044. A Mountain of Problems
Not long after we left the guild branch, my stomach suddenly made a sad "Gyuu~~" sound, so I decided to have lunch with Osada-kun at a nearby teishoku-ya (set meal restaurant).
「Pardon my interupption! My name is Fred, a G rank fixer.」
「I-I'm Petrea!」
「Actually, I wanted to join Yuuto's party.」
「Won't you join us and help us kill monsters!?」
「Wait, wait. If you want to talk to him, we're also E-ranked...」
「Yuuto-san♪ If you have time, join us and ......」
「......Ugaaaaaahhhhhhhh!」
I was constantly accosted by strangers from the same profession (?). I was so annoyed that I raised my voice.
「I was about to have a meal, and you just kept coming! Even if you talk to me all at once, I don't think I can deal with you properly, you know!?」
I said to them, and the people who had gathered around me stopped talking, as if they had something to think about. But
「Yuuto-san and Osada-san are famous people who have recently become the talk of the town within HanAria, and you are reputed to be competent fixers who have quickly developed your talents in a short period of time, you know?」
「Moreover, despite being in the dangerous position of as a buster, you have accomplished numerous requests without serious injury.」
「The most important point is that you two are a "free fixer who doesn't belong to any faction"」
「And I heard in the guild, you say "We're looking for companions!"」
――If we work together, at least we might be able to learn the secret of their success.
――In short, it seems that all of these guys are "ready to get on the winning horse".
I understand the feeling, and this is the world we live in.
I don't know if I'll have a life tomorrow, and if I'm low-ranked, I'll have to live in poverty daily, which is something I have experienced myself.
They are devious and calculating, taking advantage of others in order to survive and rise to the top ― I know it doesn't sound good, and I'm not saying that I'm not sick of it myself, but it's painfully obvious that these guys are desperate. However
「I myself am still in training, and a large part of what I've done so far has been due to "luck". It is also true that I am looking for a trustworthy companion. But――」
After narrowing my eyes and looking at the people around me,
「Became my companions. If we are going to work together, what exactly are you going to pay me in return? Money? Body? Manpower? Or something else?」
I said, and they fell silent again.
「There's a saying in the world, "Equivalent exchange". It means that in order to get something, you have to pay a certain price for it―and if you can pay me for that, I'm more than willing to welcome you to the party, work with you, ...... and all that. But if you don't have those things, then let's forget this conversation. To use an analogy, it's like asking someone to give you a product from the store when you don't even have the money to pay for it. Rather, I'm even annoyed by all of you coming at me at once. If you understand that, think a little more before you act in the future.」
I had no choice but to urge Osada-kun to get up from his seat and leave the store before the waiter came to take our order.
「Tsk. Oh, man―"this" is unexpected.」
I had thought that if I became a celebrity, I would attract some attention.
In fact, I was aware that I was popular even in Karguri, and some people approached me and bought me meals.
「But I didn't expect them to come to us empty-handed and say "Please join me!" or "Let's work together!".」
It's not so much randomness as it is a lack of "malice" that makes it all the worse.
「But you know what? The same kind of thing will happen again and again in the future, and in some cases, it may even cause more trouble, you know?」
「I know that――I know that but what the hell should I do ......」
If I keep refusing, it will surely lead to "animosity" and even endanger my own position.
(Hannah-san had warned me about this, but...)
I was too naive in my thinking and perception.
「What the hell am I supposed to do.......!」
The premonition that a poor decision could be fatal welled up from deep within me.
I guess it's all right for now.
But what about the next time? What about the next time again? And the next time after that?
The more I thought about it, the more I felt a chilly "something" running up my spine.
「Tsk tsk tsk! Yuuto. That's the wrong way to think!」
Suddenly, Osada-kun said something like that.
「In this case, the question is not, "What should we do?" but rather, "What do you want to do?" It's more important to think about it, you know? Because in the former case, you are only "completely passive," and there is a fear that you will not be able to see the way out, but what Yuuto himself wants to do, based on the current situation? An ideal image - or rather, a request? If you decide what you want, then the answer will naturally come to you, won't it?」
When Osada-kun said that to me, I stopped dead in my tracks and stared at Osada-kun beside me. And then
「Woooooooh! Osada-kun, thank youuuuuuuuuuuu!!!」
As I held him in a way that lifted his little body, Osada-kun said, "Breaking! I'm going to break!" He sounded panicked, so I lowered him to the ground again with careful movements.
「...... Yes, that's right. That makes a lot of sense.」
Rather than thinking about what to do with the problems that constantly come from the other side, if you decide "I want to do this!", dealing with them shouldn't be so difficult.
「That's my buddy. I can really rely on you♪」
「Praise me more♪, I haven't lived that long for nothing」
「Is it the age thing? Speaking of, how old is Osada-kun?」
「Eternal "666" years old?.」
「........I wasn't sure if you were serious or joking, but either way, the advice you just gave me was really helpful.」
「For my part, I'm going to leave it up to luck to some extent, rather than "depending on the situation" when it comes to gathering companions. There are a lot of reasons, you see」
On the other hand, we do not intend to continue the "status quo" forever.
Somewhere there will always be manpower――There will come a time when manpower is needed, and it is always better to keep the " adversaries" as few as possible.
(Even if I become an A-class fixer, it would only be a disadvantage if I am surrounded by enemies.)
I guess it means that I now have to pay attention to a certain kind of human relationship or something like that.
The most avoided element in games and novels―I was not good at it myself, and I was filled with the feeling that it would be a hassle, but...
「Well, we'll just have to do it little by little, won't we?」
「――Really, I felt Osada-kun's words sinking into my heart.」
「Anyway, I'm hungry. I don't want to be swarmed like before, so I'm going to go to a food stall somewhere and――」
「Don't fuck with me!!」
We heard a woman shouting not far away, and Osada-kun and I looked at each other and said,
「...... Guess, we can't just leave it alone, we'll have to eat later...」
「.......Right」
After mutually agreeing, we rushed toward the direction of the voice.
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