Otherworld TRPG Game Master

197 – Epilogue: The Strange Adventure of 7% -2

The mole’s eyes had degenerated.

Designed to live a life in the dark underground, those dim eyes could only distinguish light from darkness.

So, if a mole happened to encounter a rainbow by chance, it wouldn’t feel beauty or excitement. The spectrum-producing ring in the sky fails to move the mole.

But if some lunatic, or someone who pitied the mole, gave her functioning, delicate eyes,

The mole could now see many things. Even the unnecessary.

Surveying the world painted in vibrant colors, she feels beauty, but also witnesses the once blurry parts of the dark tunnel.

The gritty texture of the dirt particles, the space that seems sparse with oxygen, the ashen stones that keep tumbling out as she digs, and the pitiful, disgusting wriggling of the worms she has to chew.

Things she wouldn’t have cared about if she couldn’t see.

Now the mole is at a crossroads. Whether to endure the pain and live in the tunnels as designed, or to come out to the surface to see the rainbow.

It may be a story for the distant future.

Whether having clear sight was a curse or a blessing will be decided at the moment of choice.

—

Aksin-chan had considered about 81 detours. Could she kill the boy by ‘mistake’ or ‘chance’ and break free from the murderous constraints of “Kingoah”? Or perhaps hypnotize herself or create a second personality…

Impossible.

It was only after two bed-wettings and three convulsions that she could feel the extent to which the mad wizard had obsessively blocked any tricks. The blockade against ‘killing’ was almost perfect.

Even if she were under a hypnotic spell, she’d snap out of it in seconds, like a monster.

As long as “Kingoah” existed, returning to her original form was impossible. There was no feasible way to release it. Unless the main body in the mad wizard’s head was freed, it was futile.

Then, she must submit once more. Quietly take the road home, all the way to the Imperial Academy.

Choked with irritation, Aksin-chan kicked the blanket furiously and rolled around on the bed.

“Why do I have to grovel and return when they’re the ones who abandoned me? Damn it!”

While she was venting her stress, the door cracked open, and the boy peeked through the gap.

This pitiful girl, presumably toyed with by a demon, had several fits a day. Hadn’t she changed the bed sheets twice just today?

“Did you… wet the bed again?”

“No!”

From noble mtl dot come

“Good. We’re out of bed sheets…”

“Never mind that, why are you speaking informally?”

Aksin-chan glared with lit candles at the detestable human boy who had initially spoken to her so politely but now dared to speak on equal terms, despite his short lifespan.

She wanted to mix in a chilling murderous intent or a mind-shattering glare. But she knew that would trigger “Kingoah” instantly.

A mercenary, steeped in the battlefield for too long, could knock out a child with just the intimidation and murderous aura they exuded.

Even such indirect harm was deemed ‘malicious’ by Kingoah.

So… Aksin-chan expressed her anger while draining all the strength from her eyes. To the boy, it must have looked like a sassy girl pretending to be angry out of embarrassment.

The boy laughed at her lukewarm rage.

“You’re a commoner, aren’t you?”

“?”

“I thought you were a noble at first. Nobles are quiet and fairy-like. Dignified. But you are…”

Loud, rude, and brutish, even if your face is fairy-like.

With her high wisdom, Aksin-chan perfectly translated the unspoken implications hidden in his ellipsis.

And immediately, she threw a pillow at him. Whoosh, the straw pillow struck the boy’s face.

“Ouch!”

“I am a being far greater than any petty noble!”

“You, keep talking like that and you might just disappear without a trace…? Nobles are terrifying. Be careful.”

Aksin-chan was about to argue that such social statuses created by humans were fragile things that could be toppled with a mere gesture before her.

Unable to harm humans at this moment, proving it was also not feasible.

Moreover, even if the boy looked up to her with admiration, it meant nothing to her. Evil Spirit-chan quelled her anger. It wasn’t worth getting angry at him.

She sat cross-legged on the bed, propped her chin on her hands, and asked the boy languidly.

“Let’s not talk… So, why did you save me?”

“Well, because a victim of a succubus came from my house… The priest also said that the goddess likes it when we give to others.”

“Oh, is it out of goodwill? I doubt it. You must want something from me.”

“…No, that’s not it.”

In Evil Spirit-chan’s eyes, there was certainty, not doubt. The proposition ‘The boy saved her not out of pure goodwill, but because he was interested in the benefits’ was true.

When the boy asked, ‘You’re a commoner, aren’t you?’ there was a hint of desperate hope in his eyes. By the time he was convinced that Evil Spirit-chan was a commoner, frustration and disappointment had flickered through him.

He had hoped that Evil Spirit-chan would turn out to be a noble.

Thus, he had dreamed a sweet and complacent dream of praising the commoner who had helped him and extending a helping hand. To expect arbitrarily and to be disappointed arbitrarily, it was laughable.

But it smelled of tragedy.

The boy knew how frightening the nobles were. He knew that if he carelessly touched the body of a noble lady, he could be beheaded.

If he had seen her crack, the probability of death would have risen even more. There were many noble ladies who would rather spread rumors of being a bed-wetter in high society than behead a commoner who was a witness.

Thinking coldly, he should have left the place immediately instead of extending a helping hand. But he had hoped. He had bet on the possibility that Evil Spirit-chan was a good-natured noble. Desire was palpable.

Evil Spirit-chan smirked.

“Go ahead and say it. What do you want?”

“……..”

“I’m not a noble, but… Yes, I’m a magician of the Purple Tower. A disciple of the master’s disciple of the Purple Tower. Do you understand what kind of social position that is?”

“You’re a magician? You don’t seem much older than me.”

Should I show him something with illusion magic? No, it might be dangerous to let him experience it directly with his body, since “Gingoa” might act up at any time.

Then, just a little more persuasiveness is needed. Evil Spirit-chan quickly considered several possibilities and then said.

“The master’s disciple of the Purple Tower, you see, has jet-black hair and red eyes. He’s always flanked by two women, a lecher.”

“…A lecher.”

“I said I was a disciple, but… I’m more like his toy. I’ve been the test subject for all sorts of illusion magic, or been toyed with down to every corner of my body.”

The boy’s complexion turned slightly pale. He must have imagined a tragic story of being abused as the evil magician’s servant.

“But that’s not important. What’s important is that… I’m favored by him. When I return to the Purple Tower, I have the power to completely change the life of a commoner.”

“……..”

The boy seemed convinced. Whether a magician, a knight, or a merchant, those with power and strength do not keep a beautiful woman by their side.

Evil Spirit-chan’s beauty was remarkably striking, so it wasn’t strange for her to be ‘selected’. The boy pondered for a long time whether to offer words of comfort or to get to the main point.

“I have a sister…”

There was no way to save the girl from someone who might as well be the master of the magic tower. So, the boy turned a blind eye to the misfortune before him.

It wasn’t a girl living an unfortunate life, but rather, she had confided her circumstances to a magician of the Purple Magic Tower.

—

Click-clack. The legs of the devilish Akushin-chan swung back and forth as she sat on the bed.

“Hmm…”

There was a pair of siblings who begged on the streets. After a life of hardship, one day, the sister manifested divine power.

Upon joining the Goddess Church, the sister requested that her younger brother be allowed to live with her, and it was granted. The boy became a worker within the church.

But starting one day, the sister began to languish and eventually lost consciousness. Not just her, but several other priests as well.

However, the high priest leading the Elmeist branch of the Goddess Church said, “It’s alright.” There was no problem at all; this was merely a trial given by the Goddess.

Once the fever subsided, they would be reborn as faithful servants of the Goddess, he said.

The boy had no choice but to believe him, but the strange occurrences didn’t end there. Odd people invaded the temple, destroying the statue of the Goddess, and knights of the realm frequented the temple…

And then, at some point, the high priest disappeared.

Thus, the story goes, in the shattered and unmanaged church building, only the boy and his sister remained, living day by day.

“It’s quite clear what happened.”

The high priest must have been seduced by a succubus. And then slowly brainwashed the people inside the church. Perhaps the boy’s sister was drained by a demon.

Akushin-chan said with a bright smile,

“Everything will be alright. The Purple Magic Tower is home to masters of the mind, so if I go and ask… Just by doing that, your sister’s illness might be cured.”

“Really?”

“Of course, really. But you see, I’m penniless right now. To travel to the distant Magic Tower, I need travel expenses. So──”

How much can you give for your sister?

“…”

That was all that needed to be said.

The boy, believing in the one-week deadline promised by Akushin-chan, left just enough money to get by for the week. He handed over the rest of his possessions into Akushin-chan’s hands.

“Then, see you later. I’ll bring back good news.”

“I’ll wait, and wait. I’ll pray every night.”

“It will reach her. The Goddess hears all prayers from the earth.”

That’s the problem with just listening.

Akushin-chan giggled, tucking the heavy purse of coins into her bosom and left the church building. On her way out, she casually opened the entrance.

It was just small change.

With this much, I can’t use the teleportation facility, nor is it feasible to ride a private carriage. If I had to choose, it would be a public carriage.

It seems I’ll need a bit more money. Where could I find a way to draw a large sum? If I ponder, surely something will come up…

While Evil Spirit-chan was mulling over this with her ears, “King Goa” cried out.

“Hmm…? Ah, yes. You were able to help the boy. Is that what you’re saying?”

She tapped her choker hanging around her neck and muttered to herself. Yes, it’s Evil Spirit-chan, who even clung to the minds of humans directly salted by succubi.

She could easily restore consciousness to the comatose boy’s sister.

“But, why should I?”

Evil Spirit-chan shrugged her shoulders. Is it so wrong to pass by someone dying on the streets? Surely not.

But then, if she gets entangled in a grudge and suffers harm, it’s her own loss.

“I’ve never directly harmed him. I was just passive, that’s all. And I’ll keep my promise. Since I’ve received the money, I’ll return to the academy and tell the mad magician about this guy’s situation.”

But the road to the academy is long. If I encounter bandits along the way, I’ll be delayed.

And then, as the boy’s financial situation worsens. His sister starts to look resentful. Even if he tries to get money, things don’t go as planned. Waiting. And waiting.

Clutching his starving stomach, until the moment his life ends, waiting for the girl he saved… In the end, dying in despair over a vain hope.

“Whatever I did, it was out of goodwill, right?”

“King Goa” had no response.

Yes, the mad magician is fair in any situation. He always follows the rules of the game. If he had imposed a restriction on Evil Spirit-chan to bestow unlimited goodwill.

Even if she were caught by a passerby and forced to work unresistingly as a slave for 30 years, there would be no way to resist, would there?

And… unless the boy showed an unexpectedly great act of goodwill. In the end, Evil Spirit-chan’s predicament of being tortured by the mad magician was ignored. The weak are not virtuous.

This gray area.

In this terribly ambiguous gray area, I can dance as I please! Evil Spirit-chan laughed to herself. Die waiting for salvation.

Throb.

“…?”

At that moment, something vague… a very vague sensation brushed her inner self. But she considered it nothing and shook it off.

—

I need money for travel expenses.

And from the boy, Evil Spirit-chan got an idea to draw money. It’s information. There are always those who buy and sell information in this world…

Wouldn’t information about the mad magician be attractive?

The dark horse prince’s confidant, but having spent so much time holed up in his tower, the information doesn’t circulate outside.

It’s said that he frequently conjures metaphors among the students, but whether that’s true or false is unclear.

Only rumors circulate among the firmly grasped upper class, and even his existence is ambiguous.

Disguised as a wizard of the Self-Tower, I decided to feign leaking internal information.

Connecting with the information broker was simple. A mere half-day stroll was enough to uncover all four information organizations that existed within the Elmest territory.

From these, I excluded the Defense Bureau’s trap investigation and two others that were too small in scale, and chose my trading partner.

…Spill confidential information, and wouldn’t “King Goa” crush you?

Correct. That’s why I don’t reveal truly important information, such as the mad wizard’s holiday schedule.

And if I fabricate false information to sell, wouldn’t that be scamming others and “King Goa” would crush me for that?

Right again. So I stick to plain facts. Yet, I sell information that sounds thrilling to others.

It was slander, pure and simple.

“This ‘mad wizard’… enjoys casting sensitivity-enhancing spells on young girls and watching them struggle,” I said.

“…You mean to say the Second Prince has such a deranged wizard close to him?”

“That’s because his abilities are exceptional. Perhaps a few character flaws have been overlooked, but I’m not sure about that part.”

Take that, mad wizard.

The resentment, sorrow, regret, and rage of being abandoned…! I will have my revenge by secretly ruining your reputation!