Chapter 7: When the Goddess is Taken to Another World by the Otaku
The beginning of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!" is straightforward and fast-paced, detailing how the otaku protagonist is deceived by the goddess and chooses to become an adventurer in another world.
This decision comes with a perk—the goddess promises the protagonist they can bring one thing of their choice to the other world, whether it's a powerful weapon, extraordinary wisdom, divine luck, and so on.
The protagonist doesn't disappoint and selects the goddess herself, who endlessly annoys them, as their wish condition, marking the start of their challenging life in the other world.
Filming this opening segment presents few challenges, mainly with props. Whether it's the numerous magic circles or the magic crystals for special effects, Durin handcrafts them all.
Fortunately, Durin, a child prodigy of the Mage Tower, manages to create them all, having reached the realm of a Level 5 Grand Mage at a remarkably young age. Otherwise, handling so many magical circles might have drained him completely.
Regarding the wings behind the angel who will become the next goddess, Winry takes a while to barely create a pair that looks decent. Naturally, she's the obvious choice for the role of the angel.
...
The next morning.
"You should have memorized your lines last night. During the performance, remember to exaggerate as much as possible and showcase your comedic skills! The more exaggerated, the funnier it'll be, and the more the audience will laugh!"
As Durin speaks, he glances at the two individuals who obviously stayed up late, sporting dark circles under their eyes. Then he casually asks, "Can I ask what you two were up to last night? Don't tell me you got so engrossed in reading the script that you couldn't sleep."
'''...'''
Instantly, Zat and Aya, feeling guilty for their inner thoughts being exposed, nervously avert their gaze until Durin sighs and asks Winry to help them cover up their fatigue with makeup. Only then do the two of them regain their composure.
To be honest, Durin understands these two guys who stayed up all night reading the script and didn't even get a good night's sleep. After all, he himself has been in a similar state when binge-watching anime in the past, only realizing it was morning when the ending credits rolled.
For the people of this world, who at most have only read knight novels, "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!" script is probably an intriguing read they've never encountered before, so staying up all night to read it is entirely understandable.
However, as understanding as he may be, Durin can't relax his demands on their acting skills because of it. If anything, it's quite the opposite. Now that both of them have read the script and understand the roles they're playing, they must perform at their best!
So, as the group returns to the familiar small room, the official filming begins.
...
In the pitch-black small room, the scene of tricking the protagonist has progressed to the latter half.
After various inducements and persuasions, the protagonist, Kazuma, has gradually been captivated by the goddess's words, seriously considering how to cross into the other world and reach the peak of life.
As the magic crystals suddenly shine brightly, the goddess, standing up from her chair, strikes a rather subtle pose and loudly declares, "Come on, make your choice! Let me grant you an invincible ability!"
At this moment, Aqua tosses down various cards filled with abilities from the skylight above.
Despite Kazuma's surprise at the sight, he earnestly looks through the abilities displayed on those cards, suddenly finding it difficult to decide what extraordinary power he should bring to the other world.
However, while he's pondering, the goddess sitting on a nearby bench eats a roasted sweet potato she somehow procured, impatiently saying, "Hey, hurry up! It doesn't matter what you choose anyway. I don't have any expectations for a shut-in like you who spends the whole day at home."
"I'm not... I'm not a shut-in!! I just happened to die when I was about to leave home. I'm not a total homebody!!"
Although Kazuma retorts immediately, he clearly lacks conviction at this moment.
Meanwhile, the goddess licking her fingers completely ignores him and says impatiently, "Come on, just pick already. Can we hurry up? There are still many dead waiting for me to receive them."
"!!"
This girl, she's so arrogant just because she's cute!
Unable to tolerate the goddess's attitude any longer, Kazuma, fists clenched and panting heavily, slowly stands up and grits his teeth as he says, "You want me to decide quickly, right? Then I'll decide... the thing to take to the other world, right?"
"Yes, yes, hurry up and decide?!"
Swallowing the sweet potato in her mouth, the goddess seems to have completely lost her patience and turns her head away.
Meanwhile, Kazuma extends his finger slowly and says, "Then it's you."
"....?"
"....?"
With a long silence, it isn't until the magic circle for crossing worlds gradually lights up on the side, that the goddess designated to be taken to the other world fails to react to her situation, stunned in place.
"What did you just say..."
Before she could finish her sentence, a flash of light accompanies Winry, with two pairs of large wings, forcefully crushing the magic crystal in her hand and dropping down from the skylight.
Amidst the intense light, she, having memorized her lines, slowly says, "I understand. Then, Lady Aqua's future responsibilities will be taken over by me. Mr. Kazuma's wish has been acknowledged according to the regulations."
"Huh...huh?!!!"
The magic circle emerging from the ground completely disregards Aqua's astonishment, enveloping both her and Kazuma, while the goddess, finally grasping the situation, exclaims in shock, "No way? Are you kidding me?! No, wait..."
But in the face of her panic, the angel played by Winry in the distance simply shakes her head without changing her expression.
"No way!! This is so strange. How could you take the goddess to another world?! It's invalid! This choice must be invalid!! Wait, wait!!"
"Farewell, Lady Aqua. On the day you defeat the Demon King safely, I will send someone to bring you back."
"No, I can't! Although I'm a goddess and have healing and recovery abilities, I have no combat power! I can't possibly defeat the Demon King!!"
No matter how much Aqua struggles, the magic circle that has already started shows no signs of stopping because of her actions.
Meanwhile, at the same time, Kazuma, in the distance, is laughing heartily with a triumphant expression. "Hehehe, how does it feel to be taken away by a man you looked down upon? Hahaha, you've been designated as the thing I take with me. Since you're a goddess, you should use your divine power to let me live easily!!"
In that moment, the comedic flair exhibited by Zat almost caused even Durin, hidden in the shadows, to lose his composure. He was certain that the aura displayed by Zat was almost on par with the male protagonist in the original anime.
And upon seeing Kazuma's expression...
"No, I don't want to go to another world with such a man! No!!"
"Ahhahaha!"
With a burst of intense light resembling time travel, the first segment of the plot comes to an end.
"Cut! Excellent! Your comedic acting is so vivid that even I can feel it. It's like you've completely immersed yourselves in your roles. Whether it's Kazuma's triumphant smile when tricking someone or Aqua's pained expression when being deceived, it's just like the characters in the story!"
Facing Durin's earnest and approving words, the two in the room remained unresponsive, instead...
"Hahaha, you fool! You've been tricked by me! Come with me to another world!!"
"No, you useless knight! I absolutely refuse to go to another world with someone like you!"
..."
Witnessing this scene, Durin, unsure of what to say, simply flashed a subtle smile, then suddenly smashed the magic crystal in his hand and shouted, "It's great to get into character, but adjust back before dinner, damn it!!"