There was nothing wrong with being a stickler for rules and principles. If those things didn't matter, why would laws or society even exist? People only got called rigid old farts when they took it too far. The reasoning itself was sound.
It was more frustrating than bad—a personality that insisted on scrutinizing things others would simply let slide. People like that might have trouble with personal relationships, but they functioned perfectly well in society. If that personality came with diligence, it could even give them a good chance of success. Provided they had the ability to back it up, of course.
Admin, I have a question.
Wild Grylls
I heard you were planning to adjust the twenty-four-hour trade cooldown. When will that happen?
It's a pretty long wait, and not being able to trade when I need to is somewhat frustrating.
└? The admin said they'd reduce the trade cooldown?
└Mentioned it in passing a while back. No idea when, though lol
└Wasn't that total bullshit? Just a "We'll take it under advisement" brush-off.
└The admin's never lied before, but who knows.
└Why do you want it shortened, Grylls? Planning to trade nonstop?
└Wild Grylls That too, but it makes little stuff hard to trade. I can't even give someone a few bites of tasty fish.
└Look at this fucker living the good life lmao
└Got a little used to things and now you're spoiled, huh?
└Wild Grylls Wanna come here? It's a really nice place to live.
└Sorry.
└On second thought, he's earned the right to ask.
└Just lift it for Grylls lol
└Don't Abandon the Hero I'm still considering the twenty-four-hour trade cooldown! One wrong move could cause serious problems!
└Wild Grylls Couldn't you lift it just for me, then?
└Don't Abandon the Hero No! Lifting it for everyone would be one thing, but giving special treatment to one person is unfair!
└Wild Grylls What about Heavenly Demon?
└Don't Abandon the Hero She's a moderator! Would you like to become a moderator too, Grylls?
└Wild Grylls Uh...
└Whoa, don't go down that road.
└We can't have you turning blue too...
└Would he even be able to do his job if he turned blue?
└Nope lmao. Too busy staying alive.
└Special treatment just for you? Not happening lmao
The admin, Don't Abandon the Hero, had an entirely sound argument. No special treatment for one person. If the restriction was lifted, it had to be lifted for everyone. If I wanted the privilege, I had to become a moderator and fulfill my duties. Fail to fulfill those duties, and I'd get banned.
'That's harsh.'
I understood, but I couldn't shake my frustration. It was like making someone with two healthy legs race someone with a bad leg in the name of equality. If I weren't in the Forest of Four Seasons, I wouldn't even have asked.
'Even this would improve my odds of survival.'
The more I traded, the more inconveniences I found, from the twenty-four-hour cooldown to conversations timed like three-minute instant curry. It was supposed to prevent crime, but it was a real hassle.
Besides...
└Look at Grylls's fucking attitude lol. Only cares about making his own life easier.
└You think the rest of us keep quiet because it doesn't bother us? lol
└Told you that fucker's selfish as hell.
People had always resented those who received special treatment. Once I openly asked for my not-quite-special treatment, the anonymous users piled on with anger and ridicule.
└Wild Grylls Register an account and post proof before you talk, you anonymous fucks.
└For real lol
└For real lol
└Let's cut Grylls some slack. Poor guy...
Of course, I shut them down quickly. Bastards hadn't even registered accounts, and they were going on about trading. The registered users couldn't treat me so carelessly, since I'd even posted proof that I was in the Forest of Four Seasons. They were probably hoping a few scraps might come their way. And if they actually helped me, I fully intended to give them those scraps myself.
└Don't Abandon the Hero Then if other registered users are as unfortunate as you, should I lift the restriction for all of them too?!
└Wild Grylls Yes.
└Don't Abandon the Hero Uh...
└Look how fucking shameless he is lmaooo
└This guy's fucking hilarious lmaooo
└Admin got stunned lmaooo
└Doesn't the admin have a point? Remember that guy who used his daughter to get donations?
└That's different. Grylls has at least earned our trust. Besides, don't you know he almost got buried and forgotten?
└I think we can make an exception for Grylls.
└You never know. There'll definitely be assholes cleverly playing the pity card to get special treatment.
The anonymous users mindlessly shouting no had long since been quashed, and the rest were having a healthy debate.
└Would you wait twenty-four hours if your parents were about to die?
└Fuck, go outside and buy some medicine then, dumb*ss.
└Hope you get stuck on a twenty-four-hour cooldown and fucking die someday.
└Yeah, no~ Never gonna happen~
Correction: a debate full of profanity and insults about people's parents. Extreme examples were par for the course; they even resorted to personal attacks. It felt as if the little ball I'd launched had turned into a giant meteor on its way down.
└Heavenly Demon It seems the time has come to bring down the hammer. Who wishes to be struck first?
└I'm sorry. I won't insult anyone's parents again.
└Parents are greater than any of history's great figures.
└Fuck, look at these flaming paragons of filial devotion lmao
└Guess you're scared of getting banned, huh? lmao
Well, they all became docile lambs once Heavenly Demon stepped in. Everyone was equal before the ban hammer. In a world without other online communities, the forum played a major role. Once things seemed a little calmer, I appealed to the admin again.
└Wild Grylls Admin, I've registered an account, posted proof that I'm in the Forest of Four Seasons, and I'm struggling just to survive. I'll give up the privilege as soon as I escape the forest, so couldn't you please consider it?
└Don't Abandon the Hero Hmm...! Are you saying that anyone who enters the Forest of Four Seasons should receive special treatment?!
└Wild Grylls As far as I know, you can't access the forum from the Forest of Four Seasons...
└Don't Abandon the Hero Oh! I completely forgot! How did I miss that?!
└Honestly, I forgot too lmao
└Slipped my mind completely lol
└Come to think of it, you can't access the forum from the Forest of Four Seasons, can you? lmao
└Knew something was off...
How did these people forget that? I was a little dumbfounded. Now that the admin remembered, their resolve must be wavering. This was my chance. I decided to press harder.
└Wild Grylls Please, have pity on my situation and at least lift the trade cooldown...
└Don't Abandon the Hero Hmm! I'm sure you wouldn't do anything foolish, Grylls!
└Wild Grylls What would I even do...?
That wasn't pressing harder so much as outright begging. Still, I could feel the admin gradually coming around.
└Don't Abandon the Hero This is difficult to decide on my own, so I think we'll have to hold a vote! I'll make it available only to registered users, though!
└Wild Grylls If that's your decision, sure.
└Why only registered users? That's unfair too.
└You have to register to trade. Fucking register if you've got a problem with it. Please.
└These all-talk fuckers are so disgusting lol
└This is why democracy fell apart lmao
└Idiots don't even know the difference between fairness and equality lol
Democracy? Surely not the democracy I knew? The forum translated everything automatically, so chances were that it did mean the word I knew. But democracy in an age with actual kings and nobles? Something about that seemed odd.
└Wild Grylls What's democracy? You mean the thing that guarantees voting rights?
└Yep. But it failed pretty much everywhere except the beastfolk country lol
└Wild Grylls Why? Did they try a rebellion and fail?
└There was a fuckton of arguing about voting rights. Like whether slum dwellers should get a vote too.
└Besides, farmers outnumber everyone, so all you have to do is win them over lol
└None of that matters when someone crushes you with brute force. Nothing you can do. The civil wars kept coming, so they just gave up on democracy.
└They just fucking hated having the same single vote as a commoner lmao
└But the people who hated it were the ones responsible for the country's military might, so nobody could do anything...
└???: Everyone's equal? Okay, I'll go seek asylum in another country.
I'd heard this somewhere before: why democracy couldn't be introduced in fantasy worlds. Earth at least had ways of overcoming differences in strength. This world didn't. Those differences were so stark that the basic premise of "equality" couldn't hold.
└Letting commoners participate in politics is about as far as it goes. Even that's a huge achievement.
└Wild Grylls What about the nobles? Don't they complain about commoners getting into politics?
└Politicians and nobles aren't much different. As long as they don't pull the ladder up behind them, it's fine lol
└Piss them off and a farmer will take a plow to that noble's skull. They tolerate it just to avoid that...
└Look at the elves. Imagine your vote being worth the same as those lunatics'. Fucking terrifying...
└Funny enough, democracy really took root in Wid lmao
└Wild Grylls Where's Wid?
└The beastfolk country. What the fuck DO you know?
└Wild Grylls Isn't that a bit harsh on someone from another world?
└Bullshit. Just search it up lol
└You'll faint when you see beastfolk-style democracy.
What on earth was beastfolk-style democracy, and why were they laughing about it? At most, surely it just restricted voting rights to nobles or certain other people.
'What a strange world.'
Well, knowing about it wouldn't help me anyway. What I needed right now was the admin's blessing: removal of my twenty-four-hour trade cooldown.
└Don't Abandon the Hero I've put up the post! Please check it!
└Wild Grylls Thank you.
Before long, the admin left a comment announcing the post. A post by the admin was sure to attract plenty of attention. If this passed, my twenty-four-hour cooldown would be lifted.
Vote to Lift Wild Grylls's Twenty-Four-Hour Trade Restriction!
Don't Abandon the Hero
Registered user Wild Grylls is fighting to survive in the Forest of Four Seasons!
Normally, we shouldn't grant special treatment like this! However, Wild Grylls has provided proof and is highly trustworthy, so we will put it to a vote!
Please also bear in mind that Wild Grylls has promised to relinquish the privilege immediately upon escaping the Forest of Four Seasons!
1. In favor
2. Opposed
A straightforward post that hit all the key points. Nothing to worry about, then. The vote would run for a day. I could carry on with other things in the meantime. Before that, though, I was a little curious about beastfolk-style democracy. How did it work, and why was it so funny?
Democracy Delivery!
(Photo of a lion beastman tilting his head)
We didn't order that.
(Photo of an angry dog beastman)
We're giving you voting rights. Please accept them.
(Photo of a lion beastman baring his teeth)
Have you sons of bitches lost your minds? Wanna die?
(Photo of a dog beastman shouting)
Guys! This asshole says he doesn't like democracy!
(Photo of a cat beastman)
Who?
(Photo of a horse beastman)
Who?
(Photo of a deer beastman)
Who?
(Photo of a dumbfounded lion beastman)
...
"..."
That looked more like imperialism than democracy. Had they forced democracy on people through sheer numbers? One example wasn't enough to make sense of it, so I went looking for more.
Why Democracy Developed in Wid
Most countries have pretty similar ethnic makeup, but these beastfolk fuckers have over ten ethnic groups alone lmao
Even the carnivore/herbivore distinction means nothing. One back kick from a deer beastman can kill a tiger beastman.
So democracy had no choice but to develop in a bizarre direction. In a way, isn't this true equality?
└Tiger beastman: The fuck?
└Lion beastman: The fuck?
└Leopard beastman: The fuck?
└Bear beastman: The fuck?
So, roughly speaking, certain ethnic groups were oppressed after democracy was introduced. That seemed to be the takeaway. Still, apparently it was just a meme about what was now distant history. Like humans, beastfolk had short lifespans, so generations turned over quickly, and these days they all more or less got along.
'Not something I need to worry about right now, anyway.'
Enough about democracy. What mattered to me was the vote taking place on the forum. Please let it go well. I cautiously opened the admin's post.
'First, I'd better vote too.'
In favor, naturally.
Thank you for voting.
"...?"
But even after voting, I couldn't see the current results. That message was all I got. As far as I knew, results were usually shown in real time. Maybe things worked differently here.
└Why aren't this vote's results live?
└Don't Abandon the Hero Because this is an important matter! They'll be revealed tomorrow!
"..."
