Chapter 187: Sarcasm (1)

I was alone in the shooting range. The possibility of the unbeatable cautious hero getting into a difficult situation on the fight against Leon and needing me to use my gun was…incredibly low. But it wasn’t a question of possibility in the first place because…

…Because I didn’t even hit the target with a single shot!! No way!?

「You’re amazing, Goddess! You’ve practiced hard! 」

Princess Tiana smiled and clapped after seeing me firing bullets that missed the target. She wasn’t making fun of me. I could feel that she was being serious. We had the same soul, so I kind of understood.

Either way, I was frustrated by the lack of results, and I spoke to Princess Tiana, taking out my frustration on her.

「Hey, do you have time to be here? Aren’t you busy in your other affairs? 」

「I finished preparing for the wedding days ago. 」

Princess Tiana still showed a carefree smile. Then, she put her right hand on my shoulder.

「Cheer up and do your best! 」

Her gentle smile made me forget my irritation. She was about to marry someone she didn’t even love. She’d have to leave her hometown once she got married. But it seemed like Princess Tiana was more worried about me than she was about herself.

I was touched by the pure and innocent self of my past life, and for a moment I forgot I was a goddess. The words that came out of my mouth were pure and honest.

「You see, I’m a total loser. Goddess is just a title. 」

「What?! That’s nonsense!! You can even use Healing Magic!! 」

「Even humans can do that much, right? Seiya calls me a “herb girl”, you know. 」

I laughed in a self-deprecatingly manner, and Princess Tiana’s eyebrows furrowed in a rare way as her mouth turned to the side.

「That’s horrible! Seiya is the worst! 」

She was angry as if she were me.

…Well, she was mostly me, so I guessed it was only natural…

I laughed a little after thinking like that. Then, Princess Tiana ran up to me and said…

「Hey, Goddess. Focus on your aim. 」

「What…」

As she urged me, I aimed my gun at the target. My hands were shaking slightly, probably because I had missed the target so many times.

「Don’t rush. Don’t worry about what’ll happen if you don’t hit it. 」

I heard Princess Tiana’s gentle voice from behind me. Princess Tiana placed her hand on my hand that held the gun. My hand from my previous life and my hand as a goddess touched one another.

「Don’t think about Seiya or the world. Just focus on hitting the target in front of you. 」

「Okay…」

She was just helping from behind. And yet, strangely, I felt a sense of peace in my heart. My breathing became smooth, and my shoulders naturally dropped. …Huh? Maybe I was nervous and stiff until now.

…Then, I aimed at the target. That’s all. I shouldn’t think about anything else…

I pulled the trigger following the instructions of Princess Tiana. A gunshot rang out, and then…

「It hit! You hit it! 」

Princess Tiana was shaking my shoulders. I looked at the target and saw a bullet hole on the edge.

「I…I did it! 」

I screamed with joy, and hugged Princess Tiana. I was so happy that I cried a little. Princess Tiana smiled and put her fingers to the corners of my eyes, wiping away my tears.

「You did well! 」

「Thank you…」

Princess Tiana. She was probably feeling anxious about her arranged marriage to Leon, but helped me practice with my gun…

…I didn’t know which one was the goddess.

As my heart was filled with her kindness, Princess Tiana handed me the gun.

「Keep practicing before you forget the feeling! 」

「You…You’re right! 」

… I improved surprisingly quickly once I got the hang of it. After that, I was able to hit the target one out of three times. Princess Tiana smiled happily.

「Yes, great! Now you can surprise Seiya! 」

「It’s all thanks to you! Thank you so much! 」

「…Hmph. 」

Suddenly, I heard a snorting voice.

「…Whoa!? 」

I was shocked. Before I knew it, Seiya was standing behind Princess Tiana! Princess Tiana also seemed to sense his presence, and when she slowly turned around…

「Uahhhh…!?」

She yelled and pulled my waist when she saw Seiya.

「You…You startled me! That’s practically a pervert move! Seiya, I can forgive you because you’re cool! 」

Princess Tiana said something similar to what I usually think. Seiya ignored Princess Tiana and spoke to me.

「Lista, prepare to leave tomorrow while you practice with your gun. 」

「Eh? We’re going to Swain Fortress the day after tomorrow, right? 」

「The “Round Table of Lasting Peace” is the day after tomorrow. But we’ll go there a day early to scout the location and check the enemy situation. 」

“Scout the location and check the enemy situation” …that was very Seiya-like…As I was thinking about that, Eich, Colt and John Dae came walking behind Seiya. A little later, Celseus arrived in a wheelchair.

「You’re leaving aside the people of Tarmine. What preparations would you be making the day before? 」

John Dae glared at Seiya suspiciously.

「There’s no need to think of anything strange. You are Princess Tiana’s guard. It’s to ensure that the alliance is concluded safely. 」

「Yes. I understand. 」

「You…You’re being so honest. That seems suspicious…! 」

John Dae was increasingly suspicious. In fact, Seiya wanted to arrive the day before because he had to think about what would happen if he were to fight Leon. However, he didn’t tell Princess Tiana or John Dae about it because he thought it would cause trouble.

John Dae’s suspicious eyes, however, were engulfed by Princess Tiana’s cheerful voice.

「Hey! Everyone, take a look! Goddess is amazing! She can hit the target properly now! 」

「Wow. Lista, have you improved with your gun? 」

The wheelchaired Celseus said in response…

「Then show us! 」

Eich’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.

「Okay. 」

I nodded and picked up the gun. And I aimed at the target.

…I had to calm down…All I had to think about was aim at the target…

As I was focusing like that, Seiya suddenly whispered in my ear so that no one could hear.

「Think of that target as Leon. In the center of the target is Leon’s heart. 」

「Ye…Yes…! 」

Then, Seiya left my side, and my breathing became irregular again. Even my hand holding the gun began trembling.

「Haa, haa, haa! 」

「Go…Goddess!? 」

Princess Tiana looked worried. But I let my guard down and pulled the trigger.

「Hittttttttt!! 」

I heard a metallic clash. There were no bullet holes in the target…「Heyyyyyyyyy!! 」, I heard Celseus’ rough voice. I turned around and saw Celseus holding his head.

「Damn it! I would’ve died if it wasn’t for this hard skin! 」

「What?! I…I hit you with a bullet!? 」

「Yes, you did! Lista! You haven’t made any progress at all! 」

Celseus was angry. The Colt siblings tilted their heads.

「I mean, why are the bullets flying backwards…」

「Hmm. It’s strange…」

Furthermore, seeing Seiya looking dumbfounded, my face went red, and I hurriedly tried to cover it up.

「No…No, that wasn’t real! It was just a joke! 」

「Calm down, Goddess! Remember your practice! 」

「Yes! I’ll be serious next time! 」

Princess Tiana told me to grab my gun and take a deep breath.

…That’s right. I remembered my practice…I had to do it without thinking about anything else…

Then, Seiya whispered in my ear again.

「Imagine me in a difficult situation during a battle with Leon. Your target is Leon’s head. 」

「Huh? Ah? Ye…Yes…! 」

The bullet I fired hit Celseus’ head directly again. His body was hardened so there was no damage, but Celseus was furious.

「This…This…This isn’t supposed to happen…」

Seiya muttered, glaring at me as I was feeling down.

「…Ready Perfectly. 」

「Is that sarcasm!? 」

I shouted, half crying. Seiya turned around without even noticing my tears.

「That’s enough. 」

The words Seiya professed out loud as he was leaving resonated deeply in my heart.

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