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Nanana’s Buried Treasure Volume 10 Chapter 1.9

As a community, the Seventh High School had been planning to conquer the three unexplored <<ruins>> that they were currently aware of over the summer break. There were also many other things to do, such as social gatherings and preparations for the second semester, but all of those had to be temporarily put on hold. Frankly, it was a headache.

Taisei couldn’t help but voice his irritation.

「Damn it. Who exactly is to blame?」

****************************************************

「I’m the culprit.」

With a  refreshing smile, Isshin tells Kagetora and Yuu the truth.

They were at a cafe in the downtown area before opening time.

According to Isshin, the café was owned by a friend. It goes without saying that the manager is a woman.

「So, why did you attack the other owner and steal the Nanana collection?」, Kagetora asks as he and Yuu look at Isshin with confused expressions.

「Before that, I want to ask you two something.」

「What is it?」

「Will you continue to follow me?」

Kagetora snorts at Isshin’s serious expression.

「Isn’t the reason you told us you were the culprit, because you know the answer?」, Kagetora points out.

Isshin laughs.

「But I still want to hear it. What are your answers?」

「That’s a stupid question. I intend to support you to the end.」

「Thank you, Kagetora.」

「Of course, me too.」

「Thank you, Yuu. From now on, please consider this matter just between the three of us.」

At his words, Yuu’s eyes grew troubled.

「Um, Isshin-sama… the little one and Yama…」

Isshin closed his eyes at the mention of his fellow Adventure Club members and kohai.

「What I’m about to do is my own selfish wish. And I think the only ones who will go along with it are the two of you here.」

Hearing this, Yuu and Kagetora’s expressions harden. Even though he’s been working alongside the second-year students as part of the Adventure Club, he’s betrayed them on numerous occasions. This is a reflection of Isshin’s attachment to the Nanana collection, and above all, his desire to eat the younger students he considers superior to him.

The three of them, who had walked together into this situation, felt a certain resolve together about this situation.

In other words, it was a true farewell to his kohai. It was because of this that Yuu looked down and clenched her fists. But then she looked up and saw the face of the person she loved and nodded.

「I understand.」

Watching them, Kagetora nodded again.

Seeing their feelings, Isshin said 「thank you」 once more.

「So, Isshin. First, let me ask you again. What was your purpose in carrying out this robbery?」

「My purpose is to cause chaos.」

「Chaos?」

「I believe that the recent <<game>> has brought about a major turning point in the secret and search for the Nanana collection on Nanaejima.」

「I see.」

「One reason is the intervention of adults. Namely the Nanaejima Security Forces, and even the executive board. While there had been some under-the-table activity up until now, such as the purchase of the Nanana collection, this time they’ve made a major inroad into our territory. While no punishment was ultimately imposed, it’s clear that we’d only been turned a blind eye up until now.」

「In other words, does that mean they could stop turning that blind eye at any time?」

Isshin nods.

「The second is the rise of the Seventh High School community. By taking a new stance of sharing the Nanana collections they’ve acquired as a community and creating a wider forum for challengers to interact with each other, they’re creating an environment that makes it easier for challengers to collect Nanana collections. In a broad sense, I think this is a very good approach. However, how each person interprets it will vary.」

「In other words, Isshin doesn’t really like the Seventh High School community’s goals.」

Isshin nods again.

「I don’t agree with their stance of everyone sharing the same power.」

「I see.」

「Finally, the rarity of the Nanana collection has skyrocketed.」

This caused both Kagetora and Yuu to frown.

「Um, Isshin-sama, I don’t really understand what you mean…」

「Ever since Nanana was killed and <<ruins>> began appearing all over this island, many of the items in the Nanana collection we’ve discovered so far have had weak abilities. They were practically just handy items. But now they’re becoming increasingly powerful.」

「What’s your basis for thinking that, Isshin?」

「It’s this red notebook.」

Isshin took out a rather old-fashioned red notebook.

「What is that?」

「It’s probably Nanana’s notes.」

「Nanana Ryuugajou?」

「In here is detailed information about the entire Nanana collection.」

The two of them widened their eyes at what Isshin had said.

「Isshin, where did you get this notebook?」

「During the final stages of the first semester’s final <<game>>, while protecting a gravely wounded M alongside Nishi and the others, I stole it from M when she lost consciousness. The reason the leprechaun controlling the pitch black men was so obsessed with M back then was probably because of this notebook. This notebook is actually worth that much. Thanks to it, I’ve been able to collect quite a few Nanana collections since the start of summer vacation.」

「Really? How many have you actually collected?」

「Twelve in less than three weeks.」

Kagetora and Yuu both widen their eyes at the number.

After all, Isshin and the rest of the Third High School Adventure Club have only managed to acquire one Nanana collection (a fragment of the <<holy spear>> possessed by Tensai) since their activities began in April of this year.

「By the way, these aren’t from the <<ruins>>. They were all on display in the store.」

Currently, there are two main ways to acquire the Nanana collection. One is to find and conquer the <<ruins>> scattered throughout Nanaejima, and obtain them from the treasure chests hidden deep within. The other is to stumble upon the Nanana collection, hidden away in a store.

The former is hidden in a treasure chest deep inside the <<ruins>>, so it is undoubtedly the real thing. However, the latter is extremely difficult to identify, because it is not even clear what a Nanana collection is in the first place. The only way to tell the difference is to have the earthbound spirit Ryuugajou nanana look at something that you think is one, or to send a photo to online game player Sashimi (Nanana’s handle name) and have her confirm it.

「Honestly, I didn’t think there were this many in circulation. I haven’t been searching for them long. I only managed to find this many while doing some research. I’m sure there are still more.」

「I see.」

「However, I’ve determined that most of the items I’ve obtained are of low rarity.」

「You mentioned that word rarity earlier, right?」

「It’s exactly as it sounds. It’s simply whether it’s valuable or not… No, that word doesn’t really fit a Nanana collection that possesses a rare ability. Let me rephrase it this way: whether it’s powerful or not.」

Isshin holds up his red notebook once again.

「There are a total of 762 items in the Nanana collection listed here. Of those, I think 503 are rare, which is roughly 66% of the total. In the <,game>> we played the other day, I think the items that fit this description would be <<Humpty Dumpty>>, <<azure dragon isla>>, <<bow of light>>, <<Hekatonkeiru’s iron shackles>>, <<Milt Meer’s pocket watch>>, <<stardust army command cloak>>, and of course the <<wizard’s wand>> and <<sword of Nanana>> that we both once obtained, also fit the description.」

「I don’t know everything, but I have a few ideas. I know they certainly possess powerful abilities, but is the line between powerful and not powerful well enough defined?」

「I understand what you’re saying, but I’d like to express it this way.」

「?」

「The Nanana collection that can kill people.」

Isshin’s words made both of their expressions tighten.

「That’s not a gentle way to put it. But the Nanana collection is so rare, so that must mean it has that much power.」

「Of course, when we say rarity, it can vary greatly. But the Nanana collections discovered so far have all been Nanana collections that don’t have that much power.」

「So that’s what you’d call a low-rarity Nanana collection?」

Isshin nods.

「But it feels like we’ve run out of those, and I expect that from now on, Nanana collections with high rarity and powerful powers will start appearing one after another.」

「I see.」

「During the recent <<game>>, a dispute broke out between the owner of the Nanana collection and the Security Force. No actual force was taken on the front lines, but that was because the adults hesitated to lay hands on the students. Only one person actually took action to subdue the students, right Kagetora?」

「Yeah, just one monstrous figure.」

「What do you think would have happened if the Security Force had seriously attacked?」

「They would have been massacred.」

「I agree. On the other hand, what would have happened if the challengers had only a more powerful Nanana collection? At the very least, the Security Force would have been forced to fight back seriously. The outcome is merely speculation, but even we, the challengers, could have won.」