キャロルは既に食事を終えて食後の紅茶を飲んでいる。アキラはまだ食事の途中だ。かなり大量に注文した料理を味わって食べているからだ。
キャロルは既にアキラに約束した旧世界の遺物の補填である4000万オーラムを振り込んでいる。アキラはそれを軽く確認した後で礼を言って食事に戻っていた。
基本的にハンター稼業の稼ぎと実力は比例するものだ。あの無人兵器を一人で撃破した実力者ならば、その程度の額に動揺を見せないのは不思議ではない。しかし旧世界の遺物を盾代わりにして台無しにした時のアキラの嘆きから判断すると少しずれているようにも思える。
あの無人兵器をどうやって一人で撃破したかも不明だ。キャロルは考察を進めるほどに分からなくなってくる少年を不思議に思いながら興味を深めていた。
アルファがアキラに告げる。
『アキラ。ハンターオフィスから通知が来ているわ』
『通知?』
アキラは情報端末を取り出して通知の内容を確認する。それは緊急依頼の応援要請だった。依頼元はドランカムで、依頼の内容はセランタルビルにいるハンターの救出活動の援護だ。
食堂が少し騒がしくなっている。アキラがキャロルを見ると、キャロルも情報端末を操作していた。キャロルだけではなく、食堂にいる多くのハンターが同じように情報端末を確認している。通知はこの周辺にいるハンター全員に送られていた。
周辺のハンター達の会話が聞こえてくる。
「大食いビルへの突入支援? ハンターもモンスターも区別なく食い殺す悪食ビルに突っ込めってか。俺は御免だな」
「そうか? 俺は受けても良いと思うけどな」
仲間の返答を聞いたハンターが鼻で笑うように話す。
「おいおい、何を言ってるんだ。セランタルビルだ。ミハゾノ街遺跡の7怪談の一つだぞ? ドランカムも自前の戦力じゃ足りないって判断したから応援要請を出してるんだろう。しかもこの契約条件を見ろよ。倒したモンスターの所有権がドランカム側になっている。しかも弾薬費は自前。基本報酬も渋い。受ける理由がどこにあるんだ? どうせドランカムも提携している保険会社との契約で嫌々部隊を派遣するんだろうさ。ハンターの誰かが契約していた保険会社経由で緊急依頼を出したんだろう。民間警備会社やハンターの徒党と契約して、絶対に緊急依頼を受理させる保険があったはずだ。普通に緊急依頼を出しても受けるやつがいる保証はないからな。こんな危険な上に赤字前提の依頼を受けるやつがどこにいるんだ?」
否定的な仲間に男が軽く首を横に振ってから笑って答える。
「まあ確かに、金額的には厳しい依頼だ。だがものは考えようだ。ドランカムの支援有りでランク上げができると考えればそこまで悪くはない話だ。ハンターランクを上げておいて損はないからな。それに緊急依頼関連の仕事の履歴を増やすって意味もある。統企連のハンター倫理の向上活動の一環として、ハンターオフィス経由で受けた緊急依頼関連の仕事は、ハンターランクが上がりやすいと言われている。それに体面を気にする企業がハンターを募集する場合、緊急依頼関連の履歴が多いと有利になるんだ。それに、俺は違うが、ドランカムに加わりたいハンターなら、これを縁にしてって考えるやつもいるだろう」
仲間の言い分を聞いた男が
「ふーん。で、お前は受ける気なのか?」
「お前の言っている通り、怪談になる程度には危険な場所でもある。......話の分かる相棒がいればなあ」
仲間の言葉に男が苦笑して答える。
「......分かったよ。弾薬費はお前持ちだからな」
「話の分かる相棒で助かるぜ」
彼らは食後の休憩を切り上げて食堂から出て行った。アキラに聞こえる距離で話していたのだ。高い食事代を支払えるだけの実力者なのだろう。
彼らの話を聞いていたアキラが少し興味深い表情で話す。
アルファが一応確認を取る。
『アキラもそういう知識を着けないといけないわね。それで、どうするの? 受けるの?』
アキラはアルファの予想通りの答えを返す。
『受けない。今日のハンター稼業はもう終わりだ。十分稼いだし、何より疲れた』
アキラは情報端末を操作して依頼を拒否した。
キャロルがアキラに尋ねる。
「アキラの方にも通知が来たみたいね。私は断ったけど、アキラは?」
くはあそこに近付く気にはなれないわ」
アキラが情報端末を横に置いて食事の続きに戻ろうとすると別の通知が入る。シオリからの通話要求だった。
「アキラだ。悪いけど食事中なんだ。急ぎの用事以外なら、後にしてもらってもかまわないか?」
「申し訳御座いません。急ぎの用件です。手短に済ませますので、少々お時間を頂きたく」
「アキラ様にお嬢様の護衛を依頼いたします。護衛の期間は、可能でしたら今すぐ、そしてお嬢様の安全が確保できるまでになります。最長でも本日中に終了いたします。報酬等の交渉の時間も惜しむ状況ですので、その手の交渉は後回しにさせていただきたく思います。私のお嬢様への忠誠に誓って、相応の報酬の支払いをお約束します」
「それって、セランタルビルの緊急依頼の話か?」
「御存じでしたか。はい。お嬢様がその緊急依頼に参加いたします。アキラ様にはその間のお嬢様の護衛をお願いしたく......」
「......理由を伺っても? 報酬の前交渉無しに依頼を引き受けるのが原因でしたら、前金をこの場で指定していただければすぐに振り込みます。アキラ様の御都合で即時対応が困難でしたら、後で合流する形式でも構いません。譲歩可能な条件でしたら譲歩いたします」
アキラが通話越しに伝わってくるシオリの困惑を感じながら続ける。
に不満があるわけじゃないんだ。断る理由は単純だ。俺はセランタルビルに近付きたくない。俺も命が惜しい。悪いな」
シオリが強く
、俺が臆病なだけかもしれない。ただ、詳しくは話せないが、俺が臆病になる程度のことはあったとだけ言っておく。そういう訳だ。だからその依頼は受けない。そっちにも事情があるんだろうが、行くなら十分注意した方が良いと思うぞ。旧世界の遺跡なんだ。何が起きても不思議はない。ビルの中で急に情報端末が使えなくなったり、情報収集機器の性能が落ちたりするかもしれない。いつの間にか機械系モンスターに囲まれているかもしれない。ビルの設備を敵が使用するかもしれない。じゃあな」
アキラはそれだけ言って通話を切ると、情報端末を横に置いて食事を再開した。
キャロルはアキラの通話の内容が少々気になった。しかし下手に首を挟むと要らぬ不評を買いそうだったので、表面上は全く気にしていないように
さんと五分に渡り合ったアキラ少年の実力を、間近で確認したかったんすけど。それで、その表情の理由はなんすか? 護衛を断られただけにしては、深刻な顔っすよ?」
「断られた理由が問題よ。報酬の交渉以前の問題で蹴られたわ。セランタルビルには、命が惜しいから近付きたくないそうよ」
シオリの深刻な表情とは正反対に、カナエは不敵に笑う。
「アキラ少年がどんな判断からそう言ったのかは知らないっすけど、
めを進言してくるわ。カナエは出発まで準備を再確認、いえ、準備をやり直して。帰還者無しの未調査の遺跡を探索する。それぐらいの基準でできる限り準備をやり直して」
カナエが笑って答える。
「了解っす。でもお嬢の説得は無理じゃないっすか? この緊急依頼はほぼ強制。この作戦に不参加だと、お嬢は最悪ドランカムを追い出されるっすよ。ただでさえお嬢はあの時カツヤ少年を見捨てたってことにされて、カツヤ派の連中から敵視されているっすからね。その所為で残念ながら賞金首討伐にも参加できなかったっす。まあそれは、お嬢と
レイナはドランカムの若手ハンターの派閥の中で、カツヤ派でも反カツヤ派でもない少々肩身の狭い生活を送っている。レイナがシオリとカナエだけを連れてミハゾノ街遺跡に来たのもその所為だ。カツヤ派からは反カツヤ派に、反カツヤ派からはカツヤ派に扱われて、ドランカム内での集団行動が難しくなっているのだ。
「ドランカムに所属していることが、お嬢がハンターを続ける条件っすから、その説得、下手をするとお嬢にハンター辞めろって言っているようなものっすよ?」
「......分かっているわ。それでも進言はするわ。少なくとも、それだけ危険な場所に行くという認識は高まるはずよ」
「分かったっす。じゃあ準備をやり直してくるっす。大赤字上等の準備に変えてくるっすよ。経費なんか気にせずに戦えるなんて、いやー楽しみっすね」
カナエは楽しそうに笑ってそう答えた。
レイナはアキラがあれほどの態度で断った場所に向かおうとしている。それを楽しみと語ったカナエの態度にシオリが大きく反応した。シオリにもいろいろ積もるものはあったのだ。
さんの限界っすよね。あ、褒めてるっすよ? 冷静なのは良いことっす。だからお嬢の付き人を任されているし、お嬢からの信頼も厚い」
カナエはシオリを見て笑っている。ここでシオリが激情に身を任せて刀を抜いてカナエを殺してしまうと、レイナを
カナエはどちらでも構わないから笑っているのだ。この場でシオリと戦っても、この後の作戦でモンスター達と戦っても、カナエはどちらでも構わないのだ。この場で自分からは仕掛けない。それがカナエの自身の雇い主に対する義理と礼儀であり、自身の職への姿勢だった。シオリから仕掛けてくるのならば、カナエは喜んで応戦するだろう。
カナエは笑って作戦の準備に戻っていった。
シオリは何度も深呼吸をして、レイナへの忠誠を確認して、冷静さを何とか取り戻した。そして主にいつもの
アキラはキャロルと一緒にクガマヤマ都市まで戻ってきた。キャロルの頼みで下位区画の中の繁華街の近くまで送り届けた。
車から降りたキャロルがアキラを誘う。
アキラが首を横に振って答える。
「悪いが遠慮する。アルコールの類いは体に入れないようにしているんだ。意識も反応も判断力も鈍るからな」
酔った状態でスラム街に立ち入って、身ぐるみ剥がされて死んでいった者は珍しくない。アキラはそういう光景を目にしてきた経験もあり、余り酒に興味がなかった。そしてアキラの意識の状態がアルファの強化服の操作に強く影響すると知ってからは、ますますアルコールの類いに手を出す気がなくなっていた。
東部では酒飲みのハンターのために急激に急速に酔いを覚ます薬なども市販されている。しかしその薬を飲んでまで酒を飲もうとはアキラは思わなかった。
酒と女。男が身を崩す要因でもあり、キャロルが得意としている付け入る
「......酒にも女にも手を出さず、か。随分健康的に生きているのね」
「体が資本のハンター稼業。健康なのは良いことだ」
キャロルが誘うように笑って話す。
「人生の楽しみを自分から捨てるのもどうかと思うけどね。気が向いたら連絡してちょうだい。本業でも副業でも大歓迎よ。待ってるわ。じゃあね」
キャロルはそれだけ言い残して繁華街の中に消えていった。
アキラが自分を不敵に笑いながら見ているアルファに気付いて
『......だから、なんなんだよ』
『知りたい? 本当に?』
アキラがそれだけ言って運転を再開する。家の方向ではなかった。
『回復薬とか弾薬を補充してからにする。結構使ったからな』
アキラはまずはカツラギのトレーラーに向かった。通り道の都合で一度荒野に出て進む。
その途中でもアルファは意味深に
『知りたい?』
また下らないことだろう。そう思っていたアキラに、アルファは自慢げに
アキラは何とか運転を立て直そうとする。
『私を信じるっていうアキラの言葉を疑っていたわけではないけど、やっぱり実際に行動してもらえると信頼の実感も
アキラは一度車を止めて車体の安定を試みる。
『お互い信頼し合える関係は良いものだわ。私もより一層アキラのサポートができるしね。これからも力を合わせて頑張っていきましょう。アキラ、これからも
アキラは一度止めた車を再びゆっくりと動かす。そして機嫌良く笑っているアルファに前を向いたままで返事をする。
ニヤニヤしているアルファの横で、アキラが
力か......」
アキラは十分な効果がある高価な回復薬をかなりの頻度で購入している。それだけ負傷しているということだ。顧客に死なれては困るカツラギは、商売を兼ねてアキラに追加のより高威力の装備の購入を勧めた。
やられる前にやれ。モンスターとの戦闘はこれが基本。アキラにはそのための
CWH対物突撃銃とDVTSミニガン。それがアキラの主要な火力だ。これで無人兵器すら破壊したアキラだったが、セランタルビルの外でも中でも苦戦を強いられたことは事実だ。
シズカさんに相談してみよう。アキラはそう考えながらシズカの店に向かった。助言をしたカツラギの売上げに貢献する気はないようだ。これも信用の差なのだろう。
アキラがシズカの店に着いた時、シズカはちょうど店を閉めようとしていた。既に日は落ちている。深夜営業をしない店ならば普通の時刻だ。
アキラが店の前に車を
「シズカさん。今日はもう閉店ですか?」
「アキラ。そうなんだけど、良いわ。入って」
「良いんですか?」
「良いのよ。アキラを常連候補から常連に格上げする機会は私も増やしておきたいしね」
「ありがとう御座います」
めてシズカの店に入る。アキラを店に入れた後、シズカは店の入り口の看板を閉店にして店の中に入った。外の暗さの所為で、シズカはアキラの車が自分が売った車種から変わっていたことに気付かなかった。
「アキラ。通常弾の補充がないけど大丈夫なの? 装弾数増加系の拡張弾だけだとかなり高くなるわよ?」
強力なモンスターと戦うハンター達にとって、行動中の弾切れは死活問題だ。都市から離れた場所にある遺跡を攻略するために大量の弾薬を運ぶのにも限度がある。その問題を解決するために東部では様々な種類の拡張弾が販売されている。
そのような拡張弾は当然ながら通常弾より高い。通常弾の2倍3倍の値段は当たり前、性能によっては10倍以上の価格差があるのだ。弾薬の補充に問題がない環境でそれらの弾丸が使用されることは少ない。通常弾を使用する方が安上がりだからだ。
シズカがアキラをじっと見る。少なくとも多少割高になっても装弾数増加系の拡張弾を通常弾の代わりに購入したいと思わせる何か、アキラにそう判断させた何かがあったことは確実だ。
シズカが少し威圧するように笑ってアキラに尋ねる。
「それで、今回はどんな
「そう。それなら良いわ。遺物を背負って死ぬより、遺物を捨てて逃げてきなさい。生きて帰ってくれば、再起の目は残っているものよ。無事で良かったわ」
アキラは内心で息を吐いた。ビルの屋上からビルの側面を駆け下りたなどという
力? どういうこと?」
「いえ、俺の知り合いが、俺には火力が足りないって言うんですよ。モンスターとの戦闘は、やられる前にやれ、それが基本なんだそうです。苦戦するのは
シズカはアキラの説明を聞いて少し考え込む。
「......そうね、考え方次第だと思うわ。確かに、モンスターの群れと遭遇したりしたら、火力は幾らあっても足りないわ。昨日まで安全だった場所が、急に強力なモンスターの生息地に変わることもある。でも常にそんな事態を想定して準備をするわけにもいかない。採算を取るのも難しくなるしね。......私の都合で言って良いなら、足りないって言って、アキラに追加の装備を買わせちゃうけどね」
アキラは真面目に思案する。そしてその結論を答える。
「分かりました。買います」
「......えっと、その、無理をしなくても良いのよ?」
に買うわけですから。俺にも予算の都合はありますけど、命の危険の無理をするより、予算の無理をしておきます。シズカさんのお勧めを、一つお願いします」
アキラにそう言われて頼まれると、シズカも売らないわけにはいかない。アキラからの信頼に応えるために
「分かったわ。そうね、今のアキラの装備だと......、ちょっと待っててね」
シズカがそう言い残して店の奥へ向かう。そしてアキラのために選んだ装備を持って戻ってきた。
「A4WM自動擲弾銃。擲弾を広範囲にばらまけるから、多少狙いが
「分かりました。それで、価格の方は......」
「それなんだけど、またちょっと待っててね」
シズカはそう言って再び店の奥へ行き、今度は擲弾用の弾倉をいろいろ持って戻ってきた。
「当たり前だけど、弾がないと使えないわ。使用する擲弾にもいろいろ種類があるのよ。A4WM自動擲弾銃と擲弾のセットで売るから、擲弾の威力と弾数と値段を聞いて決めてちょうだい」
アキラはシズカから商品の説明と値段を聞いていく。迷った結果、擲弾弾倉の大きさと威力を考慮して、一番高額な組み合わせを選んで購入した。
アキラは購入した装備と弾薬を車に詰め込んだ。店の見送りに出たシズカに挨拶をする。
「今日はありがとう御座いました。閉店後に結構お邪魔してしまって、すみませんでした」
「良いのよ。ちゃんと売上げは伸びたしね。気を付けて帰りなさい」
シズカが軽く手を振る。アキラは軽く頭を下げてから車を動かして帰っていった。
アキラを見送ったシズカが
「......だから、違うのよ。結果的にはちゃんと商品を買ってもらったのだから、何も問題はないのよ」
シズカが自問自答する。アキラの懐具合を気遣って商機を逃すような言動をしたかもしれないが、結果的には問題なかったのだと。シズカは商人で、アキラはお客様なのだ。
Carol had already finished her meal, she was only sitting there sipping her after-meal tea. While on the other hand, Akira was still enjoying the meal in front of him, it was simply because he took his time to enjoy each and every meal that he ordered and he did order quite a lot of meals.
Carol had also already transferred the 40,000,000 Aurum compensation money that she had promised for the relics that Akira had lost. Akira then casually confirmed it, said his thanks and returned back to eating.
Normally, the amount of money that a Hunter earned regularly was proportional to his or her skill. So it was not strange that it did not faze Akira when he received that amount of money since he was strong enough to kill the automatic weapons. But compared to that, it was completely different from when Akira was lamenting over the relics that he lost when he shielded Carol.
Carol had no idea how in the world Akira killed the autonomous weapons. The more she thought about it, the more she was confused, and the more she was interested in the young boy in front of her.
Alpha then said to Akira.
"Akira, you got a message from the Hunter Office."
"A message?"
Akira pulled out his information terminal and checked the notification message from the Hunter Office. It was an emergency SOS request from the Drankam, to be more precise, it was a request to join the rescue team sent to rescue the Hunters trapped in the Seranthal building.
The situation inside the restaurant started to get agitated. When Akira glanced at Carol, she was also focusing on her own information terminal. And it was not only Carol, but all the Hunters inside that restaurant were also checking their own information terminals. It seemed that the notification message was sent to all the Hunters in the area.
Akira could hear some Hunters around him talking.
"They're asking me to go inside that ghoul building? It's that building that would eat anything that goes inside it no matter whether it's a Hunter or monster, you know? I have no plans to go there myself."
"Is that so? I don't mind taking it though."
Hearing what their friend said, the other Hunter snorted and said.
"Whoah there, what are you talking about? It's the Seranthal building, you know? It's one of the 7 great mystery of Mihazono ruin. It's exactly because Drankam knows that they can't challenge that building even after they prepare themselves, that's why they're issuing this request. And looking at the details of the request, the corpses of the monsters will be owned by the Drankam, the ammo expense is paid by ourselves, and the basic reward is small. So, is there any reason why we have to take this request? I bet that SOS request was sent by one of those Hunters through the insurance company contracted with Drankam, and I'm sure even Drankam only sends their Hunters although they don't want to because they're in a contract with that insurance company. Some of those insurance companies usually have contracts with private security companies or Hunter gangs to make sure that they would definitely take the SOS request issued by that insurance company. After all, normally, no one would want to take on such a dangerous request. Like seriously, who would want to take this dangerous request with such small reward?"
The other Hunter just smiled and shook his head before replying.
"Well, it's true that it's not a profitable request. But let's think carefully here, if we look at it as a request from Drankam that would give us a boost in our Hunter Rank, it's actually not that bad. After all, nothing bad can come from raising our Hunter Rank. Moreover, we can get this SOS request participation written in our Hunter Record. I heard that you get a big Hunter Rank boost if you take an emergency request issued by the Hunter Office due to the Hunter ethics improvement program from the Corporate Government. I also heard that some corporations, which is mindful of its public standing, tend to choose Hunters who participated in such emergency requests. And to top it off, although it's not like it's my aim, for those Hunters who want to form a connection with Drankam, this might be a good chance for them."
After hearing his friend's opinion, the other Hunter then interjected.
"Hmmm, so you're planning to take this request, huh?
"It's as you said, it's a dangerous place that it has even become an urban legend... So if only someone would accompany me there."
That Hunter then smiled bitterly at what his friend said.
"...Alright alright, I get it, but you'll pay for the ammo, okay?"
"I'm glad that I have a partner who would understand."
After those Hunters finished their meals, they took a short rest there before leaving the restaurant. They were close enough for Akira to hear their conversation, so basically, they were paying more or less the same expensive meal as Akira, which meant that they were powerful Hunters able to afford such a luxury.
After listening to those Hunters, Akira said with interest.
Alpha at least tried to confirm it with Akira.
"It seems that I need to educate you about that too. So then, what's your plan? Are you planning to take that request?"
Akira then answered back with the exact answer that Alpha had predicted.
"No. I'm done for today. I've gathered enough money for the day and I'm already tired right now."
Akira then returned back to his information terminal to refuse the request.
Carol suddenly asked Akira a question.
"It seems that you got that message too. I'm refusing that request though, how about you, Akira?"
"Thought so. I have no plans to go anywhere near that building for the time being."
As Akira placed his information terminal aside and was about to take another bite of the meal in front of him, suddenly a notification reached his information terminal, it was a call from Shiori.
"Akira here. I'm sorry but I'm in the middle of eating right now. If it's not an emergency, can you call me again later?"
"I'm really sorry, this is an emergency. I'll keep it short, so can you please give me some of your time?"
"Akira-sama, I want to make a request to you to escort Milady. As for the period of the request, if it's possible, I want you to start from right now and it'll be until we can guarantee Milady's safety. At most, it'll take the whole day today. And since we don't have much time right now, if it's possible, I wish you're okay with postponing the negotiation about the reward to later. But please don't worry, I swear on my loyalty for Milady that I would definitely pay you with a suitable reward."
"...This has something to do with that emergency request to the Seranthal building, doesn't it?"
"It seems that you've heard it as well. Yes, Milady decided to accept that emergency request. So I want to ask you to protect Milady during that request-"
"...Is it okay if I ask why? If it's because we don't agree on the reward beforehand, we can quickly decide on the advance payment and I'll immediately transfer it right now. And if it's hard for you to meet up with us right now, I don't mind if you meet up with us later. If it's something that we can help with, we're willing to make compromises."
Akira could feel that Shiori was a bit surprised and bewildered on the other end of the call as he continued.
"Ahhh, it's not like I refuse because I don't like you or anything. The reason why I won't take that request is simple, it's because I don't want to go anywhere close to that Seranthal building, I don't want to die after all. So, sorry about that."
Shiori sounded very serious as she carefully asked Akira a question.
"Well, it's at least dangerous enough for me to refuse any request that doesn't promise me enough money. Of course, it might be just me being a coward though. I can't tell you the details, but something happened that causes me to hesitate to go anywhere near that building. That's why I won't accept that request. I'm sure you have your own reason as to why you need to go there, which in that case, make sure to be extra careful. It's in the middle of an old-world ruin after all, so anything can happen. For example, your information-gathering device might lose sensitivity inside that building and you might suddenly not be able to use your information terminal there. Or if you're not careful enough, you might get surrounded by mechanical monsters without you realizing it or you might even find the monsters using the facilities inside that building. So yeah, I won't accept it, later then."
Akira only said that and ended the call. He then put his information terminal aside one more time before returning back to eating again.
Carol was curious about what that call was for. But it might annoy him if she needlessly butted into his business there, so she was putting on a smile indicating that she was not bothered at all.
"That's really unfortunate. I actually wanted to see that boy's skill from up close. So then, what is with that face? You look grimmer than usual for someone who just got her request rejected."
"The real problem is the reason why he rejected it. He rejected it without giving me any chance to negotiate saying that he doesn't want to die so he would refuse to get anywhere close the Seranthal building."
Unlike Shiori, who looked really concerned, Kanae was smiling amusedly.
"I don't know why exactly Akira would say that, but if someone as strong as Ane-san would even go that far to say something like that about that place, then it seems that this will be interesting."
"...I'll at least go and recommend Milady not to take the request. As for you, go and recheck our equipment... No, redo the preparation. Make sure that we have enough equipment to survive a ruin exploration in a ruin with zero survivors."
Kanae smiled and said.
"Roger that. But isn't it impossible to change Milady's mind at this point? This request is basically a compulsory request, if Milady won't participate, she might get kicked out of the gang. After all, some people from the Katsuya faction hate Milady since they think Milady abandoned Katsuya back then. That's also exactly the reason why Milady could not participate in the bounty hunting too, remember? But well, I guess that was a good thing from Ane-san and Milady's point of view though."
Among the young Hunters in Drankam, Reina was actually keeping herself in a delicate neutral position in between the Katsuya faction and the anti-Katsuya faction. That was also the reason she came to Mihazono ruin only with Kanae and Shiori. The Katsuya faction treated her as if she was from the anti-Katsuya faction while the anti-Katsuya faction treated her as if she was from Katsuya faction. Because of that, she was having trouble making friends in Drankam.
"One of the requirements for Milady to be allowed to work as a Hunter is that she must be a member of Drankam. So Milady might take it as telling her to stop working as a Hunter if Ane-san tries telling Milady to change her mind, right?"
"...I know. But I'll still recommend Milady not to go there. It'll at least let Milady know that we're going to a very dangerous location."
"Alright then. I'll go and redo the preparation. I'll reorganize the prepared equipment with the assumption that we'll end up in the red this time... It has been quite a while since the last time I fought without worrying about the expense, I can't help but look forward to this."
Kanae smiled happily when she said that.
Reina was about to head over to a location that would even make Akira refuse Shiori's request without further discussion. While on the other hand, Kanae seemed to be looking forward to it. Shiori was fed up with Kanae.
"It's so like you not to pull out that sword here you know, Ane-san. Ah, that's a compliment by the way. It's good that you stay calm. That's why they trust Milady to you and that's also why Milady really trusts you."
Kanae stared back at Shiori while smiling. If Shiori really pulled out her blade and tried to kill Kanae there, it would lower their fighting power for protecting Reina. But Shiori knew well that Kanae was smiling at her not because of that.
Kanae was actually smiling because she did not mind either way whether Shiori would pull out her blade and try to kill Kanae there, or that she would not pull out her blade there which meant that she would get to go and fight monsters later. Kanae would not make any provocation if the latter were to happen. It was because it was her principle and courtesy toward the people who employed her, it was her attitude toward her own job. But if that came from Shiori, then she would be happy to respond.
Kanae just smiled and went to reorganize their equipment.
Shiori took a few deep breaths, reminding her of her loyalty to Reina, and finally regained her composure. She made sure that she could put on her usual smile to her master before going to try convincing Reina.
Akira returned all the way back to the Kugamayama city together with Carol. Due to Carol's request, he dropped her near the red light district of the lower district.
Carol, who just stepped off from Akira's vehicle, invited him.
Akira shook his head and said.
"Sorry but no thanks. I keep myself away from alcohols since they lower my decision making skill and reaction speed."
After all, there were many occasions where drunk people came into the slum city and ended up as dead corpses. Akira had seen something like that happen in front of his eyes numerous times before, so he had no wish to put in even a drop of alcohol inside his body. And now, after knowing that a disruption in his consciousness would also affect Alpha's support in controlling his augmented suit, he was actively avoiding alcohol even more.
Although there was a type of drug sold in the eastern district which would instantaneously snap someone out from a drunken state, Akira had no plans to drink any alcohol to the point that he would need that kind of drug.
Alcohol and women, these two things were the gate to ruin a man, and Carol was really familiar with both of them, but both gates were shut closed in case of Akira. Carol could not help but to smile bitterly and said.
"...So you don't drink alcohol and don't play with girls, huh. That's a pretty healthy lifestyle you're having."
"A Hunter's biggest asset is their body, so it's a good thing to have a healthy body."
But then Carol smiled seductively and said.
"I don't think it's wise to abandon worldly leisure though. If you change your mind, you can give me a call anytime. I'll be waiting for you, I don't mind if it's about my main job or my side job, see you then."
After saying that, Carol went and vanished into the red light district.
Akira realized that Alpha was watching him with a big smile, so he awkwardly said to her.
"...Seriously, what is it?"
"Do you want to know? Do you really want to know?"
Akira only gave that short reaction and turned his vehicle back on. But he was not heading back to his home.
"I want to replenish my ammo and medicines first, I did use quite a lot of them today after all."
First, Akira went to Katsuragi's trailer, and in order to reach it, he had to go out to the wasteland again.
In the middle of traversing the wasteland, Alpha was still smiling at him. Akira was bothered by it, so he decided to ask her again.
"Do you want to know?"
Akira thought that it must be another unimportant thing. Alpha then said with still a big smile on her face.
As Akira somehow regained control of his vehicle, Alpha continued.
"It's not like I doubted you when you said that you trust me, but still, it really gives a strong impression when you actually show it with your body. After all, there are a lot of people out there who, although they don't lie when they speak, would lose their bravado when they have to prove it with real action."
Akira stopped his vehicle to check if his vehicle was okay.
"It's great that we deepen our trust for each other, it would allow me to provide you with more support. So yes, let's keep working hard together from here and on. I'll be in your care, Akira."
Akira restarted his vehicle and slowly drove it forward. He then kept her eyes forward as he said to Alpha who was smiling happily next to him.
As Alpha was still smiling next to him, Akira snapped at her as if he was trying to hide his embarrassment.
"Destructive force, huh..."
Akira bought quite a lot of expensive medicines, it showed that he was wounded badly enough for him to use that much medicine. Since it would be bad for Katsuragi if he lost one of his regulars, he suggested to Akira a set of equipment with high destructive power.
Kill before getting killed. That was the basics of fighting monsters. Katsuragi told Akira that what he currently lacked was the destructive power to do that.
Akira's main firepower was his CWH anti-material rifle and DVTS minigun. Although he was able to defeat the autonomous weapons with those guns, it was true that he had some problems fighting the mechanical monsters inside and outside the Seranthal building.
Akira was heading to Shizuka's shop while thinking of asking for Shizuka's opinion about it. Moreover, it seemed that Akira also had no plans to pay Katsuragi more money although he was the one who made that suggestion to Akira in the first place. It was just simply a matter of trust.
When Akira arrived at Shizuka's shop, it was right when Shizuka was about to close her shop. The sky had already darkened, save for the shops that were only open at night, normal shops would already be closed at that time.
Akira stopped his vehicle in front of Shizuka's shop.
"Shizuka-san, are you already done for the day?"
"Akira, well, yes, but it's fine, come in."
"Is it really okay?"
"Of course. After all, I want to increase the chance of you getting promoted from being a regular candidate to a real regular to my shop."
"Thank you very much."
Akira parked his vehicle in the shop's parking lot and went inside the shop. After he went in, Shizuka flipped the signboard of the front door and went inside too. Because the sun had already set, she could not notice that Akira brought a different vehicle than the one that he bought from her shop just the other day.
"Akira, you're ordering nothing but extended magazines though? Are you sure about this? It might get a little expensive, you know?"
For Hunters who often fought powerful monsters, running out of ammo in the middle of a fight was fatal. And there was a limit on how much ammo they could bring with them when they were exploring a ruin far away from the city. So in order to solve this issue, there were all kinds of extended magazines sold in the eastern district.
And of course, that kind of magazine was more expensive than the usual magazine. Some of them cost 2 to 3 times more than a usual magazine and depending on its quality, some of them even cost 10 times more. So if they had no plans to go somewhere dangerous where they had to use those kinds of extended magazines, it would be much more profitable to buy normal magazines.
Shizuka stared at Akira. There was no mistaking that Akira had a reason as to why he would pick extended magazines in place of normal magazines even if it would need him to spend more money.
Shizuka smiled at him, she was putting extra pressure on Akira with that smile as she asked.
"So then, what kind of dangerous stuff did you do through this time?"
"I see. Well, it's fine then if that's the case. It's better to abandon your relics and save your own life rather than dying with relics on your back. As long as you return back alive, you'll get another chance. So I'm glad that you're okay."
Akira made an invisible sigh. It seemed that he did not have to explain the fact that he did crazy things like jumping off a tall building and running on its wall. And of course, even Shizuka's sharp intuition could not notice that far.
"Destructive power? What do you mean by that?"
"Well, it's just that one of my acquaintances told me that I'm lacking firepower. Fighting monsters is basically boiled down to killing those monsters before getting killed. And it seems that if I have trouble fighting monsters, that means I lack sufficient firepower. Honestly speaking, since I'm carrying 2 guns that I won't be able to use without the help of my augmented suit, I thought that these 2 guns would be enough. But am I really lacking firepower?"
After hearing what Akira said, Shizuka thought for a bit before answering back.
"...Let's see, I think it depends on your line of thinking. It's true that if you fight a swarm of monsters, you would need more firepower no matter how much firepower you already have. There are also cases where areas that were originally relatively safe suddenly get filled with powerful monsters. But of course, it's not like you need to prepare yourself for something like that all the time. After all, it might hurt your wallet if you do that... If it's okay for me to say something for my own benefit, I would say that you indeed lack of firepower and I would suggest you buy more equipment from me though."
Akira thought about it seriously and made his decision.
"Alright, I understand. I'll buy more equipment."
"...Uhmmm, there's no need to force yourself, you know?"
"I don't mind, after all, I'm buying new equipment so that I won't have a hard time fighting monsters. Well, it's true that I don't have so much money that I can carelessly spend, but rather than putting my life in danger, I would rather put my wallet in danger. So, I'll take a gun that you would recommend me."
Now that Akira had gone and said it, it was not like Shizuka could back out and not recommend him anything. So in order to answer his trust, she smiled and said.
"Alright. Let's see, if it's for the current you... Wait here for a bit."
Shizuka went to the warehouse after saying that. Not too long after that, she returned with a rifle that she picked for Akira.
"It's A4WM automatic grenade launcher. Since it shoots out grenades, you don't need to aim precisely at your target. It packs quite a lot of punch that would work against monsters with strong armour. And you can use it for indirect fire too, depending on the type of grenades that you load, you can bounce the grenades off the wall and shoot the monsters on the other side of a corner. If you're looking for an addition to your current equipment, I think this is the perfect choice for you. It's only downside is the ammo expense though, after all, it shoots out grenades."
"I see, so, how much does it cost?"
"About that though, give me a sec."
Shizuka went to the warehouse one more time. She then returned back with grenade launcher magazines and other extra equipment.
"I think you already understand this, but you can't use it without ammo and there are a lot of grenade magazine types that you can use. I'll sell the gun and the ammo as a set, so listen to my explanation first about the characteristics and the power of each type of grenades magazine and their respective price before deciding which one to take, okay?"
Even after listening to Shizuka's explanation, Akira was not sure which one to buy. So he ended up deciding based on the firepower and the size of the grenades as he picked the most expensive set.
Akira then loaded his new equipment and his reserve ammo into his vehicle. After that, he said his goodbye to Shizuka who was seeing him off outside the shop.
"Thank you very much for today, I'm sorry for coming here after you closed the shop."
"It's fine. Not to mention, you also bought some equipment from me. So don't worry about it. Be careful on your way back, okay?"
Shizuka waved her hand, Akira lightly bowed and turned his vehicle on.
As she saw Akira off, she mumbled.
"...Like I said, in the end, he did buy some of the equipment that I'm selling, so this is fine."
Shizuka was answering her own question there. Although she might have missed a business opportunity there because she was concerned about Akira's wallet, result-wise, there should not be any problem. In the end, she was still a merchant and Akira was still her customer.
Rebuild World (WN)
リビルドワールド
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/rebuild-world/
Action Adventure Drama Harem Mecha Mystery Sci-fi Seinen
Abandoned Children Adapted to Manga Adventurers Alternate World Anti-social Protagonist Apocalypse Artificial Intelligence Beautiful Female Lead Cautious Protagonist Child Protagonist Dense Protagonist Determined Protagonist Distrustful Protagonist Futuristic Setting Gangs Gunfighters Harsh Training Lack of Common Sense Male Protagonist Manipulative Characters Monsters Near-Death Experience Older Love Interests Poor Protagonist Poor to Rich Ruthless Protagonist Shota Sudden Strength Gain Survival Twisted Personality Unlucky Protagonist Weak to Strong
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n9736dt/
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