Conquest Complete, So Why Is the Affection Dropping? - Chapter 68
“Chief, you were already here!”
A tall man with upright horse-like ears spotted Marvis and picked up the smaller man who was following him like an object, leaping to land in front of us.
“My apologies for being late!”
The small, chubby man with long ears lying back peered through his thick glasses with red eyes, alternately looking at me and the pipe spewing flames above.
“By the way, who is this young lady?”
I’m the unintentional arsonist.
“Introductions can wait; put out the fire first!”
“Well, it’s burning nicely. Should warm up the upper floors well.”
Is there someone suggesting we fight the bitter cold with arson?
“What nonsense! The alleyway is so narrow, it’ll fill up with smoke! Do you want to watch everyone suffocate?”
“To put out the fire, we’d need to cool the pipes, but that would turn the whole city into a freezer. Once we stop the heating, it takes a full night to get it running again. We’ll have to find another solution.”
The man who was about half a span shorter than me shook his head.
“Mason, what if we connect pipes following where the hole is? If we just extend it to the center, the flames will escape upward.”
“Good idea, Morgan. Then first, this pipe…”
The bespectacled man called Mason lightly touched the bottom of the central pipe, then quickly pulled his hand away.
“Ouch, hot!”
Of course, it’s hot when the pipe is spewing flames, why would you touch it with bare hands?
Is this Dark City really going to be okay?
“Marvis, tell these people to put out the fire! If it takes time to fix, you can make announcements or something to warn citizens about the severe cold!”
I’m not sure if there are speakers here, but seeing the electrical wires, there must be some way to transmit sound if not electricity.
However, Marvis was just calmly stroking his chin despite the critical situation.
“Marvis. Why are you so calm? Does this look like a joke to you? The whole city could go up in flames!”
“I was just gauging if the time of destruction had been moved forward.”
Marvis made an absurd statement with a composed face. It was exactly what you’d expect from someone who was convinced I was the savior who brings destruction.
“If the city is about to be destroyed, shouldn’t you try to stop it! Isn’t that what a leader should do?”
“Of course I’d like to. But the First Principle is to respect your will.”
My will? Does he mean my intention? I certainly had no intention of making a hole in the pipe and turning this city into a sea of flames.
This isn’t intentional, it’s the system’s manipulation!
“What, do you think I came here to destroy this place? I have no such intention, so hurry and put out the fire!”
“Watch your words, Shin Joo-ah.”
“What?”
“Let me ask you something. Do you think your attempt to solve the problem using your divine power was a failure?”
“Even after seeing this…!”
Just as I was about to argue about whether the success or failure of my attempt mattered, I noticed the quest window flashing seriously.
Surprise Quest, [There’s Always a Bigger Fish]!
On this bone-chilling winter day, the heating pipes happened to break down.
Help the Dark City residents spend a warm winter.
Success Reward: Reputation +500, Bonus Roulette
Failure: Reputation -100
Looking carefully at the quest I received, I saw that there was a trap.
My mission wasn’t to fix the heating pipes. Because the notice about broken heating pipes was naturally connected to helping citizens stay warm, I assumed it meant fixing the central pipeline.
‘My skills don’t have attributes that determine success or failure based on stats or probability. Unless I don’t perform the quest at all, there’s no way it could fail.’
Yet there’s a failure penalty recorded.
This means the quest’s success or failure is determined separately from the skill’s result.
‘Marvis’s question, could it be…’
Is he asking this to let me decide whether this quest is a success or failure?
“……”
I quickly turned my thoughts.
Logically speaking, I had failed the quest. Not only did I fail to fix the pipe, but I made a hole and committed arson on top of it.
But the game world moves according to system algorithms, not natural laws or common sense.
That means if I don’t consider this situation a failure and solve the problem, I could still turn this quest into a success.
“Marvis. Can you make an announcement to the entire city?”
“There are speakers installed on each floor.”
As I thought, there was a broadcast system. Fitting for an industrial city at the forefront of technology in this world.
“Tell them that the heating pipes are broken. And report that a large hole has opened in the central pipe, causing flames to shoot up.”
“……The citizens will fall into chaos. Are you admitting failure?”
“No.”
I took a deep breath and stood up straight.
“Tell them that they’ve summoned the Savior of Destruction to solve the problem, so they can rest assured.”
Originally, my reputation increased more significantly when there were more witnesses.
Mason and Morgan had appeared, but even including Marvis, there were only 4 spectators – that’s not enough people to justify a 500-point reputation increase.
Perhaps my skill failed because the proper foundation for quest completion hadn’t been laid. Even with Kaint, the wedding quest kept appearing when conditions weren’t met.
Damn system, it should show the quest when conditions are met, not show the quest first and then demand the player to meet the conditions.
‘I thought the quest name was strange. Could “There’s Always a Bigger Fish” actually be referring to the system’s own scummy behavior?’
Not only was it like a robber who doesn’t use a knife when taking commission, but it was also quite something when it came to threatening with quests.
“Shin Joo-ah, let me ask one more thing.”
Why so many questions when I told him to make the announcement? Can’t he see the fire right now?!
“Sigh. What is it?”
“What you just said, can I take it as your intention to save Niflheim?”
That’s obvious. Isn’t that why they call me the Savior? As if I would push you all into the abyss of destruction.
“Of course!”
“Haha!”
Marvis laughed heartily. It was the most appealing expression I’d seen on his face today.
“Alright, Joo-ah. I’ll believe you.”
At Marvis’s gesture, Mason rummaged through his bag and handed him something small and flat-round.
That must be the microphone for the public announcement.
-Everyone, stay calm and listen.
Marvis’s sharp voice began to echo throughout the city. The three demon race members, including Mason, stood in line like deactivated dolls, listening to the broadcast.
While watching Marvis report the recent incident to the entire city, I suddenly noticed something strange.
Despite the black smoke from the flames covering the ceiling, my eyes and nose weren’t getting blocked.
‘Is it because I didn’t acknowledge this as a failure that it’s not escalating into a bigger accident?’
If games were reality, most problems in the world would be easily solved if even physical laws could be controlled like this.
When Marvis finished the broadcast and turned off the microphone, the vibrations that had been traveling through the thin pipes also stopped.
I shrugged and approached the central pipe. Though my skin felt like it was burning from the intense heat, I wasn’t afraid.
You can do this, Shin Joo-ah!
“I’ll adopt Morgan’s suggestion.”
“What? You mean mine?”
“Yes. I think that would be best.”
Using my skill to return the pipe to its pre-hole state would only block the heating system again.
Given the conflict between my skill with zero failure rate and the quest with hidden traps between the lines, there must be a specific ‘result’ that the quest demands.
And in games, even supporting characters never have meaningless dialogue.
That means Morgan’s words were a hint.
‘I’ll give you a fire show in the center of the city!’
As I focused on the pipe, numerous 0s and 1s appeared in the air.
I had been fixated on words like restoration and recovery, assuming I could only return things to their past state, but game data actually contains both past and future.
In other words, the ‘result’ of completing the quest correctly is also recorded in the data.
This means I can call forth not just the past but the future as well.
Restoring damaged data……
As the loading bar filled up, small 0s and 1s gathered above the flame-spewing hole, beginning to take the form of a round pipe.
A white and blue light enveloped the flames and stretched all the way to the end of the alley. The pipe, extending in a straight line like a laser beam, rose up at the end of the alley and spewed flames.
The red flames piercing through Niflheim’s center looked just like a fountain made of fire.
While I was standing there with my mouth open in amazement at the spectacular sight, Marvis suddenly spoke to me.
“Success, right? Shin Joo-ah.”
“Maybe?”
“How about saying that with more confidence?”
“Of course it’s a success!”
The answer was predetermined, so I just had to say it. When I shouted confidently, Marvis grinned and announced through the microphone that the problem had been resolved.
“Woohoo!”
Cheers could be heard from afar. It was the sound of citizens celebrating at the sight of the central flames.
Quest Complete!
Congratulations! You have successfully completed the surprise quest [There’s Always a Bigger Fish].
A bonus roulette has been awarded as a success reward.
Your reputation has increased by 500 as a success reward.
Current Reputation: 600
While I was rejoicing over this hard-won success, Marvis patted my head.
“Marvis?”
He was holding the cat ear headband in his hand.
So he wasn’t patting my head but removing the headband. Tired of the cat theme already?
[Marvis]’s current affection: 55
I felt quite proud since this was legitimately earned affection. I’ll just set aside the fact that it’s the same as Hexion’s initial affection level.
When I smiled at Marvis, he tucked my side hair behind my ear and whispered in a lower tone.
“Joo-ah.”
“Y-yes?”
Why is he suddenly whispering so intimately? Making my heart flutter.
“You know that salvation comes with responsibility, right?”
