“Now then, let’s go shopping!”
“Yes!”
“How are both of you so energetic?” We should have gone at it until late at night yesterday, but their skin actually looks smoother and more vibrant than usual today. Was I the prey? Did they suck out my life-essence of something? I was really curious about it, but it’s not like anyone will answer my doubts.
“Hiro-sama?”
“Nah, it’s nothing. Shall we go?”
“Yes~!”
While being pulled by the arm by an energetic-looking and smiling Mimi, I went out of the hangar bay and the three of us boarded the express elevator. Gazing at the now-familiar space scenery, we went straight towards the 3rd Block, which we’ve frequently visited as of late.
“You’re not scared, are you Mimi?”
“I’m okay! I have Hiro-sama and Elma-san together with me. And I also have my laser gun here.”
Mimi patted the laser gun she holstered on her hip while smiling brightly. Un. But I hope she never encounters a situation where she has to use it anyway. Let’s have Elma train her in hand-to-hand combat as well next time.
“By the way, do you have any place in mind we could visit?”
“Nope, this was an impromptu suggestion, so I didn’t really plan anything. Do you have anywhere you want to go Mimi? You researched the shops in the 3rd Block before, right?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.”
Mimi took out her portable terminal and considered which places to check out.
“The gadget shop catered for mercenaries seems interesting. They’re selling some things we could use inside and outside the ship. There’s also the gun shop and the import shop.”
“The gadget shop’s fine. But the gun shop huh?”
“Yes. There’s a chance you’ll get into trouble and find yourself in an emergency if you don’t keep yourself adequately protected. I’m physically weak and I don’t have good motor skills, so I want something that suits me.”
I see. So Mimi’s been properly thinking about what she needs huh. I’m not that confident in a firefight anyway, so it might be good to check that shop out.
“I’ve been to the import shop and it’s quite fun to check out rare foodstuffs that you can’t find in a normal convenience store over there.”
“Hm, sounds great. You guys want to go there as well? I’m more interested in the gun shop so let’s check that place out later.”
“The closest one’s the gadget shop.”
“Let’s head on over then.”
The three of us walked along, with Mimi checking the store’s location on her terminal’s mini-map.
The public order of this colony’s 3rd Block isn’t all that great in general, but the outer areas near the elevator and the gate to the 2nd Block as well as the area near the military base were relatively safe. Oh, it seems the area where Oishii Mart was located was in between the secure and unsecure areas. “It looks like it’s that shop.”
“That one huh.”
The outer appearance of the store was quite normal. The shop-front had some window displays where male and female-shaped mannequins dressed in what looked like g-suits were shown. Well, they certainly didn’t look like your normal g-suits though.
“Welcome!”
As soon as we entered, the shop clerk sitting behind the counter just beside the door called out. The clerk was an intense-looking muscular uncle.
After getting a look at the interior, it seems like it wasn’t all that spacious. It’s about the same size as the convenience store. There were surveillance cameras installed here and there to prevent theft.
“You brought your women?”
“It’s not allowed?”
“Nah. Leaving that little lady aside, you and that other lady seem like you’re seasoned mercenaries.”
“You can tell?”
“It’s experience kid. Experience. Well, we have a lot of goods here, so have a look around. Give me a holler if you need me to explain the use of the products.”
The shop uncle waved us away and dropped his gaze toward the tablet terminal on the counter. He sure doesn’t look like your typical salesman. Oh well. I guess shops outside Japan generally have this kind of vibe to them. The Japanese hospitality spirit is just a tad atypical in comparison, I guess.
“Anyway, there sure is a lot of weird-looking stuff here huh.”
I grabbed a mysterious-looking can from the shelf. It’s price was 3 Enel. Just what… Oh, what a nice, fresh smelling scent! This probably goes inside the cockpit. It’s sure to eliminate that unpleasant cigarette odor! This thing was an air freshener? Now that I got a good look at it, there’s something like adhesive tape stuck to the bottom of the can. So things like this don’t change even in the future huh?
“Hiro-sama, should we buy these pilot suits to cope with the Gs?”
“Oh, that’s not necessary. Krishna’s cockpit block has a device installed which greatly offsets Gs during acceleration and sudden turns. That’s why Mimi hasn’t felt that much Gs while inside it.”
“Ah, you’re right… Now that you mention it, it wasn’t as uncomfortable as I thought.”
Mimi got a little shocked by my reveal. Well, these suit’s designs do indeed look cool, but all the life-support and survivability-enhancing equipment and systems in my ship are the highest quality, so these aren’t needed. It’s a bit unfortunate though.
“I found something good here.”
Elma brought a really high-tech looking sphere thingy. I have absolutely no idea what it’s used for, honestly.
“What the heck is that?”
“It’s a Gravity Sphere. It’s quite useful.”
After claiming that, Elma brought the sphere up to shoulder-level and pressed a button on it. The sound of whirring machinery was heard from inside it.
“Well?”
“That’s about it.”
Elma pulled something like a straw from inside the Gravity Sphere and put it on her mouth. The device kept floating above her left shoulder even after she let it go. That does look kinda neat, but I still don’t get what the thing is used for.
“Sorry, but I don’t get it.”
“You can pour drinks inside it and sip it anytime during combat.”
The Gravity Sphere kept following her around no matter where Elma turned towards. O~kay?
“So, it’s basically a floating tumbler?”
“That’s right. When you press the On button, it would float on the spot and would follow the closest object with mass after a three-second interval. It’s secure, spill-proof and can keep your drinks hot or cold indefinitely depending on the settings.”
“I’m not sure if I should call it a perfect example of pointless advanced technology, but it does sound pretty convenient.”
I reached out for the Gravity Sphere floating around Elma’s right shoulder and gave it a poke. It did sway for a bit, but eventually returned to its previous position. That sure is some mysterious tech…
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