Chapter 3: Village Girl A and a Village

Alright, I need to come up with a plan of action. Right now, the Hero is in Dadirdtoun. If the “player” controlling the Hero is thorough enough to not only go through all of my things, but also talk to me more than once, then it’s clear that they have what I call “RPG etiquette”. In such a big world, with each little area packed with some sort of content by the developers, it’s only natural to explore every part of it, right? That’s what RPG etiquette is all about.

Naturally, RPG etiquette involves talking to every NPC at every new village, and exploring the entirety of the town. Some people would argue this is the mark of a completionist, and perhaps I can’t deny that as someone who has fully completed this game, but I think following such etiquette allows someone to fully enjoy something like The Tears of Nephelai. To me, it’s always better to enjoy the full meal, rather than just taking a bite. Before I sidetrack my own thoughts though, I should use the Hero’s habits as a guideline on how to intercept him.

The fact that my pots are all smashed means that it’s quite likely that the Hero has only just arrived at Dadirdtoun. It explains why he was so thorough in his search for items. Soon enough, the Hero Party will be tasked with entering the Logswoop Marsh to find a rare ingredient for the Frying Festival. Once the Hero returns, the dungeon will be discovered in the middle of the celebrations.

I have very limited time. If I was the Hero, or even an adventurer, I could easily handle myself in the surrounding areas, but that’s not the case. I’m “Village Girl A”. If I try to fight even a common enemy in this area, the villagers might end up mourning my tragic failure. There’s no way I can chase the Hero once he’s outside of this village.

I shoo away the chicken that likes to sit on me, and I prepare myself to go outside. If the Hero needs his directive, then the only way to move the plot is to talk to the Village Elder, named Tres. I’ll intercept the Hero Party and finish things quickly. This is where my status as a mere NPC will come in handy. Surely, the Hero wouldn’t raise his sword towards someone like me. Who would take care of the chickens if I’m not there?

I finally step outside and take a good look at Dadirdtoun. I’ve shed my initial plan of reconnaissance, since I now know this world is a game, and boldly step into the village. As I thought, no one is paying any attention to me. The Hero is the talk of the town. The chicken farmer girl acting a little different than usual isn’t going to alert anyone when the setting is like this. The village itself has a sense of scale that really can’t be portrayed in a game like The Tears of Nephelai. From a first-person perspective, this place is so much livelier, and on such a bigger scale that I honestly fear I might get lost.

That same cobblestone path that I am so used to is now wide enough for multiple carriages to pass through, and where there were maybe 20 villagers total, there are now perhaps 5 times that amount. This is still very much a village on the smaller side, but the life that bustles from it is undeniable. If I wasn’t on a mission right now, I’d definitely take the time to explore this place thoroughly.

Even while I walk, I hear the conversations of passing villagers.

“Didya hear that Vulcan’s Point was completely swamped with monsters? The world is getting scarier by the day.”

“Ahhh yeah, Mack was just telling me how he barely survived escaping that place!”

Vulcan’s Point was captured at this point in the story? That’s interesting, the players didn’t even hear of Vulcan’s Point until after the halfway mark of the game.

“Hey hey, Elle! You’re late! You gotta come with me to take a peek at Chester’s training, he’s fighting Castor again!”

“Whaaaaat?! H-How do you know his training schedule? Tell me!”

It seems even love triangles exist in this village, huh? The miscellaneous conversations of the villagers want to make me believe that they are living, breathing creatures. It’s a shame I can’t truly see them that way after realizing my own position as an NPC. I wonder if these people even realize that the Hero’s presence is altering their own actions. Do they feel that same uncomfortable feeling that I do? Regardless if they have self-awareness or not, I’m glad I can understand what they’re saying. Not being in tune with the language would’ve been a huge problem.

Oh, hey, there’s the old well in the southwest of town! This is actually the entrance to the dungeon later on. If I’m by the well, then I can simply follow this path to the left to reach Elder Tres’ house. It’s a bit odd to move physically to a location I’ve long known exists, but that’s fine. Tres’ house has a big banner on it, and he’s the overseer for all the ingredients that are used during the Frying Festival.

Despite the name, the festival is described by the in-game characters as a celebration of all the culinary styles of the world.

Ah-

What the heck was the in-game world called again? I think it was called Namida. Yeah, that sounds about right. Well, the point is that Namida is a halfhearted amalgamation of whatever the developers thought was cool at the time of its creation, hence the various plot points in the original story.

That’s why you have something like the Frying Festival so early in the game, which introduces a mostly defunct and tacked on cooking mechanic. Actually, maybe I can use that to my advantage…

“Um, are you here to introduce yourself to Elder Tres?”

My gaze briefly sways to the sound of that voice, but swings back to being locked on the door to the Elder’s house. It was probably just a villager’s passing conversation.

“Uh, hello? You’re new in town right? Village Elder Tres has been waiting for you for a while, but we didn’t want to disturb you or anything…”

Y’know, seeing the Elder’s house to full scale, this guy must be living the good life. I wonder if he can spare some gold for me and my chickens.

“Miss…? You’re not responding, is everything alright?”

There seems to be someone in my peripheral vision. Is that person speaking to me? I wasn’t expecting the new person in town to be me, but maybe that’ll be helpful in the future. I guess I can give them the time of day for just a moment.

I harness the best of my secret conversational techniques and put on my best fake smile. I’ll just say vaguely related things and end the conversation as soon as possible. That’s what helped me through years of work experience as the employee who ranked the lowest in the social hierarchy.

I focus my eyes on the NPC speaking to me, and see a fairly well-built young man, perhaps about my current body’s age, giving me a look of concern. Oi. What’s with that face? Surely I’m not so ugly that you have to look at me like I’m a poisonous frog. I’ve upgraded into quite the cute ideal form, okay?

This guy… is definitely a background character. He’s got a simple beige tunic and some brown trousers, with dull boots, and short brown hair, and dim eyes. Geez, this guy has no color variation in his design! He’d blend in with a crowd better than I could. I’ll give him a temporary name and forget him by the morning.

“Ah! Sorry about that, Village Boy B! I was just contemplating how I should introduce myself to the Village Elder. My schedule is very busy, you see! All the Festival preparations worry my chickens, but I wanted to make sure everything was settled before I introduced myself.”

“Um… Right… Well, Village Elder Tres is currently meeting with some visitors, could I ask your name in the meantime?”

Unless I’m mistaking it, I’m pretty sure his face turned worse. Clearly, I did something unfavorable. I was sure that my smile was practiced and friendly. Maybe this body doesn’t have the muscle memory for it yet. But now I need to come up with a name, huh?

Well, let’s see, this girl raises chickens, so I guess I can go with a chicken-sounding name.

“Hmm, for now, you can call me Talon.”

His face brightens up. Can a name really improve a mood that much?

“Nice to meet you, Talon! My name is-”

The door to the Elder’s house opens and I remove my attention from Village Boy B. As expected, the Hero was right here. The “player” is so easy to predict. But that’s besides the point. Whether it’s the Hero or the “player”, they’re about to feel my wrath!