CH 117

C117: The big circle and me afterwards

After the battle, I went to the basement again to try to persuade the streamers, and they easily agreed and moved to the front of the tunnel.

“I’m sorry. I was worried that I might be killed, but the feeling was fading away day by day, and I didn’t care.”

This was the case. If I believe his words, it could be a miracle of the God of Desire, or it could be that there were other gods or players cooperating with him, and they were able to change their emotions by a miracle. This change was similar to what happened to Yamamoto-san, so it was probably true. Either way, I have no complaints as long as they follow me quietly.

When we arrived in front of the tunnel, I let out a small breath and looked back. There were the villagers and hunters who had gone through the fierce battle. They’re all so dirty and ragged, having used up all their strength and energy.

They must be exhausted, but all of them have a look of pride on their faces. They seem to have the same sense of satisfaction of having defeated an evil god as I do. I wonder if this is the last time I’ll get to speak to them directly. I’ve thought the same thing before, but I don’t think this kind of luck will last three times.

“Thank you all for your hard work. I’m sure God is pleased with this result. Until we get back to the village, please do not relax and don’t let your guard down.”

I sounded like a teacher leading a field trip, but everyone was listening intently.

“Once we enter this tunnel, we will return to each other’s world. This will be the last time we will be able to talk to you directly. I will miss you.”

I was going to say something more like a follower of God, but my true feelings just leaked out. Well, I guess I should thank each of them from here on out. I need to show a bit of squire-ness.

“Thank you, hunters, for your help and your assistance; I hope you will continue to keep the Village of Destiny in your prayers.”

“Of course. The money is good, and the villagers are friendly and welcoming.”

When one of the hunters said this, the other hunters laughed as they talked about the good things about the village. I feel much happier when the village and its people are praised than when I am praised. It naturally brings a smile to my face.

“People of the Village of Destiny, the God of Fate is truly pleased with the development of the village and your activities. Looking back, you’ve come a long way since that wagon.”

As I speak with distant eyes, Gams and Chem are smiling at me. They’re the only two people present who know what it was like back then.

“After that, you moved to the cave that Mr. Murus had told you about, and Kang, Ran, and other families also came.”

Murus scratched her cheek with her finger as if embarrassed by the mention of her name, and Kang and Ran looked at each other.

“Once, the cave collapsed and everything was lost, but we were able to rebuild it successfully. New elves have joined us, and we’ve even been able to get Sudhir the Dark Elves to move in.”

I punctuate my words there. The two elves, Sudhir and the rest of the dark elves exchanged glances for a moment and smiled, but quickly looked away. I wonder if these two races will get along someday.

“And now that Mr. Niles has arrived, the prosperity of the village will continue unabated. But please don’t take it too hard. The God of Fate and I are more than happy to see you happy, so please don’t forget that.”

I think I sounded like a follower of God. My words are mended, but the content is definitely true. In fact, I was able to say it without embarrassment because I was playing a character. If it were my real self, I would have felt embarrassed to reveal my true feelings.

“Thank you, Yoshio-sama. Please continue to watch over us.”

Chem stepped forward on behalf of the group and gently wrapped my hand in both of hers. The skin on her palms felt hard and rough but this was a sign that she was living hard in the village. I love soft, flawless hands, but these hands are much more attractive and lovely.

My only regret is that I didn’t get to meet Lodis family……especially Carol. It’s a pity, but it can’t be helped. I’m sure we’ll meet again through the computer screen.

“Please give my regards to Lodis, Laila and Carol…….I wish you all the very best.”

If I talk anymore, I’ll get so emotional that I’ll start crying, so turn my back on the villagers. As soon as I saw that Destiny had rushed up to me and climbed up my body and onto my shoulders, I waved widely and walked into the tunnel with the streamers.

…………………

“Well, something like that.”

I’m sitting outdoors in the shade under the blazing sun, telling Makoto the details. It’s my lunch break from my part-time job, so we’re in the middle of relaxing and eating a convenience store lunch together. It was yesterday when I escaped from the island and arrived home.

I should have explained the details to Makoto, but he was on a part-time job instead of me, and I was so exhausted that I went to bed early, so I was late reporting.

“I watched it through my computer, and that fight was really awesome!”

Perhaps the excitement hasn’t cooled down yet, but he is still talking passionately about his impressions of the last fight. It was a really great fight. The fact that I fought a god still seems like something else, but I was there, wasn’t I?

”What happened to those people you rescued?”

As he finished his impressions of the battle, he seemed to remember their presence.

“After that, I got on a fishing boat and arrived at the harbor, where the other players were waiting. Through the miracle of memory manipulation, they processed their memories about the location of the island and the events that took place on it, and released them.”

As for memory manipulation, there is nothing surprising now. The game is designed to make you lose your memory if the game is over, so I’m sure they know how to handle that.

“All’s well that ends well, right?”

“Yes, it is.”

I said, “I’m very happy with the results,” but I didn’t tell him that I actually had one more thing to worry about.

Objectively speaking, I was very satisfied with the results. Rescued a missing person. Conquered all the strategy points.

Perhaps it was the recognition of my accomplishments in completing these two tasks, or perhaps it was the normal accumulation of experience, but I had reached level 5 in the game.

Level 5 is the highest level in this game. That in itself makes me happy, and as a gamer, leveling up doesn’t feel half as fulfilling. Every time I reached a higher level, there was a reward, but the problem was – there it was. The reward for the highest level was so unexpected that it’s been bothering me ever since.

“Hey, break’s over. Let’s get on with it and get the hell out of here.”

I hear the usual loud voice of the president. Work first, worry about it later.

…………………

“I’m home.”

“Welcome home.”

I open the front door and tell her I’m home as usual. It’s a normal day in my life, when people say “welcome home” to me as if it were a matter of course.

A year ago, I never said, “I’m home. I was at home all the time. As I sat in the living room eating rice crackers with my mother, I glanced over at Destiny, who was watching a TV show. He looked like a little person in a lizard suit, slouched on the couch, chewing on a cracker. Perhaps sensing my dismay, Destiny also looked at me, chewed the rice cracker in his hand in one gulp, and walked upstairs.

I took off my work clothes, took a quick shower to wash off the sweat, and went back to my room. The computer, left on as usual, showed the villagers working vigorously today. Carol was following Gams around, and Chem was angry.

Lodis is listening to the villagers’ complaints and giving them advice. Laila gently watches over her husband. Kang and Ran are quietly carving and processing wood. Murus and Sudhir seem to be practicing target shooting with each other, but they’re arguing over whose arrow was closer to the center of the target.  Niles is still preaching the teachings of God to his congregation today.

“Yeah, it’s business as usual.”

My precious village has become magnificent. Now that the Forbidden Forest is my territory, I can quickly plan countermeasures against foreign invaders and threats. This would also allow me to respond quickly to the “Temptation of the Evil God”, which should reduce the danger level considerably. The population of the village will increase, and it will become bigger and more prosperous.

“I’ve been meaning to keep an eye on you……”

What’s bothering me is the video call I got last night from the God of Fate. Every time I remember the content of that call, I sigh.

……………

“Congratulations on reaching level 5, Yoshio!”

On the screen of my phone, I see a fuming God of Destiny blowing a cracker. From the surrounding video, it looks like it’s in an office, but I wonder if the other employees won’t get mad.

“Thank you.”

“Well done on defeating the God of Desire and rescuing the streamers! I’m so proud of what my player has done.”

She turned her upper body upside down, stretched out her chest, and spun around in her chair. If I can get her to be in such a good mood, then it was worth the effort.

“Um, can I ask you one question?”

“Anything. Anything at all.”

“What happened to the God of Desire?”

I’m going to say something that’s been bothering me for a long time. The shards of god have been destroyed, but the main body is working on the second floor of the same tenement building as the God of Fate. It seemed that the God of Fate had gone upstairs to beat him and I was itching to know how it ended.

“When I went upstairs with a group of my good friends, the God of Desire tried to escape with a laptop, so I secured him. The evil gods complained, so I exposed what he had done, and they got a big kick out of it.”

So the God of Desire was not a 1st rank follower on the side of the main deity, but at least a second or lower one?

“For a while, the evil gods will be very busy and the [Temptations of the Evil Gods] so they will probably be quiet.”

If that’s true, I’m grateful.

“He’s also getting a pay cut and house arrest. He won’t be messing with you for at least a month, and if he gets resentful and does something he shouldn’t, he might get fired. You don’t have to worry about him. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

“That would be great.”

Since my face and name are known to the evil gods, I don’t want to cause any more resentment or make any more enemies.

“Oh, that wasn’t the main reason for my call today. When a player reaches level 5, they are given two choices.”

I straightened my back and listened to her as she suddenly became more reserved. It was not something I should be listening to with a careless attitude.

“You can choose to continue playing this game or retire.”

“Retire……?”

What did the God of Fate just say to me? I couldn’t immediately understand the meaning of the words and asked back.

“No wonder you’re surprised. Of course, if you just quit, there’s no benefit, but if you choose to retire, we’ll give you 100 million yen in cash as a clearing bonus.”

“100 million⁉”