episode_0047

Sewer.

It’s not a place you’d want to enter unless there’s something special going on. Whether it’s about what to do inside, related to a specific profession… It’s an important facility, so it’s unlikely that just anyone can easily enter.

Of course, Azerna Electric isn’t a hyper-realistic game. While there are some creepy monsters, that’s just part of the monster design. Basically, it features ordinary anime-style characters, targeting otaku subculture vibes, with a ridiculously long story that even with the word “epic” attached to it, doesn’t seem out of place in the subculture gaming world.

Just because it’s a sewer doesn’t mean there are cockroaches crawling on the floor and ceiling, and all sorts of unsavory things floating around wouldn’t necessarily be depicted in graphics.

Given that the sewer system spreads throughout the entire jurisdiction, it would be unreasonable to fully implement the vast size of the sewer system. However, considering that some parts of the system were implemented in the game, the sewer system would likely look similar.

Initially, I thought about obtaining sewer design plans, but I quickly concluded that my impatient nature wouldn’t allow me to acquire them in just one Sunday. Since I could easily turn back time if I got lost inside, I judged that there wouldn’t be a major issue even if I wandered around.

“….”

“….”

Until the princesses started following me for some reason.

Leo and Claire went to handle another request. It wasn’t a different subquest, as the reward for completing it early this morning wasn’t anything special, so I decided to check something else first to get ahead of them in various situations.

However, the protagonist’s diligent nature, as seen in the original work, wasn’t much different in this game-like reality.

In game series, there are often situations where party members leave due to various incidents or start the game in a different area, but they are usually depicted as working hard in that area.

From the perspective of the game developers, these characters are like their own children. Above all, the popularity of these characters needs to be evenly distributed to ensure the sale of goods and sequels. That’s why I was somewhat optimistic even when faced with the option of the heroine dying, and there wasn’t much controversy among players.

This was because there were many popular heroines among those who could die.

Considering the scale of the production company, which made it practically impossible to create routes for all major choices, the resurrection of heroines was inevitable. I even doubted whether Claire, who was a popular character, would be saved despite being destined to die.

Anyway.

Therefore, the protagonist was working hard, but the image of the heroine who was being pampered didn’t arise, as the production team often used the setting of the heroine in a different area working diligently to prevent it.

And this diligent setting seemed to be the same in this world as well.

“Princess, and Princess.”

I spoke towards the two people following me at the entrance of the sewer.

“Alice.”

“Please call me Charlotte.”

“….”

If there was a determined expression on their faces, I had nothing to say. But these two looked very calm, as if it was natural for them to be here.

Well, yeah. It’s not strange for Alice to be here, but Charlotte?

Would there be a reason for the princess of Belbur to enter the sewer system?

“Ian, it may be much more unsavory and unpleasant than you two think.”

It’s probably going to be much more messy and unpleasant than I imagined. There’s a sense of realism that can’t be expressed in a game. The development company was famous for not being able to optimize properly. The reason there were no small bugs or rats was not because they didn’t want to put them in, but because if they did, the frame rate would drop significantly compared to the graphics.

In fact, just entering the sewer through the door I saw was like that. In the game, it was just a normal iron door texture, but here, it was rusted all over.

Still, up to this point, the surroundings weren’t much different from what I remembered. Making realistic textures close to reality was an unreasonable request for a company with no money.

So… at least I thought the interior wouldn’t be much different from what I remembered.

“So? I’m the princess of the empire. No matter how uncomfortable the space is, if it’s under the empire, I’ll end up there, right? Would I be afraid to be there when I’ll be at the highest point?”

“….”

If I said that much, there was nothing more to say. I was the one who planted such thoughts in Alice’s mind.

But… thinking like that, she would be shocked someday. It was the same in the original work.

There’s a big difference between knowing something and seeing it with your own eyes.

Oh, no. Claire hasn’t fallen yet, so Alice doesn’t need to see such a sight, right?

“….”

I looked towards Charlotte, who was standing confidently next to Alice.

“We didn’t have any other plans anyway. The Bellville royal family is not the kind of people who would ignore when a friend needs help.”

No, I didn’t ask for help.

I just met Charlotte while walking with Alice, and Charlotte just naturally stuck with us after hearing our story.

But still, I had something to say to Charlotte.

“Sewers are important national facilities. Even so, it’s not appropriate to bring in foreign guests—”

“Oh my.”

As I was speaking, Charlotte interrupted me with that remark.

Charlotte’s eyes were directed towards my hand.

… What I was holding was a lockpick.

Yes. It’s an item often used in overseas RPGs to pick locks, or it’s practically a one-time use master key that comes out in strange horror games.

It was obvious that it wasn’t a sight of ‘being allowed’ to enter.

That’s right. I wasn’t given permission. This place was supposed to be accessible only after the main quest, and it was still early in the game for that to happen.

“These days, keys are made strangely. Could it be that keys are made disposable for security reasons?”

“….”

Without changing my expression and blatantly poking fun, I just turned my head without saying anything.

The lock looked somewhat unusual. The world where words like magic and energy were casually thrown around, but fundamentally it wasn’t steampunk. The lock made of bronze looked quite sturdy.

But the internal structure was much simpler compared to what is used on modern Earth.

If you wanted to make it more complex, you could, but this was just a sewer. There was no need to use an expensive lock like a bank vault here.

And that’s why the lockpick worked easily.

Realizing that my physical abilities were so weak compared to the other monsters in this game, I decided to expand my talents towards the ‘utility’ side. One of them was lockpicking.

Since there was a scene in the original work where the protagonist picked a lock in an important moment, I thought I could do it too. It took some time to learn, but eventually, I was able to pick the lock.

“Why? Even if you look at me like that, my thoughts won’t change.”

Alice said, raising her chin as she saw my gaze return to herself.

No, I was trying to ask Charlotte for help… Well, forget it. The biggest reason for blocking this place is to prevent people from getting lost once they enter. It’s not like Charlotte would install a bomb inside.

If there’s a smell that stings your nose when you enter, they’ll figure out how to escape on their own.

I turned towards the lock, resisting the urge to sigh.

Then, I knelt down and inserted the lockpick into the lock.

After attempting to pick the lock for a while,

Ping—

With a clear sound, the lockpick broke.

The lock didn’t open.

Furthermore, the broken lockpick blocked the keyhole, making it impossible to retry.

“Ah.”

“…”

“…”

There was no sound coming from behind.

…

But I could roughly imagine what expression they would be making.

Without bothering to look back, I thought,

Again!

Click.

With a cheerful sound, the lock opened.

“You have quite the skill.”

As I opened the door to the maintenance passage, Charlotte sincerely praised me.

Although both Charlotte and Alice are skilled enough to wield swords, it seems they lack this kind of skill. Charlotte and even Alice were looking at me with admiration.

“It’s nothing special.”

After replying like that, I entered the sewer, and—

—It was fortunate that I entered first, so the two behind me couldn’t see my expression.

My expression probably crumbled miserably.

I could barely manage to regain a neutral expression, but the thought of going back after smelling the stench made me feel sick.

“…”

And it seemed the two who followed me also felt the same way.

“Ugh.”

Alice’s voice seemed to be cut off in the middle, as if she had covered her mouth with her hand.

Having successfully managed my expression, I turned around and said,

“If you want to go back now, feel free to do so.”

Alice, who was frowning and covering her mouth, removed her hand from her mouth.

Surprisingly, the smile under that hand was genuine.

“You, of all people, have an expression that’s beyond words right now.”

“An expression beyond words?”

Charlotte, who was looking at me from behind, chuckled, but in reality, Alice’s words were true.

“If you want to go back, you can go back now. That’s what you mean, right?”

“…”

At Alice’s words, I turned back again.

Yeah, that’s what I mean.

If I had come alone, I would have just given up and gone back, but if Alice came out like that, I also lose the will to give up.

Well, let’s see who gives up first.

“But, the weapon you’re holding right now…”

Charlotte asked as she looked at the weapon in my hand.

The weapon I was holding was not the usual firearm. It was a complex-looking lockpick made of brass and steel. The size itself was not much different from the Ergensen pistol I usually carried.

Inside, various gears and cogs were intricately arranged, allowing for easy loading of the cart with minimal effort. However, the only advantage compared to firearms was its relatively quiet operation. In comparison to bolt-action rifles, it lacked in loading speed, rate of fire, bullet velocity, and durability.

“I’m just preparing for the worst.”

Right now, all I could sense was the smell, but isn’t this a sewer? If there happened to be gas present, using firearms wouldn’t be out of the question, even if they caused an explosion.

Of course, if there was enough gas to cause an explosion, our bodies would likely suffer first.

“Is that so?”

Fortunately, the stench wasn’t unbearable, and there didn’t seem to be enough gas to cause headaches or dizziness…

…But still, I didn’t want to stay any longer than necessary. Let’s quickly confirm what we need to and head back.

I raised the glowing magical stone lamp to head height as I made a silent vow.

Honestly, I had planned to explore a bit more on my own, but it seemed like that wouldn’t be possible after all.