114-114
Chapter 5.01
The city was torn in half.
Not so much for the Adventurers as for the Earthlings, but that doesn't mean that the major guilds were immune to this division, and in the end, the city was torn in half.
Principals.
And duke faction.
These words swept through the bars and back alleys, and among the people standing in the square like a whirlwind.
The Duke Faction was Duke Ains of Akiba.
A duke who was trusted by the Saigu family was the greatest authority imaginable in the land-based society of the Yamato people. Of course, the support of most of the Daichians was unconditional, which meant that the Daichians had many of them.
Reynecia was popular with the Earthmen as the Winter Rose of Eastar, but she was also only a woman, a fatal disadvantage in this feudalistic society.
No matter how brilliant and outstanding she was, women were not allowed to hold most official positions in Yamato's aristocratic society. Thus, no matter how good a candidate she was for the office, her chances of being rejected as a "candidate" were slim to none as long as she was a woman, no matter how much she cared for the grassroots of the city.
That being the case, the difference between him and Akiva Duke Ains was clear, and no matter how much he wanted to emotionally support Reinesia, there weren't many people who would dare to displease the new Duke by riding a losing horse.
At this point in time, many of the Daichijin and the Adventurers knew that Ains, one of the eleven members of the Round Declination, had been appointed Duke of Akiva and had left the Round Table. At the same time, a new governing body, the Akiba Ruling Office, was to be established.
The Daichijin had never encountered any inconvenience in the past, but for them, the Duke of Akiba was a much better choice than the distant presence of the Round Table, who was a lord and a simple protector.
The word "lady school" means "even if there is no lord, Princess Reinesia has been consulting with us until now! And that was only out of the expectation of being a protector equivalent to a lord, and not now that the factions were so close together that a faction-like faction could form in the first place.
If a lord is born in a land that has no lords, it will be more stable and pleasing. That's all it took for most of the Daichijin to do that, and as a result, most of the Daichijin living in Akiba support the Duke of Ains.
It may be cash, but it is only natural for the Territorials, who are struggling to earn their living that day, to rejoice at the birth of a new lord who is likely to provide them with immediate benefits.
The cloud had changed when the news came that Princess Reinesia had refused to marry Saigu.
Who would be more popular, the new Duke of Ains or Princess Reinesia? With this information, the peaceful confrontation between the two men, "I'm a woman," and "I'm a woman," begins to take on a completely different look.
Of course, there was a defense that the marriage proposal was made by a somewhat rude messenger, but the assumption was that in the Daichijinshi society, women, in particular, could not marry of their own free will. The fact that the marriage proposal from the Saigu family was consented to by the Duke of Maihama was a "matter of course" that was beyond debate for the Daichijin.
It may or may not have been the first notoriety that Reinesia had received since she was born, almost for the first time.
Moreover, if she had only been "the daughter who refused to marry," the situation would still have been light.
No matter how much of a feudal culture we live in, where marriage is a family decision, it is natural for humans to be good or bad, or compatible with each other. There are naturally cases of happiness in the marriages ordered, but there are also countless cases of unhappiness. That's why songs about love and pure love sung by bar singers are so popular and draw tears of sympathy.
The "inability to live as one wishes" is one of the few things that the common people can feel superior to the nobility. The sympathy vote for the popular Maihama princess, Reinesia, who "did her will against an unwanted match" should have been expected to be enough.
The air in the city shook for a moment, but immediately afterwards, they would gather at Duke Akiva like a rage.
It was the wrong partner.
The person Reinesia refused to marry was the Saimiya family, the highest-ranking member of the Yamato family. In the eyes of the common people, the Saimiya family was the most powerful family in the Holy Empire of West Runde. What if this one case could get in the way of the Saimiya family? It was only natural that such a question would arise.
From the beginning, the feud between the Alliance of Free Cities Eastal and the Holy Empire of Westland was well known to the common people. Even if they don't have sufficient knowledge of the historical details, past battles are passed down in their respective regions in the form of songs, and each sees the knights and lords of their respective regions as traitors. What happens if you drop a spark into such a dangerous tension?
Akiva might become a battlefield.
The magnitude of the suspicion that ran through the residents of Daichijin is immeasurable. What they were seeking under such circumstances was the protection of their daily lives, and this was what drove them to support the Duke of Akiba, Ains.
''The color of the city is one color in support of the Duke. You've already done this and won.''
Ains raised an eyebrow at Malvez's words, which were tinged with merriment and did not even touch the wine.
This is the reception room of the
It's a good idea to have a good time with your friends and family.
It's called a summit meeting of the Ains, who are now considered to be the duke school.
It's a good thing that you're able to get a good idea of what you're looking for. Since Ains was knighted and left the Round Table, he and Saimiya were no longer on the same page, and so these meetings were held every night.
''........''
I suppose not. Malvez.
Touri Saimiya, who rested his weight on the back of the sofa, asked in an unhurried manner, "Isn't that so, Lord?
Is that so, Lord? Even though we are not educated, we will find the right way when we are exposed to the gracious compassion of the Lord, the Saigu. I don't know what use is this travesty of a vote, but which path is the right one? There are at most 10,000 adventurers in this city, and 30,000 of them are in this city. I don't think we'll be outnumbered, even if it's the eastern barbarians, now that the Lord is here.
Then Ains would not be so gloomy. Will you tell me, Ains?
Ains thought for a moment in response to the subject that had been dumped on him.
'Lord Ains. Do you doubt the prestige of Touri-sama, the Saigu?
How the silence was taken from him, the dissimilar nobleman Malvez turned his irritated voice to Ains.
'Restrain yourself, Malvez. 'Ains. Answer me truthfully. What are the odds now?
I'd say it's a 50-50 split, for partiality's sake.
After giving up, Ains opened up the prospect to the two of them for the occasion.
''Ha!
You are strong. That wise man in white.
It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with your friends and family. It's a good thing that you have the capacity to accept it, although it's only because I trusted you to that extent that I came up with the idea.
It's a good thing that they have the capacity to accept it," he said, hiding his relief and the bitterness that surpasses it.
'No.' -- it's fifty percent because I'm fighting with him. It's a good thing that you're not going to be able to get your hands on any of them. The game is already won by Shiroe. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm not going to be able to get the job done. There's no chance of winning now.
What's the meaning of this? Have you already lost? You said with your mouth that you had a 50 percent chance of winning.
Just because you say you're going to win doesn't mean we're going to lose. If he's serious about it, he'll use any means necessary to make his wish come true. Even if the means to do so is to lose the game, he'll still get his wish.
What--what are you talking about?
Ains continues to spin his words to the confused Malvez.
This must be a necessary lesson.
These two, who will have no choice but to walk together in the future, must know the substandard that is Shiroe. If that white-robed young man will get his share whether he wins or loses, then Ains and the others will have to take a new step forward as well, whether they win or lose.
'Win or lose..... It doesn't matter anymore about those things. If he's ready to go, you can rest easy there. That's the way it is. Why would you think that just because he was given a ballot contest in the first place that he's going to win with it, why would you think that he's so bypassed?
"Is some wise man trying to lose? Then why do you insist on playing the game?
To Saimiya's curious question, Ains shakes his head from side to side and replies.
''It's not that kind of short-sightedness. I'm saying that if Shiroe-kun took the odds, he would get what he wanted, win or lose. He's not going to give up and he's willing to go through any kind of labor to get what he wants.
"--
'But that's why we could win. Because he's never been obsessed with the game itself.
That's right.
There's a chance they could win.
But it would be so because it would be more convenient for Shiroe if Ains and the others won, and that would be unacceptable to the two of them.
I've never been in close contact with them, so that's not an option.
It's impossible to understand a young man who makes a ridiculous report like "I pulled it off" because he needs trillions of gold coins to open up the zone. Even Ains, who had received the report of the events, could understand what had happened, but he couldn't imagine the circumstances and thoughts that led to it.
'You know a lot about it. Were you friends with that wise man?
He is a household name among us. The Reaper's Field, the Throne of Radamanthus, and the Nine Prisons of Halos. The Prodigal Tea Party and the Devocherie Tea Party, which were only weak attack groups, tore through the large scale battle (raid) rankings again and again. Every criticism that such a thing should not happen, every criticism, and every major guild over there, without stepping back. But rather than that, the problem was that their goal was not to beat the big guilds.
I'm not going to be able to get out of it.
There was a longing and jealousy that had faded over the years.
''Their purpose, you know, was sightseeing. ...Isn't that strange? The Black Sword Knights, Princess Red, D.D.D. and the Howling. The most difficult obstacle that the great masters of the game faced in their quest for honor and the Illusionary Class, and they conquered it while sightseeing. Do you want to see the new monster graphics? "I want to read the quest text". That's about the extent of it. With such a joke of a resolve and training. That's why we were in such a mess. I've heard that the martial name of the Tea Party has been passed on among the Earthlings, but rumors about them flared up even among the anonymous message boards - the Adventurers. As a rank destroyer (billboard leaper). The jealousy of those weak guilds who couldn't participate in large scale battles was terrifying. Slander, defamation, and harassment. It was everything.
By today's standards, the Honesty would be classified as a major fighting guild. But its inner workings were different, and back then it was even more vulnerable than now.
The guild in his memory was on the side of jealousy, to say the least.
Ains remembers how they were at the time (guild chat). Backstabbing and slander against Kanami and Shiroe were discussed as if they were facts. Rumors that are told in places where people are not present are inevitably coated in a radical and dripping malice. It was this ugly scene that prompted Ains to establish a guild management guideline called "Transparency of Strategy Information". He said that at the very least, he hoped that the sensible members who noticed their appearance would change their behavior.
'The big guilds were still good. If they were defeated by the speed of attack, then they didn't think and train themselves well enough. They had the track record and the pride to think so. They had the fortune of time and the ability to convince themselves that victory or defeat was a matter of time. Otherwise, they wouldn't be able to lead a group that could carve their name in the rankings. --But not so, small and medium guilds and individual (solo) players were different. The excuse you can give when you lose to a major fighting guild, 'We don't have more connections or equipment than the big guys,' is also not an excuse, and the lashing out at the 'Tea Party' became more and more intense. ...But the Tea Party of the Prodigal never flinched. And why do you think that is?
"...why is that?
This is a confession.
A confession of sin.
Ains was on the side of the jealous masses, even if he hadn't put it into practice in a trivial way. He cursed in his heart the breakthrough of the Prodigal's Tea Party. -- the breakthrough and its naivete.
When people get together, factions form. If there is profit, they compete for it. That's the absolute truth of any society. Is it possible to build real relationships, free of money and authority, in an online game disconnected from the real world? That's just the ravings of weak-minded people.
If that were true, why do bullying and suicide happen in the schools our children attend? A little difference from the people around you, a little superiority to the extent that it doesn't lead to social status - a beautiful hair color, a good runner, good or bad taste in clothes - that's all it takes to make a person I can kill it. No, it's not. People die without even the intent to kill, just the twists and turns of other trivial faction activities.
Ains, who as a guildmaster had been tweaking such relationships, saw the Tea Party of the Prodigal and envied them. A utopia that doesn't exist. An adventurer striving for the light. When he was shown such ideals, he felt that his guild's management was a trivial human being who kept listening to the complaints of its members, who kept getting more and more arrogant, and trying to curry favor with them.
My own idealism was just a sham. It's just a pretense to deceive yourself that you're a trivial person, or at least that your ideals are high and that you're useful to the people around you. Ains knows that.
But he can't quit.
Other than that, there is nothing else for Ains to do.
'I told you. Because their purpose was tourism. It didn't matter to them whether they won or lost, the honor of being the first to fight for the first line of defense, or one of the rarest items on the server. Because to them, if they took on a large scale battle (raid) and fought monsters they had never seen before in a rare zone, that was the only purpose and victory they had achieved. Everything else was just an afterthought and a chore.
....
''It's the same in this case. I don't know, but Siloe, you are already working towards something. I trust him. So, (...)....
Ains bit his lip.
He seemed to have talked too much for his age. He wasn't young anymore, but the pain and heat of his school days seemed to have made his mouth light.
Are you sure you're not in too much of a hurry? Ains.
No..... I don't know.
You're a wimp. ...Is this what being an adventurer is all about?
Ains shook his head lightly.
He didn't care what Malvez had to say to him. Perhaps the man didn't get it. In a way, that was a blessing.
'You talk too much, Malvez. In fact, you're just fine. The Senate had left me rotting in Icoma, so this was the only time I had a chance to join my world. A house that has been stripped of its wings for so many years has no troops to move about, no lands to support it, and no money to redeem it.
'Lord. That's why Malvez is the first to help and assist the Lord!
Though arrogant and foul-mouthed, Ains doesn't think badly of Malvez. The fact that he didn't understand what just happened means that the man is basically not on the side of jealousy. Ains heard that he decided to take a dry shoulder to Saigu Touri from the position of being despised as a poor merchant aristocrat.
I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea for me to be able to say that I'm the only one. Malvez. I am grateful for your loyalty and funds, but if I want to fight the Senate, I have no choice but to use Akiba as my strength. I am a Saigun without power, Malvez. I have no choice but to look to you and Ains to obtain something new.
Tohri is also suffering. Ains thought to himself.
Many of the Daichijin revere Tohri as if he were a god, but his power base is fragile. The long and stagnant politics of the Holy Empire of West Runde had stripped the Saigu family of all power. The Saigu family has been puppets of the Senate for a hundred years now.
The nobles of Rande don't understand the value of what they have lost. "The petty aristocrats of Rande don't understand the value of what they have lost, they have smashed it with their own hands for 280 years. The relationship with Eastal is still shattered. Have you not joined hands with the demons in the East? You know the downside of that, but you're going to make the same mistake again? May a hundred years of chaos come to Yamato this time if we fight the Istal.
But this young Saigu might be able to change the times.
That thought was one of the reasons why Ains had decided to put his shoulder to the wheel. No, if he didn't embellish his words, it might have just been pity. In any case, maybe I'm a person who deserves to be on the losing end, Ains smiled bitterly.
It's just a matter of time before you get a chance to play a 50-minute match with the wise men of Akiba. What kind of profit can be gained from the game? --It's a good idea to have a good time with them. That is the real game. Isn't that right? Ains.
Yes, Master Tohri. Master Tohri. I think you're right.
However, there is no one who fights to lose. Ains now stands on the battlefield for the first time to fulfill Ains' small wish.
◆ Chapter5.02
Reinesia's resolve.
Ains' determination.
Apart from these, the day of the deciding vote is approaching like a muddy stream.
In this world where census management is vague and the concept of settlement is unclear, a completely controlled election is difficult to conduct in the city of Akiba. In the end, the hasty call for a vote "next Sunday" was a countermeasure to this problem.
Although "Akiba residents will be allowed to vote," what does that mean for the "residents"? If you ask if they are homeowners, a not insignificant percentage of adventurers live in inns. It's not unusual for the landlords to find them camping out on bridges and under the eaves of large trees, rather than in the rooms of their fellow countrymen, until they can stabilize their income after leaving their homes.
What does the city of Akiba mean, and where does it extend to? There is also the problem of how to get rid of it. In a narrower sense, this would be the zone of Player Town Akiva, but the residents of this growing city are slowly beginning to develop the surrounding zones. Some of the ruins, such as the Storehouse Tower and the ruins of the Ueno Thieves' Castle, are being renovated and turned into warehouses and work spaces for large guilds.
The only thing Shiroe and Ains were able to do was to establish a rather primitive system of "people who come to the voting booth next Sunday to vote" and "only one vote per person".
The two camps were busy with their own agendas during the short period of one week.
The new Roundtable, led by Reinesia, had to declare the launch of the new organization, but in order to do so, they had to greet the Duke of Reinesia's main family and coordinate relations with the guilds participating in the Roundtable, so they spent the first few days of the meeting in vain. It is a good thing.
After that, with Marielle, Soujiro, and Michitaka at the center, I explained the background and negotiated a request for cooperation with each guild based in Akiba.
The current situation is that Duke Ains of Akiba is gaining overwhelming support from the Daichijin. If things continue as they are, Ains will be the ruler of this Akiba. To them, it was a natural decision.
The Adventurers were a bit more complicated.
The smaller the guild, the more the Adventurer could leave the city of Akiba. They are skilled in both survival and combat, so if they wanted to, they could establish a base in an uncultivated mountainous region and live there, or they could move to a Daichijin village. In many ways, they don't need as much "protection" as the Daichijin, and that's why they are not bound by the support of Ains.
That's why they can continue to support the Roundtable without being bound by Ains' support.
However, on the other hand, that support is also something that has a bad outlook for the current situation. Because the old Roundtable was a volunteer organization, it was possible to give passive support - in other words, to withhold one's attitude of unwillingness to cooperate but not to interfere - but the new Roundtable is a governing body, and it tries to guarantee its legitimacy by voting. If it is approved, it will be impossible to avoid cooperation. In many ways, it will become a stodgy city.
But it will be the same with the "Akiba Governing Body" advocated by Ains, and in that sense, Akiba has already changed. Whichever side wins, the era of volunteers will be over, and a legitimate, self-governing organization will be established.
Nevertheless, there were two reasons why support for Reinesia among the "adventurers" was rather strong. One was that they felt sorry for Princess Reinesia for refusing to enter into a political marriage of her own accord, and the other was that the Honesti's Ains had suddenly grown so large and annoying that they would have to do something about it, Princess.
In other words, for better or worse, the Adventurer can choose to support or reject them for reasons outside of their lives.
Reinesia met this expectation well.
She was dressed in the uniform of the Roundtable and consulted with the Daichijinshi, more than ever before. However, the merchants and local nobles, who were the subjects of these consultations, had begun to distance themselves from Reinesia, as if they were assessing the situation, and this clouded Reinesia's face.
You can't deny that Reinesia, who goes around with Liese, Henrietta, Akatsuki, and the sisters of the "Peach-colored賽子", was welcomed everywhere in Akiba, but it was different from the old days, and the temperature was a bit low.
However, there was a group of Daichijinshi that supported Reinesia. The newer merchant associations had not forgotten their role in helping to establish a base in Akiba, and many of the frontier villages on the outskirts of Akiba were also inclined to support Reinesia.
'Anyone who wants food, join us! I'll even help you find a place to live!
Wood and iron ore from the dungeon. A craftsman's apprentice, with a bribe, and ten gold coins per day. We're looking for 20 more people.
This is the jersey club. We're giving away jerseys!
Meanwhile, the Duke of Akiva's faction - the Honestees, to put it bluntly - have been active day in and day out.
The task of investigating the Fairy Ring had been completed, and since the Honestees had no longer taken on the city's police force, nearly all of its members were free to go about their business. It was there that the background for their activities was created with the immediate funds brought in by Malvez and the support of the Westlandean Chamber of Commerce and the aristocrats who were committed to balanced diplomacy.
The Ains did not try to accumulate resources such as connections and money at hand. There was a strong desire among the guild members to improve their treatment, but the decisive battle was right in front of them. If they could get through this week, the future was bright. This was a reality that even the end members could see, so for the time being, they were going to do what they were instructed to do.
Even though it was on a whim, the guild members were "adventurers.
If we were to compare them to the other adventurers living in Akiva's city, they might not be as dominant as the other adventurers, but still, compared to the Daichijins, their physical abilities and responsiveness are unmatched. The Daichians, who are jobless or have drifted into the cities as refugees with no family business or farmland to take over, admire them and have the power and means to help them.
In fact, they have the power and means to help.
The village of Pogone. Also, the guys next door from Eldonte and Gabos are in the mix...
Oh, man, don't you dare move your leg!
That's what happened to me when I was surrounded by Red Dogs.
You want me to splash you? Can you tell me if it hurts? Minor healing.
'Huh! Hey, I'm cured!
Many of the Daichijin who come incessantly are divided into groups according to their hometowns. We would check on them, heal them if they were injured, and distribute food to them. The level of the Daichijin is low, which means their maximum HP is low. If that's the case, they could easily recover from low-level spells and items from the Adventurer's point of view, and it wouldn't be too much trouble to hand out sacks of food to them one by one. After the initial response, all that was left to do was hand over to the receptionists at the temporary housing units for the time being, or consult with them about finding a job.
Unbeknownst to the members of the Honestis, Malvez showed an unexpected talent for handling this kind of work. "We just need to give them some food and clothing and quickly show them around, and they'll be fine. Oh? Do you have some of the Adventurer's medicine left? Scatter, scatter, scatter! You have to be generous in order to be successful! In fact, although the taste of the food was terrible in the Akiva sense, the quantity of food that was available was plentiful, although it was not a compliment in terms of the statement "I'm not a good person," the policy of the man himself, who had risen through the ranks of the lowest class of nobles to the court, was evident.
Moreover, there were plenty of poor quality burlap sacks to pack them in, and plenty of bedding to keep them warm, though not pleasant to the touch, on board the transports. These are rather scarce items in Akiba, where people are busy developing new and useful items, but the Daichijin, who do not have any wealth, want these items for the time being until things settle down.
But when Ains spoke to me in admiration, Malvez said, "It's a scrap product that's not selling well in Minami or Akiba because the economy is getting better and better! I bought a warehouse full of goods for two or three pennies from a country craftsman and put them to good use. It's only natural for a merchant aristocrat to do so.
The core of these refugees were the Daichijin from the Boksult area, and were the result of information spread by the peddlers under Malvez that "you can eat at Akiba," but it was unlikely that there would be a significant increase in the number of refugees in a week or so. It seems that most of them had already arrived in the Akiba area, but they didn't know who to turn to and were at their wit's end.
The members of Honesty were reluctant at first, but once they were out in the field, they were carried along by the atmosphere and worked quite diligently. In fact, what they had to do was clear and not difficult. In addition, compared to the long hours spent on the investigation of the Circle of Fairies, this soup kitchen mission, in which the results were delivered right in front of our eyes and the situation changed, provided a change of pace and a welcome relief from boredom.
In addition to this, Ains, a shrewd Ains, continued to go to places where there were many people to appeal for the necessity and legitimacy of the Akiba Government Office. According to Ains' common sense, the combination of soup kitchen and speeches was clearly an act of buying votes, but in the underdeveloped world of Cerdesia, such legislation and common sense had not yet taken hold. It's obvious that it's the most "effective" in terms of effect, so Ains also closed his eyes and reopened it.
In order to narrow the gap between the adventurers, we must gain a majority. In order to do so, we must win the Earthlings over and guarantee their food and safety. It was a roundabout way, but it was also the only winnable route that Ains could find.
This prospect was right, and Ains was welcomed and responded to everywhere.
If he kept it up, he would win the vote overwhelmingly.
That conviction, however, didn't translate into confidence of victory as the day of the vote arrived in Akiba.
Chapter5.03
Perhaps the Yamato people didn't fully understand the meaning of the word "vote," or perhaps they understood the meaning of the word "vote" and decided to interpret it in their own way, but the day turned into a festival.
Without needing to be told by anyone, the main street was cleaned up, clean and polished restaurant signs gleamed, and fragrant aromas rose from the many stalls. The city was filled with a fidgety air since the morning.
The Daichijin, who had settled in Akiba, had gathered early in the morning according to their respective affiliations. When the number of people who had gathered at the Hometown Hall was several times larger than usual, they were divided into groups of people who were from the same region and moved to the plaza or the main street.
The adults were all dressed in clean clothes, many of which were the clothes of artisans.
Many of them were not very flashy, but you could tell at a glance what kind of work they were doing. There was an apprentice blacksmith's apprentice with a leather apron, a baker's daughter with quilted gloves, and so on. It seemed to be their way of saying who they were, who they were as a person living in this Akiba town.
The children, too, were different from their usual counterparts, with their hair braided in a bun and decorated with small flowers that look like they would bloom on the street. The children took in the atmosphere of the city and the delicious smells of the food stalls, but their parents chided them and reminded them that this was the fun of the afternoon. Their solemn expressions as they made their way to the square were very cute, as if they were standing tall.
From an adventurer's point of view, it was hard to understand, but it was their way of dressing and expressing themselves to the best of their ability. It was an expression of pride and gratitude that they had arrived in this city, lived a happy life in their own way, and built a life and a life in their own way.
The Daichijin, in their own way, understood that this day was an important crossroads in Akiba's town. Although they were not blessed with enough information to judge the situation, they knew the basics: either the Duke of Akiva or Princess Reinesia would be the guardian of Akiva, and they would receive a special medal and put it in the box of the one they would be cheering for. They had been fully briefed on how to do it.
They didn't know who would win, but it was clear to the Daichijin, and to the adventurers in Akiba who witnessed the event, that today would be a day of new beginnings.
Somewhere, they heard a light clunking sound.
A cloud of glittering light particles and pink smoke spread across the smooth light blue sky, probably from the use of the Fireworks Wand.
From the center of the downtown area, a song the Earthlings call the Adventurer's Song comes out of thin air. It was the opening theme song for Elder Tail, and it is now the most familiar song in Akiba.
The voting was held at the intersection of Akiba's central streets.
This intersection, recreated by the Half-Gaia Project, is a huge one, with a total of six lanes, but in this Serdesia world, it is a place that is usually used as a plaza, as there are no cars and it is almost too much space. Across this intersection are two larger squares.
One is the Great Silver Leaf Tree, one of Akiba's landmarks, and the other is the Akiba Central Market square.
The other is the main square near the Akiba Central Market.
In the former, Duke Ains of Akiba erected a huge tent as his headquarters, and in the latter, the garden of the House of Waterfrogs was opened to the public for use by the Reinesia and the new Round Table Conference as their election headquarters.
And then there was the Great Silver Leaf Tree Plaza.
I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work. It was relatively high, but small in size. It is relatively high, but its size is small. In this world where the media has not developed, the only way to convey one's opinion to a large number of people is to actually talk to them in this way.
During the conference, we had spoken about the necessity of the Akiba Governing Office from time to time, but this was probably the first and last time we would be able to get this many people together. A strange sense of urgency, driven by the fact that they were supposed to have the upper hand, but they couldn't be sure of that, made Ains inhale deeply to deliver his final speech.
Akiba people. Today is a very important day for the future of Akiba.
Ains spoke.
There are many Daichijin, and not a few adventurers in front of us.
For better or worse, the Roundtable, which had supported Akiba after the disaster, was a volunteer organization. It was nothing more than a huge neighborhood association with no official authority. The Roundtable was a better choice, but it wasn't the best. Akiba has grown, but there are people who have been left out of it.
To find the words to reach them, to make them understand, and to get their cooperation.
'So--'
And suddenly I realized.
Ah, this was apparently the end of the line, he thought.
After agonizing over it, struggling to do something about it, and then thinking about methods, setting up the situation, and arriving at this place, Ains finally understood.
He had no words for himself.
Thus, I have no words to deliver to the hundreds and thousands of eyes waiting for my words.
It is true that the Roundtable wasn't the best, but the Honesty, led by Ains, was a part of it. The responsibility for not producing the best results also lies with Ains. In the first place, the direct cause of the collapse of the Roundtable was the withdrawal of the Honestis.
The reason it wasn't for the best is that the large guilds were using their size to gain an advantage over the larger ones, and the poor adventurers couldn't stand the conditions in the city that were rotting. The oligopoly of both strategy information and production equipment in this new world has instilled an unbearable despair in modern people accustomed to playing online games. But how do we explain this to the people gathered in the square?
They are people who have left their homes without possessions. Some are dark-eyed young men who have given up, while others are women who can't give up and persevere. One couple is hopeful about the rumors about Akiba. But in any case, I wonder if they would understand me if I told them about the "poor adventurer". Probably not, since even the least powerful adventurers are hundreds of times more powerful than the others. Even the least powerful 'adventurers' are hundreds of times more powerful than them.
In the end, this means that the ideals that Ains spoke of were only for adventurers and were very narrowly focused on the adventurers. It is true, but it's not something that can be supported by the people who are using the Earthlings.
In the west, the Holy Empire of the West Runde has begun its dark campaign, and there is a growing sense of unrest in Akiba.
Ains immediately realized his mistake when he tried to change his approach.
Despite threats of imminent war, Ains himself received a title from the Saimiya family, the Holy Empire of West Runde itself, and used it as a basis for legitimacy. This will only sound like they are trying to use the armed forces of the West to create a puppet government in Akiva.
But in every camp there are people who do not want to fight. Now is the time for those good people to come together and form an organization that can talk to both the Holy Empire of Westlande and the Free Cities Alliance of Eastar.
Ains stared at the crowd with a dark expression.
People looked up at Ains with a serious but somewhat unaccountable expression.
It's not surprising. If Ains is a 〈Daichijin〉, then they can't nod widely with this content. They are looking to Akiba for their place in the world, and are not interested in improving the lives of the Adventurers. They have no interest in improving the lives of the Adventurers, much less the history of the conflict between the East and the West, let alone the darkest of conflicts.
The Governing Office of Akiba--
Ains was speechless at the difficulty of the narrative and its implications.
In other words, this loss of speech was the essence of Ains' failure.
Ains had failed to persuade his fellow members of the
But that doesn't mean that Ains himself has the logic to convince those around him. You may win, but that's because you've gained that much strength, not because Ains has gained anything.
Just as he told Shiroe that night, Ains abandoned righteousness and tried to achieve Ains' justice without pretending to be. This is because Ains' own righteousness, which had been despised at the < Round Table Conference>, was unwavering in Ains' mind, and he thought that all that remained was victory.
But now, surrounded by so many of his people, he was at a loss for words, and doubts arose.
What is this emptiness that he feels inside himself, this lack of words?
He knew it was thinly veiled, but he was still self-satisfied. Ains clenched his fists in a kneeling emptiness.
It's not that I was wrong, but the misfortune in front of him blocked his vision, and he couldn't have that much compassion that others had their own individual circumstances, that his own problems were not the center of the world.
If I was truly right, wouldn't the guildmasters of the Roundtable have listened more seriously to me? Or did Ains himself turn his back on us when he was listening?
When you think about it, it makes sense.
I'm sure that Ains himself could have said more at the Round Table. I'm not going to be able to say that I'm a good person.
The painful reality of this painful reality closed in on him, and Ains became silent.
Salvation was the fight against Shiroe. Confronting his own abomination, he strangely did not feel a heavy responsibility for what was to follow. It was strange that Shiroe was the most trustworthy opponent, despite the fact that they were enemies in the battle of voting. Even if Ains won, Shiroe would still be able to manage that future. It was strange, but there was a strange sense of security.
If he recalled, Ains was only preparing for when he lost and not thinking about when he won. He had only planned to leave what would happen after the victory to Touli and Malvez, and above all to Shiroe.
In the slightly clearer vision, Ains smiled quietly.
''The 〈Akiba Ruling Office〉, and the reborn 〈Rounding Roundtable〉, will walk into a new future. The city of Akiba will be even better. Come to think of it, this city is too short of people. But we adventurers asked too much of ourselves and didn't know too much about the people of the Earth. If I may say, I think the Daichijin were too shy to ask for help from us.
Even Ains himself could sense that the words were a little different in hue from the ones he had just heard. It was something that came naturally to him when he relaxed his shoulders and saw the color of the sky.
A narrative that he hadn't been able to find like that when they were desperate to win themselves over and solve the problem at hand, came up as if it was a lie. The words were optimistic in a way that Ains had never used before.
Perhaps if it had been me before, I would have accused him of being irresponsible with those words. 'It's idealism with no regard for reality.'
But if you blame the other person for their inadequacies, does that give you some useful reality? Did Ains gain anything by attacking the other guild masters gathered at the Roundtable? When I remember that, I am left with a painful reminder of my past.
Optimistic words are not irresponsible.
They are words of hope, words of encouragement that we can do it.
If we widen our view of the confrontation between the Akiba Ruling Office and the new Round Table, the words Duke Ains sent to the citizens of Akiba spun themselves.
'Getting better is this: we're going to be a little better at helping each other. It will be a city where those who want help will be grateful for it and not despicable, and those who help will be considerate of their neighbors and not proud. Live in peace. There are a lot of problems, but they are solvable. There will be plenty of things to do every day. I guarantee that everyone will be busy. And because of that, there are plenty of guild masters willing to help.
Ains broke off his words and looked at the square.
He looked at the guild members who looked surprised. Memories of talking to them came flooding back from afar. Yes, the more he had to remember, the less he had to recall, the less chance he had to exchange words these days.
The quiet applause and the confident expression on the Daichijin's face made Ains feel a relief he hadn't experienced in months. The conviction that this was the right thing to do was replaced by a quiet joy in Ains' mind.
When Ains, who had completed his own work, opened his mouth to say his final greeting, a thick, resonant whistle-like sound echoed throughout the entire city of Akiba from a distance. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work.
The people gathered in the square looked around at the lustrous light, their eyes scurrying about. Children clinging to their parents cheered, or expressed their feelings by pointing at the slightly smoky blue sky with a pouty expression on their face.
It was a familiar sight to the adventurers of Akiba, but one they had not seen since the Catastrophe, or even here in Seldesia.
With the flapping of their wings, dozens of griffons soared into the air.
A fragrant breeze was whipped up and the Transport Gate was activated.