Episode 389: Nouvelle Vague's Grumpy Dog (5)

Another page was torn out of the Nouvelle Vague calendar.

After one month, the guards are subject to an end-of-month evaluation.

The Nouvelle Vague labor system is somewhat unusual, with one guard leading 12 prisoners to work.

At this time, the jailer is like a god to the 12 prisoners in his charge.

You can decide at your own discretion whether or not to use corporal punishment, how much to do, how much work to do and how much to rest.

This group changes once a month.

After a month, both the prisoners and the guards disperse.

Accordingly, the jailer has to make the prisoners who become his work crew do labor for a month, and can decide whether to punish them, reward them, make them work hard, or make them take it easy.

However, that did not mean that the guards could only accommodate the prisoners.

Nouvelle Vague guards are also subject to month-end evaluations as mentioned above.

They are given points based on how much work they complete with the 12 prisoners assigned to them in a month, which is then reflected in performance evaluations for promotions.

The jailer had to make the prisoners work as hard as possible to score points.

Whatever method is used for this is at the discretion of the jailer.

There were guards who scolded prisoners by beating them with knives or whips, restricting food, sleep, rest, and solitary confinement. There were also guards who appeased prisoners by giving them more bread or work tools.

Prisoners also had to work hard to ensure that the guards in charge of them did not receive low scores.

If they don't, they don't know what harm the guards, who have the power over their life and death, will do.

… … Well, anyway.

At the end of this month, a notice was posted in Nouvelle Vague.

It was a table ranking the best-performing guards.

Prison guards compete with each other to achieve good rankings on this scorecard.

In order to attract good-working and obedient prisoners to their own group, there was a constant war of nerves, such as using a lottery to get good-working and obedient prisoners to move, giving them money to transfer them, or secretly stealing bread or work tools to go to another group.

Of course, goods here in the Nouvelle Vague are limited, so if someone eats one more meal, someone else has to starve.

So the group that always talked a lot was the group of second lieutenant Garm Nord, a junior guard.

Garum's group was always miserable.

Joe has no motivation, no grades, and no future.

As befits his name, 'Stupid Garum' or 'Dirty Dog', Garum was always given only dirty prisoners as assistants.

Bread and work tools were always stolen by other guards, so Garum had to offer up his own meals to encourage the prisoners to work.

Of course, the prisoners who belonged to Garum's group did not work hard at all.

Anyway, since he was in Garum's group, it was impossible to achieve good results, and because Garum had a timid personality, he rarely used corporal punishment.

So Garum was always ignored, even by the prisoners.

It goes without saying that he was ostracized by his fellow guards.

In terms of grades calculated by adding up the progress of construction in the area in charge, the number of prisoners sent to solitary confinement, and the number of riots suppressed, Garum has never been outside of last place.

however.

An unprecedented unprecedented event occurred.

1. Garm Nord / ◆ / 108%

2. Circo painting / ◆◆ / 96%

3. … … … … / … … / 89%

4. … …

.

.

※ Name/Rank/Task Achievement Rate

The one who always took last place.

He ranked first in this month-end evaluation.

Garum even exceeded the limits of the workload guidelines set by the top.

The achievement rate exceeded 100% and exceeded 108%. This was an unusual occurrence among low-level guards.

So whenever the lower-level guards got together these days, they always talked about the evaluation table.

"Wow - did you see the report card this time? "I thought you were completely crazy?"

"Today I learned for the first time that a task completion rate can exceed 100%."

"Originally, the task completion rate set above is a bit excessive. "I'm intentionally trying to prevent you from achieving it."

"that's right. So even that Cirko stops at around 95% to 96% every time."

"That's huge too. Did you see the gap with 3rd place? "There is a difference of 7%."

"But the gap between first and second place is 12%. "Does this make sense?"

"Was Garum's original grades that good?"

"Is that possible? It's a 'stupid split'. "He was always last at 40%."

"what? So all this time, you've been hiding your power and acting like an idiot? It's a really disgusting development... … ."

at that time. The atmosphere in the kitchen, where low-ranking guards had gathered and chatted, suddenly became quiet.

This is because Kirko, who always took first place and ranked second in this month-end evaluation, appeared.

… widely!

Kirko put the tray down on the table and sat down alone to start eating.

Roasted waterfowl, fermented sea catfish, boiled peas, and a cup of manatee milk were the menu of the day.

At that time, Kirko, who was eating quietly, heard other low-level guards whispering in his ears.

"Kirko, doesn't he seem in a good mood today?"

"I guess so. I lost first place. "Of course, that too from the idiot Garum."

"… … "If this continues, isn't Garum going to get promoted first?"

Kirko stopped chewing his peas.

Then he turned his head with a very unpleasant feeling.

at that time.

"… … !"

Kirko and the junior guards who were talking behind his back all stopped what they were doing.

Separate. The protagonist of the topic has entered the restaurant.

* * *

Separate. No, Bikir was chewing boiled peas and thinking about his future plans.

'To activate Poseidon, you need to apply as much mana or physical shock as possible to the explosion point.'

To do so, it was much more convenient to act as a guard than as a prisoner.

This is because you can observe Poseidon's movements at any time.

However, it was impossible as a low-level guard to frequently visit Poseidon in the deep part of Level Nine's labor camp.

'It would be advantageous to promote him to at least the rank of captain and, if safe, to the rank of major.'

A captain who wears a rank badge with three diamonds.

A major who wears a rank insignia with a Rose of Sharon on it.

This should be enough so that there is no hindrance to activities.

'… … Intermediate guards above captain level can move around the entire work area without reporting. It would also be possible to secretly activate Poseidon at night.'

To do so, he had to diligently accumulate achievements.

Fortunately, unlike regular units where promotion took several months to several years, in Nouvelle Vague, promotion rewards based on performance were quick and certain.

This is because so many guards die or become disabled while serving and retire.

While Bikir was thinking about various things.

… widely!

Something was placed on the table in front.

It was powder contained in a paper bag.

"Garm Nord. You have a birthday today, right? Congratulations~"

The kitchen guard tapped Bikir on the shoulder.

Only then did Bikir realize that Garm's birthday was today.

"… … ?"

The paper bag was filled with white powder.

When I tasted it with my finger, it tasted sweet.

"Is it sugar?"

Now that I think about it, it was similar to what I saw in Garum's diary.

It is said that in Nouvelle Vague, a bag of sugar is given to each prison guard on his or her birthday as a gift.

However, the sugar in the bag had a somewhat unpleasant taste.

It was hard to see because it was the same white powder, but it seemed like there was a significant amount of salt mixed in.

"what?"

Bikir shook the envelope and tilted his head.

at that time.

"Are you really an idiot?"

A cynical voice came from next to me.

Before I knew it, Kirko was standing with his arms crossed.

"It's the same reaction every year on my birthday. So other guys call you 'Stupid Garum'."

Kirko looked inside the bag of sugar in Bikir's hand and shook his head.

"I'm sure Colonel Dordium cooked it. I heard that you like sweet things. "He must have filled it with common salt because he was embarrassed."

"Right. "Are you covering your eyes?"

"Do you know why Colonel Dordium was demoted here to the Nouvelle Vague in the first place? That's because when he was serving on the ground, he was caught mixing sand and rice bran into the rice he was giving to his men. He claims that he was discriminated against because he was a beastman, but in fact, it was because of embezzlement of military supplies."

Kirko grumbled, saying, 'You can't give a dog bad habits.'

Seeing that he swears at his superiors without hesitation, it seems that his personality is definitely not normal.

"… … anyway. Well, happy birthday."

Kirko mumbled a bit before continuing.

"And thank you for helping me last time."

The words that were added later were so small that even Bikir, whose hearing reached a superhuman level, had a hard time understanding them.

'It's my birthday.'

Bikir thought about the day he was born.

A date that has no particular meaning, so I don't remember it or attach any significance to it.

That was the commonality seen in all of Vikir's lives, including before his regression, in his old age in the Maw Tree, and up to this moment.

In Nouvelle Vague, a birthday is just a low point in a gloomy and damp timeline.

It was always the same, even in the Age of Destruction, within the Tower of the Underworld, and within the Baskervilles.

The sugar quickly became sticky due to the sticky moisture.

The thick, fishy smell coming from the peas was making me suffocate.

… widely!

Bikir got up with the empty dishes and headed toward the exit.

Then Kirko looked at Bikir's back with a slightly embarrassed expression.

"… … "It's also strange."

Muttering quietly to myself.

* * *

Over the next few days, Kirko kept a close eye on Bikir.

'Gareum, was that guy always like that?'

Since it was young, I watched it from time to time.

The Garum she saw was always pathetic and stupid, but unlike the others, it wasn't to the point where she despised him.

A person who just doesn't fit in here in the Nouvelle Vague. A person who is just that.

Whenever he thought, 'Is it because I lived on earth when I was young?', Cirko somehow started to hate it.

For her, who was born in the Nouvelle Vague and had never seen the earth, the earth was represented by an image of separation.

Leisurely, timid, not very quick, and somewhat timid. He was a boy who did not seem to have any fighting spirit or competitive spirit.

… … But recently his behavior has changed.

He led the prisoners to achieve tasks that were thought to be impossible, and he also recorded excellent scores in physical fitness tests and written exams.

The way fellow guards looked at Garum gradually began to change.

The attitude that was usually indifference or close to contempt slowly changes into an attitude of being warm and anxious to become friends.

But for some reason, Kirko did not want to admit that distinction.

… … complex.

Perhaps it was a feeling of not wanting to acknowledge the earthly world represented by Garum.

No matter how great or prosperous one is here, it could ultimately be a manifestation of the complex of being a frog in a well.

Is that why? Kirko was slowly igniting a feeling of competition in Garm that he had never felt before, or rather, that he had never felt with anyone else.

'How on earth do they order the work to be done? 'What do I have to do to get that amount of work?'

Kirko was secretly following Garm and the 12 prisoners belonging to Garm's group as they went down to do labor.

I was also curious as to how they managed the prisoners to achieve the ridiculous figure of 108%.

at that time.

Kirko saw Garm putting prisoners to work.

And soon I was shocked.

"… … !?"

Something she could never have imagined was happening.