Return of the Shattered Constellation

As Chang-Sun quietly looked back at him, <Deus Ex Machina> asked with a frown, “Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“You also…”

“I did what?”

“...”

“What? Is there a problem? You should become an older brother-in-law if you have a problem.” <Deus Ex Machina> raised one of his eyebrows.

“…It’s nothing.” Chang-Sun let out a long sigh.

Ye-Eun had told him a lot of stories about her family, so he knew that <Deus Ex Machina> had a daughter. Perhaps Chang-Sun could nitpick about it… but he chose not to. Judging from the glare sent his way by <Deus Ex Machina>, Chang-Sun had a feeling that he could end up with broken bones if he did it.

‘…It’s every Celestial’s lifelong dream to be an Emperor, but nothing much has changed with my position here.’ Chang-Sun unwittingly sighed again.

“I don’t like your attitude.” <Deus Ex Machina> narrowed his eyes.

“I really don’t.”

“…”

“Anyway, is there anything you have to say?”

“…I’m sorry.”

“Alright. I’ll let it slide this time.” <Deus Ex Machina> nodded.

Chang-Sun now knew for sure that there was no limit to how childish <Deus Ex Machina> could get when it involved Cha Ye-Eun.

‘I’ll have to be careful for my entire life,’ Chang-Sun thought.

Chang-Sun had to assist <Deus Ex Machina> in more work from now on, so he had more reasons to be careful…

『You’re really terrible at expressing yourself. I can’t believe how identical you are to Master.』

Pretending not to hear what the friend in his shadow said, <Deus Ex Machina> stood up from his throne and turned away. “Follow me. I have a lot to show you.”

After sorting out his thoughts, Chang-Sun stood behind <Deus Ex Machina>.

Paahhhh―!

At that moment, the world around them quickly spun and distorted. Below them was an endlessly vast universe, in which countless Milky Ways sparkled and contained infinite Worldlines.

Even after becoming an Emperor, it was difficult to observe the unfathomably big universe in detail; watching numerous Worldlines being split and eliminated at once made even Chang-Sun lightheaded. That was how Chang-Sun was finally able to understand why Beasts and Star Signs could run wild despite the great power <Deus Ex Machina> had. With the Great Universe, which was also called Eros, below them, <Deus Ex Machina> had a serious expression.

Click, click, click―!

Numerous gears quietly rotated inside his golden machine eyes. Chang-Sun wondered what <Deus Ex Machina> was looking at right now.

“I assume that you have many questions.”

“That’s right,” Chang-Sun answered.

“Yes, you’ve witnessed a lot before reaching this place. You must want to know what the Demiurge Project is and who the <Pangu Tribe> are. Why were Beasts, Star Signs, and… the <Grand Heaven League> running wild… You somehow took down <Horoscope> and <Purple Star Astrology>, but you aren’t sure if it’s all over… There will be so many other questions to come.”

Chang-Sun nodded with a heavy heart. He had absorbed Asclepius’ memories on some level when he became an Emperor, so he knew that a lot of secrets still remained in Eros and Nyx.

Ascle had been enjoying his freedom as he freely traveled from Worldline to Worldline, but he had suddenly decided to build <Horoscope>, the first <Society> of Star Signs. And yet <Horoscope> had not been enough for him, so he had gone after R’lyeh, the body of <Dull Darkness>. It had led him to be incarcerated in the Tower, but it was all because he had witnessed something so colossal that he had felt he would still be helpless even with Eros and Nyx under his dominance.

“The 'Changgong Library' overlaps with the domain of Idea, which is the shrine of all creation’s nature and truth. Idea is located behind the Great Universe but is also on top of it, so it encompasses the Outer Universe too.”

Chang-Sun quietly listened to <Deus Ex Machina>. As a seeker of gnosis, he had a basic understanding, so it was not difficult to understand what<Deus Ex Machina> was saying.

“And the border between Eros and Nyx is becoming more blurred over time. Do you know the reason for that?” <Deus Ex Machina> asked.

“I believe it’s because Eros is getting bigger.”

“Yes, that’s correct. The infinite creation of Worldlines is taking up Nyx’s domain instead.” <Deus Ex Machina> nodded.

The world around them changed to a green hillside where an enormous tree stood above the hill. The Mother Terra Celestial had tried to use a Divine Tree for her resurrection, but the Divine Tree that Chang-Sun had seen then was rotting from [Gaia’s Curse]. In contrast, the Divine Tree Chang-Sun was looking at now shone radiantly.

“This is the Universal Tree. It’s a representation of Eros, so as to make it easier to understand the world we’re in.”

Chang-Sun could understand the structure with ease. Idea was the root, and the ‘Changgong Library’ was the trunk. As Worldlines spread out and formed branches, leaves sprouted from those branches, becoming the Worldlines’ parallel universes. Nyx was the soil from which the Universal Tree took in nourishment, and where it was rooted. As Nyx gradually became smaller, the Universal Tree took up the empty space instead.

“Eros and Nyx are like an egg’s yolk and white. The yolk becomes bigger with the nourishment of the egg white.”

“What you’re saying is that Nyx will disappear someday.”

“That’s right. Well, from an ordinary being’s perspective, it’ll only happen after an eternity, but the fact that there is an end means a lot.”

Chang-Sun nodded again. Nyx was still significantly bigger than Eros because the Worldline creation was ongoing. However, it was still bound to end someday, so the Otherworld Celestials who had settled in Nyx would have a lot on their minds.

“As you can see, the Universal Tree is having trouble growing up because of… Well, think of them as pests.”

“You’re talking about Star Signs and Beasts.”

“Yes, they’ve built small dimensions in Nyx and are using them as their bases. The Imaginary Plane, which is also called the Mirror Dimension, is only one of them.”

The world around them changed again, displaying the Minor Universes scattered in Eros’s outer region; they were eggshell pieces of the Pangu Egg, made from the leftovers after the universe’s creation. Some were as small as particles. Others were as big as several Worldlines combined. Around those Minor Universes… were Beasts and Star Signs. Chang-Sun had eliminated numerous Star Signs, and yet many more of them existed everywhere.

‘There are Beasts who have eaten Star Signs too. It’s a mess.’ Chang-Sun chuckled dumbfoundedly, realizing that the Beasts and Star Signs he had been dealing with were only the tip of the iceberg.

However, something else bothered Chang-Sun.

‘Someone else is behind them.’

For some reason… Chang-Sun could tell who was behind them. When the Mother Terra Celestial had been dormant in an egg, awaiting her resurrection, she had been receiving nourishment from somewhere that was neither Eros nor Nyx. Chang-Sun was finally able to know where it was now.

As he watched the Minor Universes, Chang-Sun’s face darkened. “…Are they receiving the support of the <Pangu Tribe>?”

“That’s what I’m thinking right now. I’ll have to investigate more to know the details.” The voice of <Deus Ex Machina> turned cold.

“Then why…”

“Why am I not eradicating those Star Signs and Beasts?”

Chang-Sun nodded again, but unwittingly stumbled backward after seeing <Deus Ex Machina> gnashing his teeth in annoyance.

“The law of causality. That’s why.”

“Ah…!” Chang-Sun gaped.

“Besides, they’ll only multiply again like cockroaches unless I pull out every root of theirs, but I’m busy tending to the Universal Tree. <Dull Darkness> and <Supreme Light> have to observe the beyond…”

Everything pieced together inside Chang-Sun’s head, answering all his questions.

“Look above you.”

Chang-Sun did as he was told, and faintly sensed something from beyond Eros and Nyx. It was so intense that a shiver ran down his spine.

‘It’s comparable to <Supreme Light>…? No, is it stronger? What in the world is it?’ Chang-Sun wondered in bewilderment.

There was no proper word to describe what Chang-Sun was seeing right now, but it was clear that both <Dull Darkness> and <Supreme Light> would not be able to care about Eros and Nyx at all once they confronted it.

“…That’s why you need gardeners for the Universal Tree,” Chang-Sun murmured.

<Deus Ex Machina> nodded. “I need you to become one of them. Can you help me?”

After noticing the various emotions swirling in the eyes of <Deus Ex Machina>, Chang-Sun chuckled again. ‘He might kill me if I say no right now.’

Of course, Chang-Sun had not been planning on running away from his duties as an Emperor in the first place, but he also had to resolve the sources of the many Lee Chang-Suns’ lingering feelings.

“You’re the most free person among the Demiurges I’ve appointed. You can freely travel Eros, Nyx, and Minor Universes, so please become my sword.”

“I’ll help if it’s necessary,” Chang-Sun answered calmly.

A faint smile finally spread across the face of <Deus Ex Machina>. After belatedly realizing his mistake(?), <Deus Ex Machina> cleared his throat and clasped his hands behind his back, saying, “Follow me. I’ll introduce you to your future colleagues.”

As <Deus Ex Machina> slowly walked forward, Chang-Sun followed him.

***

On the Earth of Worldline #801…

Ye-Eun looked outside the window, bottle-feeding Peter in her arms. Since she could have ended up waiting for Chang-Sun in <Nihil> forever, she had come back home first… but it was killing her to be forced to become a mother overnight.

“When in the hell is he coming back? Is he expecting me to raise the baby on my own or not? I’m going to kill him when he comes back…!” Ye-Eun grumbled, but her voice was filled with concern for Chang-Sun.

She had been born and raised in a family of Celestials, so she knew very well what kind of position an Emperor had. Others envied them for their oneness and freedom, but… she could not disagree more.

An Emperor was always buried in work, and things were quite unsettled nowadays from what she had heard… On top of that, she had no idea what kind of work Chang-Sun would be placed in charge of among the Emperors, so she was worried.

Nevertheless, Ye-Eun believed that Chang-Sun was going to do a good job, no matter how hard the work was. Chang-Sun had risen above the <Punishment> and was now <Dawn>, not <Twilight>. Whatever despair-inducing trials and tribulations he faced, he was someone who could surmount them and make his own future.

Paaah―!

Just then, a ray of bright scarlet light shone down outside Ye-Eun’s home. When she quickly turned to look at the door, she saw Chang-Sun walking in through the door. It looked as if Chang-Sun had come running as fast as he could because his face was covered in sweat.

“Huff… huff… I’m sorry for keeping you waiting so long.” Chang-Sun panted hard.

Ye-Eun pouted. “So you know what you did? ”

“Haha… I’m sorry. I was chatting with the people your brother introduced to me, and time went by.”

“How were they?”

Chang-Sun smiled. “Yes, they were good people.”

“Good.” Ye-Eun smiled back and then pointed at Peter, who had fallen asleep. Ye-Eun said, “Try not to make noise when you come in. He might wake up.”

Chang-Sun tiptoed into the living room. Seeing Ye-Eun and Peter at peace made Chang-Sun’s heart pound with happiness.

“Come to think of it, we really need a name for our baby. We can’t call him Peter forever. Is there any name you’ve thought of?” Ye-Eun asked.

Peter’s true name, Lee ■■, echoed in Chang-Sun’s mind.

“Yes, it’s…!” Chang-Sun answered.

It was a very fitting name for the adorable child who was also the fruition of their love.

<The End>