My Evil System

[BONUS]

Sheryl wasn't one to easily give up, though. "Wait. We can get one after the Blood Rain. What's important is now, right? I mean, why keep animals if you're not going to eat in these times of need? We can always get another one after the Blood Rain."

". . ." She did have a point.

The reason why I brought the pigs here was for consumption during the Blood Rain.

<Host, it's your other self that brought it.>

Shut it!

Emi found her voice and confidence at Sheryl's suggestion. "That's right. We can wait until the Blood Rain is finished and we can replace the pig later on. You said that it'll only continue for another four days, right?"

"The rumors said so," I lied.

The others ignored me and focused all their attention on Florin as if she was the Lord of the house now.

Their words didn't reduce Florin's anger one bit. I could feel it. The disturbing smile on her face spelled trouble.

Before she could open her mouth, I stepped in. "Sorry, but I still want to keep them. I need them to produce lots of piglets. Besides, we still have other food in the house."

A short silence descended as the others exchanged looks with each other.

I didn't want to be the bearer of the disappointing news, but we had to live with what we had.

"Florin, go and clean yourself before you catch a disease," I said to her.

A genuine smile finally appeared on her face.

"Yes, My Lord." Florin then flashed a satisfied smirk on the others' way before hopping upstairs to her room.

Everyone also dispersed.

From the beginning to the end, the only one who remained silent and relaxed was Edgar.

I thought that he would be among the loudest protesters, but I guess I was wrong.

He was more laid back than I thought.

I then proceeded upstairs to clean myself.

----

On the fourth day of Blood Rain, and I was beginning to think that something wasn't right.

I hadn't noticed it before since it was only Florin and me in the house, but now that there were at least eight of us here, the dirt we brought into the floor had accumulated.

And the dust on the windows and furniture was too visible to ignore.

Weren't the girls cleaning the house every day?

<Apparently not, if there is so much dust around.>

But the most concerning thing was the loss of chicks! There used to be plenty, but aside from the mother hen, only two chicks were left.

"What's going on?" I asked Edgar, who only stared at the ceiling, looking like he couldn't be bothered.

"Ah . . . the chicks died."

I frowned. "Died?"

Edgar shrugged. "Yeah. They probably couldn't handle the rain. It's been raining for four days, and the chicks were probably cold and caught the flu or something. I found them dead, so I disposed of them."

". . ." I had a hard time believing it. "It's been raining here every day, even before the Blood Rain. I don't think that the rain is the problem here."

Edgar's face contorted into a sneer, and I backed a step when he closed our distance. "So what are you trying to emply? That I killed and ate them?"

That was the only logical explanation, given his strange behavior these past few days. Even without meat, Edgar seemed to be fine with it when he usually complained like the others.

The only possible reason why he didn't mind was because he was getting his fill with the poor chicks.

"Well?" Edgar growled, making me take another step back.

"J-just . . . just take care of them," I said.

Edgar pulled back and grinned like a demon. "Sure. Sure. Leave it to me."

He then pushed me out of the door and slammed it on my face.

". . ." It looked like assigning him to the animals was a big mistake.

Tonight, I'd make sure to bring up changing roles.

<Host could always kill them.>

I ignored it and proceeded to my next problem.

Ford.

It had already been two days, and he still couldn't reel in any fish, so I was both curious and worried about what he was doing wrong.

When I took him into the rivers and left him under the tree, I pretended to leave but quickly hid in one of the tall shrubs nearby.

After about thirty minutes, Ford looked around, probably checking if I was already gone. He then proceeded to approach the net and took the fish for today.

So there were fish, after all, contrary to what he said about the lack of hauls.

He even knew how to put the net back in place, unlike what he told us as an excuse as to why there was no fish.

After a few more minutes, Brago appeared in tow of his hunts and proceeded to take the fish for themselves.

I think my mind exploded at what I was seeing. The ground danced before me, and I dropped to the ground, holding my head.

No wonder even Brago wasn't doing well with his 'meat' hunting. It turned out that the two of them were keeping the meat for themselves!

Was no one doing their job?!

<Apparently, none.>

I shook my head to shake away my anger and disappointment.

I thought Brago was different . . .

<They're all the same. Humans are selfish and will always prioritize themselves. That's a really evil thing, though~>

. . . I took deep, calming breaths. Being angry wouldn't help in this situation.

But this can't go on either.

We wouldn't last long if we were going to be like this. If we wanted to survive, we had to work as a team.

I needed to talk to them.

<Host, you could always kill them. Problem solved.>

No killing.

I pushed myself up from my position when the coast was clear and headed to the cave.

When all of us were gathered for lunch this noon, I would bring this up.

However, I couldn't work with all the thoughts running through my head.

I waited for the clock to reach lunchtime and immediately headed home.