Chapter 603: None Bear the Wandering Sword
Two letters handed to two Avengers. Naturally, we checked the contents right then and there.
"Well, I imagine the contents are different, but how's it looking on your end?"
"Ah... is it alright if we share information?"
"I don't mind, as long as you defeat it alone."
Solo-exclusive, huh? In that case, let's share the info.
"Let's see... 'A defiled purification, that which wails night after night is an abominable pure white. The white makeup of blasphemy, shamelessness forgets its shame as many times as there are regrets. Therefore, only the blade of the dead shall expose its true face'... it says."
"I wonder about this one... 'Raise your swords, raise your spears, a gravestone is my only proof. Rusted, unsigned iron is my entire life. Bring down glory, only the blade of vengeance is just'... Ah."
A riddle type... And one with absolutely no hints, at that.
"Hey, what are we supposed to do with this? Mine literally only describes the target monster's characteristics. Apparently, it's white."
"Hey man, mine's pretty bad too. Literally all I know is that it involves graves... Is it even a humanoid?"
A cypher? Or is there some other gimmick to derive the answer? I have no idea, not a single clue. Neither nuance nor logic applies here... This is a tough one.
"Hey, hey, you two! Don't go forgetting about us!!"
"What!?"
"You guys...!"
"Saba-san, you know what they say: two heads are better than one, but three gives you the wisdom of Manjusri, right?"
"Then if everyone here combines their power..."
"What's the superior upgrade to Manjusri?"
"Manjusri is a Bodhisattva, right? So the rank above that is... Shakyamuni Buddha...!!"
"Whoa, to think the ultimate catharsis of my life would happen right now..."
I silently shot Survival a look, and he quietly averted his eyes. Ah, so you were aware they were all idiots. Somehow, that puts my mind at ease.
"I-It's done..."
However, despite their skill, they are idiots and perverts, so the entirety of their brain power was immediately hijacked by Wimp as she stumbled out of the kitchen, rendering the letters' riddles a thing of the past... Ah, whatever. I have to go to school anyway, so I at least want to finish Wimp's event before I log out.
"Fero... Fero... Fero-something-or-other soup! Here!"
"Loli Sensei is stronger than me."
"It's soup..."
The fact that they silently started taking screenshots and recording videos was just way too unhinged. Suppressing the urge to summon Saina (who had retreated into Inventoria) and Emul (who had taken refuge inside Scorpion Sunomata, which was still there) just to increase the ratio of people with common sense in the room, I watched how things would unfold.
I don't know how she butchered that grotesque-looking Ferocitas Delectamentum, but what she brought out appeared to be a fish-based soup. The smell was... well, not bad. Surprisingly, it looked completely normal. I honestly expected some kind of messed-up avant-garde cuisine, like a fish head shoved straight into a bowl, so this was unexpected...
"........."
Loli Sensei silently grabbed a spoon, scooped up some of the fish meat and broth, and without hesitation, brought it to her mouth───
"The results!?"
"The exact moment she pulls the spoon out of her mouth... right?"
"I really wish I had a super slow-motion camera right now."
I'm gonna slap you guys. But right then, Loli Sensei made a move!!
Having set her spoon down after just one bite, Wimp froze up, terrified she had messed something up. However, instead of getting up from her seat, Loli Sensei lifted the entire bowl of soup and...
"She's going for itttttt!!"
"Tias-tan is chugging it... That's rare, Sunraku."
"I-Is that so..."
Loli Sensei naturally takes massive bites and can basically stockpile food... Her capacity for "eating" is so huge that it doesn't actually feel all that rare. Still, does this mean she reached a good outcome?
"H-How... is it?"
"............Well, it's normal?"
Ah, the kind of taste that leaves both the one saying it and the one hearing it unsure of how to react. But this means... Hey, shopkeeper, how about we talk employment?
"I suppose I'll start by teaching her cooking methods other than baking and boiling."
"I see."
Rejection avoided! Hell yeah, let's celebrate!! Though she did steal my juice.
"But still, Loli Sensei is pretty mischievous, coming here unannounced just to evaluate Wimp..."
"...What do you mean?"
...Hmm?
"No, I mean, you said you came here for a few errands. Wasn't that one of your objectives?"
"Not really... The reason I came here was to hand you those, and..."
"And?"
"...To tell Lutia and the others."
Before I could ask what she meant, the fastest little girl in the world concisely stated:
"We, the 'Wandering Swords,' have dissolved our cooperative relationship with the current royal government as of today. You are ordered to take aleave of absence for the time being... That is all."
In other words, you just dropped a massive bomb on us, didn't you!? Setting that aside, I need to log out soon or I'm going to be seriously late for school! Urgh, I'll theorycraft IRL and pick this back up tonight!!
.........
..................
...........................
"Huh? School's canceled because of a gas leak?"
The emergency notification from the school arrived the exact moment I slipped on my shoes to leave. A gas leak sounds dangerous, but apparently, they'll have the repairs done by tomorrow and reopen, so I should just treat it as a lucky holiday.
"Oh my, Rakuro, you're going to be late, you know?"
"Apparently school's canceled because of a gas leak."
"Oh, is that so... Ah, I'm going to do some cleaning for about an hour now, so you'd better stay cooped up in your room~"
Gah, seriously? In our household, "cleaning" that comes with a recommendation to barricade myself in my room means my mother is cleaning her Pandemonium. Therefore, if I get careless and leave my door open, a Palawan Stag Beetle that escaped unnoticed might drop from the ceiling onto my nose... N-No, that never happened, it never happened. According to my memory, that's the official story. My mother definitely didn't worry more about Leonardo (the Palawan's name) than her own son whose nose was caught in its mandibles.
"Mom, please don't let any stag beetles escape again."
"They're all larvae right now this season."
Well, that's a relief. Larvae don't cling to ceilings or fly up to the second floor. For now, maybe I'll head back to ShanFro...
Logging in...
Moving from the guest room in the Tri-Divinity Church I was using as a save point back to the Serpent's Apple, I raised a hand to show Survival—who was casually logged in on a weekday morning, though I wasn't going to pry into his real life—that I was back.
"Hmm? I thought you were logging off?"
"Got an unexpected day off."
"Oho... Ah, right. I've already passed it along to my guys, but about what Tias-tan said earlier... It's probably best to keep a gag order on that."
"Huh?"
A gag order?
"Bounty Hunters operate on the premise of a top-secret contract with the King. Since they've cut ties... my guess is, even if you PK inside a city right now, they won't show up."
"...Seriously?"
"Yeah. From what I hear, the top brass of Thirdrema and the current King are basically in a Cold War. It's safe to assume that all flags related to the 'Wandering Swords' have been suspended."
I see... I think 'The Boss' hinted at their relationship with the Kingdom during a conversation a while back. Breaking off relations officially means they threw away their own backing. They didn't seem like the type of characters to make foolish decisions, so there must be a reason, but the Bounty Hunters ceasing operations is definitely huge news... I guess we shouldn't spread it around.
"Well, either way, I doubt I can clear this immediately anyway... Hey, Survival. You got free time right now?"
"Hmm? Yeah, I'm free, but... What, you wanna go do some random grinding?"
"Nope."
Moving Wimp all the way here was an unexpected event triggered by the irregular that was "Warphan." Since I practically picked a fight with 【Library】, I need to execute my schedule swiftly and flawlessly. I was originally planning on doing it tonight, but since I have the time, it works out perfectly. And having someone whose skills I can vouch for makes it even better.
"How about we go snatch the honor of achieving a 100% full clear in roughly one day?"
I pointed my thumb at the target: the massive metallic whale buried in the sea of the New Continent───
Author's Afterword
Wimp's Part-Time Job Life
Daily Wage: 10,000 Mani
Bonus: Tributes from the Dress-Up Squad
Loli Sensei acted like a judge in a cooking manga, but it turns out she was just requesting something she wanted to eat.
By the way, regarding Sammy-chan, the Bounty Hunters are already aware of her, but thanks to Sunraku's neck (in a professional sense) and Wimp's Karma Value, she was judged as safe.
Tias used a ridiculous feat based on her skills, sensing Sammy-chan's presence through "individual flows of time," while Lutia noticed when she tripped over Sammy-chan, who had sneaked in out of concern for Wimp.
Comments
Post a Comment