Chapter 40

My name is Momoko Akesaka.

I was an ordinary high school girl. ...or so I thought.

One day, I was suddenly summoned to a different world.

It sounded like something out of a manga or a game, but it was undeniably real.

This world was on the brink of crisis due to a war with the demon race, and they needed more fighting power. That's why they summoned heroes from other worlds.

The heroes summoned to this different world are given skills by the gods.

The skill I received when I was summoned was "Goddess's Scythe +2."

It was a high-quality skill derived from the war goddess Athena. Its effect was to instantly kill any opponent, regardless of their characteristics or compatibility, even those with immortality, but only if the opponent's level was lower than mine.

In other words, it wouldn't work on anyone stronger than me.

However, my "Goddess's Scythe" had a "+2" bonus effect.

Thanks to this bonus, it could still work on opponents who were somewhat higher in level.

A "+1" bonus effect is somewhat common, but a "+2" is extremely rare.

Thanks to this skill, I was welcomed with more than enough enthusiasm in this different world.

Everyone I met, from the king down, praised me as a hero.

Because of this, I decided to fight hard in this world.

To save this world and return to my original world someday.

However, life in this different world was far more harsh than I had imagined.

Most importantly, this world was far less advanced than the one I came from.

It wasn't just the lack of electricity or smartphones.

The food, bedding, and clothing were all far more rudimentary than I could have imagined.

The staple food of the people in this world is bread.

But it's far inferior to the bread I used to eat in my previous world.

It's as hard as a rice cake, and eating it can chip your teeth.

I had to soften it with water before eating.

There's no tea or coffee or anything fancy like that in this world.

The bedding was unclean and infested with fleas.

The underwear and bras I brought from my original world had long since worn out and turned to trash, and the clothes I now wear in this world are so rough that they feel like burlap sacks.

They constantly irritate my skin.

Most of the people summoned to this different world couldn't adapt to this harsh environment and eventually died from exhaustion.

When I was summoned, there were about ten others with me, but how many of them are still alive now?

After being summoned, they were all assigned to different places based on their skills, and I haven't seen any of them since that day.

By the way, there was one middle-aged man among them who was diagnosed as having no skill. I wonder what happened to him?

Did he die, too?

I must always be aware that I am in a very privileged environment because I have a high-quality skill and am treated well by the king and others.

I will fight, fight, and fight through to the end.

For the people of this world.

Because I am a hero chosen by the gods and given a skill!

* * *

Then, something happened that shattered everything I had.

Thanks to the "Goddess's Scythe +2" skill, I was recognized as the top hero in the kingdom and was sent to the front lines of the war to fulfill my duty.

The enemy was the demon race.

I cut down the monsters they sent, left and right.

The number of monsters seemed endless, and no matter how many I cut down with "Goddess's Scythe +2," it felt like there was no end in sight.

It was a chaotic battlefield that seemed to go on forever.

Suddenly, the chaos stopped.

Both the human and demon races, even the monsters, were so captivated by something that flew down from the sky that they forgot to breathe.

A dragon.

One of the two greatest calamities in this world, as I was often told.

They say that seeing it means you must prepare for death. A monster among monsters.

Why was it here on the battlefield between the demon and human races?

The dragon's aura and presence paralyzed everyone on both sides.

They couldn't even move, let alone fight or flee.

Is this the power of the world's strongest creature, the dragon?

As a hero, I can tell. I can see it.

Even with the "Goddess's Scythe" skill, which can instantly kill any opponent, I can't kill that monster.

The power difference is too great.

Even with the "+2" bonus, no, even if it were a "+100" bonus, it wouldn't be enough to kill that dragon.

I thought I could become the strongest in this world thanks to the skill given to me by the gods. I had hoped for that.

Is the level of the strong in this world far higher than I imagined?

"...To all the inferior races present on this battlefield."

!?

Is this the dragon's voice!?

The dragon is speaking!?

"I am Veil, the daughter of the great dragon king Grinzel Dragon, and I serve the saint Kidan."

The daughter of the dragon king!?

Serving a saint!?

What does that mean!? There are even higher beings than that dragon!? And not just one!?

"Today, I have come to return those who have shown disrespect to my master. They are not dead. It is my master's mercy."

With that, the dragon threw about three people from its hand to the ground.

Were they demons?

"I will make this clear to all the inferior races, both demon and human. My master is merciful and will forgive minor disrespect, but I am not. Disrespect to my master is disrespect to me."

Then the dragon breathed fire.

Not at the ground, but into the sky.

However, the flame was so large that it covered the entire sky, and the heat wave from the aftereffects sent hundreds of soldiers from both the human and demon armies flying.

It was only that much because the breath was aimed at the sky, but if it had hit the ground directly, it would have wiped out both armies five times over.

"If you show disrespect to my master again, I promise that this breath will hit the cities where you live the most. My master's name is the saint Kidan! Remember his name and never forget it! The enemies of the saint are also the enemies of this Grinzel Dragon, Veil!!"

With that, the dragon left, causing a tornado-like storm with its flapping wings.

Even after the dragon left, I was in a daze and couldn't move, just like the other tens of thousands of soldiers.

I had been arrogant.

I had been arrogant, thinking that I could become the strongest in this world just because I had a good skill from the gods.

There is a wall in this world that I cannot overcome.

And one of the absolute beings on the other side of that wall is that dragon.

And the saint who can command even that dragon, who is he!?

The saint Kidan.

Since that day, I have never forgotten his name, not even for a single day.