Chapter 18: Eliminating Those Who Won’t Obey

The area in front of the temple, now sealed off by guards, had fallen into chaos.

When I arrived, there were only a handful of adventurer players present, but once others noticed the disturbance, more adventurer players—and even town residents—began gathering one after another.

"You’re saying we can’t use the temple? Then we can’t go to Larentia or the Aste Empire! And when our party gets wiped, this is where we revive!"

"Yeah! This is a matter of life and death for us! Lift the blockade on the temple!"

The adventurer players who had arrived before me raised their voices in protest, but the guards showed no sign of listening.

"As I already told you, this is a direct order from His Highness Prince Ernest himself! And it is also out of concern for your safety as adventurers! From this point on, not only adventurers, but all people within the territory of the Kingdom of Granseal are forbidden from using the temple! The priests have already been ordered to go to the royal castle as well! There’s no point in entering the temple! If you understand, then obey the decision quietly!"

Unease rippled not only through the adventurer players, but through the townspeople as well.

I had no idea how the townsfolk—originally NPCs—used the temple or for what purpose, but given that it was a temple, it was probably an object of faith for them.

Some of the gathered adventurer players were already bristling with hostility.

If this continued, it wouldn’t be surprising if it escalated into a riot.

I didn’t know what that handsome prince was thinking when he ordered this, but it was a bad development. If a riot broke out in the middle of town and players and NPCs ended up openly hostile to one another, we wouldn’t be able to stay in this city either.

As I anxiously watched how things would unfold, someone pushed through the crowd. It was Masato, the representative of the Adventurers’ Guild, accompanied by Marie and another male player who looked like a mage type, wearing a robe and sporting long hair. With the guards at his back, he stepped forward and began addressing the assembled players.

"Everyone, I’m sorry for worrying you! I know this came out of nowhere and shocked you, but this was also a decision made by us at the Adventurers’ Guild!"

At Masato’s confession, the players exchanged confused looks. But Masato continued without hesitation.

"Think about it! It’s been over a week since we were suddenly brought into this world! Even now, we still don’t know how to return to our original world, and many players have already left this country! There are fewer than a hundred players left in this city, and most of them aren’t even level 100—hardly what you’d call veterans! Outside the town, powerful monsters that ignore spawn areas and wander freely have started appearing! Everything about our situation is uncertain! There’s no guarantee how long, or how many times, revival at the temple will even work! Until we find a way for everyone to return safely to our original world, I can’t let you all be exposed to danger! This is necessary for that!"

As Masato waved his arms and passionately explained, the players—though not fully convinced—began to reconsider. Then a man dressed like a knight in white armor stepped forward to challenge him.

It was Siegfried, the notorious direct-connection fanatic.

"Masato-kun! I get what you’re saying, but isn’t there a chance we can return to our original world if we defeat the Root of Ruin Demon King, Bad End?!"

"Sieg, you actually believe a story like that? The Demon King is just an event boss prepared by the game’s developers back in our original world. There’s no reason to think it has anything to do with this unprecedented, unexplained situation where we players got stranded in this world. Besides, the Demon King is a recommended level 250 raid boss. How many players at that level do you think were still around in S Sword B Blaze O Online when the service was about to shut down?"

"Th-then if we team up with high-level players in other countries—"

"I can’t let people risk their lives over something with so little basis or likelihood. Sieg, you’ve already revived at the temple once, haven’t you? I don’t know what circumstances led to that, but you must’ve been through something close to death. There’s no guarantee you can revive again. Do you really want to experience that over and over? How many times can you endure pain and fear on the verge of death?"

Faced with Masato’s words, Sieg fell silent and lowered his head.

The other players who had been protesting also lost their momentum, and before long, they turned their backs on the temple and dispersed in different directions.

"See? Just like I said~. People like that always start enforcing weird local rules and acting like they’re in charge."

"Huh?!"

Natsumi, who had apparently appeared beside me without me noticing, suddenly spoke, making me yelp in surprise.

"Seriously, nya. Ririka thought so too, but that’s one hell of a self-appointed rule enforcer, nya. And cozying up to the prince to get the temple sealed off—he really outdid himself, nya."

Ririka was standing nearby as well.

Yeah, right. You said he was stingy, but you didn’t doubt him at all.

"But what Masato’s saying isn’t entirely wrong, is it? Revival at the temple worked that way in the game, sure, but now that this world is real, nobody knows how long it’ll keep working properly. And even if our player bodies are tough, we still feel pain. If things go badly, you might be in so much pain that you can’t move before you ever revive, left to rot out there."

"Honestly, Clarice-san, you really don’t have an eye for people—or maybe you’re just too kind. I had a senior like that back in high school, you know? If you’re not careful, you’ll end up getting burned one of these days."

"Uh… well… sorry."

I apologized without thinking, and Natsumi shifted his gaze from me back to Masato as he continued.

"People like that—those self-righteous, control-freak types—the next thing they always do is obvious. They eliminate anyone who won’t obey them."

In any case, there was no point in watching Masato continue explaining things to the remaining adventurer players in front of the temple.

We returned to the tavern. None of us felt like drinking alcohol, so we ordered fruit juice instead. It was less a discussion and more me listening to Natsumi rant about people like Masato when Rick and Dom—the brothers—entered the tavern shortly afterward. They sat down at a table in the back and, at an unusually close distance, leaned their shoulders together while dejectedly discussing something.

Curious, I introduced Ririka and Natsumi to them, and we joined their table.

"Our little brother Dias used the warp gate at the temple to go to the Kingdom of Larentia… We’ve got no intention of fighting outside the town, but Masato says he won’t allow any exceptions, so he won’t let us use the temple… And if there aren’t any NPC priests at the altar, he won’t be able to warp back from over there either… Dias is probably feeling lonely right about now…"

"...Bro… Dias might joke around a lot, but deep down he’s a solid guy. I’m sure he’ll be fine…"

Apparently, according to their setting, these brothers had another younger sibling.

While slightly put off by the sight of the bearded, heavily built brothers clinging to each other and offering encouragement at point-blank range, Ririka spoke quietly to me.

"This is a real mess, nya. Should we go to Larentia and bring that Dias person back ourselves, nya?"

"That wouldn’t solve the root problem. If the temple stays unusable, we’ll be in trouble too if anything happens."

The moment I said it, a troubling thought crossed my mind—would I even be able to revive at the temple if I died, like the other players?

Originally, I had been a character from a completely different game. I wasn’t sure whether this world’s system even applied properly to my body as Clarice.

I had been able to change my name, so maybe things would work out somehow, but I couldn’t view my status, and magic buffs didn’t apply to me. Just what exactly was I in this world?

I might find out if I died once, but there was no way I was willing to test that.

"Then even if Masato put the idea in their heads, if it’s the prince’s order that the soldiers are sealing the temple, why don’t we appeal directly to the prince and ask him to lift the blockade, nya?"

"Exactly! Clarice-san can wear something a little sexy and charm the prince!"

"No thanks."

As Natsumi grinned while watching the brothers cling to each other and muttered something outrageous, I immediately shut the idea down.

"Ehh… it’s a good idea, though…"

What part of that is good? No way.

We held our heads in frustration, but then another familiar voice called out from a different table.

"I’m telling you! If Level 200 Marie-san and Takumi-kun come along, we can gather the companions needed to defeat the Demon King!"

It was Siegfried, the direct-connection fanatic.

"Impossible. The Demon King’s recommended level is 250. Even if we searched the entire world, we wouldn’t find thirty players. We should follow Masato’s plan."

"Then let’s all level up together and try our best!"

"Who knows how long that would take? We don’t even know the conditions to unlock the level cap beyond 230. It’s safer to follow Masato’s plan—make the city livable first, then investigate."

Apparently, they were stuck at an impasse as well.

That Marie—the female warrior—was probably a guild executive, judging by how she had been with Masato at the temple. Siegfried trying to recruit someone like her was… well, very much Siegfried.

"By the way, there was another one at the temple—someone who looked like a mage. Rick-san, do you know him?"

I asked Marie, trying to recall the other person who had been standing beside Masato.

"Ah, that’s Takumi, the guild’s other Level 200 player. I don’t know the details either. Apparently, he was one of the guild’s founders, but he was mostly retired. Masato called him to the pre-service-termination gathering, and he came along."

So that was why he had been dragged into this anomaly. Bad timing, bad luck—but I wondered what he thought of it all.

Not long after, Siegfried spotted us while searching for allies. With no better plan, we ended up being led by him to the guild headquarters to try persuading Masato.

There were seven of us now: Clarice, Ririka, Natsumi, Rick and Dom, Siegfried, and Marie. It was the largest group we’d assembled so far—but perhaps strength in numbers would help.

Though Masato didn’t strike me as particularly flexible.

When we entered the guild headquarters, several adventurer players who had apparently arrived earlier to protest were already there. However, Marie—clearly someone with authority—spoke with them, and we were allowed to meet Masato right away.

"So that’s it. Dias went to Larentia. You want to bring him back, and you need to use the temple’s warp gate to do so."

"Yeah, that’s right, Masato. I’m counting on you!"

Rick pleaded. After a moment of thought, Masato nodded.

"If I make an exception once, everyone else will want the same. But you brothers have already done a great deal of work for me. As an exception to the exception, I’ll allow you to bring Dias back—nothing more."

"Really?! That’s true?! Yes, big brother!"

"Yeah! Now the three of us brothers can be together again!"

Masato had yielded surprisingly easily, and Rick and Dom clasped hands, their thick fingers intertwining as they rejoiced.

"If Siegfried and the rest of you want to go gather companions to defeat the Demon King, I’ll allow it. However, Marie is a crucial part of our guild’s strength, so she stays. Once you bring Dias back, the temple will be sealed again immediately. Is that acceptable?"

"Mm… Ririka and the others don’t really want to go out…"

"Understood, Masato-kun! We will definitely defeat the Demon King and return everyone to the original world!"

Ririka’s attempt to refuse was cut off as Siegfried, without hesitation, accepted on everyone’s behalf.

It would have been better if he had gone alone.

Masato nodded once more.

"However, if other players find out that we made an exception, it will cause trouble. We’ll also need the priests to prepare. Do you have a clock? The system clock is stopped, and this world’s timekeeping isn’t accurate. Come to the temple around 2 a.m. We’ll open the warp gate once, let you depart, and seal it again. Twenty-four hours later, we’ll open it once more. Is that alright?"

"Yes, please, Masato!"

"That works for us too. Right, Ririka?"

"I don’t care anymore, nya…"

Grateful for Masato’s decision, the brothers beamed. Along with Ririka—who had been swept along by Siegfried—Natsumi and I quietly left the meeting room.

After returning to our room at the inn and resting briefly, we spent the time until late at night preparing.

Not for a journey—but for a fight, if it came to that.

"Even Clarice-san understands now, right? That’s the true nature of that control-freak."

"Yeah… I don’t want to believe it, but… that’s probably true."

"Too bad for you, Ririka. I was expecting someone decent to gather everyone properly, nya…"

"Well, decent people don’t usually try to manage players in an online game in the first place."

I had to admit—that was probably true.

"Calling it an exception, summoning a few players late at night… yeah. That’s probably how it is."

"Yes. No doubt about it."

Natsumi looked out the window toward the temple, his gaze filled with barely contained anger, and said firmly:

"It’s a trap."