The three of them stared at me, eyes wide with shock. After a long moment of stunned silence, their expressions shifted into a messy blend of confusion and anxiety. I suppose that was fair—telling them I was planning to buy a training ground, only to reveal I had already picked out a candidate site, was bound to be a jolt.
Besides, no matter how much an explorer might earn, the proposal was coming from a high schooler who wasn't even a legal adult yet.
"Wait, wait, Daiki. Hold on a second. You found a good place, and you’re already trying to buy it?"
"Yeah. Well, it’s more like a lease agreement with a future purchase option."
I added the extra detail about the contract in a calm tone to address my father, who was questioning me with a hint of panic.
However, that wasn’t what he was worried about. He sharpened his voice, trying to correct what he clearly saw as a reckless leap.
"No, that’s not what I mean. We just heard from you for the first time that you have a plan to buy a training ground, right? And yet, you’ve already reached the stage of deciding on a candidate site?"
"Well, yeah. After looking around at various places, we felt like this one met the conditions we were looking for best... or something like that."
"I heard you say you went to tour a property earlier... but I didn't realize things had progressed that far."
"Technically, we’re just at the stage of visiting the site and thinking, 'This is the one.' The specific contract details haven't been put into writing yet, so the real estate agent is in the middle of drafting a template for us. We haven't even finalized the rent or the official purchase price; we’ve only heard the rough figures."
I had received a general-purpose contract to use as a reference, so I needed to read through it carefully later. Most of it was likely standard legalese, but if it contained specialized terminology, I might not be able to decipher it immediately. If we just skimmed it, we’d be the ones to suffer the consequences when it mattered most.
Hearing my explanation, my father let out a small sigh and offered a grumble that sounded like a mild reprimand.
"Sigh... I suppose if it’s necessary for your activities as explorers, then it’s necessary. But I wish you would have consulted us at least once before things got this far."
"Ah, sorry. I wanted to wait until the plan had some actual shape to it. See, even though we're earning money as explorers, we're still high schoolers. I figured if I brought up a plan without a solid outlook, you’d just be against it."
"Well, true. If the plan had been vague, your mother and I probably would have opposed the idea of buying land."
My father and mother seemed reluctantly convinced by my excuse. Since we were earning as explorers, they apparently didn't intend to forbid us from spending the money, provided it wasn't a total waste.
If I had tried to move the plan forward without solid financial backing, they definitely would have opposed it entirely.
"So, what kind of property did they show you? You aren't being swindled by some shady real estate agent, are you?"
"That’s fine. The agent helping us was introduced to us by Yuji’s Old Man. They’ve known each other for a long time, and he said they’re a real estate agent used to handling these kinds of unique properties."
"I see. If they were a referral from him, they probably wouldn't recommend anything too suspicious..."
"Yeah. But since we gave them a lot of outrageous conditions, it might not look like a good property to a normal person."
Thinking back on it, even though we were the ones who set the conditions, all the properties we toured would probably look like scams to anyone else. From the perspective of ordinary people like my parents, the agent would undoubtedly look like a fraud.
For the sake of Kiritani Real Estate's reputation, I needed to make sure we bridged that gap in perception.
"Properties that aren't 'normal'?"
"Yeah. But before I go into detail... Mika, can I ask you a few questions?"
"What is it, Onii-chan? Questions?"
"Just answer from an explorer's perspective, not a general one."
My father and mother tilted their heads, not understanding the point of my questions, while Mika caught on and gave an understanding nod.
"First question. If you ran a 100m race, how many seconds would it take you? That's roughly the distance of two or three widely spaced telephone poles."
"Let's see... if I ran full tilt, maybe seven or eight seconds? I've never actually timed it, though."
"Yeah, that sounds about right. Next, what about a vertical jump? A vending machine in town is about two meters tall. Could you clear it?"
"I could jump over a vending machine easily. But a traffic light for cars might be difficult."
"I see. Next question: if you ran from the house to the station at a sprinting pace, would you be out of breath?"
"To the station... I probably wouldn't be out of breath. Even if I did get winded, I think my breathing would return to normal within ten seconds of stopping."
Listening to the detached Q&A between Mika and me, my father and mother stood there with their mouths agape. Even if they knew from TV and newspapers that explorers possessed power far beyond ordinary people, it was quite a shock to hear their own children casually discussing abilities that easily surpassed world records from the pre-dungeon era.
Furthermore, this was Mika, who had only been an explorer for about half a year, even if she had been leveling up efficiently. If I talked about my actual abilities here, my father and mother might actually faint.
"So, Dad, Mom. Please think of this as the standard for an explorer who has leveled up a fair amount. If you listen to my explanation with that standard in mind, properties that seem like they have terrible conditions will start to sound like good ones."
"...I see. Even though I knew about it from the news, hearing you two list off what you can do like it's nothing is a massive shock."
"It really is. I've heard the stories, but since I don't see anyone around here actually doing those things, it never felt real..."
"That’s how it is, Mom. Even if we can do it, if we acted like that in our daily lives, we'd be constantly terrified of accidental collisions. If an explorer was running down the street with bread in their mouth like in some old manga and ran into someone... if that person was an ordinary person, it would be exactly like a car crash. At best, they'd have bruises and scrapes; at worst, it would be... well, fatal."
"Yeah, I agree. I'd hate to live every day right next to that kind of danger."
A city where explorers ran around with their enhanced physical abilities... No, that would be far too dangerous. If such a city were ever built, every resident would have to be an explorer of a certain level, and ordinary people would have to be barred from entry. Building a place like that was functionally impossible.
I shook my head slightly to brush off the silly delusion and turned back to my father and mother.
"Anyway, please keep in mind that even if a property seems 'difficult' to most people, it's not a problem for an explorer."
My father and mother nodded lightly, mentally preparing themselves to listen.
I proceeded to explain the properties we had toured through Kiritani Real Estate, starting with the initial conditions we had requested. At first, they looked a bit exasperated by our demands, but after I explained why we needed those criteria, they seemed to understand.
However, as I described the state of each property we visited, their faces gradually began to twitch.
"Whoa, hold on, Daiki. You should definitely pass on a property like that. Even if wild animals aren't a threat to you, a place where wild boar and bears appear is just too dangerous, right? Besides, I've heard that when people develop those kinds of remote areas, the displaced wildlife moves to nearby farmland and causes damage in search of new territory. If someone claims your training ground was the cause, a lawsuit for damages would be a nightmare."
"That’s right. And in a place deep in the mountains like that, if something were to happen, it would be terrible. Even if you called for help, no one would be able to reach you quickly..."
"No, I mean, you feel that way because these were the properties we looked at in the early stages when our conditions were still vague... but even these aren't really a problem for explorers, you know? Though, the issue with the shifting territories of wild animals might indeed lead to trouble. Especially in deep mountain land where people don't usually go, it’s almost entirely the animals' territory."
My father's point was something we had been concerned about as well. While the threat the animals posed to us was negligible, the impact of them changing their territories was not to be taken lightly. From a wild animal's perspective, an explorer was a predator they would surrender to immediately. If such a threat 'immigrated' into their territory, it was only natural they would abandon it and flee.
The explanation of the toured properties continued, moving on to the ones from when our conditions had become more refined.
"The properties with these conditions look much better than the first ones. However, stay away from this cedar mountain. Even if it's fine now, you'll definitely develop hay fever in the future—and a severe case at that."
"Exactly. A property within cycling distance for you two is good, but a cedar mountain with massive amounts of pollen... and the surrounding mountains are all the same, right?"
"I think you should pass on this one, too. Even if you cut down all the cedar trees for health reasons, you'd be liable for management responsibility if a landslide happened during heavy rain."
"Yeah. That’s why we all agreed to pass on the cedar mountain."
The whole family made a face, reaching a consensus that the cedar mountain with its pollen issues was out of the question. I suppose that was only natural.
The property descriptions continued until we finally reached the main contender: the property at the Cape with the underground caves.
"Next is the main one—our most likely candidate. When we saw this property, we all asked, 'Why don't we just decide on this one?' Well, the contract details aren't set yet, so it’s not an absolute certainty."
"If you all liked it so much after seeing so many properties, I'll look forward to hearing about it."
"Since you’re setting the conditions by explorer standards, I'm sure it’s another unusual property..."
"I wonder what kind of oddity it is if you guys liked it?" Mika chimed in.
Calling it an 'oddity' was a bit harsh. Given we were being offered large properties at low prices, it was only natural they had some kind of drawback. However, when measured against the leveled-up physical abilities of explorers, most of what people considered 'flaws' ceased to be an issue. Well, that only applied to locational problems; environmental problems were another story.
I began my introduction of the property at the Cape with the underground caves.
"A massive property at the Cape that was part of a failed resort development during the bubble era. On top of that, while the size and scenery are outstanding, there are caves scattered underground."
"It was land intended for resort development, but the project was canceled when the bubble burst, and the development company went bankrupt, leaving a troubled history behind?"
"There are underground caves... is the inside like a dungeon?" Mika asked, her eyes sparkling.
My father and mother seemed to find the property's history off-putting, their expressions turning sour and uncertain. Conversely, Mika looked intensely interested the moment she heard there were underground caves.
"Well, I'm sure the failed resort thing is a bit concerning, but it’s not like we’re going to run a business there, so we don't need to worry about attracting customers. As for the underground caves, there are caves that act as tunnels running all through the property, with larger ones scattered about. The one we saw during the tour was the biggest cave on the property. The ceiling was quite high and the space was vast; it felt like a small sports hall."
"Wait, the cave is that big?! I want to see it too..."
"Wait a second, Daiki. If there are holes that big under the ground, you never know when they might collapse or the ground might cave in. You wouldn't even be able to build a house on top of that."
"He's right, Daiki. You should stay away from a place where you don't know when the ground might give way."
For land with giant holes beneath it, my parents' concerns were perfectly natural.
But well, there was a trick for everything.
"That’s certainly a concern. But we have a solution unique to explorers: Earth Magic. It'll take some time, but we can solve that problem for dirt cheap, so don't worry."
With a confident smile, I declared that the sinkhole issue was not a problem.
If I acted unsure while saying I had a solution, it was obvious they would feel anxious and oppose it. A little bluffing was necessary.