Chapter 3

Since it's the first day, I'll post three episodes. Please look forward to it.

I woke up with a thud. Thinking I might have fallen out of bed, I rubbed my forehead as I got up and saw multiple pairs of eyes staring at me. Surprised, I looked around and saw a statue of a goddess with a long, narrow window behind it. On the other side of the aisle, there was a white platform about two tatami mats in size where I was standing, and a step lower, there were rows of wooden benches. The place that came closest to my memory was the small church where my sister had her wedding. Although there were some differences, the unique atmosphere was similar. However, the circular pattern in the center of the platform, which was glowing, was incomprehensible. Several young people were leaning forward, staring at me. Next to me, in the glowing circle, a girl I recognized from somewhere was sleeping. But I didn't know any high school girls. As I tried to remember where I had met her, she murmured "Mmm" and woke up. When I saw her open her eyes, I remembered. She was the two-timing girl who had caused my death. Looking at the two-timing girl who had woken up, I felt a sense of unease. She had grown huge. I hadn't noticed it when she was sleeping, but when she stood up, she was more than twice my size. In my life, I was 188 cm tall. If she was more than twice my size... I quickly looked at my own body and saw that my hands, which were touching the floor, were smaller than my three-year-old nephew's. The suit I was wearing was the one I had died in, but my waist had bulged, and the belt had turned into suspenders. The backpack I had been carrying had also shrunk, and compared to the two-timing girl, my body had shrunk to the size of a baby. The handsome prince, who seemed to be completely ignoring me, extended his hand to the two-timing girl. She either understood the situation or was just enjoying the attention from the handsome prince, as she smiled. The prince called her "Holy Lady" and introduced himself as the prince of the country. He naturally kissed her fingertips. I was completely ignored. For some reason, even though they had just met, they were creating a pink atmosphere. Then, multiple footsteps came rushing in, and the door slammed open, with people pouring in.

"Kendal, what is the meaning of this! Explain yourself!"

The man who shouted at the handsome prince was a handsome older man with the same color of golden hair as the prince, around 40 years old. The prince's eyes were green, while the older man's were purple.

"Ah, Father, just now! The Holy Lady has just arrived here!"

The prince, called Kendal, introduced the two-timing girl to the older man, who seemed to be his father, with a full smile. The older man, who seemed to be the king, had a vein popping on his forehead.

"Kendal, I asked you to explain. Why did you hide the arrival of the Holy Lady, a major event for the country? Why didn't you inform me, the king? Why did you even seal off this room with people? Explain now!"

It was only then that the prince, who had been ignoring the atmosphere, realized the king was angry and his face turned pale. He seemed to be a prince who couldn't read the room.

"That... that..."

The prince, stammering and unable to continue, was then interrupted by the two-timing girl, who couldn't read the room either.

"Please don't be so angry at the prince, he must have thought about me, I'm sure!"

She entwined her arm with the prince's, who was turning pale, and smiled at him.

"That's right! This is all for the Holy Lady! To prevent the Holy Lady, who has arrived from a different world, from being frightened, we welcomed her with a small group!"

The prince, as if he had just thought of it, raised his voice. The two-timing girl, who had been clinging to the prince the whole time, was completely locked onto him. The king, who had been watching them, sighed deeply.

"We will discuss this later. First, we need to measure the magic power of the lady to confirm if she is truly the Holy Lady."

He turned and started walking. The people who had come with the king followed, and the prince escorted the two-timing girl out. The few people who had been there from the beginning also left, leaving me alone. As I was wondering whether I should follow, a man who had approached me without me noticing said,

"Are you okay? I'm sorry for scaring you. Let's go to the magic power measurement room. We need to decide what to do from here."

He said this and easily picked me up. It was a baby hold, not a princess carry, where one arm supports the bottom and the other supports the back. I have done this many times, as I have 11 nephews and nieces ranging from 3 to 20 years old, and have been asked to carry them countless times. I never thought I would be on the receiving end. Shocked, I stiffened, and the man patted my back as if to comfort me. When I cautiously looked up, I saw a man with a frown on his forehead and a slight smile at the corners of his mouth. His short, neatly styled blonde hair was much lighter than the king's, almost platinum blonde. His eyes were sharp, his nose high, and his lips thin, making him look like a very well-groomed yakuza. I remembered my sister's mysterious theory when I was a delinquent, "A yakuza is only good if he holds an umbrella for a stray cat in the rain! If you pick it up and try to find its owner, it's no good!" I still don't understand what she meant, but from the way this yakuza-faced man, who was bad at smiling but seemed experienced in carrying children, I could tell he had younger siblings. As I was observing the man, he was carrying me to the magic power measurement room as he had said. The corridor was wide, and there were various people around. On the outer marble-like stone corridor, there were real maids, and on the inner corridor with a yellow patterned carpet, there were people in matching robes or capes. In the center, on a red carpet, there were people in expensive-looking costumes, all of whom bowed in surprise as the man carrying me passed through the center. The man seemed to be important.

After walking for a while with the man's long strides, we finally reached a door with two fully armored knights on either side. I thought they were statues at first, but when the man stood in front of the door, they crossed their spears to block the way. Surprised, I clung to the man, who patted my back and said,

"I have brought the person who arrived with the Holy Lady from another world."

"Please wait a moment while I verify."

One of the knights went inside with a clanking sound, and the other remained with his spear crossed. After a while, the knight returned and said,

"Please enter."

He opened the door and we went in. The room was a large square, about 20 tatami mats in size, with a high ceiling. In the center was a huge gacha machine, about 4 to 5 meters tall, which had an unusual presence. When we entered, about twenty people who were gathered in the center of the room, on the carpet, all looked at us.

"Is that child...?"

The king's voice asked, and the man replied,

"Yes, the child was left behind on the church altar with the Holy Lady, so I brought them along."

The man glanced at Kendal and then at the king. The king, looking at Kendal, sighed.

"I was captivated by the Holy Lady's divinity and didn't notice anything else!"

He said this boldly, and the king pressed his temples. The two-timing girl, perhaps pleased by Kendal's words, clung to him.

"Ha, good, continue the explanation."

The king, who had been interrupted, sighed deeply and resumed his explanation. The huge gacha machine was apparently a magic power measurement device. The part where you insert the coin was a plate made of metal or stone, and when a living being with magic power touched it, the upper part of the machine, which looked like a ball, would show colors and patterns according to the amount of magic power. It was quite a fantastical story. The person explaining was a man in his 30s, wearing a long robe or cape, with long hair tied back and glasses that kept shining. The man with glasses said,

"Then, let's start. Holy Lady, please."

But the two-timing girl, who was clinging to Kendal, said,

"Eh, it's scary..."

and refused to move. The people around her were exasperated and confused.

"Without measuring your abilities and confirming that you are the Holy Lady, we cannot recognize you as such."

The man with glasses said this, and Kendal became agitated,

"What are you saying! I saw the Holy Lady arrive at the church altar with my own eyes! Do you not believe me?"

"Normally, the arrival of the Holy Lady is a major event for the country and the world. It is recognized only after the king, the pope, and high-ranking nobles have witnessed it and the magic power has been measured. I do not know what you were thinking when you hid the Holy Lady's arrival, but we cannot recognize her as the Holy Lady based on the testimony of you and a few others."

He replied calmly. Kendal, unable to respond, made incoherent sounds.

"Then, for safety, I will perform the magic power measurement first, and then..."

"I will! For the safety of the Holy Lady! I will show you my magic power first!"

Kendal interrupted the man with glasses and volunteered. The people around him were exasperated. He freed himself from the two-timing girl and stood in front of the huge gacha machine. He turned back to the two-timing girl, smiled unnecessarily, and slowly placed his hand on the plate. The ball, which had been colorless and transparent, gradually turned blue around the edges and showed a colorful check pattern in the center. The people around him were impressed, and Kendal, with a smug look, returned to the two-timing girl's side. The man with glasses immediately explained,

"The results show that the color of the ball represents the amount of magic power, and the pattern represents the attributes. The magic power is divided into six levels: white, yellow, green, blue, red, and rainbow, from the lowest to the highest. Magic power above green is rare. The patterns represent the attributes..."

"Wow! So the prince has amazing magic power? That's amazing!"

The two-timing girl, who was still clinging to Kendal, interrupted the man with glasses, who was still explaining, and hugged him. The people around them were already exasperated.

"...Now that the safety check is complete, it's your turn."

The man with glasses said, and the two-timing girl, still clinging to Kendal, reluctantly moved to the machine.