Chapter 11
Without wasting a moment, Gojo Satoru and Hato Kazuma took a car overnight to Yamagata Prefecture.
Kazuma Hatori closed the pop-up window and turned his head to look at Satoru Gojo, who was leaning back in his chair.
He rested his elbow on the open car window, naturally adopting a posture of resting his chin on his hand and gazing into the distance.
The custom-made, jet-black eye mask completely concealed those beautiful pale blue eyes, leaving Kazuma Hatake unsure whether the other was daydreaming or sleeping.
After all, the game's time indicated that it was already 4 a.m.
When Gojo Satoru came to Fushiguro Megumi's house to pick him up, it was already late at night—at that time, Fushiguro Megumi had already planned to let him stay overnight.
Having just completed his mission, is Gojo Satoru about to embark on his next one?
We're clearly in the game, right? It's still the New Year holiday, isn't it?
The car drove smoothly, the artificial light shining brightly throughout the night, occasionally slipping in through the window of Gojo Satoru's car, brushing against his skin along with the gentle night breeze, and causing his soft, upturned white hair to sway slightly in the halo of light.
Kazuma Hatori's dark eyes flickered slightly, lingering for a long time in the constantly shifting, interlacing light and shadow.
This game... at times, is far more real than he expected.
"Phew. I told you—"
At that moment, Kazuma Hatori suddenly heard Satoru Gojo exhale, a sigh that sounded somewhat helpless, yet soft and gentle, with a hint of pleasantness—before turning his head to face Kazuma Hatori.
Even if you keep staring at me until dawn, the fatigue you've accumulated won't disappear, will it?
Is this a subtle way of advising him to get some rest?
Kazuma Hatake blinked. "Thanks for your concern, but I'm not sleepy right now."
Gojo Satoru tilted his head at him, "Really—?"
"real."
Kazuma Yutori affirmed, but he couldn't explain to the other person why he wasn't sleepy. After all, it was because the flow of time in reality was different from the flow of time perceived in the game; the real time on his end was still afternoon.
"But what about you? Aren't you going to get some sleep?"
Kazuma Hatori turned around and asked him with concern, "I thought you were already asleep."
"Huh, what time is it?"
Four o'clock.
"so,"
Gojo Satoru looked slightly enlightened, then leaned back in his chair in an even lazier posture and yawned.
"No wonder I felt a little tired, it turns out it was my usual bedtime."
At 1.9 meters tall with long arms and legs, even with a slender build, he's not suited to resting in a car. It looks cramped, and he definitely wouldn't be able to sleep comfortably.
"I'll take a nap first, wake me up when we get there."
But Gojo Satoru didn't complain at all. His drawn-out voice was also a bit lazy, as if he was coaxing Hatori Kazuma to keep watch for him.
"……good."
Kazuma Hatori nodded slowly.
He usually doesn't rest until 4 a.m., and he seems to be used to taking a nap in the car. How can this be considered as having slept?
Based on the information he had just received about the three starter families, since Gojo Satoru is the head of the Gojo family, one of the three starter families, he should have absolute power to act arbitrarily. Why would he make himself so busy in order to complete the mission?
...He probably really needs to learn more about the game's setting and world view.
The following morning, when the car came to a stop at its destination, Gojo Satoru got out of the car with Hato Kazuma, looking very energetic.
But following the directions of the assistant supervisor in charge of driving, Kazuma Hatake found himself back in the sewers, where the familiar stench and sewage attacked him once again.
"…………"
Well, rats from any city love to burrow into sewers.
"Hey Nanami—how was your New Year holiday? Did you enjoy it?"
Gojo Satoru greeted one of the blond youths in a light gray suit, and also introduced him to Hagoromo Kazuma, saying, "This is Nanami Kento, a real adult among adults, super serious!"
"Hello."
Kazuma Hagoromo nodded to him, “I am Ying… the head of the Kamo family.”
That was close; I almost blurted out the nickname I had chosen for myself.
"Hello, I am Qi Haijianren."
Nanami Kento, on the other hand, didn't have any extra reaction. Not only was he not curious about his name, but his response was also unusually calm and decisive, which was the complete opposite of Gojo Satoru.
However, after thinking about it, Kazuma Hatori became certain that he still preferred someone like Satoru Gojo.
After all, Mikoshiba had already teased him about his personality, saying, "You can't tell from that cold exterior that you have such a rich inner world." He couldn't possibly try to win over someone who seemed even more dull, or he would have nothing to talk about.
For example, right now, after Kazuma Hatori and Kento Nanami introduced themselves to each other, nothing more was said.
Gojo Satoru looked the two of them up and down and let out a sigh that was hard to decipher.
That's it?
Even though he clearly found the name of the Kamo family head incredibly interesting, Nanami managed to maintain such a calm expression! Amazing!
"That's all. If this head of the Kamo family is an invited helper, then please focus on the mission."
Nanami Kento pushed his sunglasses, which had no temples and were only held in place by his eye sockets and the bridge of his nose, up a little to make sure they wouldn't slip off easily if a fight broke out.
"Although the report says that a suspected top-tier cursed spirit has been observed here, I have not observed anything particularly unusual so far."
"Oh, that? I just checked with [Six-Eyed]—I checked carefully, there's no such thing."
Gojo Satoru raised his hand. "But there are still some troublesome things, you see that little guy over there?"
Following the direction Gojo Satoru pointed, Hato Kazuma saw a rat that looked completely different from the [Rat Curse Spirit] he had exorcised at Fushiguro Megumi's place.
Not only are they much smaller, but they also look more ordinary and harmless.
【You have found one of the pseudo-Special Grade [Rat Curse Spirits].】
[Enter battle: Yes/No.]
Kazuma Hatake glanced at the pop-up window, then switched to the [Team Up] interface to confirm that he and Satoru Gojo were still in a [Team Up] state.
He's only at level four in both spell power and magic, so his damage against these elite monsters is too low. Even if his health bar appears during the battle, he doesn't know how long he'll need to keep scratching it.
Since there's a beautiful and capable expert in the team, it's natural for him to decide when to start a team fight.
"Shall we fight?" Kazuma Hatori asked Satoru Gojo.
"Hmm? No need, because this rat cursed spirit is just one of the countless rat cursed spirits hiding in this sewer."
Gojo Satoru waved his hand, "Rather than killing one and causing the other rat spirits to be disturbed and scatter, I suggest we find a way to make them merge first, and then exorcise them all at once."
"Ah, if it's okay to just blow up this street, I can start doing it right now!"
The raised palm turned into a pinched [Azure] gesture with two fingers together, and playfully shook it at Kazuma Hatake, like a big cat happily wagging its tail tip.
Kazuma Hatake said "Oh," and "That sounds like a good idea."
Having area-of-effect skills is great; his [Black Flash] is a single-target attack that can only lock onto one target at a time.
Hmm, I wonder if [Crimson Blood Manipulation] has any area-of-effect attacks, otherwise leveling up by grinding monsters would be quite troublesome.
"...Please both of you be serious."
Nanami Kento's expression was calm, but his tone sounded rather speechless—he never expected that this seemingly cold and calm black-haired youth would actually seriously agree with Gojo Satoru's joking.
"It's because Nanami is too serious,"
Gojo Satoru turned around with a smile, "Then bring me a map, I'll draw out the distribution area of these Mr. Mice for you, and Iji Tomo will take care of getting them to merge!"
Kiyotaka Ijichi was the assistant supervisor who drove Gojo Satoru and Hato Kazuma all the way here. Just from his appearance, he exuded the aura of a corporate slave.
"Although it seems like an impossible operation, it's the only thing we can do for now. I'll contact the nearest [window] to come and assist as soon as possible."
Mr. Gojo seemed to be in a good mood last night and today. Just two days ago, when he heard that he had to rush back to the Gojo family home, he used a few insincere interjections to strongly express his dissatisfaction...
Kiyotaka Ichichi silently considered the matter and agreed to the request.
As expected of an elite dungeon, we needed to adopt targeted combat methods first. In the end, it was decided that Kiyotaka Ijichi would be in charge of the paperwork and Kento Nanami would be in charge of the command.
Since observations have confirmed that the individual Rat Cursed Spirits do not possess combat abilities, Gojo Satoru can wait for the [Rat Cursed Spirits] to merge before performing the exorcism, and does not need to remain on-site to oversee the situation.
After listening to the strategy meeting, Kazuma Hatori nodded slightly to them and selected "No" in the pop-up window that kept appearing, asking whether to enter the battle.
"So, before we achieve our goal of combining, I'd like to ask Mr. Gojo and Mr. Kamo to stand by for now."
"good."
Perhaps because of his title, "Head of the Kamo Family," Ijichi Kiyotaka was always quite polite to him.
In other words, the heads of the three great families of the jutsu world must be quite prestigious figures, right? After all, Nanami Kento used the word "invite" to describe him, rather than "dispatch".
Walking along the shopping street of Hachibancho, Kazuma Hatori was quietly pondering, while Satoru Gojo beside him stretched out his hand in a relaxed yawn.
"Oh my, it's been so long since I've had any free time—is this some kind of compensation for the New Year holiday I missed?"
"..." Upon hearing this exclamation, Kazuma Hato quietly spoke up, "And what about last year's New Year's holiday?"
"Hmm? Let me think... It should be missions in Nara and Osaka."
"What about the year before last?"
"In Kyushu... I think? I can't quite remember."
"The year before last..."
"I'm on a business trip, and I forgot the location."
Kazuma Hatake: "…………"
Great, confirmed. Beautiful Dawu's work schedule is even more like that of a corporate slave.
Just as he was pondering whether the so-called jutsu world operating in Japan had any labor laws, Gojo Satoru's attention was drawn to a pastry shop on the street.
"Huh? It's [A Heart-Pounding Dessert Stamp Collecting Event]... The poster looks so amateurish, and the event name is so straightforward."
Kazuma Hatori also stopped and began to carefully examine the poster that Gojo Satoru had rated as utterly terrible.
"It says [Collect stamps at various stores to receive a limited-edition secret dessert]."
For Gojo Satoru, who loves sweets, this reward was sure to win his heart.
"Yes, and the stamp collecting event lasts for eight days, hmm... it's a kind of pastime while on a business trip to a small town, isn't it?"
Gojo Satoru pondered for a moment, rubbing his chin, then readily stepped through the door and went to ask the waiter for some backing paper for stamping.
Kazuma Hatori thought for a moment and decided he wanted a backing paper too.
If he could get two servings of the secret dessert, pretty Daigo would be even happier, right?
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