Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant

Chapter 546

'At last!'

Su-ho’s eyes widened when he saw the notification.

At last, the third special quest had been triggered.

He immediately checked the quest details.

[ Special Quest ]

Category: Quest

# A special quest manifested for Player An Su-ho.

# This is a linked quest, and if you fail during execution, it will automatically terminate.

# Quest rewards are paid out by accumulating result values, and if you fail midway, no rewards will be given.

# You have completed the first quest.

# You have completed the second quest.

# The third special quest will begin the moment you touch the sentence.

'Hm?'

It starts if I touch it?

What was that supposed to mean?

In truth, there was no need to think about it too hard.

Read it exactly as written.

It literally said it would start if he touched it.

The question was why.

'Why?'

With the second special quest, the quest contents had appeared immediately as soon as the conditions were met, but this time something extra was tangled into it.

Still, what was the point of worrying over it like this?

Amid the blessings of the Olympian gods, Su-ho followed the guidance of the third special quest and touched the sentence.

It was right after Su-ho touched the sentence.

[ The quest is beginning. ]

Hwaaaaaa!

The quest began.

Then for an instant, it seemed as though a faint light burst out, and the time around Su-ho began flowing rapidly.

'What is this.......'

It was a strange experience.

Su-ho remained as he was, while only the people and scenery around him changed rapidly.

The Olympian gods declaring victory in the Gigantomachy.

The Olympian gods returning to Olympus, holding a banquet and celebrating victory in the war.

At the center of it all was Su-ho as Hercules, and everyone was busy praising his achievements.

People praised Hercules too.

Hercules’s popularity kept rising, and in the end there were even voices saying he ought to be acknowledged as a complete god.

Then all at once, the surroundings grew dark.

On a throne in the darkness sat Zeus.

“......”

He looked deeply troubled.

Because of Hercules.

Originally, he had intended to acknowledge Hercules’s accomplishments and turn him into a constellation, but as more and more humans began worshipping him like a god, it gradually became harder to turn him into a constellation.

Because once strong human faith began gathering, the target would start to acquire power like that of a god.

And once that happened, it became difficult to alter that existence carelessly.

Even for the king of Olympus.

And that wasn’t all.

People were becoming increasingly busy praising Hercules rather than Zeus or the other gods.

Watching that scene, Su-ho unconsciously narrowed his brow.

'Ah, wait. Don’t tell me this is.......'

At that moment, Zeus rose from the throne in the darkness.

“Hermes.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Summon all the gods.”

“May I ask the reason?”

“Hercules must die.”

“......Understood.”

Hermes, Zeus’s faithful messenger, did not even ask for the reason and left at once to summon the gods.

Before long, the scene changed once again, and all the gods were gathered in the great hall of Olympus.

They were all familiar faces.

He had seen them in the Gigantomachy, and they were gods who had fought beside him.

Among the assembled gods, Hera, standing beside Zeus, spoke.

“My husband, do we truly have to do this? That child’s popularity is only a temporary phenomenon.”

“Do not argue with me. What is not acceptable is not acceptable. And you of all people wanted Hercules dead more than anyone, so why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

“That is.......”

“I am the king of all gods. Therefore, there is no error in my decision. So all of you, listen carefully. Hercules is certainly a hero, but at some point he began threatening our place. Gods are noble beings, but their power only grows when the faith of humans continues. For that reason, it is my judgment that Hercules must be killed and turned into a constellation. If anyone has doubts or objections, speak now.”

“......”

“......”

“......”

Who would dare oppose the king of Olympus?

And so Hercules’s execution was decided.

Even if they said they would turn him into a constellation after killing him, what good was any of that if they were killing him out of resentment?

At that moment, Su-ho’s field of vision changed.

He was standing on some plain.

More precisely, it was Hercules’s castle built in the land of Phlegrae.

This was a deeply meaningful place, built for him by humans to commemorate the Gigantomachy, and blessed with gifts by the Olympian gods.

Here, where countless servants were working, Su-ho was reclining sideways on a throne like a king.

[ The third special quest has begun. ]

[ Zeus and all the Olympian gods have become hostile toward you. ]

[ Become a bloody avenger rather than a hero, kill all the Olympian gods, ascend the throne of Olympus, and become the new king. ]

Paaaaaaaah!

Light spread outward.

And with that, the real third special quest was finally revealed.

'This is driving me insane.......'

Once the explanation of the situation ended, Su-ho was lying on the throne in Phlegrae Castle that he had seen earlier.

When Su-ho got up, Jack asked from the shadows,

- What did it say?

- It told me to kill all the Olympian gods and become king.

- Out of nowhere?

- No idea. It suddenly showed me the flow of time in one sweep, then turned Zeus into the embodiment of jealousy. Hera tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t even pretend to listen, and it looks like he’s going to gather up everyone who took part in the Gigantomachy and come kill me.

- So that’s why the special quest hadn’t triggered all this time. It had to unfold this whole story first. Still, that system bastard really has rotten tastes, whether it’s in the spirit realm or here. But from the sound of it, this is mythology that originally existed in this land too, right? Did it originally go like this?

- No way. Originally, it ends with them honoring Hercules’s achievements by turning him into a constellation.

- Then the system bastard really does have rotten tastes.

- Probably for the sake of entertainment.

- What are you going to do now?

- What else? The system says do it. No choice but to start getting ready to receive guests.

- There are quite a few humans inside the castle. Can I gather them up as shadow sacrifices too?

- Do whatev...... ah, no. You can’t.

- Why not?

- This may be an event space anyway, but according to the setting, they’re humans who supported me. I need to show that they’re different from the villains coming to kill me.

- Aren’t you getting a little too immersed in the game? You’re dancing to the system’s tune here.

- I’m not dancing to it. I’m just pissed off. And what if I do play along a little? I’m going to keep seeing this bastard anyway. And it’s not like gathering the shadows of the humans here would dramatically increase your combat power either, right? At best they’re ordinary humans. A single Shadow Knight would be enough to turn it into a massacre.

- That’s true too. Understood. Since it’s my master’s command, I’ll gladly obey.

When Jack withdrew again, Su-ho shouted,

“Hey.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Since he didn’t know the proper title, he had just gone with hey.

Then a human who might have been a eunuch or might have been a steward came over.

“Tell all of them to leave the castle. As of today, they’re all fired.”

“Pardon?! What do you mean by that?”

“Because before long, some thugs are going to storm in here and turn this place into a wreck. If you don’t want to die, tell them to get as far away from Phlegrae as possible. If there’s anything they want to take with them, they can take it as severance pay. If they get greedy and stay here too long, then die like dogs, that’s not my problem.”

“Y-you’re joking, right?”

“Am I on the level where I joke around with you? I oughta—”

“Hiiik! U-understood!”

The man ran off in a panic.

And then the other attendants, having heard the news, also began rushing out of the castle for dear life.

Thanks to that, the castle was quickly emptied.

Looking around at the empty castle halls, Su-ho headed outside.

“My first castle ever, and it looks like I’m going to smash it to pieces as soon as I get it.”

It was then.

Gooooooo!

The air vibrated.

Something was coming.

And something very big at that.

Su-ho came out of the castle and stood in front of the courtyard, then raised his head to find the source of it.

And there, high in the sky, countless gods appeared in a flock like migratory birds and gathered above the courtyard where Su-ho stood.

At their appearance, Su-ho greeted Zeus with an expression that pretended to know nothing.

“Father, you’ve come? What brings you here without even sending word?”

Zeus did not answer.

Instead, he lightly jerked his chin toward Su-ho.

Then the first one to descend from the sky was none other than Ares, the god of war.

Ares was in full battle gear, just like he had been during the Gigantomachy.

Seeing that, Su-ho still pretended not to understand and tilted his head.

“Brother, what is this about? The atmosphere feels awfully murderous.”

“......Forgive me, little brother.”

“For what?”

At that moment, Ares exploded with his power and rushed at Su-ho with sword and shield raised.

Slash!

A sharp cutting sound.

“Kuheok!”

At the same time, a groan and splashes of flesh burst out, and someone crumpled.

Not Su-ho, but Ares.

Because just before Ares’s body reached Su-ho, a massive tentacle had shot up from the shadows spread across the courtyard and skewered Ares into the air.

The true identity of the tentacle was Jack.

- No, no. You can’t do that. You can’t suddenly show up and point blades at my master like this.

“You’re the one I saw in the Gigantomachy then......!”

- So you recognize me? That’s right. I am the great Hollow Jack, king of all Shadow Divine Beasts.

The tentacle soon transformed into Jack’s left arm, and once Jack’s full figure was revealed, it looked as though Jack was lifting Ares one-handed, impaled on his left hand.

Jack then released shadow power from his body and wrapped Ares’s body up tightly in it.

Bound so completely that only his face barely stuck out like a bundle wrapped in spiderweb, Ares let out a strained groan.

Su-ho raised his head and said to Zeus,

“Father, just now Brother Ares tried to kill me. Whatever the reason, he attempted to start a slaughter between brothers. Are you really going to stand there and watch in silence?”

“......”

“You remain silent. Understood.”

Su-ho smiled.

And Jack grinned too.

Puh-uhng!!

Then a heavy explosion burst from Ares’s body, which had been bound by shadows.

Thud—roll, roll, roll......

The explosion occurred, but because of the shadow cocoon, no flames or chunks of flesh splattered out.

Instead, only the exposed head fell off and rolled across the ground.

Su-ho quietly walked over and picked up Ares’s severed head.

Zeus’s expression twisted.

Not only Zeus, but the other gods as well.

“You beings who call yourselves gods, you swarm in here with spears and blades because you’re jealous of a single human? Is this the dignity of Olympus as you see it?”

As he went on speaking, Su-ho tossed Ares’s severed head to Jack.

Then a gigantic maw opened from Jack’s body and swallowed Ares’s head whole in a single gulp.

“If I killed a disaster you couldn’t kill yourselves, you ought to spend the rest of your lives thanking me and showering me with rewards, and instead now you’re trying to boil the hunting dog? Gods or humans, in the end you’re all blind with greed and jealousy, and you only hasten your own deaths.”

Su-ho looked at the Olympian gods, then let out a faint laugh.

“How sad. For a little while, even if only here, I’d been enjoying fatherly love to my heart’s content, and now it turns out like this. But I understand. We’re all slaves to the system, so what can we do, right?”

As he continued, Su-ho wiped a dry hand over his face, starting from his eyes and brushing back across his forehead and hair.

Then, wearing the most overbearing expression in the world, he spoke.

“Who was it that said if you’re going to be a lunatic, then be the winning lunatic? Since it’s come to this, let’s all fight our hearts out and enjoy ourselves without regrets.”

The moment he said that, the Olympian gods in the sky all began charging at Su-ho at once.

The outbreak of war.

The beginning of the Titanomachy, the Gigantomachy, and then the third war that followed them—the start of the Olympusmachy.