With the first tournament concluded, the second was set to begin. People who had initially hung back to observe the proceedings were now starting to sign up, so the participant list looked even larger than the first round’s.
Furthermore, it seemed those who had advanced to the finals were required to sit out the following tournament. This meant Kuro, Amel-san, Vul, and Elis-san would be watching from the sidelines this time.
Kuro seemed content with her single victory. Rather than competing again, she intended to spend the rest of the time as a spectator, offering guidance to her family members who weren't as accustomed to the games.
Given the surge in participants for the second round, I figured it would be a while before my exhibition match. I decided to use the downtime to proceed with the gift segment and gave the Garapon lottery machine a spin.
"EX4."
Once again, I landed on an EX slot. If I recalled correctly, this category was for presents from World Creators of other dimensions. If that was the case, I assumed the person Ein-san would summon was Canalis-san.
Sure enough, Canalis-san appeared right beside me a moment later and held out a wrapped package.
"The gift for EX4 is here."
"A-Ah, thank you... Is this... a knit hat?"
I opened the package to find a warm-looking knit hat inside. I wondered if this, too, possessed some sort of incredible power and turned toward Canalis-san for an explanation.
Sensing my curiosity, Canalis-san provided the details.
"Yes. Regarding that knit hat, it seems the creator worked very hard to knit it by hand... and that’s about it."
"Wait, really?"
"Ah, I know what you’re thinking, Kaito-sama. You’re assuming that since it was made by a World Creator, it must have some mysterious, logic-defying effect like the previous one, right? Taha~ The truth is, the power of World Creators varies wildly. While someone like myself is of the Omniscient and Almighty Class, there are others who are quite ordinary in most respects but happen to have high aptitude specifically for world creation. In other cases, they might have simply stumbled upon a creation-grade item made by another god and used it to build a world, even if their own personal power is low."
"Ah, I see. Now that you mention it, it makes sense that there would be a spectrum of power."
I remembered hearing about the Great Evil God who had created Alice's original world. He hadn't been particularly powerful himself and had lost most of his strength by sacrificing his essence just to build the world in the first place.
Of course, from my perspective as a human, anyone capable of creating a world was undoubtedly powerful, but it seemed acceptable to recognize that some ranked lower than others in the hierarchy of creators.
"For the record, the World Creator who prepared this gift falls into the latter category. She was originally a survivor from a world that had been abandoned by its previous creator."
"Abandoned by its creator?"
"Yes. It’s an appalling story, really. There are irresponsible gods who create worlds on a whim because the idea strikes them, but then they get bored or lose interest in the management. Because deleting the world is too much of a hassle, they just walk away and leave it to rot while they go off to make something else. Taha~ Well, I’ve entrusted the management of the worlds I’ve made to acquaintances, so I’m not really in a position to judge... but there are many forsaken worlds out there."
It was a somber thought, but it wasn't hard to imagine such things happening in a multiverse this vast.
"The girl who sent this present was a survivor of one of those ruined, forsaken worlds. She happened to find a tool left behind by the original creator. She couldn't save her original world with her own strength because it was already on the verge of total collapse, so she used that tool to create a brand-new world and moved the residents there. That’s how she became a World Creator herself. By holding a divine tool, she became ageless and immortal, but beyond being able to operate that specific tool, she has almost no power."
"That is quite an incredible life story. And she spent her time making this hand-knit hat..."
"Indeed. She reached out to other World Creators to gather information about your world, Kaito-sama. She chose materials she could produce herself that were similar to those from your home and got to work. Now then, I shall relay the message she entrusted to me... 'Happy Birthday. You were suddenly thrust into an incredible position, and I worry that you might be feeling confused or mentally exhausted, just as I was. You might be bewildered to receive a gift from a stranger, but I prepared this in the hope that you would know there are people outside of that world who care about you. Please keep doing your best, but don't push yourself too hard.' ...That was the message."
"Thank you. Please tell her that I’ll treasure it."
"Understood. I shall pass that along."
I imagined she was someone who had stepped up to become a World Creator out of a desperate desire to save her friends and family from a dying world. Her message felt warm and sincere, reflecting her kind nature.
It was a wonderful present—the kind that truly warmed the heart.
The Girl Who Became a World Creator
A girl who obtained a discarded creation tool in a world that had been forsaken by its original creator and was destined for ruin. Though she tried to save her home, the tool was not designed for restoration; instead, she used it to create a new world and evacuated the survivors there. As the price for using a divine artifact, her nature shifted toward that of a World Creator, granting her agelessness and immortality.
Later, the original creator returned and attacked, enraged that their tool had been used without permission. However, Nebula happened to be nearby and made short work of the intruder. After hearing the girl's story, Nebula used her overwhelming power to repair the ruined world and merged it with the girl’s new world so that they could be traversed freely. She also crafted superior management tools and gave them to the girl free of charge.
Consequently, the girl is a World Creator who deeply adores Nebula. While she possesses the necessary power for world management via her tools, her innate combat ability is extremely low—almost on par with Kaito’s. She feels a deep sense of gratitude toward Kaito for being the catalyst of Nebula’s revival and feels a certain sympathy for him due to their similar circumstances. Additionally, she is a member of a fan club specifically for those in the "Hardcore Love Faction."