Chapter 219: The Noon Chime

— "Hero," huh.

It's such a quintessential protagonist-type job, isn't it?

As I think that, I suddenly recall the night not long ago when I spoke with an elderly man named Yohata, who was physically disabled.

— A boy wrapped in silver armor.

Of course, there's no particular information linking that boy to the "Hero," but...

There's a certain eerie, protagonist-like vibe to both of them—something that gives you a shiver down the spine.

"Got it. Once we reach the destination, I'll rely on her."

"Ah... if it's okay, can I pass on a message from me too?"

"What?"

"Well... something like this: 'Whoever you love and however much you're stained, it doesn't matter—just be at my side in the end!'... That's it."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Line from Raoh. From 'Fist of the North Star.'"

"A quote from the manga?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"You know, you're probably the reason you're not popular with girls."

Even as she spoke sarcastically, Rinne gave a faint smile.

Got it. I definitely took on the job. — So, where's our room?

Ah, if that's the case...

After that, nothing particularly noteworthy occurred.

We each rented a room inside the shelter and decided to rest for the day.

The incident occurred during the dead of night the following day.

It was just after one in the morning.

▼

Ping pong.

I wake up to the sound of an electronic beep.

The entrance to the shelter was made of steel far sturdier than my run-down apartment, seemingly designed to block out even the sound of knocking on the door.

Therefore, if you want to call out to someone inside, you have to ring the bell.

But this bell seems to drag out its sound, barely audible, and doesn't make much of a fuss—certainly not enough to wake someone who's fast asleep.

Peeen pōn.

Ping pong. Ping pong. Ping pong.

So I remained lying flat on my unnecessarily huge bed, staying put for a while without getting up.

Ping pong. Ping pong. Ping pong.

"...Mew."

I grumbled slightly, then shifted my body halfway over.

Clutching the stiff, dry fabric pajamas—distributed to all shelter residents, a result of the final decision that "clothing" took a backseat to "food and shelter" in the hierarchy of needs—I rub my eyes and open the door.

Ahead stood Asada, his face pale blue.

"Hey, senpai!"

Something about this situation feels familiar—I've been in something like this before, I think.

What's wrong?

"Aizuki-chan! Aizuki Miyoi-chan!"

"?"

"She disappeared without a trace! Look! Just a single note left behind!"

Mr. Asada thrust toward me a single scrap of paper, scrawled with clumsy handwriting that read: "I don't want to come back. So, goodbye."

"Goodness me."

I stared, wide-eyed, at the utterly obvious runaway note that was so laughably transparent it could barely be taken seriously.

"Let me just ask—this isn't some kind of joke, is it?"

"Of course not!"

"What about the others?"

"Still no one... I mean, no matter how many times I ring the bell, nobody wakes up at all!"

Yeah, I get it. I couldn't wake up myself, either.

Checking the clock, it was just past one. If you asked the whole human race which time they'd least want to be woken up, this would probably be in first or second place.

"About what time did she leave here?"

"I don't know. We showered together and got into bed after ten. I must have fallen asleep without noticing, and... I just realized it a moment ago."

Then there's still a chance—maybe we can find her if we look now.

"But shouldn't access to this place be properly monitored?"

"That's true, but... she can get into anywhere. She's good at lying, too."

That said, they're likely to stay here.

Yes

Asada-san, looking thoroughly flustered.

"But but! Akiba at night is dangerous! The underground is relatively calm, but the surface—well, it's still developing, you know? It's becoming more like a slum, Dad says."

...Understood.

It didn’t seem like that kind of atmosphere when I saw it during the day—then again, I hadn’t gone much further than near the wall at that time.

Asada looked concerned,

"Um... senior..."

"What is it?"

"I heard the reason the surface is dangerous is because the 'players' who serve as experience point providers to the 'King' are handled rather loosely."

"Wait. Really?"

"Yeah... Everyone in town depends on them for survival, so nobody can really speak up. Like, someone who said 'It can't possibly be that dangerous' came back five minutes later covered in blood, or a woman walking alone has a 150% chance of being raped... Actually, that means if someone's been attacked once, they have a 50% chance of being attacked again."

No way... Seriously?

I recall the weird old man I ran into one night while walking with Yohata-san.

If some Superman-like figure showed up...

Uwah, uwah. Just imagining it makes me scared.

"If, um, that senior were to... you know... then we should probably wake everyone up first..."

I cut myself off mid-sentence, sighing heavily as I reply:

"Then we have to go help Miyan to the rescue as fast as possible—no matter what."

I don’t really want to, but...

Well, there’s no helping it.

Then, Mashida-san looks like she’s just woken up from a daze,

"Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh... Y-yes, of course! I'll get there as fast as I can!"

She dashed away at the speed of a short-distance sprint, leaving me behind.

Left alone, I grimaced and headed toward the shelter's entrance.

Along the way, I mindlessly punched the walls.

A sense of irrational anger—typical of someone abruptly woken from non-REM sleep—swelled up inside me.

I could probably go completely wild right now.

Maybe fights are ultimately just the result of people with built-up stress finally meeting each other.

Something like that.