Hacking the Game Didn't Go as Intended [Part One]

CHAPTER 170: All in Agreement? The Palismaire Flower

But as Daisuke's gaze lingered on the princess, his thoughts shifted. Lumielle's intentions were far more noble than Ariel's. This wasn't just about her own desires—everything she was doing, above all, was for the sake of her people.

"I will fulfill your request," Sinister Granny said, clearly satisfied with the benefits she stood to gain. "However, to create the necessary elixir, there's one more ingredient I'm lacking—Palismaire Flower. I'll need you both to retrieve it."

Daisuke raised an eyebrow, his tone laced with playful arrogance. "In that case, shouldn't you offer a discount? After all, we're doing part of the work. Seems fair, don't you think?"

Sinister Granny's face twisted into a dreary frown. "Lumielle, I'll be needing an extra ten thousand gold for the trouble of dealing with your friend's incessant pestering."

"What the hell?!" Daisuke snapped.

"20,000."

"You greedy ol' hag!"

"30,000."

"I see why you're called Sinister Granny!"

"40,000."

"You soulless—"

Before Daisuke could finish his sentence, he felt a shiver shoot up his spine as Lumielle's murderous gaze settled on him.

Sinister Granny glowered. "45,000."

Daisuke returned her hostile gaze.

"45,200."

Daisuke paled. "...I'm sorry?"

"I don't like you," the woman murmured acidly, then she turned her attention to Lumielle and handed her a small piece of parchment. "If you use this Illumina Seal, it should guide you to the flower."

DING!

[Foraging in the Mammothgrove Forest]

[Quest Difficulty: C-

To secure Daisuke's position as her personal aide alongside Lyndoria, all while arousing minimal suspicion within the court and royal guard, Princess Lumielle tasked Sinister Granny with crafting a gender-altering elixir. However, the peculiar brew demands one final, rare ingredient hidden deep within the wilds.

Clear Conditions: Using the Illumina Seal, locate and deliver the elusive Palismaire Flower to Sinister Granny as requested.

Rewards:

▪︎ Affinity with Sinister Granny -10%

▪︎ EXP -2,000

▪︎ -500 Gold

Quest Failure:

▪︎ Sinister Granny's wrath and lingering disappointment

▪︎ A grim future for Lumielle and the Arcanium Kingdom

▪︎ The destruction of both Mammothgrove and Murkwood Forests]

CRICK. CRACK. CRASH!

Daisuke's mental fortitude crumpled. For a fleeting moment, he sat motionless, his mind unable to process what he was seeing. Time seemed to freeze as he stared at the quest failure description, the absurdity of it threatening to tear reality itself apart. In all his years of gaming, he had never encountered something so utterly ridiculous—nothing even came close.

I don't even have a single point in Affinity with her, Daisuke fumed inwardly, grinding his teeth. So how can the reward be negative? His gaze narrowed as he glared at the witch. And she even wants to swipe my gold and EXP after I'm done risking life and limb to find this stupid plant? This is batshit crazy!

Daisuke clenched his fists, the urge to lash out with words—harsh and venomous—coursing through him. But he knew it wouldn't bring him the satisfaction he craved. No, a sharp retort wouldn't do justice to the fury boiling inside him. He wanted to wrap his hands around her feeble neck and strangle her. But both options were out of the question. He couldn't let his rage throw a wrench into their plans—well, Lumielle's plans since he absolutely loathed the idea of being turned into a woman, and yet, he was trapped in this absurd situation where his personal discomfort had to be swallowed for the sake of the bigger picture.

"The flower should be no more than a mile from here," Sinister Granny said, her tone dismissive. "Now, off you go. Goodbye, and good luck."

PLOPP!

Before either Daisuke or Lumielle could react, time and space suddenly bent to the woman's will. In an instant, the world around them seemed to warp and twist, leaving them suspended in a disorienting vacuum. It was as though a charged particle beam had punched a perfectly round hole through the very fabric of reality, leaving a pitch-black void in its wake. Half of the table had vanished, disintegrated into nothingness, along with their chairs.

Daisuke barely had time to register the bizarre anomaly before they were both plunged into the black void, falling helplessly into its depths. In the blink of an eye, a flash of blinding light consumed them, and everything around them disappeared.