God Hand

Lore & Background

In the series, the divine realm is represented by Being X, an entity that engages in a philosophical argument with a Japanese salaryman, condemning him for not having 'faith'. After the salaryman disbelieves in its existence and mockingly terms it 'Being X', the entity decides to reincarnate the salaryman into a world where he would face sufficiently difficult circumstances to turn to Being X for help. The salaryman is reborn as Tanya Degurechaff, an orphaned girl in an alternate universe's equivalent of Imperial Germany. According to Being X, if Tanya either does not die a natural death or refuses to have faith in it, her soul will leave the cycle of reincarnation and will be sent to hell for the countless sins that Tanya has committed in her previous life. Being X's interference is directly responsible for Tanya being the only one capable of using an experimental Type-95 operation orb, granting her high latent magical ability. The entity also grants additional power to Anson Sue, telling him to kill the 'Devil' (Tanya), and later grants additional power to Mary Sue, making her the counterbalance of the main protagonist.

In Their Own Story

In 2013 of modern-era Tokyo, an unnamed atheist Japanese salaryman, in the moment of being murdered by a disgruntled subordinate whom he had fired due to poor performance at work, is confronted by an entity that declares itself to be God who condemns the salaryman for not having 'faith'. The salaryman disbelieves in its existence, criticises its various statements from his perspective as an atheist and mockingly terms it as 'Being X'. The entity decides to reincarnate the salaryman into a world where he would face sufficiently difficult circumstances to turn to Being X for help. The salaryman is reborn as Tanya Degurechaff, an orphaned girl in an alternate universe's equivalent of Imperial Germany. According to Being X, if Tanya either does not die a natural death or refuses to have faith in it, her soul will leave the cycle of reincarnation and will be sent to hell for the countless sins that Tanya has committed in her previous life. In search for an escape, Tanya decides to join the Empire's Mage Corps and fight in the war, hoping to reach a high enough rank as fast as possible to remain far from the battlefield, and in this way avoid the risk of being killed. Even if she's now forced to speak with a young girl's lips, Tanya soon turns into a ruthless soldier who prioritizes efficiency and her own career over anything else, even the lives of those beneath her, especially those that get on her bad side.

Reader's Guide

The God Hand, as represented by Being X, functions as a divine force that intervenes in the mortal world to enforce faith. Being X is characterized as being frustrated with the increasing faithlessness in the modern world. It reincarnates the salaryman as Tanya Degurechaff, hoping that facing difficult circumstances will lead her to believe in God. Being X's interference grants Tanya high latent magical ability and makes her the only one capable of using an experimental Type-95 operation orb. The entity also grants additional power to Anson Sue, who had a vision of God ('Being X') who told him to kill the 'Devil', granting him additional power. Later, Being X grants additional power to Mary Sue, making her the counterbalance of the main protagonist. The power of Being X is not a physical tool but a metaphysical condition that alters the recipient's existence, often leading to conflict with the natural order of life and death.

Did You Know?

• The name 'Being X' was designated by Tanya, who does not believe in the existence of God.
• Being X is characterized as being frustrated with the increasing faithlessness in the modern world.
• Being X's interference makes Tanya the only one capable of using an experimental Type-95 operation orb.
• Anson Sue had a vision of God ('Being X') who told him to kill the 'Devil', granting him additional power.
• Mary Sue is granted additional power by Being X, becoming the counterbalance of the main protagonist.