In the school classroom, I felt like I was already dead.
「What’s up, Ichino? You look tired. Were you up all night playing games?」
「No, I was on a trip. Here, this is a souvenir.」
I handed Aoki one of the souvenirs I bought at the hotel where I took a bath.
I figured I needed to bring back one or two souvenirs; otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to appease my parents.
「Kokko? You went to Shizuoka, to Mount Fuji? That must have been quite an experience.」
「Yeah, it really was.」
I recounted what happened after my bath yesterday.
Later, we drove to the general hospital, but there were no available taxis.
Understandable—despite the self-defense forces giving the all-clear, the taxi drivers had evacuated and weren’t nearby.
In the end, the pompous assistant manager who hadn’t evacuated offered to drive us.
-0-
Apparently, he still couldn’t talk much yet due to the lingering effects of anesthesia, but his wounds have properly healed.
Milk’s mother was incredibly grateful, and Milk herself bombarded me with questions: ‘Who’s Hime? What do you mean by ‘bath’?’.
If it weren’t for Milk’s mother intervening, things would have gotten complicated.
I actually wanted to wait until Gyuuzou-san woke up, but since I had school tomorrow, I decided to head home.
-0-
Naturally, I assumed I could take a helicopter back, but they warned me it would attract attention.
Waiting for the first train wouldn’t get me to school on time, so I ended up taking a taxi—it cost an exorbitant 150,000 yen.
When I finally got home, it was practically morning, and my parents scolded me relentlessly.
I explained that it was for Gyuuzou-san’s treatment, and they reluctantly understood.
Then, it was time for school.
I realized I’d left my bicycle at the station and, despite my sleep-deprived state, sprinted there with all my might.
You might think I should have rested at the PD, but the lingering stench there made it impossible to go there.
「Yesterday was intense, wasn’t it? They said on TV that without the U.S. military’s secret weapon, we might not even know how many casualties there would have been.」
「Yeah, that U.S. military secret weapon…」
Naturally, during the press conference held by the government afterward, various media outlets inquired about the identity of the masked man.
And the man who showed up at that press conference, looking dashing, was King Campbell himself.
Through an interpreter, he explained:
『I had the privilege of using a magical weapon jointly developed by our company and the U.S. Army. It’s still in the developmental stage, so I can’t reveal specific details. Normally, we wouldn’t disclose such things publicly, but at the request of Japan’s Prime Minister and in light of our friendly relations, we decided to deploy it during Japan’s crisis. Understand that due to military secrecy, I can’t say more, but while it’s effective against monsters, conventional weapons are more efficient against humans. Please consider it a weapon designed solely for anti-monster use. 』
Being told it was a military secret quashed further questions, and the fact that it was specifically for dealing with monsters rather than humans brought some reassurance.
Online, people had already identified the woman seen alongside the masked man as King Campbell’s daughter, Hime Oshino. This revelation bolstered the credibility of King’s statement.
But honestly, I hadn’t expected King himself to show up.
He’d mentioned that Hime was just one of his many children, but he sure was a kind dad to go this far for his daughter’s plea.
「Still, it’s intriguing. That earth magic—diving into the ground. Can it only charge magic within the earth?」
It seemed people assumed that my descent into the PD was due to a type of earth magic called ‘Subterranean Dive Earth’.
It is a magic that conceals oneself beneath the ground—a baffling action to those watching TV.
「Aoki, you went to the dungeon yesterday, right? What level are you now?」
「Yesterday’s Umeda Dungeon was practically empty! I’ve already reached level 4!」
「Is that so……Good for you.」
「From the looks of it, you’re probably around level 6. Enjoy it while it lasts.」
Aoki declared war, but I just laughed it off.
※ Side King ※
On the private jet returning to the United States, King struck up a conversation with the black, marshmallow-like creature seated next to him.
『Was this within your expectations too, Danpol-kun? 』
『No, I never anticipated anyone other than you… a human that can use magic outside the dungeon. 』
『I see. I thought perhaps you were being unfaithful. 』
『Never—my resources aren’t that extensive. If I sat between two chairs, I’d just fall. 』
Danpol’s response had a touch of ‘chasing two hares and catching neither’.
『Very well. Now that we’ve closed the distance, shall we return to our battlefield? 』
『Yes, indeed. 』
『Release: Spatial Teleportation. 』
And just like that, King and Danpol vanished from the Pacific skies in an instant.
※ ※ ※
「But really, Hime is just another party member. ‘Hime’ is her real name, nothing strange about it. We just fought together in the dungeon. You know I’m strong, right?」
TN: Hime means Princess. Well, she is King’s daughter.
『But why do you address her so informally? 』
「She asked me to. Hime is American, so her sense of distance is different from Japan’s. Besides, I call Milk by your first name too.」
『True, but… 』
「When you go back, I’ll introduce you properly. I never intended to exclude you from the group. Don’t sulk.」
『…An introduction, huh. Understood. I definitely want to meet her. 』
Her determination came through even over the phone.
-0-
Now that the call was over, I guess it’s time to head to the PD.
As I stepped into the PD from the yard…
「—!?」
A dark shadow pounced on me.
By the time I realized it was a Darkness Wolf, it was too late.
I’d let my guard down completely.
No weapon in hand, and at this distance, magic was useless.
I wouldn’t even have time to reach for a D-can—
「Wait… what?」
The Darkness Wolf seemed oddly smaller, and it was busy licking my face—like a dog enthusiastically tasting a delicate pastry.
「Taira, you’ve finally arrived! Cleaning up the mess afterward was quite a challenge, you know?」
「Danpon, what is this?」
I asked Danpon, who greeted me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
「This? Oh, it’s a Darkness Wolf. Yesterday, after you left, it collapsed in the corner of the room, foaming.」
「But I defeated it, didn’t I? I’m sure—」
「You defeated it, and yet it came back to life. It’s now sworn to obey you, so everything’s fine.」
「Obey me… wait, what?」
「It’s a monster created by Danpol. Normally, when defeated, it would return as energy to the dungeon. But because it died within this dungeon, it can’t return to Danpol’s domain. So, it ended up like this. Taira, you’ve unwittingly acquired a monster pet! Congratulations!」
A Darkness Wolf as my pet!?
Even though my mom is staunchly against having pets, how am I supposed to convince her of this?
Maybe my luck stat is off the charts—though that might just be wishful thinking.
「Bark!」
And then, as if ignoring my inner turmoil, the Darkness Wolf let out a dog-like bark.
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