Published: August 25, 2025
After the hurried farewell, I realized I hadn’t exchanged contact information… but with Mr. Glen, it wouldn’t be surprising if he suddenly appeared saying something like, “I just followed my instincts and found you.”
Thinking that way, I decided not to worry and headed to the church in the nearest town. As usual, I made some donations and offered my prayers in the chapel.
“Hey, you’re back~”
“Thanks… wait, huh?”
Today, when I was summoned to the divine realm as usual, there were five deities present. Kufo and Gain greeted me, along with Lurutia, Lady Felnoberia, and Meltrise. The rest were nowhere to be seen.
“The others have left for various tasks. You see, we still need to check for other Demon King’s Fragments, and there’s a lot of world management to handle,” Kufo explained.
“Today is about discussing Ryoma-kun’s reward for returning. Also, since some time has passed since the last time, we thought we’d do a curse treatment session. But first, sit down and rest. You just came back from the Tree Sea, right?”
World management—it seems so vast that I can hardly grasp it, but it must keep them busy even with just the regular duties. A familiar low table and tea appeared before me, creating a relaxed atmosphere that made it hard to believe they were so busy.
“Thank you. As you can see, I returned safely. I thought I might need to report on the request as well.”
“That’s already handled. We all kept an eye on it until things settled down, so we know the details. To put it simply, the request was fulfilled without any problems. Right, Meltrise?”
“I confirmed that the souls of the deceased were released. That magical beast… if Korumi no longer uses that power, there’s no need to kill it.”
“Is that so!”
I thought it was probably fine, but it was reassuring to have it confirmed again.
“No need to worry. That child is one of the lives we gods are meant to watch over. I am the goddess of death and sleep—in short, the Grim Reaper—but my role is not to give death to the living. It is to watch over those who are dying, to ensure peaceful rest after death, and to prepare them for reincarnation. If there’s no need to kill, that’s best.
Of course, if Korumi uses the soul-binding power again, that’s a different matter. At that time, we will request ‘subjugation’ anew.”
“Understood. I’ll make sure to emphasize that we don’t want that to happen.”
I said, and though Meltrise remained expressionless, she nodded as if somewhat satisfied.
“Other than the soul-binding power, you may use her abilities as you like.”
“…Does that include necromancy? Magic related to undead and soul manipulation?”
“Generally, it’s forbidden, but that doesn’t mean you can’t interfere at all.”
Her answer was vague, so I looked to the others. Lady Felnoberia began explaining.
“To save time, I’ll summarize. The soul can be divided into multiple parts. How many parts and how they are divided depends on one’s concept of the soul, but for now, think of it as a two-layer structure: outer and inner.
What we forbid is interference with the inner layer. Necromancy refers to meddling only with the outer layer, which is why Meltrise said it is within acceptable limits.”
Her explanation was easy to understand, but I wondered if the boundary between the outer and inner was clearly identifiable. Korumi seemed to have unconsciously used the soul-binding power…
“That magical beast is an exceptional case. Interfering with the inner soul is not something done lightly. That’s why some misguided necromancers call that domain the ‘essence’ or ‘secret technique’ and try to use it… But in any case, it’s practically impossible unless done deliberately. There’s no need to worry.”
“Typical necromancy involves turning corpses into undead, but for living beings, when they die, the majority of their soul—the most important and inviolable inner part—returns here. Humans might have ethical concerns or aversion, but for us, it is acceptable.”