A hero who wants to help others wants to live a normal life

Chapter 60 Head of the Kamiarizuki Family

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“—Why did we end up coming all the way to the middle of nowhere?”

A week had passed since we visited Kiriya’s house. Now, Inori and I were driving down a mountain road, heading deeper into the wilderness, with Kiriya in the car.

“Well, it’s because you’re here to train.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t have to join this training…”

Naturally, we weren’t driving the car ourselves—it was provided by Kiriya’s family.

The reason we were in this situation, though, was due to the phone call that happened when we were at Kiriya’s house. After that, Inori and I ended up being roped into this training as well.

At first, I refused Kiriya’s invitation to join the training. But then I thought, “I don’t have anything else to do, and spending just one day of summer vacation with friends would make for a pretty sad memory.” So… I gave in.

Maybe Kiriya could sense my hesitation, because he convinced me to join the summer training at the Kamiarizuki house.

But… I’m starting to regret it. Now that I think about it, won’t I just end up training alone again this time? After all, I’m a ‘Blessed One,’ so I can’t exactly blend in with the others who are using different skills.

Then again, if I really hated the idea, I could’ve refused. So it’s not fair to blame anyone else. At least that’s what I keep telling myself…

Plus, this time it’s different. Everyone already knows I’m a ‘Blessed One,’ so there’s no need to hide it. Maybe it’ll turn out to be fun, training together with everyone… I hope.

“When I told the master, he was all for it. Didn’t Seiji tell you something similar?”

“Yeah, my senior told me I should join. That’s why I’m here.”

After I confirmed I was going, I got a call from my senior—or rather, from Momochi-san, who is both her bodyguard and assistant. The call was about how now that my status as a ‘Blessed One’ was out, I might be targeted more frequently, so it would be wise to take this opportunity to train seriously.

“Well, it’s not so bad to do something like this once in a while. Kinda feels like a fun camping trip,” Inori said.

“Yeah, but it’s not exactly a luxury camping trip,” Kiriya replied.

So, are we really going to camp? When I trained at Kamiarizuki before, we had to camp in monster-infested areas as part of the training. I guess the other trainees will be doing the same.

“For Inori, training must feel like playtime, so I bet it’ll feel just like camping to her.”

Inori could probably survive in any environment without any issues. Heck, she could probably live in magma or at the bottom of the ocean. For her, the kind of camping the others are doing is probably no different from a fun vacation. Not that either of us has ever gone camping with a group before, so we wouldn’t know if it’s fun or not.

“Man, being a “Blessed One” is seriously enviable!”

“Depends on the kind of blessing. I don’t have abilities as impressive as Inori’s.”

All I can do is stretch my arm, and my physical strength is pretty much on par with an average person.

“You’re still a “Blessed One,” though. If you’re here to train, I bet they’ll give you your own special training program, right?”

“Yeah, but that sounds like it’s gonna be brutal.”

“Training is supposed to be tough, isn’t it?”

“You’re probably right, but I’d rather go for something more casual, like an easy trial course or something.”

“Well, I guess we’ll see how it goes when we get there.”

I really hope there’s no “surprise.” I’d prefer something normal. Actually, even if it’s a bit different from normal, as long as it’s light, I’d be okay with it. Maybe that’s not really the point of training, but I’m not here to become a training enthusiast. If I can just enjoy the atmosphere, that’s enough for me.

But I don’t think that’s how this will turn out…

“From here on, it’s private property… wait, all this ahead too? This is huge.”

“Of course. We’re talking about the biggest martial family in the country. It’s only natural. Not that having a lot of land means there’s much on it.”

As we drove through the mountains, we passed a fence and some signs, marking the private property. But the area beyond seemed vast. It’s probably larger than an entire mountain.

I’d been here before, but I was just a kid back then and didn’t really pay attention. Now that I’m seeing it again, it feels enormous.

Even if there’s nothing much on the land, it’s still impressive. It shows just how powerful the Kamiarizuki family is. For training, having a wide, uninterrupted space is probably ideal.

“We’ve been expecting you, Daigo Kiriya-sama, Seiji Sahara-sama, and Inori Sahara-sama. The master is waiting for you. Please, follow me.”

After being driven around for a while, we finally arrived at the Kamiarizuki estate, where we were greeted as if they had been waiting for us. We were immediately escorted to meet the head of the Kamiarizuki family.

“It’s my first time being summoned by the head…”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I told you, my family isn’t that big. Sure, we’ve had some casual meet-and-greets, but that’s usually for the adults. Kids like me don’t usually get called in. At most, we might bump into him when visiting, but getting formally summoned? That doesn’t happen.”

“Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

“I mean, honestly, we’re kind of just along for the ride this time, right?”

“Wow, you’re really being blunt about it. But yeah, that’s probably true.”

We continued chatting as we walked, but man, this place is massive! Kiriya’s house was big, but this is on a whole other level. I can see why he’d downplay his own place as small compared to this.

“Master, I’ve brought the three guests.”

“Understood. Please, come in.”

After walking for a while down a corridor that squeaked with each step, we finally arrived at the head of the household’s room.

“Nice to meet you. Please, come in.”

Upon hearing those words, the person guiding us opened the sliding door, and we were taken aback by the sight that awaited us.

Until now, everything had been purely Japanese in style, but this room alone was different—it was furnished with rugs and sofas. The door was a sliding screen, and the hallway beyond was traditionally Japanese, yet this room was completely out of place, creating an odd, mismatched feeling.

However, in this peculiar room, the person who seemed to be both the master of the house and the owner of the room was waiting for us, watching intently.

“Are you curious about the change in the room? This is a study and a room to entertain guests, so this setup is more convenient. For the elderly, even the simple act of sitting and standing can be hard on the knees. Now, please, have a seat.”

It did feel a bit far removed to be a guest room, but as the head of the household mentioned, it likely served more as an office. The guests who were brought here would surely be of significant importance.

…But thinking about it, aren’t we being treated as rather important guests? I mean, it’s our first meeting, and we’ve been summoned to this room. The head of the household, whom even Kiriya hadn’t met, personally invited us. I suppose it makes sense though, since both of us are rare ‘Blessed’ individuals in the world. Kiriya… Is he just a nice guy who brought us here?

“First, Kiriya. Thank you for bringing these two here. We’ve been looking for an opportunity ourselves, and although we had tried reaching out before, we didn’t receive a very favorable response. Frankly, you’ve been a great help. I say this with no ulterior motives—thank you very much.”

“Huh? Oh, no, it’s nothing! I just happened to have friends, so I invited them…”

“Even if it was by chance, if something good has come of it, then it’s only right to express gratitude, don’t you think?”

“Ah… thank you very much!”

Kiriya was clearly tense. Well, that’s natural. After all, this is the head of a much more prominent family. It’s like the son of a small business owner being called in by the CEO of the industry’s largest company. Or perhaps more like a regular person being invited to the Imperial Palace?

In any case, it’s only natural to be nervous.

“Actually, I believe it’s us who should be expressing gratitude. But on that note, you’ve been here before, haven’t you? I’m sure there are people you’d like to greet.”

With a warm smile, the head of the household continued, and Kiriya’s eyes widened in surprise. He quickly turned back to us in a swift motion.

I could understand why. The underlying meaning of those words was clear: “You’re in the way, so could you leave now?”

“Well…”

Kiriya probably felt conflicted about leaving us here after bringing us along. But the person before us was the head of a much more powerful household—there wasn’t much point in defying them. Even if we wanted Kiriya to stay, it would only end up causing trouble for him.

“Don’t worry about us, just do what you usually do. It’s not like we’re meeting for the first time, so nothing bad is going to happen to us.”

“Oh, come now. If we tried anything like that, we’d end up being the ones devoured by you.”

Though they were joking, who knows how true that really is?

Sure, if we wanted to, we could resist. We could even go so far as to oppose this family. That’s how heavy and powerful the position of being ‘Blessed’ is.

But even if we did, there’s no way this Kamiarizuki family would go down without a fight. In fact, I think it’s more likely that we’d be the ones crushed. We wouldn’t die, and we’d still be able to live our lives as usual, but we’d definitely face some kind of setback.

“Well, in that case, I’ll excuse myself…”

Kiriya still looked concerned, his brows furrowed as if he felt guilty about leaving us, but there’s no need to worry so much. I guess I’ll just make sure to thank him properly later.