I slowly open my eyelids.
　I see a dim ceiling.

　My body is heavy.
　My memory is not clear.
　I'm fighting something, and it's putting me in a pinch. ......


"You're awake. Makoto Takatsuki.


　He called my name.
　I looked over and saw a girl with a small body and gray hair standing there. 　
　She is the Priestess of Fate, or ......

...... Are you the Goddess of Fate?
"No, no. I am now E(s)t(e)r(l)y.
"...... Estelle?
　I stared at the face of the girl who called herself that.
　I've never had a direct conversation with Esther because she was always visited by Ila-sama.

I've never spoken to you before, have I, Takatsuki Makoto? Thank you for your hard work in the battle against the Demon Lord.
　When I heard those words, I thought, "What? I got up in a panic.
　But my body felt awfully heavy.

"Ugh. ......
No, you mustn't overexert yourself. You've been pierced through the heart and your arm has been cut off.
　I'm beginning to remember.

　We challenged the Demon Lord Bifrost to battle.
　We were supposed to fight in the daytime, when it was more advantageous for us, but we were trapped by his magic, and ......

(...... I'm pretty sure I got my heart and arm cut off by the Demon Lord's scythe.

　I check my body, but my heart is still beating and both my arms are still connected.
　As soon as I was relieved, a series of things came to my mind.

What happened to me after I lost consciousness, ...... Esther?　Where am I?　And where is the Goddess of Fate (Ila)?
　In response to my rapid-fire questions, Esther smiled at me.
　Her expression is calm.
　Her expression is very different from Ila's.

I will answer your questions one at a time. First of all, the Demon Lord Bifrons was successfully defeated by the heroes of the Light who regained the light of the sun through your efforts. As per the original historical fact.

　He slowly chewed on the words, not understanding their meaning for a moment.
　Did you defeat the demon king ......?

...... So, yes.
　I exhaled and felt my strength drain.
　It seems that you have successfully fulfilled the oracle.
　Thank goodness. .......

I'm not sure what to make of that.
　The story of the legendary savior defeating the demon king had been told many times in the water temple.
　It's a shame that I was there when it happened.
　It would have been a nice souvenir for Lucy and Sa-san.

Don't you think you're being very carefree?　You almost died and didn't wake up for three days.
　Estelle asked me in a dumbfounded voice.

"Three days?
　It had been that long?
　No wonder my body was slowing down.

I'll answer your next question. This is the city of the Great Labyrinth. The old dragons led by Hakuryu-sama brought everyone here. Now that they've defeated the Demon Lord, the residents are celebrating.
"Wow. ......
　I noticed that I could hear a lot of noise coming from far away.
　What the ...... hell, I was asleep and everyone was having a party.
　I was feeling a bit lonely, but it would be strange to not make any noise after defeating the Demon Lord.
　I think I'll go check it out.

"Third question, the current Goddess of Fate (Ila) is .......


　--I heard a crash.


　And then there was a cracking sound.

"Master, ......?
"Makoto-san, ......?
　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

　They were carrying water for me.
　The ceramic cup that had been holding the water was shattered, though.
　They seemed to be taking care of me.

Anna, Momo, we're worried about you. ......
Aaah!
Makoto!　Oh, my God!　Wake up!
　Before I could finish my sentence, they jumped on me and pushed me down on the bed.

　The weight of the two of them was too much for my weak body, but I couldn't complain.
　By the looks on their faces, I knew that they had been worried about me for a long time.

　But it was hard to relax when I was hugged for a long time by Momo, a beautiful girl, and Anna, a beautiful woman who looked just like Princess Noel.


　They were both awfully close to my face. .......

　I stayed in the embrace for a while, waiting for them to calm down.

I waited for them to calm down. "Oh, ......, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm distraught. I'll go get Bailong and Jonny. We were all worried about you.
　After saying that, Anna left the room.
　The Great Sage (Momo) is still hugging her.

Ugh ......, I'm so glad. I'm glad ...... that Master is alive. ......
　I patted the Great Sage's head.

"Can we talk about this another time?
　Estelle said as she looked at us.

No, I want to know what happened after I passed out.
　I want to know more.
　I'd like to hear more about it," she said, but she couldn't finish the sentence.

"Makoto!
"Spirit Master!
Makoto-dono!
　The inhabitants of the labyrinthine city came pouring in.
　Jonny and Hakuryu are here too.

I'm not sure what to do.　Please call out to them.
　Estelle smiled.
　It seems that I need to talk to the people who worried me first.

　Although I felt a bit dizzy, I knew that my injuries were fully healed, so I went out of the room for rehabilitation as well.

　As I walked out into the middle level of the Great Labyrinth, I heard a cheer.

"The hero is awake!
"Our savior!
"The one who defeated the Demon Lord!

(No, I didn't defeat him. ......)

　(No, I didn't beat him.) I glanced back and saw Anna, the brave one of light, smiling at me.
　I'm not even a hero, though.
　I feel like I've taken the credit, but is that okay?

"The greatest contributor to this battle is you, Takatsuki Makoto. That's the opinion of everyone in this city.
　It was Esther who whispered in my ear.
　I wondered if she had read my thoughts.

I'm just doing what I can.
But the lives of the people here were saved because of your actions.
　Apparently, I'm more appreciated by everyone than I thought.

　More and more people are gathering around me.
　When I woke up for the first time in three days and told them I was hungry, they brought me a mountain of food.
　It was supposed to be valuable food, but .......

　They also brought me a lot of alcohol.
　In no time at all, I found myself at the center of the feast.

　They asked me about the fate magic I used against the Demon King.
　However, if I said that I had synchronized with the Goddess of Fate (Ila), they would think I was crazy, so I just said that I didn't remember.
　I went around to greet my friends, as I would have been bombarded with questions if I had stayed in one place.

　First, I went to Johnny, the chief of the city.
　He was surrounded by elves, beastmen warriors and beautiful women.

"Lord Makoto!　All the young girls in this town are crazy about you. You can marry any girl you like.
"Hahaha ......
　Jonny is unusually talkative.
　I couldn't tell if she was being serious or joking, so I smiled vaguely.

　The next place I went was to Bailong's seat.

"Spirit Master, you're a hell of a man!　This is the most exciting thing I've seen in my ten thousand years of life!
"It's an honor.
　Bailong-san is eating with the other old dragons.
　She's also very excited.

"Hey, you guys should be like the Spirit Master!
"Don't be absurd, Grandma. ......
That was divine magic. ......
　The old dragons are letting Bailong's reckless behavior slide with a dumbfounded look on their faces.
　Mel may also be drunk.

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not.
　Momo seems to be with them.

"Thanks to you, Makoto, I was able to fulfill my promise to my comrades-in-arms. Thank you.
"I wish I could have celebrated with you, Olga, the fire hero. ......
　I went to greet the earthly hero (Wolff) and the wooden hero (Julietta), but they were surprisingly quiet.

No, you two. It's a celebration.
　Anna was cheerful.
　The complete opposite of when we first met.

"Huh, ...... I still can't believe it.
　I still can't believe it. The Great Sage (Momo) is sitting in a chair in a daze.
　He's been taking care of me for a long time, and when I woke up, he seemed to have lost his mind.


　As I was thinking about what I did wrong, someone sat down next to me.

"Makoto-san, ...... there's something I'd like to talk to you about later, when you have a moment. ......
　Anna spoke into my ear in a quiet voice.

"Sure.
　What is it?
　I think it's mostly to thank you for defeating the Demon King.
　I couldn't read anything from the expression on her face as she stared at me meaningfully.


　After I finished my greetings, I left my seat because I was a little tired.
　There was still a lot of excitement around me.
I used my "stealth" skill to leave the scene.

　I was walking slowly towards the underground lake where there were few people.



　--There was a splash and a scream. I heard a splash and a scream.



(What?　Did someone fall?　
　Maybe someone got drunk and slipped.
　I immediately turned around to call for someone, but everyone was having a party.
　If they were drowning in the underground lake, it wouldn't be a problem if I could save them.

　I ran quickly toward the underground lake.
　It was too dark to see much.

"Dea.
　I call the Great Spirit of Water.

"Yes, my king. I've been waiting for you to wake up.
　The Great Spirit of Water soon appeared with a happy face.

"Someone has fallen into the underground lake!　Find him now.
Yes!　............ Oh?　There's no one in there, by the looks of it.
　It seems that the Great Spirit of Water can grasp the condition of the underground lake in an instant.
　But there was definitely the sound of someone falling. ....... 　

　That's when it happened.
　There was a wobbly figure coming towards him.

I've had ...... too much to drink...

　It was an elf girl who looked like Lucy.
　I think it was Jonny's daughter.
　She reminded me of Lucy, who drank too much even though she wasn't a strong drinker.
　I was worried about her, so when I approached her to talk to her.

"Aah!
　The elf girl slipped.

"Water magic, walking on water!
　I immediately cast a spell on her, preventing her from falling into the water.

"Are you okay?
What?　Oh, is that ...... Makoto-sama?　Oh, my God, I'm so embarrassed. ......
Be careful, be careful.
　And so I set out to explore the underground lake.

"......Makoto-sama.
　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

"Um, ......, can you give me a ride to my room, ......?
"Um, .......
　I accepted the invitation.
　Her eyes were moist as she stared at me, just like Lucy's.

(Is she homesick? ......)
　I found myself more shaken than before.
　Noah would say, "It's a shame for a man not to eat. I don't want to be me.

"You don't like me, ......?
　When you look at me with those eyes, I feel weak.
　When I say, "No, I don't," his cheeks flush with happiness.

Then please come here .......
　When he twined his arm around me and almost took me with him.

"Makoto?
Shisho~?
　The next thing I know, Anna and Momo are standing right next to me.
　Spatial transfer?

Oh, no. I'm not sure what to say.
I'm going to take you to your room because you almost fell into the underground lake drunk.
　I explained the situation so that I wouldn't be lying.

Then I'll take you there.
Oh, I'll go with Makoto-sama to .......
No!　Makoto is very tired!
　The elf girl and Anna are gone.

"Are you easily swayed, Master?
　Momo is staring at me with fierce eyes.
　Apparently, the conversation had gotten through.

Someone might have fallen into the underground lake.
"What?　Isn't that terrible?


　To change the subject, I explained to Momo about the sound I had just heard.
　Just then, the Great Spirit of Water (Dea) appeared.

"My king, I've searched everywhere in the underground lake, but no one is here. I'm sure of it.
"...... I see. Thank you, Dea.
　I thanked the Great Spirit of Water.

　No one had fallen into the underground lake.
　Then what was that sound and voice I heard?
　Only one thing I can think of.


　--It belonged to an elven girl who didn't fall into the lake.


(Destiny Magic: ...... Future Prediction: ......)

　Freyae told me about it once.
　I've heard from Freyae that predicting the future can be triggered suddenly, regardless of one's will.

　But I don't think the fate magic I can use at the beginner level has that kind of power.
　Did something happen to my body?

"Master ......?
Momo, I'm tired today. I'm going to rest in my room.
I'll join you!
　Me and Momo spent the night in the Great Labyrinth room for the first time in a long time .

　I tried to sleep on the floor like before, but Momo fiercely opposed me. 　
　She said I should use the bed since I was sick.
　But I couldn't let her sleep on the floor while I was in bed.

　So we both took the small bed.
　It was cramped, but I soon fell asleep.


　
　I woke up.


　I woke up.

(No, ......, I'm not awake yet. I'm in ...... a dream.

　But it's not just a dream.
　And it's not Noah's space. 　
　It was an unfamiliar place.

　A huge space with an endless expanse of luxurious carpets.
　It was a strange space with a lot of doors and bookshelves in the middle of a huge space.
　There were many books scattered around my feet.
　It's not a very tidy place, to say the least.

　But that wasn't what caught my attention the most.

　A variety of adorable "stuffed animals" are moving around everywhere.
　Fancy bears, rabbits, cats and dogs.
　They were moving around as if they were alive.

　I watched them for a while in a daze.

　At that time, a white rabbit came in front of me.
　I bowed to him, and he led the way with a gesture that seemed to say, "This way, please.

　After some hesitation, I followed the rabbit.
　I walked along beside a lot of animals working busily.


　Eventually, my destination came into view. 　


　At the place they had come to, there was a magnificent desk and chair.
　It seemed that the owner of this space was in this place.
　There was a small girl lying on the ground.
　I could hear her breathing softly.

　And there are many small bottles lying at her feet.
　I picked up one of them and observed it.

　The label on the bottle says "Yuukel".

　In short, it's from Earth.
　Or rather, you drink too much.
　What kind of black company do you work for?

　After I finished showing him around, the rabbit creature left.
　I had no choice but to talk to the sleeping girl.

"Um, ...... Miss Ila?
What?　No, I'm not!　I'm not asleep!　I'm not going to tell Altena about it.　Is ...... Takatsuki Makoto?
　I'm not sure if this is a good idea, but it's a good idea.
　But she quickly tightened her expression.

"Well, you're here. Great job defeating the Demon Lord. I've called you here to talk.
　Ila crossed her legs gracefully and floated in the air, looking down at me.

　Since I was in the presence of a goddess, I dropped to my knees and hung my head.
　Then I pondered a bit.


　Should I point out the drool around her mouth?