Chapter 69
Usagi of the Bohemian Mercenary Association.
Hoshikawa Yukina has had various worries lately.
“Older Sister?”
“Yeah?”
“How did you make that? It’s super cool!”
Yukina, who had been spacing out, looked down at her Younger Sibling Ryuji’s words.
The apple she had only meant to peel with the fruit knife was carved into the shape of a dragon’s head.
“O-Older Sister is sorry! I’ll peel a new one for you right away…”
“It’s okay! I want to eat it like that!”
“No. Older Sister will eat this one, so Ryuji, wait just a moment.”
Yukina grabbed a perfectly fine apple from the basket, peeled it in one go, sliced it, and put it on a plate.
She even stuck a fork in it, placed it on Ryuji’s Hospital bed table, and watched him eat it with crunching sounds.
“Is it good?”
“Yeah! The best!”
Yukina watched Ryuji enjoying the apple, smiling.
However, her consciousness began to creep back toward her worries.
Yukina’s worries could be broadly divided into three.
First, how do we contact a MegaCorp that could fix Ryuji’s heart?
This was her greatest worry that she always carried.
Second, what process did she have to go through to rise from her current 4th-tier to the 5th-tier?
Her desire for the 5th-tier had always existed, but it had become even more desperate recently with the added craving to stand on equal footing with Max.
She was seeking development in a different form from her past, where she only looked at money and coveted martial prowess. She considered it a positive flow.
And the highly anticipated third.
“…”
She had saved Max’s number, but was it okay to contact him?
She had no idea. Yukina, who had practically never built interpersonal relationships, couldn’t come up with an answer on her own.
With no one to ask, she couldn’t even determine the direction of her efforts.
Because of that, she had been fiddling with her phone, debating whether to send a message, until today arrived.
“Maybe telling me to come hang out at the office was just something he said out of politeness…”
The more time she spent worrying, the more negative stray thoughts increased their weight.
“Older Sister.”
“Should I peel more apples for you?”
Ryuji shook his head, saying that wasn’t it. He asked while looking intently at Yukina.
“Is something wrong?”
“What do you mean, nothing’s wrong?”
Ryuji stabbed a piece of apple with his fork and held it out for Yukina to eat.
“You know. I’m scared because Older Sister never says it’s hard even when it is. You’ve been like that for a long time.”
“Why is that scary? I don’t say it because it’s not hard in the first place, but…”
“I’m scared you might suddenly collapse. And because Older Sister gives up everything she wants to do because of me, I feel like I’ll be so sorry later.”
What could Yukina say to this?
But not being able to do what she wanted because of her Younger Sibling. That was the one thing she could never agree with.
Because this was the life Yukina herself had chosen.
“Don’t think like that. Older Sister doesn’t really have anything I want to do.”
“Really nothing?”
“As long as Ryuji is healthy, that’s enough.”
At Yukina’s evasive answer, Ryuji stabbed the apple with his fork. Poke! He muttered.
“When I look at Older Sister lately, it seems like there is something she wants to do… but she won’t tell me anyway.”
“…”
“If there’s something Older Sister wants to do, I want you to do it without hesitating, because that makes me happy too.”
Yukina unconsciously fiddled with the phone in her pocket.
* * *
The departure for the Wasteland was scheduled for the day after receiving the request.
The first thing Max equipped the two with was their attire. He purchased and prepared it on the day they received the request.
The attire, for the Wasteland, was simple.
Goggles and masks were worn to block the fiercely blowing sandstorms. The tops were hardshell hooded jackets, and the bottoms were techwear.
The shoes were combat boots that firmly held the ankles.
This set was called Runner Style, and it was the most common outfit in the Wasteland.
On the outside, it was a common fashion. However, the clothes Max’s party purchased were not ordinary products.
Because they had purchased all of this as Specialized Clothing at a District 14 department store, it could be considered a minimum Safeguard.
And on the day of departure for the request.
The three, having finished their preparations beginning with their attire, moved diligently from dawn and reached the Lower District in the 60-range, where the Checkpoint leading to the Wasteland and their reserved vehicle were located.
Ellen kept moving her body while they traveled, as if the outfit covering her entire body was uncomfortable.
“Hah, I feel so empty without my headphones around my neck.”
“Ellen, you shouldn’t go around showing off something that expensive in the Wasteland.”
“I know, I was just complaining.”
Max took out his card and phone from his pocket to receive the reserved pickup truck, Brick99.
Before heading to the shop, he habitually checked on Ellen and Flora.
When they first arrived, they were overwhelmed by the Lower District’s unique stench, but as time passed, they seemed to have adapted a little.
It was admirable how they endured without a word of complaint, as if they were having a battle of patience with each other.
“The shop will reek of cigarette smoke, so wait here. I’ll just get the car quickly. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Okay. Have a good trip.”
“If you come late, we’re running away.”
As Max entered the shop right in front of them, Flora and Ellen moved their heads to observe the Lower District.
They had only heard through words that such a district existed inside Haze, but seeing it in Person was incredibly fascinating.
“…”
The Lower District had a unique dreariness and stench that was hard to adapt to.
The eyes of the people passing by were also often strange, as if they were intoxicated on drugs.
“Oh, what’s this! Haze has drinks like this too? I’ve never seen any of these before.”
Unable to hold back her curiosity, Ellen approached the vending machine and showed interest. Without holding back, she shoved her card in.
Clunk! The can that rolled out had onions and pickles drawn on it.
“Let’s see~”
The moment Ellen popped the tab and boldly put her lips to it, a cheap saltiness and fishiness that defied common sense washed over her.
Spitting the contents right back out was inevitable.
“Blergh!”
“Seriously, what are you doing being so gross…”
When Flora sent her a pathetic look, Ellen held out the can with tears welling in her eyes.
“…You try a sip too. This is killer.”
“You want me to drink it after seeing that just now? Are you out of your mind?”
As if determined to force-feed her, Ellen started shoving the can at Flora.
Flora fiercely resisted.
“It makes your tongue and brain tingle, so just try it!”
“I said I don’t want to! Get away from me!”
While the two were having a tug-of-war with both arms, Max returned driving the truck.
“Stop playing around and get in.”
At Max’s voice, their squabble abruptly stopped.
Flora glanced at the passenger seat and headed for the backseat. It was the result of playing rock-paper-scissors yesterday.
Ellen ended up not throwing away the bizarre drink and planted her butt in the passenger seat.
Thanks to that, anxiety began to spread in Flora’s eyes.
“Oppa. Try this.”
A drink offered in anticipation of a funny reaction.
Before Flora could even stop him, Max showed an unexpected reaction.
“Oh? It’s been a while since I had this. It’s a delicacy if you drink it occasionally.”
He gulped it down as if it were a drink he already knew.
Ellen, who knew the taste, dropped her jaw, and astonishment filled her eyes.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
It was an ambiguous situation in that she wanted to see him freak out at the fishiness.
Ellen changed directions.
“Indirect Kiss! Oppa had an Indirect Kiss with me!”
At Ellen’s remark, Flora stiffened in the backseat and clenched her fists tightly.
Max let out a light chuckle as if he found it absurd.
“You’re not a kid…”
“Oppa. The cost of an Indirect Kiss with Ellen Clements, the beauty representing Haze, is 10 billion credits. Reasonable, right? Pay up quickly.”
“I’ll settle for Wasteland food.”
Max checked on Flora in the backseat and stepped on the accelerator to get on the road.
Ellen and Flora found the situation strangely exciting.
“Oppa. Are we heading straight to the Wasteland like this?”
“No. The preparations aren’t finished yet, so we can’t go right away.”
“Preparations?”
“It won’t take long.”
The first place Max visited while driving the car was a hardware store.
He purchased jerrycans and tarpaulins at the hardware store and loaded them into the cargo bed.
And next was a gas station.
He filled the pickup truck with gas to the limit, took out the jerrycans loaded in the cargo bed, and filled them completely.
He loaded the fuel-filled jerrycans into the cargo bed using Psychokinesis and covered them with the tarpaulin to hide them.
They say there are gas stations in the Wasteland too, but if one considers the price and quality, it is always better to prepare in Haze before going.
“With this, the preparations are done.”
“Get in quickly!”
“Just let me pay.”
Max was paying for the gas with his card.
His Smartphone vibrated. It wasn’t a call, but a message.
[Z87-919-767-81-3: Hoshikawa]
[Z87-919-767-81-3: Here.]
[Z87-919-767-81-3: Is this Max?]
“Oh?”
If she had used her industry pseudonym, Usagi, Max might have called to confirm.
Because she said Hoshikawa, he registered the contact first.
However, there was no time to chat leisurely.
He sent a reply saying he had a request and would contact her after he got back, then climbed into the Driver’s seat.
“Alright, now we’re really departing.”
“Oh yeah!”
“Oppa. Take good care of us.”
The truck carrying three 5th-Tier Mages rolled its wheels and headed for the Checkpoint.
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After we had driven the truck for about an hour, the Checkpoint came into view.
Ellen showed the fastest reaction.
“Wow! It’s my first time seeing a Checkpoint!”
“It’s your first time seeing one too, right, Flora?”
“Yeah. The Guard Robots are big. There are a lot of soldiers too.”
Entering Haze from the Wasteland involved many annoying procedures starting with disinfection, but going out to the Wasteland from Haze was at least a simpler process.
If one had power and fame, it became even simpler.
[Stop.]
As they approached the Checkpoint, a mechanical voice rang out, and a red light flowed from the barrier wall.
Once the Vehicle Scan finished, the voice spoke again.
[Please wait.]
A figure wearing the mark of the Haze Agency approached the Driver’s seat holding a firearm.
From here, an annoying Q&A session should have begun, but Max’s party was different.
The Driver’s side window rolled down, and Ellen showed her face.
“Mister Guard~ you’re working hard!”
“…Thank you for your hard work!”
The Guard snapped to attention with enough vigor to throw his firearm away.
The personnel working at the Checkpoint were required to memorize the faces and vehicles of publicly known power figures without exception.
It made no sense for him not to know Ellen’s face.
“We can pass, right?”
“Of course! Pass!”
The Guard’s booming voice and urgent hand gestures.
The barrier wall quickly lowered, and the Guard Robots pointed their muzzles to the ground.
Vroooom!!!
Following that, they drove straight along the road for about 30 minutes.
The truck driven by Max left the road. He finally entered terrain worthy of being called the Wasteland.
Without even the leisure to admire the new scenery, Flora’s face hardened and she spoke up.
“Oppa.”
“Yeah. I see them.”
“Wow~ is it for real that they’re sticking to us as soon as we come out?”
A Motorcycle Gang poured out from the shade of the rocks and beyond the sunken hills. They gave chase at a terrifying speed, letting out roaring noises.
The motorcycles sticking to both sides showed their firearms and sent signals to stop.
“If they want us to, we should stop for them. We have things to ask, too.”
As Max slowly reduced their speed.
A considerable number of motorcycles swiftly surrounded the vehicle.