Chapter 7: When a Shut-in Brings a Goddess to Another World
Re-written date: 5 / 15 / 2025
. . . . . . . . . . .
The beginning of KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! is very straightforward, with a brisk and comedic pace. It essentially tells the story of how the shut-in protagonist is tricked by a goddess into going to another world to become an adventurer.
Of course, it's not without benefits — the goddess offers him the choice of taking anything he wants with him to the new world: a powerful weapon, extraordinary intelligence, divine luck… anything.
And our protagonist, living up to expectations (or the lack thereof), chooses none of those. Instead, he picks the goddess herself — the very one who's been smugly lecturing him — as his "wish," thereby dragging her into his chaotic new life in another world.
Filming this introductory segment came with relatively few technical challenges. The biggest hurdles were actually the props. From the multitude of magic circles to the glowing magic stones used for special effects, everything was handmade by Edward himself.
Thankfully, Edward had once been hailed as the "prodigy of the Mage Tower" — the youngest person to reach the rank of Grand Mage. Without that background, creating all these intricate magic formations might've drained him dry.
As for the wings on the back of the angel — the next-in-line to goddesshood — it took Winry quite a while to create a pair that even looked passable. And that was with her maxed-out sewing skills. Naturally, she ended up playing the angel role herself.
. . . . . . .
Early the Next Morning…
"You guys memorized your lines last night, right?" Edward asked, standing with arms crossed. "Remember, when you're acting, give me exaggeration, give me facial expressions! The more over-the-top, the funnier it gets. That's what makes the audience laugh!"
As he said this, he glanced over at the two clearly sleep-deprived actors before him, both sporting dark circles under their eyes.
He raised a brow. "Can I ask what exactly you two were doing last night? Don't tell me you got too into reading the script and forgot to sleep."
"..."
Immediately, Zat and Aya awkwardly turned away, completely exposed.
Sighing, Edward waved for Winry to come over and do some makeup to cover the fatigue on their faces. Only after that did the pair seem to regain their composure.
To be honest, Edward could understand them. He himself had pulled plenty of all-nighters binge-watching anime in the past. More than once, the ending credits would roll, and he'd realize the sun had already risen outside.
So for these two — who had, at best, only read knight novels before — a script like KonoSuba must've been something entirely fresh and fascinating. Of course they stayed up reading it.
Still, understanding their excitement didn't mean Edward was going to go easy on them. Quite the opposite — now that they knew their roles and understood the characters, he expected even more from their performances.
And so, as the group returned to the now-familiar darkened room, this time, the real filming began.
. . . . . . . . .
Inside the pitch-black chamber, the opening "goddess tricking the protagonist" scene had reached its climax.
After a barrage of persuasion and half-baked encouragements, the protagonist Zat was clearly falling under the goddess's spell. He was beginning to seriously consider what power he would bring with him to the other world in order to climb to the top of life.
Suddenly, with a dramatic flare of glowing magic stones, the goddess sprang from her seat, striking a deliberately flamboyant pose as she declared:
"Come, choose! Let me bestow upon you an invincible power!"
At that moment, Winry, perfectly on cue, dropped a bundle of ability cards from a skylight above — each one inscribed with a different power.
Zat, momentarily stunned by the spectacle, began flipping through the cards with sincere concentration. He was genuinely torn — so many amazing options, how could he possibly choose?
And yet, just as he was immersed in this life-changing decision, the goddess — now casually munching on a roasted sweet potato of unknown origin — leaned back in her chair and grumbled:
"Ugh, hurry up already. Doesn't matter what you pick — it's all the same anyway. I don't expect some shut-in loser who never leaves his house to achieve anything."
"I— I'm not a shut-in!! I only died while going outside, okay?! That doesn't make me some kind of recluse!!"
Zat immediately snapped back, though clearly lacking the energy to fully support his protest.
On the other side, the goddess simply licked her fingers and replied nonchalantly, "Whatever. Just hurry it up, will you? There are a bunch of other dead people waiting in line for me to process."
"!!"
This girl—just because she's a little cute, she's this arrogant?!
Absolutely intolerable!
Enraged by the goddess's attitude, Zat clenched his fists, breathing heavily. Then, grinding his teeth, he slowly stood up and growled,
"You want me to decide already? Fine. I'll decide... What I'm bringing to the other world, right?"
"Yes, yes, so hurry up already!"
Stuffing the last bite of sweet potato into her mouth, the goddess turned away, looking thoroughly fed up.
But Zat only raised a hand and pointed straight at her.
"Then it's you."
"..."
"..."
An awkward silence hung in the air for a long moment.
Even as the teleportation magic circle in the corner of the room began to glow, the goddess stood frozen, dumbfounded. She hadn't processed what had just happened.
"Wait, what did you just sa—"
Before she could finish her sentence, a burst of light erupted.
From the skylight above, Winry — now with two large wings on her back — dramatically crushed the magic stone in her hand and descended into the room.
Amid the blinding brilliance, she gracefully delivered her well-rehearsed lines:
"Understood. In that case, I shall take over the duties of Lady Aqua from here on. Zat's wish has been approved as per the rules."
"Ehh... Eh?!!"
The magic circle beneath their feet activated, ignoring Aqua's shocked expression. It enveloped both her and Zat in radiant light.
Now finally realizing the gravity of the situation, the goddess panicked.
"No way! This has to be a joke, right?! No, no, wait—!"
But the angelic Winry simply shook her head calmly from the side.
"This isn't happening! You can't just take the goddess to another world! That's not allowed, right?! That choice shouldn't be valid!! Wait, waiiit!!"
"Safe travels, Lady Aqua. When you successfully defeat the Demon King and bring peace to that world, I'll send someone to retrieve you."
"I can't do it!! Sure, I'm a goddess — I've got healing and purification powers, but I don't have any combat ability! There's no way I can defeat the Demon King!!"
No matter how much Aqua flailed and struggled, the activated magic circle showed no signs of stopping.
Meanwhile, Zat stood off to the side, grinning with wild glee.
"Heheheh~ How does it feel to be taken away by the very loser you looked down on? Ahahaha! You've been chosen as the thing I'm bringing! So use your divine powers, goddess, and make my life easy over there!!"
At that instant, Zat's exaggerated facial expression — so over-the-top and vivid — was so perfectly executed that even Edward, watching from the shadows, nearly broke character.
He could tell Zat had captured the same comedic essence as the protagonist from the original anime.
Seeing Zat's face...
"Nooo! How could I be dragged to another world with someone like this?!"
"Ahahahaha!!"
As the intense light burst like a ripple through time and space, the filming of the first major scene came to a close.
. . . . . . . .
"Cut! Fantastic!"
Edward clapped loudly, his face filled with delight.
"I could feel the facial acting — like you two completely became your characters! Zat, your triumphant smirk was so satisfying, and Aya, your despair at being tricked was spot on! You two were just like the characters in the story!"
But rather than responding, the two "actors" in the room kept arguing:
"Hahaha! Gotcha! Suck it up and come to the other world with me!!"
"No way, you useless knight! I'm not going to another world with someone like you!!"
"..."
Watching this ridiculous bickering continue even after the cameras were off, Edward's face froze in a complicated smile.
Then, suddenly — CRACK! — he smashed a magic stone on the ground and shouted,
"Getting into character is great and all — but snap out of it before dinner, damn it!!"