kscans

Chapter 2 - Let's Recruit an NPC

"Huh? Production skills only? We don't need you in our Clan."

"Well, I just don't see a reason to swap one of my members for you."

"I'm planning on joining a different Clan."

"Was that the part where I'm supposed to laugh?"

These were the responses Hayato received from the players he had approached over the week since leaving his Clan. He had spoken to many more, but their answers were all more or less the same.

And it was no wonder. Every Clan wanted to win as much as possible. Even if they weren't aiming for the top of the rankings, it was only natural to strive for victory if it meant earning prize money every month.

This game had a subscription system. It cost about 1,000 yen a month just to play. Winning a Clan War could make the game free, and with some scrimping, there was a chance to earn enough prize money to cover a month's living expenses.

There was absolutely no reason to form a Clan with a player who had only production skills and no combat power.

Of course, there were also players who enjoyed the game without aiming for the prize money. Those players didn't belong to a Clan. That was because losing a Clan War carried a penalty. The losing Clan would have all of their shared in-game currency taken by the winning Clan.

For these reasons, Hayato had neither been able to join an existing Clan nor had anyone join the one he created.

And just like that, with no change, a week passed.

In the morning, when Hayato logged in, he woke up on the second floor of the log house he had newly established as his headquarters.

Hayato got out of bed, sat in a chair, and drank a coffee. As an item, it had no special effects, but he liked the smell and taste, so he often drank it when he was troubled.

After finishing the coffee, he placed the cup on the desk.

This is bad. A week has already gone by. The Clan War opponents will be decided in about two more weeks, and if I don't get some members by then, I'm guaranteed to lose. Was this too reckless after all... Maybe I should just disband for now and bet on the next one?

If he disbanded the Clan now, he would become unaffiliated and wouldn't have to participate in the Clan War. But if he did, he would have to wait about a month before he could create another one.

Should he participate in the next Clan War as he was, or should he disband once? Hayato was agonizing over it.

But no answer came.

Just as he stood up to get another cup of coffee.

The house chime rang, announcing a visitor.

"We're from the Maid Guild. Is Hayato-sama home?"

"Ah, yes. I'm opening the door now."

The Maid Guild. It was an organization that dispatched maids. Several such guilds existed in the game, and the Maid Guild was one of them.

Feeling he needed someone to handle some of the tasks he had been doing, Hayato had placed a request with the Maid Guild right after being kicked out of his Clan.

When he opened the door, a woman of about twenty, dressed in a maid outfit, was standing there.

Her long black hair was tied back in a single braid, and she was about 160 centimeters tall. Her gaze was a little sharp, but Hayato thought it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call her beautiful.

"A pleasure to meet you. I am Esha Crown, from the Maid Guild."

"Um, yes. I'm Hayato."

"First, my apologies. We had trouble finding a maid who met your conditions, which caused the delay."

"No, no, I made a difficult request, so please don't worry about it."

"I'm relieved to hear you say that."

Hayato stared intently at Esha as she curtsied, lightly holding her skirt.

Because this maid was an NPC, a Non-Player Character.

This character was controlled by an AI, not a person. She was a program, but one that could think and act for herself.

Amazing. I've hardly ever interacted with NPCs before, so I didn't really know, but it seems they can genuinely handle any kind of conversation.

Hayato knew that the NPC AI was said to be exceptionally well-made.

They weren't like characters in ordinary games who just repeat the same lines. What they said changed every time, and unless they were working at a shop or something similar, their locations were different too.

It also seemed each character had an Affection Level, and if you became friends, they might share information with you. Conversely, if your relationship soured, they would ignore you, and in severe cases, they might even call the town guards on you.

There was a story about that.

Once, a player had hired many maids and had them live in his house. While the game prevented acts of harassment, he had essentially created a harem-like situation.

As a result, he was put on the Maid Guild's Blacklist and could never hire a maid again. Furthermore, he became disliked by every town, and the player was barred from entering any of them.

In this game, creating alternate characters on the same account or owning multiple accounts was not allowed. It used biometric authentication, allowing only one character per person for life, and character remakes were not possible.

Because of that, the player who did this ended up stuck in the game. Since player-versus-player combat was not possible outside of the Clan War, he couldn't even role-play as a bandit or a thief. Eventually, that player quit.

Hayato remembered that and resolved to conduct himself properly.

"Um, you have been staring at me for a while now. Is something the matter...?"

"Ah, my apologies. It's my first time hiring a maid, so I just ended up staring. Well then, shall we talk business right away? Is ten thousand a month correct? That's what I was told in the message."

"Yes, that price is fine. Payment is in advance, please. Also, please be aware that there will be no refunds even if you terminate the contract midway."

"I heard that too. Well then, here you go."

Hayato handed the money to Esha.

Although it was called money, it wasn't a physical item like a coin. It was just a data transaction. In this game, the concept of money was managed as data by magic, and it could be exchanged between individuals. The unit was G (Gold).

"Yes, I have received it. I look forward to working with you for the next month."

"Yes, likewise. So, could I ask you to start work right away? I'd like you to do some shopkeeping."

Hayato said this as he invited Esha into the log house.

The first floor of the log house had a small counter, several display cases, and various weapons and armor hanging on the walls. The items on display were all things Hayato had made with his Production Skills.

The second floor of the log house was a living area, but the first floor was set up like a shop to sell goods. While the basic way to buy and sell goods was through direct exchange between players, it was also possible to set up a shop and sell things. But that required a shopkeeper.

In his previous Clan, Hayato had been the one running the shop and selling items, but he didn't have the luxury for that in his current situation. So he had requested a maid from the Maid Guild to handle the shopkeeping.

"Shopkeeping? If that is the case, would it not have been better to request someone from the Merchant Guild rather than the Maid Guild?"

"That's a valid point, but they're expensive, the Merchant Guild."

Hayato had initially intended to make a request to the Merchant Guild, but he gave up when he heard their prices. Since his earnings were low at the moment, it was a result of trying to cut costs where he could.

"You might think it's not a maid's job, but would you please do it? The reason I requested someone who could read, write, and do arithmetic was for this."

"So that was the reason. I was wondering why there were such detailed conditions in the request... Very well. In that case, I will handle the shopkeeping. The items for sale are these, things, here..."

"Yes, that's right. Well then, I'll leave it to you. Is something wrong?"

He had planned to start thinking about what to do with the Clan again after making the request, but he noticed Esha had stopped moving and called out to her.

But there was no response from Esha.

Don't tell me it's a bug or something. I've never heard of that happening before.

This game was also famous for being bug-free. There were updates to add new features, but there had never been an update or maintenance to fix bugs.

Puzzled, Hayato moved in front of Esha. And was shocked.

Esha was drooling from her mouth, staring at a single point.

While the act of drooling might not seem so out of place in manga or anime, seeing someone drool so realistically was actually quite frightening. Just when he was seriously thinking it might be a bug, Esha turned to look at Hayato, still drooling.

"Hayato-sama, are you going to sell this food as well?"

Esha pointed to a Chocolate Parfait made with the Cooking Skill.

Dessert-type dishes had the effect of gradually recovering HP and MP, so they were popular among players who fought like magic swordsmen. Even with the Cooking Skill at its max of 100, the success rate for making it was 50%. And the higher the quality, the longer the effect lasted. The parfait for sale here was the highest quality, five stars.

It seemed Esha was drooling at the sight of such a parfait.

"I plan to sell it, but do you want to eat it by any chance?"

"No, that is not the case."

"But you're drooling."

"Where is the evidence of that?"

"It's happening as we speak, you know?"

After that exchange, Esha wiped her mouth with a handkerchief she produced. After putting the handkerchief away, she made a fist with each hand and slammed them down on the counter with all her might.

Even with such an act, the counter didn't break, but it made a very loud noise.

"Because I want to eat it! A highest quality Chocolate Parfait! This is a miracle!"

"Ah, right. Um, you can have it as a token of our new acquaintance."

Esha was showing an expression completely different from her initial image. Surprised by the gap, Hayato felt a little scared and decided to offer her the parfait.

Esha raised her head. Then she stared at Hayato with expectant eyes.

"I may have it for free?"

"...Please, go ahead."

The market price for a highest quality parfait was about 5,000 G, but it was a dish that could be made entirely with ingredients sold by NPCs. In terms of material gathering difficulty, it was on the low side, so Hayato didn't mind parting with it too much.

Esha took the parfait in her hands, held it up with both, and broke into a huge smile. Then she placed the parfait on the counter, produced a spoon from somewhere, and sat down in a chair. With every bite, she placed her left hand on her cheek and kicked her feet in delight.

NPCs eat food too, huh. And she looks so happy eating it.

Even though Hayato had been playing this game for over a year, this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. He had basically only seen NPCs as beings who sold him items or gave him information.

And watching Esha's behavior, an idea flashed in Hayato's mind.

Can NPCs participate in the Clan War? I think I heard that Tamers can have the monsters they command participate in the Clan War. Monsters are kind of like AI, so maybe NPCs can too?

"Sorry to interrupt you while you're eating, but do you have a moment?"

"Yes, what is it? If you would feed me parfait every day, this Esha Crown pledges even greater loyalty to you, Hayato-sama."

"I don't mind that much, but we'll talk about that later. I actually have something I want to ask. Um, do you know what the Clan War is? And would it be possible for you to participate from my Clan?"

He hadn't thought about what he would do by having a maid participate in the Clan War. It was a simple confirmation of whether or not an NPC could participate.

Esha heard this and made a show of thinking for a moment. Then she smiled sweetly and looked at Hayato.

"Yes, of course. However, there will be certain conditions if you wish for me to participate."

Hayato did a mental fist pump. He felt like he had just seen a small ray of hope.

If players won't work, then I'll use NPCs. I'll recruit the strongest NPCs I can find and win the Clan War. Weren't there legendary swordsmen and mages among the NPCs? And a Hero and a Demon Lord, too?

Hayato began to seriously consider which NPC he should recruit.