kscans

Chapter 61 - Interlude: It's Tough Being in the SDF

Side: None

Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo.

In a certain room within the Ministry of Defense.

A knock echoed through the spacious conference room.

"Come in."

"Excuse me."

The permission to enter came before he could even announce himself. A man entered the room, looking somewhat tense.

It was the director of the Dungeon Agency, Akasaka Yuusuke.

Greeting the suited man was another man dressed in the uniform of the Self-Defense Force.

"Thank you for coming. Please, have a seat."

If one were to describe the man's appearance in a single word, it would be 'square.'

A square-cut head of hair, squarely trimmed eyebrows, and square, black-rimmed glasses to match. He had a rugged face, a thick neck, and broad shoulders.

His build could be described as either portly or muscular under his uniform. A prominent frown was etched between his brows, giving him an overall stern impression.

"It's been a while, General Marui."

General Marui Tadatsugu. Age fifty-four.

In a foreign military, the rank of General corresponds to a Lieutenant General or a full General. This man was, without a doubt, one of the highest-ranking officers in the Ground Self-Defense Force.

At his summons, Director Akasaka couldn't help but feel a cold sweat run down his back.

But without letting his inner turmoil show, the director glanced at the conference table, bowed his head toward the seat where paper documents were laid out, and sat down.

"I called you here today for a specific reason. There's something I wanted to discuss with you directly. My apologies for taking you away from your busy schedule."

"Not at all. The SDF and the Dungeon Agency must work in close cooperation. If there is an important matter to discuss, I will come at a moment's notice."

"I appreciate that. Ah, and one more thing."

The General's sharp gaze shifted to the documents from behind his glasses.

"I'm an analog man. I never quite figured out how to use a computer, so I had these prepared on paper. It wouldn't do for my subordinates to see, so please keep this to yourself."

"Understood."

The director understood that the bundle of papers before him was 'documentation that could not be left in a digital format.'

Without a secretary or an escort who doubled as a guard, the General had requested a one-on-one meeting amidst this burgeoning dungeon crisis.

On top of that, this development sent the director's wariness about the topic of discussion skyrocketing.

"Now then... we're both busy men. Let's get straight to the point."

General Marui placed both elbows on the table, steepled his fingers in front of his mouth, and continued.

"At this rate, culling monsters with the SDF's modern equipment will become difficult."

Words you might expect from a character in a manga, spoken by a man with the rank of General.

But in today's Japan, there was no one who would laugh at them, no one who could laugh.

Especially when the content of the discussion was something that could not be ignored.

"...May I hear the details?"

"Of course."

To Director Akasaka's stiff question, General Marui nodded without losing his composure.

"First, there's the issue of the budget. As you know, Japan is currently compensating for its lack of ammunition and equipment by borrowing weapons from the United States. But that doesn't come for free."

"The United States doesn't have a bottomless wallet, after all."

"Indeed. However, I'd like to ask them for 'a bit more of a discount.' With our personnel shortage, we have no choice but to make up for it with sheer firepower. I cannot tell the men on the front lines, who are risking their lives, to value a bullet more than their own safety."

"A sound judgment, I believe."

"In any case, that's the first reason. Now for the second. Please turn the page."

At the General's words, the director turned the page and glanced down.

For a moment, his face twisted as if he had bitten into something bitter.

"The number of injured personnel is increasing, and... though we haven't made it public yet, so are the fatalities. In proportion to that, the number of resignations is also on the rise, whether from psychological trauma or from simply being fed up with the job. To put it bluntly, we are short on manpower. ...And the fact that we're losing valuable Awakened personnel to the private sector isn't helping, either."

"........."

"Your silence on that topic is probably why you were shuffled off to the Dungeon Agency. The higher-ups won't take kindly to it, you know."

"...Thank you for the advice."

"It's not my place to say, but you're an awkward man."

The corner of General Marui's mouth lifted slightly.

"I don't intend to hold it against you. There's more to discuss, after all."

"More...?"

"Well, let's share information first. The next page explains why we need Awakened personnel."

"It doesn't seem to be just because 'only Awakened Persons can enter dungeons,' I take it."

As he said this, the director turned the page.

"Of course not. We did consider a strategy of simply crushing monsters with firepower as they poured out of the dungeons, but... these creatures are truly terrifying."

"This is...!"

"I mean—they're adapting to gunfire."

It was a combat record from a battle the SDF had experienced.

Once, a dragon had attacked a provincial town. The SDF members who entered the dungeon it inhabited naturally opened fire on the massive, flying monster.

However, the report stated that every single bullet was 'deflected' before impact.

"I had heard of a spell called [Arrow Evasion], but I never expected it to deflect even heavy machine gun rounds."

"What in the world... I was certain that gunfire had been effective against monsters until now?"

"They must have learned. There was a dragon that engaged our fighter jets and fled back into its dungeon. It's possible that creature taught the other monsters in the same dungeon about 'modern weaponry.'"

"Monsters possessing that level of intelligence... No. It's not out of the question."

They had confirmed through surveillance cameras placed inside dungeons that monsters clearly communicated with each other.

It depended on the species, of course, but there were individuals capable of it. If so, it was only natural to be on guard with that assumption in mind.

Still, having even heavy machine gun rounds deflected by a single spell was beyond anything they had anticipated.

"The countermeasures for [Arrow Evasion] are said to be either another spell or a close-range attack. Both are tactics that only an Awakened Person can perform."

"...If this only happened because an individual that saw our guns and missiles managed to retreat, does that mean it would still work on a first encounter?"

"Yes. Against dragons from other dungeons, machine guns and anti-tank cannons have been effective as usual. Though, it has made 'killing them on the first encounter' an absolute necessity."

Until now, the SDF had used the overwhelming firepower of modern weaponry to defeat monsters that possessed extraordinary power.

However, they were running low on both personnel and resources. There was no guarantee they could continue this way. If they allowed an individual with a certain level of intelligence to retreat, their trump card—their armaments—would become useless.

The report mentioned that 'they can be defeated by saturating the area with missiles and ensuring explosions at close range,' but that was hardly realistic. There was a limit to the weaponry they could bring into a dungeon, and more importantly, they had no money.

"...What is the current status of this dragon's dungeon?"

"Our most elite unit of Awakened Persons is handling it, but... we don't know when they'll be breached. They need rest and compensation, too. Performance and morale don't last forever. ...Just between us, we've also received reports that 'an SDF executive with a fondness for bamboo shoots' has made contact with them."

The General let out a small sigh.

"Of course, I thought, 'Then we must quickly increase the number of strong Awakened Persons.' But we experienced a bitter failure. Let's move on to the fourth reason."

He turned another page, and the frown on the director's brow deepened.

"As you know, 'using drop items provides experience similar to combat with Arcane Gear.' With that in mind, we processed drop-item coins into bullets. We thought this would make leveling up easy."

"...And [Arrow Evasion] was activated, even against monsters that shouldn't be able to use magic."

The document contained records of experiments conducted against Matangos and Zombie Kobolds.

It stated that every bullet fired by the SDF's Awakened members was deflected before impact, hitting the walls instead.

"Apparently, the moment the bullet was fired, there was a change in the mana flowing through the dungeon. It's just a hypothesis, but... we believe the dungeon itself may have a mechanism that 'prevents objects derived from drop items from approaching monsters at high speeds.'"

It seems they won't let us take the easy way out, the General muttered self-deprecatingly.

Ignoring him, the director scanned the document, which noted that 'when projectiles are fired at a speed capable of killing a living creature, though not exceeding the speed of sound, the majority have their trajectories altered.'

The only exception was when an Awakened Person was moving while holding a drop item.

"This has proven that we cannot easily train high-level Awakened Persons. We're continuing to level them up steadily, but with the increase in dungeons, our calculations show we won't be able to keep up at this rate."

"...If the public were to learn of this, it would cause mass panic."

"Indeed. We may call ourselves the 'People's Self-Defense Force,' but as it stands, we are a shield that cannot fully protect its people."

Although a smile played on his lips, there was no laughter in his eyes or his brow.

Nor had he given up. The General looked straight at Director Akasaka.

"There are many other problems, but let's leave them for now. More importantly, I have a question and a request for you."

"If it is something I can answer, please ask anything."

"First... I hear you recently had contact with the head of an organization connected to that 'Alchemy Enthusiasts Club.' What kind of person were they?"

Walkers.

An adventurer group that was currently expanding its influence in partnership with the Alchemy Enthusiasts Club.

While others called themselves 'clans' or simply 'teams,' they had named themselves a 'guild.' It was as if they were declaring themselves to be an 'entity that unites the clans.'

In truth, they had named themselves a guild because 'it sounded cooler,' a reason that had given Director Akasaka a headache when he heard it from the guild master's own mouth.

But the Walkers already boasted a membership equivalent to several clans combined.

The Alchemy Enthusiasts Club was heavily involved in this rapid growth. The 'high-performance golems' and 'homemade magic potions' they provided were items that adventurers would kill for.

The sale of 'magic potions' was still restricted, but merely 'making' them was not illegal. They distributed them to adventurers belonging to the Walkers under the pretense of 'just sharing with friends and acquaintances.'

Mysteriously, the Alchemy Enthusiasts Club was more knowledgeable about the law than your average lawyer or prosecutor, and they apparently had connections within the police force as well. There were even 'rumors' that they held evidence of corruption within Public Security.

It was impossible to crack down on their activities.

"...The representative of the Walkers, Mr. Yamashita, was an ordinary person. He laughed normally, cried normally. He was the kind of young man you could find anywhere."

"Oh? And you thought so after seeing him with your own eyes?"

"Yes. Though, I am no psychologist, so there is a possibility I misjudged him."

"I'm sure that's your conclusion after thoroughly investigating his background and running a detailed profile, isn't it? I'll trust it."

General Marui chuckled softly.

"For such an ordinary young man to have gathered such a force. Honestly, I'd like to recruit them all into the SDF."

"I'll take that as a joke, but as a word of caution, they are not the type to want to work for the government."

"I figured as much. But they can be moved in the form of a 'request,' can't they?"

Director Akasaka, having read the General's 'request,' put on his business smile.

"We don't have the authority to command them either, but we can act as 'intermediaries.' Shall I make an introduction?"

"That would be a great help, Akasaka-kun. The SDF is also dealing with what you adventurers call 'unpopular dungeons.' Of course, we will consider the difficulty when we make the request. As for the reward... we'll find a way to scrape it together. Perhaps we can offer something other than money."

"That's something you'll have to discuss with them directly. Also, they won't take kindly to you asking them to 'connect you with the Alchemy Enthusiasts Club.'"

"Oh? Have you already been turned down?"

"Yes. They wouldn't even give me the time of day."

Director Akasaka shrugged lightly, and General Marui responded with an amused smile.

"Well, now. I thought you were as awkward as ever, but it seems you've mellowed out a bit."

"Perhaps. Though it's also a matter of survival."

"No doubt about it."

Two middle-aged men, who had frowned so deeply for so long that their foreheads were permanently creased, shared a laugh in the conference room.

"And... one more request. No, a proposal."

"I'm listening."

"...This is a line of thinking that the SDF should not, in principle, entertain. Nevertheless, for the sake of 'national defense,' I will say it. It concerns the adventurers currently certified as 'C-Rank.'"

The brief, pleasant atmosphere vanished in an instant. General Marui and Director Akasaka's gazes sharpened.

The sound of a page turning echoed unnervingly loudly.

"Regarding the opening of certain 'B-Rank dungeons' to the public... I would like to discuss this with the Dungeon Agency at a later date."

—The discussion continued for another hour before they dispersed for the day.

Akasaka Yuusuke walked swiftly to his car. The furrows on his brow were even deeper and darker than when he had arrived.

Back in the conference room, General Marui had also removed his glasses and was pinching the bridge of his nose.

It seemed their night, too, would be a long one.