Season 4: Chapter 212. The Reason I Returned (1)

Zelu, who had once been the scorned boy of Cheese Village, now reigned as its supreme leader. He discovered that power did not bring true happiness.

“Chief, the residents’ complaints are getting serious. Monsters come every night, and we can’t defend properly, so farming keeps failing...”

“That’s right! High-level miners are farming, and high-level farmers were sent to the mines... It’s all falling apart.”

His subordinates reported honestly.

Zelu felt a headache pressing behind his eyes.

‘What kind of content is this supposed to be...?’

Did the Lord deal with this every day? Somewhere deep inside, he could almost hear that familiar chant echoing.

To silence the phantom voice, he barked, “So what!? You want us to become miners again!? Huh!? You want me to crawl back to that humiliation!?”

No one dared to answer. Zelu was as tyrannical as the Lord. A wrong word meant becoming Hellsteel or Fertile Soil on the spot.

“Then why did you launch the Miners Are Great campaign in the first place?” A man leaned against a pillar with a white sword at his waist.

ForeverAlone, the former PR officer of the Knights, naturally questioned the branding.

“That was to prove that our past wasn’t meaningless.”

“Then why aren’t

you

mining now?”

“If I did that...”

It would mean admitting that the old Working Holiday system had been correct.

“If I do that, it proves the Lord’s system was right from the start.”

Otherwise, nothing separated Zelu’s rule from the old regime. Only Cheese villagers needed to be miners.

— checkmate lol

— he literally proved the Lord right

— ideological collapse speedrun

— this is why propaganda always backfires

“Everything is just self-justification, Chief,” ForeverAlone said coldly.

“Back during the Lord’s rule, farmers lived like farmers, and miners lived like miners. Everyone lived well.”

“Don’t make me laugh!” Zelu exploded. “You brainwashed slave! When did

you

ever treat miners properly!? You people dumped all the lowly jobs on Paprika and then whined about oppression!”

ForeverAlone didn’t back down. “That’s what being a miner

is

! Miners are naturally lowly!”

— lmaooo he really said it

— ForeverAlone is beyond saving

— bro fully radicalized after eating the bug

— Fascism % increased

— this village deserved the Lord honestly

— why is he WORSE than Zelu???

A sudden alert flashed.

[LazyWorm has donated 100,000 won]

[That’s enough out of you.]

Bzzzt!

A status effect struck ForeverAlone, electrocuting him. “

Ughhhhhh!

”

— LET’S GO

—

this reaction is too good wtf

—

the worm is OP

—

ForeverAlone definitely provoking them on purpose now lol

Onion chimed in beside them, “

Sigh...

Is that the bug’s side effect? He’s been spewing nonsense nonstop. Chief, why not just throw him out?”

— too harsh...

— Onion is the last person who should judge

— remember that he caused the Boston Tea Party incident LOL

— no one here is morally clean, I fear

“That’s impossible.” Zelu shook his head. “We need the Lord’s greatest victim on our side, or we lose our justification. We seized power by painting him as a tyrant. Everything collapses if the victim joins the other side.”

He wasn’t wrong.

ForeverAlone was a problem. He was too valuable to kill and too unreliable to trust, hence the worm. However, the man was stubborn beyond expectations.

— Zelu is actually competent??

— bro is playing 4D chess in a shitpost world

— can’t believe they’re taking Survival Craft THIS seriously

— peak political drama

Another Paprika subordinate weakly said, “S-So... is there no immediate solution for our productivity crisis?”

“At this rate, we’ll all starve...”

Agriculture had crashed, and no one knew how to fix it.

Zelu finally roared, “You idiots just need to WORK harder! If your farming level is low, DIG MORE SOIL! Plant MORE SEEDS! You Paprika brains! If you starve even with fertile ground, you are destined to starve anyway!”

The Paprika players stared in disbelief.

“What are you talking about!?”

“We have other things to do! We can’t just farm all day! There’s the swimming pool party, and...”

“

Ha!

Zelu, sweetie, this aunt is a noble, okay? I’m brunching with Parsley today. How could I possibly get dirt on my hands?”

“Paprika brain? Please.”

“Farming is boring~ Where are the serfs?”

— IM DYING

— paprika brain???

— how is Paprika worse than Cheese Village?

— Zelu’s face rn LOL

Zelu pressed his fingers to his temples. “

Ugh...

”

— the crown is heavy, my king

— can’t even enjoy his coup anymore

— should’ve stayed a villain side character

‘This isn’t what I wanted. This isn’t the glorious rise I dreamed of.’

He felt something was deeply wrong.

‘War was easier than this.’

Then, a monstrous roar shook the entire region. “

KRROOOAAAAHHHH!

”

A system alert followed.

[Almond, Sweet Radish, Sweet Potato, Black Tea, Lemon, and Orange have activated the Main Scenario.]

[The server is now entering the Main Scenario.]

“What?” Zelu adjusted his sunglasses, stunned. “What are those guys doing...?”

— THEY’RE BACK

— main scenario unlocked omg

— he thought they went camping LOL

— war arc soon

— Zelu VS THE KNIGHTS ROUND 2 LET’S GO

***

“Ah... It’s Dragon of Streaming Destruction.”

With a loud popping noise, the scenario began. The Saintess transformed into a chibi character.

— oh no

— the curse also hit her

— why is her head so big? lol

— she’s embarrassed LOL

“This... this cannot be...”

Now with a head five times larger, the Saintess gingerly touched her face in horror. However, she couldn’t cover her face. Her palm was about one-twentieth the size of her head.

“I’m... big-headed...? A top-heavy chibi...? Low-poly!?”

Thud.

The Saintess dropped to her knees in despair.

— no way it’s THAT bad lol

— that’s a huge nerf tbh

— if you don’t wanna pay hosting fees, you gotta lower the poly count~

— lmao the 720p curse

“L–Lady Saintess...?” Orange was flustered. “Everyone here is a chibi, though? You don’t have to collapse over it...”

“T-That’s because... my head got so big that I literally can’t stand up.”

“Excuse me!?”

— LOL

— okay ngl that ratio would break the physics engine

— she’s clipping into reality

— ragdoll bug lol

Still stuck kneeling, the Saintess stayed where she was.

Almond asked her, “Why did you suddenly get hit by the curse, Saintess?”

He wanted to restart his Almonddoyle deduction, but he heard something unexpected.

“That is because I have stepped into this dimension again.”

“Dimension?”

“Yes. You thought I existed in this world all along, but... Strictly speaking, that was not true.”

Indeed, she had only been a sort of projected image.

“My true form exists in dimension NA. In this KR dimension, I was merely projecting a shape.”

— oh damn

— LMAO

— the low-res curse is a Korean server exclusive

— the lore goes hard

— Cheese devs put their whole heart into this season

Now, the Saintess had actually crossed over with her real body instead of a projection.

“Why send your real body now? Isn’t that dangerous?”

The Saintess glanced at Orange, the Knights, and the forsaken city beyond them. “That is because you became my disciples. My acolytes... As long as my acolytes exist... I shall have substance here. No matter what tries to bar my way.”

— oh...

— resurrect Treevy

— god this hits

— it’s because the Treevians are still here!

— #FreeTreevy

For a moment, Almond said nothing. The other six went silent as well.

‘So that’s what she means.’

All six of them had streamed on Treevy before. They knew exactly what she was talking about. Right now, Treevy was basically a hospice patient kept alive through multi-stream relays and waiting for the plug to be pulled. Most viewers had already moved to Cheese or Paprika. Only a few remained.

And yet, Treevy still existed and so did Treevians.

“Therefore, we must stand and fight.”

Treeana wanted a resistance. This began Cheese Village’s main scenario.

“We must seek out the Library of Moments and Eternity, Treevy’s greatest legacy. There, you will find all the knowledge and strength needed to fight.”

Ding.

“So rise, acolytes of Treeana... You Treevians! Fight with me!”

— “Treevians” I’m screaming

— TREEVIANS, ASSEMBLE

— #FreeTreevy #FreeTreevy

— this is literally a ‘save the old platform’ quest

— #FreeTreevy

— LET’S GOOOO

Wooooom!

Light poured down on the six of them.

[Saintess Treeana has cast a Blessing upon her Acolytes.]

They all flinched as their weapons received instant upgrades.

“I reforged the weapons you used most into my sacred relics.”

— ohhhh

— insane

— what??

— yo???

[Treeana’s Relic — Bow of Hope]

[Treeana’s Relic — Sword of Conviction]

[Treeana’s Relic — Staff of Loyalty]

[Treeana’s Relic — Spear of Courage]

[Treeana’s Relic — Shield of Friendship]

...

“Th-This material is...”

The same material had been used to build the ancient Treevy city. This weird black-violet stone was unbreakable.

Ding.

[Main Scenario Quest #1]

==== ====

You have become Treeana’s acolytes and learned a part of this world’s truth. You must join Treeana to oppose the Dragon of Streaming Destruction and restore the world to what it once was.

For that, you will need power and wisdom. Both are asleep in one place: the Library of Moments and Eternity, a place that eternally records every brilliant instant.

Go there.

The moment you accept this quest, you may no longer communicate with the server.

If you fail this scenario, the world will be destroyed.

==== ====

— oho

— LMAOOO a server wipe

— wtf

— whole server permadeath??

— this quest is literally “clear it or the content dies”

— if you don’t pay the delusion dragon fee, the service ends anyway~

***

“You’re all insane, Miho included,” Cream Puff shouted at Bubblegum. “She spends every day looking for the Lord, saying that he’ll come back if she becomes Fertile Soil! ‘The Lord likes Fertile Soil, doesn’t he?’ She’s completely lost it!”

The Knights hadn’t returned. As far as everyone knew, they had abandoned this world.

“Whatever, just stop with all of this.”

“C-Cream...”

However, they were wrong.

“

KRROOOOAAAAHHHH!!

”

A system message appeared after the roar.

Ding.

[Almond, Sweet Radish, Sweet Potato, Black Tea, Lemon, and Orange have activated the Main Scenario.]

[The server is now entering the Main Scenario.]

Cream Puff’s eyes widened. “Th-This has to be a joke...”

Bubblegum’s face lit up. “See!? What did I tell you!? I said they’d be back! The Knights are still alive!!”

— LET’S GOOOO

— Bubble Gum W arc

— Tesla went to the moon

— what is happening? lmao

— Knights return movie confirmed

— THE LORD ALWAYS COMES BACK

Everyone thought the Knights had abandoned Cheese Village. Only Bubblegum kept tossing out extra editions, playing the lone independence activist. No reply ever came. He hadn’t even known if they were still alive. He’d just... protected a tiny ember. One that could have died at any moment.

“The main scenario, huh. It’s gotta be connected to our village somehow.”

The Knights were stirring up something huge. Even if they hadn’t appeared yet, that message alone gave the Cheese villagers strength. Wind rushed onto the ember.

[Miho: Omg!! The Lord is alive!!]

[Donuts: I can’t believe this]

[Miho: I told you! He didn’t abandon us!!]

[HornRamen: Damn it, Lord! It’s you again!!]

[AcornJelly: The Lord returns... whether you believe or not.]

[GreenTea: Black Tea!!]

For the first time in a while, the server chat exploded. Naturally, the current regime did not appreciate this.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

[Onion: You idiots. You dare mention that brutal human rights abuser dictator here? You got a death wish?]

[Cherry: Anyone who uses that forbidden word will be tracked and punished.]

They tried to clamp down on the dissidents, but it didn’t work.

[AcornJelly: stfu. The Lord will return!]

Once the fire caught, it was difficult to extinguish.

Whoosh!

[Takoyaki: Long live Lord Liberation!]

[Miho: Long live Lord Liberation...!]

[CreamPuff: Long live Lord Liberation!!]

[Donuts: Long live Lord Liberation!!!]

[Pickle: Long live the Lord’s Liberation!!]

...

The flames of change were already spreading through Cheese Village.