I take the breakfast, which consists of bread and canned food, from the backpack. For now, I hide the existence of the Item Box. That"s precisely why I bring along the backpack anyway. There"s already that event which happened near the home center, so it"s better to avoid being suspected. Momo is hiding in the shadow while Aka is mimicking.
I judged that it would be best to hide them as well. After all, owning a dog which could use skills and a slime which could mimic might make her wary of us. This is especially true with what happened with the monster tamer.
"Breakfast…"
Seeing the bread and canned food, Rikkchan"s stomach growls. Her cheeks burn red. She must be famished. She then turns towards me, making an expression which seems to ask, Who is this? From her perspective, I must be someone she"s not yet familiar with.
"h.e.l.lo and good morning. I"m getting the food ready, so please wait a moment."
"Eh? Okay…?"
Rikkchan stands up while having a question mark floating on top of her head. While she is doing so, Ichinose-san wakes up from her stunned state.
"Huh? Where am I?"
"Good morning, Ichinose-san."
"Ah, yes, Ka… Good morning, Kudou-san."
Well, this is the second time though. Let"s not remind her about her near death experience just now.
"Eh? Natsun"s acquaintance?"
"Ah, good morning to you as well, Ricchan. How are your injuries?"
"Eh, ah…. Un."
"That"s good."
Ignoring Rikkchan"s confused look, Ichinose-san pats her nonexistent chest in relief. Looking here and there, Ichinose-san"s eyes land on mine. She must have realized that Momo and Aka aren"t present.
(Please keep them a secret for now.)
(I understand.)
We communicate through eye contact. I"ve told her about this before as well. She must have understood why I"m hiding them. Finis.h.i.+ng the preparations for breakfast, I take a seat.
"Here. Please have some."
Rikkchan goes silent for a while before reaching out for her food upon seeing Ichinose-san eat.
"! This is delicious…"
Rikkchan begins to eat faster. She must have been quite hungry. Later on, she tells me that she has not eaten proper food for the past 5 days. With tears in her eyes, she devours the bread and canned peaches.
"I have extras. Do you want them?"
"That!" (nod nod)
She calms down after taking a break and drinking the after-meal coffee that I brewed. Caressing her stomach, she appears satisfied.
"Ah, that was amazing! Thanks for the food!"
Where did your initial wariness fly off to? By the time she finishes her food, Rikkchan is smiling happily. Now then, we are finally ready to have a proper conversation. I explain the situation to Rikkchan. About how Ichinose-san was my companion and about how we arrived here. I might have been suspected if I was alone, but with Ichinose-san besides me, things were better. In fact, Rikkchan believes my word completely. I blur out the details about the Item Box, Momo, and Aka.
"I see. Natsun must have had it rough as well…"
"Yes. But I had Kudou-san with me, so I was okay… but it must have been difficult for you."
"Well, kind of. I"m separated from Niss.h.i.+, and I have no idea where s.h.i.+bachi and Ono are."
Rikkchan also told us how they came here. She talked about being attacked by the high orc, being saved by an unknown individual (me), meeting with Is.h.i.+kawsan and the monster tamer, and arriving at the school. Her explanation was easy to picture. Is her original communication skill helping her out with the explanation? I"m jealous. If it was Ichinose-san, she would have definitely fallen ill or bitten her tongue in the middle of her story.
"I see… so, what will Aisaksan be doing from now on?"
"What will I be doing?"
"You have companions right? Are you going to look for them?"
"Well, yes, I guess… but… I don"t know where they are or how to communicate with them…"
Indeed, the world right now is inconvenient because we do not have access to phones or the internet. Even so, skills can be used as subst.i.tutes.
"In that case, I have a solution. If you look at the list of skills you can acquire, do you have something called "Mail" available?"
"M-mail?"
Rikkchan checks her status table while tilting her head.
"Oh, there really is something called "Mail" here."
"It"s a skill which allows you to contact people in remote locations. If the recipient doesn"t have this skill, the conversation would only proceed one way. However, as long as the recipient also possesses the skill, communicating with each other possible."
"Hee…. But why do I have this?"
"Yesterday, you should have received a mail from Ichinose-san. Once you receive a mail from someone, it becomes possible to obtain."
"Ah, now that you mention it… So that was Natsun. Thank you, Natsun."
"Un."
"Do you have spare SP? Just 1 point is needed to activate it."
"I have them. I gained two levels from yesterday."
Rikkchan operates the status plate quickly and taps on the screen.
"Wow, this is amazing. There"s even an address book. This really is similar to a smartphone. Natsun and onii-san"s names are on there. Ah, I see Niss.h.i.+"s as well. Hey, Natsun, can I send you a message as a test?"
"Uh, yeah…"
Rikkchan seems happy about the new skill as she exchanges mails with Ichinose-san. I also wanted to exchange mails like this. Receiving 47 mails nonstop. That was really an unpleasant situation.
"This skill is really useful. Hey, onii-san, can I send you messages as well?"
"Yes, I don"t mind."
So Rikkchan will address me as onii-san? Hmmm, there"s something about being called onii-san by a high school girl with big b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Fufu. Even the announcement which says "You have received a mail" sounds pleasing. I feel like my trauma is being purified…
"Kudou-san, what are you thinking right now?"
"That…"
I feel a chill running across my back. I turn around to see Ichinose-san staring at me with half her eyes open.
"Nothing. Now, you should have finished testing out the skill. If you use this, don"t you think you can unite with Nis.h.i.+no-kun and the others?"
"Yes, that"s right, but…"
Rikkchan looks at Ichinose-san.
"Hey, what are you going to do now?"
"Eh? Me? Uh… I… Hot!"
Due to suddenly changing the topic of our discussion, Ichinose-san spills her coffee. Because of her inability to communicate, it isn"t rare for her to panic when the subject of the discussion s.h.i.+fts abruptly.
"Are you okay? So you haven"t fixed that habit of yours."
"It"s not so easy to fix! I can only speak normally to Ricchan and Kudou-san…"
"Kudou-san, is it…hmmm"
While wiping the coffee, Ichinose-san looks at me.
"Kudou-san… what will we do now?"
"About that… I was thinking of going to the central market or the agricultural cooperative as originally planned."
Coming to the school was just a side trip, so we should now start to secure supplies and search for a safe base. I don"t know if there is anywhere safe in this world filled with monsters, but it"s too early to give up without trying. There may be places similar to a "Safety Zone".
"Then, then---"
"Let"s bring along Aisaksan?"
I finish what Ichinose-san plans to say. Ichinose-san nods. Rikkchan"s expression also becomes brighter. She should be worried about Nis.h.i.+no-kun, but as I thought, she wants to be with Ichinose-san.
"It"s okay if it"s Ricchan… I guarantee it."
Ichinose-san says so before bowing her head. I guess she trust her very much. She stares at me with sincere eyes. After a while of staring, I sigh deeply.
"… Okay. If you"re willing to say that much…Is this okay for you guys?"
When I ask, my shadow and my hood trembles. They both seem to give their consent.
"Onii-san, who are you talking to?"
"Aisaksan, I"ve kept this a secret from you, but we still have other companions."
"Is, is that so?"
"Yes, I"ll introduce them to you now. However, please don"t attack them in surprise."
Rikkchan doesn"t understand what I"m saying and tilts her head.
"Momo, Aka, come out."
The shadow near my feet spreads open while the hood of my clothes changes shape. Momo and Aka appear.
"Wan!"
"Furu Furu."
Rikkchan"s eyes opens wide at the two"s sudden appearance.
"What is this cute doggy? And did she just come out of your feet? … And, uh, a slime? What?"
Umu, this child"s reactions are always so exaggerated. Leaving that aside, thank you for the shaking. I won"t say what"s shaking, but thank you regardless.
"I"ll be introducing them to you. This dog is Momo, and the slime is Aka. They"re our precious companions."
"Companions? The doggy aside, is the slime also your friend?"
"Yes. Both Aka and Momo are our companions."
Rikkchan"s mouth opens wide in surprise.
"Ha, haha, this is surprising in various aspects… Natsun"s friends are amazing…"
"Un, I think so too."
Ichinose-san smiles bitterly while stroking Momo. Rikkchan also strokes Momo and touches Aka.
"So soft…! This is bad… the doggy is too cute~!"
Apparently, she seems to accept them despite her shock. She hugs Aka tightly and enjoys the feeling. Purunpurun. Pyonpyon… Thank you for the meal.
"Well then, Aisaksan. Please message Nis.h.i.+no-kun. Also, please tell us about your skills and lev---"
"Hm? What"s wrong, Kudou-san? Ah? Momo-chan?"
Responding to my movement, Momo leaps off from Ichinose-san"s lap and runs up to me.
""Enemy Detection" is reacting. There"s a monster nearby."
When I say so, the tension suddenly rises. Ichinose-san grabs her gun silently while Aka and Momo enters combat mode. Rikkchan also readies her weapon.
"Please stay where you are for now. I"ll go check."
The reaction isn"t coming from within the building, but rather from outside. Since the sun has risen, monsters should have become more active. But… why do I feel uneasy? Its presence feels strange for a monster. However, at the same time, I"m sure it"s not a human… what is it? From the opening of a wall, I carefully look outside.
"What… is that?"
My eyes become round upon witnessing the scene.