Future Diary Survival Game

Chapter 2: Self-Introduction - 1

Mr. Forgotten asked,

“What is it? Why do you look so startled?”

“Huh? Sir, can’t you see this?”

“This? What are you talking about? Get a grip.”

To my surprise, it seemed my diary wasn’t visible to Mr. Forgotten.

It was a strange phenomenon, but considering that there existed a being capable of crushing an adult man to death with one hand, I figured this wasn’t something to lose my mind over.

‘Can I touch it?’

I reached out toward the diary.

Whoosh.

But my hand passed through it as if it were a ghost.

‘Damn. I don’t know what’s going on, but I want to at least record today’s events.’

Come to think of it, what day was it today again?

Right, Year 324 of the Imperial Calendar, February 10th…

Then it happened.

Rustle.

The diary suddenly began to flip open by itself.

And it stopped exactly at February 10th, Year 324.

But more than the strange sight itself, what truly shocked me was the content written there.

‘This isn’t at all what I wrote before I fell asleep.’

Something impossible happened.

When I came to, I was standing in a vast field with countless others.

A woman named Magireta appeared, and a man named Bart who protested against her was crushed to death.>

It was written in my usual, plain tone.

And the handwriting—it was unmistakably mine.

‘But I never wrote this…’

Of course, I would have written in my diary after escaping that nightmare.

And if I had, I probably would have written exactly those sentences.

‘Does that mean…?’

This diary—

Could it possibly be one written by my future self?

I kept reading.

Within one hour, find out the occupations of at least three people.

However, your own occupation must not be revealed to more than three others.>

My eyes moved downward.

Soon, I clenched my teeth.

That bastard Forgotten sold out my occupation—my “information.”

He told others: “If you tell me your occupation, I’ll tell you Mason’s.”

That kind of deal.>

Cold sweat trickled down my neck as I looked at Forgotten.

He only tilted his head, as if wondering why I was acting so strange.

I shook my head, pretending it was nothing.

Then I continued reading.

So Forgotten tied up five people together and convinced them to draw lots. Whoever revealed their job would get to know Mason’s occupation.

From their point of view, it was a low-risk gamble—only a 20% chance of exposure in exchange for gaining new information.

Forgotten pulled this trick twice.

As a result, my information wasn’t revealed to just three people—it was sold to ten.>

Ten people.

The rule was that if more than three people knew your occupation, you’d die. And yet, ten people had learned mine.

How on earth did “I” survive that?

The page ended there, so I tried to flip to the next one.

Fortunately, even though I couldn’t touch the diary, when I thought “I want to see the next page,” the page turned on its own.

But then—

My head throbbed.

It was hiding the most crucial part!

Just then, Forgotten’s voice broke in.

“Hey. Let’s split up for now.”

“Huh?”

“It said we can ask up to ten questions, right? We should walk around and use them to figure out people’s jobs.”

“...Shouldn’t we move together? You said we’re a team.”

Forgotten’s eyes flickered.

“W-Well, sure, but everyone here’s a stranger. If the two of us stick together, it’ll be obvious we’re a team. People will start getting suspicious.”

“…”

“The first step is to lower their guard. That way, it’ll be easier to lead them into answering our questions.”

That bastard.

He already had a plan.

If I stayed by his side, he wouldn’t be able to sell my information.

‘What should I do? Follow him?’

If I stuck close, I could at least stop my information from leaking.

But that would only be a half-success.

I still needed to learn at least two more people’s occupations myself.

If I stayed glued to Forgotten, I couldn’t sell his information either.

‘But I can’t just let him roam free either… Wait!’

A flash of realization struck me.

Yes, that’s it.

If my assumption was correct, this might just work.

Maybe my future self had used this exact strategy to survive.

I made up my mind and quietly stepped away from Forgotten.

“Alright, let’s do that. Let’s split up for now.”

“Mason.”

“We’ve got one hour, so… let’s regroup here in about fifty minutes.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

Forgotten hurried away, as if afraid I might change my mind.

I watched his back for a moment, then turned around.

Step, step.

The direction I headed was toward Magireta, who was floating in the air.

The area was already a buzz of people asking and answering questions.

Magireta looked down at me and asked,

“Hmm? What is it?”

“I have a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“What’s the definition of an occupation?”

Suddenly, a faint smile curved beneath her hood.

But she soon wiped it away, scratching her ear as she said,

“How old are you, kid? Mind if I drop the honorifics?”

“I’ve decided to be twenty for now. And you can speak casually.”

“‘Decided to be’? Ah, so you’re the one who said you wanted to recover your memories earlier. Alright then, I’ll talk comfortably.”

She spoke lazily.

“When you lost your memories, did some of your vocabulary vanish too?”

“I know the dictionary definition. It’s the work one engages in for a living according to one’s aptitude and ability, right?”

“Then why ask?”

“Well, since our lives are on the line, I don’t want to leave any room for ambiguity.”

Magireta pursed her lips.

I continued.

“For example, let’s say a farmer doesn’t cultivate crops during the fallow season to let the land rest. During that time, he chops wood and sells firewood instead.”

“…”

“If that person was summoned here during the fallow season—would he be considered a farmer, or a woodcutter?”

“You’ve got two occupations, don’t you?”

I pressed my lips together tightly.

Magireta spoke in a playful tone.

“Hey, no need to hide it from your big sister.”

“I think I’d have to see you pull back your hood first to confirm if you really are one.”

“You joke well too. Anyway, to answer your question… hmm.”

Her lips moved slightly.

It was quiet enough that no one around us could hear, yet somehow, her voice reached my ears clearly.

“You could be either a farmer or a woodcutter. In this case, it depends on the person’s choice. If they think ‘I am a farmer,’ then they’re a farmer. If they think they’re a woodcutter, then that’s what they are.”

That was an incredibly valuable piece of information.

Whether someone knew this or not would change the fate of many today.

I took a deep breath and moved my lips.

No sound escaped, but Magireta would probably hear me somehow.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For not announcing that publicly and telling me alone.”

“Hehe. I like how selfish you are.”

That didn’t make me happy in the least.

Magireta continued.

“It’s not like I’m giving you special treatment. If anyone else came and asked the same question, I’d answer them the same way.”

“……”

“Kids smart enough to ask questions like that deserve a bit more help, don’t you think?”

“Yes. Still, I appreciate it nonetheless.”

I was about to leave when it happened.

Splat. Thud.

“Kyaaaaaa!”

“Uwaaaah!”

“S-Someone’s head—!”

“M-Mom, I’m scared! Mommy!”

Suddenly, someone’s head exploded among the crowd.

Not metaphorically—literally exploded.

Magireta glanced over and giggled.

Then, cupping her hands over her mouth, she amplified her voice.

“Ah, everyone, quick announcement! Just now, let’s see… what was his name? Ah, yes—Mr. Obert here answered a question with a lie. You see the bulletin board there, right? You are each allowed to ask ten questions in total, and once used, you cannot refuse to answer or tell a lie. Please keep that in mind once more!”

……

Again.

Once again, I wasn’t particularly shocked.

‘Why? Why am I not shocked?’

Thud.

Someone’s legs gave out, and they collapsed.

It was a woman standing near the spot where Obert’s head had burst.

Right. That was the normal reaction.

‘Ah.’

It was the platinum-haired woman from earlier.

The one who, despite trembling with fear, had told Magireta “Kill me if you want to”—not out of courage, but rather because she was slightly unhinged.

Did she sense my gaze?

She turned her head.

Our eyes met.

Her face was splattered with blood, and in her eyes were sheer terror and shock.

Then—

Whirr. Tap.

The diary floated up in front of me.

‘Huh? W-Wait.’

Mr. Forgotten couldn’t see the diary, but a being like Magireta might.

I panicked for a moment—but quickly realized it was just my imagination.

“What’s wrong?”

“N-Nothing.”

Magireta didn’t seem to see the diary at all.

Of course, she could’ve been pretending—but my gut told me she truly couldn’t see it.

Suppressing the pounding in my chest, I looked at the diary.

……

Armelia Kerr Dneroum?

So that woman was Armelia?

‘No. Just because the Hidden Quest appeared after our eyes met doesn’t mean the two are necessarily related.’

I’d have to confront her directly to find out.

But if my guess was right…

I quickly organized my thoughts and spoke to Magireta.

“Big sister.”

“Weren’t you going to call me that only if I took off my hood?”

“That was flattery. I just have one more thing to ask.”

“You sure are sociable.”

“In a world where I can’t rely on a single memory, flattery and sociability are basic survival tools.”

“Hehe. Alright then, tell me. What are you curious about?”

“Well…”

I asked my question, and Magireta gave me exactly the answer I had expected.

Good. With that, my plan was taking shape.

I bowed deeply to her.

“Thank you again, truly.”

“Heading off now?”

“Yes. Time’s already flown by.”

“Alright then. Good luck, little brother.”

She waved lazily before sprawling back in midair.

I quickened my pace toward the platinum-haired woman.

She noticed me approaching and stumbled backward.

Why was she trying to run away?

To find out three occupations within an hour, she’d have to talk to people and ask questions.

‘So I was right.’

With a sigh, I stopped right in front of her.

The woman gave up trying to flee and spoke in a calm, detached tone.

“What do you want?”

“I think you should clean up a bit first.”

I reached into my pocket to hand her a handkerchief, but she stepped back hastily.

“S-Stay away from me.”

“You must be in shock.”

“That man answered my question with a lie. That’s why… that happened.”

“……”

“So in the end, it was like I killed him myself…”

“You know that’s not true.”

The woman flinched.

“I don’t mean to speak ill of the dead, but he was the one who ignored the rules from the start, wasn’t he?”

“……”

“Wipe your face.”

Instead of taking my handkerchief, she wiped her face with her sleeve.

The blood had already dried, but her tears softened it enough to be mostly wiped away.

I said,

“I’m sorry, but we don’t have much time. Let’s talk.”

“……”

“I’m going to ask questions to learn your occupation. You know you can’t refuse or lie, right?”

“……”

“What’s your name?”

She bit her lip and answered,

“Armelia… that is my name.”

“Your family name? Please say your full name.”

“That’s your second question?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure you want to waste two questions just to learn my name?”

“I’ll decide what’s a waste. Please answer.”

Her fist trembled, but she eventually forced out her reply.

“Armelia Kerr Dneroum.”

“……”

“Phew. Now that I’ve told you my full name, allow me one request. Forget that my eyes got the slightest bit red just now.”

“They didn’t just get red—you were sobbing.”

“……”

“No, of course. I saw nothing, Your Highness.”

Armelia Kerr Dneroum.

She was the princess of the strongest empire on the continent—the Crotica Empire.