Chapter 151 - Advanced User
I said, pointing at the door at the end of the hallway. It had a plain design, with a plate at eye level that read "Employee Room."
"...We're going in here?"
Ayako-chan tilted her head with a blank expression. Having lived with her split-off other half, I recognized this as her "I don't accept this" face.
"I have business with the cleaner."
"...With the cleaning lady...?"
I nodded quietly.
When demi-humans who've wandered in from another world disguise themselves as Earthlings, the standard pattern is to borrow the form of a resident who was originally there. —In other words, they killed or imprisoned some innocent part-time lady and stole her identity.
Deep in my chest, I felt a simple anger begin to throb.
I'm not particularly strong on justice. But seeing ordinary people become victims, I at least have enough normalcy to feel, "This is wrong."
"...For all we know, the person in there might be a lady around my mother's age. Thinking that, there's something I just can't tolerate."
"...You can't tolerate it if she's around your mother's age...!?"
"Well, of course."
Someone's mother became a victim. That thought is unbearable.
"W-wait, please. Can't you explain the circumstances?"
"There's someone in here, a cleaner, who has a connection to me."
"...An old acquaintance...?"
"Something like that."
It's a troublesome connection from my other world days, after all, those man-eating demi-humans.
"...So, Nakamoto-san, you're going to ignore the seventeen-year-old high school girl who's getting turned on right nearby, and go attack a middle-aged woman you've had a long, depraved relationship with?"
"Stop putting it weirdly. Though you're not entirely wrong."
I punched through the door with my fist, penetrating it with my arm. I unlocked it from the inside and pulled my arm out.
"Sit there and wait for me. Don't worry, it'll be over quick."
"...Well, they do say Nakamoto-san is a quick-draw expert..."
Leaving Ayako-chan, who slumped down powerlessly, I infiltrated the employee room.
Lockers were packed into the narrow space, and a table was placed as if surrounded by them.
In one of the four folding chairs sat a small, middle-aged woman. She was frozen, holding a paper cup, her eyes wide with shock.
Since I currently have Concealment Magic cast on me, her surprise is only natural.
From her perspective, it must have looked like a hole suddenly opened in the door and the lock disengaged on its own.
And from my perspective, it's convenient that a potential demi-human is completely off guard.
"Status Open."
I muttered quietly and immediately appraised the cleaner in front of me.
—The result was a bingo.
Apparently, the one disguised as this lady is a low-level Lizardman.
That said, I felt bad about hitting an opponent who still looked like a human woman, so I used Dispel to undo the transformation. A moment later, I released my own Concealment.
In the small room, a monster from another world and a Hero appeared simultaneously.
"...What?"
The Lizardman, suddenly returned to its original form, stared at its own hands in obvious confusion. Scale-covered fingers, sharp claws.
"You seem pretty flustered. Did those middle-aged woman's fingers really suit you that well? Don't tell me you've got a cross-dressing fetish."
"...!"
The Lizardman finally seemed to notice my presence and raised its head with tremendous speed.
Its vertically elongated pupils glared sharply at me.
"...Hero Keisuke..."
"What, you know me? Who put you up to this?"
The reply was a fire-attribute attack spell. A fireball hit my face directly, and my vision was engulfed in flames. But there was no pain. Magic power of this level can't even scratch my skin.
"Was that supposed to be an attack? It doesn't seem to have burned even a single eyelash."
"...Ah... ah..."
I reached out my arm toward the lizard-man, whose expression was clouded with despair.
What begins now isn't a battle, but a one-sided interrogation.
I'm really glad this guy doesn't look human.
Several tens of minutes later, having finished everything, I left the employee room.
It seems the real cleaner is being kept alive and confined in her own home. I immediately contacted Sugitani-san and arranged for a rescue.
He also spilled a large amount of other useful information, so I disposed of him in as painless a way as possible.
...I won't say this is a merciful way to kill. There's no justice the moment you kill someone; it's dirty work.
But that's fine.
My job is to support society in a way that makes everyone hate and shun me. A Hero, after all, is nothing more than a cleaner who disposes of the trash called monsters.
As I stepped out into the hallway, steeped in an ennui mood, Ayako-chan stood up unsteadily and greeted me.
"...Is it over?"
"Yeah."
"...So, was she a beautiful older lady, that cleaner?"
"No, it was a monster. It was just disguised as a middle-aged woman. Its true form is a pathetic lizard-man."
"...You did it with a reptile-faced old man with a cross-dressing fetish...? Just how advanced are you...?"
It's possible Ayako-chan heard the sounds while I was interrogating the Lizardman. A man's groaning voice, the watery sound of blood splattering. A one-sided slaughter carried out just a few meters away.
She must despise me now, I thought, lowering my eyes.
"...Um... I heard a man's hoarse screams... and squelching, juicy sounds... was that..."
"Yes. Exactly what you're imagining happened in that room."
"...I knew it..."
"I've been doing things like this all along. You could say I'm thoroughly tainted. ...Have you come to hate me?"
"...I don't know... it's just too shocking... I don't even know what to say anymore..."
"I figured."
I raised the corner of my lips and smiled.
There are plenty of women who like strong men, but almost none who like cruel men. I know that well from the treatment I received back in the other world.
"Can I ask one thing?"
"What is it?"
"...Nakamoto-san, are you a catcher, or a pitcher?"
"I have no idea what you mean."
Ayako-chan's cheeks were dyed bright red. Her breathing also seemed rough.
Why is she getting excited at a time like this?
If she actually has a thing for men who lynch monsters, is this girl going to be okay?
"Is this about my combat style? If so, I often start by taking hits without resistance to see what the opponent does, then turn the tables later. Though, that's a method you can only use if you're stupidly tough."
"...You start as a catcher, then switch to offense midway... Please, tell me more."
【Ayako Otsuki's Sexual Arousal has reached 90%】【This is a value at which consensual sexual intercourse is possible. Proceed with execution?】【If executed, there is a certain probability of producing a child】【The born child will inherit the parents' Attribute tendencies and some skills, and will also be able to share equipment and items】【Furthermore, Class transfer to the child will also be possible】
While inwardly retorting, "So why the hell are you super excited!?", I began my questioning.
"More importantly, I want to ask you something. Ayako-chan, did you hear some kind of voice in your head earlier? Like, 'Your level has increased!' or something like that?"
"...Ah, yes. I heard it. I thought it was my imagination, but what is that?"
"If you don't mind, I'd like you to tell me what you heard. That's why I brought you here, after all."
"Um..."
Ayako-chan spoke, her face still red.
"After I heard that my level increased, I heard a voice saying I learned new magic. Things like 'Morale Decay,' 'Rationality Decay,' 'Faith Decay'... What were those?"