Chapter 20
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[Breaking News] Large-Scale Monster Outbreak in Odaiba [Rumor]
Ishizaki Mineta
There’s a rumor going around like this—any idea if it’s true?
I went to check it out, and the area around the site was already sealed off.
Kisaragi Satsuki
It’s most likely true.
I can’t go into details, but it seems a serious problem has occurred.
Rokujo Renya
If you acknowledge it, then I’ll agree as well.
An incident definitely happened in Odaiba.
Akitsu Seimei
I was at the scene.
A gag order’s been issued, so I can’t say much.
There should be an official announcement from the government in a few days.
Oshiro Kousuke
I was there too.
Can’t talk about the details, but there’s something interesting.
A maid—that maid—was commanding the operation on site.
Akitsu Seimei
Yeah. I’d never seen her talk that much before.
Turns out she can speak Japanese.
Yomoyama Chisato
I don’t like her! She’s scary.
She ignores me even when I talk to her.
Kisaragi Satsuki
Please refrain from criticizing others in this space.
More importantly, that person is most likely an overseas-ranked explorer.
People like that rarely interact with others in the first place.
Yomoyama Chisato
Yeah yeah, whatever you say, Ms. Elite~ lol
Ishizaki Mineta
She’s one of those low-floor wanderers, so I guess that attitude can’t be helped—just ignore it.
But seriously, how strong is she?
I’ve seen her once on the lower floors too.
Rokujo Renya
She reaches just before the tenth floor every day, then turns back.
She advances at roughly the same speed as our team.
I once asked why she didn’t challenge the deeper floors, and she only answered, “I’m waiting for someone.”
As for her strength… given that she’s matching our clearing team’s pace alone…
Akitsu Seimei
She said she’s Level 7.
Also… apparently her “master” was at the incident site too.
She herself said he’s far stronger than she is.
Oshiro Kousuke
That swordsman, huh. I couldn’t see him clearly from a distance, but he looked pretty young.
He was the real deal. I’ve seen Central Group fights before, and he gave off a similar vibe.
To think he could defeat something like that… damn, what a scene to witness.
Ishizaki Mineta
Damn it, so she really has a master!?
What does he even do every day with a beautiful maid like that!?
What are they doingggggg!?
Aaaaaaaaaah!!!!!
Kisaragi Satsuki
Stop it.
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“Phew… ‘There’ll be a government announcement,’ huh. If I’m going to sell the magic stone, that timing sounds right. I wonder how much it’ll fetch this time… If research advances using this stone… That would bring us much closer to lifting the ban on the magic network all at once… If that’s the case, then maybe that was the goal after all…”
In Akira’s living room, Arnie sat alone, operating a window and checking a bulletin board.
On this window-based forum, one’s real name was forcibly displayed, leaving no anonymity whatsoever.
However, because of that, the credibility of the information was extremely high, and renowned explorers were mixed in as well—so valuable information occasionally surfaced.
For Arnie, who had fled from government officials after that incident, the bulletin board was the perfect place to gather intelligence on the government’s future movements.
“Selling the magic stone will probably be done by auction…My account exists in this world too, and I don’t think it can be traced back to Akira from there…I really need Akira to become an official explorer soon…”
In the end, she concluded that the top priority was for Akira to establish his position—his official status.
With that settled, Arnie stood up and began getting ready to go out.
Looking forward to eating out with Akira, she waited for him to come home.
When I got home, my sister was unusually busy cleaning the house.
Yes—maid work…!
Not just a maid in appearance, but someone doing proper housekeeping work!
During summer vacation, I’d been the one doing the laundry, cleaning, and cooking, so this felt strangely fresh.
“Welcome back, Akira. Anything unusual happen at school? I’m in a great mood right now—the lady who brought the neighborhood circular even shared some fancy rice crackers with me.”
“Seriously? Then we should get her something in return next time. As for school… yeah, quite a lot happened.”
I told her everything that had happened at school today.
Nanjo-kun aside, Misaki-senpai was someone I’d likely be involved with going forward.
“The academy’s student council president… that’s quite a big shot! I thought she was extraordinary from the moment I first saw her fight. There’s no downside to keeping a connection with her.”
“Yeah. From this term on, I’m planning to seriously aim for top honors. Partly to build my credentials.”
“That’s good. But in parallel, Akira, don’t forget to train 【Replication Lv1】 since you’ve got it.
Right now, you can only increase intangible things or very light objects, right?”
“Yeah—stuff like menu cursors or tissues. And they disappear after five minutes.”
“Oh? You’re testing it properly, huh? Practice often and raise its level. And someday, when you can ‘replicate an energy drink for ten minutes,’ I’ll drink it within those ten minutes, it’ll disappear inside my stomach, and I’ll get all the satisfaction of drinking it with zero calories—saving money and staying healthy!”
“…That’s what you come up with after hearing about my skill? …But honestly, if it’s possible, that’d be pretty useful.”
“Right? I’m counting on you, Akira!”
That sounds kind of scary—like it could turn into something close to digital shoplifting.
Even if it becomes possible after leveling up, I’ll just say, “Nope, couldn’t do it.”
Because she’d definitely try to make me do something shady…
“All right, then—let’s go get lunch.”
“Yay! Let’s go to Maok and get some Filet-O-Fish!”
“Are you sure that’s really what you want?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Ever since I saw the commercial, I’ve been craving it.”
Our house is in a pretty great location—just a short walk through a residential area and you’re at a major station.
School is close enough to walk to, and even Ginza, which I’ll be visiting often from now on, is only a few stops away.
What’s more, once you demonstrate a certain level of ability and results as an explorer, you’re allowed to ride a direct train to Ginza Dungeon Front Station.
At that point, commuting from home to the dungeon takes less than thirty minutes.
“By the way, onee-san, do you still use the direct train to get to the dungeon?”
“Yep. I’ve made sure I can use all the convenient-looking qualifications and systems.
After all, big sis is special.”
“Then… do you actually have licenses and stuff too?”
“I ‘have’ a large motorcycle license, a standard driver’s license, a boat license, a pilot’s license, and even a chef’s license.”
“‘Have,’ huh… that wording’s kind of scary.”
“What’s that supposed to mean! All the knowledge on Earth is inside me, and I can reproduce it, so relax! Someday, when I save up enough money, I’m going to buy a car. I’ll take you with me, Akira, all the way to Hokkaido. We’ll make a trip out of it while going to the ‘Sapporo Branch Dungeon.’”
As she cheerfully talked about such small dreams, my sister looked kind of cute.
I thought that dream sounded nice too.
Guess I should get my license someday.
Walking together near the station, we chatted idly like that.
“Found Maok. All right, Akira, let’s go. Big sis is going to eat in, secretly make up conversations from nearby high school girls, post them on Tsubuyaitter, and make them go viral!”
“What even is that… You can’t even tell if people like that actually go to Maok…”
“Okay! Big sis is ordering apple pie, a shake, and fries as side dishes too!”
“I think I’ll get some nuggets.”
Come to think of it, I hadn’t been to places like this for casual detours in a while,
so I headed in with a bit of excitement.
The place was packed with students who had probably just gotten out of school after the opening ceremony—just like my own high school.
In that kind of crowd, a maid outfit naturally stands out and with big sis’s distinctly non-Japanese looks, she drew attention without even trying.
And when a place is full of students on their way home, inevitably—
“Hey? That’s Akira. You’re not in uniform—did you go home first?”
“Oh, Kasumi. Yeah, we came out to get lunch.”
Yes—running into classmates like this was entirely possible.
…Which means big sis’s existence is about to be revealed…!
What’s she going to say first!?
Please—have a normal reaction…!