I am back – Chapter 45

The goddess’s gaze finally turned to the Saintess.

“……”

No one here was unaware of why the goddess was looking at Pia.

Did she have something to say?

Even if they tried to argue against the goddess or side with her, they ultimately came to the conclusion that they shouldn’t go meet Siyun. Could Pia really persuade the goddess, no matter what she said here?

But still, Pia opened her mouth.

She couldn’t just give up.

“I—I just wanted to say thank you to the Hero… to Siyun.”

So, Pia’s words came out plain and simple.

She didn’t promise anything in return. There were no religious or philosophical ponderings. There wasn’t even any logic based on reasoning.

It was just like a childish pout, wanting to express gratitude to the benefactor.

“……”

Yet, the goddess didn’t say anything in response.

As if she were silently chewing on Pia’s words, she simply continued to look at her without a word.

Even the three people following Pia couldn’t muster a word.

Pia was the one who sought to negotiate with the goddess. But what she said was so lacking that it didn’t even meet the foundations of that ‘negotiation.’ Her words, claiming rights as someone who saved the world alongside the Hero, turned out to be nothing in front of the goddess.

Because all those feats were ultimately possible thanks to the existence of that one Hero.

“Isn’t it only natural to say thank you since we received help?”

Pia pleaded with the goddess.

“That’s… the way of human beings, isn’t it?”

“……”

The goddess remained silent.

Kalia, Dana, and Arna all held their breath, watching the two of them.

Silence hung in the temple for a long while. The goddess stared at Pia in silence for a while before slowly opening her mouth.

“There is a condition known as post-traumatic stress disorder.”

The goddess’s tone, as she spoke, was no longer the authoritative tone from earlier.

It was a tone like that of an ordinary person, as when they first met.

But that annoying demeanor from their first meeting was gone. It was merely a tone of someone explaining something calmly.

“It’s only natural that you’ve never heard of this condition. It isn’t recognized as a ‘disorder’ in your world yet.”

The goddess let out a small sigh and continued speaking.

“But you should have an inkling of it. A knight returning from the battlefield, terrified and unable to return, or a young man still full of health who is horrified at the sight of red. It manifests in many different ways—for example, preferring dark corners or not being able to chew meat. It’s a mental illness that appears in various forms.”

Listening to the explanation, they began to understand.

It wasn’t just the knights or soldiers. The people here also weren’t exceptions. Each of them had developed small habits due to the war, even if they didn’t speak of it to others.

“I’ve seen so many of those people. There was a great war. A war that continued for a long time over a far larger area than the one you experienced… But that doesn’t mean that the horrifying war you faced was any less horrifying. It was just a different war.”

The goddess paused for a moment.

The four listening had no idea what war the goddess was referring to. They could only silently suppress their breathing at the remark of ‘it was large and wide.’

“Even after the war ended, victims continued to emerge for decades… It wasn’t until after the victims of that war no longer existed that the last ones finally stopped appearing. Such wounds can never be erased. They can only be held together for life with someone’s help or shown how worthwhile and necessary that experience was beyond the wounds.”

“……”

For a moment, silence enveloped the goddess and the four of them.

“The fact that comrades who have experienced such things are by your side, that there is someone who can empathize with their experiences next to them—that there is someone who will always protect them and understand their actions or mistakes—can greatly improve their condition. Of course, I’ve seen people who didn’t get better at all, but… there’s hope.”

The goddess’s gaze, which had been wandering in the air, turned to the four of them in turn: Pia, Dana, Kalia, Arna.

“……Speaking of which, I had forgotten to thank you all. No matter how much the Hero was present, it wouldn’t have been possible to defeat the Demon King without your help. As a goddess, I thank you. You are heroes who saved your world. I apologize for the delay in my gratitude.”

“Ah…”

The words “It’s nothing” didn’t come out.

It felt stuck in their throats, as if it were caught.

“Not just you, but also those who fought against the Demon King’s army. I should also thank those who risked their lives to save humans, even though they were of the Demon Race, by going into the deadly territory of the Demon King’s army. Sadly, it might be a long time before I can thank them.”

To meet the goddess, after all, one could only come here by leaving the world behind.

“And… I thank you for gathering people to create such miracles.”

The goddess’s eyes turned to Pia.

“Thanks to you, my power could fully reach the world. With that power, I was able to connect worlds. Once connected, I can reconnect them again as many times as needed. Though, of course, I don’t intend to allow just anyone to travel back and forth.”

For the first time, a smile appeared on the goddess’s lips. Though it was very brief, it was a striking expression that would firmly etch itself in the minds of the four.

“……Though I’ve given many reasons, I know that in the end, the three of you think like Pia. Because that’s what heroes think.”

Even though the goddess spoke in a languid tone, it seemed like she was putting on an act.

As the goddess looked at the three of them, she lowered her chin resting on her hand and straightened her back, as if to show respect to the four in front of her.

At that moment, Pia, Kalia, Dana, and Arna tensed up. An indescribable dignity flowed from the serious-faced goddess.

Slowly, a faint halo began to appear behind the goddess’s head.

“I have a request to make of you four, as a goddess.”

With her expression set, the goddess spoke to the four of them.

“It is merely a request, so I will not be disappointed if you refuse. Since I know that it is a difficult task, I won’t say anything if you are ultimately unable to do it. I am well aware of how too embarrassing it is to impose the responsibilities that I should fulfil as a goddess onto you humans.”

The four tensed up.

What kind of request would make even a goddess say this?

But none of them had any intention of refusing the goddess’s words, since they had directly heard her request.

They faintly realized that this request was similar to the words they heard when the Hero crossed over into their world.

“Indeed.”

Perhaps having noticed the thoughts of the four, the goddess once again let a faint smile surface.

And slowly, she continued.

“Right now, in a world completely different from the one you lived in, there is someone who is suffering. A pain they were never meant to bear—it is pain that they obtained due to my inadequacies. It is a wound obtained in the process of trying to save the world in accordance with my will.”

At that moment, the four began to understand what the goddess was saying.

Their hearts raced.

What the goddess was saying was, rather, something they had not anticipated.

“I ask you, the four of you with the most righteous hearts, in the name of the goddess. Can you go to another world and rescue that suffering person? In return for granting my request, I shall grant you one wish. Whatever that wish may be. I swear it in the name of the goddess.”

The goddess paused for a moment.

“……Will you grant my request?”

Naturally, none of the four had any thoughts of refusal.

“Yes, we will definitely do it.”

Pia said, clasping her hands together firmly.

“I swear upon all my honor.”

Kalia swore, placing her hand over her heart.

“I will use all my knowledge to make it happen, no matter what.”

Dana said, holding her notebook to her chest.

“I will make sure to succeed.”

Arna replied, looking directly at the goddess.

“……May blessings be upon your journey.”

To those four Heroes, the goddess said.