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High School Hack and Slash Chapter 146×1 Part 4

Peperon, placing Otoha who had been crushed with a splat on the tip of its nose, took refuge behind Mikan.

「I’m sorry….」

「Mm-hm. That’s how it is. So, Peperon-chan. In order to temper the『Lion God Katana』, you see, I hope you could share some of your scales. It’s a divine beast rank material, so without a catalyst on the same level as that, we can’t even polish it… Ahh, Peperon-chan, why are you running away?」

「Ge~koko~!」

「Wait up, Peperon-chan~. Three… no, just five pieces, please!」

「It’s very chaotic.」

「Yes. Well, when she’s immersed in her hobby, Mikan-chan ceases to be able to see those around her, after all.」

「… I see things that shouldn’t exist on the above ground.」

The three people who had come to the training ground expressed their respective thoughts.

The fact that the retort of Karin, who had her hand on her forehead, was lacking in sharpness was believed to be an escape from reality due to exhaustion.

「Ah, Karin. I see you’ve come to play!」

「She got lost, so I went and picked her up.」

「I, I wasn’t lost. Besides, it’s not like I’ve come here to play, or anything.」

「Eh, you’ve not, huh…」

「I, I’ve come to play.」

Seeing that Saki’s face was lightly clouded, Karin, having her sense of guilt stirred, confessed.

「That’s right, I was bored. What’s wrong with being a bored woman?」

「Even if you lash it out at me, that’d be troubling me.」

Having the anger taken out on her for some reason, Asura, still holding the paper bag in her hands, plopped her tail.

In the first place, this one was Lady Doggy who had 100% come to play from the beginning.

It was a dormitory like an attraction where delicious snacks and food were provided, there were lots of playmates, mysterious creatures were making merry, and mysterious traps and mysterious facilities were increasing in number.

If there was any dissatisfaction she had, that would be the fact that her application to move into the dormitory had not been accepted due to it being over-capacity.

「Ah. But I’m sorry, Karin. Even though you’ve taken the trouble to come all the way here to duel (play) with me… I don’t have a katana on me.」

「The battle against Hercules was an irregular one, so it can’t be helped.」

One that sacrificed robustness and durability, and put absolute importance in sharpness was the weapon known as『katana』.

The wear and tear of one’s favorite katana was a problem that plagued『Samurai』 class holders.

When it came to a normal dungeon conquest, there was no need to worry so much about the wear and tear of one’s weapon.

As long as it was not completely destroyed and lost its essence, it would be back to normal at Rashomon.

However, in the present world battle (Advent Raid) this time, sufferers who suffered equipment loss similar to Saki had occurred.

「If, if you want it, Saki, I don’t mind giving you my spare sword, you know?」

「Oh. This one is a creation of Tanuki-chan, isn’t it? The tip is elongated and the curve is thin. It’s a thick, solid, simple, and rigid katana. Yup, good child~.」

「You know the exclusive blacksmith of Tenjou Tenge (ours)?」

「Yes. Tanuki-chan sometimes uses the『Underground Workshop (Factory)』 of Asagi-sou, you know. The miasma pressure is higher than in the academy’s workshop in the Special Classroom Building, and even if you create something strange, mumblemumble.」

「Yes, yes, Mikan-chan, that’s as far as you go, I suppose. The point is, the Craftsman classes have solid horizontal connections.」

Rinko, moving to her rear, covered Mikan’s mouth.

「… Come to think of it, I was told never to cause trouble for the adept Craftsmen.」

「Well then, we’ve met up with Saki-chan, so I think it’s a good idea to have some snacks with everyone.」

After eating up the popcorn, Asura began to crave new sweets.

There it was Asura, who had learned to make the underhanded facade of doing it for the sake of everyone, as opposed to because she wanted to eat it herself.

「Hmm. There’s the closing party ahead, so I wonder if we should bake some fugashi (wheat-gluten candy) together?」

「The choice is too austere.」

Rinko smiled wryly at Karin, who involuntarily threw in a retort.

「It doesn’t make you too bloated, and it’s easy to make, after all. The kitchen has turned into a battlefield, but I suppose we could make it even with a toaster oven.」

「I’m going to make it too!」

「No, that’s not it! The reason I came here is….」

「Let’s make it together, Karin~. I’m also bad at cooking, so it’s okay even if you fail~.」

「If, if you say so, Saki, then I guess there’s no helping it.」

Karin easily sit on the fence, but in the first place, her purpose was to communicate with『the first friend who seemed to accept her』.

Her means were clumsy and unsettling, but she harbored no hostility.

Perhaps that was exactly why she was recognized as a guest by the mysterious Asagi-sou Defense Force.

Thus, in a sense, her purpose could be said to have been fulfilled.

At the very least, the person in question was satisfied.

Until this moment, that was it.

◇ ◇ ◇

「Wha….」

Karin, having no memory from when she was dead drunk, tightened her grip on the towel blanket she had pulled over her chest.

「Wha, wha, whawhawha….」

Under the futon, she was completely naked, without a stitch of clothing on.

She had slept in an unfamiliar room, on an unfamiliar bed, and next to an unfamiliar boy.

No, she had some vague recollections of them.

The『tournament good work party』, into which she was dragged bit by bit.

There, she drank, or rather was made to drink, tons of very tasty juice.

She had a feeling that after she was smashed once, she revived and ended up doing some merrymaking that she would have never done under normal circumstances.

To begin with, the sober-faced Karin was not the type of person who could get used to such events.

That was exactly why, it could be said that she had no tolerance for it.

「… hnn… Karin, that place is … no good …」

「Nya, nyanyanya….」

The sleep-talking she could hear came from on the opposite side of the boy.

As Karin stiffly turned around, there she found Saki, who was exposing an unbecoming sleeping figure.

No matter how she looked at it, it was『after the fact』.

Of course, Karin had some recollections of it.

She even had recollections that under the influence of alcohol, she had assaulted Saki, performed an incomprehensible pathetic scene of demanding if she hated her, and finally challenged her male partner to a sexual battle.

「Well, calm down. Feel free to have some tea.」

「T, thanks.」

「… But still, for you to barge in and stage a freestyle orgy, I believe it was a questionable act for a senpai.」

Karin’s movements ground to a halt at the exasperated tone of her voice.

The one sitting on the bed was one of the vice-presidents of the Adept Orders as well as the one assuming the role of the older sister of Saki.

From such a Shizuka’s point of view, she would like to spit a couple of complaints toward the interloper who had barged into their bedroom.

「By the way, I believe you remember it, but the match was a complete victory for Touma-san.」

「Th, that’s….」

「Please give up on Saki and take your leave.」

As Shizuka smiled at her sweetly, Karin, who had been shaking and trembling, jumped off the bed.

「J…」

「Yes?」

「Just you wait~!」

Karin, scraping together a change of clothes, rushed out of the Asagi-sou’s night duty room.

Worthily a well-trained vanguard class holder, she boasted a very toned and outstanding figure.

Shizuka had gotten a glimpse of it during last night’s battle royal as well.

「… Funi, Shizu-nee-sama?」

「Good morning. Saki.」

Saki, who slowly raised her upper body, stretched her body with sleepy eyes.

「Yawn… Ah, come to think of it, I thought I was woken up by Karin’s voice, though?」

「Perhaps she remembered some urgent business, she happened to just left.」

「I see~.」

The fact that her voice was somewhat despondent might be proof that Karin’s feeling was not a one-sided one.

It was just that, the directions appeared to be misaligned, for sure.

「Given her state, I am sure she will come to play again. She is your friend, is she not?」

Saki smiled as she nodded to Shizuka’s inquiry.

「Yes.」