Chapter 101: The Colorful Hero

Kino-kun finally seemed to have calmed down somehow.

I didn’t see anything. Nobody wants to see a boy crying, right?

So, nothing happened. Yeah.

It’s about time I asked him to tell me what happened.

I thought I should start by introducing myself and briefly explaining my situation, and he looked at me with sympathy. That’s right. We’re just caught up in this. Plus, my abilities are limited.

“I’m sorry if I raised your expectations too much, but I have to say up front that I can’t provide a lot. Sorry.”

“No, it’s okay…”

He mumbled something like “It’s already enough that I got to eat this again.” If I get the chance, I’ll give some more, so he can eat it again later.

Now, I asked him to tell me about his side. But as expected of a kid of these days, he could talk about himself But he said he couldn’t say much in detail about other kids because it’s personal information. Responsible. Definitely a good kid.

however, since he was completely out of it, he did tell me about himself.

Apparently, he was shopping at a convenience store when he was suddenly teleported in the Air and then found himself face to face with a God. That’s right. I also went to buy a drink at a convenience store. We must have been in the same store at that time. Now that I think about it, I almost tripped over nothing and stumbled forward. Maybe that movement wasn’t good…

According to the god, after that, a tanker truck crashed into that convenience store and exploded in flames. The five high school students were fated to die in that accident. The tanker truck was carrying dangerous materials that it shouldn’t have carried. The tanker was old and fragile to impact. The driver was overworked due to a shortage of personnel. All these factors caused the accident, which was so tragic it made national news.

Wait, I didn’t hear about this. Really? It’s true that there are a lot of strange accidents around there. Even though it’s not a place with poor visibility, there’s a gentle curve where accidents happen a lot for some reason.

“I saw the footage.”

“Oh, really?”

So that’s why he knows so much. Kino-kun looked a little pale. It must have been a shocking video.

I wasn’t told any of this or shown the footage, so maybe I wasn’t supposed to die. Or maybe the god just got tired of explaining it and left it out. I don’t know now.

“It told me I could have one wish-granted ability, and so I got teleportation from the god.”

Oh? You chose teleportation for “the strongest skill I think of”?

Ah, I see—teleportation. That’s why he got here so quickly, huh?

“it’s probably a cheat skill, but what about coordinates and number of people you can move?”

I asked out of curiosity.

“I can teleport to places I’ve been before, and if I hold hands with someone, I can teleport to a place using their memories. The number of people depends on the distance, but I can manage quite a few.”

Apparently, even for long distances, he can teleport with up to five people so far.

I see, that is truly a cheat. The fact that he can use others’ memories might mean he has a telepathic-like ability included.

“So that’s how you came here together with Nipopo-san?”

He must’ve used Nipopo-san’s memories to teleport to this town.

As I listened, it seemed that he had chosen the ability because he thought that teleportation would allow him to escape any danger he faced. Very sensible and likable choice.

“I have to ask, can you teleport back to Japan with that?”

Kino-kun shook his head weakly. Of course he’d try. The fact that he’s here answers that question.

I’m curious about the abilities the other kids got, but I probably won’t be told about them.

“So, there are five of you, right? Can you tell me their names or genders?”

I’m not sure where Kino-kun’s sense of ethics stops, but I asked what I could.

“Well, at least the family names. Akagi, Aoi, Midorikawa are boys, and Momose is the girl.”

So Kino-kun, Akagi-kun, Aoi-kun, Midorikawa-kun, and Momose-chan.

Oh wait – is it weird to use “-kun” and “-chan” to address them straight away, maybe it’s better to use “-san” for everyone?

The names you told me are all the five colors represented. Judging by the colors, they’re definitely It’s like a ranger team, isn’t it? Is this a world that broadcasts on Sunday mornings?

Or is it just a coincidence?

It may be a coincidence. I once worked with people whose names had all the cardinal points; East, West, South, and North included, so it might be a coincidence. Sometimes people with the same last name would be in one place at the same time. There were even times when the first character of their names matched exactly, and having them write the first character next to their seal was pointless.

“How are you being treated…?”

Can I even ask? Judging from his clothes, he’s well-dressed, with well-tailored dark brown pants and a shirt that fits his figure nicely. His skin tone is also not bad. Oh, he has a pimple on his forehead. But he’s very young and has smooth skin that I envy.

“I think we’re being treated well. But there seem to be some internal issues.”

They were summoned to the royal castle, where they were given a warm welcome, and are currently developing their abilities in a dungeon guarded by knights. The royal family is treating them well, but there seems to be some tension between some of the influential nobles and the royal family.

Apparently, there’s a handsome prince and a cute princess, so it sounds like they are mostly well cared for. Especially since it must be tough for the girl, being all alone, so I hope she’s treated with great care and kindness.

“Did the five of you originally know each other? Are you friends?”

“Well, except for Akagi, we were all library committee members and regulars in the library… Akagi is Aoi’s friend and would occasionally come to pick him up, so I knew his face.”

Ah, I get it. I totally understand people who hang out in the library very well. I was like that too.

Or rather.

“Umenan High?”

“Yes.”

Makes sense. It’s a small town and they’re juniors. I wonder if that library is still the same. How nostalgic. That convenience store is close to Umenan High. There weren’t any convenience stores when I was in high school though…

“In your opinion, do  you trust the other four?”

He thought a little then nodded. Okay then.

“In that case, I’ll trust them too. You can tell them about me. Please confirm if I can ask for more detailed information. But please, if you can, keep it secret from the royal castle people for now.”

“Okay. I’ll ask.”

Alright, thanks.

“Ah, storage. Does it have time stop?”

“Yeah.”

They all gave me a look like “Why are you asking? Everyone’s is like that” My storage is a little different, you see.

But if that’s the case…

I’m running low on money today, but since they’re Japanese, I want to feed them. But five people…

The cheapest rice ball would be salmon rice balls at a wholesale supermarket for 65 yen each. And instant miso soup. I remember buying cheap ones with traditional dashi and a bit of wakame seaweed. I served five rice balls and five instant miso soups.

Kino-kun’s eyes welled up again when he saw the rice balls.

“Sorry. My ability can only produce a little. Put it in your storage and take it with you.”

“T-Thank you very much.”

He took the rice balls and instant miso soup as if they were treasures and put them away in his storage.