"Y-You know! I-I thought—~ …you looked pretty hot in those outfits, Efran... Might as well be honest—~ Urgh…"
"Itoe, stop drinking." Da-Som sighed, giving a glass of water to her friend. "You can't hold your liquor, dumbass."
"Ugh… As if—~ …you're a good drinker too—~"
"Duh. That's precisely why I don't drink much."
"W-We're here—~ …to celebrate the magazine's success! Drinking is something to be—~ …expected—! Burp!"
"Don't tell me you wanna puke now…!?"
"T—~That's not it… Guh… Maybe just… a bit…"
Sitting to them, Efran couldn't help but chuckle. They were much more like sisters than friends. He'd become familiar with them since he'd attended the photoshoot, which opened them up to him a little more than before.
Da-Som was a cynical girl with quite the attitude, like a shield protecting her. On the other hand, Itoe was sparkly and joyous. That said, she's obviously complex about her age. Not the only woman like that, though. Men are the same about their height, dick size, and paychecks.
These two were the complete opposite of his mother and grandma. They were lighthearted and informal. And they weren't overprotective. That was nice, too.
—Well, I believe they invited me for something else than just for a celebration… This is a way too fancy bar just for a simple drink.
"Hey, Efran!—~ Drinking you must!" Itoe clamored, pushing her cocktail toward him. "Here's my… uh… it's a—~ …cocktail, I think?"
"You think?" Da-Som laughed, almost falling from her chair. "Shit! Fuck...!"
"It's cool drinking with you, but really, throwing a bar meetup in one of the most costly places in town wasn't necessary…"
"Come on, don't be a buzzkill, bucko. I just wanted to give you a token of thanks. The new magazine release was a hit."
"How much?"
"We sold twice as much as in the last three months." Da-Som giggled with a smirk. "It's not just thanks to you, but still, the ladies love you."
"I guess you invited me to offer me a career, then, right?"
"Give or take. It all depends on you." Som winked at him, handing him one mercury coin and five bismuth coins. "The right amount of money you should have made if you were a full-fledged model working with me. To keep you on your toes."
"Eh. You're coaxing me now?"
"Stop acting as if—~ ...I'm not here... I swear, I'll get angry..."
"Lil' Itoe! Why not tell him what you told me before?"
"Ah. Yes—~ …I've, huh… met with a trio of idols, the Climb Hip, and… huh, they seemed curious…—~ Also, the Yoshiwara family… was pleased to see a new face in the magazine…—~ They asked your name…"
"Eh, they all know who to ask to find out who I am."
"Well, yeah, Itoe is the only photographer for Bling Bling magazine, so it's not hard to guess. And since she works with Fapon Studio, people just connect the dots."
"It's hard to believe people would be that interested in just some random photos."
"Haha! Well, it's not just some photos." Da-Som shrugged. "First, this world craves any kind of stimulation. Second, Itoe uses neutrinos to put her own lust into it. When the photos are printed, they lose most of the neutrinos, but a small part remains and is exuded toward the person watching it. That way, they also feel horny. This is a kind of "pornography" you can't achieve even with computers. That's why our magazine still works."
"Yeah—~ Yeah! Don't underestimate... Yeah... All because of that fuckin' Great Pit—~..."
"But yeah, I understand what you mean, lil' bro. It's hard to believe a single dude can provoke such reactions from just a few photos. Told you you were a looker, hehe.~ A single woman finds it hard to satisfy her urge these days, so that's why scarcity brings the greedy."
"—~ I'm greedy too..."
Unexpectedly, Itoe hugged him, her voice hoarse as she nuzzled her head against his shoulder like an animal needing attention. It was a miracle she could still speak, given the amount of alcohol she'd ingested in less than an hour before the bewildered bartender's eyes.
"M—Maybe if my husband was as precious and handsome as you—~ ...maybe I could cope with the fact that he's cheating on me—~ ...yeah..."
"Hehehe! What the fuck are you talking about now!? What the heck, Itoe! Your hangover gonna be brutal, sweet cheeks! Hehe!"
"Don't puke on me, please."
"Stop mocking me—~ I'm about to go c-cra-zy mad."
"Yeaaah, I can see that." Da-Som giggled. "Maybe he goes see other women 'cause you're not taking the lead in bed enough?"
"T-That's not true..."
"Or maybe it is because you don't shave much down the—"
"Shut it! —~Bitch! Shut it! At least my husband doesn't have a willy the size of a fucking ping-pong racket handle!"
"Wowowow!" Som exclaimed, widening her eyes. "Girl! Don't give out classified data like that! He's got a reputation to uphold!"
"—Som-Som is a meanie who bullies me! Efraaan, avenge me—~!"
"...I don't think I can do that if I want to keep that job."
"If you wanna have revenge on this stupid husband of yours, why not cheat on him too?~ It's a win-win! You can ruin your husband's self-esteem and even reputation if you take it a step further!~"
"Easy to—~ ...say. At my age, finding a good man looking for that kind of relationship is way—~ ...too low..."
"Really?" Efran uttered, his hand on his chin. "You're chill, bubbly, and nice to look at. I'm sure I could also have a boner in seconds by setting my eyes on your naked body."
"Ooh~ Ballsy move, lil' bro!"
"W—~What are you saying!?"
"You got yourself a man, Itoe! You go get him! Hehe!"
"You two—~ S-Stop teasing me..."
Blushing, the drunk MILF tried to stand up from the bar chair, mumbling random stuff that nobody could ever understand before she clamored that Efran was way too young to be in a relationship with her.
Panicking, her heels got stuck in the carpeting, making her fall backward on her butt and spilling the glass of water on herself.
As she fell, she pushed back someone else behind her, making her say sorry several times, hiding her face because of the shame, remaining motionless on the floor despite the looks she was getting.
The blonde young lady she pushed back wore Napolenian red clothes and had a firearm on her shoulder. She glared at the three of them, speechless.
—What the heck Mrs. Bullet is doing here...?
As the heroine seemingly shook off the cobwebs in her mind, she focused back on Efran, apparently irritated, but got cut off by someone else.
"C-Chloe!?" Itoe asked, surprised to see the girl in front of her. "—~...Huh! Mrs. Bullet! Bullet! W-Why my daughter's friend here—~? Is she with you? Please don't allow her to see me like this—~!"
"God..." Mrs. Bullet whispered, embarrassed. "She isn't here, it's only me. Pantomai had to partake in a mission with Grander and Coolpunch. They'll come back in... a few days."
"Mm... Excuse me, Miss Bullet, but can I know what a B-rank hero does in such a fancy bar?"
"I'm here for the guy just here." She answered, pointing to Efran. "He has some explanation to do."
"Ohoh, what a bad boy he is. Doesn't it make you all tingly, Miss Bullet?"
"No, actually, he's wasting my time. I don't like that very much."
Turning toward Efran, who was helping Itoe stand up, she frowned at him, asking him what he was doing, but she soon sighed and simply said: "okay, but be quick," when she saw him escort the woman to the toilet to change her clothing since her blouse was now see-through. All the people around looked at her cleavage.
Seeing her friend's mother being ogled at like that made her agree to Efran's deed, even if she allowed a guy into the lady's room.
"Come on, Itoe, what about actually trying to walk?"
"—~ ...Am walking, walking! Swear! Am!"
"Yeah, alright." He chuckled, entering the restroom and helping her stand against a wall since she was against sitting on the seat, deeming them too filthy. "Here's my shirt."
"W—~What...?"
"Erh... Whatever." He sighed, helping her unbutton her blouse. "Forget it."
"—~Hey, say..."
"Yeah?"
"What about a kiss..."
Not letting Efran answer, she forced herself on him, bringing her lips to his as he finally completely removed her blouse, showing her bare, sweaty skin and breasts trapped in her bra.
Taking his hand, she put it between her flushed breasts, guiding him toward her erect nipples hidden under her bra, begging him to pinch them. Doing so, he used his superpower on her nips, putting some supernatural nerve endings around there, focusing some lust energy into it.
"Hnn...~"
He could feel her erratic breathing brush on his lips as the tinge of alcohol tickled his nostrils. It was even more enthralling since he was also a bit inebriated.
Hoping this would happen, Efran slid his tongue over hers as he put a hand on the wall just to the left of her head. Their kiss was sensual yet messy because of the alcohol, their tongues circling around one another, tickling each other's taste buds as they kissed more deeply.
Itoe knew she wasn't in her right mind, but at this point, she just wanted to try. She wanted to know if what he said was a lie or not.
Placing her hand on his stomach, trying to move it toward his crotch despite her blurry vision, she wanted to know if he really could have a hard-on just by watching her...
"—~ Am so silly..."
"Haha! I like the silly you."
"Am not even—~ ...half-naked, and you're already t-that hard, jeez—~ Men really are simple- Kya!!"
Cutting them off, the restroom door opened, showing Mrs. Bullet coming in with a distasteful glare. Closing the door behind her, she was about to take her firearm in her hands but backed off, closing her eyelid, and heaved a brief sight.
"I asked you to be quick, not to indulge in a salacious affair with a married woman."
"Come on, you're killing the fun."
"To HELL your fun! This is a heroine's mother!" She berated, fist clenched. "She's already too drunk to walk alone, so don't expect me to believe that she did all that by herself!"
"Well, actually..."
"Oiii, Chloe—~ Can't a woman have her fun too...?"
"Miss Takamoto!?"
"I—~Huh... wanted to try something new..."
"...No, I prefer to forget everything. You're all drunk. You'll regret everything after your hangovers." Mrs. Bullet grumbled, bringing Efran with her and dragging him by the arm. "Let's just forget about it."
"H—~Hey, don't leave me alooone.~"
"You stay here, Miss Takamoto. I'm calling Mrs. Som to take care of you."
"A-Alright.—~"
Now out of the bar, after quietly walking for several minutes, Mrs. Bullet put a hand in front of her face, muttering something before looking at her phone. Turning toward Efran, she pushed him back against a wall, but it only caused her to get pushed back way more violently, almost falling over.
"What the fuck you think you're doing!?"
"Giving you a glimpse of equal rights."
"You're defying the police!" She castigated, frowning and pointing her weapon at him. However, before she could do anything, he snatched it out of her hand in the blink of an eye and fired a round at the ground.
"Yeah, I really don't get how this gun works."
"Give my weapon back to me! Now!" Struggling to get it back, she tried to hit him, punching and kicking, but failed every time.
"Uh oh, I guess you're only a hero thanks to this, then." He mocked her, pointing at the gun. "Your hand-to-hand fighting skills are lacking."
"Don't be cocky! I'm taking you into custody for opposing a hero and illegally using an enchanted weapon!"
"Haha! That's okay with me, but don't tell me you're having a tantrum just 'cause you can't hit me?"
"Shut up! I wouldn't be here if you hadn't appeared in this stupid magazine! Didn't I tell you to keep a low profile until my superiors met you!?"
"That wasn't our agreement. You told me you did what you could to blur my name so I could work and live freely for the time being." He sighed, giving her back her gun. "Say, since I'm better than you at hand-to-hand combat, can I invite you to have a drink?"
"In your fucking dream!"
"You're an absolute sore loser."
"SHUT UP!"
"Why are you so mad, though?"
"Fucking dumbass..."
"Yeah?"
"Whatever. Grander and Iridescent will probably meet with you soon. After that, you'll meet other people to know how you survived the Great Pit and investigate stuff about what you know. Your mother has been informed."
"Perfect then."
"Not, it's not."
"What do you mean?"
"They'll come back soon after their excursion in Agartha. You'll probably be called in during their rehab time. They might be too tired to be fully operational."
"Great," he blurted, smiling devilishly at her. "So, you're going to tell me how your gun works or what?"
"Yeah, yeah... Alright."
In the end, once she talked about something she was passionate about, she became agreeable, losing this severe and professional facade she always kept.
She explained that her gun was a relic she had found when she had raided derelict temples inside Agartha with her adventurer team—three people named Ashe, Rei, and Lihan—with two S-rank members in it.
The firearm was buried under tons of rubble they had to excavate to go further into the dungeons. In the end, she found it, and Rei, the second gunslinger of the team, helped her rebuild and upgrade it. After all the tinkering, what was an A-rank loot became an S-rank, and when using her power—literally Firearms Tinkering—she could change the shape and properties of her weapon and its bullets.
Her gun could simply be a Desert Eagle with explosive rounds to a full-fledged tank cannon firing homing shells.
—Goddamn, that's the most American superpower I heard of.
The police station she brought him to was much more extensive and luxurious than the one he was in before. Many heroes came in and out, but judging by their looks and equipment, most ranged from F to C-rank.
He was made aware that going up the ranking was tough because of all the competition. Heroes were appreciated by the world, had tons of money, and had the right to go into Agartha and raid dungeons, etc. Plus, ugly or handsome, the women threw themselves at their feet, and the simps were still willing to give their lives for their favorite heroines.
As it happened not so long ago...
"Bullet!"
"Oh, Ghostra, what's the deal?"
"I gotta go help Iridescent and Grander." The fully covered heroine explained with a grunt. "They're dealing with a fire-powered villain. It seems like he burned stuff all around to get stronger. He wanted me to say to you not to worry about his sorry ass."
"Him!? He asked for reinforcements!?"
"Yes, but chill out, he's most likely safe. As ever."
"Really now..." Bullet muttered, biting her nails. "Just go then... Go help them."
"Alrighty! Until next time."
Ghostra jumped out of the door and disappeared in a flash after making ice appear behind her, instantly transforming to water a second later.
"Is perhaps Iridescent your boyfriend?" Efran asked with a grin. "You're cute when you're worried."
"Mind your own business."
"My bad, my bad."
"Come in," she sighed, entering a large office where several other heroes were working. "I have something to give you back."
Following her, he sat on the chair before her office as she gazed at something on the ground. She pulled out his axe and fire extinguisher, which she had confiscated from him the very moment he arrived in this world, and she carefully looked at them before placing them on the table and glaring at him.
"I am willing to give them back to you since our experts believe they're rare loot from the inworld you found by yourself..." She explained, removing one of her gloves to take the axe in her hand. "They said the axe was at least an A-rank weapon and the extinguished a B-rank tool, but since these weapons don't see any of us as their rightful owners, we can't do anything with them. Did you know anything about them?"
"Nah, I just found them as I tried to escape from all the rubles at the bottom of the Pit. I just killed things with it." It wasn't even a lie. He found both these things after exploding a building with C4 in his previous world. "I wasn't even aware of their ranking."
"Well then, try it out." She hurried him, handing the two tools.
Taking them in his hand, he focused as he learned from the grimoire his grandma gave him. In no time, a few tabs above the weapons appeared, showing their stats and powers.
◉—▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩—◉
〖Rank〗● S
◉—▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩—◉
〖Rank〗● A
◉—▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩▦▩—◉
"So, see anything special?"
"Nah, they're both A and B-ranks, just as you said."
"Figure. Good enough loots, anyway."
"You think it's possible to upgrade them?"
"Well, I upgraded my gun from A to S, so I'm sure you could do the same with them. It's not a rare occurrence to do so."
"It's possible to rank them up even further than S?"
"Yeah, there's SR and SSR, but it's tough to upgrade them that much. It requires a lot of levels to give to the enchantment table, while the enchantress also needs you to be there for an extended period."
—As luck would have it, my mother is both an enchantress and an overprotective gal, so being with her for extended periods won't be too hard.
"And I guess SR and SSR ratings are also given to some heroes, right?"
"...Yeah, but the heroes and adventurers in these ranks are kept secret. They're publically capped at S-rank."
"Keeping this secret must create some juicy conspiracy theories."
"Tell me about it." Mrs. Bullet chortled, closing her eyelids. "Well, I'm calling your mother. No need for you to stay any longer. I've already warned you about what you needed to know."
"Why calling her? I can just walk back home—"
"Nono, Winter, you're in custody for going against an officer."
"Eh. Whatever, I don't really mind." He scoffed with a provocative grin. "I know you just do that because you're still butthurt about earlier."
"Fuck off!"