ch301-ch320 · 315-ch315
Chapter 315: The Little Girl Kidnapping Case
'Thank youuu for shopping with us—!'
?
"Oops, excuse me. Didn't notice you there. Let's both watch ourselves."
What is with this guy......
After school, we came to Mia-san's shop, and I didn't notice the man coming out of it until the door swung open.
"Ah...... Sorry...... about that......"
No—he's doing it even now.
Right in front of me, 【Presence Detection】 barely reacts.
Like a transparent presence is moving...... I can't see any color to his presence at all.
"Haruki, be careful, okay? Chiba's been drawing more and more people, you know."
"What's wrong? Do you know him?"
Soushi and Aikawa, walking a little behind me, call out to me as I keep watching the man's back.
"No......"
But there's something familiar about him......
"That guy just now was TOTALLY one of those, you know...... Ah, welcome back, everyone."
"Come on, Hina, quit it...... Welcome back."
The delinquent girl and the vampire girl greet us.
The delinquent girl has recovered a lot of her energy.
There was a stretch where she barely spoke at all inside the dungeon.
Whatever Dr. Amamiya did, she's back to her old self now.
Speaking of Dr. Amamiya—the hospital attack incident the other day has been resolved, so let me report on it.
First: Umemoto-san's treatment is finished.
A woman who is a 【Shamaness】—the one who built the shrine here—undid the curse carved into Umemoto-san's left hand.
With that, Umemoto-san is essentially cured.
No more treatment needed, so Fuyumi-san is moving her residence to the headquarters building, apparently.
Which means she won't be coming to the Chiba branch anymore.
She did say she might come for Umemoto-san's monthly checkup.
Dr. Amamiya seemed genuinely disappointed at losing an excellent healer and a patient she was free to do anything with, all in one stroke.
Looking disappointed that your patient got BETTER is a problem, you know.
Anyway—Shiraishi-san and Hayashi-san's worries have vanished. Problem beautifully solved.
Our thanks to the 【Shamaness】.
Though the 【Shamaness】 might steal her customers next......
"Hey, Natsuki, listen to this. That customer just now—when the shop manager's around, he drops tens of thousands on shopping, but when she's not, he leaves without buying a thing."
"Huh. So he's a regular."
I see—looked suspicious, but he's a Mia-san fan.
"That guy is ABSOLUTELY a l○licon."
Way to phrase it!
The delinquent girl has recovered a little TOO much.
"Hey now, Hina-chan. No badmouthing customers. Oh my, welcome back, everyone. Want some of the souvenir a regular left? I hear he'd been off to a regional dungeon."
Mia-mama-san comes out from the back.
A plate of opened snacks in her hands.
"Mama-san, you're being played. Planning to sell off your precious daughter for snacks? Besides, that guy NEVER comes when Papa-san's here."
"Papa is harsh on him, so I asked him myself to come only when Papa's out."
Papa is harsh on ME too, you know?
Getting lumped in with a l○licon is not appreciated.
"Come to think of it, where's Mia-san?"
The woman herself is missing.
We have Mia-san's leveling planned after this......
"That's just it. And right when that mar— that regular customer came, too. Where has she gone wandering off to? She really should be back by now. You had plans with Haru-kun and the others, didn't you? I'm so sorry."
"Ah, there was quite the crowd forming outside, so Mia-san might be in the middle of that."
The video of Hiramatsu-san beating Furuta Yukiya of 'Blue Ocean' spread everywhere, so challengers apparently haven't stopped coming all day.
To think people would gather not for Kasumi-san but for Hiramatsu-san.
It's happening in the back parking lot, so I haven't seen it myself—but like Aikawa says, Mia-san might be in that crowd.
Well, the four of us can start gathering throwing golems without her.
'Crisis, crisis, crisis, ssu—! Is she not here, ssu—!'
Oh? That presence......
The newbie comes charging toward the shop in a complete flap.
"Huh? Newbie, are you allowed in the dungeon?"
"Emergency, ssu! Formation Z, ssu! I was told to come deliver the message, ssu! ......By the way, what's Formation Z, ssu?"
Z is Sword Saint-chan.
Sword Saint-chan has come to the Chiba branch, apparently.
"Whoa. Right on the heels of yesterday? Come for a rematch? Fine by me if so.
Or she might be here to recruit Kasumi-san again.
'Blue Ocean' did just start recruiting support members publicly, and Furuta Yukiya's visit yesterday was to see Kasumi-san, after all.
"Looks like today's leveling is off, then. Let's go shopping, then. Tell Shiraishi-san I'm making dinner."
"Hmm. Then I'll go hide in the warehouse—wake me when Sword Saint-chan leaves."
"Ah, Soushi's making dinner? Yay—! But hide from what? What's Formation Z?"
"What's that, ssu?"
No—forget the vampire girl, but the newbie really ought to know this......
What has Hayashi-san been teaching her?
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"Wh—!?"
I got beaten one-sidedly......
No, I held out for a while, but I couldn't take down a single one.
The moment I thought I'd won—it was empty......
The stronger I get, the stronger they get? What is this!?
What a piece-of-trash game!
Fireballs raining down, black-armored warriors showing up, more spawning the longer I take......
Couldn't I at least get some armor on my side......
"Cheating again, are we?"
"Ide-de-deh!"
I wake to Kasumi-san right in front of me.
She seizes my cheek and pulls—but her own cheek is puffed up more than mine, the one being pulled.
In one of her moods again.
But I have never once cheated—I was just napping in the warehouse, so this is a complete false accusation.
She was furious about the way the New Dungeon's second-wave recruitment went yesterday, and she looked down even before Sword Saint-chan arrived today, so I'll assume that's the cause.
"You require discipline. The competitive naginata is...... moved to Mia-san's shop, I see. Shall we? Do not worry—I will go easy on you properly today, so there will be no repeat of my disgrace from before."
Everything not needed for leveling has been left over at Mia-san's shop.
Which means the wooden bar modeled on my jumonji spear is there too.
Huh? We're moving like THIS?
Ide-de-deh!
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"So? What happened to Shiraishi-san?"
We arrive at Mia-san's shop to find Shiraishi-san lying on the floor.
Her eyes are open, so she's awake at least.
"I don't really know, but apparently she lost at gambling."
Mia-mama-san answers.
Not just Soushi and Aikawa—Mia-san hasn't come back either.
Doesn't seem like all that much time has passed.
But if both Kasumi-san and Shiraishi-san are here, isn't the counter empty?
"You turned over a new leaf and quit gambling, didn't you? Shiraishi-san. Explain yourself."
Kasumi-san addresses the prone Shiraishi-san.
Ah—right, she declared she'd become a 【Wicked Woman】.
Her bad habit has relapsed.
"That's not it—! It was supposed to be a bet I couldn't lose! One more and it was a monster payout. One more and I'd have run ten straight— and then Sword Saint-chan appeared out of nowhere and ruined it—!"
"Huh? Hiramatsu-san LOST?"
Ten straight—so that would be Hiramatsu-san fighting in the parking lot.
Nobody could run ten past Hiramatsu-san, and it can't have been Kasumi-san.
"You gambled—on the surface of all places? Unbelievable. You will cough it all back up today, this very day. Who ran the book? Come now, speak!"
Kasumi-san hauls Shiraishi-san to her feet.
The dungeon is lawless territory—is gambling permitted too?
No, no—gambling is wrong on the surface AND in the dungeon.
"Uuu. Sorry, Miki-chan, Hina-chan. Until payday, you'll have to make do with bean-sprout soup. Big sis will go without her parfaits too, so......"
"You dipped into the children's food budget!? ......I have no words."
I can't defend this one.
A true 【Wicked Woman】, aren't you......
"That's not it—! I thought I could feed these girls steak every day! Who could have guessed Sword Saint-chan would show up? It's all Hiramatsu-san's fault for losing—!"
Still, Sword Saint-chan is really that strong even on the surface......
It was spear versus sword, right?
How did she win?
"Don't blame other people! Very well—I will arrange for you to earn money. Haruki-san, prepare yourself. Right this instant, this person is going to......"
"W-Wait, Watanabe-san, please calm down! We haven't been paying our share of the food costs, have we? We'll pay properly from now on, so please calm down and put her down."
The vampire girl clings to Shiraishi-san, hoisted up by the collar, trying to get her set down.
She's clearly well loved.
Well, if the money came out of Shiraishi-san's own pocket, there's no problem......
No, wait, there is.
'Crisis, crisis, crisis, ssu—! It's a crisis, ssu—!'
Oh my?
The newbie comes diving in again.
"What now? Has that little brat come back?"
What formation is it this time?
"Way worse than that, ssu! Emergency, ssu! The loli 【Blacksmith】 has been kidnapped, ssu—!"
The loli 【Blacksmith】?
Huh?
Mia-san?
HOGEEEH—!!
――――――――――
Apologies—views on my new work aren't growing the way I imagined, so please let me plug it here too ^ ^;
Title: 'I'll Do It, I'll Make You Do It, I Won't Let You Do It.' (tentative)
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093074397292324
Like 'Just a Person,' it's a modern dungeon story.
The hero time-leaps with 【Time Regression】 and goes on an unstoppable rampage.
Updating daily at midnight (planned), same as this one—doing my best.
Ten chapters posted so far.
It's entered in the Kadokawa Books Fantasy Long-Form Contest, so reviews, support, and follows would help me a lot m(_ _)m
Comments are of course very welcome too!