kscans

Chapter 25 -

After that, I was flying through the sky with a jetpack, carrying Rena in my arms.

A large crowd had gathered around the Spring Dungeon we had just cleared, and I had a bad feeling about trying to exit from below.

My plan was to fly all the way to where Todo-san was supposed to be waiting for us, a short distance away from the Spring Dungeon.

"I was wondering why you didn't choose the jetpack that was supposed to be the special reward for clearing this place. You already had one, didn't you, Hayate?"

"Yeah. I didn't know about it either, but I got it as a trophy for being the first to clear the Black Dungeon. And actually, the boss of the Spring Dungeon had been changed quite a bit, so I might not have won without this equipment."

"I see. By the way, were there any changes besides the boss? I was hoping I could try entering a dungeon myself."

Right. She'd be curious. I, who had entered a dungeon without a single thought for the danger to my life, couldn't tell Rena that it was dangerous and she absolutely shouldn't. If she does decide to enter a dungeon, I want her to take me along as her guard.

"The mid-boss was an enemy that used the four-sword style. It felt like it was tracing my movements from about a year ago, and it was pretty strong."

"What!? Then doesn't that mean no one other than you can clear the Spring Dungeon, Hayate..."

"I wonder. It might be a monster that imitates the recent state of the person who enters the mid-boss room. Besides, there were plenty of players I couldn't beat in PVP, so even if a past version of me was the mid-boss, there are lots of people who could defeat it."

"You trained hard in real life to master the four-sword style, Hayate. But the pro FWO players you lost to in PVP were mostly older guys who didn't look very athletic. So here, in reality, you're the strongest."

Um, why do you know what those pros are like in real life?

Could it be? Was she so upset that I lost that she used the power of the Shinonome Group to investigate my opponents? ...Rena seems like she would do that.

I can definitely never cheat on her. Not that I was planning to.

──＊＊＊──

After about a ten-minute flight, we met up with Todo-san.

"Todo!"

"Ojou-sama, I am so glad to see you are safe."

As I set Rena down on the ground, she ran and threw her arms around Todo-san with great force.

"Hayate came to save me."

"Yes. I witnessed the moment Hayate-sama conquered the dungeon. Hayate-sama, thank you so very much for rescuing Ojou-sama."

Once Rena let go, Todo-san bowed deeply to me.

"It was all thanks to the extensive support from the Shinonome Group. It wasn't my strength alone. I'm just glad she's safe."

It seemed I wasn't being suspected of changing Rena's personality, at least not yet.

The real problem would be Rena's father. If he senses anything unusual about my relationship with Rena, I think my life will end right there.

"We shouldn't stand here and talk. Let us return to the mansion. Nobutaka-sama and many others concerned for Rena-sama are waiting there today."

"Okay, I understand. Let's go home. It's okay for Hayate to come too, right?"

"Of course. Nobutaka-sama has expressed his desire to thank Hayate-sama. He also has a few things to discuss, so we would be most grateful if you would accompany us."

Whoa. I knew this was coming, but I'm super nervous.

But it'll probably be fine. Rena and I had a thorough strategy session on the way here. Though most of it was just talking about places we'd want to go and things we'd want to do once we could officially date.

"And finally, a word from me. My sincerest congratulations on this occasion. I have great expectations for your continued success in the future, Hayate-sama."

That's what Todo-san said to me.

"Thank you very much. I'll keep doing my best."

It sounded kind of like a final farewell. I was thinking I would still be around Rena, possibly as a guard, so I expected to be in Todo-san's care for a while longer. It made me a little sad.

After that, we got into a limousine, but Todo-san took the front passenger seat, leaving me and Rena alone in the spacious back. I ended up sitting next to her out of habit, but was that okay?

Looking calmly at the girl beside me, I can't help but think she's cute. Just thinking that a beautiful girl like this likes me is enough to make me break into a grin. But I can't let anyone around me notice.

From the moment the limousine started moving until we arrived at Rena's home, we didn't exchange a single word.

We might slip up if we talk too familiarly.

As I worried about whether I could handle this properly and whether Rena could successfully hide her feelings for me, we entered the enormous mansion where her relatives were waiting.

"Rena-sama, welcome home."

"We're so glad you're safe."

"Welcome back."

"Hayate-sama, thank you very much."

As soon as we entered the mansion's lobby, we were surrounded by a large number of maids. They said they were all Rena's personal maids. The Shinonome Zaibatsu is incredible.

"Rena, welcome home. I'm glad you're safe. Hayate-kun, I'm sorry to rush you, but please come this way."

Shinonome-san appeared and called me over. I think he wants to confirm if I fulfilled our promise. He might be suspicious.

I wished Rena could come too, but it seems I have to go alone.

"Understood."

I glanced at Rena, conveying my intention to go.

She gave a small, silent nod. To me, it felt like she was telling me, 'Do your best'. I have to live up to her expectations. I'll bluff my way through this.

For our bright future together!!

I followed Shinonome-san into a room.

"First, I want to thank you. Thank you so much for saving Rena."

"Not at all. I had fun being able to achieve the fastest clear thanks to the Shinonome Group's backup. But since it felt a bit like cheating, I'll return the funds I didn't use for this conquest."

I made sure to appeal to the fact that my premise hadn't changed, that I was carrying out Rena's rescue while also enjoying a four-sword style rampage, which had earned Shinonome-san's trust and led to him entrusting me with her rescue.

"Ah. You don't need to try and cover it up. It's because I was watching you tell them to return Rena with her original personality intact."

"I see."

...Hm?

Was watching?

"Um... was watching what, exactly?"

"The moment you received Rena as the dungeon conquest trophy."

Shinonome-san pointed to the right wall. I looked over and saw a giant screen displaying an image of me holding Rena. It seemed to be an archive of the stream.

"What!?"

Wh, why is that being streamed?

Could it be that because he's a relative of Rena, who was made into a trophy, he got a special broadcast?

And what's more, the video didn't end there.

"The part where Rena told you she liked you. The part where you said you liked Rena. The part where you discussed hiding your mutual feelings because you were afraid of being suspected by us. The part where you told Rena to wait until you became a man worthy of her. And the moment Rena kissed your cheek, not just I, but the entire world was watching."

...It's over.

It seems my life ends here.

"I will approve of your relationship."

"Huh? D, does that mean..."

"Watching the stream, I came to fully understand that you are a sincere young man. The fact that you tried to accommodate my daughter's feelings as much as possible was also a plus. Also, do you see that view count display?"

The number of views on the video projected on the wall had so many digits I couldn't make sense of it.

"As of now, it's been viewed over 20 billion times. The moment my daughter kissed a boy, viewed by the entire world."

Shinonome-san said, holding his head in his hands.

On that streaming site, you can see which scenes are played the most on a graph above the seek bar. Apparently, the playback count for the time when Rena kissed me was the highest. It was more than five times higher than the moment I defeated the Goddess-possessed Undine.

I felt a little bad about that.

"What's more, congratulatory messages from both inside and outside the group have been pouring in nonstop. Furthermore, if I were to do anything to tear you two apart under these circumstances, the Shinonome Zaibatsu would suffer a catastrophic stock market crash. That is the judgment of our company's AI."

The video showing the scene of Rena kissing me switched to a screen displaying various graphs. It was written in English so I couldn't understand the details, but it seems the AI had concluded that it would be more profitable for the company if Rena and I were to date.

"I approve of you and Rena dating. However, you are absolutely forbidden from doing anything to make my daughter sad. And when the entire world acknowledges that you are truly worthy of Rena, my daughter and the daughter of the president of the Shinonome Zaibatsu, I will approve of your marriage."

I'm still just a high school student, you know...

It wasn't the kind of atmosphere where I could say, I can't even think about marriage yet. He was probably telling me that if I wanted to date Rena, I had to be serious about marriage too.

"You should already know how to demonstrate your own value."

My value, huh. That would be my ability to conquer dungeons.

"Show me, and the world, your worth. Your deadline is in about two years. The day Rena turns 18."

He's telling me to achieve something the world will acknowledge by the time Rena comes of age. Understood.

I accept this quest!

"I understand. I will do my absolute best!"