"There are noble gods, and there are rotten ones too."
"And because they've lived too long and grown too bored, those traits have even been magnified countless times over."
"Especially when it comes to the gods."
"The entire mortal world is nothing more than one enormous playground."
"And since it's a game..."
"Naturally, there are winners and losers, competition, and tactics."
"So down here in the mortal world..."
"Some gods really are capable of anything."
"All kinds of dramas have played out countless times throughout Orario's history."
"Some go even further."
"Just to prove a point, for the sake of their so-called pride, because an interesting soul caught their eye, or simply because they're jealous that another familia found a promising recruit..."
"They'll order their children to stir up trouble."
The gods, possessed of eternal life, had stood above the clouds and looked down upon all living things for billions of years.
It was difficult for them to maintain that so-called empathy for mortals whose lives passed in the blink of an eye.
It was like humans squatting on the ground as children, watching ants move their colony.
In a good mood, they might toss down some breadcrumbs. That was a blessing.
In a bad mood, they might piss on them. That was a natural disaster.
As for whether the ants suffered or felt despair?
Humans could hardly perceive it.
Naturally, the gods of Heaven also possessed this arrogance born of their higher order of existence.
Even if many gods disguised themselves as humans, that underlying indifference toward all living things was ultimately difficult to erase.
"..."
Once those words were spoken...
The atmosphere at the table grew somewhat tense.
The girls exchanged looks, clearly shaken by this other side of the world.
So that was how it was.
Beneath