On a Godless Planet:Volume3B Chapter 33
Chapter 33: Super High Impact[edit]
–'Aunt, you look so happy in that flower field…
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That’s amazing, was my reaction.
“Demeter-san is more of a pillager than the average hunting people.”
“She often acts weird what with the drugs and all, but she’s generally quite smart.”
“Heyyyy! I’m only interested in hearing the complimentary parts!”
“Too bad, Busty Olympus! I’d prefer it if we could all have fun doing this together!”
“That’s the human’s usual policy. We’re not interested in being ceded any land, but we would appreciate having a place to call home.”
“I’ll have to invite Koikeya to our ceded land!”
I nodded in understanding.
“But there are still other planets and the land ceding happens when Sumeragi-kun’s terraforming is complete, right? That means this terraforming is really important, so isn’t Demeter-san jumping the gun in trying to eliminate the other mythologies?”
“Not really? We’re a big group, so if Demeter calls us in, we can provide a wide variety of authorities.”
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“That’s right,” replied Raidou.
“If you include the gods under their command, Olympus can provide quite a few occupational gods and nature gods, so they would have an easy time constructing a production system where they produce resources from nature and then have the occupational gods craft them. But Shinto is the same there and Norse isn’t half bad on that front either. Bilgamesh and Kidou have construction and business authorities and Shinsei can provide anything you want in its completed state. …The Olympus gods wouldn’t be providing much we don’t already have.”
“Shinto’s number of real manifestations is restricted by the DC and Norse isn’t a monolith, so you can’t bring in too many right away. Plus, the monotheistic god would be tricky to use with any precision.”
She wasn’t holding back.
Demeter tended to hide her intentions more when she was losing.
That was happening here. So Raidou said more.
“Let’s not forget that Egyptian mythology has a lot of occupational gods, so she’d want to get rid of them too. The ones here are mostly the Hermopolis ones plus a few Memphis ones, but combined with us, they don’t leave much room for the Olympus gods.”
“Plus, there’s someone else Demeko-chan would kind of want to get rid of.”
“Eh!? You mean like the Hyogo Prefectural Police or the Osaka Prefectural Police for getting in the way of her drug dealing!?”
“Heyyyyyyyyy! This isn’t about that!”
“But it is a thing?”
●
Shifu smiled a little.
She knew who Demeko-chan would want to get rid of.
“It’s gotta be Dan-chan.”
“Eh!? Eh? Me?”
“Damn, I guess another harvest god would catch on.”
“That’s right,” said Shifu with a wave of her hand.
“There are a few different kinds of harvest god. The term can cover a lot of different things.”
“Right. A more strictly accurate term would be ‘god of harvest and agriculture’, but it’s often abbreviated to just ‘harvest god’.”
“I was originally a blonde goddess of the land and my name, origins, and motif are related to the wheat harvest, so that’s a little more narrow a definition.”
“Then what about Demeter-san and Dan-san?”
“I am a harvest god in every sense of the term.”
“Demeter really is a ‘god of harvest and agriculture’, but her original authority is something else,” explained Kuwajiri-chan. “The seasons.”
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“Now, the three goddesses concept spread across Europe and the surrounding area. In Olympus, there was Demeter, Kore, and Persephone. Kore and Persephone are seen as the same god, but what season do they control?”
“Based on what you discussed at the meeting of the gods, the three months Persephone spends out of the underworld are spring, right?”
Seito frowned after giving her answer.
“Does that mean Demeter alone controls summer through winter?”
“Right. Her control isn’t perfect, but Demeter controls the majority of the seasons. A simple harvest god wouldn’t need to control all of the seasons. And since she controls winter, which has a connection to starvation, she might have been a powerful nature god before she gained her identity as Demeter.”
Kuwajiri kept going from there.
“Shifting over to Rome for a bit, the oldest Roman calendar, called the Romulus Calendar, was made in the 8th century BCE. In that calendar, the two months corresponding to winter were a ‘blank period’ without any defined dates. A year was composed of 10 months plus an empty winter, which shows us how they viewed winter back then.”
And…
“In an age when winter was feared as a threat due to the lack of agricultural reserves, Demeter was probably based on a seasonal god from the age of hunters and gatherers.”
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“Oh,” I said in sudden understanding, looking to Demeter-san and Dan-san.
“Dan-san’s mountain and forest stuff is from the age of hunters and gatherers too.”
“Right. From that perspective, Demeter controls a season while Dan-senpai controls the mountains and forests. Hunters and gatherers would have placed more importance on Dan-senpai. And from a harvest and agriculture perspective, Shifu-senpai controls the harvest of crucial wheat.”
“Busty Olympus doesn’t bring anything new to the table!!”
“That explains why she wanted to get rid of everyone.”
“I can do it all on my own! That’s what I offer!”
●
“So is what I’ve been doing like in Megami Tensei where you swap out demons who have similar abilities?”
“I’ve never played it, but that sounds like Wizardry 4.”
“And you can’t play either one on a 68.”
“I know Izumi has mentioned that first one before, but what is it?”
<The Megami Tensei he is referring to is a Famicom 3DRPG released by Namco. Its system of recruiting, summoning, and fusing demons is well liked. But a demon’s traits are mainly their abilities and spells, so when a better version of the same demon comes along, you have to think about swapping them out…which can be fun too.>
“I tried to see how long I could keep a Nekomata with me…”
<As for Wizardry 4 that Beisu mentioned, the previous three were RPGs where you put together a party and explored a 3D dungeon, but 4 has you play as the final boss defeated in 1 trying to reach the surface from the bottom level. You can summon familiar monsters on each level, but they also have better versions on the higher levels, meaning you will swap them out.>
“People must really like that… But which one came first?”
<They were both released in ‘87, but Wizardry was released overseas on November 1 and Megami Tensei was released in Japan on September 11, meaning Megami Tensei was a bit earlier. So by pure coincidence, two games with a prominent position in the history of summoning games were released at the same time.>
“Speaking of summoning games, Megami Tensei 2 was fun too, but how long have those kinds of games existed as computer RPGs?”
<Looking just at ones where you summon creatures in battle, the Bard’s Tale, a series of foreign RPGs that used the Wizardry system, allowed you to summon wolves with summoning magic starting in its first game released in ‘85. And if you are only interested in the name and effect, Mugen no Shinzou, an RPG released in Japan in March 1984, had magic to summon spirits and ancient warriors. Or if you are talking about including monsters on your party, you could already do that in Oubliette, a game which can be seen as the prototype RPG and was developed for network systems in 1977.>
“Th-they’ve been around forever!”
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“Anyway,” said Tenma.
“We’re practically spoiled with our lineup of harvest gods. We have Norse Harvest God-senpai who controls wheat as food, we have the Irish representative who controls the forests and mountains for hunting and gathering, and we have Demeter who controls the seasons that support those things. If we could also get the Egyptians to provide a harvest god of fertility and water quality, we would have everything we need to produce food.”
“As a former wild man, I do like that we have the mountains and forests covered.”
Tenma then looked to the terraforming lead.
“Terraforming lead, which of these gods do you consider to be a necessity?”
Human-senpai raised both hands.
“I can explain each harvest god for Senpai!”
He first dashed over to Norse Harvest God-senpai.
“Shifu-senpai provides wheat to eat, but she’s also the current bustiest of the busty, so we need her! But that’s not a problem! She’s already on our side! But ending this here would be disrespectful, so I need to worship her and give thanks for her big boobs! Hahhhh!!”
The idiot immediately struck his own chest and gut eight times like he was using nunchaku. It made a nice sound.
“All done!”
“Where do these random talents of yours come from?
“You don’t know!? They’re the fruits of my nightly labors to further develop and practice my big boobs worship! That should be obvious if you think about it!”
The instant he was done, Human-senpai leaped over in front of the Irish representative.
“Why…is he so fast?”
Demigod-senpai and his partner were tilting their heads thoughtfully, so apparently it really was impressive.
Then Human-senpai looked up at her from a diagonal angle.
“Here we have the Irish version of big boobs worship! Mountains! Forests! Viewed from below, her boobs really are like the twin peaks of North Yatsugatake! I’m curious what the depths of the forest are like, but only the Irish are allowed to tread there! And everyone has sworn to their gods that they must never look behind a bangs character’s bangs!”
“Eh? R-really?”
“Really! Have more confidence in yourself! Now jump straight up! Jiggle! That was a sound effect! Try to remember it! Cause if you did it back home, it would cause a big earthquake! Anyway, Busty Bangs-senpai here represents all about mountains, forests, and rivers too! She’s a real backwoods girl! She controls all sorts of stuff!”
Then Human-senpai walked over to Demeter. He immediately pointed at her with both hands.
“She’s got the best seasonal prices on white powder!! That’s all!!”
“Shut the hades up!!””
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“To add to that, Demeter is said to have taught humanity how to cultivate grains, but she also controls the seasons and the poppy flower, so the idiot isn’t exactly wrong.”
“That is one wild harvest god…”
“Well, if you do want to gain believers and make money fast, you should come to me.”
“Aunt! What you’re talking about is a crime, so show some restraint! At least a little!”
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I considered the issue based on Sumeragi-kun’s guidance.
“Which of these harvest gods do we need to hold onto?”
“You can take me off the list.”
“We couldn’t even maintain what we have now without you, Shifu-san, so I say we need to hold onto you most of all.”
Hearing that, Shifu-san gave me a light hug.
All of a sudden, I felt buried by her.
“Yeah, that’s what I really like about you, Senpai-chan!”
While the ticklish sensation and warmth made me smile…
“Ooh! Right there! Yes, there! Zoom in! Yes, just like that! That’s it! What a great angle! Nice bustiness, Senpai!”
“The human is humaning again.”
But that aside, Kido-san gave me an inscrutable nod and I nodded back. And afterwards…
“Don’t we need to hold onto them all?”
“What makes you think that?”
“Um…when looking at running a terraforming base, we will need Dan-san’s mountain, forest, and river authorities for managing food and such. And she would probably work well with Shifu-san’s group and with the Mesopotamians.”
And…
“But the seasons are necessary to make the best use of Dan-san’s authorities. Without the seasons, she will have to constantly use her authorities to manage the mountains and forests, but if the seasons are being controlled, the mountains and forests can get by on their own.”
“You seem awfully confident talking about the authorities of another mythology’s god.”
“My father is a mountain god, so I know how the mountains change season to season.”
“…Oh! But don’t let that trick you into thinking I have a mountain authority! This weakling god is rock only! The kind who has to go around asking if anyone needs any rocks!”
“The bottom line is I think we can trust Senpai-chan on this?”
Hold on. Why was that a question?
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“I see. That was well reasoned, terraforming lead,” said Tenma.
“I honestly think the management will work out no matter who you choose. But as our front line expands, the number of bases will grow and supplies will be necessary at a larger scale. Once that happens, a mountain, forest, or seasons authority won’t be enough on its own.”
“And that’s where the seasons come in?”
“Right. The changing of the seasons allows for the automation of a natural environment. And to prevent it from being a burden on Demeter, we will also have to automate parts of the seasons using the created natural environment, the planet’s axis, and its motion.”
“Creating the seasons and nature on the planet before dealing with the planetary motion must be unique to divine terraforming.”
It was. And…
“Each participating mythology will receive an extra bonus.”
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“What kind of extra bonus?”
“With so few Shinto gods, we cannot manage everything related to a base ourselves. So…we will be lending rights to other mythologies for the construction and management of any bases.”
“Oh,” someone said. It was the Egyptian representative.
“Would that be something like receiving the right to commerce in a base your mythology constructed?”
“We can’t grant you jurisdiction. And the currency will be based on the divine world. But the right to commerce on the base can be yours as long as you spend 20% of your proceeds on defense of the base.”
“Defense will be handled by the construction gods and war gods, so wouldn’t defense spending mostly just meant paying for their food and weapons?”
“If anyone is lacking an authority, they can be borrowed and lent between participating mythologies. With the exception of schedule conflicts, you wouldn’t be able to refuse as long as they were offering a fair price.”
“How would a fair price be determined?”
“Balancer, you can calculate out the amount of ether used, right? From there, the value will be based on the amount of ether Human-senpai produces in an hour of his big boobs worship.”
A breath.
“A human-based authority evaluation is something the DC can’t do. It is unique to us.”
<Tenma? My calculation is the obvious answer, but the rest…>
“Yes. I have been planning to get help from other mythologies since before we started discussing bases. This kind of work was my job back when I was alive.”
“And,” she said. “Irish representative, I believe this discussion will be meaningful for you. As one of the workers here, I do hope you will assist us.”
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Athena had a question: why was this meaningful for Irish mythology?
“Is there some connection between Irish mythology and the terraforming reward system?”
“Yeah, I think she’s similar to us.”
“Yes…that’s right. It’s about the ceding promise.
“Eh!? Are you trying to decide what kind of land you want to live on after the terraforming is done!? Since you have big boobs and you’re from an island nation, how about we give you some giant continent somewhere?”
“A giant continent? Continents are giant by definition.”
“What, you don’t get the nuance, Kuwajiri! It’s like how Senpai has giant boobs, Kido-senpai has gigantic boobs, and Shifu-senpai has ginormous boobs! Do you get it now? Do you? Surely you see the depth and truth of it all now! Which means I win! And that means big boobs win!”
“Can you please find a way to die without giving me more work to do?”
That was a tall order, but Athena was just glad she hadn’t been dragged into it.
And the Norse harvest god walked toward the Irish one.
“Y’know.”
She took her hand.
“It isn’t going to end, so don’t worry.”
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Anne thought about what that meant.
Once she understood, she could sense a smile on her lips.
“Yes. I hope…you’re right.”
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Oh, I thought in understanding. I looked to Kido-san and said…
“Kido-san…you’re the same too, aren’t you?”
“I am. Shifu-san and the other Norse gods meet their ends and are destroyed in their myths. Dan-san also departs for the depths of the earth in her myths. …I didn’t leave any myths behind and I was saved by Izumi, but…”
A sigh of relief left Kido-san’s mouth. Her eyes were directed squarely on Shifu-san and Dan-san.
“If gods again live on the land created by you and Izumi, then it will mean I never left.”
<Correct. This still leaves the question of what to do on the planet post-terraforming, but if you will copy the divine world and model it after the 90s, that is when the UK and Europe began rethinking their view of the Celts as I mentioned before. For the Irish gods, that is a period of recovery and reassessment, so it is a great time to come back.>
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“Okay. Then it looks like we’ll be able to get the numbers we need as we start construction of our front line bases.”
Raidou saw everyone nod.
The gods had agreed. Some were still hiding things, but…
“I have no complaint as long as our interests are aligned. Just remember that being too stingy will only force me to make up the difference by less legitimate means.”
“Hee hee. We’re really making progress here. But, Tooru-chan? You aren’t done, are you?”
“No,” confirmed Raidou.
“I want to head outside and brainstorm some ideas for a base. Anything within Senpai-san’s reach she can handle with Sumeragi or Kido and we can have Balancer run some experiments too. And…”
“They’re coming, aren’t they?”
“You can tell?”
Bilgamesh and Kidou nodded.
“With this many gods present, several new ones, and users of completely different phases, I would have been surprised if the fire and earth planetary spirits didn’t react.”
“If we do head out to inspect the land…it’s probably going to mean a battle.”
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