kscans

Chapter 50 - The Conclusion, And Then…

The clash of sword and katana was over. We stood frozen, back to back.

A moment of silence hung in the air.

But then…

With a sharp pakin, the sound of something breaking echoed.

My katana had snapped in half. The upper part of the blade clattered to the ground.

I had lost.

A complete and utter defeat.

It was my first loss since I started working as a hunter.

It wasn’t that I had grown conceited.

If you lose, you die.

I knew I was in such a world, and that’s precisely why I had fought so desperately until now.

My string of victories had been built on that foundation.

"Don’t lay a hand on her," I said. "In exchange, I offer you my life."

With those words, I let go of my sword. I turned to face the Minotaur, standing completely defenseless. The Minotaur replied.

"You seem to understand the warrior’s common sense—to be prepared to lose your life at any moment. But I am the one who decides whether you live or die. Do not mistake that."

The Minotaur stated it as a matter of course.

In my heart, I apologized to Tina. I’m sorry for getting you caught up in this. The Minotaur raised its greatsword high.

I’m going to be killed. I prepared myself, and though I wanted to close my eyes, I forced myself to keep looking at my opponent.

But the greatsword never fell. Instead, he slung it onto his back. As I watched this action, the Minotaur spoke.

"I will let you live. I want you to show me if there is a limit to your strength. When you feel you have surpassed that limit, you may come here. And then, you will shout my name. If you do, I will hasten here, no matter where I am."

After that pause, the Minotaur took a deep breath.

"My name is Sidoor the Sword Demon! Engrave this name upon your soul! Do not forget! If you die without facing me again, I will destroy this country!"

His words were filled with fighting spirit and killing intent. It was enough to make me shrink in fear.

But I had to endure. I had to. If I lost consciousness here, I would truly lose everything. When the Minotaur, Sidoor, reined in his intimidating aura, he was enveloped in a black mist and vanished.

I was filled with the feeling of having been saved. The effects of ‘Turmoil’ must have worn off, as a wave of fatigue washed over my body. Then, intense pain took control of my entire being.

Groaning, I collapsed on the spot.

My magic had run out so quickly, I figured it was because I had poured everything into my lightning and fire magic.

As I lay on the ground, I sensed a presence approaching. It was Tina.

It seemed she had fully recovered. She sat down beside me.

"Are you alright? Please don’t be so reckless."

Tina’s voice was faint. It seemed she had understood my actions. To her words, I replied.

"I’m sorry… but there was no other way."

I said it with a face full of no regrets. After looking at me like that, Tina offered me her lap as a pillow. A woman’s lap pillow. There isn’t a man alive who wouldn't be excited by this.

But I wasn’t in the mood for that right now.

A defeat due to an overwhelming difference in power.

If I got carried away by this, I wouldn’t have enough lives to last me. I was thinking about the future. That monster, Sidoor, had said, "Show me a strength that surpasses your limits." His words were serious.

But could I achieve that in this country?

As an adventurer, I’ve been to towns other than this city.

I’ve subjugated the monsters there.

I’ve looked around a fair bit.

To put it bluntly, it’s impossible to get stronger by staying here. In that case, I…

"Tina. There’s something I want to talk about."

To my words, Tina replied.

"Don’t you dare say you’re dissolving the party, alright?"

She said it with a sweet smile. How did she know? I wondered. As if sensing my thoughts, Tina continued.

"I believe I understand you quite well. After what that monster said, you realized you can’t get stronger if you stay in this country. So, you’re thinking of going to another country. And you don’t want to drag me into it. That’s what you were thinking, wasn’t it?"

She was almost spot on. I awkwardly looked away. Then, Tina turned my face back towards her and kissed me.

"I love you. I choose you over any status, over any treasure."

Her words made me happy. But still, I asked.

"Are you really sure? Going to another country means your adventurer rank will drop, you know?"

I said it, my voice filled with worry.

Let me explain here.

The Adventurer's Guild exists in every country on this continent and carries out its activities. However, it’s not a monolithic organization. The A-rank is bestowed upon those recognized by the country’s king, and the B-rank is a title given to those recognized by the country’s guild. But just because one country recognizes you doesn’t mean another will. The reason is that no matter how skilled someone is, if they have a problematic personality, they could cause unnecessary trouble. Moreover, if an A-rank adventurer causes an incident, they can’t be punished so easily. For another country to punish an adventurer recognized by a different nation, regardless of the reason, is tantamount to asking, "Do you want to go to war?"

I thought that was ridiculous, but then I remembered an incident from my world.

A foreigner caused an incident. When he was arrested for damaging a Japanese car and put on trial in Japan, the people of his country fiercely protested. "He did nothing wrong, the Japanese are to blame!" or "A corrupt country like Japan isn't worth trusting!" and so on, saying whatever they pleased. What’s more, when their government tacitly approved of these protests, there was nothing that could be done. Seeing this, the Japanese politicians released the foreigner. He was deported and sent back to his home country. Awaiting the foreigner at the airport upon his return was a hero’s welcome. It was as if a champion had returned. To top it all off, at a press conference, the foreigner showed no remorse. In fact, he said, "The Japanese are the ones at fault. Apologize immediately." It was an absurd statement. There wasn’t a single Japanese person who wasn’t furious. For a while, rumors spread that people from that country were either mocked from the shadows or never showed their faces in public again.

I’ve strayed from the topic, but if such incidents happen on Earth, capturing an adventurer recognized by another country in this world would be extremely problematic. That’s why the guilds of each country established a rule: when an A or B-rank adventurer goes to another country, they must come as a C-rank. This way, those coming to other countries are C-rank, and B and A-rank adventurers will never come. No one would want to nullify the achievements they’ve built up.

However, I didn’t feel that way.

I am a hunter.

Being an adventurer is a side job, a profession I can quit at any time.

But Tina is different. She is an adventurer. I have no right to drag her into my circumstances. However, Tina said.

"There’s no point in being in a country without you. I won’t just wait for you to return. The most painful thing would be to hear that you died somewhere I don’t know. That’s why I’m going with you. Wherever you go."

Tina declared it with a determined face. It was no use trying to persuade her. Realizing this, I said.

"...Alright. Let’s go together."

To my words, Tina nodded with a smile. We camped out there for the night.

The next morning.

Once our bodies could move again, we immediately took action.

First, we returned to Earth and ate all the food in the refrigerator. Tina cooked it all, and I finished every last bite. After that, we went to a department store and bought a large quantity of canned goods with long shelf lives. We bought canned fish, chicken, and hardtack, and also a digital camera just in case something happened in the other world.

Why did I buy it? If there was a commotion or an incident over there, I could take pictures of the surroundings and discover something I might have missed. I could also photograph monsters I’ve never seen before to remember their appearance clearly. While I was at it, I also bought an iPad. It was to download a large amount of music to pass the time. I bought a charger compatible with both devices. I could charge them with my lightning magic—I’ve already tested it, and it works. I also bought several history books, just in case.

Then, when I went to the black market auction, I provided about ten wolf pelts.

At that time, I said.

"It looks like I won’t be able to come here for a while, so I brought this together. I’ll donate the entire proceeds from the auction to you."

To my words, the Manager replied.

"...It’s common sense in this world not to ask for reasons, but please let me ask just one thing. Will you be coming back?"

To his worried voice, I replied.

"Only God knows."

I left with those words. The Manager and the men in black suits were left wondering what to do. But they realized it would be a bad idea to antagonize me and sensed my resolve, so they took no further action.

My preparations on Earth were complete.

Since I wouldn’t be coming back to my house, I made sure to lock up and manage my finances properly before crossing over to the other world.

Why couldn’t I come back?

The magic circle can only be set up in one place, and writing it elsewhere won't work. Therefore, I can't return to Earth. I prepared myself so I would have no regrets. Just like in a game, there’s no teleportation magic to return to my original location. Tina was waiting in front of the house, with her luggage next to her. It seemed she was ready to go too.

However, there was one thing that caught my eye.

It was her green set of armor. Why bring something that’s useless for anything other than our nightly activities? I thought, so I asked her.

"What? Our nightly activities are necessary, so of course I’m bringing it. Is there a problem?"

Tina said it with a face that suggested it was perfectly normal. I didn’t say anything further.

Entering the guild, the two of us said to the receptionist.

"We’re leaving the country. Please give our regards to the Guild Master."

I stated it concisely.

The receptionist was stunned, but we paid her no mind and were about to leave. When going to another country, you just have to report it to the guild; that’s all. However, the receptionist asked us to wait, so we did. A moment later, she told us the Guild Master was summoning us, so we headed to his room. In the Guild Master’s room, he had a serious look on his face.

"You said you’re leaving the country? Why?"

His face said, "No lies." I replied.

"We went to investigate the monster that appeared in the rocky mountains. We encountered it and fought, but the result was a complete defeat. We were utterly powerless."

To my words, the Guild Master said.

"Powerless, you say. How did you manage to come back alive from an opponent that strong?"

His question was natural. I replied.

"That monster could speak human language. It said, ‘Get stronger,’ and then it disappeared."

I said it with a face that showed my frustration at the overwhelming difference in power. The Guild Master looked at Tina. She nodded. Confirming it was true, he prompted me to continue. I said.

"I thought about getting stronger in this country, but I felt that to defeat that monster, I would need not just power, but also to see different techniques, knowledge, and materials. We may have trade, but it’s common sense that important things don’t come in, right?"

At my words, the Guild Master was at a loss for a reply.

It was true. The goods currently coming in through trade were mainly mass-produced tools and preserved foods that were fine to give away. Valuables were the country’s assets and couldn’t be handed over so easily. This country also exported ore, but it was mostly copper and silver. Gold and Mithril were traded in small quantities at high prices. Occasionally, Adamantite was found, but it wasn’t traded; it was donated to the country. Since they were doing such things, it wouldn’t be strange for other countries to do the same. Thinking this, the Guild Master said.

"...Do you understand? Once you go to another country, your A-rank will be demoted to C-rank. And you can never get it back. Do you still want to go, knowing that?"

To his words, I replied.

"I understand. And I’m still going. To know my own limits. Besides, I’m a hunter. Being an adventurer is just a side job. Rank doesn’t matter to me."

I said it with a face full of no regrets. After seeing that, the Guild Master asked.

"Tina. What will you do?"

To his words, Tina replied.

"I have no intention of staying in a country without him."

Her face was full of determination. The Guild Master looked at the two of us and sighed.

"Adventurers are free to go wherever they please. The rank demotion is a measure to prevent unnecessary conflicts, but that’s all. There’s no power to force you to stay. However, it is a fact that you two have accomplished great deeds in this country. So, I have a proposal. First, I will give you two messenger birds. You are to write a report to this bird once a week, without fail. In other words, you two will go to another country as spies. If you cannot accept this, then I will use any means necessary to keep you from leaving this country."

The Guild Master said something completely unexpected.

Both Tina and I couldn’t hide our surprise.

A spy. In other words, he was telling us to report information from other countries.

Of course, there is information that is good for a country and information that is bad. The Harg Kingdom also has one or two inconvenient truths. I asked.

"Why go that far?"

To this question, the Guild Master replied.

"It means you two are worth that much."

He declared it with a serious face.

I thought about it.

If I refused this offer and left without permission, I could guess what he would do. He would probably put out a warrant for our arrest as criminals. If that happened, it would cause trouble for Bardos, Leona, Rumily, and Milfy, who had teamed up with me. I looked at Tina. Her face was dead serious. She was prepared to accept anything. I said.

"...I understand. We accept the role of spies. If that’s what it takes to go to another country, we’ll do any job."

To my words, the Guild Master asked.

"Are you really sure? If you’re found out, it’s a death sentence. The country won’t help you."

To his threatening words, Tina and I quietly nodded. The Guild Master seemed to give up.

"...Alright. However, you only need to report what you two see and hear. There’s no need to probe for secrets."

The Guild Master said, turning his back. In other words, it was just a formality. Thinking that, I asked.

"Should we leave our rank plates?"

To my words, the Guild Master turned back around.

"Yes. Leave them. I’ll give them back to you when you return to this town upon completion of your mission. I’ll hold onto them until then."

I silently thanked the Guild Master for his consideration and placed our two plates on his desk.

After leaving the guild, I headed to Bardos’s house, and Tina went to ‘Yuri.’

To bid farewell to our friends, I arrived at the house and waited for Tina and the others, telling them I had something important to discuss with all the members. After they gathered, I explained the whole situation.