Future Diary Survival Game-Chapter 62 : Hostage Situation – 1

Chapter 62: Hostage Situation – 1
<※ This document was written on June 12, Year 317.
It is an assignment for the royal education course, requiring a comprehensive opinion on the history of the Empire.
Though the Empire has lasted for more than 300 years, its might has not diminished in the slightest.
Rather, it continues to oppress smaller nations, and under the reign of His Majesty the current Emperor, even several kingdoms have been overthrown.
This lady harbors deep concern over such conduct of the Empire.
Has not His Majesty failed to soothe the hearts of the people in those conquered kingdoms? Are not uprisings frequently occurring in every region?
Can one truly say that the cost of suppressing those rebellions is less than the profit gained from annexing those lands?
Even from a purely economic perspective, the gains from trading with them would likely have surpassed the taxes extracted through domination and exploitation.
Above all, as the wars were waged without just cause, the Empire has now become the common enemy of the entire continent.
If the Empire’s prestige were eternal and unshakable, there would be no problem—but nothing in this world lasts forever.
The seeds of unrest that His Majesty has sown may one day return as blades pointed at the Empire.>
I widened my eyes.
‘What the hell is this?’
[The “Peeking” function allows you to view everything the target has ever written. What you’re reading right now is something Armelia wrote for one of her class assignments.]
‘Huh.’
[By the way, it doesn’t have to be a document written with pen and paper. Even doodles scrawled on the ground or a painter’s sketch on canvas can be peeked at. You can even see what’s drawn in the air.]
‘……’
[As long as the person used their hands to draw or write something, it’s all fair game for “Peeking.”]
That’s incredible.
It doesn’t even have to be a diary.
Even if the spelling’s wrong or the content is meaningless, it doesn’t matter.
Being able to peek at anything a person writes or draws with their own hands—how impressive is that?
‘Then you’re saying Her Highness the Princess submitted such a rebellious assignment?’
[Yes.]
‘Bold or reckless, I can’t tell which.’
[She must’ve lived walking on eggshells in the Imperial Palace. Perhaps it’s the kind of sentiment that grows when one feels isolated and twisted by solitude.]
I see. So, basically, it was her rebellious phase.
I kept flipping through the pages.
“Peeking” arranged everything the person had written throughout their entire life in chronological order.
Naturally, the number of pages was astronomical, and there were countless meaningless scribbles, so finding the right information seemed like a real chore.
[That’s right. But you can search by specific keywords—or by the date the document was written.]
‘Really? Then show me the last thing Her Highness wrote.’
The pages fluttered rapidly.
The final entry was this:
<※ This document was written on September 5, Year 324.
Written as if traced by her finger on the desk.
Mason Gear. Gear. Guide. Leader. That’s it? O X!!!?! I don’t know. It’s stupid.>
September 5th?
……That’s today. Right now!
‘What’s wrong with Her Highness?’
[You should ask her yourself.]
No, honestly, I had a vague guess.
But still, that’s absurd.
She’s royalty, and I’m a commoner.
I suddenly grew curious about the administrator page.
How high was Armelia’s trust level toward me right now?
Then, without me even asking, the page flipped on its own.
<1st Place. Armelia Kerr Dneroum
Trust Level: 67 / 100
One-line Evaluation of Mason:
“Hmm. Mason is… ugh, I don’t know. He can’t be summed up in a single line.”
Insight to Help Mason:
None in particular.
2nd Place. Aina Noel
Trust Level: 62 / 100
One-line Evaluation of Mason:
“This is what a true leader looks like. If he’d been born a noble, he would’ve developed his territory tremendously.”
Insight to Help Mason:
None in particular.
3rd Place. Berseum Ferux
Trust Level: 58 / 100
One-line Evaluation of Mason:
“If Eris were ten years younger, I’d want to play matchmaker for her. Well, if I really did that, Her Highness might kill me though.”
Insight to Help Mason:
None in particular.
4th Place. Sienne Katrin
Trust Level: 55 / 100
One-line Evaluation of Mason:
“If Mason had been in Boyle’s place in the previous group, maybe I could’ve had a happy ending. I hope this time it turns out that way.”
Insight to Help Mason:
None in particular.
……
……
163rd Place. Bodrak Dos
Trust Level: 23 / 100
One-line Evaluation of Mason:
“He helped me a lot during the Third Quest and is a very smart man.”
Insight to Help Mason:
None in particular.>
Her trust level had increased significantly since last time.
For some reason, that made me feel pleased.
Then I suddenly noticed something odd.
‘Huh? Why does it end at 163?’
[What do you mean?]
‘I’ve saved well over 200 people by now.’
[……]
The Diary Book stayed silent.
And I figured out the answer myself.
‘Ah.’
They must’ve been eliminated.
The people I saved—some of them must’ve been disqualified in later quests.
[There’s no need for you to blame yourself, Mason.]
‘I’m not. It’s not my fault anyway.’
That’s what I said, but to be honest, my heart still felt heavy.
They weren’t complete strangers, after all. They were people I’d saved once, even if only for a while.
I slowly rose from bed.
Then bowed my head in brief silence.
‘Diary Book. From now on, if anyone listed on my administrator page gets eliminated, tell me immediately.’
[……Understood.]
I could guess the fate of the eliminated—just look at Berseum’s son.
So I couldn’t tell them to rest in peace.
But I could promise at least this much.
‘I’ll definitely avenge you. Against Magireta.’
The next morning.
When I woke up late and stepped outside, I saw Armelia.
She seemed to have just come out of her room as well.
“Are you awake?”
“Mm. Good morning.”
“Are you heading to breakfast?”
“No. To be honest, I overate at dinner yesterday. I was so full I couldn’t even sleep properly.”
So that’s why she sat at her desk and traced my name, huh.
Feeling my face grow a little warm, I quickly changed the topic.
“What about the others?”
“I knocked on their doors, but there was no answer. They must be sleeping deeply—or perhaps out for a stroll.”
“Shall we take a walk too?”
I said it without thinking.
Armelia answered, her expression brightening slightly.
“Would that be all right?”
“I was planning to take today as a free day anyway. We’ve been running nonstop—resting for a day won’t hurt.”
“I thought you might’ve seen the future again last night. I half-expected you to say, ‘Your Highness will die again.’”
“Pfft.”
I burst out laughing without realizing it.
Armelia followed suit, laughing as well.
When I stopped laughing, I said,
“How did you know? Her Highness dies again.”
“Ahaha.”
“……”
“Hahaha… haah. Honestly.”
“I was joking.”
At that, Armelia narrowed her eyes and glared at me.
I waved my hands quickly.
“My apologies. I guess that’s been weighing on your mind more than I thought.”
“Not that much.”
“I haven’t seen the future yet. I’ll check it tonight when everyone gathers. Anyway, shall we go?”
“All right.”
And so, we headed outside.
The Deut Territory was quite a large place, with plenty to see.
We strolled through parks, plazas, and markets, buying various snacks along the way.
For lunch, we stopped by a small restaurant for something light.
Armelia seemed genuinely delighted by everything, her eyes shining the whole time.
“I never thought I’d experience something like this in my lifetime. Once again, I thank you.”
“Oh, it’s nothing. But have you really never gone out like this before?”
“I’ve never walked the streets on my own feet. I begged Cecil for it many times, but she never allowed it.”
Cecil—that must have been Armelia’s nanny.
The one I met before the Second Quest began, during the process of joining up with Armelia.
“Now that I think of it, you must really care about her.”
“‘Care about’ sounds like I’m placing myself above her.”
“But technically, you are above her.”
“My relationship with Cecil isn’t like that. It’s more accurate to call her my second mother.”
A small smile appeared on her lips as she said that.
We continued wandering around the area.
Just as it was about time to return, I spotted a small jewelry shop.
Beautifully crafted pieces gleamed behind the glass display.
One item in particular caught my eye.
Hmm…
“Your Highness, could you wait here for a moment?”
“Hm? Of course.”
She tilted her head slightly but nodded.
I went into the jewelry shop, picked something out, and came back.
She was looking up at the sky.
This was… a little awkward.
“Your Highness.”
“Oh, you’re back… huh? T-This is?”
What I handed her was a necklace.
It resembled the one Armelia had given up as a trade during the Diet Quest—at least in design.
I scratched my head and said,
“Last time, Your Highness sacrificed your necklace. It wasn’t just a trinket—it carried your memories as well.”
“Mason…”
“So, I know this might be presumptuous, but I wanted to give you something new to hold new memories in.”
“……”
“Please fill this one with new memories. Of course, our journey might be too rough to call them ‘memories,’ but still.”
Armelia stayed silent for a moment, then reached out her hand.
But instead of taking the necklace right away, she grasped my hand.
That wasn’t what I expected.
She pulled my hand toward her forehead.
“Y-Your Highness?”
“Thank you. Truly, thank you, Mason.”
“Ah, um…”
“I’ll treasure it dearly. From today, this will be my most precious treasure.”
Armelia took the necklace.
Then, with graceful movements, she fastened it around her neck.
To be honest, it was a cheap, faded jewel—unworthy of a member of the royal family.
But somehow, it looked stunning on Armelia.
“Does it suit me?”
“Yes. Truly.”
“I’m glad.”
“The necklace your mother gave you—you used to keep it close but never wore it, didn’t you?”
“Mm. That one carried memories too, but it also reminded me of the grief of losing her.”
She smiled softly as she continued,
“But this one—it only gives me joy, not sorrow.”
“Your Highness.”
“Ahem. Let’s head back. The others have probably returned by now.”
She turned briskly.
Maybe it was just my imagination, but her ears seemed a little red.
That evening, we regrouped at the inn and then returned to Berseum’s house.
On the way back, Aina nudged my side with a teasing grin.
“Not bad, huh?”
“What are you talking about?”
“There’s a necklace on Her Highness’s neck I’ve never seen before.”
Berseum chimed in.
“Reminds me of my younger days. Back in my time…”
“Fufu. People our age don’t really like stories that start with ‘Back in my day,’ you know.”
“‘People our age,’ you say?”
“Yes. Why? Is that wrong?”
“……No, not at all.”
Anyway, once we returned home, we immediately gathered for a meeting.
By now, these meetings had become so routine it was almost frightening.
Before the actual discussion began, everyone chatted casually for a bit.
During that time, I spoke to the Diary Book.
‘Let’s check the last page again.’
[Understood.]
[Opening the last page.]
[Points consumed: 50]
[Remaining points: 763]