Conversely, if the other party suggested the discount, it was easier for him to accept. And at present, he was uncertain how much her information and his protection were actually worth—so the way he saw it, the two canceled out. He was also well aware that strength in numbers was the key to survival in these ruins, and that traveling together would increase those chances exponentially. Seeing that they both understood this, he could trust her enough to accept her offer.

  Of course, he did have other options. Killing her, for one. In his old life, where being “friendly” only meant that you weren’t an enemy for the time being, this would have certainly been the more reasonable option.

  But Akira no longer lived in the back alleys of the slums, and since escaping that world, he had broadened his horizons somewhat. He now knew there were other paths available, like distancing himself from her in order to avoid conflict. And now that he’d grown stronger from overcoming countless hardships, met a variety of people, and had all kinds of new experiences, he’d learned that not everything was black-and-white—just because someone wasn’t an ally didn’t necessarily mean they were hostile. Thus Akira had been able to open himself up to others a bit more, allowing him to go along with Carol’s suggestion.

  Yet all this took place only within his subconscious—Akira himself didn’t notice the change. So when Alpha grilled him on his reasoning, he could only reply that he “kinda felt like it.”

  Even Alpha hadn’t picked up on the fact that there was a reason Akira himself didn’t know. But she could at least tell he wasn’t lying (she was astounding at detecting lies from humans, after all), so she just chalked it up to one of Akira’s whims.

  I see. Well, Carol doesn’t seem to have it in for you, so as long as that capriciousness of yours doesn’t lead to a fight to the death, I don’t see any reason to refuse her request for protection.

  As she spoke, Alpha gave him a knowing grin. Akira didn’t get why at first, but then remembered that he’d previously been seconds away from fighting Shiori in the underground ruins of Kuzusuhara, and that the catalyst back then had also been a request to be someone’s bodyguard—Reina’s.

  Fine, fine. I’ll be careful this time, Akira said with a grimace, pushing that incident out of his mind to avoid dwelling on his past mistakes.

  The more Carol learned about Akira, the more mysterious he seemed. Hmm, as I thought, he really doesn’t look that impressive. I wonder why? Is it just because he’s a kid, or is something else going on? While she couldn’t go so far as to say that he looked like a weakling, he certainly didn’t look strong—at least not strong enough to tackle these ruins on his own.

  “Hey, Akira, how old are you anyway?” she asked nonchalantly.

  “Hm? Dunno,” he replied.

  “Classified, eh? Well, if you want to keep it to yourself, that’s fine. I don’t go around telling people my age either, since keeping it secret’s more convenient for my other job. Usually I just pick a number my client’s into and go with that.” Carol thought that Akira was playing dumb because he didn’t want to answer, and she brushed it off with a grin.

  But Akira shook his head. “No, I really don’t know how old I am. I don’t know my birthday either. I don’t even know whether I forgot it, or simply didn’t know from the start.”

  Carol deduced that Akira must’ve been born in the slums. And since she knew many slum children considered their upbringing a touchy subject, she decided to not pry any further. “Okay, then how long have you been a relic hunter?”

  “Oh...” He hesitated before answering, and when he did, it sounded evasive. “Well, you know, not too long. At least, it feels like I only started just yesterday.”

  So he had immediately admitted that he didn’t know his age, but seemed reluctant to answer how long he’d been a hunter. Carol wasn’t really surprised, though. “Becoming a hunter” could mean different things to different people, like the day you registered yourself as a relic hunter in the Office’s records, the first day you went out to the wasteland, or the day you reached rank 10 and became official. There were those who’d already headed into a ruin fully armed before they’d registered as a hunter, and others who didn’t count anything before becoming rank 10 as “true” hunter work. Some purists would even treat other fledgling hunters as “impostors” before they met certain criteria regardless of how much effort the newcomers had already put in. (In fact, this was a common cause of many arguments between hunters.)

  Carol guessed that Akira was being so cagey because something similar had happened in his past, likely brought on by his youthful appearance. Still, he’d admitted that he hadn’t been hunting for very long, and since he didn’t give her the impression he was lying, he was probably as young as he seemed. In other words, he wasn’t using an artificial body or physical augmentations to make himself look younger.

  “Really?” she said. “Then you must still be a rookie. Which, in my book, makes your strength all the more impressive.”

  “It’s not that big of a deal. I just got lucky in a number of ways.” Akira found her overt praise hard to accept at face value, but it would have been far too unnatural to deny it at this point. So he just waved it away as a matter of luck.

  Carol, of course, thought he was just being modest. “Well, even being lucky is a type of strength, no? Hunters aren’t guaranteed a tomorrow, so power like that is extremely valuable.”

  “Then considering our current situation, that ‘strength’ of mine must’ve caused yours to take a hit,” he said with a self-deprecating smirk. Akira supposed that Carol’s luck had gotten worse because of his presence.

  But Carol gave him a winsome grin. “Well, that’s not the attitude I want to hear from my bodyguard. You ought to be telling me instead what good fortune I had to meet up with you!”

  Akira looked at Carol in surprise. She just smiled cheerfully again, at which Akira managed to at least raise the corners of his mouth.

  Alpha, I know I already agreed to do this, but I’ll be able to handle it, right?

  Alpha didn’t look worried in the least—on the contrary, she seemed quite pleased. No problem! Dangers of this level are practically a daily occurrence, right? After all you’ve been through, this hardly even qualifies as bad luck.

  Good point! Akira looked more upbeat and, as if to scoff at this low level of misfortune, fired himself up. “All right, then! You were lucky to run across me, Carol! I’ll protect you!”

  “Ooh, now that’s more like it!” Seeing Akira’s renewed enthusiasm, Carol thought he finally seemed a little more reliable, albeit a bit childlike. For the first time, she could genuinely believe that, despite their situation, they might actually make it out alive.

  ◆

  And as they made their way through the factory district, Akira’s prowess ended up exceeding her expectations.

  While they didn’t encounter another horde of mechanical guards, they were attacked by several smaller groups of formidable robots and even tougher individual units along the way. But Akira dispatched them with ease. Thanks to Alpha’s vigilance, he quickly spotted and then destroyed them in a hail of concentrated DVTS gunfire, piercing their tough armor. For the larger groups, he first took out their machine guns to get rid of their long-range attacks, then knocked out their legs one by one to immobilize them. Once they were sitting ducks, Carol would deal the finishing blow. In no time at all, the ground was littered with such quantities of scrap metal that Akira’s true strength became manifestly clear.

  “It’s not like I doubted you or anything, but wow, you really are strong!” she marveled.

  “You think so? Well, if taking down monsters this weak is worth twenty million to you, then no complaints here!”

  Seeing Akira’s self-assurance, Carol hesitated to say what was on her mind, but finally she came out with it. “Ah, well, I’m not complaining or anything, but are you really gonna carry that bag the whole way back with you?” She cast a gaze toward the spare pack Akira had been dragging all this time.

  Akira’s smile stiffened, and he cast a look in the same direction. The relic inside was his hard-earned prize for all he’d weathered today. “I-Is there a problem with that?” he asked.

  “W-Well, not really a problem, per se, but if you’re going to protect me, I’d like you to be able to fight at your full potential. But, you know, it’s not like I can force you or anything.” Seeing Akira’s forlorn expression, Carol backpedaled a bit.

  It was true—the pack had prevented Akira from fighting at his fullest. Since he was dragging it with one hand, he only had his other free hand to fight with, so he couldn’t dual-wield weapons like normal. Of course, he was still plenty capable, and the fact that he was still able to fight as well as he did impressed Carol all the same. Still, she couldn’t help but think he’d be able to fight even better if he ditched the pack, since it was clearly just hampering his performance.

  But Akira wasn’t a surveyor like her, and he had to bring home some relics of value—or else this entire hunt would be a wash. Even the twenty-million-aurum information he would receive from Carol for protecting her wasn’t tangible money he could use to replace his ammo—and he wasn’t sure whether the data was really worth her hefty price tag in the first place. He couldn’t abandon the only thing he’d found of actual monetary worth, in case she turned out to be scamming him.

  Carol understood this too, which was why she hadn’t forced him to drop the pack. And for his part, Akira couldn’t bring himself to immediately refuse her. He’d accepted the job to be her bodyguard, so part of him thought he ought to perform it to the best of his ability, unburdened. But at the same time, he didn’t want to give up the relic he’d gone through so much trouble to get. And he was managing just fine with one hand for the time being. So he felt somewhat conflicted.

  Alpha, do you think I can do my job properly if I keep this with me?

  For now. But if it becomes a problem, you really should just ditch it.

  I was hoping I’d have your ultra-awesome support to rely on so I wouldn’t have to...

  I’ll do all I can—but if you manage to somehow get out of your depth regardless, I’d recommend leaving it behind and focusing on survival. I understand how you feel, but your safety takes priority. On that, I will not compromise.

  That left Akira no room to argue. Urgh... Fine.

  Instead of hoping I’ll bail you out, she added, you should be hoping that your bad luck doesn’t lead you somewhere so tough that you need to abandon the pack.

  Ha... Can’t argue with that. While he’d been able earlier to laugh away the misfortune of encountering the swarm, now he imagined the scenario Alpha had just detailed—and was only able to manage a grim smile. Putting the ominous thought out of his mind and focusing on the task at hand instead, he pressed onward.

  Seeing his hesitation and then decision to keep dragging the pack along, Carol also figured there was no helping it and followed along.

  Carol led the way as they continued through the Mihazono factory district. They ran into several groups of monsters here and there, but none of them were a problem. Still, the more Akira fought, the more puzzled his expression became.

  “Hey Carol,” he finally asked. “I feel like we’re going deeper into the ruins. Is there really a back exit this far in?”

  “Sure is! It’s just over there,” she said, pointing. “Oh, I probably should’ve mentioned this before, but it’s not technically a back exit. There’s no hidden passage or anything.”

  “Huh? Then what is it?”

  “It’d be faster for you to just see for yourself. We’re almost there, so just bear with me a bit more.”

  “Ugh... Fine.” If it was just a bit longer, Akira could hold out.

  And true to her word, only a short time later Carol turned to him, looking smug.

  “We’re here. This is it.”

  Akira ran his eyes over the place, perplexed. What he saw was completely different from what he’d expected. They were in a large supply depot that resembled a loading dock in a harbor. Nearly every inch of the surrounding walls were covered in large corridors where huge bins were making their way in and out. Akira and Carol had also entered this space through one of those corridors.

  On the ground floor, giant containers were lined up neatly in rows. Suddenly, one of them floated up into the air.

  “Wh-What the heck?!” Akira couldn’t take his eyes off the bin as it climbed higher and higher into the air until he could no longer see it at all.

  Carol grinned as if amused. “Cool, huh? These are used to transport goods. Stuff manufactured in the factories can be shipped outside in them.”

  “Huh? So Old World containers can just fly on their own? Since it’s the Old World, though, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”

  “Hmm, it’s a little bit more nuanced than that—but for a quick and dirty explanation, that works for now. This way, Akira. It’s dangerous here, so be careful. Stick close to me and don’t wander off.”

  As Carol led Akira through the terminal, he saw new containers being carried through the countless corridors all the while. A cart with a number of wheeled legs traveled along a catwalk to drop one bin off in midair. After unloading its cargo, the cart dexterously scuttled back into the corridor. The container then made its way horizontally through the air before stopping in the middle of the room, then descended on its own to its designated spot on the loading ground. The entire process fascinated Akira, and he stood entranced.

  So this is how an Old World factory operates? This is amazing? Although maybe for the Old World it’s no big deal? Well, I’ve never seen a New World factory either, come to think of it.

  Akira, we didn’t come here to sightsee, Alpha admonished him lightly. So stop gawking and focus on your surroundings. If you get distracted, it’ll hamper your combat ability. Right now we need to concentrate on getting out of here.

  Good point. All right. Akira turned to focus on the task at hand, but then thought of something else. Wait, he observed to himself. Alpha doesn’t seem impressed by any of this at all. Maybe she’s just not interested in mechanics? Or perhaps she’s so used to such things that this doesn’t faze her? I wonder which it is? He got the feeling it was the latter, but stopped his train of thought there. The more he thought about it, the more misgivings he’d have about Alpha, none of which would benefit him in the end. In order to avoid finding reasons to doubt her, and thus drive some sort of irreversible wedge between them, Akira stayed silent for the time being.

  Suddenly, Carol stopped in her tracks and looked toward an area where Akira couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. After staring motionless for a moment, she nodded. “Okay, this is it.”

  Akira found her behavior puzzling, but Carol turned to him with another smug grin. Her hand grabbed something in midair and pulled it toward them. The next instant a strange rift opened up in Akira’s vision. He stood dumbstruck as the hole expanded, until finally he realized the “rift” was a doorway and found himself looking into a container he hadn’t even realized was there.

  “What the hell...?”

  Looks like that bin’s covered in optical camouflage, and Carol just opened it, Alpha explained.

  Akira reached toward the large invisible box. He could definitely feel something there. “Whoa, so this is optical camouflage? Cool!” Hardly believing his eyes, he walked closer to the box, took a closer look, and touched it again. It felt like he was touching clear glass, completely imperceptible to the outside—very high-tech.

  “Satisfied? All right, get in!” Carol, looking pleased, urged him forward.

  Akira stepped in, and after following him, Carol shut the door behind them, concealing the container’s existence from the outside world once more.

  Surprisingly, the inside of the bin was spacious enough to house an entire desert utility vehicle with room to spare. Parts of the walls and ceiling were adorned with optical camouflage, effectively creating windows that showed the view outside. Akira found this intriguing as well.

  “So this is the exit you mentioned?”

  “Yep! It’s one of the transport passageways that goes through the factory district. In other words, we’re going to ride in this container as it makes its way out of here.”

  “Oh, gotcha!”

  Akira sounded impressed, which pleased Carol as she explained further: Even after hunters carried off relics in a ruin, plenty of areas would automatically replenish their treasures after a period of time. The autorestoration system would replace the stolen relics. But these would only rarely be remanufactured on-site. In most cases, they were created elsewhere and then brought in—via these containers.

  “And so,” Carol added, “whatever their original purposes, these compartments filled with relics travel by air to reach their destinations. And this network of flight paths covers the skies of the entire East. Sometimes the relics are also carried through underground transportation routes. Apparently, they’re only rarely distributed through normal means on land.”

  “Really? Why’s that?”

  “Probably because it’d be a mess—thanks to hunters as well as monsters. Since the containers are invisible, anyone could accidentally crash into one of them on the road.”

  While the camouflage used on the containers was rather high-quality, it wasn’t foolproof—it could still be detected by a powerful enough scanner. Most hunters didn’t have scanners of that level, though, and without them it would have been impossible to tell when a concealed container was on the road. Nor were the wasteland roads maintained to begin with. Air transport, however, circumvented the issue entirely.

  Akira nodded. “Ah, I see. Yeah, in the air they’d definitely be less likely to cause problems.”

  Just then, the floor beneath him trembled slightly. Alarmed, he looked around, and saw through the windows that the scenery outside was starting to drop away. They were rising.

  “Wh-Whoa, we’re floating through the air...”

  “This one’s headed for the business district. You saw those containers hovering back there, right? They travel along invisible, predetermined routes.” She breathed a sigh of relief. “So now we can relax. We’re safe.”

 

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