The Immortal Had a Guardian Spirit – Chapter 28

Author: nicotine

“Father, that’s… please just hear me out first.”

He remembered that bastard back then, looking troubled before suddenly growing in size, revealing his true form and approaching. As if proving he wasn’t human, he grew moment by moment until he surpassed even the height of the first disciple—that overwhelming stature, and the shifting eye color along with it, had been utterly chilling.

With the proof that what he’d heard was true standing right before his eyes, he had indeed lost his reason.

“…”

His eyes met Deceiver’s. Abhorrently, the bastard was hiding his eyes as if they were ordinary, but aside from that, his appearance hadn’t changed a bit from back then.

And overlaying that image with the bastard from that time—

Splash—

Raven raised his reclining upper body.

The blood-water filling the tub spilled over the edge. In that state, he drew up his knees and raised one hand, tilting his head against it. Following the tilt, his wet black hair hung down long, and his fingers gripping his head tightened.

Crack—tendons stood out on the back of his hand.

“Father?”

“…Get out.”

“Father.”

“Get out!!!”

At the same time, the guardian spirit appeared from thin air and descended between them. Stepping back to evade the swung blade, Deceiver looked past him at Raven behind.

His expression, previously hidden by his bowed head, was now revealed.

Though the green eyes that had held demonic energy had returned to the guardian spirit, his gray eyes—sharp with killing intent—glared at where Deceiver stood. Rage so vivid it would make anyone’s knees buckle flowed across his face.

‘…Why?’

He’d apologized, so why this fury?

Blinking in confusion at the incomprehensible situation, Deceiver decided it was best to withdraw for now and obediently turned away. Raven was too agitated.

“I’ll be outside. I’ll wait—come out when you’ve calmed down.”

“…”

Even after Deceiver disappeared, Raven continued to breathe heavily in agitation. His momentum cracked, and a low curse slipped through his teeth.

“Damn it…”

How long had it been since he’d been this emotional? And that the cause was a bastard like that made it all the more irritating.

Thanks to dissolving the herbs in the bath, all his wounds had closed. He got up, wiped himself dry, and put on the clothes provided. His eyes were still with the guardian spirit, but whenever he faltered, the spirit guided him, so there was no difficulty.

The guardian spirit’s touch reached his still-damp hair. After silently letting him attend to it for a moment, Raven lowered his eyes—seeing nothing—and called out to him.

“…Ancestor.”

“[Yes.]”

“He’s a demigod.”

Even if not a complete one, he’s still a bastard with the title ‘god.’

“Which means he’s on a completely different level from a guardian spirit who can’t surpass the realm of the dead.”

The hand gently drying his long hair with a soft towel paused. Raven, regardless, calmly recited his reproachful words toward the one who had come out for him.

He had to.

“Why did you come out when I didn’t call you?”

What if you ended up being destroyed?

It was fortunate that Deceiver had been distracted by ‘Father’s’ rage—if his anger at the insolent spirit blocking his path had been greater, it could have been a disaster.

Even if his mouth were torn apart, he’d tried not to summon the guardian spirit in front of that bastard—yet he came out on his own like this.

“You know—in front of him, even messages have to be sent carefully.”

Those of higher rank than the guardian spirit can see the messages it sends. Given Deceiver’s personality, staying quiet, acting as if he didn’t exist, was the best policy.

The answer that came back was calm.

“[Because it looked like you were about to cry.]”

“…When did I ever.”

“[Child, I didn’t lend you my eyes so you’d cry. I didn’t lend them so you’d suffer from seeing bad things.]”

If the child is about to break again, what does destruction matter?

The destruction of a worthless soul that only accumulates karma with every movement—he didn’t care. Just like ten years ago, when he saw the child about to lose his reason, the guardian spirit stepped in personally, cutting off Raven’s thoughts and blocking his vision.

“[To one who cannot see, a rose is just a thorny, painful thing. I wanted you to use these eyes to avoid the thorns and enjoy the beauty of the roses. I wanted you to avoid the bad as much as possible, keep your eyes on the good, and see the flowers blooming on cacti even in the desert.]”

“…”

“[And yet you take that bastard into your eyes and suffer—how could I not step in?]”

A voice laced with warmth gently soothed his heart.

Raven squeezed his eyes shut. Unable to answer easily, he only moved his lips in the deep darkness for a long while. What he chose at the end of the silence was—

“Go back.”

“[…]”

“No matter what that bastard Deceiver does, never step in.”

—to deflect.

∞ ∞ ∞

The guardian spirit returned without answering the last remark. Likely his own form of refusal to the request not to intervene.

The moment he left, Raven borrowed the eyes again. And the first thing he did was clean up the blood that had refluxed up his throat.

Careful not to get it on his clothes, he spat out the blood, wiped his mouth again… After spending a bit more time in the bathroom, he finally shuffled out—and stopped in his tracks upon seeing Deceiver waiting for him.

“You’re out. Do you like the clothes? I recall you prefer light, thin garments, Father.”

“…”

“The temperature is perfect for this outfit, isn’t it? I went out of my way to make sure the entire palace was well-heated—”

“…Haah.”

To think the first person he saw with his newly borrowed eyes was that bastard. The fierce anger from before was gone, but a sigh escaped him nonetheless.

Without bothering to answer, he walked past him and sat on the edge of the bed.

“Get to the point.”

“…As you know, in this northern Empire, heating an entire building is a symbol of wealth. While you’re staying in this palace—”

“Quickly.”

“Father.”

“Deceiver.”

“…Just a little…”

When he kept coming at him like this, even his already-short patience had no choice but to wear thin. Deceiver’s expression darkened.

“Can’t you just accommodate me a little?”

“…”

“After all, what you want can only be obtained through me.”

Raven can die by killing Deceiver. The gate problem that needs to be resolved is also connected to Deceiver.

I am the only one who can free you from endless life.

“So let’s get to the point, as you wish. I’ll make you a proposal.”

It’s not that difficult.

Deceiver slowly approached the silent Raven, pressing in.

“Worship me, Father.”

I apologized, didn’t I?

“If the word ‘worship’ makes you uncomfortable, simply looking after me is enough. Acknowledge my existence—acknowledge that I am a ‘god.'”

Don’t turn away from me.

“In return, I will grant you anything you desire.”

As long as you don’t turn away from me, I have no intention of doing you harm. Rather, I would give you every good thing.

There were times I thought it might be easier to just break completely, but I know that you, Father, would choose destruction rather than be manipulated by my will. That’s why I’m going to such lengths to coax you.

“All you have to do is make me complete.”

The inferiority complex and hunger that come from being incomplete are more intense than anything else. If you do that, I will move to fulfill whatever you desire. Quite convenient, wouldn’t it be?

So.

‘With that high status you possess—make me.’

Please.

∞ ∞ ∞

Deceiver is a demigod.

And not even a proper one—an incomplete demigod born as an error when the world underwent upheaval.

That point had been a fierce sore spot, an unremovable thorn in his throat, tormenting him for a long time.

Unless this was resolved, he would never be happy for the rest of his life. So Deceiver had searched for a way to become a complete being, and he’d thought of the most realistic and somewhat possible method.

‘Being worshipped by someone of high status.’

‘Gods’ are born from the worship of humans.

Many humans believing that what doesn’t exist does exist, and that what does exist is sacred—that is the beginning of faith, the foundation upon which supernatural beings are born.

That is how the existence of ‘ghosts’ was acknowledged, and how ‘guardian spirits’ came to exist alongside them.

In fact, the ‘true’ demigod that exists in the Kingdom of Esperanza was also born from a tree that humans believed to be divine.

‘The reason a god’s birth requires many humans and a long, tedious time is because a certain threshold of status is needed.’

The status that each individual human possesses is absurdly low.

After all, how much status can beings who live at most a hundred years accumulate? Even if a reincarnated soul brings along its past life’s accumulation, few have lived lives extraordinary enough to shake the world, be recorded in history, and pile up high status. Such people tend to believe in themselves rather than gods anyway.

That’s why even Esperanza’s demigod took so long to be born. Deceiver, with his short patience, didn’t want to pour an indeterminate amount of time into something he couldn’t even be sure would work.

‘Father possesses high status.’

In that sense, Raven is a very suitable candidate for birthing a god.

Though he hasn’t realized it yet, he clearly possesses an astonishingly high status.

One act of worship from him is more effective than the worship of millions of ordinary people. If he were worshipped by such a person—even if reaching ‘godhood’ is difficult—perhaps he could escape the category of ‘error’ and become a complete demigod.

Clutching that hope, Deceiver looked at Raven.

∞ ∞ ∞

“…Ha.”

What colorful nonsense.

Raven let out a hollow laugh.

“Right, you were a half-baked god.”

“…”

Deceiver’s brow twitched.

Ignoring that, Raven propped himself up on the bed behind him, raised his gaze to the ceiling, and spat out a dry voice without even looking at Deceiver.

“Whatever you say, in the end you want me to keep living for a long time, don’t you?”

For my death to be accomplished means your death.

Whatever reason you attach to it, to achieve what you want, I have to stay alive first.

“As a son, if I were to add a little more greed, then yes. If you could just live a little longer—”

“Just a little, longer?”

As a son—truly tiresome.

Raven deliberately wore a sneer on his face.

“Don’t make me laugh. You want me to live until you become a ‘complete being,’ don’t you?”

“…”

“Because you’re half-baked.”

When you were laying out everything you wanted, you didn’t hold back—why are you trying to dress it up now?

Raven understood why Deceiver sought his worship. It was so obvious he couldn’t miss it.

In the first place, what reason could an incomplete being bearing the title ‘god’ have for wanting to be worshipped?

“Ah, but I suppose you can’t even be called half-baked.”

Gods are born from human faith. It’s about quality over quantity—the worship of one high-status individual is more efficient than that of many low-status ones.

Though he didn’t know the details, he must possess an unusual status, living beyond a fixed lifespan with an immortal body.

Deceiver was after that.

“Incomparably lower in status than a true demigod—”

“Father.”

Deceiver grabbed Raven’s throat.

“You should choose your words carefully.”

“…”

He tried to appear composed, but his emotions seemed quite stirred—the color of his black eyes had spread into the whites.

Raven, gazing at him silently at the bloody warning, curled the corner of his mouth. His eyes crinkled, and a cold smile spread across his face.

“You said to worship you, didn’t you?”

“…”

“What, do you think that’ll make you a complete being?”