Can Someone from a Tradition-Ridden Village Pull Off a Narou-Style Story in a Modern Dungeon? ～The Higher Being Behind Me Is Way Too Much of a Final Boss～ - Chapter 130: Lifestyle

-Thank you DCRangeRange, Dean Dexter and Cannedbread
Follow me on Patreon via Linktree https://linktr.ee/Mnotia-

They climbed the stairs over and over, aiming for the eighth floor.

But Shio and Ei's legs were already close to their limit.

"Ah, my legs are already trembling... Mikama-sama, could I have you help me...?"

"Absolutely not."

"Minako, piggyback... I might throw up, but piggyback..."

"Yeah! Absolutely not!"

"Ahh!"

The two clung to the handrail as if in despair.

And with their legs trembling, they advanced one step at a time.

One was purely exhausted, while the other's condition was caused by damage to their vestibular system from a terrifying experience and a roller coaster ride.

"Do your best, Ei. Hibari won't work in this narrow space."

"Then, piggyback me..."

"...No."

"I won't throw up!"

"That's not it! It's... um..."

Ei was sweating quite a lot right now.

The sweat pouring out like a waterfall from the heat and exercise made their hair stick to their cheeks, and their clothes looked as if they had been rained on, making their body's silhouette somewhat visible.

(If I give Ei a piggyback in this state, my emotions will definitely run high. If Kagutoa-sama senses that... there's no telling what will happen.)

There was even a possibility that Japan would be turned into a scorching hell just to make them sweat.

Under such circumstances, there was no way Senano could casually give a piggyback.

She had not realized that there would be no problem in the first place if her emotions did not run that high.

Close contact with a sweat-drenched Ei was a sweet poison to Senano.

"Senano-saaan... my legs are already worn out..."

"Th-this is... right! It's special training to strengthen your legs and hips. If you can make it all the way up, I'll allow you late-night ramen twice later!"

"Late-night ramen!? I can eat ramen at night!? Usually you get mad even over a tiny candy..."

"I'll allow toppings and extra noodles too."

"Yay! Then I'll climb! I'll do my best!"

"Eh, Ei-chan gets motivated by that...?"

Shio looked at Ei as if saying they couldn't believe it.

Their legs were still like a newborn fawn's, but a light had been lit in Ei's eyes once more.

"Should I give Shio a reward too? Hmm, later I'll show you the sea treasures I collected!"

"Sorry, that won't make this dizziness go away. I'll do my best somehow too... don't worry about me..."

"I see. Got it. If it looks impossible, tell me, okay? I'll have you wait here."

"I swear I definitely won't tell you."

For Shio, who had seen various things, that was already close to a threat.

Trying somehow to avert their own gaze, Shio pointed at the two walking ahead.

The relationship between Nene and Hachiko, who had joined up, could not be called good even as a compliment, and even now the two were quite worked up together.

"Shaa!"

"Are you imitating a cat? You're good."

"I'm threatening you! Damn it, why don't curses work on this one!"

"It's a good curse. Quite filling."

"Don't eat it!"

Senano observed the two noisily leading the way with a slightly tense expression.

(Kamikiri has been active the whole time. It's continuously eating something.)

The uninterrupted chewing sounds made one almost hallucinate that a great crowd of people were surrounding her at a dinner.

Yes, a dinner. Splendid and lavish.

They crunched violently as if savoring the texture, and gulped it down all at once to experience the sensation going down the throat.

The NARROW carried on Nene's back was right in the middle of enjoying a curse.

"...Hey hey, Senano-chan, is the person next to you amazing?"

"I don't know. But they're probably an acquaintance of Happoufusa-san. Maybe an Enri Bearer connected to their partner."

"Hmm. To stuff themselves that much, they're quite the extravagant one."

"Eh?"

Minako had Senano answer her question, yet dodged the crucial part with a laugh.

And ignoring Senano's dissatisfied look, Minako continued with another question.

"By the way, is the Enri Bearer called Happoufusa amazing? I've been quite curious."

"Well... what I know is 'Did you just say you want to know about Hacchan!?' ... Maybe Hachiko-san will tell you."

Hachiko, reacting to the whisper-like voice, rotated her neck a full 180 degrees and turned toward Minako.

And her face broke into a smile as if her earlier foul mood had been a lie.

"You want to know about Hacchan, don't you!? Can't be helped! You don't seem like that big gluttonous thief cat, so I'll tell you."

"It seems I have just been praised."

"That's right, Master."

To protect her Master's self-esteem, Senano agreed without changing her expression.

"Hacchan is an amazing Enri Bearer, you know! Believe it or not, they became S Rank at twenty! The youngest S Rank!"

"Hm? Senano-chan is also S Rank, right? You're seventeen now, right?"

"...That's right."

Hachiko's gaze immediately turned to Senano, who had been asked at a bad time.

But the moment the topic of age came up, Senano had already selected her words.

"But the reason I was able to become S Rank so quickly is that I can handle a new-model NARROW and had a recommendation from my Master. Happoufusa-san is an amazing Enri Bearer who became S Rank purely through their own ability, without any of that. There's no need to compare them to me; they are surely strong and experienced (rapid-fire, no breath)."

"You get it! Thank goodness. I almost ended up renting you the corner room."

(I don't know why, but I was saved...!)

As if to save the relieved Senano, luck came around.

They had just finished climbing the long staircase.

"It seems this is the eighth floor. Now, tell me which room they're in, Hachiko."

"Don't order me around, thief cat!"

"You're far more cat-like yourself."

"Fushaa!"

After an unsounded threat and a glare, Hachiko strode onward to the back.

Just then, the door right beside them opened.

"Ah, Hachiko-chan. Hello."

"Hello, Yao-san. Nice weather again today."

The one who came out of one of the rooms was a gentle-looking middle-aged man.

Wearing glasses with distinctive unfashionable black frames, he looked somewhat clumsy.

"That's right. Thanks to that, the kids wouldn't stop saying they're going out. It's been a while since this happened."

As if to prove his words, two young children energetically burst out from beyond the door.

With sun hats and shorts, they were dressed exactly for playing right now.

"Ah, it's Hachiko-chan! Hello!"

"It's Hachiko-oneechan!"

"You little homebodies are energetic. You're going outside? Then you have to close up properly, okay?"

"Yeah!"

The two nodded energetically.

Then the two seemed to notice Nene and the others, and looked up at them with interest, observing them.

"So big..."

"Big..."

Watching the children innocently run up, Yao asked in a calm voice.

"...Hachiko-chan, are they payment? Guests?"

"Unfortunately, guests. They're acquaintances of Hacchan, so VIP treatment."

"I see. Well, well."

Yao stood in front of Nene and the others, pulled the children away, and bowed.

"My sons have been terribly rude. You mustn't stare at people so rudely, okay?"

"Okaay."

"Sorry."

"No, it's fine. More importantly, if you're going outside, be careful of the heat. Staying hydrated is important."

"Yeah!"

"Thanks, big sis!"

"Sure."

The children headed toward the elevator with energetic shouts.

Yao smiled as if there was no helping it, bowed once more, and left.

"I'm exhausted..."

"I-I think I saw that person on the balcony... Uegh, oh no, I'm going to throw up..."

As if swapping places with them, Ei and Shio finally appeared from the stairs, but Shio's complexion only seemed to get worse.

The two staggeringly approached Nene and the others.

"Where is the goal...?"

"It's just ahead. This way, this way."

Hachiko strode onward to the back.

From the rooms they passed, lively voices could be heard, and at times the good smell of cooking drifted by.

This apartment building was overflowing with life and daily activity.

They were calming sounds and scents that made one truly feel that way.

"Here it is! Hacchan's beloved room!"

The room Hachiko pointed to was an utterly ordinary one.

The group stopped in front of a door whose only distinctive features were a plate engraved with 『Room 888』, an old doorknob, and a rusted mailbox.

"Well, go in. The thief cat can wait outside if you want."

"I'm coming in."

"This one really has no restraint. Sigh, wait a moment."

Hachiko muttered that and stood in front of the door.

In that instant, her head shifted vertically.

"Hiee!"

As if she had been sliced in two, her head slid down, and something white popped out from inside in a regular pattern.

At that sight, everyone understood that it had turned inside out.

That thing that had been stored inside her head and Hachiko's head turned inside out.

And now, in the place where her face should have been, a white box rested.

Smooth as marble, and a vivid white like a work of art.

The strangely cold atmosphere was likely because no sign of life could be felt from it.

A white box without a single scratch.

For that very reason, it was abnormal just by being there.

"Okay, it's closed, so let's go in. Thief cat, you're last."

"Mur..."

"Don't look so dissatisfied."

The voice could still be heard from the box as before.

Unlike before, it was muffled, but it was certainly Hachiko's voice.

"Well then, welcome to Hacchan and my love nest!"

Wearing the box, Hachiko opened the door in a buoyant tone.

What greeted Nene and the others beyond the open door was an entryway that was utterly ordinary except for being dim.

『Ei, don't you think becoming a housing-complex wife♂ would also be a bit of fun?』

『I would call it eccentric.』

-Thank you DCRangeRange, Dean Dexter and Cannedbread
Follow me on Patreon via Linktree https://linktr.ee/Mnotia-