NOVEL NEXT Chapter 39: (1)
I Can’t Win Against The Hero
After gathering information at the tavern, Tanaka wandered around the town.
He was looking around for something interesting with an apple-like fruit in his hand that he bought from a street vendor. This fruit was actually a weapon of his choosing after meticulous calculation. In the off chance he were to be mugged by thugs, he would be able to overcome the crisis without a fight by crushing the fruit in a cool manner. Furthermore, by biting onto it in a stylish gesture, it wasn’t impossible to attract beautiful women, making it a truly versatile weapon. Of course, he didn’t forget to consider the delicate softness of the fruit should he crush it.
Having armed himself so perfectly, Tanaka was able to look around the town in a carefree manner. However, despite his enthusiasm, no accidents arose and he safely arrived at the store he was headed for. In the store, starting with weapons and armor, there were also various other items on display.
「Oh, come to think of it, Suke-san said he wanted something, didn’t he? It can’t be helped, I guess I’ll generously get him a souvenir then. Being a good-looking, capable and dependable leader sure isn’t easy.」
Leaving his capability and dependability aside, Tanaka started to look around at once. The first thing he looked for was a protective gear to hide Suke-san’s face. Suke-san had a Shinigami-style appearance, so a full-face helmet-type protective gear would be out of place. So, as the person in question himself wished, Tanaka started looking for mask-type items.
Apparently, this store was something akin to jack of all trades. Not only did they have weapons and armor, while few in number, they also had ornaments, magic tools, and even luxury items. After a lot of rummaging, he settled his choice with a certain mask. It was a plain white mask. With thin slit-like holes on both eyes.
「It’s simple, yet somehow radiating eerie air. Combined with his shinigami style, it would make for a very tasteful appearance. Kukuku, that’d surely be a fitting appearance for a member of a secret organization working in the shadow to revive the God of Destruction.」
He brilliantly put his own interests above all else. A series of delusional settings sprang up in his head one after another.
「I’ll just need to get him a pair of gloves or something to completely hide his appearance. Now then, let’s see which one that can tug at my heartstrings the most….」
Unlike before, there were quite a few candidates. Among them, the one he picked out in the end was a glove imbued with magic effect. The color was jet black thus matching the image of Team Tanaka perfectly. The most important point was the magic circle that asserted itself on the back part of the gloves.
「Kuh… It’s simply too cool. Its magic effect of equipment summoning will undoubtedly also come in handy for Suke-san who acts as our vanguard.」
Tanaka tried putting it on his own hand and struck a cool pose for a moment. He then changed his pose one after another without noticing that the shopkeeper and other customers around him were looking at him with lukewarm eyes. Truly a terrifying concentration ability.
「… I suppose this is a good find. It’s so full of charm that I even want to take it for myself… However, for the sake of improving Team Tanaka’s image, I’ll yield it to Suke-san.」
Shortly after deciding as such, he immediately took the mask and gloves to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper amiably welcomed him as though the previous spectacle had never happened. On the other hand, a magic tool was a reasonably pricey item. So, as far as the shopkeeper was concerned, no matter how suspicious the person had acted in the shop it might be, Tanaka was still an important customer. The shopkeeper promptly handled the procedure, and the purchase was completed soon after. Tanaka was in a good mood after securing the items safely.
「I’ve finally gotten my hands on them. Ah, right… Let’s name the mask ‘The White Mask that Laughs at the World – Heaven’s Scream’, while the gloves are ‘The Illusory Illusionist – Infinite Magician’. Kukuku, as expected of me. With this, they might even be able to kill a god with just their names alone.」
As usual, he was immersed in his own world with his chuunibyou running in full force. Then, a voice suddenly called out to him.
「… I don’t think I can relate to that sense of yours. Well, anyway, care to move aside for a bit?」
Tanaka was pulled back to reality. And then, the one who came into view was a black haired beautiful girl. Tanaka suddenly froze in place, as though someone had pushed the pause button of the world. However, it was inevitable, because, before he knew it, a beautiful girl had suddenly appeared right in front of him. However, that wasn’t the main reason. What caught his attention the most was her outfit. For some reason, she was wearing a sailor uniform. On her waist, there was an out of place sword that was attached on her belt.
「Hey, did you not hear me?」
「Oh, um… sorry.」
Finally rebooting himself, Tanaka obediently made a way for the girl. He continued to stare fixedly at the girl, who was conversing with the shopkeeper, in front of him. It was without a doubt a situation worthy of screaming ‘Here comes a beautiful girl!’ in joy, but the one standing there was a man titled the King of Chicken. Rather than joy, he fell into confusion due to the unexpected situation in front of him.
It was because existence known as female students could be said to be the natural enemy of all middle-aged men. And he’d accidentally shown his chuunibyou appearance toward such a girl. The rumor of Tanaka’s chuunibyou would definitely spread at once through female students network. Should that happen, he could no longer hope to lead a normal life. From then on, the dark life of being laughed at in the shadow as a member of society would begin. Tanaka cowered in fear.
However, he suddenly realized something. This was a different world. Society life was nothing but a matter of a distant world now. He judged that it was unlikely for this matter to turn into a big problem. Then he couldn’t help but fall into thought. Why was there a female student? He was shocked at the thought that sailor uniforms actually existed in another world as well. And then, fury began to well up within him. It was likely fury at the unreasonableness of the existence of something that was so disproportionate to a fantasy world. This fury might only be natural for Tanaka, who loved the other world so much.
「Good job, world!」
Or that didn’t seem to be the case. It was euphoria. Including the past and the future, it might be the only moment when Tanaka appreciated the world. Something that didn’t really matter.
–And even while Tanaka’s thoughts were immersed in such a matter, the beautiful girl’s purchase procedure proceeded and was finished without delay.
「I feel like I just heard some strange words, but I guess I’ll just ignore it.」
The beautiful girl was about to leave right then and there. However, Tanaka stood in her way.
It was mankind’s height of folly that was referred to as the most reckless act ever recorded in the history of the earth. The hopeless act of a middle-aged man calling out to a female student.
However, Tanaka stood up to face this challenge. Was it for the sake of the ardent believers of Sailor uniform lurking in the darkness of another world? It was something that only the person himself knew of. However, the only thing for sure was that this man’s name would be passed down among sailor uniform believers for eternity to come. Even if he was destined to turn into a laughing joke….