Surviving in a World Teeming with Monsters with the Useless Skill 【Everyday Items Master】! I Was Just Hunting Wild Animals with a Crowbar, So Why Is Everyone Screaming It's an S-Rank Monster? - 108

Chapter 108: Setting Out to Break Through the Madness

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A few hours later, Shachimaru, revived by the healer of the Ferocious Shark Gang, bowed his head deeply to us.

“I’m reeeally… Truly sorry for all the trouble I caused!”

In response, each of us had something to say to him too.

“If you’re that strong, you could’ve taken down Locust or Big Ape Junior yourself.”

I said.

“What’s your Adventurer Rank?”

Botan asked.  Looking awkward, Shachimaru replied.

“Uh, to answer Aniki first… That whole rampaging water-covered move of mine is kind of a last resort move, you know? After I use it, I can’t even move properly unless I, like, literally die…”

“So, if you just die afterward, you could use it over and over again?”

“Aniki, you say that so nonchalantly like it’s nothing, but that’s seriously messed up, you know? I mean, do you even understand how bad dying is? Unless something like what just happened goes down again, I’m not doing it.”

So resurrection isn’t as risk-free or cost-free as I thought.

“And next, for Monster-chan-san. My Adventurer Rank is SS.”

“Wow. I’ve never seen another SS besides me.”

“Well, I’m nowhere near as strong as Monster-chan-san. But if my blurry memory before dying serves right… I didn’t actually lose that badly against you in a one on one fight, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, that’s true. I’m Level 36 with Tier 1 skills right now. There’s no way I could lose.”

“Whew. So you’re basically like Tier 0 Level 3, huh? That’s impressive.”

“…SS-rank…”

“And Aniki really lags out when it comes to topics like this, huh.”

“Taku is weak to high social status topics like this. Be gentle with him,”

Botan added. This conversation was taking place in a safe room where we were hiding Angel and Rick. Given how big of a mess things were, and the fact that their leader Shachimaru had caused it, it’d be nearly impossible to rebuild the team normally like nothing drastic had happened. 

So, Shachimaru had been secretly revived by the healer for the time being. He then said. 

“For now, I’m going to prioritize repaying my debt to Aniki.”

I was caught off guard by how straightforward he was.

“A-Are you sure?”

“Yes, of course. Between the whole Old Mountain King Area thing and what happened just now, I owe you way more than I can ever repay. Prioritizing you is a no-brainer.”

“B-But Shachimaru…  Luna… She…”

When I said that, feeling guilty, Shachimaru averted his gaze.

“I can promise you, as the one who got that weird ‘naming’ thing, that Luna-chan didn’t have any bad intentions. She’s just a little kid. She doesn’t even understand right from wrong. Which means…”

Shachimaru shrugged his shoulders.

“She’s exactly the kind of orphan the Ferocious Shark Gang’s supposed to protect. If I held a grudge against a kid like her, we wouldn’t be the Ferocious Shark Gang anymore.”

“…I appreciate that.”

“Please don’t. I’ve already received more than enough from you, Aniki. Besides…”

“Besides?”

Shachimaru gave me a wry smile.

“Knowing that I’ve got Aniki to run crying to if I screw up again kinda puts me at ease. Even if I’m soaked, I’ll take care of things myself from here.”

He laughed—a light, relaxed laugh. It felt like a good kind of burden had lifted off his shoulders.

“Well then. If you’re okay with it, I’m counting on you, Shachimaru.”

“Yes. I’ll be sure to protect Luna-chan or do whatever is needed against the enemy team.”

“Yeah.”

We shook hands.

Our top priority was Luna. Ui was with her right now. If we were going to take on Team Ashura, it was best to have both Shachimaru and Ui with us. The twins were already that strong. I couldn’t imagine how powerful they’d be if we had to fight all of them at the same time. We needed to consolidate our forces before making any move against Team Ashura.

At that moment, Angel and Rick began to wake up.

“Ugh… I feel like I suddenly drowned in a river mid-party…Ugh, I think I’m gonna puke.”

“Ha! Hey, Brother! My lady(bike)—she didn’t sink, right!?”

I chuckled at their reactions and explained the situation to them.

“…And that’s what happened.”

When I finished, Angel was the first to speak.

“I got it. So this Shachimaru guy here is helping secure Luna and take down those Ashura gang, huh?”

“Yeah. He’s a reliable ally.”

“Pleasure to work with y’all!”

Shachimaru greeted her as I nodded in confirmation. Angel, however, frowned and said.

“Without context, this all sounds super sketchy. Are we sure this is okay?”

“The more you get to know Shachimaru, the more you realize he’s a good guy. But if you don’t know him? Yeah, he’s shady as hell.”

“Aren’t you being too hard on me, Aniki?”

Angel folded her arms and seemed to be deep in thought—maybe planning something. Then Rick spoke up.

“Sorry, Brother. I’m gonna sit this one out from here.”

“““Huh?”””

“…I see. Got it.”

Everyone was surprised by Rick’s words. I nodded without protest. Rick gave me a wry smile.

“Hey hey, Brother. If you’re that understanding, it kinda makes it harder for me. At least ask why first, yeah?”

“I just figured… I can’t force you.”

“I appreciate that. Thing is, the reason I can’t help this time is because of my position.”

Even though I hadn’t asked, Rick began to explain.

“I haven’t technically submitted my application to the US military, but I’m pretty much part of it. I’ve been tagging along with them across various battlefields, and frankly speaking, they don’t like me being used by other factions.”

“Yeah, that makes sense.”

Angel nodded.

“Right. So think about it: what happens if I start opposing people connected to the Japanese government with you guys?”

The scale of that hit me hard—I started mentally short-circuiting—but the others seemed to grasp it immediately. Shachimaru clapped his hands.

“Got it. So basically, if you act against the Japanese government, it’ll cause a major rift between them and the US military.”

“Exactly. I want to help, but in this situation, I’d just cause more problems instead.”

“I understand. It can’t be helped then.”

Botan said with a sigh. Unfortunately, we couldn’t count on Rick going forward. Then something struck me, and I said.

“…Wait, Rick. If Ui’s not around, you can’t get back to the resort, right?”

“I will consider this as a sudden change of plan. I’ll ride my bike wherever, stuff my face with Japanese sushi, and call it a trip.”

“Rick, you’ve got such a big heart!”

I mean seriously, he jumped headfirst into this mess with no complaints, and now he can’t even go home easily. That’s some next-level chill. This over-the-top American guy is practically a saint!

“Rick, I won’t forget what you did for us. If there’s ever anything I can do for you, just say the word.”

“Yeah. When the time comes, I’ll definitely be calling on you. I won’t hold back, even if it’s for something big.”

“Coming from Rick, the guy who dove into this crap without hesitation, that ‘something big’ sounds terrifying.”

“If you run off, I’ll make you my personal chef, Brother.”

“…What kind of punishment is that?”

Anyway.

I took a deep breath and gathered my thoughts. Even after all that happened, Luna was still important to me. There was no way I’d let Team Ashura take her. And if she was dangerous, I had to be the one to take responsibility over her.

“First, we find Luna. Capture her. Talk to her properly. That’s what we need to do first.”

I stood up and immediately set things in motion.

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