Surviving as a Useless Bard in a Game

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The request is simple.

The lake is luring nearby travelers and adventurers with a sweet voice, and it is said to have eaten them.

Physical attacks are ineffective, and there don’t seem to be any known weaknesses; the lake’s entire water can be likened to its massive body.

As if that wasn’t enough, it also has mental attacks.

‘Can I hold out with my willpower? My intelligence is already low as it is.’

Well, even if I can’t withstand it and get caught in a mental attack, my companions will probably free me. Nisha is coming along, after all. If she’s a nun, she should have some divine power, right?

What worries me more is the forest.

I’ve already had the experience of wandering through a forest for quite a while back in the Song Forest. I nearly died while herb gathering there. Can I really keep up with these two?

‘…Why is that person coming, though?’

I turned my head slightly to look back.

Propertyius waved at me with one hand. I nodded in return.

He’s a priest, not an adventurer.

Seriously, why is he coming?!

To be honest, I’ve been a bit wary of him. Especially after hearing about the “right hand” ability from Skylar.

‘…To create palms in such numbers that I can’t even count them from his body.’

When I first met him, feeling like he had three hands wasn’t my imagination. It actually meant he could make three hands!

Surely, having him around would be better than having no one. He has that extraordinary spirit—like when I first met Nisha.

He’s definitely stronger than me… but still, scary is scary.

First impressions of a person don’t change that easily. Between the week that I spent, apart from getting a little friendly with Nisha, I hadn’t talked to Propertyius at all.

‘More importantly, I want to do at least one thing.’

I happened to win against Skylar in a duel. That’s why I received the silver badge.

In a normal situation, with my skill, I could never beat Skylar. I even can’t guarantee a win against other same-tier adventurers.

That is my skill. My objective skill.

The fact that I climbed a mountain to gather 15 herbs and almost died from not being able to find my way is my true level. It’s definitely not a skill worthy of a silver badge!

Anyway, my goal is survival.

I’ll assist my teammates just enough not to feel guilty and watch from a safe distance.

That was my plan.

“Selina.”

“Uh?”

Skylar suddenly called out to me. He still didn’t stop walking, and I was just trying to keep up behind him.

I moved my legs and waited for his next words.

“Do you like attention?”

“Well, if I’m being picky, I prefer having it to being unnoticed. Like, I’d like a lot of people to notice me—something like that?”

“Why?”

“I don’t know…? I feel like I’ve been like this since I was born.”

“What’s it like when you perform?”

Skylar’s random question.

Well, if I’m being honest, it’s just an ordinary conversation.

We had to walk for a long time. The road might be boring, or he could have just suddenly become curious.

Right now, I had nothing to do or think about… so I just answered, thinking it’s fine as long as I can forget about the soreness in my legs.

Why is that?

I was at a loss for words when he asked me how it feels to perform.

“…Well.”

“You’re a bard.”

“I guess the world becomes easier to understand. Honestly, I’m not sure. But you know… when I perform…”

“Yes, I get it.”

Skylar and I glanced at Propertyius and Nisha.

They seemed completely uninterested in our conversation and had moved ahead.

Once we confirmed that the ears around us were quite far away, we continued our discussion.

“The situation seems a bit strange, doesn’t it?”

“When I perform, I become a different person.”

“…I might actually be someone else.”

“If you were joking, then that’s the worst joke. It’s not funny at all.”

“Suddenly, why this?”

“Huh?”

“We’re, honestly, ambiguous, right? We’re just traveling together because we have the same intermediate destination while hiding what we’re after—just companions.”

“Are you saying, ‘What kind of interest suddenly sprouted to ask such questions?’”

“It wasn’t such a sharp tone, but well… yeah. True.”

We don’t know anything about each other.

I couldn’t understand why Skylar chose to travel with me, and he probably doesn’t know why I’m heading to the Regan either.

We’re just using each other while hiding our goals and personalities. That’s our relationship.

And we hadn’t said anything. We didn’t bring it up. I didn’t want to stir up unnecessary trouble.

I thought it had been accepted that way.

But why now?

“I saw one of the things you’re hiding.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Selina, how much longer?”

“What do you mean? I don’t quite get it.”

—A presence.
When I coughed and spat blood.

Ah, it wasn’t an illusion after all. Should have paid a bit more attention to my surroundings. I regret it, but it seems Skylar was on to something.

There’s certainly room to judge that it’s time-limited.

Generally, it’s rare to have injuries that make you spit blood even after clearly using a ‘healing’ scroll in this world.

If it’s an illness or injury that can’t be healed by recovery, it’s hard to think of anything other than a time limit or a curse.

But didn’t you, Skylar, already see with your ‘discern’ that I have a curse on me? Can’t you just think of it as a curse that makes me spit blood periodically and not more complicated than that?

“That wasn’t a curse.”

Damn, so it wasn’t something to think of lightly.

How am I going to make excuses? Should I just say that a few of my status are negative, and I’m getting penalties, to be honest?

No, Skylar wouldn’t know about statuses in the first place. Would he believe that?

Should I just pretend to be dying and play it cool?

‘…Both are insane.’

The best option might just be to leave things be and let him misunderstand.

If I just say everything bluntly, it might feel easier to confess, right? About being from another world, or being originally male, or character creation, all that stuff.

‘But would he believe that if I told him?’

Yeah. He could believe it. The mages care about rules and principles more than anyone else but at the same time break them freely.

But… what would the result be?
What reaction would Skylar show if I said all this?

Uncertainty means fear.
I was scared.

That’s why I only choose to hide. I just choose to run away, the option of a coward. That’s all.

In the end, the answer I chose was.

“Think for yourself.”

“…Selina.”

“What?”

“Never mind.”

He seemed to want to say something but ended up choosing silence instead.

Maybe, like me, Skylar has a cowardly personality and opted for a coward’s choice to run away as well.

If I were to hear that the traveling companion alongside me is actually dying or a frail girl who spits blood, it would be hard to prattle on carelessly; wouldn’t it?

A frail attribute. I didn’t particularly dislike it when I was in reality, but now that I’m in this body, it feels pretty awful.

‘If I really think about it, it is true that I’m actually frail and time-limited.’

Yeah. Well… isn’t that right? There’s nothing wrong with that, is there?

If I don’t quickly replenish my negative status, death is certain.

My status is still good, and I can move.

It’s not a serious issue. I’m steadily earning money, and since I’ve become a silver badge adventurer, I should be able to start taking higher-paying requests soon.

Worst case, I can start begging with my performances and songs.

I don’t particularly care about the means and ways. What I want is survival and return. Just… I’ll survive somehow. That’s all.

The awkward atmosphere lingered on for quite a while.

Until when?
Until we reached near the lake.

A status window appeared. A voice whispered in my ear.

–
[ Mental Strength Check – 10 or more]
[ 7 – 3]

[ Failure! ]
–
Join us.
Let’s be together.

All your worries will melt away and disappear.

Your heavy shackles of the body and the light soul of the spirit, all as one.

Wherever people live, there are always bugs buzzing about.
In the place where we live, nothing remains.
Thus, the lake is more beautiful and cleaner than the people.
That’s why we deserve to hold the world within us.
Your sky is forgetting more and more of its blueness,
while our sky shows only blueness as it goes on.
What remains at the bottom of the lake is only black and dark,
and what remains at the top of the lake is only blue and bright,
so the last moment is a moment of choice.
You have already chosen us.

“—[ Purification ]!”

“…Ah.”

The whisper faded, and my murky mind cleared.

In front of me was the lake.

Someone grabbed my shoulder and threw me back.

The start of battle was a little… embarrassing.