Chapter 1

"Where is this place?"

The scenery I opened my eyes to was clearly not that of Japan. Where was this? Medieval Europe? It was a little different, resembling a fantasy world if anything.

The polished marble-like floor was shiny, and there was a six-pointed star etched into it with Mayu and I in the center. I didn't know if it was a pattern or a language, but there was something scrawled all over it. The pillars and walls were all made of stone, just like some kind of temple.

"The summoning ceremony was supposed to be a success, but why did two people show up...?"

An old man whose hair was all grey muttered in bewilderment beside me. He sported a white robe, which gave him a rather fantastical appearance.

"What do you mean? What is this? What the hell did you do for the summoning ceremony? No way, no way."

My face froze at the frightening possibility. I was a little embarrassed to be 18 years old and seriously questioning this possibility, but maybe this was the kind of thing that often appears in novels⁉︎

"Is this another world!?"

Oh, Mayu beat me to it. I was surprised Mayu even knew that phrase; I pegged her as the type who didn't read books at all.

"Welcome to the Kingdom of Asteria, Goddess of Light. All of us here have been waiting for this day when you would appear in this land. My name is Zachariah, and I am the High Priest of this country. Pleased to meet you."

Hmm? "We're" all here?

With those words, I realized that Mayu and I weren't the only ones here. There were several men standing at a slight distance from us. One of them was a nobleman, a platinum blonde dressed like a prince.

"I'm Albert, the first prince of this country."

Was that so?

There were also two people dressed like knights who were probably his bodyguards. The first was a slim, muscular man with dark blonde hair, and the second was a slightly stockier man with smartly trimmed brown hair.

"My name is Julius, and I am the captain of the First Knights Order. Nice to meet you, Miss Goddess."

"...Leon, captain of the Second Knights Order."

The blonde's tone was honeyed, as if he was boasting, but the brown hair was blunt. I was too myopic to see their faces, but I assumed they were all good-looking, because Mayu next to me was obviously pouting. She always loved the handsome ones.

Behind them, there were a few people squirming with uncomfortable faces who seemed like retainers. I wasn't sure what to make of it, but they weren't stopping , so I didn't worry about it. I was sure they would be able to tell us more about what was going on, and what a goddess was.

According to Mr. Zachariah, there existed something called "miasma" in this country, and "magical beasts" were born from the miasma and attacked people. The miasma, he explained, only thickened and never faded, and the people lived in fear of the monsters that attacked them every day. The only person who had the power to purge these miasma pools was who they called the "Goddess." The "Goddesses" could only be summoned from other worlds once every century, and today was exactly a century since the last summoning.

"And so, in response to our summons, the two of you have appeared in this place right now...!"

Well.... I wasn't sure what to say.

"I don't even know where to begin. You were clearly confused by the fact that there were two of us earlier, weren't you?"

"Well, that's..."

I was speechless.

"I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one who's a little confused."

So it seems there could only be one goddess.

And it was me or Mayu.

Suddenly, Mayu sprang up to her feet.

"Um, I think I'm the goddess! How do I use my powers?

Eeeeeh⁉︎ As I looked at Mayu, my mouth fell open.

"Ah, yes!? Do you feel a special energy too or something like that⁉︎"

"What? How can that be?"

Mayu looked down at me as if I were an idiot.

"What do you mean?"

"If it's a choice between you and me, of course it's me. It's obvious⁉︎"

Uh… Between a young girl with bottle-bottom glasses and Mayu, who was rather pretty, Mayu might have been the more attractive one of us two, but how much did she look down at me to be thinking that?

Zachariah held out a crystal ball.

"Please hold your hand over this crystal and chant, 'Light,' as if you are gathering power within your body."

"Light!" 

The moment Mayu held up her hand and chanted, the crystal ball emitted a white light.

"This is truly the power of a Goddess...!" Zachariah shouted as if overcome with emotion, and everyone present kneeled to Mayu.

"Our Goddess, please save this world...!"

As the people bowed with reverence, Mayu muttered, "I am the chosen one, the special one...!" with a flushed face, obviously pleased.

However, I was not sure if I could return to my original world.

I wanted to go back.