"Why does this place look like a storm passed through it?"
"You fired the gardeners, your highness."
Oh, yeah. That had happened sometime in the past. He could vaguely remember it… No, he had no clue. Someone probably planted a flower he was allergic to or something. But firing all of them for that?
In any case, Reis wasn't expecting a literal jungle inside the glasshouse. He wasn't hyping it up. There were definitely wild animals somewhere in there.
"Since we're short on maintenance staff and the greenhouse requires more attention, it was left as is," Keith added.
Even without gardeners, the rest of the area fared well enough. This was the exception.
Or as Reis might say, a perfectly orchestrated negligence that was meant to pop up to bite him.
|For the record, I had no hand in this.|
Then what was this? His notoriously bad luck?
Now that he thought of it, it did seem like a plausible cause. It would exalain way everything he did backfired on him.
Like when he had said he'd rather work in the gardens, he meant working only in the garden. Not doing it after dealing with the emotional distress of, well, everything else. He had to spend half the day listening to that old man, another half with annoying instructors trying to teach who knows what.
By afternoon, he was mentally exhausted and physically drained, ready to appeal so he could steer clear of this self-inflicted damage.
Only to realize that he was given a carrot. With or without the stick.
'Will tend to the indoor garden in the eastern wing of his palace on his own, in exchange for not attending evening council meetings.' –was what the document said.
On the scale of frustrating to 100x infuriating, the council meeting sat a bit below the half point.
What could he possibly have to do at a royal garden?
Tend to a few flowers. Water a few plants. Trim some weeds.
This was clearly a bargain for him.
Or so he thought until he was brought before this botanical graveyard.
And he didn't even like carrots.
Of course, no one had expected him to actually show up to take care of the garden. Especially since he had too many things in his hands. But for the sake of a peaceful evening without those old foxes, Reis chose to be the better person and keep his word.
But this? Impossible. He couldn't even tell which was overgrowth and which was the actual plant.
"I'm going back."
|The system has detected a mana awakening herb in the greenhouse. It can clear up your mana channels instantly without training.|
|Mana attribution is one of the best ways to conduct a divine summoning.|
|Would you like to take this option?|
|If not, you may continue with physical training so you can sustain through the summoning.|
"...To arrange some lighting for this," he finished smoothly, turning back around. "Keith, you go. I can't work in the dark. Fix the lights."
The butler was stunned, but he recovered fast. "Alright, your highness. I will tell the staff to set the lighting by tomorrow."
"I need it now."
"Sorry?"
Reis flashed the usual 'Ann' look.
"I'll go right away."
Once Keith was out of sight, he turned to the blue screen again. "Do I really have to?"
|Out of the thousand people selected from the game data array, 796 have already utilized the help of higher beings.|
"Why are you telling me this now?"
"Humans function better with encouragement."
Some encouragement that was. Constantly reminding him about the summoning was another way of telling him he was useless on his own.
"It's not my fault this guy is weak."
"You matched with this character, so how is it not your fault?"
Reis gritted his teeth. "If I find the herb and unlock my mana, then I can complete the summoning?"
|Correct.|
Considering the current state of the place, it would be near impossible to find a specific herb unless it was the size of a tree. He didn't even know what it looked like.
|You will know once you locate it.|
As if–
"I will tell you."
…how kind.
But cleaning this whole place just for that one thing was still too much.
|This is a traditional location protected under old customs. Clearing it up on your own would give you exclusive rights to the place regardless of your status.|
|It could serve as a safe zone.|
Reis clicked his tongue. This could be useful, safe zone or not.
"Your Highness, I've talked to the staff." Keith was fast on his feet.
"And what did they say?"
"The greenhouse has built-in lighting structures; we just need to contact a mage to activate it."
It really must have been a significant area to have mana lights included.
Maybe he could organize it so it would be self-sufficient and lock himself inside.
|That would be against the rules. Please do not attempt such acts.|
|The upper administration will not tolerate such acts. You need to actively partake in the events.|
As if they followed rules when kidnapping him. Or was it legal around here now?
"They could only bring you because you allowed it."
This again. This creature was always putting the blame of the situation onto him. For the nth time, when did he ever agree to this nonsense?
|You did.|
Reis couldn't help glaring at the blue screen.
|The contract states that you will accept Odyssey's administrative decisions and that you do not object to becoming a direct subject of the places and situations observed in the game, including but not limited to the occasional case of a soul exchange, transmission, and synchronization. You verified that you have no issues with being brought over to another world if the administration found it suitable.|
He blinked. When in the world did he do that?!
|When you signed up for Odyssey.|
|You agreed to the terms.|
". . ."
'F*ck my life.'
—
Imagine falling into a pyramid scheme thinking it was a minor investment with not much to lose. Then you realize it wasn't actually a scheme but a clinical trial. You didn't want to be a part of that. Wasn't it illegal anyway? So you complain and complain until it finally works.
Only to be told that it was your fault.
How annoying was that?
Well, not as annoying as finding out that it was actually his fault. Cause he was the idiot who didn't read the terms. Like a normal person.
"These are high quality…is it really ok for us to take it?"
"Well, it's a gift so it doesn't count as a bribe, I think."
"Gifts can be bribes too…"
Keith tried to maintain a flat expression, but he himself wasn't sure whether it was a bribe or not. If it was, wouldn't he be an accomplice?
"Your Highness…"
"I'm cursing everyone out, don't bother me."
Keith looked at him thoughtfully.
That made sense. The prince had done a lot in the last two days, more than Keith had ever seen him accomplish in a year. Of course, he was cursing out the whole kingdom, which was very much like him.
He even went out of his way to gift pillows to staff at the office. He really was growing up.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Reis could read the butler like a third-grade book. He definitely was trying his best. In fact, he was doing so well that the people at the palace were in shock. Cause since when had the third prince been so reasonable? He had actually read through the documents and listed out the routes within two days.
The king was so happy that he ordered a feast for the staff this evening. His rebellious son had finally matured from the paper-burning era. That called for a celebration.
Well, of course he became more dependable. How else would he gain enough trust to reduce surveillance?
|There is no guarantee that this will work.|
Reis ignored the blue screen. What did it know? This was foolproof.
Once he accepted his fate of being stuck here with no legal way out, a door opened before him. And out came a stream of new ideas. So maybe being doomed was a blessing.
There were many things Reis needed for a successful escape.
Money: cause he didn't want to become a beggar without the skill set for it.
Power: so he couldn't be simply dragged back like a rat.
And last but not least, trust: so he can actually slip out to begin with.
The last one was the first obstacle for him. 'Ann' had worked on primary goals so far. Small incidents, acts of resistance. This earned him a lack of trust and even put him on a criminal board. There was a set of guards just to keep an eye on him.
Reis was planning long-term; if he was going to do something, he wanted success. And the first part of it was to submit, unwillingly, not accepting everything, but to make everyone believe he caved in. Not stirring trouble right now would be the best choice for him to get things done.
And like that, he had already earned himself a vacation. Well, technically it was a short break since he submitted a month's worth of data in days. He diligently listed out every little gap in security from Ann's memory. Enough to keep everyone busy for at least a month. The pillows were the compensation for the overtime they had coming their way.
"I'll be in the garden."
Keith only bowed as he walked away. He didn't need to follow anymore. There were tens of guards around for that here.
|Task Finalized.|
|Objective: Secure the Greenhouse and find the mana herbs.
Difficulty: Normal
Time Limit: Undecided|