The Outer God Needs Warmth

I left the five people looking at me with touched expressions and climbed the stairs.

Ding dong!

You’ll definitely feel something has changed. In fact, it did change.

But soon, you’ll realize that you yourself haven’t changed at all. Even if you grow stronger or smarter, the life you’ve lived so far continues, right?

It’s like starting to exercise to lose weight and giving up after three days, which is the same as eating more than you exercised.

I pondered about placing limits of three, even here.

I made the harvesting period too short in this second world.

In the first world, many people wanted to extend the harvesting period, so I tried to limit it, and in this second world, I clung to three because the first world had collapsed.

The third world didn’t start with any group association.

Since there was no ability to escape, or a need for abilities, certain rules were needed to parasitize that group.

Even if it wasn’t true, it could be pretended to be true.

But here, there’s freedom. So, I decided to be free.

Of course, the situation might suddenly get weird, and I could be kidnapped and forced to produce only harvesting… but that wouldn’t be too bad either.

Since it’s such a cruel group, it wouldn’t spread like in the first world at an abnormally fast pace.

If it’s a ruler filled with desire, they would use themselves only.

In other words, no problem.

First, I went upstairs to find Victoria.

Victoria was rushing back to the room, realizing I had disappeared. She went back to check the room and turned around again upon confirming I wasn’t there.

So, I went in the opposite direction and we met.

“Hey! I found you!”

As soon as she saw me, Victoria rushed toward me.

That’s understandable.

If she were a normal girl, by now she would’ve been having a rough time in a standard third-class cabin corner. But if she knows that my identity is something monstrous, she wouldn’t need to worry that much.

“Yes, Bell is here.”

“Tell me where you’re going!”

“I didn’t have time to talk! You were too preoccupied with the mechanical device!”

I slightly changed the subject and twisted the story so that it seemed like Victoria was at fault.

“Still, ugh. No, as long as you’re safe, it’s fine. Let’s go to the room.”

“Sure.”

She seemingly felt embarrassed about being so focused on the mechanical device, so she didn’t press further.

I kept my guard up, wondering if something would happen after that, but the night passed without any incident. And when morning came…

The city appeared on either side of the river.

Of course, I knew it from watching outside the window since the ship had docked at a port with a horn in the early morning.

From that port, the ship entered the river and I could see more and more houses in the vast plains little by little. Soon, it transformed into a large city.

And shortly after, as noon approached…

The ship stood at a port in the river that pierced through the middle of a massive city.

Victoria and I got off the ship together. Thankfully, there was no ticket check when we got off, so we could exit without any issues.

As we stepped out of the port, I saw how the iron framework structures and brick houses harmonized, towering to the point of being skyscrapers.

And on the surfaces and inside those buildings, giant mechanical devices were visible, moving around here and there. It felt like a city themed after the inner workings of a winding clock.

In the sky, I also saw objects that looked like high-flying machines, along with wyvern-like creatures carrying passengers soaring through the air.

“Aren’t you surprised at all?”

“I’m surprised.”

“Hehe, right? This is Bern City. The most advanced technology-built city in this country.”

Victoria said to me with a voice full of pride.

Thanks to the strangely energy-efficient power known as magic power, it was fortunate that steam wasn’t involved.

It’s hard to call it arcane punk due to the abundance of wind-up, and it wouldn’t fit as steam punk since there wasn’t any steam.

Gaslamp fantasy? It feels closer to that.

“Taxi!”

As soon as we hit the road, Victoria waved her hand to hail a taxi. Shortly after, a strangely structured tricycle stopped in front of us.

“Need a service? Try our Cogni Transport Company! After selecting the number of people and the destination, you can board after completing the payment!”

It was structured like an inverted triangle, with what seemed to be an engine in the back, and above that engine, a brass figure shaped like a person stood.

It’s an artificial intelligence, isn’t it?

Observing that machinery, Victoria showed no signs of being surprised and explained the number of passengers and the address, then handed over some money.

After completing the payment, the brass machine placed Victoria’s luggage on top of the vehicle and opened the door.

As Victoria and I got in, the arm of the figure in the back moved to close the door, and we set off forward.

I could definitely feel I had entered a different world.

It looked clearer than what I remembered from Victoria’s recollections.

If I were someone who loved to travel, would I have enjoyed this?

I don’t know.

Anyhow, the taxi drove for quite a while and stopped at a place where the skyscrapers were at a distance.

It wasn’t a mansion by any means, but it was a good enough house for someone to live in.

“The Cogni Transport Company is always with you. We hope you use us often!”

The figure attached to the taxi played a short recorded voice before leaving without looking back.

“I’m out!”

Victoria burst through the door holding her bag.

But no sound came back.

Victoria didn’t care and walked in. I followed her inside.

There was a place to take off shoes, but Victoria just walked in with her shoes on.

Of course, that’s not normal. Technically, it can be, but that’s only at home. Generally, you should change into indoor shoes at the entrance as much as possible.

Since it’s our first meeting, I should keep the manners Victoria remembers.

Are the guest shoes a bit too big?

I put on the clunky shoes and walked in.

“What kind of girl are you?”

As I walked down the corridor, a sharp voice echoed.

“Mom, have you pulled another all-nighter? Are you even sane? Put the gun away.”

From Victoria’s perspective, in front of her was a dark-skinned woman aiming a gun at her.

Victoria looked like she was used to this, so it didn’t seem to be a big deal.

“I never had a daughter like you. Where do you come in with your hair dyed like that! I told you if I catch you doing that, don’t set foot in this house!”

“When did I dye my hair?!”

“You poured purple dye all over! Considering you did it to the roots, it wouldn’t be strange to assume you did it on the way here! What are you, rebellious?”

No, that’s…

From a mother’s perspective, it might be odd to think her child suddenly became rebellious.

Before things escalated, I walked inside.

“Hello.”

“Oh my, a guest?”

Her face instantly softened but then sharpened again upon seeing my hair color. But that was brief. As she scanned me from top to bottom, her wariness gradually faded.

Maybe it’s because I look young.

“Torri, who is this?”

Torri is Victoria’s nickname. Victoria let out a sigh of relief and approached me.

“Mom, this is Bell. Bell, this is my mom.”

Victoria’s mom approached me before suddenly moving her hand quickly, flicking Victoria’s head, and standing in front of me.

“I’m Beatrice Bet.”

“I’m Bell.”

As she extended her hand, I reciprocated. When we shook hands, she looked very surprised.

“You’re a young lady. Torri, where did you bring such a child?”

Ah, she’s assessing me based on the handshake.

To be precise, it’s true I was just created not long ago, but it wouldn’t be strange for her to misunderstand if she didn’t know that.

Victoria was frozen, seemingly facing a tough question.

“No, well, Mom, it’s a really long story. It might be a story that would make you faint, so can I go tidy up my things first?”

And deciding to postpone it for now, she pointed upwards with her finger. Victoria’s room is up there. Beatrice stared at Victoria for a moment and nodded.

“Wait a moment!”

Whoosh!

Victoria hurriedly grabbed her bag and ran upstairs. It wouldn’t be proper to move freely with a guest in front of her parents, right?

Beatrice in front of me seemed to think so as she stared at the ceiling where Victoria’s room was with a look of disappointment.

“Ugh, will she ever improve even if she goes to school…? Come over and sit down.”

Recalling me, Beatrice pointed to one side. There was a large table that looked like a multipurpose table.

There were papers scattered all over it, and a few pens of the same type rolling around. Judging by how worn down some were, they must have been used here for a long time.

“Look at my sanity.”

Beatrice hurriedly came over and cleared off papers piled high on the table. A quick glance revealed many papers with large amounts written on them.

According to Victoria’s memory, since both parents were merchants, it’s not strange to have such content.

“So, really, where are you from? How old are you? What’s your surname?”

After organizing a corner of the floor cluttered with papers, Beatrice sat in front of me.

“I don’t have a surname. My age is ambiguous. And I’ll talk in detail after hearing it from Victoria.”

Beatrice’s eyes narrowed gradually.

She realized I’m not an ordinary child. I won’t hide it. I mean, it’s impossible for me to pretend to be childlike.

And depending on how much Victoria reveals, it could be different, too.

“So you’re not an ordinary child. Okay, so do you drink tea?”

“Water is fine.”

“I’m not that stingy.”

After saying that, Beatrice went to the kitchen and began to brew tea.

The fragrant smell wafted through and by the time Beatrice prepared everything and returned to the table…

Victoria came down, wearing a very comfortable outfit.

The level of comfort was something that seemed only suitable for home attire, so Beatrice scolded her, but that was short-lived.

As soon as Victoria sat beside me and started recounting her experiences, the atmosphere changed in an instant.

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