Chapter 2 - Part 1: The usual aftermath
“What does a goddess of nature mean to you?”
***
“Why don’t you tell us about this so-called goddess already? It’s been two hours since everyone has woken up now.”
“‘What does a goddess of nature mean to you?’ Are you kidding me? These people won’t buy it! They are outraged at the lives of many people of their own world being taken so easily! Give us an explanation!”
Linda Eisenberg, a young, pale azure-haired woman with light green eyes, looked at the duo of heroes, Dmitri Ford and Elliot Brave in annoyance as she complained:
“It was hard handling the procedures to report another incident of the goddess losing out to her corruption again. Usually, we would make arrangements to move the goddess to a more isolated place immediately, but, I’ve managed to convince the second prince that she will be fine here. Those cowardly guards just can’t get over it already.”
“Um… excuse me, but how many princes does this country have? Why does the goddess need to be isolated? Why do the other summoned people have to be held captive until the goddess wakes up?”
”What’s with you, you stupid hero? I told you to ask from the goddess herself when she wakes up, right? Why are people like you even heroes?”
Elliot looked piqued by her last words, but, was wary of her; her strength was the real thing.
“The princes,” continued Dmitri Ford, unperturbed.
“The princes… Hmm, the princes. Well, there’s his highness, the royal prince, 33rd of the line, Hector Phoebus, whose consort is the lady of the Paragon House, her highness, Paige Phoebus. The ruling prince is currently protecting the Eastern Wilderness, alongside Grand Hero Walter Wilbur Stanford at the city of Eldawn. Sir Alex-”
“You got too fast! Just tell the basics!” said Dmitri.
“Stop annoying me! Just be thankful that I was passing by, and, that I managed to save you two!”
“Save, you say… You were seriously going to kill us!”
“Can’t be helped. You would be dead either way if I did not choose to interfere.”
“At any rate, please keep up the explanation. I guess that you did happen to be projected from the achievement chart, so, you were indeed available in case of emergency, but, that does not answer my questions.”
“I think that she is properly telling us the things which you asked,” conferred Elliot.
“I don’t know what question you are telling me about. Be clear on what you want!”
“So, why does the goddess need to be isolated?”
“Man… You are noisy! The goddess will tell you about that. Also, Sir Alex is the second prince, and, governs the main palace of the city of Schema. Sir Gawain, the last prince is currently too young for anything noteworthy. And, there are two princesses, the elder one, Lady Liana, married to Grand Hero Norman Fox,” said Linda Eisenberg while looking at Dmitri with skeptical eyes.
“Married…!” mouthed Elliot.
“Then, why did the other people get locked up?”
“They were not locked up. They were offered resting facilities, since they might be tired. We are a bit low on maids and butlers, so, we can’t afford for large-scale conflicts to spring up randomly. Besides, the throne hall needed some cleaning,” clarified Linda in a reticent tone.
Elliot nodded as he heard her words, but, Dmitri insisted:
“Why did you happen to come to report to the goddess?”
“I didn’t come by to report anything. I’m a spirit summoner. My familiars felt a great amount of otherworldly spirits gathered in the palace, so, I started diverting towards it. The feelings emitted became more and more noxious over time, so, I regret not having come here earlier,” she replied while leaning her head down to the right side by just the slightest bit.
Elliot found this gesture of hers to be beautiful, but, Dmitri decided to be intrusive:
“So what did you divert from? Where were you going?”
“I don’t have a reason to give you an answer to that.”
“I guess that it is as you say. So, is your goddess the only one divinity present in this world?”
“It’s your goddess too. Don’t get on my bad side. I’d hate it if I were to be cautious of someone like you. If you are asking about divinity, then, there are quite a lot of them. Such as, nymphs, nature’s sacred beasts, or, dryads. But, it’s true that our goddess is the only one in the likes of non-hostile godhood currently left in this world,” imparted Linda, slightly miffed at Dmitri’s stupidity.
“Well, should I assume that I’m already on your bad side? You are only twenty years old. I’m the same age as you.”
“Why did you learn that?! It would do you good to forget my age!” retorted Linda vexed at his lack of delicacy.
“Even so, you are pretty dignified for your age. Where did you come from? You are a hero too, right? I’ve never seen a blue-haired woman on Earth.”
“Cosplay…” muttered Elliot while studying Linda attentively, before shying out because she appeared to be too charming in his eyes.
“Cosplay? Don’t say weird things about me. I’m not like those nobles who like to wear wigs!”
“Well, you are certainly from a different world than Earth, …Or, you may be suffering from chuunibyou syndrome. So, Earth, or, something I don’t know. In the end, which is it?” asked Dmitri while looking at her with piercing eyes.
“What are you saying? What is ‘Earth’?”
“Look at you playing dumb. You certainly reacted suspiciously when I said the word ‘Earth’?”
“Well, I did meet a few heroes from your world. What of it?”
“That’s rather convenient. Come to think of it, how many gods, or, only goddesses were there in the first place?”
“Hate to disappoint you, but, there are not only-”
“Umm… Great heroes, the goddess has woken up.”
Linda was interrupted by a chestnut-haired pair of maids, and, Dmitri sighed at the disturbance, while Elliot appeared to be taken off by the beauty of the maids.
“Well, lead the way. The other heroes shall accompany me,” ordered Linda without seeking any agreement from the heroes in question.
***
“We are in a royal palace. It’s obvious that there’ll be pretty faces. Get a hold of yourself, pilgrim,” chided Dmitri while holding Elliot’s shoulder.
And, he headed forward to stand beside the blue-haired woman.
Elliot, still dazed at what had transpired, tried forming a sword of light, before immediately covering his eyes from the blinding light of the thing which has materialized in front of him, and, found the maids looking at him in terror.
“Elliot, I appreciate the fact you want to play, but, this is not a playground,” said Dmitri smugly, “also, Linda, how do the powers of a hero work?”
Still looking at Elliot’s ‘rod of light’, Linda opined:
“Can’t say that I know a lot about it. Summoned people with talent and special classes usually have a power immediately appear to them in the first day itself. On the flip side, it can take as much as one month for it to appear on common heroes, while it does not appear at all in some heroes. The most important attribute of a hero is probably his worthiness in being revealed more than only one or two abilities,” explained Linda while crossing her arms.
“I see,” concurred Dmitri while keeping his indifference.
Elliot wanted the conversations to stop, but, could not voice out his complaints.
“The people of this world also have their strengths. So, it is more common for average heroes to be summoned. You won’t find their names on the achievement board. Actually, it was the first time that as much fifty heroes were summoned all at once.”
“Well, more than seventy heroes to be exact, right?” corrected Dmitri.
“How so?” asked Linda, alarmed. Her green eyes burned with worry.
“Well, quite a few heroes summoned today have already died. You saw their corpses, didn’t you?”
“I would be grateful if you didn’t announce it so nonchalantly.”
“...”
“It does not seem like you are lying… However, just how many heroes died? I don’t sense the presence of that much summoners here,” remarked Linda.
“I’ve forgotten about it. Ask the goddess that when we get to her. Besides, how many heroes are usually summoned per month, in a normal scenario?”
“Only one or two per year. But, if I were to give a reason for the numbers this time, it would be that the first batch of summoners apprenticed by me were having their first examination. I left the examination issues to the goddess, but, I can’t believe that she actually got them to summon heroes. I can only summon great wizards and such. Summoning anything else has a forty percent chance of failure.”
“That was a good joke. So, you are the one indirectly responsible for us being snatched away from our own world?”
“W-What are you saying? I did not know that the goddess would do such a thing! But, I can’t blame her. More than twenty heroes died in the last few years. Also, the god of ice and wind finally succumbed to the corruption of divinity last year, making our current situation rather precocious,” said Linda in bewilderment.
“And what does ‘corruption’ exactly entail?” inquired Dmitri loudly.
“Transmigration. The four heavenly kings decreed that the current gods of the lower world were too weak. That’s why, every single god of this world were condemned to being replaced by new gods, brought up from the race of divinity. It was you people from Earth who brought about this schism. You’ll hear the rest from Ambrosia herself, the goddess of nature and water,” concluded Linda as the maids motioned them to a room.
