"So, in Patchi's eyes, is that what my personality is like?"
"Isn't it?"
"Not at all."
Zeroy smiled proudly at Patchouli.
"I'm the type to swallow my anger and hold grudges, because once you're dead, nothing has meaning anymore. Death solves nothing."
"Even dying to prove a point… that's just gambling on whether others will be moved by your sacrifice. It's putting everything in their hands."
"And what if they aren't moved? If you're already dead, you can't do anything anymore."
"…In a sense, that does fit your character," Patchouli said after a pause.
At least from the perspective of using any means necessary against enemies.
"To be your enemy… sounds like a truly miserable fate."
"But that's exactly why enemies will avoid becoming mine, isn't it? The more they oppose me, the more it proves I'm doing the right thing."
"So what's your take on this matter?"
"I don't trust it." Zeroy shook her head without hesitation.
"I know far too little about the Main God—practically a stranger. How can I speak of trust in that situation?"
"And the idea that a being so vastly above us wouldn't need to use trickery? I don't buy it. We don't know what they're thinking, or what restrictions they face."
"Simplest example: what if the Main God just wanted amusement? To watch people dance like fools for its entertainment?"
"Would the Main God really do that?" Patchouli frowned.
Beings that transcended worlds, gods detached from all, surely wouldn't cling to such human impulses. Only children delighted in tormenting ants.
At least, that was how the Main God ought to be.
"At the very least, I know of a few—like the so-called God of Merriment, or another deity so vile and treacherous, 'cunning and capricious' isn't enough to describe them…"
"No, I meant the Main God," Patchouli interrupted.
"Hm?"
Zeroy blinked, then looked again at the shattered great sphere of light.
Indeed, the Main God didn't seem anything like a highly humanized god of pleasure.
"Your intuition makes sense… though since we know so little, I think it's safer to stay cautious."
"Fair enough." Patchouli shook her head, dropping the subject.
Since Zeroy had made her decision, there was no point in pressing further. Caution was always the best choice when dealing with a powerful existence.
"That said, as things stand, my only way to open new worlds is still by responding to the cries of the suffering."
Even with her recent upgrades, even with a nascent divine kingdom, that much hadn't changed.
At best, she was now more sensitive to faith and to those cries of suffering.
"And when I hear them, I will answer—yes, even if that makes me a guide for others to follow."
After all, once their cries reached her, those victims' circumstances couldn't possibly get any worse.
In the Akame ga Kill world, some slaughtered by Chaotic Evil Reincarnators might even have seen death as release.
Of course, she couldn't actually allow them to be slaughtered.
She would leave behind faith—and when Chaotic Evil Reincarnators rampaged, she could descend once more in response to it.
Mecha-Zeroy crossing worlds to smack you.jpg
"Besides, I actually have quite a bit of goodwill toward the Main God."
"?"
Zeroy didn't elaborate.
Why her goodwill? Because this second life was granted by the Main God. This body was sculpted by the Main God. In a way, that made it her parent in this life.
So far, the Main God had never disgusted her.
She could even faintly sense it—like the Main God was secretly giving her extra favors.
Lacking strong humanity or ego didn't mean having none at all.
"Well, let's just hope the Main God really doesn't intend to deceive us poor laborers."
.....
[Entering High School DxD world]
┗ Goal 1: Collect Longinuses (0/5)
╰ Reward: 100,000 Points
┗ Goal 2: Alter the plot by at least 30%
╰ Reward: 50,000 Points
┗ Goal 3: Defeat powerful foes (0/5)
╰ Reward: 20,000 Points each
┗ Goal 4: Seize the Longinus, True Longinus
╰ Reward: 50,000 Points
┗ Goal 5: Complete all missions (0/3)
╰ Reward: 50,000 Points, 2 Special Item Draws
[Mission Duration: 30 days]
[Note: You must have at least 3000 points upon leaving the world, or you will be erased.]
"Hm? Isn't there something strange about this mission?"
Zeroy frowned deeply at the new objectives.
"No monster-killing for Points this time. Instead, each task's rewards are on a completely different scale… Patchi, have you ever seen a mission like this?"
"…Haven't you?" Patchouli looked at the puzzled Zeroy in surprise.
"No. My first mission was that zombie world. My second was Black Bullet. I'm not lying."
"…" Patchouli began to understand why Zeroy had such goodwill toward the Main God.
Zombie-type missions were unusually easy, with low difficulty but high Point gain. Everyone liked them.
However, they were also extremely rare.
And Zeroy? Both her missions had been zombie ones. Sure, the first had newbie benefits built in…
That said, wasn't this blatant favoritism? Two missions in, and she had already caught up to—or even surpassed—Patchouli's level.
Judging by Zeroy's reaction, she didn't even realize she was being favored.
"I've seen it, yes. In fact, most missions are like this. Only zombie worlds match the style you experienced: low base rewards, but huge returns from farming countless weaklings."
"Emmmm… alright, that does sound more like the norm." Zeroy nodded. "After all, Reincarnators aren't garbage men. We're not here to sweep through endless small fry."
"Still, why keep flashing that erasure warning? Isn't it kind of a joke?"
Three thousand Points? Was her sense of spending skewed? That couldn't stop anyone.
"Ignore it. That's just for slackers—those who'd rather loaf around in the Main God Space doing nothing. It forces them to at least get something done."
High School Dragon among Dragons.
...
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