Chapter 83: Lore Is Simply a Hint for Flawlessly Beating the Event
“Then it’s settled. Let’s get things moving immediately. First, let’s finish lunch as quickly as possible.”
“So… the moment we finish eating, the event’s gonna start…”
“At the same time, Caretaker, start talking. I’ll listen while I eat, so tell me everything you know.”
“It’s already started even if we haven’t finished eating…”
Well, obviously.
If we’d already decided to wrap this whole thing up as fast as possible, then there was no reason not to save time wherever we could.
This wasn’t a situation with a ticking deadline, nor was anyone about to die.
Precisely because of that, though, the sooner we resolved everything, the more free time we’d have afterward.
“You want me to tell you a story…? Um… what kind of story?”
“For starters, anything involving spiritual power, watermelons, fruit, or anything along those lines. Stories about defeating monsters or demons. And anything concerning ninja legends. Just tell us everything you know.”
“Understood.”
The incidents that had landed on our heads could be divided into three major categories.
A watermelon overflowing with spiritual energy.
The mysterious voice reaching the Hero.
And the Bride-Stealing Ninja.
First, we’d hear everything we could about each of them.
Once we had all the information, we’d separate what was useful from what wasn’t.
If this really was an ordinary event, then local folklore and old stories would likely contain the key.
If not…
Then I’d simply conclude this wasn’t an ordinary event at all…
And handle it however I pleased.
At times like these, hallucinations were frustratingly useless.
They only ever showed me things already within my field of vision.
They never produced anything genuinely helpful.
──────
Me @ Apparently the Appraisal Skill ★
Status: It’s frankly unfair that I’m being ignored after faithfully granting your request.
──────
I never asked you to appear in the first place.
Go away, hallucination.
“Well then… a long, long time ago…”
While I silently ignored the phantom text floating before my eyes, the caretaker began his tale.
Honestly, I’d have preferred if he skipped the fairy-tale introduction and simply summarized the important parts.
Still…
There was plenty of time left before lunch was over.
I might as well listen patiently.
“…And that’s why, even today, they say the ninja are still hiding somewhere within this town.”
The story finally came to an end just as we finished clearing away the dishes after lunch.
Incidentally, the husband and wife had taken turns narrating, so neither of them had gone without eating while telling us the stories.
“Good work. Now then… let’s organize everything we’ve heard.”
Thanking the caretaker for his efforts, I mentally arranged the three legends he’d told us.
The first was…
‘The Tale of the Villager Who Ate Grapes and Experienced Strange Things.’
Long ago, a farmer from a nearby village was crossing the mountains on an errand when he discovered a vine laden with delicious-looking grapes.
His throat was dry, so he picked a few and ate them.
From that moment onward…
He began seeing impossible things.
A flower field blooming completely out of season.
An orchard filled with brilliantly colored fruit.
An inn run by a beautiful young woman.
As evening fell, the man decided to spend the night at the inn.
But in the middle of the night…
A terrifying monster appeared.
It seemed intent on abducting the innkeeper’s daughter.
Summoning every ounce of courage he possessed, the farmer stood against the beast.
Apparently, eating those grapes had bestowed mysterious powers upon him.
He wielded strange techniques resembling sorcery, confusing the monster until he finally knocked it into a river and defeated it.
Having become the heroine’s savior, the man spent the night together with the young woman.
Yet…
When morning came…
The inn had vanished.
The woman had disappeared without a trace.
The only thing left behind was the empty grape stem from the fruit he’d eaten.
“…Wasn’t that just fermented grapes turning into wine?” I remarked.
“So basically, the moral is ‘don’t eat weird stuff,’ right?” Kuwajima added.
That was our rather crude summary.
Well…
Stories where someone eats something strange, experiences bizarre events, and either survives or doesn’t were hardly uncommon in old folklore.
Next came the second legend.
‘The Tale of the Sea God and the Man Who Became a Serpent.’
For generations, many people living along this coastline had earned their livelihoods as fishermen.
One young fisherman was no exception.
Day after day, he spent his life catching fish upon the sea.
Then one day, after a violent storm had finally passed, he set out once more.
While diving beneath the waves…
He found something extraordinary.
Resting on the seabed lay a perfectly smooth sphere.
It looked like a pearl so enormous that he needed both arms to carry it.
Believing it to be treasure lost from a shipwreck, he brought it home.
He proudly showed the giant pearl to everyone in his village, boasting that once he sold it, he’d never have to fish another day in his life.
That very night…
He began having strange dreams.
A mysterious voice whispered to him over and over.
“Please… help me. Return that treasure…”
At first, he ignored it.
But after hearing the same plea night after night…
He eventually reached his limit.
Seeking advice from the village wise woman, he learned the truth.
The pearl wasn’t a pearl at all.
It was a sacred treasure belonging to the Sea God.
The voice calling to him belonged to one of the Sea God’s servants, desperately begging for its return.
After various twists and turns, the fisherman finally decided to return the treasure.
Unfortunately…
On the very day he set out to do so…
Bandits descended upon the village.
The treasure was stolen.
As fate would have it, the Sea God discovered the theft almost immediately.
The fisherman somehow managed to persuade the deity to grant him one week’s grace while he recovered the stolen treasure.
He pursued the thieves.
Instead…
They killed him.
Unable to let go of either his regret or his guilt for failing the Sea God…
The slain fisherman transformed into a serpent.
As a monstrous snake, he hunted down every last bandit, slaughtered them all, and reclaimed the sacred treasure.
After returning it to the Sea God, the serpent earned the deity’s favor.
He was transformed into a dragon.
Even now…
He’s said to continue watching over these coastal waters.
“They’re trying to make it sound like a happy ending, but really it’s just a story where the fisherman and all the bandits die because the Sea God accidentally let his treasure get stolen,” I observed.
“So… the lesson’s basically not to steal stuff that belongs to other people?” Taketsuru concluded.
That was our equally rough summary.
Well…
The cycle of stealing, being robbed, killing, and being killed wasn’t exactly unheard of in old legends.
I supposed it was simply one of those stories.
Finally came the third tale.
‘The Tale of the Tomboy Princess and the Bride-Stealing Ninja.’
Long ago, the samurai lord who governed this region had a daughter of extraordinary beauty.
Unfortunately…
She was also a complete menace.
She ran wild alongside the men, constantly picking fights and causing endless headaches for everyone in the household.
To make matters worse…
She possessed unmatched martial talent.
There wasn’t a single warrior in the estate who could defeat her.
Completely exhausted by his daughter’s behavior, the lord finally decided there was only one solution.
He would marry her off.
The princess, however, boldly declared,
“I refuse to marry any man weaker than I am.”
Accepting her challenge, the lord gathered every capable warrior in his household.
One after another…
She defeated them all effortlessly.
She was stronger than every single man under her father’s command.
The situation only grew worse.
Then…
A traveling warrior arrived at the estate.
“I can defeat the princess,” he declared confidently.
Amused, the princess accepted his challenge.
Before their duel began, however…
The traveler proposed a warm-up.
“A drinking contest first.”
The two of them drank together until they were both visibly intoxicated.
Only then…
Did they begin the real match.
Except…
There was a trick.
The traveler wasn’t alone.
He had an identical twin.
After drinking heavily himself, he secretly switched places with his sober brother just before the duel.
The princess, already drunk, never realized the substitution.
She lost without ever displaying her true ability.
Afterward, the twins revealed the deception to both the lord and the princess.
They lectured her, explaining that no matter how skilled someone was in combat, strength alone could never overcome intelligence and cunning.
Impressed by their quick thinking, both the lord and the princess accepted the twins into the family.
The princess married one brother.
Her attendant married the other.
Their descendants eventually founded the turtle and dragon ninja clans whose traditions survived throughout the region.
“…Isn’t that less ‘quick thinking’ and more blatant cheating?” I asked.
“What they actually did was get a woman drunk before taking advantage of her. That’s just awful,” Meiko said flatly.
That was our usual blunt summary.
Seriously.
Getting your opponent drunk before fighting them…
This wasn’t some tale about slaying oni.
Calling it clever felt generous.
It seemed to me they’d stepped well over the line into outright underhanded tactics.
“Well then… we’ve got quite a collection of stories.”
How should I put it?
They were exactly the sort of uncomplicated tales you’d expect from old folklore.
Interesting enough.
Yet somehow…
Unsatisfying.
Whether any of them truly had anything to do with our current situation remained questionable.
If this were a textbook light novel, the countryside’s old legends would undoubtedly contain the clues needed to clear the event.
Reality, however…
Had an annoying habit of presenting stories that meant absolutely nothing.
Still.
That was fine.
All we’d done was gather information about local legends.
We still had other sources of information left.
The suspicious watermelon, according to both the hallucination and the mysterious voice.
The voice Taketsuru claimed had echoed inside his head.
The arrow message still in Meiko’s possession.
And finally…
“Thank you for your help. One last question, Caretaker.”
“Yes. Anything you wish.”
“I want information about the person who told you that Meiko was acting as a bodyguard. Tell me everything you know. I’ll judge the rest.”
Whether it had been deliberate…
Or merely careless…
There was still the matter of the individual who had informed the caretaker that Meiko was someone important enough to serve as a bodyguard. That person, perhaps more than anyone else, deserved our attention.