Chapter 217

– Ding!

▶ Sub Episode. You can proceed with the Truth of Shatren. ◀

▶ If you choose to accept this Episode by switching seats with Blem and continuing this conversation… ◀

▶ Would you like to move?

[1. Yes.]

[2. No.]

A choice appeared before me at Blem’s suggestion.

This choice was about whether to perform this Sub Episode or not.

‘Another variable.’

In a scene with no information, there’s even a choice.

Not accepting should be the norm.

Following the characteristics of Chapter 2, most of the time, you perform the main episode through sub episodes.

If you take a route without any information in such a situation… it’s likely that the content of the main episode will change again.

But.

“I’ll do it.”

Compared to the original game, so much has already changed.

▶ Sub Episode. Proceeding with the Truth of Shatren. ◀

***

Blem took a deep breath as he moved to the central hall.

As expected, it went as he had anticipated.

He didn’t directly call it a mutant corpse; he said it was known to be a mutant corpse.

This story shouldn’t leak out to other residents, I thought.

‘That’s right.’

I still marvel at how this game works.

Sometimes, hints come from these small conversations in sub episodes. If you don’t notice them, those hints fly away, which is really cruel.

If I hadn’t noticed here, I would have lost valuable information.

“Let me answer straightforwardly. It is not a mutant.”

“It’s not a mutant?”

“Yes. The existence of mutants hasn’t been revealed to the public, but… dropping such a wooden log…”

“Yes. It’s far from what people generally know as plants.”

Of course.

“Then, it’s a monster, isn’t it?”

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

For a moment, Blem nodded bitterly.

It clearly showed as an enemy entity in the status window, and it even had names like Red Mandrenia and Purple Mandrenia. This was undeniable truth.

It wasn’t a mutant crop, but a monster attacking humans.

“Why?”

“The soil of Shatren is rich with mana. That’s why we can grow Shatren strawberries and grapes. These crops need to absorb mana to grow.”

“So, these crops over-absorb mana and turn into monsters. In fact, the seeds of these fruits are practically seeds for raising monsters, right?”

“…That’s right.”

Now, the threads are unraveling.

That’s why they were hiding something.

“But Shatren strawberries and grapes are symbolic fruits of our territory. These two crops have been passed down through a long history. They are lifelines we cannot afford to lose.”

“They probably wanted this information to never reach the public.”

“Yes. There were voices among the residents to hide this fact. Not reporting every time a monster appeared and secretly disposing of them, refusing internal patrols by guards, and not informing the young master of this fact were all due to the same reason.”

So, that’s why he suggested changing seats.

If the residents informed the lord of this, he would have reacted strongly.

“…However, young master.”

-Creak.

“Brem?”

“If I had reported this sooner, a bigger problem wouldn’t have occurred. This is entirely my responsibility.”

Brem quietly stood up and prostrated himself on the floor.

“I’m sorry, young master. My power was too weak to report this from the beginning. Even though I wanted to tell you about the problems with the fertilizer… After Marf and the corrupted nobles seized control, I couldn’t use any power.”

Brem continued to apologize and lament that he couldn’t say this until now.

“After investigating, it turns out that Marf has been receiving money from noble families of other territories to reveal Shatren’s secrets for a long time. Moreover, recently, Marf said that the secrets of Shatren are already spreading among the nobles.”

“…”

I can see the future somewhat.

Naturally, a picture forms in my mind.

People throwing up. Those who protest, saying they didn’t know they were selling this while hiding the truth. And nobles who reserved and paid a high price, only to point their knives at Shatren.

If it was known that these fruits were actually monsters that grow by consuming mana, no one would show any kindness.

“I tried to stop Marf, but failed. If this old man had been wiser, if I had been more intelligent, this fact would surely have reached you, young master. You desperately tried to help us, but… I, the village chief…! We, the ignorant ones…!”

Brem, who was venting his anger, returned to his calm voice and pleaded.

“Please, cut off my head.”

– Ding!

▶ Realized the origin of Shatren strawberries and grapes. ◀

▶ Sub Episode. The Truth of Shatren is completed. ◀

▶ Due to Marf’s accusation, the truth of Shatren spreads throughout the world. ◀

▶ An episode branch change has been confirmed. ◀

▶ Major influence changes the clear conditions of Main Episode X. ◀

▶ The spread of rumors about Shatren measures the achievement level. ◀

[ Achievement Level: -25% ]

▶ Warning! If the achievement level does not exceed 70%, the score of the symposium may drastically drop. ◀

So that’s how it was.

This sub episode seemed to affect the main episode.

This sub episode seems to depict Brem’s backstory as the village chief with no power in Shatren.

But, rumors about Shatren would eventually surface anyway. It happened in the game too, so finding it early is a blessing.

“Get up. You’re not too late.”

“Young master, if you dispose of me, there might still be a chance.”

“Brem.”

“If I alone am responsible for hiding this, you won’t be falsely accused!”

…Damn.

That’s why I hate being someone’s superior.

The worker once called ‘Captain’ was fired after taking all the blame. That lonely image… still lingers.

Similar, no, the same thing won’t happen again.

“This can be known to the world without any problems. If you can prove it, it shouldn’t matter, right?”

“…What?”

That’s impossible, right?

That’s the look on your face.

Well, we’ll see.

“Talpon. Did you hear everything?”

“Yeah.”

Talpon enters after opening the hall door. Brem’s eyes widen.

“I wondered why there was a smell of monsters in the territory. But I didn’t know the reason.”

“… ”

“But, that’s not unusual. Village chief.”

Yeah, that’s not unusual.

“What do you mean…?”

“Our existence proves that we are harmless.”

Talpon points to himself with his finger. Brem looks puzzled, still not understanding.

“I’m sorry. I don’t understand what you’re saying at all.”

“That’s fine. Just open your eyes wide tomorrow and see.”

Human beings are not that fragile.

We can suppress any rumors easily.

***

The next day.

A very noisy day began.

“Open this right now! Don’t open?!”

“The lord should explain this!”

“We deserve double, no, triple compensation for this!”

People, who heard the rumors outside, gathered in numbers enough to fill several trucks. From nobles to fairly wealthy people, everyone was discontented, regardless of gender or age.

They would have stormed in and destroyed the fields if the territory closure order wasn’t in place.

But they can’t enter recklessly because of the overwhelming presence of Talpon and the Rilfetten tribe guarding the borders.

“Carsein…”

Harnei held my collar with a worried expression.

“Don’t worry. Nothing bad will happen.”

“…If you need help, let me know.”

“What?”

“Do you remember not using the artifact last time?”

Hmm… So, this conversation is coming up.

“Don’t worry. This time, I’ll solve it perfectly.”

I replied while gently removing Harnei’s hand.

– Ding!

▶ The impact of rumors spread by Marf has caused dissatisfaction to surge! ◀

▶ If not stopped, progress will decrease. ◀

▶ You must persuade the rioting outsiders with appropriate statements. ◀

Just as the status window appeared, the choices were still not showing up as part of the territory management.

It’s time to step in.

“Hey! Look, look!!”

“The lord of Shatren has appeared!”

“Masking monsters as fruit…! Ugh. Just thinking about it…”

“Don’t be so brazen as to say nothing will happen?!”

“What happened to us after eating those fruits? You’ll have to return all the money we’ve paid.”

The dissatisfaction increasing means the compensation is demanded.

Easy.

If I convince these fools, it’s over.

I have nothing to fear.

“Even after explaining everything, you still don’t get it. I’ll ask you one more time. Are you all sure you won’t regret this?”

“What?!”

“If you casually spread words about Shatren without trust, you should be responsible for your own words.”

One noble raised his hand.

“What does responsibility mean?”

“Simple. You’ll be blacklisted from Shatren.”

“…What did you say?”

“Why? Even though we communicated through residents and guards and nothing was wrong, you couldn’t understand. So, as a consequence, you shouldn’t be able to touch Shatren’s fruits ever again, right?”

I placed a giant scroll for signing in front of them.

“If you still want compensation, sign here. But, be prepared. Insulting Shatren, which has no problems, is challenging me, the lord. This won’t be overlooked.”

– Ding!

▶ Outsiders are shrinking back. ◀

▶ Achievement level is rising. ◀

[ Current Achievement Level: -20% ]

Seeing how strong I was, people visibly flinched.

“Can it really be that there’s no problem?”

“I don’t think the lord could be so confident… Plus, rumors have already spread.”

“I feel the same way. We came without knowing if it’s true or not…”

Indeed, you need to be strong in situations like this.

When you think about it, they don’t have any solid evidence that something is wrong. If I convincingly explain, they’ll change their minds quickly.

But, it’s not guaranteed to work 100%.

“Hmph! Who will be scared by that?”

“How ridiculous. We’ll gladly sign.”

“We’ll demand multiple times the compensation, so be prepared!”

There will always be stubborn fools like this, no matter where you go.

After a while, the list of signatures was sorted.

Compared to the number of people gathered, the list noticeably shortened.

It seems they’re intimidated by not being able to touch Shatren’s famous fruits again.

‘The people who backed off are mostly from the lower class, commoners.’

As Brem said.

Now, compared to the nobles who eat these expensive fruits, the commoners who truly knew the taste of these fruits were the ones who suffered.

‘Well, that’s good.’

It’s fortunate for me that the main targets for strict suppression are mostly nobles, who are potential customers.

“Talpon.”

“Hmm. Is it time to step in?”

“Yeah.”

Crush those fools’ noses flat.

Muttering that, Talpon smiled and headed right. There, he had been roasting smoked barbecue for a while.

He tore into a deliciously cooked piece of meat and happily swallowed a juicy chunk.

Gulp.

That sound seemed to echo in the throats of the onlookers.

“What is this nonsense?!”

“Proving that Shatren’s fruits are not spoiled?!”

“Are you just making us drool by watching you eat meat?!”

“What kind of nonsense is that? It’s the process of proving it.”

Talpon answered as if he had been waiting.

“The one I just ate was a wild boar-type monster found only in the west.”

“What?!”