Chapter 82 : The Call of the Goddess Religion

The Goddess’s Garden.

Unlike its grand name, the huge island was rather desolate.

Compared to my domain, which seemed to embody an ideal earthly paradise, my garden had a living aesthetic as if cultivated by human hands, while the Goddess’s Garden looked like exotic plants had been left in nature.

Plants that had grown in an isolated environment, unlike modern varieties bred for certain traits.

Some trees bloomed water-filled buds in the middle of their trunks.

Some flowers reacted to Yuki’s and my footsteps, bowing their heads to the ground.

‘I can’t feel any magical girl magic.’

It seemed an ecosystem of a kind we had never seen before had been maintained.

But everything was just a backdrop to highlight that overwhelming white lighthouse visible beyond the dozens of kilometers of plains.

“…”

“…”

Except for the sound of helicopters flying overhead broadcasting live images of the island, the island was incredibly quiet.

[Only those who have seen the future and inherited the first lie are allowed entry.]

A message left by silver-white starlight emitted from the lighthouse.

Another bombshell statement dropped amid worldwide attention focused due to the word ‘destruction’ carelessly uttered by the divine maiden, the magical girl of [Revelation].

The first goddess.

One who has seen the future.

The first lie.

People around the world instinctively felt they were witnessing a historic moment here.

‘…Rather, with attention focused like this, I should take this opportunity to reveal the truth about magical girls to the world.’

I came up with ideas to use this surreal and dramatic situation. And I informed Ichika, Sumire, Kang Dorim, Laura, and Li Meilin that this could be our huge turning point. Despite the chaotic situation, they said they would trust me and quietly watched the situation.

Yuki and I transformed and plunged onto the island, levitating each other’s bodies with telekinesis.

After walking side by side for an hour.

“Hi-Hikari. On top of the lighthouse…!”

“Yeah.”

Long silver hair fluttering in the sea breeze.

A peculiar outfit that looked like something between a dress and priestly robes, made by wrapping a large white cloth around the body.

Red eyes like carved rubies embedded in her face.

She was watching us from atop the lighthouse.

Bloomed born 3-star magical girl of [Revelation]

Nameless Divine Maiden

With a tingling presence that made even fully bloomed 3-stars seem trivial, and enormous starlight burning the hundreds of meters tall lighthouse like a silver-white torch.

The Divine Maiden and I facing each other precisely across several kilometers.

And girls with blonde hair and golden eyes bowing their heads politely in front of the white village below the lighthouse. One of them was the familiar magical girl of [Wing].

‘All of them… are magical girls. And bloomed ones at that.’

About 10 of them felt like they had born 2-star level power. The rest of the dozens, even if born 1-stars, were either on the verge of awakening or possessed power far superior to other 1-star magical girls.

“…”

10 of the 100 born 2-stars gathered here.

Dozens of 1-stars with outstanding potential like Yuki or Hana.

This island would be safer than any country except for the magical girl society I created when the time of destruction approaches. And in an era without magical girl society, it could rightly be called humanity’s final ark.

“Hikari, what on earth is this island…”

Yuki seemed to tremble, belatedly sensing the starlight of the girls living in the village below the lighthouse.

And a surge of resentment.

“This… you had such land and power and pretended not to know…?”

Red flames flowing out like tears of injustice.

She was showing her anger by spewing flames in front of me for the first time. I grabbed Yuki’s hand and spoke urgently.

“Yuki, if I fight a born 3-star, I can’t guarantee your safety.”

“…Okay. I understand. I’m sorry, Hikari.”

“No, I’m really angry too, but…”

Yuki shook her head, then smiled sadly as if understanding everything, and bowed her head.

“…”

Still, I had to hear from the Divine Maiden.

Why don’t the apostles try to save humans?

What is <Magical Girl HAZARD>?

What is the will left by the first goddess?

“Welcome to the land of the Goddess Religion.”

As we approached the front of the village, the magical girls with blonde hair and golden eyes, including the magical girl of [Wing], all gave welcoming greetings.

Listening closely, there was a sense of discomfort in their words.

‘Korean? No… it sounds like Japanese too.’

I could feel traces of all the languages I knew, yet what they were trying to say was conveyed accurately. It was chilling that while the sound I heard was clearly an unfamiliar language, I could understand its meaning precisely.

“As I said. From here on, the Divine Maiden will tell you.”

“…”

Thump.

Despite jumping down from hundreds of meters up, there was only a light sound as if jumping from a first-floor window.

Fluttering silver hair.

And red eyes quietly gazing.

The Divine Maiden.

The magical girl of [Revelation].

I faced one of the four set up as the strongest characters in the work, a bloomed born 3-star magical girl I was meeting for the first time.

“…”

“…”

I looked at her with my slender eyes opened as wide as possible.

She also gazed at me with a mechanical gaze.

Two pairs of red eyes.

Suddenly, facing her, I thought it was funny.

All the magic and strategies I had imagined alone for the first two years in this world to escape from the magical girl of [War]. They were all just useless tricks in front of a born 3-star magical girl who had bloomed true power.

Even now, [Revelation]’s combat ability, judged by frantically seeking out possibilities with cause and effect reversal, was about one level below me.

Reading battle patterns learned from Ichika.

The unique skill of cause and effect reversal I realized myself.

Unique weapon transformation learned from Yuki.

Realizations that gave me tremendous development each time I learned them one by one.

Various skills acquired to protect.

Using all of that, I barely managed to stay one step ahead.

I felt foolish for my past self who imagined I could survive against [War] at this level without knowing anything and alone.

“Successor.”

“Divine Maiden.”

We finally faced each other, calling each other.

The Divine Maiden looked at me for a moment, then spoke mechanically.

“Why didn’t you go to school?”

“…What?”

“Shibuya East Girls’ Middle School.”

“How do you know that…?!”

“I had connected fate so that you could be educated in this world’s common sense there, meet the witness who returned with the power of revival, and prepare for destruction, but you didn’t go.”

A shock like being hit on the head with a hammer came.

The chilling imagination I had just before the Christmas party.

What if I had met Yuki early before becoming a magical girl, become close like Sato Hana, and clung to each other without doing the debutante or domain declaration, relying on original work knowledge.

What if all the memories built with the past Yuki were shattered one day by the memories of Yuki returning from the future.

Even then, would I have tried to save this world?

Did this one think I would move like a machine after experiencing all that?

“In any case, you were able to meet [Revival] again, and you clearly have the will to save humanity, so you should be qualified as the successor. From now on…”

Yuki, whose face had turned pale hearing the Divine Maiden’s words, spoke in bewilderment.

“You… remember the previous world? How?”

The magical girl of [Revival].

That was a name Yuki could no longer use in this world.

“I too transmitted memories to carry out the goddess’s orders using fragments left after the final trial.”

“Even the memories of the boar?”

“You mean the third trial?”

“Why did you do that!!! There were people throwing themselves into the sea because there were no boats!!!”

“Because the history of a world where the successor hasn’t awakened has no meaning beyond observation.”

Hearing those words, Yuki could no longer maintain her composure and sat down crying. Even seeing this, the Divine Maiden continued speaking.

“The goddess’s order was, when the world regression due to [Revival]’s eternal recurrence occurred, to have the awakened successor adapt to this world. And to have the successor meet the returned [Revival] and hear about everything that happened.”

The Divine Maiden answered while staring expressionlessly at Yuki.

“Because if the successor who fulfilled all conditions had even a little will for salvation, the Goddess’s Garden, designated as humanity’s final domain, was to be handed over.”

“…”

I too asked the Divine Maiden in a dumbfounded voice.

“Then… from the beginning, the first goddess didn’t intend to save everyone?”

“It’s more accurate to say she didn’t expect the successor to save all of humanity.”

“The things I’ve done… the magical girl society… wasn’t the goddess’s will? Are you saying what I’ve been doing was unrelated to the goddess’s plan?”

“That’s right.”

The Divine Maiden spoke with a rather questioning tone.

“Successor. Why did you know about the trials and the curse sown by the three goddesses even before [Revival] returned?”

The curse sown by three goddesses.

This too was something I was hearing for the first time.

“How does a soul from a completely different universe know this world’s common sense and future?”

“…”

Amid the confusion, one thing was clear.

If I hadn’t stepped forward on my own.

If things had flowed as prepared by this terrible order-following machine.

Forget the goddess’s salvation, nothing would have worked out properly.