The other party spoke with a hint of collapse in her voice.
Seeing this, Tsukimi Ryuune calmly explained.
That is because the request you made to me was only to become the champion. It did not include anything else.
And now, you have already obtained the honor you wanted. By all accounts, our transaction has already concluded.
She looked at the girl in front of her with a blank expression, not a trace of pity in her eyes.
“What…”
“No, that’s not it, God sama! The championship I wanted wasn’t like this!”
That has nothing to do with me. You simply failed to express yourself clearly.
Her voice was cold.
At the same time, Sato Iri, who realized the white cat god seemed angry, instantly became flustered.
“I-I’m sorry!”
“It’s my fault, it’s my mistake. I didn’t make myself clear. Please forgive my ignorant recklessness, God sama!”
Tsukimi Ryuune remained silent. However, seeing that the other party’s attitude was still relatively good, she decided not to pursue the matter.
As long as you understand your place. How could a mere mortal question a god’s decision? Besides, without my help, do you think you could have obtained everything you have now?
“Yes… I’ve always been very grateful that God sama gave me the chance to fulfill my wishes. So, could you let me make another exchange? This time, I’ll definitely explain what I want clearly.”
In the end, she couldn’t escape her own desires. But thinking about it, that made sense. The reason the other party respected her was precisely because she could help fulfill her wishes.
She suddenly felt a little bored. She was supposed to be a lofty god, yet she felt like she had become nothing more than a wishing tree.
Is that so? What do you want to exchange for this time?
“I want to obtain swimming talent that surpasses all my competitors. The kind where no one can defeat me, no matter who they are.”
Seeing that the other party had allowed her greed, Sato Iri spoke impatiently.
…
Have you thought this through? The price for this wish is not low. Also, what do you plan to offer in exchange this time? Your lifespan again?
“Yes.”
The latter answered very decisively, as if she were treating her life like an endless supply of currency to be spent at will.
Tsukimi Ryuune rarely hesitated for a moment. After thinking it over, she decided to warn the girl first.
Don’t blame me for not reminding you. This wish costs thirteen years.
“Thirteen years? Why so much? Didn’t becoming champion only cost one year before…?”
Seeing the other party’s completely clueless expression, she felt a trace of absurdity.
So she still didn’t understand the logic behind these transactions at all.
Because fulfilling wishes in my case is nothing more than an equivalent exchange.
There is no such thing as obtaining more with very little cost. You wanted to become champion, so I let you train one extra year compared to others, then applied the results of that year onto your competition day. That’s why you had an advantage over the other competitors.
“What…?!”
Did you not understand? I feel like I’ve already explained it very clearly.
“Wait, wait, wait…!”
“God sama, do you mean that all the wishes I’ve fulfilled were obtained by overdrawing my own life?”
Sato Iri seemed to have realized something. Her entire being fell into a daze.
What else would it be?
Just like with that Asano. He originally didn’t like you. If you wanted to be with him, I had to spend twenty years letting you grow into the kind of person he would like. That’s why he accepted you after you confessed to him again.
“So… it was like that…”
“So if I want to become the undisputed number one in swimming, I have to pay the equivalent of thirteen years of effort in lifespan… Only then can I become stronger than everyone else. I-Is that right…?”
Her voice trembled slightly as she finished speaking.
Mm.
It seems you’ve already understood the logic of equivalent exchange here. So, are you still going to insist on making this exchange just for the sake of appearances?
“…”
“God sama… Can you tell me how much lifespan I have left?”
I cannot.
I already told you that last time.
“O-Okay.”
She looked at the latter calmly.
In truth, Tsukimi Ryuune had considered telling her. But if she did, she would end up seeing a human who rationally managed her remaining lifespan.
She was not some kind, benevolent god. She was already a god—what use did she have for accumulating so-called merit? Rather than that, watching a person struggle between survival and desire was far more interesting. At the very least, it would help her understand what human nature truly was.
A trace of difficulty and hesitation flashed through Sato Iri’s eyes. Making wish after wish had already cost her decades of lifespan. However, because the effects of losing lifespan didn’t directly show on her current self, she didn’t truly feel afraid of it.
“I only just went from being a completely ordinary person to someone everyone pays attention to. I don’t want to go back to how I was before, becoming someone everyone looks down on…”
“So please, take my lifespan, God sama. I want to become the person I dream of being!”
There was a determination in the other party’s eyes that she couldn’t understand. Since things had come to this point, Tsukimi Ryuune no longer tried to advise her. She simply waved her hand and directly deducted thirteen years of the girl’s lifespan through her authority as the ruling god.
After the transaction was complete, Sato Iri felt her entire body become both light and filled with power. She had reached a peak state she had never experienced before.
How do you feel now?
“I-It’s amazing. I feel ridiculously strong right now…”
“So this is what it feels like to burn your life away. It’s incredible.”
The other party’s eyes were filled with excitement. She clearly didn’t care that her remaining lifespan was approaching a critical point.
56 minus 51…
Tsukimi Ryuune silently calculated in her heart.
56 was the age the other party was originally supposed to reach. After subtracting her current age and the lifespan she had traded away…
She gave the still-excited Sato Iri a deep look as the girl left the rooftop, filled with excitement and joy.
She was curious. If the other party knew she only had a few years left to live, would she regret today’s choice?
With this curiosity, she decided to wait quietly.
“Hm? Ryuune?”
“?”
Hearing that familiar voice, Tsukimi Ryuune’s thoughts instantly shattered.
Kagami Yuto hadn’t expected to run into her here either. For some reason, he had chosen to come to the rooftop to clear his head. He never imagined that the moment he looked up, he would see a figure that was impossible to forget.
Tsukimi Ryuune was equally stunned. In order to see the results faster, she had only accelerated time a little. She hadn’t expected to see Sato Iri return—instead, someone who shouldn’t be here had appeared.
“No, what’s going on…”