Ghosts and Clouds #1
Admetus, on the eve of his second match, gazed at the photo of his wife tucked away in his wallet and prayed.
'Alcestis. Please give me strength.'
Admetus was short and small in stature. Because of that, in life, he was constantly ignored or looked down upon wherever he went.
—A guy who can't even grow a beard calls himself a man?
—What booze? Go suck on your mom's tit some more!
He'd thrown himself into reckless, foolhardy ventures for exactly that reason. Admetus had always suffered under the pressure to prove his manhood and competence.
He lived every day fiercely. Then one day.
While wandering near a flower field, Admetus spotted a four-leaf clover. Thinking it was something rare he'd never seen before, he reached to pick it up—when someone snickered.
—You like flowers and grass even though you're a man?
—N-No, that's not it. Don't misunderstand. I hate flowers and cute stuff!
Admetus deliberately kept his distance from flowers and anything adorable.
—I can't stand small, cute things! Hmph! I'm a man's man!
But the woman laughed.
—I love them! Flowers! Grass! Lying in the flower field watching clouds drift by!
I come here every day to watch the clouds!
Every day? Clouds?
What a carefree woman, so unlike him— that's what Admetus thought.
And she really did watch the clouds every day. She could distinguish the names of weeds that looked the same. Admetus often chatted idly with her.
And just like clouds drifting by, he fell serenely in love.
But her father, Pelias, clicked his tongue at the sight of Admetus.
—Tch, a puny guy who hasn't even evolved like a nymph wants to marry my daughter? Fine, if you ride a chariot pulled by a lion and a wild boar, I'll allow it!
If such a chariot exists in this world, that is! Puhaha!
No such chariot existed. A lion would surely devour the boar, after all.
But thanks to his connection with Apollo, Admetus secured a lion and a 'boar that wouldn't get eaten.'
He rode that chariot proudly and married Alcestis.
That was the problem.
'Who knew that boar was Ares in disguise...'
The war god Ares had accepted Apollo's request, but pulling a mere mortal's chariot as a boar wounded his pride.
So he cursed Admetus, dooming him to die.
The only way to survive was for someone to take on the curse and die in his place.
That's when Alcestis said, as calmly as a drifting cloud:
—Admetus, I'll take your curse instead. Because I know how manly and wonderful you are. Live long in this world and achieve great things.
—Alcestis! No!
—In return... even though we didn't live long together, think of me as a good wife. At least until you meet another woman and start a new family someday...
"The day I came to your home to take your dying wife to this Soul Society, your friend Heracles, who happened to be there, grabbed me by the collar."
"...Lord Thanatos!"
Bowing deeply, Admetus snapped out of reminiscing about the distant past at the sudden visit from an executive.
Thanatos bared his nape.
"The handprint is still there from back then. Thanks to that, I couldn't take Alcestis. I was humiliated. You got the curse lifted thanks to that, but..."
"......"
Admetus and Alcestis owed their happiness to Heracles, who had shown up unexpectedly at the funeral. The 'death' imposed on her had receded.
But because of that, Thanatos harbored resentment toward them.
That was why Admetus, now employed at Soul Society, kept failing the deputy exam every time.
"But, Section Chief Admetus. The handprint is fading now, so I'll forgive you. In fact, I have a proposal for you. About Section Chief Jo."
"Section Chief Jo?"
"I already know you contacted Representative Apollo to rig this match. But that won't stop him. I guarantee it."
Admetus was confident he'd shake everyone off and take first in the next match.
But the world had 'what ifs.'
'What if I lose to Section Chief Jo...'
His wife would lose all memories and become a ghost. She was unstable now; even a minor injury might ghostify her.
No time for scruples.
But—
"I'll make sure Section Chief Jo fails this exam. Honestly, he's far too green to be deputy. A living body can't handle that 'authority' yet."
Thanatos extended his hand.
"Grab it, and it's all yours. Don't you want to save your wife? I hear her ghostification is advanced. The grand prize should cure her."
"Jo, what's this? Calling me back to the waiting room."
The pager's performance was top-notch. Lady Melinoë had reappeared in my waiting room.
Her expression was a bit grumpy, though.
"I told you no special treatment beforehand. Or do you need my help to win this tournament after all?"
"It's not that. It's this ghost."
—Hooo—Hooo—!
I held out the fluffy, cloud-like ghost to Lady Melinoë. Her grumpy face instantly softened.
"Hehe, what a cute ghost."
"Right? She just turned into one. She was a woman before."
"A woman?"
Lady Melinoë frowned again. I hurriedly added details to avoid misunderstanding.
She'd nearly been attacked by a section-chief-level cockroach while picking clover. This woman had saved me. Then suddenly ghostified—
"I see. She must've been unstable already. The shock of nosebleeding accelerated it."
Accelerated from saving me? The woman's dying murmur about wanting to see her husband pricked my conscience.
"Can you restore a ghost like this? You're the ghost goddess, Lady Melinoë. You can do anything ghost-related."
"I am a flawless goddess from birth. But I can't do everything. Even with ghosts, limits exist. My Divine Share has boundaries."
"Divine Share?"
"Think of it as the coercive power gods hold. More shares in your domain mean greater influence. I have 11 percent—"
11% of Soul Society's total shares? Impressive in its own right.
—"With that, my ghost powers can only read this ghost's former name and identity. And even that consumes massive divine energy."
"I see."
If we knew her name, we could find her husband. Just as I thought it fortunate, Lady Melinoë shuddered like pricked by a cactus spine.
"...Can't be helped. Even our divine powers bow to the Fates woven by the Moirai. This share rate is the probability of escaping it."
In other words—
11% deviation from fate limits her to reading the name.
Higher shares allow greater escape from fate.
"Just curious, but how much does our great CEO hold...?"
"91%."
Incredible. But...
Doesn't something feel off? Her 11% plus CEO's totals 102%. What's the total for Soul Society? Truly beyond human logic, godly rules.
Many questions, but priority now:
"So, what's this ghost's name?"
"Wait."
Lady Melinoë pressed the ghost to her forehead.
It looked just like a nymph greeting...
...As that irreverent thought crossed my mind.
"Cute ghost, your name is..."
The name—
"How about it? My proposal. I'll take responsibility for dropping Jo."
Admetus pondered Thanatos's offer.
Jo was a vividly alive human. Why did he dive into reckless feats for achievements here?
'There must be a reason. A desperate one.'
Thinking of Jo reminded Admetus of his own struggles to prove manhood. And his willingness to risk all for his wife.
"Appreciate the thought, but may I refuse?"
"Oh? Why?"
"I rigged the event to my advantage—cowardly, I know. But I don't want to steal his chance entirely..."
"Even if it earns my grudge? You know how fearsome that is."
"...Even so. I believe he has his desperate reason. I won't trample a man's resolve. Forgive my selfishness."
Bowing to the ground.
Thanatos's blue eyes flared.
"Daring to refuse an executive—"
"......"
—"I wanted to rage. But I don't hate it. Such manly resolve. I vaguely see why Apollo and Heracles liked you. Now I do too."
Beep-beep-beep—
The waiting room alarm rang. Next match soon.
"Probably the last. If Jo wins this, his score makes the third irrelevant. Deputy promotion confirmed."
"Won't happen. I'll win."
Admetus steeled himself and headed to the arena.
"Second match: Fetch the flag from HQ rooftop!"
"One winner!"
"Any method allowed!"
HQ was the deepest part of Soul Society. Even freefall took 9 days. Fierce spirits and monsters made approach impossible.
'But I have my chariot.'
Lion and winged squirrel-pulled. Confident driver since borrowing from Apollo. Now on his long-saved golden chariot, victory certain—
"Jo contestant appears!"
"W-What's that!?"
Fluffy—
Section Chief Jo rode a bizarre cloud-like thing.
Admetus, familiar with transport vehicles, recognized it.
"Ghost carpet...!?"
It outpaced his chariot and repelled HQ guardians. Made with 10% of the ghost goddess's miraculous shares.
And Jo rode it.
"Go—!"
Eek!? Flustered by the variable, Admetus started late.
Even on time, too late. Jo shot toward the depths like an arrow.
"Flag retrieved! Jo Section Chief wins!"
"Jo Section Chief! Who saw that ace up his sleeve!"
"Where'd he get it!?"
All in a flash.
"Jo Section Chief leads second place hugely! Two firsts unprecedented!"
"Even if others win third, catching up impossible."
"Deputy promotion confirmed!"
Darker than facing death for Admetus. Deep despair engulfed him.
'It's over...'
Floating up on ghost cloud, Jo shouted to the crowd.
"Winner's prize from CEO! But I want something else! Esteemed Chairman, worthy of awe! Pity this little ghost!"
Jo raised a round ghost high.
Admetus couldn't make out the blurry orb, but the Hell Clover in its grasp was clear.
'Alcestis...!'
Want something else instead of my prepared prize?
A mere subsidiary section chief, fearless.
Won't back down even if fired over that tiny round ghost?
Fired.
That word dizzied Admetus further. In Soul Society, firing was worse than death.
As all murmured, Jo calmly shouted:
"I'm not afraid of being fired."
He even smiled.