“Ho, so you were on your way back from your monster aptitude diagnosis today, were you?”
“That’s right. When I stopped by the shop, it turned out someone had come by to sell a Stone Slime. On top of that, I heard a pet slime at the church was acting strange. When I went to check on it, I found it had evolved into a Weed Slime. I’d say I got pretty lucky.”
“Both of those use mimicry and are hard to find. Good for you,” Kufo said.
“But Ryoma,” Tekun chimed in, “that Weed Slime was the children's pet, wasn't it? You didn't go making them cry, did you?”
“I managed to handle that. A few of them were certainly disappointed, but it turns out Weed Slimes have the power to grow weeds around their surroundings as well as on their own bodies. The church garden was becoming a total jungle. Plus, when I Appraised it, I found it had the Division Skill at level eight, meaning it reproduces incredibly fast. After I talked it over with the two sisters, they helped me persuade the kids. Of course, I promised I’d take good care of it, too.”
“Is that so? Well, I’m glad it didn't leave a bitter aftertaste. Here, have another. Your cup’s going dry!”
Tekun laughed boisterously and upended a liquor bottle he’d produced from thin air.
I hurriedly held out my cup to catch the liquid before it spilled. As I drained it in one gulp, the mellow aroma of grapes permeated my body.
“Even so, I’ve somehow grown used to being summoned to the Divine Realm like this.”
“Every time you pray at the church, it seems like someone or other is calling for you,” Kufo noted.
“And the number of gods you’re acquainted with has grown, hasn't it, Ryoma?” Gain added.
“Well, even if it’s grown, aside from you three, there’s only Tekun and Lord Fernobelia.”
“What? You haven't even met half of us yet!” Tekun barked.
“I know of others, like Lord Manoairoa, thanks to the fundamental knowledge I was granted. But as for actually meeting him… what kind of person is he?”
“Manoairoa is… well, that’s a tough one,” Kufo replied.
“Ah, if it’s hard to answer, you don't have to force yourself, Kufo.”
“No, it's not exactly that… truth be told, even I haven't seen him in several years.”
“Me neither,” Tekun said.
“Nor I,” Gain added.
“Wait, what? You gods don’t see each other?”
“The fellow has a serious case of wanderlust,” Gain explained. “There’s no doubt he’s somewhere in the Divine Realm, but he’s constantly drifting from place to place. I wonder what he’s up to now.”
“He’s also the God of Arts, so he wears all sorts of different things,” Kufo said. “Sometimes he looks perfectly normal, and other times he’s dressed incredibly flamboyantly. He’s fickle, too. He’s a strange god.”
“Come to think of it,” Tekun laughed, “years ago, he went around completely naked, claiming it was ‘natural beauty!’”
“Oh, right! I remember that!” Kufo joined in. “He didn't even have a loincloth on. Lulutia and Kiriluel gave him a real earful for that one.”
The gods really did have a wide variety of personalities…
“By the way, where is Lulutia today?”
“She’s calling on the other goddesses to hold a ‘Girls’ Party,’ or something like that,” Kufo said.
“Apparently, it’s a concept she picked up from Earth,” Tekun added. “I have no idea how it’s different from a regular banquet, though.”
“She was lamenting the poor turnout earlier,” Gain said. “One of the more motherly goddesses should be keeping her company by now.”
They certainly had a lot going on. Speaking of which…
“Can I change the subject? I’d like to ask Gain and Kufo something.”
“Of course.”
“Did something happen?”
“I mentioned that I had a monster aptitude diagnosis before coming here, right? Well, the results showed that my best compatibility is with ‘monsters that have a habit of forming swarms.’ But my knowledge and power regarding Taming Magic were things I received from you all during my reincarnation. Given that the number of slimes I can contract with is also unusually high, was there some specific intent behind that?”
When I asked the question that had been on my mind, Gain and Kufo both took on a pensive air.
“We did not give it to you intentionally, but we cannot say we are entirely unrelated, either,” Gain mused.
“Back then, we decided to give you the ability to use Taming Magic, but we hadn't decided which specific monsters you’d want to contract with, right?” Kufo explained. “That’s why we intended to leave your aptitude up to your own nature without meddling too much.”
“So my aptitude is a talent I originally possessed?”
“Perhaps it’s more of a desire than a talent,” Kufo suggested.
“It is a fact that we granted you the power you wished for,” Gain said. “Your desires should be reflected in it, and that may be what exerted an influence. I believe that is the reason your compatibility with slimes is so exceptionally good.”
Did that mean if I had wished to contract with dragons, I would have had a high aptitude for them?
“If you sought it from the bottom of your heart, yes. Simply thinking, ‘I’ll try contracting with one,’ wouldn’t be enough.”
“And as a result, I sought out slimes.”
I felt like I could somewhat accept that logic. However…
“Actually, no,” Gain clarified. “Since the power was granted the moment you arrived in the Gana Forest, your aptitude must have been determined then. It’s unlikely it would change just because you became interested through research later on. We didn't interfere to that extent.”
“Besides, if it were going to change, it would probably just be ‘Slime Specialization’ in your case,” Kufo said. “In all likelihood, it stems from the environment of your previous life, Ryoma.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s hard to say, but, well… you lived a life close to being a ‘loner’ on Earth, didn’t you? Even though you belonged to a company and had colleagues, you didn't really have many close friends.”
“Well, that’s true…”
“You couldn't belong to a ‘swarm’ or a group, so while you were fine being alone, it wasn’t that you lacked interest in others. I suspect that subconscious desire influenced your aptitude.”
“So that’s it… wait, that’s just depressing!”
What a tragic reason! It was one thing to think it myself, but being told by someone else actually stung a bit. Moreover, because these were the words of gods, the credibility was far too high to ignore.
“Hahaha! That’s just how life goes sometimes!” Tekun barked. “Here, drink more!”
I drained another cup as the nonchalant Tekun topped me off.
“In the end, it’s a good thing, isn’t it?” he continued. “You can contract with all sorts of species and gather them in huge numbers.”
“That is true. I’ve never actually felt dissatisfied with it.”
I wasn't entirely thrilled with the explanation, but I certainly had no complaints about my aptitude. To change the mood, I decided to ask about Divine Beasts.
“I heard that Lord Reinbach is contracted to a Divine Beast. What exactly are they? I’ve heard they are monsters that have received divine protection and have a mission to protect their territory.”
“That’s exactly right,” Kufo said. “As expected of a country with someone who actually has a contract, the information in the Reefaul Kingdom seems accurate.”
“Is that territory important to the gods?”
“It is precious to us, but it is also vital for the world and for all of you,” Gain explained. “The territories of Divine Beasts—regions also known as ‘Sacred Lands’—are the keys to this world’s mana production.”
“Another interesting term. Is it alright to ask for more details?”
“I don’t mind. It’s not unrelated to the reason you came to this world, after all.”
“Actually, you should probably know,” Tekun added. “You’re going to be involved with Sacred Lands in the future, too.”
“Involved in the future?”
“Ah, let’s get the explanation of Sacred Lands out of the way first,” Kufo said. “Though it’s not really that complicated.”
He began to speak slowly, as if organizing his thoughts.
“First, as you know, there is mana in this world. People and monsters make use of it.”
“And because production is insufficient compared to consumption, mana is being transferred from Earth. That was the reason I was brought here.”
“Exactly. Unfortunately, the balance of supply and demand has collapsed, but this world is still doing its best to produce mana. As for what specifically generates it, that would be the natural environment.”
Apparently, trees, stones, rivers, and valleys—the environment itself—were heavily involved in the production of mana.
“It happens in regular forests, and even in human cities, a little bit of mana is produced. But efficiency is much better where there is more nature, so the amount in cities is negligible.”
“Mana is born everywhere in this world,” Gain picked up, “but ‘Sacred Lands’ are regions where the output is particularly high and efficient. The conditions are things like being a wilderness untouched by human hands, having a certain size, and being abundant in nature.”
“And it would be a problem if those regions were ravaged by humans or wandering monsters,” Tekun said. “To prevent that, we’ve long prepared special monsters granted with divine protection to protect them—those are the Divine Beasts.”
That made sense. And I could also guess why Tekun said I would be involved. I was currently planning a journey to a place abundant in nature that was notoriously difficult for humans to enter.
“The Shulls Great Forest is a Sacred Land, then.”
“Yeah,” Kufo confirmed. “It’s right in the center of that forest. The mana produced there is why the forest has so many precious medicinal herbs and ores. There isn't a Divine Beast there, though.”
So a Divine Beast wasn't strictly necessary for a Sacred Land.
“Is it okay to leave it like that?”
“The areas where humans are active are still far away, so it’s fine. Besides, even though there’s no Divine Beast, the defenses are solid. Fernobelia sees to that.”
Kufo spoke with confidence, even though he wasn't the one in charge.
“The Shulls Great Forest is Fernobelia’s responsibility. I told him he should just put a Divine Beast there, but he started going on about how leaving management to a single powerful monster would be ‘simplistic.’ He’s been maintaining the defenses using only average monsters and environmental management. What do you think?”
“I think it’s a serious topic,” I admitted, “but the way you say it makes it sound like he’s doing a restricted play in a video game…”
“I know what a game is, but what's a restricted play?”
“It’s when someone intentionally avoids using powerful tools or imposes limits on themselves to achieve a goal.”
“Ah, that’s it! That’s exactly it!”
“Wait, you’re admitting it!?”
“It’s not like he’s playing around,” Kufo sighed, “but Fernobelia goes out of his way to use methods that take more effort. Just because he’s good at detailed work, he looks at the Sacred Lands I’ve handled and calls them sloppy.”
It seemed Kufo had a bit of a grudge against Lord Fernobelia regarding this matter. I ended up listening to his complaints incessantly until it was finally time for me to head back.
However, since I managed to learn quite a bit about the ecosystem of the Shulls Great Forest, I considered the trip a great success.