**Chapter 16: Day 16 – Cave Entrance**
We finished breakfast early, checked our luggage one last time, and sealed the entrance.
I used earth magic to create a rock door.
If someone held a party out front, would the Count of Monte Cristo emerge?[1]If a beautiful goddess appeared, I'd lock her in—we could be shut-ins together![2]
"Okay then~? Downstream along the river? To town? Or off to otaku hunting?"
"Why do you keep saying 'otaku hunting'?! Why do you always say we're hunting Oda-kun's group?!"
And so, we marched into the forest.
Strangely, no monsters appeared on the riverbank. Do they die if splashed with water? Rabies? Wait—kobold bit me yesterday? Uh-oh.
"Haruka-kun, can I talk for a sec?"
"Hm? You wanna scout ahead with just me, class rep?"
I'm on scout and interceptor duty again. Today I didn't skewer anything, so I probably won't get yelled at.
"…Um, you know?"
"The muscle-head idiots?"
"Y-Yeah. Muscle-head… you met them, right?"
"Yeah—forgot to mention. They said to pass on their apologies to you guys."
"Huh? Uh… um… sorry."
Class rep bowed deeply with incredible force. If I'd been any closer, she'd have headbutted me unconscious.
"I wanted to tell you properly… but I couldn't bring myself to say it…"
"Ah~? It's fine. I already knew. You have Hijack?"
She looked shocked. Eh? But isn't it obvious? Why?
"W-When… how long… how did you know?"
"Well, it's obvious, right? The muscle-head idiots and goblins are idiots, so they didn't get it? Something like that?"
I didn't actually ask the goblins, but they probably didn't understand either. Maybe goblins are secretly smarter than the idiots—but they never said anything, so who knows? Never talked to them anyway.
Wait… was it supposed to be a secret?
"Shit if it was a secret, then say it's a secret first! If I'd known, I wouldn't have troubled you! I didn't know it was secret! Well, I didn't tell anyone either."
"No, why do you know? The otaku never said anything either—they told me not to mention it!"
Hijack, also known as Strong Steal.
The ability to steal others' skills. Probably the most powerful, vicious, threatening ability. If you have it, you're the ultimate cheat. If someone else has it, then you're under ultimate threat. Someone nearby could silently steal your lifeline skills. Touching could steal them. The thief would grow stronger and more dangerous.
Even that's the better case. Some versions of Strong Steal don't just take, actually they kill and take. Probably the most common. And the most terrifying.
If someone has Strong Steal, no one approaches. No one is allowed near that person. You have to kill them first to feel safe. Totally taboo skill. Can't tell anyone, or you might get killed. Forbidden skill: "Strong Steal."
"And… if you knew… why? Why help me? Aren't you scared? It's normal to say stay away. Normal to hate me. Normal to abandon me. Because I… have the skill to steal people's abilities…"
"Why would I be scared? Were the otaku scared? No. So why think I'd be scared?"
"Because… anytime I could steal your skills…"
"So? I have no problem with that."
"Huh? But I… Strong Steal…"
"Yeah—want anything? Want my skills? I mean take Jack of all trade and Wooden Puppet anytime!"
"Ah! Aaaah… sorry."
What world has people wanting "Loner," "NEET," "Hikikomori," "Wooden Puppet," "Jack of All Trades," "Report-Contact-Consult"? I'd pay to give them away. Is there a "Distribute" skill?
Yeah, Strong Steal is zero problem. Actually, Strong Steal has the problem. Tough luck for Strong Steal, yeah.
"Um… sorry… but… but… other people… to other people…"
"So, the otakus weren't scared either, right? Then that's it. Or something."
I don't understand what's the problem or why she's worried, but she's clearly worried about something she doesn't understand? Language barrier? No, she speaksJapanese?
"Uh… what do you mean? …Or something?"
"What do you mean? Everyone felt relieved it was you."
"Huh?!"
"Everyone was paranoid, asking around, who had puppetry, charm, Strong Steal? Puppetry and charm sealed, left them relieved. See? No one tried sealing your Strong Steal, right?"
"Huh?"
"Those ultimate idiots noticed but everyone else didn't. They already think it's solved, so no issue. I thought 'oh, class rep' because otaku said nothing. What's the problem?"
First—the otaku didn't have it. They were surrounded by goblins, near death—no Presence Detection. You can steal that from kobolds, so if they had Strong Steal, they'd have taken it. They didn't.
The otaku—obsessed with skills—would've hunted Strong Steal first. Warned everyone. They didn't seal you.
So that's it. You're safe. Secure. In school, in isekai—always unreasonable, always unfair treatment—yet if they trust you, it's absolutely safe.
The ultimate trust mark. Not some cheap JIS or ISO—OTA mark. No stricter inspection standard exists.[3]
…
"Class rep's been crying a lot lately, huh?"
"That's definitely your fault."
"False accusation! I didn't do anything!"
"Nn—no, you did a lot. Thank you…"
Huh? Conversation not making sense. Thank you for making me cry? What did I do? Definitely not anything lewd, right? If I could do that, I'd have the Hero title. Not bragging, but I got no courage for that. Twenty enemies… lost before even fighting! Sun Tzu in my own class?
"The skillful fighter puts himself beyond the possibility of defeat but does not guarantee victory over the enemy." Wait, how is that fair? I'm still losing?
"But how did you convince them without explaining?"
"Hm? Ah—the idiots? Said 'okay' and left when I said it's fine. Idiots."
"How did they accept that?!"
"Total idiot treatment! Kinda harsh… no, very harsh!"
Class rep still tense—hasn't noticed.
"Class rep—harsh while I was saying 'otaku never said'—you called them otaku too."
"…For real? …Sorry Oda-kun, Haruka brainwashed me without realizing?"
Don't blame me for brainwashing—no such skill or death game starts. Seriously.
"My Strong Steal… kills and takes… so absolutely can't tell… Oda-kun!"
"Right~ She stole their skills~ …goblin one and orc one?"
Yes—class rep actually had "Sexual Mastery" and "Super Stamina." Not good.
"…Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Nooooooooooooooo!!"
Class rep's wail echoed in the forest. Oh crap.
Girls ran up—scolded me hard. Seriously? I did nothing! No Hero title, I promise. Really!
Lunch was a delicious fish and mushroom BBQ again! Skewered and grilled.
Class rep glaring jito eyes.
Flip skewers, cook evenly.
Class rep glaring jito eyes.
Salt both sides, plate.
Class rep glaring jito eyes.
Place gently before class rep.
Class rep glaring jito eyes.
Wants to join… probably not?
"Class rep~ come back~ dinner and meeting~?"
Class rep glaring jito eyes.
Need something nice.
"Uh, class rep. It's fine. I'm sure you don't have the 'slut' title…" guh! …(thud I fell to the ground, hard)
Kuh—class rep can Shrink Earth… true cheater (I collapse).
Now what? We're still not out of forest. Few more hours before we hit the time limit.
Clairvoyance activated, still forest. Grassland would mean town or road. Trouble.
I'm troubled, glance, by class rep jito glaring.
After epic Strong Steal talk—understanding achieved—yet Sexual Mastery/Super Stamina talk ended in violence.
Talking solves everything—flower-field pretty words. That Shrink Earth slash! She could solo the orc, right? Yeah—I got soloed.
"Vice A, do we go a bit farther?"
"Who's Vice A? I'm not Vice A!!" I blurt out.
"…Vice B then—what do?"
"Eh~ I'm Vice B~? But I'm not Vice B~?"
Yeah—definitely not Vice B either… class rep killing eyes glaring… n-nothing… looking…or not looking?
Advanced hour passed, forest end unseen. Forest camp tonight.
Decision made by a majority vote. Democracy! I get glared at. Can't talk, this the only way.
Reason I can't talk? Obvious. Class rep jito glaring. Before democracy, I want basic human rights.
Result, I'll return to cave majority. I'm going home.
We walked back slowly. Could level in forest, but night return bad. Tomorrow affected, so no point. Hurry home.
Prepared camp vs accidental camp—mentally different. Jito glaring people probably feels the same.
Opened sealed rock door. Safe, no one. There goes my Goddess dreams.
I cooked dinner for all. Home-cooked—grilled fish herb wrap.
Bath too. Might only river bathe tomorrow.
Skill map—downstream snaked right sharply. Shortcut through forest—monsters, meaning time loss.
Can't hold meeting, I guess it's a problem. Can't summon parliament, also a problem. Why? Scared to summon, again problem. Chair is worried?
No comfort always bad—today extreme.
Crawled to tent, forest walk. No idiots today, but goblins. All tired. Mental fatigue. Tired— oh look a goblin rush~ (bonk!)
My stress + goblin souls ascended to heaven, guess back to tent?
"This presence… not idiot… jito?"
"U~ name changed from class rep to jito… sorry today… embarrassed… reflex?"
Class rep → jito bowed. Unfair, I must forgive. Seriously.
"Uh, well… good luck?"
Encouraged.
"Encouragement so half-hearted~ still angry?"
"Joke? Meeting over?"
"Yeah—decided three days downstream search."
"Well—gotta find otaku."
"O… Oda-kun group?"
Class rep barely caught herself.
"Yeah, push bitches off. Get their whatever they wanna call it done for"
Much better, but I guess I'm still forcing. Won't end till meeting otaku. Bitch still has their unfinished atonement.
During fights, I'm always front, always shielding, always sacrificing. Already forgiven, already accepted as comrades, yet can't forgive self, can't accept self. Definitely stronger. But unstable.
Will bring them to otaku. Whatever result, only way Bitch will accept. Forgiven or not, they must reach there to move on.
"Yeah, we can't ditch Shimazaki. We also apologize to Oda-kun group. And thank you."
Shimazaki—who? New character? Town person? Ah—jito eyes again. Jito-san.
**Day 16 End**
[1] “If someone held a party out front, would the Count of Monte Cristo emerge?”This is a reference to Alexandre Dumas' novel The Count of Monte Cristo (and its many adaptations).In the story, the protagonist Edmond Dantès is wrongfully imprisoned for years in the Château d'If (a remote island prison). He eventually escapes and reinvents himself as the mysterious, wealthy Count of Monte Cristo to take revenge.Haruka is jokingly imagining that if noisy people (a “party”) showed up right outside his sealed cave home, some dramatic, long-imprisoned figure (like the Count) might burst out of the rock door seeking revenge… or perhaps just to complain about the noise ruining his solitude.
[2] If a beautiful goddess appeared, I'd lock her in—we could be shut-ins together!”This is a reference to the Japanese myth of Iwato-gakure (the Rock-Cave myth) from the Kojiki/Nihon Shoki (ancient Japanese chronicles).In the story, the sun goddess Amaterasu hides in a cave (Ama-no-Iwato) after a fight with her brother Susanoo, plunging the world into darkness. The other gods hold a big party/celebration outside the cave to lure her out (dancing, laughter, roosters crowing, etc.). Eventually she peeks out, sees her own radiant reflection in a mirror, and emerges. Haruka is twisting this famous myth: instead of trying to lure the goddess out of the cave like the gods did, he says he'd lock her inside with him so they could live as shut-ins together forever. It's peak hikikomori fantasy—turning the world's most famous “come out of your room” story into “stay in your room with me forever.”In short: Haruka is saying “my cave is so perfectly sealed and isolated that only a legendary shut-in re
[3] “These otaku are the most paranoid, info-obsessed people imaginable. They knew she could literally steal their skills (and possibly kill them to do it), but they still didn't fear her at all. If even they trust her 100%, then she's safe. This is stronger proof than any official standard—it's the OTA seal of approval. Nothing beats that level of otaku scrutiny.”