The first thing I felt was a soft light.

Something warm and gentle brushed against the inside of my eyelids.

Next came the sensation of pure air filling my lungs. It smelled like mint, clear and crisp—just like when you take a deep breath in the forest at dawn.

(…My stomach doesn’t hurt)

Ayabe Yuuma vaguely thought that.

The thick “Kumakiyo” costume was pierced by a kitchen knife. Akane’s panicked face twisted in agony. Rena’s smartphone lens. Shizuku’s scream, her dialect completely messed up.

All of it burned into his memory as the final scene of his life.

(I should be dead…)

Yet there was no pain. In fact, his body felt light as feathers. A refreshing sense of relief washed over him, as if the chronic shoulder tension that had plagued him since birth had finally vanished.

Yuuma slowly opened his eyes.

What came into his vision was a scene he’d never seen before.

The ceiling was impossibly high, shaped like an elegant dome with beautiful curves. The floor and massive pillars were made of polished white marble, gleaming divinely. Stained glass cast colorful patterns across the floor, creating a fantastical design.

Where am I? Is this the special room at Kumamoto City Hospital? No, that would be too tasteless. It looks like a temple from a fairy tale.

When he sat up, he realized he was lying on an opulent marble altar. He wore a pure white tunic, something he had no memory of. His usual high school uniform was nowhere to be seen.

He couldn’t comprehend the situation at all. Overwhelmed by the absurdity, Yuuma just stared blankly around him.

At that moment, a clear, bell-like voice echoed.

“—Ah, you’ve awakened. My prayers must have reached the gods.”

Yuuma turned his gaze toward the sound.

A girl was praying slightly away from the altar.

Her silver hair looked like it had been woven with moonlight. Her skin was as white as snow. Her long lashes were lowered. She was a beauty so exquisite, she seemed like a doll created by the gods.

The girl slowly stood up and turned to face Yuuma.

And Yuuma gasped.

Her eyes opened wide, revealing deep, beautiful azure—like the surface of a clear lake.

Her perfect beauty bloomed gently.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Hero. I am Saint Agnes, who summoned you to this world.”

The girl—Agnes—tucked her skirt’s hem gracefully and bowed respectfully.

Hero. Summoned. Saint.

Familiar words echoed in Yuuma’s mind. They were the same words he had seen countless times in web novels he read for escapism.

(…Wait? What? Is this a reincarnation into another world? Me? )

His confusion reached its peak. Why me? Why now? But I was supposed to be dead!

Yet, what slipped from Yuuma’s mouth was an incredibly unimpressive response.

“Oh, um… thank you…”

(Why! Why is the most neutral and non-confrontational reply coming out of my mouth?! There should be more questions! Where am I? Who am I? Wasn’t I supposed to be dead?! )

His inner scream clashed with his mouth, which had completely separated from his thoughts. Overwhelmed by the bizarre situation and entranced by the divine aura of the beautiful girl before him, he reflexively gave a non-confrontational reply.

Agnes looked puzzled at Yuuma’s response, but quickly returned to her blissful expression.

“Oh… how modest and composed you are. Truly worthy of being the hero chosen by the gods.”

(No! That’s not it! I’m just mentally blank! My brain is overloaded and not functioning properly…! )

He tried desperately in his mind to correct himself, but no voice came out. Agnes’ fervent gaze was evaporating his last bit of resistance.

Yuuma hadn’t yet truly understood that he stood at the second major crossroads of his life.

◇

“—So, summarizing it all. This is the Kingdom of Albion, and because the demon king has revived and the world is in chaos, I’ve been summoned as a hero here. Is that right?”

Yuuma, brought to a room within the temple, was sitting on a sofa with an ethereal comfort, listening to Agnes explain everything. The fruits and baked goods arranged on the table tasted like dreams.

The incredible comfort of this place made his sense of crisis about dying and being transported to another world gradually fade away.

“Yes, that’s exactly right, Hero Yuuma.”

Agnes sat across from him, straightening her back with a cheerful nod. She spoke his name as if it were sweet honey, with an entranced tone.

“Yuuma… what a wonderful name. Just hearing it makes my heart race.”

“Huh… I see…”

(This girl, isn’t there something wrong with the distance she’s keeping? )

Despite being strangers, Agnes’ gaze held an unusual intensity. It wasn’t like the affectionate looks he’d experienced in Kumamoto. More like a reptile staring at its prey—sticky, as if saying, “don’t try to escape.”

“But why me… shouldn’t someone stronger, like a soldier, be more suitable?”

Yuuma looked down at his thin arms and voiced a simple question. His athletic ability was below average. He avoided joining clubs altogether, opting for the literary club.

Agnes then smiled with the expression of a mother.

“That’s because there was divine revelation.”

“Divine… revelation…”

“Yes. As I prayed day after day, the gods answered me. ‘A hero will appear from another world, to be the Saint’s destined partner.’ That was their message.”

She casually added words that were completely absurd.

“Eh, wait a minute. The Saint’s  partner?”

Thinking he had misheard, Agnes blushed and nodded firmly.

“Yes. In other words, you and I are fated to be partners by the gods. You will save this world, and then… we will unite. That is the law of this star. The rule of this world.”

Her azure eyes glowed brilliantly, her pupils slightly dilated.

The moment she looked at him, a chill ran down Yuuma’s spine like an ice blade.

What came to mind was the dull gleam of the kitchen knife that had pierced his abdomen.

(This is bad. This girl is a dangerous type.)

An alarm screamed in his brain at maximum volume.

He recognized this feeling. It was exactly like when his childhood friend, Hinomiya Akane, said, “Yuuma can’t do anything without me.”

Possessiveness. Dominance. And an unwavering belief that it’s justice—unilateral delusion.

“I have been born into this world solely to meet you. Ah, Yuuma-sama. Finally, I’ve met you… my one and only…”

Agnes clasped her hands in front of her chest, gazing at Yuuma with a blissful expression.

(I want to run away…! )

Yuuma’s instincts screamed that. The grand tale about the demon king or saving the world was irrelevant. He just wanted to escape from this girl with dilated pupils right now.

But he couldn’t refuse. He couldn’t resist.

If he refused, she would kill him for sure. That baseless fear tightened his throat.

“…So, that’s how it is. It’s an honor.”

What came out of his mouth was again a non-confrontational, affirmative statement.

The inner lament of “Why am I like this…!” was burned away by Agnes’ fervent gaze before it could become words.

Even in another world, the same thing happened.

I can’t escape being swept along.

Yuuma felt that the saint before him was far more terrifying than the unknown demon king he had yet to meet.

◇

After finishing her conversation with Agnes, Yuuma was led to his private room prepared within the temple.

The room was ten times larger than the apartment he lived in Kumamoto, even having a canopy bed. From the window, he could see a beautiful cityscape of red-roofed buildings stretching out below.

(This is really another world…)

Just as he finally felt it sink in, the door to his room was gently knocked on.

“Hero-sama, your change of clothes has been prepared.”

“Your meal is also ready.”

“Bathing preparations are complete.”

When Yuuma opened the door, three young maid servants dressed in something like maids’ uniforms stood there with flushed cheeks.

“Oh… thank you…”

As Yuuma bowed slightly, the maids let out cheerful sounds.

“Oh, such a polite greeting!”

“What a wonderful person he is.”

“He’s just as kind as they say, the gentle hero…”

(This seems to be another troublesome situation ), thought Yuuma, but it was already too late.

“Come now, Hero-sama. First, your clothes. You must be tired from your long journey.”

One of the maids reached for the tunic Yuuma was wearing.

“Eh, um… no, I can do it myself…”

As Yuuma hurriedly tried to pull away, the maids giggled.

“Oh, he’s shy.”

“Please don’t be shy. It is our honor to take care of you, Hero-sama.”

Their unyielding smiles and flawless coordination left no room for refusal. In an instant, the maids surrounded Yuuma and began undressing him skillfully.

(Oh wow, they’re too close! Too close! )

The sweet scent of shampoo wafted around him. The soft touch of fingers on his skin made his breath catch. When someone whispered “excuse me” near his ear, his spine tingled.

Memories of the nightmare in Kumamoto resurfaced. Shizuku, Rena, and Akane—approaching from three directions, leaving him trapped between them, both mentally and physically exhausted by their advances.

“Hero-sama, you have strong muscles despite your appearance…”

A sighing voice was heard right next to him.

“You’re right. But his skin’s so smooth…”

Another maid happily ran her fingers along Yuuma’s arm.

(Stop! My SAN points are already zero! Why am I going through this even in another world?! Someone help me… but no one will because that’s my life! )

He was dressed in new clothes, seated on a chair, and then lavish meals were brought to his mouth one after another.

“Hero-sama, open up.”

“This is roasted griffin from the north region. It’s very nutritious.”

Yuuma had long since lost the will to resist, allowing everything to happen to him. His willpower had already traveled far beyond the universe.

Yet, no one noticed that someone was watching this seemingly harmonious (?) scene with a freezing gaze from the entrance of the room.

“…Hero-sama is…”

A single word, spoken softly.

A voice as cold as ice shook the air in the room. A sudden illusion of the temperature dropping several degrees struck him.

The maids flinched and turned around. There stood Saint Agnes, her face expressionless like a noh mask.

“A-Agnes-sama…!”

The maids hurriedly knelt down.

But Agnes’ gaze was not directed at them. Her azure eyes were fixed solely on Yuuma, surrounded by the maids and looking confused.

“Hero-sama is… mine.”

A low voice that seemed to crawl along the floor.

“The divine companion destined only for me by the gods. A sacred existence that no one else should touch…”

A seething aura of jealousy, unlike anything one would expect from a saintess, fills the room.

“That… Please remove your dirty hands from Yuuma-sama immediately.”

The air crackles with tension.

Yuuma instinctively braces himself, thinking (I’m going to be killed! ). The overwhelming coldness he felt when Akane stabbed him with a kitchen knife flashes through his body again. This is the same oppressive atmosphere that arises when a yandere reaches their breaking point.

A blinding light radiates from Agnes’s entire body.

“Eeek!”

The maids scream, and Yuuma instinctively closes his eyes.

――But

The expected shock or pain never comes.

Instead, solemn music flows through the church-like atmosphere, filling the room with warm light.

When Yuuma cautiously opens his eyes, he is met with an unbelievable sight.

The light Agnes emitted was not a wave of anger or destruction—it was a radiant “blessing” filled with compassion.

The maids bathed in this divine light stare at their own bodies in stunned silence.

“E…?”

“It feels… like my body has become lighter…”

“My skin…! Look, it’s shiny like pearls!”

Yes. Agnes’s 100% pure jealousy was forcibly converted into a positive “blessing buff” due to her saintly nature.

The maids’ skin glows with radiance, their hair adorned with angelic halos. Their voices become honey-sweet, their moist eyes now carry an alluring glow, and even the smallest gestures appear irresistibly seductive. Their beauty has leveled up dramatically.

Then, they all turn to face Yuuma at once.

Their eyes now hold a feverish intensity that is clearly different from the previous “respect” or “admiration.”

“Hero-sama…”

“Oh, Hero-sama… what… what is this…!”

“So beautiful…”

The maids, now irresistibly charming due to the blessing buff, gaze upon Yuuma—their object of admiration. Their affection for him has been forcibly pushed beyond limits.

Bathed in three intense, passionate gazes, Yuuma’s face twists in discomfort.

“Hero-sama, I feel my body is burning… May I serve you tonight in your room?”

One maid whispers sweetly while wrapping her arms around Yuuma’s.

“Oh, Hero-sama. My strength is surging! With these strong arms, I will protect you!”

Another maid flexes her arm to show off a “muscular bicep.” Her slender arm is anything but strong, yet her eyes brim with an enigmatic confidence.

“Both of you are being shameless. Hero-sama, my mind is sharp! A hundred brilliant strategies for the country’s future have come to me. Please let me be your advisor first!”

(This feeling… I know it! )

This suffocating harem scenario.

The actions of one yandere accelerating relationships with other women—the worst possible chain reaction.

(Back in Kumamoto… when Akane tried to keep the girls around me in check, it only made them even more conscious of me—this is exactly the same thing…! )

Agnes herself remains oblivious to the disastrous side effects her magic has caused.

“W-well, my holy power must have purified you all…! As expected of me!”

She mutters to herself, content with her own brilliance, completely oblivious to the vicious cycle she was creating.

This is the kind of treatment I get, even after coming to another world?

It seems my 【Liquid Self】can even transcend the rules of this world.

Yuuma realizes the depth of his karma and quietly looks up at the sky.

His peaceful life in this distant world begins, inevitably, in its worst possible form.