Chapter 7: I shouldn't have done that (7)

The quest hadn’t ended.

It had been updated.

“Are you saying you took care of all this by yourself…?”

“It’s almost laughable to admit that you couldn’t even handle this much alone. Were you hoping to die?”

I reflexively deflected the mercenary’s admiration—since I responded to every little thing, I was really getting into the spirit of delivering lines—and casually checked the quest.

「※ People in Danger

◆ Recover Bodies: 3/25

◆ Recover Belongings: 5/?」

This was the first time I’d ever seen a game that turned cleanup into a quest.

More importantly, why had the numbers gone up when I hadn’t done anything? Did the game count what the NPCs did as well?

If so, then there was no reason for me to step in. The job might be annoying, but doing this kind of grunt work wouldn’t exactly suit my image.

I leaned against a tree at the edge of the road. The mercenaries sent by the Mabel Trading Company muttered something among themselves, but I couldn’t care less.

“Why would Demons…”

“I’ve escorted quite a few trade caravans, but this is the first time something like this has happened in the west.”

“If they were barbarians, I could at least understand…”

If there was one thing I learned while waiting for them to finish the recovery operation, it was that the developers must have been seriously committed to making this game, because even the traces of battle didn’t disappear.

Normally, if this much data accumulated on the map, the game would inevitably start lagging, so even if they didn’t remove the corpses, they’d at least erase the traces of battle—uneven ground, weapon marks, things like that.

But this game didn’t remove any of it.

At this rate, it felt like Deep Pearl was going to dominate the entire next-generation gaming industry.

“Why are so many Demons appearing near the city?! This has never happened before!”

“We should protest to the city!”

That was something I learned from outside the game.

There was also something I learned from within it.

The fact that this attack was so bizarre and unprecedented meant there was definitely something behind it. Considering that the basic story framework of Legend of Heroes was “the story of Adventurers who gathered to stop Satan, the Great Demon who broke free from his seal,” it wasn’t hard to make a guess.

“There aren’t enough bodies…”

“What?”

“Even considering the damage they suffered during the battle, there are far too many missing.”

And now there were bodies missing as well?

Then it was definitely the work of Demon worshippers, black magicians, or… whatever. Some bastards connected to this had probably carried out a terrorist attack without thinking things through.

Later, there would probably be a separate quest to find whoever was responsible for this incident.

It was obvious without even looking.

After twenty years of gaming experience, making wild predictions was practically second nature.

“Let’s return to the city for now. We survived, so that’s what matters.”

“They took our money and still failed to properly exterminate the Demons… The Lord will have to pay for this.”

As I listened to the complaints of the survivors, I whistled inwardly.

The game even showed conversations like these and the process of returning to the city. It really did feel like I was experiencing a genuine fantasy world.

This game was seriously fun.

“…Good work.”

As I escorted the survivors back to the city, an old NPC with a sour expression was waiting for us with a cigarette hanging from his lips.

His expression wasn’t sour because of me. The damage had apparently been so severe that his mood had simply gotten worse.

“You’d better make sure the compensation is satisfactory.”

But since my Character Concept was someone with a completely broken personality, I didn’t bother worrying about it.

I’d saved this many lives. What reason did I have to be considerate beyond that?

“Hmph! I’m not about to withhold payment from someone backed by the Adventurer’s Guild! Wait there!”

Would bringing up the Demonic Energy Antidote here break character?

Right. Fine.

I trusted them to take care of that themselves.

Still drenched in blood, I heard the quest completion notification. Thanks to adjusting the BGM volume, my ears no longer hurt.

But…

If the notification was already playing, how was I supposed to receive the reward?

“Why don’t you go to an inn? I’ll have someone accompany you. Once the situation has been sorted out, I’ll compensate you properly.”

I briefly frowned at the order of events when a middle-aged NPC approached and spoke to me.

It wasn’t even a cutscene, yet his facial expressions were rendered in such detail that I found myself impressed all over again. Then I immediately understood what he meant.

Right.

The main quest hadn’t even appeared yet. There was no way the quests would simply stop here.

Sure enough, a new line had appeared in the quest window.

“It had better be enough to satisfy me.”

I stared at him for a moment, then uncrossed my arms, which I had folded as a sign of acknowledgment.

I had been planning to visit an inn anyway.

The timing couldn’t have been better.

“Of course.”

Or maybe the game company had intended this.

Even an incredibly dense player—someone like me—would probably realize by this point that the filth covering their body wouldn’t disappear automatically.

“Hey, you there! Show this gentleman around!”

If they had made the game this realistically, there had to be bathing facilities too, right?

Good.

Let’s see how they implemented the shower system.

And while I was at it, I could check out the inn as well.

Earlier, I had only gone as far as the entrance, so I hadn’t been able to see what the rooms were like.

What would it look like inside?

My heart began pounding with anticipation.

***

No.

Cancel that excitement.

The city had a sewage and water system, but the individual rooms didn’t have private bathrooms, so I was forced to use a communal bathhouse.

There wasn’t even any hot water.

Soap cost extra too.

And it was ridiculously expensive!

Thanks to that, some of my loyalty toward the game company was promptly withdrawn.

When morning came, an NPC from the trading company came looking for me.

He was accompanied by a generous reward and Izren, the Administrator of the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Our people are indebted to you.”

The first thing they did was pay me.

Three hundred thousand Gal, five bottles of Demonic Energy Antidote, five bundles of Bandages for stopping bleeding, painkillers, and more.

Just as I had hoped, the kindness I had shown the people of the trading company had returned to me many times over.

“This is slightly more than the standard payment for a rescue request. Are you satisfied, Adventurer?”

“It is sufficient.”

Honestly, with this many extras piled on top of the normal rescue reward, there wasn’t even room for me to throw a tantrum.

I stuffed the items into my inventory.

There was still plenty of space, so I could worry about inventory Tetris later.

“Is there something else?”

More importantly, the fact that these NPCs weren’t leaving gave off a distinct quest-like smell.

“Not from me, but…”

“I’d like to entrust another request to you.”

“…What?”

My gamer instincts had been correct.

It really was another quest.

Even though Izren, the Administrator who was supposed to mediate requests, looked like this was the first she had heard of it.

“Speak.”

Thud.

I closed the inn room door and leaned against the wall beside it with my arms folded.

I had been about to leave when they entered, so I was already fully equipped.

At the very least, I probably looked cool.

“What a damn attitude…”

“Sir…”

To me right now, that was no different from being told that I was acting well.

I gratefully accepted the compliment.

“Demon extermination. The location is the northwestern forest.”

“What? Sir, that area has already been assigned by our Guild to another Adventurer—”

“That’s because we haven’t heard anything about the problem being solved!”

The old man slapped his own knee and shouted.

For someone so small, he certainly had an impressive amount of energy.

The middle-aged NPC rubbed his forehead while Administrator Izren shrank back.

“Do you think there are only one or two people who make their living in the northwestern forest? If your Adventurer’s Guild had sent someone competent in the first place, I wouldn’t have to do this!”

“That’s…”

“Enough! Now that I’ve seen that bastard’s skills, I’m sending him!”

Despite his temperament, he seemed to be quite a good person.

Every request he gave seemed to be for the sake of other people.

“So, all I need to do is exterminate the Demon in the northwestern forest?”

I didn’t dislike characters like him.

Not that I intended to start acting polite.

“Yes.”

“Haa… Since you are so determined, I’ll begin mediating the request immediately. However, regarding the Adventurer who departed first—”

“What am I supposed to do if they weren’t good enough to receive the job?”

“You’ll have to pay a cancellation fee.”

“Hm.”

While the Administrator and the Chairman bickered back and forth, the middle-aged NPC approached me with his old, tired face.

“Ahem… Let me explain the situation.”

It seemed that he had given up long ago on trying to break the old man’s stubbornness.

The middle-aged NPC gave me a detailed explanation of the request.

There wasn’t much worth paying close attention to.

A Demon had appeared in the northwestern forest. The creature was somewhat cunning, which was why it still hadn’t been captured. My job was to kill it so people could travel through the forest without fear again.

That was the whole story.

The only noteworthy thing was that, like the previous Sewers quest, this was apparently a request that had also existed in the original game.

I wasn’t completely sure, but the main quest would probably begin in earnest after this.

Then again, the game had supposedly been remade, so maybe things had changed.

“I’m not asking you to leave today, but I would appreciate it if you could take care of it as quickly as possible.”

“The reward?”

“There is a bounty of seven hundred thousand Gal on its head.”

“And?”

“…Since this is a private hire, I’ll add another two hundred thousand Gal if you kill it.”

No, I had just been asking whether the seven hundred thousand Gal was the actual reward.

Could I really raise the price this easily?

I hadn’t even invested in the Negotiation Life Skill yet.

I had postponed it because I had been putting points into other things.

Don’t tell me this was possible even without the skill?

“…Three hundred thousand Gal.”

I fell silent for a moment while contemplating the game system.

Then the price went up again.

“But only if you bring it down. If you fail to kill it, I cannot pay you.”

“…There is no chance of me failing to kill it. Just prepare the money.”

Mom.

I had always thought I was bad at negotiating prices, but maybe that wasn’t true.

Or was the problem my Character Concept?

Mom, should I start acting like this at work in real life too?

“Then we shall establish the contract at a bounty of seven hundred thousand Gal and a private hiring fee of three hundred thousand Gal, for a total of one million Gal. There will be no advance payment, and while no deadline has been set, the reward will only be paid upon delivery of the target. As always, the mediation fee will be five percent.”

Apparently, the Administrator had reached an agreement with the old man while I was busy.

Her pen moved quickly as she wrote up the contract.

「※ Danger Lurking in the Northwestern Forest

◆ Travel to the Northwestern Forest」

And the moment I signed the contract, a new quest was added.

“Then I’ll leave immediately.”

“Wait, you mean you’re leaving right away? You could at least rest for a day—”

“I have no intention of wasting time while a Demon remains alive.”

If I completed just this one quest, the money I had on hand would double.

Rest?

What rest?

Unlike the cheerful thoughts running through my head, my voice was as cold as if I had been possessed by Arctic ice.

The old man, the middle-aged NPC, and the Administrator opened and closed their mouths before finally looking at me with serious expressions.

“You should at least receive travel expenses.”

“…Well, this is discretionary pocket money, so the Guild won’t interfere.”

The old NPC said so and pulled out more money from his clothes.

The pouch I reflexively accepted felt fairly heavy.

Fifty thousand Gal.

“The northwestern forest is quite far away. You’ll need to find a carriage going there.”

A carriage.

So basic travel between cities was done by carriage?

“What about a horse?”

“I can lend you one if you want to borrow one. But you’ll have to pay for it. Horses are valuable.”

After saying that, the old man thought for a moment before naming his price.

“Since I know your abilities, I can lower it to five hundred thousand Gal.”

For a moment, I felt like my eyes were about to pop out of my head.

What did he just say?

Five hundred thousand Gal?

Cleaning out the Sewers had paid four hundred thousand Gal, and the quest I had just completed had rewarded me three hundred thousand Gal.

“Since we’re the ones in urgent need, if you complete the job and return the horse safely, we’ll refund the money. However, if the horse dies or is injured, we’ll collect a penalty fee.”

He paused.

“About two million Gal.”

Ah.

Wait.

Did the game actually allow horses to be attacked?

Were horses expensive to match the setting?

I had charged into battle on horseback earlier.

I had nearly screwed myself over.

The back of my head suddenly felt numb.

In most Open World PC games, there were almost no restrictions like this on transportation.

Or maybe they planned to give players another method of transportation later?

For some reason, though, I had a feeling that wasn’t the case.

“…What about a carriage?”

Even if I was the king of bluffing, that didn’t mean I was completely detached from reality.

I decided to concede on this one.

It felt like a small defeat.

“There are carriages at the carriage rental office.”

The Administrator answered, and the middle-aged NPC shouted toward the lower floor of the inn.

“Errand boy!”

A moment later, a boy with freckles across both cheeks and his nose came running over.

“If you’re going to the carriage rental office, you can have this boy guide you. Or, if you don’t want to go yourself, you can simply send him.”

“I said I was leaving immediately.”

Should I leave right away?

Or should I stop by somewhere like a general store first?

I thought about it for a moment, then decided to go immediately.

I wanted to find out exactly what kind of system this was.

“May God be with you, you rude bastard.”

“…May God be with you as well.”

“I wish you good fortune, Adventurer.”

With the three NPCs seeing me off behind me, I immediately left the inn.

It was a good thing I had already gotten dressed.

At least I didn’t have to let them see me fumbling around while packing my things.

“This way, my lord.”

Meanwhile, the boy cheerfully stepped outside the inn.

Whenever I followed him, the Zweihänder strapped to my back clattered softly.

“My lord, you’re an Adventurer, right?”

The boy hurried ahead while occasionally glancing back at me.

His bouncing curly hair was so adorable that I wanted to reach out and pat it.

“…No.”

As for the answer to that question, though…

Well.

It was a little ambiguous whether I—or rather, this character—could really be called an Adventurer.

Sure, judging by the Adventurer Tag I possessed and the current circumstances, I seemed to belong to the Adventurer’s Guild.

But that was more of a profession than an identity, wasn’t it?

According to the character’s settings, he became an Adventurer because of money. I didn’t think he genuinely considered himself one.

If you really thought about it, his identity was closer to that of an avenger or a wanderer.

“I am not an Adventurer.”

So I denied it for now.

“…Ah. I see…”

I must have answered too firmly.

The child’s cheeks, which had been filled with anticipation, drooped.

I keep saying this, but these NPCs were ridiculously well-made.

“…But I do similar work. Is there something you wanted to ask?”

“…!”

At my added words, the child brightened again.

His baby-fat cheeks turned faintly red.

“Then… have you ever seen the sea?”

Ah.

I might get overly immersed in games, but I wasn’t usually the type to become emotionally attached to NPCs.

In this game, though, it would probably be harder not to grow attached.

How was I supposed to reset myself later?

“Yes.”

I’d manage somehow.

I was already curious about how differently NPCs would react when I came back with another class and a different Character Concept.

For my second playthrough, I should choose a Fighter class with a brighter personality who enjoyed interacting with others.

“What does the sea look like?”

“…It is blue like your eyes, and filled with waves that curl and roll like your hair.”

“My eye color is similar to the sea?”

“Yes.”

“Wow…”

As the boy chattered away, I gave him a few answers while heading toward the rental office.

The conversation continued so smoothly and naturally that I briefly forgot he was nothing more than an NPC.

“Wait here! I know the best carriage driver among the people heading northwest!”

And then, a sudden thought occurred to me.

Ah.

Even if this game didn’t give players their own means of transportation, it would still be worth playing.

The interactions with NPCs were so free and diverse that the enjoyment of those interactions alone would keep the game from failing.

It might get cursed at a lot, though.

“…Those crazy Deep Pearl bastards.”

I only moved my lips, making sure no one around me could hear.

It was hopeless.

My painful sore spot had returned as a game this beautiful.

How could I possibly not love it?

“Here! This is the person!”

“I heard you’re heading for the northwestern forest… Is that correct, sir?”

“…That’s right.”

“Then you’ve come to the right place. I was just about to depart. If you had missed this carriage, you would have had to wait another three days.”

…

But wasn’t this a little too much?

What kind of Open World PC game designed transportation like this?

I had only wanted to check out the system and look around the town before leaving…!

“The fare is ten thousand Gal.”

I wasn’t completely without the desire to visit a general store or somewhere similar and prepare myself first.

But the driver’s mention of three days was too significant.

In the end, I paid the fare and boarded the carriage.

And just like that, my loyalty to the game company—already shaken by the shower issue—took another hit.