Chapter 82

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I put the digital camera in my bag and tried to speak as naturally as possible to Sae, who was looking at me with a curious gaze.

"Long time no see, hasn't it been? It's already past noon... Good morning, Sae."

"Good morning."

"Sae, you're working, right? What are you doing here?"

"That's my line. I heard from Mika that you were coming, but what were you taking pictures of with the camera pointed at the tent?"

Hmm, I can't bluff my way out of this.

Well, it's not a big deal that I got caught... but I should at least try to keep it under wraps.

"Actually, I was asked to do something."

"Asked to do something?"

"Yeah, by Dad and Mom. They asked me to take pictures of Mika working."

"Pictures of Mika working...?"

Sae seemed to be a bit confused by my words and tilted her head in a puzzled manner.

"Yeah. I guess from their perspective, they want pictures to document their daughter's growth. Oh, and this is a secret from Mika. If she finds out and gets embarrassed, she might delete the photos, and that would be a problem."

"Ah, yes. But, is it okay? If Mika finds out, she'll definitely be angry."

"If that happens, I'll prepare some sweets to cheer her up."

Sae looked slightly exasperated at my response.

But, it seems I managed to keep it under wraps for now.

"Anyway, back to you, Sae. What are you doing here?"

"Me? I... Ah!"

Sae seemed to remember something and looked at her watch, her expression turning serious as she spoke in a hurried voice.

"Sorry, big brother! I have to go, I don't have time! Enjoy the event!"

"Huh? Time?"

"It's my lunch break! See you later, big brother!"

"Ah, yeah. Good luck, Sae."

Sae bowed and apologized, then hurriedly ran towards the tent where the goods were being sold. I could only watch her run away.

It seems she really didn't have much time before her shift.

"Guess I should go too."

Feeling a bit guilty for taking up her time, I slowly walked towards the goods tent.

---

As I approached the goods tent, I caught Mika's eye. I raised my hand slightly and spoke to her in a light tone.

"Hey, Mika. You seem to be working hard."

"Ah, big brother! You really came..."

"Was it a bad idea for me to come?"

"No, it's not that... I just..."

Mika blushed and looked down, though there was no reason for her to be embarrassed.

While I was talking to Mika, a college student who seemed to be a salesperson and was wearing glasses approached us.

"Kusunoki, are you okay? Do you know this person?"

"...Yes, he's my brother."

"Oh, I see."

It seems she thought Mika was being bothered by a strange man. The salesperson's wary gaze towards me lessened slightly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt your work. I'm Mika's brother. Mika has been working hard."

"Is that so, you're her brother..."

Seeing me bow and greet her politely, the salesperson's wariness finally dissipated.

"So, big brother, why did you come?"

"Why did I come...? I came to see the event, of course. Mika talked about it so much yesterday that I got interested."

"Uh..."

"Of course, I also wanted to see how Mika is working."

Mika realized that I had really come because of her and seemed to be a bit downcast.

The salesperson, who had been watching our conversation, smiled and made a suggestion to Mika.

"You two seem close. Why don't you show your brother around, Kusunoki?"

"Uh?"

"You have your lunch break after this, right? Why don't you take a tour of the venue with your brother?"

"But, the shift change..."

"I'll take care of it. It's only 5 minutes until your break, so I can handle it alone."

The considerate salesperson suggested that Mika take her lunch break a bit early. Mika, unsure of what to do, looked to me for advice.

Hmm, since she's being so nice, let's take her up on the offer.

"Mika, since she's being so nice, let's take her up on it."

"But..."

"It's fine, really. I'll smooth things over with the replacement, so go ahead."

The salesperson gently pushed Mika, encouraging her to leave. Mika, though hesitant, finally stood up, looking a bit reluctant.

Mika took off her apron and hat, then stood next to me with a convenience store bag in hand.

"Then, I'll borrow Mika for a bit."

"Please take care of her."

We both bowed slightly and thanked the salesperson.

"Yes, I understand. Oh, your lunch break ends at 2:30, don't forget."

"Okay, thank you."

The salesperson gave us a small wave as we left.

After moving a bit away from the goods tent, I asked Mika about our plans.

"Since it's your lunch break, you haven't eaten yet, right? Shall we go to the food area first?"

"Sure."

"Since I caused you trouble, I'll treat you."

"Really!? Yay!"

Mika exclaimed with joy and hugged my arm. She seemed really happy with my offer.

"You seem really happy."

"Yeah, there were a lot of things I wanted to try, but the food at the stalls is quite expensive, and I couldn't afford it."

"Well, it's true that it's more expensive than regular street food because it uses a lot of dungeon ingredients. But, a pack of yakisoba for over 1000 yen is a bit much, isn't it?"

Sorry... I already ate that. It was pretty good, though.

I kept my expression neutral and continued to listen to Mika's complaints.

"The whole venue smells good, but we can't afford it as part-time workers. It's really frustrating."

"Right."

"Yeah, if I couldn't resist the temptation and bought lunch from the stalls, I would have spent all my earnings."

"Right. That would be a waste."

Spending all your earnings on food when you're working to earn money... that's counterproductive.

"Since we have to pay for our own lunch, most of us part-time workers just eat convenience store bentos. Don't you think they should at least provide some kind of meal?"

Mika held up her convenience store bag and continued to complain. It seems she had a lot of grievances about the food situation at her part-time job.

...What should I do? Well, there's only one solution... sigh.

"Anyway, today I'll pay, so you can eat whatever you want."

"Okay! Thank you, big brother!"

"Ha..."

Even though I have some extra money, I don't have much on hand... will it be enough?

With some anxiety, I let Mika lead me to the food area.

---

Empty packs lined the table, and Mika was clasping her hands in front of her.

"Phew... That was delicious."

"You're welcome. ...But, you really ate a lot, didn't you?"

"Yeah, there were a lot of things I wanted to try."

Mika wiped her mouth with a paper napkin and smiled contentedly. It seems her mood has improved. I felt relieved as I started to clean up the empty packs into a plastic bag.

"So, what do you want to do next? We have about 30 minutes left for lunch break."

"Yeah... What should we do? Big brother, do you want to check out the local products area?"

"I already went through that area before coming to your booth... There were some interesting things."

Like fake skill scrolls and a tough old man.

"Then, did you see the skill scrolls I told you about? Are there any left?"

"Yeah, they were there. But, I'd advise against it. It won't end well."

"Are they... fake?"

"I can't say for sure, but the price is too low, even at a special rate. It could be real, but it's better to avoid suspicious items."

"Right... sigh."

Mika sighed in disappointment.

I can't definitively say they're fake in this crowd, as it might expose someone with the appraisal skill. If it's a trap set by the guild to identify skill users, who knows where the ears are.

While I was comforting Mika, who was disappointed to learn that the skill scrolls were fake, an announcement over a speaker and a loud cheer from the crowd caught our attention.

"What's going on?"

"Oh, right. At this time, there's a mock battle in the stage area."

Mika looked at her watch and explained the cause of the cheers.

"Mock battle... Is that the one Mika said was amazing?"

"Yeah! It's like a special effects show on TV, with people really flying and jumping!"

"Wow."

I looked towards the stage area as Mika talked.

"Hey, big brother, do you want to go to the stage?"

"To watch the mock battle?"

"Yeah. I think it's worth seeing."

"Okay... Let's go then."

"Okay. Oh, before that..."

Mika took out her phone and started fiddling with it.

"What are you doing?"

"Setting a timer. We can't miss our lunch break while watching the mock battle... Okay, set for 10 minutes before the end. This should be fine."

"Got it. Let's go."

I confirmed that Mika had finished setting her timer, then picked up the garbage bag and stood up. There was a large trash bin in a corner of the eating area, so I threw the garbage bag in and rejoined Mika, heading towards the stage area.

---

The audience seats in front of the stage area were already full, with many people standing to watch. Fortunately, the mock battle hadn't started yet, and the MC was performing with a microphone.

As we moved to find a less crowded spot, the cheers from the audience grew louder, making us more frustrated.

"There are so many people..."

"It's a popular stage event, so it can't be helped."

"But we can't see the stage from here."

"That's true... But, maybe we can see from over there?"

Mika pointed to a spot where the stage was barely visible.

It was almost directly next to the stage, making it hard to see the whole thing, but the crowd was less dense.

"Well, we can't be picky. Let's go."

We pushed through the gaps in the crowd to reach the spot we had in mind.

"Phew... We can see it, at least."

"...Yeah."

From our new position, we could see the stage, but only barely.

It was impossible to see the whole thing.

"Was it like this yesterday too?"

"No, yesterday there were fewer people, and it was easier to stand and watch."

The large crowd made me complain.

"Then, why is it so crowded today?"

"Maybe it was featured on TV news...?"

"Ah, that makes sense."

Indeed, it's possible. For an event of this scale, it wouldn't be surprising if one or two TV crews were present.

While we were discussing the crowd, the MC's performance on stage ended.

"Then! Let's introduce the explorers who will perform the mock battle today! Please give them a round of applause!"

The audience clapped in unison at the MC's prompt.

"First, we have E-rank explorer Kousuke Mizusawa!"

An explorer was introduced and appeared from behind the stage. The applause grew louder, and he was greeted with cheers.

He was wearing official dungeon guild armor and carried a long wooden pole, likely a spear.

"Next, we have another E-rank explorer, Yoji Miyano!"

The applause and cheers were even louder, but I didn't hear them. I was too shocked by the explorer who appeared next.

...Miyano. What are you doing here?

---

A PK victim has appeared in the stage event.

He hasn't noticed the protagonist yet.