ch161-ch180 · 164-ch164

Chapter 164: Aikawa's Future Path

I've just realized something bad.

There's no way we're back by five at this rate, is there?

What if a worried Kasumi-san comes charging in?

Worrying.

"Hey. From now on, I'm fighting too."

My first thought was "suit yourself"—but I glance back at the old-timer hanging in the rear to check.

You okay with that?—that kind of check.

The old-timer nods.

"What was that just now?"

Apparently my glance back displeased her—Aikawa furrows her brow and closes in.

"You know stats boost your physical abilities in the dungeon, right? Your hearing sharpens to match. Everything we say carries straight over to them."

Did that get through to Soushi too?

I flick my eyes to Soushi to confirm.

Careful, all right?

Soushi tilts his head. Huh? ...

Nope. Nothing.

"Huh? So you were eavesdropping? That's the LOWEST."

"It carries. Can't be helped. Come on, move, move. I want to be home by five."

I cover for the old-timer's crew, for what it's worth.

Inside the dungeon there's no way to contact the surface—or really, any other floor. Inconvenient.

Apparently you can use radios within the same floor, though...

So even if I wanted to tell Kasumi-san I'd be late, it's a tall order.

If it were just Soushi, I could send him running.

But with the old-timer's group behind us, even dodging monsters wouldn't go smoothly.

"Huh. So, hey—how many people are in your party right now?"

Oh my? Interested in our party, are we?

If the old-timer and Makihara-san's party is top-tier, it's naturally a full party of five.

No way they were planning to take in a rank beginner like Aikawa.

Done the normal way, it takes at least two years to reach Triple-Rank...

Yet she's here with just those two again today—maybe she doesn't have a party lined up at all.

"Just me and Haruki. Two."

Soushi answers.

That's right.

On my end, I can't formally party with Watanabe-san until I make Triple-Rank.

Well, if we meet up inside the dungeon, we can adventure together.

The Adventurer's Association caps parties at five—because boss areas only admit five.

But with my special skill, head counts don't matter; even a weird number past five—no multiple of five—would work.

That said, nobody knows what happens when six or more enter a single boss area, so for now I'm not testing it.

If we want to group up, we can just move past the boss area to the "next floor" and summon them with 【Gate】...

"Then those two you mentioned—Watanabe-san and Hiramatsu-san?"

"Association staff. Y'know, from that viral video? You said you saw it—the two who beat the snot out of Haruki."

Soushi, buddy, a touch more tact, please.

'Ah. So he's the boy from that video... I see—he seems to know Watanabe-san, then.'

'Watanabe? The staff member from before? The one said to be her kouhai from university... Well, if they're posted to Chiba, I suppose she'd get friendly with the staff. What's this video, though?'

'Watanabe-san is the staff member who caught the culprit in the Umemoto incident the other day. Then a video of her drilling the "student council president" went viral, and...'

'Eh? That staff member? Full of surprises... 【Spear King】, was it... I wonder—is she stronger than me?'

'Honestly! Of course not. The only ones stronger than Gen-chan are Blue Ocean, maybe.'

Grrrnnn.

Lovey-dovey back there again.

Look—a hobgoblin incoming from behind?

"Oh, I might've seen her earlier. The staff member who said her name was Watanabe. Now that you mention it, she IS the one from the video... She's never around usually, huh? Today was my first time seeing her. Ah—goblin! From behind... A sideways sweep would be against the regulations, you know. Let's hurry on ahead while we can!"

Aikawa noticed the hobgoblin behind us too, but she'd rather not join that conversation.

Hiding behind the regulations, are we? You, miss, were violating them wholesale not long ago?

Well, I get chewed out by Kasumi-san daily and have my own violations waved through, so I can't really talk...

Hiding behind the rules like that—wordplay-wise, wouldn't that pop a 【Shielder】?

Nah, no way, right?

"Hey, Aikawa—what are you doing about a party?"

Oh-ho. Soushi dives right in.

Don't tell me he's about to invite her?

It's a natural flow from the conversation—though it also feels like Aikawa steered it there...

"Haven't decided. I figured there might be recruiting at headquarters over summer break... Minami and his crew invited me too. Minami and co—well, more like Minami's joining Shimizu-senpai's party, so they need someone to fill his spot."

Minami's a classmate—the leader of the delinquents, the extrovert crowd.

Shimizu's a senpai who graduated from our school last year—leader of last year's delinquent group.

And this Shimizu married Gotou-senpai—a stunning beauty and former head of the library committee—and they ran a party together, but apparently Gotou-senpai is expecting, which leaves a spot open on the roster.

So: Minami into Shimizu's open slot, and Aikawa into Minami's old party. That'd be the plan.

Both parties would be registered to headquarters, mind, so I've never seen them in Chiba.

"Those guys, huh... Hmm."

Oh my?

Soushi, my boy—is this where you say no?

They're male classmates, so Soushi's impression of them shouldn't be bad.

They even talked dungeons with him now and then—if anything, the question is why they invited Aikawa instead of Soushi.

I'm on the university track, so they probably didn't ask me...

And it is absolutely not Souma-san's fault.

"What do you think, President? Should I join Minami and his crew's party? Or... should I look for a different one?"

See? You dawdled, so she's tossed it to you.

Honestly—what does Soushi think of Aikawa?

He fusses over her diligently, and she spends every class fake-sleeping...

I'm apparently the president of the so-called Goddess Fanclub, but the same question applies to Soushi, no?

This might be a case for Shiraishi-san, huh?

There is something on my mind, though.

"Are you going to keep being an adventurer?"

You idolized your father and became an adventurer, right?

And now look how that's going...

"—! I... I don't even know what to do anymore..."

Ah, I stepped in it...

Aikawa's hanging her head.

We're third-years now, after all.

Aikawa definitely isn't going to university.

She sleeps through class, and her grades are about on par with Soushi's.

Even if she planned on vocational school, it would've been an adventurer's vocational school.

Job hunting, this late?

And summer break starting right now doesn't help...

'Wh-why that guy! How could he—'

'Please, calm down.'

So the old-timer's group caught it too, catching up behind us.

Um, you're the one at fault here, though?

...Or maybe not.

It's not a bad thing, really.

It's just a matter that needed time...

She's emotional right now, but once Aikawa calms down, she might come to accept Makihara-san.

No need to force an answer this instant.

Which is also why we shouldn't invite her right this second—except Soushi, my boy, is about to...

Ah...

"Hey, Aikawa. Wanna join our—"

"Ah—a goblin!"

Aikawa sprints at the hobgoblin coming head-on.

Too bad—not letting that happen!

'The dungeon willed it.'