The Person Who Gives Some Vaguely Appropriate Hint, Then Disappears

'Phew, looks like your episode has finally passed.'

"Stare."

'What are you peeking at from behind there? I blew you away.'

"Respawn. That mercilessness means you're back to normal."

'Sorry for the trouble. I'm glad you managed to restrain yourself.'

"Hasn't your episode gotten a lot worse?"

'It seems that the less hesitation I have about attacking you, the less restraint I show during an episode, too.'

"I see."

'I don't normally go around blowing people away as a greeting, either.'

"So the less reserved you are with me, the worse the backlash during an episode gets. Maybe you should show a little restraint in general, Goddess-sama."

'If I could properly punish your disrespect while holding back, I would. But that wouldn't teach you a lesson.'

"Hehe."

'I wasn't complimenting you. Also, if you have any spare body pillows of me, hand them over. I'm confiscating them.'

"Sorry, but I sacrificed them to help me escape from you, so I'm waiting for a new shipment."

'Where are you ordering them from?'

"Amaz〇n."

※I don't think they have them.

'Don't set up an online shopping portal in the Goddess's space without permission.'

"Oh, I still have my own body pillow, though."

'I use it as a punching bag, so I'll take it.'

"Hmm, I don't think that's what it was meant for, but if it makes you happy, Goddess-sama, that's fine."

'Anyway, I did cause you trouble, so I'll at least make a small gesture to atone.'

"Then why don't we have you draw this time's suggestion?"

'That's a much simpler request than I expected.'

"I thought your good luck as a goddess might help you draw a good prompt."

'Last time I drew one, it was the voice in your head that announces level-ups, wasn't it?'

※See Chapter Six.

"Yes. I trust you'll draw a sensible reincarnation destination, Goddess-sama."

'I doubt anything good can come from a prompt submitted to the suggestion box, but fine. Rustle, rustle. From Kō-san: “The person who gives some vaguely appropriate hint, then disappears.”'

"Yes! A person!"

'That's normal, but considering your reincarnation destinations so far, it is a remarkable improvement.'

"Come to think of it, when I reincarnate as a human in another world, will I look different?"

'In most otherworldly reincarnations, your appearance changes. Sometimes you just grow younger, but your gender and even your race can change, too.'

"So looking exactly the same is out of the question."

'Then it would be more like transferring to another world. Even if you reincarnate as a baby, the environment you grow up in will be different. I imagine your features will change at least a little.'

"Growing up all over again sounds like a lot of work."

'Reincarnation is a chance to start your life over. You might not have felt it much since you've been reincarnating as objects.'

"I've experienced it as a hermit crab and an armadillo, though. When I was the voice in someone's head, I already had a certain form from the start."

'You weren't actually human then, so your soul's shape must have influenced your appearance.'

"Wow, this really feels like a proper otherworldly reincarnation."

'It certainly does. This is your thirty-first time, after all.'

"Hmm, when it comes to reincarnating as a human, the waiting list gets a lot longer, so it's hard to adjust."

'That's right. Human reincarnations are popular, so unless you come up with a somewhat unusual approach, you'll have to wait your turn.'

"But if I get to spend that time with you, Goddess-sama, maybe it wouldn't be so bad."

'Unfortunately, the waiting period starts after your reincarnation begins, so you'll be stuck in the void.'

"I bet a fair number of people who reincarnate in other worlds attain enlightenment along the way."

'Reincarnation and otherworldly reincarnation are similar but different things. Still, I suppose some people might reach enlightenment after spending thousands of years in the void. Though any memories of the void should disappear once you reincarnate.'

"By the way, do people who reincarnate as the usual Heroes and Demon Kings really have to wait that long?"

'Most of them probably get special treatment as exceptions. The creator of that world chooses them as a special case. People who happen to catch their eye and seem suited to weave a story in the world they created get preferential treatment. There are also cases where compensation is owed for accidentally getting someone involved.'

"Ah, like when a god accidentally kills someone or something."

'In practice, it may have been within the creator's intentions. But accidents do happen, so it's hard to say for sure.'

"We've been having a surprisingly serious conversation."

'You're right. We've talked so long there's hardly any time left. Hurry and set things up.'

"I think this setup should work... All right, no waiting period."

'A reincarnation with no waiting period comes with a pretty serious handicap... But I'm sure you can manage somehow.'

"I'll do my best. Well, off I go."

◇

'Now that he's reincarnated as a human in another world, I'm sure he managed to enjoy a happy life. ...Yes. This is for the best.'

"I'm back."

'Let's have you respawn once first.'

"Hmm, a sudden-death attack for no reason really makes me feel like I'm back."

'How does dying instantly make you feel alive? You reincarnated as a human, and yet you've come back?'

"Well, I mean, I was human, sort of."

'Didn't you reincarnate as the person who gives some vaguely appropriate hint, then disappears?'

"Yes, something like that."

'You're being rather vague. Give me a specific report.'

"Well, I reincarnated as someone whose role was to give the protagonist chosen by that world's creator hints on the creator's behalf whenever they got stuck during their adventure."

'Can you put that more simply?'

"I reincarnated as the creator's errand boy. Sort of like a part-time job."

'I see. You had a human form but didn't reincarnate as a human. That would explain the lack of a waiting period.'

"The creator was rather overprotective, so I was made to give hints pretty often."

'Creators come in all kinds. Some simply watch events unfold, while others interfere too much.'

"They didn't interfere directly, but without the hints, things could've reached a dead end plenty of times."

'That creator sounds like the sort who hates it when things get messy.'

"Exactly. More than that, they hated things not going according to plan. That's why they accepted my reincarnation: to use me to keep things on track."

'So the protagonist the creator had their eye on was a Hero, after all?'

"No, a mage in the Hero's party."

'Hmm, was it one of those stories where a famous supporting character gets to shine?'

"His name was Teraisa. He was a sixteen-year-old boy, a childhood friend of the Hero from the same village, and a bookish sort who loved magic."

'They really made such an unremarkable character the protagonist?'

"The creator wanted a tale about someone who grew stronger through all sorts of experiences while standing beside the Hero, who was destined for a brilliant life."

'I see.'

"My first appearance came before the Hero set out on his journey."

'That's an early hint.'

"The Hero had awakened his power but wasn't going to set out on an adventure, so things were at a standstill."

'Being a Hero doesn't mean you'll automatically go on an adventure.'

"By the way, here's what I looked like when I appeared."

'A suspicious-looking gentleman in a top hat. You can't even see his face.'

"If I showed my face too early, it would be hard to approach them separately later. I gave Teraisa a hint to get the Hero to set out on an adventure."

'A hint to get a Hero who had no interest in adventuring to change his mind?'

"Yes. “If you become a Hero and defeat the Demon King, you'll probably be popular.”"

'How shallow. Would he really act on such a crass ambition?'

"Thanks to that hint, the Hero set out on an adventure to defeat the Demon King."

'How shallow.'

"My next appearance was in the first nearby village they visited."

'Aren't you giving hints a little too often?'

"Monsters were wreaking havoc on the fields. One of them would be extremely useful in the fight against the Demon King, and the Hero could recruit it, but he was about to pass right by."

'That Hero doesn't sound destined for a brilliant life.'

"So I appeared and gave Teraisa a hint. “Those monsters wrecking the fields are really easy to recruit and super useful. They could come in handy when you're fighting the Demon King.”"

'That's an awfully obvious hint.'

"Thanks to it, the Hero recruited the monster because it would make things easier."

'How shallow. But those hints weren't really coming from you, were they? They were coming from the creator.'

"Right. Every so often, I was summoned and asked to give hints so the Heroes would do this or that."

'Overprotective. Didn't the Heroes find it strange?'

"Teraisa did. I showed up and gave advice so often that he started to wonder about me."

'At least he has the makings of a protagonist. What about the Hero?'

"He thanked me, saying, “Man, you're so helpful! You always make things easier for us.”"

'How shallow. I get the feeling the creator deliberately chose a Hero like that to make the protagonist shine.'

"Yes, the Hero was clearly low-caliber, and Teraisa was guaranteed a moderate share of the spotlight."

'I'm not saying that's bad, but it does feel a little too convenient.'

"Exactly, so I decided to secretly give him a different hint."

'Oh? Now I'm curious.'

"First, I started dropping hints so Teraisa would gradually realize that his and the Hero's paths had been arranged for them."

'You wanted to expose the creator's existence?'

"Teraisa was smarter than I expected. He quickly caught on to what I was trying to do, and with more hints, he began to understand the state of the world. Then he learned that the world was doing nothing but following the scenario written by its creator."

'So he realized he was a character in a story.'

"Yes. Then, while pretending not to notice, Teraisa began thinking about how he could break the creator's scenario."

'Wonderful. A puppet rebelling against its master. That sounds more entertaining than watching a trite puppet show.'

"Once Teraisa understood the situation, he followed the hints dutifully and advanced the story. He calmly went through the prepared scenario: encounters with the Demon King's forces, moderate struggles, a defeat event, a comeback event, meeting the heroine, and so on."

'If even the heroine's appearance was planned, I doubt Teraisa would grow attached to her.'

"Then came the final battle between the Hero and the Demon King. According to the creator's scenario, the Hero would be hard-pressed, but Teraisa would suddenly awaken his true power, turn the tide, and win in a dramatic fashion."

'Even the awakening of his true power was planned?'

"The plan was that once the Hero struggled enough, the creator would grant Teraisa a portion of their power."

'Hmm. So how did things turn out?'

"First, the Hero killed the Demon King in an instant."

'What a twist.'

"Through my hints, I had taught him everything I knew about getting stronger in another world. It was a standard fantasy setting, and the Demon King wasn't all that strong, either."

'But if the Hero had gotten that strong, wouldn't the creator have noticed?'

"Whenever the Hero powered up, I sealed away his strength to make it look like he was growing gradually. Then I released it all at once during the battle with the Demon King."

'You planned that well. The creator must've been surprised.'

"Yes. The creator panicked and abruptly created an entity called the True Demon King to get things back on track."

'So they prepared another mastermind.'

"The True Demon King was made to match the Hero's new level, and just as the creator intended, the Hero struggled. Seeing that, the creator gave Teraisa power."

'Hmm. The scenario was back on track, but... what happened?'

"The heroine killed the True Demon King in an instant."

'What a twist.'

"The creator was focused on the story unfolding between the Hero and Teraisa. The heroine, who barely appeared outside the rom-com scenes, was almost completely off their radar. So I'd given her some serious training."

'The heroine of a protagonist who's stronger than the Hero... It sounds like the lead might change.'

"Yes. Then the creator created an Ultimate Demon King to get things back on track again."

'They didn't have to keep making Demon Kings.'

"The Ultimate Demon King was made to match the heroine's new level, and just as the creator intended, she struggled. Seeing that, the creator gave Teraisa power."

'If the same thing keeps happening, it's not much of a proper story. It's funny as a comedy, though. So what happened next?'

"The monster the Hero had recruited ate the Ultimate Demon King and became the new Demon King."

'There it is, the monster that was supposed to help defeat the Demon King. It seemed like it had no role, but was it really that strong?'

"It had a special advantage against Demon King types, but I'd convinced the creator it wasn't needed since the Hero had grown strong enough. So it ended up relegated to mascot duty in the final battle."

'And that mascot monster ate the Ultimate Demon King?'

"I'm good at working behind the scenes. I made its advantage against Demon Kings many times stronger and gave it the ability to devour them, too."

'You've really made a mess of things. But with all that thrown into chaos, did the creator still try to get things back on track?'

"Yes. The creator promptly took control of the mascot, now the new Demon King, and turned it into the final boss."

'Since the creator had made the monster in the first place, they could do that.'

"And just as the creator intended, Teraisa and the others were forced to struggle. Seeing that, the creator gave Teraisa power."

'Isn't that too much power to give him?'

"Yes, but Teraisa and I had been waiting for the moment the creator tried to grant him power while distracted. We'd rigged the process so that when the power was given through the mascot, its output would shoot up dramatically."

'Hmm. If you did that... what happened?'

"The creator ended up giving Teraisa more than half of their own power."

'The balance of power shifted.'

"Yes. At that moment, Teraisa declared his rebellion against the creator and stormed the creator's home, wielding the creator's own power."

'The puppet rebellion has reached an even footing. This is getting good.'

"The creator had to fight Teraisa, and I was called in to help."

'You were the creator's errand boy, after all. Had they figured out what you'd been doing behind the scenes?'

"They suspected me, but I had a plan to cover my tracks."

'With all those unexpected events, it sounds like there was a mole working inside the creator's own camp. You still found a way to cover it up?'

"The Hero killed me in an instant."

'So you lost on purpose.'

"No, I was only an errand boy who gave hints in that world. My level and stats were about the same as a villager's."

'They wouldn't suspect someone who could be killed instantly by a stand-in Hero of being behind everything.'

"In the end, it came down to a one-on-one fight between the creator and Teraisa. Teraisa brilliantly exploited the creator's weakness that I'd pointed out in my hints, and won."

'You even gave him hints about that? Did the creator actually have a weakness?'

"They were vulnerable to criticism of the story's construction."

'A creator with a fragile ego. Authors ought to create what they want to create.'

"Creating a world and weaving a story in it aren't the same as writing a novel. The creator's mistake was forgetting that characters would act even when they weren't in view."

'Even if they hadn't forgotten, I doubt they expected everyone to do whatever they wanted out of sight.'

"Teraisa said to the creator, “If all we do is live out the story you've written, then we're not really living. I want to thank you for creating this world and bringing us into being. So could you act in a way that lets us thank you?”"

'Even after defeating the creator, Teraisa hasn't forgotten to show them respect. A well-written protagonist.'

"Yes. I had quietly been playing dead, but I patted the creator on the shoulder and said, “You created a protagonist capable of all this. I'm sure they'll weave a wonderful story even without us interfering. Why don't we start by watching them?”"

'Those are good words, but not from someone who was playing dead.'

"In the end, the creator promised Teraisa to stop interfering so much. Teraisa was still the creator's protagonist, after all, so Teraisa's words must have touched them."

'Though we probably won't get to see that protagonist's story anymore.'

"That's right. But afterward, Teraisa was appointed as the creator's assistant, and they took on the role of watching over how the world unfolded together."

'Hmm. I suppose that sort of ending works, too.'

"Yes, she didn't seem to mind it."

'Teraisa was a woman? For all that, your usual ulterior motives didn't come into play.'

"The moment I reincarnated, I was told how wonderful Teraisa was. I had no chance of getting between someone and the person they'd fallen in love with, even if that person was a creation."

'So what happened to you after that?'

"I got fired as soon as Teraisa was appointed, and my job was officially done. Then I disappeared."

'They no longer needed someone to hand out obvious hints.'

"That's right. Anyway, here's my souvenir: the mascot that no longer had a role."

'It really is a mascot—a stuffed toy. I thought it had gone from a monster to a Demon King.'

"When the creator took control of it, it stopped being a living creature. I felt bad leaving it there as a corpse after I'd meddled with it, so I asked to have it turned into a stuffed toy."

'Hmm, since we have it, why don't you give it a name?'

"Then how about Hassharyukudehito?"

'That sounds like the name of a demon who'd be killed in an instant.'

※From Syndrome of Wanting to Live a Safe Life Even in Another World.