Becoming a God Starts with Acting-Chapter 289: [Freedom Dove] - Nerio’s part (41) - The Final Conspiracy

Luther’s massive tentacles couldn’t even touch Nerio—they would soon learn who the one truly being crushed was!

A surge of water suddenly materialized from the void, wrapping around Nerio’s entire body. In that instant, Nerio seemed to dissolve into liquid, merging with the water completely.

Then, the water shot upward into the sky—a colossal current of pure, crystalline blue. The swirling torrents intertwined, forming shape after shape at an impossible speed until a massive silhouette emerged from within.

It was a giant merman. His body towered over ten meters tall, his upper half human—pale-skinned, with silver hair streaked with azure strands cascading down to meet a magnificent tail. The ends of his hair shimmered in a brilliant blue hue. His face was so breathtakingly beautiful that it seemed to steal the air from one’s lungs. His eyes glowed with pure azure light, devoid of pupils, from which droplets of blue liquid fell like tears—each drop gleaming against his cheeks like a jewel or ornament.

Above his head hovered a crescent moon, sharp like a blade, and his ears were slightly elongated, webbed with a soft shimmer that glowed even without sunlight—as though every rarest color had gathered there.

But his tail truly stunned everyone—enormous, long, and mesmerizingly beautiful. It stretched nearly twice the length of his body, radiating alternating shades of blue and silver with each graceful movement, as if countless lights were flickering along its surface.

In his hand, he held a trident of ice carved with strange, flowing patterns that covered its entire length. The weapon emitted a cold golden glow—sharp and divine. Droplets of water on his body glittered like ornaments, while a thin veil of silvery liquid—delicate as the finest silk—draped over his form. Jewels adorned his neck, ears, and hair, shining with a brilliance that dazzled the eyes.

A thunderous roar reverberated through the entire dungeon. The heavens and earth trembled like a great deluge was about to sweep across the continent.

All of humanity could only stare, breathless. After so long, they finally saw that form of Nerio once again!

Thunder and lightning streaked across the crimson sky like an unending web of fury. Below, the monstrous creature opened its massive maw, a gigantic orb of dense black energy forming before it—expanding at a terrifying speed.

High above, Nerio raised the trident in his hand. The thunder grew louder and fiercer, turning into blazing pillars of lightning that tore through the land like devoted warriors rallying behind their god.

At the tip of Nerio’s trident, an immense sphere of energy began to form—a radiant blue so bright it was almost silver, arcs of lightning swirling violently around it.

Snowflakes suddenly bloomed in the air, the largest unfurling from where Nerio stood—forming a magnificent, spell-like circle of frost and light.

The creature let out an ear-splitting roar, and the black energy orb it had been gathering launched skyward. The impact pushed its enormous body backward as its countless tentacles lashed upward like spears, aiming to pierce Nerio’s body.

But Nerio swung his arm—his own colossal energy sphere descended from the heavens, and the two forces collided head-on.

The entire sky erupted in an instant! The ground quaked violently, as though the world was on the verge of collapse.

The overwhelming torrents of power clashed, twisting and devouring each other, neither yielding an inch.

Then—out of nowhere—a blinding streak of blue light shot across the heavens like a comet. It sliced through the energy storm, plunging straight down to the earth.

"Pcht!"

The sharp, sickening sound of flesh being pierced echoed clearly. Before the monster could even react, the trident had already driven clean through its body—from its gaping mouth straight out the other side.

"AAAAAAAAHHH!"

The creature’s scream shattered the air. Ice spread across its body at a speed beyond comprehension, freezing everything in its wake. Streams of red-black energy burst from its form, soaring upward in desperation—trying to flee.

At that exact moment, a brilliant silver-blue light exploded outward, engulfing the entire dungeon in a wave of divine radiance.

The red-black sky cracked open, revealing a vast tear of pure light illuminating the entire school grounds.

Leonard lifted his gaze, feeling something cool and delicate fall onto his cheek—a droplet that instantly melted into water.

It was snow.

Pure white snowflakes drifted gently down from the deep blue sky.

The others slowly emerged from beneath Leonard’s wings. Bella lifted her hand, watching a tiny snowflake melt away in her palm before murmuring, "It’s over, right? Nerio won..."

They all looked ahead. The massive trident stood upright, its tip embedded deep into the earth. Atop the weapon’s towering shaft stood Nerio—his figure almost minuscule against the trident’s ten-meter length. From where the humans stood, he looked as though he were standing at the very center of the heavens.

"Ha... ha ha ha ha! HA HA HA HA!"

A hoarse, broken laugh suddenly rang out, so loud it seemed to tear through the air—despite the speaker’s shredded throat.

The icy trident in Nerio’s hand dissolved into countless frost shards and disappeared. He landed softly on the ground, his gaze cold as he turned toward Luther’s mangled remains—a grotesque heap of flesh, eyes, and mouths that somehow still managed to speak.

"You’ve won... you’ve won!" Luther rasped, voice trembling with hysteria. "But what does it matter?! No one will know! No one will ever know!"

The humans rushed closer, though none dared to approach too near. Bella frowned. "What the hell do you mean by that...!? Everything you did was broadcast across the entire continent! You and your damned artificial espers—don’t even dream of becoming humanity’s so-called new hope anymore!"

Luther sneered. "No. Since the Supreme One contacted us, humanity’s connection to this place has been severed. No one outside the dungeon can see what happens inside anymore! Now, with the help of the government’s upper ranks and the Association of Espers, we’ll be the martyrs—killed out of your jealousy and Nerio’s cruelty! No one will resist the power of the Supreme One! He will rule over all humanity—lead you all into annihilation! Ha ha ha ha! The world deserves destruction! Even gods should not exist!"

His bulging eyes twisted toward Nerio, full of spite. "No one will ever believe you!"

"Heh... how interesting," Nerio said instead, to Luther’s surprise. Rather than anger, amusement curved his lips.

"So that means I’ll be the villain, huh? The kind that devours every last human in one bite? Sounds pretty cool. Everyone will be terrified of me, right?" Nerio’s tone was almost cheerful.

"You... your reputation—!" Luther’s fury choked off his words.

Nerio tilted his head, mockery gleaming in his pale eyes. "You think I care about that?"

And with that, he stepped forward and stomped hard on what passed for Luther’s "face."

There wasn’t even time for a scream. Luther’s body burst apart, dissolving into streams of water that quickly evaporated into nothing on the cold ground.

Silence fell.