I Thought It Was a Healing Farming Game - Chapter 83

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I thought this was supposed to be a healing farming game.
Chapter 83

But rather than feeling like I’d come closer to an answer, it felt more like I’d stumbled into an even deeper labyrinth.
“I’m going to turn in for the night. You should get some rest too, Princess.”
“All right. Sleep well, Kaies!”
“You too.”
Kaies yawned and disappeared into his tent.
I stood there dazed for a moment before coming to my senses and heading into my own empty tent.
‘……What was that expression?’
It was the first time I’d ever seen Kaies so visibly shaken.

* * *

We blearily broke down the tents together and boarded the train right on schedule.

[Breakfast Menu]

“I’ll have cereal with milk, please…….”
After a quick breakfast on the train, we stopped at our final destination before returning to Node.

[Arriving shortly. Thank you for traveling with us.]

The moment my feet touched the ground after stepping off the train, a cascade of notifications appeared.

Achievement: Successful Party
Siard’s Affinity +20
Kaies’s Affinity +25
Yu Eun’s Affinity +20
Eun Yu’s Affinity +20
Twins’ Affinity has reached Level 6!
Priam’s Affinity +25
Priam’s Affinity has reached Level 6!
Successful Party Buff: 50% Experience Increase for 3 Days

‘This buff is incredible!’
The Affinity of all the residents who participated in the party had increased across the board.
And since I’d genuinely enjoyed it too, it was a win-win all around.
“Thank you all so much for these two wonderful days together! Let’s do it again soon.”
“Thanks to you, we had a truly enjoyable time.”
After exchanging farewells with the residents, everyone dispersed according to their schedules.
Rather than heading straight home, I glanced around and changed direction.
Since my destination was near the Tavern, I half-expected to run into Kaies on the way, but fortunately he was nowhere to be seen.
‘Based on his reaction last night, there’s no way he’d say anything nice about this. I need to be careful not to get caught.’
Upon spotting the Tavern sign, I turned and looked up at the building across from it.
‘This should be it, right?’
I lingered at the entrance for a moment before pushing open the door and stepping inside.
As I climbed to the second floor, a vaguely familiar interior came into view.
‘Ah. This is it.’
It matched exactly the background I’d seen on my tablet from the Request Office. A person at the desk spoke up.
“What brings you in today?”
“Oh, I have a commission I’d like to post.”
“Then please, let me show you to a private room.”
I was guided into what looked like a single-occupancy room, quiet and secluded.
The moment I stepped inside, the door shut behind me. A figure draped in a black cloak gestured toward a chair.
The instant I sat down cautiously, they slid a blank sheet of paper across to me.
“Please write down the details of your request.”
“Yes… um, well.”
I picked up the pen but hesitated before writing, so he gestured for me to go ahead and speak.
“The request details are confidential, right?”
“I swear to you, the contents of your commission will not be divulged to anyone.”
“Yes…”
After receiving this second confirmation, I picked up the pen and, after a moment’s thought, began writing slowly on the commission form.

[Information Gathering Request]
[Do the residents actually dislike and distrust visitors or outsiders?]
[If so, is this because of something that happened in the past? I’d like to know what that incident was.]
[Please also tell me how I might investigate this matter in detail.]

After receiving my commission form, he nodded and sealed it with wax.
“Keep this jewel with you, and when it begins to glow, come hear the answer.”
I accepted the small jewel the cloaked figure offered me.
After finishing my business, I descended the stairs and let out a heavy sigh.
“Sigh…”
Was this really the right choice?
But apart from submitting a commission, I had no real way to uncover the truth.
‘A quest has already appeared, so leaving it buried while pretending I know nothing doesn’t sit right with me.’
It was better to see and judge for myself than to speculate alone about some past incident and end up on the wrong track, nursing a misunderstanding.
Thus persuading myself, I placed the jewel in the inner pocket of my bag.
After returning home, I mulled over the lingering impressions of the journey with a slightly heavier heart.
And two days later.
The jewel I’d received from the Request Office began to glow.
I visited the office at the first moment I could spare, constantly glancing around in case I ran into someone I knew.
When I showed the jewel to the desk clerk, I was guided through a brief verification process and then into the same room as before.
“Welcome.”
The cloaked figure held out a single sheet of paper and spoke.
“This is the information you requested last time.”
I carefully took the paper, which was densely covered in information. Just as I was about to fold it and tuck it away absently—
“You cannot take it outside. You must memorize it all here.”
“What? Just… give me a moment.”
“Take your time—don’t worry.”
Take my time? Surely they didn’t expect me to memorize all of this before leaving?
‘In the game, commission details were saved automatically.’
I was momentarily flustered, but as I began reading through the contents, a notification chimed.
Ding!

Request Office – Archive
You can save and review the details of your commissioned information and items.
Auto-save activates once you’ve finished reviewing the contents.

Ah, thank goodness.
Reassured by the system notice, I looked back over the commission response.
After about ten minutes, I returned the documents to the figure with a mind somewhat more complicated than before.
“That was helpful. Here you are.”
“Thank you for using our service. Would you happen to need more detailed information? We can conduct additional investigations if needed.”
“Ah. In that case, what would the cost be…”
“We can start at 1,000 Gold and adjust from there.”
“Gasp.”
I caught my breath at a price far steeper than I’d anticipated.
I didn’t have that kind of money right now.
“That’s fine. I’ll come back if I need to! Thank you for your service.”
“Please visit again.”
Rather than pay that much, I’d find the answers myself—with that resolve, I bowed politely and left.
After slipping out of the Request Office and confirming no familiar faces were about, I stopped by the Bakery, feigning casualness as I turned down an alley.
Just in case someone asked where I’d been, I could say I’d visited the bakery.
As I browsed the bread display, I mentally retraced the information I’d been given.
First: whether it was true that the residents disliked and were wary of visitors and outsiders.
The answer was exactly as I’d expected.
The residents of Node didn’t trust visitors as a rule. I learned that some even expressed outright hostility toward them.
“I’ll take these.”
I set the bread I’d picked from the display onto the counter and continued thinking.
Second: the reason behind it—whether it stemmed from something in the past, and what incident that had been.
There had been multiple visitors who caused trouble in Node long ago.
But they had all disappeared after receiving punishment fitting their crimes, so I was told.
‘Disappeared where, though? Back to reality? Or driven out beyond Node’s borders?’
At least one thing had become clear: previous visitors had caused some kind of incident in the village, and as a result, the residents had come to avoid visitors.
Ding.
“Have a good day!”
“You too.”
The third answer concerned how to investigate this matter in detail.
I was told that if I wanted to know exactly what had happened, I’d have no choice but to search for records and evidence myself.
There was no point asking the residents directly—no one would give me a proper answer anyway.
‘Well, Priam and Kaies both gave poor reactions from the start, so the other residents would hardly be better.’
Besides, if I kept digging and asking around about previous visitors, it would only be a matter of time before word reached Kaies’s ears.
‘So I’ll have to gather the records and evidence on my own.’
According to what I’d learned, that evidence could be something a resident kept as a personal possession, or it could be hidden in a place that wasn’t immediately obvious.
On the walk back home, I opened my Hidden Quest list and stared at it intently.

– Siard’s ???
– Kaies’s ??

‘Could those question marks refer to their personal possessions or locations?’

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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