Volume 3 Extra Chapter 1: Trial of the Gods and Sereriputa’s True Intentions (4/4)
“That’s true, but… He became younger since coming to this world, right? His mentality has also grown younger, so apparently, his force of will has also grown looser. And for a moment, he was swept away by his emotions. Because of that he panicked and wanted to fix himself.
He’s also been living in the forest and was hunting animals and fighting bandits, so for the longest time he was in an environment were the act of ‘killing’ was normal. That might have also helped loosen his will.
Personally, I think it’s normal for people to think of killing others when they’re angry or have a grudge. In a sense, it’s a given. Of course, it’s another story altogether to be able to pull it off or not, but in my opinion, having no such thoughts whatsoever is stranger.” [Sereriputa]
“…In other words, Ryouma accepts killing as necessary in order to live, but at the same time, he thinks it’s abnormal and considers himself dangerous. That sounds like a contradiction to me, but that’s about it, right?” [Fernoberia]
“Ah, yeah. I think Fernoberia put it the best. Ryouma recognizes he’s a dangerous person. That’s why although he wants to be with other people, he feels a sense of discomfort. ’This is not a place where I belong. This is not a place where something like me should be’.
‘I should be gentle to others but harsh to myself’ ’I have to be good’ ‘I have to be unselfish’ ‘I have to be useful to others, or else I’ll have no worth’… Something like that? From a human’s perspective, that might be a virtue, but Ryouma-kun takes it too far. His evaluation of himself is too low.
It’s because of that that no matter how poorly people treats him, he just accepts it. It’s also the reason why he so recklessly tries to repay people who are kind to him. Unfortunately, he’s not aware of any of this at all.” [Sereriputa]
Sereriputa heaved a deep sigh, then he spoke once again to wrap everything said so far.
“‘Free Love’ might sound nice, but if you do this and that for others, the greedy society of humans will just take you for a sucker. Depending on the perspective, they could also take such actions as contempt for those who work to be compensated.
When such actions cause frictions with your surroundings, then what? It would still be fine if Ryouma became defiant or abandoned his responsibility and left, but unfortunately, his personality won’t permit that. In all likelihood he’ll either take on someone’s anger or slander head on, and then he might even accommodate demands made from him.
Unless the fundamentally distorted unconscious part of him is fixed, his actions can never truly be corrected. It seems like it’s going to get noisy around him from now on, so when push comes to shove and he still doesn’t reflect over his actions… If he keeps that up, one day, his body or soul, or maybe both will break.
When that time comes, I can bring him to an uninhabited island or give him a powerful divine protection like the ancestor of the mermaid tribe and make it possible for him to live under water. It would be best for him to completely leave human society. Even if something happens to him outside of it, the damage will be minimal at most.
The human world is something that will naturally change over time. The same is true for Ryouma-kun. That’s why there’s no need to hurry. It would be best if he could spend time in a place he could calm down and stabilize himself…” [Sereriputa]
“I see. So you’ve thought it through that much.” [Gayn]
The other gods agreed with Gayn and silence filled the room.
And then…
“That’s unexpected. You kept talking about how boring Ryouma was, and yet…” [Willieris]
“I may have said that observing his current life isn’t any fun, but I don’t recall ever saying that I had no interest in him personally or that I hated him. Besides, I do my best to treat all lives equally. Even if I’m not interested, I’ll still accommodate them accordingly.” [Sereriputa]
Willieris said unapologetically, though she wasn’t able to finish her piece.
Even if she had a relationship akin to cats and dogs with Sereriputa, she still felt she said too much—
“Well, to be honest though, I actually love kids like him who’re able to struggle despite suffering and squirming so much.” [Sereriputa]
“…” [The rest of the gods]
—The moment he said that, the rest of the gods went blank.
Sereriputa didn’t notice anything amiss and continued to run his mouth.
He sounded really excited for some reason, and his voice grew louder and louder.
“How do I put it? I guess you could say he’s akin to a baby fish that had most of its body eaten but is still alive. Or maybe like an ant thrown into antlion pit but somehow managed to survive? Either way, he’s someone who desperately struggled from the claws of death. Don’t you think it’s amazing how there could be such a brilliant life force—?” [Sereriputa]
It was here that Sereriputa finally realize it. The surrounding gods either had their eyes turned white or were so fed up they could only look at themselves.
“Sereriputa… A guy like you is really…” [Kirillel]
“Aren’t you more twisted than Ryouma?” [Kufo]
“I don’t really want to find fault with other people’s preferences, but…” [Gayn]
“Couldn’t you have worded it better? Something like ‘I can feel the value of life’ or ‘his effort to stay alive is amazing’ or ‘I’m going to support him’?” [Fernoberia]
“And here I was admiring you for a moment. How blind could I have been?” [Tekun]
“I don’t ever want to be liked by you.” [Rurutia]
“There you go running your mouth again. I don’t even.” [Grimp]
“Huh? W-Wait a moment! What’s with this atmosphere?” [Sereriputa]
“Sereriputa.” [Willieris]
Willieris called out his name. But the way she looked at him was completely different from before.
“Uwaah! What’s with that face!? You’re scary! Weren’t you looking all glum just a while ago!?” [Sereriputa]
“Oh, yes. I was wondering just why it was that I had to reflect over what I’d done. Fu fu, fu fu fu fu.” [Willieris]
“…Weren’t you guys going to forgive me?” [Sereriputa]
“It did seem like that for a moment, didn’t it? Unfortunately, it was only for a moment… Anyway, your plan was to make us feel sentimental by talking about Ryouma and then run away from your crimes, right!?” [Willieris]
“Huh!? That’s a false accusation! And at the very least, you guys should reduce my punishment because of my achievements from determining the plans of the earth god or because of how I dealt with Ryouma!” [Sereriputa]
“So you did have an agenda!” [Willieris]
“Uwaah, you’re such a pain. Wait a minute, you guys. This is supposed to be a court of some sort, right? You can’t just let this woman do whatever she wants!” [Sereriputa]
“That’s right… We’ll change locations and discuss the matter again, and then make a decision. Willieris, we’ll leave you behind to keep watch, so accompany him for awhile. Now then, let us be off.” [Gayn]
“Ah! Hey! Gayn!? Guys!?” [Sereriputa]
None of the gods responded as they left one after another. The only ones left behind was a Sereriputa bound to a chair and a Willieris who stood up and approached him.
“Everyone is gone now.” [Willieris]
“Yeah.” [Sereriputa]
“I’m sure they’ll be able to think of a fitting punishment. Until then I have a lot to say. So make sure you listen until the end, okay?” [Willieris]
“Uwaah… I-I might actually pass on before Ryouma does…” [Sereriputa]
After this Willieris gave Sereriputa a sermon he would never forget. By the time the rest of the gods came back, Sereriputa looked like a dried up corpse.
Tl Note: We’re caught up again, but there are usually two releases per month, so maybe there’ll be a new RAW chapter by next week.