Chapter 624: An Answer Borne of Small Steps Offered to a Dead End
Author's Preface
First update of the New Year! What's that? Joya Gero? That's an information hazard where you paradoxically don't welcome the New Year until you finish reading it, so if anyone is still trapped in 2019, please go read Inventoria!
It's heavy. It's way too heavy.
Being forced to listen to this relentlessly heavy backstory is making the "know-it-all" expression I glued to my face start to crack. Actually, a few of my bunny suits have already burst from the sheer pressure.
I see, I understand what she's getting at. Strictly speaking, "Isana" isn't the AI of the Leviathan, but rather the personification of the masses' image of the entity known as the Leviathan given physical form...
『I possess absolutely zero capacity within the Leviathan's database. I am capable of accessing all of the Leviathan's authority, and I can remember every single event that occurs within the Leviathan... but even so, the one remembering it is 'me,' and it does not reduce the Leviathan's memory capacity in the slightest... I struggled immensely to establish my own sense of self, and it took a very long time for my existence to be accepted.』
Knowing you are here, but being unable to prove your existence from a third-party perspective. This chain of "hardship stories" being told one after another is definitely the kind of tale that can shake human emotions.
It's just, well... it's long. It's way too long. Can I skip this? Can you just let me review it as text later? It's gotta have been five, maybe ten minutes of event cutscene already... Actually, hasn't it been closer to twenty minutes? When it drags on this long, I start becoming acutely aware of my own boredom.
So, basically, this is just you bragging about your romance, right? It's a love romance between a fairy-like entity and a man who dedicated his life to grasping tomorrow, right? I really feel like backstory dumps should prioritize... you know, lingering emotional resonance. Yeah, resonance is important.
Who would have thought "Isana" had the "talks way too long" character trait... Wait, did she show glimpses of it before? I don't know. My clothes just burst, so I need to change.
『At the time, I didn't realize it. But even without understanding anything, I tried to stop him. I rejected him, but he persuaded me regardless... Throwing his intellect, his memories, his everything into the flames, Julius vanished into the depths of the earth... And I, I...』
If I were here alone, I probably could have wrapped this up nicely and skipped it somehow, but Rei-shi is here too. And Rei-shi doesn't seem to think "Isana's" love story is too long or tedious at all... Well, I guess that just proves Rei-shi is still an active high school girl. But I'm a high school boy, you know? Honestly, if I'm going to spend this much time on something, I'd rather be fighting Type-Stinger... No, it's not good to just think about things that kill the mood.
I should properly listen to the conversation and try to connect it to lore-crafting. Let's see... First off, is it safe to assume Julius Shangri-La is essentially a God?
Firing his own brain into the core of the planet in the so-called 6.6.6. Project to control mana particles... Wait, is it closer to pacification rather than control? Based on what she's saying, he managed to calm the Divine Age environment—which was completely overrun by Raid Monsters—down to its current state, and even constructed an ecosystem entirely separate from the Genesis Kin. Yep, he's definitely a God.
"Hmm..."
I guess this is what you call a title drop. Julius "Shangri-La" and Alice "Frontier." Put them together, and you get Shangri-La Frontier... I see. In that case, the information being unraveled right now isn't just a Unique Scenario, it's directly tied to the World Story.
Come to think of it, I've never really looked into the World Story that deeply. Part of it is because ShanFro's worldbuilding is so massive that it's hard to tell if it's actually progressing or not... but if you really think about it, it's basically the main story questline.
『That is why this is my lingering attachment. Even if it is just an empty husk, even still... this is that person. But... but... Could it be that I am wrong? Humans mourn over corpses. Decorating it in a place like this, like a specimen... Ahh, perhaps it was a mistake for an entity like me, whose true nature isn't even known, to harbor feelings for someone in the first place...!!』
"Ah..."
She went and said what I was thinking but didn't say out loud. Yeah, I definitely thought it was a bit psychotic to put it on display...
But what do I do here? Just listening and moving on isn't going to cut it. ShanFro is a game of deep-lore analysis, an affection-rating game, and an action game all rolled into one. Unlike modern dating sims, this game doesn't give you dialogue options to choose from... It's designed so that you have to figure out how to raise affection based on your own deductions. Honestly, doing preliminary research is more vital here than in any other game.
However, this is literally my first time meeting Julius-san. If I really stretch it, I think his name popped up in the logs of Edward-shi, who self-destructed while dragging my snot down with him in that underground room... Yeah, that's the absolute extent of my knowledge.
But taking my place when I couldn't find the words to speak was...
"...No, no. I'm sure... it's not a mistake at all."
Rei-shi.
"Whether your actions are right... or wrong... I'm sure there's no one in this world who can actually prove that... But even so... I truly believe that shouldn't be a reason for you, of all people, to deny your own feelings... Yes, that's what I think."
『……………』
"When it comes to the feelings you hold for someone... things like species, or true nature, none of that matters. Even if you can never hear his answer again... The memories you saw, heard, and felt yourself... I'm sure they aren't lies, and they certainly aren't mistakes."
『...Is that so.』
"Yes."
I was listening to the conversation between Rei-shi and "Isana" purely from the perspective of a background mob character, but I have to say, Rei-shi dropping the absolute perfect answer for this NPC is nothing short of impressive. Ever since the trauma of Love Clock, I have a tendency to rush to conclusions whenever these kinds of romantic consultations pop up... Wait, Love Clock wasn't a romance simulator. It was a torture device designed to teach you ruthless schedule management while simultaneously stripping away your humanity and any sense of romance in the process. I eventually reached a philosophical state of enlightenment where I realized that the differing visual designs of the heroines had absolutely no meaning, because if you have to expel eleven of them anyway, it doesn't matter what their faces look like...
『...Fufu. I have lived for a very long time, but it seems there truly is no better way to expand one's knowledge and perspective than by exchanging words with another. You have my gratitude, Psyger-0-sama, and Sunraku-sama. I feel as though a certain wavering within me has finally settled.』
"N-No, not at all..."
"Yeah, yeah, don't mention it."
I know I shouldn't say this, but I literally didn't do anything, so I don't really have the chest to puff out in pride... Oh wait, I actually do have a chest right now! Wahaha!!
.........To put it mildly, that's a trash-tier joke I could never say out loud in front of Rei-shi, who is an actual woman in real life. Even if I told it in front of the scum-faction or Deep Slaughter—whose brain is specifically tuned for dirty jokes—I'd probably get clowned on for generations, so I'm permanently sealing that one away. I am a man who understands the value of silence... If you keep your mouth shut, useful bugs won't get patched out. If you clumsily brag about them, the devs will catch on and nerf you. Silence is important.
"But Rei-shi, that was a flawless answer."
"Eh, a-ah, n-no, it's nothing like that... I was just, wondering if I sounded a bit too pretentious... It's not like I have the kind of experience to be giving anyone advice, anyway..."
"No, no, you're supposed to sound a bit pretentious in moments like these, Rei-shi. Besides, I'd say a response like that is actually quite preferable."
"Pref... Prefer... -able... L-L-L-Loooooveeeeeeeee!!!!?!?"
Ah, she bugged out. Wait, did she just say kill? No, surely I misheard that. Rei-shi doesn't have the thought processes of a Bakumatsu player. I definitely just misheard her... Well then, since it looks like "Isana's" event scene is over, I suppose it's about time I asked.
"Hey, 'Isana.' I conquered the Leviathan in a single night, exactly as I declared... But that wasn't my only goal. I had to conquer the Leviathan for a true purpose."
『Yes, please ask me anything. The Edward Report is already available for you to view, you know?』
The Edward Report? What's that... Ah, you mean the corrupted file that was inside the BC-Beacon? I am curious about that, but that's not what I'm looking for.
"I'm actually looking for someone, and for a certain manufacturer."
The screenshot item I pulled out of my Inventoria allows you to view images in-game. What I brought up on the screen was a bizarre screenshot of a music player buried in a wall.
"I want to know the origins of this... and I want to know about a person named Elise Jitterdoll."
That's right. Conquering this steel whale, and taking on what comes "next"... It's all so I can settle the score for the humiliation I suffered at the hands of Orchestra.
Author's Afterword
This year's goal: I'll make the Heroine-chan work hard.
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