Chapter 183: The System's Curtain Call, A New Era
The sudden system announcement sent shockwaves throughout the entire world.
This was especially true for the believers within the White God Religion and the Goddess Religion.
Even though Shirazawa had usurped the faith belonging to the Word of God Religion, the believers still regarded the "Voice of Heaven" during level-ups as divine oracle.
Telling the believers now that divine oracles would no longer appear in the future—how could they possibly accept that?
Of course, Shirazawa couldn't be bothered to care about the emotions of common mortals.
He was about to set off to explore a broader universe anyway; as for this newly revived planet, he would just let them fend for themselves.
[System maintenance completed...]
As the system finished its announcement, tears flickered in Ariel's eyes.
Bound within the void, Sariel slowly opened her eyes, gazing at the surroundings with a touch of confusion and dazed trance.
"Lord Sariel!"
Ariel, who had been guarding by her side all this time, sprinted over, throwing herself into Sariel's embrace.
"Long time no see, Ariel."
"Did I sleep for a very long time?"
Sariel wanted to reach out a hand to stroke Ariel's smooth, lovely hair.
Yet both of her arms had long since vanished, merging into one with the void.
The only part of her that could currently move was her neck.
"Ah, you slept for a long, long time..."
Pulling out the energy bead, Ariel stuffed it into Sariel's mouth.
In an instant, a majestic surge of energy flooded into Sariel's body, causing her entire form to radiate a shimmering, lustrous glow.
Her shattered limbs and the light wings behind her back were rapidly restored, and Sariel slowly sat up straight.
"Thank you for your hard work, child."
Throughout all those endless years, Sariel had silently watched over Ariel's situation, knowing full well that she had been putting forth endless effort.
The other children as well, in order to rescue this planet on the brink of shattering and to save a stubborn angel like herself, had sacrificed and dedicated far too much heart and soul.
"It wasn't hard work at all. As long as you can return, no matter how difficult it gets, I'm willing to keep going."
Upon Sariel's eternally unchanging face, a rare, warm smile actually bloomed.
"By the way, there's also Gulie. Thank you as well for protecting humanity in my stead."
Sariel looked toward the black-haired young man standing in the corner, an elegant smile hanging at the corners of her lips.
"Why thank me? I was merely... doing my duty as an administrator. Don't... don't overthink it."
"I still ought to thank you for guarding the children in my stead."
"Y-You're welcome."
Watching the extremely awkward conversation between the two, Shirazawa was utterly speechless.
Being a tsundere truly ruins a lifetime.
What's more, the target of his tsundere attitude was the extremely dense Sariel—he was simply beyond saving.
"I have perfected the system's self-operating program. Next, all it takes is the passage of time for the planet to recover to its peak state."
Having finished her busy work, Shiraori explained the situation to Sariel and Gulie.
"In other words, from here on out it's an era of human self-governance. There's no need for administrators to interfere, so you guys can officially retire."
As for losing his job, Gulie was actually more than happy.
He had only taken up the mantle of system administrator for Sariel's sake in the first place; now that Sariel was rescued, why would he ever want to keep working?
"However, without divine interference, if humanity strays down the wrong path again, then..." Sariel's sense of mission remained strong, constantly feeling that leaving humanity unchecked would lead to trouble sooner or later.
Shiraori immediately rolled her eyes at her, far too lazy to bother explaining—it was simply too exhausting.
"Even without divine interference, after so many years, hasn't humanity lived just fine~?"
Sophia was blunt and outspoken, leaving zero face as she refuted.
"Furthermore, didn't you already interfere back in the ancient era? What was the result? Every tragedy that was bound to happen happened anyway, not a single one missed—what was the point?"
"To tell you the truth, your very existence is the single greatest obstacle to human development."
"It's precisely because a goddess exists that humans dare to be so utterly unscrupulous. They know that in the end, the goddess will always come out to clean up their mess, that if the sky falls, the goddess will hold it up."
"It's this exact lay-flat, slack-jawed mindset that caused humanity to lose all reverence, becoming unimaginably greedy, selfish, and self-serving."
"So please, spare humanity already—they don't need any goddess at all."
Sophia seemed to have unlocked all her potential at once, spitting out a barrage of sharp mockery in one continuous stream.
Shirazawa covered his forehead, tugging at her arm. "Stop scolding, stop scolding. If you keep scolding, someone's going to go emo."
"I'm just telling the truth~"
Sophia closed her mouth without having fully vented her fill, yet her face still carried an indignant expression, looking utterly dissatisfied with Sariel's way of doing things.
On the other hand, although Sariel was rendered speechless by the rebuttal, she wasn't angry.
She began to ponder Sophia's incisive words, weighing the pros and cons to analyze the path most suitable for human development.
"Sigh, hopeless."
Shirazawa let out a long sigh, leading Sophia and Shiraori away from the depths of the labyrinth.
Sariel needed time to digest things, and since the three of them hadn't met in a long time, they needed a private space to catch up properly.
It wasn't good for them to stay here and act as third wheels either.
Out of sight, out of mind—they simply went straight to the academy where their teacher was.
This time, it was a grand class reunion where all classmates were present.
Even classmates scattered outside, like Wrath, Yuri, Kunihiko, and Asaka, had gathered together.
Of course, Sophia couldn't be missing either.
However, when enemies met, their eyes burned with fury; the sparks flying between her and Yuri practically lit up the entire hall.
"Okay, if anyone has any questions, ask them quickly. Of course, if you have any dreams, feel free to speak up—I'll do my best to fulfill your another-world journey."
Shirazawa clapped his hands, acting as the organizer of the class reunion while standing before the podium to answer everyone's doubts.
Their teacher's face still looked slightly haggard, but seeing all her students safe and sound, her mood improved considerably.
Hugo in the audience raised his hand first.
"Oh~ Student Hugo, please state your dream."
"Um, based on the situation classmate Shirazawa explained just now, the human-demon war will become history, and the two will no longer be opposed. In that case, what about our main quest?"
"Main quest? What main quest?"
"Having finally reincarnated into another world, shouldn't the plot be grinding mobs, leveling up, defeating the Demon Lord, and saving the princess? Now that there's no Demon Lord, what's the point of us leveling up?"
"Oh~ So that's what you mean."
Shirazawa understood Hugo's dream now—it wasn't just Hugo, many male classmates shared this line of thinking.
They were hot-blooded youths who enjoyed adventure and challenges after all. Suddenly losing their goal was indeed quite uncomfortable for them.
"Though humans and demons are no longer opposed, the Demon Lord still exists, and likewise, so does the Hero."
"The bad guys in this world can never be wiped out completely. There will always be some crazies jumping out to cause trouble, so won't your tasks come naturally?"
"There are also vast numbers of monsters spread across various parts of the world. Once they overrun the lands, that too will be a disaster."
"Young men~ Don't stop moving forward!"
Hearing Shirazawa's words, a flurry of discussion instantly broke out below, the focus of the conversation gradually shifting away from the original topic.
Most of the boys were looking forward to their future adventures—it would surely be very interesting.
As for the girls, they weren't quite as passionate.
Compared to adventures, they preferred a peaceful life instead; what they looked forward to was a soul-stirring love story with a prince or a noble.
This class reunion was held in a very relaxed manner, the atmosphere exceptionally harmonious.
Except for Sophia and Yuri, of course.
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