now I understand. Your abilities, your power, your qualification to handle divine power. And even your influence that changes the people around you."
Right now, both Sedina Roschen, as well as Julia Plumhart and Elisa Willow, whom he fought this time.
As they stayed with Rudger, they were influenced by him.
They showed 'miracles' that should never have happened.
"Lumensis granted authority to those who faithfully serve him. But what Lumensis overlooked was who would manage those authorities if they acted selfishly. He didn't consider who would watch the watchers."
Imagine someone with absolute power to control the world.
They would perform many roles for the public good but if such a being becomes twisted and acts selfishly.
Who could stop that power?
"Even if he knew, there's nothing Lumensis could do. He can't properly influence the lower world. He can only suck his thumb despite knowing."
"A chief god who can't touch the cage he made. What an unfunny comedy."
"Well, he didn't make it alone. He created it with other gods, drove them all out, and stole it for himself."
There was anger mixed in Nirva's voice.
It wasn't hard to understand, considering that one of those banished gods was the currently sealed Dream Goddess.
"When all gods first created the world, they agreed with each other. To let intelligent life forms live freely. Not to interfere with each other. That is the law of this world. A law that even Lumensis cannot dare to violate recklessly. So he used tricks."
"What a joke of a chief god."
" Lumensis tried that once in the past and got a good beating."
At these words spoken with giggles, Rudger stared at Nirva with a look that asked what he meant.
"Ah. I see. You don't know."
"Something happened in the past."
"Yes. Something did happen. Something very interesting. Of course, I didn't actually witness it, but as you know, my power allows me to feel as if I experienced it. I'm wondering whether to tell you this or not, but since we've come this far, I'll spill it all."
Nirva sharing facts only he knew wasn't about acknowledging defeat.
Rather, there was some hidden intention behind it.
Rudger wasn't unaware of this, but he was also curious about what Nirva knew.
"It won't hurt for someone like you to know. Because the incident involved Surna as well."
"Surna..."
"The great demon Surna. In a name you're more familiar with now, you could call him Zero Order."
Rudger Chelici held the position of First Order, but he was never Zero Order's subordinate.
They had a kind of business relationship where they were wary of each other yet also joined hands.
That's why Nirva revealed Surna's past.
He couldn't be satisfied without paying back what he had suffered from him, even in this way.
"You know that Surna was defeated and destroyed in the past war with the Holy Nation of Bretus."
"He was gloriously defeated after the sacrifice of Saint Arkenis."
"That is true. But only partly true. That day, Surna and Arkenis definitely fought. But what ended that fight was neither Surna nor Arkenis."
Then who?
Rudger's expression turned to one of disbelief.
Nirva grinned and nodded.
"Yes. Lumensis, that cunning one, intervened in that fight."
"Lumensis intervened? Why?"
"I don't know the details. The aftermath was too immense for even my powers to comprehend. But that enormous power wave could only be shown by Lumensis. Whatever happened, Surna, who was thought to be dead, survived, and Arkenis died."
Lumensis intervened, but the demon lived and the saint died.
This was strange no matter how one looked at it.
Normally, shouldn't it be the opposite?
After all, the saint would be Lumensis' most faithful servant.
"Lumensis, having violated the law by interfering in the lower world, no longer recklessly touches the lower world. Therefore, he might be even more desperate. Your existence is proof of that."