Rice!
Overwhelming, magnificent rice!
The Captain had brought me to a sushi bar. The General... some shady-looking old guy was behind the counter, pressing the sushi.
"One seafood norimaki, coming up!"
It was a seafood roll.
"One roast beef norimaki, coming up!"
A roast beef roll.
"One norimaki, coming up!"
This one was like a California roll, filled with some kind of deep-fried stuff. It wasn't good, but it wasn't bad, either.
Wait a minute—this was Magellan Rice from the Kamishiro Group!
Hey, now! You’ve got a lot of nerve picking a fight with the Galactic Empire!
"Step aside."
I took over the counter. I made sure to disinfect my hands and snap on some gloves.
"This is how sushi is done!"
I was glad Old Man Ohno, a fisherman himself, had taught me everything from how to clean fish to the proper technique. I wasn't a pro, so it was only about the quality of the pre-packaged sushi you'd find at a Tourism Market, but still!
I prepared the vinegared rice and started cleaning the fish. The maintenance on these knives was atrocious! No wonder it tasted so mediocre!
"ONE ORDER OF NIGIRI!"
Tuna-like fish, squid, scallops... I churned out nigiri after nigiri. I wanted to eat some gizzard shad, but there wasn't enough time for the prep work. Actually, this place didn't even have gizzard shad!
"GUNKAN!"
For some reason, they had plenty of crab salad ready to go. Hold on, this was just Imitation Crab Meat from the Kamishiro Group!
"CALIFORNIA ROLL!"
I made one just to be petty. As for the avocado... was this a similar nut from Lepsitol? I’d have to have the Kamishiro Group start carrying these soon.
Oh, look at that—they even had something like a finger lime. Alright, I’d use that as a substitute for ponzu and serve it with some shellfish.
"...Kawagon, who exactly are you?" the Captain interjected.
"A Kawagon potato farmer."
"Like hell you are! Why are you so good at making sushi?!"
"Because ninja."
I gave him a thumbs-up and a grin. In reality, it was because a fisherman had taught me.
"Seriously... what a shady guy. Hey, General! One order of tacos!"
I wondered which of us was the shadier one. Honestly.
For some reason, I ended up working my heart out at that sushi bar until closing time. The owner asked, "Want a job here?" but I politely declined. Also, I firmly believe that serving tacos, okonomiyaki, and yakisoba at a sushi bar should be a penalty.
I returned to my apartment. It was a property owned by a Local Collaborator. I was on the seventh floor of a seven-story building. Too much space makes me anxious, so I had a standard room for a single occupant.
Lepsitol rooms were basically Japanese-style. A hanging scroll that read 'Number One Under Heaven in Martial Prowess' and a mirror rice cake were on display. Why did everything feel like such a knock-off?
I took a shower, laid out my futon, and went to bed. The pillow was stuffed with buckwheat husks.
...Maybe I’ll make soba noodles next time.
As soon as I turned off the lights and closed my eyes, I heard sounds. It wasn't frogs, or scavenger insects, or the sound of a train. It was the footsteps of a group radiating murderous intent.
Man, what total amateurs.
"Vengeance for the Branch Manager!"
The door was kicked open, so I tossed a flash grenade toward it. Were these guys ninjas? Either way, they were rank amateurs.
"Guaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Without skipping a beat, I vaulted out the window.
Clang!
"He's escaping!"
I fled via the balcony. I leaped to the adjacent room, scrambled onto the roof of the apartment building, and let the parkour begin!
"Hyah-hooooy!"
Suddenly, a small transport aircraft descended toward me.
"Send his head to the Pirate Guild!"
If they actually did that, I’m pretty sure it would trigger a Great War that would turn Chronos and the Galactic Empire into absolute enemies. I made another leap.
"G-Grrk, he's too fast! Fine... fire the missiles! Kill him along with the rest of the residents!"
Ah, I really hate that. There is nothing I loathe more than depressing plot developments you can't laugh at.
I climbed the tallest tower in the area.
"Hyah-hooooy!"
I leaped from the top and landed directly onto the transport aircraft.
"Ninja Art: Flying Squirrel!"
"Like hell it is! You're just a guy falling!"
"Shut up!"
I beat the ninjas who emerged into a pulp. I grabbed them by their collars and delivered plain old haymakers. I confiscated their ninja swords and pulse rifles before shoving them off onto the roof of a nearby building. They’d probably end up with broken bones, at the very least.
I have no intention of showing mercy to idiots who try to involve innocent civilians. I pried the hatch open with a ninja sword and forced my way inside.
"Whoa! He’s inside!"
"Con-nichiwa! I Kawagon!"
In the cramped quarters, I went for a full-contact brawl. A delightful fight where we traded blows.
Fuhahahahaha!
Fuhahahahaha!
It was so tight in here that I couldn't dodge, but I didn't care. If I got hit once, I’d hit back ten times as hard. Come at me, you morons!
I beat all ten or so men inside to a pulp. When I wiped my nose, I saw I was bleeding. Well, I guess that’s fair. Nothing was broken. I pressed a sword I’d picked up against the throat of the ninja in the pilot’s seat.
"Muuuuuu! My death poem..."
"Shut it. You have a Mikoshi Trading Co. base, don't you? Take me there. I’m going to raid it."
"I refu—gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
I was annoyed, so I chucked him out. I made sure he landed on a nearby building.
"Fairy-san! I’ve had it! Order a battleship!"
"W-What’s wrong, Leo-kun?! Uwaaaaah, you’re being reckless again!"
The Fairy was shocked. Since I hadn't brought my terminal, she hadn't been able to monitor me 24/7.
"They were planning a terrorist attack on civilians. I’m raiding the Mikoshi Trading Co. Headquarters right now!"
I met up with the Chronos Personal Guard Knight Order using the transport. They were taken aback to see me with a bloody nose, but they completely froze when they saw the smile on my face.
"He-llo, everyone. I’m going to physically eliminate Mikoshi Trading Co. now. Let’s break their spirits so thoroughly that they never dare defy us again!"
"H-Haaah... um... Your Majesty?"
"Kawagon."
"Pardon?"
"I am the Pirate Guild Great Leader, Space Kaiju Kawagon de gowasu."
"Ah, yes."
After that, I guided them to the Pirate Guild hideout. I seized a battleship.
"What’s yours is mine, and what’s mine belongs to the Potato-san."
"That makes no sense!"
"Just go!"
They had a humanoid fighter from Latarnia. It was a Latarnia military standard machine, but it had been painted in the typical, gaudy colors of the Pirate Guild. Pure gold.
And so, I would soon bring about the disaster that came to be known as the Mikoshi Trading Co. Destruction Incident. If you ask me, it’s their fault for making me angry.
The Pirate Guild ship raided the neighboring planet where the Mikoshi Trading Co. Headquarters was located.
"It’s the air defense system!" one of my Personal Guard Knights shouted.
I don’t care!
"Attack with everything we’ve got!"
We overwhelmed the air defense system with sheer willpower. And as we hit the atmosphere, I deployed in the humanoid fighter! This was the signature surprise tactic of the Galactic Empire Space Marines!
The air defense system opened fire, but I blocked the shots with my shield.
Fuhahahaha!
Fuhahahahaaa!
This was the strategy Old Man Piggett had drilled into my soul!
"Armed Yakuza machines from Mikoshi Trading Co. are approaching!"
Machines painted with tattoo-like patterns—very typical of the Yakuza—appeared before us.
"Guhahahahaaa!"
I picked them off with surgical precision. The Yakuza machines were reduced to scrap metal one after another.
"H-He’s a monster..."
"W-We've angered the one person we should have never crossed..."
Where is the New Chairman of Mikoshi?!