Surviving as a Trash Bard in a Game

A gray sky, where both the moon and stars are faint.

It felt like the end of the North.

The moment when the world, which had been golden all day, suddenly turned gray.

When the world finally tells us that a short night has come.

I woke up from a very short sleep and picked up the sounds from outside with my ears.

Slowly, I raised my body.

‘…I can’t sleep. But I’m sleepy.’

I looked around in the midst of contradictory senses.

A faint moonlight pours obliquely through the dusty windows of the church. No, it would be more correct to say that it leaks in rather than pours.

How long do you have to not clean the windows for it to be like this?

Isn’t this dirtier than the windows of London during the Industrial Revolution?

Skyler was sleeping next to me.

…He’s cute when he’s asleep.

‘I can’t sleep, should I go outside?’

To be honest, I felt like I would stay up all night if I stayed like this… I felt like I couldn’t go to bed unless I did something.

If I had a cell phone, I could just melt my brain and time until I fell asleep.

It’s a night that makes me miss modern society.

I opened the creaking door of the church and went outside. The iron bars reflected the moonlight and shone silver, and the front door of the church we had entered was still open.

Tap.

And, I heard the sound of someone tapping something.

‘…A striking sound.’

I was curious.

The name ‘Nisha’ that Skyler mentioned sounded like a woman’s name.

Therefore, I was just curious.

Because he memorized another woman’s name, was interested in her, and asked others about her whereabouts.

Skyler, whom I thought was just a kid. He called another woman’s name, asked another person about another woman’s whereabouts.

So… I felt an unknown emotion personally rising.

Something unbearable.

A feeling of something boiling inside.

An emotion I’ve never experienced before, which I can’t define firmly. A feeling.

It raged like a storm, then suddenly turned cold, and continued to torment me like that.

And, now it was calm.

Am I angry?

I don’t know.

I moved my feet. I went to the back of the church where the sound was heard.

Tap.

Tap.

The sound of wood meeting wood continued.

The sound gradually became faster… It changed to be much faster than my walking speed.

Hiding behind the wall of the church, I peeked out my head and glanced at the identity with my eyes.

My high-performance eyes further magnify the scenery so that I can see her appearance in detail.

…Ah.

As soon as I saw her, I immediately understood why Skyler was looking for her.

Silver hair that shines beautifully in the moonlight, transparent eyes that reflect all light like a mirror. Pale, but lively, transparent and clear skin.

The nun’s uniform she was wearing created a huge synergy, drawing out the masculinity hidden within me.

Yes. She was pretty.

…Love, excitement, shyness.

‘…I don’t feel anything in particular.’

The emotions that a man should naturally feel when he sees a pretty woman were missing. I just felt envious of her now… Envious? Me? Am I crazy?

I came to my senses.

And, I peeked out my head again.

There was nothing.

Only the wooden doll that she was hitting with a stick for training was there.

‘…Did she disappear?’

I realized that the scenery was a little darker than before.

Is it time to go back?

—No, it wasn’t that it got darker over time. Someone was making a shadow behind my back. That’s why my field of vision was a little darker.

“Who?”

A beautiful, delicate voice resonated from behind me.

I slowly turned my head.

She’s definitely pretty up close. However, it can be said that it is one level below my perfect customization that I made myself. My voice is more beautiful too.

Yes. I am more.

“I asked who you are.”

She held a spear in one hand. It was definitely a stick that was held in that hand a little while ago… Now it was a splendid cross-shaped spear.

No, it is a strange shape to call it a spear.

It was a difficult form to describe.

A greatsword if held upside down. A spear if held upright.

There was no handle.

There was only a protruding blade that would be presumed to be the sword’s guard.

A long, cross-shaped stick with no place to hold it by hand, sharp on all sides.

‘…That thing is also a weapon?’

Yes. This was exactly what I thought.

“I don’t like repeating the same thing.”

“I’m, a guest of Propertius.”

“Huh?”

“I’m staying at the church for a while with Skyler—”

“Skyler came here?!”

She spoke in a strangely excited tone.

The mysterious atmosphere that had been felt until a moment ago was shattered and disappeared.

“Yes.”

I answered cautiously, and she smiled broadly.

Waving her hand at me, she spoke softly.

“Let’s meet again, formally, tomorrow.”

For some reason, I felt a sense of fear from that one word.

An unknown… great fear.

***

I went to bed in fear, and morning came quickly.

As soon as the sun rose, Skyler woke up and woke me up.

“You have the face of someone who didn’t sleep well. Is it because it’s the floor instead of an inn? But you slept well in the cave and the forest….”

“I didn’t sleep well.”

“I heard that there are people who are more comfortable with camping than indoors, but I never expected that to be you.”

“…I didn’t know either.”

“Anyway, let’s take a look around.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t plan to stay in this city for long. You have the goal of going to the capital, and I have my own purpose.”

Skyler’s purpose is probably to find his heart again.

Considering that humans with divine bodies are drawn to each other, maybe the reason he’s accompanying me is… to meet the mad king again?

No, Skyler’s current power can’t beat Eyal. He has another purpose.

‘…He needs me.’

The closest guess is that he needs my existence for his purpose. He needs my eyes.

It must be one of the two.

Since the plan was to travel together to the capital of the Empire, it would be better to see what action he takes after arriving at the capital.

First… let’s go out.

“Let’s roughly solve the requests in this city, replenish the scrolls, and then depart. I’m running out of time.”

“Okay.”

“And, I think it’s probably okay to play.”

“What?”

“You’ve been restless since yesterday. I thought for a long time about where I saw that behavior, and there was one thing that came to mind. Is that correct?”

How should I say it?

I wasn’t in a state where I could play yet. To be more precise, I haven’t let go of my sanity yet.

Without me knowing, my fingers move completely differently from my will and thoughts, I’m only filled with the vague thought of wanting to play, and I have to be in a dazed state as if I’m drunk… to be able to play.

When my ego and personality are suppressed, and I’m controlled by something bigger.

When I’m more faithful to instinct than reason, and my character is stronger than my original self.

“Yes. If I get a chance.”

“Okay. Then let’s go to the Adventurer’s Guild. The guild in this area is a bit small, but there are many useful requests.”

“Why is that?”

“That’s because… there are fewer adventurers.”

“Doesn’t that mean that if there are fewer adventurers, there are also fewer requests?”

“That would be true in a normal city. Adventurers are always people who chase money and requests. However, this is the end of the North.”

“What do you mean?”

“The end of the North is harsh, and there are too many dangerous things. Even if adventurers always prioritize money and requests, in the end, they prioritize their own lives.”

“So, it means that there are many dangerous and harsh things, and they give a lot of money, but those who value their lives don’t come?”

“That’s right.”

“…Are you okay?”

“I can take care of your safety. My skills are not just a silver tag.”

No, I can’t really trust a mage who can only use scrolls when they say that.

Would he be hurt if I said this…?

Let’s just keep quiet.

Nod.

The preparations to leave were roughly complete.

The priest had placed food and water near the church door at some point.

My body is also in good condition.

I can manage with my willpower for now.

The influence of the status is low, the headache is gone, and my head is spinning fast. My stamina and body are weak… but there’s nothing I can do about it.

Alright.

‘I didn’t forget anything… Let’s go!’

No, wait a minute.

I forgot something important.

What do you mean, let’s go?

The most important thing.

There was something I had to ask Skyler.

Creak.

The gate of the church’s fence opened with an ominous sound.

The silver-haired woman reappeared, holding a strangely shaped spear.

“…Nisha?”

“Hello. Long time no see.”

“Ah, did you come to greet us?”

“Yes. But that’s a very cold way to talk.”

“I’ve always been this way.”

“We’re like family.”

“Like family…? That sounds a bit strange.”

Skyler and the woman named Nisha were talking as if they knew each other. However, the atmosphere was not friendly at all.

Rather, it was precarious, dangerous, and cold, like walking on a thin layer of ice on a frozen lake.

Their atmosphere was so precarious that the word reunion with an enemy was closer than the word reunion with a loved one.

“Where are you going?”

“We’re going to solve the requests, get some travel money, and leave right away. I didn’t even plan on coming here in the first place.”

“Let’s go together. If we solve it quickly and leave, it’ll be good for you too, right?”

“…”

Skyler glanced at me.

The woman named Nisha closed one eye and winked at me.

She was signaling me to accept.

I nodded my head without realizing it.

…The penalty activated on its own.

Is it a clumsy habit? No, it’s very different from how it usually activates.

Why?

Before I could find the answer to my question, she grabbed my wrist and dragged me from the church to the Adventurer’s guild in an instant.