A normal fight and Good Device

Two people left the supermarket as dusk approached, and the gentle rays of the setting sun spread, enveloping the entire city in a beautiful golden glow.

Tetsuya and Gabriel walked side by side on the sidewalk, as the evening drew near, a cool breeze blew, causing Gabriel's beautiful flaxen long hair to gently sway, and the cold air made her shiver and huddle closer.

Suddenly, their gazes were met with the curious looks of passersby. Tetsuya looked around and felt that the onlookers' gaze had turned strange.

Hey, I have no relationship with her!

Tetsuya waved his hand, but his explanation seemed to have no effect. At this time, couples were strolling together, and since he and Gabriel were walking side by side, the pedestrians' hostile stares made it seem as if he should take off his clothes and put them on Gabriel. It felt like any moment someone might aggressively confront him.

Do I still want to bring happiness to others all day?

Gabriel's response made Tetsuya somewhat amused and exasperated. He sighed and took off his black school uniform. Underneath, he wore a fitted t-shirt. With his physique, this weather had no effect on him. After all, he had been taking cold showers at home for the past few days.

"Here, take this. You look better in it than me." Seeing Tetsuya handing over the school uniform, Gabriel was slightly startled. She looked at his upper body, which was now only wearing a t-shirt, and blinked with a concerned expression, "Schoolmate Tetsuya, you should put it on. I'm fine."

"Take it, I don't really feel the cold in this weather." Tetsuya rolled his eyes and said. If he didn't put it on, he would become the public enemy of the pedestrians.

"Thank you very much, Schoolmate Tetsuya!"

Gabriel gratefully received the school uniform Tetsuya handed to her and put it on. She expressed her thanks with a polite bow. Her petite figure made Tetsuya's clothes look like a coat on her, hanging down to her knees, effectively warding off the cold.

"Woo... Mom, Mom..."

Soon, Tetsuya and Gabriel passed by a park, where they suddenly heard the sound of a child crying. Gabriel immediately ran over after hearing the sound, and Tetsuya could only follow and enter the park. In the center of the park stood a young boy, about five or six years old, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Little friend, what's wrong?" Gabriel walked up to him, crouched down, and asked in a gentle voice.

"I can't find my mom..." the young boy sobbed.

"Well..." Gabriel pursed her lips, thinking for a moment. She smiled with a gentle voice and said, "If we leave now, your mom might not be able to find us. Would you like your big sister to stay here and wait for your mom to come back?"

As she said these words, Gabriel squatted in the center of the park, basking in the golden afterglow of the setting sun, her smiling face covered in a holy light. The scene seemed to exude a healing aura and bring happiness to people.

The young boy's sobs gradually stopped as he looked at Gabriel's beautiful face, which appeared like a pure angel. He said innocently, "Big sister, you're so pretty. You look like a real angel..."

Regardless of one's age, being praised feels good. Gabriel immediately smiled happily and sincerely thanked him, "Thank you for your kind words, little friend."

Can't you be a little more modest?

Tetsuya rolled his eyes and turned around. Coincidentally, at that moment, near the park entrance, two puppies were joyfully playing, with a black puppy lying on top of a white one.

Tetsuya suddenly felt a tug on his finger. The young boy had quietly come up behind him, with a puzzled look on his face as he pointed at the two puppies in the park, asking, "Big brother, what are they doing?"

Tetsuya's face showed an awkward expression. Although he had been a senior driver before and knew exactly what the puppies were doing, he couldn't blatantly talk about it in front of others, especially in front of a child. Tetsuya pondered for a moment, then coughed and earnestly replied, "They are playing!"

"Playing!" The child nodded thoughtfully.

Upon hearing the conversation between the two, Gabriel couldn't help but smile. She had studied biology in high school, so she knew it was perfectly normal. However, her laughter seemed to be teasing Tetsuya, who turned to glare at Gabriel and gritted his teeth, saying, "Why are you laughing? Do you want to fight?"

Hearing Tetsuya's words, Gabriel's face turned red, and she shyly lowered her head.

Ahem, scared you, didn't I? Do you really think I wouldn't dare to talk openly? Don't you want to bully me?

In a little while, a young woman hurriedly walked over, and the young boy ran excitedly to her, calling out, "Mom!"

When the young woman saw her son running towards her, her eyes welled up with tears. She expressed her gratitude and told Tetsuya and Gabriel their address, inviting them to visit whenever they had free time, before leaving the park with her son.

Tetsuya and Gabriel crossed the street, where cherry blossoms danced in the air, and arrived at the entrance of Gabriel's house.

"Thank you so much, Schoolmate Tetsuya. Not only for lending me your clothes, but also for waiting with me in the park for so long." Gabriel took off the clothes and handed them back to Tetsuya, bowing slightly to express her gratitude.

"You're welcome. I also wanted to help that child."

Tetsuya smiled lightly and accepted the clothes. Despite everything, Gabriel's kind heart was admirable.

"Goodbye, Schoolmate Tetsuya!"

After saying goodbye, Gabriel's eyes flashed with a hint of panic. She almost turned and ran up the stairs, rushing to the entrance of her own apartment. She took out her key, unlocked the door, and quickly entered her room, with the sound of a locked door and a closed window.

Watching Gabriel quickly escape into her room, Tetsuya stood there dumbfounded, as if he had just witnessed something frightening.

If there was a mirror in front of me, would I really look that scary?

Are you really Aqua? Do I really have to fight with you?

This fake angel is too pure, isn't she?

Tetsuya smiled bitterly. Due to the proximity of Gabriel's apartment to his own, just across a small street, Tetsuya went across the street and arrived at his own front gate. Tomorrow would be Saturday, and he needed to go to the E-Mule Library headquarters to submit a piece of writing with Aki. So he needed to reduce the number of symbols he used tonight.

Tomorrow, he had to submit a total of 100,000 characters. Even though he had reached 100,000 characters, he would still edit it down to about 30,000 characters before signing. Many book editors would judge a book based on a single glance. Even if he submitted 1 million characters, it wouldn't make much of a difference. It was better to have a strong opening with just three impressive chapters.

Tetsuya entered his apartment building and, as usual, shouted, "Okay, little sister, I'll prepare the food quickly."

Almost every day, the same thing would happen. Tetsuya had grown used to it. He called out to his little sister from the building entrance, then went upstairs, placing his book bag in his room. He then entered the kitchen, washed his hands, and put the food he had bought in the refrigerator. He started preparing the meal for Sagiri. Today's menu consisted of golden fried rice and green pepper shredded beef. Under Tetsuya's skillful cooking, both dishes were completed in no time.

As the aroma of the dishes filled the air, golden rays seemed to radiate from the food.

[Golden fried rice: 90 points!] [Green pepper shredded beef: 90 points!]

Receiving the information from the system, Tetsuya smiled. The green pepper shredded beef he made using the fresh ingredients he had just bought and his cooking skills earned a solid 90 points. It wasn't a coincidence.

Tetsuya divided the meal into two portions and placed Sagiri's portion together with the between-meal snacks he had bought. These were Sagiri's treats.

"Sagiri, the meal is ready. I've placed it at your spot."

Thump thump!

He heard the sound of knocking on the floor inside the building. In Tetsuya's ears, it seemed to say, "I know."

Are you hurrying me to leave the dining area?

Tetsuya sighed inwardly.

Touching a sore spot, my little sister!

However, Tetsuya knew that if he didn't leave, Sagiri wouldn't come out of her room. He could only sigh and head downstairs, carrying his own dinner, and return to his room.

Feeling safe and without anything to do, Tetsuya turned on his computer to read today's news. And, by chance, he came across an article that caught his attention because he saw the name Yuuki Asuna mentioned in it!

______________________________

The world's attention is focused on the official release of "SAO" in Akihabara, a large-scale game jointly developed by various countries' manufacturers, which will be sold by a major electronics manufacturer tomorrow. Tonight, the CEO of RECT, Yuuki Shouzou, will lead the company's high-level officials, including his daughter, Yuuki Asuna, in a sales ceremony held in Tokyo.

As Tetsuya read the news titles on the homepage, memories of his involvement in the community activities came rushing back. They had discussed the preparations for playing "SAO," a game that was said to have 70% hyper-realistic graphics, created by Nishimura Hideki, a high school student. The game had gained a reputation of being god-like, and Tetsuya couldn't resist the urge to try it out.

He clicked on the news article, and what appeared before him were pictures of Yuuki Asuna and Yuuki Shouzou. Today, Yuuki Asuna looked different from her usual schoolgirl style. She was wearing a white evening dress, her beautiful blonde hair flowing down her back, and a touch of pale makeup on her delicate cheeks. She exuded an ethereal charm, resembling a pristine princess at the conference. Standing beside her was her father, RECT's CEO, Yuuki Shouzou.

"No wonder Yuuki Asuna took a break from school activities. Who would have thought she was attending the 'SAO' release party? Her life is truly different from that of an ordinary girl."

Tetsuya sighed inwardly. He wasn't particularly fond of sales events like this. Perhaps it was because he had been in seclusion for so long, and his thoughts and interests diverged from those of typical social butterflies.

Damn social butterflies, they make me explode!

At that moment, Tetsuya felt a vibration in his pocket. He quickly took out his cell phone and saw that Aki was calling.

"Could it be about the E-Mule Library matter tomorrow?"

Tetsuya pressed the answer button, and immediately, Aki's voice came through.

"Tetsuya, can we go to Akihabara and visit the E-Mule Library center tomorrow?"

"Akihabara? Are we also going there to buy the 'SAO' game device?"

Suddenly remembering the game's release tomorrow, Tetsuya couldn't help but ask. "Do you also want to rush to Akihabara to buy the game device that 'SAO' is selling?"

Considering their friendship, they had started calling each other by their first names.

"Do you know about it too?"

Aki's tone sounded surprised. "Tetsuya, are you also interested in playing the game?"

"I came across it by chance," Tetsuya replied truthfully.

"In that case, don't you plan to play the game? It's the pinnacle of technological research and development, surpassing any game currently available. Even the combat requires precise control, or else your attacks may not hit the monsters."

"Although I want to play, it's a pity that my economic situation doesn't allow it. I can't afford to buy the game device," Tetsuya said helplessly. If he remembered correctly, the game device created by Nishimura Hideki was priced around 100,000 Japanese Yen, which he couldn't afford at the moment.

"No worries, I happen to have two member coupons given by fans. I've reserved two game devices, and each set can be purchased at a 50% discount. And tomorrow, there won't be any rush to buy them!"

Hearing Aki's laughter, Tetsuya felt a surge of happiness. With a 50% discount on the game device, his budget would be enough. Even if he spent the money, he could still make up for it by working part-time at the Food Department on Monday.

"So, you mean one coupon costs 50,000 Japanese Yen?"

"Yes, since you want to play, one of the coupons can't be used. I'll give it to you, and my device will be number 100, and yours will be number 101. Our devices will be side by side."

Listening to this, Tetsuya twitched his face. He couldn't help but feel that Aki's words sounded somewhat odd. Is it really necessary to be so excited about having our devices side by side?

"Tetsuya, let's meet at Akihabara tomorrow!"

"Sounds good!"

...

After hanging up the phone, Tetsuya mixed the green pepper shredded beef and golden fried rice together and began eating. As he enjoyed his own cooking, he couldn't help but praise himself. His cooking skills seemed to be improving, and his appetite followed suit.

Could it be that I have some hidden talent?

After devouring three large bowls in one go, Tetsuya finished eating the golden fried rice and green pepper shredded beef. He rubbed his slightly bulging belly with satisfaction and pondered another matter.

It seems I'll need to spend some Fantasy Points to trade for a "Molding Pill." If I keep eating like this and not going out, I'll turn into a chubby shut-in sister who won't recognize her own brother when she opens the door.

Is it too easygoing?

After finishing his meal, Tetsuya took the dinner plate downstairs and carefully washed the dishes.