Future Diary Survival Game-Chapter 53 : Diet - 2

Chapter 53: Diet - 2
“You’re Boyle… no, Edgar now, was it? I understand that you’re not as wicked as that man. But the problem is, I also believed Boyle was a good person during the previous game.”
“……”
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean that you’re bad—just that my judgment of people is lacking. Could I observe you a little longer before giving an answer?”
“I understand. That’s enough for now.”
Any further persuasion was meaningless.
From here on, I’d have to show it not through words, but through actions.
Then Berseum asked,
“But how did Edgar retreat in the end? For someone who’d lived 350 years, his entire body was a weapon.”
“When I splattered my blood on him, his body began to burn.”
“Ah. I see.”
“……”
“Huh? What did you say?”
I calmly explained the short skirmish with Edgar.
Though, to call it a ‘fight’ was an exaggeration—it was merely me splattering blood from a kitchen knife.
After listening to everything, Armelia spoke seriously.
“As expected, you’re special.”
“Hey, are you really just going to accept that? Isn’t this too unrealistic?”
“Why not? Was the ability to see the future realistic?”
“Urgh.”
“I’m satisfied as long as we’ve made some minimal preparations. In this game, practical survival plans come before trivial curiosity.”
Armelia seemed more thoughtful and composed than before.
In the end, everyone nodded in agreement.
“Kuah~.”
At that moment, Aina stretched and said,
“Let’s stop here for today and rest. I’m exhausted—probably because I almost died.”
“I’m not sleepy at all, though.”
“Well, that’s because you, Princess, were clinging to that lady and slept to your heart’s content.”
Then Sienne interjected,
“As I’ve said before, I’m only in my fifties. Please call me sister instead.”
“Wow……”
“What’s with that sigh of admiration?”
That day’s conversation ended with them compromising on calling her “Miss Sienne.”
We each returned to our rooms to rest our tired bodies.
There was something I always did after finishing a quest and lying down on my bed—
to check what kind of influence my actions in the previous quest had on the future.
Especially the last page… to confirm whether my lifespan had increased, even slightly.
‘Hey, Diary Book?’
[Would you like me to show you?]
By now, we were in perfect sync.
When I nodded, the Diary Book fluttered open.
[Opening the last page.]
[Points consumed: 50]
[Remaining points: 368]
<Year 327, January 10>
I survived until the very last game.
So, I believed that this wretched nightmare was finally over.
……
……
Looking back now, my first “failure” began at the fifth quest—Diet.
The fifth quest, Diet.
A game where one had to resist the temptation of the “incredibly delicious” bread that Magireta offered, exercise self-control, and lose weight to pass.
At first, I thought it was unusually easy for a game.
But Magireta’s bread was delicious. Too delicious.
That indescribable, heavenly taste made every participant, including us, addicted.
Even as we knew we shouldn’t, our hands naturally reached for the bread.
By the second week, it was obvious—we had all gained weight.
When despair began to set in, Berseum saved us.
He locked us inside a room and cast magic on the door.
Of course, Berseum himself couldn’t use magic properly anymore due to the addiction.
But by attaching a document with a pre-stored magic circle onto the door, he managed to create a barrier.
If Sienne had been in her usual condition, she could have easily broken through that barrier—but she too was too weakened by addiction to even swing her sword.
After locking us in, Berseum said,
—For the remaining two weeks, I’ll bring you bread. But only a very small amount.
He claimed that, since he was the oldest among us, he could resist temptation.
In our fading rationality, we accepted his words as reasonable.
But we were wrong.
From the very beginning, Berseum had intended to sacrifice himself.
For the next two weeks, he visited our room once a day—threw a piece of bread inside, and disappeared.
Each time, his face looked a little fuller than before.
Yes… against the miraculous taste of that bread, even age and experience meant nothing.
Finally, on the last day we barely managed to reach the target weight and pass the game.
But Berseum exceeded the limit and was eliminated.
When the withdrawal symptoms faded and our sanity returned, all of us broke down in tears.
But no amount of crying could bring back someone who’d been eliminated.
……
……
Was there any other way to clear that demonic diet game?
I couldn’t hold back my curiosity and asked Magireta.
What was the right answer to that game? What should we have done?
Magireta, perhaps because it was the last time, answered cheerfully.
—You just had to eat one piece of bread every two days. Then you’d only feel a little itchiness, not full addiction.
Hahaha.
One piece every two days? That was the answer?
……
……
After Berseum’s elimination, our party faced a crisis.
The first sacrifice within the group.
The guilt of not being able to stop him.
And the practical problem of losing our mage—all of it became a massive disadvantage in the games that followed.
That’s why I can say for certain:
My first failure was in the fifth game—Diet.
I remained silent for a while.
Because the content of the fifth quest was simply absurd.
‘Just how delicious was that bread… the one the future version of me couldn’t resist?’
Of course, I already knew the answer.
It was obviously bread made by Magireta.
It only took the form of bread—its essence must have contained Magireta’s omnipotence.
There was no way a human could win against such temptation.
I folded my arms and thought.
But no matter how much I pondered alone, no clear solution came to mind.
It seemed like I would need to discuss the next quest with my companions.
For now, I set that aside and spoke to the Diary Book.
‘Come to think of it, the system got upgraded again, didn’t it? The shop was at lv.2 or something.’
[Yes. Would you like to check it out?]
‘Sure. I can already guess, though.’
<Always by your side. The On-the-Go Service Diary Shop.> <You can purchase the following items for a very affordable number of points.>
<Currently at lv.2, only two items are available for sale.>
<1. Stimulant (for Armelia only): Purchased!>
<2. Stimulant (for Aina only): 500 points>
As expected.
[Oh my. You really must buy that one.]
‘But I don’t have enough points. Will you let me buy on credit?’
[No.]
So stingy.
For a shop with only one customer, it sure was arrogant.
You’d think they could at least allow some kind of… credit. Credit?
Wait.
A flash of realization struck me.
If my guess was right, this could be a valuable discovery.
A small smile crept across my lips.
The next morning.
We finished breakfast leisurely and were enjoying a cup of tea.
As we chatted casually, everyone happened to bring their teacups to their lips at the same time.
I took that opportunity and spoke in a serious tone.
“Let’s talk about the next quest.”
The others straightened their postures as if used to this routine.
But Sienne tilted her head and asked,
“What are we talking about?”
“This is where I tell you about the next quest, so we can discuss strategies and precautions.”
“Ah, I see.”
Sienne answered absentmindedly—then suddenly her jaw dropped.
“Wait! How could you possibly know something like that?”
“I already told you before. I can see the future.”
“……”
“I was also the one who warned you that Ian would kill you. Of course, since Ian took a one-way trip to hell last time, that future no longer exists.”
She pressed her fingers lightly to her forehead.
“Hold on. I need a moment… my head hurts.”
“Fufufu. Isn’t it amazing? That’s Mason for you. The surname Gear doesn’t fall short at all.”
“And why is Your Highness the one bragging?”
“Well, Mason’s far too modest and humble. Someone has to boast on his behalf.”
What nonsense.
Anyway, I briefly explained the content of the fifth game.
Berseum stroked his mustache and said,
“Diet, huh. Not a familiar concept.”
“Actually, even though I said it, it’s a term I’ve never heard before either, brother.”
“Ah, but I do know its meaning. Some of the higher nobles go on diets. It refers to regulating one’s meals to manage one’s body shape. It’s a luxury for commoners, really.”
At his words, I looked at Armelia.
She hesitated for a moment before replying,
“I’ve never done it. I’ve never needed to.”
“That’s a rather conceited statement.”
“I-I didn’t mean my figure is perfect! I just meant I usually eat lightly.”
“I was joking.”
Anyway, that concluded the explanation about the game.
Soon after, Aina spoke to Berseum—her tone uncharacteristically gentle.
“So, Grandpa tried to sacrifice himself for us.”
“I don’t remember any of that, though.”
“Of course not. It’s something that’ll happen in the future.”
“……”
“Still… I feel bad and thankful, for no reason.”
Berseum chuckled.
“I told you, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Let’s focus on countermeasures instead.”
“The first idea that comes to mind is to bring plenty of food before entering.”
Armelia reached into her pocket and scattered a few gold coins she had received from Magireta.
“With just one or two of these, we could secure a month’s worth of food. Though we might only be able to manage jerky or other dried provisions since cooking may not be an option.”
“I did think of that too, but I doubt Magireta would allow it. Any food brought in from outside would definitely be confiscated.”
“Hmm…”
“So, as the next-best plan—”
I lowered my voice.
“We endure by eating one loaf of bread every two days.”
“Huh?”
“In the future I saw, eating one loaf every two days prevents addiction. Not completely, but it won’t numb your reason.”
“I see. Knowing that makes a huge difference.”
She was right.
Sienne added,
“It makes sense if we think of the bread as a drug. After all, even drugs don’t cause deep addiction on the first try.”
“Exactly. At first, it’s just an intriguing experience, something you casually think about afterward. If you only inhaled once every year or two, it wouldn’t lead to addiction.”
“So in this game, the safe threshold is one loaf of bread every two days?”
“In the future I saw, yes. But if anyone has a better idea, I’m open to it.”
We continued our discussion for a while.
In the end, though, we decided to follow my plan.
As a side note, we also agreed to eat a bit more until the game began—
if our current weight was considered normal, gaining a little extra might make it easier to lose later.
Everyone except Berseum and me seemed hesitant, though.
About a week passed that way.
When I opened my eyes one morning, a blue sky greeted me.
I should have been seeing a ceiling—but instead, there was the sky.
That alone told me what had happened.
—Bam-pa-pa-pa!
From somewhere, a blaring trumpet sounded, loud enough to tear through my eardrums.
The noise was enough to shake my brain, so I hurriedly covered both ears.
A moment later, the trumpet stopped—and Magireta’s voice rang out.
“Everyone awake now? This melody really is the best for morning wake-ups, isn’t it?”