Lord of Entertainment

Chapter 299 - Realm Expansion

(3rd Person POV)

The moment Arthur invested his Divine Points into his «Divine Realm», he immediately felt a surge ripple through his core.

A warm pulse radiated from his chest, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished from his office—his body dissolving into shimmering light.

When he reappeared, he stood inside the familiar yet ethereal replica of his headquarters, now located within his Divine Realm. The moment his feet touched the ground, Arthur could feel it—the pulse of the realm, like it was an extension of his own body. Every grain of dirt, every breath of air—it all belonged to him.

"Hmm," Arthur murmured as he walked to the window, peering out. "It's expanded again."

What had once been the size of Horn Kingdom's central district was now the size of an entire city. Beyond the borders of what he'd built stretched a blank void—white, formless, waiting to be shaped by his will.

Rising above into the sky with a simple thought, Arthur floated over the empty expanse, arms folded, eyes scanning the white canvas. He tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"I could build anything... absolutely anything. So why stop at a backward district?" His eyes lit up with inspiration. "What if I went further? What if I built something more modern—something closer to the world I left behind?"

He raised his hand and focused.

In response, two familiar objects materialized in mid-air before him: a low-end gaming PC and a dusty old PlayStation 4.

Arthur laughed softly. "My old setup... from my previous life." With a single thought, both devices powered on and ran smoothly, exactly as he remembered.

"This place really has no limits," he whispered. "If I can recreate these... why not an entire city?"

Opening his Entertainment System interface, he navigated to the Shop tab, scrolling through the various categories. It didn't take long before he reached the blueprint section.

There it was—just sitting there, waiting: full city blueprints for Tokyo, Singapore, etc.

He paused, considering. "Singapore might be clean and efficient... but Tokyo has the chaos, the density, the heartbeat I'm looking for."

Decision made, Arthur selected Tokyo's blueprint. But first, he needed to clear the old district.

He raised his hand once again, and with just a thought, the entire central district he'd first modeled after Horn vanished—clean, silent, and instant.

Then he focused.

A hum filled the air.

In the distance, the Tokyo Tower emerged from the void, followed by skyscrapers, billboards, glowing neon lights. Streets webbed outward in perfect detail. Apartment complexes. Convenience stores. Game centers. Subways. Bullet trains.

The full city of Tokyo bloomed into existence—perfectly recreated, pulsing with potential.

Arthur smiled as the artificial sun of his realm rose above the new cityscape. "Now this... this is a Divine Realm worthy of entertainment."

Just then, Arthur felt a surge ripple through his Divine Realm. The divine energy production spiked sharply, filling the space with a vibrant hum of power.

He narrowed his eyes, sensing the change. "Hmm... Did the creation of Tokyo City boost my divine output?" he muttered thoughtfully.

Without hesitation, he channeled the overflowing divine energy into his «Devourer Ring». Originally built to store vast amounts of magical mana, the ring now absorbed a higher-tier energy—divinity itself.

Arthur checked his reserves. His mana pool had long since broken the ceiling of what was considered possible, now sitting at an overwhelming 30 million. But his divine energy... only around 200,000.

Powerful by this world's standards, he thought. But still not enough.

He knew better than to be complacent. There were hidden threats lurking—beings not spoken of in public but whispered about in cults, forbidden texts, and ancient prophecies.

And then there were the gods. True or false, the existence of religions—especially the dominant Solarus Faith—was proof enough that divine forces played a role in this world.

Just as he was deep in thought, a system notification appeared before him:

[The «Divine Realm» has met the required conditions. Souls of your deceased followers may now take residence within your Divine Realm.]

Arthur's eyes widened in disbelief. "My realm can house souls now?" he muttered, then a slow, satisfied smile spread across his face.

"I've been thinking about this for a while," he said aloud. "A god without worshippers is boring... but a god without an afterlife?" He chuckled. "That's just lazy game design."

His eyes gleamed with ambition. "If I can entertain the dead, maybe I can generate Entertainment Points even in the afterlife..."

---

Elsewhere, in Angels City

The streets lay quiet, cloaked in the soft stillness of night. But not everything was still—three ghostly figures drifted down the sidewalk like a whisper on the wind.

One was an old man, his beard wispy and translucent. The others were a younger man and woman, both barely past adulthood in appearance.

"Grandfather," said the young man with a sigh, "we've been praying to this 'Dionysus' for weeks. Nothing's happened. I'm starting to think he's no different from those so-called gods of the Three Known Faiths."

The old man scoffed. "Don't speak so hastily. You've seen the living receive answers from Him."

The young woman tilted her head. "But what if... He only listens to the living? Maybe we're not worth His attention?"

The old man's brows furrowed, his tone turning grave. "That's what worries me. If He doesn't respond to us, then maybe our prayers really were in vain."

The young man folded his arms. "Then what's the point? Maybe we should take that studio's offer to appear in that ghost-themed movie. I hear they pay good... even to the dead."

"You fool!" the old man snapped. "You're a ghost, not a circus act! Show some dignity!"

"But—" the young man began, but before he could finish, a warm golden light bathed the alleyway.

They froze. At first, they panicked—assuming the Solarus priests had found them and were attempting to purge their souls.

But it felt... different. There was no pain. No searing. Only warmth. Peace. As if their essence was being cradled.

One by one, they lifted their heads and hands toward the descending light.

"This... this isn't from the Solarus..." the young woman whispered, eyes shimmering.

The old man stared upward, eyes wide. "No. This... this is Him."

And with that, their souls began to rise.

---

In a cramped, dimly lit room deep within the slums of Apple City, a frail old demon lay on a creaky bed surrounded by his family. The flickering candlelight danced on their worried faces.

"Don't look so glum," the old man rasped, a crooked smile on his lips. "When I'm gone, I'll come back as a ghost. You'll still see me floating around the house, scaring off rats and freeloaders."

A few chuckles broke through the sorrow. His oldest son forced a smile. "Yeah, but you'll forget all about us and wander off like every other spirit."

His younger daughter sniffled. "Demons usually become ghosts, dad... because they don't worship the Three Known Gods. But maybe if you choose a deity, you won't have to wander. You could find peace in the afterlife."

The others nodded solemnly.

"Please, dad," the son added. "You've always been stubborn about religion, but maybe now's the time."

The old demon let out a weak laugh. "Who said I haven't?"

The family blinked in surprise.

"Wait... really?" the daughter asked, her eyes widening. "You... you mean it? Did you finally accept Lord Solarus?"

The old man shook his head slowly.

"The Moon Goddess then?" another guessed.

"The God of Craft?" said another.

Again, the old demon gently shook his head.

"Then who?" they asked in unison, confusion and curiosity rising.

With a faint, content smile, he whispered, "Someone told me about a god I'd never heard of... His name is Dionysus. The Lord of Entertainment."

A heavy silence filled the room.

The daughter's voice trembled. "W-what? Dad... that's not one of the Three Known Gods! That's... that's a cult!"

"No," the old man said firmly, though his voice was barely above a breath. "He's real. I prayed to Him just a few days ago... I asked for more time... and He gave it to me."

The family stared, speechless.

"I should've died already," he murmured. "But He gave me one more week. One last chance to say goodbye..."

His eyes fluttered, and a final breath escaped his lips.

And just like that, he was gone.