I want to praise myself for not reacting at all to the words of the god.
My facial muscles worked perfectly, creating a poker face as if it were a fine play.
The content suddenly asked by the god Luina.
If asked if I had any familiarity with the story itself, I can say yes.
Nine times out of ten, the being this god is referring to is Mimamori-sama.
I have a fresh memory of her appearing very young in my memory.
The same god, young appearance, personality, no, even godly disposition, is not that bad.
…Rather, it’s almost laughable that such convenient conditions for this god have been met so precisely.
Should I honestly answer about such a being?
I pondered for a moment how to answer, with the laughter of battle-crazed individuals, GAHHAHAHA and AHAHAHA, as the BGM.
Without a doubt, Mimamori-sama perfectly fits into the strike zone of the god Luina before me.
This fact made me even more at a loss for words, if only for another moment.
Sister Sanari looked to be around middle school age, maybe just getting there.
Her appearance was about the same age as Mimamori-sama.
This proves that she perfectly fits within the range, forming an equation of equality.
“Hmm, you do have some familiarity. However, it seems you were troubled to answer due to my tastes and preferences.”
As expected of a god, she could see right through my inner thoughts.
Being accurately pointed out after a few seconds of hesitation, there was no way to hide it.
“Yes, that’s correct. However, the other party is seeking interaction. Evia Nordis will likely visit and report to you regarding that matter.”
“Mmm, so you heard from them before that report arrived. I understand. I will hear the details of that matter from them directly.”
Fortunately, if I confessed honestly, she didn’t bring it up further and politely stepped back.
I was a bit anticlimactic, having braced myself for a thorough interrogation.
“Surprised?”
“Yes, to be honest.”
Seeing my expression, I was asked with a bitter smile, and I honestly nodded.
That just led to me being laughed at even more for being honest.
“I believe I made a vow at the beginning.”
“?”
“‘Yes Lolita, No Touch.’ Be a gentleman towards small children. While I do have a preference for young children, I have no intention of soiling them. They are beings to be cherished, not to be broken. Please don’t misunderstand.”
“…I apologize.”
“It’s all right, it’s a common misunderstanding.”
What can I say? When I think about it, it does make sense.
While the content spoken with a serious expression is a bit perverted, what she’s saying sounds reasonable.
Yeah, I think the reason for such a sense of incongruity with “normal common sense” is probably due to my previous statements.
The “common misunderstanding” is definitely due to her usual remarks and actions without a doubt.
The fact that she says it without shame suggests she’s unaware of it.
“However, I haven’t given up yet?”
“?”
“I don’t lay hands on beings from the lower realms, but if they are gods from the Divine Realm, then it’s legal from my perspective! In other words, legal loli! If such beings exist, I will court them without hesitation!”
Everyone has their own principles.
But I feel like this is going too far.
Even with a powerful clenched fist and enthusiastic explanations, it’s something I can’t empathize with.
Even if she’s a god, she should take responsibility for her words, I thought, sending a cold gaze her way.
“!”
It was just for a moment, but at that moment when the air relaxed.
God Luina’s brow twitched.
I braced myself, wondering if something had happened or if another strange remark was about to surface.
“A fire.”
However, God Luina’s words were unrelated to children.
No, if what was spoken were true, it would be a grave matter.
“But this is…”
Without looking at me, God Luina’s gaze drifted into the distance, as if looking somewhere far away.
A fire.
I was filled with doubt as to whether a single word could provoke such a reaction from a god.
And then I finally realized.
If it were a house fire, would a god react?
Well, maybe, but would they react this strongly?
If not, then a disaster of a scale that would provoke a god’s reaction would likely be a large-scale fire, like a forest fire.
“This is bad! With this scale, countless children will be in danger!! Mortal! I have an urgent matter!! Tell him later that I will come to convey the contents of this matter! Wait for me, little ones! The god is coming to save you now!!”
My prediction seemed to be correct. After hastily conveying the gist of the matter to me, she declared loudly that she was going to save the children, and then, with a waver, the god withdrew from Sister Sanari, who looked about to collapse from exhaustion. I caught her.
“…This… seems to be earlier than planned, but have the objectives been met?”
She had only been unconscious for a few seconds.
Sister Sanari, who woke up as if nothing had happened, looked around, blinked a few times at the fact that she was being held, then seemed to grasp the situation and stood up on her own, confirming with me.
“I don’t know if it was according to plan, but I think it’s probably over.”
“Yes, the fact that they are fighting means the battle is over without any casualties, doesn’t it?”
Then, her gaze fell upon a single girl happily prancing around, and she let out a large, exasperated sigh.
“Honestly, while I was dedicating myself to my master, that child… I’ll scold her later.”
Although her tone was polite, the underlying nuance made her words quite impactful.
For a moment, I thought I might have misheard, but I thought I heard “beat her up” instead of “scold her.” It was probably my imagination.
“And also, Jiro Tanaka-sama, thank you.”
“? For what?”
Slightly intimidated by the atmosphere, I was suddenly thanked, but I had no idea why.
All I did was fight with all my might.
Could it be… is this child also of the same ilk as the instructor?
“No.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“I just had a feeling, and the look in your eyes was the same as when you thought I was like Saml.”
She hit the nail on the head, and I flinched. I’ve heard that women’s intuition is sharp, but I marveled that it’s active even at times like this, and I understood that it wasn’t gratitude for fighting.
Then, for what could it be? I became genuinely confused about what she was grateful for.
“You are grateful that my body is intact? Because you went easy on me?”
“Well, I wonder about that?”
I understood that it was about that, but I had been protecting God Luina with all my might. I had attacked with all my might, so I couldn’t accept that gratitude. But it would be problematic to be honest about it, so I decided to vaguely deflect.
“You don’t need to be so modest. From what I can see, you don’t seem to be injured either.”
That’s what it looks like on the surface, anyway.
In reality, I am quite in pain. Even if my bones aren’t fractured, I’m covered in bruises.
The pain can be endured and not shown on my face, but the places where I defended or was hit directly still ache. I regret not having a magic body.
Although damage didn’t get through to conspicuous areas like my face, that means damage got through even through my armor.
Even though it was a god who dealt the blows, the physical damage was inflicted by the limbs of Sister Sanari, who spoke with a smile. If she had been fully equipped, how much damage would I have sustained? The mere thought sends a cold sweat down my spine.
Currently, she’s lightly armored. She seemed to be fighting with just her nun’s habit and God’s blessing, but she should normally have much more solid equipment. Perhaps from watching Saml and the others being lectured, I imagined her in full gear. I pictured Sister Sanari wearing a nun’s habit, equipped with brass knuckles and a spiked bat, a sukajan jacket slung over her shoulders, riding a heavily customized motorcycle—
“Yes, I am someone who makes a living fighting, so I won’t be defeated by this much.”
“Those are very reassuring words.”
Without showing any hint of my imagination, I kept my words vague. I erased the image of her saying “Yoroshiku!” with a fitting expression and replaced it with a smile that showed no such thing. However, this conversation is heading into dangerous territory. I need to change the subject quickly. If we continue talking about the battle, I might accidentally say something like, “A spiked bat would suit you well.”
“Speaking of which, God Luina mentioned a fire earlier and seemed flustered. For a fire that a god needs to respond to, it must be quite large, wouldn’t you say?”
“What did you say?”
Ah, I might have botched the topic change. Just a few seconds ago, she had a calm expression, but after I brought up this topic, all emotion drained from Sister Sanari’s face.
“Did our Master say something like that?”
“Yes, and she also said she had to hurry to save the children.”
“Where?”
“Unfortunately, I didn’t hear.”
Could it be something very important? If so, I feel like I should tell the instructor and Saml, who are fighting right now.
“If our Master moved, I believe there’s no major issue, but I will confirm it from my end just in case. Excuse me.”
With that, Sister Sanari turned on her heel and boldly entered the space where the instructor and Saml were fighting.
“Excuse me, Raidou-sama. I apologize for the interruption due to an urgent matter.”
With a solid thud, she caught the instructor’s punch with a firm stance. As expected, her fundamentals are solid. If they had continued fighting, it might have turned into a real battle to the death. Was it a handicap that allowed me to win, or were there some conditions that prevented me from going all out?
“And Saml, Yaml. We’re going home. This is an emergency.”
“Ehhh~”
“…”
“Yes! We’re going!”
While I was thinking about such things, the mock battle between the instructor and Saml had already ended. Saml seemed dissatisfied until the very end. A sharp glare from me made him obediently snap to attention.
“Hey, hey, why don’t you explain what happened?”
Instructor Kio, who is being addressed by Sister Sanari, is truly impressive.
“Jiro Tanaka-sama said that our Master discovered a fire. A fire so large that our Master had to move. There will undoubtedly be support from the temple as well. Therefore, we will be leaving soon.”
“…Understood. I’ll call Baskal. It won’t take long to get back on his back.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
Did he understand what happened from that alone? The instructor, unusually for him, nodded honestly and responded. I was just going with the flow, unable to grasp the situation. What in the world is happening? I wish someone would explain it, but it seems they don’t have time. Is it best to wait quietly? Or should I ask?
“Hey Jiro! Come here for a sec!”
As if not wanting to waste time pondering, the instructor called out to me. Is it that much of an emergency?
“What is it?”
I approached obediently and asked for the reason.
“I’m sorry, but it seems we don’t have time to relax. After I send you back, I’ll go to the General’s location. For today, return to your work.”
His words were perfectly ordinary. However, the lack of information provided to me meant that there was nothing I could do. Well, it’s true that I can’t do anything about a fire, and it would be overstepping my bounds to get involved with the organization responding to it. It’s natural.
“Understood.”
It’s something I can understand and accept. But why?
“Alright, let’s go for drinks again sometime.”
I have an vague premonition of something bad.
Word of the day: Conveying all reported content takes time, and information is filtered.
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*The first volume of the novel is published by Hayakawa Bunko JA. It was released on October 18, 2018. The e-book version was released on October 31 of the same year. The second volume was released on December 19. The third volume was released on February 20, 2019. The content has been revised and expanded from the version posted on Shousetsuka ni Narou, with the addition of unpublished intermissions. Please also check out the new releases! We appreciate your continued support of this work.
