Subtitle: Becoming the World’s Enemy?
Qiweiya stared down at the crowd, their attire so ostentatious it rivaled the delusions of a chuunibyou. Her eyes, devoid of emotion, turned to Lysander.
“Are you certain I haven’t stumbled into a world teeming with lunatics?” she inquired.
Lysander, lifting her gaze, responded with a perfectly blank expression.
“What if they are all special class professionals?”
“Don’t tell me they’re called Heroes,” Qiweiya deadpanned, “and that dark, shadowy one is the Demon King.”
Lysander, ever one to drop a bombshell, merely stated, “You are correct.”
Qiweiya looked as if she were on the verge of tears.
“But… it seems we were summoned by the Demon King!”
Lysander remained utterly expressionless.
“You only need to know that you are the one destined to save this world.”
Years welled in Qiweiya’s eyes.
“But… those Heroes have started attacking me!”
“No,” Lysander replied. “That is merely your misconception.”
Qiweiya swept her hands through the air, instantly obliterating all incoming magic attacks.
“You must be doing this on purpose! This is outrageous!”
As Qiweiya and Lysander landed, they turned to face the hulking figure in full black armor behind them, whose laughter was undeniably lewd.
“You are the Demon King?” Qiweiya questioned.
The Demon King strode directly towards Qiweiya.
“Gah-hah-hah! My dearest friend! To think you would reincarnate as a female? How utterly amusing!”
Qiweiya’s face twitched. How dared this Demon King provoke her tender spot? He was practically begging for death!
“Bang!”
With a single kick, she sent the Demon King flying, straight through the wall of his so-called castle. She clenched her fists, a furious gleam in her eyes.
“The thing I despise most are you types who can’t help but court death! And now another one appears? Perfect, I’ll just let off some steam!”
The Demon King clambered out of the gaping hole, his armored finger pointing accusingly at Qiweiya.
“Who exactly are you?! My dearest friend would never attack me like this!”
Qiweiya glanced at the wary Heroes who were now keeping their distance, then turned back to face the Demon King.
“Listen carefully! I am the otherworldly deity dispatched by the Creator God to eliminate you! I am Qiweiya, the Origin God and Goddess of Ice and Snow!”
Lysander gently patted Qiweiya, who was clearly reveling in her grand pronouncement.
Qiweiya turned, a flicker of irritation crossing her face.
“What is it? Can’t you see I’m in the middle of making a grand entrance?”
“My Lady,” Lysander calmly explained, “your actual mission is to maintain the balance between the two factions.”
“Gah!”
Qiweiya exploded in a fit of rage, swearing vehemently.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?! My entire dramatic pose was utterly wasted!”
Lysander calmly wiped a speck of spit from her face.
“That was merely your own oversight, My Lady. Your true course of action now should be to repel the Heroes who have arrived here.”
Qiweiya was so incensed she felt she might vomit blood.
“Fight the Heroes?! Is the Creator God out of his mind? Shouldn’t I be vanquishing the Demon King to bring peace to the world? This isn’t following the script at all! What a damn cliché!”
Lysander pointed towards the eager, challenging Heroes.
“My Lady, shouldn’t you now deliver a painful lesson to these humans?”
Qiweiya wrung her hands, burying her face in them.
“I’m still stuck in memories! Damn it, Aqua!”
“Bang! Bang!”
Her Destroyer gauntlets snapped into place, clashing together.
“Since this is my mission, I suppose I have no choice. You can only blame that accursed Creator God!”
She instantly materialized amidst the Heroes.
“Hey!”
With a single sweeping strike, she incapacitated several of them.
A young Hero seized the momentary stiffness in Qiweiya’s posture to unleash a powerful ultimate skill. Qiweiya, however, merely scoffed.
“You think such paltry sword energy can defeat me? Don’t dream!”
She squeezed. “Bang!”
The sword energy was instantly crushed in Qiweiya’s hand. She then kicked the young man flying, only to discover several negative status spells had been cast upon her, much to her surprise.
‘I can’t believe there’s magic capable of interfering with me,’ she mused. ‘Is it because I’m not in my own world? No! My connection to the origin has been severed?!’
Qiweiya was struck by a colossal hammer, sent flying, but managed to dig her heels into the ground, barely stabilizing herself.
Qiweiya surveyed her surroundings. Both the Demon King’s forces and the Heroes’ faction had encircled her.
This feeling of being an enemy to the entire world… Ha ha! It was absolutely magnificent!
Qiweiya lifted her head, her emerald green eyes shifting to a piercing ice-blue.
“Connect! Oh, Ice and Snow Origin of this world! I am Qiweiya, the Goddess of Ice and Snow, who upholds balance! Let me scorn all beneath the heavens!”
“Oooommm—bang bang bang bang…”
After a world-shattering hum, a sound like shattering glass echoed throughout the realm.
The light in Qiweiya’s eyes intensified. She had grasped something that had been absent in her own world.
‘So that’s it… I haven’t been utilizing the Origin sufficiently? In that case! My power shall reign supreme across this world!’
To the terrified expressions of both the Demon King and the Heroes, Qiweiya placed her hands flat against the ground, a frown creasing her brow.
“Hey—rise for me!”
The earth quaked, mountains crumbled, and the very ground split apart. Qiweiya had forcibly ripped out a colossal slab of the continent’s foundation.
Qiweiya’s eyes blazed with a crimson light.
“Begone, all of you!”
The colossal slab, which stretched towards the heavens, was hurled towards the Heroes with effortless ease, as if it were a mere toy in Qiweiya’s hands.
“Rumble rumble rumble…”
The Heroes, utterly terrified, turned pale and immediately used what appeared to be recall skills to flee the area. The massive stone slab crashed into the towering mountains, triggering landslides, collapsing peaks, and plowing through the earth. It finally ceased its movement only after carving a super-gorge that stretched for a million miles.
Qiweiya looked closer, realizing that the slab had been forcefully halted by the combined magic of those mages. After all, behind them lay Valkyrie City, the very foundation of the Heroes’ power.
Qiweiya turned to face the Demon King, who instinctively tried to wipe away sweat, only to remember he was wearing his helmet. He reluctantly lowered his hands.
Qiweiya stared coldly at the being known as the Demon King.
“Do you know what you must do now?”
The Demon King nodded frantically.
“Yes, yes! I understand! My Lady, I will no longer attack humans!”
Lysander leaned closer to Qiweiya’s ear.
“My Lady, you cannot allow the Demon King to cease his attacks on humans. Otherwise, the ‘balance’ will be broken, and humanity will lose its motivation to advance.”
Qiweiya’s face was a mask of disbelief and exasperation.
“What… what kind of twisted logic is this? Damn this balance! Unbelievable! The Creator God must be deliberately tormenting me, right? I’m going on strike!”
Lysander remained utterly impassive.
“If so, My Lady, your powers will also be reclaimed. You will truly become a mere mortal.”
Qiweiya suppressed the overwhelming urge to directly confront the Creator God, pinching her nose as she reluctantly conceded.
“Fine! I’ll let them fight now!”
Qiweiya turned and pointed at the Demon King.
“You.”
“Ah? Ah! Are you calling me, My Lady?”
Qiweiya regarded the Demon King’s complete change in demeanor with a hint of disdain.
“From now on, you will attack humans as fiercely as ever! Remember, be as ruthless as possible! Understood?”
The Demon King bowed repeatedly, practically kowtowing.
“Yes, yes, yes! Your humble servant obeys!”
Lysander leaned into Qiweiya’s ear once more.
“The Creator God has also decreed that both factions must attack you, My Lady, at regular intervals.”
Qiweiya’s face flushed crimson with fury.
“Just tell me where the Creator God is! I’ll go eliminate him myself and save everyone this trouble!”
Lysander remained utterly expressionless.
“That is impossible. I am the Creator God’s most loyal messenger; I could never betray him.”
Qiweiya gazed at the impassive Lysander, truly wanting to swat her away. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. ‘She’s a girl, what am I supposed to do? I can’t possibly hit a girl, can I? I don’t want to be single for life!’
Qiweiya dispelled the Destroyer gauntlets from her arms, sighing in resignation.
“Fine! I’ll listen to you one last time. But if you have any more demands, I’m going straight back to my original world. I’m not playing anymore.”
The Demon King, who had been watching Qiweiya, turned away, almost in tears.
“My Lady, please, just tell me if you have any other demands! My domain truly cannot accommodate a ‘great god’ like you!”
Qiweiya scratched her nose, a touch sheepishly.
“Well… it’s nothing much, really. It’s just that from now on, you and the humans will have to collectively ‘raid my dungeon’ every now and then.”
The Demon King nearly leaped in fright.
“No, no, no! I won’t go!”
Qiweiya glared, her voice laced with menace.
“If you refuse to go, then I will drag you into another dimension and show you what ‘Patchouli GO’ truly means. I doubt you’d want that, would you?”
Though the Demon King had no idea what ‘Patchouli GO’ was, the profound malice emanating from this being from the Great Thousand Worlds told him exactly how to respond.
“Yes, yes, yes! I will obey My Lady’s commands!”
Qiweiya smiled, a picture of innocent charm.
“You truly are a sensible Demon King, after all. A teachable child, indeed. Since that’s settled, I’ll announce this news to the world later. I’ll take my leave now.”
Qiweiya led Lysander into the colossal gorge she had just created with her attack.
“I think I’ll build a palace here.”
With a mere wave of Qiweiya’s hand, a magnificent floating city of ice materialized in the middle of the immense gorge.
Qiweiya stroked her chin thoughtfully.
‘Something still feels missing… Ah, right! Bridges. Without bridges, the Demon King’s army and the Heroes won’t all be able to come and attack me.’
Qiweiya thoughtfully connected eight bridges directly to the ice city. She even considerately prepared rest stops, akin to transit stations, for those who might not endure the entire journey.
Lysander, having observed the entire process, offered another suggestion with her usual impassive demeanor.
“My Lady, don’t you think a beacon would be appropriate?”
Qiweiya’s mouth twitched as she stared wordlessly at the expressionless Lysander.
“Are you trying to make me a world BOSS? I feel like I’m just some super monster destined to be raided. I’m seriously worried if I get defeated, I’ll drop a Dragon-Slaying Blade or gold… or maybe a pet egg.”
Lysander remained as calm as ever.
“That will not happen. This is a real world, not a game world. You are overthinking it.”
Qiweiya pouted.
“Alright! Since it’s a request from you, the great messenger, I can only obey.”
A gigantic beacon appeared above the ice city, displaying a glowing prompt: ‘Goddess of Ice and Snow Weekly Dungeon (Mandatory).’
Qiweiya gave Lysander a deadpan look.
“This should suffice, yes?”
Lysander nodded.
“It will. Please issue the world quest, My Lady.”
Qiweiya covered her face.
“Divine oracle is fine… but ‘world quest’? I seriously doubt if this isn’t a game world after all.”
‘Oh, beings of this world! I, Qiweiya, the Goddess of Ice and Snow, have been dispatched by the Creator God to maintain the so-called balance here. Henceforth, every seven days, regardless of your faction, you must collectively assault the City of Ice. Along the bridges, I have thoughtfully considered your physical and mental stamina, and have established transit stations that will surely satisfy all you討伐者. Come! Indulge in revelry! I await the moment of my defeat at your hands!’
Qiweiya, ignoring the world’s reaction, covered her flushed face and rushed into the palace.
“This is utterly mortifying! Why did I suddenly get chuunibyou again?! Waaah… I can’t show my face anymore!”
Lysander tilted her head, clearly not comprehending Qiweiya’s behavior.
“What a peculiar deity. However, my mission is mostly complete. I wonder what deeper meaning the Creator God’s actions hold, but as a messenger, I need only obey.”