Shopping (Weapons)

"I'm really sorry about yesterday, boss. I'll take this chance to apologize

once more."

"I already said I've accepted your apology though. Or rather, you really

have to start thinking about the consequences before doing stuff,

okay?"

"Ahaha… I've gotten that from Whee a lot since we were just kids."

Tina smiled wryly and scratched the back of her head. It looks like she

calls her little sis with the pet name Whee. Whisker refers to Tina as

'big sis', so she probably doesn't have a pet name for Tina. Calling her

'Tee' does seem a bit weird because it rhymes with tea.

"Even though it hasn't been decided if you guys will be coming aboard

our ship, I think you really need to work on fixing that reckless attitude

of yours. If even your sister is having problems with it, then you really

should work on it."

"I do understand that boss. Really."

"At least learn from this experience, okay. Sheesh."

From the looks of it, anything I say will just be a waste of effort. I kinda

understand how hard Whisker has it now.

"Please do not worry, Master. I will immediately report to Space Dwerg

if she ever does anything that inconveniences you. And so, you better

shape up. If not, you'll get disciplined again."

"Uu… I'll be careful from now on."

It looks like Tina had a pretty intense first impression of May, so she

acted a bit uncomfortable around her. Well, it's true that the scariest,

when angered among all of us, was May, so It's not like I don't get where

she's coming from. In the first place, May will only truly get angry when

it has something to do with my wellbeing.

Since I haven't acknowledged Tina and Whisker as part of the crew yet,

it's understandable that she's stricter around them compared to how

she treats us. Mimi and Elma are my lovers, so she does give them a

considerable amount of respect.

"U-Uhm… Oh yeah! You wanted to buy some weapons for power armor,

right boss?"

"You sound desperate to change the subject, lady… But, yeah, that's

right. My splitter laser gun gut cut in half on my last job after all. I want

to buy a new one, and maybe look for some other nice weapons."

"It got cut in half? Just what did you get yourself into for that to happen,

boss…?'

"I can't give the exact details, but let's just say we got caught up in a

conflict between nobles. So my laser gun became an unfortunate

casualty."

"Oh, then I better not ask. Yeah. That would be better. But you did well

to survive getting caught up in that, boss."

"Well, I guess."

"Okay then. Anyway, I know a good place that specializes in selling good

quality laser weapons, so let's visit there first."

When she heard it had something to do with nobles, Tina promptly

backed down. She then continued leading the way for us as she walked

through avenues with uniformly low ceilings. May and I diligently

followed after her.

"By the way, how long have you been in the mercenary business, boss?"

"Hm? Oh… Uh, I've been doing this for a while now, I guess."

If we count the time when I first came into this dimension until now, it's

been barely half a year. I've spent quite a number of days just cruising

around in the galaxy after all.

"A while huh. But your pretty impressive boss. You're already Goldranked. How much have you been making?"

"I'd say about 100,000 Enels on good days."

"Eh? You're joking, right? 100,000 is a bit too much, boss. C'mon."

Tina laughed as if to say 'nice joke' as she elbowed my waist.

"No, I'm serious. If not, then I wouldn't have been able to fork out 20

million Enels just like that you know. We did a number of big jobs like

assaulting pirate bases, participating in territorial conflicts, and the

like."

The 100k per day is a result of tirelessly hunting down pirates almost

every day after all.

"Seriously?"

Tina glanced upward with shining eyes.

"Seriously."

I nodded to confirm, and Tina proceeded to take my hand and place it

on her meager chest. Man. It wasn't soft at all. Guess this is what you

call a washboard huh?

"Hey boss, why don't you marry me? I'll throw Whee in as a bonus too."

"Marriage huh… Well, if I ever decide to get married one of these days,

Mimi, Elma, and May are my priorities."

"Kuh, so I'm fourth in the running huh…"

"What the heck are you saying? If, and I say if, I do marry you sisters, I'll

prioritize your little sister more."

"Why!? This Tina-chan is super cute, right!? Or rather, we're twins, so

Whisker and I look pretty much alike!"

"Since you look alike, I'll base it on personality."

"Gaaah!" Tina groaned as I pushed her forehead away. I then picked my

ear with my left hand without a care. Maybe I'll get May to clean my

ears later. Her ear cleaning skills have transcended the realm of just

being good and sublimated into something almost divine.

"Kuh… Oh well. I'll teach boss all about this Tina-chan's super cuteness

no matter what. Just you wait."

"You know, making it painfully obvious that you're only interested in me

because of my money is already making your prospects bleak."

"What the heck are you saying, boss? Being able to make money shows

just how dependable a man is. It's just natural for women to get

attracted to dependable men you know. Though one can also fall in love

even without money involved, it's better to have that covered."

"That's quite a practical view of love."

"Well yeah. People can't live on beautiful dreams alone y'know. If you

don't have a stable income, you won't be able to continue living well."

"I see."

I ended up thinking back to the feeling of Tina's washboard chest. I

guess Tina's had it hard as well. Maybe she sensed what I was thinking

about. Tina looked up at me with a peeved expression.

"It's not like that, okay. I'm still in the middle of my growth period."

"Growth period huh…"

I gazed at the dwarven women walking around the streets. Fumu, they

certainly come in all sorts of sizes… But growth period huh…

"You sure you're still in your growth period when you're already

twenty-seven?"

"Boss, you idiot!"

My behind ended up getting slapped by an incensed Tina. Her hands

are small, but they sure pack a punch… Ouch.

"This is the place, boss."

"Hmm."

The shop Tina led us to was a weapon store with laser weapons as their

main merchandise. It also has a pretty diverse assortment of other

weapon types as well. There were a lot of customers who looked like

mercenaries coming and going.

"It's more packed than I expected."

"This shop has a nice selection after all. You can also get order-made

weapons here too. Most of the mercenaries who come here would be

staying at the colony for an extended period of time, so they take the

opportunity to get order-made weapons here."

"Order-made weapons huh… Fumu."

So, a weapon that's made just for me huh? It's quite an exciting

prospect. We have some budget left over because of May, so I'd like to

get one too if possible.

"Okay then, let's go in."

"Yeah. It's been a good while since I last came here too."

Tina led the way and entered the shop first. Her way of speaking really

sounds like Kansai-ben to me. Is she really speaking in a particular alien

dialect so it's being translated to me as Kansai-ben? But this can be

considered one of her unique traits too, I guess.

"Hmm, mmhm, mmm."

The shop interior was quite spacious. The shopfront was pretty large as

well, but it looks like half the store is dedicated to the workshop for

making made-to-order weapons.

"C'mon boss. Are you an owl or something?"

Tina got a good laugh while looking at my actions. Even if you say that

this kind of place just tickles the male heart y'know. The sight of all

kinds of laser guns, laser rifles, and all sorts of other cool-looking

weapons is quite exciting, even though these are ultimately tools made

for the purpose of killing.

"Let's check out the splitter laser guns first. Maybe we can even get the

sliced up one fixed."

"Master, if it's alright, may I also shop around for a weapon?"

"Oh, that's right. We'll need to look for a weapon for you as well, huh.

Sure. If you spot something you like, then go ahead."

"Thank you very much, Master."

May made a little bow. Increasing May's combat abilities will also lead

to an increase in our safety after all. That's more than welcome, so she

should just buy whatever she fancies.

"How about me, boss?"

"You've got no use for weapons, right? Rather, even if you do, I don't

remember ever saying I'll buy one for you too."

"Stingy. Can't you treat me just a bit?"

"I'll buy you lunch then. I don't mind if we eat somewhere expensive, so

go ahead and show us somewhere good."

"Great! Leave it to me, boss!"

Her mood brightened up instantly. She's really gung-ho about money

and benefits huh. Well, it's fine, I guess. I'll just treat it as her guide fee

or something. Come to think of it, Elma and Mimi rarely ask me for

something on their own accord. So being proactively asked for a treat

like this is kind of a refreshing experience.

May? Instead of pleading, it's more like she's asking for something

absolutely necessary whenever she asks me to buy something for her.

They are usually expensive, but it's not like she's buying them just to

satisfy her hobbies. So it's more close to demanding for something

instead of begging. But it's a bit different from that too.

"Let's buy some grenades while we're here as well. Well, we don't

usually use them so they aren't much of a priority."

"You're right. It's not a grenade, but can we buy this, Master?"

She showed me something made of some sort of metal alloy… What the

heck is it anyway? Throwing knife? But it's quite a bit thicker and

tougher-looking than your usual throwing knife. It's also way too thick

to be classified as a throwing needle. A full-metal dart?

"It's a dart made of special alloy. The metal used to make it is also

employed in producing power armors."

"Can you really use this thing?"

"Yes. With my specs, I can easily pierce power armor with it, and it's

perfect as a hidden weapon."

She then showed me something resembling a holster for storing the

metal dart. I see. So it's a hidden weapon huh. It looks quite heavy

though… But I guess with May's specs, carrying it on her person will

just be a piece of cake.

"Is an analog weapon like this really fine?"

"Yes. It's analog, but that just means it's very reliable."

"Hm. I guess. It won't suddenly break down on you, that's for sure."

It doesn't just apply to laser weapons, but ballistic weapons as well, but

there's always a chance of them breaking down from impacts and the

like because they possess some delicate components. Compared to that,

metal darts like this may not be all that mainstream, but they won't

easily bend or break and would deal considerable damage when

thrown with proper force. In that sense, it's true that analog weapons

are more reliable.

"Okay then. Let's buy it. How about you buy a new alloy baton as well?

I'm sure you'll be able to make use of it effectively in close quarters

combat with your abilities, May."

"Yes, thank you very much. I'll help myself then, Master."

She bowed slightly to me once more. When she looked up, I noticed that

May was acting quite happy. She still had her blank expression on, but

her aura just gives that kind of impression. Geez. She's mostly

expressionless, but this maidroid sure knows how to appeal to her

master.