Prologue

Where am I?

When I came to, I was in a Japanese-style room with tatami mats.

The sliding fusuma was shut, so I couldn't get any sense of what lay beyond it.

More than that, I couldn't take a single step from where I sat. I couldn't even stand up.

Locked in an unfamiliar tatami room, unable to move, I felt an indescribable anxiety welling up inside me.

I was racking my brain for some way out when the silence of the room was broken by the sound of the fusuma sliding open.

"My apologies for keeping you waiting."

The one who entered, speaking those words, was a black-haired woman clad in a pure white kimono.

Just who was she? Given the situation, she was probably the one who brought me here, or at least involved with whoever did. I certainly didn't remember coming here on my own.

Either way, there were a great many things I needed to ask this woman.

"This is a room within my domain in the Divine Realm. I use it for speaking with the souls of the departed and processing their reincarnation."

The Divine Realm? What was that supposed to mean. Souls of the departed, reincarnation… she'd been watching too much manga or anime.

Wait, more importantly, I hadn't actually spoken my question aloud, so why was she answering it?

"Everyone who comes to this room asks the same thing, so I make a point of explaining first."

I see. That made sense, then.

No, wait, that wasn't it. There was something else I should be more concerned about…

She'd said something nonsensical about the souls of the departed. What on earth did she mean by that?

There was too much I wanted to ask, and I didn't know where to start.

"Please rest assured. I will explain everything to you from here."

Looking me straight in the eye, the woman began to speak in a calm, even tone.

"To put it bluntly, you have already passed away, and exist now as nothing more than a soul."

Right out of the gate, a fact so absurd I doubted my own ears came flying at me.

I'm dead?

Just a soul?

If that were true, I shouldn't even have ears.

"Yes. You do not."

Did I say that out loud just now?

And if what she was saying was true, I shouldn't have a mouth or throat to speak with, either.

What in the world was going on…

"I am one of the gods. Reading thoughts is no great feat for me.

Naturally, those who come to this room are not yet accustomed to existing as souls alone, so to make our communication more efficient,

I have been reading your thoughts."

I see… given how far this had already gone, I was starting to believe the bit about the Divine Realm and all the rest might really be true.

But if my thoughts were being read, I was starting to feel a sudden sort of pressure, an awkwardness… and on top of that, the other party was a god…

Couldn't we just talk normally?

"Please rest assured. There is a way for us to converse without my reading your mind.

Picture yourself directing your thoughts at me, and consciously think the question you wish to ask."

"D-did I really die? …Something like that?"

"Yes. Very well done."

Oh, this kind of felt like telepathy.

"As for your question, as I mentioned a moment ago, you have indeed passed away."

I'd already gathered as much when she'd mentioned the souls of the departed, but hearing it stated directly was still a shock.

But I couldn't think of anything that had happened that might have killed me… in fact, I couldn't remember anything at all.

My name, my age, what I'd been doing with my life. I couldn't recall any of it.

"Um… I can't remember anything about myself…"

"Those who are summoned here ordinarily reincarnate with their memories intact, but I took the liberty, please forgive me, of making an exception in your case and erasing your memories."

I see… no wonder I couldn't remember anything.

But why was I the only one whose memories were erased?

"May I ask why I'm the only one whose memories were erased?"

"Of course, I will tell you. Your fate was twisted and toyed with by an Evil God. As a result, you were beset by countless misfortunes, and in the end, you lost your very life. Carrying memories like those would have had a detrimental effect on your soul, so I took it upon myself to delete your personal memories."

With an apologetic look on her face, the woman explained what had been done to me.

Still, there was something I had to press her on.

"Wasn't there any way to do something about it before I died?"

"My apologies. The gods are forbidden from interfering directly with the world below, so this is the only form in which we are able to make amends."

The black-haired woman, or rather, Goddess-sama, placed three fingers to the tatami and bowed deeply.

"Um… please raise your head. It's not your fault, Goddess-sama. And since I don't have my memories anymore, I don't feel any anger or sense of loss about it either."

"Thank you for your generous words."

With a relieved expression, Goddess-sama lifted her head.

If it was forbidden by the rules, there was no point in complaining about it…

Setting aside the matter of my past life, since I'd been summoned, there must be some business at hand.

"So, what was it you called me here for?"

"You were brought here so that I might apologize and explain. As I touched on earlier, you will be reincarnating into another world. Truthfully, I would prefer to send you back to your original world… but that is forbidden by the laws of the gods."

"Why won't the original world do?"

"When a soul carrying memories of a past life lingers too long in a single world, it has a harmful effect on the world below. As they reincarnate again and again within the same world, their desires swell larger and larger, bringing chaos upon it. Since the soul outlives the lifespan of its kind, its desires grow beyond what its station can bear. That is why, when a god allows a soul to reincarnate with memories intact, it must be sent to a different world."

"I see… but if I don't have my memories, wouldn't it be fine, then?"

That's right, she'd just said she'd erased my memories.

It wasn't that I was especially attached to my original world, but I didn't see the point in deliberately sending me elsewhere either.

"That is because your memories have not been completely erased. After all, if they had been wiped clean, we wouldn't be able to converse like this in the first place."

Goddess-sama said this with a beautiful smile on her lips.

Now that she mentioned it, she had said she only erased my "personal memories," and I felt like I'd been making comparisons to manga and anime a moment ago.

"You will reincarnate carrying the memories that remain. If, in this state, you were to reincarnate in your original world and happen to learn the truth about your past life, there's no telling what might happen to your soul. To avoid the worst-case scenario, you cannot be reincarnated into your original world. And if your memories were completely erased, it wouldn't constitute atonement, so this is the form your reincarnation will take."

Atonement, huh… I didn't really feel anything about it at this point, but it would probably be kinder to the other party to accept what was being offered.

"I understand the situation. So, what's this reincarnation going to be like?"

"I am grateful for your understanding. You will reincarnate by merging with a version of yourself that exists in a world parallel to your original one."

Once I'd accepted her apology and gotten my bearings, Goddess-sama began her explanation in a gentle tone.

A world that exists parallel to my own… it must be something like a parallel world. After everything else, this hardly fazed me anymore.

Merging with the me in a parallel world… what would happen to the other me? Wouldn't that mean there'd be two souls?

"There's a me in the world I'm reincarnating into, right? In that case, what happens to that me's soul?"

Even if it was another version of myself, taking over someone else's body still felt a little wrong…

"The Evil God's hand reached even the you in that parallel world… by the time it was discovered, the soul of your reincarnation destination had already…"

Goddess-sama trailed off, looking apologetic as she spoke.

The mood from a moment ago had shifted right back into something grim.

Thanks to that Evil God, my souls across worlds had been put through a great deal of trouble, it seemed.

"If there's no soul, does that mean the body is still there, and that's what I'll be reincarnating into?"

"Yes. Exactly so. By housing your soul in the vessel of your reincarnation destination, I grant you a new life.

Normally one would start life over from scratch, but given your current compatibility, this world is the most convenient option.

Fortunately the body is still young, so you should have plenty of life ahead of you, but please be aware, you won't have any memories of the world you're reincarnating into."

I was relieved to hear that my understanding was correct.

But going in with no knowledge of that world, and at a not-quite-young age too…

I'd have to be careful or people would look at me strangely.

"Um, with this kind of reincarnation, is there usually some sort of mission, like defeating a demon king or something?"

In reincarnation stories, that was the standard setup, but how did it actually work in reality?

With memories that weren't even complete, I couldn't see myself being any use if I'd been reincarnated to fight.

That sudden concern made me abruptly switch topics.

"Please rest assured. You have no such mission. Some people are given one, but not this time. Besides, if you had a mission, it wouldn't be atonement. If anything, your mission would be to become happy."

Goddess-sama answered politely, laughing softly and gracefully.

That had probably been a rather self-important question on my part.

But "becoming happy" as a mission… what a lovely-sounding thing.

"S-so, getting back on track… what kind of place is the world I'm going to?"

"The world you'll be reincarnating into has a civilization similar to your original one, so there's no need to worry.

As for memories of your reincarnation destination, passing it off as amnesia should account for the gaps."

Goddess-sama kindly reassured me as I felt a small flicker of anxiety about reincarnating.

If the level of civilization wasn't that different, I probably didn't need to worry too much.

So that must be what she meant by "compatibility being convenient."

And it sounded like, somehow or other, I'd manage without my memories.

"Are there any other questions? If not, I will move on to the reincarnation right away."

While I was still chewing over Goddess-sama's words, she gently prompted me.

My doubts and anxieties had been laid to rest, so I felt I could face the reincarnation at ease.

"Yes. I'm fine."

A little flutter of excitement at the start of a new life.

…Though I didn't have a chest to flutter yet.

"Understood. Then let us promptly move on to the rite of reincarnation."

Goddess-sama's demeanor hadn't changed at all, but I could feel my consciousness gradually drifting away.

It had only been a brief moment, but I was glad I'd been able to speak with the beautiful Goddess-sama.

At first, when she'd said things like "you have died" and "Evil God," I'd thought it was some kind of joke, but now I was resolved.

My vision was slowly clouding over with white, and I could feel that the time of reincarnation was upon me.

"Oh, that's right. Amnesia or no amnesia, not knowing your own name would be inconvenient, so let me tell you.

Your name is———"