"O, most supreme Lord! I have finally understood my own arrogance and foolishness! Please forgive this lost lamb for daring to question a creation as noble as Yours!"
Having finally understood humanity's choices through the concept of a limited lifespan, Goetia prostrated himself in sincere submission. If before, he had held the belief that such a "trivial" matter didn't require God's intervention and that he could build something more glorious than the doomed Human Order through his own efforts, now, he had completely grasped the error in his thinking.
This error didn't stem from Su Mo's personal descent—though that was the direct cause. The true root of it was his own arrogance. He had been so foolish that, when he couldn't comprehend the choices of Solomon and God, he arrogantly believed his own judgment was correct. He arrogantly deemed humanity worthless and sought to tear down everything the world had accumulated and start over.
But in reality, the "foolishness" he couldn't understand was precisely where humanity's transcendent nature lay. What he sought to overturn was not merely a world, but a direct challenge to God.
To deny the humanity that God had created was to believe his own judgment was superior to God's, to believe his own creation was greater than God's. It could even be seen as the transgression of thinking he could surpass God himself.
"So the Lord's grace was not bestowed upon Solomon, but upon me!"
Goetia raised his head, his eyes filled with fervent adoration. "If you had not descended personally, I would surely have committed the same error as Lucifer and Azazel. To be a creation of God yet question His decisions... that is the greatest of sins!"
He used to think the Bible was nothing more than a fairytale, not worth his attention. Only now did he realize that he had committed the same mistake as those archangels. As a creation of God, he looked down on humanity and even questioned God himself. Though the cautionary proverbs had been written down thousands of years ago, both humans and angels kept repeating the same mistakes.
From this perspective, he was naturally immensely grateful for Su Mo's appearance. Not only because Su Mo had put a stop to his arrogance, but also because Su Mo had granted him a grace that none of the other archangels had received. If those fallen angels had received God's grace and warning beforehand, they wouldn't have had to fall to their current state.
"Hallelujah! All glory be to my Lord!"
Goetia bowed his divine form deeply, placing his head before Su Mo, ready to accept whatever judgment his God deemed fit.
Seeing this, even Romani was a little surprised. "...You're a Demon God King. Even if you've turned over a new leaf, you don't have to be more devout than I am, do you?"
Goetia's essence was the Seventy-Two Demon God Pillars, which were essentially heretical deities conquered by Christianity, demoted and repurposed as demons. In contrast, Solomon was a believer with a pure pedigree. Who would have thought that this Goetia fellow would seem even more fanatical than him, spouting "Hallelujah" every other second, acting more like the Sage King than the actual King Solomon?
It made him feel compelled to kneel as well, forced to join in on the competitive piety.
Fortunately, Su Mo didn't care much for such formalities. With a single glance, he could tell that Goetia had truly seen the light. Though he was exhibiting a bit of convert's fervor and overthinking things, he had indeed abandoned his plan for the Incineration of Human Order and was sincerely repenting.
"Becoming an Evil of Humanity is certainly your sin, but it was also a predetermined role. You need not be too concerned," Su Mo said casually. "As one of the Evils of Humanity, you were always meant to be an obstacle for humanity to overcome, just as arrogance is your innate poison."
"Therefore, aside from the punishment the world itself will mete out to you, I will not add any further penalty. You need only fulfill your duty as a trial, and I will leave a place for you in Eden."
From Su Mo's perspective, Goetia's arrogance and his awakening were both deeply embedded in his character, transformations that were bound to happen. He had merely accelerated the timing slightly, which couldn't really be considered a blessing.
But hearing this, Goetia was even more shaken.
"My arrogance was also a predetermined role? Of course! The Lord is omnipotent, how could He not know of our foolishness... So everything was decided at the dawn of creation! You have already arranged the best possible path!"
Goetia was first stunned, then had a sudden epiphany. So, both humanity's limitations and its transcendent nature, as well as the mistakes he had made, were all part of God's plan from the very beginning.
"Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!"
He trembled once more, his understanding of theology finally approaching the level of medieval scholasticism.
"Enough with the pointless pageantry. Even with your enlightenment, you still have your own task to complete. Go back!"
Su Mo waved his hand and, under Goetia's tearfully grateful gaze, tossed him back to the Grand Temple of Time. Having seen the light, he would no longer destroy the world, but he would still fulfill his duty as an Evil of Humanity, providing a trial for mankind in a more appropriate manner.
After Goetia's departure, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief. At the very least, the crisis of the Incineration of Human Order had been successfully averted.
Just as all of Chaldea's staff were beaming with smiles, constantly thanking God for His grace and watching as human civilization was steadily restored, Su Mo suddenly spoke.
"The Incineration of Human Order incident is concluded. However, the subsequent Freezing of Human Order... you'll have to overcome that with your own strength."
"Huh?"
At his words, all of Chaldea froze.
The what?
From the literal meaning alone, the "Freezing of Human Order" sounded like a catastrophe on the same scale as the "Incineration of Human Order."
But hadn't they just overcome the crisis of human extinction with Su Mo's help? Why was there another crisis? First incineration, then freezing... were there going to be other disasters like boiling and stewing next? Was Human Order ever going to be okay again?!
Joy turned to sorrow. After the initial shock, the Chaldea staff, including Romani, all turned their gazes to Su Mo.
Was there any chance that the Lord would help them again, to overcome the next disaster?
However, the moment the thought arose, before they could even ask, the Spiritron Communication link to Uruk in the Age of Gods was completely severed.
Looking at the blank hologram, everyone understood God's attitude and their faces fell.
Meanwhile, in Uruk, Mash and Gudako exchanged a look but didn't have the nerve to ask Su Mo for another favor at a time like this.
"We'll deal with what comes next when it comes. For now, let's celebrate overcoming this crisis!" Gudako said with a carefree air.
"Mhm!" Mash nodded emphatically.
Outside, Siduri had already, under Gilgamesh's orders, organized the entire city for a celebration: a festival of thanks for His Majesty the God-King.
That night, the city was ablaze with light. And within the temple of Ishtar, the Primordial Mother Goddess Tiamat finally ceased to suppress her own primal urges, wanting to create new life with her Father God.