Daylight shone brightly.
Brilliant sunlight spilled down from the blue sky.
Blue skies, white clouds, a gentle breeze.
Roland stretched and let out a satisfied sigh.
Although, at his current level of existence, deep space was where he could really cut loose, the time he had spent in that empty expanse of pure white was far too indistinct. As a place to relax both body and mind, it hardly qualified as a good destination.
"Even so, isn't going from somewhere on that level to an island on Earth a bit too much of a step down?"
A voice as unfathomable as a secluded spring rang out.
Yukari Yakumo slowly stepped out of a gap.
"Hmm? Did I actually pick up the bad habit of talking to myself?"
"No... but there was no need for such an obvious hint, anyway. That expression on your face is exactly the same as Reimu's when she holes up in the shrine!"
The Youkai Sage's face held nothing but helplessness, like a mother whose child had entered a rebellious phase.
"That girl, too. She's clearly resolved her hang-ups and has a future whose end is utterly beyond sight waiting for her to explore, yet she still spends all day holed up in Gensokyo."
"But she's the Hakurei Miko, isn't she? No normal person would increase their own workload for no reason."
Roland took a deep breath and spoke languidly.
"If they all threw themselves into Little Garden right now, dazzled like those so-called gods in DanMachi, they'd have plenty to suffer through in the future."
"If you haven't even grasped what you already possess, yet plan to charge toward somewhere farther away than the stars, the switch between prey and hunter takes only an instant."
After recreating the world from a higher-dimensional perspective that stood