Oh no… This is bad.
Who knows, maybe I’ve created something that will turn the world upside down.
“Y-You! Again! Let me try again!!!”
“Get out of the way! It’s my turn now!!!”
“I’ll offer all the faith I have if you let me try!!!”
“Move aside! Move it, I said!!!”
The square of the Divine Hall had turned into a chaotic scene. Countless gods were swarming around Asherith.
At the center of it all was… the prototype machine I had made.
“Hey, hold on! This is just a trial version! Everyone gets one turn, I said!”
“I don’t care about that! Show me what it’s like to be my believer! Let me see the world through their eyes!!!”
“Ahhh, come on!!!”
Asherith, after physically restraining several gods clinging onto her, managed to somewhat organize the situation and looked around while speaking.
“It’s just freshly made, you know! Today is only the trial run! A test! So calm down and wait!!”
“To make us go through this and then tell us to wait?! Isn’t that a bit too much?!”
“What do you want us to do when there’s nothing else?! The Goddess of Life is working hard right now, so please wait patiently!!”
Mass production isn’t even ready yet? I just set up these tests to gauge reactions for now.
Why does it feel like everyone thinks mass production has already started? There are still so many issues with the hands that need fixing!
“Hmm, that’s right! Then we should ask the Goddess of Life to hurry up and finish making it!”
“Hm, but what if the Goddess of Life gets mad? Or worse, she might cancel the project because she finds it bothersome….”
“Ugh… considering the personality of the one who wiped out a significant number of gods… it’s not impossible.”
What’s wrong with my personality!? For your information, this is a pretty decent personality! And the reason I got rid of so many gods was because they were crossing the line!!
Ugh. Did I make a mistake creating this thing? Uuuugh…
Ah, whatever! First, I’ll mass-produce the minimum-function prototypes and distribute them. Then, I can gradually upgrade them to high-performance versions!
That way, complaints will disappear!
Seriously, what is happening here?! My workload keeps increasing!
I just wanted to live lazily without doing anything! But every time I do something, the workload grows exponentially…. Ughhh…
—
Somehow, the prototype I made sold like hotcakes among the gods.
Wait, it doesn’t even have a proper name yet, and it’s selling like this? What is this thing?
After trying out the prototype installed in the square, the gods immediately purchased it without hesitation. Word-of-mouth spread quickly, leading more gods to try the experience themselves, buy the device, and spread the word further. This cycle repeated endlessly until eventually…
An astonishing 100% of the gods owned the prototype.
What is this? This is terrifying… Just testing it a little bit resulted in such an explosive reaction. Was it really because the gods lacked entertainment?
Still, since it’s just a prototype that allows viewing from the perspective of a believer, it was easy to produce without any major problems, which is fortunate.
One regrettable point though… it still doesn’t have a proper name. Hmm… let’s give it a temporary one. Since it lets you experience human life, how about “Life Experience Machine”? Hmm, sounds too rigid.
Since it provides a virtual reality-like experience… hmm. It’s not VR since it’s not fully virtual. Full dive… dive…
Since it dives into life, how about “Life Diver”? Shortened, LD…? Hmm. Maybe I’ll go with this for now. Just a temporary name, though.
And to ensure the gods don’t overindulge or get addicted, I’ll set it to automatically exit when the subject falls asleep. For the official version, I’ll add more features for better enjoyment.
Thus, development of the temporarily named “Life Diver” proceeded smoothly.
—
Initially created as a toy for the gods, the Life Diver (LD) revealed an effect I hadn’t anticipated.
As gods used the LD to observe from the perspective of their believers, they began to develop attachments to humans.
Originally, humans were merely seen by the gods as sources of faith, resources, laborers, tools for conversion, etc. However, through the LD, the gods experienced the individual perspectives of their believers over time, fostering emotional connections.
Well, even if the attachment is akin to treating humans like pets beneath them…
Considering that before, humans were viewed as mere crops for harvesting faith…
Hmm. Anyway, it’s definitely a good thing that the gods started cherishing humans. It means fewer humans will suffer under the gods’ troublesome prophecies.
However…
“Please, O Goddess of Life! Revive my believer!”
“No.”
“Please! I’ll do anything! Please!!”
“No means no!!”
It’s rather problematic that some gods have become so attached to humans that they’re asking to revive those whose lifespans have ended.
While I understand their feelings… it’s simply impossible!
“There’s no way….”
“If it’s healing someone before death, curing illness, or mending injuries, that’s possible. But reviving the dead? That’s beyond my abilities! Now go back! Don’t interfere with the development!”
Development must continue! Like adding restrictions on avatar creation points! Sensory restriction features for overly sensitive gods!
Fixing bugs where the sound cuts off, the perspective flips occasionally, or sudden pain forces users to eject from the LD!
Additionally, for gods with few believers or whose believers only perform meditative practices without much excitement, I should create a sharing service for followers affiliated with the Church of Life!
For gods stuck watching elderly humans nearing death groan in bed or those repeatedly resetting the LD until they find an appealing subject, I need to add a search function for specific conditions!
Also, introducing premium features via small faith-based payments for advanced LDs, allowing external support!
There’s so much work piled up! Why am I listening to these childish requests from the gods?!
Where’s Asherith? Asherith!!! Aren’t you supposed to handle the gods instead of me?!
Ah! Damn it! She’s immersed in the LD!!! That idiot!!!!
After forcefully ejecting a god clinging desperately to me, I forcibly pulled Asherith out of the LD.
“Eh?! Wha, what’s going on?!”
“What’s going on? You! Aren’t you neglecting your duties by being obsessed with the LD?!”
“Ah, w-well, you see….”
Asherith stammered, clearly aware of her wrongdoing upon seeing my angry expression.
“Do you understand why I’m angry?”
“Y-yes… It’s because of the LD… right?”
“It’s not just because you used the LD! I’m angry because you’re ignoring your responsibilities due to your obsession with it!”
Asherith couldn’t respond to my words.
How bad is it that even prayers from believers that Asherith should handle are coming to me?! While developing, I also have to listen to believers’ prayers with half my mind!
Thanks to this, I’ve become quite skilled at multitasking, but this isn’t right!!!
“I-I’m sorry….”
Asherith immediately deflated. Normally, she’s the one nagging me to do work, but now the roles have reversed.
Well, it just shows how engrossed she was in the LD.
Ah! That’s right! Should I add a feature to allow work while using the LD…? Hmm, probably not a good idea since it would break immersion.
Though it might disrupt full immersion, at least it could prevent work from piling up… Hmm. Maybe I’ll make it a feature available only in high-grade models.
“Anyway, don’t neglect your duties. Got it?”
“Y-yes… I’m sorry.”
With that, I scolded Asherith and returned to the workshop where I was developing the LD, only to find…
“Hmm… Is this it? Could this be the one?”
“P-please stop. If Her Ladyship sees this…!”
A flustered Freyja and an unfamiliar young-looking deity stood next to the LD I was developing.
Who’s this? Never seen this god before.
A fluffy white-haired child with innocent sky-blue eyes glowing brightly.
Hmm… Could it be?
“Cloud Whale?”
Upon hearing its name, the young deity widened its eyes and quickly hid behind Freyja.
“I-I’m sorry! I won’t touch it recklessly, I promise!”
“Whale-sama! Hiding behind me won’t make you invisible!!”
Hmm. I wondered if it was him, but it really is Cloud Whale, huh?
Did he gain the ability to transform into a human? Makes sense, considering his role in giving birth to new life and possessing immense power.
Just because he has the intelligence of a child, he hasn’t been able to take human form. He’s the eldest among the gods under me, the Goddess of Life, after all.
Being the one responsible for bringing all life into existence is no small task.
“I won’t be angry, so please step forward.”
“R-really? Are you sure you won’t be mad?”
“Yes.”
With that, Cloud Whale timidly emerged from behind Freyja, looking like an adorable little girl in every way.
