The
next day, Shinji and Renka visited the Miko room in the <Medio> temple.
Shinji, who had visited the temple many times before, was used to it, but
Renka, who had only been there once before, was quite nervous. It was
understandable, since she was being invited by the Goddess and Miko, a
situation that would be impossible for a normal person.
After
they had arrived, holding hands, they were greeted by Miko Arian, Yoriko,
Flair, Sylphyi, and Marie. All five of them looked at Shinji and Renka, and Shinji
opened his mouth while gently holding her hand as Renka put all of her strength
into their joined hands.
「Good
morning, Arian. Good morning everyone」
「Good
morning, Danna-sama...」
Miko
Arian is the first to respond to Shinji's greeting, and the rest of the group
takes turns speaking. Renka sensed from Shinji's behavior that he had been here
many times as an Apostle and had interacted with them.
↓ Continue to Read ↓
↓ Continue to Read ↓
（It
didn't really feel real, but... it's amazing, right?）
At the
time of the nomination request, Renka was too nervous to take a closer look at
the room. But now when she looks it again, she can't help but feel that it's a
beautiful room based on white color, and she can't help but admire Miko Arian's
beautiful figure.
「Um...
Could I call you Renka-san...?」
「Y-Yes!
Miko-sama!」
Miko
Arian who saw Renka was getting overwhelmed approached her. In her own way, she
was trying to be friendly and close the distance, but in fact she was making
Renka more nervous.
「Um...
Arian wished you could... support our husbands as his wives... and I hope we
can get along...」
Her
words reminded Renka of the story Shinji had told her last night. Because of
her position as a Miko of the Goddess, she is under constant guard outside the
temple. Within the temple, the priests kneel down to her, and Renka hears that
she has no one she can call a friend.
（Shinji
told me that if I don't want to join, I can refuse...）
What
she meant was that she was invited to this place to try out the magic to cross
the world. She was astonished to hear that it was approved by the Goddess, but
since Shinji had told her about the apostles, she had been thinking that there
might be a time when she would be involved. That's why Renka didn't turn down
the offer and said she would accept the invitation.
（Because
I'm the one that Shinji chose. So, I must be a woman with guts!）
It was
a strange thing for her to think that way. Still, Renka smiled as usual as
Shinji and the spirits watched Miko Arian and Renka.
「All
right. Then I'll take your word for it and call you Arian. You can call me
Renka, too」
Renka
held out her right hand, not only verbally, but also to show that she was equal
with her as a wife. Miko Arian did not know that the hand was for a handshake,
and blinked her eyes. That was how absolute her position as a Miko was in the
temple.
However,
after a beat, Miko Arian understood and her expression turned to joy. Her smile
was full of mystical beauty, and her gesture of taking Renka's hand as if to
wrap it tightly in both of her hands was adorable even from Renka's point of
view.
「Yes,
Renka..... I'm so happy...!」
「Nice
to meet you...!」
Renka
smiled back at Miko Arian with a little heart pounding and waving her hands up
and down.
「Miko-sama,
it's good for you~noja」
「Yes~.
Shinji-san is relieved, isn't he~?」
「I
guess so...」
Shinji
nodded vaguely as the spirits looked over at Renka and Miko Arian with
heartwarming expressions.
It was
certainly nice to see that Renka and Miko Arian's meeting had gone well.
However, this is only the beginning.
（I
have to become a good balancer...）
Being
an apostle of the Goddess and marrying a Miko are the intentions of the
Goddess, and cannot be changed now. If that is the case, then the only thing
Shinji can do is to do his best to make them happy.
**b
「Please
take care of me... Renka is my first friend... I'd like to talk to you about
something...」
「Of
course you can. Let's see...」
「I'm
sorry, but the Goddess is here」
As
Renka was being overwhelmed by the pure goodwill of Miko Arian, who was eager
to have a casual chat, Yoriko, who was standing alone in a high position,
interrupted her. At the word “Goddess”, Miko Arian regretfully let go of
Renka's hand and lined up next to Shinji.
「Renka...
See you later...」
「Oh,
yeah. Right...!」
Suddenly,
Yoriko's presence changed. At that moment, Miko Arian and the spirits bowed
their heads in a polite bow.
「All
of you may raise your heads」
Even
though the voice was the same as the previous one, the dignified voice sounded
completely different to Renka's ears. Renka felt that everyone except her
raised their heads, so Renka also raised her head.
Renka's
eyes met with Yoriko's, the Goddess Arian, and Renka felt in her soul that she
had a real Goddess in her.
「Welcome,
Renka, and thank you for being my daughter's friend」
「T-That's
too much to ask...!」
Goddess
Arian looked at Renka with a smile as she bowed her head, but Renka also had a
firm respect for the Goddess.
「I
hope you will continue to support Apostle Shinji. And that you will take a good
look at his magic today」
「Yes,
thank you very much...!」
「Goddess,
please don't put pressure on her...」
「Fufufu,
I can't let your wives see me in such a shameful state, can I? Apostle Shinji」
Even
though Shinji gave him a protesting look, Goddess Arian seemed to be in a good
mood and smiled. It was quite casual, and Renka was able to smile a little.
（I
heard from Shinji that Renka is fine with respect, but I guess it's true）
Goddess
Arian heard and understood Renka's feeling. After the formal atmosphere
lightened up, Goddess Arian spoke the main topic of the day.
「Then,
get ready to test the magic of the <World Gate>. Flair, Sylphy and Marie
will create a barrier to prevent others from detecting the magic of the Apostle
Shinji. As soon as that is done, Apostle Shinji will test his magic」
「「「As
you wish（~noja）」」」
Each
of them started to prepare.
「Then
I'll get ready too」
With
that, Shinji moves away from Renka and Miko Arian.
「Shinji
can do it!」
「Danna-sama...
I believe in you...」
Shinji
smiled at their encouragement.
- Renka-chan meets Miko Arian.
- Proceed with the story!
