The Outer God Needs Warmth

The Royal Castle of Ansellus Kingdom, with its long history.

Among its many rooms, the largest one stood.

The floor was adorned with colorful stones, arranged in geometric patterns. Ivory-colored pillars rose from the ground, and a chandelier made of glass hung from the arched ceiling.

This room was usually reserved for displaying the king’s majesty, used only on special occasions, but today it was filled with people.

The relationship between the Ansellus Kingdom and the Holy Spirit Church was similar to that between the kingdoms of medieval Europe and the Vatican.

To the east of the Skard Rock Desert, the region that followed the teachings of the Holy Spirit, could be compared to Europe without much difference.

There were many differences, such as the presence of magic and sorcerers, or swordsmen drawing sword energy from their blades, but one glaring distinction stood out.

Here, the gods themselves have direct influence.

Warriors and priests recognized by the gods emerge, and miracles descend from the heavens.

In such a world, the power of the Holy Spirit Church was so strong that even the king of a nation could not easily oppose it.

Therefore, when they condemned the Ansellus Kingdom for harboring an evil god, there was no choice but to bring forth that evil god.

After all, if the gods spoke, it was as if the laws of the world themselves had spoken.

No living creature can escape the laws of the world.

And if one does?

Then, they cease to be a living creature.

And that non-living creature appeared, led by soldiers.

At first glance, she seemed like nothing more than a small girl with purple hair. Judging by her appearance, she seemed closer to a child than an adult, though her large chest made one wonder if she truly was a child.

If you take that away, she looked like an unusually pale-skinned child.

There was no dignity, no sense of foreboding.

She was just a small girl.

Those seeing her for the first time thought so.

Most of the people present had never seen her before. In fact, more than 80% of the people there were seeing her for the first time.

The majority of those present were nobles or former priests. The only exception were the servants working among them, but even they held a status close to that of minor nobles.

However, this room was not filled only with the people of the Ansellus Kingdom.

There were people from other kingdoms surrounding Ansellus as well.

The reason why so many nobles and royalty from other kingdoms were present was simple.

Because just yesterday, the legendary hero Tis-ha’s funeral had been held.

In other words, it was a national event, and the foreign dignitaries had come to pay their respects.

Originally, after the funeral, they planned to spend the night at a banquet and return the next day.

But suddenly, a major event related to the Holy Spirit Church occurred here.

They all attended without fail.

Additionally, lords who had come from the provinces for the funeral were also present.

So many people had gathered that it could be said everyone who could attend had come. And among them, foreign press had arrived.

"Ah, I see. You've come to make excuses. Go ahead," came a voice.

When the foreign press entered, the moment they arrived, all attention focused on them, and a brief silence fell over the space.

The first to speak was none other than the foreign press.

"What excuses are you making, evil being! How dare you speak before the Holy Spirit!"

At that moment, a knight of the Holy Spirit Church drew his sword and shouted. He immediately followed up by quoting the holy scriptures, denouncing the foreign press.

For those who held the Holy Spirit Church as their faith, citing the holy scriptures had an overwhelming persuasive power.

That meant that most of the people present no longer doubted the small girl before them, now convinced she was an evil god—pure evil.

In reality, she was pure evil.

If warmth is taken from someone, they are ruined. They cease to be human, transforming into monsters. And these monsters kill to steal warmth.

Is that any different from murder?

Moreover, it wasn’t just a matter of hunting like an animal to steal warmth.

This creature implants itself into others, stealing their warmth.

And if that weren’t enough, this monster takes control of the descendants of those it has implanted itself into.

It shares its essence, and upon death, takes everything that person held.

The foreign press mistakenly believed that their contract was tied to blood, but it was actually the contract she had formed that was the cause.

Depending on the interpretation, this cruel contract could even tear apart the entire Ansellus Kingdom.

But the foreign press had not realized this yet.

Without specialized research or accumulated knowledge, it was akin to someone not fully understanding how food is digested within the body.

But, the foreign press had never intended to understand that.

Not because they were benevolent, but because they believed doing so would bring greater benefit.

For that greater gain, they wore the mask of hypocrisy. They did not take more than necessary and kept the contract purely.

In fact, the first contractor, Yasle, had even achieved revenge. The royal family of Ansellus, which Yasle had wanted to destroy, had essentially collapsed.

This wasn’t a contract made to bless someone, but one made to grant wishes.

Looking at it now, who would believe Ansellus Kingdom still existed? Rather, the one blessed by the foreign press now ruled the kingdom.

Aware of this, the foreign press boldly stood before them and said:

“If you claim that all contracts are meaningless before the gods, then you may declare that proudly. No one would deny it, in front of all of humanity. If you truly can?”

It was a provocation.

If they were truly right, all people would accept it.

The knight, assessing the situation quickly, frowned. Though he appeared rough and thoughtless, he was a knight of the Holy Spirit Church.

A knight who specialized in political matters, including heresy trials.

Such a person wasn’t easily fooled by words.

However, there was one mistake made.

They believed the foreign press was struggling to survive.

The knight glanced at the priest.

In truth, priests and knights had distinct roles. The knight, armed with sword and armor, would act swiftly and radically, while the priest would intervene and negotiate with a peaceful approach—using the good cop, bad cop technique.

Intimidating with violence, while pretending to be friendly to extract information or manipulate people into perjury.

Such techniques were common in places where people lived.

Nonetheless, the priest, thinking from a normal person’s perspective, assumed the evil being would struggle to survive as usual.

So, in that moment, they decided to publicly showcase the power of the Holy Spirit, thinking this was the right time to defeat the evil god.

It was a fatal judgment.

At the priest’s signal, the knight shouted loudly:

“If you say so, I shall judge your crimes before all of humanity! The Holy Spirit shall expose your sins and punish the evil being as it deserves!”

“Now, now. Let’s not be in such a hurry. In the Ansellus Kingdom, you can’t do anything without permission. The sins of their ancestors should be paid for by them.”

The priest’s words could be interpreted as follows:

"You prepare the stage, and I will refrain from punishing your kingdom."

In an instant, the hero blessed by the gods became a sinner.

Some of the people in the Holy Spirit Church believed Tis-ha, though a believer of the Holy Spirit, was not a part of the church. They didn’t like the idea of such a person being chosen by the gods.

So, this was an opportunity to degrade his sanctity and elevate the Holy Spirit Church.

It wasn’t necessarily a bad act, but it was a distasteful one.

The people of Ansellus began to feel slightly annoyed at the disrespect for their proud hero, the one who had created their kingdom.

Reading the expressions of the people, the foreign press silently laughed.

Technically speaking, it was akin to someone in Korea saying, “King Sejong? He was just a king, not the great king.”

But they couldn’t directly refute it, for the authority of the Holy Spirit Church was too powerful. Instead, they waited for the moment when anger would break out and let the frustration settle deep within.

Meanwhile, the king approached the foreign press with a stern expression.

“It has been decided.”

He then ordered soldiers to prepare the execution stage in the plaza. The knight and priest nodded in agreement, pleased, while the people of Ansellus, though uncomfortable, watched with satisfaction as the evil god was to be killed.

“Yes. People have the freedom to choose their gods. I don’t get angry over such things.”

The poisoned blade moved.

“I get angry at those who take away humanity’s freedom.”

At that moment, the god became the one who oppressed humanity’s freedom. But no one deeply thought about what that meant.

It wasn’t such a shocking statement. It could simply be heard as a request for mercy because the one punished was not disliked.

And far away, Hyungkeshni, watching from a distance, chuckled at the foreign press’s pleading, finding it amusing.

Almost 80 years ago.

The monster that had been silent like a doll for half a year, thinking of consuming people, was now terrified.

Just a moment ago, it had claimed to be dying, but now it trembled before people, begging for mercy.

Hyungkeshni projected herself into the situation.

A person who had always feared death and fled would easily notice such things.

A far more powerful monster, trembling before a god, begging for its life. The same monster that had tormented her.@@novelbin@@

With a sinister sense of satisfaction, Hyungkeshni decided to watch this show until the end.

What would the foreign press look like in their final moments?

And in this, there was something uniquely human that Hyungkeshni had deeply internalized.

If punished by a god, the foreign press would die.

Indeed.

This was the truth.

The gods were truly great beings.

During the short time she had spent observing the foreign press, Hyungkeshni realized they were far less formidable than they appeared—just a foolish child who thought they were human.

A human who could never touch the gods.

So, she relaxed.

As Hyungkeshni waited, smiling, imagining the pitiful sight of the foreign press dying, a massive execution stage began to be built in the plaza in front of the castle.

Meanwhile, a person with purple hair came to meet the foreign press.

They asked as they approached:

“What will happen to my blessing now that you’re leaving?”

The question was shockingly selfish.

They worried that the youth and health they had gained would disappear in an instant.

But the foreign press did not reprimand them.

Instead, they answered:

“My blessings won’t disappear even if I do. They weren’t a guarantee. I gave them because I wanted to. Blessings are inherently bad.”

At the foreign press’s words, those with purple hair had their hearts race, and those eavesdropping secretly laughed at them.

The one blessed by the foreign press also asked in surprise:

“Bad? How so?”

But the foreign press did not give the expected answer. Instead, they continued to tear down the idea of the gods.

“Just as a child leaves their parents’ embrace, humanity will eventually leave the embrace of the gods and stand on its own. Blessings are too much of a gift. But I wanted to give it.”

The foreign press did not deny the gods.

They said humanity could one day stand in the same place as the gods.

It sounded like a neutral statement, without any ill intent.

The foreign press had no plans to replace the Holy Spirit.

Instead, they intended to plant an idea: a foundation for humanity’s enlightenment, where they would eventually break free of the shadow of the gods.

Though no one fully understood it yet.

Not yet.

But the foreign press left something behind in the hearts of those listening.

They sowed a seed, hoping one day it would sprout as they moved toward the place where they would die.