Ascension Through Skills

Something felt off, but there was no reason to refuse Ainzhar’s proposal. Taesan followed Ainzhar deep into the library.

“I owe everything to you for discovering Lady Levynenoff.”

Walking ahead, Ainzhar hummed. He hadn’t even known Levynenoff was in the Library of All Things. Without Taesan’s help, he would still be wandering in search of the goddess.

“That’s why I believe it’s only right to grant you the chance to meet the goddess.”

“Is that so?”

Taesan quietly observed Ainzhar.

His demeanor and responses were undoubtedly strange. He seemed vastly different from the Ainzhar of the past.

“This way.”

Ainzhar guided Taesan to the edge of the library.

[Hey, old man. Congratulations. You finally found her? You’ve been in the labyrinth longer than I have, haven’t you?]

The ghost spoke to Ainzhar. Startled, as if noticing the ghost’s presence for the first time, Ainzhar let out a sound of surprise.

“Ah, brave soul! You’re here too! It’s all thanks to Taesan here. Thanks to him, I’ve fulfilled my wish to enter this place!”

Laughing heartily, Ainzhar rearranged some books. Soon, a secret door was revealed as the bookshelf slid aside.

“Come on in. Lady Levynenoff is here.”

Ainzhar stepped into the passageway. After a moment of hesitation, Taesan followed.

The Library of All Things was bright without a single candle, but this place was dark, as though cut off from the outside world.

More than anything, the deeper they went into the passage, the more oppressive an alien force became.

[...Wait a minute.]

The ghost noticed something strange. Taesan frowned.

‘This is…’

It was highly unusual.

The energy typical of transcendent beings varied but always had distinct characteristics.

But the power emanating here was a chaotic amalgamation, impossible to discern.

It was disturbingly similar to a power Taesan himself wielded.

‘A boundary?’

No, it was different. While a boundary was chaotic yet separable and somewhat controllable, the force beyond the passage felt warped beyond recognition.

Resolving himself, Taesan stepped through the corridor.

Ainzhar smiled and opened the door.

“Behold! Lady Levynenoff!”

Beyond the door was the beloved goddess, Levynenoff.

She lay silently in midair in the vast room.

Her face was exceptionally serene.

Just looking at her brought a sense of peace.

Though Taesan had encountered many deities, she was by far the most gentle and compassionate in appearance.

Yet the energy she emanated was entirely different.

It was something twisted, incompatible with this world.

The aura flowing from her heart was foul, almost decayed.

[Ugh.]

The ghost instinctively covered its mouth. Though it no longer had a body, it reflexively gagged at the sight. The energy was nauseating.

[What… is this?]

Taesan clutched his chest. His instincts as a living being rebelled against the scene. It felt like witnessing a masterpiece defiled beyond recognition.

The goddess’s appearance was beautiful yet utterly foreign. She couldn’t even be called a deity.

“Come! Kneel and pay your respects to the goddess!”

Only Ainzhar, with vacant eyes, spread his arms wide.

“My goddess, Lady Levynenoff!”

[You have discovered Levynenoff, who has been corrupted by the High Gods.]

---

[...Old man.]

The ghost asked in a trembling voice.

[What is going on here?]

Levynenoff was clearly not in a normal state. Instead of answering, Ainzhar asked back.

“What do you mean?”

[What do I mean? Look at the goddess’s condition. What happened to her…?]

“Ah, you mean that.”

Ainzhar smiled faintly.

“The goddess is feeling unwell at the moment. Don’t worry. With time, she will regain her original form and return to us.”

[...Regain? Her original state?]

“Yes, I’m certain of it. So there’s no need for concern.”

Ainzhar’s words were firm.

But the words seemed more like an assurance to himself than to anyone else.

[Well, if you say so…]

The ghost trailed off. Ainzhar was Levynenoff’s devotee. He would naturally know more about the goddess’s condition than the ghost could.

Yet, something felt deeply unsettling.

The ghost couldn’t believe that such a state could ever recover.

“It seems the goddess is tired. We should leave her to rest.”

With a concerned expression, Ainzhar led Taesan away.

“My apologies. You’ve come all this way, yet couldn’t even offer a prayer. But come back anytime. For you, the doors will always be open.”

“…Thank you.”

“Think nothing of it. I’m the one who’s grateful.”

After parting ways with Ainzhar, Taesan continued to browse the books in the library, but the words failed to sink in.

His mind was preoccupied with Levynenoff.

The twisted goddess and the force emanating from within her.

Taesan spoke.

“Balbabamba.”

Rumble.

The ground shifted, and Balbabamba appeared.

[Why have you called me?]

“Ainzhar. Do you know about him?”

[...So you’ve met him. Now that I think about it, you were the one who revealed the goddess’s location to him.]

Balbabamba clicked its tongue.

[Perhaps it would have been better not to tell him. Then he could’ve lived with a faith that could never be fulfilled.]

“What is that?”

From the broken goddess emanated the power of the High Gods.

Balbabamba hesitated before replying.

[You might be able to handle it now. But not for you yet, hero. Step back for now.]

[Am I not allowed to hear the story? So stingy.]

The ghost grumbled but obediently stepped back. Balbabamba gathered its power, enveloping them in a shroud.

Only then did Balbabamba begin its story.

[The High Gods seeks to trample upon this universe. Countless worlds and transcendents have perished in the process.]

This was a story Taesan had already heard. The Demon God had said that over two hundred worlds had been destroyed by the High Gods.

[Many beings have fallen—mortals, immortals, and even transcendents who had claimed their own domains. Levynenoff, whom you just saw, is one of those.]

“She suffered while resisting the High Gods’s invasion?”

[To explain it in detail would take much longer, but to simplify—yes.]

“Still, her condition seems far worse than mere damage.”

Levynenoff was broken.

The goddess’s power and the High God’s power were chaotically intertwined, creating a grotesque distortion. It was not something that could be explained as mere collateral damage.

[That’s because the High Gods exist beyond the laws.]

Balbabamba spoke calmly.

[Transcendents who possess their own domains cannot die as long as their domains remain intact. Yet, many have disappeared before the High Gods. The reason is simple: the High Gods can corrupt even the domains themselves.]

“Corrupt?”

[For a transcendent, their divinity and domain are everything. The High Gods taints those domains, destabilizing the very foundation of their existence.]

“…Is that even possible?”

A divine domain was absolute. No one could interfere with or damage it.

While overwhelming power like that of the Demon God might destroy it, the concept of “corruption” was unimaginable.

[I told you—the High Gods exists beyond the laws. Divinity and domains are, after all, merely another form of law.]

“What are these laws, anyway?”

Taesan had heard endless mentions of the laws and what lay beyond them, but he still didn’t understand their meaning.

[The laws are the most fundamental principles of the universe. Any being born within this world cannot escape them—they are absolute truth.]

“…Wait.”

The laws formed the foundation of the universe. No being born within the universe could escape them.

But the High Gods was said to exist beyond the laws.

A thought flashed through Taesan’s mind.

[That’s all.]

Balbabamba concluded quietly.

[That is all the information you are allowed to know.]

“For that, you’ve told me quite a lot.”

[That’s because you, though limited, have transcended mortality to some degree. This much is permitted. Now you understand why I called it an unattainable faith, don’t you?]

“More or less.”

The power beyond the laws had corrupted the domains of transcendents. And a domain was everything to a transcendent.

Even other gods couldn’t meddle with the domains of fellow deities.

[The God of Knowledge has placed Levynenoff in the Library of All Things to protect her, but even a god cannot fix her condition.]

Balbabamba clicked its tongue.

[To be honest, I would prefer to remove Levynenoff immediately. She is far too unstable.]

As soon as Balbabamba finished speaking, a violent wave erupted.

It was a foreign vibration, blending the power of the High Gods with the goddess’s divinity.

[There it goes again.]

Taesan quickly moved toward the source of the disturbance. It was the secret chamber where Levynenoff rested.

Arriving at the chamber, he saw Ainzhar desperately exerting his power.

“My goddess! Please!”

The gentleness had vanished from the goddess’s face.

Her eyes were wide open, and black tears flowed from them.

Her darkened chest spewed a thick, ominous energy as if it were purging itself.

[Aaaaahhh!]

A scream of pain tore through the air. Ainzhar’s face contorted as the sound reverberated, shaking his very consciousness.

Crack!

The goddess’s wounds split open, unleashing a gray energy.

It was a foreign force, corrupting everything it touched.

Taesan released his divinity. His holy power suppressed and began to purify the gray energy.

[This is a mess.]

Balbabamba unleashed its power aggressively. The labyrinth began to twist around the goddess.

Rumble!

Balbabamba pressed down forcefully, sealing Levynenoff’s power. After a tense period, Levynenoff closed her eyes again.

[Ainzhar. Is this the outcome you hoped for?]

Ainzhar sat slumped, staring blankly at the goddess.

Balbabamba departed, leaving with a parting remark.

[I got involved this time, but I have no intention of meddling further with the goddess. If it becomes a problem, Jorge will deal with it. However, as her only remaining devotee, don’t you think it would be kinder to let her rest peacefully than to leave her in this state?]

---

“What an ugly display.”

Ainzhar apologized with a somber expression.

“I truly regret dragging you into this mess.”

“It’s fine.”

Taesan shook his head. He quietly asked:

“You already knew, didn’t you?”

“…How could I not?”

Ainzhar nodded with a pained expression.

Ainzhar was a monster.

Even compared to Taesan, he was overwhelmingly stronger.

In terms of pure combat ability, he was likely among the top tier of immortals. It was impossible for someone of his level to overlook what even Taesan had vaguely sensed.

He was simply averting his eyes, running from reality.

“Levynenoff suffers. I want to help her, but there is nothing I can do.”

His face was filled with despair.

“She sacrificed herself to save me, yet I can do nothing to repay her. She continues to endure with her own strength, but… there’s no solution.”

The goddess had not yet been completely consumed by the High God’s power.

The black tears and screams from earlier were proof of her resistance.

But as Ainzhar said, there was no solution. If even the gods were powerless, Ainzhar stood no chance. It was a futile struggle.

“Perhaps, as Balbabamba said…”

Letting her rest might truly be the only choice.

Ainzhar clenched his fists in anguish. Blood seeped as his nails dug into his palms.

Taesan fell silent in thought.

The goddess had not yet been fully corrupted and continued to resist the High Gods’ power.

And Taesan knew of a power similar to her condition.

“This is purely hypothetical.”

“Hmm?”

“What if—though the chances are slim—a way to purify the corruption consuming the goddess exists?”

Ainzhar’s pupils widened. Taesan asked:

“What would you do?”