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Chapter 119

A corridor of pure white.

Leaving the dragon tribe at the entrance, we proceeded down the square-shaped passage.

Then, we opened the door at the end—

—Where are we?

There was a garden here.

Even though it was indoors, a vast blue sky spread out, with fluffy clouds floating here and there.

A gentle breeze tickled my cheeks, and birds and butterflies danced in the meadow and small hills.

On the hill with a large tree at its peak, there was a wooden table with a tea set placed on it.

And sitting in a chair, elegantly sipping tea was—

「Nice to meet you all. Welcome to the Garden of Eden, everyone. I believe there’s no need for introductions, but I am the Goddess entrusted with the management of this world.」

「The Garden of… Eden?」

When I said that, the goddess chuckled self-deprecatingly.

「Well, the world you all inhabit is like a managed miniature garden by the gods, so you could say it’s Eden.」

We live within a limited habitat, with population and civilization regulated by the system.

Once, due to advancing civilization, environmental pollution on this planet progressed, eventually reaching its limit… Before self-destruction, humanity reset its own civilization.

But even though we condemned ourselves to evil, we’re still alive.

The conscience of the remaining humanity… No, by the ego of those who play god, we are kept alive under the condition of culling and regulating civilization progress backed by an absolutely violent apparatus.

That’s the truth of the Garden of Eden we inhabit.

At that moment, the goddess turned her gaze to Lute and smiled.

「Well then, shall we start the tea party?」

Everyone sat at the wooden table, and tea was served by the goddess.

Wary of poison, I hesitated to sip, but Lute laughed and said,

「If they intended to kill us, we’d all be wiped out within minutes.」

So, I just cautiously tasted the tea.

Ah, it was delicious.

It had a gentle and refined taste that couldn’t be produced by any high-grade tea leaves I’d ever tasted.

「So, what do you intend to do?」

「So you’re cutting to the chase. Well, it’s a plan that the Dragon King has been thinking about for a long time—」

Lute laughed, but he looked straight at the goddess.

「We humans are thinking… of disarming.」

At that, the goddess’s smile faded, and she widened her eyes.

「You don’t mean…?」

「Yeah, it means we are abandoning the nanomachines. When the system adjusts the population, it counts lives using nanomachines, right? If we abandon them, we won’t be monitored by the system based on population.」

「But if you do that, humans won’t benefit from the status… Unable to fight monsters, and without waiting for the adjustment of external gods and major calamities—humanity will be culled.」

Lute nodded firmly.

「Once, Adam and Eve ate the fruit of knowledge, were expelled from the Garden of Eden, and were cast into the wilderness where hungry beasts roamed, right?」

「Yes, according to legend…」

「But, in exchange for danger, they gained freedom. And humanity remembered fire, made stone tools to eliminate external enemies, and built their own homes, gaining peace.」

「…」

「We’re just doing the same thing. By facing monsters without relying on status, we’ll gain our freedom.」

At that, the goddess laughed incredulously.

「It’s quite a radical treatment.」

「Or would you prefer to go along with Moses’s plan, wipe everyone out, reset everything, and living in a managed miniature garden again? It’s really an unappealing choice. So, what’s it going to be?」

「That’s a problem for all humanity. If you’re going to decide that alone… it’s just arrogance. Iijima Ryuuto… have you gained power and become conceited? When you wanted to offer flowers to Cordelia and wished for crop cultivation skills, you weren’t such an arrogant person, were you?」

Lute nodded without remorse.

「Yeah, I guess I’m arrogant.」

「If you think so, then restrain yourself. This issue has been faced by numerous reincarnators before, and it’s a problem that has been shelved and put on hold.」

At that, Lute shook his head from side to side.

「I’ve been thinking about it for a while. Even if we were to stop Moses here, population growth wouldn’t stop. If a major calamity were to occur, and even if we were to stop it, then the external gods… they’d wipe everything out.」

「…Can’t you just not stop the major calamity?」

「10% or 20% of the population will die, you know? How many orphans do you think will be left, and how much suffering do you think will occur in the world in a state of panic? We have the power to stop it… Do you think we can just overlook the crisis in front of us?」

「…」

「So, fundamentally, I’m not some hero here to save the world. I’m not that kind of guy.」

With that, Lute turned to face me.

「So, what do you think, Cordelia? My opinion might change depending on your decision.」

Huh?

He’s asking me at this moment?

「Wait a second, Lute? Are you seriously letting me decide such an important matter?」

「As I said before, I’m not a hero here to save the world. I just want to protect what’s precious to me.」

So—Lute not only turned to me but also to Lilith, Koharu-chan, Guild Master-san, and even Abe-san.

「All of you, decide together. If it’s unanimous, I’m willing to go along with the Dragon Kings’ proposal of disarming the status. Even for the Dragon King and his merry companions, it’s uncertain whether this method is right or not. So, from our side as well… we haven’t decided.」

I see.

So, that’s why he brought everyone close to him here.

「No, wait a second, Lute? But, what do you yourself think?」

「If I didn’t think independence from the old world’s system was right, I wouldn’t have come here.」

Ah, well, that makes sense.

「…What about Lilith?」

As if it were a foolish question, Lilith nodded.

「…I’ll follow Lute. Lute alone… is my reason for living.」

That girl is… well, that’s just how she is.

Next, I turned my gaze to the black-haired shrine maiden.

「…Koharu-chan?」

「Um, well… I don’t really understand complicated things. But… I, I think… Lute-kun is right. Not because Lute-kun said so… but because I, Saegusa Koharu, personally think so.」

「And the reason?」

「I’m saying what I said when I was channeling Takemikazuchi-san. ‘Geez, those ancient ghosts… Acting like gods even though they’re humans? Treating others like livestock… bunch of idiots!’…」

Well, Koharu-chan in her trance state is quite assertive and hawkish.

She’s usually quiet, but…

「Guild Master-san and… Abe-san?」

「Haha, are you lumping us together?」

Guild Master-san laughed as if he were at a loss, and I instinctively bowed my head.

「Oh, I’m sorry. That’s not what I meant…」

「No, no, it’s fine. Right, Cordelia? Well, I decided a long time ago. I’ve decided to follow Lute-san for the rest of my life.」

This person is also a follower of Luteism, huh…

Well, that seems about right.

「And Abe-san?」

「As I am… not long for this world, I have no objections to the decisions of the younger ones. Even if it were to happen, I am only concerned about the path that Miss Liz’s generation will take, but… to continue on with gentle culling like this…」

He seems to be the most reasonable one here.

But, well… I don’t think a conclusion will be reached no matter how much we think about it.

We weren’t that smart to begin with.

So, in the end, I guess I’ll just have to follow my emotions obediently.

「So, what do you think, Cordelia?」

「…It’s obvious, isn’t it?」

Yeah, I’ve had my stance decided since I heard this story.

So, I endured Hell under Master Liu Hai to fight against all the injustices.

Yes, even if I were to lose my status and cease to be a hero…

「That meddling is none of your business!」

With that, I glared at the goddess.

「You’re just being nosy!」