Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Spilled Water (4)
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To Liberra, the Hotdog Man was a strange breed she'd never once seen in this city.
The memory of their first meeting still felt as vivid as if it had happened yesterday.
The residents of Risk City all lived with sharp spines in their hearts, like hedgehogs.
Piranhas swarmed everywhere, snapping at any weakness without hesitation, in a world of survival of the fittest where no one thought twice about it.
But.
- What're you here to buy, little one? Errand for your mom?
He was an existence that didn't fit this city at all.
A kind voice approached along with the warm, cozy air of the grocery store.
It wasn't an act or pretense.
Liberra, whose senses had become dozens of times more acute through some kind of experiment, could tell that much.
Even though he'd mistaken her for a 'little one' at first, his attitude didn't change much even after she later revealed her true identity.
- I need it for something else too, so I can't give you everything, but this should be enough, right?
He even handed over most of the support money from the mafia boss like pocket change for kids.
Liberra had refused it multiple times, saying she couldn't accept, but she couldn't just ignore his persistent urging and kindness for the children's sake.
- ...Thank you so much.
She'd thought pure goodwill didn't exist in this city.
That day, Liberra learned for the first time.
That a light act of kindness could feel heavier than someone else's sticky malice.
'How should I repay this favor...'
And moreover.
Every time she recalled his face showing no disgust even after learning her identity, her metabolism started speeding up—what was she supposed to do about that?
Her hair, which she'd originally kept covering her face to hide her identity, now couldn't be parted because her face was purely flushing red.
'...He's probably back by now.'
But separate from her embarrassment, her steps toward the grocery store were incredibly light.
Having succeeded in finding a new house to live in with her family, Liberra ran faster than usual to meet the Hotdog Man.
A homeless man basking in the flames of a drum barrel on a tattered mattress in the alley spotted her and called out a greeting.
"Hey, kid! Headed to the boss?"
"......"
"He probably just got back. Saw him coming with Michael, who went out to meet him."
This was something that never would've happened before.
With no RCPD to handle security, Liberra had wandered around openly baring her hostility in all directions, like a rabid chihuahua protecting herself and her family.
Even now, the slums were full of homeless guys who'd tried to mess with her and gotten wrecked instead.
But things were different near that grocery store.
Most of the homeless here weren't the type who didn't know the value of food.
In other words, they didn't take the favors from the Hotdog Man lightly.
Sometimes crazy homeless folks would cause a ruckus, but they'd handle it cleanly among themselves before he could see.
Liberra herself remembered following some (crazy) android who'd made off with a ton of food and giving them a 'light warning.'
Security around here was better than anywhere else.
And people didn't hide their kindness.
As Liberra nodded without replying, the homeless man who'd called out to her smirked and took a bite of his sandwich.
"But... the boss looked kinda serious. Michael too. Feels awkward for us to ask, so kid, can you check what happened?"
"......"
"Yeah, thanks as always."
Before she knew it, they were calling the Hotdog Man 'boss,' and everyone had gotten used to him fondly patting her head, so she was 'kid' too.
But that wasn't important.
Everyone cherished the Hotdog Man just the same.
Titles were just differences in how they called him.
'...Personally, I'd prefer only the Hotdog Man call me kid.'
Whatever.
It was fine.
They were all comrades protecting the Hotdog Man.
Having spent her whole life in a lab, she had a stronger sense of community than most.
Not quite family yet, but enough to call them comrades.
And the Hotdog Man was...
'This must be what having a dad feels like...'
Of course, there was more of a 'personal feeling' mixed in than that.
Like a dog ready for a walk, Liberra trotted quickly to the grocery store.
And.
Liberra met the 'beautiful android with white eyes.'
"......"
"......"
A staring contest began, pride on the line.
"This is Nova. The management AI that controls the turret on the grocery store ceiling."
"......"
"And this is Liberra. She comes here often, so you remember her, right?"
"......"
Only after I gave an English textbook intro did they each step back one pace.
Liberra, hiding her expression behind her shaggy hair, nodded first, and Nova, expressionlessly looking down at her, nodded back identically.
This heavy air.
'...Feels like diving into the deep sea.'
On top of that, the tension inside the grocery store felt like the faceoff right before a UFC match, after weigh-ins.
Blue corner—Android Nova, with overwhelming physical specs comparable to a walking Goliath who'd aced product evaluation!
Red corner—Fearsome kid Liberra, who escaped a megacorp's secret project and succeeded in assassinating the chairman for revenge!
'...Thinking about it, this lineup is stacked.'
I tried to air out the heavy mood with a forced bright voice.
"You're basically meeting for the first time, so it's natural to feel a bit awkward. I was like that earlier too."
"“......”"
"Hey, you're all good kids. Get along."
No, please get along.
Liberra was wary of strangers because of her sad past.
Nova just couldn't be friendly because her identity was the grocery store's security management AI.
Then Liberra's gaze pierced through Nova's worn T-shirt to her strong presence, then quietly glanced down at her own chest.
"...Tch."
Liberra suddenly hunched her shoulders.
For some reason, she felt an intense sense of defeat right from the start.
I couldn't help feeling sorry for her clenched fists, so I habitually patted her head.
At the same time, Liberra snapped her head up to look at me.
Ah, right.
She's not a real kid, she's a full adult.
"Sorry, I'll be careful next—"
"...It's fine!"
As I tried to pull my hand away, Liberra pushed her head toward my palm.
Her shining eyes blazed like solar flares between her fluffy hair.
...Well, if she likes it.
I didn't know her exact age yet, but she was probably younger than me anyway.
'Maybe.'
As I fiddled with Liberra's hair perfectly positioned for petting, a low voice suddenly came from beside me.
"Ah."
"...?"
Nova, who had been calmly standing by, covered her pale pink lips with one hand at the sound that slipped out unconsciously.
"...It's nothing."
She straightened her posture calmly again, but there was a sense of discomfort.
Nova seemed to feel a strange sense of defeat for some reason too.
After that staring contest ended.
With Liberra and Nova shaking hands warmly, apparently having reached some agreement behind me.
I approached Michael, who had retreated far away.
"If you saw them like that, why didn't you introduce them first?"
"...That would've been impossible for me."
True, the mood was heavy.
Still, now I could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Michael seemed to think the same, exhaling deeply as he asked back.
"But, why did you say earlier there'd be no pursuit from Megacorp?"
"Ah, that."
How much to explain?
Talking about everything with the Boss working at city hall was too sensitive.
Just the conclusion...
"I asked a level 8 Web Spider to erase all traces that could track us."
"...Level 8?"
"Yeah."
If my memory wasn't wrong, yeah.
This should be enough expla—
"Level 8... Someone who could easily be a security head or even CSO for some family or megacorp."
Eh?
"...I can't even begin to guess how far the Hotdog Man's connections reach."
It was a tone that sounded like a misunderstanding.
A strange sparkle lit up Michael's expressionless face.
"I'll strive to improve further."
"No, that's not—"
"Of course not. It's a secret."
I said it's not.
It was just help from our Boss...
'......No.'
Saying more would just breed more useless misunderstandings.
Technically, it was connections.
Anyway.
We got Nova's new body, and Megacorp pursuit risk was way down.
Now just hand out food to the homeless like usual and live peacefully.
That's what I thought, until Michael's calm voice followed.
"Then, no need to worry much about the White Fang Group either."
"White Fang what?"
"White Fang Group."
Michael uttered the name of the organization I'd completely forgotten.
"The most notorious of the three major groups backing Hole Paradise."
Come to think of it, mafia family boss Luciana had said something similar.
That's why she gave support money.
As I sat there shocked and silent, Michael added as if that wasn't all.
"And the place we took Megacorp's stuff from was Black Square, managed by Black Star Society. The details aren't out yet, but turning two groups into enemies at once had me worried."
"......"
"Looks like I didn't need to."
Michael bowed neatly.
"I can't imagine what grand plan you're drawing, as an ordinary guy like me..."
I'd just moved without thinking.
No way he'd believe that.
"I, Michael Dylan, will serve only the Boss—Hotdog Man—with faith."
I quietly closed my eyes.
The blackened world rippled ominously, as if foreshadowing my future...
For now.
'...Let's just eat a hotdog first.'
I was escaping reality by trying to microwave the hotdogs in the box.
Thud...
A huge noise echoed from the back lot.
My body moved on reflex the moment I heard it.
'An attack already...?'
Speak of the devil, and here comes the tiger—the White Fang Group or whatever weren't messing around.
But.
The situation unfolding in the grocery store's back lot was a bit different from what I'd expected.
"...Ah, they're already here!"
Liberra, who came up beside me, said brightly.
While looking at the 'huge building structure' dangling in midair.
I slowly looked down at Liberra with eyes demanding explanation.
"I'm using the money from the Hotdog Man this time to build a whole small building...!"
I vaguely remembered seeing something like this on YouTube before.
Assembling a house in seconds with heavy machinery parts.
Cyberpunk tech for real...
With heavy equipment and massive drones moving, the speed was insane.
"I'll make the first floor piloti-style so other homeless can stay, so don't worry about space."
"......Yeah."
I'd thought she'd just remodel the existing building.
Suddenly, we had new neighbors.
"No idea what face to make in a situation like this..."
Of course, contrary to my mutter, my face was probably smiling.