I'm still just a kid!

"Is whether blood can be used as hair dye really the point?"

Even the wax figure beside her felt that Himeko was focusing on something odd. "Just use blood to make Mao Xue Wang like you're supposed to, not coffee!"

"You're not much better!"

Both Himekos were acting a little scatterbrained, which only reinforced Taco's thinking.

Maybe Himeko wasn't some monster that ate a virgin boy and girl before and after all three meals a day, as the commentator had claimed, but a normal person he could actually talk to.

Himeko also realized that now wasn't a good time to research coffee. Her expression turned serious.

"Your assessment is somewhat biased, but I can accept that. Still, if you suspected I was highly dangerous, what made you approach me despite the risk?"

"Do you want the truth or a lie?"

There were separate options for that?

"My gut told me you couldn't be as vicious as they said."

"That certainly sounds like polite small talk, but if we're to continue this conversation, let's be honest with each other."

Himeko found the person before her rather interesting. She had no intention of attacking him and didn't mind chatting a little longer.

"I went to the bathroom, turned a corner, and accidentally ran into you. I was going to make a run for it, but after hearing your conversation, I figured you didn't really seem like some chainsaw killer. Maybe I could get you to carry me or something," Taco said, spreading his hands.

"Are you looking down on my mom?" Wax Himeko glared at him.

"How am I?"

"How is my mom not a chainsaw killer?! You just didn't see her chainsaw. One whirr, and she chopped a monster into such tiny pieces you couldn't even put it back together."

Himeko couldn't take much more and interrupted them.

"Um... could you change your appearance? Also, don't call me Mom."

Watching something that looked exactly like her bawl and throw tantrums on the floor, then point in people's faces and trade insults, was making it hard for Himeko to keep her composure.

"These are my factory settings. Nothing I can do. Please bear with me."

After a warning look from Himeko, Wax Himeko quietly shut her mouth and said no more.

Having disciplined the ill-behaved impostor, Himeko finally resumed her earlier conversation with Taco.

"Seeking strong assistance when faced with an unexpected situation is indeed a wise choice. As it happens, the Nameless aren't people who make enemies indiscriminately. What I mean is, of course you can."

"I can tell, Miss Himeko. You're truly an outstanding individual-gracious, refined, exceedingly modest, and immensely powerful. Getting to ride your coattails is such a blessing from my ancestors. I bet my ancestors up in heaven are kowtowing to Jesus so hard their foreheads are covered in bumps."

Seeing how easily he had persuaded Himeko, Taco breathed a sigh of relief and ordered every brain cell he had to think of anything he could say to praise her.

"...There's really no need to go that far."

Having a burly man covered in muscle appeal to her with tears and snot streaming down his face took Himeko quite a while to mentally prepare herself before she could accept the situation.

As she learned, Taco had summoned a Crazyracing Kartrider kart. It ran on solar power and had a fairly average speed. His guardian was also rather interesting: a pair of smart glasses.

The glasses had no combat capabilities whatsoever, but they could analyze the danger posed by targets within his field of view. They also had a built-in AI program that could serve as a real-time translator, play music like a speaker, and so on. Their range of functions was anything but ordinary.

"If you need it, I can play some seriously rousing background music while you fight."

Hearing that they could play music reminded Himeko of another contestant who could play rousing background music during battle.

"Do your glasses have a Stellaron in them too?"

"A Stellaron? What's that? Never mind, let me ask. String Bean, String Bean, what's a Stellaron?"

Why does everyone in the world use String Bean for their AI?! Does this thing actually give accurate answers?

Setting aside the somewhat idiotic built-in AI, the smart glasses were still very effective.

They could analyze enemies, spot details concealed in the dark, and even provide night vision. Himeko decided to rank them in the elite tier.

"Let's put your situation aside for now. Next, let's have a proper chat with this... what should I call you?"

Himeko turned toward Wax Himeko behind her, and Wax Himeko said solemnly,

"Since I'm Himeko too, and a fake at that, why not call me Fake Hime..."

Before she could finish, an ice-cold wrench came flying over and smashed into her head, knocking half of it away.

"Ah-how heartless! You can even strike your own face without a moment's hesitation!"

That wrench blow left Wax Himeko unrecognizable. Although Himeko was still smiling, Taco could clearly see her current state through his smart glasses.

[Target: Himeko, contestant from China, danger level five. The target is suppressing her anger. If you insist on making an enemy of her, remember to prepare a coffin first. Or perhaps you won't need one, since whether your corpse will remain intact is another question.]

Taco turned his gaze toward the wax figure with half her head missing.

[Target: Himeko?, danger level three. Preliminary scan indicates a friendly target with no hostile intent. Finding a friendly target in a place like this? You really lucked out.]

Taco didn't know what a danger level five being was like, but he had picked up a map from a newsstand earlier, and the glasses could analyze the dangers in each area.

The highest was the haunted house in a corner of the park, marked as danger level three. The lowest was the Wax Museum, whose danger level was a question mark.

"No danger level? That means no danger!"-and so Taco had swaggered into the Wax Museum and enjoyed a thoroughly satisfying bathroom break.

"Since you haven't done anything too out of line, I can give you another chance. Answer my questions properly."

Another wrench appeared in Himeko's hand.

"Why would anyone carry so many wrenches around?!"

"Unexpected situations always come up when repairing the train, and you're bound to lose a few tools while running away. Bringing a few spares saves me from having to keep going to the hardware store."

"I also like saving money on protein powder so I can buy protein powder." Taco nodded repeatedly in agreement.

"I don't think you're talking about the same thing. Also, I think you need a neurologist," Wax Himeko said quietly.

"Mind your manners," Himeko stressed. "Tell me your true identity, or I may have to resort to force."

The Monomolecular Saw in Himeko's hand slowly began spinning again. Realizing that neither throwing tantrums nor acting cute and wheedling would work, the wax figure finally ran out of options and confessed everything.

"One moment we're a loving mother and dutiful daughter, and the next we're at each other's throats. How cold and heartless."

The Monomolecular Saw roared-

"Wait! I'll talk! I'll get straight to the point! After a visitor enters the Wax Museum, the Wax Museum reads their memories and creates a wax figure that looks exactly like them. Aside from their appearance, the wax figure's behavior and way of thinking are also similar to those of the corresponding visitor!"

"And the reason we exist is to kill our corresponding visitors. You know how it is, we've all got KPIs to meet. Come to think of it, how long has it even been since I was born? Two hours? I'm still child labor. For the sake of the kid I still am, please spare me!"