It ain’t my fault!
The Director told me to do it!
To break the microwave!
Because things would turn out better that way…!
『Humans who rely on those heaps of junk whose only merit is their precision are adorable. Something like that will break immediately if you just create a little blank space in it…. And yet they try to develop using such things…. Hehe, how lovely.』
『…A-Are you really sure it was okay to break it?』
『Yes. This gives us an excuse to go out, and it also emphasizes how pure and ignorant Ei is.』
『But that was probably an expensive one, right? Won’t Senano-chan feel bad?』
『Ei, let me offer you these words. Pitiable is adorable.』
『I think there should be limits to that!』
『That is for me to decide. You just fulfill your role. Right now, you are a cute girl. Destroy human reasoning with that sense of distance, and then by the next morning turn back into a man and frighten them!』
『Yessir.』
Sorry, Senano-chan.
I’m basically just one of Sora’s puppets.
A yes-man has no will of his own!
“All we’re doing is going to the convenience store, so why are you having that much fun?”
“Yes!”
Right now, we were heading to the convenience store for breakfast.
The dim road lit by streetlamps that gave off a steampunk feel hit me way too cleanly.
If there was one complaint, it would probably be the horror effect of Sora staring intently at us from a little distance away.
She was invisible to everyone but me, and right now she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the content of me and Senano-chan, arms folded as she nodded to herself.
So beings of a higher order who stand behind you with their arms folded really do exist, huh.
『Convenience stores are a fine civilization. They have tasty things too.』
I was a little moved to learn that even inside a city like this, there were convenience stores.
I wonder if they sell fantasy tools and stuff too.
Like, does NARROW ever hang there next to charging adapters for about 1,500 yen?
“It’s fine to get excited, but don’t wander too far away from me, okay?”
Senano-chan said that with a tired look.
Sorry….
『Now. Close the distance like an idiot and walk right up against her.』
『Yessir.』
I scampered over and pressed myself right up against Senano-chan.
Startled by my sudden action, Senano-chan stared hard at my face as though examining it.
“What was that for all of a sudden?”
“…Because you told me not to wander off. Hehe, when I was little, I used to walk clinging to mother like this.”
(TL Note: original uses Kaa-Sama but I changed it to mother. I use formal language if the source uses formal language. In the future, if a character uses a more informal version like kaa-san, I’ll use ‘ma’ or ‘mom’.)
I answered that while tilting my head slightly.
Senano-chan was a little taller than me, so I looked up at her while playing the part of an innocent, teary-eyed cute girl.
When I glanced at Sora, she was nodding again.
『Good. It is these little accumulations that give content depth.』
『Is that so.』
『…Do you mean to say you have no interest? Then it seems an educational Ten’i is necessary.』
『Eek, s-sorry! I’m super interested, seriously!』
『Then that is fine. Sorry for scaring you. But Ei, when you are frightened, you are cute too＾＾』
Give me a break.
“Guh, the fact that your face is so good just drives me even crazier….”
“? Senano-san, is something wrong?”
“It’s nothing. I’m an elite, so it’s nothing.”
“? Understood.”
Senano-chan was already in tatters.
And while we’re at it, I’m in tatters too. Could we maybe please settle this peacefully and have today end with just the convenience store event?
I’m already exhausted and it’s still morning.
『Mm-hm, yes, very nice, very nice. If this human could come to love Ei just like this, it would become even better content.』
She’s saying something kind of scary….
“…Stop.”
“?”
Senano-chan abruptly stopped walking.
There still wasn’t anything around us that looked like a convenience store.
『Oh, are they making contact?』
Sora said that as though she already knew.
But she didn’t tell me anything.
“So I ended up seeing a uniform I didn’t want to see first thing in the morning. Enri Agency-san.”
A moment later, a man emerged from the darkness ahead of us.
He wore a uniform based on a color like the deep night, with a single crimson line running along the shoulder.
The moment you looked at him, he carried a strange atmosphere that made the word suspicious float into your mind.
“A-Rank Enri Bearer, Mikama Senano-san, correct?”
“You don’t have to verify it every single time. It’s not like you weren’t watching me anyway.”
“…Senano-san.”
“It’s okay.”
Noticing that I had grabbed the hem of her clothes tightly, Senano-chan patted my head to reassure me.
How’s that, Director!
…Ah, the Director has that “＾＾” look on her face!
Looks like she approves!
『That was good improvisation. Two Ten’i points.』
Why does doing a good deed bring me closer to hell…?
“Mikama Senano-san, there is an urgent request for you. This will also serve as your promotion examination.”
“That’s awfully sudden. I’ve already been hit with irregulars on two missions, so I’m getting pretty paranoid about this sort of thing.”
“…It appears there was some miscommunication in the transmission of information last time. Our apologies.”
“Miscommunication? What exactly happened for a miscommunication to end with me fighting a high-rank Aberrant Entity like that?!”
Senano-chan started to close in on him, but immediately remembered I was there and held herself back.
Then, as if to regain her composure, she took one deep breath.
“…Fine, whatever. So what’s the mission?”
“We would like you to dispose of an Aberrant Entity that appeared in an apartment complex in Tohoku. The details will be sent to you in data form afterward.”
“I see. Understood.”
“…Senano-san, are you perhaps going off to fight again?”
Isn’t Senano-chan way too busy?
Could it be she really is an elite?
“It’s fine. I’ll wrap it up quick and come right back. Hey, send someone from your side to look after this girl. Someone with common sense, and as elite as I am.”
Hearing that, the man returned an answer flatly, without moving even a single eyebrow.
“There is no need for concern. This time, as an Enri Bearer’s first field training exercise, Oretsu Ei-san will be accompanying you.”
“Eh, m-me!?”
So this is my first mission, huh. Does that mean my absurdly overpowered legend starts here…?
I’m looking forward to it!
“…Don’t say ridiculous things.”
Senano-chan…?
“She hasn’t even touched a NARROW yet, and she doesn’t even know much about Aberrant Entities. And you want to throw someone like that straight into field training? There’s no way that’s acceptable. That wouldn’t be good for her, and it wouldn’t be good for the country either!”
“Nevertheless, the decision has been made.”
“I don’t care about that. If you’re saying you’re taking this girl along, then I refuse the mission.”
“But this is your promotion examination, you know?”
“That’s fine with me. I’m an elite, so after a while I can just take the promotion examination again. So what if I miss one opportunity? I’ve already missed two!”
(TL Note: Woah, im starting to like this character. Love people that have morals they won’t bend the knee for)
As if casually shielding me, Senano-chan stepped in front of me and declared it.
Her soul is way too protagonist-like.
“Senano-san….”
“…So that is your choice, then.”
“Yes. Are you satisfied?”
The man and Senano-chan glared at each other for a while.
For the time being, I watched how things would unfold while acting flustered, but in the end, the first to move was the man.
“Understood. Our side concedes. We will permit you to carry out the mission alone. However, before the mission, please submit a report explaining why Oretsu Ei will not be accompanying you.”
“You people still love paperwork as much as ever. Spend the rest of your lives glued to your desks.”
When Senano-chan said that, the man gave me a single glance, as if to say his business here was done, and walked away.
Left behind, Senano-chan and I looked at each other.
As though trying to reassure me, she smiled once more and patted my head.
“Shall we go buy food at the convenience store already? After that, I’m going to be away from the house for a little while. Can you stay home properly?”
“Yes, leave it to me.”
“That’s a good answer.”
Saying that, Senano-chan took my hand and started walking.
Food, food!
■
【Enri Agency Mission Document】
Document Number: EN-MSN-2025-0913
Mission Classification: Rescue / Aberrant Sealing Mission (Hazard Designation)
Mission Target: Enri Bearer Mikama Senano (A-Rank)
Issuing Department: Enri Agency Anti-Enri Disaster Section, Second Bureau
■ Mission Name
“Snake-Shadow Window Distortion Incident” Rescue and Sealing Mission
■ Background
At residential tower ██ located on the outskirts of ██ City, reports have continued for several weeks of “snake eyes appearing in windows” and “residents vanishing.”
One dispatched Enri Bearer team sent to investigate, consisting of six members total, has gone missing.
However, it was recently confirmed that one team member, name undisclosed, has been intermittently transmitting a rescue signal.
The signal is still being emitted from the ██ floor of the apartment building.
The case was initially misidentified as “Shadow Serpent Shutter Screen” (EN-2819-JP), but due to the scale of the damage, structural alteration, and disruption in the signal waveform, it has been reassessed as strongly likely to involve a different Aberrant Entity.
■ Mission Objectives
・Confirm the survival of and rescue the one Enri Bearer emitting the rescue signal.
・Confirm the true nature of the Aberrant Entity within the apartment building.
・Identify the point of manifestation and deploy a sealing barrier to prevent the spread of damage.
・If necessary, eliminate the target or carry out temporary containment.
■ Mission Conditions
Mission Executor: Mikama Senano (solo dispatch)
Equipment: NARROW, standard anti-Enri portable gear, observation sealing tags, emergency barrier talismans, portable communications terminal
Support: Two local Enri Bearers
Restrictions: Destruction of the apartment building is prohibited (risk of complete connection to an Aberrant space)
The rescue target is high priority, but if the target has transformed into an Aberrant Entity, they are to be treated as a containment target
■ Hazard Assessment
This case is publicly issued as a “rescue mission,” but in substance it is classified as an A-class Aberrant Entity response mission.
Since the advance team has been wiped out, the risk of engagement is extremely high.
The possibility that the rescue signal is bait must also be taken into account.
■ Special Notes
This mission also serves as Senano’s final examination for promotion to S-Rank.
The apartment building at the scene has already been evacuated, but since outwardly it appears no different from a normal housing complex, the risk of civilian approach is high.
What Senano may encounter includes the Enri Bearer designated for rescue, if still alive, the main body of the Aberrant Entity that devoured the advance team, or one of its peripheral derivative bodies.
■ Addendum Regarding the Exclusion of an Accompanying Candidate
At first, during internal coordination meetings within the Agency, a proposal was submitted to have the medium-like existence A-E1, commonly known as Ei, accompany the mission.
This was in consideration of the observational value it might provide in countering the cognitive contamination of Aberrant Entities.
However, immediately before the mission order was issued, Senano herself strongly refused. She reported the following reasons.
・This mission also serves as her own S-Rank promotion examination, and she should not rely on a third party.
・There is a possibility that the target possesses a nature that strongly devours “media,” and Ei’s accompaniment would therefore be even more dangerous.
Under normal circumstances, this refusal would have been rejected, but due to Senano’s forceful stance and the director’s approval, solo action was authorized.
Accordingly, there will be no accompanying party on this mission, and Ei will remain in the rear on standby.
Issuing Signature: Enri Agency, Anti-Enri Disaster Section, Second Bureau, Bureau Director ███
Issue Date: August ■, 20██ CE
(TL Note: Ngl, I think the highers ups might be really stupid or their being mind-controlled by sora. Cause why in the flying fuck would you send someone you just discovered into a battle?)