Unpleasant Jobs Usually Get Assigned to Newcomers

As I listened to Fujita-san, I thought to myself, Ah, I see.

If we can't defeat an enemy ourselves, we can ask someone else for help.

All the more so if that someone is Japan's largest armed group.

It was so obvious that, ironically, it never occurred to me.

(No, wait...)

Somewhere in my mind, I had already eliminated that option.

Four days ago.

When I saw the Self-Defense Forces being helplessly trampled by a High Orc.

(But now that I think about it, their equipment had been kept to a minimum back then...)

Their equipment varied, and perhaps circumstances had prevented them from bringing out all their weapons.

(They had managed to inflict a scratch on that High Orc, at least...)

Even a scratch is still a wound.

If they had been fully armed back then—or if they had military helicopters equipped with missiles and heavy machine guns—the outcome might have been different.

Firearms, missiles, tanks, military helicopters.

The power of science native to this world, separate from Skills and Jobs.

It was an appealing kind of power.

If they could bombard it from afar without getting close, they would certainly stand a good chance of defeating even that gigantic Golem.

Don't underestimate Earth—this is a fantasy world.

(But that was only assuming the Self-Defense Forces were still functioning properly.)

It had already been six days since the world changed.

There was a very real possibility that the Self-Defense Forces had already been wiped out.

Several powerful monsters had appeared in this town, including a High Orc, a Dark Wolf, and a gigantic Golem.

We shouldn't assume they were just an 'exception' unique to us.

There could be even more powerful monsters appearing in other places.

That's why Fujita-san had prefaced it by calling it 'a gamble.'

As the room buzzed, someone raised a hand.

"The Self-Defense Forces... When you think about it, I guess that makes sense, but... would that really work?"

"...I don't know."

"What...?!"

"I told you at the start, didn't I? This is a gamble. They may be too busy dealing with monsters themselves, and there's even a chance they've all been wiped out already. If so, we'd be wasting our time completely."

"Then—"

"Then tell me: do you have any other way? Any way to defeat that Golem?"

"Th-then... right, if we defeat the ants and level up..."

"Would that give us more power than the Ground Self-Defense Force's missiles? Maybe it could, but we're out of time. Three days left... no, precisely fifty-eight hours. Two and a half days. It took us five days to become this strong. Do you think we can increase our strength explosively beyond that in less than two days?"

Fujita-san continued, clenching his fist.

The one lamenting our own powerlessness more than anyone was probably Fujita himself.

At his words, the man who had protested shut his mouth, looking frustrated.

"It'd take about an hour to get to the Self-Defense Forces' base by car under normal circumstances. We can't use cars now, and motorcycles are out too—they could attract monsters. We'll have to go on foot. We should expect it to take a full day."

In other words, two days round trip.

No—if the Self-Defense Forces were functioning properly and we could use a military helicopter, it would effectively take only one day.

That is, assuming they responded to our call for help.

"The problem is... who's going?"

Yes, that was the problem.

Since we had no way to contact them, someone would have to go there in person and notify them.

"I was the one who proposed this, so I'll take responsibility. But... if possible, I'd like one more person—no, maybe two—to come with me."

Apparently, Fujita-san intended to go himself.

"No! You can't!"

A man stood up and raised his voice in protest.

He was another of City Hall's core members, just like Fujita-san.

"You and Mayor Uesugi are the pillars of City Hall! What will we do if something happens to you?"

"Then you take my place. Besides, in today's world, something like that could happen at any time. And if the Self-Defense Forces are functioning properly, we'll need someone to negotiate with them. Who's better suited than me?"

"B-but... th-then!"

His gaze shifted to us.

"Th-then why not send them? Even though they're newcomers, I've heard their levels are quite high. I think they should be able to complete the mission."

"Oh, come on... They only got here yesterday. There's no way we can entrust such a dangerous mission to them. This is exactly when we adults need to do our part, isn't it?"

Fujita-san sighed and glared at him.

Responsibility as an adult, huh? Nice thing to say, Fujita-san.

But... the other members didn't seem to feel the same way.

"Y-yeah, that's true..." "We have things we need to do ourselves, after all..." "Wouldn't it be better than teaming up with them and throwing off our pace?" "This is the kind of job young people should handle..." "That's right. If they want to join us, they need to prove it properly through their actions." "Yeah, yeah."

Fujita-san panicked at their words.

"W-wait, are you seriously saying that? That's not what I meant—"

"I agree with them as well."

The person who spoke up was Chief Shimizu, who had been standing behind him.

"Shimizu-chan..."

"I agree with the idea of requesting aid from the Self-Defense Forces. However, if we consider the trouble of forming a new team for that purpose and reorganizing the rotations of the current exploration and subjugation teams, I think it would be more efficient to assign the mission directly to the newcomers. And—"

"And since we're newcomers, even if we failed, it wouldn't be much of a loss. It wouldn't reduce City Hall's existing forces... Is that what you're saying?"

Cutting in over Chief Shimizu's words, Nishino-kun spoke up.

"...That's not what I said. Don't misunderstand me."

"The meaning's the same, isn't it? In fact, I'd appreciate it if you didn't decide this on our behalf without asking our opinion."

"You're right. I apologize for that. So... what do you think of Fujita-san's proposal?"

The gazes of Nishino-kun and Chief Shimizu met.

"I agree with Fujita-san's idea. If we can get the Self-Defense Forces' help, it's worth the gamble."

"Then—"

"But that doesn't mean I'm okay with you forcing it on us. Besides, the rotation Shimizu-san mentioned wouldn't be much trouble, would it? It sounded like nothing more than an excuse to convince everyone else."

"...You certainly don't mince words."

"I know how to behave, but that's separate from this. This plan carries considerable risk. Newcomers or not, we're not disposable tools."

"That's not what I said, is it? You're valued comrades."

"But that's how everyone's attitude sounded to me."

"What the hell are you talking about?" "Just because you're a student, do you think you can ignore your manners?" "What an insolent attitude!" "Young people these days..." "Can we really trust people like them?" "Hey, keep it down! This is an important discussion!"

At Nishino-kun's words, everyone else—especially my former coworkers—vehemently protested.

Fujita-san exhaled deeply and tried to placate everyone, but once the argument had caught fire, it refused to die down easily.

The students should go.

No, we should draw lots and decide fairly.

Maybe there was another way, to begin with.

Everyone voiced their opinions as they pleased.

In the middle of all that,

(Big bro, what should we do?)

Rikka-chan asked me in a low voice.

(Let's see...)

I put a hand to my chin and thought.

(City Hall... and the Self-Defense Forces base...)

The state of City Hall. The gigantic Golem. The massive army of ants. And the Skills we possessed.

I considered all of it together.

I thought and thought and thought—and reached a conclusion.

What would benefit us the most?

(It's a gamble... but it shouldn't be a bad one.)

If things went well, we might be able to dramatically change the course of events from here on out.

I immediately navigated the status screen.

When I finished, I quietly raised my hand.

"Um, excuse me... I have a somewhat odd question, but does City Hall have any motorcycles we can use?"

Everyone was dumbfounded by my sudden question.

They all looked at me as if to say, What is this kid talking about?

Come on, is it really that surprising? You're hurting Ichinose-san's feelings.

Nishino-kun was surprised too... though he wasn't looking my way.

"Um, Ichinose-chan... that was your name, right? We do have one, but why do you ask?"

Fujita-san was the one who answered.

His answer satisfied me.

If they had one, there was no problem.

"...I have a Skill called 'Silent Movement.' It makes movement extremely quiet... and, well, it works on vehicles too."

Fujita-san's expression changed at those words.

"I-I'll go... to that Self-Defense Forces base."

I figured it was time to make a major move.

It was a path we'd have to take sooner or later anyway.