Chapter 74

At the station, I met up with Milk and Ayame, bought drinks at a convenience store before the ticket gates, and we sat side by side on the train.

I glanced at Milk and Ayame out of the corner of my eye.

Sure enough, they are both so cute.

Milk has always been cute, and Ayame is no less adorable.

She has a certain fragility, yet she is a strong-willed girl.

That's why I want to protect her, and at the same time, I want to support her.

The people around me are mostly beautiful.

Milk and Ayame, as well as Hime, Ako, and Mizuno, are as cute as, or even cuter than, the actresses and idols on TV.

If I were to get married---

What am I thinking?

I guess it's because I was told that the condition for entering PD Generation II is marriage, which makes me think about it more than I should.

Well, if it were Hime, she might agree to marry me if I told her that she could level up in the best environment by doing so.

Mizuno is afraid of dungeons, so she wouldn't be interested.

What about Milk and Ayame?

Milk has been very focused on leveling up lately, and with her clear goal of helping Mr. Usuzou, she might consider it if it brings her closer to that goal.

I'm not sure about Ayame.

She might agree to marry me out of gratitude.

Am I being too hopeful?

Milk has always been popular among classmates. Several male students, including the soccer team's ace, who was the most popular in school, had confessed to her.

However, her standard response was always, "I won't date anyone who isn't stronger than my dad."

This became quite a topic among her classmates.

The question was, how many people in this world could be stronger than Mr. Usuzou? As a result, she was nicknamed the "Absolute Defense Girl."

'I'll become stronger than your dad.'

When I said those words naturally while eating pancakes with Milk, maybe it was because I remembered that.

"Taira, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I was just thinking about the past. By the way, Milk, what's in that bag you've been carrying?"

Milk was carrying a golf bag for some reason.

"This? A crossbow, a staff, and new weapons."

"Didn't you leave your weapons at the dungeon's reception?"

Thanks to my inventory, I haven't used weapons much recently, but you can leave weapons you use in the dungeon at the reception.

The Danpon in the dungeon stores them in a different dimension.

Thanks to this, you don't have to carry weapons when you go to the dungeon.

"Mr. Ichino, the dungeon we're going to in Kyoto is a bit different. Some services, like weapon storage and currency exchange, are not available."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Unlike other dungeons, the location was chosen by Danpon. The Kyoto Prefecture wanted the dungeon to be near Kyoto Station to attract visitors, but Danpon insisted on placing it near Fushimi Inari Shrine."

"But why isn't Danpon there? They do item buybacks, right?"

No Danpon?

Then, who are the friends of the Danpon I know?

"I understand. So, what kind of new weapons do you have?"

"Hehehe, they're amazing weapons. I made them with Mizuno for fun in the dungeon."

With Mizuno?

I knew they had exchanged phone numbers and lived close to each other, but they became friends in just a few days.

But with Mizuno's skills, making a staff for a mage would be difficult---

What kind of weapons did they make?

We transferred from the Kintetsu line to the Keihan line at Tamba Bridge Station and headed for Fushimi Inari Station.

Fushimi Inari Taisha is famous for its Thousand Torii Gates.

Actually, I've never been there, even though I live in Osaka.

School trips were mostly to Nara, and I went to the area around Kyoto Station more often.

I often see solemn and sacred photos, so it must be a quiet and nice place.

Thinking that, I got off the train---

"Huh?"

I was surprised.

Most of the words I heard were not in Japanese.

It was full of foreigners.

"It's the inbound demand..." Milk said.

There were stores like Dragon Burgers and bubble tea shops, which completely changed the image.

But I thought there must be some Kyoto-like stores---

"Milky! Look! This is the only place where you can buy this!"

"Wow, I want to stop by."

Ayame and Milk were excited about a Kyoto-themed store.

A store collaborating with Ch〇kawa and Fushimi Inari, with people dressed as fox Inari in H〇ware costumes. I don't know if it's lucky or unlucky, but it's cute. Really cute.

"Let's stop by on the way back. We're waiting for Hime now."

"Okay--- Oh, I want to go to the Tsuten Bridge at Tofuku-ji Temple near the next station on the way back."

"Sure. Mr. Ichino, is that okay?"

"The autumn leaves are the most beautiful, but the green leaves in summer are also very vivid and beautiful."

Well, I don't come here often, and since the two of them want to go, I'll go with them.

So, we decided to put the sightseeing on hold and move forward.

What caught my eye was a giant imitation crab.

Is crab a specialty around here?

There's also Maizuru Port---

But it seems that the foreigners who visit as inbound tourists like it.

Then, I thought, do they also like the roasted sparrows and quails in the store?

It turns out that these are part of the culture of the Fushimi Inari Shrine approach.

It's a strange feeling.

As we approached the shrine, various stalls lined up like at a New Year's visit, but I was relieved that eating while walking was prohibited inside the shrine and there were no stalls.

Just as we were about to enter the shrine, I spotted Hime.

It was lucky to meet her so quickly in such a large shrine.

"We've successfully met up. Let's go to the dungeon, shall we?"

"Sure."

By the way, where is the dungeon?

At the top of Fushimi Mountain?

There are many things I want to see, like the Thousand Torii Gates, pumice stones, and wish-hanging ema.

Even knowing that the dungeon is the main attraction, my heart beats a little faster.

Just as we were about to head towards the main hall---

"That's not the right way, everyone."

Hime called us to a halt.

Huh?

But no matter which direction we go, this should be the right way---

"The dungeon is next to the toilet beside the parking lot. Let's go."

Hime started walking towards the toilet beside the parking lot where tour buses and cars were parked---

"“We came all the way to Fushimi Inari for this!?””

The three of us exclaimed.

Author: "I came all the way to do research for this!?"