From the shadows of the mortal world... your gaze has awakened something.
Do you dare to keep reading the scriptures of this forbidden novel?
Then listen well, curious soul.
I have opened a digital temple on Ko-fi.
With a simple offering of $1, you will help me summon sacred illustrations:
authentic portraits of the beings that inhabit this story.
But every pact deserves a reward:
The faithful will receive personalized, unique images... and perhaps, a secret reserved only for the chosen ones.
[Make your offering here]
https://ko-fi.com/gremory0zero
-----------
[Wednesday, April 24, 2028]{7:45 AM}[Sakakino Institute]
Arriving at the institute, seeing a larger influx of students, Javier went through the gate first, followed by Kotonoha, who kept her distance.
Not bothering to go any closer, he reached the shoe lockers.
—Katsura-san, where are you going now?—
—Etto... mmm, to the teachers' lounge and then to the Chemistry room—.
Kotonoha said reservedly.
—I'll help you—.
—Hey, don't bother, I can do it myself.
—Nothing to do with it, let me make up for my rudeness the other day. Now let's go.
—No seriously, don't bother, I can do it myself...—.
Unable to stop Javier, he could only follow behind him.
—Well, here we are—.
Entering as he usually did, Javier caught the attention of all the teachers.
—Student Javier, how many times have I told you not to open the sliding door like that?
—Sensei Tenma, good morning, it seems you slept well... Where are you going so elegantly?—.
—You don't learn, right?
He shook his head at Javier's behavior. He stood up, casually adjusting his black suit before grabbing the key from the desk.
—I'm going, along with another colleague, to Tokyo, the programming club that represents Sakakino High School in the Science and Technology Competition—.
—Mm, if I'm not mistaken, they are the ones who presented that achievement, they must be good, since they entered sensei—.
Disregarding their knowledge, Tenma explained.
"I don't know them, since I'm new here, but from what I heard, they have five students, two of them seniors and three sophomores. Asking my colleague, the programming club had to pass two tests; the first was a video of the project explaining its area of expertise. The second was a virtual simulation of the prototype."
—Hmm, it sounds easy, but there must have been thousands of schools across the country, and vacancies must be very close.
—You get the picture. Well, the kids are here, and I'm going to pick them up and take them to the science and technology fair. By the way, Student Valderrama, take these papers and distribute them to your classmates.
—Sensei, I want to refuse that job!—.
"Just say it and don't reply."
-Yessss-.
Professor Tenma left without checking the papers and put them in his backpack while watching Kotonoha saying goodbye to the Chemistry teacher.
—Terminants Katsura-san—.
—... I still have to bring some utensils—.
—Then I'll go with you, it must be hard for a girl to carry everything alone.
-Something-.
Still feeling uncomfortable, Kotonoha walked away from Javier's presence.
(Store)
Soon after, Javier took out several glass utensils before moving into the Chemistry classroom.
—Kuu, they're a little heavy, you're fine carrying this, Katsura-san—.
Javier inquired before turning to see Kotonoha sweating a little as she carried some smaller, but delicate, glass utensils.
—I-I'm fine, thank you—.
—Uuuu, and Katsura-san, this isn't difficult for one person where is the other person who should help you—.
—...—.
—If you don't want to answer, that's fine, but as a woman you're not very strong.
—You're telling me that because I'm a woman I can't do heavy things—.
—Yes, with that appearance you give off, it seems impossible for me that you do things that are too heavy, or I'm wrong.
Responding with silence, a lonely smile crossed her lips. Javier, who had noticed everything about her, even though her back was turned.
—What novel do you like to read, Katsura-san?—
—Etto, fantasy, romantic, among other things, why?—.
—Just a casual question. I love suspense and adventure novels. Have you read the novels called [The Veil] or [The Adventures of Yunjar]?
—I don't think so, what's it about?
—I assure you, you'll love it. [The Veil] is set in 1908 England, around detective Charles and a series of murders that at first seem unrelated, but later on, it turns out that they weren't entirely true. [The Adventures of Yunjar] are set in a world where ancient ruins exist everywhere. As you may know, the protagonist is an archaeologist who is just starting out...—.
Kotonoha, fascinated by Javier's experience without spoiling the important details, wanted to read both recommendations, and arrived at the Chemistry classroom.
—Fuuu, will it be okay here? Right?
—If that's okay, thank you for your help, Javier-kun.
Showing his gratitude, he bowed to Javier.
—You're welcome, you're welcome—.
Kotonoha, who hadn't finished, arranged the utensils on top of each table before leaving.
—Katsura-san, do you want to go to the library to read? I don't think you have anything better to do in the classroom right now?
Being an invitation with no interest other than enjoying the books, Kotonoha looked at the watch on her wrist, checking that she still had time for the bell to ring.
----------
[9:45] [Tokyo Stadium]
Hustle, hustle, hustle.
Listening to the calm bustle coming from all over the different stalls under the tents.
—Sensei, thank you for bringing us and doing the paperwork.
—It's my job, you don't have to be formal, but this place is impressive.
—Is this your first time attending these events?—
—I'm sorry to say yes—.
—Then there's no reason to stop here, sensei can go for a walk, we're already ready, we just need to open the doors to the public.
—That would be irresponsible of me.
—Come on, come on, don't be too strict with yourself, besides, we're not kids anymore, we can take care of ourselves, and there's still 15 minutes until the doors open.
—W-well, if you insist, I'll go see the competition they have here—.
Watching him go off to explore, Rei and Arisa, who had finally convinced him, went back inside the tent, where Mizuho, Kunihiko and Jumpei were, nervous enough to stay awake.
—I'm tired, my body will hold out before the fair ends—
Bufo Rei sitting heavily on one of the chairs.
Meanwhile, Jumpei and Kunihiko, in a hyperactive state due to nervousness, kept checking the systems.
—Yes, no problem, it's working as it should against interference from electrical waves and potential hackers, and the anti-coolants are also doing their job.
—Fuu, it's not for nothing that I worked for this system for a long time.
Kunihiko confidently declared that he was just as tired as the others.
—Rei-sempai, I want to activate the prototype—.
—That's not a bad idea, Jumpei-kun. Since you're the tallest, you can put it on top of the tent. Ari, help me put in my contact lenses. Is Mari-chan connected to the video screen? Kunihiko-kun, I want you to keep an eye out for any problems with the security system. Jumpei, join Kunihiko later.—
—The screen is connected to the laptop so it can display what the drone sees.
—Kunihiko-kun help me by holding the chair, I don't want to fall—.
-Go-.
Handing him a rustic Mizuho device consisting of a small aluminum tube found in the antennas of any house, connected to a small plastic box like a matchbox.
Taking it, Jumpei peeled off some double-sided stickers he had on the tent, repeating them four times around it.
Everyone, seeing this new object they made at the last minute, laughed bitterly.
--------
[3:51 Am] [Stark Family Home]
—We're finally done.—
Rei exclaimed as she stretched.
—The systems are green, no faults or overheating are found.
Kunihiko stated proudly.
—The line between the lenses and the drone is stable, there is no delay—.
Jumpei cheered, slapping his leg.
—Shared image works like a charm, with this there won't be any problems. While someone controls the drone, someone else can enjoy the moment.
—Is there any discomfort with the glasses, Arisa?—.
Mizuki asked since she was the one who made the virtual glasses, while Javier made the wiring system and installed a small circuit with batteries in one of the legs.
—A little rustic, but beyond that, no problem.
—Well, I can conclude that the drone's operation is a resounding success.
Applause! x5
No one could help but applaud for achieving what they set out to do. Javier, who was acting as the drone's test operator, removed his contact lenses by placing them in a container with a specialized antibacterial liquid that wouldn't damage their circuitry.
—But don't you think it's very simple?
—Hmm? What do you mean by simple?
Happy that everything had gone as planned, Kunihiko didn't mind asking Javier.
"—Or I see it well, there's no need to change anything—.
Jumpei said proudly, puffing out his chest.
—Ah, that's what I mean, like a flight prototype, the navigator screen in a corner, alerting of nearby objects, it's very good, but it's simple and I don't say it's bad, but what you want is for people to come to your stand, to make it attractive to the public and among the public there will be university and company personnel from all over the country, even foreigners.
—You're saying you want to make it more interactive—.
—Exactly, Rei-sempai. Someone played a game of piloting a plane on their cell phone.
—Ah, you want to set challenges—.
—There you have it, Fuyuki-sempai—.
—But it's too late to do that, there are about two hours left until dawn.
—Enough time, Imagawa-sempai! We have six people here who are proficient in programming. Throw out your ideas, let's go.
Rei and the other kids' sleepy faces faded, and they began to offer their opinions.
—We can't do anything that sophisticated, but we do make it collect points, like the game of dartboard.
—That's a good one, Rei-sempai. In addition to the points for passing the targets, we can have them pass a shooting range like in the war games.
He added Jumpei to Rei's idea and immediately launched another idea, Mizuho.
—We can also give him a virtual hook to carry from one place to another, and depending on how many objects he carries, he will earn points.
—If so, a simple GPS search is also a must.
Contributing his idea to Kunihiko, Javier looks at Arisa who had remained silent, frowning.
—It all sounds nice, but time is upon us, at most we can put into practice an interactive game—.
Arisa's words were like a bucket of cold water, Javier just smiled and moved his cell phone.
—Now there are all kinds of apps on the phone, I can draw very quickly, while others program the holographic minigames.
—But it doesn't overload the system, it's already at its limit to support the load—.
"I'd already thought of that, and we can use antennas as transmitters. The real magic is in the laptop with the biggest processor."
----------
Present.
"—now that I think about it, it's crazy what we did in a few hours—.
—Ha ha, that was crazy in itself. But our kohai gets all the credit.
—True, your drawing technique would leave a professional in tears.
—And the most impressive thing is that he uses such a crude tool to draw, if the anime makers realized the kohai's talent they would cry—.
"It feels strange to have to praise, but he's talented. I wonder why he went to our school. With his talent in studies and the fields he's in, he'd be in college skipping three years."
Mizuho not being the only one to think about it, a visitor arrived at the tent attracting everyone's attention.
-Who are you?-.
The boy said nothing, he looked at everyone, he looked at the drone on the table covered with a tablecloth and on which was the crude device.
—A simple drone, they think it's 2005—.
Sarcastic, with a mocking tone, the most temperamental Jumpei jumped from his seat to confront the 19-year-old boy, but Kunihiko's hand stopped him.
—I don't know who or why you came to our tent, but it's best if you leave.
Standing proudly in front of Rei's group, he looked at the logo on Kunihiko's uniform.
"And here I thought I was dealing with people of my level, but I see that you are mere filthy commoners. Ah, ah, this contest should ban your kind and let only the true schools showcase their talents."
Displaying unbridled arrogance, he snorted before leaving.
—You bastard, come on and repeat it if you think you're such a cock!—.
—Stop it, you'll just make a pointless scene, Jumpei-kun.
Arisa reproached, but even she could sense how angry she was.
—He's from the riquilla kotachi school—.
Rei clarified that she hadn't said anything. Arisa, who was rubbing her head, told them.
—The short sword stuck in the rock, there's no doubt it's from the Kotachi school, but seeing its age it must be from the university.
—Tch, I didn't like those kinds of people.
—Me too, but we can't stoop to their level.
—I know, but if he comes back showing how conceited he is...—.
Showing her fist trembling with indignation, Rei could only shrug her shoulders in a sign of not knowing anything.
[Good morning to everyone present. Ah, all participants from your respective schools, please return to your seats, as the Science and Technology Open House is about to begin.]
Hearing a woman's voice on the speakers, the stadium doors were opened.
-------
10:05 AM [Tokyo Stadium]
Little by little, people arrived, Rei and the others, even though they hadn't seen the visitors as they were located a little far from the doors and the environment.
—Uuuu, the wait is killing me, Rei-sempai can I have one of those sandwiches your mom made?—
-... Take-.
Rei was passing the sandwich, the shadow of a girl made her jump.
—Mommy, here's Onee-chan!!—.
Rei who didn't know who the girl under 10 years old with a ponytail was, dressed in a one-piece with a bow under the chest had suddenly appeared, further behind running a woman with long dark blue hair, short-sleeved blouse over a cardigan and long flowery skirt, next to her came a boy who had just entered his teens wearing dress pants, a short-sleeved shirt and his usual hooded sweater and at his side accompanying them were a maids.
—Excuse me, who are you?—.
—My daddy said Shio should come with mommy to meet an Onee-chan!—.
-Hey?-.
Rei's mind was so soft that Jumpei and Arisa had to support her after the sudden news. Rei, trembling all over, tried to confirm, but her words failed when she saw the girl's childlike smile, which seemed to be true, and her nervous mother.
Rei could only think of one possibility
-Dad, how could you-.
—Shio be careful, didn't he tell you, mommy, not to run, that you might fall and hurt yourself?—
—S-sorry, Onii-chan—.
Apologizing for being scolded by Asahi, Shio went back to see what was on the table, but being small she had to jump around, causing Asahi to grab her armpits to lift her up.
—Sorry for the inconvenience.—
Yuuna said seeing Shio's hyperactivity, who paid no attention to anything they said.
—...—.
Rei, with Shio's misunderstanding, then Asahi, made her imagination run wild until she couldn't think clearly about anything other than her father's betrayal with another woman. Yami, who realized everything, took her cell phone out of her apron and showed something to Rei.
—W-what is this?—.
[Message 7:09 AM]
[Sorry for not being home last night. I'm feeling fine. I didn't contact anyone, but I hope Rinka relayed the message. There's a Science and Technology open house at Tokyo Stadium at 10:00 AM. Go if you want, but I assure you, you'll have a great time and a good time. Here's a photo of our school members. By the way, I helped out a bit.]
—Rei, you're okay, don't worry, I'm sure everything has an explanation: your dad would never cheat on your mom.
Arisa, just as surprised as the others, approached and touched Rei's stiff shoulders. Jumpei, Kunihiko, and Mizuho, who knew Rei's father, kaku, eh, were equally surprised and didn't know what to say to him in a situation like that.
—No, you're not wrong, Ari... thanks, look at this—.
Yami, who left the phone in Rei's hands, showed the message Javier sent three hours ago.
—What a scare—.
—Tell me about it, I'm sorry, Dad, I doubted you.
Feeling guilty for having doubted her own father, Rei returned the phone to Yami.
—Thank you and sorry for my misunderstanding.
(You're welcome, I'm Yami, nice to meet you.) Yami greets, writing in his notebook.
—... Oh, sorry, Yami-san, nice to meet you and—.
Looking at Shio, Yuuna and Asahi for not knowing anything about the three of them.
"Onee-chan, I'm Shio."
—Hello, Shio-chan—.
—Nice to meet you, Yuuna Kobe and this is my oldest son, Asahi Kobe, says hello—.
-Hello...-.
—And my youngest daughter, Shio Kobe—.
—Nice to meet you, Rei Stark, excuse my question, but who did you mean by father?—.
—Daddy is Shio's daddy—.
—Shio, I told you that you can't call him that, people will misinterpret it and it will cause problems for young Valderrama—.
-But...-.
Ducking his head, he puffed out his cheeks like a squirrel stuffing his nuts, muttering, but no one was listening, except Yami who said nothing.
—But Yami-mama told me I could only call Javier-kun like that outside—.
Shio whispered, falling completely for Yami's lie.
—I'm sorry if my daughter misunderstood you—.
—Don't worry, it's normal for children to get attached.
-What is this?-.
Asahi, hooded, asked them about the Drone on the table.
—Since the Kohai is sending you here, it would be wrong for you not to try our little invention—.
—Put on these glasses—.
—...Okay—.
Behaving like a respectable sempai, Mizuho handed over the glasses, which looked very crude and tasteless at first glance.
The frame was as thick as the legs, but it still didn't look coarse. However, the two legs now protruded from the outside, which looked like a finger battery, which was covered with black electrical tape, the only good thing being that they were the same color.
—It looks a little ugly compared to what's shown here, but its quality is top-notch.
Arisa told him she was acting like an older sister, taking the glasses out of Asahi's hands and putting them on, then placing the electrodes on Asahi's temples.
"It's your turn, Jumpei-kun."
—Oh, go on.
Taking some control from the laptop, Jumpei checks that everything is normal on the drone to remotely turn on the goggles. At the same time, the TV, which had only been showing a green mountain with clouds flowing like rivers, switched to the drone image.
—Ohhh!!—.
Getting tangled up in his own feet, he falls, hitting his knee and palm.
—Okay? Come, sit here, and when you feel ready, tell me to continue.
Rei kindly explained that she helped lift Asahi up to help him sit up, since he couldn't stabilize himself.
—It's incredible... this is what it looks like from behind that camera—.
Excited and shocked by a new world, he looked at the screen that looked the same as the glasses, but felt it wasn't the same, putting it back on.
—Can we continue?—.
—You heard, Kunihiko-kun—.
Responding with a thumbs up, a chibi girl wearing the Sakakino uniform suddenly appeared, with the difference that her skirt was short, and she didn't have the school logo but the seal of the Hentai God on the skirt and blazer, this being a type of lotus that was just blooming.
(Hello and welcome to the Mirai drone interface. I'm the chibi Mir, and I'm here to show you how to control Mirai... Let's start with something simple, which I know you can do, look at this bar, you have to get to this point. Do you think you can?)
—Hmph, simple—.
Asahi replied, and as if answered, the chibi Mir nodded proudly.
(Excellent answer, now concentrate as best you can and spin Mirai's propellers)
—Uh, Kub...—.
With a little force, the bar began to fall as the propellers began to move and stop.
(Excellent! You did very well. Now it started to fly slowly... Very good! How wonderful, Mirai is finally flying...)
—Look, Mommy!! He's flying!! Like the little birds, incredible.
—Seriously amazing, it's blowing Asahi's mind—.
Yuuna was stunned to see the drone controlled by Asahi fly a few centimeters from the table, Shio kept pulling Yuuna's skirt as she observed the new world with bright eyes just like Shio, showing that they were mother and daughter.
"—Ami-mama, look, look, he's flying like a little bird, it's amazing how Onii-chan does it—.
Yami, who didn't understand what was so great about Asahi flying a simple drone with his mind, didn't respond, but smiled at Shio, who was tugging at her skirt to get her attention.
(With that, Mir's basic tutorial is complete. Congratulations, now it's time to take to the skies. Oh, we have a new mission, hoop watching. You have to go through said hoops to earn points and make Mirai recover energy... Danger!! Mir has encountered multiple hostile reactions from the hoops, evasive maneuvers are recommended! Here it comes, get ready!!)
Mir, who until now was speaking with the voice of Arisa's older sister, changed and an adult Mir appeared who was not wearing a school uniform, but a black latex one that was attached to the body, on top of which she had a yellow exoskeleton that covered the neck, shoulders, and in the middle of her apple-sized chest, on which the seal of the hentai God was engraved in pink.
In the same way, her waist tightened down to her feet, revealing a short luminous skirt while a kind of tail moved restlessly, revealing a sensual figure that changed for the innocent chibi.
Having a military air, Rei's voice sounded through the speakers.
(Time to find out what you're made of, rookie champion, battle mode has entered)
Asahi, who could barely keep his mind calm, his body instinctively moved to the left, lowering his upper limb, moving enough that he looked like a clown falling to the floor.
(Kyaa!!, champ, we've been hit, we've lost the right wing!, we're losing altitude, we're going to begin the emergency landing!, focus!.)
Urging him on with a pained face, the chibi Mir, whose right arm was injured, just like the one shown on the screen where she received the damage, was red while the others were green. Asahi, who felt everything was so realistic, did his best to land, appearing tense until he landed safely.
(Whew, well done champ, the landing was a complete success, thank you.)
Turning off the screen and the augmented reality glasses, the last image was of Mir showing a big, almost human smile.
—I did it!—.
Asahi who was too immersed in the few minutes he was, the simple Asahi who kept a serene face now showed a big smile of happiness that ran to his mother.
—Look, mommy, I did it, hehehe—.
—!.. Yes, well done, Asahi, you did a good job—.
Yuuna, being the mother, couldn't believe what she saw and hugged Asahi lovingly while congratulating him.
-My little one finally shows me a smile from his heart after what he suffered, even if it was just through a game...-.
—I'm a little jealous—.
—Huh, what do you mean, Mommy?
-Nothing-.
Hiding that feeling in her heart, she continued to hug Asahi until she was pulled off by her clothes.
—Mommy hugged, Shio wants a family hug—.
—Of course, my girl, come—.
Hugging the Kobe family under the tent, neither Rei nor Arisa understood that, they were simply happy to see how they made a family happy because of their invention.
—S-sorry, I think I damaged the drone—.
Asahi said apologetically as he handed over the glasses.
—... Huh, why do you say that, look, the drone is fine? —.
-Hey?!-.
Turning to look at the drone, he realized that it was intact, that what he had experienced was nothing more than a game.
—But it was clearly seen that the right wing was destroyed—.
—Ah. That's it!—.
Coming out from behind, Mizuho explained.
—That was thanks to the augmented reality system and the antennas you see above the tent.
Coming out from under the tent, Asahi recently realized that it was there.
—Incredible, everything was so real, I felt the wind hitting my face and when I received the impact, my arm hurt.
..
..
.
—Ahahaha!!!—.
—W-what are you laughing at?—
Not understanding anything, he looks at everyone laughing except Yami.
—S-sorry, but it was funny, don't you remember that you fell to the floor sideways because you tried to dodge the attacks?
—And the air came from the fan we brought that's spinning.
Blushing when Asahi realizes this, he hides his face with his hood, causing them to laugh again.
—Mommy, I want to try, I want to try—.
—But Shio looks a little violent—.
—Ah, don't worry, the program has several simulations, not all of them will be with young Asahi-san—.
-I follow!-.
Sitting down on the chair all excited, Shio let Rei put her glasses on.
Asahi, now a spectator, saw the entire Drone, it began to fly above the table and Mir herself appeared in uniform.
(Welcome to the Mirai Tutorial 2. I'm chibi Mir, and I'm here to show you how to control Mirai... Let's start with something simple. I know you'll be able to see this bar; you have to get to this point. Do you think you can?... Very good answer, excellent, well done! Let's start the engines and fly through the sky with Mirai!... Ah! Captain, I received an SOS call. They're asking for help, we have to hurry, we'll have to fire up the engines and get there as soon as possible. Be careful with falling obstacles.)
Immediately, the chibi Mir changed her school uniform for a red pilot's uniform that accentuated her figure and finished with a helmet.
—Amazing, the interaction is very different with Shio—.
Stunned by all this, Yuuna Mizuho and Arisa looked at each other and laughed stiffly.
—It was a last-minute thing, but we managed to do it well with the help of the Kohai.
Kunihiko clarified with some confession while monitoring Mirai's systems. Yuuna, who had an idea about the so-called kohai, asked.
—By Kohai do you mean young Valderrama?—.
—Ah, yes, thanks to the Kohai's help we were able to finish and make many arrangements—.
Jumpei declared that he was just like Kunihiko, watching.
—By the way, what are they to you, Javier?—.
Curious to know who Yami, Yuuna, Shio and Asahi were who came for Javier, Yami began to write in his notebook and show it to Rei.
(I'm the maid who serves Javier body and soul. Yuuna is the newcomer who helps with cleaning and making good food, her son Asahi who helps too and the youngest Shio daughter of Javier. By the way, next month the two will enter their new school)
—¡¡Aaaaaa!!—.