Realizer

"Sorry for the sudden request," Mikie Okamine brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, looking slightly embarrassed, and said, "The captain asked me to come over, hoping I could assist you."

"So that's how it is," Kaguya nodded in realization.

She had momentarily thought her charm had reached the point where even little girls were flocking to her, but clearly, she had overthought it.

"Well then, thank you very much. I look forward to your guidance," Kaguya smiled and expressed her gratitude.

"No problem," Mikie Okamine replied with a cute smile, her eyes narrowing slightly. She looked especially adorable when she smiled, with two small dimples appearing on her cheeks.

The virtual simulator was actually a device used by AST members for training before receiving their actual Manifestation Apparatus. It had the ability to simulate the Manifestation Apparatus and various battle scenarios, allowing trainees to quickly experience and familiarize themselves with the equipment's functionalities.

This method was somewhat similar to the currently popular VR technology, except the level of simulation was much more advanced. Users were fully immersed in the simulation rather than just wearing a pair of glasses like in VR. The virtual simulator was far superior to anything the general public had access to, which was still much less advanced than what the AST used.

With Kaguya's dojutsu (eye techniques), she could easily see through the simulated environment's inconsistencies. No matter how well it was camouflaged, it could never fool her completely.

At that moment, the system's voice suddenly sounded.

"The system is loading. Matching the most suitable scenario for the user. Please wait."

"Loading complete."

"Entering debugging phase."

"Debugging complete. The system is ready."

"Entering the test phase. Please proceed with the basic movement test."

With a soft white glow, a sleek set of Manifestation Apparatus appeared on Kaguya's body.

Perhaps to facilitate combat, the equipment was designed to be very minimal, stripping away most excess material and exposing large areas of her delicate skin. Since the Voluntary Domain provided sufficient defense, there was no need for thick armor.

However, this made the equipment look quite revealing. Her abdomen, back, thighs, and forearms were all exposed, and her chest was only half-covered, revealing a considerable amount of soft, pinkish skin that seemed to be on the verge of spilling out.

Kaguya couldn't help but think that the person who designed this equipment must have been a connoisseur of "refined tastes." Otherwise, why would they design something so skimpy— it was practically swimwear.

Nonetheless, as soon as Kaguya donned the equipment, she immediately felt lighter, as if she had been carrying a 50-kilogram weight on her body and had suddenly put it down. Her movements became far more agile. For the average person, using this kind of equipment for the first time would likely result in awkward movements and a lot of clumsiness due to unfamiliarity.

However, Kaguya, with her immense spiritual energy, could easily manipulate the equipment, and it didn't take long for her to perform various actions with finesse.

This set of Manifestation Apparatus, known as iSuit, was only a basic model—essentially the lowest-tier gear. While it could enhance physical strength beyond normal human capabilities, it was by no means the most powerful, just standard-issue mass-produced equipment.

The truly powerful suits were those worn by the likes of Shidou's sister, Mana, and Ellen. Ellen, without her Manifestation Apparatus, was just an ordinary woman with no combat abilities, but once equipped, she became a force to be reckoned with, even capable of holding her own against Spirits.

"The system is now entering the combat testing phase. Please prepare for battle."

"Hmm?" Kaguya blinked in surprise. How was she already entering combat? Even without being familiar with the virtual simulator, she could guess that most people started with basic movements, and even strenuous exercise was usually restricted at first to avoid putting too much strain on the body and mind.

If someone accidentally exceeded their physical limits, they could suffer serious injuries, especially mental ones, which were much harder to recover from.

Before she could dwell on it, several beams of white light shot down from the sky, and in the aftermath of those blinding lights, several girls in manifestation suits appeared before Kaguya. They looked like AST members, but their vacant expressions and lifeless eyes indicated they weren't real people but simulated enemies generated by the system.

Without any prompt, they launched an attack on Kaguya.

With a loud sonic boom, their manifestation suits emitted high-speed jets of air, sending them hurtling toward Kaguya like arrows released from a bow.

But handling these opponents was far too easy for Kaguya. Even without using any special abilities, she could thoroughly overpower them with just her physical prowess.

She took a step back as a dazzling beam of light from a sword slashed past her, but it wasn't over yet. Another sword beam came from her side, and she could hear the shrill sound of a lightsaber cutting through the air from behind her. In an instant, Kaguya found herself surrounded, attacked from all sides.

Kaguya found herself surrounded, seemingly on the verge of being skewered by three blades, but she didn't seem to take the threat seriously. In fact, she wore a relaxed smile on her face.

At that moment, her lips curled upward, and her body suddenly moved, becoming a black blur, leaving behind a trail of afterimages.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three muffled sounds followed as the three AST girls simulated by the system were sent flying, tumbling to the ground like broken kites. Their bodies shattered into countless points of starlight before gradually fading into the air.

But before Kaguya could relax, several more AST girls appeared, materializing out of thin air. Their numbers had increased—from three to six—and the aura they exuded was far stronger than the previous batch. Their eyes even showed a hint of liveliness, indicating that these were more advanced simulations.

Without any warning or dialogue, they rushed toward Kaguya at lightning speed.

A new battle had begun.

However, even with increased numbers and strength, it was futile against overwhelming power. Despite the enhancements, they were still no match for Kaguya and were quickly dispatched. To her, they were nothing more than target practice. Although their speed had improved, it was still no challenge for Kaguya's remarkable perception. In less than a second, she had effortlessly knocked them all to the ground.

Having now faced two waves of opponents, Kaguya's proficiency in handling the manifestation device had improved significantly. She was already moving with complete fluidity, integrating her near-flawless combat techniques into her movements, enhancing her combat prowess even further. Even if Kaguya didn't rely on her true strength and limited herself to the level of an ordinary person, she could easily defeat AST members. After all, the skills honed through mountains of corpses and seas of blood weren't something anyone could casually acquire.

However, Kaguya's brow furrowed slightly as she sensed something was wrong. After each round of computer-generated enemies was defeated, new ones kept appearing. Not only had their numbers increased, but their strength had grown considerably. This level of difficulty was far beyond what any normal training program would involve. Even the toughest training sessions wouldn't escalate to such extremes. While these enemies weren't quite on par with Origami, they were certainly close.

Even Kaguya, without using her full abilities, would have to take them seriously to avoid getting caught off guard. She could no longer treat this situation as casually as before.

While Kaguya was locked in fierce battle within the virtual simulation, in a shadowy corner of the virtual simulation room, a thin figure watched the running equipment with a faint, cryptic smile.

"It seems there's a slight discrepancy from the information we received. Who would've thought a Spirit could have such capabilities? Quite surprising," the figure muttered in a low, magnetic voice.

"Should we take action?" A woman with a tall, graceful figure stepped forward, her voice soft yet firm.

"No, no. You must wait until the fruit is ripe before picking it. If you harvest it too early, all you'll get is a bitter, unripe fruit. That would be such a waste, wouldn't it?" Though the figure's face was concealed in darkness, there was a clear sense that he was smiling.

"Shall we continue the test?" the tall woman asked.

"No need. She's already beginning to notice something is amiss. If we continue, she'll figure out the truth. Where's the fun in that?" There was a trace of excitement in the shadowed figure's voice.

"Understood."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several shadows flickered through the air, and the lifeless bodies of a few simulated AST girls fell heavily to the ground. Bright red blood spilled from their mouths, and the light in their eyes quickly dimmed. In mere moments, the bodies of these once-youthful girls disintegrated into specks of light, vanishing into the air.

The battle was fiercer than expected.

Kaguya wiped the sweat from her forehead, reflecting on the situation.

She had intended to end this practice session earlier, but the simulated AST girls kept reappearing, trapping her in an endless cycle. Under these circumstances, the system had informed her that she couldn't exit the simulation until she either defeated all her opponents or was herself defeated.

What a scam.

Kaguya had initially thought about intentionally losing just to get out, but the system threw her another curveball, stating that if she didn't give her all in the fight, even being defeated wouldn't allow her to exit the virtual simulation.

Who the hell designed this scam? If Kaguya found them, she'd definitely give them a good thrashing.

With no other choice, Kaguya continued battling the endless horde of simulated girls.

Fighting wave after wave of beautiful young girls had been Kaguya's long-time dream, but this wasn't the kind of "fighting" she had in mind. The "three-hundred-round battle" she'd fantasized about was definitely not like this!

To make matters worse, these girls were emotionless. They fought like wooden dolls, mechanically going through the motions, which left Kaguya feeling disappointed. Yet for some reason, she couldn't shake the feeling that these opponents didn't seem entirely like mere computer simulations—though she had no solid evidence for this, it was just her intuition.

Nevertheless, the disparity in strength was still far too great. Even without utilizing her full power, Kaguya easily crushed her opponents, no matter how many there were or how much stronger they became with each wave. She overwhelmed them using only the basic Manifestation Apparatus, knocking them to the ground, their ranks in disarray.

It was a shame the battle wasn't taking place on a bed, though, Kaguya thought with a hint of regret.

At that moment, her vision suddenly went dark, and she was abruptly ejected from the virtual simulation system.

No system alert or warning?

Kaguya wanted to complain, but she was relieved to finally be out. After spending what felt like half the day inside, her hands were starting to feel sore from all the fighting.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon: 

Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven