Chapter 522 - An Acquaintance and a Favor
The day after the somewhat awkward dinner, Parfait finished school and was waiting for Wilnel at the Base.
This was because Wilnel had told her at school that she would be bringing an acquaintance along today. Wilnel seemed to have entered AFO before Parfait logged in and was currently somewhere else. Assuming she had gone to pick up the acquaintance, Parfait began preparing to welcome them.
As she prepared, Parfait thought about various things.
Wilnel was known as the next head of the Gemini Foundation, which made her stand out quite a bit at school. It wasn't that she didn't talk to anyone besides Parfait's group; she spoke normally to everyone and smiled, but fundamentally, both Wilnel and others maintained a certain distance in their interactions.
Even though Parfait and her friends were used to it, the Foundations were powerful enough that people often joked they would be royalty in a different era. Because they were organizations with such power, it wasn't a situation where people could easily strike up a conversation. Since Parfait and the others talked to Wilnel at school, it made her slightly more approachable, but even then, no one ever talked to her one-on-one. Conversations always involved someone from Parfait's group.
Given that situation, the word that Wilnel was bringing an acquaintance was truly a bolt from the blue. Apparently, they were around the same age, but not a school acquaintance. Parfait wondered if it might be someone from the Gemini Foundation, but she quickly dismissed the thought. Wilnel had often emphasized that she never had friends before. Perhaps because of that, whenever Parfait and the others invited her to play, her preparations were always so over-the-top that they were constantly surprised.
If they were a friend, she'd probably say so. Maybe it's someone she met recently. I wonder what kind of person an acquaintance her age is?
Parfait couldn't imagine it at all, but she proceeded with her preparations to be a good host regardless of who arrived or when. While she was debating what kind of cake to prepare, Diite arrived at the scene.
"Hello, Parfait-kun. It's been a while since we met here."
"Diite-oneechan, that's rare. Did something happen?"
"Rather than something having happened, something is about to happen. I was wondering if I could ask a small favor of you."
"A favor from Diite-oneechan is really rare... If it's about my nun habit, don't worry, I'm keeping it as it is."
"Yes, I'd like you to continue doing that, but this is a different favor."
When the system to change the appearance of equipment was implemented, Diite had asked Parfait not to change her clothes. Parfait had no intention of changing them anyway, so she kept them.
Since a separate request was also unusual, Parfait thought to herself that between this and Wilnel's guest, today was shaping up to be quite busy. She urged Diite to take a seat.
After serving Coffee, Parfait asked, "So, what's the favor?"
"I believe Wilnel-kun will be bringing an acquaintance here shortly. I would like you to listen to their requests as much as possible."
"...Diite-oneechan, do you know Wilnel-chan's acquaintance?"
"They probably don't know me, but I know them. I left most of the arrangements to Ronios-kun, but some strange conditions were attached. Or rather, she found the other party's proposal interesting and accepted it. She really is a handful."
"Ah, Ronios-san..."
Ronios, the current head of the Gemini Foundation, was famous as a troublemaker not just in AFO but in the world at large. She was Wilnel's aunt, but her tendency to act on impulse and her love for interesting things had caused even Wilnel's opinion of her to become somewhat complicated recently. Wilnel had mentioned that they gave her busy work because they didn't know what she'd do if left to her own devices, but Parfait was amazed that her ability to turn anything into a hassle was still going strong.
"What do you think? You can refuse if you really don't want to."
"It's fine. I just have to listen to their requests, right? You're always taking care of me, Diite-oneechan, so I can at least do that much. Oh, but I'll turn down anything I can't do or things I absolutely hate."
"That's perfectly fine. I don't think it will happen, but if they ask for something you absolutely hate... well, I intend to make them regret it."
"That's scary. But who is it?"
"It would be better to hear it from the person themselves. They seem to be looking forward to meeting you, Parfait-kun."
"...Me? Why?"
"I think the reason will be explained by them as well. Now, I should be going. Thank you for the Coffee."
"Oh, you're leaving already?"
" I'll drop by for a longer visit next time. See you."
"Yeah, see you."
Diite waved with a smile and vanished from the spot with a glowing effect.
Things are so hectic. But it's someone even Diite-oneechan knows? Who could it be?
Parfait's anxiety began to outweigh her anticipation, but she told herself she couldn't slack off on her hospitality and resumed her preparations.
Thirty minutes later, the sound of a knock on the Base door reached Parfait's ears. Immediately after, Wilnel's voice called out, "It's Wilnel."
Parfait opened the door immediately, said "Welcome back," and then noticed the woman standing next to Wilnel.
She had long, straight black hair and black eyes. She was dressed like a bounty hunter from a Western film, wearing a white shirt with a brown vest and trousers, and a long coat draped over her shoulders. She wore a wide-brimmed hat, and a gun belt with a large buckle was slung diagonally across her waist, with a golden revolver hanging from it.
When I think of Westerns, I think of Pat-san, but this person looks like a Gunman who could have been based on him. Wait, is she wearing a shoulder Holster and leg Holsters too? She's equipped with five guns in total... Is she like Cecil-san?
The golden gun was the most striking, but she had two more at her sides and two on her legs, totaling five. It made Parfait want to point out that she had no idea what kind of monster one would have to fight to need that much gear.
"This is..."
As Wilnel tried to introduce her, the woman raised a hand to stop her. Parfait was surprised to see someone take such an action toward the next head of the Gemini Foundation, but the woman gave a small smile and spoke.
"Nice to meet you. I am Luty."
With that, the woman approached Parfait and grasped both of her hands.
"I've wanted to meet you for a long time, Parfait-san. After all, you're the daughter of Hayato-san and Esha-san."
"Y-yes. You know my parents?"
"Of course. Anyone in AFO who doesn't know Hayato-san and the others is a total amateur. Especially Hayato-san; he's the one who made this world even wider. Just hearing about the discovery of the sky island and the gimmick for defeating Shuten Doji on Onigashima makes my heart race."
Even though it was their first meeting, Parfait found herself warming up to Luty after hearing her father being praised. Thinking it wasn't right to keep her standing, she invited Luty inside, and Wilnel leaned closer to Parfait.
"You shouldn't let your guard down around this person too much."
"That's cruel, Wilnel. You shouldn't talk about a friend that way."
"We are not friends. We are merely acquaintances. Besides, did you forget the mess yesterday?"
"Nothing went wrong there, did it?"
"The fact that you can say nothing went wrong is exactly why I'm wary."
"Yesterday?"
Parfait knew her parents had logged in yesterday and that Wilnel had been there. She didn't know the exact time, but it was highly likely this Luty had been there too. However, Wilnel hadn't mentioned anything particularly bad happening, other than the unneeded information about her mother in a Maid Outfit making things a bit awkward.
Wilnel sighed, looked at Luty, and said, "Actually..."
"The one who wanted to meet Hayato-san and Esha-san in AFO yesterday was this Luty-san."
"Oh, so that's how it was?"
"At first, we were just talking normally, but then Esha-san suddenly shot Luty-san."
"...Eh? What do you mean? Shot her? My mom did?"
"Luty-san was the one at fault. She tried to reach for her gun right in front of them."
In contrast to Wilnel's exasperated gaze, Luty had a broad smile.
"Esha-san is magnificent! I tried to point my gun at Hayato-san to test his skills. But you know what? Esha-san shot me the very instant I tried to reach for it! I was so surprised that I couldn't even pull my gun from the Holster!"
Parfait couldn't understand why she was saying this so happily, but the moment she heard Luty tried to pull a gun on her father, she began to categorize her as an enemy.
"No, truly, I am sorry. I bowed my head and apologized sincerely to Hayato-san and Esha-san afterward. And of course, Parfait-san, I'm sorry for doing such a thing to your parents out of nowhere."
With that, Luty gave Parfait a deep bow.
Parfait couldn't tell if she was an enemy or an ally yet, so she opened her mouth to ask a question.
"Um, may I ask why?"
"It really was just intended as a test of skill. The stories about Hayato-san and Esha-san are often unbelievable. I'd heard they were abnormally strong. So, I wanted to see for myself if it was true. It was beyond my expectations. I thought I'd at least be able to take them down with me, but I couldn't do a thing!"
Parfait looked exasperated, contrasting with Luty's excited expression. Unaware, Luty continued happily.
"Afterward, I asked her why she shot me before I could even touch my gun. She said it was because of the flow of conversation, my body movements, and most importantly, my gaze. I intended to wait for the next break in the conversation, but being shot while talking really surprised me!"
Parfait could only think that being shot while talking would indeed be surprising. However, she was more concerned with the question of what exactly is my mom? and her heart was full of complex feelings.
Her masters, Benitsuru and Simon, had told her that the eyes changed for an instant whenever someone was about to do something. They said one could even dodge bullets as long as they watched for that, but Parfait was taken aback that her mother had actually done something that sounded like it belonged in a manga.
"Ignoring the fact that it was in the Virtual Reality of AFO rather than reality, I want to learn from that decisiveness!"
Parfait thought that was probably the one part she shouldn't learn from, but if Luty was happy with it, she decided it was fine. She recognized this person as slightly dangerous and added her to the list of people she shouldn't get too deeply involved with.
"However, I do have a slight complaint."
"A complaint...?"
"I was defeated without being able to do anything. I understand that I'm no match for them, but I don't know exactly how big the gap is."
"I see..."
"So, therefore..."
Luty smiled and let the long coat draped over her shoulders fall to the floor.
"Parfait-san, would you fight me?"
Parfait realized that this must be the favor Diite had asked her to listen to. She felt a twinge of regret for agreeing to it so easily.