We succeeded in getting Sofia and Amane to our side and so we returned to the hideout.
「 These two didn’t escape, but pulled out normally, right? 」
「 We don’t need to escape stealthily 」
Sofia talks to us while we’re on our way.
The two started out on the north side from the Sumeragi team’s spot.
After joining up with the teachers, they joined up with the Sumeragi team.
Both of them are rank 1 in Sumeragi’s team.
It’s so nobody other than Byakuya can make a move on them.
Byakuya’s the only one who can make a move on the rank 1 woman.
That said, Byakuya didn’t even make a move on her.
No, he couldn’t.
Sofia has Amane as her attendant, a gifted fighter.
Byakuya knows martial arts and he has a gun, but he’s still no match for her.
It’s the difference between combat skills as a sport and combat skills used to kill.
Therefore, the Sumeragi team treats them as special.
Then, the two decided to leave was because of the rain.
Rain is something everyone can expect but Byakuya let most of them be exposed to rain.
As a result, they doubted his nature as a leader and so they left.
Byakuya’s usually against people leaving the group but he immediately let go of the two.
Sofia’s an exception, she’s a thorn in his side.
「 Are Tanaka and Kageyama in your team? 」
Amane asks.
「 You knew? 」
「 I saw them escape 」
「 It’s great that you let them 」
「 It’s not my job to watch them 」
Amane’s speaking sure is cold.
She’s the type who doesn’t have ups and downs in her emotions.
Is it because of that personality that she’s Sofia’s bodyguard? I don’t know.
What I know about her is that she won’t hesitate to kill.
If you try to harm Sofia, you’ll die.
「 Well, you can see it out of the forest 」
We arrived at the sea.
I can see the cliff from a distance. It’s our hideout, the cave formed from marine erosion.
「 There’s a cave over there on the cliff facing the sea, it’s created from marine erosion. That’s where we’re living. Its alias is the hideout 」
「 Why did you move your base to a sea cave? 」
Sofia stares at the hideout with interest.
「 It’s to prepare for Sumeragi Team’s assault. Byakuya still had a lot of power when we moved to the hideout. They could be planning to expand their power, and if that happens, we’re the first target. We have Eri and other beauties in our group 」
「 Especially Mana, who’s Byakuya’s type 」
Eri added.
I heard that before, Byakuya’s into Mana.
That’s how it was in school so it’s no surprise.
「 Speaking of which, Sumeragi-sama mentions that name occasionally 」
「 As it turns out, they didn’t have time for that now 」
「 So you moved to a new location to avoid conflict with the Sumeragi team 」
「 That’s right. If we fight, we’re probably going to lose, and even if we did, there will be casualties on both sides. I don’t want to have that kind of unproductive conflict in this primitive world 」
Sofia claps her hands in admiration.
「 What a splendid thought! I was right to accept Shinomiya-sama’s invitation 」
「 That’s nice of you to say 」
We head to the hideout while talking.
◇
Nobody was in the hideout when we arrived.
They’ll come back if we just wait so I’ll explain things beforehand.
A brief description of the terrain in the hideout and our activities.
Then, while I was about to finish explaining, people returned.
First were Karin and Hinako, then Meiko and Kageyama, then Tanaka and Arisa.
The three groups also brought a new face each. They’re all men.
「 Ooh?! Now we have more strange faces! 」
Mana who returned last is surprised with the five newcomer faces.
「 Now that everyone’s here, I think it’s time for self-introduction 」
We encircle the bonfire.
First, I introduced the 9 people so far, their names and age.
Then, the newcomers introduced themselves.
「 I’m Washimine Sofia Reina. 17. Call me Sofia 」
Sofia started.
Then, everyone went noisy.
It’s the young lady of the Micron-soft, they say.
「 Best regards, Sofia. I know that you’re a god-like existence in Japan, but you’re in equal standing with us here. Do you mind that? 」
「 Not at all 」
Sofia’s a sensible girl it seems.
She doesn’t whine, nor act arrogantly.
She’s different from the upstart somewhere else. She’s the real deal.
「 I’m Kiryuuin Amane. 17. Sofia-sama’s attendant. I’m skilled in combat so leave the hunting to me 」
Nobody was replying to Amane.
It’s not that they’re uninterested, but they’re overpowered by her aura.
They call me hard to address before.
I think that my school-self is just like Amane now.
「 I’m next 」
The third guy is a muscular guy
He’s slightly taller than me so he should be around 175cm.
Despite that, his overwhelming muscles are clearly off the scale.
「 I’m Muscle Takahashi. 17. I’m the 6th place in the Japan-wide high school bodybuilding competition. Leave the heavy lifting to me! Muscle! 」1
Takahashi suddenly takes off his clothes.
I was thinking what he would do then he suddenly started flexing with bodybuilder poses.
I don’t know the names of the poses but he did a few of them.
Then, every time he changes pose, he shouts “Muscle!”
「 Wow, that’s some muscle! Really great! Tanaka and I found him 」
Arisa says with a triumphant look.
Matching with what she says, Takahashi flexes his muscles.
「 So, Takahashi, what’s your given name? 」
I asked, Takahashi;
「 Muscle! 」
Arisa laughed out loud.
Then, she went “Oh wait,” and said while laughing.
「 He won’t give his name. I think that “Muscle” is his given name, Right? 」
「 That’s right! Muscle! 」
「 Then, we’ll call you Muscle Takahashi 」
He’s a weird guy but not a bad one.
By the way, he’s a rank 3 in Sumeragi’s team.
Even so, he can’t stomach Byakuya and that’s why he left.
「 There are no other rank 3 escapees, right? 」
Arisa says with a triumphant look.
Then, Meiko says “I wonder about that?”
「 Our Mizuno here is also a rank 3, right? 」
Meiko brings the guy she invited to the subject.
He’s lesser than Takahashi, but he’s still a muscular man.
I know this Mizuno guy.
We were in the same class in the first and second year.
Mizuno nods saying “indeed,” and introduced himself.
「 I’m Mizuno Eitarou. 18. Japanese triathlon representative. Leave the ocean to me 」
Mizuno’s a celebrity in the school.
Unlike the Sumeragi brothers and Sofia, his famous for sports.
He’s 18, but his skill in triathlon is better than anyone in Japan.
By the way, a triathlon is a complex marathon where you swim, bike, and run.
「 I found Mizuno-dono! 」
「 Then, I invited him 」
Meiko and Kageyama high-fived each other.
I swapped them around but it seems that it went smoothly.
「 Lastly, this is Yoshiokada-kun 」
Marin said.
We all had a question mark on our heads.
「 Yoshioka? 」 「 Okada? 」
Seems like he’s already accustomed to that response.
Yoshi Okada
「 It’s Yoshiokada Tomonori 17. I’m a 4th class amateur radio operator. I memorized morse code so I can communicate in such, over 」
Yoshiokada’s a newcomer whose body figure is different from the other two.
He’s in the same style as Tanaka and Kageyama.
His characteristic is his hairstyle, it’s curly hair, like the ones from explosions.
「 Yoshiokada, what rank were you in Sumeragi’s team? 」
「 The last one, over 」
「 Why do you always put “over” to end your sentences 」
「 It means that I’m done talking. It’s basically saying “your turn” 」
「 I-I see 」
Judging by the appearances, it would seem that Yoshiokada’s the most incompetent.
But, you can’t judge a book by its cover so his true skills are still unknown.
「 All five of them have their quirks, but whatever the case, I’m looking forward to the future 」
We want a bit more but five is a perfect number.
「 Let’s celebrate the success of the operation headhunt with a party today! 」
「 「 「 「 「 Ooooh!!! 」 」 」 」 」
Work will start tomorrow so today, we’ll enjoy the welcome party for the newcomers.
- Sai-sai-sai-side-chest! ↩