A depressed-looking giant-cup beauty with navy-blue hair.
Her name, the girl standing before him who seemed to possess barrier abilities—was it… Yume Saena?
“Yume… you’re okay?”
“You know from the daily votes that nobody has died, right?”
The voting ends once a majority is reached.
With forty classmates, maintaining a majority of twenty-one votes makes it clear that no one has been killed.
That’s true, but being alive and being unharmed are two different things.
He checked her attire.
Her uniform was somewhat dirty and frayed, but perhaps because she had washed it with water, it wasn’t as bad as Loa had been when initially found.
Instead, there were wrinkles, likely leftovers from wringing it out to remove the water, given they had no iron or anything similar.
Her complexion wasn’t bad either, but she was simply a very thin girl.
She’d always been that way, but looking at her like this made it impossible to tell if she was eating properly.
“What are you staring at so blatantly?”
“Ah, no, sorry about that.”
“You don’t need to apologize… but just tell me about Shoushi.”
Her attitude was quite cool and distant, but that was the kind of space one would expect between girls who weren’t close.
The women I’d encountered before were just being nice.
I glanced out beyond the wall for a moment.
You couldn’t see the Dream World from the outside.
But apparently, you could see everything on the outside from within.
I could see Micron headbutting the wall in panic, Shion with tears welling in her eyes, and Loa going pale as death.
I could hear their voices too, and they seemed to be quite worried.
“It’s fine to talk, but first I want to assure our allies outside that we’re safe.”
”…Got it. We don’t want to cry on the class members either.”
Having received permission, I poked just my head out of the barrier.
From the inside, it felt like there was a thin membrane stretched across.
It was similar to the sensation of having only part of your body in a bath.
“Don’t worry, we’re safe.”
“Eeeek! So, so-sogoro-kun!?”
“M-Master, are you truly unharmed? Y-You only have your head left…”
“Ahh, so that’s what it looks like. Yeah, I guess it is. It’s fine; all five of my limbs are intact. I’m just going to have a quick word with Yume.” “Huh?
Soji-kun!?”
And so, he returned within the barrier.
”……Why aren’t you running?”
“Do you want me to run?”
“That’s not an answer.”
Yume glared at him sharply.
Normally, Shion would be here to see through his lies, which would be a lifesaver in a situation like this, but surely that much trust wasn’t expected.
“You dragged me out here because I looked like the leader, didn’t you? And the topic was Soshi. Meaning, you’re not an enemy; you’re just worried about a friend. There’s no reason for you to run.”
If the goal had been to oppose them, they would have likely dragged out one of the girls instead of a boy.
The fact that they hadn’t done so suggested he was specifically wanted to speak with him, who appeared to hold decision-making power.
”……Fine. And where is Soshi?”
“She’s moving together with us right now.”
“What are the dragons outside? Monsters haven’t come out yet, have they?”
“Weren’t you asking about Soshi’s abilities in the first dream?”
“Huh? …Ah, so that’s why it has fur growing on it? You can summon things if they’re fluffy and soft? …That really sounds like her.”
Yume laughed for a brief moment.
“Can I ask you something now?” “Sure. That seems fair.”
“Your ability is barrier creation, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t seem surprised by what I knew.
Presumably, she had anticipated the patterns I remembered or that Shouko had taught her.
“If my memory serves, this barrier can keep insects, beasts, and humans out. And considering that I set it up, depending on the conditions, others could be excluded from entering as well.”
”…So?”
“I want to make a deal.”
”…Say it.”
“I want you to surround our base with your barrier.”
“What’s in it for us?”
“Do you not remember my ability?”
”…I never heard about it. I just mentioned an ability out of habit from Shouko.”
“Oh, I see. Well, let me explain. My ability is craft-based. If I have the materials, I can skip the process and produce the finished product.” “What? Isn’t that way too convenient?”
Fortunately, the people on the island I’ve met immediately grasped the utility of this ability, so conversations go quickly.
“The barrier ability is pretty impressive too, though…”
“Wait, then what about you, Takano? Can you make clothes from fibers and huts from wood?”
“That’s right, exactly like that.”
”…If you chose your ability with all that in mind, you’re amazing, you know.”
His gaze remained stern, yet his words carried a tone of genuine admiration.
“Thank you. So, since I can arrange whatever items from the Dream Realm that we need, in exchange, I want you to protect our base.”
”…Specifically, what are you offering?”
“Well. If we don’t have a base, I’ll build a house. Plus furniture, spare clothes, towels, soap… things like that. And since Shion is out there and a good cook, she should be able to handle the meals too.”
The Dream Realm froze at my words.
But it was only for a few seconds before he snapped back to attention as if shaking off daze.
”…Huh? It looks like Houshin is wearing a maid outfit. Did you do that too?”
“Exactly. Just to clarify, I’m not the one making him wear it.”
”…There are two conditions.”
“Go ahead and tell me.”
“First, you bring Shouko with you. Sorry, but I can’t just believe everything right away. It’s not about your abilities, but about you.”
“That’s natural.”
Actually, being trusted blindly out of the blue would be more of a hassle.
I was childhood friends with Senu before the transfer, and friends with Shouko as well. Shion trusts me because of her ability, and Fuhou had some incident before the transfer that gave him a favorable impression of me.
Loh treats us favorly out of gratitude for saving him when he was stranded.
Trust is something that has to be built over time.
In that case, she’s simply itching to talk to Miko, the familiar she already has a bond with.
She probably intends to use Miko as a litmus test to see if she can trust me.
“And one more thing—pay the fee in installments.” “Huh? Is that okay with you?”
“Actually, is it okay with you? If I hand over everything at once, there’s no reason for me to keep maintaining this barrier around your base.”
It was a fair point.
Dream World was suggesting that I disburse the reward little by little to ensure she wouldn’t betray me.
Despite her prickly attitude, she’s actually quite kind.
“As for me, I’m not really worried about that.”
“Why?”
“Because if you betrayed us and monsters attacked our base, your friend Miko might get hurt.”
”…Maybe I don’t even care about that.”
“You brought me into the barrier because you were worried about Miko. You would have been safe if you had done nothing, yet you took the risk. It wasn’t a zero percent chance that I’d attack you, and yet you cared enough about Miko to do it.”
”…Fine, I get it. That’s enough.”
She looked away from me.
He wore a look of frustration, though a faint flush tinge his cheeks.
“Just for now, come back this afternoon again. Ah, do you have any food with you?”
“Huh? …I’ve been eating mushrooms and fruits and stuff.”
I would end up explaining about the 『Inventory』… but well, since he was Shouko’s friend, it should be fine.
On the tray, I arranged items that could be eaten quickly: a “Thermos of warm soup,” “Seedless bread,” “Meat dish,” “Boiled eggs,” “Salt,” and “Several fruits,” before handing it over.
“Here, help yourself to these if you want.”
“What? Tabu, how did you just…”
“It’s an application of my ability. It lets me store what I’ve made and take it out again.”
Since I definitely wanted to make the deal with Yume-gai succeed, there was also the intention to demonstrate its utility…
“That’s way too convenient,” she said.
“I haven’t put any poison in it.”
“I wasn’t worried about that. If I want your ability, killing you would be pointless anyway.”
“Yeah, fair point.”
”…Bring Shouko to the same spot next time. If we’re too far apart, my voice might not reach her.”
“Understood.”
“—Tabu.”
Just as I was about to step out of the barrier, Yume-gai called out to me.
Looking back, she wore a complex expression, hesitating before finally squeezing out these words.
“Thanks for this. I’ll pay you back.”
“In that case, please consider the trade positively.” “It’s up to Shoushi.”
“Ahaha.
See you later in the afternoon, then.”
“Understood.”
I stepped out of the barrier.
“Sousuke-kun!”
“Mmphh…!?”
In an instant, Shiine lunged into my arms.
I was stunned by the impact and the feeling of her against me.
“I can’t believe you didn’t explain more! I was really, really worried!”
Hearing that in a tearful voice left me with nothing to say in return.
“Sorry about that…”
I patted her back gently.
”…I’m glad you’re safe, but please consult with us properly next time.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’ll make sure to do that from now on. It seems the Dream Realm wants to meet Shoushi.”
“I see. Yeah, it must be nice to reunite with close friends.”
”…I, too, have friends whose safety concerns me.”
Shiine and Roa nodded in agreement.
“For now, let’s head back.”
If we could achieve the best possible outcome, it might allow us to establish defenses beyond anything else.
Besides, Soko would surely be pleased to know her friend is safe.
I stroked Mikron soothingly as she clung to me, then climbed onto her back.
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