—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Catherine talked to herself in front of the mirror.
“…Hmm, should I pack this too?”
She put the clothes she was holding into a bag. Next to it, three or four other bags were already overflowing.
The room was a mess, and anyone passing by would have mistaken it for a burglary.
Catherine looked around. Bags packed, necessities packed.
“This should be enough, right?”
She said, placing her hands on her hips.
Of course, if her plan went accordingly, there would be no need to pack, but this was just in case. It never hurts to be prepared.
“Alright.”
She’d clean up later. It was time to go back ‘home.’
She didn’t know what might happen if she left those two alone.
Catherine hoisted the large bags onto her shoulders one by one.
The sound of tightening ropes from the bag straps indicated how much she had packed.
Just as Catherine opened the front door and was about to head to her new living quarters, she stopped for a moment. She remembered something she had forgotten.
“Right.”
She put down the bags with a thud.
Scratching her head, Catherine walked towards the small built-in closet that came with the apartment.
The inside of the closet was similar to the rest of the room. Due to hastily packing her clothes, it was a disorganized mess.
Catherine took out a single ‘outfit’ that was neatly hung.
“…….”
She walked back to the mirror.
She held the outfit, a ‘maid outfit,’ designed with a sophisticated combination of white and black, against her shoulders.
She just checked the fit.
For some reason, the outfit Catherine had bought was designed with a much shorter hemline in certain areas compared to the one she had seen the AI wearing.
Especially the skirt.
‘What kind of outfit…’
It was an outfit that made her face flush involuntarily.
Catherine thought calmly,
‘…Is this really the right thing to do?’
She thought and thought, more than she had in recent times.
Looking at herself holding the revealing maid outfit against her shoulders, she felt a strong sense of embarrassment.
“Ha.”
A chuckle escaped Catherine’s lips unconsciously.
After more than 10 years, her friend’s ‘hidden preference’ was shocking, even to her.
But the situation couldn’t be helped.
She was already at a disadvantage. She wasn’t foolish enough to be picky about methods just because she was embarrassed.
Catherine turned her body slightly, examining her reflection in the mirror.
“……But is this too much?”
…If she wasn’t careful, her underwear would be visible.
The Meteor of the mercenary world was a legend to rookie mercenaries.
How did she end up worrying about something like this?
As Catherine continued to ponder in front of the mirror,
Ring, ring, ring.
The default ringtone, which she hadn’t changed, rang through the intercom.
Catherine strained her ears towards the front door. She heard a familiar male voice, Lee Shiun’s voice, from outside.
[Catherine! Are you in there?]
Catherine hurriedly shouted,
“Yeah! I’m coming!”
As she rushed towards the front door, Catherine stopped and looked down at the maid outfit in her hand.
“…….”
Catherine secretly slipped the maid outfit into her bag.
…It might come in handy someday.
Rationalizing it that way, Catherine nodded to herself.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Ko-zaka’s amusement park, Pete Mac Land, was bustling with activity during the day.
I hadn’t realized it when I came here late at night, but the sky was actually dyed blue.
“Huh.”
It seemed to be a similar mechanism to areas like Royal Vegas.
Hologram graphics projected using the city’s shielding system.
But the difference was that the night sky in Royal Vegas was always ‘night,’ while the sky here was always ‘blue.’
I thought only places like Royal Vegas, overflowing with money, could do something like this, but thinking about it, Ko-zaka was no slouch when it came to capital.
As a result of this massive investment, excluding the Pete Mac hologram flying in the air, it was a peaceful scene that didn’t seem to belong in a cyberpunk world.
And perhaps because of that, there were a lot of people.
There were tons of people who seemed to be visiting with their families or partners.
Among them,
“…She’s wearing a maid outfit? Is there an event?”
“Mom, what’s that?”
“Oh my, dear. Don’t stare.”
We were clearly an unusual sight.
A stern-looking man in a black suit, Ko-zaka’s SP (Security Police), escorted us.
A man (me) covered from head to toe in a mask, gloves, and a coat, as if he were sick.
And two incredibly beautiful women, one of whom was even wearing a maid outfit, enough to make ten out of ten passersby turn their heads.
It was a combination that was bound to attract attention.
“…….”
Why did they have to build the corporate headquarters in a place like this, causing me such suffering?
The more I thought about it, the less I understood.
Apparently, it used to be in the mid-levels.
Ko-zaka William had said that he had opposed the relocation of the headquarters.
Despite the vice chairman’s opposition,
only one person came to mind who had the authority to relocate the headquarters as they pleased.
…What a lunatic. Smile John.
No, here, I should call him Pete Mac.
What was his purpose? I still couldn’t understand.
Was it really just curiosity about the Super AI ‘Eve’?
Thinking about it, the attack at the landfill wasn’t his doing.
Of course, he had tricked us into mistaking Ko-zaka William for himself, but it wasn’t exactly a trap.
The ninja squad that actually attacked us was sent by Ko-zaka Koichiro, Ko-zaka William’s brother-in-law.
He had even warned us in advance that a ninja squad had been deployed on the ground!
What was he thinking? What did he plan to do next?
I had no clue.
So, I planned to ask Ko-zaka William about it when I met him this time.
I had to resolve this quickly─.
I was thinking that when I felt something being placed on my head.
“?”
I turned my head to look behind me.
Catherine and Eve were standing there, arm in arm, looking at me.
“See? I told you it would suit you.”
“Affirmative.”
When did you two become so close?
I was momentarily flustered by their sudden closeness, but something even more bewildering caught my attention.
Like couples often wore headbands at amusement parks, Eve had cat ear headbands on her head. Catherine had dog ear headbands on her head.
They were stealing my attention.
…Wait. That means.
I raised my hand to check what was on my head.
Should I call this fortunate? They weren’t animal ears.
Two round balls, resembling alien antennae, wobbled with my hand movements.
…….
“We haven’t taken a picture yet, so put it back on!”
What?
I immediately held out my palm in refusal.
“Picture, no.”
I tried to return the headband, but the two of them just stared at me without saying a word.
What?
““…….””
“What’s wrong?”
They were looking at me as if I was the strange one.
I looked around for someone who could help.
Especially the SP who was supposed to be our guide.
But strangely, perhaps because he was from Ko-zaka, he had vanished like a ninja.
As I looked around for the SP, Catherine approached me and said, still arm in arm with Eve.
“We told him we’re going to have some fun, so go to the headquarters building first.”
Catherine snatched the alien headband from my hand and put it back on my head.
Incidentally, I was wearing a hood, so
it created a very strange look.
Hmm.
If I couldn’t ask the SP for help, I had to find another way.
I turned my gaze to Eve.
Please, help me.
Eve, who had always listened to my requests, would understand the meaning in my eyes.
But Eve wasn’t looking at me.
I followed her gaze.
At the same time, I heard a loud whooshing sound.
““Waaaaah!!!””
A fast ‘rollercoaster’ sped by on a huge rail.
The speed and force were so strong that my hood was blown off by the wind.
The headband also flew off, but thanks to my childhood friend’s excellent dynamic vision, it landed back on my head.
Noticing Eve’s stunned gaze, I said,
“Absolutely not.”
It was Catherine who answered.
“Why? Doesn’t it look fun?”
What are you talking about… I don’t enjoy paying for pain.
Eve, tearing her gaze away from the disappearing rollercoaster, looked back at me.
“…….”
What, why?
I tried to ignore her gaze, ready to accept whatever came.
But with Catherine joining in, I realized I had no other choice.
As usual, I was the one who gave up first.
“……Alright, I guess it’s okay to have some fun before we go in.”
“Yay!”
“Thank you.”
Thinking about it, it seemed alright.
I had recently skydived without a parachute.
Compared to that, this would be nothing.
Of course, that thought wavered when I saw the ‘warning sign’ attached to the front of the rollercoaster.
【Warning! The world’s tallest rollercoaster】
【Those with cardiac implants are prohibited from riding, and we are not responsible for any issues】
“…….”
Hmm.
Should I run away?
But I couldn’t escape the grasp of the two women pulling me along.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
It was several hours later that we, thoroughly exhausted from our fun, finally entered the headquarters building.
Ko-zaka William asked me, who was half-dead,
“……Were you attacked on your way here? Never mind being late, but you look─.”
“…….”
I didn’t have the energy to answer. I just slowly nodded.
I felt like I was going to die from exhaustion.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
