Evangelist Eve (2)
Sunday means I am the jjajang ramen chef. Eve kept chanting the magic phrase Lee Shin had taught her while simmering the broth. Today wasn't Sunday, but so what? Lee Shin himself was a god.
If a god says it's Sunday, then today is Sunday.
"Eat as much as you like, everyone! This is a blessing bestowed by God. God has said that this jjajang ramen will feed all people to their fill—and still leave behind twelve baskets!"
The people, who had been sniffing the air cautiously, finally began to eat the jjajang ramen. With no chopsticks or forks, they scooped it up with their hands, devouring it without even noticing the heat in their hunger. Some residents even began to cry.
"I-it's a heavenly taste.""Waaah, it's so delicious.""The savory broth is incredible. I think I could live just drinking this soup.""Hic… I don't even remember the last time I ate something this warm. It's the kind of food my late mother would've loved..."
After devouring the jjajang ramen in the blink of an eye, the residents wore dazed expressions. As even Lee Shin felt deeply satisfied, the people of the city began to approach Eve hesitantly.
"T-this food is far too precious… How could we ever repay such kindness...?"
Eve smiled brightly.
"You don't need to repay me. This is a blessing from the heavens bestowed by God—a single day of fullness granted to the lambs of this land who suffer from hunger and pain.""Pardon? God...?""I have come to this land to bring you salvation."
With star-shaped pupils sparkling brightly, Eve surveyed the would-be believers. But the people who had just eaten the ramen as if they'd throw away their pride and dignity suddenly recoiled when they heard the word "God."
"Another cult fanatic?""Now they're trying to lure us in with food..."
A cult fanatic? Judging by their reactions, the residents seemed to have completely misunderstood. It looked like they were lumping Eve together with the people loitering in front of subway stations.
"Right. There's no way pure goodwill could still exist in this world.""We're sorry, but..."
Their gazes grew colder by the second. Watching the troubled look in Eve's eyes, Lee Shin cleared his throat softly and opened his mouth. In the next moment, a thunderous voice rang out.
"Little children."
At the same time, every resident's face turned deathly pale.
"Why do you deny me?"
The instant Lee Shin's voice fell, the residents of the Red City of Jepet began to tremble violently and look up at the sky.
"This… this can't be."
There was no need for petty persuasion or logical proof. They could feel it in their skin, and the small souls of the small dwarves were crying out.
Your god has come.
"We thought… we thought God had abandoned us."
When the moment of destruction arrived, the god who ruled the dwarves' world had forsaken His creations. No matter how desperately they cried out for help, God never answered. In the midst of that horrific sense of loss, the dwarves' religion vanished without a trace. In despair, faith disappeared. Hope disappeared.
All that remained were cults.
That was why the dwarves left behind in the Small and Lethal World all resented the very existence of gods and felt strong aversion toward any religion that appeared.
But—
"A new one has appeared."
A great, omniscient, and omnipotent being had returned. The dwarves felt a fullness rising from deep within their souls.
The sense of fulfillment that had vanished when God abandoned them—something they had thought they would never feel again. In this lonely, desolate world, they were no longer alone. They could clearly feel that a god who would care for them had appeared anew.
Lee Shin did not know this, but in a world where gods truly existed, being abandoned by one's creator and god was a truly horrifying thing. The dwarves had long been children abandoned by their parents, lambs cast aside by their shepherd, dust rolling across the land after losing all purpose.
But when a god returned to them once more, only then did the dwarves become dwarves again—no longer beings discarded by the world, but beings worthy of care, love, and life itself.
"You are no longer alone, dwarves."
Like a bolt of lightning, a thunderous sound rang out again and again, loud enough to deafen. Yet not a single person grimaced.
"There is no need to fear, little ones. I will not leave your side, and I will personally watch over and care for your ruined world so that it does not completely disappear."
"I will embrace you and become your shelter. I will become your parent. I will be your companion and your eternal place of rest. When you are at your most wretched and insignificant, your god will not turn away, but will take responsibility for you until the very end."
Even if it meant losing their hearing today, the dwarves were willing—joyfully willing—to endure it.
"I proclaim this. The abandoned and desolate world of the dwarves has reclaimed a new god today. From this day forward, no one shall dare call the dwarves abandoned. If your faith is eternal, then your glory shall be eternal as well."
As the voice that repaid all their long-held sorrow fell, Eve—straining as she climbed atop the pot—shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Rejoice!! The Savior has come!!"
Clenching her fist tightly, Eve continued to shout.
"Praise Him, praise Him!"
"..."
"The Savior for the little ones has come—everyone, bow down and worship!!"
At Eve's cry, those who had been standing there blankly began to bow their heads to the wasteland ground one by one. Drops of water started to fall over the heads of those showing their faith.
The great drought that had lasted for over a hundred years after being abandoned by God was finally over. Gazing at the rain pouring down from the once-dry sky, the people opened their mouths wide and let the rain bestowed by God soak their entire bodies.
It truly was a blessing.
71% of the residents of the Red City of Jepet believe in you.
Your number of believers has increased by 71.
Current believers: 72
There are many new believers.
Please manage their faith carefully.
Since everyone seemed to have starved badly just like Eve, Lee Shin poured rain using not only the water bottles in the room, but every single two-liter bottle of water in the house.
With seventy-one believers gained, a new status window appeared before Lee Shin's eyes.
Conditions have been met.
Please appoint an [Apostle] to manage your believers!
TIP: You cannot perfectly manage an entire world on your own.
TIP: An apostle will gladly spread faith for you and faithfully carry out your will so that belief does not fade.
TIP: Choose the one you trust the most.
TIP: Of course, you can't choose me!
TIP: 0*
Lee Shin realized that the position of apostle was essentially a kind of middle manager. If that was the case, there was only one perfect candidate—the first friend he had ever made in this world.
The lower-rank believer [Eve] has been appointed as your glorious first apostle.
The believer rank has increased.
Congratulations, lower-rank believer Eve has become a [mid-rank believer]!
Eve, who had been dancing wildly, lifted her head above the pot. Tilting her chin up as she looked toward the sky, she screamed at the top of her lungs.
"Kyaaaaaaah!"
Clenching both fists tightly, Eve shouted,
"O God, O God! I'm so moved! Waaahhh, long live—long liiive! Bow down, all people, bow dooown—waaahhh!"
Ding. A status notification chimed.
The status has been updated.
The small and cute believer closest to Lee Shin
Name: Eve
Lineage: High-ranking Clergy (First Apostle)
Overall Evaluation: Excessively excited. Looks like she could do twenty consecutive somersaults. Her faith has soared past the sky and filled the very edge of the universe.
At the same time, status notifications continued to pop up in succession.
You have reached a cumulative total of 50 believers.
Achievement reward granted.
World Interference – [Apostle Management] tab unlocked.
World Interference – [Tribute] tab unlocked.
World Interference – [Descent] tab unlocked.
World Interference – [Summon] tab unlocked.
All interference power has been consumed.
[World Oversight] has been Released .
Consumed interference power will recover in 12 hours.
In the year Lee Shin was born, a rift opened, and some of humanity awakened supernatural abilities. They gained all kinds of different powers, but they shared one thing in common: every time they entered a rift and fought monsters, they could grow stronger.
It was similar to gaining experience points by killing monsters in an RPG, but Lee Shin's ability seemed to grow in a different way.
Divine power increased the more believers he had, and the more influence he exerted, the more his interference power grew as well. The way Lee Shin earned the resources to wield his mysterious power was unusual.
Lee Shin was fairly satisfied with having awakened a power different from everyone else's. He didn't have the confidence to bravely enter rifts and fight monsters like Choi Bom did.
Rather than killing something, Lee Shin was the type of person who liked helping, caring for, and getting along with others. Just like now, he liked spending time quietly with cute, small beings.
– Did things like that really happen?
"Yeah. This time I made Eve an apostle, and a bunch of new tabs opened up. Feels like I'll be able to do a lot from now on."
– You said you're the god of that world, right? That's fascinating. From what I learned, the Otherworld Exploration ability is really tricky. I heard that residents of other worlds don't welcome outsiders at all, so it's extremely hard to get close to them—and you can even get attacked if you're not careful.
"They're all really nice to me. Kind, too."
– That's a relief! Guess it's nice that you've got lots of friends now besides me, huh?
"Still, you're the best."
– Tch. Next time we go out, I'll buy you meat.
While talking on the phone with Choi Bom after her work hours, Lee Shin told her about what had happened in the Small but Lethal World. It was an unprecedented and unusual ability, but whether it was his parents or Choi Bom, everyone thought, "Well, if it's Lee Shin, I guess that could happen."
The news that he'd awakened didn't feel all that shocking—Lee Shin had always been an unusual kid ever since childhood.
"It'd be nice if I could make money with this ability and buy you meat. You're always the one paying—this time, I want to treat you."
– No thanks. I buy you food because I want to, you know? Don't go chasing money and end up losing the small but certain happiness we've got. You finally made friends besides me—just think of it as traveling and enjoy it comfortably.
As expected, Lee Shin was surrounded by good people.
– By the way, did you read your status window properly? There's probably a lot of useful information in there.
"No, I didn't really read it carefully."
– Idiot. Read through it properly sometime, and if there's anything you don't understand, ask me. What's the point of having a friend going through hunter training if you don't use them for help when it counts?
"It's fine. The status window explains things pretty well."
Even for the smallest problem, it would always send messages called TIPs. But at Lee Shin's words, Choi Bom responded with a doubtful "Hmm," as if something felt off.
– The status window isn't usually like that, though…?
"Not like that? It answers carefully whenever I ask even one question—super convenient. It's kind of cute, too."
– Cute? The status window is infamous for having a terrible attitude. And cute? It's usually so curt and unfriendly that everyone says they want to punch it at least once a day.
Listening to Choi Bom, Lee Shin scratched his head and then stared blankly into the air. Soon—
Ding. A status window appeared.
TIP: (0 ·~· O)?
No way. Lee Shin thought Choi Bom was just exaggerating again, as usual with her constant grumbling.
– Anyway, I've got to get ready for roll call, so I'm heading out. If we meet on the weekend, tell me more then, okay? I want to see that tiny, scurrying kid for myself at least once.
"Got it. I'll call you again."
Click—the call ended. Sitting there quietly, Lee Shin thought it might not be a bad idea to try what Choi Bom had suggested. No matter what it was, you were supposed to read the manual carefully.
"She's busy herself, but she still tries to help."
Trainee hunter training was supposedly so busy you barely had time to breathe. If he had questions, he could always ask somewhere else instead of bothering Choi Bom. Lee Shin turned his head slightly and looked into the empty air.
Before long, a reply came.
Ding!
TIP: I'll explain everything from one to ten for you!
TIP: 4(<);