Chapter 142: Kind Mita Makes a Great Contribution
A Shura field.
Just hearing the term was enough to make people's faces change. Wherever a Shura field appeared, the best case was friendships snapping apart. The worst case was heads snapping off.
What the front desk attendant did not realize was that her casual question a moment ago had already met one of the conditions for a Shura field to form.
Differential treatment.
Two double rooms?
Then who was supposed to share a room with Asagiri?
To prevent that scenario from happening, Asagiri made a decision on the spot. He would suffer a little and squeeze into the cramped double room together with the three beautiful girls.
Ah, the lead singer really was working too hard.
"Six hours for a double room. That will be four thousand eight hundred yen."
"Okay."
After Asagiri paid, the attendant accepted the money and handed him the key with both hands, smiling politely.
"Here is your key. Please keep it safe. Also…"
Her gaze flicked past Asagiri to Yuuki Asuna, Iwanaga Kotoko, and Kato Megumi behind him. She lowered her voice in a gentle reminder.
"When you are in the room, please try to keep quiet and speak softly so you do not disturb other guests. Thank you for your understanding."
"Hey, hey. I want a drink."
Iwanaga Kotoko tugged Asagiri's sleeve as she said it, then skipped straight to a vending machine. The moment she saw what was inside, the cute smile on her face froze solid.
"This is…"
"That machine…"
The attendant's expression wavered, as if she were one breath away from breaking. She pointed at another machine off to the side while doing her absolute best not to laugh.
"That one over there sells drinks. This vending machine sells… toys."
A blush bloomed across Iwanaga Kotoko's fair cheeks. She turned away and walked over in silence, head lowered.
Yuuki Asuna watched, smiling. She bent slightly, leaned close to Kotoko's ear, and teased in a soft voice.
"What, you can get shy too? That's a rare sight."
"Tch…"
Kotoko made a little sound like a cat hissing, but she did not argue back.
She was shy, yes, but the toys themselves were not enough to fluster her. The real reason was the moment she saw the Fleshlight, her mind flashed back to the night she had spent with Asagiri a week ago.
Back then… she had basically been playing the role of that toy.
Kotoko did not dislike it. If anything, she had liked it a lot.
But there was no way she could tell Asuna that the sight had moved her, that it dragged out the memory of Asagiri lifting her up, and that was why her face had gone red.
…
When they entered the double room, Kato Megumi glanced around. The space was only about seven or eight square meters, with two computers squeezed inside. It felt cramped.
"The room is kind of narrow…"
Before Kato could finish, the petite Iwanaga Kotoko kicked off her shoes. In white socks, she dashed across the floor like a wild dog slipping its leash, beelining for one of the computers. She dropped into the chair and sat cross legged, claiming it in an instant.
"Woohoo! Got the spot! Now Leader has to sit next to me."
After declaring her victory, she turned her head toward Yuuki Asuna. A provocative curve lifted her lips as she raised her chin smugly.
"Heh heh. You might be a Flash, but at a time like this, you're too slow."
"You little scoundrel…"
Asuna shook her head, speechless.
"Aren't you afraid you'll break your prosthetic leg? Forget it. If you want to sit next to him, go ahead. Who's fighting you for it?"
"Heh heh. If you can't beat me, just say you can't. Hehe."
Kotoko was still riding her smug high when Asagiri stepped in with Asuna and Kato behind him. He closed the door, locked it, then calmly extended his right hand.
"Persona, Mita."
The instant Kind Mita appeared, the already cramped room became so packed that even shifting their feet felt difficult.
"You…"
Caught off guard, Kind Mita stumbled straight into Asagiri's arms. She lifted her head, looking at him with faint helplessness.
"So that cake wasn't eaten for nothing. This work environment is brutal, huh?"
Asagiri smiled. "Hurry up and get to work."
"Ah, okay."
Kind Mita squeezed her way through the bodies and reached the open computer. With effort, she sat cross legged in front of it.
"Huh?"
Kotoko stared, stunned.
"Leader, shouldn't you be sitting here? Why…"
"I'm not a hacker," Asagiri said, leaning back against the wooden wall with a light chuckle. "Everyone has their specialty. Let Mita handle it."
Yuuki Asuna knelt near the door on Asagiri's left, her shoulder brushing his as she settled in. Seeing Kotoko's confused face, she could not resist teasing.
"Impressive. You were fast enough to pick the spot farthest from Leader. As expected of you."
"That's right."
Before Kotoko could recover, Kato Megumi calmly slid into the space on Asagiri's right, then delivered the finishing blow in a gentle voice.
"Maybe this is what they call trying to steal a chicken and losing the rice instead."
Today, Iwanaga Kotoko had no "hehe."
…
An hour later.
"Found it."
Kind Mita lifted her hands from the keyboard and stretched, letting out a long yawn. Then she turned her head toward Asagiri.
"I broke into the databases of multiple official agencies across the cities in this world. Power stations, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department backend, urban planning departments, water supply bureaus, all of it. Combined with the earlier news about an Abyss Man exposing their identity, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's advance notice about clearing and cordoning off certain roads, I can roughly confirm that the area we're looking for…"
As she spoke, she extended a finger to the map on the screen.
"The research institute's base should be in this deep mountain region near Chiba Prefecture. But if you want the precise location… I can't push it any further."
"It's fine. This is enough. You did great."
At Asagiri's praise, Kind Mita tucked her long hair behind her ear. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she spoke in a deliberately casual tone.
"Then… shouldn't there be some kind of reward?"
Before Asagiri could answer, she hurried to explain, as if afraid of being misunderstood.
"I'm not being selfish. I just think that when I go back later, if I tell them I received a reward after completing my work perfectly, it'll motivate everyone. That's all. It's not like I particularly want it or anything…"
"Oh?" Asagiri's eyes curved. "Then what kind of reward do you want? Should I buy you a slice of cake?"
"I don't want cake…"
Her voice dropped until it was barely louder than a mosquito.
"Besides… you still need to discuss things, right? So… just a kiss. Let that be the reward…"
"A kiss? Sure."
Asagiri leaned in and gently kissed her cheek.
Kind Mita did not look satisfied. She turned her head, eyes full of shyness and awkward determination, and slowly leaned toward his lips.
"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing?"
The moment Kind Mita was about to kiss him, Iwanaga Kotoko shot out her hand and blocked them, indignation blazing across her face.
"Kissing in front of us? No. No. I won't allow it!"
Kotoko was still fuming when Kato Megumi's soft voice cut in and instantly froze her in place.
"Hmm? In front of 'us'?"
Kato's expression was calm. Her voice was gentle. The words, however, silenced the air.
"It should be 'in front of me,' right? Necro."
"Uh… y yeah, in front of me. I spoke too fast…"
"Mm."
Kato simply nodded, accepting the obviously flawed excuse without pressing further. Then, as if nothing had happened at all, she returned to the matter at hand in the same indifferent tone.
"Now that we've confirmed the location of the research institute's base, what do we do next?"
With the topic pulled back into seriousness, Yuuki Asuna straightened her posture and replied.
"Should we go now? Chiba Prefecture isn't far from Tokyo. If we can find the base first, even if we can't break in immediately, we can prepare. At the very least, we won't get ambushed by Players who arrive early."
"There's no need to rush."
Asagiri shook his head, dismissed Kind Mita, and spoke slowly.
"Riding the Shinkansen doesn't require identity registration. You can just buy a ticket with coins. But taking a Shinkansen to Chiba carries a huge risk."
He paused, then added in a tone that made it sound obvious.
"It's like stepping into an elevator or any confined space in a horror movie."
Yuuki Asuna frowned, thinking.
"You mean… if we take the Shinkansen, because we can't just leave whenever we want, we might run into danger or fall into a trap after we arrive? But the people in this world don't know we're Players. If our identities could be exposed, what method would they even use…?"
Her slender brows knitted together as she muttered under her breath.
"A news broadcast? No. If it were that, not only the people of this world, but all Players in this Dungeon would learn each other's identities. Before entering this Dungeon, the system specifically reminded us the clear time is at least twenty four hours and told Players to handle their real world affairs properly. That means the system doesn't want Players exposing their identities in the real world, at least not at this stage. So…"
Asuna was still speaking when Asagiri suddenly lifted a hand.
A quiet shushing gesture.
Immediately, faint footsteps approached from down the hall and stopped right outside their door.
The next second, in the tense silence of the four team members, an impatient, rapid knock slammed into the room.
Knock knock knock!
"Routine identity check. Open the door!"
.....
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