CHAPTER 64
Receiving the Heavenly God's proposal, I answered like this:

"Are you crazy by any chance?"

The other party was the Heavenly God, making it an incredibly rude question, but it was such a confusing proposal that I couldn't help but give that answer in the moment.

He wants me to become a proxy and a god in charge of this world itself?!

Making such an offer to someone he just met today did not seem sane at all!

"Strictly speaking, it's not our first time meeting."

...Does he use mind reading or something? The Heavenly God continued to see right through my thoughts as he spoke.

"I've known of your existence for a while now and peeked in on you from time to time. Otherwise, how would I know your situation so well?"

Now that I think about it, this guy acted like he knew me well from the moment he first appeared.

But why was he peeking at me? Because I'm his clone? But then what about the original Ceres?

If the Heavenly God had shown the same interest in the original Ceres, he wouldn't have died so miserably.

What's the difference between me and the original Ceres? Did my regaining my past life's memories and taking action influence this?

Unlike the original Ceres, I've been spamming Divine Power left and right, so it makes sense that the Heavenly God would detect it.

"I watched you, thought about it in my own way, and then made my decision."

The Heavenly God said to me as I was lost in thought.

"To be honest, this place is practically devoid of an administrator."

"Aren't you managing it?"

"In name, yes. But I manage more than just one or two places. I'm so short-staffed that even dispatching subordinates isn't enough."

In other words, a manpower shortage.

As I was nodding in understanding, his next words startled me.

"So, just in case something happened while we weren't able to pay attention, I gave my feather to the Whiperion clan."

What, that was the reason he gave them the feather?!

"Wait, then why did you just sit back when the Whiperion Royal Family was destroyed?"

"I already told you. I wasn't able to pay attention. And I'm not a being who can just move around carelessly."

He explained that he had intended to step in after grasping the situation, but by then, the Empire's founding Emperor had already killed the Demon King.

"After that, the Imperial family kept killing Demon King-like things on their own, so there was even less need for me to care."

"...Then couldn't you just keep leaving it alone? Why appoint a proxy now of all times?"

"Because now you're here."

The Heavenly God said that regardless of the reason, there was now a being who possessed a portion of his power and could be considered a lesser god.

With a perfectly suitable proxy available, he couldn't leave the position of this world's administrator vacant any longer.

"That's why I'm offering it to you."

"...What if I refuse?"

I asked nervously. What would happen if I refused the Heavenly God's offer?

But the answer I got was quite ordinary.

"Then I'll just leave, or look for someone else."

It was an answer implying that it would be great if I did it, but he had no intention of forcing me if I didn't want to.

I felt relieved that there was no coercion, but the Heavenly God wasn't finished speaking.

"But is there any reason to refuse?"

"...If someone suddenly tells you to become a god, of course you'd feel averse to it."

"But you've already been going around telling people that you're an extralegal existence. And you even resolved to become a god to build your harem."

"Think about it. This is actually an opportunity."

The Heavenly God tried to persuade me as I was left speechless.

"If you truly become my proxy and the god managing this world, you will become a genuine extralegal existence."

"...But thinking about it again, it feels like a stupid idea. I'm already famous as it is; if I go around declaring I'm a god, won't I just get even more famous?"

Just as the Heavenly God said, getting some rest made it feel like my brain was finally working again. It was only now that I realized the method I had thought up was far too reckless.

The Heavenly God nodded.

"I suppose so."

"Then why?"

"Just accept the title for now. If you do, I'll pull some strings to create a situation where you can naturally build your harem."

Can I trust this?

It was absurd that a god, of all beings, was offering to help me build a harem.

I looked at the Heavenly God suspiciously and countered.

"But even if I agree to it, I don't think the women will accept that."

"I'll make them accept it."

"Are you planning to brainwash them or something?"

"No, I'm going to persuade them."

The Heavenly God spoke confidently. He said he had a secret weapon to persuade those women.

If that was really true, it was a good deal for me, but...

"Will I be able to do a good job?"

Honestly, I wasn't confident.

Being the god who manages the entire world and acting as the proxy for this transcendent being right in front of me?

If it were a simpleton like Red, she might say, "He's a god and you're a god now too, so shouldn't you be able to do whatever he can?"

But I knew better. We might both be called "gods," but the gap between the being in front of me and myself was as vast as the difference between a common foot soldier and a Sword Master.

"Don't misunderstand. I'm not telling you to do things exactly like I do."

Guessing my worries, the Heavenly God said.

"And even if I call it 'management,' there's no need to overthink it. Normally, just live as Saint Ceres, and only step up to work as a god when something truly important happens—like if a Demon King or something shows up."

"Is that really okay?"

"Actually, it's problematic if a god intervenes every single time something happens."

"Wait a minute. If a Demon King-level event occurs in the first place, isn't that beyond my power to handle?"

"No. Once you learn to handle Divine Power properly, something on that level will be nothing. And if all else fails, you have your companions, or you can just contact me."

Put like that, it sounded doable. It wasn't like a Demon King from the old days was going to appear again, and the current Demon King was Sibylius.

It was practically a job with zero workload, and even if something did happen, as long as I didn't have to solve it alone, it was definitely worth a shot!

After some deliberation, I decided to give it a try.

"I'll do it. But please give me the right to quit halfway through if I feel like I absolutely can't handle it."

Just in case, I attached a condition, but the Heavenly God agreed nonchalantly.

"Everyone has the right to resign. Understood."

After saying that, the Heavenly God turned his back.

The dreamscape had a very surreal atmosphere, and suddenly a door appeared on one side of the space. The Heavenly God swung the door open and prepared to leave.

"I'll do as I promised, so you just keep sleeping."

"I was already sleeping, though? Do I have to go to sleep again in here?"

"If you want to be a god, you should try sleeping within a dream."

With those joking words, the Heavenly God vanished.

I was bewildered, but I tried to do as he instructed. I lay down again within the dream space.

"...I'm going through all sorts of absurd things."

But whether it was because I was in a dream, or because I had too many distracting thoughts, sleep didn't come.

It was inevitable; the Heavenly God had just come and promised to solve all my problems in exchange for a deal, hadn't he?

Very few people would be able to maintain their composure after experiencing something hundreds of times rarer than winning the lottery.

...No, wait, come to think of it, isn't this pretty common in RoFan novels?

It seemed pretty common for a god or a similar being to suddenly appear and solve the female lead's problems.

In the first place, the female lead secretly being connected to a god was a very common trope in RoFan.

I had skimmed through other RoFan novels after getting hooked on Heaven's Ceres, and that one was a banishment story.

The female lead gets banished due to a misunderstanding, but out of nowhere, a god appears, explains the whole situation, and makes everyone around her regret their actions.

[Sibylius, Demon King of this era. Open your eyes.]

"...Huh?"

Hearing a voice calling her, Sibylius opened her eyes.

And there, right in front of her, was a dazzlingly radiant figure that looked just like Ceres.

"The Heavenly God?!"

Sibylius was startled out of her wits. What was going on?

She had definitely parted ways with Ceres, stayed awake for a bit, and then gone to her room to sleep. So why was a god appearing before her eyes?!

[I have appeared in your dream because I have something to tell you.]

The Heavenly God read Sibylius's confused mind and spoke as if answering her.

[So watch carefully what I am about to show you, Demon King Sibylius.]

"...Are you acknowledging me as the Demon King?"

[In this world right now, there is no one else to play the role of the Demon King but you anyway. If anyone doubts your qualifications later, tell them you are the Demon King acknowledged by the Heavenly God.]

If she went around saying the Heavenly God acknowledged the Demon King, people would probably tell her she was spouting bullshit, wouldn't they?

Doubting whether this was just a nonsense dream, Sibylius spoke to the Heavenly God.

"What exactly are you trying to show me?"

[A parallel world. A world very similar to this one, but where the genders of the people and the social standing of men and women are reversed.]

"Oh, is that so? What a fascinating place."

Despite the Heavenly God's astonishing words, Sibylius was unimpressed.

"Well, if you just give me enough time, I could also view another world using magic."

[Then are you not interested? In what the male you or the female Ceres are doing in that other world?]

"...It's not that I'm uninterested."

[Then shut up and watch. I have to show you and then go visit the other brats as well.]

Unable to resist the bait the Heavenly God threw out, Sibylius reluctantly watched the images he showed her.