Future Diary Survival Game

Chapter 11: First Come, First Served – 3

I asked cautiously.

“Who are you.”

“I’ve been keeping an eye on you since the first quest. You talked to that woman, Magireta, several times. If I hadn’t seen that, I probably wouldn’t have been able to ask today’s question.”

“So you’re the kid who asked earlier what the majority of thirty-three people was.”

“Right. Though I’m not a kid.”

“No, you look about sixteen or so? For reference, I’m twenty.”

“You said you lost your memory, but you still remember your age?”

“I just decided to set it that way.”

Aina seemed unwilling to waste time on useless banter and changed the subject.

“Turn around slowly.”

I did as she said and turned my body.

It was the brown-haired girl I had seen earlier.

Her expression was as cold as ice, but her eyes were surprisingly clear and beautiful.

I spoke.

“Put the sword away first, then we can talk.”

“I like it this way.”

“You’re trying to talk to me. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have taken that wom— the Princess as a hostage.”

“……”

“And I’m not saying anything while a sword’s pointed at my neck.”

Aina hesitated for a moment, then withdrew her sword.

But she didn’t return it to its sheath.

She spoke slowly.

“No need to call her ‘that woman.’ She’s the Princess of the Empire, isn’t she?”

“……! How did you know that?”

“During the first quest, I asked her name. She answered ‘Armelia.’”

“You didn’t hear her family name, but you connected that straight to the Princess, huh.”

“I know all the names of the Imperial royals. Every single one of them is trash. I tried to kill her the moment I heard that name in the first quest.”

Then a muffled “mmpf” sound came from behind the tree.

Well, no matter how she looked, she was royalty—it was understandable she’d be angry.

I shrugged.

“So why didn’t you kill her?”

“I thought she’d never survive anyway, even without me doing anything. But then some weird guy showed up and saved her.”

“I am kind of amazing.”

“You’re quite different from the impression you gave when you were flirting with Magireta. Do you change your attitude depending on who you’re dealing with?”

She twisted her lips, clearly displeased.

I changed the topic.

“So, what is it you want to talk about with me?”

“Like I said, you left a strong impression during the first quest. Magireta erased everyone’s memories each time she finished grading, but the memory that you weren’t just an employee remained.”

“That’s true.”

“My guess is that you had another occupation. I’ve thought of that possibility too, so it’s not surprising. What did surprise me was that you managed to fool that restaurant owner you supposedly lived with for three years.”

“……”

“In this insane game, I figured I’d need a partner to survive. From what I’ve seen so far, you seem the most suitable one.”

Chuk.

Aina completely sheathed her sword.

Then, she held out her hand to me and said,

“Join hands with me. Until a quest appears that forces us to fight each other.”

“……”

“I can’t promise to hold your hand until the very end. No one knows how many quests Magireta has prepared, when they’ll end, or who the final survivor will be. It’d be best if we never had to fight, but if it comes to that, I’ll kill you.”

“You say ‘let’s join hands’ and then add that you’ll kill me. That doesn’t sound right.”

“At the very least, we can form an alliance until that moment comes, can’t we?”

“And if I refuse?”

“Then you’ll die by my hand. To be exact, you’re already half-dead.”

What? I didn’t even need to ask that aloud.

Wobble.

Suddenly, the ground and sky flipped upside down.

Thud.

I fell to my knees.

“W–what… what’s happening?”

“This.”

Aina held up a small needle.

From its tip dripped a thick, black liquid.

“Poison?”

“Yeah. Who would’ve thought Magireta actually packed my personal toolkit into my backpack?”

“You’re… an assassin, aren’t you.”

“Like you, I’ve had multiple professions, but my main one is definitely assassin.”

“……”

“And this is the antidote.”

She raised another hand, holding a small vial.

“What I injected into you is pretty strong. Without this antidote, there’s no natural cure.”

“……”

“Within a few minutes, you’ll start feeling dizzy, nauseous, and cold. After fifteen minutes, your nails and hair will start falling out. And after thirty minutes, your heart stops.”

“……”

“If you don’t want to die, agree to join hands with me. Then I’ll detoxify you safely.”

But instead of her threats, I focused on her first words.

“You said *‘you guys’…?”

“She must be quite precious to you. Asking that first thing.”

“Just answer me.”

“Yeah. I poisoned the Princess too, just moments ago. And let me be clear—I have no intention of detoxifying her.”

I struggled to move my hand into my coat.

I grabbed the page with the map I had torn out earlier and reached out mentally.

[Princess, are you all right?]

[Uweh!]

[I’ll come to you right now.]

[Don’t come. I’m rolling around in vomit.]

[Even now, you’re concerned with maintaining your dignity?]

[Cough… Mason, leave me. Just do as that woman says.]

The Princess spoke with labored breaths.

[You’ve been hit too, so you know. She managed to stab us with a needle right under our noses without us realizing. She’s no ordinary fighter. Having her by your side will be a great help to you.]

[What about you, Princess?]

[I’ll handle myself somehow.]

[That’s just a roundabout way of saying you plan to die.]

[That woman intends to kill me anyway. At least you should live.]

There didn’t seem to be any falsehood in her words.

She really was a strange Princess.

I forced my trembling legs to stand and approached her.

Aina asked, sounding irritated,

“What are you doing?”

“Let me have a word with the Princess before it’s over.”

“Sigh… fine. Make it quick.”

I finally reached the Princess.

Then I pulled out the map I had in my coat and spoke to her in my mind.

[Princess, can you see this?]

[A map? Did you draw that yourself?]

[Yes.]

[Remarkable. To draw such a perfect map in that short a time.]

Though it was my drawing, I wasn’t the one who actually drew it.

[This is where we are right now. The shining rock Magireta mentioned is at the circled spot here.]

[The distance is shorter than I expected.]

[Yes. Can you memorize this map well enough to navigate without looking again?]

The Princess was the one who had memorized every single line of Magireta’s speech during the first quest.

Of course, memorizing a map was a different skill, so I couldn’t be sure—

But fortunately—

[ I think I know what you’re planning. All right, I’ve memorized everything. ]

[ You’re not lying, are you? ]

[ In a situation like this, why would I waste time lying? ]

[ Good. Then— ]

I spoke to the diary.

‘Can you make this invisible to others again?’

[ Yes. Once I reclaim the page, no one else will be able to see it. ]

‘I’ll drop the map at the right moment. You, down below, just open up and catch it like you’re catching falling candy.’

[ That’s quite the analogy. ]

After finishing all preparations, I painfully turned my body.

Aina was looking at me with a displeased face.

“Done saying your farewells?”

“Hey. What does this look like to you?”

“……! What, is that a map?”

“Yeah. The one I was just drawing hard up on that cliff.”

“I’m really impressed. Guess I was right about you.”

She smiled in satisfaction and held out her hand.

“Hand it over.”

“Come and get it.”

Swish.

I dropped the map.

The page fluttered as it fell.

Just as I’d told it to, the diary spread itself open on the ground.

And then—

“……Huh?”

It vanished.

The diary had swallowed the page whole.

Even that terrifyingly skilled assassin couldn’t help but rub her eyes in disbelief.

“T-the map disappeared? It was there just a second ago!”

“I use some pretty uncanny tricks. To put it plainly, I’m a magician.”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“Whether it’s nonsense or not, you’ll find out later… But that’s not what matters right now. What matters is that the only map is gone.”

By the time I said that, my legs had already given out.

I stumbled and sat heavily on the ground.

“That map that just disappeared—I’m not bringing it back again.”

“……”

“If I summon the map again, there’s a risk you’ll snatch it away. Honestly, if you set your mind to it, I wouldn’t be able to stop you.”

“T-then you’ll be in trouble too, won’t you? No matter how well you drew it, there’s no way you remember it all.”

“Yeah. I don’t. But the dying Princess over there remembers it perfectly. I showed it to her just now.”

It seemed Aina had finally realized my intention.

Her face twisted.

“I know you showed her something, but you expect me to believe she memorized it instantly? You’re really pushing it with these lies.”

“She’s quite sharp, you know. You seem familiar with the Imperial family—ever heard any rumors about the Princess’s memory?”

“……Tch.”

“At this point, you know what I’m getting at.”

Tak!

From my sitting position, I slapped my knee.

“Save us. Unless you want to wander this forest forever.”

“I could just kill you both and find it myself. The rock glows, so it’s not like I’ll get lost.”

“But you don’t know whether there are swamps or cliffs along the way, do you? Without an aerial map, you’re walking blind.”

“……”

“What if you’re walking straight and suddenly hit a huge obstacle? You’ll waste time and energy going around it. Don’t forget—we need to be within the top sixteen.”

Aina bit her lip.

Then Armelia spoke.

Thanks to me removing her gag earlier.

“As one of the involved parties, let me say just one thing.”

“Shut up!”

“Spare us. I don’t want to die.”

Aina’s eyes widened.

She clearly hadn’t expected the Princess to beg for her life.

Armelia spoke again, her vomit-stained lips glistening.

“Especially not bald.”

That went for me too.

In the end, Aina gave us the antidote.

The chills faded, and the dizziness subsided.

I managed to stand and said,

“Wow. That was seriously close.”

“I’m warning you—don’t even think about pulling anything. It’d be nothing for me to poison you again.”

Then Armelia cut in.

“We’re a team now. No need to be so wary. I have no intention of betraying you.”

“Hmph. Not like you’d have the means to anyway.”

“Now that you mention it, true enough.”

“Don’t agree with me! Ugh, you’re both so irritating!”

Aina stomped the ground a few times, then spun around.

“We’ve wasted enough time. Let’s move.”

“And what will you do by taking the lead? I should be the one at the front.”

“…Haah.”

So we began walking, with Armelia at the very front.

I was second.

Aina took the rear.

Without even looking back, I could feel her dagger aimed squarely at my back.

After walking in a straight line for a while, night had fallen deep.

Armelia spoke.

“I can’t see a step ahead. The trees have completely blocked out the moonlight.”

“Should we rest for the night?”

“That seems best—”

“No.”

Aina’s quiet voice cut in.

“We can still walk, so stop whining. We don’t know how close the others have gotten to the rock.”

“At this rate, you’ll trip.”

“I’ll be fine. I don’t fall. I’ve got good night vision.”

“Then walk beside me. You can guide me by hand.”

“Are you crazy?”

As Aina began to flare up, I intervened.

“I think that’s a good idea. The Princess remembers the map, but she needs to match it with the terrain for it to mean anything. In this darkness, we can’t even tell if we’re going the right way.”

“……Damn it.”

Grumbling, she finally stood beside Armelia.

Meanwhile, I rummaged through my backpack.

“I’ve got a flint in here. Anyone have oil?”

“I do.”

“As expected of you, Princess. Impressive.”

“I didn’t really do anything.”

“Then, assassin—you go chop some wood.”

Of course, Aina let out a sharp yell.

But after my kind and gentle persuasion, she started climbing the nearest tree.

We hadn’t known each other long, but I already had a good sense of how to handle her.

Fwoosh.

Aina gathered the branches.

I tied them together, tore my upper garment, soaked it with oil, and wrapped it around the bundle.

When lit, it became a fine torch.

“I’ll walk with this to light the way. You, assassin, use your good night vision to check the surroundings and report to the Princess. And you, Princess, move straight ahead based on that information.”

“A perfect division of labor. You truly are impressive.”

“You flatter me, Princess.”

Aina looked utterly disgusted.

“You two did meet for the first time in the previous quest, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then why are you acting like you’ve been inseparable for years? You’re a commoner, she’s a Princess.”

“I’ve got a weird personality, and the Princess doesn’t care about that kind of thing anyway.”

“Anyone could tell that just from her speech.”

Then Armelia spoke up.

“So my manner of speech really is strange?”

“Obviously.”

“I thought it suited a royal. I forced myself to speak this way to keep a certain sense of authority… and now it’s just become habit.”

I tilted my head.

“You said your position would become difficult otherwise?”