アルファが急に部屋の出入り口を見る。アキラがつられて同じ場所を見ると、そこからキャロルとヴィオラが現れた。
アキラ以外の者達もキャロルとヴィオラに気付いた。キャロルとヴィオラは部屋を見渡すと、少し話してから別行動を取る。ヴィオラはカツラギとトメジマの方へ向かい、キャロルはアキラの方に歩いてくる。
しいわ。奇遇ね。アキラ」
「そうだな。キャロル。何か用か?」
「暇つぶしにアキラと雑談でもしようと思って。忙しいの?」
「いや、大丈夫だ」
「それは良かったわ」
アキラは旧世界の遺物を陳列していた台の上に座っていた。キャロルがアキラの隣に自然に腰掛ける。
キャロルはボディスーツ系の戦闘服を着ている。ミハゾノ街遺跡でキャロルが着ていた旧世界風の過激なデザインの戦闘服と比べるとかなり落ち着いた服装に見える。それでもキャロルの魅力的な体の線が強く出ているため、異性に慣れていない者にとっては十分
アキラがキャロルに注意する。
「座るのは勝手だが、台が壊れないように気を付けて座ってくれ」
「それにしても、随分派手に戦ったみたいね?」
アキラが不服そうに反論する。
「俺の所為じゃない」
キャロルがアキラの反応を少し意外に思う。アキラがその手のことを気にする人間だとは思っていなかったからだ。キャロルにアキラを非難する気持ちは
「確かに、これはここを襲ってきた連中の所為であって、アキラの所為ではないわね」
アキラが少し不思議そうにした後で、キャロルの勘違いに気付いて首を横に振る。
「そうじゃない。戦闘が終わった後の部屋はもっと
アキラはキャロルの話の意味が分からず、表情に疑問符を浮かべていた。
キャロルはアキラの様子に気が付くと、少し意地の悪い笑顔を浮かべて尋ねる。
「何を言っているか分からないって顔ね。もし知りたいなら、私の予想を交えた話で良いなら説明しても良いわよ?」
興味のある話なので、アキラは特に考えずに
「情報料......って言ったら、アキラはどうする?」
「情報料って......」
じゃないのよ? アキラだってそれぐらい分かるでしょう?」
「......まあ、そうだけどさ」
真に受けるか、冗談と取るか、笑って流すか、気の利いた返事をするか。キャロルはアキラの反応から、アキラという人格の基準、指針、思考などを深く探ろうとしていた。
アキラの反応に不満や嫌悪、拒否反応等の態度がある程度強く表れていた場合、キャロルはすぐに軽い冗談で言ったことにしてアキラに謝り、アキラの機嫌を取りながら説明を始めていただろう。
アキラは悩み考え込んでいる。キャロルはアキラの様子を観察しながらアキラの返事を待っている。
「......その手の冗談は嫌いだ」
少し不機嫌そうに答えたアキラの様子を見て、キャロルは裏でアキラへの理解を深めながら、
キャロルはアキラの態度からいろいろと読み取りながら思う。
(アキラは冗談の通じない方か、金の絡む冗談が嫌いなのか。この態度から考えると、両方のような気がするわね。アキラを口説く時には、下手な冗談は慎みますか)
キャロルは内心を表に出さずに、調子良く
な借金を背負わせた上で長期に渡って回収することになる。だが誰かの額に銃を突きつけて法外な利息の大金の借用書に同意の署名をさせたからといって、それが東部で有効な債権として扱われるかどうかといえば、否だ。なぜなら東部最大の権力機関である統企連がそれを許さないからだ。
統企連は東部での健全で公平で自由で平和な経済活動を阻害する要因を一切許可しないと宣言している。実際に取り締まるかどうかは別として、それらの規則等をしっかり公布している。何よりも誰よりも自分達の経済活動のために。
東部で犯罪とはつまり何かといえば、それは統企連への敵対行動を意味する。統企連は都市の防壁の外側でハンター同士が殺し合っても
正当性のない理由で誰かに借金を背負わせることも、健全な経済活動を阻害や畏縮させる犯罪であり、統企連への敵対行動なのだ。
そのためカツラギ達が襲撃犯の生存者に借金を背負わせるためには、その借金の正当性を示す必要がある。そこには借金となる和解金の額の妥当性も含まれる。自分を殺そうとしたので和解金は1兆オーラムにする、などということはできないのだ。
そしてその正当性が認められれば、統企連を介した対象の財産の差し押さえも可能だ。銀行の口座やハンターオフィスの口座の差し押さえも可能になる。不足分の債権をハンターオフィスに売却することすら可能だ。
カツラギ達が部屋を汚しているのは、高額な和解金の正当性の理由付けのためである。そこで凄惨な戦闘が行われたという光景を記録して、和解金と損害賠償の額を上げようとしているのだ。
アキラはキャロルの説明を聞いてから、もう一度部屋を見渡して
キャロルはそう答えると、カツラギ達と交渉をしているヴィオラを指差した。
「彼女はヴィオラっていう、まあ何というか、その手の裏ごとにも通じている交渉人とか事件屋とか、そういう人間なのよ。私はヴィオラの護衛でここに来たのだけど、ヴィオラは独自の情報網で今回の件を聞きつけたんでしょうね。今回の襲撃の件はヴィオラから聞いたわ」
「カツラギが呼んだやつじゃないのか?」
「多分勝手に来たのよ。そしてヴィオラには勝手に来ても追い返されないだけの実力がある。何を話しているかは知らないけど、えげつない交渉でもしているんでしょうね。彼女の護衛を引き受けた私が言うのも何だけど、かなり質の悪い女だから、関わり合いにならない方が良いわよ? 交渉事に慣れていないのなら
みながら冗談めかしてそう話した。しかし本気でそう言っていることはアキラにも何となく分かった。
「キャロルがそう言うのなら気を付けるよ」
キャロルはアキラを籠絡しようとしている最中なのだ。ヴィオラに余計な手出しをされては困るのだ。
カツラギ達が交渉を続けている。カツラギ、トメジマ、シェリル、ヴィオラの4人がそれぞれ異なる表情で話を進めている。
トメジマが苦手意識を出しながらも、むざむざとは引き下がれない態度を見せてヴィオラに話す。
ヴィオラが美貌に余裕と自信と挑発の表情を乗せて笑いながらトメジマに話す。
「あら、私なら額を5割増しにできるって説明しただけじゃない。より良い条件を提示しただけよ。虫が良すぎるとは心外だわ」
「人の債権を額面の6割で買っていったやつに、今回の利益まで持って行かれて
トメジマが我が意を得たりとすかさず声を上げる。
「そうだろう! その通りだ!」
「しかし5割増しか......」
前言を翻すようなカツラギの
3人の視線がシェリルに集まる。シェリルは3人の話を聞いてはいたが、視線と意識を3人から少し外していた。
シェリルはやや固い表情で視線の先を見ている。視線の先には談笑をしているアキラとキャロルの姿がある。シェリルはアキラが見知らぬ女性と楽しげに話している姿を見て、心の底から湧き上がってくる何かを理性で必死に抑えていた。
シェリルは理解している。この感情のままに行動してはならない。それは自分を破滅に1歩近づける。不安も嫉妬も
カツラギがシェリルの視線の先にいるアキラに気付いて話す。
「ああそうか。アキラの意見も聞いた方が良いか?」
シェリルが冷静であろうと努めながら話す。
「......いえ、アキラはカツラギさんにこの件を一任していると思います。多分尋ねてもアキラは面倒そうに好きにしてくれと言うと思います。私もカツラギさんの意見に従います。組織の利益ということでしたら、アキラとカツラギさんの意思に沿うことが、組織の一番の利益につながると思いますので」
選択を委任されたカツラギが、ますます悩みながら話す。
「そうか? そうすると俺もどうするべきか......」
ヴィオラが自分は大幅に譲歩したという態度を前面に出しながら話す。
「仕方ないわね。それなら、生存者はトメジマに引き渡す。死体は私に引き渡す。これでどう? トメジマも死人相手に金は貸せないし取り立てもできないでしょう? やればできるかもしれないけど、死人から取り立てるのはトメジマの得意分野から大分外れているばずよ。悪くない提案だと思うけれど、どうかしら?」
カツラギがトメジマを見る。トメジマはやや不満の残る表情を浮かべていたが、渋々
「そこはいろいろ方法が有るのよ。手段の詳細は企業秘密。手段の概要と手数料を引いた回収金は、その報告書と一緒にカツラギさんに送付するわ」
カツラギ、トメジマ、シェリルの3人が、それぞれ違った表情でヴィオラを見る。3人の内心に違いはあれど、
カツラギ達が帰っていく中、ヴィオラは帰らずにアキラのところにやってきた。
「えっ? 知り合いなの?」
キャロルが妙な誤解や余計な勘違いをする前に、アキラがキャロルに説明する。
「シカラベに雇われて仕事をした時にちょっとしたことがあって、その件でトメジマってやつと少し話をしたんだ。その時にその場にいたんだ。別に知り合いって訳じゃない。1回会っただけだしな」
キャロルがそれだけを簡素に口にした。キャロルはアキラの説明を聞いて、アキラの説明を信じた上で、どうでも良いこととして流さずにいろいろな懸念や推測を立てている。それはアキラにも何となく伝わった。
過去に一度ヴィオラと会ったことがある。それだけでキャロルがこの様子である。アキラはヴィオラという人間を、今のところ敵ではないが要警戒という区分に分類した。
キャロルが立ち上がって、アキラに
「ヴィオラが戻るようだから私も引き上げるわね。アキラ。また会いましょう」
「いろいろよ。ああ、ヴィオラのことはしっかりアキラに話しておいたわ。質の悪い事件屋だってね」
ヴィオラは意地の悪い笑顔を浮かべてアキラに話す。
「キャロルに何を吹き込まれたのかは知らないけど、質の悪さならキャロルも負けてないわよ? キャロルに貢ぎすぎて人生を狂わせた男は多いわ。
い。アキラが早速ヴィオラの質の悪さに引っかかったようね。またね」
キャロルはそう言い残してヴィオラと一緒に帰っていった。
『つまり、あの2人は両方とも質が悪いってことよね』
『そうなるな。まあ、5人殺して平然としている俺も、大した違いはないんじゃないか?』
どことなく自嘲気味なアキラに、アルファがいつも通りの
『私はそうは思わないわ』
『......。そうか』
アキラは照れ隠しのように少し愛想を悪くして答えた。
アキラはその後、シェリルと一緒にシェリルの自室に戻った。シェリルに頼まれたからだ。
シェリルは自室に戻っても、いつものように接客用の服から普段着に着替えようとしなかった。部屋に入って少しのところで、少し
がるようにしてソファーに登り、以前のように正面からアキラに抱き付いた。ただし以前のシェリルの様子とは少々違っていた。
シェリルは表向きアキラの恋人で、その建前を利用してアキラに抱き付いたりしている。その時のシェリルの表情には、恋人との心地
しかし今のシェリルの表情は少し暗く、どことなく思い詰めたような雰囲気を漂わせていた。
シェリルはアキラの肩に自身の頭を乗せて、アキラにしっかり抱き付いている。それは愛する者を引き寄せるための抱擁ではなく、
アキラにはシェリルの内心を正しく察するほどの人生経験も観察力もない。それでもシェリルの様子が悪い意味で普段と異なる程度のことはアキラにも感じ取れた。やや戸惑いながらシェリルに声をかける。
「......すみません。さっき撃たれそうになったことが、気が緩んだら今更怖くなったんだと思います。
東部の基準でも、スラム街の基準でも、銃を乱射されて殺されかければ普通は動揺ぐらいするものなのだ。ハンターなどのその手の荒事に慣れた人間の基準で考えてはいけないのだろう。アキラはそれを思い出して、シェリルの言い分をあっさり信じて答える。
「......ありがとう御座います」
シェリルはやや暗い声でそう答えて、アキラに抱き付く力を強めた。
を吐いているわけではない。確かに殺されかけた恐怖もある。だがそれ以上にシェリルはアキラの
シェリルは理解している。アキラは別にお人
シェリルはアキラがキャロルと話しているのを見ていた。シェリルから見てもキャロルはとても美人で異性を誘う魅惑的な容姿をしていた。そしてシェリルにはキャロルがアキラを誘っているように見えた。
明日にでも誰かがアキラを口説き、アキラの恋人になるかもしれない。そうなれば、アキラの
アキラがシェリルに少しでも執着すれば、それがシェリルの体でも心でも地位でも財産でも能力でも何でも良いから求めてくれさえすれば、シェリルはもう少し安心できただろう。求めてくれさえすれば、シェリルは喜んで全てを差し出すだろう。
しかしシェリルの不安を和らげるようなものを、アキラはシェリルから何も要求していない。
くするとシェリルの部下が報告にやって来た。抱擁を中断されたシェリルの少し不機嫌な様子にたじろぎながらも、少年は負傷者の運搬が済んだことなどを報告する。
「......それで、診療所のやつがボスに一度診療所まで来てくれって言ってた。治療費やら何やらで話があるってさ」
「私とカツラギさんの名前は出したのよね?」
「出した。でも人数も多いし、
少年はシェリルに感謝して深く頭を下げてから部屋から出て行った。
アキラはその内に一度自分の体を診てもらうつもりだった。本格的な病院に行く前に簡単な診察ぐらい受けても良いだろう。そう考えてシェリルに尋ねる。
「診療所か。俺も付いていって良いか?」
「よし。じゃあ行こう」
アキラはシェリルと一緒に診療所に向かった。
Alpha suddenly turned towards the direction of the door into the room, Akira noticed that and followed suit, there he saw Carol and Viola coming in.
Other people also noticed Carol and Viola. Both of them scanned the room, talked to each other for a bit and separated off, Carol went to Akira while Viola went to Katsuragi. Carol walked all the way next to Akira and smiled at him.
"I'm happy to see you again! What a coincidence, Akira!"
"You're right, so, why are you here?"
"I just thought of killing some time talking with you, are you busy right now?"
"Nah, I'm not busy."
"That's good to hear."
Akira was sitting on top of one of the displays originally used for the relics. Carol casually sat next to him.
Carol was wearing a bodysuit for fighting, it had a more tame design compared to the old-world design augmented suit that she wore back in the Mihazono ruin. But even so, it still pronounced her body lines, so for those who were not used to it, she looked rather seductive.
Akira then warned Carol.
"I don't mind you sitting there, just make sure not to break the display."
"But still, it seems that you had a pretty hard fight here."
Akira awkwardly replied.
"It's not my fault."
Carol was a bit surprised by Akira's reaction, she thought that he was someone who was not bothered by something like that. Although she did not mean to blame him at all, her wordings there might have somehow triggered him. So in order to not worsen his mood even more, she tried to defend Akira.
"Well, it's true that it's the attackers' fault and not yours."
Akira turned his face to Carol and looked slightly weirded out. He then noticed that she misunderstood his words, so he shook his head and said.
"That's not what I meant, the room was cleaner after the fights. It's because those people who came with Katsuragi dragged the dead bodies around and spread the blood, and used the sheets to mop the blood in the corridor which made the fight seem gorier than it originally was. That's why it's not my fault that the room looks like this. But well, it's not like I was being careful to keep this room clean when I fought them either."
Akira tilted his head in confusion, he still did not understand what Carol was referring to.
When Carol noticed that, she smiled mischievously and asked Akira.
"Hmm, your face is saying that you don't understand. If you want to know, I can explain it to you, of course, that is if you don't mind me adding my guess there."
Akira was interested, so he nodded without much thinking.
"If I ask for an information fee... What would you do?"
"Information fee...?"
"Information is not free, you at least know that much, right?"
"...Well, yeah, I do."
Carol was trying to judge Akira's personality and his way of thinking from how he reacted to that, whether he took that seriously, or he took that as a joke, or if he just laughed it off, or if he replied back trying to be considerate to her.
If Akira seemed offended or angered or anything similar to that, she would immediately apologize and carefully start her explanation to make sure not to worsen his mood.
Akira seemed to be thinking for a bit. Carol kept her eyes on him while waiting for his reaction.
"...I just don't like that kind of joke."
Akira's reply was rather brusque. Carol understood Akira's character a bit more, she then smiled and apologetically said.
Carol was able to infer a lot of things from Akira's reaction, she then thought to herself.
[Akira doesn't seem to joke that much, huh, or maybe is it that he doesn't like to joke around money. Judging from his reaction, it might be both. I need to be extra careful not to make bad jokes when I'm trying to seduce him.]
Carol did not show her thoughts on her face, she was still smiling like usual as she started her explanation.
As for the attackers that were still alive, they would be put on a huge debt and made to work for a long time to pay for that debt. But in the eastern district, their contract would be invalid if they were forced to sign the contract at gunpoint. After all, that kind of contract was not allowed by the biggest authority power in the eastern district, the Corporate Government.
The Corporate Government had declared in the past that they would not allow any kinds of activity that might bring harm or disrupt the order and the peace in the eastern district. Regardless of whether they really put that into action or not, it was properly written in the rule. Rather than for the sake of anyone else, it was for their very own sake.
The definition of criminal in the eastern district was simply those who were against the Corporate Government. The Corporate Government would not do much when Hunters kill each other outside the wall, but if merchants or scammers started doing something suspicious, they would not show any mercy. That kind of bias was normal in the eastern district.
So, forcing someone into a debt without a good reason would disrupt the economy, thus, such actions were seen as an act against the Corporate Government of the eastern district.
Because of that, Katsuragi and his men needed to show the attackers that they had enough reason to force the attackers into debt which included the peace money. After all, they could not demand trillion Aurum peace money just because they tried to kill Akira and Sheryl's men.
And if their reasoning was good enough, they could get help from the Corporate Government to seize the attacker's properties. They could also ask for help from the Hunter Office that was handling their bank account. They could even sell the bond to the Hunter Office if all of the above things were not enough to pay for the debt.
The reason why Katsuragi and his men were making the room messier than before was simply to give a good reason to get the attackers on that debt contract. They were trying to pull up the debt nominal by taking a record of how bad the damages were.
After listening closely to Carol's explanation, Akira looked around the room one more time.
When Carol said that, she pointed her finger at Viola who was talking with Katsuragi and some other people.
"That girl is Viola, and she... well, what can I say... She's an expert in under-the-table deals like human trafficking and 'resolving disputes'. I'm here because I was simply following Viola since I'm her bodyguard at the moment, I bet she got the news of this incident from her personal information web. I myself only know it since I heard about the incident from her."
"Oh, it's not like she's one of the people that Katsuragi called to come here?"
"I'm pretty sure she came here uninvited, and they know well that Viola is powerful enough so that they could not just shoo her off. I don't know what they're talking about, but I'm pretty sure it's nothing good. I know it's strange for me to say this since I'm her bodyguard, but she's a bad girl. It might be better if you keep your distance from her, you know? And that's doubly true since you're bad with negotiation."
Carol was talking while giggling as if she was joking with Akira. But Akira understood that she was being serious there.
"Well, if you say so, I'll be careful with her."
Carol was in the middle of trying to seduce Akira, so it would be troublesome for her if Viola tried to mess with him.
The discussion was still going on between Katsuragi, Tomejima, Sheryl and Viola. They had different expressions as they were talking to each other.
Tomejima looked like he knew he was talking to a difficult opponent as he desperately refused to back down.
Viola smiled at Tomejima, there was a trace of confidence and intimidation in her smile that was adorning her beautiful face.
"Oh my, I only said that I can increase the profit by 50%, you know. I'm just giving a better offer here, it's so rude of you to call me suspicious."
"You bought that debt bond for 60% of the face value back then, like hell I'll let you take this one away from me too."
Tomejima confirmed that he got a vote of confidence from Katsuragi, so he raised his voice and said.
"That's it!! That's right!!"
"But still, 50% more profit, huh..."
Katsuragi mumbled as if to contradict what he just said before, Tomejima who heard that could not help but exclaim.
Katsuragi and Tomejima turned to Sheryl too. Although Sheryl was listening to their conversation, she was looking in a completely different direction.
Sheryl kept her gaze in one single direction, she was staring at Akira who was talking with Carol. Seeing how Akira seemed to be having a good time talking with another girl whom she knew nothing about, Sheryl could not help but feel something welling up inside her as she tried her best to hold it down.
Sheryl understood that if she obeyed that feeling, she would be taking a step closer toward her own destruction. Insecurity, jealousy, displeasure, fear, sorrow, sadness, these kinds of things would disrupt her ability to make a sound decision. If she ended up making bad decisions because of that, it might become a reason for Akira to abandon her. She kept reminding herself of that possibility as she kept doing her best to maintain her calm.
Katsuragi noticed that Sheryl was looking at Akira.
"Ohh, I see, it might be a good idea to ask for Akira's opinion too, right?"
Sheryl tried to keep her calm as she replied.
"...No, I believe Akira has left this matter to Katsuragi-san. Even if we ask him, he will just annoyedly tell us to do whatever we want with them. I will also follow whatever Katsuragi-san decides. As for the talk about profit, I think the best decision here is to follow whatever Katsuragi-san and Akira decide."
Now that Katsuragi was given the right to take the final decision, it made him even unsure of what to do there.
"Is that so? If that's the case, then what should I do now..."
Viola suddenly said as if she decided to give up.
"It can't be helped then. I'll let Tomejima take those who are still alive and I'll take those who are dead. How about that? It's not like Tomejima could get them to sign on a debt bond anyway, right? Well, he might be able to if he tries, but I believe his real skill is not in that matter. I don't think it's a bad offer though, so?"
Katsuragi turned to Tomejima, who did not seem to be fully happy with that offer, but he gently nodded.
"Well, there are many ways other than that one. But they are my trade secret. Later I'll give a report to Katsuragi-san outlining how I plan to do that together with the money minus the handling fee."
Katsuragi, Tomejima and Sheryl looked at Viola with different expressions. Although each of them imagined different things, all of them equally thought that it was nothing good.
While Katsuragi and his men had left the place, Viola stayed behind and came to Akira.
"Oh? Both of you know each other?"
Akira quickly explained to Carol before she misunderstood something.
"I met her once when Shikarabe hired me for a job, that was also when I met Tomejima. It's not like we know each other, it's just that we have met before, and that was just once."
Carol replied back swiftly with that short reply. She believed Akira's words. She did not let that just slide and use that information to make all kinds of guesses. Even Akira was able to notice that.
Carol showed that reaction only by knowing that Akira had met Viola before in the past although it was only for once. With that, Akira put Viola on the list of people that were not his enemy but he needed to be careful with.
Carol then stood up and smiled at Akira.
"Well, since Viola is done here, I'll leave too. Akira, see you again next time."
"Well, a lot of stuff. Ahh, by the way, I did tell Akira about you too, I told him that you're a bad girl."
Viola smiled mischievously at Akira.
"I don't know what Carol told you, but just so you know, she's more or less as bad as me. There are many men who got ruined because of her, so you better be careful of her."
"Geez, how can you say that? Well, at least, it seems that Akira was able to quickly see how bad you are. Well then, see you again."
Carol only said that before she left the building together with Viola.
"So basically, both of them are bad girls, huh."
"Yup, that would be the right conclusion. Well, I did kill 5 people without feeling anything much though, so I guess I'm not that good of a person either, right?"
Akira sounded as if he was admonishing himself, but Alpha just smiled like usual as she replied.
"I don't think that's true."
"...Is that so?"
Akira awkwardly replied back as if he was trying to hide his embarrassment.
After that, he returned to Sheryl's private room together with Sheryl since she asked him to.
Even after they returned, Sheryl did not change back to her usual clothing. She seemed to be a little bit bummed out as she was only standing there not too far from the door.
She slowly climbed on Akira and sat on his lap, she then coiled her arms around him and hugged him from the front just like in the past. But there was something different this time.
Sheryl was Akira's fake lover, she used that position to hug Akira in the past. That time, Sheryl was smiling, she looked delighted spending her time together with her lover although it was in name only.
But this time, Sheryl's expression looked a bit dark, she seemed to be feeling cornered.
Sheryl rested her head on Akira's shoulder and squeezed on him. It was not a hug to draw in someone that she loved, it was more of a hug to cling to someone.
Although Akira was not skilled enough to read what Sheryl was feeling inside, he at least knew that Sheryl was not her usual self, in the bad meaning. So Akira awkwardly spoke to her.
"...I'm sorry. I think I'm still shocked, the fact that I almost got shot back then finally hit me after I calmed down. So please let me stay like this for a while... If you don't like it, I'll step away."
Even in the eastern district where the public order was bad, even for the slum city resident where fighting was common, people would still get shocked when they were about to get shot and killed. So it was not right to compare common people with those Hunters who were used to that kind of thing. Akira reminded himself of that fact and accepted Sheryl's excuse without questioning it much.
"...Thank you."
Sheryl's voice was darker than before as she tightened her hug.
She was not lying, it was true that she was still scared after she was about to get killed, but that was not the only reason. She was more scared of Akira suddenly abandoning her.
It was only to be expected for Akira to be in contact with all kinds of people other than Sheryl and her men. Sheryl was evading that common sense until now.
Sheryl saw Akira talking with Carol. Even to her, Carol was a beautiful girl who was wearing such a seductive outfit. From her point of view, it seemed like Carol was trying to seduce Akira.
Someone might one day seduce Akira and become his lover, that day might be as soon as tomorrow. If that happened, Akira might as well stop supporting Sheryl. Seeing Carol talking to Akira, trying to seduce him, seeing a beautiful skilled female Hunter doing that, it really gave her a kick of reality. It reminded her of the possibility that she had been avoiding recognizing until now.
If only Akira was interested in Sheryl, regardless whether it was her body, her heart, her position, her money, her skill, anything, it might give her a sense of security. If Akira asked anything out of her, she would happily give everything to him.
But unfortunately, Akira was not interested in Sheryl at all.
Not too long after that, Sheryl's men came to give their reports. She was a bit annoyed that she got interrupted. The children who came to give their report winced back as they gave her the report of the current situation including the treatment of the wounded gang members.
"...So then, the guy from the clinic told us to tell the boss to come to the clinic. It seems that he has something to talk about, like about the fee and other stuff too."
"You did tell him about me and Katsuragi-san, right?"
"We did. But we carried a lot of wounded people there and some of them are badly wounded. So I guess there's something he wants to talk about regarding that. So please, don't let them kick the wounded out after they got treated just enough for them to stay alive. Those guys will have to work after this to stay alive, so please do something about it."
Those boys thanked Sheryl and bowed deeply to her before leaving the room.
Akira was also planning to have his body checked up soon anyway. So he thought that it might be a good idea to get his body checked up in a small clinic first before getting a full check-up in a hospital.
"A clinic, huh? Can I come too?"
"Alright then, let's go."
Akira then headed to the clinic together with Sheryl.
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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