Akatsuki Translations

“Evie looks worried about you,” Misuzu said as we stepped outside the dungeon. It was still midday, but I couldn’t tell the exact time. In Tokyo, snow was falling and accumulating on the asphalt. The difference in climate never ceased to amaze me. The scorching sun felt like a distant dream.

“That’s not true,” I replied.

“Do you think I’m too possessive?” Misuzu asked.

“N-no, I don’t think so. It’s only natural. I’m the one who needs to be clearer, sorry,” I stammered.

“It’s okay. If you’re aiming for level 1000, I understand wanting to keep Evie as a companion. But…” Misuzu trailed off.

It wasn’t just about that. I wasn’t being unclear because I wanted to reach level 1000. In fact, I believed there were other methods to consider. That’s why I had said those things in the dungeon.

In truth, I had expected Misuzu to lose interest in me after that. However, that didn’t happen, and I found myself falling for Evie, making it difficult for me to be direct.

“You know, I’m honestly scared of Evie,” Misuzu confessed. “When we were in class together, I somehow knew I was the prettiest girl. I didn’t mean to be conceited, but I took it for granted that everyone thought that way. But Evie is more beautiful than me, she’s rich, and she can be kind too… sometimes. That’s why being with her scares me.”

“Even you feel that way, Misuzu?” I asked, surprised.

“I’m learning this about myself for the first time. This is what it feels like to fall for someone,” Misuzu said softly. “Becoming so jealous, wanting them to look only at me. Hey, the person you said you liked is Imari-chan, right?”

“That’s…” I hesitated.

It wasn’t true. The one I liked was Kiriyama Misuzu. Imari was important to me, but it was different from romantic feelings. Despite having kissed her, I knew that the woman I truly liked was Kiriyama Misuzu.

I wanted to say it out loud.

However…

“Kiriyama-san would probably find it annoying if someone like me confessed to her,” I thought.

“Confessing would only make me a laughingstock,” I believed.

Even with the object of my affection right beside me, expressing her feelings for me, I couldn’t muster the courage. Moreover, I had begun to desire both Evie and Imari, despite not having romantic feelings for them before.

“I’m sorry, Yuuta. I lied to Evie, even though you’ve never once said you liked me,” Misuzu apologized.

“No, it’s my fault,” I said quickly.

“It’s not your fault, Yuuta. I’m the same as Evie. Just like Imari-chan said, I’m a homewrecker. But being with you feels so good. When I think about how this is what it means to like someone, even in this messy situation, a part of me doesn’t think it’s so bad,” Misuzu admitted, clinging tighter to my arm, perhaps due to the cold.

She had become accustomed to pressing her chest against my arm. If I were to tell her that I still couldn’t believe this was real, what kind of face would she make?

Until recently, I had been nothing like this. Just a miserable, bullied kid.

“Hey, let’s stop by a store. We need to buy food,” Misuzu suggested.

“Food?” I asked, puzzled.

“W-well, a fancy hotel would be too stiff, so let’s go to a cheap love hotel where we can bring in food,” Misuzu said, blushing.

“L-love hotel? Ah, wait, Misuzu. I think it’s too early for that. If we were to have a child at 15, it would be a big problem,” I stammered, my face turning red.

“…Yuuta. Do you dislike me?” Misuzu asked, her voice small.

“That’s not it at all,” I reassured her.

“…You spent the night with Evie before entering this dungeon, right?” Misuzu questioned.

“Yeah,” I admitted.

“Then is it okay if we don’t go all the way, but still do that?” Misuzu asked, her eyes hopeful.

“Ah, yeah,” I agreed, nodding.

Why did Misuzu pursue someone as indecisive as me? Evie was the same. I wished they would both grow tired of me.

“Anyway, let’s stay at a cheap love hotel,” Misuzu decided.

“Well, that’s fine, but…” I trailed off.

It seemed that even with the large sum of money we had received, Misuzu wasn’t sure what to do with it. I felt the same way. I had been honestly troubled about what to do with the over 40 million yen in my magic bag. Should I ask Imari to deposit it in a bank for me?

No, if a 15-year-old girl brought that much money to a bank, there was no telling what they might say. When in doubt, it was probably best to rely on David and Mark.

“Then let’s stock up on food,” I said as I opened the automatic door of a large drugstore that sold side dishes and snacks, my arm still linked with Misuzu’s. The air inside was warm. People had been staring at us for a while now, probably because I was walking alongside the beautiful Misuzu.

Although we had changed our clothes, our faces and physiques remained the same. So when the two of us walked side by side, we were seen as a completely mismatched couple.

“Everyone’s looking at you, Yuuta,” Misuzu remarked.

“Haha, of course they are. That’s what happens when I walk with you, Misuzu. I just hope we don’t run into any weirdos,” I chuckled.

“If we do, you’ll protect me, right?” Misuzu asked, smiling.

Come to think of it, I remembered that I was strong now. Even if ordinary thugs had guns, I wouldn’t be afraid. It’s not like we would run into explorers in a place like this anyway, so it should be fine.

As we walked through the store, noticing the excessive number of masks on display, a female store clerk who looked to be around high school age was looking at me. When our eyes met, she hurriedly looked away.

“I guess people really do think I’m not a good match for Misuzu. My level has gone up, and I don’t think my face is that bad, but maybe they can tell I’m just a facade,” I sighed.

“Geez,” Misuzu exhaled, sounding exasperated. “Yuuta, what’s your charm value?”

“56. The number itself is impressive, right? I heard that if you exceed 50, you become incredibly good-looking, but well, it’s me we’re talking about,” I shrugged.

“Ugh, you gloomy bug. You don’t get it, do you? Why Evie is so fixated on you,” Misuzu groaned.

“That’s because she wants to reach level 1000, right?” I guessed.

“Geez, why don’t you look at your face in the mirror?” Misuzu suggested.

“Why?” I asked, puzzled.

“Both Evie and I prefer guys with good-looking faces, that’s why,” Misuzu explained.

She pointed to a full-length mirror at the back of the large drugstore. I looked at myself in it.

There, wearing a black down jacket, was an incredibly handsome man.

“Who’s this guy?” I wondered, turning around to see if anyone was behind me, but there was no one. Then I realized it was myself.

“Who?” I muttered, still in disbelief. There were no mirrors inside the dungeon, so I rarely saw my own appearance. Misuzu and Evie had brought hand mirrors to fix their appearances, but I didn’t care, so I only saw my reflection in the water occasionally.

“Who else could it be but you, Yuuta?” Misuzu sighed.

“Me?” I asked, checking the mirror again. Why was my face so good-looking? Do explorers really become this handsome? My hair was still short as always, but my once-average eyes had become sharp and well-defined.

My nose was straight, and my lips were beautifully shaped. Even my average height seemed to have increased slightly. The beautiful man reflected in the mirror was wilder than any action actor around, exuding a frightening amount of masculine charm.

I remembered Nagumo’s words about Hazumi and the others: “Even though they became explorers, their appearances didn’t improve at all.” They should have been able to become this good-looking by becoming explorers, but they didn’t. What Hazumi and the others did was terrible, but even at level 300, they still didn’t become handsome.

Looking at my own face again, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for them.

“See, all the women are looking at you, Yuuta. That person, and that person, everyone’s looking,” Misuzu pointed out.

“It doesn’t feel like me,” I mumbled.

No, rather than feeling like it wasn’t me… It wasn’t me. This? This wasn’t my face? No matter what, this was too beautiful. Too handsome. Too good-looking. I could guarantee it. My face was never meant to become this beautiful.

“But it’s said that faces with no potential won’t turn out like yours, right?” Misuzu said.

“You mean there was a possibility for me to become a face like this?” I wondered. Looking in the mirror, I noticed that I had become more muscular and my face had become more chiseled compared to before. It was said that if a person’s potential for appearance changes through leveling up was zero, their face wouldn’t improve. It was believed that by taking care of various things like beauty, health, and muscle training, one would reach their ultimate form.

“Was my face not that bad to begin with?” I muttered. No, even so, it felt like my bone structure had completely changed. It was the kind of face I had imagined if I could become this handsome. Above all, it was strange that my height had increased. Or was it not strange? Considering I was in my third year of middle school, there was still a possibility for my height to increase.

“Even so…” I trailed off. What would happen if I reached level 10? Just looking at my own face in the mirror made me feel enchanted. I could understand why good-looking people tended to be narcissistic. With a face like this, I could stare at the mirror all day.

Charm increased evenly with each level. If that was the case, when I reached level 10, my charm would be 80. Evie’s peak charm was thought to be 79, so I would become a more beautiful man than her.

That’s it! Maybe I should buy a mirror to bring into the dungeon so I could see my face there too…

“B-but still, Misuzu is definitely more beautiful,” I stammered.

“What are you saying? Our charm stats are almost the same now. You have 56 and I have 58. The way charm increases is characteristic, it goes up evenly until level 10. So, I’ll stop at 67 in the end. You’ll eventually reach 80,” Misuzu explained.

“…” I was silent. It was a well-known fact, and it seemed Misuzu knew about it too. That’s why people went wild with joy when their charm increased by just 3 points when reaching level 2. It was guaranteed to increase by 27 points in total. However, when I reached level 2, my charm had increased by 8 points.

Honestly, I thought it was some kind of misunderstanding. I had wondered if the dungeon was joking around with the stats. That’s how unreal the number 8 was to me.

“Didn’t you pay attention? Every time you leveled up, your charm increased the most. Koharu said that with an average face, charm is 10. Even after leveling up, it’s rare to exceed 30. Most explorers stop at around 30 charm. In the most miserable cases, charm might not increase at all even after reaching level 10,” Misuzu said.

“Sakaki-san really cares a lot about appearances, huh?” I remarked.

“Everyone does. I’ll be honest, I didn’t want to lose to you in charm, so I was always mindful of my charm stat. Because your appearance obviously changes with each level, it makes you really conscious of your face. Especially you, Yuuta, you become abnormally more handsome with each level,” Misuzu admitted.

“You, who are too beautiful for someone like me, were worrying about that?” I asked, surprised.

“Because I thought that if you became better looking than me, you might lose interest in me,” Misuzu confessed.

“Better looking…” I mumbled. More than that, could I even call this my own face? Once stats went up, they never decreased. I had no choice but to live with the fact that this face, which seemed unbelievable to be my own, was indeed mine. Even so, the more I looked at my face in the mirror, the more out of place it felt.

Realizing it would be strange to stay by the mirror forever, we moved away and grabbed a shopping basket, randomly purchasing snacks like Pocky and chips, and even a single beer, just enough to not get drunk.

“I thought I’d never be able to go shopping with a girl in my entire life. But this is the second time,” I said.

“Saying that with that face just sounds like a backhanded compliment,” Misuzu pointed out.

“Really?” I asked.

“Yes, really,” Misuzu confirmed.

“Ah!” I exclaimed.

“What?” Misuzu asked.

“I-I’ll treat you here,” I offered.

“Fufu,” Misuzu chuckled. Well, of course she would. The shopping probably wouldn’t even amount to 10,000 yen. Considering the large sum of money in my magic bag, treating her was nothing. I could probably buy the most expensive item in this store.

When I was trying to become an explorer, I would choose the cheapest item even if it was just a single yen cheaper. That was just recently.

“Hey, Yuuta, can I ask you something weird?” Misuzu asked.

“Huh? Uh, sure,” I replied.

“Yuuta, did you like your original appearance?” Misuzu asked.

“…Not really,” I admitted. Back then, even looking at myself in the mirror was depressing. No, it was still better than seeing myself in a photo. It was a mystery to me how I could look so ugly in photos.

“I see. Then, never mind. Sorry for asking something strange,” Misuzu apologized.

“Hm? It’s fine, really,” I reassured her.

“…Yuuta. I love you. If you’re up for it, I’ll do anything for you, just tell me,” Misuzu said bluntly.

I felt embarrassed by Misuzu’s straightforwardness. She had no hesitation when it came to these things. Worried that people around us might hear, I headed towards the register.

The cashier was a young girl who turned bright red as she looked at my face while processing the transaction. I understood how she felt. Even as a man, I would be intimidated if a face like this appeared in front of me. When our hands touched during the payment, she pulled back as if startled.

“U-um, you two are both so beautiful, are you explorers?” the cashier asked.

I was surprised to be spoken to at the register. Was it even okay for a cashier to do that? The girl was quite cute. She seemed to be a bit older than us. Thinking that she definitely wouldn’t have talked to me with my previous face, I felt conflicted.

“Well, something like that,” I said.

Thinking about saying this with the face I had seen in the mirror, I felt like I had become an incredibly pretentious man.

“Damn,” the girl muttered.

“?” I looked at her quizzically.

“Ex-explorers are really good-looking, aren’t they? I-I’m going to Musashino’s D-Rank this year. If you see me in the dungeon, please take care of me. Um, can I shake your hand?” she asked nervously.

“Huh? Ah, yeah, I don’t mind,” I replied, taken aback.

The customers behind us in line were probably making faces like “what is this girl saying?” But when I looked, they weren’t really doing that. Instead, a woman was leaning in, looking like she wanted to talk to me too. I held out my hand to the cashier girl and shook hers. She gripped my hand surprisingly tightly.

“I-I won’t wash this hand for a while!” she declared.

“No, I think you should wash it,” I advised.

I see, so when you become handsome, even just being a cashier can be exhausting. She had mentioned starting a D-Rank this year, so considering she was working as a cashier, she was probably saving up for that. Maybe she would enter after graduating high school. D-Rank didn’t have an age requirement, so while it was for high school students, you didn’t have to be 15.

“D-Rank…” I muttered, feeling a bit of interest in what it was like. Would I still be bullied now? Even after reaching level 7 and having my face become so handsome, I was still worried about bullying. Realizing that I was still that pathetic, I decided to keep my self-admiration for my face in check.

“Misuzu, do you often get hit on in the city?” I asked as we left the store.

“Somewhat? In Shibuya, I usually get hit on… Well, I think handsome guys get approached more often. When a guy approaches a girl, she might think he has some weird intention, but when it’s a girl, she doesn’t take it that way,” Misuzu explained.

“I see,” I said.

“Your face. You’re grinning,” Misuzu pointed out.

“Oh, oops,” I quickly tried to suppress my smile.

“You’re full of openings, so you’ll be tempted from all sides,” Misuzu warned.

“I didn’t have to worry about that before; nobody ever approached me,” I said.

I managed to hold back a laugh that threatened to escape. Even though snow was fluttering down, I didn’t feel cold. It was because Misuzu was firmly linking her arm with mine. As we walked, I used my smartphone to search for a hotel that allowed 15-year-olds to stay.

I knew it would be fine if we were explorers, but it was a hassle to show our status or be asked our age, even if we could customize our appearance. That’s why I searched for a place without such procedures. I quickly found a nearby location.

If it was just Misuzu and me, we could get there in no time by running, but I didn’t feel like doing something like searching for stairs in the middle of the city. We got into a taxi at the taxi stand. I purposely didn’t mention that it was that kind of hotel and only gave the address. The driver, catching on, grinned as he drove us there.

We got out of the taxi and entered the hotel without making eye contact with any of the staff. Despite thinking it was cheap, there was a large heart-shaped bed sitting prominently in the room.

As we sat on the bed together, Misuzu hugged me tightly.

“Yuuta, your scent is so strong. I think it’s better when you smell. Somehow, you have a nice scent, and I feel more at ease when I can smell you,” Misuzu said.

“You’re like an animal,” I teased.

“You said it,” Misuzu pouted.

We had changed clothes right after leaving the dungeon and got into the car without taking a bath. When we removed our transformation rings, we both returned to our original appearances. Misuzu was wearing only a white long-sleeved shirt and black shorts, while I was wearing just a long-sleeved shirt and jeans.

That day, I was feeling excited. Perhaps because of that, I went a little further with Misuzu.