Chapter 93
The next day, after a fierce night of battle.
The morning of the fifth day.
I woke up inside the school building that had been reduced to ruins.
"Is it morning already...?"
I sat up, scratching my head.
There didn't seem to be anything unusual around me...
Search detected no signs of monsters or people, either. Thank goodness.
When I looked to the side, Ichinose-san and Rikka-chan were still asleep.
Just looking at them sleeping like this, they looked like ordinary girls their age, but...
"Don't sleep while hugging a gun..."
A sniper rifle was held tightly in one of Ichinose-san's arms as she slept peacefully.
What kind of former high school girl sleeps while hugging a gun?
An accidental discharge... should be fine. There didn't seem to be any bullets loaded.
If I remember correctly, she made the bullets with a Skill too, at the cost of MP.
Looking closely, Rikka-chan hadn't let go of her hatchet either.
It was a somewhat yuri-like sight, with two beautiful girls sleeping while holding hands, except that the things they were holding were far too dangerous...
Incidentally, the reason the two of them slept while holding hands was to transmit the Perception Interference Skill.
I learned later that, unless it was turned off, this Skill apparently worked even while sleeping.
Aka was too weakened to use Mimicry to cover all of us.
For our safety while sleeping, the best thing was to sleep huddled together like this.
What about me? I was just sleeping while holding onto the hem of Ichinose-san's clothes, okay?
Apparently, Clothing is recognized as part of the body too. No problem.
It's not like I have any ulterior motives.
Rikka-chan aside, Ichinose-san is flat-chested. No problem.
"I don't need to wake them yet..."
After everything that had happened yesterday, they were probably tired.
Though, come to think of it, I should be the most exhausted one here...
Was it thanks to the Recovery Potion Ichinose-san had given me?
I felt fantastic.
"Woof!"
Perhaps noticing that I had woken up, Momo emerged from the shadows.
"Good morning, Momo."
"Whiiine."
Unlike the two high school girls sleeping with dangerous weapons, Momo was as adorable as ever.
Since she came over and licked my face, I petted her head and body while enjoying some physical affection.
Oh? Maybe it's just my imagination, but her coat seems better than yesterday.
This is the best thing ever.
"Thanks for keeping watch too, Aka."
"...... (shiver shiver)"
Next, I looked at the red slime—Aka—trembling by Ichinose-san's feet.
Aka trembled as if to say, 'Don't worry about it.'
Slimes don't need sleep.
Even though Mimicry wasn't possible, Aka had volunteered to stay awake in case anything happened.
Aka really was such a good kid, too.
When I picked up the shrunken Aka, its cool, smooth feel was pleasant.
Hmm, it had been a little strange at first, but once I got used to it, this sensation might even rival fluffiness.
Oh, right.
I should distribute my points before the two of them wake up.
My level had risen by one in yesterday's battle, bringing me to Lv. 18.
I had 20 SP and 10 JP.
What should I do...?
After thinking about it for a while, I first raised Ninja to Lv. 6.
Then, because my Ninja Job level had reached 6, the levels of Ninjutsu, Throwing, Enhanced Senses, Odorless, Silent Movement, and Concealment each rose by one as well.
I saved the remaining 4 points.
Now, what should I do with my SP...?
All right, I'll raise Physical Activation to Lv. 5, Ninjutsu to Lv. 8, and Prediction to Lv. 3.
I used all 20 of my SP.
My status looked like this.
Kudo Kazuto
Level 18
HP: 190/190
MP: 45/45
Strength: 142
Endurance: 138
Agility: 318
Dexterity: 288
Magic: 25
Magic Resistance: 25
SP: 0
JP: 4
Jobs
Ninja Lv. 6
Hunter Lv. 6
Shadow Figure Lv. 5
Unique Skills
Precocity
Job Enhancement
Skills
Ninjutsu Lv. 8, Throwing Lv. 5, Enhanced Senses Lv. 5, Odorless Lv. 6, Silent Movement Lv. 6, Concealment Lv. 5, Night Vision Lv. 4, Vital Spot Strike Lv. 5, Presence Concealment Lv. 7, Appraisal Interference Lv. 4, Search Lv. 7, Telescopic Vision Lv. 3, Enhanced Agility Lv. 7, Enhanced Dexterity Lv. 4, Observation Lv. 10, Eavesdropping Lv. 4, Shadow Manipulation Lv. 5, Physical Enhancement Lv. 10, Physical Activation Lv. 5, Swordsmanship Lv. 5, Stress Resistance Lv. 9, Fear Resistance Lv. 9, Poison Resistance Lv. 1, Paralysis Resistance Lv. 2, Virus Resistance Lv. 1, Heat Resistance Lv. 1, Taunt Resistance Lv. 1, Automatic HP Recovery Lv. 1, Hostility Detection Lv. 6, Danger Detection Lv. 9, Riding Lv. 2, Negotiation Lv. 1, Escape Lv. 4, Defensive Instinct Lv. 1, Item Box Lv. 10, Mail Lv. 2, Concentration Lv. 3, Prediction Lv. 3
Party Members
Momo
Assassin Dog Lv. 5
Aka
Fake Slime Lv. 2
Ichinose Natsu
Lv. 23
Because Ninjutsu had reached Lv. 8, I learned two new ninjutsu techniques.
Their uses came to me intuitively.
Huh... These are interesting abilities.
Most of the Ninjutsu I'd had until now were mainly for escaping, but these seemed like they could be useful in their own way.
Combined with Aka's abilities, they could probably come in handy for infiltration and things like that.
Come to think of it, everyone had leveled up in yesterday's battle.
More importantly, Ichinose-san's level was still ridiculously high...
Lv. 23...? She's still five levels above me.
Even with Precocity, why isn't the gap closing?
No, well, checking my Skills comes first.
The Unique Skill Job Enhancement that I acquired in the middle of yesterday's battle with the Dark Wolf.
My guess was that it enhanced the Skills learned when acquiring a Job.
I needed to learn more about it.
Just like Precocity, which granted point and Experience Point bonuses, this Skill was undoubtedly extremely powerful as well.
Besides, I was curious about what that monster-taming girl had said.
―――If it were me, I could enhance that Skill even further, you know?
That was what she had said.
If that statement hadn't been a bluff, this Skill might work on party members too.
If so, it should become a powerful means of surviving in this world.
I would confirm it once Ichinose-san woke up.
"Actually, once she wakes up, we need to decide what to do with Rikka-chan too..."
I'd agonized over it all yesterday, but I still hadn't found an answer.
What should I do?
If she wanted to return to her old place, to Nishino-kun, I intended to let her go. But if she said she wanted to stay with Ichinose-san, should I let her join the party?
To be honest, she might be Ichinose-san's best friend, but she wasn't that important to me.
Sure, I didn't want her to die, but that didn't mean I trusted her enough to have my back.
In the end, the fact that I was agonizing over this was proof that I still couldn't completely trust Rikka-chan.
This was the kind of world we lived in.
No one knew what choice was right or wrong.
I'd made mistakes and wavered plenty yesterday, too.
"...Momo, what do you want to do?"
"Woof?"
I asked Momo, who was lying on my lap.
What should we do with Rikka-chan?
"...Woof."
After thinking for a moment, Momo made a sound that seemed to mean, 'I'll leave it to you.'
"...What about you, Aka?"
"............ (shiver)"
Aka trembled in a way that seemed to mean, 'I'll leave it to you' as well.
So both of them were leaving it up to me, huh? What was I supposed to do?
"Mmm... huh... Kazuto-shan?"
Ichinose-san's voice came from behind me.
Apparently, she had woken up.
"Good morning. Did you sleep well?"
"...........Yesh. Yaaawn... mnh..."
Yeah, she was totally out of it.
Even so, the fact that she hadn't let go of her gun gave her a strange intensity.
"...Huh? Wait, I...?"
That seemed to wake Rikka-chan up as well.
Perhaps she hadn't fully grasped the situation, because she looked around at her surroundings.
Then she saw Ichinose-san sitting beside her in a daze and opened her eyes wide.
"Nattsun...? Wait, no way... It wasn't a dream...? I mean, I'm alive...?"
Rikka-chan whispered, unable to believe it.
Given what had happened yesterday, I suppose she couldn't be blamed for thinking that.
She had been so badly injured, and then she had lost consciousness almost immediately afterward.
"Oh, Ricchan, good mor―――"
"Nattsun... Nattsuuuuuuuuuuun!!"
"Mmph!?"
Rikka-chan threw her arms around Ichinose-san and hugged her with all her might.
Whoa, Ichinose-san's face was buried in her chest!
"Thank goodness, thank goodness... It wasn't a dream... It really was you, Nattsun... Waaaah..."
"Mmmmmmm!!" Bang bang!
Um, sorry to interrupt this touching reunion for the second time, but could you loosen your hug a little?
Because Ichinose-san was about to die.
That girl's stats were in the single digits, you know. She used to be a shut-in, you know.
Well, whatever.
They both seemed to be awake now, so we'd talk about what to do from here over some food.