CH 346

Episode 346: Maneuvering(Third Party Perspective)

"What? The Explorers' Guild made a move? Is that true, Tani."

In a room with a sense of dignity, the man across the office desk receives a report from his subordinate, raises his head from the paperwork, raises one eyebrow, and asks back.

The man has chiseled features, and he has the appearance of an actor who had been a villain a generation ago.

His name is Shinonome Dougen.

Even before the mass destruction caused by monsters, they resided on the east side of the old Tokyo, one of the four great families in control of the defense of the east. Among the four great families, their clan is the most skilled in martial arts, he is the grandfather of Shinonome Rin, who is also a dormitory student like Fuhito.

"Yes, it's as you said. We've been secretly watching their movement up until today, I have confirmed that Satou Fuhito and Shindou of the Toshima Branch of the Explorers' Guild have made contact."

The subordinate man called Tani is a person who is approaching old age with grey hair. He repeats again what happened today.

"What does this mean ...?"

"No, I don't know about that, but ..."

After receiving the report, Dougen murmurs in a way that sounds like he is talking to himself, yet questioning.

Tani takes it as a question to himself and has no choice but to answer that he was unable to find out.

Yes, the man named Tani has tried to keep tabs on Satou Fuhito's movements along with his own subordinates, but it is difficult to get close to him.

Fuhito always notices where and how they approach, and suddenly stares at where they are hiding.

He felt like his heart was being grabbed each time.

Every time Tani remembers it, he breaks out in cold sweat and shudders.

Fuhito doesn't usually use detection that much, so there are many cases where he just happens to look back, but Tani doesn't know about it.

"Ahh, come to think of it, that's right. I couldn't even get close."

"Yes. Like the person himself, each member of his party is ridiculously skilled."

As soon as he sees Tani's condition, his boss nods in agreement, and Tani's body is still trembling as he replies.

Tani is the most powerful man among his subordinates. Not only Tani, but many other people tried to monitor him, but none of them produced good results, so Dougen had no choice but to give up, until now.

"Fumu. It can't be helped. Collect information from the people around them, not the people themselves. Also, have Rin make contact with him at this time. She's useless, so she should make herself useful at times like this."

Up until now, Dougen has always been passive, but no matter what the reason is, if the members of the Explorers' Guild purposely made contact with Fuhito, he can no longer be passive.

He has Tani gather information from the surroundings and decides to have his granddaughter, Shinonome Rin, make contact with Fuhito. Rin is the dropout of the Shinonome Family. Dougen only sees her as a tool for political marriage or to get concessions from his negotiating partners.

Luckily, Rin now goes to the same school as Fuhito, and on top of that, she lives in the same dormitory. They have many points of contact, so it's not so unnatural when she makes contact with him.

He can't help but take advantage of this.

"Understood. I will give instructions to Ojou-sama, and I will definitely live up to your expectations."

"Umu. I'm looking forward to it."

"Well then, excuse me."

Tani receives Dougen's instructions, and he disappears from Dougen's sight.

■■■■■

"Aah aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!! He's never coming!!"

A beautiful woman sits at her desk and screams, scratching her head.

This particular room is simple, or maybe simplicity itself, the interior is like the employee room of some supermarket.

As it should be. This is the room where the employees of Dungeon Adventure, an explorer specialty store in the mall, do their office work.

She is Jougasaki Momoka, the store manager of that Dungeon Adventure.

When Fuhito visited before, the weapons and armor that matched his rank were all destroyed when he tried them on.

So she took notice of Fuhito, and she had Rei investigate Fuhito, gave a presentation to her boss, and was supposed to be entrusted full authority the next time he visited.

However, that Fuhito did not appear at all.

Fuhito-tachi do not need to visit because they routinely obtain high-quality weapons and items suitable for themselves in high-rank dungeons, but there was no way for her to know after Rei withdrew.

"There's no way that person will come just because you want them to come, store manager."

"At that time, I curse myself for not properly exchanging contact information ..."

It is her junior employee who mutters while looking at her figure with eyes like looking at a regrettable thing.

After Momoka screams for a while, she throws herself down on the desk and cries.

"Maybe he won't come again ..."

"What was that!!"

Looking at the drooping Momoka, when her junior mutters deeply, Momoka vigorously raises her head and glares at her junior's face.

"Because a long time has passed since he last came, right?"

"Right ... It's been about three months."

To the question of her junior who continues to talk without flinching even when glared at, Momoka answers while depressed.

"Normally, it wouldn't be strange to come here for replacement or maintenance, to not come and buy tools, maybe he's given up on it?"

"No way!?"

With that period of time, regardless of weapons or armor, the tools would almost certainly run out. The fact that he didn't even come to buy those has enough power to back up her junior's words.

Momoka's face has an expression of not wanting to believe such written on it.

"..."

"Store manager."

Her junior calls out to Momoka, who immediately falls down and stops moving.

"..."

"Are you crying?"

However, there is no reaction at all, and her junior looks into Momoka's face.

"Mooooooooou!! In this case, I'll talk directly!!"

"Nkyaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!"

At that moment, Momoka raises her face so vigorously that her junior falls over in shock. To the extent that her sexy undergarments hidden by her skirt are exposed.

"Ora, you're pretty bold, aren't you."

"I, isn't it fine!!"

At Momoka's impression of seeing her underwear, her junior immediately lowers her skirt and hides it, and glares at Momoka defiantly while her face turns bright red.

"Well, there's no problem because it's an individual's freedom. More importantly, immediately proceed to secure Satou-kun!!"

"Y, yes!"

After approving her junior's hobby, Momoka decides to take the initiative rather than wait to get Fuhito for her company.

In this way, with the contact between Fuhito and Shindou, each faction begins to move. They are relatively peaceful, but even more radical forces are secretly at work.