Whether You Call Me a Guardian Dragon or Not, I’m Going to Sleep

Chapter 43: God (8)

I looked at Shamash, who was kneeling in the air, and said,

"Trials?"

"They are not spectacles..."

"Judgments?"

"They must be fair..."

"False accusations?"

"Should not be punished..."

"Good."

After creating a brief eclipse by striking Shamash on the head, I proceeded to educate Shamash with physical force.

It was a somewhat harsh education, but it was appropriate for Shamash, who treated courtrooms where the fate of people's lives was decided as mere spectacles.

"From now on, do not treat trials as spectacles, and approach judgments sincerely. Do you understand?"

"Yes..."

Shamash's avatar, still with a dent on the top of her head. The dent on the head of the blonde young girl looked somewhat odd.

But was my strike that painful? So much so that it caused an eclipse for a moment.

Well, it might also be due to using the avatar created from my own body. It means it was that painful.

Speaking of which, an eclipse... It would be troublesome if other humans saw the eclipse and got scared. Hmm...

I should say something through the Lizardman. That my child did something wrong so I had to smack it quietly, kaang!

Leaving a simple message would prevent humans from getting scared, wouldn't it?

"By the way, this body... It's really fascinating. I can feel pain just as it is."

"Since it's a body made using your own essence, of course, it would hurt."

"What...?"

Shamash brushed her body in confusion. She seemed quite surprised by her body emitting faint light.

"I did it to punish you. Beating up an avatar made from my clone wouldn't make you feel pain, would it?"

I was curious if it would only tickle even if the clone was smashed to pieces.

"If it was made using the original body... Can I return to my original form?"

"That's not difficult."

With a light flick of my finger, Shamash's body dispersed and returned to its original form of light.

[Wow! I really returned!]

"Creating a body using the original essence allows you to feel sensations perfectly, but you'd feel pain just the same. I never thought hitting the head would cause an eclipse."

[That's exactly what I wanted to say! To hit my head so hard it dents! I thought my beautiful head was going to be squashed.]

"Still, since it's a created body, it seems you won't die. It just hurts a lot. Even if it's destroyed, you just return to your original form."

[Still, I don't want to feel that pain again. It really hurts. really.]

I nodded slightly at Shamash's words. Well, I hit her because it was supposed to hurt.

If it didn't hurt, Shamash wouldn't remember. That's bad. Of course.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After teaching Shamash how to create an avatar, we spent some time unraveling the stories that had accumulated while trying out the avatar creation.

I wanted to find Erebus and regain the dragon's body, but Shamash, being light, could never find Erebus.

After that, she wandered the world without a purpose, just shining light.

Now, being revered as the god of light by humans, she felt quite happy.

Law and justice seemed harder than she thought, and she felt she needed to think more.

"Ah, when will I be able to read memories and detect lies?"

"I've already made it."

Um. I had long created magic that connects minds. Modifying it a bit wouldn't take much time.

However, I placed a restriction that it could only be used when there's an overwhelming difference in status between the caster and the target.

Considering Shamash might play around and cause trouble with it, such a restriction seemed appropriate.

I taught Shamash the magic to read memories. Being a god, even with many shortcomings, she learned it quite easily.

"Um... Can't I read your memories, Mom?"

"Unfortunately, it can only be used on beings of a lower status than you. It would be usable only on criminals."

While it is possible to read the memories of all humans, I deliberately do not teach that fact.

"Hmm. Well, it doesn't matter. This will make me easier to make judgments."

Judgments. Judgments, huh...

Come to think of it, did humans have something like laws now?

It's an era where they write on stone or clay tablets. Would they have proper laws? Probably not, right?

"Shamash. Do humans have anything like clearly defined laws?"

"Huh? If there were such things, they wouldn't ask me to make judgments, would they?"

Hmm... That makes sense. That's why they rely on Shamash to make judgments.

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Since there were no clearly documented laws, Shamash, who makes judgments, must be important.

"Then... we need clear laws."

Laws. Rules. Codes. They might be called by various names. Humans... no, there were subraces too. Um.

If rules that intelligent beings should not break are defined and given, clearer judgments could be made.

"Why don't I just make all the judgments?"

"Do you think you can make all the judgments as more and more trials happen in the future?"

For now, it might be possible for Shamash alone... but there's no guarantee it will stay that way.

"I'll try if I can! Those foolish humans need a god of law and justice!"

"Still, if clear rules are set, wouldn't they try not to break them?"

Wouldn't it be unfair to be judged based on vague standards in the first place?

"Hmm... That's true. For fair judgments and to prevent innocent punishments, clear rules are necessary."

"Un. Then let's establish some simple laws."

I created a pure white crystal tablet.

It was a crystal tablet of pure white color without a single stain.

"Let's write the laws on this and bestow it upon humans as a code of laws. In the name of the god bestowing the crystal tablet, let's write your name, Shamash."

Come to think of it, the god who bestowed the famous Code of Hammurabi was also named Shamash.

Is fate embedded in names? It's a bit fascinating.

"My name? Not yours, Mom?"

"The god of law is you. It wouldn't be good to invade someone else's domain."

It's better to respect the defined domains. Anyway.

I started to write on the crystal tablet with my finger.

First, it's necessary to clearly state who is bestowing this code of laws.

"I, the god of light, law, and justice, Shamash, establish justice on this land to punish the wicked, protect the weak from the strong, and illuminate the world from above with my light. I hereby bestow this code of laws."

My fingers swiftly wrote the text. Elegant letters were inscribed on the hard crystal tablet.

"First, let's define the most important rules that need to be established."

There are countless things to define, but we have to start by clearly writing the main principles.

Let's see... Shall we start with the most famous Ten Commandments?

Of course, I can't use the Ten Commandments as is, so I'll have to modify them.

"One. Worship the gods with sincerity."

"What does worship mean?"

"To admire and respect... Hmm, humans probably won't understand either. Let's write it in easier-to-understand words."

I rubbed out some of the letters with my finger and wrote again.

"One. Admire and respect the gods with sincerity."

"Two. Do not despise the gods of others."

"Three. Honor and be dutiful to your parents."

"Four. Do not take life recklessly."

"Five. Do not commit things that go beyond limits."

"Six. Do not steal."

"Seven. Do not lie."

"Eight. Do not discriminate against yourself or others."

"Nine. Do not harm yourself."

"Ten. Rest one day out of seven."

"Those who break these 10 rules will be punished according to the weight of their sin."

Hmm. Does this roughly cover it?

It's a bit of a knockoff with just a few changes to the Ten Commandments...

"Is this the basic rule? Some of them are a bit hard to understand."

"There's a reason for everything. Now, let's write down the specific punishments."

There's still plenty of space left on the modified version. Much more can be written.

And first... an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. It's important to clearly state that no punishment greater than the crime committed can be imposed.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Shamash's Code.

It was a long time ago. In the distant past when there were no established laws. A pure white crystal tablet given to humans by Shamash, the god of light, justice, and law.

The code, made of unbreakable crystal, contained detailed laws that became the foundation of kingdom laws.

Especially, rules that seemed to foresee conflicts between different races or those who worship different gods, and rules intended to prevent sacrifices due to excessive labor, are said to be rules that foresaw the distant future.

Currently, this code is enshrined in the innermost part of the Temple of Light, and despite countless times passing, it emits a pure white light without a single stain.

As the god of light watches over you, please view it with a reverent attitude.

- Temple of Light Guide.