The Heroic Tale of the Weakest Ability User ~The F-Ranker with the Dual Pistols~ - Chapter 10

I followed Master Ken deep into the underground of the ESP Academy.

We went down a stairway that felt like a cave, heading further into the depths. Neither of us said a word — we hadn’t spoken before, and we wouldn’t speak now.

After walking for a while, I saw a huge door in the distance.

The door looked like something out of a top-secret science lab — like it was hiding dangerous experiments. It was strong, like a nuclear shelter.

When we got close, Ms. Ken Misaki took off her backpack and pulled out a card key. She slid it into the reader by the door and typed a code into the touch panel like she had done it many times before.

As soon as she pressed the last number, the door opened.

First, a heavy metal door opened. Then, a large spinning metal gate turned and unlocked. Several layers of steel mechanisms slowly revealed what was inside.

I felt a strange curiosity, wondering what could be behind all those defenses.

Smoke and wind blew toward me. I smelled metal and oil.

In front of us, a metal fence blocked the path to an even deeper area.

“W-What… what’s down there?” I asked, staring into a massive hole. It didn’t look man-made. It was more like the earth had collapsed.

Thick fog covered the bottom, hiding whatever was there.

“You want to know? Come to think of it, you’re the first trainee to ever come here,” she said and started walking down a staircase on the right.

I followed her.

“Tasku,” she said.

That was the first time she spoke to me today. Her voice didn’t have its usual energy.

“Yes? What is it?” I asked. Was she feeling sick? Maybe we should take a break?

“So… have you decided what you want to be in the future?”

It felt like she changed the topic suddenly, like she wanted to avoid something.

I had no idea what she really wanted to say.

“Not yet… but, Master Ken, how about we rest for a bit?”

“Yeah, you’re right…” she agreed.

We sat on different steps, with her sitting just a little below me. She stared at the fog, deep in thought, as time passed.

I watched her quietly and stretched out my arm to give her a bottled drink I brought.

“Yuu… listen to me,” she said before I could hand it to her.

I pulled my arm back and listened.

“I… I wanted you to fail. I thought that if you experienced failure, you would walk a better path for your future.”

So this was what she had been hiding. I listened silently.

Maybe she expected me to lose to Banjo Oya, that strong opponent from before.

She even lied to me, telling me I had talent, just to train me… Hearing that made me appreciate her kindness.

“I don’t think you should live as an ESPer But at the same time, I keep hoping maybe you do have incredible power…”

Her words were different than usual — not direct or sharp, but roundabout and soft. That surprised me.

I didn’t want to get emotional, so I joked to lighten the mood.

“What’s wrong, Sensei? Did your time of the month come or something?”

“I’m not in the mood for jokes right now,” she said.

She looked at me, then stood up. I handed her the bottle.

“You can still turn back,” she said, glancing at the stairs we came from.

“Tasku… stay by my side. When you were unconscious, I realized I don’t want to lose you. Please… no more life-threatening situations.”

She turned away, hiding her face.

Her back looked fragile and girlish. I’d never seen her like this. I was stunned

“What are you saying?” I asked. I couldn’t fully understand her words.

“…Don’t join the Rank Festival,” she said.

Then she took a sip of the drink. I remembered what Mai told me before.

Now it was my turn to speak up.

“…I have a goal I want to reach. That’s why I will join the Rank Festival.”

I paused, then looked at her.

She looked back at me.

“Ms. Ken Misaki, back then… you were cheering for me, weren’t you?”

When Banjo Oya used his ultimate attack and I was about to faint, I clearly heard her yelling, “Don’t give up!” into the mic louder than anyone else

“That was…” she began, but couldn’t finish her sentence. She looked like she was struggling to explain — honestly, it was kind of cute.

For a moment, she seemed just like a girl.

Silence fell again. We looked like a couple right after a fight.

“I’ll be okay, Master. I might not look cool doing it, but I’ll win,” I said, facing her.

“I want to show my awkward, clumsy victory to you — my master. That’ll be my way of saying thank you.”

No matter how uncool I look, I can endure it for the sake of my goal.

“You…” she whispered.

She looked at me for a while. I think she was moved.

Then she smiled and said, “You’ve really changed in these three months… you little punk.”

She grinned and gave me a side punch with her elbow.

“Ow! That hurts!” I yelled.

She had big b00bs next to my head, but I couldn’t focus on that because of the pain.

“Let’s go, Sensei,” I said.

*****

Eventually, we reached what looked like an underground lab.

We went down a staircase that followed the edge of a massive hole. There was a cave-like entrance on the right, and inside was the lab.

The stairs continued even deeper, but Ms. Ken Misaki stopped here.

She used her card again — but this time, she spoke into a voice communicator.

“Old man, it’s been a while. I’m here to request a weapon. Yes, he’s my favorite student… His name is Task Sabe. Didn’t you want to meet Task’s son?”

I listened as she talked to someone inside.

So she talks to other men too. Makes sense. I’m not the only male student.

With a pshh sound, the door opened.

“So you’re Tasku Sabe…”

An old man, probably in his 70s, stood in front of us like he’d been waiting.

“Uh, yes…”

“I forgot to introduce him. This is Dr. Littner,” she said.

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Littner.”

To be honest, I had no idea what I was being polite about. I didn’t know what this guy did.

His name sounded foreign, but he looked fully Japanese. Maybe he was just of Japanese descent.

“Have a seat,” he said.

We walked to a messy room with a table and couch. We sat down, wobbling a bit.

Dr. Littner brought us tea and sat in front of us. His round body sank into the couch.

“I’ve heard about you. You beat that Banjo Oya guy, right?” he said, stroking his big beard.

“Yeah, I guess,” I said.

“Let’s get to the point,” Master Ken cut in.

“So you need a weapon, right?” he asked, looking at my missing arm.

“Yes, something to replace this arm.” I looked down at it. Only bone and scar tissue remained.

“An arm, huh… I have an old prosthetic. With a bit of work, it’ll do,” he said.

He pulled out a measuring tape and started checking my arm’s size and width.

“Wait here,” he said and left.

While he was gone, Ms. Ken Misaki looked at an ice sculpture in the room and spoke.

“He’s actually the one who made most of the original weapons in this academy,” she said.

“Seriously?” I half-joked.

“Yeah… though now he works alone.”

She lit a cigarette. I was amazed. Creating personalized weapons for so many students was insane.

What kind of brain does this guy have?

“It’s ready!” he called out.

I had been watching boring TV and almost fell asleep. The loud sound of the door opening woke me up.

He was holding a metal prosthetic arm.

It looked like something straight out of an anime. You could see the inner parts between the armor plates.

It was bigger than my old arm — a total upgrade. I felt excited.

“This was a powered arm I made five years ago for a girl. I modified it for battle. No one else needed it, so I fixed it up for you. Yep, I’m a genius!” he laughed like an old blacksmith.

“Can I try it on right now?”

I couldn’t take my eyes off it.

“Here. Wait, I need a computer to adjust the power output.”

He handed me the arm and went to get his laptop.

I couldn’t wait, so I tried attaching it.

It seemed to react to nerve signals in my arm.

“Let’s start,” he said.

He connected the arm to his computer and typed quickly

“Okay, try moving it.”

I imagined moving my old hand.

The prosthetic arm made a mechanical sound as it moved. Each finger joint moved too.

It was a little stiff but nothing serious.

“Whoa… this is so cool!”

It moved better than I expected.

“Now try holding this,” he said and handed me a soda can.

I grabbed it on the second try. It needed practice, but I’d get used to it.

“Perfect settings. Like I said, I’m a genius,” he nodded proudly.

I was genuinely impressed.

“Just so you know, the battery is in the elbow joint…”

(…To be continued.)