I am back – Chapter 200

After finishing work, we sat facing each other in the living room.

Unlike usual, it was just my older sister and me in the living room. All our comrades had gone home.

The comrades who had come at the request of the Goddess had performed their tasks impeccably. Of course, I couldn’t say everything was completely healed yet, but having seen the world I saved with my own eyes, my heart felt greatly at ease.

The sacrifices I made held significant value, after all.

Had a comrade died at that moment, I would still be tormented by immense guilt. So, my choice at that time was by no means wrong.

Once I realized that, my mind felt much lighter.

However, the absence of the lively noises of my comrades—now friends, I suppose—filling this vast house felt somewhat lonely.

The living room retained traces of their time spent here.

Arna, who learned that invasive species could destroy ecosystems, left behind the cactus pot she had bought. She felt quite guilty about leaving it with me, but I decided to take care of it for now. After all, Arna would visit again from time to time, and I thought it would be nice to see it each time.

Kalia and Dana took many of the books they had acquired, but they didn’t clear out all the furniture they had used while living here. This was also due to my suggestion. They might want to use them again if they visit someday.

Pia, too, took only some of the clothes she had stockpiled. They were comfortable for her to wear in this world, but they were definitely not clothes fit for a Saintess in Irrelaysia.

Everyone repaid the expenses they incurred while living here in their own ways.

Kalia repaid with gold from her family, while Pia did so with gold from the Church.

In truth, when considering the amount of gold these two contributed, it paled in comparison to the cash they spent living here. They hadn’t lived solely on luxury items, after all. Dana still had a heap of gold stacked in her room.

Dana brought a lot of magic stones for use whenever they paid another visit.

And for me to use, too.

I wasn’t particularly talented in magic. If anything, I would say I was a jack of all trades. I could manage to use simple spells that anyone could learn, but anything beyond that was a failure.

However, even someone like me could easily wield magic if I had high-quality magic stones. In modern society, I could do quite well without magic… but if I ever fell ill with a condition that modern medicine couldn’t treat, having the magic stones or tools Dana handed over might make healing possible.

Of course, in such a situation, using the holy water Pia gave me or consuming the fruits of the World Tree presented by the Elves might be better than relying on magical tools. Having options is never a bad thing.

Dana’s Magic Tower and the Elves aren’t exactly poor, either. The Magic Tower creates and sells almost all kinds of magical items, so they had a decent amount of gold stacked up, and the Elves had gold for trading with humans. Both had given me some gold…

Hmm, the total amount was too much to move at once, so most of their gold was still in a state of ‘pending’. I couldn’t even transfer the gold given by the Kingdom and the Church.

Even without visiting as friends, there would be plenty of reasons for my friends to come over.

That’s why I felt at ease, even without their presence.

“Alright.”

My older sister, sitting across the table from me, spoke up. Her face was a bit tense.

It wasn’t because of anything that had happened between us. Rather, it was because of what lay ahead of us. The reason we were facing each other like this was for that very reason.

The sky, which had been clear until midday, started to sprinkle snow as we returned, turning into a heavy snowfall just as we entered the apartment lobby. Thanks to that, I was grateful we didn’t have to walk in it.

If it were my childhood, I would have wanted to go outside in it… Well, it seems that as you grow up, your perspective on snow changes, and that seems true enough.

“From now on, let’s think about how to convince Mom.”

My sister naturally referred to our mom as just “Mom.” It wasn’t too unfamiliar, given that she had always been friendly with our mother. In fact, Mom treated her just like family.

I didn’t ask her why she had started calling Mom “Mom.”

I thought it would hurt too much if I listened.

I could vaguely guess why. After I died, my sister began living with Mom. Both she and Mom must have had it incredibly tough. I was a glimmer of hope for Mom. I was her only family.

Once I grew up and started earning money, the family’s situation would surely improve. If necessary, Mom could rest and no longer work.

But then I died.

My sister felt a sense of responsibility for my death, thinking that I had risked my life because of words she had said long ago.

So, the two of them managed to rely on each other for a while.

They say it was Mom who got up first. She was a strong person. My sister was too, of course, but Mom must have felt firsthand how harsh this world could be.

So, I hoped that Mom would recognize me. I wanted to let her know that I was here and hadn’t died.

It wasn’t the faint feeling I sensed when I first arrived here.

No matter what, even if Mom rejected me several times, I was determined.

“Just going straight to her and bringing it up… Honestly, I think that’s too risky. There’s no way she’ll believe me. It sounds like a weird story from the perspective of someone hearing it for the first time.”

I nodded at my sister’s words.

“And right now, we don’t have any comrades. Frankly, even if we did, it wouldn’t have changed much. We may have been suspected even more. Considering my religion, she might think it’s a cult or something.”

Religion… That might be a bit misleading, but it felt odd to say I had no faith when I was diligently praying to the Goddess. Although I hadn’t been baptized or anything, I considered myself a believer of the Goddess.

“What about this?”

My sister asked, glancing at something on the table.

On the table lay a flat, round object. At first glance, it looked like a few CDs stacked together with a hole in the center. Or, to put it simply, it resembled a pot coaster.

This was something Dana had given me.

“If you want to prove your existence to someone, use this.”

Dana had said that. I hadn’t heard exactly what it was since it was finished right around the time I was about to return.

But I knew it couldn’t harm anyone since it was something Dana had given me.

Dana was smart. She must have thought through various scenarios.

“Maybe we’ll know when we try it.”

But even so, showing it to Mom and having her believe it was another thing altogether.

The usage… wasn’t complicated; I just had to fill it with magic power.

I held the object in my hand. Its surface was smooth, seemingly carved from stone.

But upon closer inspection, it was evident that intricate lines were engraved with very fine tools. It was so detailed that anyone who hadn’t studied magic circles would probably mistake it for just a pattern carved to prevent slipping.

I had never seen a magical tool with such a delicately engraved magic circle. I could tell it wasn’t something that worked simply, given all the effort Dana had put into making it during my time in Irrelaysia.

When I looked at my sister, she nodded her head nervously, observing me.

Even after learning magic for several years, I still found it fascinating. For my sister, who had only recently discovered the existence of magic, it must have been extraordinary.

And it must have made her nervous, especially since she had encountered Dana’s magic at the Elf Capital before.

It was an incredibly tense moment, and how well this object functioned could determine the success of what we were trying to do.

I almost laughed at my sister’s expression.

“Alright, then I’ll begin.”

At my words, my sister nodded once more.

I looked down at the object in my hand.

Magic is like programming. Sure, the language is far more complex, and it looks much more fantastical, but there’s a ‘starting trigger’ that’s the same.

So this object had that aspect as well.

If it were a CD, there should be a hole to secure it.

On that spot, there was a small circle, just the right size for a fingertip. The surface there felt smooth compared to the rest, which was intricately carved.

I placed my index finger there.

And gently channeled magic power into it.

The blue light flowing from the tip of my finger gradually moved along the grooves of the object.

And—

“Ah…”

My sister stared in awe, her mouth agape at the result.

I was the same.

Ah, so that’s it.

Dana thought of this.

Seeing that possibility, I felt my heart race.