Manuke FPS - Chapter 52

Chapter 52

It was almost the evening when I returned to the Fort City of Barga . I wanted to ask Rezmond-san to check the magic dagger I had found in Wolf Fang Labyrinth, but it should be crowded at the Guild’s annex by now . A lot of adventurers would rush there to report their quest completions or bring proof of their conquests . Rezmond-san worked fast, but the wait time would still be long . I’d ask Malta-san to appraise the dagger instead .

First of all, I’d head back to the White Flower Pavillion and ready myself for the mission with the caravan tomorrow . I needed to get dinner as well since I’d need to leave early tomorrow . I had to get things ready quickly and make use of tonight to heal the fatigue from my exploration .

I had planned to go to bed early after preparations and dinner was finished, but… It was already two in the morning .

[P/N: also around the time I’m proofing this…]

“The preparation is so much trouble…”

I hadn’t taken the guard request tomorrow as an the D-Ranked Adventurer Schwarz, but as someone else, a masked man . Quite a lot of people had seen the power of VMB already, but only a few had known of its offensive abilities; people were only aware of its mapping ability . As I’d be conquering labyrinths on my own, my combat ability would become more widely known . If I was able to detach this from Schwarz’s mapping ability, maybe I could devote myself to labyrinth conquests without being bothered by invitations from the clans .

I had decided on my disguise . I’d use the kevlar mask to conceal my face . This bulletproof mask was used by Taiwan and Bosnia’s special forces, and could stop 9×19 parabellum rounds as well as 357 magnum rounds . It was designed to have only two holes for the eyes and no opening for the mouth or nose . The eye holes were equipped with the same lens as my goggles, so I could still check the map and obtain info with no problems .  I also planned to use the voice change function of VMB to change my voice and I would wear something over my powered suit to fully cover it . It was already mid November, so there was no problem wearing thick clothes . I usually wore a field jacket so the image would be different this time . I’d wear a black overcoat similar to the black suits the German Army had worn in WWII . I couldn’t wear a belt since it would be difficult to take out a handgun from the shoulder holster .

I changed clothes in a second with the avatar customization and registered the set . Black kevlar mask with a black suit, absolutely the kind of officer outfit that would aggravate those with eight-grader syndrome*…

[T/N: Chunibyo . ]

[E/N: How SS of him . ]

The next problem was the weapons . First of all, the FM69*, Manufactured by the American company Magpul . It was a submachine gun built on the Glock 18C machine-pistol . Specialized for bodyguard duties*, its rectangular shape could be folded down to a compact size that could fit into the back pocket . It carried 33 bullets, and could be unfolded and ready to fire in less than 0 . 5 seconds .

[E/N: FMG-9 Technically, it’s not it’s own weapon if I’m understanding the salesman correctly . It’s a frame, slide, and magazine of the 18C, like a Micro-RONI , or Folding Glock . It was designed for concealed carry and for a possible acquisition by the USA Secret Service, but MAGPUL has no intention of putting it into production . ]

[T/N: Yes, the author literally wrote “Glock 18 with outer parts attached” about the FMG9 (グロッグ18という拳銃に外部パーツ取り付け製作したSMGサブマシンガン) . I have no idea how to put it into English so I just go with this phrasing :sweat:]

I prepared the FMG for close quarter battles inside the Royal Capital, but I was really troubled about what to use during the trip . I wanted something completely different from the P90 and Scar that I usually used . I racked my brains over the numerous small arms and attachments combination in my inventory . Preparation like this was really enjoyable . It was a difficult but fun time that made me forget about sleep . Before I realized, morning was already coming .

In the end, I chose the AS VAl, a select-fire rifle with an integrated silencer as my main weapon . It was developed for the Soviet Union’s Special Troops, and even through the 9x39mm rounds it used had a slow firing velocity, they had low sound signature . However, its magazine could only hold 20 rounds . This was used to balance with the integrated silencer . Its bullets’ offensive power was somewhere between the 9x19mm and the 7 . 62×51, enough for large-ish monster .

[E/N: That’s a pretty wide chasm there buddy . Like saying this is somewhere between a Honda Civic and a 2500 Truck . ]

Even though it made the gun look misshapen, I also mounted a silencer to the FMG-9, and hid it under my overcoat together with the AS VAL . To others, it would look as if I wasn’t carrying any weapons .

Lastly, aside from the small arms, I also prepared a special electromagnetic baton, an original melee weapon from VMB . It was an improved version of the self-defense stun baton currently on the market and could be extended to about 70cm long . If you pushed its pointed end to your opponent and pressed the switch on the grip, it would emit an electric current similar to a stun gun, and temporarily stun him .  In VMB, it was the type of weapon that was joked to make people want to shoot you dead if you used it, but I had never used it before . It had been completely just for show .

With this, my preparations were complete . I brought along some luggage, told the landlady Mirna that I would be away for about a week and paid the rent to keep the room without meals, then left .

When I arrived at the Marida Company, three large wagons had already been parked in front, and the workers were busy loading boxes and sacks into them . As I was peeking at the group to see if the usual clerk was there, the eyes of the workers were all on me . Those eyes were not for customers; they were clearly cautious and uneasy . Which wasn’t surprising, as I came wearing the mask and suit .

“Welcome . What business do you have here today?”

The usual clerk asked with apparent tension on his face . It seemed like he didn’t recognize me .

“I am Shaft, commissioned to guard this merchant party by the Chairman of Marida Company . ”

Shaft was the alias I thought of for when I wore this attire . I had no time to think of a good alias, so I just picked the code name of the AS VAL .

“Could you please wait a bit? I will confirm it with the Chairman . ”

“No problem . ”

“Please excuse me . ”

Ah, I had told Malta-san that I would be in disguise, but I hadn’t said anything about an alias . It would be great if he could guess it… Just as the clerk had said, I only had to wait a little before Malta-san appeared and approached me with caution .

“I am Malta, Chairman of the Marida Company . Excuse me, but I would like to confirm under whose commission do you come as a guard of this merchant party?”

“…I come here in place of a D-rank adventurer called Schwarz . I heard that you have acknowledged this . Is it not true?”

“I apologize; of course I have known about this . Shaft-sama, please come inside . It will be a while until we depart . ”

Just as expected of Malta-san – he had skillfully guided me to get a confirmation . I followed him to the usual parlor .

“Schwarz-san, you’re really thorough in your disguise . ”

“A disguise is meaningless if done half-way . ”

“Well, the clothes and that black mask were simple enough, but even your voice is completely different… I still can’t believe it unless you take off the mask . ”

This voice was much lower than my real one, and with the kevlar covering my mouth, it came out even lower . It seemed like Malta-san still didn’t fully believe me, so I decided to take off the mask to confirm my identity first .

“Well, you’re Shaft-sama now, but what about going in and out of the city?”

“There is no way to disguise that, so I will go in and out of Barga and the Royal Capital as Schwarz . ”

“That’s better . You can have multiple Guild cards if you register with multiple guilds, but with aliases you’ll be taxed separately . ”

Getting multiple Guild cards…

“Is it unusual to double-register?”

“It’s not . Many people register with different guilds depending on their expertise, like adventurers registering with the Merchant Guild or the Magician Guild . Some facilities can’t be used without the registration card of the specialized guild . ”

“I see…”

Since it was not unusual, I considered registering with another guild as Shaft once we reached the Royal Capital . While we were chatting, the usual clerk entered the parlour .

“Chairman, three adventurers from the General Guild has come under our commission . Should I bring them to you?”

“Oh, they have come? Please bring them here . ”

“I will right away . ”

The clerk didn’t look in my direction once, and withdrew immediately after reporting .

“Is this look too severe?”

“As you’re a guard, it’s better than looking like a gentleman . ”

Malta-san seemed to find the clerk’s reaction interesting as well as unavoidable . He laughed, his belly shaking .

“Oh! Is it here?”

“Yes! Here, leader!”

“I’m opening the door!”

Loud voices were coming from outside the room . It might have been just my imagination, but I think I’d heard those voices before…