35. Humanity shall inevitably ascend to godhood!

"Have you ever seen a god, Elian? A true god."

Elian remained silent.

"I have!" Gut rushed to speak before Elian could respond. "When Helen and I were young, childhood sweethearts—you were still in your cradle then."

"My father took us away from the floating city for a time, traveling across the vast, untamed wilderness."

"We once witnessed a battle between gods with our own eyes!"

"An avatar of an Orc god and an avatar of an Elven god clashed atop a mountain that pierced the clouds. Their battle razed the entire mountain range to the ground and set the heavens ablaze."

Elian did not speak, knowing that this rebellious chief was already immersed in his own emotions, waiting for him to continue.

A touch of madness stained Gut's smile:

"Ever since then, I have thought—"

"So, gods are just like us. They have bodies, facial features, and arms. They are not something invisible or untouchable."

"They are clearly neither omniscient nor omnipotent."

"They have joys, angers, sorrows, and delights just like us, with temperaments no different from children. They are merely more powerful."

"Is it possible that gods are simply mages, just like us, only more powerful?"

"Legend says gods can fashion their own realms to welcome the souls of their departed believers; surely magic powerful enough could achieve the same..."

Elian showed neither fear nor surprise, nor did he offer a heated rebuttal. Instead, with the calm, objective tone of a historian, he remarked:

"Strictly speaking, your understanding is not entirely accurate."

"However, given the limitations of the current era, it possesses a relative degree of advancement."

"So, what does this have to do with my reforms?"

Gut stepped forward, his voice burning with intense passion:

"There is one question I have never been able to understand. Why, among all intelligent races, are we humans the only ones without the protection of a racial god?"

"Even the ugly goblins and kobolds have their gods!"

"Why did we, the mage aristocracy, have the sudden whim to ascend to the high heavens and cut ourselves off from the surface?"

"Finally, one day, I understood."

"We mages in the high heavens are the human gods currently in the making!"

"Admittedly, we are not yet as powerful as the gods, but sooner or later, we will reach the divine realm."

"Magic—arcane magic, which relies on study and years of hard work rather than racial innate ability—is what allows us humans to twist nature, reshape it, and do what gods were meant to do."

Elian frowned slightly, remaining silent, allowing Gut’s impassioned speech to continue.

"Look at the other races. The gods are disdainful of the tiny beings in the mortal world, treating them like pets in a fish tank, only intervening when they are on the verge of extinction."

"Yet the mortal beings must revere these gods!"

"Is that not exactly the state of Aeldoron right now?"

"The outcasts on the surface are mortals, and we are the gods."

"As long as we imitate the relationship between gods and men found in other races, one day, we mages above the heavens will ascend into true human gods."

"You share the authority of gods with mortals, blurring the line between man and god."

"This is blasphemy! It will surely prevent us, the mages of the high heavens, from ascending to godhood!"

So that was it?

Gut’s perception of his own mission had reached the level of fanatical belief...

He believed that these mage aristocrats, the first to touch magic, were the destined gods of humanity...

Indeed, in this ancient age, human understanding of the world was too limited. The original scholars, constantly pondering the laws and philosophies of the world, were prone to developing various extreme convictions...

This was also the source of many primitive cults and philosophical ideologies...

Especially in a world with real supernatural power, these ideas often became even more extreme...

Elian gained some insight and tried to refute him from certain logical points:

"Then do you think that once the commoners on the surface learn magic, they cannot become gods just like us?"

"What kind of joke is that? The number of gods must be strictly limited. Look at the pantheons of other races. Even the number of mages in Aeldoron now is far too high. I will limit childbirth and reduce the population of the floating cities in the future," Gut immediately retorted.

As expected, such an extremist had already established his own value system, with his own logic at every angle... Elian shrugged helplessly.

Suddenly, Gut stepped forward, his burning gaze locking with Elian's, and then, he bowed deeply:

"Elian, Chief of the Pale Necromancers and current Supreme Mage, I respect you for your ability as a great mage."

"Likewise, I respect your military achievements. You led the soldiers of Aeldoron to defeat the three great Orc clans and drove away those hideous monsters!"

"Therefore, I am willing to give you a chance."

"Stop now. End this absurd farce of reform!"

"As long as you are willing to abandon this transformation, you can continue to be your Supreme Mage, your Arcane Emperor. You can be the King of all mages in Aeldoron."

"Fate granted us the fortune of being born on the floating cities, and the intelligence to become masters of magic; these are the very symbols that we are meant to be gods."

"Please do not tarnish this mission, my Emperor!"

When Gut finished speaking, Helen and Kard, standing to the side, were both stunned.

Wait, this wasn't what they had agreed upon?

Why was there another chance for a choice?

If Elian really agreed, would they really just let him leave safely?

However, seeing Gut’s nearly insane expression, they dared not contradict him directly.

"It's over."

Kard, the bald Chief of the School of Abjuration, felt his heart in chaos:

"Gut has completely immersed himself in his own world and that philosophical theory based on the mission of mages!"

"Because of this theory, he has too much respect for Elian as Aeldoron's top mage, harboring some overly complex sentiments. He believes Elian has simply gone astray."

"Elian is not a fool. He could easily agree to abandon the reforms, leave here, return to the floating city, find General Sol and other loyalists, and then come back to settle the score with us!"

Kard’s face turned slightly pale, not knowing what to do.

"A worshiper of magic. A human supremacist. One who believes that the mage aristocracy has a natural mission to become gods..."

"As a mage, while his intelligence is astonishing, he also has a naive, bookish side..."

"There is a positive, progressive side, but also an overly extreme side..."

Elian murmured in a whisper so soft it was barely audible.

It was as if he were evaluating Gut, or as if he were merely a judge who had transcended history—impartial, objective, and devoid of emotion, as if he were not the one in danger.

"So, Chief Gut."

"If I agree right now to immediately stop this reform, destroy all the magic schools, recall all the surface teachers, and even call back all the undead assisting in farming..."

"You will let me leave and allow me to continue as the Arcane Emperor of Aeldoron?"

Elian asked, as if to confirm.

"Yes!" Gut promised.

It’s over... The bald Kard took a deep breath, his eyes frantic, his face ashen.

The blonde Helen’s mouth twitched as well.

Gut had gone absolutely insane!

They had planned for so long, and it had been so difficult to finally find such an opportunity to assassinate Elian.

And now, now they were actually going to let Elian run away!!

Just as the two were losing heart, they saw Elian face the three of them and relaxedly open his arms.

It was the first time in over half a year that they had seen the Emperor of the Empire smiling with such a relaxed posture:

"In that case, I refuse."

"Now, you may come and kill me!"