Ryouma left the Great Forest of Shurus, and went back to Gimuru. Upon arrival, he spent most of his time studying and researching the inheritance he received from his grandmother. There, a life of rest and games with his magical beasts began.

At a day like that, the G.o.ds opened a feast in the divine realm with Ryouma.

More wine! Dont hold back! Just drink and drink! [Tekun]

Tekun, arent you drinking too much? [Rurutia]

Isnt it fine? I wont get drunk. Instead, why dont you tell that to Gayn? [Tekun]

Mn~? Im not drunk, you know~? [Gayn]

You are! [Tekun & Rurutia]

He is drunk, right? [Rurutia]

Hes drunk completely. Ryoumas cooking and snacks are delicious, so weve been drinking nonstop~. But really this liquor here is the sacred wine, so drinking lots probably cant be helped Its great that the cooking matches it though. Ah, do you have any more of this j.a.panese-style Hamburger? [Tekun]

There is. The meat was cheap, so I bought lots and made lots. Please feel free to eat as much as you want. [Ryouma]

This feast is something that became common practice after Ryouma received the treatment for the demon kings influence and around the time when Ryouma started receiving pointes from Tekun on how to make his staff.

At the start, Ryouma was wondering whether or not he could find a way to thank Gayn, Tekun, and co. for helping him out, so he filled the magic tool box that he got from his grandparents with cooking, and then entered the divine realm.

But before the food comes wine. And when theres food and wine, then its a feast. Said the G.o.d of Wine, Tekun, who was also naturally a wine aficionado. It only took him a moment to prepare the liquor and the place.

As Rurutia enjoyed the sweets back in Earth, it could be seen that the taste of the G.o.ds and the humans arent that much different. Because of that even the G.o.ds that were lacking in pleasure enjoyed the feast. And since the G.o.ds seemed to be happy, Ryouma brought food again the next time he came. And again, and again That repet.i.tion continued for some time until it finally became common practice amongst them.

The G.o.ds that took part in the feast were generally the four G.o.ds, Gain, Kufo, Rurutia, and Tekun, along with Ryouma. But after holding the feast a few more times, other G.o.ds started partic.i.p.ating as well. For example, the G.o.d of War from before joined. And even the G.o.d of Magic. After that, even the husband and wife, the G.o.d of Farming and the G.o.d of the Land, joined.

At the start, Ryouma was at a loss when the G.o.ds he knew started to increase. But lately hes gotten used to it.

And today, a G.o.d Ryouma hadnt met yet, showed up.

Hey. [Tekun]

Oh my. [Rurutia]

Why are you here? [Kufo]

Well, thats unusual. [Gayn]

Muttered the G.o.ds as the they looked behind Ryouma. A moment later, Ryouma turned around. What entered his vision was the face of a young girl. Their eyes met.

Eh!? [Ryouma]

When Ryouma noticed that the girl was point-blank him, he took a step back, but the girl only continued to stare at Ryouma without saying a word.

When Ryouma had taken some distance, he saw the full body of the girl standing there in front of him. Ryouma thought the girl to be cute, but emotionless. The girl almost seemed robot-like with that deadpan face of hers.

The girl looked to be below 10. Her straight, silver hair extended past her waist all the way to her knees. Clad in a dress black as the dead of the night, the girl released a mysterious, overwhelming pressure. Ryouma and the girl continued to look each other in the eye wordlessly.

If this keeps up, well end up wasting time. Ryouma-kun, that childs name is Meltrize. She is a G.o.d just like us. [Gayn]

Pretty rare, eh? For you to show up. [Tekun]

I was interested. [Meltrize]

The little girl responded to Tekuns inquiry with only a few words as she continued to stare at Ryouma. Ryouma was bewildered at the girls behavior, but he decided to introduce himself anyway.

Greetings, my name is Ryouma Takebayas.h.i.+. [Ryouma]

I know who you are. [Meltrize]

Said Meltrize with an expressionless face.

My name is Meltrize. I am the G.o.d of Death and Sleep. Its a pleasure. [Meltrize]

Its a pleasure to meet you, Meltrize-sama. [Ryouma]

Meltrize is fine. Rather than that, I want to hear you sing. [Meltrize]

Sing? [Ryouma]

While Ryouma was surprised by the sudden request, Tekun stood up.

Oh? Missy, you wanted to hear a song? If thats the case, then I can sing enka. [Tekun]

No need. [Meltrize]

Ok [Tekun]

Tekuns proposal was flatly rejected, so he had no choice but to dejectedly sit back down. Tekun came to like Earths enka, so he started enjoying singing it during the banquet.

What I want to hear is the song that you sing during the night. [Meltrize]

Hearing that, Ryouma finally understood what it was that Meltrize wanted to hear. But at the same time, he was troubled.

Could it be youre referring to the Cursed Song? [Ryouma]

Right. [Meltrize]

That songs a bit [Ryouma]

When Ryouma got back to Gimuru, he sometimes practiced the song in the abandoned mine. But despite that, he wasnt able to control the Cursed Song once.

Theres no need to worry. Were all G.o.ds here. Your magic wont harm us. [Meltrize]

Then in that case [Ryouma]

With those words, Ryoumas fears were swept away. He took out his guitar from the Item Box, and he began to sing.

Then One song. [Ryouma]

Sing, sing! [Tekun]

Hyu! Hyu! [Kufo]

While Tekun and Kufo were egging Ryouma on, Ryouma sang the Cursed Song. They were still having a banquet, so Ryouma chose a quiet, but warm song. The effect was lessened, but its not like the Cursed Song cant be used unless the songs depressing.

And just as one would expect, even Tekun and Kufo kept quiet when the song began. They all quietly enjoyed Ryoumas performance.

When Ryouma finished singing, the G.o.ds broke out in an applause. All but Meltrize who only approached Ryouma.

Was my performance able to satisfy the young miss? [Ryouma]

As Ryouma jokingly asked that as if he were a gentleman, a sinister and vigorous black smoke erupted from Meltrizes, which wrapped itself around Ryouma.

What are you!? [Ryouma]

Just as Ryouma thought he had offended the G.o.d, a black smoke appeared, and Ryouma began to struggle. But then, Rurutias voice reached his ears.

Its alright, Ryouma-kun! She is only giving you her divine protection; it wont hurt you! [Rurutia]

Divine protection!? [Ryouma]

Hearing that, Ryouma finally noticed that neither the black smoke nor Meltrize held any ill will. Ryouma has the divine protection of Kufo, so he should be able to tell whether Meltrize wishes to harm him or not.

But divine protection? Im grateful, but why me again? [Ryouma]

Ryoumas question was answered by Tekun.

There doesnt have to be a reason for us to give a divine protection, you know? She pretty much just came to like you, so shes give you her divine protection. Its the same even for the slimes. If I like one, Ill give it my divine protection. [Tekun]

But you actually did give my drunk slime your divine protection. [Ryouma]

I thought it was pretty strange seeing a slime who actually enjoyed to drink, but when I saw it evolve, and saw it become able to make alcohol. I thought, well isnt this amusing? That little girl over there is the same. Shes giving you her divine protection because she likes your song. [Tekun]

Hearing that, Ryouma looked at Meltrize. When he did, Meltrize nodded wordlessly, then she began explaining.

That song I dont hate it. The sound is filled with magic power and is relaxing. [Meltrize]

Ryouma didnt know whether the song being relaxing had anything to do with the sound being filled with magic power. Meltrize realized Ryoumas confusion, so she tried explaining.

I am the G.o.d of sleep and death, so I feel most at home at places where theres plenty of dark attribute magic power. Your Cursed Song spreads dark magic power in the area. And the area affected by that magic power is comfortable to me. There are many people better than you when it comes to playing the guitar and singing, but theres no one else who can sing a song as comfortable as you. [Meltrize]

So thats how it is [Ryouma]

Ryouma wasnt able to understand to what extent it was pleasurable, but he did understand what Meltrize was trying to say.

After that, Meltrize joined the banquet. As she ate, she began to teach Ryouma the details of the divine protection of the death G.o.d.

My divine protection will make the usage of dark attribute magic power somewhat easier. So as long as you put in the effort, you should be able to control the Cursed Song. Also, although its really just a little bit, but you should also gain resistance against curses and dark magic. [Meltrize]

Hearing that, Ryouma, who had little resistance toward curses, was elated. So he figured he could at least bring out more food, and sing as a form of appreciation.

And this is going somewhat off topic, but this is Meltrizes first time joining the banquet, so he didnt know what she liked. To remedy that, Ryouma had everyone taste all the food in the banquet, and he found out that Meltrize enjoyed food like pepperoncino which had strong sharp taste.

He also found out that contrary to her appearance, Meltrize actually liked to drink.

It was in this way that Ryouma enjoyed his time with the G.o.ds. Until finally, the time for the banquet to end came.

Oops, guess its time. [Tekun]

Said Tekun as he looked at Ryouma. A bead of light had already began to s.h.i.+ne around Ryouma due to the time limit being reached. As this is something that everyone had already gotten used to, its now being used as a sign to end the banquet.

From there on, Ryouma began to quickly clean everything up as he put everything back into his box.

Then next time again. [Ryouma]

The next ones two weeks from now. [Rurutia]

Youve already managed to do the basics of making a staff, so next time, depending on your progress, Ill teach you the next step. [Tekun]

Dont push yourself too much~ [Gayn]

Lets meet again. [Meltrize]

Its hard, but do your best. [Kufo]

Like this, the banquet for the day ended, and Ryouma left the divine realm.

After Ryouma had left the divine realm, a heavy atmosphere unlike that of a while ago filled the presence of the G.o.ds. Even Gayn who was acting a little drunk just a moment ago was suddenly sober. Amongst that group of G.o.ds, the one who spoke was Kufo.

Well then I guess the breaks over. [Kufo]

Right. Its going to become busy again But its still good since he Ryouma found that thing while it was still in that stage. [Rurutia]

True Its embarra.s.sing as a G.o.d, but not one of us was able to notice the fragment left behind by the demon king. We would have probably fallen behind if Ryouma hadnt found it, so our works actually been reduced a lot as were able to deal with it before it turned into a disaster. [Tekun]

Its been such a long time since we were this busy I hate this sort of busyness. [Rurutia]

Thats because theres nothing fun about working ourselves to the bone looking for the hidden fragments of the demon king. [Gayn]

The other G.o.ds nodded to Gayns words, showing their agreement. Ever since Ryouma found the magic gem that housed the fragment of the demon king, the world of the G.o.ds has been buzzing in busyness.

Even if it is true that the demon kings fragment that Ryouma found was well hidden, it still doesnt change the fact that the ones responsible for governing this world are the G.o.ds. Which means to say that the G.o.ds were negligent. So its only a given that they would start working to find a solution as soon as they found out about the matter.

If it were a human they were dealing with, they would have been able to settle the issue immediately. But the opponent right now is a demon king. Although rotten, its still a former G.o.d. Finding the fragment is difficult even with the power of G.o.d. It takes a lot of time and effort to find, making the work a ch.o.r.e. The G.o.ds bodies may not be capable of breaking apart, but they do still acc.u.mulate stress and fatigue. So in order to restore their energies, they have a banquet whenever Ryouma comes.

However, they did not explain to Ryouma about that part. All they said was, Were trying to see if therere any more fragments, keeping any information under wraps. And because Gayn and the others were too busy except during the banquet, they decided to exchange information after the banquet before going back home.

Speaking of which, whats going to happen to Ryouma? Youve been letting him drink some of the G.o.ds wine thats been diluted with normal wine, right? [Tekun]

The influence of the demon king sometimes comes out, but I dont think itll get any worse than this. As for the sacred wine, hes only drinking enough to contain the strength of the demon king, so there shouldnt be any other effects. [Gayn]

With the sacred wine as treatment, we should be able to keep most of the harm to Ryouma in check, right? [Rurutia]

Well, he has gotten better, right? Besides, its better than completely sealing it up. If we were to completely seal it up, then Ryoumas soul would also have to be sealed That would be putting the cart before the horse. [Gayn]

Even a moment of sealing would cause a person to become crippled after all. [Rurutia]

Hearing that, Meltrize, who had just met Ryouma today, was shocked. But with her unsociable expression and unchanging tone, that shock was by no means visible from the surface.

Was that fragment that strong? I heard he hadnt spent much time with the fragment. [Meltrize]

A normal person wouldnt be affected as much, but if its Ryouma were talking about, then the situation is a bit different. I talked to you about Ryoumas previous life when I woke you up, right? [Gayn]

You did. It is visibly strange. [Meltrize]

Umu. Ill leave it at that for now, but because of that worlds G.o.d pulling strings, Ryoumas soul has become able to easily absorb the power of G.o.ds. Weve managed to treat it for now, so its safe now, but the demon kings power did begin to influence Ryouma soul. It will take some time before Ryouma fully recovers, but we can only call it fortunate that we didnt find out before it was too late. [Gayn]

Also, Fer Noevir mentioned that he might have figured out a hint from that case regarding the abnormality of the recent otherworlders. [Rurutia]

Tekun reacted to Rurutias words.

What? I didnt hear anything about that. [Tekun]

Oh? Maybe its because you went ahead that time? Well its a separate issue from the demon fragment, and theres no proof either, so we probably forgot to inform you. [Rurutia]

So what did he say? [Tekun]

Isnt that the reason why we were sometimes unable to predict the grow of the otherworlders that were sent to our world, is what he said. [Rurutia]

So the G.o.d from the other world is doing something to the people being sent here? [Tekun]

Well, its not impossible. We already know after all that that G.o.d has changed the destiny of many people already. It wouldnt be strange if some of those people were to come to this world. [Gayn]

But why would he do that? [Meltrize]

The G.o.ds fell into deep thought at Meltrizes question. In the end, Gayn said this,

I dont know. The G.o.d from Earth is a level above us. Moreover, theres no merit in him attacking other worlds as his own world is safe There were some otherworlders that caused disasters, but there were also those that benefited our world. So I cant think of his actions as an invasion.

Moreover, there were also people that lived ordinary lives until the end. I cant think of any reason for him to be doing this on purpose. As of now, the most I can say is that its a coincidence. [Gayn]

And while there might be many G.o.ds who dont interfere with G.o.ds of other worlds, there arent many who would willingly give the magic power of their world to another G.o.ds. Because of that we cant afford to pursue the matter, lest risk angering the G.o.d of earth, and losing a source of magic power for this world. Which would then greatly affect this worlds vitality [Rurutia]

When that happens, the world might not be destroyed, but a lot of problems will certainly come up Wait a moment, this.. and even that too! Isnt everything the fault of that demon king!? [Kufo]

I cant say everything, but it is true that this world was invaded, and that the magic power became easily exhaustible. If it werent for that demon king, we wouldnt have had to borrow power from the G.o.d of earth. But saying that now wont change anything. Right now, what we have to do is decide on how to solve the problem. [Gayn]

Then should we start the operation now? [Tekun]

Umu. Lets go look for the fragments of the demon king. As for me, Ill go check up on the others that couldnt come to me, and then Ill go back to my own search. [Gayn]

As Gayn said that, he vanished from that place.

Ill go back too. [Meltrize]

Dont forget to contact me when you find a fragment. Also, come to the next banquet too, alright, missy? [Tekun]

Sure. [Meltrize]

How unusual. Not only did the sleepyhead Meltrize wake up, but shes also actually going out do something. [Kufo]

Pepperoncini was delicious. Also Im not a sleepyhead, Im the G.o.d of sleep. [Meltrize]

You realize that in the mortal words time, you slept 500 years straight until you actually had to deal with this recent matter, right? Isnt that plenty to qualify you as a sleepyhead? [Kufo]

Im going home. [Meltrize]

As Meltrize said those words which, although her face remained expressionless and the tone normal, seemed to carry a hint of dissatisfaction, she vanished.

After that Kufo, Rurutia, Tekun, also disappeared one after another. And they all busied themselves, searching for the demon kings fragments until the next time when Ryouma comes to visit again.

TL Note: Meltrize is p.r.o.nounced mel-tree-ze. The ze is like the ze from zen. Also, extra chappie tomorrow.