When I opened the door in the temple, I found myself… in a hanging garden.
No, I’m not making a joke or anything—seriously, when I stepped through the door, what I saw before me was a hanging garden, and there was no one in sight. The door I had just passed through, which I should have only left a minute ago, was gone.
To be honest, my mind hasn’t quite caught up with what’s happening… Wait. Could this actually be the waiting room? Maybe I’m the only one who doesn’t know, and this is the norm—No, that can’t be right. How could anyone possibly call this place a room!?
[……………..]
[Eh?]
Just as suddenly as I had found myself in this place, someone appeared as though they had been there all along.
Yes, before I even noticed, without making a sound or giving any hint of her presence, a woman stood a few feet in front of me… No, “something” stood there, of nature I couldn’t understand.
She had the appearance of unparalleled beauty—there’s really no other way to describe her. Her long, silver-white hair, straight and without a single curl, reached down to her knees and seemed to faintly glitter. Her golden eyes were clear and without a trace of cloudiness.
Her body, about 160 cm tall and draped in white vestments, was so perfect it seemed to embody divine proportions… And most of all, she was kind of eerie.
When I met Kuro, her silhouette against the sunset felt like a work of art, but the woman before me now is art itself—not just a metaphor, but a reality.
Everything about her is so perfect that it gives me an inexplicable sense of otherworldliness.
She’s standing right in front of me, yet she doesn’t feel real, as if I’m looking at a flawless, finished painting. My instincts scream that the being before me exists on an entirely “different dimension” from myself… Could she be, perhaps, a God?
[Nice to meet you, Miyama Kaito-san, the human from another world who was chosen by Kuromueina. I am “Shallow Vernal.” It’s a pleasure to meet you.]
[…………….]
When the woman spoke in front of the completely speechless me, I felt like something cold ran down behind my spine.
Her voice was so beautiful that it felt like a divine gospel, but at the same time, I felt a strong sense of discomfort that I can’t put into words.
It didn’t take me long to realize why I felt that way—it was because I couldn’t quite believe that the words I just heard emanated from the woman standing before me.
[I imagine the suddenness of the situation has surprised you. I was guided to this place at Kuromueina’s request. As they mentioned, the more beautiful the surroundings, the more calming the atmosphere will be.]
[………………..]
If I focus solely on the words she spoke, there doesn’t seem to be anything particularly strange about them—yet her voice lacks any inflection.
Though her voice is undeniably beautiful, its unchanging volume, speed, and tone make it devoid of emotion, as if it were a machine speaking to me. No, her voice is so unnaturally consistent that even a machine might sound more expressive in comparison.
Her facial expression remains completely unchanged, as if she had no emotions to begin with. I can’t even tell if her golden eyes are truly looking at me or simply staring through me at the background, as though I don’t exist.
They say people fear what they don’t understand, and that’s likely what I’m experiencing now—the source of the chill running down my spine.
[You seem quite confused. Are you alright?]
[……Eh? Ah, y-yes… I’m sorry.]
[There’s no need to apologize. The fault lies with me for bringing you here so abruptly.]
As expected, every word from Shallow Vernal-sama was delivered without any change in her expression or tone. Forcing myself out of my frozen state, I hastily nodded and replied to her.
[I-I’m Miyama Kaito. N-Nice to meet you. Errr, Shallow Vernal-sama…]
[You can call me “Shiro” if you’d like. That’s what Kuromueina—Kuro—calls me.]
[N-No, but, errr…]
[You can call me Shiro if you’d like. That’s what Kuro calls me.]
[Errr… Shiro-sama?]
[The “-sama” is unnecessary.]
[No, but…]
[The “-sama” is unnecessary.]
[As expected, I can’t just impudently…]
[The “-sama” is unnecessary.]
[Ah, yes… Shiro-san.]
[Best regards.]
Our conversation finally moved forward!? She wasn’t even budging on her stance—any more of that, and we’d have been stuck in an endless loop!
…Alright, I’ll do as you say, so please stop sounding like a broken record stuck on repeat. Seriously, it’s unsettling.
To be honest, I felt really uncomfortable addressing someone so clearly above me in such a casual way. But after hearing the same words repeated over and over again in her completely unchanging tone and expression, I gave up and reluctantly adjusted how I addressed her.
[T-Then, once again… Shiro-san, you mentioned that Kuro requested something of you… But why exactly was I summoned to this place?]
[It’s a reasonable question to ask—well then, I shall now grant you my blessing.]
[Huh? Eh?]
Arehh? That’s strange… Didn’t she just hear me ask that question? Just telling me what you think about it doesn’t really explain anything, you know!?
After saying that in her emotionless voice, Shiro lightly pointed her hand at me without answering my question.
[Bless you.]
[!?]
After her brief, emotionless words, my body seemed to glow for a moment.
However, there were no other changes, and the light quickly faded. Arehh? Was that it?
[Now then, shall we have some tea?]
[What?]
Wait a minute, please, I’m begging you—could you explain the situation a little? I have no idea what’s going on.
What exactly did Kuro ask Shiro-san to do? Is the blessing already finished with just that? And why on earth are we having tea now? I’d be fine with a brief explanation, but could you please just explain it to me!?
[Kuro asked me to grant you my blessing. Your blessing is now complete. However, it will take some time for the blessing for your companions to be finished, so let’s have some tea and get to know each other.]
[Ah, yes.]
I thought she would just ignore my confusion, but she really gave me a concise explanation!? I really don’t understand this person at all… Are all Gods like her?
Honestly, I want to hold my head in my hands right now, but before I could even react, a garden chair and table appeared in front of me, and Shiro-san was already seated.
If I don’t sit down, I feel like I’ll end up stuck in that endless loop again, so I settle into one of the simple yet beautiful white garden chairs, facing Shiro-san.
And then, as if it were the most natural thing, a cup of amber-colored liquid appeared in front of me.
[…………………..]
[…………………..]
A-Awkward. The combination of her silence and expressionlessness made everything incredibly uncomfortable. A c-conversation… we should have one, at least…
I-It’s alright. I’ve been through a lot since coming to this world, and even though I’m a loner, my communipower should have improved a little by now… I just need something—some kind of clue—to start our conversation…
Even though we’re sitting directly across from each other… the silence stretched on, and I started to feel impatient. So, I turned to the drink in front of me, searching for a way to start talking—whoa, this is delicious! Is this black tea? Even though I’m not an expert on tea, I can tell this is outrageously good… Should I say it’s to be expected from tea served by a God? Right, how about we start with the tea…
[T-This tea is quite delicious, isn’t it?]
[I’m glad you like it.]
[…………..]
[…………..]
I can’t move the conversation forward at all!? Or rather, even if I try to push it, I can’t continue at all with her complete lack of facial expressions and voice intonations.
Kuhhh… I guess the level-up of my communipower was just wishful thinking. Reality is truly ruthless… I’m the type of person who usually waits for the other person to speak.
What I’ve learned from my long, loner life is how to adapt to what the other person says… In other words, I rely on the other person to start the conversation, and I just adapt and keep things going without forcing it.
This technique works well with most people, especially someone like Kuro, who’s willing to talk to me.
Unfortunately, there’s a fatal flaw in this approach. It doesn’t work well when I’m talking to someone who’s the same type as me. And that’s exactly the problem I’m facing with Shiro-san right now.
I might be able to steer the conversation if I were talking to a normal person, but Shiro-san is a different kind of challenge. I don’t know what she’s thinking, and I have no idea how to approach her in the first place…
Shiro-san, anything is fine, but don’t you have anything we could talk about?
[In that case, let me ask you a question—what did you mean by “communipower”?]
[…It’s short for communication power, which is essentially the ability to have a good conversation with others.]
[I see… Then what does being a loner mean?]
[It basically means someone who is alone… By the way, Shiro-san, can you perhaps read my mind or something like that?]
[I can certainly read your mind.]
[Ah, is that so.]
She just confirmed it as if it were the most natural thing!? Does that mean she heard everything I just thought!? That’s really embarrassing…
I guess it’s best to let Shiro-san take the lead in this conversation…
[Ah, it wouldn’t be right if we didn’t have some teacakes, right?]
[…………….]
I’ve been thinking for a while now, but haven’t you been going at your own pace this entire time? Are you really that free? Hey, are you really that free?
She doesn’t even seem to care about our current situation, casually switching from one conversation to another with the same expression and tone. It’s something that’s been said across all eras and cultures, but it seems like gods don’t really understand human emotions.
[Please enjoy your meal.]
[…Shiro-san, even you, huh…]
To be honest, I had a bad feeling when I heard that she was Kuro’s acquaintance, especially with how she appeared in front of me so naturally. The baby castellas have definitely become the most familiar thing I’ve seen in this world.
With no energy left to complain, I pick up a baby castella, something I’ve already gotten used to eating, and put it in my mouth…
[!? !? !? !?]
——I feel like I might faint from the agony.
The moment I take a bite of the baby castella, a sharp spiciness spreads through my mouth, and it sticks not just in my mouth, but also in my nostrils.
D-Don’t tell me… this is—Wasabi!?
Eh? Why is there wasabi in the baby castella!? Is she harassing me? Isn’t wasabi completely out of place here? This combination should be impossible…
A baby castella filled with wasabi—A bizarre, disproportionate clash of sweetness and spiciness spreads in my mouth. I desperately try to wash away the awful taste by gulping down some tea.
And just when I glance at the person who presented me with these cruel teacakes that have now become a source of new trauma, Shiro-san continues eating hers without any change in expression.
…Why is she eating that so calmly? Don’t tell me… she’s not actually trying to harass me, and this is just a regular teacake for her? T-This person… Could it be that not only her very being, but even her sense of taste is weird?
[Sh-Shiro-san?]
[What is it?]
[Is that good?]
[No, it’s so bad that I’d rather eat dirt.]
[………….]
Then at least show some of that feeling in your expression or voice!!
I mean, in the first place, why the heck did you make something like that and serve it as teacakes!? Say it!!
[Kuro once gave me these as a gift, saying, “I tried to make them, but they were incredibly bad, so I’m giving these to you.”]
[…However, didn’t Shiro-san also think that it tastes bad?]
[Yes. It’s hard to believe that food this terrible exists in this world.]
[…Then, why did you serve these as teacakes?]
[Kuro told me, “Baby castellas are the best thing to eat with tea,” and since I want to deepen my friendship with Miyama Kaito-san, I served what I heard was the best thing to welcome you.]
[…However, what about Shiro-san’s thoughts on these teacakes?]
[They taste so bad that I think their very existence should be a sin.]
[……………….]
I think I’m starting to understand this person a little better. Her expression and intonation never change, as usual, but this person is probably… a truly outrageous natural airhead.
Combining being a natural airhead with being expressionless and emotionless makes for a terribly poor disposition. I would like to have back all the reverence I felt for you just a short while ago…
[Don’t you think it would be quite difficult for me to return it since it isn’t tangible?]
[…It’s just a metaphor.]
Dear Mom, Dad— I met God, but… She was eerily expressionless, chillingly emotionless… And to top it all off—she’s an outrageous natural airhead.