Chương 91: Chapter 25 Tentative Title: “The Duo(Part 3)

"U-Um... First-san? Chloe-san? What's a Small Bone? You mean that pig-faced monster?" Yuji hesitantly raised a hand as he asked. He was covered in wounds himself. If he was talking about the pig-faced monster, then he'd either encountered one of the Uniques... or perhaps he'd run into it while rescuing Miyafuji. No... Mochida hadn't reported any Unique sightings, so I couldn't say for certain.

"Yuji, that pig-faced one is a monster that appears from the Fifth Gate onward. Calling it a Unique isn't exactly accurate."

"Hmm... What was it like?"

"It carried a sword without a blade. It swung around these super-thin steel threads." That was probably the one I'd seen in Seth's video. There hadn't been many of them on the battlefield, but I had killed several similar monsters. Whether that had been the original or not, I had no idea. There were probably still more of them inside.

"Yuji-kun, that wasn't a Unique." Miyafuji absentmindedly touched the place where his missing arm had once been.

"Uniques are... different. They're flashy, over-the-top, or completely unlike anything else. And they're strong." The Unique I'd encountered while scouting the Safe Space had been incredibly powerful. And if the Sage hadn't stepped in, I wasn't even sure we'd have found a way past that iron sphere outside.

"So... that thing was considered normal...?" Yuji's face turned pale.

"Suguru... we really dodged a bullet. If we hadn't gotten into that fight, I would've gone deeper inside."

"I don't appreciate being lumped together with you... but yes. I probably would've ventured farther in alone as well." Without realizing it, they'd preserved each other's lives. If they had still been as arrogant as they were when they started that fight in the middle of the city, they probably would've rushed deeper into the Gate without a second thought...... and quietly disappeared forever. By now, we'd gathered plenty of monster data from the Akihabara incident.

We needed to compile a proper monster encyclopedia as soon as possible. Hyodo's group had already started giving provisional names to various monsters. If we coordinated with them, organizing the information would probably go much more smoothly.

"By the way... First-san, how many monsters did you kill over there?"

"Hmm? Chloe is fine." I smiled. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

"I owe Miyafuji-san, and besides... I'm thinking of retiring 'First' as nothing more than a stage name."

"I didn't keep an exact count."

"I killed five or six Small Bones."

"And then the final boss."

"As for the regular monsters..." I shrugged.

"I have no idea. They died the moment I saw them."

"That's insane..."

"I remember people arguing on the forums about whether you were actually strong or not..." Suguru let out a bitter smile.

"Turns out you were on an entirely different level..."

"Not really..." I lowered my eyes.

"My strength wasn't enough."

"Far too many people still died..." It wasn't arrogance. I'd accepted that people would die. Even so... I couldn't help wondering whether I could have done more. Whether there had been a better way. That wasn't pessimism. It was something I needed to carry into the next battle. Turning my eyes away simply because the truth was painful... That was nothing more than cowardly escapism. This time, countless people had died. Then next time... The number had to be lower.

If that was my goal, then I couldn't avert my eyes from the dead. I had to face those losses and learn from them.

"Chloe-san... you did everything you possibly could." Miyafuji looked straight at me.

"You brought everyone together in just ten days."

"I honestly think you accomplished something incredible." He paused before lowering his head.

"... I'd like to formally accept your offer."

"I don't know how much I'll be able to contribute..."

"But for the sake of the comrades I fought beside..."

"And for myself..."

"I'll do everything I can." There was life in his eyes again. He was stronger than I'd realized. I didn't know what kind of life he'd lived... Or what road had brought him here... But anyone who could keep moving forward after losing so much...... was strong.

"Understood." I nodded.

"Then as Director, I'm officially hiring you."

"The title itself may be little more than a decorative collar, but if they're going to give me authority, then I intend to use it."

"If they tell me I can't..."

"I'll throw the position back at them."

"A title without authority is meaningless." The three of them simply stared. Ah... Right. The whole Director position was still only in the planning stages. Still... If I was going to act as an advisor, I'd need one or two reliable people. As for the two standing in front of me... What about them? They were both Sweepers. They had volunteered for the battle. They'd even come to visit Miyafuji afterward. If I trusted my instincts... They weren't bad candidates. Although...

The conversation had certainly taken a sudden turn.

"Um... why are you staring at us like that?"

"Yuji, be quiet." Suguru adjusted his glasses.

"She's obviously thinking about something."

"With Chloe-san, you never know what's going to happen next."

"I've seen enough of her livestreams to know that." The one with glasses was, if I remembered correctly, a mage. If I assigned him under Miyafuji, he'd have plenty to learn. The spiky-haired one was a swordsman. I'd seen him manipulating wind during the battle, and his primary weapon was definitely a sword. More importantly... If every advisor ended up being a government employee, there'd be almost no room left for civilians. If these two agreed...

Bringing them in as civilian Sweepers would also serve as a subtle reminder to certain people that civilians weren't going to be pushed aside. The government probably wanted to monopolize Gate operations. But I doubted they had enough manpower to pull that off. I had no idea how quickly Suits could be manufactured. Still... If another overflow occurred while only government personnel were available, and civilians hadn't been trained... We'd simply repeat the same tragedy. What we needed......

was cooperation between the public and private sectors. I hadn't even received the official list of advisors yet. Even so... Adding two more names afterward shouldn't be difficult.

"So..." I looked at them.

"Would the two of you be interested in receiving my guidance?"

"Chloe-san..." Miyafuji gave me an exasperated smile.

"That conversation took quite a leap."

"Ah, right. Sorry." I laughed awkwardly.

"This is off the record, but every prefecture is planning to establish a Special Designated Hazard Countermeasure Headquarters."

"Miyafuji-san is someone I intend to recruit as one of its members."

"As for you two..."

"I was thinking about bringing you in as civilian Sweepers."

"Meeting here has to count for something."

"There's no need to answer immediately."

"Once you've made your decision, let Miyafuji-san know."

"I'll make sure you're added." Which ministry the Special Designated Hazard Countermeasure Headquarters would ultimately belong to... Or whether it would become an independent organization...... would determine everything. According to Chiyoda, I was already considered to be on 'their side.' Surely they weren't planning to hand me a management position with nothing but congratulations. Now then... Just which branch of the government was going to end up claiming me?