“So, why did you call me all of a sudden?”
While I was cheerily on my way home from the Big Tree dungeon, I got a message from Uoyama-kun asking if could stop by his home. When I asked what was up, he only said “just to be on the safe side, I want to talk somewhere we can be at ease”.
Normally, I would have tried to think of some witty response, but since I felt it wasn’t so trivial whatever this was, I simply agreed.
So, I went to his home and was then invited into his room. He then took out and offered me a cushion, something he had never done to my recollection. Like that, the two of us sat down facing each other. After a few seconds of silence, he readjusted his glasses and then spoke.
“The two of us are friends but at the same time, we are adventurers”
“Well, yeah.”
“So, if we had a favor to ask the other as fellow adventurers, it is only proper for us to prepare the compensation.”
“Huh…?”
As though ignoring my confusion, he took out 5 brown envelopes from a bag by his side and lined them up beside one another. I couldn’t imagine them to have contained letters since each one was so thick.
I felt like Uoyama-kun’s already narrow eyes became even narrower. I gulped down hard as I wondered just what the heck he was planning to ask of me.
But then, the door to his room suddenly opened.
“I brought you some snacks and juic—”
“I’m hoping to buy you for one day.”
“…”
“…”
With a serious expression on his face, Uoyama-kun looked straight at me and asked so. As for me, I slowly moved my gaze from him to the door. And then, there was his mother, staring at us, petrified.
Before long, his mother, still haven’t said a word since, placed a tray which had the aforementioned snacks and juice between Uoyama-kun and I, just next to the envelopes.
“Err, well, enjoy…”
“Thank you.”
Uoyama-kun said so and bowed to his mother who was doing her best not to make any eye contact. His mother then hurried to get out of the room, but just before she fully exited, she turned back and said:
“You know…your mom believes in free love.”
Quickly thereafter, she shut the door.
“Alright, let me hear your answer, Kyotaro”
“I’m gonna kill you…”
“!?”
This was probably the very first time in my life that I used such a menacing tone.
“…but seriously, what is this even about? What is that request you have for me, as an adventurer?”
“I’ve found my ideal tentacle, so I’d like your help in securing it.”
“Ahh, I see now. So it’s about that…”
In response, I covered my eyes with my hand and then bounced my head.
“I’ve prepared 500,000 yen. I’m hoping this will be enough to hire you.”
“…wow, you’re really going all out.”
“Irregular as this is, I am still asking the help of a “B+” adventurer, so of course I’ll prepare at least this much.”
“You don’t really have to though…”
Sure, adventurers earned so much more than your average part-time worker, but who knew for how long that would be the case. I might not have any right to say this as I myself had gone on a splurge just recently, but it was probably better for him to save that money in a bank or something.
I mean, would anyone normally present that kind of money to ask a friend a favor?
“We have to set boundaries here. If I were to compromise on this, the dynamic of our friendship would change. I don’t want that.”
Uoyama-kun rejected my idea. Before realizing it, I had let out a sigh.
Geez, this guy…
“…you’re really one awkward guy.”
“I hear that from time to time, but surely not as often as you do.”
I sighed once again the same way as before and then spoke.
“Alright, I accept your request.”
“Thanks. But you haven’t heard what kind of monster I want yet. Will you still say yes?”
“Yeah, I’m good with whatever you choose. Ahh, but obviously B rank monsters are out of the question, yeah?”
“Understood. I mean, in the first place, ordinary people can’t go to B rank dungeons even if they wanted to.”
There was that, yeah, but I had a feeling that if it was the sake of his beloved tentacle, Uoyama-kun would go so far as to break the law.
Anyway though, the dungeons that were open to the public were only those that ranged from E to C rank. If one wished to enter A and B rank dungeons, they must first obtain special permissions from the country. Ordinarily, only JSDF members dealt with A and B rank dungeons, but civilian adventurers who were insanely strong or those who had accomplished much were said to be asked for help regarding those dungeons. This was information I got in our training course.
I also heard in a video that the Low-tier Knight was also asked for that.
“Still, you could have worded that better, you know…”
“Worded what?”
At that moment though, I heard a rather gentle knock from the other side of the door.
“Hey, so your mom thought about it again, and, well, I don’t believe a relationship should be based on money. Relationships, I believe, should be based on the feelings between the couple instead.”
“…hey, I’ll accept your request, so help me explain. For some reason, my parents don’t have much faith about my preferences lately.”
“I mean, you dug yourself into that, don’t you think?”
Oh shut up! I’m nothing more than your regular boob enjoyer!
* * *
The next day, I went to the station Uoyama-kun told me to go. I had arrived a bit too early, so I had no choice but to wait for him. The station in question seemed to be in a town near the sea, but there was almost no people here. It didn’t look like there were shops where I could pass the time either, so I simply leaned against the wall and watched videos on my phone.
With my earphones on, I rewatched a video by Golden Guitar.
<<~♪>>
Obviously, it was good. Her voice, which was clear but has unconcealed cheeriness at the end of each line, brought to mind the clear blue sky.
And on the screen was her presumably E cup boobs hidden underneath by a plain T-shirt. That one brought to mind 2 mountains of the perfect size.
Apparently, she had this tendency of hugging her guitar during the chorus whenever she got excited. And when she did so, her boobs were elevated by the guitar, making it more pronounced and…
How she didn’t have any horny-leaning comments in her videos, I had no idea.
Can it be that I’m the only one who looks at her that way? Yeah, no way. This is the internet, after all. A place full of horny—
At that moment, my Magic Eye suddenly activated and showed me a vision where a slender, supple hand touched me by the shoulder.
“!?”
“Oh?”
I immediately jumped to my left side and glared at the owner of the hand. I found a girl in nun clothes quizzically looking my way.
That face! Those boobs!!
“Hanazono, Karen…!!”
“Yes. It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Silver Lily? I’m glad you’re well.”
It was the pervert from last time, dressed just like she did back then. And of course, there was her dynamite body. I could say her body was straight out of a lewd manga, but I was more behaved than that, yup.
Anyway, I removed my earphones, and then fiddled with my phone to get out of video screen and into phone app. I was going to report it to the police.
“Ahh, wait! Today, I just want to talk about Golden Guitar!”
“…huh?”
I was baffled by what she meant and looked at her with suspicion. But she had her fingers linked in front of her chest.
Ghh. It’s almost like her hands are getting sucked into her boobs! But no, I won’t fall for that seductive technique! And yet, I can’t tear my eyes away! Wait, is this a superpower!? …right, sorry, it’s just my intincts…
“I’m also a big fan of hers, so if you don’t mind, want to talk about her for a bit?”
“…”
I was confused on what to do. If she had simply attempted to recruit me into the so-called Yuri goddess religion, I would have turned her down and reported her. However, what she was proposing was a simple conversation about an artist.
It felt a bit wrong to report her for that.
“…if it’s really only about that…”
“Ahh, thank goodness you’re willing to talk, Silver!”
“I’m not Silver…ahh, whatever”
I didn’t want to tell her my real name anyway, so this worked too.
“Golden Guitar has been uploading song covers for about 3 years now. Silver, which of her videos do you prefer, before or after the Return of the Age of Mythology?”
“…well, if I had to choose, I’d say I like her songs from the before period.”
“Oh! Me too! You truly are a comrade in arms! Apparently though, she started posting even back when she was in junior high, seeing being a content creator as a stepping stone into finally debuting as a pro someday.”
“Ohh…”
…is that information available somewhere else? But then again, I haven’t watched all of her videos, so maybe I just haven’t come across it.
“There’s also her desire to help a bit with their family finances…she had lost her father, you see, so her her family is in a little bit of a rougher spot than most.”
“Mm?”
Even that kind of information is available online?
“But it seems that in becoming an Awakened One, she stopped running ads and other related stuff. Apparently, based on the assumption that her power as an Awakened One affected her singing, she thought she was kind of brainwashing her audience and didn’t like it.”
“Ohh, so she was an Awakened One.”
“That being the case though, in order to help with her family’s once-again difficult finances, she decided to become an adventurer…but it’s not like has given up on her dreams; she’s still posting videos to this day, after all.”
Yeah, something really is strange here. Like, people won’t post about that kind of thing, right? Or was that exactly what you write about in blogs and stuff? I don’t really know as the only social media I used were the group chats I had with my friends.
“And then, there is her childhood friend, Ito Kurumi, who has been supporting her all along! Despite her saying out loud that she has given up on ever making a debut! Ohh, the way they stay together, even going so far as to become fellow adventurers! I don’t know how else to describe this other than yuri!”
“Hey, hold on,”
“They have a bond that transcends the thing we call friendship! The sweat on Kurumi-san’s hands as she films the videos, ahh, you can feel them even through the screen! The two of them still hasn’t crossed the line, but it’s only a matter of time before they realize what it is they are truly feeling!”
“Where did you even get this information?”
“I’m sure of it, it’s love!”
“A pervert like you shouldn’t talk about love”
Just when I thought she was simply staring into space with a scary sparkle in her eyes, Hanazono Karen then extended a hand toward me.
“But we can’t let things be! We have to prepare the wedding hall for those two! And the people around them are not nearly enough! We can’t overlook this, Silver Lily!”
“What I can’t overlook are you and your criminal acts”
Like, you’re absolutely beyond what a doxxer is.
Perhaps thinking I was being serious as I typed in the emergency number 110 in my phone, Hanazono Karen pushed her hands forward.
“H-hold on, Silver. I think there’s a misunderstanding happening between us right now.”
“You say that like we ever truly understood each other.”
“Anyway, I’ve only shared this information with you. I haven’t talked about this with other fellow fans. It is sensitive, personal information, after all.”
“No, the problem to begin with is how you even know all this stuff about her.”
“I’ve heard it from an ally who is going somewhere far away for some reason.”
In other words, this criminal had an accomplice.
“He’s a fellow with really good ears. He gave me all sorts of information he got from who knew where…his eyes were really, really glazed over though, I wonder how he’s doing now…”
“…can you tell me this guy’s name?”
“I’m not sure. He only ever gave me fake names.”
Sure sounded like one shady guy.
“For now, I’ll call a government employee I know, so please tell me more about that person. He’s someone I can’t turn a blind eye to.”
“Well…”
The world was full of fans who behaved badly. But hearing of someone doing that kind of information gathering, well, as a fan, I couldn’t overlook it.
For the meantime, I decided to contact Togo-san and ask him to talk to the police in my stead again. I just had no confidence I would be able to explain this whole situation properly.
<<Hello, this is Togo>>
He picked up after only a single ring.
“Ahh, hello, this is Kyotaro. Sorry but Hanazono Karen-san showed up again.”
<<……I see. How are things at the moment? If necessary, I can get in contact with the closest police station.>>
“Ah, no, I’m not hurt or anything. I just heard from her than an acquaintance of hers has been doing some shady stuff.”
<<That…doesn’t sound like pleasant news.>>
“Yeah, I thought so too.”
I agreed and looked toward Hanazono Karen.
“I think it’s better if you heard straight from…she’s gone!?”
Before I knew it, the pervert in nun clothes vanished. In the few seconds I had been on the phone, she had managed to get away without even so much as a sound.
I got careless. Because I knew my Magic Eye would have reacted if I was under attack, I took my eyes off of her and forgot that she could simply escape.
“Sorry, she got away.”
<<It’s fine. The officer who’s in charge of her should have her number. I’ll inform them.>>
“Thank you.”
<<We’ll also look into this acquaintance you mentioned. You don’t have to be involved more than you have already. I mean, it’s a day off for you, isn’t it?>>
“Oh…thanks, I’ll take you up on that offer.”
To be honest, even though I did all this out of a sense of justice, I still found the proper process to be troublesome. Like, why should I go spend my precious day off reporting about a suspicious, ill-behaving fellow?
If the government could take care of it all by themselves, I say let them. I did feel a bit guilty though.
“Sorry, calling you on a Saturday and all…”
<<Don’t worry yourself about it. You only got caught up into this matter that should have been totally unrelated to you. Leave it to us adults and go enjoy the life of a high school student. Well then, talk to you later.>>
“Ohh, yeah. Sorry again for the trouble.”
We ended the call, and I breathed out a sigh.
Togo-san sure is reliable…ahh, but I shouldn’t keep on relying on him, of course. Maybe I should get him a box of sweets for the next time we meet.
“Sorry for making you wait…Kyotaro, what’s wrong?”
“Ah, Uoyama-kun, hey.”
Almost with perfect timing, Uoyama-kun arrived. I waved back at him.
“Woah, you’re carrying so much”
“Yeah, thought I should bring as much of what we would need.”
He was carrying something that, although it was covered with cloth, looked like a tower shield. He was also carrying a large mountain-climbing backpack. I had to do a double take as soon as I noticed.
“We absolutely cannot fail. I beg you, Kyotaro, help me.”
“O-of course.”
His face tightened to reveal a very determined expression. He was being unusually serious.
“Alright, let’s go. The [battlefield] awaits us…!”
He said said so and then headed toward the bus stop. As I followed behind, I saw the back of someone full of anticipation and anxiety. It was very much the back of an adventurer.
For Uoyama-kun, this exploration could as well be his “first big adventure”. And as he tread on the ground with assured steps, I thought to myself: if only that determination of his was directed toward a cooler thing.
Taroppe-sensei(author)’s Q&A corner
Thank you for reading!
Also, please consider leaving some of your thoughts, a review, and bookmark the title over at the narou site (https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7336ie/)
Your support is appreciated and I hope you continue doing so.
Q: Kyotaro’s Magic Eye activated, so does that mean he was attacked?
A: Remember that his Magic Eye also activated to warn him of bird droppings. That is to say, it activates more on things that “will definitely put him in a disadvantage”. This time, it activated because “this suspicious person has enough grip strength to make it hard for him to break free if he got grabbed”.
Q: Who is Hanazono Karen’s informant?
A: It’s the public safety rookie from before. After his talk with Togo-san, he approached Awakened Ones in his own particular way, and…got overwhelmed. Togo-san made the young man spill out his guts on what he spilled to Hanazono Karen. Afterward, Togo-san literally spilled his guts out on the toilet. Still, he would probably take care of the rest. Maybe. Probably.
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