Thus, Encia cast away her humanity, entrusting all her legacy to her disciple, Cecil.
A great fortune, many books, the fame and great deeds of a mage, and even a significant amount of magical power.
Leaving behind only the minimum magical power she needed, she transferred all her power to her disciple.
Thus, she shed her human self and ascended as the God of Magic, Cientia.
Well, since she hasn’t yet risen to the Divine Hall, strictly speaking, the ascension is still pending.
“I even changed my brain and heart, so I can no longer be considered human,” she mused.
“If even after completely transforming my body, I still consider myself human… doesn’t that mean I am human?”
“Is that really the case?”
“Of course it is. What defines me is myself.”
“But, you’ve ascended to godhood now. Isn’t it a bit wrong to still see yourself as human?”
“Then fine, let’s just say I’m a god who was once human. I don’t really place much meaning on having been human.”
Cough. Sia’s nonchalant words somehow penetrated my heart, but for now, I set it aside.
“Have you said your goodbyes properly?”
“Yeah. I paid my respects at my parents’ tomb. I informed the Council of Procyon that I’m embarking on a journey from which there’s no return. I told my disciple that she can take over my tasks. The handover is definitely complete.”
“Good. So.”
“Are you ready to ascend to the Divine Hall?”
Sia hurriedly turned her head at the voice behind her.
“Tia…?”
“Yep.”
I stood behind Sia, offering a small smile, and Sia mirrored my expression.
“I feel like it’s the first time seeing you in person.”
“It is. Until now, I’ve only communicated through your mind.”
When Sia ascended to the Divine Hall, she’d need someone to guide her. It would be awkward to ask the other gods to do it.
So, I appeared before Sia myself.
“You look younger than I imagined. I thought you’d look more mature.”
“Mature, you say…?”
“But, you’re called the Goddess of Life, the Mother of the Earth. It’s a bit odd for such a young appearance to carry that title.”
Younger appearance, huh? Hmm. I can’t deny that. I might change a bit when I transform, but my appearance as a young girl remains unchanged.
“Anyway, are you ready for the ascension to the Divine Hall?”
“Yes, I’m fully prepared mentally.”
I reached out my hand toward Sia, who carefully placed her hand over mine and gently grasped it.
As if to say she wouldn’t let go.
“Alright. Then let’s set off to where the gods belong.”
The sky opened, and a rainbow descended. A bridge connecting the ground and the sky appeared.
After stepping onto that bridge, I led Sia’s hand onto the rainbow, slowly rising above the sky.
Thus, Sia, Cientia, ascended to the Divine Hall.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“So, what is Cientia?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“The title attached to the basic theory of magic, Cientia. I’m curious what it means.”
The bespectacled girl, with sleepy eyes, thought for a moment before speaking.
“Remember when I said there’s a prayer directed at the God of Magic?”
“Yeah, you did.”
“That God of Magic is named Cientia. Oh, and she’s also the Goddess of Knowledge.”
“Goddess of Knowledge?”
“The name Cientia stems from ‘scientia,’ meaning knowledge. That’s why she’s both the goddess of knowledge and magic.”
At her words, the bespectacled girl looked a bit surprised.
“Isn’t that a very important deity?”
“She is important, but she doesn’t really have any intention of spreading her faith. She once even asked to have her name removed from the Divine List.”
“The Divine List… isn’t that the list of gods?”
“Yeah. That’s it.”
At the sleepy girl’s words, the bespectacled girl looked a little astonished.
“Wait, she could actually have her name removed from that list?”
“If she asks, they’ll remove it. But it’s just that it’s unnecessary.”
“Unnecessary…?”
“Of course! The gods are always desperate to gain more followers. Why would they want to remove their names from a list where they could gain human believers? Unless it’s a peculiar case like Cientia.”
“That’s… certainly true.”
“The Divine List is kind of like a magazine promoting gods, so there’s hardly anyone who would want to remove their name from it.”
The sleepy girl’s words made the bespectacled girl nod slightly.
Thinking of whether the priests in the temples are fervently working to secure believers…
“Well, that’s possible since securing believers is somewhat stable.”
“Stable believers?”
“Those who are magicians. No magician would pray to a God other than the God of Magic. Scholars pursuing knowledge would also be praying to Cientia.”
“Ah, indeed, that means there’s a steady source of income.”
While it sounded like a cheap summary, there wasn’t really anything wrong with that statement.
“So now that I’m using magic, should I pray to the God of Magic?”
“If you do, I’ll leave the academy.”
“Why? What’s your connection with the God of Magic?”
“It’s a secret. I have my own reasons. Why else would I keep my distance from other mages?”
The bespectacled girl didn’t understand why the sleepy girl was acting that way, but since such things had happened before, she just accepted it.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“This is the Divine Hall…”
Looking at the world above the clouds, Sia couldn’t help but marvel.
The sight of the Divine Hall, where many gods reside, didn’t seem much different from a human city at first glance.
Aside from the fact that it’s a city positioned above pure white clouds, and that those living there are gods, it shouldn’t be vastly different.
“Should I build a temple for you to live in?”
“A temple? That seems a bit bothersome. Can’t I just live with Tia?”
“With me? Hmm… Since you’re now a true god, it would be good for you to have your own temple.”
“A temple. I might need one eventually, but for now I just want to live without any. So please, I want to live with Tia.”
Hmmm… Well, there are many empty rooms in the temple, so it’s not a problem…
Giving her one room is no big deal, right? It should be fine.
“Alright. I have several empty rooms in my temple. I’ll let you have one.”
“Thank you, Tia.”
So I returned to my temple with Sia.
“Not allowed.”
I was suddenly blocked by Asherat, whose expression was quite stern.
“There are plenty of empty rooms, right? Just giving one isn’t…”
“Do you think it’s fine for other gods to freely enter the temple of the Goddess?! It’s the temple of the Supreme God! It needs to have the kind of dignity that other gods can’t easily approach!”
“Do you really want to give a room to a god who was once human, having also let the Cloud Whale and other angels in easily? Is that sensible?!”
“No, but…”
“But nothing!! I’m asking you to maintain some dignity! As the Supreme God!”
Ugh… The resistance is too strong. At times like this…
“The new LD…. Let’s first start with a trial ticket…”
“I won’t fall for that! You’ve been drowsy and just entered hibernation not long ago, remember?!”
“Ugh… You’re not buying that.”
I let out a small sigh. Asherat’s refusal was so persistent that I couldn’t think of any way to convince her.
In that case…
“How about just until this child’s temple is built? She has given up everything as a human to become a deity, yet she currently has nothing.”
I appealed to Asherat’s conscience. Yet, her stern expression showed no sign of relenting.
“Please, Asherat.”
“Sigh… Really, you’re far too easy to convince. Fine. I’ll allow her to stay in the Goddess’s temple only until her temple is built.”
Asherat spoke as if forced into it. Great! I managed to persuade her!
“Tia…? Is that deity… your fragment?”
“Yeah, kind of, but most of the work of the Goddess of Life has been entrusted to Asherat.”
To put it bluntly, without Asherat, I’d have to do the job of the Goddess of Life myself.
I wouldn’t want that. Listening to the prayers of humans sounds monotonous and I don’t feel inclined to do that.
In that sense, Asherat can be considered a super subordinate.
“I don’t get it.”
“You’d understand if you look into these kinds of relationships.”
While a bit regretful, it is what it is.
