CH 167

With a flash of bright light, Gi-Gyu was transferred to another place. He found himself in another completely white space when he opened his eyes. Everything was white, including the walls, floor, and ceiling. And in the middle of the room, a woman was kneeling elegantly.

‘El…’ Gi-Gyu recognized the woman.

‘It’s El.’ The woman resembled El’s human form. A thin silk dress hid her wings, and she looked so beautiful that Gi-Gyu couldn’t help staring at her in awe. The woman looked a little different from the El Gi-Gyu was used to, but there was no doubt that she was El.

‘But what’s happening here?’ Gi-Gyu wondered as he watched the scene. During Lou’s test, his consciousness was put inside Lou’s physical body to experience Lou’s last battle. But now, all he could do was watch El like a ghost. As if to show that he wasn’t actually here, Gi-Gyu wasn’t given a physical body or the freedom to move around.

‘Lou, El, Brun,’ Gi-Gyu called out to his Egos, but no one answered.

‘I guess I can’t communicate with them here?’ In the first test, Gi-Gyu couldn’t talk to any of his Egos except Lou. He was seemingly in a similar situation again, but…

‘Why can’t I talk to El either?’ Gi-Gyu became confused. Disappointingly, he couldn’t hear or talk with El. This was El’s test, so why didn’t his connection to her become stronger?

Left with no other option, Gi-Gyu decided to just watch El. Even after what seemed like an eternity, the kneeling figure didn’t move an inch, making him question if time had stopped. However, that didn’t seem like the case since some breeze from somewhere would make her dress flutter occasionally.

Rustle.

Time passed by as she maintained her kneeling posture like a statue. She remained still, and he watched her patiently. It might have felt boring to some, but Gi-Gyu didn’t feel this way.

‘She’s so beautiful,’ Gi-Gyu thought in awe. She looked so divine and elegant. Studying her quietly, he waited for something to happen.

-...

Suddenly, Gi-Gyu heard one of his Egos’ voices. It was a whisper so faint that he couldn’t tell whom it belonged to.

‘El? Is that you?’ Gi-Gyu asked. This was El’s test, so he assumed the speaker was El.

But…

-Creepy bastard.

It was Lou.

***

‘What?! Why are you here?’ Gi-Gyu couldn’t hide his disappointment.

-Did you have to sound so disappointed?

Lou teased him while laughing creepily. This didn’t make sense to Gi-Gyu. During the first test, he could only communicate with Lou. So here, he should have been able to chat with El.

‘Wait. Could it be…?’ Gi-Gyu’s improved brain worked fast to come up with several possible explanations. After going through each of them, he selected the most logical explanation.

-You got it.

Lou confirmed Gi-Gyu’s suspicion. Gi-Gyu quickly turned toward El.

‘El!’

-El is inside that data, so she can’t talk to you. But I still don’t get why you and I are connected.

If the kneeling El was his El, then why did the stance and appearance change then?

-I’m gonna guess that her memories stored inside the Tower have restored her previous form and placed her inside it. That isn’t exactly the same El you know. The old El is inside this new El.

This Russian doll situation confused Gi-Gyu, but he nodded since he felt he understood what was happening.

Rustle.

El finally rose. The silk dress moved around her body, showing off her slim silhouette.

Knock, knock.

Someone had knocked on the white door from the outside. It appeared El had already known someone was coming to her room before the knock. She murmured in her clear voice, “Please come in.”

Creak.

The white door opened slowly, and the visitor was revealed. He kneeled on one knee and announced, “The meeting has started. Everyone is waiting for you, ___.”

Gi-Gyu became confused. He was certain the visitor addressed El by her name, but he couldn’t hear it.

-I’m guessing the data hasn't been processed perfectly yet. Just give it some time.

Gi-Gyu nodded as he saw El walking out the door.

‘Huh?’ Gi-Gyu tried to follow her, but he couldn’t move. It was as if his body was trapped underneath something heavy. Was he supposed to wait here until El returned? Helpless to do anything, he just watched her leave. All he could do now was stay where he was and wait.

***

Creak.

Gi-Gyu couldn’t tell how long he had been standing and waiting in the same place for El’s return.

‘In a way, this is just as hard as the first test. It’s certainly less dangerous, though,’ Gi-Gyu thought. Watching the time pass by endlessly was a tedious task; the boredom was painful even. So when El returned, Gi-Gyu felt ecstatic.

But…

‘Did something happen to her?’ Gi-Gyu asked in confusion.

Lou replied,

-Who knows? This isn’t from my memory, so I have no idea. I can’t even tell when this happened. But…

Lou trailed off before continuing.

-Based on what you experienced in the first test, I’m guessing this timeframe was very important to El.

Gi-Gyu silently nodded and watched the tired-looking El, who had her head down.

Trudge.

Her exhausted steps made his heartache. El returned to her original place and kneeled again.

‘This again?’ Gi-Gyu became a little frustrated, wondering if he would have to watch it again. And if yes, for how long?

But it seemed that he was worried about nothing. El clasped her hands together as if praying and asked, “Just what is it… that you want me to do?”

Drip.

Tears rolled down her eyes, looking like pearls as they hit the floor.

El whispered again, “Just why are you giving me such a difficult test?”

It sounded like she was praying to a god. Gi-Gyu didn’t know why she seemed sad, but he could feel her devastation. She was also feeling deep sadness, longing, respect, and…

‘Betrayal.’ Gi-Gyu realized in surprise. The emotions El felt were both positive and negative.

‘Lou.’ Gi-Gyu called out.

-What is it?

Unable to help his curiosity, Gi-Gyu asked, ‘Does god exist?’

Gi-Gyu’s voice was calm and quiet, indicating that his question wasn’t a light one. Lou didn’t answer immediately, and Gi-Gyu continued to watch El, who hadn’t stopped praying.

“Please do not make me choose this,” begged El.

Then, she suddenly stood up.

Gi-Gyu wondered, ‘Does she have another visitor?’ 

Lou still hadn’t answered his question. Regardless of how hard Gi-Gyu thought about the word “god,” no light bulb went off in his mind. Had Lou known anything about it, Gi-Gyu could have accessed the information from Lou’s data. Did this mean Lou didn’t know?

Creak.

This time, the door was pushed open rudely without a knock. El used to be the queen of all angels. She had to be the most powerful being here, so who could burst into her room like this?

Before Gi-Gyu could even turn to see who it was, El called out to the visitor, “Raphael, what is it?”

Finally, Gi-Gyu saw the visitor. It was a slim and elegant young man, but Gi-Gyu couldn’t see his face for some reason. However, Gi-Gyu’s instinct told him that the man was powerful.

The visitor was so powerful that Gi-Gyu couldn’t even analyze his full strength.

But…

‘He is about as strong as Belphegor. Or is he a bit stronger?’ 

-So it’s him, huh?

Gi-Gyu asked, ‘You know him?’

-Just like in hell, there were rulers where El lived too. El was above them, but the other six archangels were no joke.

Something popped in Gi-Gyu’s head, ‘The Seven Archangels.’

-That’s right.

Raphael, the rude visitor, was known to be the strongest of the seven.

Raphael replied, “I came because I was worried about you.”

El gave him a small smile and asked, “Why would you be worried?”

El’s voice sounded so kind, but Gi-Gyu felt annoyed. But, he controlled his emotions and quietly listened to the conversation.

It appeared that there was no goal for this test. Unlike the first test, where the system told him to experience death, no announcement was made for this test regarding a clear goal. Gi-Gyu needed to find a clue and achieve the secret goal.

-Perhaps watching itself is the goal.

Gi-Gyu nodded to Lou’s statement. Meanwhile, the two angels continued to chat.

Bowing, Raphael asked, “Aren’t you unhappy about the meeting’s conclusion?”

“I am,” El didn’t deny it. “But isn’t this what everyone wants?”

Raphael became quiet.

In a frustrated voice, Lou muttered,

-What an annoying system. If a king orders something, it should be done. Setting up meetings to make collective decisions… How ridiculous!

That statement alone was enough to tell Gi-Gyu why Lou was betrayed.

Hearing the thought, Lou yelled,

-What?!

Ignoring Lou, Gi-Gyu concentrated on the two angels’ conversation.

Raphael replied, “You don’t have to take responsibility for everything.”

“No, you’re wrong.” El’s firm voice made Gi-Gyu’s eyes widen. A serious look appeared on her face, indicating how determined she was. “As the head of the angels, I must protect you and the rest. How could I call myself a leader if I only rule without taking responsibility?”

Raphael seemed speechless. After a long pause, he argued, “But…”

Raphael seemed so distressed that he wanted to cry. Feeling annoyed, Gi-Gyu thought, ‘Hmph! How can an archangel be that weak?’ 

-Don’t get personal here.

Lou warned.

Raphael continued, unable to hear Lou or Gi-Gyu, “Don’t you have the right to be happy as well?”

In the end, Raphael burst into tears. El smiled and murmured, “Just as I have the right to be happy, everyone does too. I do not consider this a sacrifice.”

El closed her eyes, asking, “After all, don’t you agree that this is his will?”

Raphael became quiet again. Another awkward silence fell, and despite feeling uncomfortable, Gi-Gyu had no choice but to watch them.

Creak.

The door opened once more without a knock. Gi-Gyu turned toward the door to find the next visitor shouting, “Fuck that! God is already dead!!!”

Raphael and El’s eyes widened in shock. Nonplussed, they just stared at the new visitor.

“...!”

“...!”

However, Gi-Gyu was so shocked that someone could have knocked him down with a feather. The one who had made the proclamation was none other than…