Chapter 2

"Queen Karuka, that time is long past, as I'm sure you remember." Li Zhong says as he kneels to the queen and gestures to Katsumi to do the same, but Katsumi ignores it and continues to stand up.

"Kneel." The queen says as she extends her palm forward. A magic circle forms on her palm and she moves her finger downward, as if commanding Katsumi to forcefully kneel.

The pressure is immense, and Katsumi can't help but kneel and his lips feel tied together.

Li Zhong looks as if he is about to object, but continues to remain silent and kneels.

"You haven't aged a day." The queen says. She stands up from her throne and removes her crown, making her hair fall down as she waves it around.

Her hair color starts with blue, then transitions into a scarlet red color, with the red color being more dominant.

She stands at a height about 5'6, being much shorter than Li Zhong, who is 6'1.

"I could say the same to you, you look more beautiful than the day I left." Li Zhong replies

"You, with your cheap flattery, almost never fail to make me blush." The queen says, still walking towards the duo, with a fan covering her mouth.

"What did you need me here for? Li Zhong asks, with a more stiff tone than usual.

"Well, I heard from a friend of a friend, or well I suppose my subordinates, that you were in the area about a day ago, but you left so suddenly."

"So, imagine my surprise, when you come bursting through the door with a troublemaker no less, injuring even one of my very dearest warriors."

She closes her fan, revealing her grin.

-Li Zhong's POV-

She was waiting for this. The very moment I got out of Frucal mountains, she was ready to take me. The only area that Atlantis doesn't own on this side of the country are the mountains.

-3rd person POV-

"Forgive Katsumi, he has only gotten out of seclusion, he knows nothing of this world."

"But manners are common aren't they?"

"I should've not let him go on his own, if you are to punish someone, punish me."

"Taking the blame for something that you didn't do, again. Reminds me of that time your friend ran away, and you came to me."

"Even broke the vow we gave, how selfish of you."

"That is in the past, Karuka."

"Getting chummy are we? You are not to address me by name."

"Forgive me, your highness."

"Well I had something to ask of you, but I think I know something much better."

"You will stay here with me. Make up for your lost days and nights."

"But your friend here, he has to repent, but I'll let him off easily, as long as he can do something for me."

"My Queen! He is a child!" Li Zhong tells the queen, being hasty for once.

Katsumi is uncontrollably moving, his jaw visibly retaliating, as if trying to break the spell.

"Speak." the queen says as she extends her arm and a magic circle forms, breaking her spell of silence.

"I am not a child! I can handle whatever you want me to do, and more!" Katsumi retaliates

"Ew, he speaks even like a child, so unslay."

-Katsumi and Li Zhong's POV-

Unslay? What does that even mean? Is it some popular slang?

-3rd person POV-

"Moving on, you are to reclaim something for me, a crimson red pearl, I recently had to entertain a guest and it seems like they have some very sticky fingers."

"Do you have any way to identify them? I'm not going on a blind goose chase you know." Katsumi asks

"My fair lady here will escort you, she knows all the details you'll need, maybe pack some things, it'll be a longer trip than you'd think."

She says as the maid from earlier walks behind her with her arms laid down and hands folded.

"Introduce yourself, Esther."

"Understood, your highness."

"I am Esther, child of the queen, and your companion for this task only."

"She's not actually my biological child, but you have to admit, she's almost as pretty as me." Karuka says

Katsumi simply looks at her with a blank stare, thinking to himself that she's quite the narcissist.

"Our details for this mission is to recover the Pearl of Enthrallment, the supposed culprit of this is one Levronn, from the Sadaya gang, an envoy from the kingdom Lilliputian. His build is of a goblin, green skin and dark brown eyes, with long ears and short black hair."

"He entered the queen's chambers to approach her with an offer, his noble clothes suggesting him to be trustworthy, but it was quite the opposite." Esther says, with a blank tone

"Are you sure she isn't a robot?" Katsumi asks Karuka, with a slight tilt in his head, as to show his curiosity.

"She isn't, she's just not fond of strangers." Karuka answers

"Well I must get going, follow me Li Zhong." Karuka commands as she walks towards her bed chambers

Li Zhong, while hesitant, follows Karuka and they both vanish out of sight.

Esther walks closer to Katsumi.

"I have familiarized myself with your abilities, I shall provide you with ranged support, should you need it." Esther says as she materializes a floating orb with lines of numbers circling around it

She taps on.. Something, on the orb, and it materializes a sniper, with a futuristic look to it.

The sniper is white in color, the design sleek and the material used for it is an alloy made from adamantite and thorium, this alloy is known as Adarium, and it is well known for both being light and able to take in a lot of magic and endure it.

The bore on it is small, and there doesn't seem to be a compartment for a magazine. The usual bipod also isn't anywhere to be found, suggesting it's a sniper for people who move a lot.

"What is that? That orb thing?"

"It's a magically infused device, MID for short, it's commonly used in militaries by those who aren't blessed with magic or for quick casters. It links itself with the user's chip and reads their thoughts, or more specifically, their magical flow, so that it casts the right spell."

"Sounds cool, can I have one?" Katsumi asks, with a childish wonder in his eyes.

Esther looks at Katsumi on the sides and notices that he doesn't have a neural implant.

"You'd need this first." Esther says while pointing at the side of her forehead, which has a small hole that's almost impossible to see without close inspection.

"A hole in my head?" Katsumi asks, with a frightened face.

"A slot."

"You need a slot so you can insert a chip, the chip is the integral factor of the MID, as it allows the device to read your magical flow."

"How do I get one?"

"We can stop at a place along the way to find Levronn, I do advise you to give your decision some thought, as the installation process is quite.. Painful." Esther says, with a visible flinch

"I still want one!"

"Very well, I'll take you to a neuromagic surgeon on the way."

"Tell me the things you'll need, would you like shoes or sandals?" Esther asks Katsumi, pointing at Katsumi's feet.

"I still prefer going barefoot but I'll take sandals."

-Change of Perspective-{I'll be dubbing this CoP for the next times}

Karuka walked to the left hallway, moving through multiple doors.

On the door, printed promptly on it are the names of the rooms.

[Guest room]

[Clinic]

[Kitchen]

[The queen's abode]

Karuka opens the door, revealing her bedroom, a very girly one, unlike her attitude. Unlike what you would expect of a queen to be gallant and royal, she has a large queen sized bed at the end of the room. The walls are painted with pink and there are stuffed toys placed on the bed.

On the left side is a table, with tons of paperwork stacked on top of each other, she must be running a bit late.

On the right side is just another collection of stuffed toys, placed on top of some shelves and cabinets.

There is another room connected to her room, evidenced by the extra door on the right side of the room. On the door has a label.

"Closet" It reads.

Must be a luxurious one, to need another room.

Karuka sits on the bed and locks eyes with Li Zhong.

"Do you still keep contact with that man? Senrai?" Karuka inquires Li Zhong

Li Zhong looks at her, it's difficult, but he keeps eye contact.

"I told you to answer." Karuka demands

"I met him a while back, but if you are curious about if I still kept in contact after I escaped, no."

"You two were always quite clever together, even though you both were beasts in war." She remarks, she has a faint sly smile on her face.

"Sit with me." Karuka commands. Li Zhong follows.

"Stay there." Karuka tells Li Zhong as she opens the closet door and enters.

She comes back a minute later with a chess board and a box with labeled "Novum Militia"

"I hope you haven't rusted, 𝐀𝐫𝐞𝐬."

-CoP-

"Please stay here for a while." Esther says after guiding Katsumi into the guest room.

"I shall prepare us a corey, amuse yourself with one of the things here while you wait."

The room has computers and phones, along with a black orb and a painting of the queen.

"What's this orb for?"

"To measure one's magic capacity, this doesn't correlate to their skill in using it, but it simply says how much mana they can hold."

"How do you use it?"

"You just infuse your mana inside, think of it like you are firing off a wave of air from your hand and the orb is a vacuum."

Katsumi puts his palm out and creates a magic circle, and the orb greedily sucks in Katsumi's mana from his magic circle.

"Don't worry, it will only take a small bite."

The orb glows for a few seconds then turns black again with white numbers appearing.

"2030"

"Much above the average, as expected, the average man usually scores 500, and a trained magician around 1400."

"It seems you have talent, my queen was right in choosing you for this task." Esther says, with a blank tone

"I don't really care much, do you have any training dummies?"

"They're outside in the firing range, would you perhaps like a robot instead?"

"A robot?" Katsumi asks, with a sparkle in his eyes.

"It can use magic, and we've integrated a few martial arts into it, it should serve you well in your practice."

"Take me to it!"

-CoP-

"Have you ever played chess? Since that day I mean." Karuka asks Li Zhong as she places a chess board on Li Zhong's lap.

"Don't let it fall." She requests, even if it's a command.

"A fair amount." Li Zhong addresses her question.

"Do you think you can win?" Karuka asks Li Zhong, it's an unusual question, especially for the challenger.

"Maybe."

Karuka sets up the pieces on the board, giving Li Zhong the white pieces, it's common knowledge that white is better than black.

"Courtesy? You don't need that for a traitor." Li Zhong recalls

"It's not courtesy. It's confidence."

"Make sure it's not arrogance."

(For this segment, Li Zhong's moves will be named L and Karuka's as K.)

[L:D4, K:D5, L:C4]

"Queen's gambit, how fitting, I think I'll decline, like how you declined me." Karuka says to Li Zhong.

"Hmm.. The envoy that took my pearl came to me with an offer." Karuka says as she picks up her knight.

[K:Nf6]

"What does that have anything to do with me and you?" Li Zhong asks

[L:Nc3, K:E6, L:Nf3]

"Well, I thought it may bring back some memories." Karuka says

[K:Bf4]

"Which ones?" Li Zhong intensifies, his face stiffens more

[L:Bg5]

"This bishop reminds me of you." She plays with the bishop, swaying it side to side. After she's done playing with it, she picks it up and bumps the knight.

[K:Bishop takes knight on C3]

"Always taking on someone else's mistakes, one could call you a glutton."

[L:Pawn recaptures bishop]

"Get to the point."

"Well, the envoy came to me with an offer."

[K:Castles]

"They told me that we can reignite the war." She continues

"Are you out of your mind?!" Li Zhong snaps, the pieces shake a little, but luckily enough they remain intact.

"Calm your horses, or well, I guess one died." She comments as she plays with the knight with her index finger.

"I haven't given him an answer yet. Your move."

[L:E3, K:H6]

"You should think this through, think of how many of your people died, all for your greed." Li Zhong says, with his face still stiff.

[L:Bh4, K:Re8]

"This is what will happen if you go to war again." Li Zhong says, as he picks up his pawn and bumps another pawn.

[L:Pawn captures pawn on D4, K:Pawn recaptures D4]

"So what? It's just a few pawns, I'll win in the end anyway."

"You don't know that a pawn can become a queen? I thought you of all people would." Li Zhong retaliates

[L:H3]

"Well, not that we need one, right? Atlantis already has a queen, you're looking right at her."

[K:Qd6]

"What about your precious cavalry? Your team of seahorses and your esteemed knights?"

[L:Bishop takes knight]

"They can't handle a nuke." Li Zhong says

"So they're worthless, all you need is your ruler."

[K:Queen takes bishop]

"And after all, you'll always have a replacement." Karuka says

[L:Bf6, K:Kc6, L:Castles, K:Bd7]

"Well you understand it too right? The other side will also have a ruler, and they'll sink you with them." Li Zhong strikes

[L:Qb3]

"Well, don't forget, I'll also have nukes, who says we're playing on uneven ground?"

BISHOP TAKES H3! As if an actual nuke fired onto their chess board, the bishop erupts and opens the door and knocks! (Check the comment section.)

"A careful ruler will never leave their gates open to be run over by a swarm."

[L:Queen takes b7 pawn]

-CoP-

Katsumi and Esther arrive at a grassy field with a robot, surrounding the area is a thick forest of trees. The robot was designed for pure functionality, only having the shape of a human but none of their facial or body features. There is a control panel just beside it, on top of a podium.

"Here it is, our robot, be delicate and don't break him."

"I must get going now, prepare well." Esther says as both her presence and her body fade into her own shadow.

-Katsumi's POV-

That is some cool magic she used, maybe I'll ask her to teach me it.

Well, moving on, I should see what this control panel has. I reach for the control panel and it has a few options on it, labeled, swordsman, gunman, assassin, warlord, and destruction. I can only surmise that this is the mode in which the robot will take, I will just choose swordsman.

"Give mark II a sword." The panel flashes and the voice of the panel requests.

Give it a sword huh? I'll just give it one of my swords. I materialize a few swords and grab a floating sword and hand it to the robot.

"Initiating swordsman mode, you will be given 3 seconds to prepare, 3, 2, 1."

I take my distance and the robot dashes straight at me with a slash aiming for my throat after the countdown.

CLANG!

I parry its sword and extend my left arm to control my other swords to impale it. The robot jumps back to gain distance and parries the summoned swords while I dash straight at it while it is busy parrying the other swords.

THRUST

I miss my target by a hair as the robot contorts its chest backwards to dodge my sword in the weirdest manner I've seen yet.

The robot wastes no time after seeing me in a vulnerable position and aims for my throat in a slashing manner.

CLANG!

I parry it but it sends me off my balance and my posture is weak. The robot calculates my position and goes for a thrust. I move my left hand to the right to control my swords and block the hit.

CLANG!

My summoned swords deflect the hit and I'm able to get my posture back. The robot moves his hand to touch the blade and infuses it with lightning, only saying,

"This metal is unsuited for magic." After running its calculations.

I extend my left arm out to attack it with my swords. Good, I should land a solid hit here once I go in. I dash in as it is parrying my blades.

CLANG!

It parried my swords to go straight at me?! Thank Athena I parried on time.

Wait, where is the robot?

I hear a gust of wind and feel a sword on the tip of my neck, electrocuting me and making me pass out.

—

"How about it?" Li Zhong asks Karuka

"Want to trade our queens and entrust it to our army?"

Karuka is pressured, she'd leave the door open for the knight to come in and break through if she doesn't take.

[K:Queen takes queen]

"Look at that, your queen falls to a mere pawn."

[L:Pawn takes queen, K:Rd8 to Re8]

"So what if I fall? My army will follow through my wishes, and another can always take my place."

Li Zhong looks at Karuka for a few seconds, then plays rook takes rook.

"Will they be as strong as you? Are you sure that you won't end up dooming your country?"

Rook recaptures.

"..Atlantis will never sink, not again."

"What makes you sure that you won't be the cause?"

[L:Ne3, K:Bg4, L:Ne5]

"I trust my people to lead without me."

[Knight takes knight]

"Something I'm sure you should be familiar with." Karuka glances at Li Zhong

[Pawn takes knight]

"Why go through the effort of starting another war? What is it that you want?"

[K:Bishop to D7]

"For my people to prosper and reclaim what is ours, what has always been ours." She has pride behind her words, she has conviction, this is not a choice she made out of malice.

[L:Rook to B1]

"I think your people would prosper more if they were alive."

[K:Bishop to C6]

"It's merely a means to an end, I too, don't want to see my people die, but I know that the other kingdoms won't give me what I want."

[L:Rook to B8 Check]

"That's dangerous, aren't you satisfied that you own more than half of the seas?"

"I'm a ruler, my very job is to greed and gain more for my people, even if it means sacrificing them and myself."

[K:Rook to E8]

"Bloodshed is never the way, if you so want, I can help you, without the unnecessary bloodshed." Li Zhong offers

[L:Rook to b2]

"What could you do? What do you know? Haven't you seen how unreasonable the kings can be? I'd rather have my men and women die with glory than die being a slave."

[K:Pawn to G6]

"Hmm."

-CoP-

Esther walks into the scene of a passed out Katsumi, noting to herself that she should've warned him that the robot can take on multiple people at once, being a very bad matchup for someone like Katsumi, who wields summoned blades.

"Wake up sir." She says while kneeling on both knees, looking at the fainted Katsumi with blank eyes.

Katsumi doesn't wake up and Esther pulls out her MID and clicks on a few buttons, after she is done, a bucket of water falls onto Katsumi's face and he wakes up, hitting Esther's forehead as he sits up.

"I'M UP I'M UP!"

"Ouch." Esther says with a slightly more humane tone. She's pressing her hand on her forehead, to soothe the pain a little.

"Ah, sorry." Katsumi apologizes as he stands up.

"Apology accepted. The corey is waiting on the docks, would you like to go now?" Esther stands up straight and brushes the dirt that got on her dress.

"Ah, yes!"

The robot turns on again after seeing the unconscious Katsumi finally wake up and says,

"Please check your training results."

"My training results?" Katsumi asks

"It evaluates your moves and the things you lack, so just take a look at the panel and you'll see the things you did wrong." Esther responds, blank tone again.

Katsumi walks towards the panel and sees his results.

"Impressive swordsmanship, but still lacking, at the moment when mark II attacked after the user was off balanced, the user should have dodged instead of blocking and risking the integrity of half his weapons."

"The user is also not accustomed to using magic, hand controls are precise but the user hasn't learned to infuse his sword with magic, nor is the metal of his swords suited for it."

"It is suggested to switch to Radeon or Adarium alloy."

"Pros and Cons of each choice will be displayed in 3, 2, 1."

[Radeon ]

│Pros Cons

│ Sharper │Has less magic

│Able to take in magic compatibility

│ Lighter │Less durable

│ Adarium

│ Pros Cons

│ Has more magic │Is less sharp

capacity

│ Is more durable │A bit heavier

│ Can take in more

elements than

[Radeon ]

"I suggest changing to Radeon, sir Katsumi."

"Oh? Why is that?"

"You simply just need to dodge more if you use Radeon, and it will let you use magic without compromising your skill as a swordsman."

"Switching to Adarium later on is advised once you are better at using magic, however, for the purpose of this mission, we are running on a clock and cannot waste any time."

"Come with me, I will help you forge your new swords."

"Having you is like having a really helpful assistant.. Oh wait that is what you are. My bad." Katsumi says with a chuckle as he scratches his hair, realizing how dumb his statement was.

-CoP-

Karuka sits there, in deep thought, and picks up her g pawn and moves it a square forward.

!!

Li Zhong could see it, that was a blunder.

"It's these little things, these things are the mistakes that someone will make, undoubtedly if you weren't there."

[L:Pawn to F5]

"I have faith, and they have faith in our god."

[K:Pawn to G4]

"Poseidon won't help, the gods are selfish, the only time he's helped you was out of his boredom."

[L:Pawn to G3]

"And yet, you pray, every night we were together, you'd pray to him." Li Zhong says

"I have faith in my God, you are someone that has given up on yours."

[K:Rook to C7]

"Maybe it's because he gave up on me first."

[L:Rook to B6 Check]

"Check." Li Zhong says

[K:King to G5]

"Your faith is unrewarded." Li Zhong continues

[L:Rook takes A6 pawn]

"That is what faith is for, to believe even in the most dire situations and in uncertainty."

[K:King takes F5 pawn]

"Don't tell me that's why you backed out? Because I was simply faithful?" Karuka asks, with disappointment written on her face.

"It's not that. I simply never wanted that marriage, it was a means to an end." Li Zhong says, expressing his refusal to their marriage.

[L:Rook to F6 Check]

"Check." Li Zhong continues

[K:King goes to E4]

"I'll give it to you now, your win." Karuka says, giving up the win

[L:King E2, K:Rook takes C3 pawn, L:Rook to F4]

"Mate." Li Zhong declares

"I'll let you win the argument for now." Karuka says, admitting her loss.

Li Zhong leans forward and tries to move his hand to her head, their signature gesture when consoling each other during their time together.

She slaps his hand away and simply says

"Don't touch me, traitor."

-CoP-

"This is our magiforging room.", Esther says after leading Katsumi into one of the many rooms in Karuka's castle. It's rather hot inside.

The view of machines and forges along with about ten workers consistently working on the machines and keeping the fuel going is seen.

These workers look like a mix of both gnomes and dwarves, the dwarves working on the machine, the gnomes helping with fueling, and there seems to be 2 humans that help on the hammering processes, even if there are already auto hammers.

The things that are forged are mostly artifact looking devices, like a necklace or ring, commonly worn to increase one's ability if they attune it correctly.

The forges are brown in color, with a fire emanating a red crystal source.

"Woah, I never knew you had this many workers?"

"We have more, but they're not in this castle, these are workers that Queen Karuka chose."

"They personally work for her, they tell me everyday how happy they are to serve her, and how much she saved them from having to work during the war."

"Why are some of the humans still hammering?" Katsumi asks, taking note of the mass of automated hammers.

"Automated work can never compare to a blacksmith's magnum opus, automation simply only makes the best it can, not the best it can get."

Katsumi walks up to one of the dwarves at the very back of the room and says to him with a smile,

"Would you mind forging me a sword?"

The dwarf is really short, only seeming to be about 3 feet tall, with a long beard that almost reaches his belly. By his side lies some ale poured into a wooden mug, which seems to be common in this factory.

His hair color being white, suggesting he must be of quite old age, yet there are barely any wrinkles on his face.

"Esther, who is this kid?" The dwarf asks, confused by the sudden visit.

"He is Katsumi, someone I'll have to work with for a few days or a week, be kind to him."

"So, kid, what do you want your sword to be forged with?" The dwarf asks while trying to keep eye contact with Katsumi, despite the height difference.

"Well, I'm not a kid, but I want it to be forged with Radeon."

"Radeon huh, well we should have an abundance of it, the queen doesn't like using it."

"Why is that?"

"Well sir, the panel should've told you already, it is not as good as Adarium in receiving magic." Esther says

"Could you also prepare a MID for Katsumi? I don't mind if it's rushed work." Esther asks the dwarf

"Hmm, well it won't take too long to make one, the longer process is connecting him to it anyway."

"So, what do you want for your MID?" The dwarf addresses Katsumi

"What do you mean?"

"What options? Shape?"

"Is it possible to just make it my sword?"

The dwarf erupts into laughter, as if Katsumi asked something really stupid.

"I like the challenge!" The dwarf says

"Call me Daruc, after this mission and you get a little older, we could have a drink or two."

"Why? Is it difficult to make my sword the MID?"

"Well, it is unprecedented of course. MIDs were made to be a supporting tool, not the actual weapon itself."

"I'll have to thank you for the idea, I'll see that this will be top tier quality, the queen has already gotten what she needs anyway." Daruc says, with a massive grin

He tallies the other working dwarves and tells them the story, some have their doubts, but he looks to be the leader of the group, so they all start working anyway.

"Come back in a day or two, we'll have it ready for you."

"Well sir, would you like to get the neuromagic surgery first then?"

"Wait, you're telling me this kid wants an MID made for him and yet he still doesn't even have a chip?" Daruc bursts into laughter again

"Oh man, this kid is a bundle of joy." Daruc says while wiping a tear off his eye

"As I said, I'm not a kid, but yes I would like to go through the surgery now." Katsumi says, with a smile, perhaps affected by Daruc's contagious laughter.

"Wait, is it alright to be wasting time?" Katsumi asks Esther

"It's quite alright, we need you fully prepared for the mission, no one knows how strong they will be, and the queen specifically asked me to keep the mission lengthy."

Katsumi raises an eyebrow at the last sentence, looking like The Dwayne's famous meme. It's suspicious, but he has to push it aside for now.

-CoP-

The silence in the room was suffocating, as if the air had a cold grip on their throats.

"Let's play Novum Militia." Karuka says, breaking the tension.

"As per your order."

"I'm sure this is a game you're familiar with, it should bring some memories."

"Yes, unfortunately so."

Karuka opens the box and it has two eye scanners, like the ones you'd see in that one popularized show, Spear dart online.

"Put this on." Karuka says while handing the scanner.

"It isn't done traditionally anymore?" Li Zhong asks as he receives the scanner.

"This is to make it more realistic."

"Put it on like this." Karuka says as she grabs the handle of it and slides it on top of her ear, like she was wearing a pair of glasses.

Li Zhong follows her instructions and wears the device.

"Initiating, scanning for the user, 50%-60%-70%-80-%90%-99%-100%, complete."

Li Zhong gets "transported" into another world, a virtual reality one may call it. He sees a typical hotel lobby, with a receptionist in the middle with a table running across her, a neon sign above her saying "Start match"

"Well, it would be unfair to start the game without explaining the rules to you first."

"The rules are written over there, to your left." Karuka says as she points towards Li Zhong's left.

"How is this possible?" Li Zhong asks

"The game you mean? It reads your brain signals through the fluctuations of mana in your eye and translates it to your body movements in this."

"No, I mean how was it created?"

"Well the Lilliputians are really crafty, they're ingenious. I get jealous of their intellect sometimes. They just came out about 3 years ago and introduced this."

"I don't fully understand it myself. I've been trying to dissect it and all I find are just complicated pieces of machinery."

Li Zhong stands there for a few seconds, baffled by it, and then reads the rules.

[War simulation game

Turn based game

Each player will be given two turns but will not be able to hear each other's command

After the two turns they use

The war will commence

And the two turns start again

Each troop you choose will have 9 health

You will be given 15 troops

Land troops will have 3 defense and 2 damage, cost one troop

Sea troops will have 2 defense and 4 damage, costs 2 troops

Air troops will have 1 defense and 6 damage, costs 3 troops

Defense will reduce damage flatly

Land troops have a special command in which if they prepare for one turn, they can block damage for three troops you choose, these land troops can also stack the defense, and they will have 6 defense during this action, but cannot attack.

Sea troops for the exchange of one turn and the next turn after war ends, will be able to shoot a missile that will deal 9 damage(basically imagine that you have to use 1 turn and then it will use the 1 turn you'll have in the next round, like you'll have only 2 turns in total)

Air troops will have the ability to summon a nuke that will hit a 3 by 6 square and deal 12 damage, however, the enemy will be informed in advance if you choose to nuke, and the nuke will arrive in two cycles.

Each troop will hit the troop that is in their line, and there will be a 9 by 12 invisible line running through the war area to put the boundaries as to where you can place your troops.]

"How complicated. They even had to change the rules." Li Zhong says, with a sigh.

"Well it's just like war isn't it?"

"I think that's enough, let's start the war." Karuka says as she walks over to the receptionist and says

"Start."

-CoP-

Katsumi and Esther are seen walking to the docks, with Esther as the guide walking on the front and Katsumi behind her.

They reach the corey and Esther summons her MID and says,

"Open."

The corey's glass cover opens and the stairs protrude out, letting Katsumi and Esther enter. Katsumi sits on the passenger seat while Esther is on the driving seat.

"Close."

The glass pod closes and the stairs recoil back into the machine.

"Drive." Esther says, soon after, the corey dives into the water and starts driving on its own.

"It's driving on its own? The guard had to use the steering wheel before."

"It responds to my thoughts, so it follows where I want to go."

"How convenient." Katsumi says, almost paying no mind to Esther and looking at the sea life with curiosity, the mermaids are clearly seen with the abundance of fish, there are sharks and merfolk everywhere, as swimming is their leisure, like how walking is a human's leisure.

"Do you think I can win against a hammerhead shark in the ocean?"

"It may be possible, with the right magic. As you are now, I'd say, you'd be food."

"Sharks can't use magic, they aren't intelligent enough to understand the Hernandez theory, they simply use their mana to sense and strengthen themselves, so in theory, they should be weak, unless you fight them on their domain."

The Hernandez theory is known throughout Novum Terrae, it is the theory that mana and the ability to use it is connected to one's own thoughts. The very quantity and the quality of the mana is the creation of the person's thoughts.

Even Katsumi knows it, almost every novel he read had mentioned it at least once.

"Sir, are you familiar with demonization?"

"Hm? What's that?" Katsumi asks, with a curious look.

"About 70 years ago, 30 years after the Hernandez theory was proposed, the first being known to be a demon came to life."

"A demon?"

"They're beings made of chaotic mana, and their very existence shook the world, and created a whole new tree of magic."

"It is theorized that when a person's sanity drops below what it should be, their mana will overflow and rewrite their soul, letting an existence from hell take over."

"It is due to this that every kingdom came together and made a contract, to make the holy templars, and no one should own the holy templars, they will be dispatched to take out demons, and no one should have the right to use them."

"However, despite that agreement, lies are always persistent, but the leader of the holy templars is known to be loyal to the god he serves, almost to the extent of insanity, and serves only his purpose, that is why not a single person has acquired the holy templars."

"And why are you telling me this?" Katsumi asks, but not in a way that suggests he's not interested.

"I simply thought you'd be curious with a story."

"Well you guessed right!"

Esther's eyes lock on to the direction they're going to and she informs,

"We are close to our destination."

The view of an underwater city can be seen, very modernized especially for a sunken city, one can call it Atlantis if it were based on humanity's old records, but it is just a normal city in Atlantis' territory.

"Sir, I'd advise you to be careful, my magic can let you breathe underwater with a bubble, but if it were to be destroyed, you'd be on your own."

"The people here do not speak English, please let me speak on your behalf instead."

"Why don't they? It seems like the people in the harbor spoke it."

"The harbor is a tourist destination, and it is in the land of Terra, they grew accustomed to the culture and language. The people here are purely Atlantean."

"Well, alright." Katsumi says, with a little reluctance.

Esther summons her MID and presses a few buttons and says

"Open."

The corey is currently underwater, but Esther casts a spell on both herself and Katsumi to create an air bubble.

Katsumi and Esther's clothing turns into a suit more fit for diving, being skin tight and allowing you to move easier.

"Won't this run out of air?" Katsumi asks as he points towards the air bubble.

"Wait, can you even hear me? We're underwater right?"

"I can hear you loud and clear sir, any domain of Atlantis has a special magic underneath it, to let you speak underwater, for the convenience of our tourists and the people alike."

"Seems too convenient, though it makes sense." Katsumi says, with a little curiosity as to how the magic even works.

"I can see your curiosity with both my magic and the magic under Atlantis, it was a large-scale project with the coordination of the Mystics and the Lilliputians."

The Mystics, they aren't considered a kingdom, and are neutral in any battle, they live in their forests and don't interfere.

"The kingdoms were curious as to what is in Atlantis' oceans, so they decided to create a project to allow them to talk and breathe underwater, although it only partially worked, only allowing them to talk, so the idea was scrapped."

"The Terra kingdom funded the project along with the Lilliputians, this caused a small imbalance for a while, but it ended."

"As for my magic, it converts the oxygen in the water for you to breathe, acting similarly to a fish's gills. It can sustain some impacts, but it can still break with a sufficient blow, so I highly suggest not aggravating the people."

"I'm also curious about your shadow magic that you used earlier, but I want to go ahead and finally get my chip!" Katsumi says with excitement as he runs towards the city.

"Please do not go on your own again, we would not like you to start another riot." Esther pleads

"Oh, right."

The two slowly approach the entrance and the guards, who have fish heads and scales, like merfolk, block the gate and scan their identities first.

"Esther, daughter of the queen, Katsumi, unverified."

"Ah!" The guard kneels to Esther

"Is this Katsumi fellow here your friend?"

"Please stand up, I do not hold as much power as my mother, I am simply here on duty." She tells the guards. Despite what she says however, they follow her request like it's an order.

"Yes, this sir is my companion." Esther clarifies, not wanting to push on the matter any further.

"Understood. Guards! Let them in!"

The gate opens and the bustling city is seen, with a lot of people in it and them being breeds of fishes and humanoid features.

"There's more species than I thought, I thought the Atlantis kingdom only housed more specific species like mermaids and merfolk, along with sirens and anything that looked humanoid enough." Katsumi says, eyeing the multiple breeds and species, most especially the ones with fish heads and the weirdly misplaced bodies on them.

"Interbreeding will always happen, our queen is generous enough to give them a place to live, and they all serve their purpose."

They walk through the bustling streets, the people at them raising eyebrows on why there's a human and an elf visiting their city. Katsumi eyes a restaurant, a sushi restaurant.

"Wouldn't the restaurants count as cannibalism?"

"Would you count cows as humans?"

"Fair enough."

The city seems to have everything a normal human city would have, speaking from Katsumi's imagination. They have stores, machinery, vehicles(these are simply coreys), even hotels.

"This is unexpected, especially for a city underwater, wouldn't a tsunami or earthquake easily break it though?"

"The queen protects all of her domains, she has placed a countermeasure in case of disasters."

"How do they still function underwater? Won't stuff float to the top?" Katsumi looks at the many buildings with silk like texture as part of their branding and the signs that are placed on the ground.

"At this depth, walking here is like you're in freefall, the water won't make you float."

"So it's like gravity increases the lower you go?"

"Well, in simple terms, I suppose."

"What about the fire they use to cook the food?"

"Magic crystals, sir."

"Ah, ahahaha." Katsumi lets out a dry chuckle, it must've been a stupid question to hear.

After 4 minutes of walking through the city, taking shortcuts through the allies, they reached a place with a neon sign saying The Neuromagic Clinic.

"You know this place like the back of your hand." Katsumi praises Esther

"I have been here many times." Esther simply replies

"That makes sense."

Katsumi opens the door and the clinic is surprisingly empty, with only the doctor, who is a human with an air bubble. Standing behind the receptionist table is a mermaid.

The place is like a dentist or a doctor's clinic, a few chairs placed on the side and the entire floor is white. The lighting is bright and it's hard to look anywhere without getting slightly blinded.

The doctor is wearing a white coat, clearly soaked by the water. His pants don't fit his attire, he's wearing a swimming suit underneath but is still wearing his white coat.

His hair is short, probably because the water made it impractical to have long hair, his hair being a jet black color, and his height reaching about 6 feet or a little under it.

The receptionist has long brown hair, flowing lazily in the water, and it's hard to tell how tall she is, does the tail count? How would you even measure?

She's looking at a holographic projection and has some paper made of Crufals.

Crufals are plants grown in Atlantis, they can be turned into paper and do not absorb any water.

"Why is it empty?" Katsumi asks

"Well, almost everyone has already had their surgery, and it's a once in a lifetime kind of thing, it never breaks unless you get a really strong bludgeon, one most people won't survive." Esther explains

"Welcome, it's been a while since I've had customers, what type of implant do you want?" The doctor greets the two.

"There's more than one type?" Katsumi questions

"Well, some people get more than one, but they all serve different purposes." The doctor replies

"Can you show me the types?" Katsumi asks with wonder.

The doctor taps on something on his watch and a holographic model appears, with words written in Common on it.

All implants

Eyes of Argos- Reads the biometrics and mana flow of the person scanned, to see what their name is.

Mind of Ares- Enhances mana flow and thinking speed, allowing you to strategize faster and apply spells quicker.

Speed of Hermes- Automatically puts a spell of haste on you, as long as your mana doesn't drop to critical levels, and lets you cast spells quicker than mind of ares, as long as you can circulate your mana fast enough.

FlameClone- Allows multicasting as much as the user's thought process can handle.

"These names seem really edgy." Katsumi says, wrenching a little from the naming sense.

"Well, they sell!"

"All of these have the inbuilt features of what a phone can do." The doctor says

"I think I'll take the Speed of Hermes and Mind of Ares."

"Oops, no can do, you can only take one at a time, you might suffer too much pain and lead to death, or your mana may overflow."

"I'll.. take the Speed of Hermes then."

"Excellent choice, I assume you have the credits to pay?"

"Credits?"

"They're the crypto version of doubloons, I'm sorry, did you live under a rock until recently?" The doctor asks Katsumi, with a confused look.

"Well.. uh.."

"I'll pay for this sir, I will simply just have to cut your payment for this mission."

"You heard the lady!"

"When can I get the Mind of Ares?"

"Hm, I'd say about 6 months from now, when your mind and the chip have fused."

"It is still risky to do it, but don't worry, I am a surgeon. The best there is."

-Li Zhong's POV-

This game is.. Too realistic.

The grass field under my feet, I can feel the sensation, and the pressure that comes with being the commander.

I'm leading my army to kill and to die.

I can't falter here, there is a war that can start if I don't beat some sense into that woman.

A holographic projection of Karuka pops up in front of my eyes.

"It really brings back memories doesn't it, Ares?"

I stay silent and click through the menu of troops I have, it's like I'm leading my battalion through the last stretch of war.

"You're as cold as ever." Karuka says

I swipe her projection away and it cancels her projection.

I choose 6 of my land troops and place them on the 1st, 4th, and 9th squares, placing two of the land troops on each column.

I choose 2 sea troops and place them on the 1,5th squares, and 9,4 square

I choose one of my air troops and place it on the 4, 12 square along with 2 land troops above it.

"That seems to be all that I can place."

"All troops have been placed, would you like to start your command?"

"Enemy nuke has been released, aiming for the 7,4 square."

Damn it, she's going all out already?

7,4 should hit 6 and 9, with 6 rows, so it will hit my 2,3,4,5,6 squares.

So if I write it, it should hit my land troop and my sea troop.

The nuke will arrive in two turns, I will launch a nuke as well.

"Nuke to 5,3"

"All commands entered, war may commence." The system says

I'm standing on top of a castle, seeing Karuka on an identical one on the other side.

"A missile has successfully hit your 1,1 land troop, calculating damage taken, 6!, troop is at 3 health."

What? How did she use another turn?

Her holographic image appears again,

"Well I was going to tell you, but you swept me away, these troops are boosted by your leader's charisma, just like war."

"That wasn't in the rules."

"Well that's what makes the dwarves really clever you know? War doesn't have rules, there's only victory."

I can see my 4th square troops going to war, her other troops are on the 3rd and 6th squares.

My 4th squares overwhelm her land troop and sea troop

Your 4th square troops have landed a hit on the enemy land troop, calculating damages, 2, 4. 6, 8, 11, damage has been calculated, enemy land troop has taken 8 damage.

Enemy troop fires back, calculating damages, 2, 5, ally land troop has taken 4 damage, troop is at 5 health.

War round ends, commanders, take your positions.

The game refunds me back my troops that I have placed, but their profession or hp hasn't changed. I definitely took more damage this round.

I think I have an idea.

-CoP-

"My name is Doctor Reinkenn, come back in 6 months, if you still want that other implant."

Esther walks towards the receptionist and speaks Atlantean, then pulls out her MID and clicks a few buttons for about 10 seconds.

"What was that for?" Katsumi asks Esther

"I had to register you."

"What do you mean?"

"Your biometrics, I had to register them. I took your biometrics from the guard and uploaded them to my MID."

Katsumi looks at her slightly shocked, and can only think that she's way too attentive.

"Now that that is done, follow me." The doctor says as he heads towards a room.

"Alright, let's take a look at your records." Doctor Reinkenn says as he moves his hand downwards and a panel comes out from the ceiling attached to a metallic tube.

"Impressive, your muscles are insanely dense, suggesting strength much above your looks."

"I'd say this is even unprecedented, a god given talent indeed."

"Though, I've had to perform surgery on multiple warriors before, I don't suspect the process will be different."

"Please, lay down on your stomach." He says while pointing towards a bed, something you'd see at an ER.

The doctor pulls out a needle from a box with "Radeon" written on it. He then walks up to a tube with presumably anesthesia on it.

"This will cost you a little more than the average person, his physique implies that it will be difficult to pierce through his skin."

Katsumi lays down on the bed, laying down on his stomach.

The doctor injects the needle into Katsumi's spine and asks him to turn over after he's done injecting.

Once Katsumi turns over, Reinkenn summons a magic circle and prays,

"O Asclepius, son of noble Apollo,

hear our prayer, father of surgeons.

Released from a mortal womb by your noble father and

imbued with the great healing knowledge of Kheiron,

your skill in medicine across broad Earth and in the heavens

is without equal, Glowing one."

Katsumi falls asleep as he chants the prayer.

"Lights out for now." The doctor whispers

-Karuka's POV-

Hmph, he should've listened to me. It's been a while since my anger dissipated, but I can't fully forgive him.

I know I was unfair, to push an arranged marriage, but I didn't expect he'd betray me and run away, I would've understood if he just said what he wanted.

Well, that isn't important right now.

I have 4 land troops with 3 air troops and 1 sea troop, I should use up one of my other troops to spy on his position then.

"6,1 land troop, turn into a spy."

The land troop walks out of the border and disappears off my vision, only to come back 8 seconds later with a map of Li Zhong's placements.

So he placed his injured troop on the 1,1 square, again, I will place an air troop and 2 land troops, this should kill it.

I'll send a missile to his 5,3 square, to hit his sea troop.

I'll place my sea troop on squares he isn't on, so they should be effective on the 3,1 squares and my remaining air troops can be on the 4,2 and the 5,3 squares.

"LISTEN UP, MY ARMY, YOU ARE TO WIN THIS, FOR THE GLORY OF YOUR QUEEN!" I say while infusing my voice with musical magic. I'm not adept at this type of magic, it isn't in my repertoire but it should be fine.

"Troop morale is boosted, troops will now attack vacant squares with a 2 by 1 radius." the system says to me

I'm not sure of the buff I'll get each time, but this seems like a good one.

Both commanders have given their commands, and the war round will commence.

"I should win this round."

The grass field turns into the war ground, with me on top of the castle and Li Zhong on the opposite side.

WHAT?! Why are all his troops on the 9th square? Help, that's actually cheating.

"Enemy nuke has landed, calculating damages. Air troop on 4,2 and air troop on 5,3, incinerated."

Why did his nuke land so early? I had time to move out.

I scroll the menu and use the call option to try and understand what's happening.

"What did you do?!"

"Fog of war, you should know it."

"Fog of war. That soldier that came back, he was yours?"

"Yep and it seems like, the soldiers always know what the queen is doing, so imagine my surprise when your soldier told me every part of your plan, after some ball kicks of course."

"That's.. Sick."

"Do you get it now? Do you remember how the war actually was?"

"There's no other way, the kings won't budge, I've offered them everything except the seas and my people, and they won't take it."

"This castle I am in, I have offered it to them, it has everything a person would want, I offered everything except my workers, and yet the Impurus or Lilliputian kingdom wouldn't even budge. "

"One more, one more round, if you win, I'll agree to your offer."

"Which offer?"

"Your offer to help me take the oceans from the kings."

"Sounds like I won't gain anything."

"You won't have to fight another war, and you'll make it up to me."

Li Zhong stands there, contemplating his thoughts.

"Fair enough."

"For this last round, I'm going to the battlefield, I'll risk it all, you better do the same." Karuka says, with a fierce look

"I can't compare to your power. I am merely a general."

"Then you'll lose."

"I can't have that."

-CoP-

The doctor puts on his gloves and summons his MID, which seems to have the shape of a book, he reads some of the letters in it and a mask appears on his face along with a hair net as his mana tucks in his hair inside.

The doctor grabs a drill with a flat looking tip to it, and reads a few letters in his book to turn it on. His eyes turn blue with white stripes converging to the pupil.

He drills into the right side of Katsumi's head and is careful not to hit any of the nerve cells inside.

After a few minutes of drilling, the doctor stops and dematerializes the drill, and asks his assistant to bring him a chip of speed while he casts a prayer.

The assistant brings the doctor a chip and Reinkenn is careful to not damage it.

He uses his magic to control the chip to be properly lined up into the hole he drilled into Katsumi, carefully inserting the chip slowly, and then reading a few words in his MID.

The wound closes a little, only barely open.

"Doctor, I've always wondered, how do we not get any infections from this?"

"I thought a smart lady like you would've researched it, but well I suppose that isn't needed for you, we simply block it off with barrier magic."

"And it doesn't dissipate?"

"The barrier is kept by the mana of the person that the chip is attached to."

"We simply cast the circle, and you will fund the mana."

"And that's it, quick and simple." The doctor explains

"I remember my surgery being longer than this." Esther says

"It varies from the year and the surgeon, when did you get yours?"

"About 8 years ago."

"You were just a child? Oh they must've had to be more careful."

"I remember it being really painful."

"That may just be your memory of the pain after the surgery."

The doctor reads a few lines in his MID and moves Katsumi into another bed.

"Please pay by the counter, and let your friend rest." Reinkenn asks Esther

"Understood."

-CoP-

Li Zhong readies his troops, putting them all into a rectangle-like formation, readying himself for war.

"Troops, we are going to war, if you don't give it your all, your families will never see you again, and you will have failed your kingdom."

"I will go in myself, let's win this."

Karuka is getting ready for the fight, readying her troops.

"MY PEOPLE! We are here to fight for glory, we are here to win it all, if we do not win, then we are nothing! Fight for your kingdom, and LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!"

Commands have been entered. Commanders have chosen to go all in, entering battlegrounds in 3, 2, 1.

The two enter the battlefield

Li Zhong is wearing his clothes from the time he went to war, it wasn't anything special, it was simply a mask and his compression suit, with blue lines running along his body.

His muscles haven't withered away, still looking like a Greek god, with his perfect proportions.

Karuka took the crown off, letting her hair fully flow, without the crown clumping it and revealing her to be wearing a suit made from her own mana, meshing into her body, the color is a deep black, below her neck is a red crystal, mixed into her suit.

"I didn't expect to see you again like this, Ares."

"Likewise, Greed."

"It's so unfair you get a cool name when they do nothing but just give me a sin."

"It fits you."

"Enough." Karuka says

Karuka extends her arm and creates a magic circle.

"Burn."

A blast of fire summons from her palm as Li Zhong moves his hand upward to summon a wall.

"Air forces, shoot."

The flying force shoots a beam of magic at one of the land troops.

Karuka creates a magic circle and aims it at the beam.

"Cancel."

The beam of magic dissipates as Li Zhong disappears from her vision.

The fog is thick and there is a muddy smell.

"The fog of war huh."

Karuka extends both her arms on her sides and says,

"Dissipate."

The fog disappears and Li Zhong is nowhere to be found.

Karuka looks around her area and tries to find Li Zhong before closing her eyes. To her, there is not a need to keep her sense of sight, not in the fog. She's merely using her magical sense.

"I found you."

Li Zhong is on top of some trees, drawing a bow back and trying to shoot Karuka's sea troop.

His shot lands true and Karuka could see it, her troop count decreasing.

"How cheap."

Karuka extends her arm and aims at one of Li Zhong's troops.

"Freeze."

A surge of ice appears from the ground, impaling two of his land troops.

"That's not freezing at all." Li Zhong says

"Well, the idea is there."

Li Zhong runs back and breaks through the ice surge using his spear,

"Break."

The ice surge disappears and breaks into pieces.

Li Zhong kneels to the floor, writing a magic circle on the floor,

"Armory."

Li Zhong says as his remaining troops are given armor and new weapons, made from his magic.

"Troop strength has been increased, defense increased to 5 for everyone, damage has increased to 5 for everyone." The system tells Li Zhong

"TROOPS! CHARGE!" Li Zhong shouts

"Futile." Karuka says

Li Zhong fades into the ground.

"Your skill, I've seen it many times."

Karuka conjures two magic circles on her palms and slams the ground, creating even a larger magic circle

"Erupt."

The ground pikes up into spikes and impales Li Zhong's air troops while his land troops dodge the attack.

Li Zhong appears on top of one of the spikes near Karuka's air troop, and jumps above and conjures a spear, stabbing the air troop.

"How did you not die?!"

"A magician never reveals all his secrets."

Li Zhong jumps on top of the spikes, being careful to create a magic circle on his hand every time he jumps onto one, creating a platform to step on.

Troop tally:

Karuka

0 Air troops

0 Sea troops

3 Land troops(one was captured and tortured, he died by the 2nd round.)

Li Zhong:

0 Air troops

2 Sea troops

6 Land troops

"Enough of this." Karuka says as she transforms into her leviathan form, invoking fear into all of Li Zhong's soldiers, her size towering over his entire army.

"DIE!" Karuka charges a magic beam, enough to cover all the land that Li Zhong holds.

"LAND TROOPS, COVER! SEA TROOPS, SHOOT MISSILES ON LAND TROOP 6,2"

Li Zhong shouts, but none of them are moving.

Fear. Fear of death is primal, and Leviathans invoke that fear like no other.

"Damn it." Li Zhong says as he casts a magic circle upon his heart, breaking his contract temporarily.

"GOD OF WAR, ARES." The system says

Li Zhong transforms into the image of the god of war, with his hair on fire and his suit changed into a suit of armor.

He summons a magic circle on his feet and his hands, and slams them onto the ground, creating an earthquake and using all the land that his troops aren't standing on to create a wall.

He then fades out of vision, then reappears on the other side of the wall as Karuka shoots her beam, summoning the gate to his arsenal, raining it on Karuka's remaining troops.

Each one is either impaled or bludgeoned by his rain.

Land troop count, 3,2,1..0

"The battle is a draw!" The system announces

"A.. draw?" Li Zhong asks while removing his form as Ares then running out of breath.

"Your troops died the same time hers did!" The system says

"Really, she's way too strong."

Karuka morphs back into her human form and puts on her robe and crown and walks to Li Zhong.

"I guess you win." Karuka says

"Why? It was a draw."

"You won the chess match didn't you?"

"Right. Huff."

"If you want to get out, just go to the menu to quit, if by chance you log off earlier than me, please leave my room for a while, go to the guest room, you should know where it is."

"..Alright."

Li Zhong menus to quit the game, and goes back to the real world, wondering how the system was able to replicate every part of their power.

He even feels tired in real life, and ready to pass out.

He walks outside of the room, being careful to close the door, and passes out on the floor.

-About 9 hours later after Katsumi's surgery-

Katsumi wakes up, with a searing pain on the right side of his head, making him visibly cry out

"AGH!"

"Take a rest, sir." Esther says, looking as worn out as Katsumi herself.

"Did you not sleep?"

"Well it is advised to have a guardian to watch over the patient, the queen did it for me on the day of my surgery."

"I'm not worth all that to you." Katsumi says, not looking pitiful, just simply stating his thoughts.

"You have worth for as long as the mission exists." Esther says, without a change in her face.

Katsumi looks into her eyes, seeing a small change in it.

"You aren't as uncaring as you make yourself seem."

Another change, a small glitter, something most people won't see.

"I don't mind if you're scared, but I'm gonna think of you as my older sister from now on, mostly because I've never had one."

"Why?"

"I don't know, I've never had someone else care for me except for my father, and it feels.. Warm."

Another change.

"I don't think that would be appropriate, sir."

"What's wrong with it?"

"I am merely your acquaintance."

"And yet you care enough about me, it's fair I return it."

"That's what my dad taught me, return to people the same things they give you." Katsumi says

A small change in her lips, it's slight, but it feels as though Katsumi can think quicker, see faster.

"Very well."