Isekai Online Game Developer

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The nobles expectedly gossiped about Mili.

As if sensing their words, Mili trembled and attempted to leave.

Then, she froze, having spotted something.

I realized what was happening when I noticed someone approaching her.

To be precise, that person wasn’t directly coming for Mili.

I moved closer to her and grabbed her shoulder.

“Hi-Hi-Yikes!”

“Are you okay, [Gaidore Sit]?”

“Ah, M-Mage.”

At that moment, the Baroness also made her way over.

“It’s been a while, Mage.”

“It has indeed, madam.”

The Baroness was addressing me, not Mili.

That was because the Baroness and I were somewhat acquainted.

“I was so lucky to be able to come here. Speaking of which, I should have bought ‘Maple Leaf Story’ back then. If I had, could I have joined the expedition team too?”

“Of course, madam, you could have. Did you manage to obtain it now?”

“Fortunately, I was able to buy the third release.”

After chatting briefly with the Baroness, I led Mili to a different spot.

The Baroness didn’t seem to remember Mili.

“I apologize, [Gaidore Sit]. The screening is about to begin, so let’s take our seats.”

“Ah, um… yes…”

Mili sat down at her designated seat, her expression dazed.

It was the front row reserved for expedition members.

Then, amidst grand music, the ‘Zatume Raid Screening’ began.

Though it was a four-hour video, they had managed to condense the boring parts down to about thirty minutes.

Everyone held their breath as they watched the expedition’s battles unfold.

Among them, some were shedding tears, moved by the spectacle.

Mili still seemed unable to grasp the situation and was unable to focus on the video.

Every now and then, she would steal glances at me and the Baroness with fearful eyes.

I contemplated if I should explain it to her, but decided against it.

I recalled the situation when the first release had just sold out.

…

“There’s a commoner among the purchasers.”

“Really? It shouldn’t be an amount a commoner could afford yet.”

“Yeah. It definitely seems difficult for a commoner to come by such money. Upon investigation, I found out that this commoner used to work as a maid in a rural lord’s castle. It seems she has since quit and moved.”

“Hm… that sounds suspicious.”

“Indeed, it did seem suspicious when I sold it, but I remembered what you, Mage, said back then and decided to sell it. You had said you wanted to gift others the chance to craft their lives, regardless of their beginnings.”

I headed to the rural lord’s territory after hearing about the blue-haired merchant.

By the time I arrived there, a maid was about to face punishment for stealing the Baroness’s ring.

However, that maid wasn’t the one who purchased ‘Maple Leaf Story’.

It seemed another maid had been wrongly accused.

I ended up paying the Baroness instead for that maid.

The one who stole the ring must have been the maid who bought ‘Maple Leaf Story’.

I treated it as if I were covering her payment.

That was when I first crossed paths with the Baroness.

Not long after, it became clear that [Gaidore Sit] was the maid who had stolen the ring.

[Gaidore Sit] had chosen the challenging dagger rogue and played the game with the utmost dedication.

Rather than saying she played a game, it would be more appropriate to say she “lived passionately”.

It seemed as if she was truly embracing a new life.

She built her life more diligently than anyone else.

Seeing that, I decided to bury the incident of the stolen ring.

I somewhat understood why she had made such a choice.

I could empathize with her longing for an equitable life unbound by birth.

I merely hoped she would continue to enjoy ‘Maple Leaf Story’.

It was the very reason I had created ‘Maple Leaf Story’—to gift that life to those who hadn’t been born into it.

And now, she had become a member of the expedition, successfully capturing Zatume.

…

As I recalled the past, the video reached its climax.

It was just before [Gaidore Sit] used the Mesos Explosion.

Exactly at the moment [Gaidore Sit] was showering Mesos.

“Here comes the iconic scene.”

Eventually, [Gaidore Sit] ran out of money.

Only one last coin was left.

Ting—

[Gaidore Sit] flicked the coin with a tremendous explosion engulfing Zatume.

-Ooohhhh!!

People watching the video erupted in excitement as they saw Zatume’s health rapidly diminish.

Of course, there were still those who looked down on her for remaining a commoner.

The remaining expedition members succeeded in taking down Zatume with just a little health left.

And along with that came a cascade of items and Mesos.

It was a glorious scene, and the audience gasped in awe.

“Ah… So that’s how Zatume’s helmet falls.”

“One, two, three… Three pieces.”

“Seems like the members with Zatume’s helmet are three, so it must have been three. Not everyone can get it just because Zatume was captured.”

It was no surprise that people were interested in Zatume’s helmet.

The helmet was designed to drop randomly between zero and five pieces.

This time, three fell, and those three were taken by [Tower Master], [Empire's Light], and [Gaidore Sit].

“Hohoho… Zebit got Zatume’s helmet.”

As Zebit muttered that while watching the video, the scene displayed Zebit proudly wearing the Zatume’s helmet and hopping around the map.

There seemed to have been many subsequent events related to Zatume’s helmet, but I intended to ask Hina or Rikal about that later.

Anyway, the screening came to a close.

The audience erupted into applause that could collapse the banquet hall for the historical Zatume raid by the heroes.

The expedition members greeted the audience one by one amid cheers.

Was it like a stage greeting?

“Thank you…!”

However, especially when [Gaidore Sit] bowed, the applause and cheers were notably less.

Which meant that there were still people who looked down on her for being a commoner.

Did they still harbor jealousy despite witnessing such a significant contribution?

Indeed, such people existed everywhere.

And considering she had even snagged Zatume’s helmet, their disdain would only grow.

Of course, many people were amazed by [Gaidore Sit]‘s performance.

But it seemed Mili had already become intimidated by the negative scrutiny.

She had done something praiseworthy.

Seeing her like that left a bittersweet feeling in my heart.

At that moment, [Corruption Power Warrior], Galleard stood up to speak.

*

After all screenings ended, Galleard stepped forward before the crowd.

He planned to share what Rai had asked him to.

“Isn’t this the way it goes? There have always been such people.”

Galleard thought that even without Rai saying it, he would have naturally spoken about it.

A comrade who had saved the world but was looked down upon for being a commoner existed even back in the day.

“We have finally defeated ‘Zatume’!”

The crowd cheered at Galleard’s powerful shout.

“A long time ago, I had a somewhat similar experience. It was when I battled the Demon King. The emotion from this raid was comparable to that time. ‘Zatume’ was a formidable foe, and this time, we had to fight alongside more comrades for a longer duration.

Though the video was condensed, we fought nonstop for about four hours this time. It was more intense and brutal than any battle I had ever experienced.”

People began to focus on Galleard’s speech.

“Back then and now, the exhilaration of victory feels the same. Gratitude for comrades, the glory of a hero, all of it. And not only that, similar situations arose this time too, and I want to talk about it.”

Galleard pulled out a human arm from his cloak.

It was an actual severed arm, gripping a dagger tightly.

“This is the arm of my former comrade, ‘Lesit’. Everyone knows who ‘Lesit’ was without needing to be told. He sacrificed himself in the battle against the Demon King, which allowed us to secure victory. After the battle, we searched for ‘Lesit’s’ remains, but we could only find this arm. To honor him, we enchanted this arm with preservation magic.”

It was a well-known tale.

As always, Lesit clutched his dagger.

No one knew why he never let go of that dagger, whether it was to protect someone or for some conviction.

However, regardless of the reason, it was certain that it suited the notion of a “hero.”

“As you all know, ‘Lesit’ was a commoner, and before joining the hero party, he was a thief and assassin. When I first accepted him as a comrade, everyone pointed fingers at us.

But I was sure back then. Although he was a commoner who had nothing to his name, he was more of a hero than anyone else.

The money he stole was obtained through unscrupulous means, and the people he assassinated were all wicked villains. Anyone still pointing fingers at ‘Lesit’ would only be considered as equally vile. Set aside the fact that he was a hero who saved this world.”

Galleard turned his gaze toward Mili.

Mili lowered her head, staring at the floor.

“And during this raid, there was a comrade who reminded me of ‘Lesit’. You all know who it is without me mentioning it. As you just saw, without her contributions, this raid would have failed. Moreover, she sacrificed all her Mesos to seize glory. If we were to convert the sum she blew up into real-world value, it would amount to this. In essence, she sacrificed nearly all the Mesos she gathered while playing.”

Galleard spread his fingers.

People’s jaws dropped at the amount, which was far more significant than expected.

“Even for me, I wouldn’t have been able to sacrifice such a sum. However, she accomplished it without hesitation for the greater good. In that action, I thought of ‘Lesit’.”

Galleard grabbed Mili’s hand and pulled her forward.

Mili gasped in surprise but was unable to resist his strength.

“How could anyone not praise such a person? How can we not call her a hero when she captured ‘Zatume’ after sacrificing nearly everything? She is a commoner, and surely she has far less than we do. Yet, is there anyone among us here who could selflessly give up what they have for the greater good like her?”

Silence enveloped the banquet hall.

Nobody there had the ability to make the choices Mili had.

“She has become a hero before she is a commoner. So how can we still point fingers at her?”

Galleard raised his voice, looking around at the nobles.

He was probably the only person with the courage and conviction to say something like this in front of so many nobles.

“I shall attribute all the glory of this raid’s success to [Gaidore Sit]. Without her, the raid would have failed. I believe it was right for ‘Zatume’s Helmet’ to go to her as well.”

Mili continued to bury her head.

The banquet hall was silent, and she thought everyone still looked down on her for being a commoner.

“If ‘Lesit’ hadn’t existed, this world wouldn’t exist. And if [Gaidore Sit] hadn’t existed, we wouldn’t have been able to tackle Zatume. So, here, I dare to bestow every ounce of glory to these two commoner heroes. They are truly deserving to be called ‘true heroes’ who have protected the world by sacrificing everything!”

Galleard raised high both the severed arm of ‘Lesit’ and Mili’s hand.

At that moment, the banquet hall was utterly silent.

Not a single person dared to breathe.

And in that silence, Mili thought.

Everyone was still disregarding her.

They likely despised seeing a mere commoner trying to stand out.

Still unable to lift her head, Mili’s eyes were obscured by her long, brown hair, only gazing at the ground.

[Please, lift your head.]

Suddenly, words appeared on the floor she was staring at.

It was a vision—an illusion visible only to Mili.

Slowly, she began to raise her head.

With the dazzling lights of the banquet hall, the faces of the nobles appeared.

They were all looking at Mili.

Yet their expressions were slightly different from what Mili had expected.

“Ah…”

“Sniff, sniff…”

“Lord Lesit…”

Some seemed to be reminiscing about Lesit, gazing into the distance.

Some wiped their tears, while others frowned, moved.

Clap- Clap, clap—

A round of applause suddenly echoed, breaking the silence.

It quickly spread throughout the banquet hall, filling it with sound.

No, the thunderous applause resonated across the entire continent.

“Wh-What…?”

“You did incredibly well, [Gaidore Sit].”

Galleard looked down at Mili with a satisfied expression.

At that moment, the anxiety that had been filling Mili’s chest began to melt away.

Simultaneously, a single tear formed in the corner of her eye.

One droplet became two, two became four, quickly overflowing like rain, streaming down Mili’s cheeks.

“Sniff, wuwah…”

It was an emotion she’d never thought she would feel.

And surely, no one would have expected this would happen again.

Being born as a commoner with nothing and receiving such grand applause in such a significant place.

It felt like an impossibility.

Yet Mili’s hard work made it possible.

So, Mili wept profusely amid the cheers and recognition she had never experienced before.

“…I’m glad.”

Rai, from a corner of the banquet hall, clapped for her, smiling as he exited.

And thus, the ‘Zatume Expedition’ incident came to a close.