Final Chapter [Princesses, Cats and Space Pirates]
The following day, I found myself at the university. It was a university I thought I could quit, but Hime insisted I attend the required classes needed for graduation, just in case we’re not discovered.
So far, neither the police nor the Self-Defense Forces had come knocking at our door, and there were no inquiries for my company. According to Hime, an investigation was launched at the karaoke bar after we left, but they backed off after seeing fabricated footage of us innocently singing karaoke. Alibis were in abundance.
The child I had helped, even risking my own safety, had been safely rescued and returned to their parents. Although the child’s words of gratitude, “Thank you, big brother,” had caused a stir in the media, everything seemed to be fine.
I sat on a bench in the university courtyard, sipping on a juice pack. I was exhausted, not so much physically but mentally drained. The burdens of my hometown and my company were too heavy for me to bear alone. I didn’t want to be a president or a mecha pilot… I just wanted to be an ordinary student among the passing crowd.
“Did you see that? That thing from yesterday?”
“Gunam, right? It was amazing!” “Do you think it’s not from the Self-Defense Forces after all? Could it be a weapon from another world?” “I’ve seen on forums that it might be Kawashima General Trading. But when I searched online, all I found were images of furikake.” I spit out my juice in surprise. Nearby students glanced at me briefly before continuing on their way. What’s going on!? Why is our company being suspected!? I wiped the spilled coffee off my clothes and searched for similar news on my phone. Indeed, there were some posts that seemed suspicious. [Isn’t that robot Kawashima’s powered suit?] “It wouldn’t be strange if Kawashima General Trading had a real Gunam too.”
“Since Kawashima is connected to another world…”
I felt a wave of relief. While there were speculative posts, none seemed to hit the nail on the head. There were even videos of our powered suits, but there were also comments denying any connection to Gun*am. Feeling slightly relieved, I bought a cake at the station and headed home. It was a small apology to the two who had been dragged into danger yesterday.
That night, after dinner at the Kawashima household, we sat around the table staring at our smartphones.
“Shall I make the call?”
“Tonbo, remember what we practiced. Don’t say anything unnecessary.”
“If you get confused, look at me. I’ll guide you.”
With these instructions, Hime tapped her small tablet device next to her face. I nodded and pressed the call button for “Gold Dragon Trading, Tita,” the contact that appeared on my screen. Without waiting for even one ring, the call was answered.
[President Kawashima, We have been eagerly awaiting your call.]
“Um…”
[Even without you saying so, we understand. Shall we discuss the exchange of the three snake heads and the spaceship capable of atmospheric penetration?]
“Oh, right.”
[Our technical department is eager for analysis. What do you say to exchanging the three snake heads and the spaceship, which has atmospheric penetration capabilities?]
“Uh…”
“Wait, that spaceship isn’t one that will break down immediately, right?”
[Oh, this is Sergeant Popte. No, former Sergeant Popte. It seems you misunderstand us, which is sad… As proof that there are no hidden agendas, we will send you the spec sheet. Please review it thoroughly before making a decision.]
As Tita said this over the phone… my smartphone received data in unreadable characters. At the same time, Hime pointed to her tablet next to her face.
“I’ll check, so just stay silent.”
I nodded at Hime and slowly moved away from the kotatsu.
“Output, propulsion, stealth function, living quarters… nice. The ship is small though.”
“Why does it have such advanced weaponry and stealth features?”
[At present, the Kawashima family is isolated and alone. So we thought the necessary function would be to protect ourselves from external enemies… and thus, we selected this ship. Mizu.]
Yeah, the functionality is fine. Since it’s a recent model year, I think we can use current-generation general-purpose and consumable items without any issues.”
Hime and Mars nodded in agreement.
“okay… I’ll trade the head of the snake for the spaceship.”
[Good, the deal is struck.]
There was a ten-second silence, during which the three of us continued to stare at our phones intently.
“We’ve confirmed the transaction. Please verify the anomaly.”
As I checked the junkyard, I noticed unfamiliar arrow-shaped objects. To prevent them from being exchanged, I set them to KEEP and read the description: “[Compressed].”
[That spaceship is compressed. If extracted, it will return to its original size in one hundred seconds. It’s not recommended to extract it now.]
“Understood.”
[Then, Mr. Kawashima, let’s continue our good business relationship. If you need anything, your representative, Tita, will assist you wholeheartedly.]
The call ended abruptly. Along with it, the tension dissolved, and I collapsed onto the floor. As I lay there, I raised both hands above my head and exhaled slowly. Suddenly, something like fabric was draped over my face.
“What?!”
I sat up to see that it was my outdoor pants.
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“Tonbo, let’s go.”
“Huh? Where to?”
“To the company. The parking lot over there is just wide enough to get the spaceship out.”
“Right now?”
“If we do it during the day, won’t it be immediately noticed? Don’t worry; we’ve installed camouflage anchors since we rented it, so it’s ready to use.”
“If worst comes to worst and they find out we killed the snakes, we’ll escape in the spaceship, so we need to make sure if the spaceship works or not.”
Mars’s words spurred me into action. Indeed, we needed to act quickly. The three of us hailed a taxi and headed to the headquarters and factory of Kawashima General Trading.
“Tonbo! Camouflage is working, and the soundproofing is operational, so you can extract it safely!”
The factory parking lot was dimly lit by the lights attached to its eaves. Hime stood at one end, making a circle with her hands, while I waved from the center of the parking lot.
“Okay, I’ll extract it!”
“Once you do, come over here!”
I waved back at Mars, who was standing next to Hime, and proceeded to extract the spaceship. Placing the palm-sized craft on the gravel ground, resembling a plastic model, I ran back to Mars and the others.
“Is the orientation okay? If it’s sideways, it might hit our neighbor’s beat-up car.”
“I placed it so that the bow faces this way.”
“Thirty seconds left.”
“What kind of ship is it…”
From then on, we all fell silent, gazing intently at the spaceship. This vessel represented the culmination of everything we had done so far. Mars, who had been adrift at the edge of the universe, could finally return home.
I glanced at Mars. He noticed my gaze and flashed a toothy grin.
Thud! A light, almost like dropping an empty poly tank, echoed from the center of the parking lot. There, the spaceship, shaped like a paper airplane with gray and white lines, hovered slightly above the ground.
“Wow… amazing!”
“…This, could it be…”
“Mars, is this…?”
“Incredible! But… is it really…?”
While I was excited, Hime and Mars stared at the ship with uncertain expressions. Was it not a popular type of ship, perhaps?
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“What… what’s wrong?”
“We’ve been had… This isn’t just any ship; it’s a pirate ship.”
“A pirate ship!?”
“There are specialized shipyards for pirates in space… This is a solo raiding vessel. It’s heavily armed with plenty of stealth features… But, for her to go this far…”
The pointed bow of the spaceship resembled a raptor’s beak, with sharp beam cannon barrels on either side, reminiscent of a dragon’s eyes. It did indeed look like a pirate ship. But it was cool, and it seemed quite powerful. Wasn’t that okay?
“Um… so, what’s wrong with a pirate ship? It still operates normally, right?”
Mars, still holding his head with his paw-like hands, responded.
“Pirate ships can be shot down without warning under the Galactic General Law. So, as long as we’re on this ship, we’re considered pirates and can’t get close to anywhere.”
“Huh!?”
“Meaning, we’ve been saddled with a ship that we can’t use anywhere because of her.”
“Sh… Shark Trade! Somehow, I felt like I finally understood why the Golden Dragon Company is so hated.”
“Umm… well, let’s just give it a try, shall we? Worst case, we can send a distress signal and sink the pirate ship somewhere in the ocean.”
“W… well, yeah. I guess we wouldn’t immediately get shot down just for going into space around here. Let’s give space a try.”
“Just a moment, let’s scan for any viruses before we take off.”
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