Part 231: Promise with the Three Daughters

Opening my eyes to the sound of an alarm clock beeping repeatedly,

"...a ceiling I've never seen before."

Even muttering about Evangelion stuff like that, you're still alone.

I slowly sat up, took a morning shower, brushed my teeth with the portable toothbrush I'd brought along, and then quickly chewed and swallowed some bread ("end-of-the-world" bread, baked after the apocalypse) and drank canned coffee.

……I wish there were a morning news program here, but that’s probably too much to ask.

Having changed into my usual school uniform, I opened the door just in time—five minutes before the scheduled gathering.

Then,

“Ah!” “Oh!” “W-W-W-What?!”

Three girls, one with blonde hair, one with black, one with brown.

Glamorous-looking girls were waiting right in front of the room.

…Who are you?

I instinctively started to ask, then stopped myself mid-sentence.

They might have been someone I knew before I lost my memory.

"Hey. Long time no see. Well, it's only been a month since then, but still..."

It seemed my guess was correct—apparently, we were acquainted.

The girl who approached us was clearly the representative of the three, a glamorous blonde.

"Do you remember me? We met at the first floor of the 'Dungeon'... with that guy named Ryoma?"

"Dungeon." "First floor."

I don’t think I talked much about that time before I lost my memory, so it’s kind of mysterious to everyone.

"Um, well... vaguely, I guess..."

"Vaguely? That’s a bit too vague. We’ll never forget you, not even if we tried. You left a major impression."

"Um... huh..."

Damn. I can tell this is going to slip up sooner or later.

Still, they seemed to think of me as that kind of person, so they didn't seem particularly surprised.

I heard from Enishi-san about you, Ryoma-kun. I heard you passed away.

Is that so?

How did he meet his end?

I let my gaze wander for a while,

Well done.

And responds.

Though Ryōma seemed to have lost his sanity for some reason, he still gave me a hint—despite that.

...Yeah.

Then, among the girls, the two with black and brown hair began softly crying.

"Ryōma-kun... you were noble until the very end..."

"Yes..."

And I proceeded to explain the events of last night, one by one.

The three of them listened attentively, their faces solemn, not missing a single word.

When I finished speaking,

He never rests, always working hard for us who can't fight in the "dungeon"... Honestly, a guy this kind-hearted and good-looking is hard to find, even among the guys I know.

Handsome... He was handsome, wasn't he, him.

It wasn't really an impression I had, since there was a knife stuck in my head.

Did you like Ryoma-san?

...hmm

The girl (blonde) nodded sincerely,

"We three girls, we all had a crush on him."

Now that it's all said and done, it's a sad confession, isn't it.

"Still, Ryoma-kun chose Shiosaki-san... Do you remember? The one with the sky-blue hair, the Kansai accent?"

"...Sorry. I don't remember."

"It's not surprising, really. Even when I tried to hold you back, Shiosaki-san was the only one who opposed it. She was such a noble person. Ryoma-kun was naturally charming, so maybe that's why he was drawn to someone with such pure intentions..."

"Hmm."

"We'll take care of Shiosaki-san and Ryoma-kun's child for the rest of our lives. I think that's the only way we can repay her..."

"That's certainly a good thing."

I’m fully aware that my words come across as stiff and distant.

I should probably just leave this place already.

"Hey, 'Warrior' girl. Can I ask you one more thing?"

"Huh?"

"You remember Ichi, right? Koichi Ikeda. That slightly gloomy guy who used to cling to you."

"Um... well..."

"I haven't seen Ichi around lately... Do you think he's turned into something like Ryoma-kun, too?"

"That's... well..."

I looked away.

I don't know exactly what process turns someone into something so monster-like,

but if it's come to this, I think it's safer to assume that every 'player' who disappeared after Phase 3 has inevitably mutated into one of those 'Hunger People.'

"Ah... right, Ryō."

Ryō?

...Um, something like "understood," abbreviated, maybe?

As I'm lost in thought, the girls each pull out a single furoshiki-wrapped package from their pockets.

"Hey, 'Warrior' girl... Can you take this? It's our feelings, please?"

"Eh?"

"Last night—probably the moment Ryoma-kun died, we got this achievement reward item called 'Team Dissolution.' I think the condition is that someone in a subordinate relationship has to die. Since we each obtained one, take yours."

The glass bottle she held was about the size of a 500-milliliter PET bottle.

"This one's called an 'Elixir.' You have to drink it all, but it can fully heal your wounds and restore your magic power—just once."

The other one is... I'm not really sure, but it looks like a gold-colored rod about the size of a palm.

"...It's called a 'MacGuffin.' When used in trade, it makes whatever you're offering seem incredibly appealing to the other person. But the effect disappears the moment it's handed over, so be careful."

And the last one is a wooden effigy shaped like a goat.

"Scrapgoat. Disposable, but it can lure in that hostile lifeform for a while."

I took each item from the girls, one for each hair color,

"...Are you sure?"

"Yeah. You'll probably make better use of it than we would."

I wonder.

These items almost feel like a lifeline for players with low combat power.

"Then, warrior-chan... make sure you avenge Ryoma-kun."

Still, even I—known for my lack of social awareness—couldn't help but respond.

"Yes... I will definitely."