CHAPTER 1 – I’LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU ALL
Something like being summoned to a world from a game or manga, completely unrelated to one’s own world, and desperately trying one’s best for the sake of that world, makes me unbelievably frustrated.
I’ve always been like this. It’s just fiction, how can people get so attached to it, it would be a different story if it was a story about modern society, I have no idea how people like that could exist.
Now, that aside.
I’m Kaya Minafuchi, a j.a.panese high school girl, and right now I have no idea what’s going on. What it’s like to live in a different world. Some incredible situation that seems like it’s straight out of a game or manga, seems to have unfortunately happened to me.
“Strong one from another world. One who has a n.o.ble soul. Please, protect our G.o.d Tenshi-sama, and bring peace to this world……”
Some old men dressed in weird, profusely decorative clothes, were saying that to the stunned me at a location that seemed like some sort of altar. My cheek twitched badly, and my lips were shaking.
What came out of my mouth was of course,
“I don’t care about that. It’s your world, so do something about it yourselves.”
That’s what I said.
What makes me boil over in anger even more, is that they don’t seem to be listening to me. What’s with this.
“……Well, I’m glad that you appear to be well, Red Guardian of Dawn-sama.”
The lady-in-waiting that forcibly brought me to some room in this G.o.d’s temple that was next to a tall and narrow mountain like j.a.pan’s Mount Tenzan seemed to have a troubled voice. I gulped down the contents of the cup that they brought to me, and somehow managed to suppress the urge to hit the lady-in-waiting who was tilting her head at me as hard as I could, closed my eyes, and spoke up.
“……Um, you know. I think this is already like the eighth or ninth time that I’ve said this. I should have said to stop calling me that already. Do you have a bad memory? Is something wrong with your head?”
The tone of my voice was quite hostile. But, I got no responses from her even when I smashed the cup, and she kept managing to treat me courteously somehow. What’s more, I’ve been requesting the same thing from this lady-in-waiting that I met just today for about seven or more times already.
“I should have properly introduced myself for our first meeting. I think it was just sometime this morning. I think I’ve explained so many times already, that I don’t acknowledge your duty towards this Red Guardian thing you’re calling me. That’s why, calling me that really rubs me the wrong way and I’ve asked you to stop so many times already. Honestly, even though you keep calling me milady, if you keep doing that it wouldn’t be strange for this lady to slap you. Please stop calling me that.”
In a low voice, I spat all that out at once.
Even though it was already dark outside, birds were still singing tranquilly. Even though they were like that, my stress was at its maximum and a vein was about to burst from my forehead, this is the most irritated I’ve ever been.
Really, it’s not that I’m easily stressed out and frustrated, it’s that this morning, the entire world around me changed. I feel like I’m about to explode. It’s all the fault of the people from this world.
“Well…… But, the Red Guardian of Dawn, is the number one guardian of the G.o.d Tenshi-sama, and it’s a very honorable duty……”
“I know nothing about that. I mean, this G.o.d, has nothing to do with my original world at all. I’m not even indebted to this G.o.d, so why should I be expected to protect him? Ordering someone to protect such a G.o.d, I can’t see any reason why I should accept, and I hate the very idea.”
“Our G.o.d Tenshi-sama is a wonderful one. It’s very worthy and n.o.ble to serve him for the rest of your life……”
“Um, I, am not a slave you know.”
Although it’s the first time I’ve heard this lady-in-waiting speaking, I cut through her elegant voice like my words were daggers. As expected, seeing how serious I was, she fell silent again. She’s probably a perfect match for those that are terse.
“If you don’t want to get beaten up, get out from my sight. Immediately.”
The sound of her rustling clothes faded as she hurriedly ran away. I finally opened my eyes, and was able to unclench my teeth at last as there was no more source of stress right next to me.
I was summoned to another world this morning.
It was the first time my entire family would have eaten together in a while. My older brother who’s already moved out and become independent came back for a visit on holiday, and even though it was a bit early, my entire family headed out to our favorite restaurant for an early lunch.
That’s when it happened. I heard a mysterious voice that I couldn’t tell where it was coming from, and just as I was wondering about it, the next moment I was summoned to another world. I was sitting on something that seemed like an altar in a wide s.p.a.ce that didn’t seem like the buildings I was used to. There were about ten or so people prostrating themselves toward me for some reason. My first impression of them made me think that as unbelievable as it was, they must have been RPG cosplayers or something.
While I was still confused at the completely unfamiliar location, one of the people who had been kneeling before me stood up, and this is what he said to me.
“Traveler from another world, child of the G.o.ds from the world of blue oceans, welcome to the world of dawn, Akatsuki. We have been waiting for your arrival, thank you very much for coming.”
Exactly what is he saying. What are these t.i.tles? No, their cla.s.s system has nothing to do with me. ……Another world? Another world? No, it couldn’t be, how ridiculous.
The general meeting of my shrine maidens…… Akatsuki? What’s all this? (TL note: It doesn’t really translate to English, but these are h.o.m.onyms in j.a.panese, and she didn’t understand what they were saying.)
“We are of the red world, ruled by Tenshi, and milady’s world is called the blue world of oceans. This is the red world. Since we are next to the blue world of oceans, this should be a world with few differences from yours.”
Probably, at this time I had already figured out the current situation with frightening speed. After putting together the sounds into something that made more sense, I somehow understood what they just said.
“The red world is the first one that’s achieved peace thanks to the management of Tenshi. We have summoned milady here, to have milady become the Red Guardian of Dawn, in order to defend Tenshi and become his guardian.”
It’s a great help that I’ve dabbled in anime and manga to some extent. Setting aside the issue of whether to believe them, I was able to organize their statements and figure out what was going on in a short period of time.
I was summoned from my world which they’re calling the blue world of oceans, to a place called the red world where Tenshi protects the peace, and it seems that they summoned me because they want me to become his guardian.
Then, the person who had been talking to me kneeled back down again, and the person next to him stood up and began talking. The first person that had stood up was already an old man, but the one who stood up this time looked much more elderly, he looked so weak like he should have belonged to a hospital or nursing home.
“Strong one from another world. One who has a n.o.ble soul. Please, protect our G.o.d Tenshi-sama, and bring peace to this world……”
The old man seemed to be sincerely pleading with me from the bottom of his heart. Well, the echoing sounds of his pleading didn’t get through to me at all.
I’m just going to refuse them straight up.
“I don’t care about that. It’s your world, so do something about it yourselves. Sorry, but I’m not that nice and I’m not the type to help everyone. If you can’t do something about it by yourselves, then just accept the end results and give up already.”
As I spat out those cold words, it caused a commotion in the people prostrating themselves before me.
“That’s why, I don’t even want to listen to any more of your story, so please return me to my original world.”
“T, that’s! This is……”
“There’s nothing to it, really. I’m refusing your sudden request. This is the end, so please ask someone else.”
The people kneeling raised their heads and looked at me in confusion.
“……That’s not possible. Please, we humbly request this of you……!”
“No, even if you desperately ask me, I’m not going to listen. I mean, arbitrarily calling on me just like that, I have my own circ.u.mstances going on as well. Is this a bad joke? You’ve basically kidnapped me. An abduction. And you still have the nerve to request something of me? What’s more, protecting this Tenshi, how long would it take? Forever? At the very least, you’re probably not talking about one to two hours, right? I don’t have the time to unreasonably accompany you guys for this, and even if I had the time, I wouldn’t do it. I mean, you’re saying you want me to be a bodyguard, right? Doing something like bodyguarding, isn’t it quite dangerous? Why should I have to risk my life for some strangers I don’t know and a world I don’t know? I don’t understand at all.”
I said everything on my mind that was making me angry, and by the end I wasn’t even using polite speech anymore.
Well, since they were the ones who basically kidnapped me, there’s no need to be polite with them. They’re just people from another world, there’s no reason to respect them.
After I said all that in one go, the old man in front of me was turning pale. I wonder if they’ve realized that what they’ve done is wrong.
“If it’s like this, then there’s no helping it. Everyone, capture the Red Guardian of Dawn!”
……Eh. What?
In accordance with the old man’s command, ten people close to me came flying at me in unison.
Of course, I scratched, beat, kicked, bit, pulled hair, aimed at eyes with my fingers, and attacked weak points, resisting them to the point of fully intending to kill them, but the number of people just kept increasing.
In the end, I was captured with the force of numbers, violently forced down, and something hot was dripped on my forehead –
“For now, burn a curse into her. Don’t leave a scar! Take the Guardian to the Palace of Red Dawn!”
Something is burning on my forehead, it hurts really badly. Having lived peacefully in modern society, I’ve never experienced such pain before. I was desperately screaming for the first time.
Then, a seething grudge boiled up in me, and this was the next thing to escape my throat.
“-I’ll never forgive you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”