Harvest Moon Survey

 Harvest Moon Survey ( ハーヴェストムーン・サーベイ ) is a game event in Mass for the Dead that was released on September 23, 2023 to October 7, 2023.

Background
A single "rumor" was spreading in the reconstruction of E-Rantel.

It was an illegal gambling den that was recently built on the border of the kingdom. A mysterious gambling den that is said to be run by a "strong man in the underworld" In order to investigate, CZ and the Kyuko head to the site right away.

Incident
At the Adventurer's Guild in E-Rantel, Soi finishes delivering a report to the receptionist for the guildmaster. For a few days the undercover Nazarick agent has been patrolling the city on the protagonist's behalf, so far she hasn't seen anything odd happening. Exiting the guild, Soi is about to return to report back to her comrade, when Saint Clementine approaches the guild from the street.

The two women cordially greet each other, when Soi notices that there is something on the saint's mind. Clementine asks the adventurer to spare a moment of her time to discuss something she heard in town. Before she can do so, Soi changes the location of the conversation back to guild in one of the offices for some privacy. Though its a bit of a hassle, considering that she just left, Soi still wants to know what Clementine has to say.

Recently the saint has heard that there is an illegal gambling den that is becoming famous in the kingdom. This brings up a memory of when Blue Roses were investigating a similar gambling establishment. In E-Rantel, illegal gambling dens have been stamped out thanks to the efforts of the protagonist, which Clementine is thankful for, but it seems that one has opened up on a new area. And its influence had even reached their city as well.

Soi asks if there is a point to the conversation, which the saint then explains that some people have been doing well as of lat. After some investigation she found that those people had made money at the illegal gambling den. Soi asks what is the range of the gambling den being "illegal"? For clarification, Clementine asks if the adventurer is wondering if the gambling den in question is operating without a license or is the content and operations of the place illegal to which Soi confirms.

Sadly it appears to be all of the above. There is also a lack of entertainment at the den, and normally such establishment can exist as long as it will energize people. However having checked with the mayor, there is no proper permission for such a place to exist. In addition the scale and stakes conducted at the den are prohibitive and are of similarity to illegal gambling dens in other cities and the ones that were shut down in E-Rantel. It is also said that unusual gambling is being carried out using something like a large gambling box.

The mention of this gambling box piques Soi's interest who wonders what it could be. Clementine unfortunately does not know the details, but apparently the parlor is run by a "strong man from the underworld who has many stories of heroism." Stories such as about the man who took on multiple teams of adventurers at the same time and won, setting Jaldabaoth in a trap in advance and inflicting a fatal wound on him before the protagonist defeated him. From the stories to Soi it seems as if someone else took advantage of her comrade's accomplishments, though its not unexpected as there plenty of people who would want to use the protagonist's fame if they don't get found out.

There is one thing that is hard to ignore...there was a dealer who was recently caught in the city, selling illegal drugs. While the full details of the sales channels have yet to be clarified, it appears the aforementioned gambling parlor is also involved in the drug trade. At this point, Clementine, doesn't think it to be just a rumor and asks Soi if she can deal with the problem.

Due to its being something that she can give an immediate answer to, Soi promises to tell the protagonist about the situation and wait for a reply. Before she heads out, Soi curious ask why Clementine doesn't think it to be a mere rumor? Although the saint says it's a rumor, she appears to have done a lot of research in advance and has a air of certainty. Frankly Clementine replies that she is going on a "hunch." Soi accepting the answer then leaves the room, before Clemetine mutters that her "hunch" is more like a sense that there are people like her involved.

In the streets, Soi sighs about getting involved in a complicated situation. Though she promised to tell the protagonist for Clementine, Soi decides not to inform him, as it currently it would be too cruel to approach him. Instead she reports the situation to Momonga via a [Message]. Momonga who is in the Round Table Room receives the call and is informed of the details of the case. Soi apologizes if she overstep her bounds by skipping past the protagonist and going to the Overlord directly, but Momonga assures her that she made the correct decision, as it would not be a good idea to put any more burden on the homunculus who is already in too deep.

Momonga states that Nazarick is currently proceeding with a casino plan in acquiring foreign currency so this gambling den is a potential business rival that will likely compete with them. If so they need to deal with their competitors. The undead then tells his subordinate that he will be handling the matter as he ends the call.

To Momonga, at this stage, he feels that the news of the gambling den has yet to reach beyond the category of a "rumor" thus its reliability is questionable. Even if it is just a rumor, Momonga thinks it's a weak reason to move Demiurge to investigate. At the same time he doesn't feel comfortable of asking the protagonist to do so either. He then turns his mind to the one tidbit of the report mentioning the "big box where one can play special bets." Based on his knowledge, the first thing that comes to mind is a slot machine. And if such a device is there then it could mean a player is involved. It's not impossible considering the protagonist reported that the Sunlight Scripture have toys like Rubik's Cubes. Another possibility is that the item is another legacy of the Boastful Sage. Regardless Momonga believes that it would be better to take action and send someone to check on the area. But everyone at present is busy and he doesn't think there is a credible reason to move any of the NPCs for such as task to confirm a rumor.

There is a knock at his door, from Momonga's attending Homunculus Maid, who announces that Demiurge is here with a suggestion. Momonga then invites the demon into the room, who has some new suggestions regarding casino measures. Momonga allows Demiurge to speak his piece, which the demon reports that the operation of Casino Resort Nazarick is on track, and the data necessary for their measures is being collected smoothly. In order to improve the quality of the casino, he would like permission to proceed to the next step. Now the purpose of the casino was to provide comfort to the general maids, and the data they collected was from a sample of the maids. However in order for it to become their trump card in acquiring foreign currency, it is unavoidable that they will need to collect data from humans.

This is very coincidentally to Momonga who mentions casually to Demiurge about the illegal gambling den in town in the Kingdom. Demiurge is very much aware of the den and is surprised that Momonga knew about it. As it so happens the demon received information on the illegal gambling den and was just about to inform his master as there are mechanical games that are not available in Nazarick there. And thus another reason for his audience with Momonga was to do some research as he believes such devices could be worth introducing to their casino.

Momonga is worried about moving in the field, as the demon is especially busy. Even if it's someone else he can't give permission if it causes problems with their concurrent work schedule. Demiurge appreciates his master's consideration, but the "preparations" mentioned are on tracj to be completed and everyone is less busy and able to rest. Considering the importance of finding traces of "players" it would be best to make a move now.

Seeing that the chance to ignore this issue has sailed, Momonga agrees with his subordinate and begins the selection process of sending personnel to the site of the den. Since this will be an undercover investigation, Momonga believes that those like CZ2128 Delta, Lupusregina Beta, and Narberal Gamma would be well suited as those three can become invisible as will. Demiurge though states that Narberal and Lupusregina will be unable to participate in this mission, as they are already occupied with their own and wonders if they should call them back. To himself, Momonga considers the option of sending them on the investigation when the return, but thinks otherwise as it would be bad to send them on a new mission and denying them rest. So far only CZ and him are free, so it seems essential to entrust the former to this investigation, but it would be more appropriate to have her team up with someone else.

The next day, CZ is summoned by Momonga to the Round Table Room, where she receives an explanation about her new mission from him and Demiurge. Momonga adds that from Demiurge's research the gambling hall in question is secretly owned by a nobleman who owns territory on the outskirts of the kingdom, and it seems that it attracts a lot of customers and makes a lot of money. But since it is not possible for nobles themselves to actually run the gambling halls, it seems that they provide the funds and space to someone else to run the business. Demiurge states that the person who is entrusted with the management of the gambling parlor is apparently a "famous person in the underworld." So far their investigation on who it is has not been completed. Moreover, there are still many things that are not revealed about the inner working of the gambling parlor. So CZ by Momonga's intention is to go and investigate it on an undercover mission. When CZ inquires if she will be alone, Momonga states that Solution and one other will be accompanying her. Demiurge has already informed the "other one" about the mission, so all she and Solution will have to do is go to that place to pick them up, which as it turns out to be the Great Forest of Tob.

Later at the Tob Forest, Solution and CZ both in their undercover adventurer and worker personas, are seen racing through the trees on a beast borrowed from, Aura Bella Fiora to meet their teammate at the rendezvous. They disembark for the beast's back, which then retreats, causing CZ to be disappointed on its departure. Solution, now as Soi, tells her it cannot be helped as the monster has another mission from Aura. The adventurer urges her partner to meeting spot, where they meet with Kyuko and a Death Knight. The fox-girl who is eager to be part of the mission greets the pair and immediately becomes a fixation by CZ. Soi the tells Kyuko for their current mission, CZ will be referred to as Shizuni and since they will be heading into a human town, asks Kyuko to change her appearance. Kyuko complies and heads into the bushes to retrieve something, and then transforms in the samurai adventurer Ku. Ku needing to adjust to her older form then decides to use three emerged Chaos Beasts are practice before heading out.

Afterwards on the road, the three women are seen journeying together. For Ku she is a bit embarrassed by Shizuni's actions of petting her tails, and tries to politely ask the worker to let her go. Soi watching the interaction, finds the scenario to be expected since CZ loves cute things that are fluffy. This in consideration, the undercover adventurer wonders if pairing her and Kyuko was intentional by Momonga as was her induction to the mission.

In a flashback, back at the Round Table Room, Demiurge and Momonga initially had agreed to have CZ and Kyuko be sent to investigate the gambling hall since the two can become invisible if needed and possess high fighting power if they encounter an unexpected situation. Given their personalities, Momonga believe bot the fox and automaton will get along and also provide a good team-building experience with someone other than the Pleiades. But Momonga also includes Solution into the team who is also present in the room. Her purpose on the team is simple, "Don't neglect reporting." The simple piece of advice causes Demiurge to believe that Momonga has a deeper purpose to this mission, as to use it as a test case for the future, in the assumption that they the Sorcerer Kingdom will be working with other factions. In this situation where the number of field missions is increasing, among a limited number of people but also the need for others to act as a third party to collect behavioral data. Thus the demon ascertains that Momonga wants to establish proper guidelines in the case of something similar happens. Of course Momonga has no such plans as his only selection of the team was to give the girls experience. But is unable to deny that Demiurge is wrong and plays along with the ruse.

Back in the present, Soi remembers that Momonga did not go into anything detail, about CZ and Kyuko's compatibility but trusts his judgement. To start, Soi begins explaining the mission. They will be heading into a noble's territory on the outskirts of the kingdom, to investigate a gaming den that is said to be there. While Shizuni understands the briefing, Ku has a question, on how "games" are related to their mission she is referring to. Soi realized that the fox doesn't come to Nazarick that often hence she isn't aware of the casino. Soi then asks Ku if she knows about gambling parlors to which the fox admits that she never seen one, but heard stories of such places. The slime then goes on to tell her peer that gambling houses or casino were locals where people could gamble by playing games. She provides examples of games like blackjack and poker that use face cards and roulette where one has to guess the numbers on the rotating number board. For Ku this brings to mind of her village, having seen people playing a game of rolling dice.

Soi points out that while dice games are played by humans it does not necessarily mean they are betting on anything and could have been playing for fun. In gambling houses, people bet on money on games. This helps Ku to understand what a casino is and upon hearing that Nazarick has one of its own, with various interesting games where one can earn prizes, the fox requests Soi to bring her to the place in the future. Though its rare for the fox to make a request, Soi finds it natural for the girl to be interested due to the incentive of prizes and Shizuni promises to do so sometime after the mission.

The trio arrive at the town of the territory belonging to the frontier noble where the illegal gambling den is located. After checking at a reasonable inn Soi reports their arrival to Demiurge and Momonga via [Message]. Once Soi had finished her report, she is stunned to see Shizuni still playing with Ku's tail. The slime ignores the antic as she thinks it will be fine so long as the habit does not interfere with the mission. The adventurer has the other two women splitting up to investigate the town. The three then begin combing the streets and back alleys for any sign of the gambling den.

They eventually regroup at a bar, near the evening to share their information. From what they have gathered the lord of the town owns the gambling den, and is using one of his mansions on the outskirts of the town as the site. It was opened around the same time there was a crackdown on illegal gambling in E-Rantel, and being run by a "powerful guy from the underworld". Because of that reputation there has been an increase in dojo storming to pick a fight with the "big guy" at the gambling den causing the security situation to get worse and worse. Many of the residents in town know about the gambling den, making it an open secret. And it looks like the feudal lord is covering things up with bribes and his connections so no crackdown is coming from the Royal Capital.

Since they now know where the gambling den is, Soi thinks it would probably be quicker to go there in person. Shizuni believes that she can go there to check things out as she has measures she can take to infiltrate. However she doesn't believe that such methods are necessary as the front gate of the place as she could use a story of "dojo storming" to get in. Ku suggests just going through the front as customers to see what kind of games are available. Her suggestion is met blankly by the other women. Ku defends her suggestion as she doesn't want to play a game at the establishment but wants to fulfill the purpose of their mission in finding what they have inside the gambling hall.

From her reasoning the undercover Pleiades maids agree that her suggestion is reasonable. Soi believes it might be a good idea to check out the place first and Shizuni goes with Ku to do more some more scouting.

The two of them the. headed straight to the back alleys of the night city. For awhile they continue walking through the back alleys at night without doing anything. Once Shizuni signals Ku the fox girl them calls out to the people who are discreetly following them. Three goons appear from the shadows. One of the men identifying himself as the leader of the group tells the women he was impressed that they picked up that they were following them.

To why they are being followed, his subordinate was just at the bar the two were at earlier and heard they’ve been sniffing around for the gambling parlor during the day. He demands to know who they are. To maintain their cover Shizuni whispers to Ku to stay quiet and calm. To be less suspicious they plan to pretend they don't know each other.

Shizuni feigns ignorance but the man is not fooled as he knows they been collecting rumors about the gambling parlor. And while he doesn’t know their purpose, he is prepared to deal with them himself. The men unsheathe their weapons to get you to tell the what's going on.

The effort is all for naught as the leader and his men are thoroughly beaten. The leader of the group kneeling begs the two to hear him out. While the behavior is unseemly, the man fmrather than begs for his life asks them to work at his gambling house.

Even though he doesn’t know where they got wind of it, circumstances have made home seek aid as recently there have been a lot of people trying to make a name for themselves by defeating his boss. Also, the number of annoying customers have increased, so he thought it would be better to have more bodyguards. And for the two women it’s apparent that they are strong.

This is an unexpected turn of events for the undercover agents. The two then silently agree to move cautiously when accepting the offer and ask the leader if they can think about it until tomorrow. The man accepts this, asking that the women come to the den around the same time as tomorrow if they make a decision. Upon returning to the inn and informing Soi, it was then decided that Shizuni and Ku would accept to work as bodyguards at the gambling den.

A few days later, at the gambling parlor on the outskirts of town, Shizuni and Ku are seen in the hallways of the mansion speaking with the man they encountered in the back alleys. The man as it turns out is the manager of the parlor who gives them the rundown of how their bodyguard duties entails such as rotating shifts. Taking them to a lounge, the manager also intends for them to work on the floor of the gambling parlor once they get acclimated. For now he wants them to patrol the grounds of the premises. While he seen their abilities in action, and has confidence in them, the manager warns not all the people in the gambling hall feel the same way and have doubts on the newcomers. Thus he advises the two to build trust when they can.

Another thing is that he likes his female employees to wear the same uniforms. Ku is confused by this as why on earth would that matter, leading to the manager to explain that because he has been receiving poor quality of customers, they had to increase the number of bodyguards. But then that led to other complaints, such as the new bodyguards being "ugly" and "obnoxious" even if they are there just as a precaution as seeing mercenaries with weapons wandering around is an eyesore to the guests.

Since both Shizuni and Ku don't look so bad to the eyes, he thinks it would be nice if they could dress like the rest of the female employees while acting as security at his parlor and make it more glamorous. Shizuni points out a problem in that the female employees uniforms ar not suited for combat and Ku adds that they also don't see suitable for carrying weapons. However Shizuni makes a compromise offering to prepare their own uniforms that could withstand combat which is acceptable to the man.

At night, after the two return to the inn and told Soi about the situation, Soi reported to Demiurge. Demiurge hearing their work as bodyguards queries the requirement of wearing uniforms suitable for female employees. He told by Soi that her teammates reason for doing is to avoid giving the impression of being too demanding. but since the same uniform as the female employees would not be suitable for combat, the two of them requested that we be able to borrow similar equipment.

Demiurge would certainly, allow it as there are enough benefits for the mission. If Shizuni and Ku were to carry out an undercover investigation as employees, and figures the customers they would come into contact with would probably be more lenient if they were dressed as female employees. If customers feel better about themselves, it will be easier to gain more trust from the manager and other employees. The demon will talk to Momonga right away and see if he can prepare equipment suitable for the mission.

A day later, Shizuni and Ku were seen in the waiting room of the gambling hall, wearing the costumes that Demiurge had arranged and brought to them by Soi. The outfit definitely impress the manager particularly after hearing they’re magic items and wants to acquire them. They are interrupted when a drunk man barges into the women. Noticing that they are the new bodyguards he tries to made crude advances towards them by asking the women to drink with him.

Ku politely declined him professionally stating she is on patrol duty and it would be best if he quietly return to his seat. When the drunk persists, Ku tosses he effortlessly to his dismay.

As the women walk away, two male bodyguards appear and grab hauling out of the parlor as they do if tolerate harassment of their fellow employees. With the men taking care of the disruptive guest the two women go room to room checking the security. Still day, they go outside the mansion to patrol the grounds  the find their first security threat, a pack three wolves and move forward to take care of the beasts.

Once the wolves are put down, the women go back to the waiting room. There they find a noisy commotion happening in the floor. An employee seeing them is glad they are present as there is a dojo stormer and his men making a racket, demanding the boss of the den to come out.

The manager tries to reason with the brute, claiming that the boss is not in, but the dojo stormer doesn’t accept the excuse seeing it as an obvious lie.

The employee who is standing with Shizuni and Ku complains that this is a reoccurring thing at the gambling den. Ku and Shizuni then decide to rid the den of the nuisances. The man and his goons notice the women, who politely as them to please stop their violent behavior here. If they wish to fight their boss then they state that they can only after they defeats the two of them.

This greatly amuses the dojo stormer and mockingly tells them to repeat their words. When they do so without a hint of fear, the man is infuriated thinking they are looking down on him. Seeing that they are poor customer Ku won’t show as mercy which Shizuni concurs.

Taking the fight outside the women begin the suppression of the goons. All three are defeat, leaving many from the gambling den in awe at the spectacle and meet the victory with cheers.

The manager is especially happy glad to have hired the two to help him with this problem. The male employee at the den also praise the women as amazing and even as goddesses that they are enamored with. Though such adulation is a bit too much for the fox.

From that moment forward the two became regarded as goddesses, as vivid as a storm, in front of the employees working at the gambling parlor. A few days later, after defeating the dojo breaker, Ku and Shizuni's abilities became known to the employees of the gambling hall.

One employee asks Shizuni for a moment for her time. It’s to have her stand guard out in the hallways while he completes a transaction in a room. Since the customers get wary when too many guards are out, Ku decides to continue her patrol on her own.

While on patrol, another employee greets Ku and the two have a chat. The employee is in the process of making a new game device to replace the at the parlor. He offers her to try out the device and play with it so he  can see if it worked well.

He then brings her a large box about the height of an adult. There is something like a small window in the box, with three rows of numbers and symbols. According to the employee, each dial with a pattern on it rotates. Ku curious about the device wants to know more about it.

The employee tells her that to operate it all one had to do was insert a coin into the slot, pull the lever on the right, and the dial will start rotating. After it starts rotating, if she pull the lever again at any time, it will stop rotating. The number of coins she bet increases depending on the combination of symbols after it stops here. He then gives her lots of coins to test out the machine.

The employee noticing that the patterns on the machine are in the same order has Ku help him adjust the rotation speed. He thanks her for taking time to assist him, to which Ku doesn’t mind as she is interested in "games." The employee feels he may call her again to help, and offers to please not hesitate to ask for his help then.

Later switching to the Round Table Room, Momonga finishes listening to a [Message] from Soi and is pleased to know that the investigation is progressing.

Once it ends, he has Albedo and Demiurge  beside him as he seeks their counsel. From what he heard from Soi there some interesting reports that he wishes to share with them. The venue at the illegal gambling hall allows for various games to be played. The rates are higher than those at official casinos, and the casinos are designed to encourage gambling among customers.

A wide variety of casino games can be enjoyed on the ground floor, and the floors are divided into those for general customers and VIP customers with special treatment. And underground, there are arenas and games where the life and death of living things are at stake, such as a game called “Rat Killing. ''

Demiurge recalls it to be some kind of blood sport, where one releases a dog into a cage with a lot of rats and bet on how many rats the dog can kill within a certain amount of time. Demiurge and Albedo find it amusing that humans also enjoy torturing weaker creatures but understand the appeal. Momonga finds that what is appealing at the gambling establishment is that you can enjoy games that are rarely available in licensed casinos.

Demiurge adds that the VIP floor, is where illegal drugs are being traded. From what he’s heard, it seems that "black dust," which was previously traded in the Kingdom, is also included. Albedo mentions that the gambling hall has also become a new trading location for smugglers who can no longer stay in the Royal Capital or E-Rantel.

Just like the profits from gambling parlors, there have also been reports that the profits from drug dealing end up in the pockets of the noble who provide the venue. Momonga remembers hearing in a previous report that the noble was a member of the anti-royal faction and seems like his purpose is to earn money for his own activities.

Demiurge believes there is probably an advantage in renting out a mansion and turning it into a gambling hall. By keeping everything in one place, one can ensure confidentiality. The retention would allow managing information to become easier if they do it in one place. Hence why the illegal gambling hall is able to set high rates that deviate from those of licensed casinos and gambling halls.

Demiurge shows interest in the device that Kyuko played with. That was a really interesting report. But Momonga pities that Kyuko can't seem to find out any details about the inventor or the structure of the device. And though while it would be nice to know the source, but it may be too hasty to ask for that much at this stage.

Momonga looks forward to the new report. And asks the two demons to sit with him again when the time comes. He has one last item on his list to go over. It concerns the island that is currently in the hands of “that person”…..Albedo’s subordinate. He asks the Overseer Guardian if there are any inconveniences or problems?

Albedo reports things are progressing smoothly. She does asks if he has any concerns? Momonga doesn’t adding briefly that it would be great if things were going well. However on the last sentence Demiurge gives a moment of thought, causing Momonga to curse himself for saying the small talk.

He then tries to hide his Mistra by saying that while he appreciates her loyalty, he doesn’t don't want her to work too hard. If something happens, even the smallest thing, Albedo is to report it immediately. Both demons comply to do.

Aftermath
TBA