Chapitre 22: Ron will always be by my side.
Ron ultimately became Bronya's guard.
To be honest, when Bronya first rushed up to him and suddenly asked him to be her guard, Ron refused.
He wondered how an ordinary Silvermane officer and captain of Klippenburg's gate guard could suddenly be appointed as Bronya's guard.
Moreover, although Ron was eager and proactive in the simulation game, preferring to handle all the troubles himself, in reality, he was genuinely lazy.
Playing games was one thing, but having to put in the same effort in real life?
He'd rather die.
Though the AI in the simulation game might differ from reality, Ron's experience in the simulations gave him a clear idea—he didn't want to be constantly messed with by Bronya in real life.
Did she think that just because she was cute and his superior, he would unconditionally obey her orders? Ha, he absolutely...
"I've reviewed your record. Being a gate captain does not fully utilize your abilities. I hope you can take on a more meaningful position."
"If you want, I can offer you a monthly salary of 30,000 Winter City Shields..."
Bronya added a bit awkwardly, "This is the maximum I can authorize. Anything higher requires Cocolia's approval, which I can't promise right now."
...Impossible to refuse!
Ron agreed without hesitation to become Bronya's most loyal guard.
Why?
Sorry, but 30,000 Winter City Shields can indeed make you do anything.
With such a huge sum, even if Bronya asked Ron to guard the gate, do her laundry, cook, wash her feet, and warm her bed, he wouldn't have a single complaint.
Keep in mind, the exchange rate between Winter City Shields and Credit Points is 1 to 50... A monthly salary of 1.5 million Credit Points—what's there to refuse?
He had been guarding Klippenburg for two years, with less than a million Credit Points saved!
Damn, the simulation didn't reveal such details about the salary. If he had known being Bronya's guard was so profitable, he would have stuck around her more after learning about his future from the simulation...
For a moment, Ron felt his heart ache, his vision darkened, and it seemed like countless Credit Points were growing wings and flying away before his eyes.
Credit Points are never too much... Ron had long planned to lie flat, initially intending to guard Klippenburg for another year, save up over two million Credit Points, and then retire.
Enjoying life until the Stellar Core explosion ended the world, waiting for the crew to handle the Stellar Core, and then return to work, avoiding all danger and trouble.
But now, Bronya offered him a job with a monthly salary of 1.5 million Credit Points, needing just a month to save up enough to lie flat for a year...
Heaven, such a good thing exists?
Anyway, work is work. Although Bronya was quite troublesome in the simulation during wartime... before Belobog's situation deteriorated, she was one of the best superiors.
Because she had no opportunities to mess with Ron...
Just work for a month. If it gets tough, he could always leave.
With this mindset, Ron started his first task as Bronya's guard—
"A merchant named Sampo from the Underworld recently contacted me. I'm curious about the current situation there, and I hope you can accompany me to the Underworld."
Bronya said, "There's been no communication between the upper and lower districts for a long time, and the supply of Geomarrow is decreasing every month... For the sake of Belobog, I need to find out what's happening in the Underworld."
For the sake of Belobog... Well, that's typical of Bronya, running around for Belobog. I didn't expect this time she actually chose the right place.
The Underworld is indeed a good place, at least it could reveal Cocolia's mistakes and let Bronya see a part of the truth... But why did Sampo contact Bronya and pull her to the Underworld at this time?
Ron frowned slightly, deep in thought.
Actually, when Bronya came to recruit him as a guard, he felt something was off. After all, he had experienced two simulations, and in both, Bronya only recruited him after receiving orders from Cocolia.
Both simulations started this way, indicating a high possibility of this happening in the future, with little room for error.
But now Bronya made a move completely different from the simulation's start...
Ron quickly deduced Bronya's reason for this action.
It's likely because Sampo contacted Bronya, and she wanted to go to the Underworld but found no one available.
The Underworld was unknown and dangerous to her, so she sought a helper, thus temporarily recruiting Ron as her guard.
However, Sampo, a masked fool walking on the Path of Elation, suddenly doing such a thing was too strange...
What kind of drama was he plotting? Now that the train crew hadn't arrived yet, why was he trying to pull Bronya to the Underworld directly? What's the reason?
...Could it be Elation personally seeking entertainment?
Ron had a chilling thought. Bronya seemed to notice his confusion and asked:
"What's wrong? Any problem?"
Yes, I suspect this job is tricky, can I leave temporarily?
Ron was silent for a long time, ultimately keeping his thoughts to himself.
That's 1.5 million Credit Points! 1.5 million!
Even if it were 100,000 less... Forget it, take it one step at a time.
Thinking this, Ron said, "No, Lady Bronya."
Bronya smiled:
"No need for formalities, just call me Bronya."
She said, taking out a newly drawn map: "Sampo gave me this map, showing a small path to the Underworld that bypasses the Furnace Core Hub. We can leave now."
Is it that urgent? Slow down, Bronya, don't rush headfirst into the play set by the masked fool...
Ron complained inwardly but obediently said, "As you wish, Bronya."
Outwardly compliant, he was actually ready to leave at any moment.
Bronya, seeing Ron raise no objections, secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Actually, Bronya had lied to Ron... She indeed met Sampo, but that was in the last simulation.
The secret path from Sampo was also a memory from the last simulation, temporarily borrowed now, providing a chance to quietly reach the Underworld.
The reason Bronya deceived Ron was mainly due to the blockade of the lower district—
Cocolia had blocked the upper and lower districts, and any attempt to breach the blockade to the lower district was a serious violation.
Based on Ron's behavior in the simulations, except for special circumstances, Ron would never break Belobog's laws... because he was the most loyal follower of the Path of Preservation, and the one who could walk the farthest on this path in Belobog.
She needed a suitable reason to persuade Ron to accompany her to the Underworld.
Bronya, considering her usual honesty, had thought about telling Ron everything about the life simulation game.
It was a perfect reason, and she believed that with Ron's personality, he would unhesitatingly help her.
But even after several years, the scene of Ron exploding in the sky still vividly flashed before Bronya's eyes, the heavy memories pressing on her heart, making it impossible for her to speak about the simulations.
She couldn't overcome her own inner hurdle.
Both simulations ended badly for Ron because of her immaturity and recklessness, and her shame prevented her from telling him about these events.
She wanted to save Belobog successfully, without dragging Ron down.
She also wanted to prove herself.
Only by doing this could she relieve the pressure on her heart, and when she eventually explained everything about the simulations to Ron, she wouldn't feel ashamed.
...And she could genuinely, without any burden, tell Ron that she had developed feelings for him because of his rescue.
Bronya secretly cheered herself on.
She was heading to the Underworld to gather talent, preparing for a future palace coup.
This time, she wanted to collect some useful character cards... like Cocolia from the Underworld. In the last simulation, she found this character card very useful, reliable even without seeing the attribute entries.
Collecting more character cards not only increased the chances of success but also helped share some of Ron's burdens, killing two birds with one stone.
As for how much time it would take to do this, how many simulations she would need to try and fail, whether she would miss the opportunity to confess...
Bronya didn't care.
After all, there was still a long time ahead, no need to rush...
Ron, like in the simulations, would always loyally stay by her side...
She had nothing to fear anymore.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone