Mercenary Sisters ch1

No need to be nervous.

Your knee's a little stretched out.
Bend it a little more.
L-
Like this?

That's right.
Fu.

Okay, give it a shot.
Watch out for the recoil.
R-
Right.
...This is...

p2-3

Aim carefully.

Fire!

M Country Disputed Zone Military Base

Shooting Range

Nice work.

You hit all the targets.
Not bad for your time.
You think so, Mizusaki-san?

As an amateur with no experience...
that I've been tasked with training,
you've gone beyond my expectations.
You're amazing, Rinko.

G-Glad to hear it.
Okay.
Onto the next one.
Eh?
Already?

Um... Could I maybe take a short break?
My hands are a little numb from the recoil.
Ah, I see.

Give them here a moment.

I'll give you a light massage.
No, you don't have to.
I can do it myself.
Bit close.

blush

Just let me.

...Well, you are just a beginner.
You should keep this in mind as you at advance.

Tell me right away if something feels off.
We don't want you developing nerve pain.

R-Right.

They feel lighter now.
Okay, next one.
Ooh...

I'll teach you the basics of one-hand shooting.
We're gonna go through all of them by the end of today.
Eh?
Aren't we cramming a little too much in one day?

Don't worry.
I know you can do it, Rinko.

We gotta get you quickly used
to handling a real weapon.
That's right.

p10

R-
Right...
This isn't a toy like back then.

One month ago, Shibuya, Tokyo.

Thank you very much.

Next customer, please~

Um, sir?
Please no cutting in line.
Huuh!?
I'm in a hurry sir.
Ah, Mr. Clerk.

p11

Don't worry about me.
He's in a hurry, right?

Please, go ahead.

Tch.
That goes without saying, you lazy brat.

Let busy people go ahead of you in line.
I'm such a good girl... 100 points!
This gets dangerous people to back down.

p12

Don't cause trouble.
Don't get too involved with others.
That's my fundamental stance for living a peaceful life.

You lazy brat.

Phew~
That was good.
Now then, today I think I'll...

...Kinda close, isn't she?
But...

p13

She's got pretty hair...
Nice figure too.
I bet her face is pretty too.

Hm?

Eh?

Wh-
What is it...!?

p15

...Hey.

Could you lend me
that plastic bag?

...She's...

p16

She's absolutely gorgeous...
Beyond my imagination.
Y-You mean this?

Urp...
I got travel sick on the bus.
I think I'm gonna barf.

A-Are you okay?

Dead~

What kinda situation is this?

Diagram of looking after a pretty stranger who's about to hurl first thing in the morning.

p17

Should I go buy you some water?
Hehe
Phew~
It's fine. I think I managed to hold it back.
Do the buses here make her that sick...?

...Are you doing a photo shoot or something?

Eh?
Ah... Sorry if I guess wrong.
You're really pretty, so I thought you were a model or something.

Ahaha
Is that a compliment? Thanks.
But you're wrong.

p18

I'm a mercenary.

...A mercenary?

I'd better get going.
Thanks. You were a lifesaver.
Ah... Sure. Take care now.

A mercenary... Like the ones who go to war and stuff?
It did look like she had a scar on her face.
Maybe she's an actress who's in character?

p19

Well, either way,

she's from a completely different world to the one I live in.

Fufu
But I'm a good girl for helping others today!
100 points!
Okay.
I'd better get going too.

p20

8am - Part-time job as a mover.
Good morning~
Where should I carry these?

Are you okay? Aren't those heavy?
I'm pretty confident in my stamina.

12pm - Relocate / eat lunch
Good work~

1pm - Delivery
Got a delivery here~

2pm - Part-time job cleaning buildings

Good morning, Rinko-san.
Good work today, Kubota-san.

Weren't you working somewhere else first thing in the morning today?
Yes.
How many jobs do you have going on again?

p21

There's this, moving, the convenience store, delivery and construction.
Occassionally I'm also a specialist cleaner, clinical worker, model house receptionist, wedding applauder and...
You're like an illustrated job encyclopedia.
Don't overdo it, okay?

5:30 pm - Relocate / eat dinner

6pm - Part-time job at izakaya

Rin

Three more drafts coming up~!!

Thanks for waiting.
You should drink with us too, missy.
I can't since I'm underaged.

Who decided that~!?
It's the law.
This is my world.

p22

In the year since I moved to Tokyo, I've taken on so many jobs
that I end the day totally worn out.
I'm home.

16 hours of work today... Not bad.
Phew~
I helped a lot of people all day, so I'd call that a good day.

...Ah,
come to think of it...

what is a mercenary

p23

Mercenaries
are soldiers hired by foreign armies or other armed organizations to take part in battle.
In the modern era, there are "soldiers for hire" who do various jobs for private military companies.
That sure is grim.
Prettty much exactly as I pictured it...
Ooh...

So that woman really was a soldier?
I can't picture it at all...
A pretty woman like her doing that.

We really do live in different worlds.

p24

Eh?

ArmorLink Inc.
Now recruiting mercenaries

Positions in South East Asia.
Pays daily.
They off merc jobs just like that?

It's like the part-time jobs around here...
...Come to think of it,

I'm pretty confident in my stamina.
I can move right away after 3-4 hours of sleep.
I'm pretty good with my fingers too.

Apply

p25

Could I be fit for mercenary work?
If I apply to be a mercenary,

I could go somewhere far away where nobody knows who I am.

...No.
Fu

What am I thinking...?
Not happening. I don't even have a passport.
Let's go take a shower.

p26

I'm just escaping reality.

Even now, I'm driving myself to work over 12 hours a day.
I guess that's kinda like escape reality...

Erm, this delivery
is for Shibuya SY 2nd Building... an office on the top floor.
It should be around here...

...Wait.

p27

...It's here!?
Eh?

The name seems to be right.

The elevator's not working.

Eeh~...?

p28

...

It looks abandoned.
Surely this is the wrong place...
But it did say it was this building...

p29

This is the top floor.
There's nobody here.

Um, hello?
Is anybody there?
...

Hah
...I should head back.

p30

...Eh?

p31

A knife?

What? Why?
Eh?
Somebody

is approaching you with the intent to attack.

You have no weapon.
What will you do?

It's a dangerous person.

p32

I gotta run!!

A wise decision.

!!

p33

...Ng!

Hah Hah Hah
Who was that? What's going on here?

A killer? A human trafficker?
Calm down. Calm down.
Hah hah
This isn't the time for thinking.
I need to call the cops.

Hah
Gotta call-

p34

Eh?

p35

Such a shame.

You had 100 points up until midway,
but you ended with 0 points by a slim margin.

Hah
How

did they get behind me...
Any last words?

Ah, that thing they say before they kill you.
What do I do?
I thought I'd be fine with dying any time, but...

p36

I really don't want to die right now after all.
Hey, wait...

Hm?

Huh?

I am so sorry!

p37

I'm Mizusaki Nagisa from the private military company ArmorLink.

I'm really sorry
for getting you involved in that test just now.

ArmorLink Inc.
Now recruiting mercenaries

Haha...
That place that was hiring.

So she's from that company...
Aah... I can't believe I did that to a civilian.
This is exactly why I said we should stop doing tests like this...

Hah~
Not to mention they put me in charge of recruitment cos I said I was returning to Japan.
They're really screwing with me...
U-Um, don't worry about me.
Sounds like you have it rough.

Also... thank you again for yesterday.
If you find any injuries later, you can call me via the number on that card.
Well then...
Um...

p38

You said I had 100 points up until midway but ended up with 0 by a slim margin.
What did you mean by that?

None of your concern.

You're an outsider,
so there's no need for you to know.

But...
Also, this is the 3rd building.
If you're looking for the 2nd building, it's next door.

Dilapidated drop

Eh?
Ah, my work!

[tn: The kanji for 3, 三, looks like a 2, 二, with the middle line taken out.]

Wah...

p39

Hah
Well that was an eventful day.
I've got a cleaning job first thing tomorrow.
I'll wake up at 5am.

None of my concern... huh.
Don't get too involved with others.
That's a neccessity to give myself 100 points.

But...

Hey, did you know?
Rinko-chan apparently working as a middle school graduate.

p40

I heard it from one of the employees.
She sure is taking on a lot of part-time work for someone who's only 16.
What are her parents doing?
Wouldn't they normally send her to high school in this day and age?

Indeed. I guess
she's what society would call a dropout.

Good morning!
Kya!
Man~ I overslept and got here just now.
A-Ah, I see.
Phew

I had to skip breakfast so I think I'll splash out for lunch.
Maybe I'll get a beef bowl!
Ah, to be young.
Ahaha.
That's good. Eat plenty, okay?

Okay, I'll go clean the toilets.

p41

I didn't ruin the mood.
100 points.

Don't get too involved with others.

Even if I give myself 100 points,
they can be deducted as easy as that.

p42

Such a shame.

You had 100 points up until midway,
but you ended with 0 points by a slim margin.

Come to think of it,
that woman...

...Seriously, this is the last day I'm doing these interviews.

This is the 3rd building

Why...?
I didn't come back to Japan to do interviews.

At any rate...

p43

...The arrangement's different.

There shouldn't have been anyone but me and the applicant since yesterday.

p44

Who...!!

!!

p45

Wah...

...Consider me surprised.

p46

We meet again.
Did you forget something?

No.
I'm here to apply as a mercenary.

...You?
I made sure to send in an application beforehand.

p47

I'm a middle school grad working part-time jobs.
From society's point of view, I'm an idiot dropout who's worth 0 points.

That's why I don't get too involved with others.
The only one who can give me 100 points is me.
Or so I thought.

But back then, I didn't know why you gave me 100 points

only to suddenly give me 0 points.
It was my first time not knowing.

p48

Can someone like me
still get 100 points from someone?

p49

Please tell me.
I'm a prospective mercenary,
so I'm no longer an outsider, right?

...

...The reason I gave you 100 points

is because you went straight to securing a path of retreat instead of opposing me recklessly.
The reason I gave you 0 points
is because you failed to consider that room was actually one big room and got yourself caught.

p50

My ratings system is simple.
On the battlefield, you get 100 points if you life and 0 points if you die.

That's all there is to it.

I see.

p51

There are people who'll look at me
with a ratings system as simple as that.

Well,
with that said, you get 0 points today too.
I wasn't expecting a surprise attack, though.
Pfft.

Ahaha.
Well, I figured a frontal attack wouldn't work.
Wait, 0 points again!?

Then please let me keep trying until I get 100 points!!

p52-53

...I see.
An unusual form of motivation, but not a bad one.

Someone like you might actually stand a chance on the battlefield.

You pass, Isumi Rinko.

If you want 100 points,

p54

then show me you can survive alongside me on the battlefield.
...And thus began
my like as a mercenary.

The fate of two women who were never supposed to have met begins to move.

Warning