Chapter 10
The One I Admired
'───The Prime Minister's body was found at 3:00 a.m. today. Although it was severely damaged, identification through his belongings and DNA...'
'Not only the Prime Minister, but the bodies of four other ministers were also found at the same location, and the impact on future politics...'
'To prevent a political vacuum, discussions are currently being held among the cabinet ministers...'
'To begin with, are we certain this was really a spiritual disaster? Unless we clarify that point, we cannot say anything...'
'Was the response of the Gifted police officer at the scene truly correct? Regarding the Prime Minister's death, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's...'
'After hearing the news of the Prime Minister's death, opposition leader Kijima expressed his condolences on social media...'
'White House spokesperson Josephine expressed her condolences for the victims of the spiritual disaster in Tokyo before speaking about future cooperation between Japan and the United States on measures against monsters...'
'Nearly one hundred lives have been lost in this spiritual disaster alone, as far as we can confirm. This is the third-highest number of casualties in any spiritual disaster in Japan, and experts...'
'The Adventurer System is not enough! I am not calling for conscription, but Gifted people must take a more active role in combating monsters...'
'Breaking news. Defense Minister Izumihara Makoto has been selected as acting Prime Minister, and a press conference will be held from 2:00 p.m. today...'
Yesterday, far too many things had happened.
The clan entrance test. Takanashi-san's confession. And another spiritual disaster in Tokyo, which had claimed the lives of five cabinet ministers, including the Prime Minister.
Naturally, all of Japan was in an uproar. Apparently, the incident in Tokyo was also receiving extensive coverage on overseas news programs.
Even though it was Sunday, the atmosphere was anything but cheerful.
Despite my parents worrying about my health, I finished breakfast, got ready, and left the house almost immediately.
My destination was, of course, the home of that time traveler.
＊ ＊ ＊
"I never imagined something like this would happen."
the time traveler said, sweating nervously.
When I arrived at Takanashi-san's house, she was repairing the humanoid robot—the thing called a 'Kenning'—in the garage.
She was wearing coveralls, but the sleeves had been tied around her waist. She wore only a black shirt on her upper body.
The radio sitting at the edge of the workbench was still broadcasting the news in question.
"...It seems I have no choice but to believe what you said. First, please allow me to apologize for doubting you."
I bowed deeply to Takanashi-san.
In my heart, I had doubted her terribly, calling her a 'hopeless chuunibyou' and a 'beautiful but deluded woman spouting nonsense.' I was truly sorry.
"No! It's only natural that you couldn't easily believe in time travel. You have done nothing wrong, Yahiro-san."
"I'm relieved to hear you say that."
When I raised my head, I found Takanashi-san looking flustered.
...She was closer than I had expected, and I was a little startled internally.
Mixed with the smell of machine oil was the scent of soap. Feeling inexplicably self-conscious, I took a step back.
"So, I came here today to discuss what we should do from here on, but..."
I cast a quick glance at the Kenning.
"What... condition is it in?"
The humanoid robot had no right arm, and the armor covering its torso had been removed. The mass of machinery, with wiring and pipes visible inside, looked like something straight out of science fiction.
Takanashi-san's fingers, covered by work gloves, brushed over the Kenning's thigh.
"Combat will be difficult. It has lost all of its weapons, its right arm is missing, its balance has been compromised, and the other parts have suffered extensive wear. In its current condition, moving under its own power is the most it can manage."
"So... can it be repaired?"
"Everything except the core unit can be manufactured using the technology of this era. I possess the minimum necessary knowledge as well, so given enough time, I should be able to repair it. As for the budget, I have plenty of room to spare thanks to the money Demi-chan gave me."
"...The being who calls itself the Demiurge gave you money as well?"
"Yes. When I checked the bankbook left in the house, I found that a considerable amount had been deposited into an account in my name as living expenses for the foreseeable future. Um... I believe it was roughly the equivalent of winning first prize in the lottery five times."
I nearly choked.
There were many different kinds of lotteries, but either way, it was undoubtedly a large sum. Between this house and that self-proclaimed Demiurge, who on earth was she really?
"Um... I think you should avoid talking about the account outside this house."
"Yes. There were soldiers who killed one another over financial disputes, so I will not tell anyone except people I can trust."
Takanashi-san straightened her back and nodded.
As her large breasts gave a slight tremor, I looked away and returned my gaze to the Kenning.
The machine's appearance stirred a different kind of excitement in me from the time I looked at her chest.
A humanoid robot. And not only one that humans could pilot, but one capable of combat. Was there any Japanese man who wouldn't be thrilled by that?
No. There wasn't.
I glanced at Takanashi-san. This might not have been the right time to ask, but admiration was a troublesome emotion that could not easily be controlled by reason.
I set aside my anxiety about the future and decided to make a request.
"Um... Takanashi-san."
"Yes. What is it?"
"...I came here to discuss something serious, but... well, if it's not okay, never mind..."
"...? Unless you tell me what it is, I cannot judge whether it is acceptable or not."
"...Could you show me the cockpit of this thing?"
My heart began beating needlessly hard, and nervous sweat broke out.
At my timid question, she...
"Yes. If that is all, I have no problem with it."
She nodded without hesitation.
"I-is that really okay!?"
"Yes. Ah, but please do not touch the switches or levers inside. The battery has been removed, so it should not move, but I would rather avoid even the slightest possibility of an accident."
"I-I understand! It's fine! I'll be careful!"
"Uh...?"
Takanashi-san tilted her head in confusion at my sudden excitement. Apparently, she did not understand this sense of wonder at all.
Despite looking puzzled, Takanashi-san led me around to the back of the Kenning.
The gray giant was kneeling on both knees with its head bowed. A large box was attached to its back. Apparently, that was the cockpit. The hatch had opened sideways, revealing the interior.
"Here. Please use this."
"Ah, thank you very much...!"
Takanashi-san set down a small stepladder for me, so I used it to climb inside.
"Whoa...!"
I was having an incredibly valuable experience.
It was an object from the future, a hundred years from now... but more than that, it was the cockpit of a humanoid robot. And not just any robot—it was apparently a military machine.
There was a small, hard-looking seat, along with two levers covered in buttons. Things that looked like instruments were mounted on the walls, while monitors were attached in front and to either side.
It was exactly the sort of cockpit seen in robot anime. My excitement was through the roof...!
"Amazing... Absolutely amazing...!"
"Is it really something worthy of that much excitement?"
"It absolutely is! There are only a limited number of humanoid robots that people can ride in during this era, and I've never even heard of one capable of moving well enough for combat!"
"I see."
"That's right...!"
Would it be all right if I sat in this...? No, surely that would be asking too much...!?
I wanted to say things like, 'System, all green. Let's go!' or 'Not yet! It's only the main camera that's been destroyed!' just like in the anime...!
As I was thinking this, Takanashi-san rose onto her tiptoes and peered into the cockpit from the ground.
"This space is unfamiliar even to me, but it does not feel particularly special."
Then she pointed beneath the seat.
"Beneath the seat. I was stored in that space. I saw it directly for the first time after coming to this era, but it is like my own room."
"Ah... yes."
There was a small space beneath the small seat. It was so cramped that I wasn't even sure whether two basketballs would fit inside. Takanashi-san had spent eight years there, with only her brain removed from her body and connected to a machine.
Even that alone would have been enough to drive someone mad, yet she had continued fighting monsters the entire time.
I felt ashamed of my thoughtless excitement and quickly climbed down to stand beside Takanashi-san.
...I kept a little distance between us, since being too close made me nervous.
Trying to change the subject, I glanced briefly at her body from the neck down.
"Um... did the Demiurge give you this body too?"
"Yes. She said, 'I will restore your body with healing magic.' I have little firsthand sensation of it, but I suppose she regenerated it from the state of my brain."
Takanashi-san looked down at her own body thoughtfully.
"I do not know Demi-chan's intentions, but I suppose I should call her my benefactor. She saved me, when my only choices were to die when my life-support system ran out of energy or be eaten by monsters. On top of that, she made me into the 'Gifted person' I had always admired. I must be grateful."
"...She made you Gifted? The Demiurge did?"
There had been cases of non-Gifted people awakening to Gifts since the Day of Return. However, I had never heard that there was any pattern to them.
No method of freely creating Gifted people had yet been discovered, but...
"Yes. I had no aptitude for becoming Gifted. According to Demi-chan, she changed me 'from absolute garbage into barely edible garbage.'"
"Th-that is... quite a way to put it..."
Calling someone garbage was cruel enough. And she was still being treated as garbage even after changing.
It was a terrible way to phrase it, but Takanashi-san did not seem bothered.
"However, it is true that I had no spiritual aptitude whatsoever. Being able to wear Spirit Armor now feels like a dream."
As she said this, Takanashi-san deployed her Spirit Armor.
I nervously fixed my gaze on her face despite the outfit clearly revealing the lines of her body. Staring at her from the neck down would be far too stimulating in every possible way.
Her face made me nervous too, because of her overwhelming beauty.
If what the Demiurge said was true, then this was the body Takanashi-san would have grown into at age fifteen if she had not become a 'biological component.' Apparently, the Demiurge had used healing magic.
It was almost unthinkable that such a beautiful girl could have been reduced to nothing but a brain. Wouldn't that have been a tremendous loss for the world?
"Besides, she also gave me this ring."
"A ring?"
"Yes."
Takanashi-san held her right arm out toward the Kenning. A silver ring threaded onto a cord hung around her wrist.
I could tell at a glance that it was no ordinary ring. My magic eye told me that it contained a considerable amount of magical power.
"Apparently, this is a magical tool called an Item Box."
The moment she said that, the Kenning's form warped grotesquely.
Before I had time to react to the sudden event, the three-meter-tall giant was sucked into the ring.
"Wh...?"
I looked back and forth repeatedly between the ring and the spot where the Kenning had been. Only the concrete floor remained where the gray giant had stood moments before.
Spatial magic. Had she incorporated it into a magical tool?
I had heard at the orientation that the amount of mass that could be stored while Spirit Armor was deployed was roughly equivalent to an ordinary backpack. Even a large hiking backpack could not be stored inside it.
The Kenning was about as large as a passenger car. I was left speechless by the sight of it vanishing into the ring in an instant.
Only now did I realize why Takanashi-san had come to the clan entrance test empty-handed.
...Had this woman really been openly carrying around such a valuable item!?
I stared at Takanashi-san's face with a twitching cheek, but she was nodding thoughtfully about something. Was even a magical tool this precious considered ordinary in the future?
"Even a hundred years from now, items like this are extremely valuable. Thanks to it, I was able to transport the Kenning safely."
So it was valuable even in the future.
My head began to ache a little. This woman really was out of step with ordinary common sense. Considering her circumstances, I supposed it couldn't be helped.
But even so.
"...The Demiurge is really something else."
The self-proclaimed Demiurge. Her true identity, this girl who called herself a false god, was still unknown, but perhaps she really was a god.
It would be nice if she were a god friendly to humanity... but the scale of what she did was so enormous that getting involved with her, whether she was good or evil, seemed certain to cause trouble.
If possible, I would rather not meet her face-to-face.
Aware of the cold sweat trickling down my cheek, I let out a small sigh.
I was finally growing tired of being surprised. I had thought I had experienced enough surprises to last a lifetime within a week of the Day of Return, but... apparently the world was still full of mysteries.
Somehow calming myself down, I turned to face Takanashi-san.
In any case, there was one more thing I needed to confirm. If we were going to think about the future, I absolutely had to ask her.
"...Takanashi-san. In our conversation yesterday, I heard that this is a 'parallel world' from your perspective."
"Yes. At least, that is what Demi-chan said."
She nodded as though it were nothing unusual.
Normally, if someone were suddenly sent to a parallel world, wouldn't they panic a lot more...?
Come to think of it, Takanashi-san's family hadn't survived into the future, had they? If so, perhaps she had no lingering attachment to the world a hundred years from now.
But could that be equated with having a reason to fight for this era?
"Even so... are you willing to fight to make the future better?"
───Does this world have enough value for you?
In response to the question I had asked her,
"Yes. Of course. I am a soldier and a warrior. Now that I have power, I will fight for those without it."
she answered without the slightest hesitation, bringing her heels together and giving a salute that looked immaculate even to an amateur.
It had nothing to do with this world's circumstances. She had proudly declared what kind of person she was.
I could not tear my eyes away from her gaze, which stared straight at me. I was forced to understand that the words that sounded like mere platitudes were her true feelings.
...This must be what a manga protagonist is like.
She was someone I could never become. I felt as though she had shown that to me. Even if I found myself in the same situation, I would only act to protect myself. It would be impossible for me to risk my life for the reasons Takanashi-san did.
And yet, strangely, I did not feel inferior. Rather, this was...
"Thank you, Takanashi-san."
I turned toward her and held out my right hand.
"Please lend me your strength."
"Yes! It is my honor to fight alongside you...!"
We exchanged a firm, solid handshake.
The warmth of her hand, felt through the glove of her Spirit Armor, seemed to pass into me.
Takanashi-san held an unearned respect for me—for Yahiro Kota, who had died long ago in her world from her perspective, and in the future from mine.
But I... I, in turn...
I was the one who had come to admire this girl.
"...That aside, what should we do?"
"For now, let's build up our forces so we're prepared for anything that happens. Also, please tell me as much as you can about the famous people of this era whose names are known in the future."
"Yes! Understood!"
The so-called better future would be exceedingly difficult to reach, but...
That was how the partnership between the two of us began.