272 シロウの推察
アキラはキャロルの話を興味深く聞いていた。
『アルファ。ミハゾノ街遺跡にいる時だけ旧領域接続者に近い状態になるって言ってるけど、そういうことってあるのか?』
『十分考えられるわ。一口に旧領域接続者と言っても、いろいろあるからね』
旧領域接続者にも通信能力には種類も個人差もある。中途半端な接続状態の者が遺跡に行き、遺跡の拡張現実機能との相性で急に
旧領域接続者の知識と共にアキラに説明した。
『キャロルはアキラのように汎用的な旧領域通信は出来ないし、クズスハラ街遺跡に行っても私は見えないわ。だから旧領域接続者ではないというのも
っては東部の人間ほぼ全てを旧領域接続者と呼ぶことも出来る。アルファはその辺りの知識も一緒に伝えた。
『へー。成る程。じゃあこの話、本当なのか。キャロルも随分珍しい経験をしてるんだな』
った。つまりキャロルの話を聞いても、面白い話を聞いたという感想しか覚えなかった。
アルファがそこで指摘を入れる。
『それでアキラ、どうするの?』
アキラも単に自分の察しが悪いことは理解しているのだが、何を尋ねられているのかは分からなかった。そしてそこでキャロルの様子に気付く。
キャロルはどこか追い詰められているようにも開き直ったようにも見える複雑な表情で、アキラの返答を待っていた。話してしまった、
「えっと、キャロルの護衛だけど......、俺にも事情や用事がある。だから悪いんだけど......」
続く言葉を想像し、キャロルの顔が悲しく残念そうなものに変わった。だがそれもすぐに変わる。
「......前に言った装備を手に入れた時点で一度区切りにさせてくれ。それでまずは俺は用事を済ませる。その後に護衛を継続するかどうかは、その時にその時の状況から考えさせてくれ。他には......」
驚いた顔を浮かべているキャロルの前で、アキラが現状で他に説明しておくことを考えながら続けていく。
「......あいつは坂下重工のやつだから、キャロルが逃げるのならオーラム経済圏の外まで行かないと駄目なのか? 悪いけど、そこまでは付き合えない。さっき言った装備のこともあって、俺はクガマヤマ都市から余り離れられないんだ。装備を手に入れて、用事を済ませた後なら......送るぐらいなら良いか? まあ、それもその時の状況次第だ。あとは......」
「キャロル。そっちから他に何か確認しておきたいことはあるか?」
仮に後で気付いて悩むようなことがあっても、自分とキャロルの両方が見落としていたものなら、依頼として大きな問題にはならないだろう。アキラはそう考えて結構真面目に聞いていた。
「私も特に思い付かないわ。何かあったら、その時に調整しましょう」
アキラはそのキャロルの態度を少し不思議に思ったが、自分がまた普通の感覚とはズレたことでも言ったのかもしれないと考えただけで、特に気にしなかった。
い護衛が付いていたから取引に切り替えたのかもしれないしね。まあ何にしろ、何かあったらしっかり護衛を御願いね」
キャロルが再び吹き出し、楽しげに笑った。アキラは首を
『アルファは何か思い付くか?』
アルファは自分もアキラに依頼を頼んでいる立場なので、アキラに依頼を途中で投げ出すように勧めることは出来ない。そこで出来る限りアキラ自身が思い付くように促したのだが無駄に終わっていた。
『いいえ。無いわ。護衛の期限、区切りの確認も出来たのだから、そこまでは、一度引き受けた依頼をしっかりやり遂げなさい』
そのアルファの言葉を自分なりに深読みしたアキラが、ちゃんと分かっていると言いたげな口調で答える。
『分かってる。装備が届いたら、アルファの依頼の方を優先するって』
『期待しているわ』
反応を見せずに座って仮眠を取っていたアキラが急に立ち上がった。そして外に出る準備を始める。銃を身に着け、迷彩機能付きの防護コートを羽織ったところで、キャロルがその気配に気付いて目を覚ました。
「アキラ。どうしたの?」
「それなら私も行くわ」
アキラはそう言い残し、徒歩で車から出ていった。
キャロルは無意識に車両の後方、アキラのバイクを
いは自分を置いてこっそり出ていくつもりならバイクに乗っていくだろうと考えて、アキラを信じているがそれとは無関係に心配性な自分に苦笑を浮かべた。
車内では軽い様子だったアキラが、外に出るのと同時に表情を引き締める。
アキラは防護コートの迷彩機能を使わずに、アルファに教えられた方へ歩いていった。そして少し離れた場所、
の陰から人影が現れる。シロウだ。シロウの方も武装はしているが迷彩は解いていた。
「無視しても良かったんだが、車両の周りをずっとウロチョロするのなら、追っ払うぐらいはしないと
な様子を強くするアキラとは対照的に、シロウが笑みを強くしていく。
「500億オーラム、お前の賞金と同額を出す。どうだ?」
「本気で言ってるのか?」
「本気だ。お前を殺すのに500億オーラム掛かるんだ。お前を雇うのに同額掛かっても不思議は無いだろう? まあ
「いや、そうじゃなくて、いや、それも含めてだけど、普通賞金首を雇おうとするか?」
「別に坂下が賞金を懸けた訳じゃないしな。俺は気にしない」
仕事の期間は1ヶ月ほど。その間、自分の戦力としていろいろやってほしい。具体的に何をするかはまだ話せないし、状況次第なところもあるので自分にも正確には分からない。しかし未発見の遺跡に何の情報も無いまま乗り込めるぐらいの戦力は期待したい。500億オーラムは経費込み。ハンターとして雇うので、戦闘は確実にあると思ってほしい。シロウはそれらのことを、突拍子も無い話に困惑するのが精一杯で流されているアキラに話していった。
「あと、先に十分な経費を
く我に返った。
「断る理由も無いだろう?」
「お前、坂下重工から逃げてるんだろう? そのお前に雇われたら坂下重工を敵に回すことになるじゃないか」
「......俺は個人的にお前を雇おうとした。お前もそれを分かっているから、その辺のことは口に出さないでいてくれたと思っていた。だがそれを口に出すなら、こっちにもその辺の話をすることになるぞ?」
「何が言いたい?」
「俺の後ろに坂下重工がいるように、お前の後ろにもお前を支援する者がいるってことだよ!」
と共にアキラの警戒が一気に高まる。反射的に銃を握り銃口をシロウに向けた。
シロウはアキラの動きにまるで反応できなかった。しかし銃を突き付けられてもたじろがず、厳しい表情で、だが笑ってアキラを見詰め返す。
「図星......ってことで良いんだな?」
そう問われたことで、アキラは自身の反応でシロウの言葉を肯定してしまったことに気付き、顔を更に険しくした。
『アルファ、どうする? ここで殺すか?』
アルファがアキラの前に立ち、いつもの笑顔でアキラを見詰めて落ち着かせようとする。
『アキラ。落ち着きなさい。まだ私の存在が露見したと決まった訳ではないわ』
『彼を殺すかどうかは私が決めるわ。アキラはとにかく落ち着いて、余計なことを言わないように気を付けて。良いわね?』
『......分かった』
アキラは自己暗示を兼ねて大きく息を吐いた。続けて深く吸い、深く吐き、頭から動揺を消し去って冷静さを保つ。そして裏でアルファと話しながらシロウとの話を再開する。
「......図星だったとして、そうすると、俺が次にすることは、この場でお前を殺して口封じ、になるんだけど、俺がそれを出来ない理由があるなら聞いておこうか。当然だけど、そういう理由があるから言ったんだよな? それとも、図星を
「じゃあ何だ? 話せないのなら、理由は無い、と同じだぞ?」
「俺を殺せば、坂下だけじゃなく、
も、いや、五大企業全体、統企連が敵に回るからだ」
『アルファ。何で急に着替えたんだ?』
『気にしないで』
めて舌打ちした。アルファに言われてやったことだったが、過去の不運を思い出した本心も混ざっていた。
その態度を見てシロウが笑みを深める。
「もしかして、賞金首になったのも何かの不手際か? それとも作戦か?」
シロウが求める者は坂下重工と敵対する恐れがある仕事でも引き受ける実力者だ。そのような者は当然ながら坂下重工でも無下に扱えないほどの者となり、基本的に最前線付近にしかいない上にコロン払いの依頼となる。
そこで仕方無く妥協した。強く、この近隣にいて、オーラムで雇うことが可能で、仕事に誠実で、金を積めば危険な内容でも引き受ける者。その条件に抑えて、出来る限り一致する者を探したのだ。
その結果、アキラというハンターが見付かった。リオンズテイル社に
そして悩んだ末にアキラを雇うことに決めたのだ。
アキラはそれらの話を、明らかに説明の仕方に注意している様子のシロウから聞いた。
『アルファ。この話、本当だと思うか?』
『妥協か。まあ裏事情を下手に隠されるよりはそっちの方が良い』
「......俺の目的には、ある遺跡の攻略も含まれている。単純に遺跡としても非常に貴重で、東部の在り方にとっても重要な遺跡だ。俺に雇われて仕事を済ませれば、当然その情報が手に入る。旧領域接続者であっても、一介の工作員にとっては価値が高すぎる情報だ。持ち帰れば功績になる。お前の
での地位も上がるだろう。聞いてしまった以上、その情報が欲しいだろう? お前は絶対に功績を求めている。俺を殺せば、手に入らないぞ」
「良いだろう。雇われてやる。だが条件がある」
何を言われるのだろうと警戒したシロウは、その条件を聞いて顔を思わず
キャロルは寝ないでアキラを待っていた。裸体のままベッドに腰掛けている。そこにアキラが戻ってくる。
「お帰りなさい。大丈夫だった?」
「あー、キャロル。そのことでちょっと話があるから服を着てくれ」
「これで良い?」
「ああ、悪いな。ちょっと待っててくれ」
アキラはそう言って一度下がり、車のドアを開けた。
「お邪魔するぜー」
「......アキラ、どういうこと?」
「そいつが俺達を500億オーラムで雇いたいそうだ。で、その交渉がしたいんだってさ」
シロウがキャロルに向けて調子良く笑う。
「そういうこと。まあ、座りなよ」
そう言って勝手にリビングルームのソファーに座ったシロウが、キャロルにも座るように手で促す。キャロルは
キャロルに余計なことを話さない。キャロルの護衛は続ける。その上で、キャロルが良いと言ったら引き受ける。それがアキラがシロウに提示した条件だった。条件は他にもあるのだが、まずはその条件を満たさなければ駄目だと告げていた。
「俺の仕事の優先順位は護衛が先だ。護衛が
「アキラ。私が嫌だって言ったらどうするの?」
「まずそいつを車外に
「坂下重工の人間を無闇に殺すのはお勧めしないぜー」
かなり真面目な様子のアキラと、
「えっと、アキラ、その、つまり、私が断ったら、500億オーラムの依頼が流れるのよね? それ、アキラはどう思ってるの?」
「気にしなくて良い」
「そ、そう言われても......」
億に満たない小銭であれば、以前のミハゾノ街遺跡での騒ぎの元になったであろう者となど関わりたくないと、キャロルもアキラには悪いとは思うが断っていた。しかし
「坂下重工所属の旧領域接続者として、旧領域接続者の捜索方法や判別方法など、社外秘に関わる情報も含めてしっかりと教えてやる。企業から逃げるにしろ隠れるにしろ、逆に利用するにしろ、非常に役に立つ情報ばかりだ」
「俺だって普通は絶対に教えない。一応社外秘だからな。だが今は俺にも事情がある。だから特別に教えてやる」
Ch 272
Akira listened closely to Carol's story.
"Alpha. She mentioned something about turning into an old-world connector only in Mihazono ruin, is that even possible?"
"It is. After all, there are many types of people who can connect to the old-world domain."
There were individual differences in how far each person could connect to the old-world domain. There were those who could only imperfectly connect to the old-world domain. However, once they stepped into a certain ruin, the augmented reality system stimulated their connection and turned them into complete old-world connectors. Of course, the other cases also exist.
Alpha explained to Akira a lot of new information regarding the types of people who could connect to the old-world domain.
"In the end, unlike you, Carol cannot connect to the old-world domain through the general-type connection. She could not see me even when she was in Kuzusuhara ruin. So, it is not exactly a lie when she said she is no longer an old-world connector. Well, of course, that part varies from a person's point of view."
From another point of view, everyone in the eastern district was an old-world connector. Alpha also conveyed such information to Akira.
"I see. Then that means she is telling the truth, huh? That is a rather rare and interesting experience she had to go through."
Akira's reaction to Carol's story ended there. In other words, even after hearing Carol's story, Akira's impression only extended as far as 'it was an interesting story'. Nothing more.
Alpha made a mental note of how he reacted.
"So then, Akira, what's your plan?"
Akira already knew that he was not good at reading between the lines. However, in this case, he truly did not understand the question. That was when he noticed Carol's expression.
Carol was furrowing her brows. She looked anxious and desperate. Like someone who just confessed her sins, waiting for Akira's response. The feeling of relief from finally letting it out and the anxiety from finally confessing her secret were mixed inside of her as she stared at him.
"Uhhh, about my bodyguard job... As you know, I'm also pursuing another goal and I'm in this particular situation right now, so I'm sorry but..."
Carol had guessed what Akira's next word would be. She looked crestfallen. However, that changed in the next moment when Akira continued.
"...Once I get my new equipment, let me withdraw from this job for a bit. I will finish what I need to do first before returning. Whether I will continue the job or not will depend on the situation at that time. And also..."
In front of the wide-eyed Carol, Akira started talking about other things, in the order in which they came to his mind.
"...Since that guy is from Sakashita Heavy Industry, that would mean if we're going to run away, we will have to get out of the Aurum Economic Zone, right? I'm sorry but I can't accompany you in that case. As I said before. Including the equipment that I'm waiting for right now, I don't want to get too far away from Kugamayama city. If it's after I get my new equipment and finish my business here... Well, I can at least escort you out. Hmm... But then again, that would depend on the situation when the time comes. Other than that..."
"Carol, is there anything else you want to make certain of?"
Akira said so with a rather serious expression. He thought that even if there was something complicated, they should make it clear beforehand. Regarding what the job entails. If it was something that neither he nor Carol had thought of, then there should be no problems.
"Nothing in particular. We can discuss it afterwards if something comes up later."
Akira did find her change in attitude to be strange. Though, thinking that his own common sense was distorted, he ignored it.
"Well, that is difficult to say. He might have changed his plan to peacefully negotiate since I have a great bodyguard with me. Either way, I will be counting on you as my bodyguard if something comes up."
Carol softly chucked and smiled amusedly. Akira tilted his head in confusion at her reaction.
"Alpha, did I miss anything?"
Alpha, as one of Akira's requestors, could not afford to recommend him to leave his request mid-way. Although she did try to encourage him to think of a reason to withdraw from Carol's request, in the end, it was futile.
"Nope, not at all. Since you have agreed on the ending line for this job, let's give it our best until the very end."
Akira agreed with every word though he tried to probe the hidden meaning behind those words as he replied.
"I know. Once I get my new equipment, I will prioritize your request."
"I'll be looking forward to it."
Akira, who was sitting next to Carol as he slept, showed no reaction to her body. Suddenly, he stood up. With his rifle in hand, he planned to head out. As he put on his defensive coat, Carol, who noticed, woke up.
"Akira, what's wrong?"
"I will go too."
Akira said and left the camping vehicle.
Carol inadvertently turned toward the back of the camping vehicle, where Akira's bike was resting.
[If the bike got taken, Akira might be trying to sneak away, leaving me behind, under the guise of patrolling the camping vehicle....] She reflected on herself, and the fact that she did not trust Akira, made her give a bitter smile.
Although Akira was completely relaxed when he was still inside the camping vehicle, he immediately turned serious the moment he stepped out.
Akira walked toward the direction Alpha pointed to, without activating his camouflaging coat. He then stopped next to a mountain of rubble and sighed.
Someone appeared from behind the rubble, it was Shirou. Although he was armed, he had already turned off his camouflage.
"I have no problems ignoring you. But if you're just going to aimlessly sneak around the camping vehicle, I thought it would be bad if I don't at least try to get rid of you."
Akira tilted his head and squinted his eyes., In contrast, Shirou's smile widened.
"I will pay you the same amount as your current bounty. 50 billion Aurum."
"Are you being serious?"
"I am. It takes them 50 billion Aurum to get someone to kill you. So, it's only a given that I pay that much if I want to ask you to do a job for me, no? Though, as you would have expected, I can't pay the full sum upfront. But we can talk about the details for that part later..."
"That's not what I mean. Well, that part does bother me a bit. But no normal person would offer a job to a bounty target, you know?"
"It's not like it was Sakashita that placed that bounty on you. So, I don't really mind."
The job would last for 1 month. In that one month, Shirou wanted Akira to do some stuff, which included fighting. However, Shirou did not tell Akira in detail what he needed from him. Such detail depended on how the situation unfolded or changed. Thus, Shirou could not make that part of the job clear. Basically, he needed someone with enough firepower to explore an undiscovered ruin. 50 billion Aurum would include the expenses. Furthermore, since it was a request for a Hunter, it was to be expected that there would be fighting. As Shirou explained, it sounded more absurd, which made Akira even more confused.
"And also, although I know that you can fight with fewer worries if I pay for the expenses beforehand. But I still have my limits. I can't pay you 20 or 30 billion Aurum as a deposit, just for taking the job. So, I will give 5 billion Aurum first and see where it goes from there..."
As Shirou explained, Akira eventually returned back to his usual self.
"But you don't have any reason to refuse, right?"
"You're running away from Sakashita Heavy Industry, right? If I accept, wouldn't that mean going up against Sakashita Heavy Industry?"
"...I'm offering you this job as an individual. I thought you knew this and wouldn't say anything about that topic. But since you asked, I will have no other choice but to answer that question."
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"Just like how I have Sakashita Heavy Industry behind me, I know that you have a patron behind you!"
Akira was taken aback and immediately raised his guard. He quickly picked up his rifle and aimed it at Shirou.
Shirou was not able to react. But even after having the muzzle touch his forehead, he did not falter. Although his eyes were cold, he was still smiling flippantly at Akira.
"I hit the bullseye... Didn't I?"
Akira immediately realized that he overreacted when Shirou asked him that question and squinted his eyes.
"Alpha, what should I do with him? Should I just kill him?"
Alpha stood in front of Akira. She made her usual smile and spoke to him, trying to calm him.
"Akira, calm down. There's no proof that he knows about me."
"I will decide whether to let him live or to kill him here. You should just calm down for now. Be careful not to say anything unnecessary, okay?"
"...Alright."
Akira took a deep breath to help himself calm down. He breathed in deeply and let out a long 'fuuh' to help him maintain his calm. He then continued his telepathic conversation with Alpha, while restarting his conversation with Shirou.
"...Let's say that you are correct. In that case, my next move would be to make sure that you won't be able to tell anyone. In other words, to kill you here. If you have any reason why I shouldn't do that, this is your chance to tell me. I'm sure you have some since you decided to say that to me, right? Or is it that you believe I won't kill you if your guess is correct?"
"So, what is it? If you won't say anything, I will just kill you here and now, you know?"
"If you kill me, not only Sakashita but Tatsumori, Tsukisada..."
"...And even Senba too. Not only that, you will be picking fights against all the five biggest corporations, which means the whole Corporate Government."
"Alpha, why did you do that?"
"Don't mind me."
Akira frowned and clicked his tongue. Although he only did that because Alpha told him to do so, remembering his past bad luck still made him feel unpleasant.
Seeing that, Shirou's smile deepened.
"Oh. Don't tell me that becoming a bounty target was also a mistake? Or is it some kind of strategy?"
What Shirou needed was someone powerful. Someone who was not afraid of fighting against Sakashita Heavy Industry. Naturally, those who satisfied his conditions were few. It had to be powerful Hunters that even Sakashita Heavy Industry could not just ignore. But they would be working near the frontline and would only accept Chrome as payment.
As such, Shirou had no other choice but to make a compromise. He had to look for someone strong, someone nearby and someone who would accept Aurum as a payment. It had to be someone who took their job seriously, someone who would face any danger if the reward was large enough. He was searching for someone who satisfied all these conditions.
Eventually, he found a Hunter by the name of Akira. Akira picked a fight with the Lion Steel company and even became a bounty target. He even got designated as a monster by Kugamayama city. There was no question. He was a Hunter with multiple screws loose. However, that made him likely to accept an illegal job that might turn the 5 largest corporations against him. When Shirou investigated Akira's past, leaving aside his morality, he was unquestionably someone who took his job extremely seriously.
After weighing his options, Shirou finally decided to hire Akira.
It was obvious that Shirou was being careful with his words. After hearing his explanation, Akira turned to Alpha.
"Alpha, do you think he's telling the truth?"
"So, it's just because he's making a compromise, huh? Well, it's better than having malicious intentions behind that his request."
"...My goal includes exploring a certain ruin. It is a special ruin that is very important to the eastern district. If you accept my offer and can complete the job, I will tell you about that ruin. It's highly valuable information that you wouldn't normally get from a single job. That is even if you're an old-world connector. If you return back with that information, they will definitely think highly of you. I'm sure you'll receive a good position inside Tsukisada Construction. Now that you know, I'm sure you can't just ignore this, right? I'm sure you want this information, and if you kill me, you won't be able to get it."
"Why are you so sure that I want a higher position?"
"Very well, I accept that job, but I have conditions."
As Shirou started to tense up, waiting for Akira's answer, he could not help but frown after hearing his reply.
Back in the camping vehicle, Carol did not go back to sleep and instead waited for Akira. She was hugging her legs on top of the bed, still without a piece of cloth on her body, as she waited for Akira to return.
"Welcome back, was it alright?"
"Yeah. Carol, there's something we need to talk about. Can you put something on?"
"Will this be good enough?"
"Yeah, sorry about that. Wait here for a bit."
Akira then left the room and opened the vehicle door.
"Excuse me for intruding."
"...Akira, what's going on here?"
"It seems like this guy wants to hire me for 50 billion Aurum. So, he's basically going to discuss it here."
Shirou looked at Carol and smiled.
"Yep, it's exactly just as he said. Well, just take a seat for now."
Shirou did not wait for an answer nor ask for permission. He simply went and sat on the sofa in the living room. He even signalled Carol to take a seat as well. Although Carol was still confused, since Akira was the one who invited Shirou in, she thought that he should be friendly and took a seat.
Akira placed multiple conditions for Shirou. Though, they mostly stemmed from just one main condition. That he would continue to work as Carol's bodyguard. While the attached conditions were for Shiro to not say anything unnecessary to her. Also, he would only accept the job if Carol was fine with it. There were also additional conditions. However, Akira mentioned that if Shiro could not satisfy these conditions first, then he would refuse.
"Priority-wise, my bodyguard job comes first. If you are afraid that it will hinder my job to protect you, then you can just say so. After all, I accepted your request first. So, you can decide for me. If you can't decide, I will take it."
"Akira, what if I say no."
"First, I will kick him out of the camping vehicle. Then, we'll need to move away from this place. We can decide later whether to leave him alive or not."
"I don't think it's a good idea to kill someone from Sakashita Heavy Industry, you know?"
In contrast to the serious Akira, Shirou was still as playful as ever. Both then looked at Carol.
"Uhh, so, Akira, basically, if I say no, you will refuse that 50 Billion Aurum job offer, right? Are you sure you are okay with that?"
"You don't need to worry about it."
"W-well, even if you say so..."
If it was only for a small amount that did not reach the billions, although she would feel bad for Akira, she would definitely refuse. After all, she did not want to have anything to do with the source of the incident back in Mihazono ruin. But 50 billion Aurum was not a small amount. It could not be simply ignored.
"As an old-world connector from Sakashita Heavy Industry, I can tell you why they are looking for the other old-world connectors and all kinds of secrets regarding the other companies. If you want to use it to hide from them or to manipulate them, the information I'm going to share will be extremely valuable."
"Of course, normally, I would never tell anyone about it. After all, it's considered a corporate secret. But I don't have that leeway right now. So, I'm willing to make it an exception this time."
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/
非公開