Chapter 1901: Ship Party 26
<Author's Notes>
I never thought that there would actually be someone who could get it right with such little information...... reading the comment section surprised me.
(T/N: This comment section is over there in syosetu.)
Aside from the fact that Jane-san's facial muscles weren't working at all, her personality was cheerful and pleasant, and our conversation somehow naturally became lively, creating a comfortable atmosphere that it was hard to believe we met each other for the first time.
[Well~~ Kaito-sama's conversational skills are good too. I can't help but get excited. You're good-looking, have a good personality, are rich, and have a wide social circle...... Hahaan, Kaito-sama, aren't you a high-spec male with strong communipower!?]
[I think you're exaggerating a bit...... Rather, I think the reason is that talking with Jane-san is lively and fun. That being the case, I feel that Jane-san is the one with strong communication skills...... Well, your face really doesn't make a twitch at all though......]
[Tahaa~~ Sorry about that! This is what you might call a quirk, so while we're at it, wanna talk about it? Even this Jane Doe has a sad past...... is what I was thinking, but it would be a long story, so maybe another time. Good grief, although my expression looks completely dead like this, my heart is full of love and peace, so please don't think of me as a boring woman, okay? I'm heading for the interesting woman route here!]
No, I actually do think she's a very interesting woman. The fact that she's so filled with emotions despite having a blank expression is already interesting once you get used to it.
It really is a mystery how she can produce such voices without changing her expression or moving her mouth much, but well, that's also part of what makes Jane-san fascinating. If possible, I'd like to have a more leisurely conversation with you sometime.
That said, I still have to make the rounds for greetings, so I can't keep talking to her forever. I'll need to wrap things up here at some point.
[No, I really do find you fascinating, Jane-san. Talking with you is so enjoyable that I wish we could chat longer.]
[Ohh, I've certainly got myself a good impression, yes? Tahaa~~ The gates have been opened, onwards to the marry-to-riches route! Of course, I'll let myself in!]
[Ahaha, well, putting aside the marry-to-riches route, I do really want to talk with you more...... but I still have to continue going around greeting everyone......]
[Ahh, indeed. Well~~ I'm sorry for keeping you long. Kaito-sama is busy too, so please don't mind me and head to your next destination.]
[Thank you. Well then, I'll take my leave now. Let's have a leisurely chat again if we have the chance.]
[......Tahaa~~ The scary guard had shown up huh. I'm a timid one, so I'd like you to excuse me from the investigations.]
[Calling it investigations is an exaggeration, I'm just asking some simple questions. If you answer honestly, you can go home...... So "you who likely possess at least omnipotent power", who are you?]
Upon hearing Alice's sharp inquiry, not lowering her guard at all, Jane, her expression still unchanging, turned her eyes devoid of light towards Alice.
[......I'm no one special. The one before you was someone who couldn't even become a nobody, the remnant of someone who once was a God, akin to a ghost traversing countless words. Tahaa~~ Sorry for being mysterious!]
[As expected, there's so little information that it's hard to guess who you are with just that...... In that case, let me ask you the important thing. Do you have any hostility towards Kaito-san?]
[There's no way I would. If it's gratitude and debt of gratitude, I have so much that I can't express it in words...... Well then, let's call it a wrap like that, so I'll excuse myself! If fate allows, let's meet again!]
After saying this, Jane disappeared like a mist. Alice, who could only watch that happen, put her hand on her chin with a dubious expression on her face.
(Pursuit seems impossible. While there may not be a big difference, the other side seems to have a higher status...... Rather than pursuing this matter myself, it seems quicker to ask someone like Shallow Vernal-sama. No matter how I think about this though, I can't imagine a being of that level could slip in without Shallow Vernal-sama's permission......)
Alice gave up chasing Jane and decided to ask Shallow Vernal, who most likely knew what was going on, she disappeared with a light sigh.
<Afterword>
『?????』
A being who was once a God, a being who is no longer a God, a being who, in exchange for the one they revere, "escaped the end". From that moment on, their expression stopped moving, and the being who became unable to become anything entrusted the recreation of the world to others and became a wandering ghost, traversing different worlds.
One who can't stand still, one who can't disappear...... To cease to be oneself is a blasphemy against the one they revere......
They held no resentment for the being who brought the end...... because such is an act of dishonor to the pride of the one they revere who proudly stood against the end......
Yet they held no purpose, held no meaning to live, only a reason not to disappear...... until they heard the story of the Little Hero who defeated the End and learned about the story that once ended had been reopened......