There has never been a time in my life where I've been as speechless as this.
No matter what, I just couldn't take my eyes off of the dozens of messages flying through the chatroom at blazing speeds.
My unadapted brain had a hard time keeping up with it all.
[Whats with those armed soldiers u gotta chill out lolol this like a movie fr lmao]
[^^ it IS a movie *******]
[xdxdxdxdxdxd]
[hey does anyone know why there are 2k people here? lol gotta be bottled]
[^^ nah it aint botted there are way too many people saying this stream just landed on their fyp. probably bugged algorithm]
What...? Almost two thousand people are watching us?
...Sure enough, I scrolled down just a little and it had the number right there―2,151 concurrent viewers. That's a lot more than I expected... Couldn't this be insanely useful for gaining supporters?
If I managed to convert all two thousand of these guys into consistent viewers, I'd get a hell of a presence, wouldn't I? In one go, too.
Truth was right...
I mean, of course he was, but still...
"...Hah."
Reflexively covering my already mask-hidden mouth with my hand, I unintentionally spat out a suppressed snort.
"Pardon...?"
Ah.
With an inquisitive glance from Minami that seemed to ask what the hell I was snickering about, I turned my gaze and answered her earlier request.
"Now, why on Earth would you want to turn off the camera when there are so many people who are invested in the show?"
"..."
"Not to mention, the ball has yet to get rolling."
"What are you going on about...?"
She gave me that same look as if I were insane, but without elaborating, I took a covert glance at the time on my smartphone―18:49, or 6:49pm.
About forty minutes, then, until the main event will begin.
Entertaining our guests with a side-event in the meantime should be good enough to make them stick around.
I don't think I'll have to do this broadcasting thing for long, but it'd be a good idea to make my name known to entice more people into supporting me in the meantime.
I suppose teasing a little of what I can do would do it, right?
「Piquing the viewers' curiosity about your identity and power will suffice to bring attention to your stream and maintain it for the time being. However, it would be counterproductive to show off too much; releasing too much information would mostly bring negative attention, especially from the wrong sources」
I see. In short, do it in moderation. Well, that shouldn't be difficult.
Clearing my throat, I raised my voice.
"Now. We have a little time until the main event begins, so how about we play a fun game with Miss Minami Mochizuki here?"
Everyone likes games, after all.
A little game could never hurt anybody except for those who get hurt.
Along with that announcement, I glanced at the chat messages and noticed something.
"What are you talking about all of a sudden? We had a deal, but I don't have time for silly games," Minami started getting annoyed like that, but perhaps she had forgotten?
"Um, Minami?" Turning to her, my head tilted a bit. "We haven't signed a contract yet, so this isn't an order, but don't talk back to me, okay? Also, did you happen to forget what would be the result if you decided to ignore me today?"
It would be good for her not to forget.
Her eyes widened.
"You little..."
If I had to terminate our contract before we even signed it, that would be very disappointing, but thankfully, I don't think that'll be necessary.
"Then, the game. The rules are simple:"
"The two of us will play Rock Paper Scissors, best of 9."
"If Minami wins a round, I will do any one thing she says, but if I win a round, then I'll tell everyone an interesting fact. If there's a draw, we go again."
"The first to win five rounds wins the game, and the loser must do one thing, within reason, that the winner says."
Looking at the chat, it appeared full of question marks and confusion, but I thought my explanation was clear enough, so I ignored it
Facing Minami, I asked her, whose furrowed brows conveyed evident suspicion. "Sounds like a fun game, right? Harmless."
She reacted rather intensely, however.
"What are you up to? Why are the conditions so in my favour?"
Hm? Why was that a problem?
I checked the chat again, but it was just...
[????]
["Anything", you say? "Anything", you say?]
[He's up to something lmao]
[Minami dont listen to him Minami dont listen to him Minami dont listen to him]
[lolololol]
[nah you guys trippin he just THAT confident LOL]
[YEP Trapseeker YEP Trapseeker YEP Trapseeker]
[Truthseeker the RPS GOAT fr]
...A trap?
Judging by the state of things, I thought it'd be best to explain.
"It's not a trap, you know? I'm only making the rules fair; after all, if I made it so that I gained something from winning, then it wouldn't be a fair match at all."
Well, it's not like it matters what the rules, conditions, or rewards are, but aren't I doing this for the show?
"What do you--"
"Because, I'm not going to lose, Minami Mochizuki."
Cutting her off, I spoke frankly.
"...Rock Paper Scissors isn't that kind of game where you can just win whenever you want, you know? Hypothetically speaking, even if you were omniscient, you wouldn't be able to see the future that hasn't yet occurred."
She glared at me, but honestly failed to look more intimidating than a kitten.
"Well, you are correct. But, I fail to understand how the game conditions could possibly be interpreted as a trap. If you feel so strongly about it, would you like to give it a preliminary run?"
Minami quickly agreed, perhaps wanting to prove me wrong that I wouldn't completely sweep the floor with her, and thus followed the practice round.
"Ready? On shoot. Rock--"
""Paper, Scissors-- Shoot!""
In unison we chanted, and the result?
"Oh, would you look at that―it's a draw."
I shrugged my shoulders exaggeratedly and glimpsed at Minami's expression. At first, she appeared to be overjoyed that I didn't win, but that emotion quickly shattered as she slowly realised the reality.
"Wait! ...Play me again. First to three."
She challenged with surprising enthusiasm, and needless to say I complied.
"Alright. Then, once again; on 'shoot'."
""Rock, Paper, Scissors-- Shoot!""
I thought I heard a sound like a blood vessel popping when our plays were revealed, but it could have just been me. Needless to say, the result was―
"―A draw. Wow, you're good at this, huh? I haven't been able to win against you yet..."
"...There's one more."
Feeling the end of my lips slowly curl upwards behind my mask, I found her frustration rather entertaining.
"Woah... Three draws? I can't believe--"
"Stop. I don't want to hear another word out of your mouth."
"Oh, but that won't do, Minami. Otherwise, how will I be able to give my interesting facts when I win?"
"..."
Perhaps she still thought I was bluffing? As we moved on to the real game, Minami seemed to retain a certain amount of determination to achieve victory.
She must really want to win. Or is it that she just doesn't want to lose?
I wonder what she would make me do if I lost? It has to be within reason, so she can't just tell me to kill myself or never talk to her again―As if I would do something like that in the first place.
「Her first order would be for you to reveal your true identity and the full extent of your power」
Hm. That's two orders, isn't it?
Either way, it isn't going to happen.
In the interest of time, we promptly started the first round.
""Rock, Paper, Scissors--""
The result?
""Shoot!""
―My win, naturally.
As I relished Minami's quickly despairing expression, I then moved my attention to the stream.
"Okay! Now, for an interesting fact! Let's see..."
I wanted a fact that would be verifiable by the audience so they would know for certain that I'm telling the truth.
I'd rather it be something not too out there, at least for the first one, so as to not grab the attention of anyone unsavoury, but perhaps that is unavoidable.
"Then, let's start off with something relatively simple."
Something small in substance, but still verifiable and shocking enough to garner curiosity as to how I might know it.
"Tonight, at around 10pm, despite the news saying it will stay clear, there will be a vicious thunderstorm in Ain's Weinstell City."
Of course, it wasn't a fact that could be verified right now, but it fit the bill quite nicely in every other area. It would only be a few hours until then, anyway.
"Are you serious?" Minami looked at me as if I were stupid.
"What's wrong? Did you not like the fact?"
"There'll be a storm? In three hours?"
She ignored my question, but it was forgivable.
"I guess you'll have to wait to find out," I smiled. "Let's continue, then."
Round two.
"-!?"
"―My win again. Did you get a whole lot worse all of a sudden?"
"...Get on with it."
"Oh, come now, let's not rush people. Or, no way, is it that you're letting me win because of a vested interest in my facts...?"
She scowled at me with an expression that screamed 'like hell I am', but I knew despite thinking that, she would still listen closely to what I have to say.
"Then, fact two... That last one was a bit dull, right? So, I'll tell you the winning lottery numbers for this week's national lottery."
"What...?"
Snickering internally at her astonishment as Minami stared at me in shock, I said the winning numbers.
Of course, now that I had said them on a public broadcast, they were no longer going to be winning that much money, but they didn't need to know that.
"You... How the hell do you expect anyone to believe that?!"
"No, no, Minami, look. The people watching are going to enter these winning numbers, see? Whether they believe me or not, it's not like they'll lose out by trying the numbers one time, and they stand to gain much more."
I showed her the screen of my smartphone and gradually, she returned to her natural cool and collected look.
Perhaps, after adjusting to the atmosphere, she was able to steadily calm herself.
That's not going to prevent her from entering those numbers later on, though.
"Just continue."
"It's because I'm Truthseeker, you see? I know everythi--"
"I said round three!"
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot―Less than five seconds later, I had won the third bout.
"Don't you think, Ms. Minami Mochizuki, that three in a row is too much to be called a coincidence?"
Giving a glance to the chat, they seemed adequately hyped up and agreed with me. Some deniers probably thought it was staged or that I was cheating, but that's a minority.
How can you even cheat in Rock Paper Scissors?
"For fact three, let's go with... Following the recent events, there will be a series of unfortunate occurrences starting today. One will be in August, and again in October. So, those who live nearby, I'd recommend you watch out."
I realised that what I was saying sounded more like the words of a prophet, but a little misunderstanding like that would probably be advantageous to not let people know what I'm actually capable of.
Though, even if I'm not a prophet, it's not like I can deny I know the future if someone asks.
I couldn't actually see the future or anything, but I knew about plans that certain people had for those times, so in a sense, it wasn't a lie to say I knew parts of the future.
"What do you mean, 'unfortunate occurrences'?"
Turning to Minami at her question, I pondered how much information to give.
Hm...
"You don't have to worry about it. If anything, it'll be beneficial to you."
That'll do.
"Wait, no. What is going to happen? How do you kno--"
"You know how. Sorry, but I believe it's time for round four? Let's see if you can get a win this time, then!"
―Rock.
―Paper.
―Scissors.
―Minami changes her play at the last moment.
―Shoot.
―My Victory.
"Awh, you've gotta try harder than that. Well, better luck in the fifth round. But first―a fact."
Once again turning away from the woman who gritted her teeth in frustration, I briefly checked the time while giving fact number four.
Fortunately, it seems things should flow nicely.
"For our penultimate fact, I think I'll take one question from chat and answer it. Well, have at it, guys and girls! Give me a good one."
I watched the chat zoom as all sorts of questions whizzed by. Many of them were either obvious jokes―where is my dad, will I ever get a girlfriend, et cetera―or too serious―what are your thoughts on the existence of God, yada yada.
It was somewhat entertaining, but at the same time, I frowned.
God... God...
Repeating the word in my mind, I felt something familiar about it somehow, but I didn't know what.
Unfortunately, Truth was useless when it came to reminding me about these hazy memories of my childhood, but anyway.
Those sorts of existential questions are the kind I despise the most.
From experience, I know that asking certain questions will result in rejection.
For example, were I to ask something like 'Is God Real?', or 'What happens when I die?', I have yet to receive an answer other than the following in response:
「You do not have access to this information」
In my eyes, it was the most bone-chilling response I could receive, and it's the same response I get whenever I ask about my missing childhood memories.
That single line of text was proof the proverb "Ignorance is bliss" is true, and that's simply because of the fact there are some things in life humans are better off not knowing.
And, as the one with the alias of Truth, I know.
Just because one can know something, doesn't mean one should.
I already know one person who would do anything to satisfy his craving for knowledge, after all.