Chapter 50: Sumire Marking Her Territory
ICDS Universe, Earth, Japan, Tokyo.
After casting [Return], Tatsuo appeared in his bedroom in the next instant. And the first thing he did was take off his cowl. After that, he took his smartphone out of his [Inventory], and sent Sumire a text.
Soramoto Tatsuo: I'm back at home.
Minami Sumire: Okay. We'll fly back to Tokyo soon.
Minami Sumire: That was amazing how you dealt with all those people.
Minami Sumire: But why didn't you beat that last lady? Did you think she was pretty? Is that why you didn't beat her up, too?
Seeing Sumire's last message, Tatsuo could not help but start to smile.
"Haha... Sumire-San is jealous." Tatsuo thought to himself. "That's kinda cute."
Despite having that thought, Tatsuo replied to Sumire's text quickly.
Soramoto Tatsuo: No, there was another reason for that.
Soramoto Tatsuo: I'll tell you about it when you get back.
Minami Sumire: Okay.
Minami Sumire: Nee-San and I will be there soon.
Seeing Sumire's last messages, Tatsuo smiled. He wasn't even so bothered by the fact that Hwaya would be coming with her. Although he still would not call Hwaya a friend, he did not have as much of a problem with her. As long as she could keep her pride and superiority complex in check when she was with him, that is.
"Alright, I guess I'll get cleaned up." Tatsuo said to himself as he put his smartphone down.
After that, Tatsuo unequipped the [Azure Green-Scaled Body Suit] and [Fluttering Feathers]. Then, he took off his clothes and put them in the washing machine. Once all that was done, Tatsuo treated himself to a nice hot shower and a long, relaxing bath.
About forty-five minutes later, Tatsuo finally came out of the bathroom. And the first thing he did was pick up his smartphone. When he did, he saw a text from Sumire that said she and Hwaya would arrive at his apartment in about three hours.
"She sent that text about twenty minutes ago." Tatsuo said to himself. So, I have a little more than two and a half hours to kill. What should I do until they get here?"
While Tatsuo considered what to do, his gaze passed over his piano. Then, with a happy smile, he made his way over to the piano bench and flipped the key lid. After that, he started playing the piano and training his [Pianist Skill] by injecting his [Energy] into the piano while he played.
Two hours later, Tatsuo finally stopped playing and flipped the key lid back down. Then, he thought of what he should do for the remaining time.
*Growl!*
At that moment, Tatsuo's stomach growled, reminding himthat he had not eaten in a while. So, he picked up his smartphone and ordered some sushi to be delivered.
"It should get here around the same time as the girls." Tatsuo said after placing his order. "I guess I'll circulate my [Energy] while I wait for either the food or the girls to get here."
And Tatsuo did exactly that. However, he did not make much progress before receiving a text letting him know that Sumire and Hwaya had arrived.
Getting up, Tatsuo made his way towards the elevator to let the girls upstairs.
"I haven't checked either my [Status] or Dungeon Explorer Status in a while." Tatsuo thought aloud. "I wonder how much progress I've made. Though, I haven't leveled up in awhile, I take some time to circulate my [Energy] every day. So, there should be some progress in that regard."
With that thought, Tatsuo checked his [Status] and Dungeon Explorer Status, starting with the Dungeon Explorer Status first.
{Dungeon Explorer Status
Name: Soramoto Tatsuo
Race: Human
Sex: Male
Class: Dimensional Assassin
Title: Lizard Knight Slayer (All Stats +1)
Rank: Silver 1
Level: 21
HP: 3530/3530
MP: 3270/3270
Strength: 60
Dexterity: 87
Constitution: 57
Intelligence: 53
Magic: 140
Charm: 310
Luck: 154
Skills
High-Ranked Martial Arts Technique: Lv. 5
High-Ranked Dagger Mastery: Lv. 8
High-Ranked Marksman Technique: Lv. 2
Overwhelm: Lv. 3
Spatial Mastery; Low-Rank: Lv. 4
Return: Lv. 1
Lightning Speed: Lv. 1
Class Skills
Blink; Low-Rank: Lv. 6
Spatial Slash; Low-Rank: Lv. 7
Enhanced Stealth: Low-Rank Lv. 9
Spatial Rend; Low-Rank: Lv. 3
Back Stab; Low-Rank: Lv. 6}
Seeing his Dungeon Explorer Status, Tatsuo was happy with his Attribute growth. However, the lack of Skill growth was a bit disappointing.
"Well, I guess I should have expected that." Tatsuo muttered in a downcast tone. "I haven't been in any fights that made me go out in a long time. So, of course they wouldn't improve."
After that, he checked out his [System Status]. And like with the Dungeon Explorer Status, only the attributes had improved, leaving the [Skills] at the same rank as the last time he checked.
{[Status]
[Personal Information]
Name: Soramoto Tatsuo
Age: 15
Race: Human/???
Title: ???
Coins: 449,275
[Physical Attributes]
Comprehensive Physical Evaluation: C-
Strength: C-
Agility: C-
Dexterity: C-
Endurance: C-
Intelligence: C-
Perception: C-
Energy: C
Charm: B
[Skills]
Language: E+
Pianist: D
Singing: E+
Vale Tudo: D
Weapon Mastery: D
Dagger Master: D+
Firearms Mastery: D-
Cooking: F+
First Aid: E-
Hacking: D
Stealth: C+
Blacksmithing: C-
Leatherworking: D+
Tailoring: D+
Programming: E+
Blink: D+
Spatial Slash: D+
Spatial Rend: D
Return: S-
Back Stab: E
Enchanting: C+
Lightning Speed: C-
[Abilities]
Mana Reactor: A+
???: ???
[Note: The average values of an average adult are F+. Trained Athletes have values of E-. Those at the peak of their field have values of E. Those at the peak of humanity have values of E+. Anything D- or higher is considered supernatural, usually requiring the infusion of mana or an equivalent energy to achieve.]}
"*Sigh* Not much improvement here, either." Tatsuo muttered. "Well, at least my [Intelligence] and [Perception] went up. Now, I'm at least C—Rank across the board."
By the time he finished checking the two statuses, Tatsuo had entered the elevator and pressed the button for the bottom floor. And in less than a minute, the elevator doors opened and he saw Hwaya and Sumire waiting in the lobby.
"Hey, you're here." Tatsuo said with a smile. "Come on up, I ordered some food. It should be here soon, too."
As if they were waiting for Tatsuo to say that, the sliding glass doors of the apartment building opened. Through them, a delivery person wearing the uniform of the best sushi restaurant in the area entered the lobby.
Seeing that, Tatsuo's eyes lit up. And before the delivery person could page his apartment, Tatsuo left the elevator and made his way over to the pretty teenage girl.
"Hey, is that delivery for Soramoto?" Tatsuo asked.
Immediately, the girl turned away from the reception desk when she heard the voice. And when she saw Tatsuo's handsome face, her eyes lit up and she started blushing.
'O.M.G., he's so hot!' The delivery girl exclaimed internally. 'I wonder how old he is, and does he have a girlfriend?'
Caught in her fantasies, the girl did not answer Tatsuo's question right away. And since Tatsuo had gotten rather used to people being captivated by his looks, he did not get annoyed. Instead, his pride swelled.
Meanwhile, Sumire, after seeing the way the delivery girl was looking at Tatsuo, quickly walked over to Tatsuo and grabbed his arm, almost completely subconsciously. Then she looked at the delivery girl as if she were curious to know the answer to Tatsuo's question, as well.
When the delivery girl saw Sumire holding onto Tatsuo so intimately, all her pink-colored delusions popped like a soap bubble. Then, her expression turned completely expressionless and she finally answered Tatsuo's question.
"Yes, I have a delivery for Soramoto." The delivery girl said in a monotonous tone. "I assume that's you?"
"That's right." Tatsuo said while smiling amusedly as he stole a glance at Sumire. "Thanks for the trouble."
"It's no trouble at all." The delivery girl said as she handed the bag containing the food to Tatsuo. "Then, I'll be on my way. Please order from Sushi King again in the future."
'Next time you order from us, hopefully your girlfriend won't be here.' The delivery girl thought to herself. 'Then, I'll have the chance to get to know you. And I'll definitely steal you way from her. Hmph!'
Ignoring the possibility that she may not be the next one to deliver Tatsuo's order, the delivery girl turned around and walked away with confident steps while her hips swayed seductively. Meanwhile, Hwaya, who watched the entire encounter from the side, could not help but smile at Sumire as if she were the most precious thing in the world.
Sumire, on the other hand, after realizing what she had done, could not help but blush up to the tips of her ears.
'Wh-wh-what did I just do?' Sumire asked herself. 'What will Tatsuo-Kun think of what I just did? Is he gonna think I'm a jealous, clingy girlfriend? But he's not even my b-b-boyfriend. Oh no! What do I do?'
As if he could see the gears in Sumire's head turning, Tatsuo only smiled at her reaction. However, he did not feel like teasing her at the moment. He was too hungry for that, after all.
"Alright, the food is here." Tatsuo said as he turned back towards the elevator. "Let's go upstairs and have something to eat."
In response, Sumire silently nodded her head. Then, she followed behind Tatsuo with her head lowered and her face as red as a tomato. At the same time, Hwaya followed the two with a smile on her face.
Eventually, the trio reached Tatsuo's apartment. And when they got into the kitchen, Tatsuo set out all the food on the kitchen table. And considering how hungry he was, there was quite a bit of food, enough to cover most of the table.
"Wow, you really ordered a lot." Hwaya said. "Are we celebrating the fact that we cleared that Event Dungeon, or something?"
"Uh… I guess?" Tatsuo said in an uncertain tone. "I really only ordered this much because I was hungry. But if you wanna treat it as a celebration meal, be my guest."
Hwaya could only look at Tatsuo blankly after hearing that. Meanwhile, Sumire, who had been silent since the delivery girl left, finally showed something other than a completely embarrassed expression, as she smiled at Tatsuo's reply.
"Anyway, let's just eat." Tatsuo said, feeling a little uncomfortable because of Hwaya's blank stare. "I'm so hungry."
With that, Tatsuo did not wait for a response, as he started digging into the food. Sumire followed shortly afterwards. Hwaya, on the other hand, stared at Tatsuo for a little while longer before shaking her head and starting to eat, as well.
A while later, Tatsuo finished the last of the food. Now, not only Hwaya was staring at him blankly, but Sumire was doing the same. The amount of food Tatsuo ordered should have been enough to feed ten people or so. Yet, he ate enough to feed six people by himself.
The fact that Tatsuo ate more than a normal person was not what Sumire and Hwaya found strange. Rather, it was how much more than a normal person he ate.
Most Awakened ate more than your average person thanks to the necessity for more energy. Sumire and Hwaya were no exception to this rule, either. However, they usually only ate about twice as much as the average person. But just watched Tatsuo eat six times more than an average person.
"Are you really human?" Hwaya asked in a dumbfounded tone. "I mean, I know you're athletic, but how can your body hold that much food. Your stomach isn't even bulging."
"Of course, I am." Tatsuo replied.
'I think.' Tatsuo continued internally while remembering the ???'s that showed up in his [Race Status] on the [System Status].
"Well, I guess it's good that Tatsuo-Kun has a healthy appetite." Sumire said with a smile. "But can you tell us about that woman from Guardian now?"
With the exception of when she was claiming her territory in front of the delivery girl, both Tatsuo and Hwaya knew that Sumire had been dying to ask that question ever since she arrived at the apartment. They were actually surprised that she was able to hold it in so long.
"Sure." Tatsuo replied uncaringly. "It's not like it's a secret."
Hearing that, Sumire leaned forward slightly as to not miss a single word. Even Hwaya showed a bit more interest when Tatsuo agreed to tell the story.
"I'm not a hundred percent shore if I'm right or not." Tatsuo said after taking a sip from a glass of water. "but I'm pretty sure that lady, Lt. Colonel Yoshikawa was a friend of my mother when she was a kid."
"Really?" Sumire asked curiously.
"How can you be sure?" Hwaya asked.
"Do you remember when I blocked her slash and threw her over my shoulder Tatsuo asked a question of his own instead of answering Hwaya's directly.
Both girls nodded in response.
"Well…" Tatsuo said as he started his explanation.
Tatsuo then went on to tell them about the technique Lt. Colonel Yoshikawa used to defend against his shoulder throw and that his mother and a friend of hers came up with it a long time ago.
"But how can you tell?" Hwaya asked curiously.
"Yeah, it only looked like she managed to get her feet down before slamming into the ground to me." Sumire added. "I really couldn't' see anything special about it."
"Yeah, to anyone who doesn't know the technique, it wouldn't look like anything special." Tatsuo replied. "but there was a certain way that she moved… Ugh! I don't know how to explain it. But trust me, I was able to see something."
Hearing that Sumire and Hwaya exchanged glances. Eventually, Hwaya shrugged her shoulders, deciding not to think about it any further. Instead, she brought up something much more pressing.
"You said that she might have figured out who you are, too, right?" Hwaya asked. "What will you do if she comes here with the people from Guardian and Freedom Wing?"
In response, it was Tatsuo's turn to shrug his shoulders.
"Then, I'll turn my threat into reality." Tatsuo said in a frigid tone. "I already let them off once for attacking me without proper reason. And I'll be damned if that will ever happen a second time."
"But what if she really is your mother's friend?" Sumire asked in a worried tone.
"If she is, she is." Tatsuo replied uncaringly. "She's not my friend. And she's already gotten off once. If she wants to make the same mistake twice, then she can only blame herself."
Sumire and Hwaya were surprised at how ruthless Tatsuo sounded. However, they both agreed with him. Even if Lt. colonel Yoshikawa was his mother's friend, she wasn't his friend, after all.
At this point, the room fell silent for a while. However, the silence was eventually broken by Sumire.
"Well, now that we know what happened at the end of the fight… Um…." Sumire said before starting to stammer. "Could you… play the piano for us… please?"
Tatsuo smiled at how quickly Sumire's attitude could change. However, he agreed to play a few songs in the end. After that, the three headed into Tatsuo's room where he played the piano for an hour or so. Then, Sumire and Hwaya left to spend the night at Sumire's house.
Meanwhile, Tatsuo laid down to get some sleep after seeing the girls out. Unfortunately, he was unable to fall asleep right away.
'After clearing General's Honor, I only have one more objective to fulfill.' Tatsuo thought to himself. 'Then, I can go back home. I really miss Mom, Kasumi-Neesan, and Mai-Nee. Who would have thought I'd actually miss them. I guess I got used to having a family again after Mom rescued me, huh?'
Reaching that point in his thoughts, Tatsuo could not help but smile while thinking about his little family. A moment later, however, his expression turned uncertain as another thought ran through his head.
'But when I go, what should I tell Sumire?' Tatsuo asked himself. 'Should I make something up about going around the world to kill monsters? Or… Should I just tell her the truth? Will she even believe me if I do?'
Like that, Tatsuo continued tossing around ideas in his head. However, he was unable to come to a decision before he eventually fell asleep.
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