I'm a Goddess to Be Devoured by the Protagonist - Chapter 37

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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 37
Sirius hung his head low after reading the system window’s contents.
[‘The Listener who draws diagonal lines’ is asking how long this has been going on.]
-About a month now.
So this started after I fell asleep.
Were you worried about me?
[‘The Listener who draws diagonal lines’ says he’s perfectly fine and there’s no need for this anymore.]
A window opened beneath his bowed head. Slowly, Sirius lifted his gaze.
-That’s right. There’s no need for this to continue.
His emotions had settled somewhat; he pushed himself up from the bed and sat on it again.
-But just until today, if I may rest?
[‘The Listener who draws diagonal lines’ says it’s fine to rest a bit longer.]
-Thank you.
Sirius lay back on the bed, and soon only the sound of his steady breathing remained.
Sirius was settled for now.
Next, I decided to check the notification window visible beside me.
[Unread messages: 187]
Unbelievable. Nearly two hundred messages had piled up.
I opened the topmost message thread.
[Communicator: You alive?]
[Communicator: Oh, right. There’d be a backlash. Let me know when you wake up.]
[Communicator: Hello? You’re not sulking because I didn’t tell you about the backlash, are you?]
[Communicator: I’m sorry. Contact me.]
After that, apologies continued in an endless stream. Most of the roughly two hundred messages were from the Communicator.
[Listener: I’m awake now.]
[Communicator: Gasp]
[Communicator: You’re awake!!!]
It felt as though I could hear the Communicator’s voice through the messages.
Ping! Ping!
With so much to say, the message alerts kept sounding.
[Communicator: Oh nooo how worried I was for real for real]
[Communicator: Come to my space real quick.]
[Communicator: I’ll cry if you don’t.]
[Listener: I’m coming.]
[Send]
I pressed send and moved.
The place I arrived at this time was a cute, cozy room unlike before—the sort you’d only see in those romance-fantasy web comics about parenting.
The presence of a bed suggested this was where the Communicator slept and lived.
“Sniff sniff. Listener…”
The Communicator appeared from somewhere and clung fast to my legs.
“Our newbie can’t die. How long has it even been since starting Cosmos? If you die, what am I supposed to live for?”
Did even gods die so easily? The word “die” kept slipping from my lips.
I couldn’t tell if she was worried about me or about her own entertainment.
But her upturned face was clearly tear-stained.
“I won’t die from something like that.”
I offered her what comfort I could, never stepping outside my role as Listener.
Looking back on that moment, it certainly wasn’t a fatal wound. It was just painful.
“Well, that’s how gods are anyway.”
The Communicator wiped her eyes quickly.
Once her crying stopped, I decided to ask what was on my mind.
I wondered if Sirius wouldn’t have ended up like that if the Communicator had told him about my condition—but from his reaction, it seemed she hadn’t.
“Did you perhaps inform my contractor about my condition?”
“Oh.”
The Communicator’s face showed she’d completely forgotten.
“I was so worried about you I forgot!”
Come on. People might think I’m the one you’re fond of.
Of course, that would never happen. It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other’s faces.
It was unfortunate that the Communicator hadn’t relayed anything, but she had no obligation to look after Sirius, who wasn’t even her contractor.
“I’d appreciate it if you told him next time.”
“Next time?! What next time?!!!”
She let out a shrill cry and smacked my leg repeatedly. Her small palms held little force, so it didn’t hurt.
I spent some effort trying to soothe her.
Sigh…
Until Communicator finally fell asleep from exhaustion.
I laid Communicator on the bed, and before leaving her space, I wrote something in the sketchbook with a crayon.
[I’m going out while you sleep.]
Then I returned to my own space and checked the remaining notifications.
[Unread messages: 2]
Most of the messages were indeed from Communicator.
I checked the other two messages.
[Victor: Heard about it.]
[Victor: Once you wake up, we’ll train again.]
They were from Victor. The content was brief and simple.
I sent Victor a message saying I was awake now.
[Victor: Good. Let’s meet up later.]
Now there were no more messages left.
Ping!
Just as I was about to rest again, someone sent a message.
[Narrative: Got time to meet me now? (￣∇￣)]
It was Narrative.
To send a message like that again. Anyone watching would think she was some suspicious, squinty-eyed character.
[Listener: Sure.]
Caught off guard, I pretended to be calm and moved to Narrative’s space.
“I was worried about you.”
Narrative offered me tea and cookies.
I didn’t refuse and drank the tea. It was the same as last time.
“Eat more. More.”
Narrative spoke like a rural grandmother pressing food on someone already full.
Only after I finished an entire bowl of cookies was I able to escape the searing gaze of those closed eyes.
“Well, you’re fed now, so you can go back and— no, wait.”
Just as I thought I was finally being dismissed and started to stand, I hesitated.
“You should probably meet Shirin Light too. He’s been out of sorts since he hasn’t seen you.”
Why was Narrative bringing up Shirin Light?
Puzzled, I studied him carefully.
“I don’t like him, but he’s been so restless that it’s become a nuisance, so I’m forced to mention it.”
And with that, he sent me an address.
“It’s the address to Shirin Light’s space. Go there.”
[Sending]
Another location filled my field of vision.
Like Listener’s space, this place was night, and it was filled entirely with ice structures, all of them shattered as though someone had gone on a rampage.
At the center of it all stood Shirin Light.
“The Listener who draws diagonal lines of wishes.”
For some reason, I felt as though I were being scolded by an adult as a child.
Shirin Light turned around slowly. His eyes were fierce.
“You broke your promise.”
We never made a promise.
“You said you’d come to the gathering.”
I’d said I would if I felt like it, but I didn’t remember promising to go without fail.
“Because of that, I skipped a gathering.”
It’s just one gathering—can’t you skip one? Why are you being so frightening?
So what was I supposed to say here…
“I see.”
It wasn’t an apology. It was resignation.
My apologies for possessing this body here of all places.
“Sigh… Yes. You were always like that.”
His voice carried resignation. I wasn’t sure whether it was good that my acting was working well or not.
“I’ll do better. Please, find me.”
It was an unexpected thing to say. Here was a man who looked like he only knew how to attack, yet he was saying he’d do better.
For some reason, I found myself thinking of Narrative, who’d called himself a solitary old man.
“I will.”
Thinking about how he must have suffered at the hands of the Listener in the past, I felt almost sorry for him.
Coming to meet me wasn’t such a big deal—I could manage that much. As long as I played my part convincingly, it should be fine.
He looked startled at my words, then his expression softened into a smile.
“I created you, yet I still cannot fully understand you.”
What? Who created what?
You don’t mean… you created me?
“You may return now. I have seen your face.”
Shirin Light swept his hand through the air. At the same moment, the damaged ice structures repaired themselves.
I quickly retreated to my own space to hide my shock.
“Ham.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Am I… Shirin Light’s daughter?”
“Yes, strictly speaking, that’s correct.”
The Listener was Shirin Light’s daughter?
For some reason, I felt as though I might spit out orange juice at any moment.
True, they both had that same cold impression about them.
Beyond that, though, I couldn’t see any resemblance.
* * *
Whether Sirius hadn’t appeared to struggle these past days or not, he could well have been exhausted on the inside.
I thought perhaps he deserved a few days of rest.
I’d been working him hard—carriage rides and dungeon runs, one after another.
[‘The Listener Who Draws a Line’ suggests taking a brief rest.]
-Understood.
[‘The Listener Who Draws a Line’ asks whether you prefer the city or the countryside.]
-I’m not sure.
How unhelpful. What am I supposed to do with that?
What am I supposed to do? I’ll just decide for him!
[‘The Listener Who Draws a Line’ suggests using a Movement Stone to travel to City Aquamarine.]
I’d planned to visit Aquamarine a second time anyway, once I obtained a Movement Stone. The reason was that I wanted to meet Blue Bird then.
[Will you use the Movement Stone?]
[Yes] / [No]
Sirius pressed the Yes button.
Using the Movement Stone automatically transported one to an unpopulated location, so there was no need to worry about startling passersby.
And since it could transport one or two people at a time, there was no need to worry about leaving Vega behind alone.
[Hotel Albatros]
My first choice of activity in City Aquamarine was a hoecance at the hotel.
-Welcome. I’m the staff member assigned to you, Sirius and Vega.

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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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