ch201-ch220 · 218-ch218

Chapter 218: The Blue Sparkle

"Well then, for the next three days or so I'll be handling a request from headquarters. Please don't push Natsukawa-san and the others too hard. There will be no nightly phone calls either, but do study properly. Knowing you, Haruki-san, I'm not worried about you running wild—but the moment you step outside, all manner of temptations..."

Starting today, Kasumi-san is off to help with a Triple-Rank promotion request.

It's a two-night, three-day trip, and she's awfully worried about me.

If she's going to Floor 30, I wish she'd worry about herself instead...

"Watanabe-saaan! Something terrible happened, ssu! Save me, ssu! I hate Aomori, ssu!"

And who should come running up but the newbie.

"Fuyutsuki-san, I'm busy right now... Ah, so you heard. I don't think it's a bad offer, though? I see. Mmm-mmm-mmm. Haruki-san, could you give us the room for a moment..."

"Kasumi-saaan. A visitor from headquarters has arrived—please come right away."

And now they've started on the interesting part.

Just as I was about to say I wanted to listen too, Hayashi-san arrived to call Kasumi-san away.

Her escort, maybe?

"Is it that time already? Fuyutsuki-san, I'm terribly sorry, but I'll be away from the branch for about three days with work. Let's see—please consult Hiramatsu-san. Sakura—... rather, Hiramatsu-san, that is. Well then, Haruki-san—see you in three days. ...No running around at night, now?"

"Okay~ You take care too, Kasumi-san."

"Nooo, ssu. It has to be you, Watanabe-san, ssu."

The newbie keeps clinging to Kasumi-san.

What happened?

"You reap what you sow. She was rude to the chairman, so she's getting transferred. Accept your punishment gracefully!"

"Transferred, ssu? Surely the chairman wouldn't get angry over something like that. Besides, I hear Aomori is bustling right now and short-handed. It's a promotion now that her training period is over, you know?"

"My, Kasumi-san! Unbelievable! Are you suggesting Chiba is inferior to Aomori? Just look how much she hates it! However you look at it, this is a punishment!"

"I haaate it, ssuuu!"

Apparently the newbie screwed something up during Monday's inspection.

Aomori, huh... I wonder if my old man got transferred for screwing something up too...

︙

︙

"Huh? That's Kasumi-san... And next to her..."

Soushi was late, as usual, so I was waiting at the warehouse with Aikawa when Kasumi-san's presence entered the dungeon.

Four others, too.

Presences moving at the same speed.

And the presence beside Kasumi-san is like nothing I've ever felt before.

A blue glow...

Not that it glows the way Shiraishi-san's does—all bright and shiny—it's more a small, sparkling twinkle.

It might be the most beautiful presence I've ever sensed.

"Something wrong?"

I let out a startled voice, and Aikawa reacted.

"Nah, it's just—Kasumi-san came into the dungeon..."

"Huh? Wasn't she doing the Triple promotion request at headquarters?"

"There are four others with her, so maybe they're doing it here in Chiba... I'm gonna go take a look at the members."

Aikawa came along, and before we reached the main street, the fully-armed Kasumi-san party crossed right in front of us.

"Wow... such a beautiful person."

At Aikawa's voice, Kasumi-san's whole group glanced our way for an instant—but that was all.

Kasumi-san, too, ignores us and passes on by.

...I can hear voices.

'So you conquer the dungeon all by yourself?'

'Normally I join freelance parties at headquarters. Freelance in the sense of a gathering of acquaintances, but...'

"Hey? That just now was a man, right?"

The person walking beside Kasumi-san was stunningly good-looking, but judging by the height and build—probably a man.

So beautiful I have to say "probably"—a real pretty boy.

And even the presence is handsome...

Chatting Kasumi-san up with a bright, refreshing smile.

"Oops—they heard us. Let's fall back."

Reacting to Aikawa's words, the woman walking in the rear glanced back at us for just a moment.

Her presence color is... purple.

Needing concentration to read a color is the mark of a scout-type.

'The other day, all I could offer was my thanks, but the truth is I'd been hoping to talk with you like this.'

Mmm-mmm-mmm.

Isn't that standing a little too close?

"Hey, hey, that guy was suuuper handsome. Is he the client?"

Once we were back at the warehouse, Aikawa started talking.

"...Probably."

Judging from the conversation, that'd be it.

"My, my? Someone's in a mood~"

I didn't mean anything by it, but apparently my voice had gone low...

"Aikawa, about today..."

The plan today was to try fighting Forest Ogres on Floor 21.

That was the plan, anyway...

"Say no more. Go on, get going. You're curious, aren't you?"

Arms crossed, Aikawa unleashes some mysterious pretty-boy move.

Just like Mia-san. So cool.

"My bad. I'm off."

I'll go tail Kasumi-san a little.

Just a teensy bit—to see what kind of person that pretty boy is, and how Kasumi-san is reacting...

"Ah, Haru-kun, wait!"

Armed with nothing but the Lilliputian Spear, I was about to dash off in stealth mode when Aikawa stops me.

"What?"

"I don't know anything. Haru-kun just suddenly dashed off. ...Got it?"

"R-right. Thanks."

It'd be a disaster if Kasumi-san found out later, after all.

Let's leave it at that.

Wait, isn't that backwards? I'm the one who asked HER to provide MY alibi?

︙

︙

(Oh? Caught up.)

I left right away, so I caught up with them on Floor 2.

That sparkling presence—I spot it instantly.

I've already got 【Presence Concealment】 running.

Their scout doesn't seem to have noticed me.

Hiding in the shade of the sparsely growing trees, I keep my distance and listen.

'Kyaaah! You can fight too?! Amazing! Where you get assigned isn't decided yet, right? I'm putting in a request for there!'

Hey! Scout-types shouldn't be shouting like that.

The scout seems head over heels for the pretty boy.

And I don't even register on the radar. Grrrnn.

'I'll fight from here on. We have to reach Floor 25 before dark. Unlike headquarters, Chiba has no adventurers thinning out the monsters for us—let's pick up the pace.'

'Eee? But I wanna watch more of Akiyama-san fighting—'

Kasumi-san tries to raise the pace, and the scout whines.

So today they're camping out in front of the 'Gate to Floor 24' on Floor 25, huh?

And the pretty boy's name is apparently Akiyama.

'Measuring my strength is part of your mission too, isn't it? Besides, I'm not sure making the escort target fight is right. Do your jobs properly.'

"Kasumi-san, don't be so cold about it. We were ordered to, so we do report—but we don't have anything against you. I'm sure our paths will cross on missions again, right? Let's be friendly like old times?"

The last of the three women, counting Kasumi-san—a woman who, unusually, has a bow slung on her back—acknowledges Kasumi-san's statement.

So they've also taken on the mission of probing Kasumi-san, then.

But she's talking like they were close back at headquarters.

This one's presence color is green—no, a bit yellowish; yellow-green, maybe?

'If we're hurrying, better everyone fights. I'll take point and lead.'

Oh—the last one, a fierce-faced older guy, moves up front.

A hammer slung on his back.

Presence color: light blue.

Honestly, it feels like he's just jealous of the pretty boy and trying to look good...

Go get 'em—!

So with Kasumi-san and the pretty boy included, that makes a five-person party—three women and two men, huh.

Incidentally, the pretty boy carries a big shield, and his weapon seems to be a sword.