kscans

Chapter 797 - The Ten Seats of the West

And so. From final team-up meetings for each pre-determined squad to individual build adjustments and checks on weapons and carried items, the ways to use the 'one hour' Alicia had announced were likely endless.

However, what I needed to do was, once again, already decided.

It was only natural. I had already greeted the 'Three Laws of the North,' but there were other notable players here whom I had never met before...

Well, you know. There were quite a few of them.

"—Well, well, well! Finally! We finally meet!"

"—We just never had a chance to cross paths, did we?"

And so, the moment I approached, I was instantly captured.

They must have been waiting for me to come and offer my greetings. The instant I arrived at the gathering of ten... no, nine esteemed individuals, two men stepped forward and seized my hands.

Then came a forced handshake, followed by a physically demanding up-down-left-right handshake. I was grateful for the enthusiastic welcome, but I really wish they had let me say just one word first.

Kagura-san. Please stop standing in the back, exuding a big-shot aura and laughing, and help me.

"Ah, yes, um... H-hello. I'm Haru, rank four of the Eastern Faction, the [Acrobat]. I've come to belatedly offer my greetings to all the artisans—"

"Gahaha! No need for all that stiff formality! Let's just get along, brother!"

"Welcome, welcome. You're just the fine young man we heard you were."

What should I do? The punishment of having my hands shaken endlessly isn't stopping.

What is this, what am I supposed to do...—Just as I began to struggle with how to handle this particular brand of intimacy, where the goodwill was palpable but the response was perplexing,

"Hey, hey, that's enough! Gan-chan, O-jiji, let go of his hands! Can't you see you're bothering him?!"

Another person, one of the nine before me, threw me a lifeline.

At that, the two men, who had been swatted on their hands, obediently let go of me... and seamlessly targeted Nia, who had peeked out from behind my back.

"Whoops, look what we have here! It's been a while! How've you been, Nia-boy!"

"Nia-chan, welcome. Glad to see you're doing well."

"Yeah, yeah, thanks, I'm great!"

And so, the blue-haired girl, caught by the two friendly figures, offered a gruff greeting.

"I see, this is one of those patterns where the conversation will never progress... —Hey, you big shots over there enjoying the show, could you hurry up and get this under control?"

With a complaint, she turned her eyes.

In her line of sight were the 'big shots,' three figures each with their own shade of red hair, displaying a rich variety of expressions...

One laughed, one was silent—and one stepped forward.

"My apologies. I do enjoy watching a lively scene."

He was a man with long, crimson hair tied at the nape of his neck, clad in unadorned, rugged artisan's attire.

"..."

He was the kind of man whose presence commanded attention the moment he spoke, naturally making one straighten up. His expression was calm, but his presence was immense.

If I had to think of someone with a similar atmosphere...—it would be someone like Yotsuya Togo.

"Our Kagura has been in your care for some time."

"Not at all. If anything, she's the one who's always taking care of me."

In other words, a natural demeanor would suffice. Fortunately or unfortunately, I had grown accustomed to exchanging casual banter with celestial beings from a different dimension.

And so, after taking a single, small, deep breath, I confidently returned his words.

"What's this? He seems more like a big shot in person than I was led to believe."

"He was more clueless and endearing in the beginning, you know."

The crimson-haired artisan turned back with an amused expression, and my personal Magicrafter playfully picked up his words. ...I haven't heard the details of their relationship, but it's clear they're close.

And just then.

"Do you like our beloved failure?"

To the playful remark, delivered without losing a shred of his imposing presence, I offered a smile. He must have understood my unspoken answer, as he nodded in satisfaction.

He nodded, and spoke once more.

"—I am Enra, current leader of the Western Faction, Vestol. My title is the [Crimson Arm]. It's a pleasure to meet you, Haru."

"The pleasure is all mine."

When I took his outstretched hand, the handshake was firm and warm.

And his introduction as the current leader was the signal.

"Current second-in-command. I'll skip the introduction; you already know me, right?"

"Of course, very, very well."

To the playful voice that followed, I simply returned a fond smile. Then, my gaze met the person standing right next to Kagura-san.

"—..."

She stared... no, she glared at me.

What emotions dwelled within the large golden eyes that watched me? Combined with her spunky, pomegranate-colored short hair, she exuded an incredibly strong-willed aura.

...It was just an aura, though.

"...—Third seat. My title is the [Scorching Arm]. My name is Kokoro."

I will absolutely not say it out loud. No matter what, I will not voice my thoughts.

"Well, let's get along."

"Y-yes..."

It's just that... her tiny figure and her incredibly cute voice, which sounded unmistakably like a little girl's, were a complete mismatch with her dignified expression and aura.

No, seriously. I repeat, I will not make any careless remarks.

"—Heeey!!! Next up is the long-awaited fourth seat!!!!"

"That would be Nonomi-san of the [Colorful Beauty]. Thanks for your hard work the other day. Okay, next."

"Wait a minute?!?"

"...Fifth seat, [Origami], Tsugumi."

"Tsugu-tsugu, why are you skipping me too?! This was Nonomi-chan's big moment!!!"

Setting aside my noisy friend who was behaving as usual, I moved on to the next person.

He had glossy black short hair that covered his eyes. His sleepy black eyes and overall appearance bore a slight resemblance to a certain 'silver' someone, but the complete lack of sternness in his expression gave him a totally different impression.

To put it nicely, he was a listless pretty boy. To be blunt, an apathetic one.

True to the information I had, he was a man of few words, falling silent as if his mission was complete after an extremely brief introduction.

I probably couldn't expect any further introduction, nor should I. In fact, from what I knew, the fact that he spoke at all was an incredibly rare event.

Thank you very much. A pleasure to meet you.

"...Oh, right. I'm Nia, by the way."

And so, the current sixth seat, the [Fairy of Blue Jade (Milmarinus)], was the one clinging to my back.

"Alright, my turn! I'm Ganju, the seventh seat! Title's [Iron Extension]! Nice to meet ya!"

Next was one of the men who had given me such a warm welcome earlier. The one with the cheerful, energetic voice, the short old man, Ganju of the [Iron Extension].

His messy brown hair was so coarse it would make a scrubbing brush weep. His extremely shaggy beard would undoubtedly make a child cry if it brushed against them. And his short, stout body, short legs, and thick arms... well, the inspiration for his avatar was obvious.

"Alright, my turn. I'm Oz-ji, eighth seat, [Big Spender]. A pleasure to meet you, Haru-kun."

Next up was the other half of the enthusiastic welcoming pair.

Our own General (O-jiji) in the Eastern Faction is quite the old man, but this one was a bona fide grandpa (O-jiji). Unlike the muscular Ganju, Oz-ji-sama had the short stature of someone who had shrunk with age.

His magnificent white beard had a dignity rivaling that of a dwarf, but his head was as clean as the sun (bald).

"Don't stare. It's embarrassing."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

And it seems he has a good sense of humor.

Furthermore, his physical vitality was proven by the earlier handshake. There was no need to worry about whether it was safe to bring him onto the battlefield.

"..."

Now then.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

What to do about the next one? I wouldn't mind waiting for the little creature to muster up its courage...—

"Eek...!?"

"Seriously..."

Just trying to make eye contact produced this result. Wondering what on earth to do, I glanced behind me, and Nia, reading my plea for help, stepped forward with an ambiguous smile.

She stepped forward and...

"Okay, Shizu-chan, gotcha!"

"Hyaaaa...!!? I'm sorry...! I'm sorry...!"

And just like that, the small animal was secured.

"Aaaand so...—This is Shizuku-chan, the current ninth seat, [Raindrop Koropokkuru]. As you can probably tell, she's suuuuuuper shy, so please forgive her for not introducing herself."

"Ah, yeah. I don't mind at all, but..."

A girl with a wasabi-green, straight-banged short bob. Her eyes were light green... actually, she was green all over. She wore what looked like the traditional clothing of a northern people, but her own color and the color of her clothes were mostly green. She probably had a passive camouflage effect in any area with plant life.

She was also small. Small and incredibly delicate. She looked even smaller than the pipsqueak pair in our Eastern Faction, so she was probably a middle schooler, or maybe even an elementary schooler avatar.

However,

"Also, I think you know, but she's an 'onee-san.' So be sure to show her proper respect."

"Of course."

"You don't have to respect meee...! It's quite alright...!!"

This person is older than Ui-san, you know. If her public profile is to be believed.

Is she like this in real life, or is it roleplay...? It's a mystery, but she's rather amusing to watch, so personally, I don't mind either way. I mean, if she were just super shy, I'd worry about how tough life must be for her, but as you can see, she's a ranker.

She's already earned her abilities and her position.

In that case, even if her difficult disposition is her true nature, it just adds to her character.

"—...Mmm, is it about time?"

"Ah, yes, please."

And so, we come to the last of this incredibly unique lineup.

Nia was poking Shizuku-chan's cheeks, despite having just told me to respect her. And Shizuku-chan, letting out a sound that was somewhere between a scream and a whimper, "Hyaaaaah...," was letting it happen, looking weak and frail.

As I watched this scene, tilting my head and wondering if they were actually friends, a voice called out to me from beside. It was a person who I assumed was a young man, who had appeared next to me at some point.

"Well then, if you'll excuse me. I'm Balast, the current tenth seat, the [Hit Maker]. ...As you can see, I'm just a normal guy, so I apologize for being the one to bring up the rear of this lineup of colorful characters—"

"Are you saying that as a joke?"

Well, I couldn't help but shoot a merciless retort at Balast, who had casually slipped a joke into his introduction, but I am absolutely not at fault. I mean, come on.

In what world is there a normal, average person who would casually strike up a conversation with a stranger for the first time while wearing a Tyrannosaurus Rex costume? Don't you dare underestimate 'normal.'

"Ah, by the way, that was a pun on 'tori' as in 'last' and 'tori' as in 'bird'... you know. The theory that they had feathers."

"Please, for the love of god, stop explaining your jokes with such a cheerful expression. What is this, what's the correct way to react, that's what I'm desperately trying to figure out right now."

As I watched the fluffy Tyrannosaurus, which I personally didn't want to acknowledge as it shattered my dreams, happily waving its short little arms,

"...You know, Nia-chan."

"Yes? What is it?"

I had but one thought.

"You were one of the relatively sane ones, huh..."

"What do you mean by 'relatively'???"

It seemed that rankers, no matter where you went, were all a little... off, somewhere.

That was all.