Pakira's 2P color illustration — Yomid, god of dungeons and the underworld.
I never expected to be summoned at a time like this.
"Wof."
"H-hi there."
I gave a small bow for the time being.
"Well done. Good job."
"…Ah, thank you very much."
"With this. The King of the Death Wind. Decided. Thanks to Wof. Well done."
"You spoke with Anemos?"
"…Normally. That's what I'd do. Not. But the previous one was terrible."
"That's… true."
That was terrible.
While we're at it, the King of the Earth Death was terrible too.
But the King of the Fire Death was a really nice person.
"So. I had to judge for myself."
"How is Anemos?"
"She's good. Surely. She'll make a fine King of the Death Wind."
"Ah, um, Anemos is male."
When I pointed that out, Yomid shook his head slightly.
"That's a man. There must be some mistake."
At the same time, both of her black tails — one long, one short — swayed.
"He really is a man."
I'd just declared it myself, but for all I knew, she could actually be a woman.
Still, there was no reason to hide it, so I was pretty sure male was right.
Yomid's eyes went wide and all his fur stood on end.
He was so cat-like in moments like this — just like Pakira.
"As I thought. The world is full of mysteries."
"Yeah."
I mean, we did run into an Anomalocaris, so...
"Now then, let's get to the point. The commission has been completed. Therefore, I shall present your reward."
"Y-yes."
"A weapon. A Relic. Legendary. Choose one."
"One out of three?"
"Whichever you choose. They're all fine pieces. You'll be pleased."
Hmm.
First up, weapons. I couldn't use a sword, so that pretty much meant a knife.
I already had a spear, and I had no interest in other weapons.
But I already had a stockpile of knives, so...
Maybe I'd skip the weapon.
Next up, Relics.
Relics, honestly… I have quite a few of those as well.
And whether I can actually make full use of all of them — not really.
I'll skip Relics too.
That leaves Legendary items.
Legendary ones are also insane — elixirs, Phoenixes, stuff like that.
The water bottle I use every day, the "Crescent Vessel," is Legendary too.
As for a Legendary I actually want — oh, right.
"Um, excuse me. I have one favor to ask."
"What is it? Go ahead."
"Could you hold onto this for me?"
I took the "Phoenix Revival Egg" out of my pouch.
Lady Yomido turned her gaze toward it and opened her mouth.
"A Revival Egg."
"Yes. Honestly, I have no use for it and it's just sitting there taking up space. Carrying it around doesn't exactly make me anxious, but…"
I have no plans or intentions to revive anyone.
Besides, even if you call it revival, what comes back is random.
However, if someone dies nearby, reviving them quickly means they come back as themselves.
In that sense — as a kind of insurance — I've split some off into small bottles.
Still, personally… I think.
In this world where souls cycle through reincarnation, resurrection feels somehow wrong.
But if someone precious to me dies, and I can bring them back—
Could I really declare it wrong and refuse?
Could I turn away?
Could I choose not to resurrect them?
This stuff is complicated.
I can't judge this correctly. Well, nobody could, probably.
"Life and death. That is. The world's absolute system. To resist it. Never. Permitted."
Yomido said that without a shred of emotion, then accepted the Phoenix Revival Egg.
"Here."
"Even so. Resurrection. A soul technique born from humans. That the world permits."
"Wait, so that means—"
"But. A forbidden technique. That surpasses what humans should wield."
Yomido lightly floated the Phoenix Revival Egg in midair, then softly snuffed it from existence.
"Ah—"
"Don't worry. Safely. Taken. When the time comes. Say the word. It's returned."
"Thank you very much."
That's a weight off my mind.
"So then. Weapons. Relics. Legendary. Which will you pick?"
"I'll go with legendary."
"Do you... have a wish?"
"I do!"
"Then... what kind of... legendary... do you want?"
"A refrigerator."
"A refrigerator."
"Preferably one with a freezer function. Something that fits in the underground storage room. A commercial-grade one would be fine."
"Wof. Refrigerator. What is... that."
Ah, so that's where we're starting from.
I explained carefully.
"Then... if you stop time... that works."
"Keeping things fresh — that would do the trick too."
"Freezing... that's... difficult. But... stopping time... easy."
Isn't that the harder option?
But then it hit me.
That's right.
When I trained with the knife goddess before, it was Yomido who had been slowing down time.
I wondered if Yomido was also the god of time.
Wasn't holding three positions a bit much?
"Then I'll go with that, please."
"Understood. But... Wof... you don't ask for much. Is this really... enough?"
"That's more than enough for me."
Honestly, I was grateful.
A storage container where the items you put inside have their time stopped — that was basically legendary grade.
"Wof. You. If you wish. I. Interfere. With the world."
"No. I'd like a storage container where the items I put inside have their time stopped."
Interfering with the world? Getting something like that would honestly be more trouble than it's worth.
I had no desire to change anything about this world.
I just wanted a quiet, steady life with a little something extra on top. Nothing more.
Long live the slow life.
"Understood. Then. It will take. Some time. To create."
"That's fine. I'll wait as patiently as I can."
"I appreciate it."
Yomido gave a slight bow.
"Understood."
"Oh, and Warawa. Wof. I have. A request."
"What is it?"
"Pakira."
"You mean... I should bring her here?"
"Pakira. I want to see her."
That was something I'd been wanting to arrange on my end, too.
What should I do?
"Wof. Pakira. Sleep together."
"EH?"
"And. Connect."
"Huh!?"
"Hold hands."
"Oh, ahh..."
"Then. She can come."
"O-Okay. I'll ask Pakira."
Whoa, that surprised me. Really surprised me.
But why was I surprised? I'm a kid, so I don't get it.
But I was seriously surprised!
"Pakira. I. Meeting her. That is. Surely. An important thing. So. Please."
Lady Yomido said that with a serious face and bowed deeply once more.
Would something happen when the two of them met?
I agreed.
My consciousness faded, I lost it, and when I woke up... ah, right.
I'd been resting my head on the witch's lap, and the wall of breasts had gotten in the way, and I'd completely fallen asleep.
Even now, the soft, ample wall of breasts was blocking the witch's expression right in front of my eyes.
The gently swaying wall of breasts.
Even though I'd come back to reality, it still didn't feel real.
Yeah. The timing was definitely off.
The next day.
Leold came to visit.
Apparently he had something to talk about regarding the Paleido.
What could it be about?