"Inujiro is so well-behaved. Although it's a stray dog, it never hurts people… It must be that you guys deliberately taken advantage of it, which is why you got bitten. You deserved it!"
The middle-aged woman stomped her foot and cursed.
"That's right." The little boy beside the middle-aged woman echoed, "The dog's stray life is already so hard, and you still want to hurt it. That's too cruel."
"You, you're talking nonsense!"
Hearing their indiscriminate favoritism and accusations, even the good-tempered Tsubame couldn't help but clench her fists, feeling a surge of anger blocking her chest, wanting to hit someone.
"Tsubame-senpai, take it easy."
Natsuki gently squeezed Tsubame's fingers, signaling her to calm down, then whispered:
"Did you receive a side quest notification just now?"
"Hoo…"
Tsubame exhaled softly and whispered:
"I received the quest notification."
Natsuki pressed his brow and pondered:
"Then we need to come up with a 'win-win' solution."
The content of the side quest seemed simple: one was to drive away the vicious dog, and the other was to make the dog-headed mother and son in front of them truly convinced.
Driving away a vicious dog was simple; Natsuki could do it with ease.
But making someone truly accept the situation—and agree with it—was incredibly difficult.
As everyone knows, true mutual understanding between people is impossible.
On certain issues, the gap between people can be even wider than the gap between a human and a dog.
This is especially true regarding the treatment of stray animals; even in the real world, it sparks fierce conflict between opposing sides. Trying to make a malevolent spirit within the instance truly accept the situation... well, the difficulty level was nothing short of "Hell Mode."
Just as Natsuki was considering his next move, the middle-aged woman launched another verbal barrage:
"Every life deserves equal treatment. Just because you don't like dogs doesn't give you the right to deliberately hurt one."
Tsubame couldn't hold back her indignation:
"We made it very clear: that dog attacked us first."
"Impossible!" the middle-aged woman flatly denied. "Dogs are so well-behaved; how could it possibly attack you? You must hate dogs and provoked it on purpose, forcing it to defend itself. You're just selfish! If you treated the dog as an equal, it would see you as a friend and never attack you!"
A girl standing behind the upperclassman couldn't help but interject:
"Have you ever been bitten by a mosquito?"
The middle-aged woman replied casually:
"Of course I have."
The girl shot back:
"If treating things as equals—like you said—prevents attacks, why did the mosquito bite you?"
"And even though only a few mosquitoes actually bit you, why do you try to swat every single one you see?"
"Besides, male mosquitoes don't drink blood; only females do, and they only do it to lay eggs—they're practically 'heroic' mothers. Why don't you treat mosquitoes equally?"
The middle-aged woman looked at her as if she were an alien:
"What kind of nonsense are you spouting? How can you compare a mosquito to a dog?"
The girl couldn't help but retort:
"Why can't they be compared? Aren't they both living creatures?"
"Of course not," the woman said, as if it were obvious. "Mosquitoes are so annoying; how could they possibly be as cute as a dog?"
What a shameless double standard! So, your standard for "all creatures living in equality" is actually just whether or not they're cute? Cute animals get to coexist, while the ugly ones have to be wiped out entirely—is that it?
Tsubame couldn't help but speak up:
"If you really love dogs, you should adopt it and take it home, not leave it to wander the streets."
"Absolutely not," the middle-aged woman refused, shaking her head immediately. "Dogs like to chew on things; what if it ruins my furniture?"
Tsubame: "..."
"Senpai, let it go."
Natsuki reached out and pulled his senior behind him, his expression calm as he said:
"Leave the rest to me."
People can never truly understand one another; trying to persuade someone with opposing views through mere words is a pipe dream. You could talk until you were blue in the face, and they still wouldn't change their minds.
In a situation like this, there is only one way to "persuade" the other party...
"Come here."
Natsuki looked at the vicious dog hiding behind the middle-aged woman and smiled, extending his right hand.
Resting in his palm was an ordinary-looking rice ball.
"Huh?"
Tsubame was startled the moment she saw the rice ball, but she quickly realized what Natsuki intended to do.
That's right.
The item Natsuki had produced was a "Momotaro" rice ball.
It looked unremarkable and held no particular appeal for humans, but it possessed an irresistible allure for animals. Upon catching the scent of the rice ball, the vicious dog grew agitated and wanted to lunge forward.
However, the kick Natsuki had delivered earlier had left a deep psychological scar; the dog was terrified of him and dared not approach, yet it couldn't resist the temptation of the rice ball, leaving it to pace back and forth while whimpering.
"What are you doing?"
The middle-aged woman asked, frowning. Natsuki spoke with a serious expression:
"After hearing what you said, ma'am, I've had a change of heart. Humans and animals really ought to live in harmony, so I'm taking out my own dinner to feed the dog."
The little boy beside the middle-aged woman piped up noisily:
"Who knows if that rice ball you pulled out is even safe? It might give the dog a stomachache."
"Exactly," the woman agreed. "People who show uncalled-for kindness are usually up to no good—thieves or worse. You two are in cahoots; you definitely have bad intentions."
Amamiya calmly raised the rice ball to his lips, took a bite, and said:
"Say that again—will it give someone a stomachache?"
"..."
The woman finally fell silent.
"Here."
Amamiya didn't tease the dog; he simply tossed the rice ball into the air.
Whoosh.
The vicious dog couldn't hold back; it turned into a black blur, leapt up, and snatched the rice ball in one bite.
As the rice ball went down, its affinity for him shot up rapidly.
Amamiya reached into his pocket, pulled out another rice ball, and whistled:
"Come here."
With the affinity boost in effect, the vicious dog was no longer afraid of Amamiya; it wagged its tail and happily trotted over.
However, Amamiya didn't feed it the rice ball right away; instead, he turned and summoned Yuuko, the human-faced dog.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Yuuko asked, looking thoroughly annoyed. "I was right at the best part of my manga. Dragging me out like this is seriously infuriating."
"Huh? Huh? Huh?"
Upon seeing the human-faced dog, the girl passing by was startled and let out an involuntary gasp.
It had the body of a dog but the face of a beautiful young girl; in terms of sheer creepiness, it was far more terrifying than the vicious dog.
"Don't be nervous," the upperclassman said, holding the girl's arm and speaking softly. "I'll explain later... just know that Yuuko is our ally."
The girl swallowed hard and nodded nervously.
A vicious dog with a young girl's face... it's an evil spirit, isn't it?
It definitely is! To think they'd actually call an evil spirit a "companion"—what kind of player had I run into?
Natsuki looked at the Human-Faced Dog and said softly:
"Yuiko, I need a favor. I want you to translate a sentence into 'dog language' and tell it to this dog."
"What are you talking about?" The Human-Faced Dog was instantly enraged. "I'm a human! I don't speak dog!"
Natsuki remained unfazed:
"After we get back, you can pick any five items you want from Amazon."
"Don't underestimate me." Human-Faced Dog Yuiko lifted her chin, her gaze fierce. "...I want ten!"
Natsuki said calmly:
"Deal."
"..."
The deal was struck.
Natsuki took out his notebook, wrote a sentence on the paper, and held it out to Human-Faced Dog Yuiko.
To be safe, he wrote the message down rather than saying it aloud, ensuring the middle-aged woman wouldn't overhear.
"Huh?"
After reading the text, Human-Faced Dog Yuiko immediately looked excited:
"You're so evil."
Taking the payment meant doing the job; Human-Faced Dog Yuiko sidled up to the vicious dog. The oppressive aura radiating from her—an entity of urban legend caliber—kept the vicious dog from daring to move a muscle.
"Woof, woof, woof..."
Human-Faced Dog Yuiko relayed Natsuki's request in dog language.
"Done." Moments later, Human-Faced Dog Yuiko trotted back and whispered, "Give me a rice ball as a down payment first."
Natsuki nodded slightly, recalled Human-Faced Dog Yuiko to the Theater, and casually tossed the rice ball he was holding.
The vicious dog instantly leapt up and snatched the rice ball out of the air. Although its affinity didn't rise as dramatically as it had the first time, it was still high enough; not only did its tail wag furiously like a propeller, but it even rolled onto its back to expose its belly, making soft, whimpering sounds of invitation.
"That rice ball is incredible, isn't it?"
The bystander girl's eyes widened. The terrifying, ferocious dog that had looked ready to tear someone apart just moments ago was now rolling on the ground, exposing its belly and acting cute; the drastic change was almost too much to process. Natsuki clapped his hands, then took the upperclassman's delicate hand in his and turned around, saying:
"Let's go."
"Okay."
Tsubame agreed immediately without asking a single question, placing absolute trust in Natsuki.
The passing girl snapped out of her daze and hurriedly followed; she certainly didn't dare stay behind alone.
Seeing Natsuki leave, the vicious dog instinctively rose and took a few steps after him before remembering the earlier command; it then turned around and walked toward the middle-aged woman.
"How did you end up as a sanitation worker?"
Natsuki asked with a smile.
Tsubame gave a playful, feigned scold: "You turned into a security guard yourself, didn't you? ...Oh, right, this is Ms. Ami, who works with me. She's a player too; we got lucky and spawned at the same waste collection site."
"Hello." The girl hurriedly bowed; she showed no disrespect despite Natsuki's youth, saying respectfully, "I look forward to working with you."
Natsuki nodded:
"Hello, Ms. Ami."
"..."
Among players, age is meaningless; strength is the only standard that matters.
Natsuki had effortlessly subdued the vicious dog, proving his strength, so the other player naturally wouldn't dare look down on him in the slightest.
After a brief exchange, Natsuki stopped, turned to look behind them, and said softly:
"It's about time."
"Huh?"
The girl turned her head in confusion, muttering to herself:
"There's nothing behind us at all..."
The next second.
The sound of a vicious mauling and a woman's scream rang out simultaneously.
"That sound is..."
The girl's eyes widened as an unbelievable guess formed in her mind.
"Let's go back."
Natsuki took the lead and started walking toward the back.
The upperclassman followed without a moment's hesitation, while the passerby player, snapping out of her daze, hurriedly tagged along, filled with curiosity.
Rounding a cluster of bushes, the three of them were confronted with a gruesome scene.
A vicious dog had knocked a middle-aged woman to the ground and was relentlessly mauling her; the ground was littered with torn flesh and splattered with blood.
The woman struggled desperately to push the animal off, but she was no match for it; meanwhile, the young boy, showing no intention of saving his mother, had nervously hidden himself some distance away.
"Help... help me!"
Upon seeing Natsuki and the others appear, the woman hurriedly cried out for help.
Natsuki stopped in his tracks and asked:
"Ma'am, did you beat a stray dog?"
"I didn't!" the woman screamed as she struggled. "I just petted the dog—who knew it would suddenly snap at me... The dog has gone mad; kill it, quick!"
"Impossible."
Natsuki's expression turned serious as he stated firmly:
"Dogs are such well-behaved creatures; how could it possibly attack you? You must dislike dogs and deliberately provoked it first, forcing it to strike back in self-defense. Am I right?"
"..."
Having her own words thrown right back at her, the woman was left speechless, her eyes wide with shock; for a moment, she even forgot to scream.
Natsuki continued:
"I recall you saying earlier that if one treats dogs as equals, they view us as good friends and won't attack. So, please—try winning it over with love."
"..."
So satisfying!
Tsubame clenched her small fists and let out a breath of relief, feeling all the pent-up frustration in her chest vanish.
The passerby player stared in astonishment; although there was no concrete proof, there was no doubt in her mind—this absurd spectacle was undoubtedly Natsuki's handiwork. "Save... save me!" the middle-aged woman screamed as she rolled on the ground. "It's a mad dog—there's no way to tame it!"
Natsuki spoke unhurriedly:
"So, what method would you like me to use to save you?"
"Beat that mad dog to death!" the woman shouted without hesitation, her voice full of spite. "Break its legs, then skin it alive!"
Tsubame, arms crossed over her chest, couldn't help but remark:
"...That is such a double standard."
The bystander girl nodded in agreement:
"It really leaves you speechless."
When a stray dog bites someone else, people preach about cherishing strays, viewing the situation rationally, and using love and justice to tame them—insisting that every animal has a right to exist on Earth.
But the moment a stray bites them—or their child—they instantly turn into a demon, wishing they could skin and dismember the animal just to vent their rage.
Every life certainly deserves respect, but that respect isn't shown merely by paying lip service while remaining detached; only by taking concrete action and contributing can one truly claim that right.
Seeing that the situation had reached a turning point, Natsuki took out a security guard's baton and stepped forward, making a show of driving the animal away.
Upon seeing Amamiya approach, the vicious stray immediately abandoned the woman, tucked its tail between its legs, and bolted out of the residential complex in a flash.
At the same time, a mission notification appeared before all three of them:
[Side Quest 'Vicious Dog' Completed. Rewards will be issued upon clearing the scenario.]
"Wait, wait—the quest is already done?"
The bystander girl looked on in disbelief.
In her limited experience clearing scenarios, she had encountered side quests before, but they were always incredibly difficult; to date, she hadn't managed to complete a single one.
Yet here she was—having done absolutely nothing but follow Natsuki and the upperclassman around for a bit—and she had actually completed a side quest?
She quickly snapped out of her daze and gazed at Natsuki's retreating figure, her eyes sparkling.
This guy was clearly the real deal!
"Senpai, let's go."
Natsuki took hold of his senior's delicate hand and turned to leave without a moment's hesitation.
The side quest was already complete; there was no need to spare another glance at the middle-aged woman lying on the ground, drenched in blood. After all, she had to take responsibility for her own actions—specifically, for petting a dog she shouldn't have.
One wonders, though, if she'll still be able to spout platitudes about "winning them over with love" the next time she encounters a stray dog.
Once they reached a secluded spot, Amamiya asked curiously:
"I didn't get a chance to ask earlier—what was your main quest, Senpai?"
Tsubame tucked a lock of hair that had fallen across her chest behind her ear and spoke softly:
"After entering the instance, I found myself wearing a cleaner's uniform, and my main quest was related to that role... I had to sort and collect the residential complex's trash according to the regulations."
The random girl nearby chimed in:
"My main quest was the cleaner role, too."
Tsubame continued:
"Since I didn't know where everyone else was, I decided to check the quest difficulty first and came over with Ami-san to collect the trash. But just as we finished up, we ran into that vicious dog. It's a good thing you showed up, Natsuki-kun—otherwise, we would have been in real trouble..."
Had he simply abandoned the random girl and left, there wouldn't have been any trouble at all; however, given his senior's personality, she wouldn't have been able to flee alone, even if the other person was a total stranger.
"By the way, what was your main quest, Natsuki-kun?"
Tsubame asked curiously. Natsuki tugged at his security guard uniform and said:
"Senior is a cleaner, and I'm the residential complex's security guard—a match made in heaven. The mission is simple, too: just play the role well and help the residents with whatever issues arise."
A faint blush rose on Tsubame's lovely face; she couldn't help but roll her eyes at him before asking softly:
"Do you think Chika and the others are in the complex too?"
Natsuki shook his head:
"Unfortunately, no."
"Huh?"
Natsuki raised his right hand, his little finger twitching slightly, and said:
"Right after entering the instance, I used the red thread to sense their location. Chika is outside the complex... Clearly, the instance isn't limited to just this residential area; the space outside is part of the scenario as well."
"Hmm..." Tsubame blinked and pursed her lips. "That makes sense. In the Summer Time Rendering instance, the playable area was as vast as an entire island."
"An—an entire island?!"
The passerby player couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
As a player who had joined the Bureau, she understood the basic rules of instances—namely, that a larger playable area usually meant a higher difficulty level.
To think the two people before her had cleared a scenario the size of an island... Just what kind of god-tier teammates had she run into?