“I don’t know if the gods showed mercy only to me. Gods don’t show mercy to beings outside their control.”
In an instant, a lightning-made spear from a distance flew by, barely brushing against me, and I felt as if my entire body was electrocuted. It was a close call, and the feeling of my heart pounding resonated throughout my body.

“Wait, what do you mean the gods gave you a name?”

At this moment, I felt that something I had known was turning to ashes. That’s how shocking it was.

“Your name, you didn’t personally choose it? We didn’t even have names…”

Unknown facts, things I believed to be true twisting, my head felt like it was tearing apart.

Since I didn’t give them individual names, everyone adopted the name “Nakwon,” the paradise of the land of the gods, and was called ‘Nakwon,’ standing as a brilliant and beautiful existence.

And the gods treated me kindly, gave gifts through their messengers, and even built a magnificent house resembling a temple for me, but there was one thing missing.

‘I had no name.’

“When the gods created the world, I was a mistake, that’s why.”

The first human. A friend of the World Tree. A beautiful being crafted with the gods’ dedication. Living as the object of the second humanity’s worship.

Even during those tumultuous times, the gods undoubtedly had affection for me. If I ever got upset, they would console me. If I were indifferent, they would never do such things.

“Maybe the gods thought I was connected to the world.”

It wasn’t jealousy towards Lillis. It was just confusing to realize that the world I knew was just a small enclosure, and beyond that, the sincere gaze of the gods observing me broke apart with just one ‘name.’

“In reality, I managed the world for several centuries. However, even for someone like me, there were no special privileges. I always had to stay within the rules and control set by the gods.”

I vaguely remembered a mural in the temple with an image of a woman with long hair embracing the vast Earth. Perhaps that was Lillis? Now that I think about it, Lillis, referred to as a serpent, had a significant role before living as a snake.

“After I left, the gods planted the World Tree in the world.”

Sensing my hesitation, Lillis glanced at my face and continued speaking.

“That’s what the gods said. This time, there won’t be a being like me, leaving on its own.”

Was it deliberately hidden by the gods? Listening to what Lillis was saying, it seemed like there was some kind of interaction between her and the gods, even after she stepped down from her managerial position.

“But it really was like that.”

But this guy Lillis, already troubled, staring at me so intently while saying that… Could it be?

“Creating an ignorant being incapable of even self-judgment.”

Captivated by the sensation of falling into the eyes of the yellow serpent, I grabbed my forearms with both hands.

“That’s you.”
Subsequently, I see myself struggling in the dark, soaked in black seawater, gasping for air, then sinking. A massive rock falling from the sky pressed me to the ocean floor, as if forbidding me from resurfacing and taking another breath.

“Then, was I just a substitute consumable for you?”

My chest tightened.

“No.”

A tingling sensation reached the tip of my nose, and from deep within my abdomen, a tangled mess of complex emotions surged up. Even if Lillis wasn’t a consumable, the meaning and purpose of my existence already felt like a consumable.

“I was the one in charge of the world’s life in place of me. You were a friend of the World Tree. The World Tree genuinely cherished and liked you.”

Taking a deep breath, Lillis, now lost in contemplation, finally closed her eyes and spoke with a mournful expression. I didn’t want to hear this story, but her pained expression added an extra layer of agony, making it impossible to turn away.

“In fact, you were created to be the nourishment for the World Tree. The World Tree valued and liked you sincerely.”

As Lillis spoke carefully, pondering her words, the painful reality of being created for such a purpose left me devastated. The sense of purposelessness hit me like a wave, and I, like a grand sandcastle, crumbled with a single touch of the wave.

“I know my words sound cruel. I understand if you resent me for only revealing this now.”

For some reason, Pobi and Sasha fell silent, their expressions full of shock. My mind whitened, making it impossible to logically process the situation.

“But every being in this world was created for a purpose and is used for that purpose. You’re not the only one.”

Is that supposed to be comforting?

‘It leaves a bitter taste in the mouth.’

The emptiness that remained after the universe that surrounded me disappeared, leaving only shadows, brought a chilly wind to my heart.

“However, you were just created more purely than other beings.”