CHAPTER 42: WHAT IS A GOD? [4]

Several Years Later...

Ren was now fifteen.

So was Celestine.

But time hadn’t passed—dragged would be a better word.

Years of pain, of obedience, of submission.

He had endured everything Celestine inflicted—emotional abuse, physical torment, even the sick, silent horrors that couldn’t be named aloud. His soul had decayed, rotting in a body that still somehow breathed.

Celestine had now set her eyes on Entities Hunters High School.

She was preparing for its rigorous entrance exam and—like always—Ren had no choice but to follow.

He filled out the form.

He sat for the exam.

And when the results came, Celestine stood proud with Rank 4.

Ren? Rank 120.

He was sitting alone in the cold stone cell. The walls were stained with time and screams, but now, they simply watched his silence. His knees tucked close, head resting on the wall behind.

CLANK.

The heavy door creaked open. Celestine entered.

Two guards followed, dragging something wrapped in cloth—and a metal branding rod, glowing red-hot, hissing smoke.

"Bring him," she ordered.

The guards moved in, seized Ren by both arms, and dragged him forward.

"Drop him."

THUD.

Ren hit the floor hard, but didn’t flinch.

He looked up slowly, his eyes hollow.

"What do you want?"

His voice was like ash—dry, used, and lifeless.

Celestine smiled. That sweet, venomous smile.

She crouched beside him and gently held his face in her hand, caressing his bruised cheek like a lover.

"As you know... we’re both in EHHS now." She leaned closer. "And I cannot risk my little dog thinking he’s free."

She extended her hand behind. A guard placed the glowing branding rod into her palm.

Her name—CELESTINE—carved in jagged steel at the tip.

"I’m going to brand you... So you never forget who you belong to."

Ren didn’t resist.

He didn’t beg.

He didn’t speak.

She pressed it against his stomach.

SZZZZT!

Flesh sizzled. Smoke rose.

He flinched.

But he did not scream.

She watched him for a moment, then stood.

Without a word, she turned and left.

---

Several Days Later — EHHS Campus

Students gathered and squads were formed. It was all new—so many fresh faces, excitement, nervous energy.

Ren walked through the dorm corridor quietly, heading toward the restroom.

As he pushed the door, he halted.

Inside, by the mirror, stood Celestine—locked in a kiss with a tall, well-dressed student from a noble family.

The Rich Guy—known around campus.

Their lips were tangled—her hands sliding under his shirt, his fingers grasping her waist.

They kissed hungrily. Her body pressed to his as their breaths mingled.

It wasn’t love. It was possession, lust, control.

Ren didn’t stare.

He simply walked past them, toward the urinal.

He peed in silence.

Flushed.

Turned.

WHAM!

A heavy boot collided with the side of his head.

His body flew sideways, crashing into the tiles.

Darkness swallowed his sight.

His mind flickered out like a dying flame—

And in that moment...

Leon’s vision turned white.

"Where... am I?"

Leon looked around, his breath catching in his throat.

The world was white. Endless, weightless white.

He glanced down—

His eyes widened.

"This... isn’t Ren’s body. It’s... mine."

As the realization struck, his knees buckled. He stumbled.

One of his arms—gone.

A leg—missing.

His vision—faded into sheer blankness.

Then—

A whisper like wind on glass.

"I heard realization hits hard. Now seen."

Leon spun his head, trying to locate the voice. But the void gave no direction. Just endless light and absence.

A hand suddenly rested on his shoulder.

Leon jerked away—fell with a harsh thud.

"Ouch—"

"Why’d you jump? I’m not that scary."

The voice.

He knew that voice.

"Ren?!" Leon gasped. "Ren... you’re alive?"

"Sorry to disappoint... but I’m not."

"This is just my last goodbye."

"I thought you’d have questions—after seeing what I lived through."

Ren’s voice wasn’t broken. It wasn’t bitter.

It was peaceful.

Almost... happy.

Leon managed a small smile. "I don’t have questions about your past. It was hell. But asking questions won’t change what happened."

A soft chuckle echoed beside him.

"But," Leon said, his smile fading, "I do have one question."

"Go on."

Leon lowered his head, blind but somehow still looking for him.

"...Why did you sacrifice yourself for me?"

There was silence—then the warmth of Ren’s presence filled the space.

"Because you were the second person who truly understood me."

"After Ruthie."

Ren’s voice grew quieter... more fragile beneath its calm.

"Ruthie believed she was the reason I suffered. That’s why she... she left."

"I didn’t want that to happen again."

"I wanted someone—just someone—to remember me. Remember her. My mother, my father... my sister."

A pause.

"I don’t even know if sister is alive. Or if Celestine’s guards..."

"Forget it."

Leon clenched his fist, jaw trembling.

"I’m not the person you’re looking for, Ren. I’m weak. I couldn’t protect my friends. I lost my arm, my leg, my light—and you, my brother..."

"Leon,"

A hand again rested on his shoulder.

"Strength isn’t just physical. You’ve seen it. Even the president couldn’t defeat Plus One and Minus One—not because she was weak, but because they were united."

"They understood each other’s flaws. Their strengths. Their pain."

"Two bodies. One soul."

"You don’t have to prove anything. You don’t have to be a hero."

"Just live. Smile... like nothing happened."

Leon said nothing. His lips pressed into a thin line, still trembling.

"It’s time I said goodbye."

Ren’s voice was fading. Not in volume—but in existence.

---

Then came the thoughts. Not spoken aloud. Not whispered. Just... thought.

Sometimes i really thought,

What is a God?

Why did He make us?

What was the reason? The intention?

Was He just another entity... amused by watching humans suffer?

Two minds.

Two places.

Leon, in the place where a friend was fading into nothing.

The Person, in the place where all friends had already disappeared.

One, lost in questions.

One, beyond the need for answers.

"Can I ask you a last favour?" Ren’s fading voice echoed in Leon’s mind.

Leon nodded silently.

"Don’t forget me... Ruthie... and my mother and father. Remember us... until your last breath ends. Promise me."

Leon reached out. As his hand touched Ren’s, something stirred—warmth surged through his body. His broken self began to heal. His eyes opened, light returning. He felt his lost arm forming again, his leg strengthening, the pain fading.

And just before Ren vanished completely, Leon saw it—

A smile.

Ren.

Ruthie.

Ren’s Mother.

Ren’s Father.

All smiling at him, saying together:

"Go on... God."

—

In the hospital room, only half an hour had passed. Alexia sat beside Leon’s unconscious body. Suddenly, something shifted.

She flinched, then yanked the blanket back. Her eyes widened.

A soft green glow circled Leon’s lost limbs. His arm regenerated. His leg reformed. Sight returned to his once-dead eyes.

"What... is this?" Alexia whispered, shaken. "Who’s casting this magic?"

—

Inside Leon’s mind—a different world.

Not Leon anymore.

But, The Person.

Rain poured across a vast battlefield. No trees. No grass. Only rocks and endless mud drowning millions of corpses.

He stood alone.

Above blood.

Beyond pain.

Past hope.

Winning or losing,

Loyalty or betrayal,

Friend or foe,

Understanding or delusion,

Life or death,

God or demon.

Two sides of the same coin—flipped by chance.

People will label you to hide what they fear.

Call you savior, if you save them.

Call you tyrant, if you rule them.

Call you kind, if you give.

Call you cruel, if you don’t.

They will turn you into what suits them best.

To understand what people create—

Become the one who created them.

Become the one who shapes meaning.

Become the one above the coin.

Become the...

God.

---

All the thoughts in Leon’s mind shattered like glass as he returned to reality. His vision cleared, and he saw Alexia standing in front of him, alert and guarded. He blinked, confused, scanning the white room around him.

"Where... am I?" Leon asked, his voice hoarse.

Alexia studied him for a second, then exhaled, finally lowering her guard.

"In the hospital. It’s been four days since the battle ended," she replied, her tone calm again.

Leon sat up, slowly piecing everything together. "Hiroshi... Kami. Are they okay?"

"They’re fine. The one who wasn’t okay—was you," she said, crossing her arms. "Then, out of nowhere, your body started recovering like some divine miracle."

Leon blinked. He tried moving his legs, expecting pain—but there was none.

"I can walk. My body doesn’t hurt at all..." he murmured, surprised.

Suddenly, the hospital door burst open.

"BROTHER!!" Hiroshi cried, cartoon tears streaming down his face as he sprinted across the room and tackled Leon into a hug. "I thought you were dead!!"

All the air left Leon’s lungs. "Leave me ALONE!" he wheezed, smacking Hiroshi on the head.

"Stop your gay-ish drama, idiot! God, I thought I was dead!"

Hiroshi stepped back, rubbing the spot Leon had hit. "You were about to kill me with that hug," Leon muttered, catching his breath.

Behind them, Kami stood quietly, tears in her eyes—but smiling. Leon noticed her and stretched out his arm.

She walked up slowly and embraced him.

"I thought you were gone," she whispered. "You were in such a horrible state after the battle."

Leon smiled faintly. "I can’t die. Not until I make sure my comrades are safe."

Kami pulled back, wiping her eyes. Then, without warning, she hugged Hiroshi too.

Hiroshi flinched, startled. "Don’t scare me like that!"

"I’m not trying to scare you, you idiot. I’m just... so glad you two are okay."

Leon and Hiroshi both laughed.

Kami pouted. "Why are you laughing? I didn’t say anything funny."

Leon looked at her, then out the window.

"You’re just... caring for us like a—"

He stopped mid-sentence, then whispered with a soft smile,

"—like a mother."

Alexia, who had quietly been observing the entire time, gave him one last look—then turned and silently left the room.