ch61-ch80 · 073-ch73

Chapter 73: Charge Spearman, No Return

SIDE: Natsukawa Soushi

"Gnnnnh."

Apparently, Haruki has found a new party member.

And that party member is supposedly a receptionist at the Adventurer's Association.

Using the fact that my birthday hasn't come yet to get all friendly with the receptionists, that bastard...

I want to get friendly with Hayashi-san and Shiraishi-san soon too.

And with the black-gal receptionist and the bombshell receptionist as well.

"He told me to look for party members too, huh."

Me, Haruki, and Watanabe-san the receptionist—that makes three.

You can only bring five people into a boss floor, so two more, huh...

Haruki suggested Saito (the black gal in our class), but that's hopeless.

If Mizuki (aka the Goddess) glares at us, we'll all be pretending to sleep for the rest of our lives.

"Pretending to sleep, huh... What about Aikawa?"

Aikawa sits next to me, and she said her father is an adventurer...

'Ring ring, ring ring.'

The phone at home is ringing.

It's already past midnight.

Looks like Mom picked up.

"Soooou! Phone! It's Haru-kun's mother!"

Don't bellow "Sou-chan" like that.

You did press the hold button properly, right?

But Haruki's mother, at this hour?

"Hello? This is him."

"Ah, Soushi-kun? Haruki hasn't come home, so I called thinking you might know something. If he's not at your place, I suppose he's at his girlfriend's?"

"Girlfriend? Don't tell me—Watanabe-san?"

That bastard.

So that's what it was.

"Watanabe-san? So her name is Watanabe-san? I thought it was the Mizuki girl. Well, I figured he didn't stand a chance with her anyway... But he hasn't even sent me a message. His phone doesn't connect either. The day before yesterday, I did get a message saying he wouldn't be home. Sorry for calling so late."

"Ah, right. If I turn anything up on my end, I'll let you know."

Click.

Damn you, Haruki.

Sneaking ahead of me...

(...Still, him not making contact does bother me.)

Could the phone not connecting mean he's inside a dungeon?

It's hard to imagine, but did something happen to him?

I try calling from my own phone, just in case.

'The number you have dialed is currently outside the service area...'

(I've got a bad feeling about this.)

"Mom, I'm heading out for a bit."

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SIDE: Hiramatsu (Association Staff, Dungeon Counter)

It's about time for the shift change.

"Fwaaah."

Go home, have a drink, and sleep.

"Hiramatsu-san, has that high schooler come back yet, ssu?"

"That one? Ah, Haruki. No, he hasn't come by my window. Hasn't he stopped by yours, newbie-chan?"

"He's never once come to my window, ssu. Not today either, ssu. So I just figured he went to yours, ssu. He hasn't come back, ssu?"

"Headed home without stopping at the counter? He wasn't carrying his weapon when he went out, after all. And there were people around today, unusually enough. When customers came up to both windows at once, didn't he use the 'Dungeon Gate'?"

"I'd be fine if that's all it was, ssu... But Shiraishi-san told me to keep an eye out for him at shift change, ssu."

"If you're worried, want to check the ticket gate logs outside? Have I taught you how to do that? Once the relief gets here, switch over right away and let's take a look."

What we Association staffers call the "ticket gate" is the machine in front of the surface 'Dungeon Gate' that manages all entry into and exit from the dungeon.

It looks just like the ticket gates at a train station, so we simply call it that.

The rules are that you can't get in—or out—without a license, so any Association staffer can tell at a glance who's inside the dungeon.

"Yes, please, ssu. Huh? Endo-san, ssu? Are you on late-night dungeon duty today, ssu?"

"No, I shouldn't be. You were on surface duty the same shift as us, weren't you?"

Endo-san is a former adventurer, a woman who normally works surface duty from evening into the night.

A beauty with a strangely alluring air about her.

Last week there was a shift change, and she covered the dungeon-side counter together with Sato, but apparently Sato didn't say a single word to her the whole time.

What a tremendous waste.

And here I am, secretly hoping every single day that our walks home to the station might happen to line up.

But for a surface-duty staffer to come to the dungeon side...

Did something happen?

"Do you know a high school adventurer by the name of Kasugano Haruki?"

I find myself making eye contact with newbie-chan.

So he really hasn't come back...

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SIDE: Watanabe Kasumi

"...Haruki-san, what could have happened?"

Something is wrong.

It's already the middle of the night, and there's been no word from Haruki-san.

I left headquarters at six in the evening and sent him a message then too, but the last message I received from him was this morning.

After I left headquarters, there was a get-together—or rather, the women I often form freelance parties with threw what was basically a farewell party for me, and I attended.

I'd sent him word about that as well, so during the party, I thought perhaps he was holding back out of consideration.

I don't usually drink, and I had work the next day, so I didn't touch any, but a drunk Mia-san and the other women teased me quite mercilessly.

"Leaving to get married," "traitor," "and here I thought you'd be the last one left"—I got it pretty rough.

It was a fun time, but even after messaging him that the party had ended, there was still no word from Haruki-san.

Perhaps he was tired and fell asleep.

But just once more—just once more, let me reach out.

'Have you fallen asleep? Would you like to talk on the phone, just for a little while?'

I want to hear his voice.

Is that greedy of me?

Is the wording too stiff?

A-a heart mark?

Nnn, impossible.

But we are lovers.

A heart mark should surely be permitted.

"...Lovers... are we?"

Haruki-san did say he likes me.

'I like you. That's why I want to be with you.'

(Eeee.)

The memory comes flooding back.

I dive into my bed and kick my legs.

My face is hot—I can feel it turning red.

I'm too embarrassed to lift my head.

Kick, kick... kick.

Remembering what came next, my legs stop.

'Um, um, I also...'

I ran from it, that time.

I couldn't say the rest.

I'd never had this kind of experience before.

Through high school and university, I was surrounded by nothing but girls.

Even after joining the Adventurer's Association, my days off went to the dungeon.

And in all-women freelance parties, at that...

(This is running away too, isn't it.)

I'm making excuses for myself...

I have to face things head-on and fight.

That's what my relationship with Haruki-san has been.

That's right.

We are not officially lovers yet.

So I have to tell him properly.

"Haruki-san, I like you."

Kick kick kick kick.

I bury my face in the bed all over again and start kicking.

"...What am I doing?"

When I calm down and lift my face, it's coming up on one in the morning.

How long was I doing this...?

There's no call, is there.

'Riiing riing riiiing'

It's here!

Haruki-san—!

Huh?

The Adventurer's Association Chiba Branch?