The Price of Speaking the Truth
Roberta and I carrying out a quest to deliver supplies to a family living deep in the wilderness, doubling it as training.
Hmm...? A call from HQ?
Sounds urgent. You should take it.
Ms. Roberta. Can you hear me?
Loud and clear. Lugh, what's going on? Nothing serious, right?
It's not an accident, but... there's something you need to see for yourself.
If you're nearby, could you come?
Let's see... We're actually close by.
The quest it basically finished anyway, so all that's left is to file the report...
Captain. If you're not busy, could you come with me?
Of course.
Estimated disaster occurrence: 70.281%. High risk.
So it was a monster attack?
Yes. A group of monsters came down from the northwestern ridge and invaded the village.
The team on standby neutralized the threat.
Nice work. What's the damage report?
Other than a few damaged homes on the outskirts, there were no casualties or losses.
Good. Well handled.
All thanks to proper preparation.
Considering the observation report listed this area as high risk...
It doesn't seem like it was that severe after all. That's a relief.
Anyway, what's this thing I need to see for myself?
Nothing about the disaster itself seems out of the ordinary.
Well... It's about a certain object we found while securing the site.
An object...?
Here. We found it in the forest while tracking the remaining monsters.
I believe it was buried under the rubble and became exposed during the fight.
Lugh pulled out a mechanical device that looked strangely familiar.
That's the...
It looks familiar...
...Monster attractor.
From the train station?
Yes. The structure is almost identical.
But... why is it here?
The culprit should be locked up by now.
Perhaps he hid it before his arrest?
...That, or someone else is misusing his invention. One of the two.
Hmm... Lugh. Where did these monsters come from again?
From that ridge over there.
The villagers say monsters sometimes descend during winter.
But they've never reached the village itself. This is extremely unusual.
The monster attractor must have drawn everything living on that mountain.
It's clear someone orchestrated this attack...
But we still don't know why.
Lugh, do you have the observation reports for this area?
Yes. Here they are.
...Something's off.
Off? What do you mean?
Look. From this date onward, the observation data shifts noticeably.
It's changing way too consistently to be a coincidence.
But that's not even the most suspicious part.
The village's getting flagged as more dangerous by the day, and meanwhile...
Here.
Roberta pointed to a section of the map.
This area's risk level has been steadily decreasing.
During the exact same period.
What's located in this area?
It says... the Astra Energy development site.
Astra Energy... Isn't that the mining company under Kemet Industries?
Yes. They're excavating Heart of the Star fragments there.
Wait... Last year's data had the risk too high for them to get approbal, didn't it?
Correct... But as you pointed out, the risk rating suddenly dropped this year.
Which is why development is now in full swing.
Hmm... Something smells fishy.
Lugh, gather everything you can on this.
Yes, come in—
Ms. Roberta. What brings you here so suddenly?
Good day, Ms. Eleanor.
I'm just here to ask you something.
About what? Are you here to lodge another complaint about the Observatory?
No. This isn't about the Observatory... It's something I'd like to ask you, personally.
Roberta placed a heavy pouch on the desk.
Do you know what this is?
...I don't.
It's a monster attractor. Made by the culprit we arrested.
It draws in nearby monsters and drives them berserk.
Well, Roberta, I'm afraid I don't know anything about it. Why are you showing me this?
It was found near the Astra Energy development site.
Are you certain you have nothing to do with it?
*Sigh...* Could you get to the point instead of wasting my time with your drivel?
Yes, I figured you'd deny it...
You should stop while you still can. For your own sake.
Ms. Roberta. Are you seriously insinuating that I—
You manipulated the site's risk level using the monster attractor, didn't you?
You needed a low risk level for mining permits to pass.
And that interference corrupted the data, which is why the Observatory's projections have been a mess—
That's outrageous! Ms. Roberta, can you take responsibility for that claim?
Do you have proof for those accusations?!
It's hardly a secret that the mother of the newly appointed CEO of Astra Energy...
Holds significant authority within the Orbital Observatory.
And by coincidence, your tenure aligns perfectly with the surge of Astra Energy's profits.
...Didn't you hear me?
Show me the evidence.
I don't have physical proof. I'm simply here to warn you.
Stop manipulating the risk levels.
You said yourself that even the tiniest variable can skew results significantly.
Do you know what happens if you try to manipulate the risk levels?
Other disaster probabilities besides monster attacks become distorted as well.
That development site sits on unstable ground.
It requires constant monitoring for collapse risks.
If you ignore that and maintain this facade, both your position and your son's business will be at serious risk—
...
...
Roberta...
...Yes, sir.
Rumor has it you visited Ms. Eleanor and threw a bunch of baseless accusations at her.
HQ decided the conflict between you and the Orbital Observatory is interfering with our duties.
...With respect, sir—this isn't anything personal.
Wrong data means we can't prevent real disasters.
If we dont' stop this now, something catastrophic could—
Roberta. I understand, but you should know by now...
Things don't move just because we think they should.
...
...As of today, your team will undergo reorganization.
You're suspended for the time being. Your members will be reassigned to the reserve team.
Commander?! This was my decision alone!
This has nothing to do with my team!
...That's enough. Go get some rest.
Commander!!
...So that's what happened.
...
Ahaha... Captain, that's a scary look you've got there.
...It's fine. I said what needed to be said.
And if that makes Ms. Eleanor think twice—even a little...
Then maybe we can save someone from getting hurt.
Still... I dragged my team into this.
...Maybe I was never cut out to be... a good team leader.
As she walked away, her back looked smaller than ever.