I Hate Systems

"Why has the God of Humanity visited my humble abode?"

"Well, you seem smart yourself." Pnolli extended his hand casually, "So, why don't you try a guess?"

"Let's see," The God of Peacocks, Yedu thought for a moment as it showed his eyes of suspicion before speaking, "You wish for us to not wage a war against humanity?"

"But I'm afraid you'll be disappointed." It displayed its crown of feathers, emitting a dense killing intent, "The war will happen. And we'll annihilate humans."

"I'll take that back," Pnolli sighed as he shook his head, putting on an expression of disappointment, "You're dumber than I thought."

"What?" Yedu glared in anger, offended by such a provocative statement, "You dare call me dumb?"

"Do I have to clarify it once again?" Pnolli put on an exasperated look, making it seem as if he felt the conversation to be an exhausting exchange.

"If you came here to mock me, don't even dream about leaving this forest alive…"

"I guess I'll stop being kind for the moment," Pnolli spoke slowly, interrupting Yedu as suddenly, the forest turned deathly silent, frightening the other party as his entire body morphed into a shadow.

Yedu was terrified, clearly aware that it wasn't his opponent. But, just when it was about to ask the God King for help, the shadow vanished as Pnolli reappeared, seated on a tree stump that had somehow appeared there.

"Do you beasts wish to prosper?" He asked, "I'm giving you a choice now."

"What is it?" Even though it was unwilling, Yedu didn't have a choice but to listen. Even though it wished to strike humanity, it didn't have the guts to face the God of Humanity alone. There was a massive difference in power scale between the two.

"Humanity would continue to develop over the years. They would invent tools and accumulate knowledge at a vigorous pace." He spoke, "That's the unique gift humans are born with."

"You're planning to adapt using the Beast God's blessings, right?" He asked with a smile.

"H-How did you know that?" Yedu stuttered unconsciously.

"Well, leaving my methods aside, there is one problem in your plan." His eyes swirled with shadowy tentacles as he unleashed formless pressure, "I'll be killing the Beast God."

"So when that happens, you're back to square one."

"Every single God on our side would resist if you try that." Yedu glared, "We have plenty of Deities."

"Same on my case too." Pnolli smiled coldly, "And my side is stronger."

"If we really waged a war, I can simply nuke your people out of existence."

"Nuke…?" Yedu was confused for a moment when it heard loud thumping from Pnolli's chest. A second later, a scene played in its mind.

A terrifying explosion followed by a mushroom cloud that reached the heavens, a destructive force that wiped out everything in range. But, that was just the start of the upcoming disaster. A wave of death that wiped out all living matter, turning the region into a death land for tens of thousands of years.

Truly, there was no hope of recovery.

Yedu trembled in fear, "T-This is the power of the God of Humanity?"

"Nope, that's the power of humanity. I just act as a database holding all accomplishments of humans." Pnolli said, "What you see is just something that will become a reality in a matter of days if I grant the necessary knowledge and experience to the humans."

"W-What do you want?" Yedu said, "We will definitely never give up the Beast God. He's our only hope of survival."

"Then, let's do it like this." Saying so, he took out a small glass jar and placed it on a flat rock before him that served as a table. Yedu blinked in surprise, unable to understand when the rock had appeared.

It was as if every action of Pnolli followed the same rhythm as its breathing, causing it to subconsciously gloss over his existence and actions.

It took Yedu a few seconds to gather its bearings and stare at the glass jar, observing five shadowy creatures resembling octopuses within. "What…are those?"

"Curse of Faith," Pnolli said, "It's something I have created that allows you to plant a curse on the recipient through faith."

"I'll never betray the God King…"

"Listen, idiot." Pnolli clicked his tongue, shutting up the other party as he continued, "The target is the Beast God and not the God King."

"For the same reason, both of us wish to fight and devour the other in their pristine conditions. That's why we haven't schemed against each other directly."

"Anyway," He let out a breath of air slowly and said, "When you consume it, your faith gets a small upgrade. But it won't show unless you will it. This would be your special ability."

"You can designate your believers as targets and bless them with this curse." Pnolli spoke slowly, "And when these believers pray to their Deity, the faith they generate isn't entirely pure. What it does is simple."

He smiled and pointed at the glass jar, "It causes the recipient to fall under the control of the source, like a slave."

"Basically," Yedu muttered, "If my believers designated to pray to the Beast God do as told, the Beast God would become my slave?"

"Something like this works?" It was unable to express its shock.

"Yes, but only against the Beast God." Pnolli smirked, "It won't work against any other Deity or Devil. That's how I created it."

"Moreover," He continued, "Keeping the Beast God enslaved takes strenuous concentration. Just you alone wouldn't be enough. That's why,"

He patted the jar, "There are five of these creatures. So, the five Deities would work as a team to keep the Beast God under control. Do that and I promise to not kill him."

"What is your goal here?" Yedu asked, "You're only giving us the means to grow stronger. What do you hope to accomplish by that?"

"We'll become stronger than humans eventually."

"Well, if it happens, it happens." Pnolli shrugged, "The natives of this world decide their future, not us."

"And I plan to get rid of all six external influences. So," He nudged at the glass jar, "Do you wish to retain the power of the Beast God by enslaving him or do you wish his death?"

"The choice is yours."