An Old Man Restaurant Owner Is Unparalleled by Relying on His Old Tricks. It Turns Out, He’s the Legendary Dungeon Conqueror. - 27

Chapter 27: That Means the Gap Between Her Personalities Is Insane

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The staff from the headquarters of the Dungeon Management Agency suddenly came to my restaurant. They said they wanted to talk, so I instinctively braced myself for the worst. What flashed through my mind was the excruciating mistake of exposing my private part during the livestream.

But still, I couldn’t help but to wonder why he came here with a young woman like her if he came to punish me for public indecency. 

“Allow me to be frank, we would like to promote Nishida-sama to S-rank.”

“Huh? You’re not here for ‘that’?”

“Hm? What do you mean by ‘that’?”

“N-Nothing. Never mind.”

Thank goodness, they didn’t come here to arrest me for public indecency. But… So they wanted to promote me to S-rank?

“You were registered as an explorer just recently, hence why you’re still an F-rank explorer.  However, we reviewed your abilities based on your livestream and we at the Dungeon Management Agency are convinced that your skills are worthy of an S-rank.”

“I will politely decline.”

“However, according to the rules of the Agency, being promoted to S-rank unconditionally is… Huh?”

Mizusawa-san looked visibly perplexed after he was caught off guard by my abrupt refusal. 

“W-why?!”

He seemed flustered, clearly not expecting to hear a refusal coming from my mouth.

“Why? It’s because I’m a restaurant owner. I only did dungeon diving and streaming it to promote my restaurant. I don’t have the slightest intention to work as a dungeon explorer.”

“If I may be honest, given your level of skill, it seems a waste to be running a mere…”

“A mere what?”

“Uh… Nothing, I mean…”

Mizusawa-san stuttered, seemingly at a loss for words.

“O-Of course, I believe running a restaurant is a commendable profession too. The food I had earlier was so delicious that I somehow had eaten it all without realizing it. In fact, that was the first time my heart was touched by the food I ate. However… We’re in the era of dungeons now. Dungeon resources enrich the country and at the same time, the existence of monsters inside the dungeon threaten the safety of the country too. The existence of skilled explorers is crucial for both protecting and enriching the nation.”

His points were valid. The dungeon exploration in Japan was lacking compared to other countries. So much so that Japan had fallen from its position as a leading nation to a second world country or even third world country. That being said, life for the people had become so much easier now compared to the past thanks to the resources from the dungeon. Being branded as a second world or third world country didn’t really have much correlation with the quality of living of the people.

“The existence of S-rank explorers is extremely important to maintain the nation’s dignity. Nishida-sama, please reconsider.”

“No. My answer will remain the same. I refuse.”

Mizusawa-san bowed deeply, but I gave him another firm answer without even reconsidering. My answer wouldn’t change no matter what. But then, the female subordinate who had remained silent during the whole conversation suddenly raised her voice.

“WHYYYYYYYYYY ARE YOU REFUSINGGGGGGG?!”

“Wai-?! Abukuma-san?!”

Mizusawa-san looked flabbergasted, rightfully so, while Abukuma-san continued to scream. 

“I’M A FAN OF NISHIDA-SAMA! I’VE BEEN WATCHING YOU EVER SINCE YOU FIRST LIVESTREAMED YOUR DUNGEON DIVING! I WAS SO MOVED TO SEE SUCH AN AMAZING PERSON AS YOU! IT WAS THE FIRST TIME MY HEART WAS MOVED TO THAT EXTENT! That’s why… I was ecstatic when I heard Nishida-sama is going to be promoted to S-rank… I actually begged to be brought along because I was so excited! But… But… You’re going to refuse?! WHY? WHYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!?!”

…It turned out she was a pretty intense woman. 

“Normally, someone would be crying with tears of joy when they heard they’re going to be promoted to S-rank! Nobody in their right mind would refuse such a lucrative offer!!”

“Abukuma-san! Abukuma-san!! Please, calm down!!”

“HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO REMAIN CALMMMMMMMMMM?!?!?!”

“M-My apologies, she’s usually very calm. She’s very competent at her job, I really didn’t expect her to act in this way.”

“That means the gap between her personalities is insane.

Mizusawa-san sighed deeply before he said. 

“Let’s call it a day for now. We will come back another time. Ah, but before we go… There’s one more thing we need to talk about. It’s about Nana Tendou, the S-rank explorer who attacked you yesterday. She’s currently under investigation by the police.”

“Ah…”

“We’ve watched the livestream and she undoubtedly attacked you first, but… She’s a precious S-rank explorer. If possible, we’d prefer it if the situation doesn’t escalate even further…”

“So you’re asking me, the victim of the attacker, to say that it was part of some training or lesson or something like that? I don’t mind.. After all, although I had forgotten about her, but the fact still remains. She was someone I knew and I don’t want her to get punished either.”

I remembered back in the days, she would keep challenging me over and over again. Even though she was still in elementary school and I was already a university student. She was relentless, both back then and now. She had become an adult now, but still. It was actually kind of adorable how she didn’t change much over the years.

“…We greatly appreciate your generosity, Nishida-sama. Well then, we’ll be taking our leave now…”

“I’M NOT LEAVING!!! I WON’T GO HOME UNTIL HE AGREES!! I’M NOT LEAVINGGGGG!! I’M NOT LEAVING!! NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”

Mizusawa-san grabbed his subordinate by the scruff of her neck and dragged her away forcefully. 

“Oh. Please be careful when you leave the restaurant. There are a lot of scouts lying in wait outside. All of them are dying to get close to you.”

Ah, so that was the reason why there were so many people hiding outside. After I saw them off, I quietly snuck out of the restaurant stealthily to avoid getting caught up in more hassle.

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