"Are you sure about that oracle?"
Murus asked Chem in a harsh tone of voice with a frown on her face.
"Yes, I'm sure. Would you like to see it?"
She opened the Bible in her hand so that everyone could see it, and they all peered into it.
"That's certainly what it says....Accepting the dark elves as villagers, huh? I'm not going to argue with that if that's what the God of Fate says."
There's only one reason why I want to make one of them part of the village, and that's because when someone becomes a villager, the area I can see on the map expands. The area that the villagers have seen so far will be displayed on the map.
In other words, I will be able to look into the village of the Dark Elves. This would allow me to observe the village and find out if they have been in contact with any suspicious people. Although I will only be able to hear what they say if they are not near a Bible, I will be able to get valuable information.
I wondered if I should reveal that...to the villagers. If I tell them they'll probably go along with it, but I'm afraid they'll have a grudge against me. But if I reveal the divine ability, it will lose its mystique, and if the villagers think it's a crappy ability, I might lose fate points.
The number of villagers has increased recently, and the number of fate points has also increased significantly compared to the past. But I'd like to refrain from saying or doing anything that might arouse distrust in the gods.
"I guess it's hard to be on top of people...."
If you stand up for the other side, you can't stand up for yourself. I used to think that big men were just there to give orders without doing anything, but I didn't understand their trouble until I experienced it. I really admire Lodis and the president of my part-time job.
I'd rather ask someone for advice than think about it on my own, but although I have online acquaintances who call themselves presidents, from what they say on a daily basis, they're not presidents by any stretch of the imagination.
If that's the case, then the best person I can rely on is...father. I'm pretty sure he's a general manager. He'll be home early today, so I'll casually ask him about his work over dinner. I still get a little nervous talking to my father, but I should get used to it, he's family.
...…
As I watched the villagers, it quickly became evening, and it was time for dinner. When I went downstairs, my father was already at the table and my sister hadn't come home yet. She had told me that she had been busy lately, so she was probably working late again today.
I helped him with the food and as the meal began, I kept glancing at him. He was eating quietly with a serious look on his face. I can't find the courage to ask him for help. It would be nice if there was some kind of timing that would give me a chance.
"Dear, how's work going these days?"
My mother brought up the subject as if she could read my mind.
"It's okay. We're doing fine."
All right, I'll jump on board and interrupt the conversation!
"You're the head of a department, aren't you, Dad?"
"Yeah, he is."
For a moment it looked like my glasses were glowing, but it was just a reflection of the fluorescent light, right?
"You know, do bosses ever have problems with relationships?"
"Yes, they do. A company is a collection of people. When people get together, conflicts and problems arise. There are subordinates who are not good at socializing even if they are good at their jobs. Why are you asking me that?"
Oh, that's a very managerial thing to say. I'd like to get some tips on how to act like a boss at this rate.
"You see, there was a little problem in the village that I took care of at the beginning of the year. The people who have lived in the village for a long time don't like the people, who are planning to move there, and I want them to get along, but I don't know how to advise them."
I tried to be as untrue as possible, suppressing information that I shouldn't have given.
"It's a difficult problem to solve. There is a way to let them talk to each other until they are satisfied, but this has the potential to make the relationship worse than it already is. In the case of work, there was a precedent of reconciliation through mutual recognition of each other's abilities. You can also create a common enemy to strengthen their camaraderie."
"I see. Thanks for....Thanks for the reference."
When I thanked him, my father's speech seemed to loosen up a bit. Based on the conversation with my father, it seems...difficult to discuss. I can only imagine a scene of staring at each other and abusive language flying around even if we had the opportunity to do so.
It may be possible to recognize each other's abilities. We have a common enemy, and if we work together to challenge each other, there is a possibility that our relationship will improve. The first thing I should do is to find out if the Dark Elves are worthy of our trust.
If they accept our proposal, I will check their village for anything suspicious. If they're okay, we'll raid the monster's base together. If they refuse our proposal, we should just pretend that this never happened. I can't afford to put the villagers in danger.
...…
When I returned to my room after lunch, there was a change in the appearance of the village. The main members of the village were gathered in the building where the Dark Elves were. A quick check of the logs showed that they had just spoken to the other party about the proposal from the God of Fate.
"You want us to live in this village? Seriously?"
"Yes. Would you like to live in this village, even if it's just for one person?"
Lodis responds calmly to Sudhir's mocking tone. He concealed the fact that the proposal is from God.
"Ha, ha. You want a hostage so that we won't betray you?"
"No, no, no. It's a proposal to deepen our friendship with each other. We want to trust you, and we want you to know more about us. That's all I'm saying."
Lodis continues to negotiate without losing his smile. Laila watches her husband with an enthralled expression. Carol cheers him on in a small voice, saying, "Good luck, Dad." Seeing this family makes me want to get married. It's an ideal family, and to be honest, I'm jealous.
"Hmm. It's not fair to ask me to do something and not accept the other person's request. Even if I accept, I have to decide who will stay, so can I get back to you tomorrow?"
"Of course. It would be great if you could give me an answer by noon tomorrow."
"I'll see you tomorrow."
So this is the end of the negotiations. Now we'll decide what to do based on tomorrow's response. As the villagers stood up and left the building, Gams took over from a villager who was standing guard nearby. Chem walked up to Gams and took something out of her pocket and held it out.
"Brother, take this."
"Okay."
It was a Bible that Chem handed to her brother, Gams. Actually, there is a deeper meaning to this action. The Bible can pick up voices up to a certain distance from its location. In the past, the area inside the cave and the fence was small, so it was possible to pick up all the voices of the villagers, but now it has become too large to cover the whole village.
So she gave the Bible to Gams, who was on watch, and by keeping the buildings where the dark elves were within the Bible's range, I could eavesdrop on them. No matter how much they whispered, the subtitles would be displayed along with the voices so I would not miss anything.
"I know it sounds like a stakeout, but it's to protect the villagers."
I'll make an excuse to myself. Of course, I didn't tell the villagers to give Gams the Bible for eavesdropping. I told them that if they had the Bible, they could invoke a miracle in case of emergency and contain the disturbance before it happened....The number of words of the oracle written in the Bible this time may be the largest ever.
"I hope that's what you want to hear."
I hope I can get the information I want most from the Dark Elves discussion. I'm sticking to the front of the PC to make sure I don't miss a single word, and I'm watching them.
The Dark Elves began to gather in the center of the building after Gams, who was in charge of the watch, confirmed through the window that they were moving to a slightly more distant location. When they were all together in a circle, they gave a small nod, and it was Sudhir who started the conversation.
"I know you've been listening. Can you give me your honest opinion?"
Oops, when she was talking to the villagers, she was talking like a gal, but now she's like a reliable sister. So she is using two different faces.
"I think it's a bit fishy to accept us when there are elves around."
He's a dark elf with an old-fashioned way of speaking. He looks and sounds young, so it's all very strange.
"I'm with you."
"Likewise."
All of them have doubts? Well, of course they do. If I were in their shoes, I'm sure I'd be suspicious of that offer.
"I know. To be honest, I'm only suspicious, but...the gods have told me to make the negotiations a success."
Sudhir took out a dark green book from her pouch and shrugged her shoulders, letting out a small breath.
"Is that a Bible? I didn't think she had it in her possession...."
My first priority was to find out from the Dark Elves whether or not they had a player playing God, but I was surprised to see that they had brought a Bible with them.
I had considered it as a possibility, but I had assumed that they had left it at their base village. But if you think about it, if you're dealing with players, you'd want them to have one so they can understand the situation.
"I don't care enough about...players. Huh."
Regretting it now would not give me a do-over, but I could use this failure to my advantage in the future. She mentioned that she had received instructions from God. This means that there is almost certainly a player on the Dark Elves' side.
And I should think that they have seen everything we have done so far. Even when I was discussing with them, the conversations of the Dark Elves in the building were being displayed. If I can hear them, they must be able to hear us.
"I should just assume that everything was transparent, right?"
I thought my side had the advantage, but it was overturned at once. I'm so angry at myself for being so stupid. I thought I'd grown up a little, but I'm still a little naive.
"Since we didn't get an oracle today, let's ask the Nature God what we should do now."
Will the other side leave the decision to the player? What kind of decision will the player make? I focus on the opponent's Bible and zoom in.
"O God of Nature. If you hear this voice, give us a sign."
She kneels down and prays. After a while, the Bible emits a light, and the book opens by itself without being touched. Now, what kind of reaction will I get? I was both excited and scared.
I can only hope that they are friendly players. As I gazed at the Bible with the Dark Elves, the words appeared on the open page.
"O God of this village. You see this, do you not?"
I couldn't believe my eyes at the unexpected question.