Chapter 69
Now then, shall we stock up on supplies before heading to the school?
Let's head to the convenience stores and supermarkets nearby.
"...Come to think of it, Kudo-san, about food..."
"What is it?"
"Rather than just supermarkets, wouldn't it be better to go to wholesale markets, distribution companies, or JA warehouses if we want to get a large amount of supplies? You know, there might be reserve rice, vegetables waiting to be shipped, or even seeds..."
Ah, true.
Since food won't spoil if I put it in my Item Box, we should probably try those places too.
"That's true... But, embarrassingly enough, I don't know where the warehouses are..."
The JA itself is near the municipal office, but I don't know the locations of its warehouses or storage facilities.
It would take time to search for them.
As for the wholesale market, it's beyond the city center, farther on from here.
That would take time too.
"―――'Map.'"
When Ichinose-san muttered that, a three-dimensional map like a 3D projection appeared in front of her.
It was Ichinose-san's 'Map' Skill.
Apparently, she'd gotten this one from the Gacha too.
Apparently, it can perform searches to some extent, like Google Maps.
Actually, for someone who calls me a cheat bastard, Ichinose-san is pretty ridiculous herself.
Her Gacha luck is way too good. Even big spenders would want to scream, "You've got to be kidding me!"
"The warehouses... Ah, they're pretty far away."
The blinking points on the map apparently marked JA warehouses.
Every one of them was quite a distance from here.
Hmm, then maybe we should leave them for later.
If you don't have an Item Box like me, it would be difficult for anyone else to carry anything away, and even if they did have one, their level probably wouldn't be very high without the point bonuses I have.
"Then let's stick to the original plan after all. We can head over there afterward."
"Sounds good."
So we explored the nearby convenience stores one by one.
While we were traveling, I carried Ichinose-san on my back. It was faster that way.
Incidentally, I learned while carrying her that Ichinose-san's bust was basically nonexistent. No need to worry about it. Heh.
"...Why is that? I suddenly feel extremely offended."
"It's your imagination. Please don't dig your nails in."
As for our appearance, we were an incredibly suspicious pair carrying a gun and a decapitation knife, both wearing full-face helmets.
In ordinary times, we'd definitely have been reported. I would have reported us.
Well, it wasn't a problem because my Skills and Aka's Mimicry were at work.
Still, this really is the city center.
The presence of people was on a completely different level from the suburbs.
There were plenty of monsters around too.
'Detection' had been going off constantly for a while now.
"There are a lot of people out here too..."
"Yeah..."
Almost all of them were ordinary people looking for evacuation shelters, but there were a lot of them.
Well, they probably didn't have Skills, so there was almost no chance of them noticing us.
"It's almost creepy how no one notices us..."
"Well, we're specialized in stealth."
While we're moving, 'Presence Concealment,' 'Silent Movement,' and 'Odorless' are active, and inside buildings, Ichinose-san's 'Recognition Inhibition' takes effect too.
'Recognition Inhibition' is a special Skill that makes it difficult to recognize your presence inside buildings, but apparently its effects spread to me too when I'm touching her.
It was a powerful Skill that had even deceived Momo's sense of smell. Very reliable.
Unless there was an exceptional case like that High Orc or Dark Wolf, there was little chance of anyone noticing us.
"Ah, Kudo-san, look at that..."
"Hm?"
I looked in the direction Ichinose-san was pointing.
There was a monster there.
"...Slimes, huh."
Three slimes had gathered around a garbage dump.
As usual, they were quivering while absorbing garbage.
Looks like it's Aka's turn.
"Aka."
"...(shakes)"
We approached the slimes, and Aka partially dispelled its Mimicry, stretching itself out like tentacles.
Then it slurped up all three slimes.
"...It's like a vacuum cleaner."
Yeah, it really was.
Outstanding suction power.
After confirming that Aka had absorbed the slimes, we quickly left.
After that, we visited convenience stores, general stores, supermarkets, and so on, replenishing our supplies.
The interiors had been pretty thoroughly ransacked, but some supplies remained.
As expected, people with Item Boxes must be rare.
After replenishing our supplies without incident, we headed for the high school.
A few minutes later, we had reached the immediate vicinity of our destination, the school.
Since we hadn't encountered any particularly formidable monsters, we'd arrived considerably earlier than planned.
Even from here, I could already sense quite a large number of people.
It seemed the evacuees really had gathered here.
"...Tch. So it wasn't destroyed after all."
Ichinose-san muttered something, but I'll let it slide.
More importantly, I could sense some very powerful presences from inside the school.
There was more than one.
They were probably people with Skills.
I didn't know what level they were, but we might be able to obtain some useful information.
"Hm...? What's that...?"
While hiding in the shadows and observing the situation with 'Telescope,' I spotted a familiar face near the school gate.
It was Nishino-kun.
And that flashy high school girl... Rikka-chan, was it?
Ishizawa-san, the newlywed we'd seen at the shopping mall, and the sporty girl were there too.
Apparently, they had survived safely. Good.
Nishino-kun and the others were talking to the guard at the school gate.
I wonder what they were talking about.
Even with 'Keen Hearing,' I can't make it out from this distance...
After finishing their discussion, Nishino-kun and the others entered the school grounds.
"Did you see someone you know?"
"Ah, no, I wouldn't really call them acquaintances."
"Hmm, I see. Without a Skill, I can't see that far, naturally."
No, if you could see as well as I could while using 'Telescope,' that would be a cheat in itself.
For now, let's infiltrate from somewhere with fewer guards.
Once we're inside the school, Ichinose-san's Skill will take effect too.
Now, I hope we can find some useful information.
With that hope, we began searching for somewhere we could sneak in.
Meanwhile―――.
The Dark Wolf was racing through the city center.
Its wounds hurt. It had let its guard down.
Who would have thought that human possessed such power?
That was beyond anything it had expected.
As a result, half its pack had been wiped out, and it had been injured itself.
The damage was severe.
But it had gained something too.
The presence of the mate it had been searching for ever since the world collapsed.
It had finally managed to find it.
"THAT DOG."
The dog that had been with that human.
It had sensed its mate's presence in that dog.
"THAT DOG IS MY MATE."
There was no mistake.
At long last, it had found its mate.
"WAIT FOR ME."
It would definitely bring its mate back.
But it couldn't afford to rush.
It needed to heal its wounds and build up its strength for now.
"FIRST, I WILL REJOIN THE MEMBERS OF MY PACK..."
It had fled separately from the others to prevent pursuit.
For a pack with keen senses of smell, that was no serious problem.
They would be able to regroup soon.
As it twitched its nose and searched for the scent of its pack, several goblins appeared.
"DO YOU NOT KNOW YOUR PLACE?"
It warned them, but the goblins readied their weapons and glared at it with vacant eyes.
How foolish.
But this was convenient.
It needed to recover even a little of its strength.
Since they were willing to fight, they had no grounds for complaint.
"DIE."
The Dark Wolf spread 'Darkness' and killed the goblins instantly.
At its feet, the goblins' magic stones rolled around.
"THEN I SHALL TAKE THEM."
It craned its neck to eat the magic stones.
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, 'chains' emerged from the magic stones and wrapped around its neck.
"Ghk!!?"
What?
The sinister chains rattled with an unpleasant metallic clank.
The sudden event left it confused.
"WHAT ARE THESE CHAINS!?"
It couldn't tear them apart, no matter how hard it tried.
It couldn't shake them off, either.
"Ah-hyahyahyah! Man, what luck! I can't believe I got such a big catch. I'm seriously on fire today!"
A grating voice suddenly came from behind it.
What was this human? Where had they come from?
No, more importantly, could this bastard have caused these chains?
"GRAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"
"Whoops, shaking them off won't do you any good, you know? The conditions have already been met. From now on, I'm your master, doggie."
Conditions?
Master?
What was this human talking about?
Its strength suddenly drained away, and something unpleasant began coursing through its body.
It felt as though its consciousness were being diluted and overwritten by something else—a bizarre, indescribable sensation.
"This 'Monster Tamer' Job really is the best. Choosing it was absolutely the right call! Ah-hyahyahyahyah―――..."
The grating voice grew distant.
Its consciousness gradually faded.
No. It still had things it needed to do.
There was someone it had to go and retrieve.
It desperately tried to hold on to consciousness, but it was no use.
The Dark Wolf completely lost consciousness.
"All right, subjugation complete. Now, I guess I'll head back to the school. I need to hurry, or those guys will get suspicious."
Satisfied with the result, the person left the scene as well.