Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 398

“W-What is this......?”

Tsukuyomi looked more shocked than he had been at any point so far.

Is that why?

Watching that reaction is quite amusing.

Seeing a person be surprised is fun, but if the subject is a god, all the more so.

Su-ho asked back.

“Why are you so surprised?”

“This is clearly a small moon derived from a fragment of the Moon...... How do you have this?”

“There’s a bit of a story. Long ago there was a royal house founded by a lunar clan called the Isis family, and by chance I became that family’s head as well as the last king leading the kingdom.”

“Isis? If it’s Isis, don’t tell me......!”

At the word “Isis,” Tsukuyomi tried to act like he knew something.

But he had no choice but to shut his mouth at the system’s immediate sanction that followed.

‘So he does know something.’

Anyway, that damn system.

It’s really unhelpful.

Seeing it come down with such a razor-edged check, however much Tsukuyomi might want to bear constraints to tell me things, at most one piece of information would be his limit.

Su-ho continued.

“I don’t know which Isis you mean, but anyway it’s true they’re an Isis clan that uses the moon’s magic. I was also granted a new name, Henry the Isis. But the Moon Rune is separate from Isis. The Moon Rune is......”

Henry seemed to hesitate for a moment, then spoke honestly.

“I have a vampire’s blood flowing in me. Pure, at that. I released that power to a certain degree, and in the process I received the blessing of the moon and came to possess the Moon Rune.”

“......?”

At Su-ho’s explanation, Tsukuyomi made a dumbfounded face.

What is he even saying?

After a while of silence, Tsukuyomi asked.

“Then what about the Sun Rune? The vampires I know are the polar opposite to sunlight.”

“That’s......”

A rather sharp point.

At Tsukuyomi’s question, Su-ho hesitated to answer for a moment.

But to get more and more detailed information, even if it’s a bit embarrassing, I should lay it all out.

Like telling your lawyer every dirty little secret to get your sentence reduced.

Su-ho said,

“Hard to believe, but I also have dragon’s blood flowing in me. I obtained the Sun Rune in the process of acquiring the power of a true dragon called the Sun Dragon.”

“What?”

“Surprising, but all true.”

“What does that even...... Then you’re human, yet a dragon, yet a vampire?”

“‘Vampire’ has a bit of an off ring to it—could you call it ‘Vampire,’ if you don’t mind? I’m a Royal Vampire among vampires.”

“Fine. Then you’re human, yet a dragon, yet a vamp—no, a Royal Vampire. And the successor to the three Transcendents?”

“Well...... I do also have a giant’s bloodline.”

“W-What?”

“That’s how it turned out.”

“.......”

Tsukuyomi fell silent.

It would probably be better not to mention that I’m a Hercules candidate and a VIP guest of the Great Demon of Greed.

After a silence, Tsukuyomi let out a hollow laugh.

“Absurd and ridiculous, and yet on the other hand, understandable. You’re a Player, after all. No, that must be why it’s possible. For a Player, none of this is entirely impossible.”

“Thanks for understanding. So what do you think about this?”

By now, Su-ho’s Henry Moon had risen above his head, floating like an angel’s halo.

Staring at Henry Moon, Tsukuyomi asked,

“Judging by its size and state, it seems to be pre-germination.”

Su-ho called up Henry Moon’s information.

[ Henry Moon ]

# Emblem of the Isis lineage.

# Still in seed state; germinates by feeding on the owner’s power and desire.

“Right. Not yet.”

“As you can tell from the info, a small moon awakens by feeding on the owner’s mana and desire. If you met the Isis lineage, you must already have experienced a fully awakened small moon, yes?”

A fully awakened small moon.

Su-ho thought of Hex’s Moonless Moon, the first family head.

‘Every time his Moonless Moon became a full moon, it removed all of Hex’s detrimental effects and restored all health.’

How could I forget that?

Knights with strong recovery like paladins were once even called cockroaches.

“Judging by your look, you’ve already seen one. I don’t know what kind of moon you met, but that one’s moon would have complemented the greatest lack among what that person had. The desire to sow in a small moon is something like that.”

At Tsukuyomi’s words, Su-ho nodded.

I see.

Hex was a pure knight, so perhaps a powerful healing ability was the one he most needed.

Su-ho was the same.

Then a thought suddenly came to him.

‘But what am I most lacking right now?’

Hex’s small moon germinated into the Moonless Moon as Hex’s power and his lacking recovery ability blended together.

But Su-ho couldn’t think of any lack off the top of his head.

‘Originally, my lack was healing ability. That’s why, after regression, I chose the healer class instead of swordsman.’

Not that my original swordsmanship ability fell off.

I obtained most of my original swordsmanship by other means.

Barring anomalies, Su-ho will be able to raise his tech according to his laid-out plan and climb back to the realm of the Formless Sword.

‘On top of that, through the New Blood trait I’m acquiring other people’s traits and skills, and I’ve even secured stat levels to a degree I couldn’t have dreamed of in my previous life.’

So what is it that I lack?

Furrowing his brow, Su-ho asked,

“That ‘desire’—does the moon find it in me on its own?”

“What do you mean?”

“No matter how I think about it, it doesn’t feel like I currently lack anything.”

“What is that...... Have you never once in your life felt a sense of lack? Or have you never even made a wish upon the moon?”

“My wish is the end of the Gates. So I’ve always had a hunger for power. But I’m currently the strongest Player in the world, and I intend to remain so. The fact that I’m the successor to the three Transcendents is proof enough, isn’t it? All the more since, if there’s a power I need, I can get it somehow...... To be honest, I don’t really know what ‘lack’ is.”

“.......”

Su-ho calmly laid bare his true feelings.

But to Tsukuyomi, it was nothing short of absurd.

What kind of human is this?

Is this that narcissism or whatever?

Or arrogance?

However, to call it narcissism or arrogance, Su-ho’s eyes were far too sincere and honest.

“Anyway, you’re saying that ‘desire’ is necessary for my small moon to germinate, right?”

“Right. In that sense, you’re quite lucky. I don’t know how you obtained a small moon, but those who possess the Moon Rune originally can only wield the moon’s power on nights when the real moon rises, whereas a small moon in itself shines moonlight imbued with mana—and you can summon it whenever you like.”

Tsukuyomi thought.

Maybe you’re stronger than you think.

Su-ho nodded and said,

“So sincerity is what matters. Then how do I convey that sincerity?”

“That—your little moon will notice before anyone else. From the look of it, you seem to have more than enough foundational power, so all you need to do is find what you feel the most desperate for.”

“Hard.......”

It’s hard.

If only there were a clear answer like in math.

At that moment, the Sun Rune popped into Su-ho’s mind.

“Hold on. Then does the Sun Rune operate on the same principle?”

“Yes. Don’t tell me you’ve never enjoyed the power of the Sun Rune until now?”

“Nope.”

“......Then don’t tell me, like the small moon, you also have a small sun?”

Tsukuyomi tensed up.

Somehow, if it’s Su-ho, he really might have it.

But regrettably, Su-ho had no small sun.

No, he didn’t even know there was such a thing as a small sun.

“No, unfortunately I don’t have that.”

“I see? That’s a pity. So, did my answers help?”

“Yeah, a whole lot.”

“Then as promised.......”

“Ah, wait. I’m not done speaking yet. Don’t you know you have to listen to Korean all the way to the end?”

“I’m a god of Japan, though?”

“That’s true, but anyway there’s a saying to listen to Korean all the way to the end. Long story short, the information you answered was extremely helpful, but it’s still a bit lacking.”

“What do you mean?”

“Originally, you were going to give information to the extent you could bear the system’s constraint, right?”

“What is that...... Didn’t you clearly say that if you got the answers you wanted, that would settle it?”

Tsukuyomi recalled what Su-ho had said.

‘I have a few things I’m curious about—answer those. Even if it means taking the system’s constraint. If I get the answers I want, I’ll let that square us.’

He remembered clearly.

Of course, so did Su-ho.

Su-ho said,

“I did. But some of that information I pieced together from hints. And you already resolved to bear the system’s constraint. «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Sure, I got the answers I wanted. But as I said earlier, I’m someone who will somehow build power for the end of the Gates. To someone like me, a ‘god-race’ is offering big information even at the cost of system sanctions—wouldn’t it be a waste to just let that pass?”

“.......”

Tsukuyomi’s eyes narrowed.

It was a bit of a thug-like idea, but not so wrong that he could deny it.

After all, Players move for their goals and desires.

“......Very well. A vow already made—I shall give information worth bearing the system’s constraint. But I do not know what information that will be. If you’re curious, guide me to it yourself through your questions.”

“That much is nothing.”

He had already decided on the question through the conversation just now.

Su-ho asked,

“You asked earlier what I wanted, right? Originally nothing in particular, but through our talk, I came up with one.”

“What is it?”

“A small sun.”

“What?”

“I learned of a small moon’s existence through Isis. But through you, I just now learned of a ‘small sun’s’ existence. And you said it—if a small moon properly awakens, I can always use the power of the Moon Rune. Then if there’s a small sun, that means I can always use the power of the Sun Rune, right?”

Tsukuyomi fell silent.

Silence is affirmation and gold.

Su-ho’s lips curled up.

“I figured, since you’re the god of the moon, you’re a moon expert who knows the moon better than anyone, so I proposed a trade in exchange for information. Then when it comes to the sun, one of the sun gods, Amaterasu, would know best, right? But you said Susanoo would be in the next stage, and I’ll have to fight Susanoo again. Moreover, in that kind of atmosphere, there’s no guarantee Amaterasu will sit down and talk calmly with me like you. But for some reason, I don’t think you wouldn’t know how to obtain a small sun.”

Su-ho grinned and said,

“So you tell me instead. How do I obtain a small sun? You’re not going to say you don’t know at this point, are you?”

“.......”

Tsukuyomi was silent.

His gaze turned somewhere.

Su-ho couldn’t see it, but it was a system notification.

A system warning not to divulge the small sun.

Thus Tsukuyomi had no choice but to close his eyes for a moment.

How could he demand information that would force me to shoulder such an annoyingly precise constraint?

But there was no choice.

If one truly yearned for power to end the Gates, Susanoo’s power would be something to drool over.

“Very well. I shall tell you.”

Despite the system’s warning, Tsukuyomi shifted his gaze back to Su-ho.

Then, after letting out a sigh, he said,

“There will likely be only one chance, so listen well.”

Tsukuyomi began to explain how to obtain a small sun.

And the moment Tsukuyomi’s words continued—

KWA-BOOOOOOOOOOM!!

From the sky, a super-massive lightning bolt of unprecedented size fell upon Tsukuyomi.