CHAPTER 60: THE KING-GOD

A week and a half later...

The royal couple, their children, Yan Mo, Maldie, Gari, Sayaka, and Ayame with Rouhuo stood before an massive wooden complex set among the mountains.

"Are you sure this is the place?" Haru asked, surprised, holding Shion’s hand. "Brrr, it’s pretty cold. I wish we’d brought warmer clothes."

"Y-y-yeah..." Asahi said, clinging to him. The boy was shivering.

"Oh, come on, it’s not that bad," Shion the Second said.

"Asahi, is it because you’re half-dragon?" Yuri asked curiously.

"Yeah. We half-reptiles are more sensitive to temperatures, especially while we’re growing," Gari explained. "Sorry kid, you just gotta deal with it. At least your mom’s here, so you can snuggle up."

"Yes, this is the place," Ayame said. "I was here recently with Yuecheng, so that’s probably why Hoshizuma told us to come. I also asked my husband to inform the staff we’d be arriving. Apparently he booked all the rooms for tonight so we’d have the whole place to ourselves."

"He might as well have bought the entire building. A little bit weird he didn’t," Rouhuo remarked.

"That’s true, but Lord Lan Yue’s mind works in mysterious ways," Yan Mo replied.

"If you say so..." Haru sighed, still rubbing Asahi’s back with his free hand to warm him up. "So, should we go inside? The kids will freeze."

"Ah, right," Ayame said. "Let me and Rouhuo go first. The staff already knows us."

"Alright," Haru nodded.

When they stepped inside, they found a small but well-kept wooden room with yellow walls. At the back was a short counter, next to a passage leading deeper into the building. Behind the counter stood a tiny old woman, who immediately approached them.

"Ohh, Your Majesty! Welcome to our humble guesthouse," she said, bowing deeply. "Thank you for trusting us enough to bring your relatives here as well. I hope you all have a wonderful stay."

"I hope we won’t cause any trouble," Ayame replied with a smile.

"Please, right this way," the woman said again, bowing low and gesturing toward the passageway.

*

"Honorable Regent Yue," one of the ministers spoke, "we did as you instructed and... the natural disasters have stopped tormenting the nation. I don’t know where King Shion gained such wisdom and power, but we are truly grateful for this revelation." He bowed deeply.

Yuecheng – or rather Hoshizuma sitting on Shion’s throne – smiled triumphantly.

All I had to do was wait, and the people trusted me. I knew the Fourth would force his gods to attack this country, but gods have brains too. They don’t want to lose worshippers – it weakens their power – so they didn’t kill people.

Ever since I ordered everyone four days ago to destroy the shrines of other gods and replace them with shrines of King Shion, and worship him like a deity, the natural disasters stopped tormenting people or weakened significantly.

Because the gods didn’t just lose their shrines – they lost massive numbers of worshippers all at once, which drastically weakened them. Only the strongest can still threaten the kingdom, but they know they’ll have to deal with me.

Hoshizuma thought.

"If the people want things to stay this way," he said slowly, "then together with my uncle, we’ve devised the next step so everyone can continue enjoying this peace."

"I’m all ears, my lord," the minister said, bowing again.

We both know this isn’t about the people but about your damn profits. You wouldn’t care if people died so long as the crops were safe – especially useful when you run an alcohol business, right, Ming?

"From this day on," Yuecheng said in a firm tone, "the religion of the King-God Shion Hoshigane is to be the only religion of our nation. All other religions must be wiped out. That is my order."

"M-my lord, b-but–"

"Tell me – did worshipping Shion not help them with the unnatural catastrophes that plagued them? Of course it did. Once they believed in their king as a god, their situation changed. You should have no doubts, Ming. Go carry out the order and spread the decree."

"As you wish, my lord," the minister said, bowing again before leaving the hall.

It’s good that Shion is far away. I can feel the rising, pulsing energy in the air – energy born from faith in him: in a man who is not a god, which makes him a god who doesn’t exist.

Normally, in such cases, a god either forms on his own, or some lower, mischievous creature steals the energy and ascends.

I can’t allow either possibility if I want a loyal puppet among the gods. So I’ll create my own. If the Fourth created so many of those pests, I should have no trouble making one myself.

Yuecheng furrowed his brows and raised his open hand.

Hoshizuma focused, thinking about all the energy gathered by Shion’s worshippers – the idea that the god had to resemble the king, be a protector, and also his pawn. Strong enough to withstand attacks from other gods, but not so strong he’d crave independence.

Moments later, Hoshizuma felt the energy of thousands of new followers of the king-god. Gold-silver mist began rising from his hand.

He concentrated even harder, Yuecheng’s brows tightened sharply. He held that tensed expression for several seconds until the mist shot into the floor before him, forming a new god.

The King-God Shion was majestic. He had golden, gleaming skin and hair, silver robes, eyes glowing like twin suns, and a face resembling Shion’s.

The King-God bowed low to Hoshizuma.

"Thank you for granting me life, Great Father. I swear I will not disappoint the hopes of those who believe in me," he said, his voice echoing as though speaking from beyond a wall of stars.

"Don’t forget you were created in the likeness of a human," Hoshizuma replied. Yuecheng’s grimace softened as he lowered his hand and opened his eyes. "A human who is the king of this nation, Shion Hoshigane. You are his divine equivalent, and you must never against him."

"Yes. At the moment of my birth, I could feel the bond connecting us. Whoever that man is now, wherever he may be, I know one thing – he is calm and happy."

"Oh, I’m glad. You see, I told him to rest in the hot springs before the next attack from the gods."

"Attack from the gods? Forgive me, I don’t quite understand, Great Father."

"Please, don’t call me that. ’My lord’ or ’prince’ is enough."

"As you command, my prince."

"You see, right now there is a war for survival. The people of the Hoshigane Kingdom and the entire royal line – perhaps even humanity itself – against the gods and the one who created them. I ordered the destruction of other gods’ shrines and for your name – the king-god’s name – to be worshipped. That reduced the power of other gods so they could no longer torment humans with catastrophes. But that doesn’t mean they won’t want revenge."

"If my duty is to protect my followers, then nothing is simpler. I feel that my blade exists for exactly that purpose, and I will draw it for that reason."

Hoshizuma smirked.

"You even talk like him. Impressive copy – though perhaps I should call you: a creation inspired by him." He laughed. "Yes, protecting those who believe in you is your main task, but... when you fight an enemy god, don’t hesitate to kill them."

"If that is your wish," the god replied, bowing.

"Oh, it absolutely is," Hoshizuma said with a sinister grin. "Wear your name proudly, Shion, but so you’re not bound to just a human name, I’ll give you a divine name too – your own original identity, known only to the two of us."

The king-god bowed.

"Thank you for such a generous gift."

"Your glow... it feels distant yet close. You’re noble, yet near to people. It gives you something alive. You’re gold like light and silver like metal... I know! From now on, you may also use the name Ginsei Kōjin. That’s how I’ll call you – Shion Ginsei Kōjin."

"A beautiful name, my lord. Thank you a hundred times over," Shion Ginsei Kōjin said, bowing again.

"Your power has now been sealed through the simple act of naming. Go and do what you must. Don’t disappoint me, or I’ll end your life in less than a second."

"I promise to be your pride, my prince."

Shion Ginsei Kōjin nodded once, then vanished in a burst of blinding light.

Hoshizuma sighed. He looked at the hand from which the magic had shot out.

One of Yuecheng’s fingers had turned gold, the other silver.

It probably hurt like hell, but his consciousness is asleep, so he didn’t feel anything. Anyway, I don’t care about the side effects, just the goal.

Hoshizuma examined Yuecheng’s deformed fingers, then bent them.

No issues moving them. Good. That means he should be fine, even if I overdid the magic again.

He yawned.

Well, that’s enough for today. I’ve done what I needed to do, and tomorrow... we’ll see. Maybe I’ll finally respond to the Fourth’s provocations...

Hoshizuma thought as he rose from the throne and headed toward the royal chamber that had become his temporary bedroom.