Chapter 31 - Chapter 31: Ground Zero
It seems I'm going to take on a terrible job at the Nuclear Power Plant Ruins, using my Item Box.
I heard it would take about a week to prepare, so I was thinking of going into a dungeon or something~?
――Just as I was thinking that, Hareyama-san from the government department contacted me.
It seems there is another job waiting.
Well, it's probably something terrible anyway.
They must be plotting to push it onto me at this very moment.
If I take it, I intend to get a massive reward.
I'll be snatching the people's taxes, and the people themselves――I'm terribly sorry, but this is all the government's responsibility.
Setting aside my own work for a moment, it seems high-level adventurers are disappearing one after another in the dungeon.
The location is a newly discovered floor.
There might be unconfirmed transfer traps or the like.
It might not be related to that, but I'm also concerned that the number of children inside the dungeon has decreased.
Could it just be that the authorities have strengthened their crackdown?
I hope it's not a sign of something bad.
――When I woke up in the morning, I checked the video I uploaded yesterday.
As expected, the tiltrotor aircraft and the aerial footage of the Special District are well-received.
'What?! Who are you to be able to ride something like this?!'
'Over the Special District sky!'
'Awesomeeee!'
'Mess play! Mess play!'
'Tiltrotor aircraft, so cool! This is a new model, right?'
Boys really do like things like this, don't they?
This time, there seem to be few anti-comments as well.
Naturally, the view count is exploding.
More money will come in again.
After finishing breakfast, Hareyama-san contacted me again.
It was a helicopter from the hotel roof again.
"Sorry, I'm going a bit far today, so I might be late or even have to stay overnight."
"I watched Daisuke's video, but where are you going riding something like that?"
Kirara seems to have watched my video as well.
"I'm sorry, but I have a duty of confidentiality, so I can't tell you."
"Eh~?! Cheap~!"
"Don't pout your lips when you're an old man."
"Age has nothing to do with it!"
It's obvious, isn't it?
I just won't say it out loud.
"Everyone, please be safe in the dungeon."
"Yes!"
"Mio, study hard at school."
"Okay!"
I actually want to take care of them, but it's more dangerous if they are with me.
The Prime Minister said that I have guards and surveillance, but do these kids have them too?
There's a possibility they could be taken hostage or the like.
I'll ask when I get the next contact.
After exchanging greetings with everyone, I left the inn and headed for the hotel.
Before that, I'll go ask the government office lady about something that's been bothering me.
Since Kirara is involved, I've already exchanged contact information.
"Good morning. It seems children are disappearing in the dungeon, does the government office know about it?"
A reply came immediately.
'Yes.'
"I know you have a duty of confidentiality, but is the government office involved in the crackdown?"
'No.'
So it's not related to the government office...
Hmm.
I suppose it's something I shouldn't worry about... but I can't help but be concerned.
Upon arriving at the hotel, I spoke with the front desk.
"Good morning. Niwa-sama."
She is a professional on the other end.
She remembered my name instantly.
If hundreds of billions of yen come in, I could make this hotel the guild's base.
No, before that, if I had money, I wouldn't need to be an adventurer...
While thinking about the new base, a woman acting as a guide came over.
Again, while gazing at her buttocks, I took the elevator to the roof.
Upon arriving at the roof, we waited for the helicopter's arrival, but staying silent even with a beauty was a bit awkward.
"Um..."
"Yes?"
She spoke to me first, which surprised me a little.
"Riding a helicopter every day――what kind of work do you do?"
"That's a secret. Before that, though, my job is being an adventurer."
"Ah!"
Hearing my words, she seemed to realize something.
"Something...?"
"Um... if there is an adventurer named Niwa-san who has an Item Box..."
"Yes, that's the old man."
It's a somewhat rare surname.
If it were Tanaka, Suzuki, or Sato-san, I could bluff and say it's someone else...
"Since the helicopter is also a contact from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, is it government-related work?"
"No comment."
"S-sorry."
She is a professional on the other end.
She must have realized it was a bad question.
One must not pry into a guest's private life.
With a slightly awkward atmosphere, a deafening explosion sound approached from the sky.
As expected, it wasn't the tiltrotor aircraft, but a regular small helicopter.
I parted ways with the lady and boarded the helicopter amidst the strong wind.
"Thank you for your hard work."
We exchanged greetings.
It's a different pilot from yesterday.
If they fly every day, they'll eventually run into the same person, won't they?
Pilots don't seem that numerous.
After flying for 30 minutes along the coast, we arrived at the Nuclear Power Plant Ruins.
Landing at the same helipad as yesterday, I could see Hareyama-san waving below.
I jumped out of the landed helicopter.
"Good morning."
After exchanging greetings with her, the helicopter took off again.
I watched the shrinking helicopter.
"Without delay, what is the additional work?"
"...Um, well..."
She pointed apologetically toward a huge silver structure visible in the distance.
A strange building with a cylinder mounted on a square box――it was the ruin of the building where the reactor used to be.
They are surrounding the debris with an even larger building, like a coffin.
"You don't mean you want me to deal with the reactor debris? From the video I saw before, the inside was a mess of twisted steel beams like candy."
"Whatever you can do is fine..."
"Eh~? Let me tell you, things that are connected probably can't be stored, okay?"
"Yes."
Once, high-level radiation from exposed fuel rod debris made it impossible to approach.
Now that the uranium fuel has been neutralized, it seems the dose isn't that high...
But there is no doubt that a storm of radioactivity is raging.
"The Prime Minister said the reward will be the same as the treated water job..."
"The contract hasn't even been signed yet..."
"Is it really a no-go?"
Hareyama-san looked up at me.
Old men are weak against that.
Anyway, I'm interested in what's inside.
If not for this chance, I definitely couldn't enter.
"Are there protective suits and Geiger counters?"
"Of course! If you accept, I will go with you."
"No, no, Hareyama-san is an ordinary person, so please don't overdo it."
"No, Niwa-san, you shouldn't be the only one doing dangerous things!"
I appreciate the sentiment, but I'm worried about high-level radioactive waste being put in the Item Box and leaking radiation.
"Then, let's try putting a little in the Item Box and measure the dose."
"It would be terrible if it leaked out of the Item Box, right?"
"That's right, in that case, we'll call it off."
"Understood! I'll tell the Prime Minister that."
She was tapping away on her smartphone.
"How is it?"
"The Prime Minister has also agreed."
Of course he did.
I can't become a walking radiation source.
"Umm, well, let's go then."
"Thank you!"
Right now, it's not a situation where approaching means instant death.
If it were really like that, I definitely wouldn't accept.
Together with the enthusiastic Hareyama-san, we headed to the work office.
It was a normal concrete building.
Such places usually have an image of prefabricated construction, but it's been 30 years since the accident.
Climbing the stairs with exposed iron, we entered the office.
Inside, desks were lined up, and men and women in gray work clothes were sitting――it felt like a normal office.
Hareyama-san was talking to a man who seemed to be the director.
An old man with a bald head was glancing at us.
He's someone who might lose his job if this place disappears.
One of the workers seemed to be guiding us.
He was a slightly tall young man.
"This way."
Following the man down to the first floor, we opened a door and entered.
There was another door further inside, and we opened it and entered.
In the dimly lit room――orange protective suits like in movies were lined up.
It looks like a spacesuit, but with a large windshield, the visibility seems good.
It seems one cannot put this on alone.
Passing my limbs through the heavy suit, Hareyama-san helped me.
When she changed clothes, I helped her, but there was something bothering me...
"Isn't it hot inside these?"
"These are high-function work suits with air conditioning, so it's fine."
"That machine on the back is the air conditioner?"
"Yes."
"Hareyama-san, I think it's quite heavy, but are you okay? I'm an adventurer, so I'm fine."
"I-I'm fine."
Just then, the man cut in.
"What is it like for adventurers usually? High-level ones have amazing strength, right? How do you control the power?"
"Usually it's fine, but if I move suddenly, it's no good. I can't control the power well."
"Ah~, so that's how it is."
It seems the man is very interested...
"Are you interested in being an adventurer? I don't really recommend it."
"But I want to try it at least once."
Is that how it is?
I happened to get powers by chance, but without that, I wouldn't have thought of becoming an adventurer.
Having finished changing, the three of us headed toward the building ruins.
――But the man led us not to the front, but to the back of the office.
There was a small open-top car there.
A simple shape like a box with tires and lights attached.
It seems to be an electric vehicle.
I thought it would be difficult to get into a normal car with this outfit, but there was something like this.
The three of us got into the open-top car and headed for the site, weaving through the valley of huge tanks.
Wearing spacesuits, I felt like I was heading to the moon.
Gradually, the huge silver tombstone-like building approached.
Does the cylinder on top have some meaning?
"Can we go inside?"
"Yes, since the fuel rods have been neutralized――that's why processing has been carried out bit by bit."
"So you're plotting to push all of that onto me..."
"Um... does the Item Box really exist?"
"Yes, of course. That's why we are in this situation now..."
"I heard it from the workers, but it's unbelievable that huge things disappear right before your eyes..."
Well, that's natural.
Ten years ago, the world suddenly changed, but the Item Box is still something supernatural.
Even so, he is very interested in dungeon-related matters.
Maybe that's the public interest.
While talking to him, we arrived at the huge silver building.
The man was talking with someone who seemed to be the site supervisor about various things.
I felt like the other person was holding their head, but was it my imagination?
"It's fine. Let's go."
"Yes."
"Turn on the dosimeter."
"Eh? Ah, yes."
So there are such devices too.
This is seriously a spacesuit.
Following him, we climbed the crude metal stairs of the building.
With the air conditioning, it was cool even while moving around.
The man struggled with a heavy-looking metal sliding door.
"I'll help."
"Yes."
The block of iron opened with a dull sound.
With high-level power, this is a breeze.
"Amazing."
"Haha, I'm an adventurer."
The door opened, and we entered.
Immediately, the sound of the dosimeter intensified.
"Whoa..."
The accident site with rubble and steel beams scattered around was a scene as if time had frozen.
A small amount of light slanted in through a small window in the ceiling, and there, inorganic iron and concrete were ruthlessly shattered and scattered.
The air was wrapped in silence, and not even the breath of life could be felt.
It gave the illusion as if it were fixed forever like that.
Once, this place must have operated and sent electricity throughout Japan, but now all of that is lost, and only the debris of ruins remains.
It feels as if this place is still enveloped in the lingering aftertaste of that tragedy.
The site where time has stopped is now a place where only fragments of past memories remain, with inorganic debris quietly speaking.
"How long can we stay here?"
I asked the man.
"Usually 30 minutes."
"Then――for now, can I put the debris I can fit into the Item Box and measure the dose outside?"
"Eh? Ah, yes! I'll leave it all to you, Niwa-san."
"If it's dangerous, it's fine to wait outside."
"No, since I'm in a supervisory position..."
The man answered my words.
Well, if something happens, it would be troublesome if the person in charge of the site wasn't there.
――That means this man holds a certain position.
Perhaps a seconded staff member from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, like Hareyama-san?
"Well, let's go."
Inside the building, catwalks made of steel bars were laid out in a circle.
They were layered in several tiers, and stairs allowed access downwards.
I used them to go down.
The dose seemed to increase the further down we went.
"Niwa-san! Are you okay?!"
Hareyama-san's voice came from above.
"I'm fine."
She seems to be filming with her smartphone.
Probably――something like "this is what we were doing"――for a report to the Prime Minister.
I continued down and arrived at the rubble-strewn ground.
This gray landscape with no sign of life is the ground zero...
For now, I put things that were rolling around and not connected or tangled into the Item Box.
It seems to hold things about 10m in size, so I can take in quite a lot.
Even large concrete fragments could be stored.
If I drop this on a monster, it might be usable as an attack.
Proceeding through the gray landscape toward the center of the building――a large hole opened in the ground.
"Is this the entrance to hell?"
Inside were many long, thin objects――probably those were the reactor fuel rods.
Previously, just approaching here must have exposed one to radiation levels that meant instant death.
Now――the sound of the dosimeter is certainly loud, but it's not a level that will kill you.
Still, if an ordinary person was exposed for a long time, it might be bad.
I was able to store the large debris I could see, so I decided to turn back for now.
I should have stored quite a lot of debris, but it doesn't feel full yet.
Just how much can it hold?
"Niwa-san! Were you okay?"
Hareyama-san had a worried look on her face.
"Yeah, no problem. Huge things can't be stored unless they are cut to 10m, and small fragments are inefficient unless put in some container."
"Y-yes! I'll report that to the Prime Minister."
For now, we decided to go outside.
Away from the building, we checked the dosimeter――it's fine.
"It seems radiation isn't leaking from the Item Box."
"Really, it's convenient!"
The man was very interested.
"It seems time is very slow or stopped inside."
"Heh~"
"Since it seems safe, can I continue working in other buildings?"
There is still plenty of space in the Item Box.
"Um, about that..."
The man looked apologetic.
"What is it?"
"If you are exposed to a prescribed amount of radiation, there is a rule that you must undergo a health check..."
"I'm not an exception either?"
"Yes, I'm sorry."
Well, it probably doesn't say "Adventurers are tough so they are exempt from the law."
This is very much like government bureaucracy, but they have their own positions to consider.
I can't force them.
Or rather, wouldn't I not need this spacesuit anyway?
"Understood."
Together with them, we got back into the open-top car and came to a white building near the office.
Inside, it looked like a clinic.
Taking off the work clothes, we received a health check.
The examination was conducted by a middle-aged doctor with a bald head and a female nurse.
They looked at the dosimeter I was wearing, measured my pulse, checked my blood pressure, and performed a blood test.
Does exposure to radiation decrease white blood cells?
They must be checking for that.
"Do you feel tired or nauseous?"
He was tapping my chest with a stethoscope while I sat on a round chair.
"No."
"Umm, you're an adventurer, right?"
"Yes."
"I heard adventurers are strong against radiation, is that true?"
I thought this would be known to doctors at sites like this, but maybe not.
"According to the Prime Minister, they conducted experiments and proved it..."
"Hmm..."
He was writing something in the medical record.
Does he believe it or not?
Actually, I'm fine.
If something happens, won't it just heal if I go to a dungeon and drink a potion?
My thinking is dungeon-based, but I think it's dangerous even for myself.
What would happen if the whole world became like that and dungeons suddenly disappeared one day?
The examination results were fine, but it seems I can't work for a few days.
What a pain.
Well, since that's the rule, maybe adventurers can't be exempted.
With this, I have nothing to do for today.
The work ended after 30 minutes.
"Hareyama-san, if you want to make adventurers work, you need to amend the law, don't you?"
"I will also convey that to the Prime Minister!"
"Alright, then I'll go back now... If I go back now, I might be able to dive into a dungeon a bit from noon."
"Then! Shall we go to that dungeon?"
"That dungeon, over there?"
"Yes!"
What she is referring to is the unprepared dungeon we entered together a little while ago.
"Is it okay? Isn't that mixing private and public affairs?"
"I am in charge of the management... If I say it's an investigation, no one will suspect it."
"I don't mind, but that place hasn't been worn out, so there seem to be many item drops."
"Then let's go!"
She seems very enthusiastic.
Well, I am a man too.
Doesn't she think it's bad to be alone with a man in such a place?
Or does she think I'm an old man and it's fine?
Well, I wouldn't make a move or anything... but if I'm invited, cough cough.
It's a complicated state of mind, but that dungeon sounds interesting.
If she weren't there, I'd want to go all the way to the back.
If no one has entered, there might be treasures too.
With that decided, I got into the car driven by her and headed for the dungeon.
We proceeded through the mountains, passed security guards and a locked fence, and arrived at the concrete wall sitting in the valley.
Using her key, she opened the door, and we entered the dungeon.
Just like last time, the dampness and mustiness greeted us.
I took out the Rebar Mace from the Item Box.
It seems this is just right for shallow-layer monsters.
It seems I can encounter enemies, so I prepared the camera.
"Shall we go a bit deeper today?"
Hareyama-san was enthusiastic.
"Eh? Is it okay?"
"Niwa-san is here, isn't he?"
Her eyes were sparkling, like a child's eyes.
"Why are you――interested in dungeons? I heard there are tourist tours for the Special District..."
"Those aren't the active exploits of real adventurers, are they!"
"Well, that's true."
She seemed full of energy, so I handed her a chemical light.
I also started filming.
"Niwa-san, are you okay?"
"I can see even in the dark."
"Eh~?! Amazing! You can see without lights or anything?!"
"Well, it's black and white."
"Heh~"
While saying such things, a slime came, so I defeated it immediately.
Potions came out scattered.
So, this place really hasn't been worn out?
I was thinking I should maintain it more――but then items stopped dropping immediately.
It seems it was only at the beginning.
"Niwa-san! Niwa-san!"
"What is it?"
"It's a rabbit! A rabbit! Cute!"
I quickly approached the white fluff and kicked it up with all my might.
"Take this!"
"Kyaaaaaa!"
Hareyama-san's scream echoed inside the dungeon.
Ah, man.
I thought this would happen.