The moment Erica recognized his identity, she understood that the Divine Beast Boar hadn't appeared alone. The deity before her was either the boar's master or its enemy.
In either case, it didn't really matter.
The existence of a Heretic God was, in itself, the greatest disaster in this world. The worldview of a god was vastly different from that of a mortal. An encounter with an existence of this level would never end peacefully.
To escape a Divine Beast only to run into a Heretic God himself...
Erica, her pride already shattered by the boar, no longer had any overconfident thoughts of challenging a god. But she didn't run away, either. Instead, she straightened her back and stood beside Su Mo.
She understood with profound clarity that even though they were both Tier 2, Su Mo's strength was far greater than hers. She had given her warning. What happened next was not something a supporting character like her, inferior in both wisdom and strength, could interfere with.
She believed that with Su Mo's wisdom, he would surely be able to control the situation.
In the chat group, hearing Erica's words, the members were struck as if by lightning.
Rin Tohsaka: "A H-H-Heretic God?!"
Madoka: "I-Isn't that the 'God' Erica-oneechan talked about before?"
Rin Tohsaka: "That's right. If Erica isn't mistaken, this should be a Tier 3 existence, a terrifying being capable of destroying nations!"
The young Rin's expression was grave. In her understanding, a god-level combatant was utterly invincible. Aside from a Magician, there was likely no existence that could match one.
Kanae: "Does this mean... they might become enemies with a god?"
She couldn't help but start praying for Su Mo and Erica. Even knowing how fickle the world was, none of them had expected such a dramatic turn of events.
They had just resolved one crisis only to encounter the greatest disaster in the Campione! world.
Seeing a Tier 3 being for the first time, even after witnessing Su Mo one-shot a Divine Beast, they couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for him. God-level combat power was a dominating force in any world.
After what had happened before, they didn't think Su Mo was out of options, but they certainly didn't believe this was a hurdle that could be easily overcome.
Can Lord Su Mo handle a crisis like this?
Their worries clearly did not reach Su Mo in the slightest.
There was no defensive posture, no nervous expression. Even after hearing Erica's warning and seeing her trembling body, he still asked his question with the same casual air as if he had just run into an acquaintance on a street corner.
"What makes a god, a god?"
Seeing his calm and indifferent demeanor, the young boy who had quietly appeared before them grinned, revealing an excited smile.
"Interesting!"
The boy sized up the man before him, who showed no signs of having any backing, with great interest.
"As expected of the one who defeated my incarnation. To remain so composed even after knowing my identity... you have the makings of a great warrior!"
To be praised by a Heretic God like this would have sent any ordinary person over the moon. But Su Mo was not moved. Even the praise of a god could not excite him in the slightest. He simply repeated his question in a calm tone.
"You may refuse to answer, but do not ignore the question, Verethragna. That is basic courtesy."
Even when facing a Heretic God, his tone was one of an equal, making the others in the chat group sweat for him. To be so assertive with a god, isn't he afraid of setting him off?
Erica, on the other hand, didn't notice Su Mo's tone. Her attention was completely captivated by the name he had casually uttered.
Erica: "Verethragna, the Zoroastrian God of War?"
Erica: "Speaking of which, Verethragna does have a myth where he incarnates as a boar, and as the guardian of light, he does take the form of a youth. That seems to match."
Erica: "As expected of Lord Su Mo, to see through the Heretic God's true identity at a glance!"
Knowing his identity was always better than not knowing.
Hearing Su Mo's question, the young war god Verethragna's eyes lit up even more.
"To recognize my name at a glance, it seems you also have the disposition of a sage. I never thought there would be such an outstanding hero in this era. It seems I made the right choice in descending to the lower world!"
The Heretic God's gentle attitude made everyone sigh in relief. But Su Mo's next move made their hearts leap into their throats.
"The type that can't be reasoned with, I see."
Muttering this under his breath, Su Mo's hand moved directly to the hilt of his sword.
"It seems this is the only way to communicate!"
As a human, his thinking was even more direct than that of a Heretic God. If words failed, he would resort to action.
Seeing this, before Erica could even decide whether to step in and mediate, the young god had already taken a step back, de-escalating the hostility.
"My apologies, my apologies, don't be in such a hurry! I just don't know how to answer your question. After all, this body is a god!"
Though he apologized, his leisurely attitude suggested his concession was merely out of a whim of interest and basic courtesy. This was not surprising; no Heretic God would be wary of a mere human.
Even if this human had just slain a Divine Beast, in the eyes of a Heretic God, it was nothing more than child's play.
Fortunately, Su Mo didn't care about that. Hearing the answer, he continued to press.
"How do you determine that you are a god?"
A vague feeling couldn't be used as proof. There must be some decisive structural difference between gods and non-gods.
"Are you trying to study the existential structure of a god?" Verethragna quickly realized Su Mo's intention.
"Correct." Su Mo did not hide his purpose.
"Hahaha! What an arrogant thought! I truly don't know if you are a sage or a fool!"
Though he said this, a rather excited smile appeared on Verethragna's face. His interest was clearly piqued.
"No need for the little girl to say it, 'divine power' is definitely the wrong answer. For a god, such a thing is plentiful in the heavens and the earth."
"If you ask me, my answer is a god's 'divinity'."
"Divinity is the key to confirming a god as a god. A god who loses their divinity will be demoted, and may even lose their sense of self."
On this point, Verethragna, who had just had his divinity shattered and had lost his self once, was well-qualified to speak. In any world, divinity was inextricably linked, even bound, to a god.
Therefore, Verethraggma felt that his answer was sound and nearly irrefutable.
However, standing before him was Su Mo.
"You've made the same mistake. God-Slayers also possess divinity corresponding to their Authorities, but they are not gods."
Su Mo easily provided a counterexample. The Authorities wielded by God-Slayers also existed within their bodies in the form of divinity. If one were to use a more fitting term, they should be called "Divinity Holders."
"Then I don't know." After two seconds of thought, Verethragna chose to give up. As an expert in god-slaying, divinity was the best answer he could think of.
"Let's set aside the special case of God-Slayers for now. Regarding divinity, how much do you, as a god, understand it?"
Su Mo didn't press further, shifting the topic to divinity.
Hearing this, Verethragna gave a hearty smile.
"If you're asking about techniques for severing divinity, I know a great deal."
"And if I ask about the physical or occult structure of divinity?"
"I don't know a thing!"
The answer was decisive, without a hint of hesitation.
Hearing this, Su Mo expressed his confusion.
"As a god, do you not have any desire to understand your own structure?"
"Do humans study how their own brains think?" Verethragna retorted.
"Of course, they do. The human brain is broadly divided into three parts: the reptilian brain, the emotional brain, and the rational brain, which control instinct, emotion, and logical thought respectively... And all three of these brains are structures that evolved for the sake of survival and reproduction," Su Mo explained simply, giving a brief science lesson.
"..." Verethragna was speechless for a moment.
"The humans of this era are truly strange. Isn't that denying the existence of free will?"
"No. It is exploring the boundaries of free will. In fact, the truly strange ones... are you gods, aren't they?"
Su Mo's eyes held a look of slight incomprehension.
"No matter how weak humans are, over several millennia, they have gradually evolved into an industrial society. You gods, in these same millennia, have made no progress other than the changing of myths."
"You possess such great power, such a transcendent form of life, and a nearly infinite lifespan. Why do you never investigate your own existence? Do you not even have the most basic curiosity?"
Speaking to this point, Su Mo took a slight breath, then posed his biggest question.
"Don't you gods... ever think?"
"..."
At these words, Verethragna fell completely silent. He wanted to open his mouth to say something, to defend the dignity of the gods, but the words caught in his throat. He didn't know what to say.
Even he himself, at this moment, was starting to have a divine existential crisis.
Could it be... that gods really are all idiots?
And on the other side of the chat group, seeing the legendary god rendered speechless by Su Mo's questioning, the members didn't gloat. Instead, they felt a sense of shared empathy.
Rin Tohsaka: "So, it's not just us. Even legendary gods are like monkeys in Lord Su Mo's eyes!"
Rin Tohsaka: "Suddenly, I feel a sense of balance."
Kanae: "Balance +1."
Madoka: "Balance +1."
Madoka: "Actually, the big brother's attitude toward us is much better than his attitude toward the god."
Rin Tohsaka: "True!"
Rin Tohsaka: "Grateful."
Kanae: "Grateful."
Erica: "Grateful."