第８０８堀：建前と本音 (Part1)
Side: Yuki
After Taiki and I finished recovering the fighter jet, we leisurely chatted in the conference room.
"...So, Yuki-san. It's good that you got the fighter jet, but you shouldn't ride it, even as a joke."
"No, that's definitely impossible inside the dungeon. The altitude is only about 30 meters at most, so I'd immediately hit the ceiling and crash."
"No, no, I mean outside too."
"Where would I build a runway or facilities for that?"
"If you use your Dungeon Master power, you could prepare it anywhere instantly, couldn't you?"
"I certainly can't prepare something like that just to fly it once."
"Really? Aren't you thinking of just building a makeshift runway somewhere on the New Continent and taking off?"
"Of course I am."
"I knew it. You just blurted that out so easily."
"Well, there's no reason to hide it. I'm not going to just hoard a fighter jet I received. Though, there's a proper reason for it too."
"Can I hear the reason, just in case?"
"Of course. When the aircraft carrier sinks, we need to prepare a place for the evacuating planes to land, right?"
"Ah, that's true."
An aircraft carrier can indeed handle takeoffs and landings, but it's also right in the middle of enemy territory. Since the true nature of the sea monsters is still unclear, we must assume kaiju-level monsters might exist. In such a situation, even if planes manage to escape safely, they would still die if there's nowhere to land. It would be better to simply prepare an airfield than to pray for a miraculous belly landing. Conversely, since it can also handle takeoffs, we could send in reinforcements for rescue.
"I certainly wouldn't borrow a fighter jet just for fun. How much do you think one costs?"
Well, I got it for free, but losing it would be an unacceptable level of loss.
"Well, that's true. But wars that consume such weapons like water are terrifying, aren't they?"
"They really are. What kind of mindset allows someone to start one? Or rather, if you're consuming that much, you'd feel like you absolutely have to achieve results, no matter what."
The feeling of not wanting to end a war once it's started probably stems from this.
"But if that's the case, shouldn't you have just told your wives honestly?"
"There's the budget issue, and also the question of what to do with the personnel for that facility."
"Ah, so it's that problem."
"Exactly."
Even if we build more extensive bases as an organization, we lack the personnel to guard and maintain them.
"Then, you won't be able to build it after all, will you?"
"No, if it's for emergency evacuation, it only needs takeoff and landing functions. We don't even need control tower instructions. Magic communication and radio communication will suffice."
"So, just a runway and guide lights for night?"
"Exactly. There are airports that are just that. In fact, there are many cases of planes landing at closed airports during emergencies."
"But even so, there's no reason not to tell your wives, is there?"
"Idiot. That's the pretense. You want to ride it, don't you? A fighter jet."
When I said that, Taiki immediately nodded his head up and down.
"Of course! I definitely want to ride it. So, where are you planning to build this airport, or rather, this makeshift runway? You'll need quite a large plot of land, won't you? Ah, is it in the plains of Baide?"
"It would be too conspicuous there. We wouldn't be able to leisurely ride the fighter jet. Our wives would immediately find out and come flying over."
"Well, that's true."
My wives absolutely don't want me to ride a fighter jet; they really warned me after finding out Luna had offered one. So, I won't do anything that would be easily discovered, and I pretended to quietly agree.
"That's why we have to secretly build a landing strip somewhere inconspicuous."
"But a place where you can build it secretly... was there one in Baide?"
"I have one place in mind. First, I'll have to negotiate with the landowner, though."
"That's obvious, but from your tone, it sounds like land outside of Baide. Do you have such connections? Ah, is it the Kamishiro territory in Kagura?"
"Close, but no cigar. I certainly considered borrowing land from Duke Kamishiro, but that's a house of loyal retainers to Haiden. They'd definitely report it immediately."
"Well, the Kamishiro family is one of Haiden's Three Great Houses, after all. Besides, if an airport, even a makeshift one, were built, anyone would report it."
"That's why I can't borrow the Kamishiro territory. Duke Kamishiro's word wouldn't be considered a lie, you see."
"Well, Kamishiro-san's report wouldn't be considered a lie... that is..."
Taiki seemed to finally understand after saying that much himself.
"Could it be... Mikos?"
"Exactly. I'm thinking of borrowing land from the Jaana family. It's near the area where the Seasaifo Kingdom's reconstruction support army was temporarily stationed, and we already have a base there. I plan to persuade John to let us build it alongside. Of course, I'll also speak to Mikos's parents, so keeping it quiet will be fine, and even if it's reported, it's just the territory of a rural baronial family, right?"
"They'd just think it's a misunderstanding, wouldn't they..."
"Moreover, no gold or silver treasures have been found. It just looks like a wide, flattened piece of land."
"There'd be no point in reporting it, right?"
That's right. I feel bad for Mikos, but for us, the location of the Jaana family is incredibly convenient in many ways.
"So, I need to go meet Mikos now and secretly get permission to use the land. Well, ostensibly, it's a greeting to the Jaana family. Now that a visit, or rather, support for the Seasaifo Kingdom has been decided, I should properly greet them as a transit point."
"Hearing your true intentions, it's just an excuse, isn't it?"
"It's necessary, so it can't be helped."
Even if it's a pretense, it's a proper reason, so it can't be helped. Following proper procedure is important.
"So, where is Mikos now?"
"Ah, about that..."
With that, we arrived at the beach, and...
"..."
There were women in swimsuits sprawled out on the beach like corpses. Normally, one might be pleased to see beautiful women in swimsuits, but no, that's not right. Looking at this situation, it looked less like swimsuit beauties and more like the scene of numerous drowned bodies washed ashore. Their hair was disheveled, their skin covered in sand, and their swimsuits were not alluring but uniformly school swimsuits.
"What is this? It's a situation that would make a child cry if they accidentally saw it!"
"So that's how it looks, huh?"
My opinion didn't seem to be particularly wrong.
"Ah, they got us."
"Hmm. This is a bit rough."
As we were chatting, two of the "drowned bodies" slowly stood up. No, drowned bodies swell with water, so they're not actually pretty corpses. Jokes aside, the ones who stood up were Princess Stacia and Agil.
"Peh, peh. Sand got in my mouth."
"Same here. Peh. At this point, we've stopped caring about a little sand on our bodies, haven't we?"
"Indeed, if we've done this much. That said, if we have the leisure to brush it off, we will..."
"Right. Oh dear, completely covered in sand."