Chapter 216: Chapter 11: The Price of Omniscience and Omnipotence
In just ten years, the world's technology had made staggering leaps forward.
Under the threat of the Gastrea, no country or region was willing to sit idly by. Massive budgets and funds were poured into the research and development of weapons and technology.
Ordinary soldiers on the battlefield were like lambs to the slaughter, unable to withstand the ferocious attacks of the Gastrea. Even with advanced equipment, they were no match for the monsters.
So, the New Human Creation Plan was born.
Four of the world's most developed nations Japan, the United States, Australia, and Germany secretly joined forces to create mechanized soldiers capable of fighting Gastrea.
Each country appointed its most brilliant scientists to lead and execute the plan.
These scientists were known as the Four Wise Men.
Countries invested heavily, dedicating most of their researchers to drafting blueprints for combining humans and machines. The goal was to create super soldiers who could turn the tide on the battlefield and relieve the pressure on frontline troops.
And Rentaro Satomi was one of them.
"This is the biggest secret of my life," Rentaro said, scratching his head awkwardly after revealing his deepest truth. "I know it might be hard to believe. The New Human Creation Plan is top secret information sealed by the government. Ordinary people have no way of knowing about it. But please believe me I'm not lying."
"I believe you."
"If you don't believe me, you can touch it your self... Wait, you believe me?"
"Mm hmm."
"Uh..."
Rentaro fell silent for a moment, then hesitantly asked, "Were you... part of the government? Do you know about the existence of mechanized soldiers?"
"No, I'm just an ordinary manga artist. I've never worked for the government."
"Then why do you believe me? For most people, hearing something like this would be unbelievable, right?"
"Oh my, have you forgotten so quickly that I'm not an ordinary person either?"
Nia puffed out her chest with pride, patting her modest chest. "Now that you've shared your biggest secret, it's my turn. Are you ready, young man?"
"Of course."
Rentaro took a deep breath, his ears perked, afraid to miss a single word.
He stared at Nia lips, his focus razor sharp.
"Omniscience and omnipotence."
Rentaro eyes widened as he met her gaze.
The air grew eerily silent.
After a long pause, Nia, growing increasingly embarrassed, broke the silence first: "Why aren't you reacting? You should be shouting, 'How is this possible?!' or 'You must be lying!' right now!"
"Honestly... I don't know how to react."
Rentaro tone was complicated.
Omniscience and omnipotence.
These were powers reserved for gods.
In any story comic or novel this was the kind of ability both heroes and villains would kill for.
And here she was, claiming to possess such power?
If anyone else had said this, he would've dismissed them as a fraud.
If it had been yesterday's Nia, he would've chalked it up to drunken nonsense.
But after witnessing what had happened just ten minutes ago, even though his experience and intuition screamed that this was a joke, some inexplicable force kept him from dismissing it entirely.
As the saying goes, hesitation is half belief.
And Rentaro was already halfway there.
"You saw this book earlier, right?"
Seizing the moment, Nia summoned Rasiel again. "This is my Angel. Think of it as a tool only I can use. It's called Rasiel. With it, I can achieve omniscience and omnipotence... well, almost omniscience and omnipotence."
"Almost?"
"Of course. Even real gods aren't truly omniscient or omnipotent. They can't always bring back the ones they love, no matter how hard they try." Nia's tone was calm. "As a nun who's only been granted a fraction of divine power, how could I have the real deal?"
"If there are limits, how can you call it omniscience and omnipotence?" Rentaro rolled his eyes, ignoring the part about gods and lovers. He treated it as a myth and didn't dwell on it.
"But 'half knowledge and half power' sounds so lame. I don't want that."
"Titles don't really matter... So, what are the limits?"
"For omniscience, I can only access information about the past and present from Rasiel. I can't see into the future," Nia explained. "As for omnipotence, I can't resurrect the dead or create life."
"Wow... Even with those limits, it's still incredibly close to omniscience and omnipotence." Rentaro took a deep breath. "So, if you drew the destruction of the world right now, would it actually happen?"
"In theory, yes," Nia said, scratching the back of her head awkwardly. "But the more my drawings defy common sense, the more spiritual energy they require. If I tried to draw the end of the world, I'd probably run out of energy before I even finished."
"Spiritual energy?"
"Think of it like a mage mana. Once it's gone, I can't use Rasiel."
"I see."
Rentaro nodded, but then a realization hit him. "Wait. The reason you believed me so quickly about being a mechanized soldier... was because you already used Rasiel to check my past, wasn't it?"
"Ahaha, busted." Nia clasped her hands together apologetically. "I couldn't help it. It was part of the test. I won't do it again in the future."
"Personally, I don't mind you checking my past or my heart. Aside from being a mechanized soldier, I don't have any secrets." Rentaro mouth twitched. "But I have to say, that's a really annoying ability. You probably don't have many friends, do you?"
"Well... before I got Rasiel, I had quite a few friends."
Nia smiled bitterly, a flicker of sadness crossing her face. "When I was young and reckless, I did a lot of stupid things and saw things I shouldn't have. It almost ruined my life. So after that, I rarely used Rasiel."
"Every bit of power has its price..."
Rentaro fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"It seems being omniscient and omnipotent isn't all it's cracked up to be."