“It was a pleasant meeting, Director.”
“The honor was mine, [Lady of the Night]. It was a privilege to meet you.”
“Let’s meet again sometime.”
“Yes, safe travels.”
The [Lady of the Night] turned with a satisfied smile, and the other gods who had been watching her followed behind her as she left.
With this, the immediate problem was resolved.
No, it wasn’t just resolved—it was a monumental success.
It was as if I had secured the rights to all those gods’ stories.
Now, I could incorporate the tales of widely revered deities across the continent into the game without needing their explicit permission.
I had been stuck recently, unsure of how to expand the roster of characters, but this opportunity practically rolled into my lap.
“Hey, kid!”
As soon as the gods left, the Demon God, who had been guarding my Constellation like a watchdog, appeared in front of me, her stance tense and defensive.
“Are you okay? Earlier, you were talking about making some weird deal with that woman. You didn’t get tricked, did you?”
Had she been deceived by the [Lady of the Night] often enough to react like this?
“No, it was actually an excellent deal.”
Just as the [Lady of the Night] proposed, I agreed to incorporate the gods who volunteered to participate in the meeting into the [Akashic Archive] as characters.
But this wasn’t something I requested. It was what they demanded.
In exchange for fulfilling their request, I made my own terms clear.
I couldn’t just add them into the game without some form of payment. If they wanted their wish granted, they had to offer something equivalent in return.
The character order provided a perfect opportunity to tie it all together.
So, I proposed the following:
If you want to become a character, you must bring an offering suitable for my Constellation.
And the gods who offered the most reasonable compensation would be added first.
‘These are no ordinary beings—they’re gods, worshipped as the pinnacle of existence by the people of the continent. There’s no way their offerings will be trivial.’
Using the lore of gods widely known on the continent for free while also receiving compensation in return—there’s no better business model than this.
It was the perfect deal, one with nothing but profit.
“No, kid, you don’t understand. That woman isn’t your average tough cookie. Even if you think you handled it well, there’s always a catch. You need to double-check everything,” the Demon God insisted.
“I’m telling you, it’s fine.”
Just how many times has she been tricked?
Deception, huh...
Was there really any?
The [Lady of the Night], as far as I could tell, didn’t seem to have any intent to deceive me.
I brushed off the Demon God’s warnings, letting her words drift past me, and turned my attention to my Constellation, who was waving their tiny hands at me.
***
"Of course, it’s [The Lady of the Night]! I knew trusting her was the right call!"
"You did well."
"To think you managed to extract a promise from the Curator to turn not just us, but all the gods present there, into characters! That’s an incredible feat!"
"Well, for me, it was easy."
As they left the domain of the God of Dreams, the gods who had been silently watching the negotiations between her and the Curator burst into cheers.
"Honestly, it’s surprising to see you all just sitting and watching. Didn’t the characters you love so much come to life? That Curator...was that what they called him?"
"Come on. That’s exactly why we just sat there watching."
"Right. The Curator—he’s the Curator of the [Akashic Archive], isn’t he? My ultimate favorite character just walked out into reality—how could I even dare to speak to him?"
"...Is that so?"
"That’s how fandom works."
"...I don’t play games at all, so I wouldn’t know."
In truth, she was the one most shaken by the events at the meeting, but she didn’t let it show.
"It’s surprising that you were the one to propose this idea."
"Right? When you gathered us for this meeting, I assumed it was because you’ve been enjoying the [Akashic Archive] yourself."
"I find no interest in the act of playing games. ...I only acted this time for the sake of celestial peace. If I hadn’t stepped in, this divine imbalance would certainly have escalated into a conflict among the gods."
"Is that so?"
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"How dull. What do you even do for fun in this monotonous celestial existence of yours?"
"Why don’t you try the [Akashic Archive] yourself? It’s fun."
"Heh. If I find the time."
The [The Lady of the Night] exchanged farewells with the other gods and crossed the threshold into another space.
She descended into her own secluded domain, a space closed off from all others, beneath a deep and blackened night.
"My favorite character..."
Passing through the pitch-black darkness, she arrived at her private chamber.
Fwoosh!
The room, previously shrouded in darkness, lit up as she entered.
"And I’m the same."
The walls of her now-brightened room were plastered with countless posters.
There were posters of [Knight Ren] vanquishing monsters, posters of a boy and girl awkwardly dancing to repetitive music, posters of the Demon King’s awakening, of a date with Versia, and even posters of dark elves and elves holding hands.
Her room was decorated so densely with posters that not a single piece of wallpaper was visible.
But among all those posters, one stood out as her favorite.
"To think I’d meet the Curator in real life!"
Her cheeks flushed as she rubbed her face against the most cherished poster in the room.
"I knew it! There’s no way he couldn’t exist in reality!"
From [Knight Ren] to [Dark Elf Gaizerus], every major character in the main story—except Versia—was based on real gods.
Then wouldn’t the Curator also exist in reality?
The idea that had always been a vague fantasy suddenly felt tangible.
Her ultimate favorite.
Serious and endlessly solemn when needed.
A charming and captivating boy when cheerful.
And she had met him in real life.
Even though his entire body had been shrouded by the power of dreams, as a god, she could see through it.
She could confirm without a doubt that he was the Curator.
"So, he’s the Director?"
She didn’t fully understand what the title "Director" meant, but if it referred to the manager of the game...
Did that mean the [Akashic Archive] she had been enjoying all this time was a story the Curator had been telling her?
A story told by her ultimate favorite!
No wonder every tale had felt so captivating.
She had loved playing games ever since she was young, but she had kept this fact hidden to protect her external image.
Secretly enjoying games alone in her domain, she had stumbled upon the virtual reality game that shattered all her preconceived notions.
Even as the game altered the continent’s balance and reduced the amount of divine power she received, she didn’t care at all.
She, too, had laughed and cried with the stories within the game.
The sense of connection she felt with the gods portrayed in the game was beyond words.
Even so, there was a reason she had convened the meeting and made her proposal.
What if the gods’ dissatisfaction turned against the [Akashic Archive] and the characters within it?
Even though she had carefully chosen gods favorable to the game to hold the meeting, many extreme opinions had been voiced.
If she hadn’t intervened, the idea of destroying the game might have gained traction.
To protect the game and its main characters, she had no other choice.
Fortunately, the celestial realm was full of gods eager to appear in the game, so she had managed to steer the discussion in a favorable direction.
With this, she wouldn’t have to worry about the radicals for a while.
But more importantly...
"The Curator..."
He was unbelievably handsome.
Seeing him in person, he exuded an even more masculine charm than in the game.
A typical person might think the Director had designed the Curator’s character to resemble himself out of vanity.
But with her rose-tinted view, such thoughts never crossed her mind.
"Earlier, I was so shocked at seeing the Curator in front of me that I couldn’t think straight... but if I appear in the game, doesn’t that mean the Curator will tell my story?"
The final agreement reached through negotiations with the Director:
The gods who offered the most compelling rewards would be granted the opportunity to appear in the game.
Initially, she had no intention of appearing early, wanting to join quietly when the hype died down.
But now, things were different.
"The Curator will tell my story...! There’s no way I can resist this!"
Hugging a Curator plushie tightly, she sprang to her feet.
She began rummaging through her secret stash.
Let’s see...
What gift would make my Curator desire me?
With her powers, it wouldn’t be difficult to find the perfect one.
In her daydreams, she was already far past a romance with the Curator—she was deciding on their grandchildren’s names.