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? - 73

Chapter 73: Can Curiosity Kill the Cheshire Cat?

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The doorbell rang, and I stood up with a puzzled hum.

“Hm…?”

The stream had long since ended. It was after ten, that laid-back time before bed. Because of that, I just stood there, dumbfounded, muttering as I looked at the front door.

“…The doorbell?”

I looked at everyone else. Botan and Angel seemed a bit on guard, while only Luna tilted her head and asked, “What is this sound?”

Of course, out here in the quarantine zone, chances for the doorbell to ring were practically nonexistent. Even drone deliveries, which used to come here before, had completely stopped. Now, you could say we were completely cut off from the outside world.

So for a doorbell to ring now—it was obvious who the caller had to be. In other words, it was for Luna’s…

“…So they’ve finally come, huh…”

Feeling like I was about to cry, I stood up and approached Luna.

“Luna, they’ve come to pick you up.”

“Eh…? Onii-sama…?”

“Come on, get up.”

I helped Luna to her feet, crouched down, and gave her a hug.

“Onii-sama?”

“Luna, these two weeks I spent with you were really fun. Be strong over there, okay?”

“Ah…”

Realizing what my words meant, Luna’s eyes began to fill with tears. But it couldn’t be helped. We’d always known this goodbye was coming. Getting through something like this—that was how people grew up.

“Go say goodbye to the other two, okay? While you do that, I’ll go have a word with them.”

“Ugh… Y-yes…!”

When I gave her a gentle push on the back, Luna practically flew toward Botan and Angel, throwing herself into their arms. The two of them understood the situation and hugged her back, both teary-eyed.

“Please wait just a moment, I’m opening the door now.”

Calling out to the person on the other side, I sniffled and opened the front door. Standing there were three people—two girls and a man. The man was young, with long hair tied into a ponytail that flowed over his shoulder. He wore a suit. The two girls looked like they were still young enough to be called children. They wore school uniforms, and both had mesh highlights in their hair, probably twins.

Sensing something vaguely hostile about them, I hesitated.

“Um… You’re from the Ministry of Defense, here to pick up Luna, right…?”

“Yes. Forgive me, but are you not Taku Monobe, the skill holder of ‘Everyday Items Master’?”

The one who responded was the long-haired man standing in the middle. A katana on his left hip. A handgun on his right. Simple, but efficient equipment. Whether it was against humans or monsters, he gave off the air of someone fully prepared to take down his target with sheer power.

“Y-yeah. I’m Taku Monobe.”

When I replied, the man said.

“My apologies for the late introduction. I am Shuuya Koufukuji, of the Ministry of Defense, and I serve as the Commander of the Special Mobile Unit A-4, assigned to quarantine zones. For this mission, I’ve been tasked with retrieving the subject.”

“I’m also with the unit, Sango Koufukuji!”

“And I’m Shizuku Koufukuji…”

“I-I see. Um… thank you, I guess…”

Siblings, maybe? Well, that didn’t matter. That was their business.

Then the long-haired man—Koufukuji the elder—lowered his gaze.

“We sincerely apologize for the delay in retrieval. Not being able to accompany the original recovery and showing up two weeks late was completely unacceptable. Please allow me to express my apologies.”

“We got stuck in a dungeon with a messed-up sense of time~! So, so sorry~!”

“Sango-chan…! Please apologize properly…! A-ah, we truly apologize for the inconvenience…”

All three bowed deeply in unison. I accepted their apology.

“Ah, no, really, it’s fine. It’s a quarantine zone, so, you know… these things happen.”

“Thank you very much. Now, as it would be rude to intrude much longer at this late hour…”

Straightening his posture, Big Brother Koufukuji looked me straight in the eyes.

“Please hand over the recovered subject.”

His tone was calm and matter-of-fact. It felt cold—merciless. Like someone trying to avoid complications, or too focused on handling dangerous material to consider anything else.

I pressed my lips into a thin line.

“Okay… but, um, can I ask a few questions before that?”

“I will answer to the extent that my authority allows.”

Around the time Big Brother Koufukuji said that, Luna approached me, saying.

“Um, Onii-sama…?”

“…So this is her, then.”

Koufukuji reacted to Luna’s appearance. The twin girls also fell silent, showing some degree of surprise. I gave a quick introduction.

“This girl is Luna. I found her at the deepest part of the specified dungeon, so I assume she’s the one you’re looking for. That said, I have a few questions.”

I looked directly into Big Brother Koufukuji’s eyes.

“She’s a good, honest girl. If possible, I want her to be happy. Can you guarantee that?”

“…I will do my best within what is possible.”

“Thank you. Also, apparently she has a mother. If possible, I’d like her to be returned to her. Being separated from one’s parents is generally considered a tragedy, right?”

“I’m sorry, but I cannot answer that.”

“I see. Oh, and this is just a small thing…”

I narrowed my eyes slightly.

“You referred to Luna as an ‘item’ earlier, didn’t you? Not ‘this girl.’”

“…I didn’t intend to phrase it that way, but if I offended you, I apologize.”

Silence. A tense stillness filled the air. Behind me, I could feel Botan and the others starting to move. In front of me, the twins subtly shifted their hands.

“Hey, Everyday Items Master Onii-san—maybe don’t poke your nose into things that don’t concern you~?”

Said the one with the red mesh.

“That’s right…! There are lots of things in this world better left unknown. Curiosity can get you killed, you know…?” 

Added the one with the blue mesh.

““Just like a little kitty~””

The twins spoke in eerie harmony. Big Brother Koufukuji sighed and said.

“You two, silence.…My team members were out of line. Now then, do you have any more questions?”

Koufukuji was calm—still trying to keep the dialogue going to the end. Placing my hopes in that thin thread of possibility, I asked.

“…Would you be mad if I said I don’t want to hand Luna over after all?”

“Onii-sama…!”

My voice carried a half-laugh, half-serious tone, as if joking a little. Luna’s eyes lit up as she clung to me. Big Brother Koufukuji halted his movement.

“…In that case, you would be breaching the contract.”

“But the original contract was for a single day of simple labor. What Angel specified was that I ‘lend myself out for one day.’ It wasn’t a deliverables-based contract. Just an agreement to act.”

In other words, it wasn’t a contract for results. I had agreed to “clear the dungeon, recover any treasures, and hand over any retrieved individuals if applicable” within one day.

I had followed those terms to the letter on that one day. And no one had come to receive the subject within the contract period. Deliverables-based contracts require results, but this wasn’t one of them. I had followed instructions for the full day, as agreed.

“So not handing over Luna isn’t a breach of contract. The handover was just a gesture of goodwill. Even if I back out, it’s not a violation of the contract.”

“…Do you really think that logic will hold up?”

Big Brother Koufukuji shifted his stance, just slightly. In response, I let out a quiet breath. I had done all I could. I had said everything I needed to say. From this point on, words would no longer matter. So I said.

“You don’t get it, do you? I’ve hated you guys from the start.”

I bared my teeth in a grin like a Cheshire cat, glaring at the three of them.

“What kind of scum points a murderous intent at Luna? You really think I’d hand her over to people like that?”

My final ultimatum. To that, Big Brother Koufukuji touched the communication device by his ear and spoke.

“Negotiations have failed. Commencing combat.”

“You’re getting a little too cocky there, Everyday Items Master-san!”

“I told you, curiosity is gonna get you killed…!”

As they shouted, the twins unleashed their weapons with swift, precise movements. Red Twin drew two large swords from her waist. Blue Twin raised a submachine gun and a compact shotgun.

Just from the way they moved, it was obvious—they weren’t small fry. These two were real combatants, the kind I’d never seen among ordinary humans. But I had already finished dealing with them.

【Deadly Kitchen Knife】【Deadly Kitchen Knife】

“Eh.”

“Ah.”

The kitchen knives I had crossed and thrown ripped into the twins’ throats. I closed the distance with Big Brother Koufukuji. In my hand was my last kitchen knife. With a reverse grip, I slashed at Big Brother Koufukuji’s throat.

No—I tried to slash it. A metallic clang rang out.

“Whoa!? Are you kidding me!?”

“Tch! So this is the power of a Master Skill…!”

My strike had been deflected by Big Brother Koufukuji’s sword. We were both surprised. I was shocked that my opening attack hadn’t landed. He was stunned that his two sisters had been killed in an instant.

“Maybe… I should’ve killed you first—Botan! The crowbar!”

“Coming your way, Taku!”

I heard the wind rushing behind me. Trusting that cue, I caught the crowbar without even turning around. I brought it down immediately. It clashed with Big Brother Koufukuji’s sword, sparks flying from the impact.

The battle for Luna had begun.

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