You’re Right, They’ll Expel Me if I Run into the Store with a Weapon!! - Chapter 20: "Hey, do you live in the same apartment building as Hiroki?" Shiori: "..." Haruna: "Hey! Tell me!" Shiori: "..." Haruna: "Then, I'll ask Hiroki." Shiori: "Huh!?"

^[1]Yes, this is the title, bizarre? Maybe, but it’s still the title. … Continue reading

“That’s the situation.”

“…Huh?”

Hiroki struggles to comprehend what he’s just been told upon arriving in the morning.

“So, please take care of me as a part of your team.”

“Wait a second.”

Hiroki puts his hand out to stop Shiori, who is smiling at him. What’s this about?

(Why do I have to team up with her?)

“Even if you ask me to wait, it’s the principal’s order, so it’s hard to refuse.”

“Ugh…”

Why is the old principal deciding this on his own? Hiroki feels hatred brewing inside him again.

“Then, let’s prepare our equipment since there are no classes today.”

“Equipment?”

“Yes, the standard issue isn’t exclusive, so we must get proper customized equipment.”

Equipment? Customize? What is all this?

Feeling sick of the common sense at the Combat College, Hiroki decides to ignore the conversation.

“Let’s go then!”

“…Okay.”

“This is the development facility I use. It’s also called a research facility.”

A glass building of about five stories stands before them. After an hour on the monorail, they arrive at the development facility Shiori frequents.

Development, what?

“(What are you) developing?”

“(Weapons like) guns and knives.”

“(I thought you were developing) something else, you’re crazy.”

“Not crazy, it’s normal.”

Hiroki can’t make sense of the Combat College anymore. He wants to ignore over ninety percent of the upcoming conversation.

His spirit is at its limit. And a conclusion crosses Hiroki’s mind.

“Wait, if you brought me here, then…”

“Of course. Hiroki will also start…”

“No, thanks.”

His refusal is immediate. Hiroki’s face is covered in cold sweat.

(Why? What are they going to develop for me? What exactly? No way, I refuse!)

Hiroki panics in this overwhelming situation. Shiori looks at him seriously.

“Maybe Hiroki doesn’t need it. But it’s better to have it developed than not.”

“I don’t need it.”

“Let’s go!”

(Are you even listening to me?)

As the conversation fails to align, Hiroki instinctively steps back.

“Hmm?… Hiroki, why are you keeping your distance?”

“Huh? Shiori!”

As Shiori tries to approach, a high voice suddenly comes from the building.

“Haruna, long time no see.”

“Yeah! It’s been a while! What brings you here today?”

“I brought a guest.”

“That guy over there?”

A girl dressed like a car mechanic turns to look at them.

Hiroki thinks…

(A guest? So, she’s the one who’s going to ‘develop’ me!?)

Hiroki had planned to ignore most of the conversation, but now he feels compelled to disregard it entirely.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Haruna Midorikawa! May I know your name?”

Overwhelmed by her positive introduction, Hiroki introduces himself.

“I’m Hiroki Ogino.”

“!?… Really… Shiori-san! Really!?”

Suddenly, Haruna turns away and grabs Shiori’s collar.

“Really, and you’re hurting me.”

“Shiori-san, you’re amazing! I wanted you to bring him! I even emailed you!”

“Yes, I brought him just like your email said.”

“Thank you so much! Ah, Vulcan!”

“Alright! Hiroki! Let’s go somewhere else.”

“Just kidding! Sorry! Black Appearance of the Black Spear!”

As the girls’ conversation flows, Hiroki listens with dead eyes.

(I don’t understand what’s happening, it’s too fast.)

After their playful interaction, Haruna returns to Hiroki and grabs his arm to walk.

“Let’s go inside! A new world awaits you!”

(No way! I don’t want to go to that world!)

Hiroki is taken inside the building.

“What are you developing here?”

“Like I said, weapons.”

“Yeah! Weapons!”

Inside, the building looks like a science lab. White walls and glass enclose each room; despite metal cutting, no noise can be heard thanks to soundproof glass.

“Let’s go see the doctor then!”

“The doctor?”

“Over here!”

Hiroki is pulled along to a door.

“Doctor! I brought a new guest!”

“Excuse me.”

Haruna and Shiori enter the room, and Hiroki follows.

Inside, a white wall and chemicals line the shelves, documents pile on a desk, and a long-haired man in a lab coat is eating cup noodles.

“Hey, Haruna, Shiori, long time no see.”

The long-haired man speaks slightly suspiciously, his face hidden by his hair.

“So, are you the new guest?”

“That’s right!”

Haruna responds for Hiroki. The man circles Hiroki, the soy sauce aroma tickling his nose.

“And your name is?”

“I’m Hiroki Ogino.”

At his introduction, the doctor shakes his cup of noodles.

“Ah, Hiroki-kun, looking forward to working with you.”

“Nice to meet you.”

(From my observation, they’re not doing the development I imagined.)

Hiroki shakes hands with the doctor and responds, feeling a sense of relief inside the lab.

“Call me Doctor or Uncle, which is fine too. I’m turning forty this year.”

“Then, Doctor, it is.”

“Yep.”

After introducing themselves, Shiori explains why they came.

“I’ll leave Haruna in charge then. She’s trusted by Shiori, too.”

“Doctor! I love you!”

Haruna hugs the doctor from behind, who pats her head.

“I can’t love you back; I have a wife.”

“Shock!”

What’s this farce?

“Hiroki, let’s go. We’ll find another lab.”

“Wait! Stop! I’ll show you my lab!”

Reacting to Shiori’s words, Haruna clings to Hiroki’s arm.

They leave the room, Haruna dragging Hiroki along.

“The one who defeated Shiori-chan, a multi-ability user, huh? This is going to be fun.”

The doctor’s muttering went unheard by everyone.

“This is my research lab!”

What Hiroki had imagined as ‘development’ was not happening here. This place was for developing children’s toys. He took in what he saw and managed to make sense of it.

Haruna’s room was like a toy store. It was filled with whimsical items like squeaky hammers, yo-yos, remote-controlled cars, and plastic models.

“Did you make another pointless thing?”

“Pointless? How dare you! This is still a weapon!”

Another round of girls’ talk began. Hiroki ignored them and explored the room.

(A squeaky hammer?)

He found a predominantly red and yellow hammer, a bit heavier than the squeaky hammers he knew. Just then, Shiori’s yelling caught his attention.

“That’s what I mean! It’s a waste of time! Make something more normal!”

“What’s wrong with making what I want to make? It’s not about the design; it’s about functionality and the user’s skill!”

The noise was getting on his nerves, so he said,

“Keep it down, will you?”

Pico!

With those words, he hit Shiori’s head with the squeaky hammer.

“Huh!?……..”

Thud…

Shiori collapsed instantly.

“Ah, that was my ‘PikoBiri Hammer.’ It’s a hammer with an electric stun gun feature. The voltage is not ordinary.”

Wow. It was a real weapon in a cute form, and he had just knocked out the tenth-ranked with it. Is it dangerous to use a stun gun on the head?

Hiroki’s mind-numbed as he realized what he was holding and that he had taken down Shiori.

“Well, she’ll wake up in a few minutes. Let’s put her on the bed for now.”

“Okay.”

Haruna calmly moved Shiori to a prepared bed.

“So! What kind of weapon would you like? A pistol, machine gun, knife, sword, anything! I’ll make it just for you!”

“Order?”

“Yes, order! What do you want?”

(Weapons, like guns? Why… never mind.)

Hiroki felt uneasy about students needing firearms, but he forced himself to accept it as part of Combat College and went along with it.

“I’ll take this PikoBiri Hammer.”

“Really? You sure?”

“Yeah, this one.”

“Yay! Someone’s using a weapon I designed!”

Haruna was overjoyed, her body shaking with excitement.

“How about this one?”

She handed him a black umbrella, a bit heavy.

“Did you make this too?”

“Yes! And feel free to call me Haruna! Keep it up!”

Ignoring Haruna’s friendly vibe, Hiroki opened the umbrella.

“So, it opens normally. Where’s the weapon part?”

“Hehe, see the two switches on the handle?”

Indeed, there were two switches in an easy-to-press spot.

“Point the tip at that wall and press the lower button.”

The wall was different in color, with indentations. He pointed the umbrella at it,

“Like this?”

He pressed the button.

With a loud thud, the umbrella’s tip jerked up.

“What’s this?”

He asked as a scorched indentation appeared on the wall, and smoke rose from the umbrella tip.

“Not done yet! Now press the upper button! You can point it anywhere!”

He pressed the button.

Click!

The umbrella transformed, revealing shiny blades.

“This is?”

“A ‘Hidden Umbrella’! Sometimes a gun, sometimes a blade! It’s even made from bulletproof material!”

“Then I’ll take this one.”

“Yay!”

He decided on his weapons as the conversation flowed.

“But you should also have some normal-looking weapons, just in case. Odd for me to say, but still.”

Suddenly serious, Haruna thought he should have standard weapons, too.

“Can you pick something for me?”

“Is that okay?”

“Yeah.”

Hiroki, knowing nothing about weapons, couldn’t choose. So, he left it to Haruna.

“Got it! Let me measure your hand size. And I’ll make a holster, too, so I need your body measurements.”

She pulled out a measuring tape and started measuring Hiroki.

“Let’s make two pistols and holsters, then! Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Great! Oh, and can I install the latest system for the pistols?”

“Whatever’s fine.”

Hiroki replied, mentally drained and deciding to just go along with everything.

“Alright! I’ll remove the safety and add fingerprint recognition – no, infrared fingerprint recognition! So you can use it with gloves! And…”

Haruna began mumbling to herself about technical details.

“I’m going home.”

Hiroki glanced at her and, feeling mentally exhausted, decided to leave.

“Huh? Okay! Bye! Oh, everything will be ready tomorrow! Come pick it up!”

As Haruna called out, Hiroki raised his hand and headed for the door.

“Hey, Hiroki! You’re forgetting Shiori!”

Hearing that, Hiroki broke into a full sprint.