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Chapter 47: Ultra-Emergency.
Around 5 p.m.
At that time, as most classes were finishing their written exams, some students were checking their answers, while others were already thinking about where to hang out.
Among them was a female student striding confidently out of the dormitory building.
“Well, as long as I don’t get yelled at by the Hero—mm, I’m sure it’ll work out somehow.”
An entity bearing the divine name of "Balance of Order and Causality."
A literal goddess, currently possessing the body of a student who, coincidentally, had a prior connection with the Hero.
Known more by the nickname Pink-Hair than her real name—Misamoto Maho, a Japanese exchange student.
To be precise, she had noticed the Hero from afar and recognized him as the incarnation of the Dragon God, and as a bonus, she "borrowed" the student’s body.
She could have descended directly, considering her close relationship with the Hero, but—this was meant to be a surprise birthday party.
‘If I just descend, he’ll notice right away.’
With how loud and flashy divine descents were, sensitive individuals would notice in an instant.
There was no way the Hero, who was more connected to the divine than anyone else on Earth, would miss it.
He might’ve even noticed if she had descended on the opposite side of the world.
Saving that divine energy for a more entertaining moment seemed like the better plan.
‘Well then, I’ll be in your care for a bit.’
Though pushy like her subordinate, the Hero, the goddess was still polite enough to bow her head respectfully in her mind.
It wasn’t just a disposable avatar from a friendly god—it was a body with its own rightful owner.
Not the Dragon God from the Reverse Earth,
But the actual owner—Misamoto Maho, a.k.a. Pink-Hair—nodded with a bright smile as she watched the outer courtyard through the goddess’s eyes.
‘This prank is gonna be gold. Please continue.’
She was more of a third-party spectator now, eagerly awaiting the drama with popcorn in hand.
* * *
Misamoto Maho.
A Japanese high school girl studying abroad at Seoul Academy.
Naturally pink-haired.
A spiritualist with divine power, and so on.
She could be introduced in many ways, but in Japan, people called her a "shrine maiden chosen by the heavens."
But Maho herself found the title burdensome.
It wasn’t something she had earned with her own effort.
Piety, purity, sacrifice.
The weight of those words pressed heavily on her heart.
In the deep mountains of central-west Japan,
She was born into a branch family of the Izumo Shrine, with over a thousand years of history.
There were strange signs from birth.
Her body was colder than average, her breathing was faint, and her pupils were clouded.
Even doctors couldn’t properly diagnose the strange neurological and immune disorders.
‘Oh dear…’
‘Poor child…’
But the shrine’s residents knew her condition better than anyone.
It was clearly the sign of “Divine Affliction.”
A curse and blessing where a god torments you—and only a god can save you.
People mourned her fate, certain she wouldn’t live long.
There was virtually no chance she would survive.
Worse than an incurable disease.
Yet her parents devoted themselves wholeheartedly to caring for her.
Surviving past six months was already miraculous.
But the most astonishing thing happened the moment her tiny breath stopped.
Everyone had said no one could save her.
At that moment—
—Ahh.
A god appeared.
A breeze through the window frame.
An unseasonal, otherworldly air.
A divine spirit visited the shrine.
A dragon-shaped entity with crimson eyes came to her.
And reignited the fading ember of her life.
Not merely out of pity.
—Oh, poor child. Your fragile body resonates with my powerful soul. How curious and wondrous this is.
The dragon god gently stroked the small, frail body and smiled kindly.
—I shall watch the mortal world through your eyes, in exchange for half your life and half your soul.
It was a divine contract, offered by the Dragon God.
Such a contract could only be fulfilled with the other party’s consent.
But a newborn could not answer.
Just as the god sighed and turned to leave—
“Please save her.”
Startled, the mother of the newborn grasped the deity’s sleeve.
“Please, save her.”
Having given birth, her weakened body and strengthened spirit brought her slightly closer to the divine,
And in that moment of facing a god, what she expressed was not awe or reverence—
But desperation.
A mother’s single plea and heartfelt sincerity carried more weight than a thousand years of shrine tradition, perhaps even more than divine power itself.
The god, slightly at a loss, accepted the contract with the mother instead.
And thus, Maho lived.
But not as a normal human.
With every heartbeat, traces of divine energy flowed through her.
The sacred and wild essence of a dragon.
Whenever the god looked upon the world, that energy reached her through her soul and blood.
Along with the god’s vision, its voice would also touch her mind.
As her body grew, as she aged, she gradually became used to living with two personas.
Or rather, she became a coexisting being.
—I want some cola.
More like having a chill big sister than a mighty deity.
She realized something remarkable as someone living with the Dragon God:
These gods, though great, were surprisingly not perfect.
‘You had some yesterday.’
Even if she talked back in her mind, the god wouldn’t notice.
They weren’t omniscient or omnipotent as legends claimed.
Though overwhelmingly powerful compared to mortals, there seemed to be many restrictions.
Sometimes, when she found golden bracelets or necklaces, she would react with giddy excitement—so human.
She really did feel like a big sister living with her.
The Dragon God might have shown awe-inspiring dignity to others,
But to Maho, her shrine maiden, she revealed everything.
“Ah, I can’t wait. I’m so excited. I wonder how surprised he’ll be when he sees me.”
So even when another god briefly possessed her body, Maho wasn’t too shocked.
It had been discussed beforehand, and the plot sounded intriguing.
‘I need popcorn for this.’
Just like the goddess possessing her body now, Maho looked forward to the events ahead.
As she watched quietly, Maho suddenly noticed something unusual.
Her divine sensitivity, amplified by both the Dragon God's original power and the goddess’s possession, had been triggered.
‘…Huh?’
To be precise, it was the Dragon God’s spiritual power that reacted.
Due to the awakening of her dragon traits, two horns had sprouted above her pink hair.
Majestic and tall.
“…Huh?”
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“Whoa, is that a spirit manifestation?”
The goddess’s confident strut and horned appearance stood out even at an academy known for its oddities.
Even before reaching the rendezvous point, she drew plenty of attention.
Since all this was happening with her actual body, the real Maho tilted her head in her subconscious, then smiled brightly.
‘Well, guess I’ll get a little famous, huh?’
Having almost died as a newborn due to a mysterious illness, she had become the ultimate optimist.
And for someone who knew the situation, it was the intriguing scene that was about to unfold that caught her attention more than anything else.
The birthday star of the day.
Would Shin Yuseong realize that the soul in his body had been replaced by a god?
Or, mistaking her for the usual, would he casually call the goddess “Pink hair” like always?
It might be irreverent, but she couldn’t help being oddly excited about it.
“This’ll be fun.”
At this point, Misamoto Maho had only planned to watch for amusement.
* * *
The Guardian Lion of Yeongnak First School.
Emir was the first to arrive at the club room she had temporarily reserved.
It was a fairly spacious room for a group of five or six, but with a star-studded lineup and recent dungeon raid successes, they had earned it.
Wearing a male student uniform.
Technically unisex—with a jacket and trousers—she stood there with a serious expression, scanning the room decorated with colorful balloons and a [Happy Birthday] card.
“Not a bad setup.”
They could have pulled in church resources and gone all out like a Blue House banquet, but that would have been overkill.
The cozy, homemade vibe would do much better to foster a sense of closeness.
That’s why Emir and Sephine Alavad, as agreed beforehand, blew up the balloons themselves and even prepared the card to decorate the club room.
Once Misamoto Maho and Shin Yuseong arrived, the weekend dungeon party members would be able to enjoy a small birthday celebration together.
“All this for a birthday party…”
It had been a chaotic few days.
Having worked herself and her intel team to the bone to prepare for today, Emir silently applauded their efforts.
Then she smiled brightly as Sephine entered the room.
“Oh, you’re here?”
“Ah, yes.”
As soon as Sephine stepped into the decorated room, she glanced around, checking for Yuseong’s absence, and let out a small sigh of relief.
Only after hiding the gift box she brought did she smile and speak.
“You got the cake and the party poppers ready, right?”
“Yes, I’ll sneak out to get them in a bit.”
“Phew, I hope Yuseong likes it.”
There was definitely more nervousness in her expression than one would expect when just celebrating a friend’s birthday.
Feeling a similar sort of tension from preparing today, Emir found herself relating to her.
…Well, at least that girl gets to enjoy a bit of youthful romance.
For Emir, it was just more work.
‘Might even be worse on my end.’
Clicking her tongue, Emir tried to keep a positive outlook.
It helped that she had dressed to match Yuseong’s gender—maybe that’s why he’d been so cooperative so far.
If they were both women, things might’ve been more tense.
Two girls might be fine, but three could easily turn into a rivalry.
‘Not that I have any romantic feelings or anything.’
As a sort of professional, Emir didn’t care about romance—she just desperately hoped to win the favor of this mysterious monster.
And to do that, she couldn’t afford to wait around like the girl in front of her.
Standing in one corner, she once again raised her hand to her ear with a serious expression.
“Status: where is the Hero now?”
“Currently heading toward the target location. ETA: five minutes.”
“And Maho?”
“She should arrive in about three minutes. Although… something seems a little off.”
“What? Is she sick or something?”
“No… um, looks like she’s already wearing a party headband or something.”
“Really? Hmm, maybe we should’ve all worn headbands.”
Just before the operation began, Emir received the final report and let out a relieved sigh after confirming that there were no major issues.
But just as she was about to return to Sephine, a burst of static came through with an urgent update.
“Uh, the primary surveillance target just came into contact with another person while en route.”
“Who? A professor? Another student?”
“A student… and they seem to be close.”
“…In what way?”
“Well, the girl seems to like the guy.”
Emergency.
Code red.
When you have one handsome guy and four girls in one room, it’s a recipe for trouble.
Not that there was an easy way to handle this.
Emir shut her eyes tight and prayed.
Please, let this birthday party end without any romantic drama.
* * *
Seol Yeonhwa had just finished all her exams and was walking down the hallway when she ran into Shin Yuseong.
Well, to be exact, she had been on her way to find him.
So the moment she saw him, she cheerfully said:
“Want to eat together?”
Yuseong thought for a moment.
He had a small appointment, but Emir and Sephine said it wouldn’t take long, and the goddess hadn’t said much either today.
So it seemed fine to go have dinner with this friend who asked first.
“Sure, sounds good.”
Since they had similar tastes in food, Shin Yuseong happily accepted her offer.
He even thought it’d be nice to introduce her to the others at the Academy.
If they got along, she might be a good addition to the weekend dungeon raid party.
The original purpose of potion-making was complete, but they were still continuing the weekend dungeon runs for fun and pocket money.
Nothing wrong with getting along well with friends, right?
With that thought, Shin Yuseong headed toward the club room with Seol Yeonhwa.
* * *
And thus, the six were about to meet.
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