I Became a Raid Boss

After the first episode of A Break with a Sip of Tea Season 2 aired, and a week later, the second episode garnered even more popularity than the first.

...I heard it garnered more popularity.

"Are you really not going to watch it?"

"Yeah..."

The reason I say "I heard" is because I didn’t particularly follow the broadcast this time.

I also didn’t check the reactions to the second episode.

So, unless I had heard it from the PD rambling on the phone or Daeun telling me, I probably wouldn’t have even known about it.

Or maybe I would’ve found out later.

The simple reason I didn’t check the reactions was because...

“There’s no need to.”

After our previous conversation, I realized that Daeun didn’t like me lurking around the community.

The reason I used to check out such places wasn’t just because I was bored, but also because I thought it might help Daeun in some way.

However, it seemed like my actions were only worrying Daeun, so I stopped doing it.

...Though, not completely.

"Hmm."

The reason I didn’t watch the second episode was because I just felt like sleeping that day.

Originally, I planned to watch it with Daeun like we did for the first episode, but once I got cozy in my blanket, I just didn’t want to get up.

So, I didn’t watch it, and then I kept putting it off.

It wasn’t something I absolutely had to watch, and I figured I’d watch it eventually, so I just left it at that.

Anyway, that’s the end of A Break with a Sip of Tea for me.

The PD, despite still clinging to his promotional dreams, didn’t bring it up, probably because he was happy with the unexpected success and didn’t want to stir up trouble.

Maybe he thought that mentioning it might create some unnecessary issues.

I decided there was no need to interfere if things were going smoothly on their own.

Even if that wasn’t the case, I had other things to focus on, and considering how important other matters were, A Break with a Sip of Tea was nothing more than a side project for now.

Just like now.

It had been a while… well, it feels like I’ve been here recently, but anyway, I visited Demonis.

"Any progress?"

As I opened the door to the CEO’s office and asked, Edel, who had been sorting papers, gave me an incredulous look before responding.

"...Is that really the first thing you say when you suddenly show up?"

"You weren’t expecting a warm greeting, were you?"

"Hmm. After seeing what you’ve been up to, I thought it wouldn’t be bad if there was one."

"Hmm. Well, I guess."

After all, I suppose if a god were to instruct their followers to hold a grand festival in celebration of their descent, that would be acceptable.

"Why bring up the descent ceremony all of a sudden?"

"They say you can judge a tree by its fruit. If they’re celebrating something trivial like that, I thought you’d probably be obsessive about greetings."

"...Forget the amazing logic of calling a god's descent trivial. But hearing you spout such sophistry without batting an eye, I can tell you’ve picked up quite a bit from that kid. Is this what they mean when they say education is important?"

"Thanks for the compliment."

"That wasn’t a compliment, I was mocking you. Are you sure you’re not suffering from a headache?"

"Huh?"

I tilted my head.

Now that I thought about it, it sounded like a compliment.

I knew I wasn’t the best with words, but it wasn’t like I couldn’t speak up because I was shy or made the situation awkward with the wrong words.

I just didn’t have the knack for using euphemisms or light-hearted jokes to ease the mood.

If I were to put it harshly, I suppose I just didn’t have a good sense of humor.

In that regard, the fact that I had picked up something from Daeun was a compliment, wasn’t it?

Even if it was sophistry, it meant I had filled in my gaps quite well.

"Well, it’s like you’re reading the situation incorrectly. A complete misinterpretation of the speaker's intent."

"Thanks for the compliment."

"I told you, it wasn’t a compliment."

At this point, I figured poking the bear any further might get me buried in a pile of papers, so I stopped teasing Edel.

I closed my mouth and backed off, and Edel finally relaxed, her tense eyes softening.

"Anyway, the descent ceremony wasn’t even something I asked for. The kids just did it on their own."

"Then you should’ve told them not to."

"They did it because they love me, how could I stop them?"

In the end, it seemed like she hadn’t stopped them because she liked it too.

Setting that small thought aside, I asked again.

"So, any progress?"

It was the same question I had asked when I entered the office.

There was no context, but Edel somehow understood and replied.

"Alice, right?"

"Yeah."

I had expected to find Alice here, but to my surprise, Edel was alone in the office.

"Why isn’t she here?"

"Maybe the same reason you didn’t come with her? She has work to do."

But something had been bothering me for a while.

"...Why do you keep calling her 'that kid'?"

There’s a perfectly fine name, Daeun, why keep calling her "that kid"?

Of course, I had called people by the wrong name before, but that was either because I didn’t know their name, was hostile, or just didn’t feel like getting close.

But judging by how Edel spoke, I didn’t think that was the case here.

Still, I found it annoying for some reason, so I gave her a sharp look.

"Alright, fine. Daeun. Is that better?"

"Yeah."

"You're being difficult. Anyway, Alice is downstairs."

"...You locked her up?"

In the end, she couldn’t resist her disgust and threw Alice into the basement.

Not that I felt particularly sorry for her.

"What’s wrong with that?"

But Edel lightly dismissed my assumption.

"We can’t just do work anywhere when we don’t know what’s going to happen."

She pointed her finger at the floor while saying this.

"There’s a space I set up in the company basement. With my power and the manager’s help, it’s reinforced to the point where even a nuclear bomb could go off inside and it’d still be fine."

"..."

"What's wrong?"

"Well, it’s just..."

Using Earth’s terminology, the world of Silia was highly fantastical.

Hearing a god talk about nuclear bombs in that context felt strange.

Edel, who had thrown a questioning look at my reaction, soon turned her gaze away.

"Plus, we borrowed their technology."

"Their technology?"

"Separation techniques. It’s something we can do too, but with the right medium, it’s much easier."

"You mean the cube. But is it okay to use that freely?"

"The stability’s been verified, so it’s fine."

"Well then..."

She had said all that, so what’s the point in me, who knows nothing, arguing about it?

I stopped voicing my unnecessary concerns and kept my mouth shut.

"If you’re curious, you could always go see it."

"No, I’m good."

"Hmm... Really? Weren’t you dying to come here because you’re so curious?"

"I was a little curious, but not that much."

I hadn’t come out of curiosity; I was more like checking on progress to see if everything was going smoothly.

"Ah, I see."

Edel clicked her tongue as if I were being ridiculous.

But instead of getting into an argument, she decided to report on the progress.

"Honestly, there hasn’t been any significant progress yet. It’s not easy creating a new god."

"Is the method wrong?"

"Maybe. But whatever happens, we have to keep trying, right?"

"That’s true..."

While responding, a sudden curiosity emerged in me.

How does a god come into being?

When I asked Edel, she immediately answered.

"I don’t know either. And I doubt any god knows how they were born. I haven’t spoken to any other gods besides the manager, though."

"Eh..."

I had always thought gods were omniscient and omnipotent.

Of course, I knew they weren’t all-powerful, but still...

"From my guess, maybe they were born from some kind of law, or created by a higher being than us. But either way, there’s no way to verify it."

"That’s complicated."

"That’s just how life is."

As I talked with Edel, I felt like we were growing closer.

Not in the sense that our relationship was getting more intimate, but in the sense that I realized, "Gods have worries just like humans."

"If I had known, creating a god artificially would’ve been easy. But in this case, isn’t it more like divine creation rather than artificial?"

"...Was that a joke?"

"It’s not a joke, just stating the facts. ...Hmm, this is awkward, let’s just call it artificial creation."

"Do whatever you want."

I had come here thinking I might help, but it seemed like there was nothing I could really do.

After all, how could I help restore a soul that had been reduced to mush?

"So, I’m going to head out now."

"Wait a second."

Just as I was about to leave, Edel stopped me.

"I almost forgot, but you came at a good time."

"Don’t gods forget things?"

"Anyway, take a look at this."

Edel rummaged through the pile of papers and pulled out a sheet to hand to me.

I took the paper without thinking and started reading slowly.

"'Violating Blade Possession Administrative Penalty Notice'...?"

What is this?

The writing was familiar, but why did I have no idea what the first sentence meant?

I couldn’t hide my confusion, and when I looked at Edel, she kindly answered.

"It’s simple. It’s saying that possessing a sword is illegal under the law."

"...?"

After hearing that answer, I still didn’t understand. Was I normal, or was my comprehension just lacking?

And why was this sent to me, and not Edel?

"...Explain more clearly."

In the end, I had no choice but to say that.