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“Hmm….”

The boy, who had lost consciousness, slowly opened his eyes and stared blankly at the ceiling of the room.

“Where am I…?”

As his senses returned, his eyes quickly focused, and his expression turned to one of panic as he took in the room’s surroundings. Just before he passed out, he had been fighting a monster in the forest, and now he found himself in an unfamiliar room. It’s only natural he’d be a bit flustered.

He hurriedly sat up, but the Dragon Priestess pushed him back down onto the bed.

“Please don’t get up just yet. Your recovery is complete, but moving too quickly isn’t advisable.”

The Dragon Priestess said in a soft voice, and the boy looked at her, still flustered.

“Is this… the paradise of the Underworld?”

“Excuse me?”

“No, but… I heard you had to pass a terrifying test to enter the paradise of the Underworld…”

Paradise? Tests? There are trials, but no tests?

“What do you mean by that?”

“I… I was definitely stabbed by the sting of a fearsome monster… Didn’t I die from the poison of that monster? If not, how could I wake up in such a nice room after fighting a monster in the forest…”

Hmm. Well, he does have a point. After all, just a moment ago, he was battling some dreadful monsters.

There’s no way he’d just wake up here unless someone moved him.

“And there wouldn’t be such a beautiful girl beside me. This must either be a dream or I’m definitely in the paradise beyond the Underworld.”

The boy, still trying to make sense of things, was talking nonsense. The Dragon Priestess remained silent in response to his words.

“Why are you silent?”

‘Oh, um… when you said I was beautiful… I felt something… tingling in my chest…’

“Hmm…?”

‘What’s happening to me?’

I had a slight suspicion of what he might be feeling, but I decided not to say anything. Such feelings aren’t something someone else can explain; it’s something one must realize on their own.

‘Something feels like it’s trembling inside my chest… and there’s this jolting sensation. Hmm… I don’t get it. Why is this happening to me?’

“Well, it could be that your heart isn’t doing so well?”

“My heart? But you’re the Dragon Priestess?”

Or maybe it’s something like arrhythmia?

After a moment of reflection, the Dragon Priestess spoke calmly, looking at the boy.

“I need to correct one thing.”

“You’re not in the paradise one goes to after dying. You’re not dead.”

“What? So this isn’t paradise? Then where are we… you… um… since you have horns, are you a Beastman?”

“No. I am not a Beastman.”

The Dragon Priestess shook her head gently.

“This is the headquarters of the Church of Life. And I am…”

She paused for a moment as if she were contemplating what to say.

“The headquarters of the Church of Life? Then… could you possibly be the Dragon Priestess?”

The boy grew more eager.

“Yes? Ah, um… yes. I am the current Dragon Priestess.”

“Are you really the Dragon Priestess? You aren’t just a Beastman girl who calls herself the Dragon Priestess, are you?”

“The Goddess of Life has conveyed her voice to me, and following her will makes me the Dragon Priestess, doesn’t it?”

It seems the Dragon Priestess herself doesn’t think of me as the Goddess of Life!

Well, since I’ve been by her side, narrating things since her sense of self wasn’t fully formed, it makes sense that she doesn’t see me as the Goddess of Life.

“So, if you really are the Dragon Priestess… did you come down to this world to choose a hero to protect the life of this land from the threat of the Demon King?”

The Dragon Priestess hesitated to answer the boy’s question.

“That’s…”

“That’s it! The Goddess of Life would nurture the life of this land! She wouldn’t just leave the Demon King unchecked! She will surely bestow a hero’s sword upon this land and choose a hero to defeat the Demon King!”

Well, I didn’t really leave him unchecked. I weakened him by separating his body and spirit.

If I hadn’t weakened him, and if his body were intact… he might have wreaked havoc across the world.

Right now, he can’t move properly without a body… but had he had one, just roaming around would have caused a catastrophe.

“So, where is the hero chosen by the Dragon Priestess? Can I meet the hero who will save this world?!”

Just moments ago, he had been unconscious, but now he was looking at the Dragon Priestess with sparkling eyes.

A hero. The champion who rescued many. That sword and that title bequeathed to heroes was probably the longing of countless souls.

And it was surely the same for this boy.

However…

“The hero…”

The Dragon Priestess merely pointed at the boy with her index finger.

“It’s you.”

“What?”

“You are the hero I have chosen.”

The soft words from the Dragon Priestess left the boy confused for a few seconds as he tilted his head, slowly comprehending, his expression shifting to one of pale shock, then turning frantic.

Thud.

He rolled over and fell back onto the bed like a fainting goat.

“Huh…?”

The Dragon Priestess watched the boy’s reaction with a puzzled look on her face.

「That’s a bit much. Just pouring the red medicine on him out of the blue.」

‘Red medicine?’

「Oh, is that term not used for that purpose?」

‘Well, the potion made by the Church of Life is red…’

「That’s a different meaning, so forget it.」

After all, there wouldn’t be anyone in this world who understands what ‘red medicine’ means.

「Anyway, how do you think the boy would take it if you told him he’s the hero he’s been waiting to meet?」

‘Um… happy?’

「You really don’t know how human emotions work!」

‘Well, you don’t know human feelings either.’

「That’s because I’m a god. Completely different from human emotions.」

‘That sounds convenient. You only pull that card when it suits you. You’re more human than anyone I know.’

「You’re the only one who thinks that way.」

At this point, I hardly remember what kind of human I originally was.

All I have left in my heart is an overwhelming and stubborn longing that refuses to fade away.

「Anyway, when the boy regains his senses, let’s have a calm conversation.」

‘Calm conversation? About what?’

「Anything you like. It’s important for you both to take the time to understand each other little by little. Whether you chose this boy or not, to him, you are just a stranger he has met for the first time, the Dragon Priestess.」

From the boy’s perspective, he wouldn’t understand why this stranger has suddenly gotten close to him.

So indeed, it is necessary to take time to understand each other.

‘Hmm… I don’t get it.’

The Dragon Priestess merely tilted her head at such a statement.

「Well, it’s okay not to get it. You both don’t know anything yet. What you need right now is time to understand each other.」

Of course, I don’t really know either! I’m just talking in a seemingly plausible way!

After all, would I have any relationship with things like romance? Even if I’m called the Goddess of Life or the primal mother, I’m fully aware that my mind leans more towards being male.

If I had entirely female traits… would it have been better? Could I have made better choices?

No, now thinking about those things is meaningless anyway.

Even if I had the power to turn back time and start over, I doubt I’d be satisfied with that restored time.

If I were to turn time back just once to see, it would lead to multiple turnings back, and every time something unsatisfactory came up, I’d keep turning it back, endlessly, forever repeating the same future.

So really, unless it’s an unavoidable situation, I don’t want to turn back time.

Hmm. My thoughts just took a wildly different direction. Focus. Focus.

‘Time to understand each other…?’

「Exactly. Like how one would dip their toes in the water before swimming. It’s just about gradually, little by little, taking the time to understand each other. Your previous action was like submerging your entire head into the water all at once.」

‘Hmm… I still don’t understand. I’ve never even swum before.’

「Oh… come to think of it, that’s true.」

The Dragon Priestess, loved and cared for within the Church of Life, has surely never had the opportunity to swim.

Aside from lying in a bathtub filled with warm water, she’s hardly ever gotten wet.

「Ahem. Anyway, even if you tell a boy who has just awakened that he is going to be a hero, he’s not ready to accept that yet. If we had taken the time to explain, it would have been fine.」

‘Hmm… dealing with people is tough, huh?’

「Well, that’s how it is.」

There’s nothing easy in the world, but one of the hardest things must be dealing with other people.

Especially when the other party is also a thinking, judgment-making person with their own motives.

‘It would’ve been easier if I just did it for him.’

「Are you suggesting I do it for you?」

‘Yeah. I know a lot, I’m wise, and I can do anything.’

「But this body isn’t mine; it’s yours.」

In response to my words, the Dragon Priestess pouted slightly, and…

“Ugh…”

The boy, who had rolled his eyes and fainted, slowly opened his eyes again.

 

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