I Start with 13 Hidden Traits Chapter-463

Chapter 463. **The One True God**

—

*Kuurrrng!*

When King Rundmal brought his sword down, the ground caved in. Soil and sand alike evaporated completely, leaving nothing behind.

*Grrrrrrrr—!*

At the same time, the world began to tremble.

Centered on the hollowed-out ground, a circular barrier formed.

King Rundmal scattered all the mana he possessed within that circular boundary.

Soon, it was as if the world had been split—those inside and outside the circle could no longer see one another at all.

It was to prevent both his own mana and the opposing Destruction’s mana from leaking outside.

And—

‘So he doesn’t want the knights to see him like this.’

Proof that King Rundmal’s state of mind had changed.

The man who had once paid no heed to the gazes of his knights had now severed the inside from the outside, trying to hide his disgrace.

He was likely being swayed by emotions he was feeling for the first time.

‘I definitely cut Rundmal’s rune.’

I cut the rune.

And in doing so, I drew out the soul of Rundmal that had been sleeping within it.

There must have been a massive internal change, yet Rundmal chose to fight to the very end.

Because he already knew his choice was irreversible.

By now, he must have realized how selfish it was to devour everything and start anew in a different world.

Yes.

Right now, Rundmal—

For the first time in his life within this world—

“…has attained enlightenment.”

His soul had grown.

On his own—without devouring anything—he had gained enlightenment.

King Rundmal’s presence was clearly different from before.

The density of his mana, its quality—nothing could be compared to the past.

And that wasn’t all.

Even the way he looked at the world had changed.

With higher-dimensional thought now possible, he seemed to understand how to wield his power.

“I already possessed so much. Enough that I need nothing more.”

There was no need to devour the world.

Rundmal had already consumed more than enough beings.

Endless desire was not the answer.

He had realized that nurturing what he already had—bringing it to a better form of bloom—was far superior.

Just like that Destruction… as he had seen inside Phantom.

It might not be the same kind of “coexistence,” but “resonance” was possible.

“I can feel them. The countless runes dwelling within me. Their voices. Their wills.”

King Rundmal’s body trembled.

The emotion was indescribable.

He had not understood the “resonance” Satan spoke of.

But now, he felt he did.

Rundmal had begun resonating with every rune he had ever devoured.

Then he turned his gaze and said,

“This world has begun to revere me as a god. In the truest sense, one could say I have attained immortality.”

His tone was solemn beyond measure.

Once he stepped beyond the rune and entered the realm of the soul, the world—previously stagnant—turned toward Rundmal.

It granted him immortality and began to venerate him as the god of this world.

In a world without gods—

Rundmal had become a god.

With a soul far richer than before.

With a stature incomparable to his former self.

At last, he was complete.

But it was too early to be satisfied.

“Destruction. Because of you, I will become a Primordial God.”

Which is to say—*my end.*

The old Rundmal who reveled in destruction would disappear, leaving only Rundmal the Primordial God behind.

Once he ascended to the stature of a Primordial God, regenerating this world would be possible.

“Regret deeply that you granted me enlightenment.”

All of this was possible because of the Destruction before him.

Now, he would not die.

Having become the sole god of this world, Rundmal was practically invincible here.

A being from another dimension could not possibly exert its full power in a foreign world.

And before the one true god, that would be even more difficult.

Victory and defeat were already decided.

……As I looked at the supremely confident Rundmal—

I spoke calmly.

“Now this is starting to feel like a real fight.”

And I smiled lightly.

*

*

—N-No… Rundmal has become a god… the One True God…!

The god of the dwarves cried out in a shocked, despairing voice.

Even the slightest possibility had vanished.

The world itself had acknowledged Rundmal as a god.

*Gooooooo—!*

The great origin of the world responded by granting him an even stronger divine authority.

No matter how the shadow of Destruction loomed, it was impossible to destroy the “origin of the world” outright, without any process.

If that were possible, Pangaenia would have been destroyed the moment Destruction appeared.

But even that mighty Destruction had not erased the world’s origin instantly.

It had only made it possible by gradually erecting towers and expanding its influence.

“He became the One True God? What does that even mean?”

When Dietrich tilted his head and asked, the god of the dwarves sighed before replying.

—There is no god in this world. Because there is no god, the power of the “origin” that sustains the world could only continue to weaken. Until just now, Destruction still had a chance to win—but once Rundmal ascended as the One True God, that chance is gone.

“How could he suddenly become a god?”

—I… don’t know. The primary role of us gods is to balance and sustain worlds, and to handle “souls.” Souls support the world, maintain it, and allow brilliant life to bloom. But this world had no souls. And yet King Rundmal suddenly acquired a soul.

“Does that mean reincarnation is possible through souls? But this world has existed for a long time. New life has been born as well.”

—“Brilliant life” refers to lifeforms with *latent potential*. Beings that can move forward on their own. Beings that can build their own stature—some even with the potential to become gods. When many such beings build their stature, the “origin of the world” strengthens itself naturally.

“So that’s why he devoured runes to grow stronger.”

—But the first “brilliant soul” has now bloomed. Rundmal broke out of his shell. Having become one who creates rules, a Destruction with no foundation in this world can never defeat Rundmal.

“…Even so, I believe.”

Dietrich did not waver.

The Phantom he had witnessed had never once been defeated.

In fact, he couldn’t even imagine Phantom losing.

*Gooooooo—!*

The strengthened “origin of the world” bit into the End even more fiercely.

The End screamed and was forced to recoil.

As the god of the dwarves had said, this was not Pangaenia but an entirely different world.

Here, Phantom had not yet fully adapted.

Though he had raised the Tower of the End, there was only one.

Which meant his influence itself was limited.

And with limited influence, it was only natural for the power of the End to weaken.

Gradually, the End’s momentum began to fade.

Watching that sight, Dietrich bit his lip hard.

‘I’m still too weak.’

There was nothing he could do.

Then suddenly, Dietrich looked down at the Guardian Holy Sword.

“…If we increase the influence, can we win?”

—The way Destruction increases its influence is by erecting Towers of Destruction. It’s only possible by killing and corrupting gods.

“If we could connect the ‘tower’ in Pangaenia to this place?”

—Child. This world is completely different from Pangaenia. Each world’s rules do not apply to the other.

“Then what about that? Didn’t you say Rundmal gained a soul? That should have been impossible to begin with.”

—That is……

“The rules have already changed.”

—What are you planning to do?

“…I’ll reopen the ‘gate.’ The altar.”

Dietrich turned his gaze.

The Guardian Knight—Andro, was it?

“…?”

As Andro tilted his head, Dietrich spoke at once.

“Hey. I need you to take me—right now—to the place where the ‘gate’ through which the dwarves first appeared is located. As fast as possible.”

*

*

 

Runes are eggs.

Rundmal, who had broken out of the egg, had finally obtained life—existence itself.

Yet there was something he couldn’t understand.

‘Why did he awaken me?’

He had helped him break the egg.

Even though he was an enemy that should have been slain.

Why had Destruction turned him into a god?

Because his previous state had been too easy?

But now, Destruction could not defeat him.

Could not kill him.

Their very stature was different.

Still—

“…A strange technique.”

Rundmal tilted his head.

There had been several moments when he thought he had struck Destruction.

Yet he couldn’t touch him.

It was as if Destruction were using a technique that rewound time itself.

“Manipulating ‘time’? It’s only for an instant, but he keeps altering the outcome… How is that even possible?”

It was an authority of an unknown star.

The rift of time Wilhelm had grasped at the end.

Through that enlightenment, one could rewind a fleeting moment.

But repeating it endlessly was impossible.

“Even so, I’m stronger.”

Rundmal was confident.

There was no being capable of opposing him now that he had reached the stature of the One True God.

*Swish!*

Rundmal’s divine form vanished in an instant.

The power and techniques of Destruction clearly surpassed his conceptual understanding—but it didn’t matter. That thing still couldn’t reach him.

Time was on his side, and Destruction could only weaken as time passed.

‘What…?’

…It should have been so.

Yet no matter how much time passed, Destruction did not weaken.

Rather, there were signs it was gradually catching up to his stature.

Wasn’t that strange?

How was it catching up without using any particular technique?

‘Adaptation. It’s adapting!’

Ah—

Rundmal furrowed his brow.

He had no choice but to.

Destruction wasn’t catching up to his stature.

Rather, it was recovering its weakened presence—its *stature*.

The influence it had lost upon coming from Pangaenia to this world was being restored through its clashes with him.

‘Impossible. There’s no way it possesses a greater stature than me, the One True God…’

Stature was qualification.

Naturally, it made no sense for Destruction to have a qualification greater than the world’s sole god.

Especially not within his own world.

The greatest being in this world had to be Rundmal.

Unless Destruction expanded its influence and gained a greater qualification in this world, defeating the One True God head-on would be impossible.

*Spat!*

In that instant, the sword of Destruction slashed his side.

And at the same time—

“…!”

Rundmal’s eyes filled with shock.

It cut him.

It had cut through *immortality* itself.

A wound formed—and it would not heal.

But it wasn’t such a wound that truly shocked him.

In the instant he was cut, he saw it.

The *true nature* of Destruction.

Rundmal retreated at once and spoke.

“You… What are you? You’re Destruction—so why do I see ‘Truth’ within you?”

He had seen it clearly.

Not mere souls, not the existence of a god—

But eyes and a mouth that lay even deeper beyond that.

Yet what Rundmal spoke of now was something else.

He had seen Truth before.

He had entered it and devoured vast amounts of knowledge.

If it were the same Truth, he wouldn’t be this shocked.

Truth was something the heavens enjoyed—allowing their weapon, Destruction, to possess Truth would have been natural.

But what he saw in Destruction now was entirely different from what he had seen before.

It was far removed from the Truth enjoyed by the heavens.

This wasn’t borrowed Truth.

It was on an entirely different level.

Rundmal’s eyes moved from shock to trembling awe.

Then, in a voice of disbelief, he said,

“You… Could it be…? No, that’s impossible…!”

Why—

…does your entire being look like **Truth** itself?