The Chronicles of a Man Who Aspired to Be an Unparalleled Character with Hidden Weapons - The Explorer Who Conceals His Power Becomes the Strongest When He Wields a Sword - Chapter 18: Someone Watching from Behind

Chapter 18: Someone Watching from Behind

Three days had passed since the defeat of the monster emitting a dark red aura.

Many students still pondered how to deal with the abnormalities that had arisen in the dungeon, but even so, as days went by, the liveliness of the dungeon returned. 

There had been no sightings of any suspicious monsters, nor had there been any confirmation of monsters moving from the lower to the upper stratums of the dungeon, so in a sense, it seemed like the dungeon had returned to its usual state.

“I guess the analysis of those gems should be finishing up around now.”

I had been receiving updates from Sumeragi, and it was about time for the results to come in. I was genuinely curious whether those gems were just a treasure or if it hid some other secret.

“Hey, Sena!”

“Sena~! Hey!”

“Huh?”

While walking down the corridor, I was called out to by Yoshiki and Saki. I turned around, wondering what it was about. It didn’t seem like they were inviting me to the dungeon.

“We’re all going to karaoke after school today! How about joining us, Sena?”

“Karaoke, huh…”

Karaoke, what a gathering of extroverts… But I thought to myself, maybe it’s not a bad idea to take a break from diving into the dungeon once in a while.

“Great!”

“Alright!”

I couldn’t help but smile wryly at their excitement. Indeed, it had been all about the dungeon lately, so a bit of relaxation and fun seemed like a good idea.

“Well, I should get going. See you after school!”

“Okay.”

“See you later!”

Saki, seemingly very excited about after-school, bounced back to the classroom.

“Is she that happy?”

“Well, it’s typical of high school students.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Then, I headed back to the classroom with Yoshiki.

It was lunch break, and although after-school was just around the corner, I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmingly sleepy in the afternoon.

“So, this is the history of the Explorers―”

I had zero interest in the history of Explorers, so I fought hard not to yawn and kept my eyes open. But no matter how hard I tried, my eyelids drooped, and darkness started to cloud my vision.

“…?”

While struggling to stay awake to the sound of the teacher’s voice, I suddenly felt someone’s gaze on me and looked in that direction – Sumeragi was staring intently at me. 

It wasn’t like she was interested in me or anything romantic; she probably just found it amusing to watch someone about to fall asleep.

(I wish you’d pay attention to the lesson instead.)

I thought to myself, not sure if she’d get the message. But then she chuckled and turned her attention back to the front. 

I wondered if she understood my silent plea, but perhaps someone as perceptive as her could guess what I was thinking just by my gaze.

Thanks to Sumeragi, my drowsiness vanished, and I made it to the end of the school day.

“I’ll head there first, okay?”

“Sure.”

Shinichi and Yoshiki decided to go ahead to the karaoke place, as we had agreed to meet there. I took my time gathering my things when Sumeragi approached me.

“You seemed quite sleepy, didn’t you?”

“Yeah… But I was saved by you, Sumeragi.”

“Oh, really?”

It was surprising when our eyes met during the class. That moment truly saved me from succumbing to sleepiness.

“…?”

While chatting casually with Sumeragi and packing up, I received a message from Yuki, expressing concern. I replied to reassure her, telling her to trust her big brother.

Sumeragi seemed curious about who messaged me, so I told her it was my sister and showed her a photo I had of Yuki.

“Oh my… How adorable♪”

Sumeragi’s expression visibly changed when she saw Yuki’s photo.

“Do you like cute things?”

“Of course, who wouldn’t! But, saying that about your own sister.”

“She is cute, right? She’s my treasure!”

“Yeah. She is so adorable! I can’t think of any other word!!”

Yeah… she really gets it!! 

Unlike me, Yuki is genuinely adorable, and as she grows older, she’ll only become more attractive. She’ll undoubtedly turn into a beauty who will bewilder many men.

It looks like it’s going to be a challenge for Mom and me to pick the right partner for Yuki.

“Wait, I almost forgot!”

Sumeragi, who had been intently looking at the photo, suddenly spoke up.

“The analysis results for those red gems just came in. I was thinking, maybe we could go to the guild together to check it out.”

“Ah, right…”

“Do you have other plans?”

I informed her that I already had plans to hang out with friends.

Understandingly, Sumeragi nodded and suggested that we could meet up after my plans were finished, as we were both likely curious about the gems. I agreed to her proposal.

“Yeah… that sounds good. I am quite curious about it, so we’ll meet up after… Ah, right!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Sumeragi, are you free after this, aside from the gems matter?”

“Well… I’m pretty free. I wasn’t planning on going to the dungeon today.”

“How about joining us for karaoke?”

“Really? Can I?”

She looked surprised, so I nodded and promptly messaged Shinichi to let him know. 

I didn’t specify who I was bringing, but he said anyone I’m friendly with is welcome. It seemed like it wouldn’t be a problem to bring Sumeragi along.

“The others will be surprised if I suddenly show up with Sumeragi.”

“You don’t think they’ll be scared, right?”

“No way. The girls, like Saki, will definitely welcome you, and the guys will be thrilled to have a beauty like you join us.”

“Stop calling me a beauty!”

“Eh? But I think it’s true though?”

“…!!”

Hey, stop hitting my shoulder, you beauty.

I thought she would be used to compliments like ‘beautiful’ and ‘gorgeous,’ but maybe not. Reflecting on this, I apologized if I had teased her too much.

“It’s not something to apologize for. I was just… embarrassed, that’s all.”

“Okay then. Let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

Walking alongside Sumeragi inevitably attracted a lot of attention. Among those glances was, of course, one from Oogara, but thanks to Sumeragi’s earlier warning, he didn’t dare mess with me.

“Karaoke, huh… umm.”

“Is something wrong?”

“I’m not… good at singing.”

“There are things even Sumeragi struggles with, huh?”

“There are plenty. I can’t stand frogs or centipedes at all.”

“Really? I’m not fond of frogs either, but I got used to centipedes since my family’s home is in the countryside. They were a common sight, especially during summer.”

“Getting used to those is amazing. I respect that.”

By the way, my sister would mercilessly crush a centipede on sight without a second thought.

“…?”

As we headed to the karaoke place, I felt a strange gaze on my back, but it quickly disappeared. 

Was it directed at me or… Sumeragi?

It didn’t seem like a gaze filled with simple admiration or lewd intentions towards her… more like someone observing.

[Presence Detection Level 7]

Thanks to this skill, I noticed it… but Sumeragi next to me seemed unaware.

Maybe I should discreetly ask about it when we go to the guild.