To America (2)
To America (2)
Vietnam's national hero. The seventh-ranked S-rank Awakener. Võ Chí Công.
After defeating the Grade 0 Villain Necromancer, he had thought his hardships were finally over, but...
[Boss, we've got an order from the U.S. S-rank Gate. They want us there right now.]
[Everyone, let us go make some money!!]
His life hadn't changed.
Restoring Vietnam required money—an enormous amount of it.
The Vietnamese people contributed what little they could, donations arrived from abroad, and the Church of the Lord had provided a vast sum.
Even so, Công still had to earn foreign currency himself.
Whenever an S-rank Gate appeared in another country, as one had today, he rushed over to deal with it.
Công was usually in a poor mood whenever he departed on an overseas expedition, but...
today, his expression wasn't gloomy.
If anything, he looked cheerful.
[Whoa, Boss. You're looking cheerful?]
[I'm going with Yujin.]
[Yujin!?]
There were two reasons he was in such a good mood.
First, Yujin—his close friend and a hero in Vietnam alongside Công himself—would be accompanying him.
[Is that safe? We're glad to have him, but Yujin might be in danger....]
[Ninomiya is coming too.]
[...Then even bringing a newborn would be safe!]
Second, that Aika Ninomiya would be joining them.
Công and the other Vietnamese Awakeners were all in high spirits.
The life-or-death S-rank Gate had instantly become a picnic destination.
"Hey, Yujin. Long time no...."
—Loud chatter.
"Kyaaaah!!! It's Yujin!!!"
"How do you say 'get an autograph' in Korean?"
"Use a translator! A translator!!"
Their completely relaxed mood continued after they arrived in Korea.
They squealed the moment they spotted Yujin waiting at the airport.
They were far too carefree for people about to enter a Gate.
Công didn't scold them. He merely chuckled.
After everything they'd endured, he could allow them this much.
"Hey, what's with your people? What are they shouting about when they see me?"
"Well, the truth is...."
—Whisper, whisper.
"I'm basically an idol in Vietnam right now?"
"That's how things turned out. Sign some autographs for my people on the way."
"I don't mind, but what I taught you really isn't anything special...."
That multiplied Yujin's burden two hundredfold.
Feeling as though he'd stolen his friend's accomplishments, he spent the entire flight providing fan service.
The Vietnam Liberation Army ended up split evenly between supporters of Công and supporters of Yujin, but...
Công did not particularly care.
'What I needed to worry about now was... Ninomiya.'
The person who concerned him was Aika Ninomiya.
The woman Yujin loved.
Công's eyes narrowed.
He directed a suspicious look at Aika.
[Ninomiya. I need to ask you something.]
[Don't use Telepathy on me. If I'm gonna adjust to the jet lag, I need to sleep ahead of time....]
[Has anything happened between you and Yujin since then?]
'Nothing should have happened if she followed my advice... but would this gorilla ever listen obediently?'
About a month earlier, she had made Yujin cough up blood.
Công and Seol Hayeon had worked to prevent a repeat.
But had their efforts accomplished anything?
Had Ninomiya already pounced on Yujin?
That was the suspicion he leveled at Aika.
[.......]
—Shift.
The purple eyes glaring at Công slid toward the blameless window.
Had anything happened?
She had teased her disciple by pretending to wear nothing but an apron.
Then she had shown him the slingshot swimsuit beneath it.
She had only told him that if he confessed, she would even show him her naked body.
Afterward, she had pretended to spill water on their clothes by accident, stripping herself and making him strip as well.
She had casually touched him while helping him train.
She had pretended to fall asleep in her underwear, pretended to be too drunk to stand, and tried all sorts of other things.
She had certainly kept busy, but...
[Nothing happened.]
'My disciple never laid a hand on me. In the end, that meant nothing happened.'
Aika casually ignored the prick of her conscience.
Nothing had happened. That was her story.
[Really? You wore modest clothes and behaved properly?]
[Th-That's what I said.]
[I'll ask Yujin later, you know?]
[...There might have been a tiny problem with my clothes.]
[.......]
'As expected, she spent the whole month wearing obscene outfits.'
Công sighed heavily at the transparent lie.
Of course, he couldn't press her.
Pervert or not, she was still the No. 1 S-rank Awakener. He could hardly interrogate her about what shameless clothes she'd worn.
Công valued his life.
Besides, Yujin would have enjoyed it.
That guy loved the gorilla, after all.
Công decided not to pursue the matter.
[Leaving the clothes aside, how far has your relationship progressed?]
[...Huh?]
[Yujin loves you. Hasn't he made any moves? Held your hand, asked you to go somewhere together, anything like that?]
Instead, he interrogated her about their romantic progress.
Two people who loved each other were living beneath the same roof.
Even if they had not gone all the way, he assumed they must have grown much closer.
—Droop.
[.......]
Aika answered with the most pitiful expression imaginable.
She had made it perfectly clear that her disciple could confess whenever he wanted and that she intended to accept him.
She had showered him with physical contact meant to make a man's heart race and worn the revealing clothes men liked.
Yet her disciple had not laid a single finger on his master...
Could her age be the problem?
She was thirty-two, after all—
Her expression was full of that self-loathing.
'She looked like an old laying hen about to be culled.'
[I don't need to hear the answer.]
[Yeah... My disciple won't confess. My age must be the problem.]
[Of course not. You and Yujin are simply missing each other's signals.]
[...Explain.]
But her dejection lasted only a moment.
Công's suggestive words drew Aika's full attention.
Công raised the little finger of his left hand.
[First, Yujin likes you. I heard it directly from him, so there's no doubt.]
[Okay.]
[And you, Aika Ninomiya, also like Yujin—Ahem. You're willing to accept his confession.]
—Clench.
His right hand formed a tight fist.
A faint aura of mana rose around it for emphasis.
The pinky looked tiny beside the fist.
[Now imagine that this little finger is Yujin and the fist is you.]
[Keep going.]
[The fist has accomplished countless feats. It's strong and rich, just like you.]
[Right. So the confession....]
[The pinky, on the other hand, is still a fledgling. To him, the fist looks impossibly large—so far above him that he can't even dream of confessing.]
[.........!!!!]
Aika stared in horror.
She had assumed that because she was so accomplished, her disciple would naturally confess...
but her greatness had actually intimidated him?
That realization horrified her.
[Then what should I do?!]
[The best solution would be for you to confess first, but....]
[I-I refuse! Then I'd look like a perverted master who lusts after her disciple and wants to devour him!!]
[.......]
'That was exactly what you were, you perverted gorilla.'
Her stubbornness remained, but Công did not care.
Everything was proceeding exactly as he expected.
[Then the second option is to give Yujin stature worthy of you.]
[That... sounds difficult. My disciple is growing quickly, but it'll still take at least six months for him to reach S-rank.]
[Yujin doesn't have to earn it all himself. You can spoon-feed it to him.]
[Explain.]
[Yes. First of all....]
Công earnestly laid out his plan.
How could Yujin catch up to Ninomiya's standing?
Even a lifetime might not be enough.
Ninomiya's strength couldn't be explained by stats alone.
Therefore, she would help Yujin directly.
She would funnel him the achievements that should have belonged to her,
make him stand out more than she did,
and ultimately make the world praise him.
[Make him the No. 1 S-rank Awakener. Then Yujin can confess without feeling intimidated.]
[How?]
[Conveniently, we're headed into an S-rank Gate. Feed Yujin every last hit.]
[...Your IQ must have been at least two hundred!!]
Even Aika found the plan highly convincing.
Making her disciple the No. 1 S-rank Awakener.
It gave her a perfectly respectable justification as his master, and...
'A woman supporting her husband from behind the scenes? That was exactly the ideal wife and mother I'd always dreamed of becoming!!'
It suited Aika's personal tastes perfectly.
Her eyes shone.
[All right. In exchange, protect my disciple's friends. It'll be hard to keep them safe while funneling all the credit to him.]
[I'll protect them until my ability overloads.]
[Naturally.]
[.......]
'Yujin, was this gorilla really the woman for you? Vietnam was full of pretty girls I could introduce....'
Công wondered whether he should tell Yujin to flee immediately, but...
Aika cared nothing about his doubts.
* * *
After some time, they arrived before the S-rank Gate.
Aika took a deep breath and steeled herself.
She resolved to feed the entire S-rank Gate to Yujin and no one else.
"Whew...."
'It'd be fine. My disciple's Jaha Sword Art became perfect with my support. Anyone watching would think he had done everything himself.'
The plan was flawless.
Yujin's Jaha Sword Art was incomplete—only half of a whole without Aika.
But what if she supplied the missing half?
To everyone else, it would look as though Yujin had defeated everything.
They would think Yujin had bisected the enemy with his katana while Aika merely hovered in the background.
'The problem was that an S-rank Gate was dangerous for my disciple.'
Her only concern was Yujin himself.
His stats had grown tremendously, bringing him to roughly B-rank.
But B-rank was still only B-rank.
One mistake inside an S-rank Gate could kill him.
As his master, she had every reason to worry.
'It would be fine. If this was an ordinary S-rank Gate, I could support him, though only just.'
She buried her anxiety beneath confidence.
Who was I? Aika Ninomiya.
An S-rank Gate was mere breakfast to her—a piece of cake.
"Then... let us go, my disciple."
"Yes. Công, everyone. Let us go."
With her resolve firm, Aika marched forward.
It would be fine. She had cleared dozens of S-rank Gates alone. A mere S-rank Gate posed no problem.
She repeated that to herself.
———But,
—Ding.
[The Gate's estimated danger level evolves from S-rank to S+++-rank!]
"......!!!!?"
'This was on a completely different level from an ordinary S-rank Gate...!!'
Reality had decided to screw her over.
"My disciple!! Do not leave my side...."
"Aika Ninomiya! Approximately fifty monsters will attack in ten seconds! Charge ahead and wipe them all out first!!"
[What about feeding my disciple the last hits?]
[Is that really what matters right now, you gorilla?! We're all about to die!!]
"......Ugh."
With absolutely no other choice, Aika...
'It could not be helped. I'd kill them as quickly as possible—but not so quickly that I stood out. Then I'd leave the rest for my disciple...!!'
—Shing!!
"Hryaaaaaaa!!!"
—KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!
"......!!!!?"
'That musclebound gorilla had been hiding her strength!!?'
'Was Master always that strong!? She had not been anywhere near that powerful in the First Round?!'
Aika stopped hiding her abilities.