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War. War never truly ends… Well, wait, maybe this isn’t the time to bring that up. Whenever I say it, it makes me think of a world devastated by nuclear war.

Anyway, whether it’s a war among humans or among gods, the broad strokes never change… so I guess that line still holds true today.

I was watching the open fields of the Divine Hall where a fierce war was taking place, surrounded by children.

A war between the Ennead and Olympus. The first and the last war among the gods.

I wondered if battles between superhumans in games or movies looked anything like this. From the spectator’s stance, it was quite an exhilarating war.

“The overall situation favors the Ennead.”

“Well, obviously. Those guys have been training by charging at me day in and day out. The scorching heat of the desert couldn’t take them down. There’s no way those clumsy folks from Olympus can beat them.”

Ifrit was praising the Ennead, whom he was close with.

Since the Ennead originated near the desert where Ifrit dwelled, it made sense.

“Indeed, the individual power is stronger in the Ennead.”

The gods of the Ennead were raising a sandstorm using their faith and charging forward. Leading them was Amun, the chief of the Ennead.

I wondered if Baal, who I saw 300 years ago, would look like that as an adult. Amun looked incredibly similar to Baal as he rushed towards the gods of Olympus without hesitation.

With unique S-shaped swords in both hands, wielding them like dual weapons, he charged and slashed through the gods of Olympus indiscriminately—more like a berserk warrior than a leader of a faction.

Despite Olympus concentrating their forces to stop the rampaging Amun, most gods found themselves unable to withstand even a single swing of his sword and were sent flying.

He resembled a wolf rampaging among a flock of sheep.

“We can’t leave someone like Amun rampaging like that. Someone like Athena or Ares must step up to temporarily halt him…”

Sylphid spoke with concern while gazing at the battlefield. Indeed, to stop someone that chaotic would need more than ordinary gods.

Unless it’s a few of the top-tier gods from Olympus.

“Oh, Athena’s coming out!”

Sylphid pointed with her finger at Athena riding a chariot.

Riding a chariot pulled by two white horses created by divine power, Athena dashed toward Amun, striking down the gods of the Ennead.

The long spear she wielded shot toward Amun.

It was a force that could have shattered any ordinary god with a single attack. But Amun crossed his swords to block the spear.

Although he didn’t fully withstand the force, it seemed he was pushed back slightly.

“Whoa. Amun getting pushed back. I hear Olympus has two gods of war. So, one of them is that goddess.”

Ifrit marveled at the sight of Athena.

“Well, Amun can indeed withstand that charge from Athena. He’s certainly worthy of being called the king of the Ennead.”

A curious situation where those watching were complimenting each other while not even partaking in the fight.

Well, you could say it felt like cheering for some friendly folks.

Anyway, Amun and Athena started swinging their weapons at each other.

Amun relentlessly closed in on Athena with his dual swords, while Athena was on her chariot, swinging her spear and using her shield to block attacks.

At first, it looked evenly matched, but gradually, the advantage shifted toward Amun.

“Even though it’s a horse made by divine power, it really isn’t a big threat to a major deity.”

Sylphid’s cold assessment. While she could sweep through lesser gods on her chariot, it wasn’t much help facing Amun.

In fact, Athena was exhausting her stamina just trying to protect her horse from Amun’s attacks.

It would have been better if a god like Zeus faced Amun and Athena rampaged through the battlefield.

“If Ares were here… In such disarray, Ares would really shine…”

Ares. The same guy who caused an uproar by saying he would take a sage deep into the forest.

Unfortunately, he ended up getting suppressed by me, losing his faith and becoming a mere shadow of his former self.

“Olympus had the advantage over other factions not just due to Zeus’s personal strength but also because of the destructive power from Athena and Ares… And now, mom made one of them incapable of fighting…”

“But he just barges in and causes a ruckus, threatening to burn the forest if the sage doesn’t come out. I couldn’t just let that slide.”

If it were just a matter of meeting casually… he looked like he could be used in various ways due to his sheer stupidity. But burning the forest was a no-go.

“Thanks to that, the tides of this war are favoring the Ennead.”

Zeus was scattering lightning, and various gods were using their powers to defeat other gods, but the gods of the Ennead were no pushovers either.

At this rate, Olympus would meet its defeat in the war.

However…

“Huh? What’s that…?”

From one side of the battlefield, a group of gods came rushing in.

They were neither from the Ennead nor Olympus. Each was wielding weapons and charging in.

Their power was weak compared to the gods of the two factions, but the considerable number of the gods started attacking the gods of the Ennead.

“Huh? Who are those gods…?”

“I think those might be allied forces of Olympus.”

The gods of the Divine Hall couldn’t exist independently, so interacting with other gods was a natural occurrence.

Thus, some gods would have friendly relationships, while some might be at odds with each other.

It was only expected that gods would join the war between Olympus and Ennead, each with their own reasons.

There would be gods who joined to help their friends, gods who couldn’t afford to lose their trading partners, and those who participated for their own gain.

Essentially, even gods belonging to no major faction would be swept into the war.

At least it was a relief this war didn’t affect humans.

Well, I had set the tone with my threats, so that was to be expected.

“Given this situation… we can’t ascertain the outcome.”

“No, allies aren’t only with Olympus.”

Ifrit was gazing at a group of gods charging in from one side of the battlefield.

They began fighting against the gods of Olympus.

“More allies over here…!”

“That number looks like it’s more than half of the Divine Hall’s gods!”

Starting from those with names to the lesser-known gods.

If you exclude gods like mountain gods, river gods, and land gods who couldn’t come due to the rift between the Divine Hall and the human world… hmm, it looks like the Aesir and Lokapala gods are also absent.

If you omit those cases, nearly all the gods were brandishing their weapons in the war.

“It’d be nice if only some gods could survive through this.”

“That’s hardly likely, is it? Well, if it does happen, mom wouldn’t need to step in herself.”

I smiled wryly at Shamash’s words.

With many gods crashing in, the battlefield plunged back into chaos, but the situation hadn’t changed much.

Even with the support of allies from Olympus and the Ennead, the balance didn’t return to its original state.

Hmm. How significant is the void left by just one war god? Will this end with Olympus’s defeat?

The battle between Amun and Athena seemed headed toward Athena’s defeat. Having lost her voice and tumbling off her chariot, Athena used her spear and shield to resist, but defeat was merely a matter of time.

From a distance, Zeus was throwing lightning bolts and taking down many gods, but it wasn’t enough to change the war’s tide.

Could it be because he claims to be the king of the gods? Or because he holds the authority of Baal, the king of gods?

Did he think that personally fighting on the battlefield would tarnish his authority? Does he not realize that authority without action holds no value?

Leading the charge in the most crucial of tasks is what protects one’s authority. Does that foolish god not get that?

One by one, the gods of Olympus were falling. Athena’s shield cracked, and Amun’s dual swords struck her down.

Poseidon’s trident shattered, and Hestia’s flame-spewing hearth was crumpled.

Hermes had his swift legs severed, and Aphrodite was left with her face ruined from a potent poison.

Step by step, Olympus was crumbling.

In such a situation, Zeus began to emit lightning from all over his body, as if he was determined for something.

Does he think it’s time to step in? Or has he already deemed it too late?

Zeus wrapped in lightning surged up, leaping into the middle of the Ennead gods.

However, it was a delayed judgment.

At the very least, before Amun and Athena clashed, Zeus should have fought directly instead of Athena. If he had, things wouldn’t have deteriorated this much.

Athena riding her chariot couldn’t be halted unless it was by a powerhouse like Amun. Had he done that, the battle’s atmosphere would have changed.

Zeus faced defeat for not taking action to uphold his authority.

And then, when Zeus charged into the midst of the numerous Ennead gods, wielding lightning…

“What’s that…?”

Yet another group of gods emerged on the battlefield.

 

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