Chapter 02
“Hah…!”
My consciousness, which had felt like it was sinking into the dark depths, suddenly snapped awake at some point.
At the same time, I found myself greedily gulping down the sweet air filling my lungs.
My mind was still hazy, as if shrouded in fog. The moment I desperately clung to my consciousness, which was threatening to fade again, someone’s hand gently touched my forehead.
“You must have been very startled. You’ll be alright now.”
Whoooosh—
A warm, gentle light flowed forth after the benevolent voice, instantly making my body feel at ease.
Only then did the events from just before vaguely surface in my dazed mind.
‘I died.’
And right after realizing I had been reincarnated as a minor villainous character in a novel I wrote.
‘Huh? Wait a minute.’
That’s right, I died. But how am I able to think?
‘Who is this person touching my forehead?’
Goosebumps rose all over my body at the incomprehensible situation. As absurd as it sounds, did God really answer my plea or something?
Even though the hand on my forehead was still warm, my body was gradually growing cold.
‘I need to check. Quick. Whoever, no, whatever god saved me, I need to see.’
I only hesitated for a moment. Gathering my courage, I lifted my eyelids to see the being before me.
And the first thing that came out was…
“Wow…”
A gasp of admiration.
‘No, who is that? Who looks like that?’
This was definitely not a character from my novel. That appearance was beyond not only my writing skills but also anything that could be rendered even in video!
‘He could slap the male leads dozens of times and they’d have nothing to say, seriously….’
His slightly curly black hair was so deep it seemed to absorb all light, and it looked incredibly soft.
His pupils shimmered with multiple colors, as if containing the entire universe, and it felt like if I lost focus for even a second, I’d be sucked right in. A moment ago they seemed red, but now they looked blue.
Eyes that weren’t fierce but also not drooping, the slightly upturned corners of his lips, and flawlessly smooth skin.
If someone said, ‘Forget everything else, I just want an interesting face,’ this was the face you could show them regardless of their taste and they’d go crazy.
It was literally the face of a celestial being.
“Hmm. A-are you done observing me?”
“…!”
Oops!
I had been admiring the man for too long without realizing it. I instinctively straightened my jolted body and gave a slight nod.
Then, the man moved away from me and sat in the chair opposite. Seeing the steam still rising from the tea on the table, it seemed I hadn’t been unconscious for too long.
“You must be very confused, but I’m glad you woke up early. I would have been in trouble if you hadn’t…”
The man stared at the tablecloth and hesitantly continued his sentence.
Taken aback by his unexpected reaction, I also rolled my eyes around and cautiously asked.
“Ah, yes… But, who are you?”
I could tell instantly that he wasn’t human. His appearance was one thing, but the space I was currently in was also strange in some way.
‘The sky is rainbow-colored.’
Moreover, we were having teatime right in the middle of a flower-filled field, with a table and chairs set up.
So, it was half-confirmed that he was a non-human entity, but I couldn’t tell exactly *what* he was.
There were a full four gods in this world, after all.
‘Besides, I never wrote a setting about a god being this timid.’
To begin with, the novel I wrote, <Izel: The Men of the Saintess>, barely had any scenes where gods actually appeared.
“Oh, dear. It’s been so long since I’ve faced a person… I forgot to introduce myself. Hehe.”
While I was busy thinking about the novel’s setting, the mysterious god blushed and opened his mouth.
“I am ‘Arte,’ Ciela.”
“Ah, Lord Arte… Wait, what?”
I couldn’t help but question the god’s, no, ‘Arte’s’ words. It wasn’t because he said my name.
‘Arte? Arte, did he say?’
It was a name I knew well from the start. But it wasn’t the name of any of the four gods I was hoping for.
You see, ‘Arte’ was most definitely…
“Sorry to ask, but… you *are* a god, right?”
…the name of the fake god claimed by the crazy cultists nobody sane believed in.
Unlike the modern world I came from, in this world, ‘gods’ astonishingly actually existed.
That fact was something anyone could easily realize. Because they bestowed not only oracles upon humans but also divine powers.
There were a total of four gods whose existence was proven in this way.
Pride, God of Light and Knowledge.
Grid, God of Earth and Charity.
Envy, God of Water and Benevolence.
Lust, God of Darkness and Purity.
There were also many other gods passed down through oral tradition, but aside from these four, none had ever been verified.
There were no oracles, and no abilities to perform feats impossible for human power.
That included ‘Arte,’ the god claimed by the most prominent group of fanatics.
“No… How can Lord Arte be a god?”
Nowhere in the basic settings I wrote in the synopsis was there any mention of Arte being a god.
‘Well, forget the settings for a moment.’
If he were a real god, why didn’t he bestow powers upon the humans who served him, like the other gods did?
Unable to comprehend the situation, I tilted my head and looked at Arte.
Then, I saw his face quickly harden.
*Gulp!*
It was only then I realized how presumptuous I had been.
‘Asking if he’s really a god when he’s right here. Ciela, you must have a death wish.’
What does it matter if I was the author who wrote the setting? Now that I’ve been reincarnated into it, I’m no longer the author, just a character!
‘What does it matter who the god is?’
As long as he can bring me back to life, that’s all that matters!
My palms were sweaty even though I was already dead. I had to somehow fix this situation.
But just before my mouth could open, he proved the answer to my question with action first.
*Fwoosh!*
“Huh?”
On my previous body, I had clawed at my arms until they bled, writhing in the pain of an incurable disease.
The scars from that remained on this body as well.
“They’re gone?”
And that wasn’ all. The faint, lingering pain had also completely vanished.
‘…He’s the real deal.’
*Gulp.* I swallowed dryly. Furthermore, I had never seen such an ability in any priest. The four well-known gods couldn’t ‘heal’ people either.
‘Maybe he’s the ‘true’ god of this world.’
My throat was too choked for even a gasp to escape.
I just stared blankly at Arte. Misinterpreting my expression, he gave a bitter smile.
“I understand. The humans of this era probably don’t believe I’m a real god. E-even though I’m the Creator God of this world, they don’t even know that. It’s okay, *sniff*. It’s okay…”
Excuse me, Lord God. How can you expect me to believe you when you say that with a face that looks like you’ve lost everything?
My bewilderment at his claim of being the Creator God was short-lived. Belatedly realizing my mistake, I instinctively waved my hands in denial.
“No, no! It’s the humans who don’t know that fact who are wrong! Right!”
“No. It’s all my fault. I was too lacking, so my children got tired of me, they left me, *sob*.”
But despite my denial, the god proceeded to dig himself into a pit of despair. Seeing him bury his face in his hands and cry, I felt like crying too.
‘Ahh, I’ve messed up…’
Making a god cry this badly means my resurrection isn’t just down the drain, it’s sunk to the bottom of the abyss.
I forced down a sigh that threatened to deflate me. If I make another mistake here, I might not even get to reincarnate…
“Lord Arte. Please calm down. I was just so surprised that I misspoke.”
Fortunately, I had a handkerchief in my sleeve and offered it to him.
His face was already drenched in tears, even though he hadn’t been crying for long. The handkerchief was soaked through in an instant.
‘Is it okay for a god to be such a crybaby…?’
Isn’t he too sensitive? As I stared blankly at the handkerchief, he spoke with a somewhat refreshed face.
“Sniff, th-thank you for comforting me…”
“Not at all. It was my fault.”
“Hic, you’re k-kind too! This is the first time I’ve been comforted like this, boo hoo! *Sob*, Ciela, could you comfort me a little more?”
“Huh?”
‘What is he going to say now…?’
It would be problematic if the god cries more here. But I couldn’t recklessly shake my head no.
‘Maybe it’s an opportunity.’
If I revive the empathy skills I used to smoothly handle complainers in my past life, I might be able to make a good impression on the god.
“Of course! Please tell me anything. I’ll listen!”
Anyway, now that I’m dead, all I have is time to spare.
I nodded so hard my head nearly fell off. But maybe I should have refused firmly then.
I didn’t know that story would last for over a day!
After listening to that long story, my impression was just one sentence:
“Lord Arte. Just why have you been living like that?”
