Full Metal Panic! Short Stories Volume 8 Part 1 by Shouji Gatou

Author:Shouji Gatou
Language: eng
Format: epub

Eventually, Kaname found the inn she was after tucked away in the city’s winding back alleys. The sign hanging from the eaves had an intricate design that read, “Arleigh Burke.”

“Finally here,” she muttered.

Incidentally, Sousuke’s unreliable promise of aid had come a few weeks earlier, and in the meantime, Shinji had apparently tried to recruit other friends and acquaintances to help. She didn’t know who had agreed, but she’d heard a few of them had already started playing. She figured that if she came here, she’d have to run into someone she knew.

“Hello,” she called as she passed through the door. The inn’s first floor was a tavern, a dimly lit place with few people around.

There was a sorcerer in a black robe seated at the table. Above his head was the name Zama. His level was 99, the highest possible for the game. He was a super-elite compared to Kaname.

“Can I help you?” the sorcerer said languidly. He had sleek black hair and the glasses of an intellectual. His form cast deep shadows from the light streaming in through the window. Beside him leaned a large staff with the head of a dragon, which looked like it had to be a very powerful artifact.

“Is this the Arleigh Burke?”

There was a long silence. The sorcerer let out a sigh, then said, “Yes. But this is no place for newcomers. It’s existed since the early days of the game. It’s a place for veterans who’ve seen their share of combat.”

“Um, but...”

“Don’t you get it? I’m telling you to leave.”

Kaname was struggling to figure out what to say when the bartender, polishing dishes behind the counter, spoke up. “Sorry about him, miss. He’s in a bad mood for various reasons. Not only did the self-styled Demon Queen Yoko steal his girlfriend, but the party members he recruited to save her have all been completely useless.”

“Lay off,” Zama muttered.

“Oh, calm down,” the bartender retorted. “Anyway, sorry he’s in a bad mood, honey, but beginners belong at the guild office in the first district in the south.”

“Um, but—”

“Get a clue already.” The sorcerer burst out of his seat, staff in hand. “Did you know you can even PK in town here in DO? And there’s lots of ways to get away with it. I know just how to fool security. You want to try me?”

It might have been an empty threat, but Kaname was already at the end of her rope, so she struggled to explain. “S-Sorry. But a friend of mine from school told me to come here...”

Here, the sorcerer stayed his aggression. “Would your school be Jindai High?”

“Um, yes?”

“Who are you?”

“Um, my name’s Chidori. We’re classmates...”

The sorcerer suddenly froze up. His sprite remained expressionless, but he seemed somehow panicked.

“Um? What’s wrong?” she asked.

The sorcerer responded, still expressionless, “S-Sorry, Chidori-san. I didn’t think anyone else was coming, and you didn’t seem especially interested... I was even feeling kind of bad about forcing that gift card on you. Um...”

“Kazama-kun?”

“Um, yeah, that’s me. Normally, I’m really nice to new players.

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