Ch.129Week 4 Wrap-up (2)

After teasing Agath for hours, my gloomy mood instantly improved. People really do need to relieve stress to regain their vitality.

“I’ll be going now. See you tomorrow at 3 AM~”

“P-please don’t ever do this again… I’m begging you…”

“I’ll decide based on what you do, Agath.”

I’m going to tease her again after we defeat the Demon King. So this is why Agath kept teasing me all this time.

Of course, I know that karma eventually comes back when you torment others. But if we’re being fair, Agath started it first. I’m just returning the favor.

Honestly, if she’s enjoyed tormenting me that much, she should quietly accept her karma now. Surely she wouldn’t forget this moment and come back to accumulate more bad karma?

Still, just in case, I found myself thinking about more efficient ways to tease Agath as I returned to my room.

“Oh, you’re back? What were you doing all this time?”

“Just teasing Agath a bit.”

“…You can actually tease that person?”

“Yeah. I just told her what we did yesterday, and she was absolutely thrilled.”

The more details I shared about yesterday, the more intense Agath’s reactions became. But I still hadn’t told her the specifics of when things got serious.

Good, after we defeat the Demon King, I’ll tell her about that. If I do, she’ll definitely show an even more entertaining reaction than today.

While I was imagining this delightful future moment, Ju-an suddenly spoke up with embarrassment.

“Um… weren’t you the one who said we should keep our relationship a secret?”

“Since we got the aphrodisiac from Agath in the first place, she probably figured it out no matter what we said.”

“No… aren’t you embarrassed about telling someone else about that?”

“Compared to what Agath usually does, this is nothing.”

If everyone knew what I’ve been through, they’d understand my actions. I’ve really had a tough time.

Come to think of it, most of Agath’s sexual jokes were about pairing me with Ju-an.

In the past, whenever I heard those comments, I thought it would never happen, but how did we end up here? Well, I’m happy now, so I guess it doesn’t matter.

“We should get some sleep soon.”

“Going to bed already?”

“You remember what you did to me yesterday, right? And we have a major battle tomorrow, so we need to rest properly to be in good condition.”

It’s normal to get plenty of rest the night before something important. Especially before a day like tomorrow when we’ll need our physical strength.

Just as I was about to rest for tomorrow’s battle, Ju-an spoke with a hint of anxiety.

“Lite, are you really planning to fight tomorrow?”

“Of course I have to fight. That’s why I worked so hard to get my first supernatural power.”

“But what if you go and end up dying?”

“What if I don’t go and everyone else dies?”

“You know the chances of you dying are much higher than the chances of you being helpful.”

Ju-an stabbed me with facts, quite cowardly. But I won’t give in to such trivial arguments.

“If there’s a chance I can help, it’s worth taking the risk.”

“But the chance of dying is too high.”

“I can’t just not go. And even if I die, I can just ask the Goddess to revive me with my wish.”

Before, I was saving my wish to turn back into a man, but now I have no reason to go back. So I’ll just ask to change this cursed body.

Not to change my appearance or gender, though. I just want a body that’s easy to move in and has a long lifespan so I can live with Ju-an for a long time.

While I was thinking about this, Ju-an asked in a much darker voice than before.

“Lite, can’t you just wait here?”

“Absolutely not.”

Even if it seems like meaningless stubbornness, I don’t want to back down after coming this far. And the thought of Ju-an getting hurt while I’m not there makes my heart race with anxiety.

So I’ll just stay by his side. If necessary, I could give my entire life to save him.

Anyway, to reassure Ju-an, I wrapped my arms around him and patted his back.

“It’s okay, everything will work out.”

“…Yeah, I’m sure it will.”

I heard a voice tinged with guilt. I wonder why he feels guilty when I’m the one who should feel much more remorseful.

“Shall we go to sleep now?”

“…We should.”

Ju-an and I got into bed. But what happened yesterday won’t happen again. Tomorrow is truly an important day, and we can’t afford to waste energy on such things.

As I was about to fall asleep to conserve energy, Ju-an suddenly spoke in a serious, calm voice.

“I’ll protect you no matter what happens.”

“Why are you saying such cringy things all of a sudden?”

In stories, people who say things like that always die instead of the person they’re trying to protect. I don’t know why, but that’s always how it goes.

But this is reality, not some novel. Such statements shouldn’t have much impact here. Still, just in case, I should add something too.

“Just don’t die trying to protect me. If you do, I’ll be really angry.”

“How would you be angry if I’m dead?”

“Well, I’d haunt…”

Suddenly, Ju-an’s mood completely changed. If I had said just a bit more, yesterday’s disaster would have happened again.

Okay, this time I’ll be careful and say something more appropriate.

“…I’d just desecrate your grave.”

“That’s a bit terrifying.”

Ju-an replied with a dejected look, sounding annoyed.

“Are you upset?”

“Yes.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“Then grant me one wish.”

“What is it?”

“Please don’t die.”

His voice sounded genuinely concerned. But there’s no need to worry about something so trivial.

“Why would I die when we both need to live and be happy together? And even if I die, I can come back to life, remember?”

If necessary, I can use my wish to come back to life. So no matter what happens, we just need to defeat the enemy. Even if it costs me my life.

I should end the conversation here. Now I need to sleep and prepare for tomorrow’s battle.

“Good night.”

“Yeah, see you later.”

And so, hiding my lingering anxiety, I fell asleep in Ju-an’s arms. Having him beside me really is reassuring.

***

When I closed my eyes and opened them again, I found myself not in the familiar room but in a completely black space. Oh right, today is Sunday.

“Ah, hello.”

Someone welcomed me. But it wasn’t the Goddess—it was that girl who had been with Leo.

“…Why are you here?”

“Traversing dimensions is my specialty.”

I couldn’t understand the situation at all. Why was this girl greeting me instead of the Goddess?

While I was pondering this important question, the Goddess popped up beside the girl.

“Oh, I forgot to introduce you. Lite, this is the department head I mentioned before.”

“…So this is the person who gave you dog food as a gift?”

“Yes! She also brings really delicious snacks and is super kind…”

“Junior, shut up.”

Fortunately, this woman seems friendly toward us. But then why was she with the Demon King’s army?

But that’s not the most important thing right now. There’s only one truly important question.

“Why did you treat the Goddess that way?”

Making her work all the time, feeding her what amounts to dog food, and even teasing her. Can someone like that really be called human?

“I definitely sent food money regularly. But she spent it on unnecessary things behind my back.”

As the person called “department head” glared at the Goddess, the Goddess smiled awkwardly and retorted.

“But opportunities only come once, so I had to give it my all…”

“What’s the point of saving on such meager food expenses?”

Fortunately, the department head wasn’t such a bad person, and this was just a situation caused by the Goddess being overly kind.

Good, now that the most important issue is resolved, let me ask about the next most important thing.

“Why were you with the Demon King’s army?”

“I needed to prepare to seal someone, leak some information, and make sure reinforcements couldn’t arrive during tomorrow’s battle.”

“But I don’t remember receiving any information from you.”

“Who do you think got the information that the damn… I mean, the Hero passed on to you? Anyway, I’ve made arrangements so you’ll only have to fight the Demon King tomorrow, so don’t worry about reinforcements and just kill that damn bastard.”

The department head spoke with a voice full of hatred.

“…You seem really angry.”

“I’ve been suffering because of that guy for hundreds of years.”

The Goddess had suffered enough, but it seems this person has suffered just as much. Though probably not as much as the Goddess.

Now what else should I ask about… Ah, that’s right.

“By the way, how did you know about fate?”

The Goddess doesn’t know much about fate, but this department head person seemed to know everything, even that the Demon King would appear.

“There’s nothing good about knowing this, but do you still want to hear it?”

“Of course.”

Honestly, I’m not sure if this is important information. But knowing is better than not knowing.

“This is a bit complicated… Let’s say I turned back time. Normally, if I did something in the past, it would cause a butterfly effect and change the future, right?

But no matter what I do, the future doesn’t change. Instead, there’s some unknown pressure ensuring that events that must happen in the future will definitely happen.

That’s why I summoned you all. If beings who never existed in history from the beginning were introduced, they might be able to twist fate.”

This really was useless information. But I guess it’s better than nothing. Anyway, just as I was about to ask the department head another question, light began to gather around me.

“Isn’t it too early to return to reality?”

“Instead of making your head spin with useless talk, just go back with a clear mind.”

Indeed, rather than learning more useless things like earlier, having a clear mind would be much more helpful.

Anyway, I was enveloped in light and transported back to reality. But the place I arrived at wasn’t the familiar room but some kind of secure bunker.

“…Huh?”

I should have woken up next to Ju-an, but this is a completely different place. Was I kidnapped while I was sleeping?

While I was worrying about this serious situation, I heard a fairly familiar voice.

“You’re awake?”

Beside me was the orange-haired… Phylax.

“…Where is this place?”

“The safest bunker in this guild.”

“No, I mean why am I here?!”

“Ju-an sent you here himself, so ask him, not me.”

At least I wasn’t kidnapped, which is a relief. Or maybe something just as serious has happened.

Ju-an sent me here directly. That means…

“W-why are you here then?”

“Ju-an asked me to keep you from escaping.”

It seems Ju-an locked me in here and left to fight. He probably did this because he was worried I might die during the battle.

So I immediately started looking for a way to escape. Honestly, I probably won’t be much help even if I do get out, but I have to go.

The chance may be slim, but I absolutely refuse to just watch as the person I love dies.