The Virgin Hero Who Fought in the Dungeon for 20 Years Returned to the Surface Only to Find the Population of the World Has Dropped Drastically, with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:1000 - 27

Chapter 27: The Record of Sayaka Yamanashi

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Sayaka Yamanashi was a male protection officer. To put it simply, male protection officer was a newly established profession specifically designed by the government to protect the bodies, lives, and assets of the now rare and precious male population. It was also the most popular occupation among women. Officially speaking, male protection officers had roots with the military, but their duties closely resembled those of the police instead. 

They were granted the authority and independence to arrest and take actions in order to protect their assigned male clients. The bottom line was, they were allowed to do anything within laws in order to protect the precious male population. In order to become a male protection officer, one needed to possess exceptional intelligence, physical ability, and mental resilience. It was a job with extremely high qualifications, but the remuneration was said to be quite substantial. 

To begin with, the monthly salary started at the highest rank, Grade 21(Level 10) from the very first year—never dropping below 600,000 yen. From the second year onward, it increased by roughly 100,000 yen per year. Bonuses were paid twice a year, always totaling 12 months’ worth of salary. It was an unprecedented sum indeed.

However, this was a double-edged sword. Even if one managed to become a male protection officer, most remained on standby, waiting for an assignment. And if they were lucky enough to be assigned a client, the vast majority were either dismissed within three months or resigned within six.

This was because male bodyguards lived in constant, close proximity to their assigned male clients, available 24/7. If they were deemed incompatible, they were immediately dismissed. If not, they typically ended up as “kept women,” effectively spending the rest of their lives as either a wife or mistress of their male client.  In such cases, the male protection officer almost ended up pregnant. The fact that they had shared their love together was a very significant problem for the continuation of male protection officer and a divorce was practically impossible unless the involved party had a major flaw. 

It had been just over three years since Sayaka was assigned to her current unit. She had undergone only about five months of training as a male protection officer and this caused her to be celebrated as a “lucky girl” within the military. However, her life had been far from easy. The reason for her birth itself wasn’t a particularly tragic one though. Sayaka’s family ran an old shrine in Joushuu and her biological mother was the only daughter of that lineage. However, a few years before the world was ravaged by the Demon Lord virus—a disease believed to be the Demon Lord’s dying curse, which led to the mass extinction of adult men—her mother had fallen in love with a white foreign explorer who had come from overseas to conquer a dungeon. Her biological mother eloped with the foreign explorer and conceived Sayaka. 

By the time Sayaka was born, her father had already perished during a dungeon expedition. Consequently, the prestigious Yamanashi family was left with a mixed-blood child of unknown paternal lineage. After giving birth to Sayaka, her mother swiftly married another man, as if her grand romance and elopement had never happened in the first place. She then gave birth to Sayaka’s younger sister. Since this child’s father was Japanese, she bore no traces of mixed heritage, embodying the pure image of a Yamato Nadeshiko. As a result, both Sayaka’s mother and grandparents rejected Sayaka’s existence. Her  family had collectively decided that it was Sayaka’s younger sister—not Sayaka—who was suited to inherit the shrine and uphold its traditions as a priestess. Ostracized by her own family, Sayaka’s childhood was nothing short of miserable.

“Hey, Mom. I won a gold medal at the exhibition.”

“Grandma, I got another perfect score on my test.”

“Grandpa, I won the piano competition.”

“Hey, hey, hey, listen to me…”

Sayaka Yamanashi’s family remained thoroughly indifferent to her. Born with a naturally bright and cheerful personality, it didn’t take long for that side of her to fade. In return, she transformed into something that resembled an expressionless bisque doll. Her demeanor suited her appearance all too well and all for the wrong reason. 

When the threat of the Demon Lord had vanished from the world, Sayaka’s younger sister, the shrine maiden of the Yamanashi family, received a divine revelation, which granted her powerful skills and magic. As a result, she became an explorer who gave high contribution to the region by challenging dungeons. This younger sister, two years Sayaka’s junior, had unmistakable potential as an explorer specializing in magic. She had already reached B-rank even though she was only 13. Across Japan, there were more than three million explorers, yet fewer than ten thousand had attained B-rank. That alone served as enough testament at how talented her little sister was. 

By contrast, Sayaka was unremarkable in that section. The temple had bestowed no magical blessings upon her and the skills she managed to obtain were mediocre at most. Despite her efforts… Despite three years of hard work, she never advanced beyond D-rank. To be fair, reaching D-rank by the age of fifteen without ever attending a specialized explorer school was already impressive enough. Her skill was above average, but  her parents and relatives would never acknowledge her. She was forever marked as the elder sister who was clearly inferior to her little sister. 

I’m invisible.

It was only natural for Sayaka to find her house was stifling to live in. After graduating from middle school, she chose to enroll in a military academy with dormitories. Yet, ironically, it was in the military academy that Sayaka’s talents finally blossomed. Skills and magic that worked inside dungeons did not manifest on the surface world. So it was the National Defense Forces’ duty to defeat the monsters that had managed to escape from the dungeons onto the surface. Sayaka, a patient and perceptive girl, was highly intelligent. She absorbed the military’s education as effortlessly as a sponge soaking up water. Her handling of firearms, hand-to-hand combat, stealth tactics, and reconnaissance abilities were particularly outstanding. These traits made her a prime candidate for the special operations unit.

Having endured the grueling training under the direct recommendation of her superior officers, Sayaka stood at a crossroads upon its completion. Would she remain in the military and pursue a career as a soldier? Or would she choose the path of a male protection officer, a profession that promised the possibility of happiness as a woman?

When her superior officer first presented the idea of becoming a male protection officer, Sayaka was completely bewildered. Male protection officers were a position envied even within the military. More importantly, it was not something one could simply wish for—one needed a strong recommendation from a superior officer and had to pass an infamously difficult selection exam to become one.

“Um, Major… I don’t think I’m suited for the role of a male protection officer…”

The mere thought of someone like her—gruff and never once cherished by anyone—attending to a man, living alongside him… It was simply too incredulous, even for Sayaka. It was like a mirage, like an unattainable dream, something that she didn’t even dare to imagine. 

“You’ll be fine. You’re very adorable after all.”

“Is that so…?”

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