Shepherd Wizard

Chapter 237

Translator: Pai_

“Ah.”

“Oh my god.......”

April 3, 2034, in front of UCD Medical Center in Sacramento, California, USA.

People witnessed a miracle for the first time in thousands of years.

To witness legs regenerate after having disappeared in brilliant light, intestines reappear, and damaged brains be restored.

Seeing hundreds of people who had been lying on hospital stretchers rise to their feet could only be described as a miracle.

“Ooh.......”

“Mr. Colson, it's dangerous for you to get up!”

“I’ve never been this healthy in my life.”

“Mom, I’m not sick anymore!”

The photo of a mother crying as she embraced her awakened daughter spread across the world in an instant.

And needless to say, the gray-haired young man silently watching the scene drew attention as well.

Naturally, doctors were half in a frenzy at the manifestation of such a transcendent power that could treat hundreds of patients with a single gesture.

“No, he didn’t just treat trauma, did he?”

“Even the cancer patients who were accidentally brought in got completely healed... how is that possible?”

“This one was a drug addict.”

Turan, quietly watching the doctors speak in confusion, turned his head at the sound of a small voice near his ear.

Meisa had secretly transmitted her voice using wind.

[“Wait, what was that light? It had nothing to do with the healing.”]

[“I thought we needed a bit of dramatic effect.”]

Over the past few days, while resting at the hotel, he had spent time analyzing the differences between Earthlings and people from Cradle.

As a result, he discovered that while they were physically identical, they were entirely different beings in terms of magic.

Humans on Earth had no magic power, unlike the humans of Cradle, and they lacked any kind of spiritual symbolism.

But that didn’t mean they were spiritually no different from beasts.

Their emotions were clearly being converted into presence.

Perhaps their spiritual systems were simply structured differently.

“The effect is certain.”

“That much?”

“Yeah.”

The outcome of broadcasting the miracle directly to the entire world through developed media was truly tremendous.

He could feel the thoughts of hundreds of millions, maybe even billions of people who had seen the scene beyond those screens, transforming into presence and clinging to him.

In a world like Earth where essence does not exist, such presence was useless, but once they returned to their world, it would function as a massive source of control.

He was certain that if he harvested power of this scale a few dozen more times, it would even be possible to transform the entire world into essence and absorb it.

It was the ultimate realm that Monarch had desired.

“Then let’s move to the next location.”

“Yes, sir!”

Perhaps due to the impact of the miracle shown, the colonel in charge of escorting them responded with a fired-up voice.

After that, they continued visiting several hospitals in Sacramento, pushing aside the now even more frenzied reporters, and treated patients in serious condition.

From the second round on, Meisa took turns participating, and thanks to the demonstration earlier, she also healed people with added, albeit unnecessary, visual effects.

In fact, because of the added effect of light radiating from the treated person’s body, she looked even more powerful than Turan.

"Wait, I'm standing!?"

“This wasn’t even a condition caused by the recent disaster.......”

Meanwhile, a patient who had originally been paralyzed from the waist down and nearly died due to an earthquake injury fully overcame his disability, such astonishing incidents continued without end.

After visiting several hospitals and treating thousands of people, Turan chose San Francisco as their next destination.

The two sat facing each other in a limousine specially sent by the president, having a conversation.

“How’s the situation?”

“Compared to when we first arrived, it’s increased dozens of times. No, maybe even over a hundred.”

“In that case, coming here was definitely worth the time.”

In the world of Cradle, it was nearly impossible to harvest presence in this way.

Even if someone is healed, while it may be an immense miracle for the individual, for those who are at the level of Family Heads of the Great Noble Houses, it’s something they would naturally assume could be done.

Needless to say, as word of such events spreads by word of mouth, the emotional impact fades.

In contrast, here, they were able to show what they were doing to hundreds of millions, even billions of people simultaneously.

Simple healing magic that treats commoners was a miracle among miracles, something no great Sacred Relic could achieve.

Using a mobile phone borrowed from the soldier acting as their driver, he searched a little and found that most internet sites seemed to be down due to traffic issues.

That was how much of a shock their appearance and the miracle transmitted through the screen had brought to this world.

While enjoying the aftermath of what they had done, the car carrying the two arrived in San Francisco.

“This is where you fought Monarch? It’s really completely wrecked.......”

“Exactly why we need to clear the roads. I’ll start leveling things from here, so can you take care of the island side? Think you can handle it?”

Currently, San Francisco had become a heap of ruins where the entire city had to be demolished and rebuilt.

This was because Turan had forcibly reshaped and held the collapsed buildings together.

Naturally, all the citizens had evacuated.

Restoring everything to its pre-destruction state wasn’t impossible, but it was an excessively difficult task.

Unless they were dropping hydrogen bombs en masse, breaking apart a jungle of steel and concrete wasn’t easy.

So Turan, after discussions with the president, agreed to completely flatten San Francisco to enable reconstruction from scratch.

Demolishing and cleaning up all the buildings would also require enormous labor and resources, so just that alone was a huge help.

“Hmm, with the strength I have left now, it might be a little tight.”

“If it seems like it won't be enough, I’ll share more with you, so don’t worry.”

“In that case, I’ll give it my all.”

After a brief consultation, the two instructed the attendants, journalists, and onlookers who had followed them not to approach the ruined area.

Of course, Americans, who are known for taking authority the least seriously in the world and never listening, weren’t going to comply so easily.

“Alright, this looks like a good spot for a phot- ugh.”

Those who tried to cross the line secretly immediately had their bodies stiffen and fell in place.

With a simple barrier cutting off access, the two moved to their assigned zones.

“Well then, here we go.”

Turan immediately transformed into the form of a massive golden eagle.

Not only was this form physically stronger, but it also matched the soul fused with Bije, allowing him to exert greater power.

With a single flap of his wings, an enormous blaze surged forth and began to purify the city.

The white flame, originally a power of the Silver Sun, started from one corner and began melting everything in the city.

‘That side… seems to be going well too.’

A colossal female figure made of storm and lightning looked down over the city, as if it were Meisa’s original form scaled up.

Although the amount of essence she could currently handle was extremely limited and thus her form was much smaller than Turan’s golden eagle, to the Earthlings, even that was an overwhelming appearance of a god.

When the Storm Goddess gestured, the whirlwinds that rose up instantly engulfed an entire section of the city, toppling buildings with a crash.

About one hour.

That was how long it took for the two of them, carefully avoiding spreading damage to the surrounding areas, to turn San Francisco into a flat land where nothing remained.

“That was exhausting... if I had pushed a little more, I would’ve collapsed.”

“Here.”

“Ah, now I feel a bit stronger.”

Meisa, who had returned to her human form, let out a tired complaint about the almost depleted essence, then smiled as she felt the power being passed on to her.

After transferring some of his remaining essence to Meisa, Turan turned to the still-dazed lieutenant colonel and spoke.

“I’m tired. If there’s a suitable place nearby to rest, take us there.”

“Yes, sir!”

***

In truth, compared to healing people, this kind of destructive act consumed far too much power and was inefficient.

Even so, there were two reasons Turan proposed such a plan.

First, unlike regenerating lost body parts, triggering phenomena did not cause a permanent loss of power.

And second, it was necessary to once again remind the people of Earth of their destructive power, so they wouldn’t harbor foolish ideas.

‘Since healing magic is rare on Earth, old and sick people in power might start getting strange ideas.’

After all, even the U.S. president he had met was over sixty years old, an age at which death wouldn’t be surprising.

To be honest, whether an Earthling's lifespan could be extended indefinitely was a topic Turan himself was quite curious about.

Reversing the physical aging of people here didn’t seem all that difficult, but how the aging of the soul would proceed remained unknown.

In any case, with the destructive demonstration they had shown this time, it was clear that no one would dare try to control or restrain them.

If anyone did, it would likely become a truly horrific tragedy.

“What are you watching?”

While he was deep in thought, Meisa came out of the shower and flopped onto the bed.

A unique scent wafted from her, one he had never smelled before.

“Just something about us.”

“Let me see. Show me.”

“Here.”

What Turan showed her was a live-streamed video.

There, an elderly man and woman were having an intense debate, it was all about the two wizards.

[If they can raise the sick and punish cities with fire, what reason is there not to call them gods?]

[Don’t speak blasphemy.]

[Just having great power doesn’t make one a god. You have to consider their intentions, what teachings they can offer humanity....]

[Did they ever call themselves gods in the first place?]

Beside the video, live comments from viewers were scrolling by.

People worshipping them as gods and others denouncing them as frauds, people pleading for them to cure their family members with incurable diseases, and those complaining that it was unfair for America to monopolize them.

Reading through all of this, Meisa let out a quiet sigh.

“It’s overwhelming.”

“Is it?”

“Yeah. These people think we’re gods. But we’re just twenty-something humans who happen to wield enormous power. We don’t know that much, and we make tons of mistakes.”

Turan, quietly gazing at his lover with a troubled expression, suddenly tossed the phone aside and pulled her into a hug.

Meisa, who had lower self-esteem than others due to wounds suffered during her growth, was clearly feeling guilty at the thought of turning her back on those she could save.

“You don’t need to worry that much. At this point, we’ve more than repaid any debt we might have owed them. Still, if you want, we can come back now and then to hold a few charity healing events.”

“Yeah.......”

“More than that, I wonder if we can make this kind of shampoo and toiletries over there. They’re really good.”

“You like the scent?”

“Very much.”

With their foreheads pressed together, they whispered for a moment, and then both of them burst into laughter without knowing who started first.

“Let’s head back soon.”

“Are we going?”

“Yeah. I was originally planning to travel around a bit more to harvest more presence, but it seems the shock Earthlings felt was bigger than expected. Do you want to stay longer?”

“I did think about it... but yeah, we should go. Our home is over there, after all. We also need to check on Luska.”

Turan sent one final message to the president using his phone.

It said that they would be returning soon, and though he didn’t know when, they’d come back someday, perhaps they could share a meal then.

There was no need to even check the reply, so he tossed the phone onto the bed.

Anyway, in their world, due to different physical laws, it was nothing more than a hunk of useless metal.

“Well then.”

With that one short sentence, the two of them left Earth simultaneously.

Leaving behind a world thrown into chaos by their arrival.

***

“I’m back.”

“That was quick. You said it might take longer.”

“I thought so too.”

Turan exchanged greetings with Ashiz, sat at the office desk, and began reviewing a few of the documents that had piled up.

The world of Cradle, which he had returned to after several days, was still in the midst of rapid transformation.

This was because, with the help of the Soo-ho, various professional knowledge essential for a medieval-level world had been distributed across the land.

Of course, reaching the level of Earth’s civilization would still take a very long time.

Having received all sorts of luxurious treatment on Earth during this trip, he was reminded of that fact more than ever.

“Where’s Meisa?”

“She went to see Luska.”

“We should go together.”

“I wanted to take care of this stuff first. I think it’s finally time we can implement what we discussed last time.”

"Already?"

“Considering that their population is over a hundred times ours. Actually... maybe even more than that.”

Due to the return of the New Era, the number of deaths was still not accurately calculated.

But it was certain that it accounted for over thirty percent of the global population.

Perhaps even more.

Turan exchanged greetings with Ashiz and sat at the desk, reviewing a few of the documents that had piled up.

If the total population of Cradle was under ten million, that meant Earth’s was nearly a thousand times larger.

“I can’t even imagine what it’s like over there... and I heard their landmass isn’t even that much bigger than ours.”

“You should visit sometime. Once you’ve acquired enough defensive capability.”

“So the standard for whether someone’s defensible or not is having four bloodlines and being able to handle essence? That’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?”

Ashiz grumbled but nodded, seeming to understand.

Having lightened his mood a little through casual talk with his friend, Turan finished signing a few documents and stood from his seat.

“Alright then, shall we begin?”

“It’s not like something huge is going to change instantly, right?”

“Not for now. Oh, by the way... we can’t make gunpowder or Water of Death the old way anymore.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“Both of them are substances that can’t exist under correct natural laws.”

The gunpowder currently used in Turan’s world was never a real, physically possible substance to begin with.

That’s because the “SSMS” gunpowder wasn’t actual black powder, but rather a physical manifestation of the image people had when they thought of gunpowder.

Similarly, the Water of Death wasn’t real hydrochloric acid but a substance closer to a fantasy version that simply reflected the properties Earthlings associated with the term.

If natural laws were restored to their correct state, these materials naturally couldn’t exist anymore.

“But instead, we can now create similar things using natural methods, so ordinary people can be used in the production process.”

“And I’m the one who has to design the factories for that.”

“Well, nothing we can do about that... Anyway, I’m starting.”

“Damn it.”

Leaving Ashiz’s grumbling behind, Turan immediately shifted his location.

Not to somewhere in this world, but outside of the world, to the boundary.

A completely empty realm stretched before his eyes, where only the pure-white world barrier and the void beyond existed.

No, to be precise, it wasn’t entirely empty.

There stood three doors at one side of the boundary.

Each door, blue, yellow, and red, was labeled “Paradise”, “Reincarnation”, and “Hell”.

‘Now that I look at it again, I might’ve made these a bit too half-assed.’

He had used a few religious texts brought from Earth, based on the memories of the gods, to design them, but it seemed like he’d have to do some reinforcing later.

To the spirits of the dead arriving in the afterlife, this likely didn’t look very convincing.

Passing through the tribunal in front of the three doors, where spirits judged each other through the Veil of Ignorance, Turan stepped through the first door.

Paradise, a place where one relives the happiest moments of their life.

While quietly observing it, he realized a few issues.

‘Seems like people don’t have as many happy moments as I thought. Since they’re repeated over and over, everyone eventually gets bored. In the end, this so-called paradise might become a hell that dries people out with boredom.’

Still, manipulating the soul's memories to erase their happy recollections and force them to repeat daily routines seemed not only extremely difficult, but also ethically questionable.

This was something that would need to be discussed further and revised later.

As for the second realm, Reincarnation, there was no real need to inspect it, so Turan moved on to the last: Hell, and frowned.

“Wait, what’s with these numbers...?”

The afterlife had only come into full existence a few weeks ago.

And yet Hell was already overflowing with hundreds, even thousands of souls.

Considering that the population in Paradise was only a few dozen, it was an absurd imbalance.

On reflection, it may have been inevitable, given how evil this world had become.

After all, this was a time when people had to do whatever it took to survive, just after barely emerging from an apocalyptic state, to borrow Earth’s terminology.

Still, if they could make the world as abundant as Earth, perhaps the number of evil people would decline.

With a light sigh, Turan began searching through the countless wicked souls for those he had personally thrown into Hell.

“Let’s see, Phoenix and Haps are still here...”

"AAAAAAARGH!"

Phoenix, who had used the body of his grandfather Talis, and Haps, who had possessed Meisa’s father Badal-

Both gods were buried at the very bottom of Hell, suffering.

It would take an unimaginably long time for them to pay for their crimes through mere retribution, and even that wouldn't be enough to say they had fully atoned.

If one included the deaths they had indirectly caused, like during the Zahar-Aravion War, the number of victims at their hands was certainly in the millions.

After passing by the gods of Carmine and Aravion, whom he had previously captured, Turan arrived at the section where the half-elves of Ruvan and Varaha resided.

“Been a while.”

“Can’t say I’m... glad... to see you...!”

Reshion, muttering with a grimace, was chained and being scorched by flames.

Turan gestured to pause the punishment for a moment to make conversation easier.

"Who exactly did you burn alive to be burning this long?"

“Been too long, I can’t even remember. Damn it, after all the effort I put in cooperating, I still ended up in Hell.”

“You’ve done enough wrong that letting you go wouldn’t be fair. I did reduce your sentence to a tenth though, shouldn’t that be good enough?”

“What a load of crap.”

Considering that even his so-called cooperation came from being threatened to comply or be annihilated, he didn’t have much ground to feel wronged.

Besides, this was the same bastard who tried to kidnap Solif and use his body.

In contrast, Kim Woong, who had surrendered out of genuine guilt, was allowed to reincarnate without punishment once his lifespan ended.

At the very least, he had truly reflected on his wrongdoings.

On second thought, whether someone genuinely regretted their sins should probably be part of the judgment criteria.

After receiving confirmation from the half-elf prince that, so long as the living white elves did not resort to cannibalism, their bloodline would not be wiped out, Turan left Hell.

Perhaps it was because of the constant screams of agony echoing everywhere, but even with just a brief visit, his soul felt tainted.

‘Come to think of it... maybe I should go to Hell when I die, to be fair.’

The thought made Turan chuckle weakly.

For the very master of the afterlife to worry about going to Hell after death, what meaning could that possibly have?

If he were ever defeated, the invaders would likely tear out this entire afterlife system and consume it for power.

Shrugging off the self-deprecation, Turan stretched his hand toward the vast world barrier and turned his awareness inward.

The amount of essence he possessed now was far less than before.

That was because he had transferred a large portion to Meisa, who had now gained control over immense presence.

To pull this off successfully, he needed to have enough control capacity freed up in the space that had been emptied.

Extracting the laws that governed the world and reverting them back into essence was, in itself, a monumental undertaking.

‘Alright... let’s begin.’

The laws of 'SSMS', forcibly etched into the world when the Preah God Tribe arrived on Earth, began to be pulled out.

A young god began shaping the laws of the world according to his own will.

*****

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