kscans

Chapter 17 - Reflection and the High School Girl

The next morning—no, it must have been well past noon. I had been properly tucked into bed.

I pushed myself up, and Famu, noticing, rushed over to my side.

"Master, you wouldn’t wake up at all… I…"

Her eyes were welling up with tears.

"Sorry. Using ‘Goddess Summon’ drains all my mana."

"That, and the thing with Lady Laciel… you should have told me beforehand."

Famu was a little angry.

"Right, Laciel’s panties are…"

"I’m wearing them now."

She said it like a comedian delivering a punchline, her face turning bright red.

"I see. Good."

I pulled Famu into a hug and kissed her.

"Nothing about this is good, and your timing is weird."

"I’m hungry. Did you eat, Famu?"

"No, I was worried, so I stayed by your side. But I did get some bread."

Famu fetched the bread from the desk. We sat on the bed and ate together.

"Master, we need to talk."

Her formal, low tone sent a shiver of dread down my spine.

"Wh-What is it?"

"Please tell me the names of all the women you’re currently interested in."

"Ugh, well, putting me on the spot like that…"

"If you don’t answer, I will sit on the floor, cut my stomach open in a cross, and arrange my organs on the floorboards."

"Full-on seppuku? Is it really that serious?"

"Yes. You may think I’m being difficult, but last night was too much of a shock. My entire sense of values feels like it’s about to collapse. I don’t know how to process it."

"Alright… I’ll be honest. Please, don’t laugh."

"I won’t laugh."

"I told you that in my previous world, I was despised by the opposite sex. So… I end up falling for any woman who talks to me…"

I had a feeling she’d see through any lies. As I spoke honestly, my words somehow became more formal by the end.

"…"

A long silence followed.

"I don’t understand how you could be despised by women, Master."

"No, just look at me. I’m disgusting, right?"

"I don’t think so at all. Speaking for myself, I’m sure there are others who feel the same way I do. So, if what you’re saying is true, I think there must be another reason. Like your personality. Or the lecherous look on your face when you’re staring at breasts."

"Urk… But even you, Famu. Suppose we met a different way, and I just happened to pass through your village as a traveler. If we passed on the street, you wouldn’t talk to me. That means I’m getting filtered out before you even get to my personality or my breast-staring."

"That is certainly true."

"Wait, you were the one person I wanted to deny it. That really hurt!"

"S-Sorry! But, but, oh, right! That’s because my father told me not to go with strangers."

Even though she was mad at me, she was still trying to back me up.

"You’re right. Maybe saying I was despised by everyone was an exaggeration."

"So there were some who saw you for who you are."

Famu looked somewhat relieved.

"Yeah. My younger sister had a daughter. My niece. Every time we met, she was incredibly attached to me. The last time I saw her was two years ago, when she was seven."

Now she’d probably be hitting her rebellious phase and hate me.

"Ah, Master… normally, one doesn’t count their niece… ah, no, you’re right, your niece is a wonderful girl. I see now that what you said is true."

My attempt to provide an example to refute the claim that I was hated by women had somehow become proof of it. Famu fell silent, lost in thought. It was a long silence.

"Ah, we seem to have gotten a little sidetracked. Let’s get back to the topic."

I was free. That was a tense few moments.

"Me, Mizuki-san, Lady Laciel, Myra-san, and the guild receptionist. Are we all on the same level?"

Famu’s sharp intuition was so terrifying it made me shudder. She was pretending to line them up as equals, but the order perfectly matched the one in my head. Not that I had consciously ranked them. Famu was number one. That was unshakable. Next, I had felt it was Laciel, who accepted my lust, but no, it was Mizuki. She was annoying, but I actually liked that kind of personality. The high-school-girl factor was also huge. It was also terrifying that she’d accurately picked out the guild receptionist, who I’d barely even spoken to.

"Wait, Famu is different. Famu is special… But I do want to do perverted things with the other girls too."

"…"

Another long silence descended. Finally, Famu sighed.

"I see now that you and I are very different, Master. But I will accept it. Just remember this: I’m the only one you’re allowed to be inside. Not even other women."

I could only nod at Famu’s intense pressure. Had I been forgiven?

"…Doing perverted things to Lady Laciel was a little fun."

We came to the dungeon again. It was past noon. Just a quick look.

We entered the shrine and found several parties already there. Some people apparently teamed up on the spot to dive into the dungeon. The idea of going into a dungeon with strangers was deeply unsettling to me. I couldn’t do it. Fortunately, people would want to party with strong members, so no one was likely to approach us. As I was thinking this, I spotted Mizuki. The other members of Wind Blade were not with her. She seemed to be alone.

"Alone? Where are the others?"

After my conversation with Famu at the inn, I couldn’t help but be conscious of her. And as usual, she had a very sexy body. I wanted to stare, but I avoided it to keep Famu’s attention off me.

"They’re probably in the dungeon."

"Is that so?"

I nodded, as the conversation didn’t seem to be going anywhere.

"What are your plans for today?"

"As you can see, we’re going into the dungeon too. But we’re just scouting and plan to head back soon."

"…Hey, can I come with you?"

I glanced at Famu. I wanted to ask what she thought, but she gave me no answer. In fact, she seemed to be observing me, waiting to see what I would do. But Mizuki was worrying me. Not in a lewd way. There was a shadow on her face, a gloominess about her. Maybe she was homesick, but I had a feeling she was dealing with some kind of problem.

"Right now, Famu and I are training to take down enemies with coordinated attacks. You’d just be watching. And we’re only going to the second floor. I should also mention this: we’re weak."

"That’s fine. I’ll come along."

"Is that alright?"

I checked with Famu.

"I am a slave, so I will simply follow."

She touched the light-blue armband. Mizuki had joined our party. Mizuki seemed down. And Famu was terrifyingly scary.

As we stood on the black circle, numbers floated up: "1, 2, 39, 40, 41."

You could go to any floor that a party member had visited before. If there were no adventurers in the party, you were forced to start at floor 1. I chose floor 2, and we appeared where we had left off yesterday. I took out the map for the second floor from my storage. Famu took it from me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Should we head for the Area Guardian’s room?"

"Yeah, let’s do that. But I’m scared of jumping right into a boss fight. If we don’t run into any monsters on the way, let’s wander around and find some."

Famu nodded and started walking. Mizuki and I followed, walking shoulder to shoulder.

"You’ve been to the forty-first floor?"

"Yeah, but not on my own merit."

Even for Mizuki, I couldn’t imagine her being okay at that low a level. Her party must be incredibly skilled to make that possible. Mizuki’s Super Save skill might have also played a part.

Famu stopped and drew her sword. Mizuki and I followed her lead. Mizuki was equipped with a shield and a one-handed sword. A snake, about two meters long, was there. A Serpent. Like wolves, they came in monster and animal types, but the monster type was clearly larger. I moved to stand beside Famu, and we split to the sides to surround it. Mizuki hung back, observing. Famu feinted with her sword. As the Serpent’s attention turned to her, I swung my katana from behind and lopped off its head. The Serpent vanished, leaving behind its skin.

"That was easy. But they’re poisonous, so be careful."

At this rate, the second floor shouldn’t be a problem.

"Where did you get that katana?"

Mizuki asked.

"Ah, remember Aidan? The dwarf guy."

"Yeah."

Mizuki nodded. Her memory was good; I had forgotten.

"Aidan’s an alchemist. This is something he made. He gave it to me."

"He gave it to you?"

"Yeah."

"Huh. You’re actually communicating with people."

"Shut up. Don’t underestimate a working adult."

As Mizuki said, I was a bottom-tier corporate drone with no communication skills, but I protested anyway.

"It’s a very good sword. It has an enchantment that increases its sharpness when you channel mana into it. Her knives seem to be the same."

"You can tell?"

A lot of things clicked into place. The reason the sharpness changed was because I was unconsciously channeling mana into the blade. It wasn’t just because I was swinging it according to proper form. I was glad I hadn’t bragged about my swordsmanship to anyone.

"I changed my job to Swordsman. I have a weapon appraisal skill."

"Laciel is going to cry!"

Famu’s shoulders flinched. I trembled. Was that a trigger word now?

"? She’s not the type to cry over something like that. Reed was an Adventurer, so it was better for the party composition if I chose a different job."

I had been scared of Famu, but Mizuki seemed to have misunderstood.

"Do you know where Aidan-san lives?"

"Famu, do you remember?"

"I believe it’s in the dwarf residential area to the north. You should be able to find out by going to the Blacksmiths’ Guild."

Famu was on the ball as usual. I, for the record, had no idea.

"So your name is Famu? We haven’t properly introduced ourselves. I’m Yamase Mizuki. You can call me Mizuki."

"Yes, it’s a pleasure to meet you."

After bowing her head, she turned to me with a curious look.

"Master, I’ve always thought ‘Mash’ was strange. Please tell me your real name."

What was so strange about Mash? I didn’t get it. Was it a weird name in this world?

"If you stop calling me ‘Master,’ I’ll tell you later in secret."

"Urgh… let me think about it."

Was it really something she needed to think so hard about?

"Hey, tell me too!"

"No way. I’m not telling you, Mizuki."

"Hmph, it’s probably something stupid like your name is one letter off from someone famous and you got made fun of for it!"

Why are women so damn perceptive? It was a mystery.

After a few more battles, we arrived in front of the Area Guardian’s room. Just like on the first floor, there was a large door. Famu had memorized the map, so we had proceeded without getting lost.

"Should we beat it and head back to the inn?"

"Yes,"

Famu replied.

"Hey, can I join the fight too?"

Mizuki hadn’t participated in any battles so far. It would probably just be a matter of surrounding and wailing on it, so it shouldn’t be a problem. I nodded and opened the door.

We entered the room and the door closed behind us. We waited for the boss to appear, but nothing happened.

"?"

I glanced at Famu and Mizuki. Mizuki seemed just as confused.

"Master, the ceiling."

I looked up and saw countless black, writhing things clinging to it. Then, they started dropping down, falling freely toward us.

"Gyaaaaaaah, snakes!"

It was a scene straight out of hell. A chill ran down my spine and goosebumps erupted all over my body. I swung my katana frantically. Famu and Mizuki did the same. There was no room for coordination. Fortunately, monsters vanished when they were killed. I didn’t want to imagine a pile of their corpses.

After about ten minutes, the battle, which had left us utterly exhausted, was over, and the door at the far end opened.

"I never want to come to this floor again."

"...Agreed,"

I replied to Famu, who was breathing heavily. Amidst the massive pile of snake skins left behind, two Mana Seeds were lying there. I gave one to Mizuki.

"Instead of the guild, you’ll get a better price if you take it to a trading company. If you don’t have any connections, I can introduce you to the Mateo Trading Company."

"‘Introduce you to a company’..."

Just for saying something normal, Mizuki labeled me as an old man. Famu was quietly snickering. I whispered in her ear, "Did you get the point of that company?"

After that, we proceeded to the third floor and then returned to the shrine.

"Can I come with you again tomorrow?"

Mizuki asked.

"Hm? Sure, but what about Wind Blade?"

"It’s a bit complicated. I’ll tell you later. What time?"

I could feel Famu tense up at the question. I had a feeling she’d get mad if I said in the afternoon.

"Let’s start in the morning. Is that okay with you, Famu?"

"Yes."

She gave a small nod.

"Alright. See you tomorrow then?"

Mizuki waved goodbye like a high school girl. Well, she was a high school girl. I felt a sweet and sour nostalgia for a youth I had experienced long ago. No, wait, that time a girl in my class waved, it wasn’t at me, but at the guy behind me. We decided to head back to the inn as well.