Surviving as a Trash Bard in a Game

Fourteen people.

People who were completely different in appearance and atmosphere, a group of humans who did not mix.

They were looking at us.

The first glance is a searching glance, the second glance is an evaluating glance, and the last glance is one of satisfaction and disappointment.

Various emotions intermingle, making my head dizzy. Unless it's time to play, the attention of others is burdensome and dangerous.

Skyler opened his mouth first.

How can he open his mouth first in such a heavy atmosphere? ...I was a little envious.

"Does everyone have experience with large-scale subjugations?"

"...The guy who's the latest is naturally starting with a question?"

"I apologize for the rudeness, but in large-scale subjugations, the experience of the raid leader, vice leader, and manager is generally the most important. If you don't have experience, I'd honestly like to step out."

He skipped the self-introduction and immediately started picking a fight.

Since all mages are socially inept, the adventurers who were picked on reacted as if 'it was bound to happen.'

Instead of getting angry, they remained unresponsive. In short, they were indifferent.

Conversations continue as if it were normal for a party with a mage to have such scenes and conversations. Even prideful adventurers moderately match the mood in front of mages.

'...It's not like they want to match it, though.'

The 16 people for the request were already filled, and with one day left until departure, could they release the mage and find another one?

Of course, the answer was 'they could.'

The reason was simple. There was a magic tower in this city, and there were many mages interested in the binding magic possessed by the Witch of the West.

If they wanted, they could sufficiently expel Skyler from this raid and replace him with another mage in a day.

Then why did Skyler pick a fight with them as soon as they met?

This answer is also simple.

'Because I'm here.'

Look at me. The only proper armament I have is a dagger, and the only useful things are my appearance and voice. But... you can see that I have an instrument behind my back.

In other words, I was undoubtedly a bard to anyone who looked at me.

Here's a question.

How rare is a profession that takes on dangerous missions that require a 'silver tag,' can tie with a solo silver-tagged adventurer, and has the ability to assist or heal others?

'...If you don't know, memorize it. Healers are nobles.'

It's not a figurative expression. Healers were actually nobles.

The ability to assist and heal is very rare.

Magic basically focuses on changing, altering, and utilizing objects. Conversely, divinity, healing, and assistance are about restoring the object itself.

Magic can also achieve regeneration if done clumsily, but the unit of mana consumption is different. Simply put, the fuel efficiency is not good.

Then, one might think, can't they just ask a cleric for help?

'But... basically, there are very few cases where a cleric would jump into dangerous work, and an ordained priest is treated the same as a quasi-knight of the noble class.'

Is it common for the illegitimate child of a minor noble family to risk their life as an adventurer? Of course not.

Well... if it's a monk, they're treated the same as freemen, so the story is a bit different, but those people also become priests after accumulating experience after their pilgrimage.

There's no need to jump into dangerous work.

'In other words, because I, Skyler's companion, look like a healer or supporter. These people can't kick us out.'

They can get one mage from the magic tower, but it would take quite some time to find a supporter and healer who can heal, buff, and debuff.

As Skyler explained on the way, for a 16-person group, 4 support jobs are essential.

A brief silence followed, and the conversation resumed.

"We all have experience with large-scale requests. What about you guys?"

"I have about 4 times, and my companion next to me is her first time."

"...Your companion, a bard?"

"For now."

"What's the possible range?"

"Just a moment."

Skyler approached me and whispered in my ear.

It felt a little ticklish, and for some reason, my face turned red.

I had bent my knees a little to match his height, but for some reason, I felt like a child, and Skyler felt like an adult.

I took a deep breath and focused on his words.

"How far is it possible?"

"...Roughly, if it's about 1/3 of the mana in my body, how much would it be enhanced?"

"Melodies aren't very fuel-efficient, but they're better than magic... a simple calculation would be about a 25% increase. What about the range?"

"I think it should be fine as long as the melody can be heard. I'm not sure, but I just have that feeling."

"I'll trust you. Does healing consume similarly?"

"Probably, yes."

I wasn't sure. I was just trusting my instincts.

Ever since I received this lute... maybe ever since I played on the table at the adventurer's guild... maybe ever since I listened to the music I created alone in my room.

I felt like I already knew.

I just play as my body leads, and speak as my mouth tells me to.

It sounds grand, but the only basis was a weak feeling that it just seemed like it would be that way. Whether it would work as expected in practice was questionable.

Skyler moved away from my ear and continued his explanation.

"The range can apply to all of us, enhancement is about 20%, and healing is up to 3 times."

"That's good."

"The request grade is what it is, after all. If it's a silver tag, they're not beginners, right?"

"More than half of the people who call themselves adventurers have silver tags. It's better not to have any half-baked ones."

"So, what about the joining time and strategy? The location is on the request form. Is the group moving?"

"Here's a summarized map and plan. Take it."

"Yes."

"Check it, and we'll depart at the same time tomorrow."

Skyler received two pieces of paper and took my hand.

I was dragged along by his hand and taken to the second floor of the guild.

***

The second floor of the guild was quiet. Compared to the number of people gathered on the first floor, it was strangely silent. Was it possible that they had rented out the entire building because it was a large-scale request?

More importantly, I think Skyler forgot something important.

"We didn't rent a room."

"It's okay."

"Huh?"

Skyler roughly pulled me along. I could have resisted if I wanted to, but I didn't think it was necessary, so I followed closely behind him with small steps.

A child's body has a small stride, so even if I walked with small steps, after a few steps, it felt like our feet would collide.

So, I followed closely, but sometimes I slowed down or stopped for a moment to match his stride as much as possible.

For some reason, it felt a little... strange. My ears were burning.

My heart was throbbing. This is... not a strange feeling. My body temperature was actually rising. My chest started to hurt.

It seems I need to rest a bit when I get to a room. And, I need to find a way to prevent my clumsiness or narcolepsy from acting up during tomorrow's request...

—Thud.

My consciousness was cut off.

Skyler turned around.

He saw Selina about to fall to the floor with her eyes closed, and he quickly moved behind her, grabbed her waist with both hands, and supported her body.

She had suddenly collapsed like this when they first met.

'After she collapsed, she didn't wake up for about 1 to 3 hours no matter what I did.'

It seemed better to postpone the explanation about this subjugation until after she woke up.

Since she didn't seem to know the extent of her abilities as a bard, it might be a good idea to prepare some mana supplements and test her while feeding them to her.

There were still 24 hours until the start of the subjugation, so there was plenty of time.

He also needed to replenish his scrolls, so he could buy supplements while visiting the magic tower.

'I hope she doesn't collapse during the request...'

Considering that she hadn't been clumsy or had her narcolepsy act up in truly life-threatening situations, it was clear that the person who placed the curse on her had put considerable effort into her.

The organization that used her as a test subject probably intended to observe her for quite a while, keeping her alive.

However, one thing that bothered him was that... this cumbersome method was not the way of the Magic Tower, the Church, the Empire, or the mad king.

'Anyway, I need to test the performance and efficiency of her playing after she wakes up.'

If she were to cause trouble during such a large-scale request, it wouldn't just end with a failed request. Her name being posted on the bulletin board must be avoided.

After all, Skyler himself had another purpose.

The goal of a belated family reunion.

The goal of finding a body to replace his heart.

Even if he had to face a past he didn't want to encounter, there were things he had to do.