Mob Kousei No Ore Demo Boukensha Ni Nareba Riajuu Ni Naremasuka: Chapter #97
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
Episode 97: The Way is
Near, Yet People Seek It Far Away
The next day, I was wandering the streets of Hachioji
by myself.
We had managed to trudge through 42 floors over the
course of a day after that conversation, and we decided to take a break to
recover from the mental fatigue that had built up more than we had anticipated.
I thought I would spend my sudden day off just
relaxing at home, but my mind was a bit fuzzy and restless, so I wandered
around town aimlessly.
I looked around the Guild's card store and tried to
find some new adventurer's equipment, but nothing caught my interest, and
before I knew it, my feet were leading me to nostalgic places, as if I were
retracing old memories.
The elementary school I attended, the forest where the
secret base was built, the drainage channel where I fished.......
I usually don't reminisce about these places, but when
I see them in front of me, the memories of those days come back to me vividly.
I remembered that I dared to mess with a girl I liked
and she disliked me, and the time I told my friend where I had hidden my
collection of discarded erotic books and we had a fight the next day because
they had all been stolen......
Some of the memories were so embarrassing that I just
wanted to writhe in agony, and upon those moments I would quickly leave the
place.
I wondered if it was because I had sealed up the
memories that I don't normally recall them......?
While thinking about this, I was struck with an
unexpected sense of loneliness when I passed by the elementary school and saw
that the building I attended had already been torn down and replaced with a new
school building.
Then I came to a candy store adjacent to the park
where I used to hang out.
"Ah,
Onii-chan!"
Ai, who was hanging out with her friends, spotted me
and called out.
"Ai? You've
been hanging out here?”
"Un. With Aoi-chan
and Mio-chan."
"Long time no
see."
"Hello."
The two childhood friends of Ai who often come to our
house bowed to me with a small nod.
Aoi-chan had a sociable personality and was not afraid
of talking to others—a modern girl with dyed hair and the latest fashions.
Mio-chan may look like a quiet literary girl with long
black hair, but even though she was still an elementary school student, she was
interested in investment and had already been using her New Year's money to
invest in stocks and binary options.
I think our Ai was also quite sophisticated for an
elementary school student, but compared to these two, she was still quite
normal, which was a bit of a relief, I must admit.
『Yo!』
『Do you remember to drink enough water, Ai?』
"Ah, Renge-chan,
Athena-chan!"
With a buzz...... a 3D image of Renge and Athena
appeared and they greeted Ai.
Ai and Renge had always been good friends, but as soon
as the card gear allowed communication with the outside world, Athena became
good friends with her as well.
Surprisingly, Mea did not get on well with Ai, not
that she disliked her, but she seemed to be jealous that Renge could play with
her outside the dungeon.
While Mea seemed bright and sociable, her personality
tended to be more introspective and reserved.
She and Suzuka shared similarities, and I felt that
the friendship between Renge, Mea, and Suzuka might have been established with
Mea as a go-between. I think so.
Ai and Mea do have a delicate barrier between them,
but Ai is proactive in getting along with Mea, and through watching anime and
other activities, the distance between Ai and Mea gradually shrinks.
So I didn't intend to interfere much, just watching
over them warmly.
Athena, on the other hand, somehow took an odd liking
to Ai and acted almost like an older sister, helping her with her summer
vacation homework and enjoying quiz shows together.
Despite Athena's timid demeanor, her ability to bond
so easily with Renge and Mea suggested she was quite outgoing when she was
comfortable. Perhaps it was a case of opposites attract or simply that they've
found a common wavelength.
Besides, our house started to become much more lively
thanks to the Card Gear, as Eliza and Audrey asked Mom to teach them our family
recipe, Dragonet and Dullahan hit it off after learning chess from Dad, and
Yuki developed a mysterious rivalry with Maru (our dog).
"Wow, that's the
Card Gear everyone's talking about!? How nice~"
"Amazing. It's
like science fiction. ...I'm sure Emerald Tablet's stock price will rise even
more."
Aoi-chan and Mio-chan, seeing the image floating in
the air, came over with sparkling eyes.
Seeing them like this made me smile, thinking that
they are still just kids. ...Although Mio-chan's excitement seemed a little
off.
"I want one too~
Can I have it, Maromaro?"
“No way. Once
registered, it can only be used by that person. When it's released, beg your
parents to buy it for you."
"When is it
released?"
When Aoi-chan asked me that, I remembered what Anna
had told me,
“Hmm-, I believe it
will be after the summer vacation. They confirmed that there were no problems
during the one-week race and the public response was better than expected, so
they decided to make this prototype the official version and moved up the release
date or something."
Anna tried to use her connections to get her hands on
a Card Gear somehow, but in the end, it was impossible.
Or should I say, she heard that it would be released
after the summer vacation, so she backed down instead of forcing her way to get
it.
Instead, she was able to secure enough high-end models
like the one I have for everyone at the end of the summer vacation. The
Jushichiya family's connections never cease to amaze me.
"Fu~un, oh well.
Then~ take us to Fantasyland again~"
"I'm busy, so no.
I'll buy you some sweets, so bear with that."
I easily dodged Aoi-chan's request and pointed to the
sweets store,
"Yay!"
"Thanks,
Onii-chan!"
“Thank you so much,
Maro Nii-san!”
Seeing the three of them rushing into the
confectionery store at once, I chuckled at how much of a child they were, and I
headed for the confectionery store myself.
Then, the old lady who owned the store saw me and
called out to me, seemingly nostalgic.
"Ara, it's been a
long time, hasn't it? Has it been five years since you graduated from
elementary school?"
“Grandma, it's been a
while."
Right, it's been about
five years, huh?
Unlike when I was an elementary school student and
could drop by on my way home, middle school students didn't cross the street
here, so naturally I didn't stop by.
This was originally a hangout spot for elementary
school students, and there was an ambiance that when students went to middle
school, they would graduate from this park because it would make the still
elementary school students feel intimidated, so I'm sure grandma is used to the
fact that the graduates stop coming...
I wish I could have shown my face once in a while
knowing that she remembered my face like this.
"I saw you on TV.
You became an adventurer and made some amazing discoveries. Aren't you
amazing?"
She patted me on the shoulder and then said worriedly,
"...But don't do
anything too dangerous."
I bowed my head obediently. She probably referred to
the Hound Master.
"Onii-chan, buy us
this!"
Ai and her friends handed me a shopping basket after
they finished picking out the sweets.
The basket was filled to the brim with juice and
sweets.
These guys ......
really have no restraint. I guess it's half the price, but...
I brought the basket to Grandma with a warning,
“Don't eat it all in
one day.”
It's been a few years
since I've been to this store, so I've got to spend extra money here.
Grandma's eyes widened as she saw the mountain of
sweets.
"Oya, you bought
quite a lot, can you pay?"
“It's alright, I have
earned money.’”
I said and was about to take out my phone when I
realized,
Oh shit......! I
forgot my wallet!
I've only been shopping
with my smartphone and adventurer license lately!
It would be too uncool to say I forgot my wallet in
front of my sister and her friends.....
I was panicking.
"Oh, you can use P〇yPay."
I felt the greatest lapse of time that day as Grandma
pointed to the list of e-money-compatible services next to the cash register.
"Speaking of
which, do you guys have any dreams for the future?"
As I was eating ice cream with Ai and the others on a
park bench, a thought suddenly occurred to me and I asked them.
“Eh~, that's so sudden.
What's wrong?"
Ai tilted her head at my too-sudden question.
"Ah, no... I'm
just having a bit of trouble with my future too."
"Eh?! Aren't
you becoming an adventurer, Onii-chan?"
"N? No, you're
right. I've decided to be an adventurer."
Shaking my head at the surprised Ai, I confirmed this.
Yes, I'm going to be an
adventurer...... I can decide that much.
The question is, what
kind of adventurer will I be?
"Ah~, what the, I
was surprised. Are you talking about becoming a professor or a gladiator?"
“Nn......, well, you
could say that.”
With MonColo spreading throughout the world as a
culture, there were talks of starting a World Cup soon.
Aiming to win the championship there and becoming the
world's best gladiator ...... is also a possible goal as an adventurer.
“Hmm~m ...... I don't
really get it, but maybe Mom and Dad will feel more at ease if you aim to be a
gladiator. Unlike the professor, your life won't be in danger.”
"Ah......”
Certainly, that would be more reassuring for Mom and
Dad.
Not making my parents worry is also an important
factor.
“I want to be a model~
I wonder if I'll get scouted to be a magazine model.”
Ooh, so Aoi-chan wants
to be a model.....
Aoi-chan's legs seemed long and slender, so she might
get scouted when she goes to junior high school.
"I'm going to be
an investor. I'm going to be a billionaire trader."
....As usual, this girl had a slightly different view
of the world from Ai and the other little girls.
“How good of an
investor are you, Mio-chan?”
I asked, and Ai answered,
"Mio-chan is
amazing~ She started with 100,000 yen and multiplied it by 5 times in one
year."
"Five times?!
That's amazing."
"No, it was just
by chance. The stocks I bought at first just because I knew the name kept going
up and up five-fold."
Even so, that's still amazing....... Most people will
take a profit somewhere before it goes all the way up.
In both investing and gambling, it remained the case
that those with money have an overwhelming advantage.
In a world where most individual investors would quit,
being able to multiply your assets by several times, even if you were lucky,
was a feat.
I too had tried to study the possibility of investing
in stocks, but it was such a complicated and strange world that I gave up,
thinking I could make a much more steady income by diving into the dungeon.
Now I have Renge's
ability so maybe I can do it, but I'm afraid that if I make a billion or so
with that...... I'll lose the desire to dive into the dungeon, and most of all,
I'm afraid that I'll get a backlash from it.
So I had no intention of getting involved in stocks or
other investments.
"You two are
awesome~ I never thought about my future~"
“E? Really? I
thought Ai wanted to be an adventurer."
"Un."
"Mm~ I'd like to
be an adventurer, but lately I've been thinking it might be impossible for me
to aim to become a professional like Onii-chan. It's a dangerous and scary
world, after all."
I was a little surprised.
I had assumed that Ai only saw the good side of being
an adventurer.
So, if she saw me and decided to become an adventurer
because she thought it would be easy, I was going to make sure to teach her
about the dangers of becoming an adventurer......
"I see, it's such
a shame~ even though you have such a great adventurer onii-chan."
"Maybe it's
because she's so close that she can see the hardships we can't.”
"Right, it should
be that. And the boys in the class are talking about becoming adventurers after
junior high school and surpassing Maromaro in no time~"
"They are the ones
who can't see reality. They're just acting cool."
"That's true~ The
other day, too, that idiot Yoshida..."
The topic then shifted to how stupid the boys in their
class were, and I laughed.
But... even elementary school kids think about a lot
of things.
When I was that age, I hadn't even thought about my
future.
In my elementary school
graduation book, what did I write for my future dream ......?
I thought about it until the ice cream melted and fell
to the ground, but I just couldn't remember.
After parting with Ai and the others, I went back to
the station area and wandered around.
As I walked around town, I noticed that there were a
variety of adventurer-related jobs.
For example, commercials on the large screens in the
buildings showed not human beings, but cards called 'talent cards' engaged in
the entertainment business. It was, of course, not the cards themselves but
their owners who received the salaries paid to these talent cards.
When [Spiritual recurrence] was first discovered and
caused a stir, I received offers from several agencies to let Renge work as a
celebrity.
A 'card producer' is a person who is paid for creating
talent cards that gain public recognition and popularity. This was also a
legitimate profession in today's world.
Take, for example, a magazine in a bookstore. The
headlines introduce a business called 'Trainers', a business that trains the
skills of the cards in its care. Although there seemed to be some trouble with
strange companies that take away your cards if you ask them to do it, I have
heard that there is a waiting list of more than half a year for a reservation
at a big company with a good reputation and a good track record, even though it
costs a lot of money.
Nurturing is a strong point of mine as an adventurer.
I am well known and trusted for my role involving the Hound Master. It would
not be impossible for me to work as a trainer.
There were also posters on the wall asking people to
join the Japan Self-Defense Forces, and there was also the option of becoming a
dealer like Tono-san. If you have a decent track record as an adventurer, there
are many universities you can go to through recommendations, and there are many
companies and institutions that conduct dungeon-related research.
Up until now, I had been rushing forward, but when I
stopped and looked around me, I realized that there were many different paths
to take.
Being an adventurer doesn't just mean diving into
dungeons and fighting in arenas.
"Huh? Maro?"
As I gazed at the scene in front of the station from
the pedestrian walkway of Hachioji Station, a voice called out to me from
behind.
I turned around at the sound of a familiar voice, and
sure enough, I found the East-West duo there.
"Higashino,
Nishida! What are you doing in Hachioji?"
Higashino answered my question,
"We came here to
go gaming. Only one arcade in Hachioji has six Merci Blood machines. What are
you doing here?"
"I'm just hanging
out. It's been a while since I've had any free time."
“You... you should have
told me you had a day off today! I would have invited you then."
"Sorry, sorry, it
was suddenly decided last night."
After apologizing briefly to Higashino, I turned to
Nishida,
"By the way...
Nishida, have you lost weight?"
Nishida grinned.
"Oh, you can tell? Actually,
Rika invited me to cosplay with her at the Winter Comiket. I don't look good
with my current body shape, so I'm on a diet and doing muscle training."
"Are you
serious.....?"
I never thought that the day would come when that fat
guy who said he had never been skinny since he was born would diet and do
muscle training, even if it was for a girlfriend......
Nishida was tall with broad shoulders, so if he lost
weight, he might look quite manly.
“Anyway, if you're not
busy, let's go to the arcade, Maro. When I'm alone with this guy, he always
inserts his love life into key moments, and it makes me want to kill him."
“Okay, okay.”
Higashino said with a wild look characteristic of a
single person, making me crack a smile, and the three of us headed for our
favorite arcade.
After that, we spent a while playing games together...
“This, this is
impossible...... I, can't even win a single match......?” Higashino couldn't
believe his eyes.
“You, when did you
practice.....? Aren't you busy being an adventurer......?” Nishida looked at me
with a fearful gaze.
Seeing the two of them, I chuckled,
"Hehehe..."
You let your guard down
huh, thinking I hadn't been playing much lately... Despite my appearance, I've
been playing games fiercely with Renge almost every night.
In the beginning, she didn't understand combos and was
just one-sidedly tortured by me - she would get into a bad mood if I played
games with her, so I had no choice but to be serious about competing with her.
As a result of learning combos and tactics, she had recently become quite
skilled.
Ever since learning Link, my dynamic visual acuity and
thinking speed have improved, and this improvement has been particularly
noticeable recently, so beating the East-West duo, who aren't even professional
gamers, was a piece of cake.
"Dammit! The
plan was to beat Maro to a pulp and make him buy drinks for us!"
“Seriously? Are you
really taking your adventuring activities seriously?”
Higashino trembled and Nishida shot me a frustrated
look.
Figured, that's what these guys were planning to do.
When the guy with the lowest winning record started talking about buying
drinks, it was certain.
"Too bad for you~
Go on, Nishida, go buy some juice. Run."
“All right...... you
two can have some oshiruko1,
right?”
“Of course not! Go get
some cold juice!"
I said and slapped Nishida on the ass.
"Hey, is something
bothering you?"
As we left the arcade and were taking a break while
drinking juice, Higashino started talking.
"Why?"
“Well, because you're
different from the usual Maro. Like you're a bit distracted..."
"Oh, that's what I
thought, too. When Maro became an adventurer, he was like this too."
"........................"
These guys are ...... incredible.
I was surprised that they were right on the money.
At the same time, I'm somehow happy that my friends
understand me so well.
Yeah... I might as well
ask for their advice.
"Hey, have you
guys thought about your future?"
“Wh, what's this, all
of a sudden... is that what you're worried about, Maro?"
“Well, something like
that.”
"Ehh... Seriously?
Even if you say that, we haven't really thought about the future either."
Right? Higashino asked Nishida, seeking his agreement, but...
"No? I want to
make a living as an illustrator in the future."
"Whaaat?!"
Nishida's answer made Higashino look as if he had
somehow suffered a terrible betrayal.
“Hee... I know you draw
illustrations, Nishida, .....but you were trying to be a pro?”
"Yeah, I guess.
I'm thinking of starting out by working on light novels or mobile games, and
eventually, I'd like to work on game production."
"By game
production, do you mean joining such a company as an exclusive artist?"
"No, if possible,
I'd like to start out as a doujin artist with like-minded friends and
eventually turn it into a company."
"For real?"
I could not hide my surprise that he was thinking more
concretely than I had expected.
“If you're going to go
so far as to say that, then maybe you've already started?"
"Well, posting
pictures on social media is part of that. After all, when it comes to starting
from doujinshi, the power of the drawings is important, so I thought I'd start
building a fanbase now. As for programming, Rika is planning to go to a vocational
school after she graduates from high school, and I am planning to join the
illustration department at the same school and create a club there ....... That
would be ideal for now."
"Ohhhh! You,
that's amazing! If you can, let me in on it too."
"In fact, I want
you to help out, Maro. The first work is going to be about adventurers.
Supervision? Is that
what you call it? I'd be happy if you could do something like that."
"Ooh, I'll do it,
I'll do it. Just make sure my name is in the final credits."
"On the contrary,
I'd appreciate it. That way we can say it was supervised by an actual
adventurer."
Then Nishida asked as if he had just remembered,
“Ah, but, why are you
bringing this up?”
"Oh...
actually——"
I told them about the conversation with Teacher from
the other day, blurring parts here and there.
"...I see, that's
a difficult topic."
Higashino crossed his arms with a serious look upon
hearing what I had to say.
"An adventurer's
goals and objectives... I mean, it's beyond my imagination. Sorry, I'm not much
help. All I can say is that it's best to do what Maro wants to do......."
"Yeah, I know.
Thank you."
I smiled at Higashino, who had painstakingly delivered
a few simple words, then turned my attention to Nishida, who was also thinking
with a serious expression on his face.
Unlike Higashino, who hadn't given much thought to his
future, I had high hopes for Nishida, who was working hard toward his goals.
After waiting for a while for an answer, Nishida, who
seemed to have put his thoughts together in his head, began to open his mouth,
“Hmm...... how should I
put it, you said that you've been moving your goal each time, but that's not
necessarily a bad thing, is it?”
"You mean?”
“Uh. For example, my
goal is to start a game company, but that's not the end, it's just the starting
point in a way, right?
Then the next goal is to produce a hit game, but that
doesn't mean the end if I produce a huge game, does it?
Some people may be satisfied with that, but usually
people want to produce another hit one after another, don't they?
If anything, I think it's bad to set a goal where you
want it to be the end......"
"......!"
My eyes widened at Nishida's words.
The bad side of setting a final goal ....... It was an
eye-opener for me, because I had been thinking that I had to have a specific
end goal.
Nishida continued.
"Well, I don't
know much about the world of adventurers, so I don't really understand, but...
I think you are confusing objectives with final goals, Maro.
You want to be an adventurer...or rather, you want to
be involved with cards for the rest of your life, right?
In that case, isn't that what life is all about?
Isn't life a place
where you have objectives, but no goal?"
No goal...
"I don't want to
see Maro decide that his destination is somewhere, reach the goal, and then get
burned out."
No matter what you say,
you're our hero after all...
Nishida said embarrassedly, and I also felt
embarrassed and looked down.
Higashino then said playfully, trying to dispel the
naive atmosphere,
"...But you guys,
can you stop talking about your futures and stuff like that? It's making me
nervous."
I turned my eyes to cast a blank look at Higashino,
"No, Higashino,
you should think about it a little bit......"
"We're already in
our second year of high school and it's time to think about what we're going to
do."
"A lot of the guys
in our class are going to summer classes at cram schools this summer."
"I'm just hanging
out with you, so I shouldn't say anything, but if you're not planning on
working after high school, wouldn't you be better off studying?"
"Aaaaah! I don't
want to hear it!"
Higashino covered his ears and shouted.
But we relentlessly chase after him.
"While you cover
your ears, close your eyes and try to escape reality, the reality is moving
forward, you know?"
“In his senior year of
high school, he frantically studied for the university entrance exam but failed
to get into the school of his choice, and his parents would not allow him to
enter a lower-tiered school, so he had no choice but to become a ronin2.
He was told to put money into his house while he was a ronin, so he started
working part-time, but eventually, he became a freelancer instead of studying.
He received a notice from a classmate from his high school days about a
reunion, but he didn't want to let his freelance status be known, so he chose
not to attend. As he did so, he became less and less able to keep up with his
old friends, and as he got older, it became harder and harder for him to keep
up the part-time job......"
“Stooooopp!! I
mean, forget about me! I was listening to your story and I was thinking, what
happened to Ushikura-san? That was, frankly, Maro's initial motivation for
becoming an adventurer, right?!"
"Ugh...!"
The unexpected blowback made me recoil.
"Ushikura-san...
how should I put it, the closer we get to each other, the more I feel an
insurmountable wall between us..."
“Oh,...... I can sort
of understand that. Ushikura-san is very friendly, but there is a sense in
which she draws a line around her."
“I mean, Ushikura-san
probably isn’t interested in guys…to be honest—”
“Oo, no, stop right
there!”
I stopped Nishida as he was about to say the forbidden
word.
"Don't go any
further... please."
"O, oh ......
sorry.”
“Well, it's
Schrödinger's cat until you hear it from her own mouth......"
Higashino was right.
Even if Ushikura-san is not interested in guys, there
is a particulate level of possibility for me until I hear it from her mouth.
......I don't have the courage to confirm that,
though.
"What do you say? Another
round?”
Higashino, looking at his watch, asked.
"I've had enough
of fighting games. Maro has gotten so strong. Let's play Card Master."
"We can win at
Card Master. Maro is a weakling."
"What the hell!
I'll show you the power of my money-rich deck that I put together!"
“Poor Maro...... you've
lost the heart of a boy who makes do with a deck on his meager
allowance....."
"Let's show Maro,
who's starting to rely on the power of rare cards, the importance of strategy
and deck concept, Nishida."
————That night, I pulled out my elementary school
graduation book and read the section on future dreams.
It said, "I want to become an adventurer, collect
my favorite cards, and make the best deck."
[TIPS] Item Drops
At the C-rank floor of the dungeon and above, monsters
you defeat will drop magic items in addition to magic stones and cards.
The drop rate is 10%, which is not low by any means,
and the value of the items dropped is of a certain quality depending on the
rank of the monster, making it a major source of income for the professional
class.
Among the items dropped by monsters, there are
occasionally rare items known as rare drops, and while most of these are traded
at high prices, some are priced low because no one knows what their use is.
Since the discovery of [Spiritual recurrence], it has
been determined that those junk items could be of use as key items, thus the
number of such items has decreased considerably, but there is still a certain
amount of junk items.
Items larger than a certain size appear as cards, but
items up to the size of a human being are dropped as they are, making the
transportation method for them a headache for the professional class.
***
Notes:
1 Red bean soup. The vending machine will give you the canned, hot ones.↩
2 Ronin students are people who prepare themselves for the college entrance examination for the next year. The name ronin derives from masterless samurai in the feudal era of Japan. The ronin students belong to neither a high school nor a college and thus are similarly masterless. ↩
[ANNOUNCEMENT]
We decided to have a GOAL starting
now:
IF WE EARN $225/month
for AT LEAST 3 MONTHS STRAIGHT from Patreon membership, WE WILL ADD ANOTHER
ADVANCED CHAPTER ON EACH TIER on our Patreon!
We set the “earning visibility” public so you can
always see it.
More people joining means more advanced chapters for you Patreon members!
Previous chapter | Novel page | Next chapter
Please help
us out and get Advanced Chapters on our Patreon!
Or you can
keep our spirit up by buying us Coffee (人ゝω・）
