In my previous life, I never really believed in gods.
I wasn’t exactly a staunch atheist, but most of the religions I encountered didn’t suit my taste. Moreover, no religion ever managed to convincingly answer the question, “Why do you believe your god is the only truth among so many presented?” So, I remained without faith until the moment I died.
Still, if a god exists, I sometimes thought it would be nice to meet one. I was curious about what kind of mindset a being—whether an all-powerful monotheistic god or an imperfect yet strong personality from Greek or Roman mythology—would have if it could resolve all the great problems that humans couldn’t.
But the god I ended up meeting was no different from characters in the stories I wrote.
One of them even said something like, “It seems I’m not a god after all.”
And then there were people calling me a goddess! It made me seriously ponder what the concept of ‘god’ meant in people’s minds. Well, in the East, even ghosts are considered a kind of deity, so I guess any strong supernatural being could be called a god… Hmm, but it still doesn’t make much sense.
Anyway, starting from the moment I met Ariel in the Temple of Gods, I spontaneously dropped formal speech, which made the gods feel relatively close to me. Yet, it didn’t seem that way to the others.
Erica, who had directly asked me for help, Aurora standing next to me, and even Seo-A, the only adult among us, were all slightly trembling.
“Are you nervous?”
It was a refreshing sight to see even Seo-A shaking, so I asked.
“…If you’re asking whether it’s nerve-wracking to have a face-to-face meeting with the goddess and the demon, the majority would, of course, answer yes.”
“People call me a goddess just by looking at me.”
“…I think anyone unfamiliar with you would turn pale just by seeing your face.”
There was a kind of certainty in Seo-A’s voice as she answered.
I nodded, remembering the faces of the high-ranking individuals I had met. Especially the Pope, who fainted the first time he saw me and fainted again when he later heard news about me. If he had been here, his heart might have really been at risk.
Seo-A had seen me long before I was treated as a goddess, so she knew me well.
“Also, I’m still not used to the light coming from your face. Want me to tell you what was said at the last school meeting?”
“What was it?”
“Even though a goddess is attending as a student, they were wondering if it’s appropriate for us to evaluate and give scores to the goddess. Until it was revealed that you are you, many thought it was right to do so since you held a student status, but once that dazzling halo appeared behind your head, the opinion shifted steadily to ‘that’s disrespectful,’ now it’s nearly half and half. Thankfully, many teachers have strong hearts, or else in a normal school, the latter side would have already won.”
“…….”
I wiped my face with my hand.
“As long as that light radiates from your face, more teachers will tend to think like that. No matter how strong-hearted they are, they still have faith.”
“Ah, yeah…”
I was thinking it over too. I just couldn’t come up with any ideas besides releasing power for now.
I let out a light sigh.
“Well, are you ready?”
“I am… yes, I’m ready.”
Of course, even as Seo-A said that, her fingertips were still trembling. It seemed slightly embarrassing, so she clutched her shaking hand with her other hand.
I looked back at Aurora. At least Aurora wasn’t trembling as much as Seo-A. Although her tense expression was obvious, she had already faced the gods before. Plus, she was a saint who wielded miraculous powers, and it felt incredibly embarrassing to say this, but the goddess she believed in was right here.
Lastly, I approached Erica.
She seemed very tense too, but at least the fact that she boldly asked me for help indicated that she was somewhat prepared. Placing her hand on her chest, she took a deep breath and seemed to notice me coming near, turning to look at me.
“Are you ready?”
“…Yes, I’m ready.”
Erica nodded slightly.
“Alright.”
I nodded back.
In fact, the Temple of Gods was already faintly overlapping in my vision.
The power accumulating within me was increasing faster by the day. As my story circulated among people and my achievements spread, it would surely keep accelerating. Once the cathedral bearing my name in the Elven District was completed, merely releasing power might not suffice.
Before that, I needed to find a way quickly.
“Then, I will begin.”
I said that and closed my eyes. As soon as I did, the vague reality before me completely disappeared, leaving only the image of the Temple of Gods.
Alright, let’s write a little differently today.
The auditorium was quite a spacious area. However, the power I released without thinking overflowed, spilling outside. That wasn’t a good thing today.
First, I locked all the classroom windows visible from the hallway and secured the classroom door. I drew the curtains over the windows. From outside, one would only see a bright light pouring out.
An empty classroom was certainly much smaller than the auditorium, but if I could use my power “in the right direction,” I wouldn’t exceed this range. I could just extend the duration instead.
I focused, clearly picturing where the necessary range was. It felt similar to using miraculous powers. However, if the miraculous power is like water seeping out of a tiny hole in a water pouch, the power I was using was more like regulating it with a proper valve. A water pouch might burst if mishandled, but this power wouldn’t burst; I just had to experiment to find the proper amount.
But I had no time for that.
“Everyone, let me know when the visible illusion fills the classroom.”
So, I decided to borrow the power of those next to me. As I kept my eyes closed, I couldn’t properly see what was happening in the classroom.
Listening to the others respond one by one, I slowly began to spread my power, taking my time in contrast to the last two days.
“Ah…”
Someone gasped in awe at the scene. I couldn’t see it precisely with my eyes closed, but it didn’t feel like that explosive outpouring of power like before.
“Ah, Clara! It’s done now!”
I opened my eyes at Seo-A’s shout.
Before me was filled with the image of the Temple of Gods. I could see no trace of the classroom inside. It looked as if I could endlessly walk down the infinite corridors of the Temple of Gods, but if Seo-A had timed the signal right, at least this illusion wouldn’t spill outside the classroom.
The only problem was that I hadn’t fully opened my power like last time, so the light kept spilling out from behind my head.
This was probably something that would gradually fade as the time spent maintaining this place increased.
“…Huff.”
Someone exhaled, seemingly having tensed up.
No one appeared to be in the Temple of Gods yet. It was different from last time, where I immediately encountered Baal as soon as I used my power.
“You should have no reason to be too nervous. As gods, we’re not much different from each other.”
“…You’re the only one in the world who can say that in front of gods. You don’t think that would ease anyone’s mind, do you?”
“……”
Is that so?
I couldn’t tell whether the sounds coming from beyond the illusion were from the classroom feeling empty or if it was from our movements echoing in the empty space. I wasn’t even sure which side was real, as I had only briefly talked to Ariel in the transition to here.
“It seems we appear like this when we come down to the world.”
The voice, which seemed to come out of nowhere, startled us all.
“No, it’s much worse… You must have been watching from up there. Saying this feels a bit odd, doesn’t it?”
Turning toward the source of the sound, I saw Ariel chuckling softly.
“The view you see through the lens of another power differs from seeing it directly. Is it truly worse? It makes sense that others are surprised to see that.”
“What a huge problem. Honestly, attending classes at the academy is troubling enough, as too much power creates an illusion of the Temple of Gods in front of me.”
“I hope you can find a way to control it as quickly as possible… Apologies for not being able to help.”
“Well, there’s no need to apologize.”
If gods were to descend into the world, there would be no need to control their power. After all, they wouldn’t appear as their true selves, but would assume others’ appearances instead. Putting the matter of letting the gods borrow bodies aside, they would have already started to deteriorate before using miraculous powers. There wouldn’t be any way to help. Ultimately, even if gods descended, their time spent in the world would be very brief. There wouldn’t even be ample time to find a method for controlling their power.
“Rather, we should first be concerned about whether there is a method to control it at all.”
As I sighed deeply and spoke, Ariel gave a rare wry smile. That wry smile looked just as bright as others’ earnest smiles in many ways.
Ariel turned her gaze to the people in this room: Aurora, Seo-A, and Erica.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ariel.”
Surprisingly, the only one who managed to greet appropriately was Aurora, who had already experienced this situation and was staying near the currently manifested goddess.
Speaking of which, I think people instinctively recognize gods when they see them. Didn’t Andrea weep when she saw Ariel manifest through my body? In that sense, it seems my abilities are a little weaker compared to the other two gods. At least I don’t think anyone has instinctively cried upon seeing me.
For now, Ariel looked more like a beautiful human than a goddess. She merely took on the appearance of Ariel through an illusion. If she had truly descended, her face would have been enveloped in brilliant golden light that one couldn’t even see.
“Ah, it’s a pleasure to see you, Ariel.”
“…It’s such a pleasure to meet you, goddess.”
Both of them bowed to Ariel, trying to mimic Aurora as closely as possible, albeit somewhat clumsily. To these three, Ariel flashed a gentle smile before shifting her gaze back to me.
Ariel likely knows everything, but it seemed she wanted me to say it aloud, so I looked her straight in the eyes and spoke.
“Erica asked me to. Is it alright if I do this?”
When I asked that, Ariel simply shook her head.
“Just as we can decide to meet you, you all also have the right to meet us. The methods may just be quite limited.”
Usually, the only way to meet is after one dies and meets in a spiritual form.
Many people die every day, but not every single one can meet the gods. Considering that the Temple of Gods and this place might be entirely different dimensions, the speed of time may differ as well. That’s something I would have to confirm later myself.
Nodding, I could see Ariel smiling gently at me before she looked back at the three who were bowing slightly at a distance.
“Please lift your heads.”
At Ariel’s gentle voice, the three raised their heads.
“Erica, is there anything you’d like to ask me?”
Erica appeared slightly surprised at Ariel’s gentle voice, her eyes widening.
“Um, well…”
Even though she was here willingly, it would only be natural to be nervous in front of a goddess. Unlike Baal, who had only recently been unveiled, and me who had been a saint until recently, Ariel had been revered as almost the sole god in this world for the last 500 years. If someone wasn’t nervous, they would surely be strange.
For instance, a country.
“I wanted to ask about my parents…”
I’m not sure if it was a relief or not that my expectation was accurate.
“Yes, please feel free to speak.”
Finally gaining confidence from Ariel’s gentle voice, Erica clenched her fists tightly and spoke.
“My, my parents… did they really die in a car accident?”
“…”
For a moment, silence enveloped the Temple of Gods, or rather, the classroom.
Ariel shook her head sadly.
“No, that’s not the case.”
“Ah…”
The strength drained from Erica’s tightly clenched fist. I noticed Seo-A biting her lip. Aurora bowed her head deeply and could not dare to look at Erica.
“Is that… so…”
And with that, Erica no longer asked anything.
“May I ask why you thought that?”
Ariel inquired calmly, addressing Erica, who stood dazed with weakness.
“I…”
Erica, with her hands clasped tightly in front of her chest, glanced around before answering.
“I don’t know. From a young age, I think I’ve had doubts. With no basis, regardless of whom I asked, the same answers kept coming back, but I thought it all felt unnatural.”
“And you’ve kept that belief until now.”
Ariel briefly turned her gaze to Seo-A, who stood slightly apart from Erica. Seo-A had a hardened expression. I guess they had no idea that such a young child had been questioning the truth all along.
“Sometimes, the eyes of pure children penetrate truths that even adults cannot grasp. I’m often surprised, as well.”
Ariel took a few steps closer to Erica.
“If you quietly listen here, I can hear the voices of those praying to me. Sadly, my power is limited, so I cannot hear all their words. I also do not have the ability to grant all those wishes. All I can do is remember those wishes and assist people in creating a better world, even just a little.”
Then she reached out and gently patted Erica’s head. Of course, the image of Ariel I saw now was merely projected through an illusion, so her real hand would never touch Erica’s head, yet it seemed Erica understood why Ariel was acting that way.
Ariel smiled softly at Erica, who stared at her wide-eyed.
“…I may not have been able to hear every voice, but I remember very well the voice of a child who prayed to bring back their parents, anything would do.”
Although Ariel’s expression was smiling, it also looked somewhat sorrowful.
“I remember the prayer of a child who contemplated endlessly about the world that took away their parents, yet decided to tread the just path their parents had walked.”
Ariel didn’t say who that child was, but among those present, no one was unaware of whose story it was.
“Despite being called a god, I’m a foolish one who couldn’t even fulfill the wish of that child who has faced great misfortune. Yet, one thing I promise with all my being: One day, in the distant future, you will be able to meet your parents again. And you’ll be able to share all the stories you couldn’t tell while smiling.”
Ariel’s gaze briefly turned to me. Her slightly narrowed eyes seemed to smile at me a bit.
…Ah, is that it?
Is she referring to the setting of immortal souls that I had written?
Feeling uncomfortable about characters dying in the story and awkwardly inserting that setting because I felt uneasy about the extras dying in places unseen in the narrative.
‘The wicked receive punishment for their sins, while the virtuous are rewarded for their goodness,’ this forced tale of a child I had included had become something natural in this world.
…I’m not sure if what I wrote truly influenced this world. Honestly, I’m uncertain about that.
Ariel and Baal probably feel the same way.
However, at this moment, I felt that the smile Ariel directed towards me represented gratitude. If my writings truly influenced this world, then the stories about souls would exist because I “wrote that story.”
If there were any reason for my past self to receive praise, it would probably be just that.
“May I ask how our parents died?”
Erica looked up at Ariel and asked. Ariel nodded.
“I shall tell you as much as I know.”
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