め事を起こしては駄目よ?』
『分かってる。エレナさん達もいるんだ。向こうだって別に
アキラは楽観的に捉えているが、アルファは僅かに険しい表情でそれを否定した。
またアキラが何か仕出かすかもしれないとアルファは考えている。アキラはアルファの態度からそう判断して、自重するように自身に言い聞かせた。
「当然だ。相手が何を言おうと、俺に丸投げしてくれれば良い」
シカラベはそう言い切った。事情を理解していないアキラがエレナ達の顔を見る。察したサラがアキラに説明する。
「エレナが言ってたでしょ? 人員の相性で問題があったって。元々はもっと多い人数で探索する予定だったのよ。でもドランカムがメンバーとして派遣したハンターの中にシカラベと非常に仲の悪いハンターがいたみたいで、シカラベが合流を嫌がったのよ」
アキラはサラとエレナから事情を説明してもらった。
サラ、エレナ、シカラベの3人は前線基地構築補助作業の依頼を受けたハンターだ。サラとエレナは2人1組のチームとしてモンスターの
クズスハラ街遺跡の奥部へ続く通路を確保する
仮設基地構築の司令部は地上部の通路確保のために確保していたハンターの一部を、仕方なく地下街の制圧にまわすことにした。それがサラ、エレナ、シカラベの3人が地下街にいる経緯だ。
3人とも元々前線に配置されていた実力のあるハンターだ。その3人に現場のハンターを数人加えれば探索チームとして十分機能する。シカラベがドランカムに所属していることも有り、ドランカムから追加人員を派遣して探索チームとする予定だった。
しかしそこで問題が起こる。ドランカムから派遣された追加のハンターがカツヤ達だったのだ。
ドランカム内でシカラベとカツヤは完全に敵対していた。特にシカラベはカツヤが大嫌いだった。
シカラベはカツヤ達が自分達の探索チームに加わることを強硬に反対した。カツヤ達を加えるならば自分は抜けること、カツヤ達がいない分の負担は自分が責任を持つこと、その他いろいろなことを言いだした。万一の事態には自身が
「いい加減にしろ! 俺はもうあんたの部下じゃないんだ! あんたの指示に従う義理はない! あんたの我が
でエレナさん達にどれだけ迷惑が掛かっているかも分からないのか!?」
エレナ達に同行できると聞いてカツヤは喜んでいた。成長した自分達の実力をエレナ達に見せて、自分達の評価を取り戻す良い機会だと考えていた。シカラベも同行することに不満があったが、カツヤはそれは我慢するつもりだったのだ。
しかしシカラベはその機会そのものを彼の我が
カツヤが険しい表情でシカラベを説得しようとする。
「このまま3人だけで探索を続ける気か? 俺が嫌だからってドランカムから別のハンターが派遣されることはないぞ。いつまで意地を張る気なんだ?」
カツヤはドランカムの管理側に連絡を取っていた。カツヤ達を探索チームに
管理側の決定は、現場で話を付けろ、だった。管理側としてはドランカムの古参で実力もあるハンターのシカラベと、若手のハンターの代表的な立場になりつつあるカツヤのどちらかに、管理側の権限で行動を強制するのは避けたかったのだ。
管理側が一度シカラベの肩を持ったことは、ドランカム側から他のハンターを派遣しないことで相殺としている。シカラベの実力では対処が困難なほどモンスターの脅威度が高ければ、カツヤ達が探索チームに加わることができるだろう。カツヤはそう考えて、探索から返ってきたシカラベ達に接触したのだ。
「ああ。大丈夫だ。追加要員なら本部が用意してくれた。アキラだ。実に強そうだろ? 昨日も大量のヤラタサソリを撃退したハンターだ。本部のお墨付きだぞ?」
そう言ってシカラベがアキラをカツヤに紹介した。カツヤ達の視線がアキラに集中する。カツヤ達はアキラのことに気付いていたが、探索チームの追加要員だとは考えていなかった。単にエレナ達の知り合いなので話していたのだろうと思っていたのだ。
「だから何だ? 本部がわざわざ用意してくれた人員だ。何の問題もないな。第一エレナとサラだって、ドランカム所属のハンターじゃないだろう」
「十分な戦果が見込める依頼で人員の追加が必要な場合は、ドランカム所属のハンターを優先して追加する決まりだろ!」
「それは役立たずを連れて行って苦労した挙げ句、報酬まで分け与えろって意味じゃないんだよ。今までの経験で勘違いでもしてたのか?」
腰で言い争っていた。2人ともこの場で交戦しないだけの理性は残っているがそれだけだ。周囲に多数のハンターがいる状況でなければ危険だったかもしれない。
「時間よ。出発するわ」
エレナはそれだけ言って歩き出した。サラとアキラがそれに続く。シカラベはカツヤを小馬鹿にするように笑ってからエレナ達の後を追った。
カツヤは去っていくシカラベの姿を
「......また、あいつか!」
アキラがいなければシカラベが折れてカツヤ達を探索チームに加えたかもしれない。カツヤは無意識にそう断定して忌ま忌ましそうに
エレナが率いる探索チームに加わったアキラは険しい表情で地下街を進んでいた。
探索チームには様々な役割が割り当てられている。アキラ達第9探索チームの主な仕事は、地下街の未調査部分のマップ構築だ。地下街の構造を最低でも
アキラ達はかなりの移動速度で地下街を進んでいる。アキラの感覚では早すぎるペースだ。
アキラは知らなかったが、エレナはアキラの実力を確認する
『アキラ。索敵の訓練は中止よ。私が索敵を引き継ぐから少し休みなさい。その調子だと何かあった時にアキラの疲労が限界に来るかもしれないわ』
『......悪い。正直限界だった。頼んで良いか?』
アルファが自信を持って答えた。それはアキラに大きな安心感を与え、アキラの索敵動作に明確な緩みを生み出した。
シカラベがアキラに意識を向けていたことにアキラは気付いていなかった。シカラベが唐突にアキラに尋ねる。
「アキラ。右の状況は?」
アキラが少し驚きながら答える。
「......50メートル先にヤラタサソリが3体いる。動かないから多分死んでる。擬死だとしても進行方向でもないし近寄ってくる気配もないから無視して良いだろう」
シカラベがエレナを見る。エレナに状況の確認を求めているのだ。エレナが簡潔に答える。
シカラベはエレナの返事を聞いて少し意外そうな表情を浮かべて話す。
「了解だ。何だ、索敵をサボり始めたかと思ったが、ちゃんとやってるな。俺の勘の方が鈍ったか?」
アキラはアルファの言葉を繰り返しただけだ。何とか動揺を抑えて平静を保ったが、それでも表情には僅かな焦りと驚きの色が浮かんでいた。
(......ばっちり
シカラベは別にアキラを注意するつもりで尋ねたわけではない。元々アキラは火力担当として加わったのだ。アキラの索敵能力に少々不備があってもエレナが補えばすむだけだ。
気になるのならば念のためにシカラベが右側の警戒を少々高めて対応すれば良い。右側の警戒を高めるべきかどうかを判断するための質問だったのだ。
サラとエレナもアキラの索敵に少し驚いていた。情報収集要員であるエレナに迫る精度だったからだ。アキラが索敵においてもそこまで優秀だとはサラもエレナも予想外だった。2人の予想は正解でもある。実際に周囲を警戒していたのはアルファだからだ。
を言った借りは、俺が先頭に立つことでしっかり返しているだろ? 最終的にはリーダーの同意も取ったじゃないか」
アキラが少し意外そうにエレナの方を見る。エレナはカツヤ達5人よりシカラベ1人の方が戦力になると判断したことになるからだ。
アキラにはカツヤ達がそこまで弱いとは思えない。そしてシカラベがそこまで強いとも思えない。アキラの疑問はエレナにしっかり伝わった。
「......何かあった場合に、カツヤ達が私の指示に大人しく従ってくれるかどうかが微妙なのよね」
エレナも気の進まない選択をしたことは自覚があるようだ。
サラが苦笑しながらアキラに話を付け足す。
「エレナはちょっと心配性なところがあるけど、皆の安全を考えての判断なの。ただでさえ即席の部隊で、しかも部隊の人数が多いといろいろあるかもしれないからね。余り悪く捉えないであげてね」
アキラが笑って答える。
「いえ、人数が多い方が安全だろうと素人考えで判断して少し不思議に思っただけです。エレナさんの判断を疑ったとか、そういうことではありません。エレナさんの判断なら俺も正しいと思います」
「同感だな。俺もエレナの判断は的確だと断言しよう。俺は連中とはちょっと縁があって連中のことはいろいろ知っているんだ。カツヤは自分の判断が正しいと考えて勝手に動く。ユミナとアイリはカツヤを擁護してカツヤの指示に従う。レイナは
「......その情報の精度は別にして、その手の懸念事項は減らしておきたい。それがカツヤ達を連れて行かなかった一番の理由よ。私も誤った指示を出さないように精進するから、アキラもなるべく私の指示に従ってちょうだい。そう指示する理由を知りたい場合は、尋ねてもらえればちゃんと答えるから」
「分かりました。大丈夫です。仮にエレナさんの指示が多少間違っていても、俺の判断よりは良い結果になると思ってます。俺が指示の理由を聞いた時は、その指示に不満があるんじゃなくて、その指示の理由を理解して勉強しようとしていると思ってください」
アキラは本心でそう答えた。アキラは自分に優れた判断力があるとは
「その信頼に応えられるように頑張るわ」
サラがエレナを見てにやにやしている。エレナがサラの様子に気付いて少し威圧的な笑みをサラに向ける。サラは視線を素早く地下街の通路の奥へ向けた。
一行は順調に地下街の探索を続けていた。地下街は元々入り組んだ構造の上に、落盤などで塞がれている通路やシャッターなどで封鎖されている場所の所為で、今では迷路に近い有様だ。
その地下街を迷ったりせずに進むことができるのは、エレナの高い情報収集能力のおかげだ。エレナは地形情報を取得して地下街の見取図を作成しつつ、移動距離や周辺の情報から正確な現在位置を割り出している。そしてモンスターが生息している場所や、襲撃された場合に不利になる場所を割り出し、安全なルートを選択して地下街を進んでいるのである。
アキラ達は途中数度モンスター達と交戦した。大半は先頭にいるシカラベが一人で撃退し、モンスター数が多い場合は4人がかりで
アキラ達の中で一番負担が多いのは先頭のシカラベだ。シカラベは宣言通りカツヤ達の代わりになるだけの戦果を上げていた。
当然だがそれだけシカラベが多く消耗することになる。体力も精神も、消費する弾薬の量もだ。
そろそろ交代した方が良いだろう。エレナがそう判断する。
シカラベが続行を提案するが、エレナが却下する。
「体力は十分でも弾薬は消費したでしょう? 余裕があるうちに交代した方が良いわ。疲労の回復でも、弾薬消費量を
「了解だ。......なら一度アキラを先頭にしないか?」
シカラベがそう提案すると、エレナが
「万一に備えて、念のためアキラがどの程度戦えるか確認しておきたい。俺らに余裕がある時なら、仮にアキラが不覚をとっても十分カバーできるだろう。どうだ? まあ、アキラが嫌なら無理強いはしない」
確かに本格的な戦闘になった場合にアキラがどの程度エレナ達の足を引っ張るかは早めに確認しておいた方が良いだろう。アキラもそう判断してエレナに答える。
最終的な判断をするのはエレナだ。エレナがアキラの実力では任せられないと判断するなら、アキラはそれで構わなかった。
エレナはシカラベの意見も一理あるとしてシカラベの案を受け入れる。
「分かったわ。アキラはシカラベと交代して。アキラは絶対無理をしないこと。サラとシカラベは、私の指示を待たず2人の判断でアキラが危険だと判断したらすぐに援護に入ること。良いわね?」
アキラは普通に、サラはアキラとエレナを安心させるように、シカラベはどこか楽しそうに答えた。
移動を再開する前にアルファがアキラに尋ねる。
『今のうちにアキラに聞いておくけれど、私はどの程度アキラをサポートした方が良い?』
アキラにはアルファの質問の意図が分からなかった。アキラが少し不思議そうに答える。
『......どの程度って、できる限りしっかり頼む』
『一応提案しておくわ。ここで多少手を抜いて、防衛チームに配属されるのを期待するって手もあるわ。ここで活躍しすぎると、明日はもっと危険な場所に配属されるかもしれない。それを踏まえて、どうする?』
アルファの説明で、アキラはやっと理解が追いついた。確かにその手もあるのだろう。アキラはアルファの説明に一応の納得を示した後で答える。
『......確かにそういう考えもあるけど、そんなことをするとエレナさん達に迷惑が掛かる。構わずに全力でサポートしてくれ』
『まあ、そう言うと思っていたわ。了解したわ。任せなさい』
"I don't think I even need to tell you this, but be a good boy and try not to cause a fight, okay?"
"I know, Elena-san and the others are here too. I'm sure they're not here to pick a fight either."
Akira looked confident with his guess, but Alpha refuted him making a serious face.
From how Alpha was acting, Akira thought that she was worried if he would cause a problem. So he reminded himself to act carefully.
"Of course. You can just blame me for everything he says."
Shikarabe stated that out flatly. Akira, who did not know what was going on, looked at Elena. Sara noticed him and explained the situation to him.
"Just like Elena said, there was a compatibility problem earlier. Originally, we planned to go out with more people. But it seems that among the Hunters that Drankam sent, there's a Hunter that Shikarabe just can't get along with, and so Shikarabe vehemently said that he would not go with that Hunter."
Sara and Elena then told everything to Akira.
Sara, Elena and Shikarabe were originally a part of the temporary base construction aid request. Sara and Elena formed a team of two and were given the duty to patrol the area and take out any monsters they find. While Shikarabe was dispatched together with the other Hunters from Drankam and had similar duties.
But on the outskirts of the ruins, where there should be only weak monsters, they encountered Yarata Scorpion swarms. Then a later investigation showed that there were multiple Yarata Scorpion nests in the underground city. Given the size of the underground city, it was perfectly possible for it to be connected to the deeper part of the Kuzusuhara Ruin.
Because of that, the commander in the temporal HQ on the surface had no other choice but to send some of the Hunters from the surface to the underground. And that was the reason why Elena, Sara and Shikarabe were here.
The three of them were originally skilled Hunters who were stationed in the front line. They only needed to pick up some Hunters immediately to form an exploration team. Since Shikarabe was affiliated with Drankam, the original plan was to team up with some other Hunters that Drankam had dispatched to form an exploration team.
But there was a problem. The Hunters that Drankam sent were Katsuya's team.
Even in Drankam, Katsuya and Shikarabe just could not get along with each other. Especially Shikarabe, he really hated Katsuya's guts.
Shikarabe was strongly against the idea of teaming up with Katsuya and his friends. He said that he would step out if they joined the team, or that he would do all their worth of work too, so there's no need to take Katsuya's team. He even said that if things got really bad, he did not mind if Elena and Sara used him as a decoy to save themselves.
"Give it a break already!! I'm no longer working under you!! I have no reason to listen to you!! Don't you know that you're troubling Elena-san and Sara-san just because of your selfishness!?"
"Before spouting something like that, you should know how much trouble you'll be giving them if we let you join the group. Now get lost!!"
Katsuya was so happy when he found out that he would be dispatched together with Elena and Sara, he thought that it was the chance to show them his growth and redeem himself from their last evaluation of him. Although he also hated the idea of being in the same group with Shikarabe, he was planning to endure it.
But Shikarabe cut short that opportunity just because of his selfishness. So it was understandable that Katsuya was angry at Shikarabe.
Katsuya's face tensed up as he tried to convince Shikarabe.
"Are you seriously planning to go out with only the three of you?! Drankam would not send another Hunter here just because you hate me, you know!! How long are you planning to be so stubborn?!!"
Katsuya did contact Drankam's management beforehand, he was hoping that the management side would give their absolute order to Shikarabe, who was so vehemently opposed to Katsuya joining the exploration team.
But in the end, the management side told them to sort it out themselves. It was because Drankam's management wanted to avoid using its right to force Shikarabe, who was a veteran and skilled Hunter or Katsuya, who was like the representative of the young Hunters in the gang.
Although the Drankam's management sided with Shikarabe, they did not send another Hunter from Drankam here. So Katsuya thought if Shikarabe met a monster strong enough to give him a hard time, he might let Katsuya join the exploration team. That was why he went to talk to Shikarabe who just returned from an exploration.
"Don't worry about that. The HQ already sent an extra Hunter. It's Akira. He seems to be pretty strong, doesn't he? It seems that he took out a huge number of Yarata Scorpions yesterday, even the HQ approved him, you know?"
Shikarabe said that and introduced Akira to Katsuya. Katsuya and his friends turned to Akira. They did notice Akira's presence, but they did not think that he would be the extra Hunter for the exploration team. They thought that he was only talking to Sara and Elena since they knew each other.
"So what? The HQ was the one who recommended him. I bet he'll do just fine. In the first place, Elena and Sara are not from Drankam too, am I wrong?"
"Our rule says that when we need a skilled Hunter for a certain request, we'll be prioritizing Hunters from Drankam!!"
"That doesn't mean that we have to take deadweight useless Hunters with us and divide our hard-earned reward with them, you know. Are you misunderstanding everything that you've experienced up until now or something?!"
Shikarabe was looking down at Katsuya, and Katsuya was glaring at Shikarabe with rage. They were totally against each other. The only reason why it did not break into a fight was because both of them knew that they should not fight in that place. If it was not for the Hunters around them, it would have been a very dangerous situation.
"It's time, let's go."
Elena immediately turned and left the place after saying that, Akira and Sara just silently followed behind her. Shikarabe smiled mockingly at Katsuya before following suit.
Katsuya kept glaring at Shikarabe's back as he was leaving that place, his gaze then shifted to Akira.
"...That boy again, huh?!"
If Akira was not there, Shikarabe might back off and let Katsuya join their exploration team. Katsuya unconsciously thought so as he mumbled angrily.
Akira who just joined the exploration team headed by Elena continued walking deeper into the underground ruin with a grim face.
Every exploration team was given a certain job. The exploration team number 9 to which Akira was assigned to, got the duty to map an uncharted area of the underground city. In order to at least understand the rough layout of the uncharted area, they brought a survey device to map out their surrounding.
The whole team was moving pretty fast, too fast for Akira.
He did not know that Elena adjusted the whole team to move slower than usual in order to check Akira's skill. But even so, it took everything that he had to barely be able to match up with their speed.
"Akira, let's stop the training here. I'll be watching out for any monsters, so you can relax for a bit. If we stay like this, you might get too tired to handle the situation in case if anything bad happens."
"...I'm sorry. To be honest, I'm already at my limit right now. So, is it okay if I leave it to you?"
Alpha replied back confidently. It gave Akira a sense of security as he obviously relaxed his guard.
Akira did not know that Shikarabe was actually observing him. Shikarabe suddenly asked him.
"Akira, how's the right side?"
Akira was a bit surprised as he quickly replied back.
"...There are 3 Yarata Scorpions about 50 metres ahead. They're not moving, so I think they're dead. But even if they're just playing dead, since they're not in our way and it doesn't seem like they're coming here either, I think it's fine to just ignore them."
Shikarabe turned to Elena, he was asking for her confirmation, so Elena quickly responded.
Shikarabe looked a bit surprised when he heard Elena's answer.
"Roger that... That's weird, here I thought that he lowered his guard, but it seems that he's doing his job properly, huh. I guess my intuition has dulled."
Of course, Akira was only repeating what Alpha said to him. Although he tried his best to hide his shock and keep calm, there was still a trace of shock on his face.
[...That was a close call.]
It was not like Shikarabe asked Akira that question in order to warn him. Akira was added to that team as extra firepower in the first place. So even if he lacked surveillance skills, Elena could cover him just fine.
If it bothered him, Shikarabe could just watch his right side too, it was only a question to help him judge whether he should do that or not.
Sara and Elena were surprised by how proficient Akira was. After all, that level of area scan was close to Elena's level who specialized in that skill. Sara and Elena did not think that Akira's searching ability was that good, but of course, their prediction was correct. After all, in reality, it was Alpha who was scanning the area.
"Don't say that, I did volunteer myself to be in the front as an exchange for my selfishness, right? And in the end, you being the leader of the group also approved it, didn't you?"
Akira turned to Elena in surprise, and that remark by Shikarabe meant that she decided to bring Shikarabe alone rather than bringing 5 people in Katsuya's team.
Akira did not think that Katsuya was that weak and he also did not think that Shikarabe was so strong. Elena could catch Akira's line of thinking from his expression.
"...I'm not sure if they would listen to my command in case if we're in a pinch, you see."
It seemed that Elena knew that she made a difficult choice.
Sara smiled bitterly and joined their conversation.
"Well, Elena is a worrywart after all, but you decided to take that option thinking that it was the best option for our safety. This team was formed on the spot, so it might be a bad idea to suddenly form a big team. So please don't think bad of her, okay?"
Akira smiled as he answered back.
"Of course not, it's just that because of my inexperience, I thought that more people would definitely mean it would be safer, that was why I found it a little strange. It's not like I'm doubting Elena-san's decision. If Elena-san thinks so, I'm sure that it's the correct decision."
"I agree with that. I can assure you that it was the correct decision. I used to work together with them, you see. So I know a lot of things about them. Katsuya often takes action without approval thinking that he's absolutely correct. Yumina and Airi are only there to support him, so they obey whatever he says. Reina is impulsive and hot-tempered. While Shiori is only there prioritizing Reina's safety. All of them are full of problems. Especially that Katsuya, if he finds something that he doesn't like, he'll always go with voting and take over the command. Since the other 4 are always backing him, his opinion will always come out on top. He would not even notice that and insist that it's a decision they made together. I can guarantee that. If they do something like that in the uncharted area of the underground city, it'll definitely break the team. In the worst-case scenario, it might even cause the whole team to get wiped out. That's why it would be a big mistake to bring them here."
"...Leaving aside whether that information is accurate or not, I wanted to cut off the need to worry for something like that and that's the biggest reason why I decided not to bring them here. I'll be very careful not to give any bad orders, so Akira, be sure to obey my orders, okay? If you want to know why I give you a certain order, you can just ask me and I'll explain it to you."
"I understand, don't worry, even if you make a bad decision, I'm sure that it's still better than if I were to make the decision myself. And when I ask you about your reason, that's not because I want to complain, please think of it that I only ask the reason just in order to learn."
Akira was being honest when he said that, he did not think even for a second that his judging ability was better than Elena. Moreover, Alpha herself also recognized Elena's skill. So he had no reason to doubt her decision.
"I'll give my best to answer your trust."
Sara was smiling mischievously when she saw how Elena was acting. Elena noticed her and returned with an intimidating smile, so Sara quickly turned her face back to watching the hallway.
They continued their exploration without any trouble. The underground city had a very complex design in the first place, and on top of that, the crumbled rubbles blocked some hallways and there were shutters that sealed some areas. Because of that, the underground city felt like a labyrinth.
The only reason why they could venture safely deep into the underground city without getting lost was because of Elena's information analysis skill. She used the gathered topological information of the area to create a rough map and used the special features of the area around them in tandem with the direction and distance they travelled to accurately ascertain their position. She was also avoiding areas with monsters and any other dangerous areas where other Hunters had encountered monsters, to pick the safest route.
They encountered some monsters during their exploration. Most of the time, Shikarabe who was in the front would take them out all by himself, and when the monsters were too many for him, 4 of them would work together to repel the monsters. Most of the monsters that they met were Yarata Scorpions, but their numbers were not huge. They continued exploring the underground city without facing much trouble.
Among all 4 of them, Shikarabe was the one who worked the hardest since he was in the lead position. Just like he said, he took Katsuya's team's worth of work too, that was why he had the biggest workload.
Of course, it put Shikarabe under more stress, it shaved his physical and psychical stamina as well as his ammo reserve faster.
Elena thought that it was time to rotate the position as she said to Sara.
Although Shikarabe said that, Elena immediately rejected his suggestion.
"Even if you have the stamina, it's not like you have an unlimited amount of ammo, right? It's better to rotate when we have the chance. Not only can you take a rest, but it'll also conserve your ammo too."
"I see, alright... In that case, how about Akira takes the lead?"
Elena looked puzzled when Shikarabe made that suggestion.
"I want to confirm his ability. Since we're not in a relatively dangerous area, we can handle the situation even if he misses something and gets ambushed by surprise. So what do you think? Well, I won't force it if Akira doesn't want to do it though."
It was true that it was a good idea to confirm whether Akira would handle well during a real fight or would drag them down. Akira also thought so as he said to Elena.
In the end, Elena had the final say in that team. Even if she judged that he did not have the skill to do that job, Akira did not mind at all.
Elena also agreed with Shikarabe's suggestion, so she decided to rotate Akira's position to the front.
"Alright then. Akira, exchange position with Shikarabe and take the point. Be sure not to do anything reckless, okay? Also, Sara and Shikarabe, if you think that Akira is in danger, there's no need to wait for my orders to help him, okay?"
Akira was completely neutral, Sara and Elena smiled gently to reassure him, while Shikarabe sounded as if he was looking forward to it.
Alpha then asked Akira before he changed position.
"Let me ask you this while we still have the chance, how much support do you want from me?"
Akira did not understand why Alpha asked that question. He looked puzzled as he answered back.
"...How much, you ask? Full support, please."
"This is just an idea, if you want, you can lower your performance so you might get assigned to the defense team next time. On the other hand, if you do too well, they might send you to a more dangerous place next time. So, with that in mind, what do you want?"
Akira finally understood why Alpha asked that question after listening to her explanation. He realized that he had such an option after he understood what Alpha actually meant, he then said.
"...Hmmm, it's true that I can do that, but if I do that, I'll be causing more trouble for the others. So give me full support, just like usual."
"Well, I knew you would say that. Alright then, just leave it to me."
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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