--The next thing I knew, I was standing in a meadow.

　The sky was blue, high, and clear in every direction.
　The wind was cool and calm.

　It was a beautiful sight.

(...am I dreaming again?)

　I realized that.

　And then I suddenly looked at my hands and was surprised.

(Huh?　(This is not Merle's hand.)

　What was there was an adult hand made of light.

　I looked down at my body, all made up of light, and I couldn't see the outline of my body clearly. But a nostalgic feeling inside me told me that this was my former life.

　Why?

　My head was full of questions when I suddenly felt a presence behind me.

　I turned around.

(Ah.....)

　There was one child standing there.

　Soft brown hair.
　Thin, beautiful blue eyes, as if he were sleeping.

　A boy with a loose, calm atmosphere.

　-- It was Marle.

(Or maybe it was the Divine Ark-in?)

　He looked up at me and smiled.

　It was a strange smile, I thought, that put the person watching me at ease. Even if they had the same body, I couldn't imitate it. I'm sure this is his true nature.

"..........

　He sat down in the meadow.

　Pom-pom.

　He taps the one next to him with his little hand.

(All right.)

　At the urging of Arkyn, I sit there as an adult who has become a light.

　Ah, a nice breeze.

　Even Arkyn's brown bangs are swaying softly.
　He seems to feel good, too.

　I can see green grass that stretches to the end of the horizon and an endlessly wide blue sky.

　It's so peaceful.
　I wish time would just stop like this.

"..........

　Arkyn laughed and nodded, too.

　His smile made me laugh too.

　He told me a lot of things.

''..............''

　But I couldn't hear him.

　I was a little disappointed.

　But he was trying his best to talk to me, sometimes sadly, sometimes happily, with gestures, as if he were happy.

　So I listened the whole time, too.
　It was strange, because even though I couldn't hear his voice, there was something about it that got through to me.

(Yeah, yeah.)

　We were smiling.

　And the next thing I knew, I was talking to Arcluein, too.

　We talked about many things.

　We talked a lot, a lot, a lot about the world, the Children of Darkness, my favorite dish, Illtimina-san, what I liked, what I didn't like, Kilt-san and Solstice, our adventures up to this point, the vague past lives, and many, many other topics.

　He nodded and listened.

　He empathized with me.

　He was able to give me answers to my worries and anxieties.

　On the other hand, he also told me what to do.

　I liked the fact that he listened hard and answered my questions. It's a shame I can't hear his voice. What comes across may not even be remembered because it's not words. I'm sorry about that too.

　I don't want to wake up from this dream.

　I didn't want to wake up from this dream, I really didn't.
　But then.

(It doesn't work that way, does it?)

　That precious person is waiting for me.

　Arkyn nodded.

　And we looked at each other.

(............)

..........

　Somehow, I had a feeling that I would never see Arkyn again.
　He's aware of that.

　So I figured that's why he came to see me like this.

(Are you sure?)

　cough

　He nodded.

　Then his blue eyes stared into my face.

　Are you sure you're okay with that?

　I felt like I was being asked that.

　I see.
　Just as Ark Inn would disappear, the current me would probably disappear too. But that's okay.

(I thought I had already been reborn.)

　He nodded and smiled.

　He held out his small right hand.

　My adult light hand gripped it tightly.

　Geez.

　A young, warm hand.
　It is the hand I've been using since my reincarnation until today.

　That hand is filled with light.

　Arcuin's body was wrapped in pure white light.
　My eyes are dazzled.

''.........''

　Arkyn said something. I still can't hear him.
　But I said something to him.

Thank you. Keep up the good work.

　I thought he, the light, smiled again.

　--and our hands of light, which were connected, slowly melted away.

(Ah....)

　We have been mixed up for a long time.
　The boundary between us, which has been mixed up for a long time, is disappearing in a real sense.

　We are becoming a light.

　The grass and the sky are illuminated by the radiance of the light, and before long we can't see them anymore. The world was blank, just like the one I saw just before I was reborn.

　At that moment, I suddenly felt someone calling me.

(Yeah ... I have to get up now.)

　Or so I thought.

　We became one light - I, Marle, did so, and slowly woke up.


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


You awake, Merle?

　The first thing I saw was the face of a beautiful blond-haired, blue-eyed boy up close - a raptor.
　The horns on his forehead have now disappeared.

　At the back, there is also the figure of Recto Alice.

''Good.''

　She let out a breath of relief.
　The third eye on her white forehead was already closed, too.

　Apparently, I was still lying in bed.
　I slowly raise my upper body.

'Are you okay?'
Do you feel sick or have any pain anywhere?

　Two worried voices.

　I shake my head.

"No, we're fine.

　Then I looked at their hands.
　The hand that was connected to mine looked like my fingernails had been ripped open and a little blood was spilling out.

'I'm sorry, Rapt, Recto Alice,'

　They both laughed, noticing my gaze as I apologized.

'Never mind.'
That's not even close to the truth.

　Then, the hand that was pointed at us suddenly shines, and the lacerations there disappear.

(Whoa?)

　Is it the effect of eating only 'healing spiritual water' all the time?

　It was as if the two of them had been sprayed with the "healing spirit water" and their wounds were healing.
　If I had been drinking only the Spiritual Water of Healing for a long time, I might have changed into this kind of body, just like the two of them.

　Recto Alice asked me in surprise.

"The meridians of the divine energy are open, but... how do you think?
Yes.

　I nodded.
　In fact, ever since I woke up, I've been feeling my physical body change.

(I can feel a tremendous power deep inside my body.)

　The magic power he had been using was warm water.

　But the 'divine qi' was like scorching hot magma.

　Moreover, if the amount of magic power in my body was a cup, then this amount of divine qi was like a vast lake.
　And right now, it feels like there are two faucets attached to it. It's like I can freely decide which faucet to open when I use magic.

(This is awesome.)

　I opened the 'divine Qi Faucet' for a bit and let it circulate through my body.

　Hot, hot!

　Hurriedly, I closed it.
　But that was enough to make me feel like a fire was rising from my entire body, flooding me with strength.

''Oh?''
What?

　Rapt and Recto Alice let out a squeal of surprise.

　The two of them stare at me.

(?)　

　I couldn't help but shake my body at the sensation.

That's great, Merle. You can unleash your power now?
What?

(...power?)

　I'm scowling at Rapt's impressed voice.
　Then Recto Alice asks me suspiciously.

''You haven't noticed?''
...for what?

　The two looked at each other with a subtle expression on their faces.

(????)

Merle, come here. Come here.

　Rapt's hand pulled my bewildered hand, and I was lowered off the bed. As it was, he brought me in front of the mirror of the figurehead that had been prepared in my room.

'Here.'
..........

　A child with dog ears and a tail stands propped up in the mirror.

　........eh?
　What is this?

　Touching the brown ears, same as the hair.

(Well, it feels right...)

　His tail is also about a meter long, like a fox, brown and fuzzy.



　round and round

　He spun around in front of the mirror to chase his own tail.

　The two of them giggle.

'Myself, calm down,'
Don't worry. That's your true form as a 'divine dog'.

　Oh, the way it should be?

(This!

　I'm baffled by my beastly self.
　No, I'm a 'God's Dog' for sure.

It's the same as Wai's horns and Recto Alice's three horns. By letting the divine energy flow into the body, it is possible to change into a 'divine body'. It's a way to strengthen the body and display special abilities.
Oh, really?

　I'm surprised, indeed.

(Hmm?)

　Ah, maybe it was because he immediately shut off the faucet of 'divine Qi', the dog ears and tail disappeared with a shuaaah.......white smoke.
　They returned to their original form.

　Well, that's a bit of a relief.

　Recto Alice opens her third eye again and stares at me, illuminating me with a red light.

''Hmm, I see.
What?
As I suspected, Mahr's body has undergone a major transformation due to all the food he's consumed. I'd say that Marle's time in the Godhead is limited to about three minutes. Any longer than that, and his body will probably collapse.

　Really?

(Like a three-minute enhancement mode?)

　Rapt asks her.

'How would you like it if I made Marle take only a seder now?
I can't.

　He shook his head, shaking his glossy purple hair.

'In its current state, Marle's body is stable. Maybe no further alteration will happen, no matter what he eats. --he's almost human now.
Sayaka.

　Rapt looks a little sad.
　I laughed.

But for me, it's the same as before. No, it's more of a reinforcement. Thank you, Rapt, Recto Alice.
"...Merle.
No, you're welcome.

　Rapt looked wistful, and Recto Alice smiled like a grown-up.

'But be careful,'
Hmm?
The divine meridians will close again if you don't use them, so once a day, let the divine energy flow through them and keep the path open.

　Okay.

"Okay. Well I don't want to go through that again.
Yeah.

　She giggles.

(And then there's 'god body mode', huh?)

　I didn't think I would ever be able to transform. No, it's just the ears and tail that grow back.

(.........hmm?　(Have you grown a tail?)

　Realizing this, I reach out.

'Oh, ah!'

　be scared

　The two of them are surprised and stiffen at my sudden outburst.

'What, what?!'
What's going on?

　The two of the 'God Fangirls' looked at me with a nervous expression, wondering what was going on.

　I turned my tearful face to them.

''And because of your tail, your butt pants are ripped........''
..........
..........

　A few seconds of silence.

　And then the two of them burst into a burst of laughter, echoing through the room.
　What, what the hell!


　◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ ◇.


　The hole in my pants managed to be hidden by the hem of my jacket, but

I'm sorry.
I'm sorry for laughing.

　The two of them laugh at me in a huff, and I apologize desperately.

"We're already one of the few 'God's Dependents'. .........right?　Just bear with me, okay?

　Rapt says, putting his hands together in front of his face.
　........already.

(It's not fair to talk like that.)

　I exhale heavily.

'Okay.'
That's Merle!　Keep it up.

　Rapt is overjoyed, and Recto Alice giggles and says, "Thanks.

(You're in good shape, totally.)

　I chuckle too, and regain my composure for now.
　I then sat down on the sofa and decided to ask the two people sitting on the sofa across from me.

''But you say they're few, but specifically, how many people are the 'Divine Consort' right now?　It seems like we're the only three people in this world, too.
Yeah.

　Rapt folded his arms with a difficult face.　

"Three hundred years ago, during the Battle of Calamity, there were more than a hundred of us," he said. But 80% of them were killed by human bombardment.
Okay, so there's like 20 people?

　Less than I thought.
　Recto Alice also says, while stroking her glossy hair.

It's a good thing that there are quite a lot of 'God's Attendants' who did not respond to the summons this time. And it seems that there were times when the gods, the masters of those dependents, were able to keep them back.
..........

　I see.
　But if you think about what people did three hundred years ago, it's probably inevitable.

Including us, there are only about 10 people who came to the human world this time.

　A tenth of what it was 300 years ago.

(Things are tougher than I thought.)

　To which Lectoris adds, gravely.

''Then there's the possibility that the 'Children of Darkness' have made the first move and killed us, as Marle reported. ........There may not really be any more survivors except for us.
..........
..........

　A cold silence falls over the drawing room.

(Just the three of us, huh?)

　Despair weighs heavily on our hearts.
　As if to shake it off, Raptor suddenly said in a cheerful voice: "Speaking of which, Merle?

'Speaking of which, Marle?'
Hmm?
The Shumurian Kingdom seems to have summoned another 'God's Dependents', don't they?　You've never met yourself?

　Huh?

　Recto Alice looked at me.

"More than a month ago, we had a 'visionary dream'. You didn't see it?
Was it a revelation?

　I was scurrying around.

"It's a dream where a 'star of light' falls from the heavens into the dark world.

　Come to think of it, I think I saw it.

(That was ... the night of the night we stayed at the big tree house of the Golden Seal's magician, Mr. Colon-Tude Resta, I think.)

　That strange dream was a 'revelation' that summoned the 'Divine Family',

　Rapt says.

The place where the star fell is undoubtedly in the Kingdom of Shumuria. It must have been summoned to a place close to Marl, right?

　Really?

I'm sorry. I had a dream, but I didn't see you.
Sayaka.
Yes.

　They looked a bit disappointed.
　I say, "I'll write a letter to the Princess of Shumuria.

"I'll write a letter to the Princess of Shumuria. I'm sure she'll find you and protect you soon.
Yeah.
Yes, you should.

　Yeah.

(Somehow, they have to find him before the Child of Darkness does!)

　Although I myself am an imperfect "divine dog," I still don't want any more of my "divine brethren" to die.

　Just then, I looked out the window and saw that it was already dusk.

　It seemed that we had been talking for a long time.

''Is it this late already?　--Rapt, Lectoris. I'll go back over there for once, as I'm sure my current companions are worried about me.
What a load of crap.
Why don't you stay here tonight?

　Rapt's lips quirk up in discontent.
　Recto Alice also says something like that while looking at the big bed.

　I smiled apologetically.

I'm sorry. But they're also very important friends to me right now.
..........
..........

　The two of them let out a sigh.

'Wow.'
Yes.
Will you two come with me?

　I said, but he shook his head.

'Yes, for now.'
'Yes. ...I've decided to fight for people, but I'm still trying to sort out my emotions.

　I see.
　I nodded and got up from the couch.

'Okay, I'll let you guys know about the two of you.
Do as you please.
Okay.

　It's a curt reply, but I got permission.

(Even if it's not immediate, hopefully you two will get to know everyone a little better, too.)

　But in order for that to happen, I'm going to have to be the bridge between the two.
　Yeah, I'll do my best.

I'll come back and visit you.
Oh.
I'm waiting for you.

　They smiled happily at my words.
　I smile back too.

　So I sit on the sofa in the dimly lit guest room and leave the room at dusk, watched by the two "Divine Fangirls" who emit a faint light.