Chapter 7: A Suspicious Man and My Aching Muscles

Chapter 7:
A Suspicious Man and My Aching Muscles

 

BY THE TIME I woke up, it was already midday. I hadn’t woken up so late in a long time—and I’d slept like a log, totally dreamlessly. When I stretched, my arms and thighs throbbed painfully in protest.

My whole body ached, but my thighs were especially bad. When I worked out, I often skipped leg day, and I was paying the price now. I tried to stand up but collapsed instantly like a baby deer. Giving up, I instead began to crawl awkwardly. Somehow, I made it to my computer to check on my villagers.

“Wonder if anything happened while I was away…”

I scrolled through the backlog. At first everything seemed normal, but then I found something unusual. Someone had been speaking in the early hours of the morning when nobody else was awake.

“I’ve seen nothing suspicious so far. I’m sure they’re just refugees. Yes. I’ll take a look and then return.”

It sounded like a conversation, not something someone would mutter to themself. I wish I could have seen what happened, but all I had was the plain backlog text.

“I am sure the Day of Corruption will wipe them all out without our help, just like the last bunch of humans and those repulsive dwarves who settled here.”

I hadn’t known there were dwarves in this world, but they were a fantasy staple…

“I’m slightly worried about the blessings they receive from the God of Fate. If we meddle, we may invoke His wrath. That’s why I believe we ought to stick to observing… Yes. I understand. Those who encroach on our holy ground must face the judgment of the God of Plants.”

It had to be Murus. He was the only person who knew the forest and was close enough to my villagers to watch them. So he wasn’t the helpful physician he appeared to be. From the sound of it, he belonged to a group that already lived nearby and was suspicious of my villagers. Was this why I couldn’t see his bio like the other characters? After spending so long getting to know him, his betrayal kind of hurt.

 

“I’m glad they have me, at least.”

It sounded like he wasn’t planning to act against my village, thankfully. If it weren’t for me, the God of Fate, maybe Murus wouldn’t be so scared to do something to them. What did worry me was that I had been relying on him to help protect my villagers on the Day of Corruption. If I couldn’t count on him, then Gams was the only fighting-fit villager.

I wanted to work on a solution right away, but I’d woken up hungry. It’d be better to eat something first so my brain could work at full capacity.

When I went downstairs, I found Mom doing the dishes.

“Oh, you’re up! I’ll warm up some lunch for you.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do it myself.”

Lunch was last night’s leftover dinner and soup. Mom finished up the dishes and sat across from me as I ate.

“How was work?”

“Everyone’s really nice. I’ve gotta work tonight, too. Same time.”

“Oh, really? That’s nice.” Mom smiled at me.

It had been years since she’d seemed so happy. Still, it made me feel uneasy that she was praising me for something most people did on a daily basis and without a second thought.

“How was the food I left you?” she asked.

“Oh, um…it was great. Er… Um… Thanks,” I managed to say.

Not only did my villagers help each other, they were properly grateful—and that kept their relationships working smoothly. I wanted to follow their example.

“You’re welcome. All these changes are really nice, Yoshio.”

“Yeah…” I got to my feet and rushed back to my room, unable to take the embarrassment anymore.

I was going to go back to bed and rest my muscles before work, but I sat back at my computer without thinking.

“Huh. Guess I’m on autopilot.”

Anyway, it was time to take things seriously with my village. I couldn’t just sit by and watch them like I usually did. I had to keep an eye on Murus. I considered letting him know I was on to him in the daily prophecy, but I’d need to be careful to say something that only he would understand, so as not to alarm my villagers. I briefly thought about telling them directly that Murus was not on their side, but I decided against it. They had enough to worry about. Besides, I didn’t want him running away either. He was still valuable when it came to keeping my people safe and fed.

 

***

 

I finally finished writing my prophecy. My villagers were all together, having just finished lunch, so there was no better time to send it.

Chem quickly swallowed her last mouthful of food. “Look, everyone! The daily prophecy is here!”

Whoops. I hadn’t realized she was still eating.

 

“I know you are all worried about the Day of Corruption, but please, stay strong. I still have enough power to perform some miracles. Do not forget that you are under my protection. Should there be anyone who dares harm you, they shall incur my wrath. Do not forget this.”

 

Chem read out my message. As she did so, I kept an eye on Murus, and I didn’t miss the change in his expression—his eyes darted back and forth in panic. He was scared! He wouldn’t try anything now.

“We’ll be fine,” said Gams. “The Lord is watching over us. But that doesn’t mean we can let up! The Lord doesn’t reward the lazy! We still have to do our best.”

C’mon, Gams, that hit a little too close to home…

I already knew I didn’t deserve to be God of anything, except maybe loafing around.

Anyway, now that I’d taken care of the Murus situation, it was time to focus on the survival plan for the Day of Corruption. First of all, I had to keep working so I could afford more Fate Points. I was paid by the hour, so I wasn’t sure how much I could expect to earn, but I estimated I’d bring home about 30,000 yen.

My eyes then fell upon a parcel in the corner of my room. It had arrived while I was sleeping. I opened it up to find a small, very round pebble.

“I bet you spent ages pickin’ this out for me, huh, Carol?” I knew it was just a rock, but I couldn’t help smiling as I held it in my palm.

My villagers assumed they could only send me one offering a day, but the truth was they could send up to two. Carol was using up one of those “slots” by copying the adults and putting her own offering on the altar. Her gifts were usually pebbles she liked the shape of or small, white flowers. Sometimes I’d even be treated to a clump of dirt. Lately, she’d started sending me tiny wood carvings, a skill she’d picked up from watching Chem and Gams make my statue. I thought they were supposed to be dolls, but it wasn’t quite clear. They were getting better and better, and I always looked forward to seeing what kind of creation she’d send me next. That didn’t stop me from worrying every time she picked up the carving knife, though.

I put the pebble on my shelf where I used to keep my manga and light novels. Her wooden crafts were there, too. Anyone else would probably think I was crazy for keeping this stuff, but to me and Carol they were rare treasures.

I knew they probably weren’t real gifts. Even if a kid actually made them, it was probably one of the developer’s children. But I wanted to believe they were real, pathetic as that might be.

“I know she’s not real…”

With my new pebble on the shelf, I stretched out my limbs and let out a yawn. Boy, was I sore.

“Time for a nap, I think. I just hope my limbs feel better when I wake up.”

Even just getting up from my chair sent a stabbing pain through my muscles. I wasn’t as nervous about working as I’d been last night, probably because I knew what to expect. Up until now, the very idea of work had made me feel nauseated. Yet here I was, almost looking forward to it. I could help someone out and earn money by doing it. But most of all, I could make Mom smile.

 

***

 

That night, I was working with the same two coworkers as the day before. When we were all on break, our boss told us about how he used to work for a huge cleaning company, but they paid badly and treated their employees like crap. So, ten years ago, he took everything he’d learned and set up his own company. When things got busy, he’d ask other small cleaning companies to lend some of their employees or hire temporary workers like me.

“And you’re already getting pretty good at this!” said my brawny boss.

I was just using the vacuum to suck up dirty water, but I appreciated the praise.

“R-right,” I said.

“No need to be so nervous! I know it’s only your second day, but you’re doing fine…”

“Thanks!” I plastered a smile on my face, hoping he wouldn’t think I was laughing at him.

With my limited social skills, I wasn’t quite sure how to act. I tried to think back to how I’d been in college, but those memories had faded over the past ten years. It had been a long time since I’d interacted with people outside my family.

“These days, my employees are a really nice bunch. And even if they look like a bunch of ne’er-do-wells, they’re all excellent workers.”

I followed the boss’s gaze to see one of my new coworkers, hard at work. He’d dyed his hair light brown, and he didn’t look like the kind of guy who’d take work seriously. But when I watched him work, I could see how efficiently he tackled the task at hand.

“The best thing you can do is take work seriously. Do that, and no one can ask any more of you.”

“Thank you!” His words really got through to me, and my reply came out a little louder than I meant it to.

“Well, I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself!”

“Hey, Boss! Quit killin’ time with the new guy and come help us out! And Yoshio-kun, don’t get too enthusiastic! You don’t wanna burn out!”

“If you’re gonna slack off, Boss, we’re gonna give ourselves a raise and take it outta your pay!”

“S-s-sorry guys… Hey, wait! You’re not the accountant! And I’m your boss!” The boss rushed over in a comedic show of rage.

The relaxed atmosphere made it easy for me to loosen up. I had nothing to compare it to, but I sure knew it was fun to be here. I knew it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, but it felt like a job I could give my all to, no matter what happened. “I gotta do this…for them.”

There was less than a week to go until the Day of Corruption.