ビルの中にはハンターオフィス関連の大規模な施設や、複数の都市で活動している企業の支店などが存在している。そこを生活の一部とする者は都市でも上位層の人間ばかりだ。都市で成り上がろうとする者達が目指す場所でもあり、豊かな生活を夢見る者達の憧れの場所でもあり、都市の財と力を示す象徴的な場所でもあるのだ。
アキラがその場所を見上げている。だがその目には、上を目指す者達が見せる特有の輝きや、内に秘める意思の強さ、遠く巨大な目標を見据える力強さなどはなかった。
アルファが浮かれているアキラを注意する。
『アキラ。顔が緩んでいるわ。みっともないわよ』
『おっと』
アキラが表情を引き締める。それでも機嫌の良さは隠しきれない。見苦しくない程度に緩んだままだ。
アキラはシオリから再び食事の誘いを受けていた。ミハゾノ街遺跡でレイナ達を助けた礼を兼ねた食事の誘いだった。
アキラは以前の至福の一時を思い出して、警戒心を緩めてその誘いに乗っていた。
アルファがアキラの浮かれようを見て、少し
『そんなにあの店の料理が楽しみなら、自費で何度か通ってもう少し慣れた方が良いかもしれないわね』
アキラが即答できない程度には悩み、葛藤し、揺らいだ末に答える。
一応、今のアキラの稼ぎなら、装備代や弾薬費などを削れば食事代の確保は容易だ。だがそれはアキラの安全性を、命を削るのと同義だ。アキラは自分にそう強く言い聞かせることで、ちょっとぐらい良いか、という誘惑に頑張って耐えているのだ。
アルファが苦笑して話す。
『それならその貴重な機会を逃さないように遅れないようにしましょう』
『そうだな』
アキラは足取りも軽やかに機嫌良くビルの中に入っていった。
アキラは前回と同じようにレストランの受付で銃を預けた。店内は相変わらずアキラの一張羅代わりの強化服が場違いに見える高級感だ。だが客はハンター風の者とそうではない者は半々といったところで、アキラが特別目立つことはない。これも店と立地と客層に
店員にテーブルまで案内されたアキラが意外そうな表情を浮かべる。アキラは前回と同じようにシオリだけが待っていると思っていたのだが、案内されたテーブルにはレイナとカナエも座っていた。
カナエがアキラに気付いて軽く手を振る。
「少年! また会ったっすね!」
アキラがカナエの服装を見て微妙な表情を浮かべる。シオリとレイナは上品な私服を着ていた。この高級店に入る私服として十分な服装だ。だがカナエはメイド服を着ていた。下手をすれば店の従業員と勘違いされても不思議のない格好だ。
(......普通、なのか? 俺が強化服を着ているのと同じ扱い? いや、でもシオリは普通の服を着ているし、店員の態度も普通のような......、俺の考えの方が変なのか?)
アキラはまた自分の常識が揺らぐ音を聞いたが、恐らく考えても無駄だと思い直して、気にせずに店員に勧められた席に座る。
シオリとレイナがアキラの反応を見て
「カナエ。やっぱりその服は何とかならないの?」
カナエが笑って答える。
「ならないっす。お嬢の護衛として十分な装備を常に着用していることは大切なことっす。アキラ少年だって強化服を着ているじゃないっすか。同じっすよ」
アキラは同じ扱いにされることに少し抵抗を覚えたが、
「アキラ様。先日はお嬢様を助けていただきありがとう御座いました。事前にお伝えした通り、ここの代金は私が持ちますので、遠慮なく好きに注文してください」
アキラが機嫌良く答える。
「ありがとう御座います。じゃあ早速......」
メニューを開いたところで、アキラはふと思ってシオリに尋ねる。
「......でもセランタルビルの件での礼なら、エレナさん達も誘ったりはしなかったのか?」
「そちらの方々には、正確にはアキラ様を含めた部隊全員にですが、依頼の報酬を増額することで対応させていただきました。ドランカムの金銭処理にも関わりますので、実際の支払い時期が少々遅れることになりますが、満足いただけるかと。今回の食事は、私の個人的な頼みをアキラ様に引き受けていただいたことに対する個人的な謝礼と解釈していただきたく思います」
「私の頼みでアキラ様に5秒時間を稼いでいただいた件です」
「あれか。ああ、なるほど。あの件の報酬が今回の食事なら、無理をした
アキラがメニューから料理を選び始める。メニューには相変わらずアキラの知識では料理の外観を想像できない名前の品々が記載されている。アキラは悩んだ挙げ句に、前回と同じように本日のお勧めコースを注文することに決めた。
注文を無難な選択で済ませたアキラを見ながら、アルファがメニューを指差して話す。
『遠慮なく頼めって言われたのだし、一品ぐらい当てずっぽうに適当に頼んでみたら?』
『止めておく。アルファが指差している料理なんか、まるで西部に存在するっていう呪文の詠唱みたいな名前じゃないか。これを頼んだら一体何が出てくるんだ?』
アルファが冗談交じりに答える。
『西部でこれを
『いいんだ。店が勧めているんだ。お勧めコースの内容に外れはないはずだ。この貴重な機会に下手に冒険して、あれを頼むのは止めておけば良かった、なんて可能性を増やす必要はないんだ』
『あら、ある意味命賭けの冒険を稼業にしているハンターらしからぬ発言ね』
『そんな冒険はハンター稼業だけで十分だ』
アルファが意味深に
『それもそうね。慎重なのは良いことよ。できれば普段もそれだけ慎重になってほしいわ』
アキラはアルファを意図的に無視してメニューを閉じた。
注文を終えたアキラ達は雑談をしながら料理を待っている。アキラがシオリからセランタルビルの現状を聞いて興味深そうに答える。
「へー。セランタルビルはそんなことになっているんだ。でも1階を制圧して簡易拠点にしても、上の方には機械系モンスターが山ほど残っているんだろう? 大丈夫なのか?」
「何でも都市の職員がビルの管理人格との交渉に成功して、ビルの設備の一部を簡易拠点の防衛に利用しているそうです」
アキラがかなりの驚きを見せて答える。
「交渉に成功した? あのセランタルってやつと?
さんと戦って引き分けたって話っすけど、本当っすか?」
アキラは舌から伝わる至福に意識の大半を割いている。その所為かどうかは分からないが、その話に心当たりが思いつかなかったので、不思議そうに聞き返す。
けているのだろうか。カナエはそう思ったが、アキラの表情から本当に心当たりがないと判断した。守秘義務に触れないように具体的な文言を避けて尋ねる。
「ほら、あの時にあの場所であの件での話っすよ」
「いや、シオリと戦ったことは覚えている。でも引き分けてはいない」
さんはそう言ってたっすけど」
「個人の感覚の差だろう。俺は俺の方が押されていたと思っている。シオリは状況的に俺と戦う必要があって、しかも俺を倒してはいけない状況だった。そういう制限がなければ、俺ぐらい軽く殺せたんじゃないか? それを引き分けたって言うのは、俺としてはちょっとな」
「そうっすか。へー」
(これが擬態だったら逆に凄いっすね。ある程度の実力を身につけると、普通はそこからくる自信みたいなものが雰囲気に
う。シオリは澄ました顔を浮かべていた。アキラの発言に対して何か言う気はないようだ。シオリの態度はアキラの発言を肯定しているようにも見える。
やはり大したことはないのか。カナエはそう判断してアキラへの興味を大分失った。少々強い程度の子供なら東部に幾らでも
アキラの実力への興味を失ったカナエはそれで話を終わらせようとしたが、興味を失わなかった者が話を続ける。レイナだ。
レイナはどこか思い詰めているような真剣な声でアキラにそう尋ねた。
3人の視線がレイナに集まる。アキラは少し戸惑っている。カナエは少し意外そうにしている。シオリは嫌な予想が的中したように表情を曇らせている。
シオリがレイナを気遣いながら話す。
「ごめん、シオリ。私はアキラに聞いているの。黙っていて」
シオリは今のレイナに自分が何を言っても無駄だと悟り、出過ぎた
3人の視線が今度はアキラに集まる。アキラはどこか深刻で重苦しいレイナとシオリの雰囲気に戸惑いながらも、答えないのは無理だと悟って自分なりの考えを話すことにする。
「......えっと、強いとは何かとか、強くなるための心構えとか、そういう精神論みたいな話ではなくて、単純な個人戦闘能力の話だとして答えると、やっぱり装備と訓練だな。一つに絞れって言うなら装備だ」
める。アキラの認識では、アルファのサポートを受けている自分は、ある意味その馬鹿どもの理想を実現しているようなものだからだ。
アキラは数多くの訓練と死線の上を駆け抜けるような実戦を繰り返している。それはアキラの実力を飛躍的に向上させている。
しかしアルファのサポートがある場合とない場合の落差と、アキラの自己評価の低さが、カナエからの質問に対して違うと答えるのをアキラに
「いや、そこまでは言わないけど、どっちかと言えば、俺は装備を重視するってだけの話だ。極論を言えば、100年訓練して素手でモンスターと戦うよりも、適当な銃を買って撃った方が早いってだけだ」
「いやいや、アキラ少年。銃を過信しては駄目っすよ。たとえ銃や戦車が存在していても、格闘技術は今も廃れずに洗練され続けているっす。近接戦闘に特化した強化服を着用すれば、人間がモンスターと殴り合うことも十分可能っす。
「わざわざ敵に近づいて殴りに行くぐらいなら、俺は銃を使うってだけの話だ。第一、その手の装備がどうこうって話になっている時点で、やっぱり装備じゃないか」
「アキラ少年。装備だけじゃ駄目って話っすよ。装備品を使いこなすためには適切な訓練が必要っす」
「だから俺も装備と訓練って言っただろう? ハンターはいつ死んでも不思議はない。だから長期間の訓練をしている暇なんかない。それを補うためにできる限り良い装備を整えた方が良いって話だ。何で俺がカナエの言う馬鹿どもと同じことを言っていることになるんだ?」
カナエがはっきりと答える。
「それはアキラ少年の
しみながらもそれで納得してしまった。当然とでも言うような自信に満ちあふれた発言は、内容がどうであれそれなりに説得力を持つものだ。自分の知識や常識などに自信がない者には特に有効だ。
レイナは2人の話を真剣に聞きながらいろいろと考え、揺らぎ、迷っていた。そして少し
「......その、できる限り良い装備を整えるって言っても、下手に高性能な装備を手に入れると、装備の性能を自分の実力だと勘違いして慢心して余計に死にやすくなるって話を聞くけど......」
アキラが当たり前のように答える。
「慢心で死ぬのなら、慢心しなければ助かるかもしれない。少なくとも慢心以外の理由で死ぬ場合よりは助かる確率が高いはずだ。慢心しないために自分の装備の性能を落とすぐらいなら、俺は慢心するぐらい高性能な装備を手に入れて、慢心しないように注意する方を選ぶ」
そう答えるのは簡単だが、実践するのは難しい。アキラの場合はアルファのサポートという極めて高性能な装備を手に入れたにも
レイナが再びアキラに尋ねる。
「......カナエが言うような馬鹿は多いわ。実際に高性能な装備を手に入れて調子に乗るハンターもね。そんな調子に乗るハンターを見てアキラはどう思うの?」
「どう思うって言われても......」
「身の程を超える高性能な装備を手に入れたとして、その装備に頼っている姿を誰かに見られた時に、自分がどう思われているかとか、それに対して自分はどう思うかとか、でもいいわ」
レイナは真面目な表情で、少し思い詰めているようにも見える表情で返事を待っていた。
アキラは質問の内容とレイナの態度に関連性を見いだせずに戸惑っていたが、食事を
「ではアキラ様。仮にですが、分不相応に高性能な装備品の使用を嫌がる人物に対して、それを使用するように説得するとしたら、アキラ様ならどのように説得なさいますか?」
レイナがシオリに僅かな非難の視線を向ける。シオリは
シオリは過去に何度もレイナに装備の更新を勧めていた。しかしレイナはそれを断っていた。
ドランカムは所属しているハンターにハンターランクに応じた装備品を貸し出している。ハンターランクが高いほど、貸し出される装備も高性能になる。ドランカムの若手ハンター達がハンターランクを重要視する理由もここにある。
若手達の装備はほぼ全て貸出品だ。自前の装備を保持している者はごく僅かだ。レイナの装備も同様だ。
逆に古参達の装備は
長期的な視点で見れば経験を積んだハンターが増えていくのだ。組織には十分な利益がある。だが古参が若手に陰口を言う理由には十分だった。装備が良いだけでそれを自分の実力だと勘違いしている馬鹿どもだと。
レイナはその陰口をかなり気にしていた。それはその気になれば更に良い装備を手に入れられる立場だからだろう。
その上でシオリはレイナに更なる装備の向上を勧めていた。より良い装備を自前で
またずれたことを言ったかもしれない。そう判断したアキラが少し気まずそうな表情で付け足す。
「......まあ、説得したけど駄目だったっていう実績作りで話すのなら、これも経験だ、とか、試しに一度、とか、適当なことを言ってみる......かな?」
「貴重な御意見をありがとうございました」
「......いや、こっちも参考にならないことを言って悪かった......です」
シオリは本心で
アキラはその後もシオリ達と雑談を交えて食事を続けた。レイナの様子が少し気になったものの、シオリもカナエもアキラを非難するような態度を取っていなかったので、下手に反応するのは止めておくことにした。
食事が進み、料理の残りの品が少なくなるのにつれて、レイナの様子が少しずつ変化していく。深く
アキラが食後のコーヒーを飲み干した時、レイナの表情にはある種の覚悟が備わっていた。
「ごちそうさまでした。とても
「こちらこそ、ありがとうございました。何かの縁が御座いましたら、また御一緒いたしましょう」
アキラが苦笑しながら答える。
「はい。......できれば今度は、あんな
シオリはどことなく機嫌の良さそうな表情でそう答えた。
ビルの外に出たアキラが軽く伸びをする。
名残惜しそうにそう話すアキラに、アルファが笑って答える。
『止めろ。誘惑するな。意思が揺らぐだろうが』
金だって思えるぐらいのハンターに成ってもらわないと困るのよ。気は長い方だけれど、頑張ってちょうだいね』
『分かってるよ。気長に待ってくれ』
アキラは機嫌良くそう答えて、アルファと雑談しながら家に帰っていった。
レイナ達はまだレストランに残っていた。既に料理皿もコップ類も下げられたテーブル席で、それぞれが座って待っている。
カナエは暇そうにして待っている。シオリは黙って静かに待っている。レイナは、自分の心が整うのを待っている。
レイナがシオリとカナエに顔を向けて、覚悟を決めて話し始める。
「シオリ、カナエ、今まで御免なさい」
レイナがシオリに真剣な表情で頼む。
「シオリ。今更だけど、私の装備の更新を頼んでも良いかしら。できる限り良い装備を御願い。それで誰からどう思われようともう知ったことじゃないわ」
「カナエ。これからも私の護衛を御願い」
カナエがいつも通りの軽い笑みを浮かべながら、機嫌良く答える。
「良いっすよ。元々それが仕事っすからね」
カナエが挑発的に笑って答える。
レイナが内心の覚悟が
くお嬢も素人未満は卒業っすか! 装備も実力も中途半端なくせに、進んで危険地帯に乗り込もうとする素人未満の護衛を任された時はいろいろ思ったっすけど、これからは初心者ぐらいにはなりそうっすね」
「では、今後ドランカムでの訓練の予定は全て取り消させていただきます。今後は私とカナエでお嬢様をお鍛えします。訓練はかなり厳しいものになります。お覚悟を御願い致します。......それとカナエ! 少しは口を慎みなさい!」
(どうすれば強くなれるのか。ちゃんと強くなろうと決めて、強くなろうとすれば良いだけだった。私はそれすらしていなかった。私は強くなる! 絶対に!)
レイナは覚悟を決めた。自らが誇れる強さを手に入れるために。
There were branch shops of all kinds of companies that were doing business inside the city as well as Hunter Office's facilities. Some of the people inside that building were the people from the upper district. That building was the goal of those who wanted to reach success in the city, the object of the admiration of those people who wanted to be rich, as well as the monument that reminded everyone of the city's powerful influence and strength.
Akira looked up to that building. But in his eyes, there were no sparkles like how those people who wanted to reach success looked at that building, nor the strong will to reach that place, nor the admiration for that place.
Alpha then warned Akira.
"Akira, stop smiling. You look embarrassing."
"Whoops!"
Akira tried to gather himself together. But even so, he still could not completely hide his jovial mood. He still had a big smile on his face, embarrassingly so.
Akira got another invitation from Shiori for a meal. It was an invitation to convey her thanks after saving Reina in Mihazono ruin.
As he remembered what happened last time, Akira completely dropped his guard and immediately accepted the invitation.
Alpha saw Akira did not change much and sighed.
"If you really like the meal in that restaurant that much, you can just go there with your own money from time to time, you know."
Akira did not reply immediately, but after some thinking, he answered back with a rather heavy tone.
In reality, the current Akira would be able to easily pay that much money if he reduced his expenditure on his expendables and equipment. But those expenses were for the sake of his safety, they were basically his lifeline. Akira kept reminding himself of that while fighting back the temptation.
Alpha smiled wryly and said.
"Well, in that case, let's hurry up before it's too late to enjoy this opportunity."
"You're right!"
Akira walked happily as he entered that huge building.
Just like last time, Akira left his rifles at the reception desk. The interior of that restaurant was still as luxurious as before, Akira's augmented suit looked so out of place there. But since half of the customers were also Hunters, Akira did not stick out. This was also because of the location of that restaurant and the type of customers it usually served.
The server guided Akira to his table, but when he arrived, he was very much surprised. Akira thought that Shiori would be alone, just like last time. But this time, Kanae and Reina were also present.
Kanae lightly waved at Akira and said.
"Yo there!! We meet again!!"
Akira looked at Kanae and frowned. Shiori and Reina were wearing high-class suits suitable for visiting that luxurious restaurant. But Kanae was using her usual maid outfit, it would not be strange if someone mistook her as another server of that restaurant.
[...Is this... Normal? Is it just like me who came in this augmented suit? No, wait, but Shiori is using a suit while the servers didn't seem to be bothered by that maid outfit... I guess it's just me, huh?]
Akira thought that his common sense might be wrong, but then he thought that it was not like he could do anything about it, so he just shook it off and proceeded to sit on the chair that the server guided him to.
Shiori and Reina saw Akira's reaction and sighed. Reina then said to Kanae.
"Kanae, can you do something about that outfit of yours?"
Kanae smiled.
"Nope. It's important for me to keep using this maid outfit for the sake of protecting Milady, and Akira is still using his augmented suit there, so it's not that much different from that."
To be honest, Akira did not want to be treated the same as Kanae, but since he was there on their dime, he stopped himself from protesting.
"Akira-sama, thank you for saving Milady the other day. As I promised, I'll be paying for your meal today, so please, there's no need to hold yourself back."
Akira answered back happily.
"Thank you for that, well then, let's not wait-"
As Akira browsed the menu, he remembered something and asked Shiori.
"...But if this is a gratitude for what happened in the Seranthal building, shouldn't you invite Elena-san and the other Hunters too?"
"For their case, we have given their team, including you, extra reward as our thanks. Since it also includes the money from Drankam, the reward will take some time to process, but I hope that you'll find the amount satisfying. As for today's meal, this is my thanks for accepting a personal request from me back then."
"You did take my request to buy me 5 seconds."
"Oh, that one, huh. I see. If this meal is the reward for that, I'm really glad I pushed myself back then. Well then, if that's the case, I won't be holding back."
Akira then started deciding on what to order from the menu. Just like last time, he could not imagine the kind of dishes simply from the names written on that menu. After trying his best for some time, just like last time, he decided to pick that day's special course.
Since Akira could not decide on anything, when Alpha saw him pick the 'default' choice, she pointed at the menu and spoke to him.
"She did say not to hold back, so how about picking something else randomly?"
"No thanks. The dish that you're pointing at has this strange name that sounds like a curse chant from the western district. What exactly would come out if I actually ordered this?"
Alpha jokingly replied.
"Hmm, if you chant this name in the western district, it feels like it might summon fire or something. So I'm sure it would be something red and spicy."
"It doesn't really matter, I'll pick the recommended course from the restaurant, I'm sure you can't ever go wrong with that one. There's no need to experiment with this precious chance, after all, it'll only needlessly add the risk that I would regret it later."
"Oh my, that's not something I expected from a Hunter who always risks their life in their job though."
"I already had my fill taking risks only for my Hunter job."
Alpha smiled mischievously.
"Well, now that you mention it, that's true. It's a good thing to be careful. If it's possible, I want you to be this cautious all the time."
Akira deliberately ignored Alpha and closed the menu.
After they placed their order, they started talking to each other while waiting for their meals to arrive. Akira was listening closely to Shiori's explanation about the current state of the Seranthal building.
"I see, so that's what's happening in the Seranthal building right now, huh. But even if they secured the first floor, the upper floors are still filled with monsters, right? I wonder if they're going to be alright."
"From what I heard, it seemed that someone from the City Management was able to make a deal with the manager of Seranthal building and they're using some of the building's facilities to bolster their defence."
Akira seemed slightly surprised by it.
"A deal with the manager of Seranthal building? Do you mean that Seranthal A.I? That's amazing. If the city had someone that amazing, they could have sent them in sooner and we wouldn't have had to go through all of that."
"By the way, I heard that you fought Ane-san evenly though, is that true?"
It might be because Akira was fully focused on enjoying his food that he could not remember something like that, so he tilted his head and asked.
So Kanae thought that Akira was playing dumb because of that, but looking at his expression, she realized that he was being serious. So she then asked in a roundabout way as not to infringe on that secrecy.
"I'm talking about that thing in that place, you know?"
"No no no, I remember that I fought Shiori, but I don't think I fought evenly."
"Is that so? But Ane-san said so though."
"I bet it's just the difference in our opinion. If you ask me, I was the one on the receiving end. At that time, Shiori had to fight me, while at the same time, she couldn't afford to kill me. Without that limitation, I'm sure she could have killed me. So for me, I don't think I fought her evenly."
"Is that so? I see."
[This is pretty amazing if he's trying to play dumb here. If he's really someone strong, normally, strong people would exude an aura of confidence, but I don't feel anything like that from him. So is it like it's really because he's not that strong?]
Kanae then glanced at Shiori, who was eating her meal with a composed expression. It seemed that she was not bothered by what Akira just said. Judging from how she was reacting, it seemed that Shiori agreed with him.
Kanae then thought that Akira might be really someone not that strong and lost interest in him. If he was just another strong young Hunter, there were many other young Hunters like him in the eastern district, so it did not interest Kanae at all.
Kanae who had lost interest in Akira was about to end their conversation there, but Reina who had not lost her interest continued the conversation.
Reina was asking with a serious tone, it sounded as if she was desperate.
The other 3 turned their attention towards Reina. Akira seemed to be at loss on what to say, Kanae was a bit surprised, and Shiori looked rather worried, she somehow had a bad feeling about what would happen next.
Shiori then tried to be considerate as she said to Reina.
"I'm sorry, Shiori. I'm not asking you, I'm asking Akira."
It seemed that Reina would not listen to her no matter what she said, so Shiori apologized for rudely interjecting and did not say anything more.
Reina, Shiori, and Kanae turned their attention to Akira, who was rather confused by that heavy mood emanating from Reina and Shiori. But since it seemed that he had no other choice but to answer that question, he tried to think of an answer on his own.
"...Well, if you're not asking about what's the meaning of strength or what is inner strength or anything philosophical like that, and if you're referring to simple fighting power, I would say equipment and training. If I have to pick one, it would be equipment."
Akira flinched a bit, it seemed that Kanae hit the bull's eye. In his own opinion, he who had Alpha's support was basically the dream of those stupid people who put emphasis on equipment.
In reality, Akira had gone through a lot of training and multiple near-death experiences, which actually boosted his skill.
But judging from the difference between when he had Alpha's support and when he did not have it, plus how Akira evaluated himself lowly, Akira could not bring himself to deny what Kanae just said to him. So instead, he tried to make some excuses.
"I won't go that far, but if I have to pick between training and equipment, I do think that equipment is more important. I know that this is a rather extreme comparison, but I'm just saying that it's faster if you buy a rifle to fight monsters than to train for 100 years to kill monsters with bare hands."
"No no no, Akira boy, you can't put too much trust on rifles. As in matter of fact, even when we already have rifles and tanks now, people are still polishing martial arts, right? If you get yourself an augmented suit designed for close combat, you should be able to fight monsters just fine. There are actually more Hunters than you think out there who don't use rifles to fight monsters, or at least, there are enough of them for corporations to make equipments for."
"In my opinion, I would rather shoot them from afar with a rifle than getting close to fight them. In the first place, when you bring up that talk about augmented suits designed for close combat, it already means that equipment is more important, right?"
"Akira boy, equipment alone is not enough. It's also important for you to train yourself and get yourself familiar with those equipments."
"That's exactly why I did say training and equipment, yes? Hunters can die anytime, so we can't afford to spend too much time training. I'm just saying that it's better to get the best equipment you can afford to compensate for that. So why does that make me one of those stupid people?"
But then Kanae firmly replied.
"That's because you picked a bad analogy there."
Akira just accepted that answer although he was not 100% convinced by it. No matter what the subject was, it had some convincing power when you said it firmly after all. Even more so when it came to someone like Akira who had no confidence in his own knowledge and common sense.
Reina listened seriously to that conversation and thought about it, it did surprise her and made her unsure. After hesitating for a bit, she then said to Akira.
"...Uhh, but even if you say to get the best equipment that I can afford, I heard that it might cause me to mistake the power of my equipment as my own skill, get ahead of myself, and get myself killed instead though..."
Akira replied casually.
"If getting ahead of yourself only gets you killed, then you just need not get ahead of yourself. It'll at least reduce the chance that you might get killed by something else other than getting ahead of yourself. So, if I have to choose, rather than lowering my equipment just so that I won't get ahead of myself, I would rather get good equipment enough for me to get ahead of myself but be extra careful so I won't actually get ahead of myself."
It was something that was easy to say but difficult to practice. In the case of Akira, although he had Alpha's support which was great 'equipment', he got himself almost killed several times, which was why it was easy for him to not get ahead of himself.
Reina then asked another question.
"...There are a lot of stupid people like what Kanae said, they get ahead of themselves just because they have powerful equipment, so, what's your opinion about them?"
"...Hmmm, even if you ask me so..."
"Let's say that you get your hands on a powerful equipment and someone sees you using it, do you get bothered by how people would think of you? Or what's your own opinion about yourself in that situation? Things like that."
Reina asked with a serious face, she looked rather desperate as she was waiting for Akira's answer.
Akira was a bit confused since he did not understand how Reina's question connected to her expression, but since they were paying for his meal, Akira seriously thought about it first before replying.
"In that case, Akira-sama. Let's say that there's someone who is against using high-level equipment that doesn't match that person's real skill and let's say that you have to convince that person to do so, what would you say to that person?"
Reina immediately looked at Shiori, there was a trace of reproach in her gaze toward Shiori. But Shiori did not look back as she fixed her gaze at Akira.
Shiori had recommended Reina to renew her equipment several times in the past, but Reina always refused it.
In Drankam, Hunters were allowed to borrow equipment from the gang depending on their Hunter Ranks. The higher their Hunter Ranks, the better the equipment they could borrow. That was one of the reasons why the young Hunters in Drankam prioritized raising their Hunter Ranks.
Most of the equipment used by the young Hunters in Drankam were borrowed equipment. Only some of them were using their own equipment. Reina was no exception.
In contrast to that, most of the equipment used by the veteran Hunters were their own equipment. Of course, they could borrow equipment from Drankam too, but the available equipment for them to borrow with their Hunter Ranks were mostly weaker than what they already had.
In the long run, it would allow more Hunters to gather more experience. It was a good thing for the gang. But that was also enough to earn some grudge from the veteran Hunters as they mocked those young Hunters as stupid people who mistook the power of their equipments as their own skill.
Reina was bothered by that kind of thing. It was because she was in a position where she could get better equipments if she wanted to.
But even so, Shiori still recommended Reina to get better equipment. There was no problem with getting better equipment on her own. And by getting better equipment with money, she would be seen as a fool who had nothing other than her equipment not only by the veteran Hunters but also by the other young Hunters and Katsuya's faction.
Akira, who sensed how awkward the mood got, thought that he might have said something strange again.
"...Well. If I have to at least try even though I know that it would be completely useless, so that I can say that I've tried, then I would at least speak up about it..."
"Thank you very much for your valuable opinion."
"...Uhh, well, I'm sorry that I only gave you an answer that might not be useful at all..."
Shiori was honestly smiling right from the bottom of her heart.
After that, they continued enjoying their meals while talking to each other. Although he was a bit bothered by how Reina was reacting, since Kanae and Shiori did not say anything, Akira decided not to say anything too.
As they continued enjoying their meal and slowly reaching the end, Reina started to show some changes. She raised her head and seemed to be seriously thinking about something as hesitation slowly erased from her expression.
When Akira finished his meal and drank his coffee, Reina's expression had already changed to a more resolved one.
"Thank you very much for the meal. It was a great meal, thank you again."
"Likewise, thank you very much. If the chance presents itself again, I hope that you would accept my invitation."
Akira smiled bitterly.
"Of course... But if it's possible, I hope it won't be after doing something as risky as this the next time."
Shiori was smiling happily when she said that.
Akira then left that building and stretched out his body.
Seeing how Akira sounded a bit sad, Alpha smiled at him and said.
"Stop it, don't try to tempt me like that. I might really end up going there with my own money if you do that."
"It would be troublesome for me if you don't grow up to be a powerful Hunter who thinks that amount of money is nothing but a spare change, you know. Although I think it'll take some time until you can do that, let's be patient and keep giving our best, okay?"
"I know, so please wait patiently for me until I can be that strong."
Akira replied with an uppity tone, he then walked back home while chatting with Alpha.
While on the other hand, Reina, Shiori, and Kanae were still inside the restaurant. They were sitting at their table, the plates and coffee cups were already cleaned off. They were just sitting in their respective seats while waiting.
Kanae looked rather bored. Shiori waited silently without saying anything. Both of them were waiting for Reina to finish reorganizing her feelings.
Reina then looked at Kanae and Shiori, she made her resolve and said.
"Shiori, Kanae, I'm really sorry about everything until now."
Reina then asked Shiori with a serious face.
"Shiori, I know that I've always refused it, but can you please help me renew my equipment? If it's possible, I want to get the best equipment available. I don't mind what others might say of me."
"Kanae, I'll be counting on you to protect me."
Kanae was smiling like usual.
"Sure, that's my job in the first place after all."
Kanae gave a challenging smile.
Reina's resolve was obvious from her tone.
"Ohh, that's great then!! It seems that Milady will finally graduate from being a total amateur! I had a lot of thoughts about it when Milady decided to challenge a dangerous place without proper skill and equipment and was fully relying on Milady's bodyguard. But this time, Milady will finally be able to start as a proper beginner."
"Well then, in that case, first I'll remove all the scheduled training in Drankam. From here, Milady will be training with both of us. Since it won't be an easy training, I hope that Milady is ready... And also, Kanae!! Watch your mouth!!"
[What should I do to become stronger? It's simple, I just need to decide to be strong and put real effort into becoming stronger. I wasn't even doing that until now, but this time, I'll properly become stronger!!]
Reina made her resolve to attain strength with her own effort.
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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