The morning after I revealed the training ground project to my family, an unsettled atmosphere hung over the breakfast table. Dad and Mom, who had been left staring blankly from total mental overload the night before, seemed to have regained their composure after a night’s sleep—yet they clearly didn't know what to say. I suppose you could say they’d been swept up in the moment or caught off guard, and since they’d already given their approval once, they were stuck in a dilemma. They had plenty they wanted to say, but they felt it was too late now to start a stern interrogation.
Once breakfast was finished, Dad spoke up with a look of firm determination.
“Listen, Daiki. About yesterday...”
“About yesterday? You mean the training ground?”
“Yeah, that. We gave our approval yesterday, but I’m still a bit worried about you kids buying land.”
“Yeah, I understand. We’re the ones proposing the purchase, but we have our own concerns too. It’s not just the amount of money involved; we worry about whether we can really make use of the place once we own it, or if we can properly dispose of it if we don't need it anymore. There are plenty of risks. But this is a plan we all decided on after discussing all those factors.”
Since I felt a bit guilty for essentially forcing their approval while they were still dazed, I validated Dad’s anxieties even as I made it clear that the training ground project was moving forward.
Even though it had been something of a surprise attack, I had managed to get my parents' consent when I’d expected it to be nearly impossible. I wasn't about to let that progress slip away if I wanted to keep things peaceful.
“I see... In that case, please keep us updated on the progress as much as possible. Neither your mother nor I have any experience with land transactions, but I’ve looked over my fair share of contracts at work. If there’s something blatantly wrong with a document, I should be able to spot it. I’d like to be of some help.”
“Thanks, Dad. None of us have experience with contracts either, so we were actually saying we should consult someone who knows their stuff once we get the documents from the real estate agent.”
“Is that so? I’m not sure how much I can do at this stage, but I’d be happy if you could rely on us for advice.”
“Yeah, I’ll count on you then.”
When I gave a slight bow and asked for his help, Dad and Mom exhaled softly and relaxed their shoulders, dispelling the heavy atmosphere that had been lingering in the living room.
Mika didn’t seem particularly concerned about the details of the plan itself, but she looked relieved to see the oppressive mood finally lift.
“Right. Well, we’d better leave soon or we’ll be late.”
“““Ah!”””
Thanks to the unexpected morning family meeting, the clock was showing a rather precarious time. The discussion had dragged on because of the heavy mood, and it had taken a while to even get started. Since Dad was already prepared for work, he stood up slowly, while Mika and I rushed out of the living room to our rooms to change into our uniforms. Even though we still had a small buffer before our scheduled departure, we didn't have a second to waste.
About fifteen minutes later, we were ready and at the door. Despite our best efforts to hurry, Dad had already left for work, and we were cutting it extremely close—or rather, we were already behind.
“Well, Mom, we’re heading out.”
“I’m going now!”
“Be careful, you two.”
Seen off by Mom, Mika and I left the house.
Because we were behind schedule, we headed down the school route at a brisk pace. If it came down to it, our explorer specs would let us reach school in time if we sprinted down the road, but that risked a summons to the student guidance office. There was a period when that sort of behavior had become a serious problem.
In one instance, a student explorer who was about to be late ran at full power to get to school and caused quite a scene. While they didn't run any red lights at major intersections, they supposedly wove through the road and sidewalk at speeds approaching a moped during the morning commute. No accidents occurred, luckily, but the school was flooded with complaints from local residents about the dangerous behavior. When several such incidents happened nationwide... well, naturally, schools designated it a prohibited act under threat of strict disciplinary action. It was, of course, forbidden at our school too, along with a warning to leave early enough that we wouldn't have to run.
“We’re later than I thought... Will we make it?”
“We still have time, so if we keep up this pace, we should be fine. That said, we can’t exactly run.”
With that in mind, Mika and I proceeded along the school route at a pace roughly equivalent to a jog while chatting. At this speed, no one would complain. Even a non-explorer might run on the sidewalk at this pace, after all. Though, given the clear difference in stamina, we were essentially like marathon runners out for a casual sprint.
“As expected, the number of people on the school route starts to thin out around this time.”
“That’s true. It would suck to avoid being late only to get sent to the student guidance office.”
“True enough.”
Mika and I continued at the same pace without even getting winded.
Once the silhouette of the school began to appear in the distance, we slowed down as a large number of students came into view on the path.
“Looks like we’ll avoid being late.”
“Yeah. Is that... the tail end of the morning rush?”
Mika and I breathed a sigh of relief as we passed through the school gates, blending into the crowd.
After walking for a bit, the crowded entrance came into view. With a slightly weary expression, I quickly changed my shoes and stepped into the school building.
“Alright, Mika. See you in the clubroom after school.”
“Yeah, good luck, Onii-chan.”
Mika and I parted ways at the entrance and headed to our respective classrooms.
Being the start of the week, I could hear cheerful voices from the hallways and classrooms discussing their weekends—trips, shopping, or dungeon crawls.
“Hmm, our way of spending the weekend is definitely pretty unique...”
While I often heard talk about going to dungeons, I certainly didn't hear anyone talking about going to a real estate viewing. Then again, normal high schoolers wouldn't think about buying land just because they’d made some money.
Dejected by the realization of our own eccentricity, I headed toward the classroom.
“Good morning.”
I gave a light greeting as I entered, finding that about eighty percent of the seats were already filled. Even for the remaining empty seats, the owners were just standing nearby to chat, so nearly everyone was accounted for.
In other words, I was one of the last people to arrive.
“Morning, Kokonoe.”
“Good morning, Daiki. You’re late today. Did something happen?”
Yuji and Shigemori noticed me and returned the greeting, so I raised a hand in response as I set my bag on my desk.
“We just had a bit of a family meeting this morning. It took longer than I expected, so I was late leaving the house.”
“A family meeting? Sounds pretty ominous for first thing in the morning. Did something happen?”
“No, it wasn't anything serious. We were just discussing a purchase I’m planning, and the conversation ended up stretching out unexpectedly.”
“A purchase?”
Yuji caught on to what we had been talking about and wore an understanding expression, while Shigemori looked curious and pressed for more details. I doubt Shigemori would ever imagine we were talking about buying land.
“The price of the thing I want is a bit high, you see. My parents were worried about it, or rather, I had to persuade them...”
“Ah, I see. Yeah, if you’re buying something that expensive, I guess it would turn into a family meeting... So, what were you fighting over buying?”
“We weren’t fighting. I managed to convince them—well, I got their approval, more or less.”
“Oh. So, what are you buying? Come on, don't keep me in suspense!”
Yuji’s eyes widened slightly in surprise at the news that I’d gotten my parents’ approval, while Shigemori leaned over my desk, practically interrogating me as he tried to pry the details out of me.
I shot a quick glance at Yuji before answering Shigemori.
“I can't really say exactly what it is... But I’m planning on buying something big, so it wasn't something I could hide from my parents. That's why we had the family meeting.”
“Something big enough that you couldn't hide it... Are you buying a huge TV for your room or something?”
“Haha, the TV in the living room is plenty. If I want to watch a drama or a movie, I can just use a streaming site. A smartphone or tablet is a perfectly good substitute for that.”
“I guess you’re right. Then... is it an instrument? Like, are you going to start playing the guitar?”
An instrument... It’s true that while prices vary wildly, even entry-level ones for beginners can be quite expensive. For a student, buying one would usually involve consulting parents first. Plus, they’re fairly large and the sound carries, so it would be hard to keep it a secret.
“Haha, who knows? Well, I’ll leave what I’m buying to your imagination.”
“Oh, that reaction... did I hit it? Come on, tell me! What kind of guitar are you buying?”
“Now, I wonder what I’m buying...”
Since I couldn't honestly say I was buying land, it seemed better to let him stay mistaken for now. It might be a problem later if he keeps badgering me to let him hear it, but since I never explicitly said I was buying an instrument, it shouldn't be hard to dodge the subject.
While parrying Shigemori’s pursuit, I sat down and spoke to Yuji.
“By the way, Yuji, I’ll give you the report on that matter in the clubroom after school. Things went more smoothly than expected.”
“Hm? Ah, okay. I thought it would take a lot longer, but it sounds like things went surprisingly well.”
“Yeah. When I actually tried it, it worked out better than I thought. Sorry for asking you to help out with that. I’ll make sure to let Hiiragi-san know too.”
“It wasn't that much trouble, so don't worry about it. Just make sure to say something to Hiiragi-san before this afternoon, okay? She’s probably concerned about it.”
“Yeah, got it.”
As I finished my brief report to Yuji regarding the training ground project, Shigemori, who felt left out of the loop, spoke up with a bit of a huff.
“Hey, hey, you two. What are you talking about without me?”
“Hm? Just some explorer-related stuff. And Shigemori, no matter how much you press me, I’m not telling you what I’m buying, okay?”
“Stingy. You could at least tell me what it is... I won't even ask how much it cost.”
“No can do.”
As the three of us went back and forth like that, time passed quickly, and before we knew it, the teacher entered the classroom.
“Everyone, get to your seats. We’re starting morning homeroom.”
At the teacher’s command, everyone sat down, and the school day began.
The day’s lessons ended without incident, and after-school hours arrived. Shigemori had pestered me several more times about what I was buying, and although I was tired of dodging him, I managed to get through it.
Then, the three of us—Yuji, Hiiragi-san, and I—moved to the clubroom together after homeroom.
“Seriously, Daiki, Shigemori was being persistent.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. Honestly, why does he care so much...?”
“Now that you mention it, Shigemori-kun was pestering Kokonoe-kun quite relentlessly. People were starting to gossip a bit about what was going on,” Hiiragi-san noted.
“All I did was mention this morning that I was making a big purchase...”
I didn't know which part had piqued his interest so much, but Shigemori had been on my case all day. He probably has a rough idea of the average income for explorers, so the fact that I, who seems to be earning a decent amount, mentioned a big purchase might have caught his attention. For a high schooler who isn't an explorer, the amount of disposable income wouldn't be that large, so I suppose it's only natural to be curious about what someone would buy.
“That must have been rough... But man, I’m surprised you got approval so easily. I thought it would be a difficult persuasion job, so I feel a bit deflated,” Yuji said.
“I agree,” Hiiragi-san added. “My family eventually gave their approval, but it turned into a bit of a fight... I’m surprised your family, Kokonoe-kun, being a typical household without a business background, gave their approval so smoothly. I’d even prepared supporting materials to help you convince them... but I guess they weren't needed.”
“It was only because I dumped a ton of information I’d been holding back all at once and moved while my parents were confused and their cognitive abilities were lowered. I feel a little bad about it, but thanks to that, I successfully snatched their approval.”
““...Don't be so reckless.””
Yuji and Hiiragi-san looked at me with somewhat exasperated eyes at the methods I’d used, but I decided to take it as a look of praise and remained silent.
There didn't seem to be anything good to gain from digging into the meaning behind those stares. If a difficult case goes smoothly, everyone is bound to be surprised, right?