Chapter 15

The Golden Week holiday has ended, and weekdays have returned.

In my case, if I wanted to take a break, I could get as much time off as I wanted by going to PD, but I feel like school is a better way to change my mood.

It’s a peaceful daily life.

Yeah, super peaceful.

Except for the fact that Aoki has dead fish eyes.

“What’s up? Aoki.”

“Ah… Ichino, I might be done for.”

“What’s wrong?”

“I found my ideal girl.”

What a surprise.

It seems Aoki has fallen in love.

“Really? What? Does she know you?”

“She knows me very well.”

“What’s she like?”

“This—”

While thinking that it’s not good to refer to a crush as “this,” I looked at the smartphone Aoki handed me.

There was a photo of an incredibly cute girl, blushing shyly.

She’s the kind of girl that if you asked a hundred people, a hundred would say she’s cute.

But, what is it?

I can sense a very dangerous vibe.

I can feel that falling for this girl would be a bad idea.

Plus, I feel like I’ve met her somewhere before.

Especially her eyes.

Then, I looked at Aoki’s face and realized it.

“...Is this... you?”

In response to my question, Aoki paused for a moment and then nodded slightly.

“...About the video site, there are a lot of female viewers, so they thought it would be funny to have me dress up as a girl to attract male fans. At first, I thought it was a joke, but the senior editor is really good at that kind of makeup... Before I knew it, this was the result... I never thought my ideal girl would be me in a girl’s outfit... What a joke.”

“...Cheer up. I’ll buy you a juice later.”

When I said that, Aoki seemed to reset and said,

“I’ll take a large melon soda. Also, I’m going back to being an explorer.”

“Huh?”

“It turns out I’m quite popular. Reiko said she wants me to do dungeon streams with her. Plus, the dungeons are less crowded now, so I can probably reach level 10 in a month. They’re even paying me a salary during the leveling process. So, do you want to go to Umeda D with me next weekend?”

“Sorry. I already have plans to hang out with someone else that day.”

I have plans to go to the dungeon with Mr. Higashi next Sunday.

We’re planning to go to the third floor, so level 1 Aoki wouldn’t be able to keep up.

I thought he might be scared to go to the dungeon after the incident at Expo Park D, but he replied that he’s looking forward to going with me.

I guess he’s still scared to go alone, but he also wants to become a top explorer.

“Got it... By the way, if they offered to triple your salary if you dressed up as a girl for the dungeon stream, what would you do?”

I would run away from such a company immediately.

Talking with Aoki really makes me feel like daily life has returned.

※ ※ ※

Even though daily life has resumed, the extraordinary continues. As if timing it to when I got home from school, a limousine stopped in front of my house.

It seems to be a call from Ushizou.

I wasn’t surprised because I had been notified in advance.

I should be grateful that they didn’t send a helicopter.

The limousine got on the highway and headed for City Hall.

We then took the elevator to the restaurant on the top floor.

I had heard that the top floor of City Hall was a restaurant, but this was my first time visiting.

Milk and Ushizou both seem to like top-floor restaurants.

When I entered the restaurant, Ushizou was waiting at a window seat.

There were no other customers.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Thank you for coming. I wanted to talk at my house, but my wife doesn’t know you were in the dungeon that day. Plus, I don’t want others to overhear. This is the only restaurant I could think of that we could have to ourselves.”

“Did you reserve it exclusively?”

“Originally, dinner here is only for reservation guests. There was one reservation, but they agreed to let us have it. No problem.”

No problem... I guess that’s what being rich is like.

But, something’s off.

This table only has two chairs.

It doesn’t feel like someone else is coming later.

“Is Milk... not coming?”

“Milk is at counseling. I wanted her to go in the morning, but she insisted on going to school.”

So, it’s just Ushizou and me?

Awkward.

Sweat started trickling down my forehead.

“Order whatever you like.”

He handed me a drink menu.

I ordered a cola.

“Cola, and I’ll have oolong tea.”

“Don’t you drink alcohol?”

“I have to go back to Mount Fuji afterward, so I can’t. I have a helicopter waiting on the roof.”

Like he had a car waiting.

The limousine I came in is apparently waiting outside too.

“First, I have this to give you.”

Ushizou handed me a piece of paper.

It was a check, but the amount was blank.

Did he forget to write it? Or—

“The amount isn’t written...”

“A daughter’s life is priceless. Write whatever amount you like.”

Of course.

There are actually people who say such things in real life.

What if I wrote ten billion?

Is this a test?

“I have a hundred billion in the bank. I can’t spend it all anyway, and my income still exceeds my expenses. I can give it all to you if you want.”

He’s beyond my imagination.

His lifestyle is too extravagant.

I looked at the blank check, took a ballpoint pen from my bag, and wrote a number.

“Here you go.”

“Is that all?”

Ushizou looked at the check with 50,000 yen written on it, seeming displeased.

His face said, "Is my daughter’s life worth only 50,000 yen?"

“I have a deal with Milk to cancel the debt of saving her life by treating her to high-end Korean barbecue. So, please give this to Milk. I don’t want anything more.”

Though, I’d prefer if you gave it to her in cash.

She’d be confused if her father gave her a 50,000 yen check.

“Are you sure that’s okay?”

“That’s what I want.”

“I see... I won’t force you. But since it’s high-end Korean barbecue, I’ll add another 50,000 yen.”

Ushizou put the check in his inner pocket.

I thought 50,000 was a lot, but now it’s 100,000.

With 100,000 yen, I could go to an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue for a month.

The difference in financial sense between a high school student and an adult.

I took a sip of cola to wet my throat.

More than half was gone.

I hope the food comes soon.

“That’s the main topic.”

Ushizou’s talk wasn’t over yet.

I don’t know what’s more important than a blank check.

“The government plans to pass the EPO Act this month. You’ve probably heard of it.”

“Is that the Guild thing?”

“The government stubbornly dislikes that name, but yes.”

EPO stands for Explorers' Partnership Organization, which translates to Explorers' Cooperation Organization in Japanese.

It’s a law related to the group of explorers commonly known as the Guild.

Rumors about it have been circulating since last year.

Currently, explorers contract with companies or form parties individually, but the government wants to manage them in a unique framework.

They’re creating a legal entity for explorers.

In exchange for taking on government jobs when needed, these entities will receive significant tax benefits.

Many countries, including the United States, have adopted similar laws, and Japan has been lagging behind.

“EPO entities will have various privileges. The tax benefits are significant, but the most important is the relaxation of safety margins for full members. With your ability to defeat Bite Wolf, you could go to the seventh floor immediately. The dungeon side has already approved it. There will be 30 approved EPO entities, with up to 50 full members per entity. It’s difficult to manage more explorers.”

So, there will be a maximum of 1,500 full members of EPO entities.

There are over 10,000 professional explorers, but this will create a gap among professionals.

“I’ve been asked by the government to establish an EPO entity.”

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you. I have a request. Would you like to become a full member of my EPO entity? I plan to offer a base salary of 200.”

“200 as a base salary? Is that per year?”

“No, per month. I’ll add performance bonuses. With your ability to defeat Bite Wolf, you could easily earn double that from the start.”

A base salary of 2.4 million yen per year, plus tax benefits.

It’s a deal most people would jump at.

But—

“I’m sorry, I can’t decide yet. I still have school.”

“Opportunities come and go. You should seize them while you can.”

“Even so—yes. As you know, the way I entered the Ishibutai dungeon is a unique skill, not the usual method.”

When I said that, Ushizou fell silent.

Then, he slowly spoke.

“I can imagine. A transfer skill to enter the dungeon without the usual method, and an invisibility skill or a skill to avoid detection. These are the likely ones. Skill manifesters are usually level 100 or higher, but it’s possible at lower levels, though very rare.”

None of those.

So, rare skills are more likely to manifest at higher levels.

I thought about explaining the skill orbs from D-cans, but if that information got out, the value of D-cans would skyrocket.

I want to increase my stock of D-cans before leaking that information to Ushizou.

“Those skills are highly sought after by criminals. Even level 100 explorers, whose status benefits decrease outside the dungeon, usually have some self-defense means, but it’s difficult for you at your level and age. Indeed, the skill information of EPO entity full members must be reported to the government. The risk of information leaks from the government is low but not zero... I understand. Let’s put it on hold. I’ll keep your seat open, so let me know if you change your mind.”

“Thank you.”

“I should be the one thanking you. I intended the EPO entity offer as a form of gratitude, but it seems to have caused trouble. Well, how can I show my appreciation?”

“...Oh, right! If you have any D-cans you found in the dungeon but haven’t used, could I have a few? Collecting them is a hobby of mine.”

“D-cans? I think I have a few in my storage. Sure, I’ll send them to you.”

“Thank you.”

Maybe I can get new skills or rare magic items.

“And, here, take this.”

Ushizou then took out a black card.

Not a black card, right?

It would be scary to have someone else’s credit card—until I saw my name on it.

“It’s a special membership card from the Oshino Group. With this, you can use various services, including hotels, restaurants, and spas, for up to ten people. You can also enter dungeons managed by the Oshino Group. Usually, reservations are required, but special rooms are often available, so you won’t need a reservation. If the rooms are full, they’ll introduce you to another affiliated hotel.”

“Huh!?”

A surprised sound escaped me.

In a way, it’s more terrifying than a black card.

I’ve heard of a card that gives you free ramen for life at a famous chain in Osaka, but this is on a different level.

“The Oshino Group’s hotels have multiple such rooms. This was given to me as a gift and an apology, but I don’t need it, so I registered it in your name.”

It’s an amazing card.

He stood up.

“I’ll be going now. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, and I shouldn’t keep the helicopter waiting. The bill is already taken care of, so don’t worry.”

“Thank you.”

As Ushizou was leaving, he paused and seemed to be thinking.

I wondered what was on his mind when he said, without turning back,

“Dungeons are dangerous. If anything happens to me, I’ll leave my daughter in your care, Ichino-kun.”

“Of course, I will.”

“But, be careful. I won’t let anything happen to me.”

Scary!

The vibe was clear: if I laid a hand on his daughter, he’d kill me.

I nodded in fear, and he nodded deeply before leaving confidently.

The next day, while I was at school, a delivery truck arrived at my house.

Ushizou sent the D-cans the day after he promised.

My mother signed for them but got really mad.

I can see why.

When I got home, the entrance was buried in cardboard boxes, and I couldn’t even get inside.

But, I don’t think it’s my fault.

Who would expect to receive over 300 boxes of D-cans?

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Next time, we’ll dive into the dungeon again.