CH 55.1

—1 day remaining.

As planned, I spent my time with my family that day.

I helped my father tend the field. Unlike usual, I took my sweet time. After that, we all ate the breakfast that my mother served. While discussing what to do that day, we were in great agreement that we should check up on Rufus who was studying under a master of painting!

For them to agree so easily, I thought that it was odd… But it turned out that my parents were visiting my brother once a week! They sure were overprotective! Moreover, the master always caught them. He even complained, “At least, put some more effort into not getting caught.”

That day, the three of us got found out, too.

But after that, the master gave Rufus some time to rest. Rufus, who I hadn’t seen in a long time, had tanned and looked quite manly. Apparently, he’d run some errands for the master along with the other apprentices. Despite having a hard time, Rufus seemed to be enjoying himself.

Boys sure grow up fast…

Afterwards, I went home and made dinner with my mother. I tried my hands at making a stew, but white sauce was actually difficult to make! Thus, I accidentally burned it and the sauce turned black. Even so, my father said, “How delicious!” When I burst into tears, my parents were shocked. Shrugging it off and shifting the topic proved difficult.

Then, I took a bath and the three of us played cards for the first time in a while. My mother was unexpectedly excelled at cards. In contrast, my father wasn’t so good. Hence, the winning side became obvious.

My mother’s luck is truly amazing…

Hopefully, she’d bestow some of it to my father’s scalp.

Then—

“—My apologies, I ended up pulling an all-nighter.”

In the pure white world, I apologized to god. He wasn’t angry and instead smiled quietly.

“Did you have fun?”

“Yes, it was a truly fun day…”

That day was the last day I’d be spending with my family. Said day turned out to be very peaceful and enjoyable.

Soon, tomorrow would arrive.

—then, on the morrow…

God asked as he brewed tea as usual.

“What would you like to do tonight? Do you want to spend your time chatting like usual? Or—”

“—No, actually, there are many things I’d like to ask you.”

Upon steeling my resolve, I gazed into god’s sullen eyes. He offered me a cup of tea and said, “Go ahead.” After quenching my thirst with the steaming black tea, I raised some questions.

“First of all, are you truly a god?”

“Isn’t it a bit late to be asking that? Unfortunately, yes. It’s my obligation to look over the activities of the living in this world and govern the cycle of life and death… Although, despite saying something so grandiose, other than a person’s life expectancy, I don’t know anything else…”

I see. God isn’t omnipotent. Well, even if a god is supposed to be omnipotent, this particular god just didn’t seem like he would be…

…Oh no, what do I do?

I’m sure he’ll get offended if he reads my mind right now.

“Then, is it alright for a god to lend his aid to an individual such as me?”

“…In all honesty, it isn’t. Right now, I’m still safe, but I’m sure that I’ll suffer consequences later.”

“Your work environment sure is harsh.”

“It’s merely a different dimension. Once you get inside, everywhere is the same. I have a superior and subordinates. Besides, I’m relatively low-ranked. There are many substitutes for me.”

As I thought, the world of gods is difficult to comprehend.

I felt like if I understood too much, my dreams would shatter into pieces. As such, I decided to not dig too deep. Alright, let’s return to the main topic.

“—Why? Why are you going to such lengths for me?”

I had always wondered about that. While calling himself ‘arrogant’, why did god insist on helping me? I refrained from asking that question because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to see him anymore. Thus, I decided to keep quiet.

After all, I was stated to die in 100 days.

…There’s no way I can spend those days by myself.

“It’s just like I said at the beginning. It’s due to my arrogance. I merely—…I only want you to be happy. Even if there is only a little bit of time left, I wanted you to spend those days to the fullest… That’s all.”

“Yes, but you ended up placing a lot of pressure on me, like, ‘Why don’t you go out more?’, ‘Why don’t you eat something delicious?’, ‘Don’t you want to fall in love?’”

“Well, that’s because… Up until now, you haven’t enjoyed yourself at all. When it comes to girls of your age, don’t you like talking about who you like and such, along with eating delicious food while looking at pretty things?”

“Like I said, you’re merely imposing your ideals to me. If I were to die in 100 days, I’d refrain from doing anything that’d cause my family to be unhappy. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it!”

When I stated the truth, God shrugged and smiled wryly.

“…I agree. This time, essentially, I wanted to let you live for yourself. But you… are just that kind of girl, aren’t you?”

“…What do you mean, ‘this time’?”

“Never mind. I’m sorry. It’s irrelevant to our current topic.”

What’s with that?

Even though I was truly curious, god only shrugged me off.

“In the end, did I become a hindrance?”

“Oh my, did you realize that just now?”

Hey, god…

I didn’t want him to make such a face. I wanted to see him smile. I wanted him to smile happily—beside me.

“God taught me the future. Because of you, I was able to do something for my family. Besides, I had a lot of fun these past 100 days—and it was all because of you!”

“I couldn’t wish for anything more than that.”

“That’s right, I was truly looking forward to seeing you every night! I can’t thank you enough!”

When I straightforwardly said that, god chuckled and started laughing.

“Look at you, saying such a thing so happily… Are you trying to seduce me?”

“Well, of course!”

Upon affirming his question, god turned bright red.

…Really, he’s more selfish, arrogant, and human-like than anyone I know.

“Hey, god. Do you remember the promise we made?”

“Of course, what is it you want? Wealth? Fame? A romantic lover? An irreplaceable friend? Or, would you like to become a god as well? If so, I can recommend you.”

“I’m keeping it a secret until tomorrow.”

I winked at him.