abcnovels
Book 16: Prologue
Book 16: Prologue
Book 16: Prologue
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Prologue
“Your opponent is the god who once ruled the Earth.”
“Huh?”
I… Tenjou Yuuya, opened my eyes wide at Reimei-sama’s words.
“Rei-Reimei-sama, do you know about this god?”
According to Saara-san, there was a god on Earth in the past, but…
“Well, I don’t know much about it, but I do know that they were beings that were destroyed by humanity.”
“By humanity?!”I was surprised by the unexpected words.
“That’s right. You probably don’t know about it because it’s already part of history, but… a long time ago, God existed on Earth.”
“Saara-san said the same thing.
“Umu. Besides, the circumstances of Earth’s birth are very different from what you learn.”
“Eh?!”
“This world… that is, the universe and the earth, was suddenly born from nothing.”
“I-isn’t that what they call the Big Bang?”
“Hmm… I guess you could say that, but you could also say it’s something else… It’s really hard to explain… For now, I can say that this world was created by mysterious forces, not by any scientific forces you know of.”
“Uh-huh…”
“Well, just keep it in mind for now. Anyway, the Earth, which came out of nothing, has a will of its own, and it is this will that created and allowed the current life forms on Earth to flourish.”
“I see.”
“By the way, I was born the moment the Earth gave birth to life.”
“Eehh?!”
I was taken aback by the incredible fact she told me so casually.
“W-Why at that moment…”
“Because the concepts of life and death were first born on Earth. I was naturally born as an existence that manages dead things.”
I knew that Reimei-sama was a powerful being, but I had no idea that she was so powerful.
“Well, enough about me. Anyway, all the beings that live in this world were created by the will of the Earth. However, there were those who wanted to rule the Earth. Those were the gods who once ruled the Earth.”
“…..”
The scope of the story was too large…!
“The ancient gods were born out of nothing, just like the Earth. Therefore, they are equal to the Earth. However, the gods tried to become the rulers of the Earth. The being that was created to oppose them was the girl named Saara that Yuuya was talking about.”
“I see…”
“A long time ago, as the girl named Saara says, there was a continent called Moatra. But in the end, it rebelled against the gods and disappeared with them. And then the Earth took on its present form and things settled down.”
I could only remain silent as I listened to the story of the people of the continent of Moatra, which Saara-san had not told me about.
Then Reimei-sama raised her eyebrows.
“Well, from what Yuuya told me, it doesn’t look like it was destroyed. After all, the other party is a god, even if they are corrupt. Unless they have ‘star power’ or ‘divine power,’ they can’t destroy humanity. Wait a moment.”
Reimei-sama said this and then quietly closed her eyes, releasing her spiritual and mystical power.
A short time later, Reimei-sama quietly opened her eyes.
“Hmm. This is strange.”
“Huh?”
“I just checked the situation on Earth. I could definitely confirm the presence of divine power. Those must be the divine soldiers that attacked Yuuya and the others. However, I can’t detect the presence of the gods themselves.”
“What… does that mean…?”
Now that the divine soldiers have appeared, there must be a god who summoned them.
However, as far as I could tell from what Reimei-sama said, there was no god-like presence.
“I don’t know about that either. Maybe they hide their power well, or maybe there is some other factor at play… Anyway, even if the existence of a god cannot be confirmed, as long as the divine soldiers have appeared, there must be a reason. Don’t let your guard down.”
And so, after hearing from Reimei-sama, I returned to the real world.
???
“??I’m home.”
“Ah, Yuuya-sama! Welcome back!”
Lexia-san greeted me when I returned from the underworld.
“So, how was it?”
“Well, I heard many stories. Anyway, how is Saara-san?”
“Oh, that’s right! That girl has woken up!”
Lexia-san led me to where Saara-san was, lying on her futon with her upper body raised.
Luna, Yuti, Night, and the others were gathered around her.
“Ah, Yuuya-san…”
“Are you okay?”
“…Yes. I’m sorry for showing you such an embarrassing sight just now.”
Saara-san bowed her head as she said that.
So, I decided to tell Saara-san about the story I had heard earlier in the underworld.
“Please don’t worry about it. More importantly, I heard your story.”
“Eh? H-how did you…”
…If you ask me how I did it… I went to the underworld… but there’s no way she’d understand that…
Lexia-san puffed out her chest as she looked at me.
“Of course, it’s because it’s Yuuya-sama!”
That doesn’t explain anything!
“I-I see.”
You’re convinced?!
Maybe because Lexia-san was so confident, Saara-san was confused, but she also came to accept it.
A-amazing… Is that the aura of royalty…?
“Yuuya… I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I think you’re probably wrong.”
“Eh?”
“More importantly, you’re going to explain, right?”
“Oh, that’s right.”
I straightened up and faced Saara-san again.
“Saara-san, you once fought against the gods of the Earth. As a result, you were sealed away by the people of the continent of Moatra where you lived, right?”
“…Yes.”
“This is what happened after you were sealed away… As you know, the continent of Moatra no longer exists on Earth today.”
“I-I see.”
Although she probably understood it in her head, Saara-san lowered her head when she was told the facts again.
“However, it is said that the gods of Earth also perished at the same time as the continent of Moatra.”
“No way! Then what about the divine soldiers we fought earlier?”
“Yes, that’s the problem.”
According to Reimei-sama’s story, it seems that the gods were finally defeated by humanity and perished.
However, the appearance of the divine soldiers meant that the gods were still alive.
Especially since they targeted my house… and probably intended for Saara-san.
“The divine soldiers appeared, but when I investigated, I couldn’t confirm the existence of the gods. It’s possible that the gods are hiding their power, but do you know anything about it?”
“No, nothing. They were completely confident in their own power. That’s why I can’t even imagine them hiding their power.”
“I see…”
While we were discussing this, Luna raised her voice.
“Could it be that because they’ve never lost before? From what you say, those gods were defeated by humanity, right? That’s why they might have given up their appearance and hidden their power from then on.”
“That’s probably it. Or maybe they transformed into something else?”
Even if you say that the gods turned into something else, it doesn’t really make sense, but if that’s the case, it would explain why Reimei-sama couldn’t sense the gods’ existence. After all, they aren’t gods anymore.
“Anyway, since they sent divine soldiers here, Saara-san is being targeted.”
“That’s right. The fact that they went out of their way to attack her as soon as she woke up means that they were probably looking for her as well.”
“Thoroughly. They’re serious. They probably think that if they can get rid of Saara, who was their rival in the past, they’ll be able to rule the Earth again.”
Yuti was right.
If Saara-san, who was the only one who could deal with the gods in the past, was killed, there would be no one left to oppose them.
“So what are you going to do, Saara?”
Luna asked what Saara-san planned to do from now on.
Then, a light appeared in Saara-san’s eyes.
“I’m going to kill them. Just like they’re looking for me, I’m looking for them too…”
“Saara-san…”
“But do you have any idea where they are? From what I heard from Yuuya-sama, it seems like they’re hard to find…”
“That’s true. But if I keep killing the soldiers they send, they’ll eventually lose their patience and show themselves.”
In other words, she would wait for the gods to show themselves while she took on all the divine soldiers who attacked her.
When Saara-san said this, she slowly stood up.
“Saara-san!?”
“That’s why I can’t stay here. If I stay any longer, I’ll be a nuisance to everyone.”
Of course, as long as the gods were targeting Saara-san, they would attack again if she stayed here.
Still, I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
“Saara-san, why don’t you stay with us for a while?”
“Eh?”
Saara-san’s eyes widened at my suggestion.
Lexia-san spoke up immediately.
“That’s a good idea! Saara will be safe here for sure!”
“Well… there’s also Yuuya. There’s no safer place for her than here.”
“Woof!”
“That’s right, Night and the others are here too.”
As if to say that he was here too, Night raised his voice, and Luna smiled and petted him.
Saara-san, who had watched the exchange, quickly came to her senses.
“No, that’s not good! If I stay here, I’ll put everyone in danger…”
“Ara, where do you want to stay then?”
“Well, somewhere…”
“Then we can’t just leave you!”
As Lexia-san said, if things continue as they were, it looked like Saara-san might start sleeping outdoors somewhere.
Especially now, everything was so different from when Saara-san lived.
“If you’re thinking about revenge, I think it would be best if you recuperated at my place for a while, don’t you think?”
“Ugh…”
Actually, there were not many places where Saara-san, who had nowhere in particular to go, could get a good rest.
Perhaps because she understood this, Saara-san was at a loss for words.
And then…
“I understand. Then, for the time being… I will be under your care.”
Saara-san said this and bowed again.
And so it was decided that she would live in this house until she felt rested.
???
One afternoon.
The super-popular model had been called in by the president of her talent agency, Star Productions.
“Excuse me.”
“You came.”
When Miu entered the president’s office, she found the president there.
“I heard that you wanted to talk to me…”
“Yes. First of all, please take a look at this. Kurosawa.”
“Yes… here it is.”
Kurosawa handed Miu a piece of paper at the president’s request.
“Um… a movie poster?”
The poster Miu was handed was for a certain foreign movie.
Miu was confused by being handed a movie poster out of the blue.
“Um, what is this…?”
“You don’t know this movie?”
“I think it’s that movie that’s been in the news lately that’s in production, right? It’s being directed by a rather unconventional and famous movie director…”
When Miu replied like that, the president grinned.
“That’s right! The director whose movies always break the 10 billion yen box office mark is currently filming her latest movie!”
“Huh…?”
As a model, Miu was at a loss to understand why the president had brought up this topic and was simply stunned.
Then Kurosawa spoke up.
“As a matter of fact, the president has a personal relationship with this director, and one of our agency’s models has been chosen to appear in the movie.”
“I see.”
The director of the poster Miu was holding was known for his ability to guarantee box office success with his movies, so acting in a movie directed by him was a very important career move for actors.
That’s why Miu was really surprised to hear that the president knew the movie director personally.
Then the president spoke.
“That’s why I invited you.”
“M-me?!”
The president said to Miu, who looked up in confusion.
“You??you have to appear in this movie.”
“Eh?!”
Miu was taken aback by the unexpected order.
However, she quickly came to her senses and opened her mouth in panic.
“W-wait a minute! Why me? I’m a model, and besides… I don’t even have any acting experience!”
It was a reaction that could be considered natural, but the president didn’t seem to mind.
“I know that. But I thought this would be a good opportunity for you to try your hand at acting.”
“Well… but there’s someone else in our agency who wants to appear in this movie…”
Then Kurosawa spoke up.
“Unfortunately, due to scheduling problems, there are no actresses available to participate.”
“That’s the situation. But even so, we can’t pass up the chance to appear in this genius’s work, can we? That’s why I asked you to participate.”
“…..”
Miu was lost for words.
However, the president continued without flinching.
“You have certainly had great success as a model. But I think it would be good for you to try something in the wider world. That’s why I think this offer won’t be a bad thing for you.”
“B-but acting…”
“Don’t worry about that. I heard from the director that you don’t need any acting experience.”
“Eehh…?”
Miu was confused by the offer.
In fact, the fact that they were willing to hire someone with no acting experience made her feel that they must be a genius.
Then, ignoring the confused Miu, the president continued.
“So I’ll let the director know about you.”
“Eh, um, really me?!”
“That’s right! So pack your things now!”
“Right now? U-um, what about my other job?”
As Miu was about to say this, the president simply told her.
“All of them are canceled!”
“Eehhh?!”
“Don’t worry, I already told them!”
“Still, you can’t just suddenly… By the way, where are they filming…?”
“Overseas.”
“Overseas?!”
Miu was surprised by the unexpected location of the filming.
However, the president continued to speak in a matter-of-fact manner.
“Of course! After all, the other party is a movie maker based overseas.”
“Well, that may be the case, but… if they’re coming to our agency, I thought for sure they were going to film in Japan!”
“Of course not! If that were the case, it would have been all over the news by now. Anyway, you’d better get ready!”
“Eehh…”
Miu can’t keep up with the fast-moving story.
However, the president immediately contacted the director, and Miu’s appearance in the movie was officially decided.