I'm a Goddess to Be Devoured by the Protagonist - Chapter 22
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 22
“So, have you changed your mind about giving me a proper answer to my question?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t—ack! Don’t go!”
At his desperate cry, I started to rise, only to sit back down again.
“Telling the Listener about the future I’ve seen would create a massive Variable. In other words, even if your contractor’s world wasn’t originally doomed to destruction, my revealing it could cause that very destruction.”
I see.
“I’ll be leaving then.”
“Ah, wait—why again?”
“I have no further business here.”
I came to this place seeking information about the future. If Seosa couldn’t provide it, there was no reason to linger.
Seosa thrashed his head back and forth desperately, then suddenly broke into a wide smile as if struck by an idea.
“I can create a reason for you to stay. Will you help me out? I’ve been wanting to rearrange my bookshelves for ages.”
“Can’t you move furniture easily through the system?”
I spoke while recalling the window that had asked if I wanted to change the placement of the Baking Set.
“My bookshelves are too old—they don’t have that function.”
So older objects couldn’t be moved through the system, then.
“You helped me move them before, and it was such a relief…….”
Was the Listener the type to help others willingly? It didn’t seem like it.
“You’ve done it before without asking for anything in return, helping people out in your spare time. Could you do the same for me now? Please?”
“I suppose I did.”
I affirmed it as if it were nothing, though I was genuinely taken aback.
For some reason, it seemed the Listener had been helping others.
Was the Listener a tsundere? Did that make them a psychopathic tsundere?
What kind of absurd classification even was that?
“Ah. You’re not asking for payment now, are you? If so, then… ah! I can tell you that—Manwagyeong left behind some prophecies before falling asleep, and there’s one about Quartz in them.”
Excuse me. I never told you that my contractor’s world is called Quartz. If you know something, at least keep it hidden properly.
Manwagyeong could see futures that never changed—it was worth hearing what he had to say.
“Yes, I understand. I’ll help you.”
Seosa’s face brightened immediately.
I followed him as he led the way somewhere.
“Just move it over there~, okay?”
After he stopped, he pointed with his hand at an enormous bookshelf crammed full of books. I stared at it silently.
I thought when he asked for my help he wanted me to move some light, empty bookshelf. A weak god like me couldn’t possibly move something like that.
But he said I’d moved it before. Was it one of those things where “a god hides their strength so their vessel doesn’t know”?
On the slim chance it might work, I clung to the bookshelf like a cicada on an old tree and grunted with effort.
“Huh? What are you doing right now? Hugging the bookshelf?”
Seosa looked at me strangely. A wave of embarrassment washed over me.
Well, what else would you have me do?
“Did you forget how to use Divine Power?”
Divine Power? What’s that?
The original Listener would have known about it, so asking now would seem strange.
In any case, I gathered that this Divine Power was what I needed to move the massive bookshelf.
Since I had nothing to lose, I might as well try.
I imagined pouring my strength into the bookshelf.
And…
Swoosh.
The bookshelf shot off like a rocket.
Oh.
By the time I realized something had gone wrong, it was already too late.
Crash!
The bookshelf slammed into the wall with a thunderous bang, shattering into pieces, and books scattered in all directions like debris.
Seosa stared with his mouth agape.
“Did I… happen to upset you somehow?”
“No. Just get a new bookshelf.”
I answered as if nothing had happened, but inwardly my mind was in chaos.
Does even a weak god possess this much power? Or are Divine Power and physical strength separate things?
Like a puppy caught misbehaving, Seosa watched my expression nervously while walking toward the wall and gathering up the books piece by piece. What surprised me was how he continued reading my mood even with his eyes closed—the tell-tale signs weren’t hidden at all.
I debated whether to help him collect the books. Part of me wanted to say it was my mistake and I’d handle cleaning it all up myself, but no matter how I thought about it, the Listener wouldn’t have done that.
“I, um—I’ll handle organizing this myself. Can we talk again once you’ve calmed down? I’ll tell you Manwagyeong’s prophecy then. Oh, and me—I can’t tell you the future, but I can offer counsel. Like I said before, I’ve lived quite a long time, so I know quite a lot……?”
How bored must he be, wanting to stay in touch with a god who just destroyed his bookshelf?
“You mean you’re telling me right now…….”
“Ahhh! I just remembered I have urgent business! Of all times! I can’t possibly discuss this now!”
His fingertips trembled as he cried out at empty air. The best I could do was leave him be, so he wouldn’t grow even more frightened.
My apologies. My apologies.
* * *
Back in the Listener’s space, I stared down at the dough in the Baking Set.
Splat!
A sound no human fist could produce rang out as the dough burst apart, and the counter cracked down the middle.
[Suggestion]
[The ‘Baking Set’ has been damaged. Would you like to repair it?]
[Repair Cost: 10p]
[Yes] / [No]
It was absurd enough that a single button could fix it, but now they wanted payment too. I threw a punch at the window floating before my eyes, then pressed the ‘Yes’ button.
Two holographic hammers appeared over the Baking Set, moving as if striking away. Not long after, it was restored to pristine condition.
Perhaps the Listener’s Divine Power was at least somewhat useful.
But there’s nowhere to use it.
What good is my Divine Power being somewhat stronger? I can’t even help Sirius with it.
[Mission Success! Reward granted!]
[Bread×1]
While I stood staring at my hands as if I possessed an uncontrollable dark flame dragon, Sirius arrived at Amethyst Village.
Unfortunately, conducting trade with other deities would have to come later.
I sprawled across the bed and watched the broadcast screen. Since I’d completed the previous mission, it was time to assign the next one.
I tapped at the holographic keyboard like a brilliant pianist or a powerful keyboard warrior.
The moment I pressed the sponsorship button, a mission window appeared before Sirius. He stopped in his tracks and read through the contents.
The reason he’d come to this village was to obtain something called a Skill Scroll.
Unlike other novels, “This Journey” didn’t work by having you stab ridiculously strong monsters until your sword gained an aura or something.
The human body had physical limits to growth, but by obtaining Skill Scrolls, one could gain diverse abilities.
Sirius currently had not acquired a single skill from a scroll. It meant he’d obtained not a single skill from scrolls before the novel even began.
Skill Scrolls weren’t something you could just dig up from the ground, so they were difficult to obtain.
Sirius went to the inn, rented a room, and ordered a meal on the first floor.
-……And I’ll have the most expensive liquor you have.
At that, the Innkeeper’s face brightened instantly. His figure disappearing into the kitchen looked delighted.
When the meal arrived, Sirius placed the food within Vega’s easy reach while setting the bottle of liquor to the side.
Throughout the novel, Sirius never once brought alcohol to his lips.
So the reason for ordering it was obvious. I’d told him to.
Was I trying to do something involving that altar he’d mentioned before?
No. I can’t drink alcohol.
There’s no grand reason—it tastes bitter to me. Because of that, I’ve heard far too many people say, “Oh, you find alcohol bitter? I find life bitter.”
There were two reasons for ordering alcohol despite having two non-drinking adults and one child at the table.
Sirius asked the Innkeeper, who was turning to leave the table.
-I have a question for you.
-Sure. Ask away.
The Innkeeper laughed and shot a look that said he’d answer anything. For how briefly he’d met this outsider, he was remarkably kind.
The reason the man was acting that way was because the most expensive liquor in this establishment carried quite a hefty price.
In the novel, the joke went that he could afford to close the inn for a few months thanks to it.
There had been an explanation for why such expensive liquor existed in such an ordinary inn. The Innkeeper had drunk a glass of it and explained, but of course I had no memory of that.
In any case, this Innkeeper was not the sort to treat roughly a customer who’d brought in such a windfall.
-I heard there’s a dungeon somewhere in this village.
The Innkeeper’s face hardened instantly. He rolled his eyes, glancing around, then lowered his voice.
-If you’re thinking of going there, you’d better give up on the idea.
The atmosphere sank heavy in an instant.
-Not a single person who’s entered that dungeon has come back out. That’s why its entrance is called the Monster’s Mouth. It’s a story that couldn’t possibly be anything but terrifying…….
-You know I can hear all this, right?
The Innkeeper’s expression showed he’d made a mistake, and he slowly turned his head toward where the voice had come from. Sirius’s gaze followed suit.
The screen shifted, revealing a person in full armor sitting hunched over at a table.
He sucked up a beer through a drinking straw that had been inserted into a hole in his helmet, then rose from his seat.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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