The chamber buzzed with energy as scholars moved between terminals, monitoring hardware diagnostics and readings. Holographic screens floated from their Akasha terminals, streaming real-time reports.
"Signal's flowing!"
"Divine Tree Memory Banks are activating confirmation received!"
"Server-to-console connection stable! Root node synchronization holding!"
Noah stood near the main console, his eyes followed the data streams across the main monitor.
"Give me the full status report," he called out.
One of the scholars raised a hand. "Leyline relays are stable across Sumeru City. Data flow is consistent, holding at 93.2% no signs of overload."
"Good. Any fluctuations from any relay?" Noah asked.
"None detected. Feedback loops remain optimal. System integrity is holding across all primary veins."
Nahida leaned in beside him smiling. "It's working, just like we hoped."
One of the scholars stepped forward, tapping quickly on their Akasha-linked device. "All leyline relays are responding. Signal strength is stable across the entire Sumeru City. The data flow rate is holding at 93% and climbing."
"Node connection latency?" Noah asked, keeping his tone even but attentive.
"Below three milliseconds, Grand Sage. All nodes are within the acceptable range," the scholar confirmed.
Nahida beside Noah asked. "Console stability?"
Another scholar, trying not to laugh, raised her hand. "Fluctuations are within the safe range. There was a brief spike in node twenty-three… probably because the Aranara started playing with the root interface.... again."
Noah is stunned with a disbelief expression. "Wait.. What??"
Nahida sighed with a helpless smile. "We might need to remind them that the system isn't a playground."
the scholar grinned. "We did told before but they said, and I quote: 'Happy vines make happy dreams.'"
Noah let out an amused grin. "Well... I guess that's the most wholesome interference report I've ever heard."
Buer opened her eyes as the last traces of dendro energy faded from her form.
"Memory synchronization with Irminsul is confirmed. The plant-based neural network is now fully online. The Divine Tree's integration is stable and strong."
Noah gave one final look to the scholars.
"Final check. Any anomalies?"
"All green, Grand Sage!"
"System stability confirmed!"
"Server, console, and processors are all synchronized!"
The chamber, once filled with movement and chatter, fell silent. Even Miss A, who always had something to say, was holding her breath. Elysia stood still. Lumine's grip on her sleeve tightened slightly.
"…So… it worked?" Kiana broke the silence, blinking as she looked between them. "Right? Like it's actually a success?"
Noah looked at Buer, then Nahida. The three shared a glance.
They smiled. Then together they high-fived.
As if on cue, cheers and applause erupted in the room. Some scholars slumped into their seats, exhausted but triumphant. Others stood frozen, wide-eyed, overwhelmed by what they'd just witnessed. It worked. It actually worked.
Noah turned toward the girls who had been watching quietly from the side. Their faces lit with awe and pride.
"It's alive," he murmured with a breath of relief, lips curling into a smile. "We did it."
Lumine didn't hesitate. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him. "Congratulations," she whispered.
Kiana bounced in right after, tossing her arms around them both. "Captain, you're getting more ridiculous by the day!"
Miss A gave a theatrical salute. "Hahaha, that's our Captain alright~ One minute he's doing office work, the next he's building nature's internet."
Elysia snapped a picture as she tilted her head and gave a mischievous grin. "Mmm... I just hope no one ends up using this to invent a love letter algorithm or something~"
Noah let out a long groan. "Don't give them ideas."
Nahida giggled, then said softly, "Big Brother, you just gave the world a new way to dream together."
Buer didn't speak, but her serene expression said everything. Pride. Gratitude. Hope.
The Inteyvat network had bloomed and so will be across the world, so did the future.
-------------
" Alright!" Noah clapped his hands once, drawing everyone's attention. "With the Inteyvat network fully operational and running smoothly, we can officially call Phase One a success."
Another wave of cheers erupted among the scholars, echoing through the chamber like a celebration of triumph.
"Can you believe it?!" one scholar whispered to another. "This is a new era for Sumeru!"
"I thought the system would crash at 80%," someone admitted, half-laughing, half-crying.
"I already started preparing a backup speech!" another said while hiding a half-torn paper from his sleeve.
But just as the laughter spread again, Noah raised his hand.
The effect was immediate. Silence ran across the room. Eyes turned toward him, everyone was ready to hear it.
"Now, with that in mind," he continued, sweeping his gaze across the gathered scholars, "we'll begin preparations for Phase Two. In two hours, we initiate the Virtual Reality experiment. Be ready. This is where things get interesting."
Noah gave a wry smile, crossing his arms. "I just hope none of you forgot the actual reason we started building this network in the first place?"
A noticeable twitch ran through the room. Some scholars awkwardly looked away, others chuckled nervously. One or two tried to casually shuffle their notes as if that would help them escape the implication.
Even Buer, who had been proudly standing moments ago, let out a tiny embarrassed squeak and turned her head, clearly remembering only now.
Noah stared at the room flatly, deadpan. "Seriously? All of you?"
No one dared to respond.
"The VR experiment? The safe environment for simulation testing? Ringing any bells yet?"
Only silence answered Noah's question.
Kiana blinked and tilted her head. "Did they... actually forget?"
Lumine sighed, deadpanning. "...They really did."
"It flew away, carried off by the wind of excitement~" Elysia sang softly with a theatrical flourish.
Miss A clutched her stomach, trying and failing to stifle a laugh. "I can't believe this! They really forgot the real reason for the entire project!!!"
Nahida turned to Buer with a quiet, piercing gaze. "...Even you, Sister Buer?"
Buer stiffened, then looked away with an awkward chuckle. "E-Eh? Nahida-chan, let me quibble... Ehem, I mean explain! You see, I was just really excited about the network launch, and I... I might've slightly overlooked that teensy little detail! It's not forgetting, really! More like... selectively enthusiastic memory filtering!"
Nahida blinked slowly. Her expression remained gentle, but the disapproval in her eyes was clear.
"Mmm-hmm," she said softly. "If you say so sister~."
Buer dropped instantly. "Uuuu... that smile hurts more than a scolding..."
Noah sighed and pressed his fingers against his forehead. "Just... get ready. I don't want a single accident happening today. Not even a minor hiccup."
"YES, GRAND SAGE!!!" a chorus of nervous voices rang.
Everyone rushed into motion, scholars dashing to terminals, adjusting configurations, and pretending to be busy. Though in truth, it wasn't just about their duty, most were simply trying to avoid Noah's stare.
"Move like your research grants depend on it!" one scholar whispered in a panic.
"Because it probably does," another replied under his breath.
Noah exhaled slowly and muttered with a long-suffering look, "I fear for the future of the Akademiya…"
----------
The scholars bustled near the control terminals, eyes switching between monitors and graphs. One of them leaned over their console, and spoke up.
"Grand Sage, system parameters are locked in! All modules are green across the board."
Another chimed in, tapping a holographic interface, "Node relay and server functioning at optimal levels."
Buer stood behind them, hands clasped, observing the readouts with a focused gaze. "Akasha synchronization and Divine Tree link are stable. Neural strain remains minimal."
Nahida gave Noah a nod. "All preconditions are met. Your vitals are steady. Ready when you are."
Noah exhaled through his nose, activating his Akasha terminal with a gesture. "Then let's begin."
He looked at Kiana, Lumine, Elysia, and Miss A, giving them a thumbs up. Each one returned the gesture with their own.
"Good luck, Captain!" Kiana grinned, resting her hands on her hips.
Lumine gave him a soft, encouraging smile. "Be careful, okay? We'll be monitoring you."
"Let me go next if it's safe!" Miss A chirped, bouncing excitedly. "I want to fight a giant virtual dragon or something!"
Elysia winked and lifted her recording device. "Noah~ Do something epic. I want this footage to make history look grand~."
Noah chuckled softly and shook his head, a small sigh escaping. "Alright, alright. Time to do this."
He sat back, letting himself sink into the seat. Slowly, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax.
"Link start!" he declared clearly.
In a moment, Noah's consciousness entered into the virtual world.
-------------
Noah opened his eyes to a completely white space. He scanned the area carefully, before raising a hand to tap the Akasha terminal near his head.
"This is Noah. I've successfully entered the virtual space," he reported. "Give me a full system status check. Any signs of server or processor stress?"
[Negative, Grand Sage. All systems are operating within optimal parameters,] came the clear voice of one of the operators.
[No spikes or fluctuations have been detected,] Buer added, her tone steady.
[The Divine Tree link remains stable. In fact, it's performing above projected efficiency,] Nahida chimed in with a smile in her voice. [It's amazing. Everything is working better than expected.]
"Good to hear," Noah replied, nodding slightly as he absorbed the information. He let himself relax, but his mind remained focused for the next phase.
He moved his fingers with ease, constructing a virtual workbench, chairs, and various materials. Each item materializes into existence with a glow.
[Wow... even with all that, the stress on the processing units didn't budge.] One of the scholars sounded impressed, eyes glued to the display.
Noah let out a small breath. "Good. Proceeding to the next step."
[Roger that. Initiating combat simulation now,] Buer reported crisply.
With a flick of Noah's hand, the furnishings vanished, dissipating into faint green particles. In their place, a cluster of slimes materialized in front of him, emerging with a pulse of dendro light.
[First test: engage a Dendro Slime,] Buer instructed.
Noah gave a small smirk. "This really brings back memories of the VR games from Asterisk..."
Then his grin faded. He quickly moved his right finger downward, bringing up the interface menu. His eyes scanned the options until he found what he was looking for, the Logout option.
He exhaled in relief. "Good. It's there."
[Hm? Big Brother, is something wrong?] Nahida's voice carried a hint of concern over the comm.
"No, not really," he replied with a chuckle. "Just needed to confirm the logout button exists."
A few confused murmurs echoed through the channel.
"Don't worry, it's just a musing from my home world." Noah added with a wry smile.
Drawing his Lux-light saber, he launches himself into battle with the slime.
After completing several rounds of combat tests, Noah had just finished wave 25 when a heavy silence filled the comms.
"Wave 25 cleared," he said casually, putting his blade back at his waist sheath as the Geo Lawachurl fell with a thud. "Hello? Why did everyone go quiet all of a sudden?"
[.....Nothing to report, Grand Sage.]
[..All systems remain stable on our end.]
[But your opponents? Not so much...]
[He didn't even give them a second to act...]
[They vanished the moment they appeared. That might be the fastest defeat I've ever witnessed.]
The scholars watching from the outside were visibly stunned. Even though the combat environment was virtual, the monsters within were exact replicas of their real-world counterparts, right down to their attack patterns and toughness.
To see them fall so easily was… absurd.
[...Just like Sister Kiana said… Big Brother really is on another level,] Nahida whispered, awe lacing her voice.
"...Are all tests completed?" Noah awkwardly asked, changing the subject.
[Combat simulations have concluded, Grand Sage. Proceeding to the final phase simulation of real-world conditions,] a scholar reported promptly.
Noah nodded. "Understood. I'll construct a scene based on my memory. Record and monitor all network and system parameters as it materializes."
[[Acknowledged. Preparing the system.]] echoed the operators in unison.
He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes, calling to mind every detail of the Astral Express's parlor car, the gentle hum of the engine, the warm lounge, the light from trailblaze energy reflecting on silver rails.
As the virtual space begins to change, something strange is happening. A kaleidoscopic light spread through the virtual space. The white space around him should be transforming into the familiar lounge but with the glitch, it is transforming into an entirely different area.
"This is—!!" A scholar monitoring the central console jumped in his seat, eyes wide as parameters went up from his display.
Buer, Nahida, and the rest immediately turned toward him.
"What is it?" Buer asked, walking swiftly to his side.
"Lady Buer, the main CPU just spiked! It's still within acceptable parameters, but the change was too abrupt."
Buer's expression hardens. "Start a full diagnostic. Everyone, cross-check all instruments. If there's any small change in parameters, I want it caught immediately."
"Understood, ma'am!"
The scholars snapped into action, fingers flying across consoles, holograms adjusting and blinking rapidly as dozens of data streams poured into view.
One scholar called out, "Initiating system trace. Monitoring real-time stress flow."
Another followed, "Adjusting server cache modulation, checking for packets."
Nahida's gaze swept across the shifting readouts, her fingers lightly brushing the terminal. Beside her, Buer tensed, eyes narrowing.
"Nahida-chan," Buer spoke, her voice calm but urgent, "Just in case, dive into the Captain's consciousness. Stay close to him. We might need you in a heartbeat."
"Understood, Sister Buer," Nahida nodded and stepped forward, placing her hand atop Noah's head. A soft green glow came from her palm, signaling her using her divine power.
Suddenly, Void Archives' voice rang through the chamber.
[Warning: An unknown source is attempting to divert the Akasha terminal's connection to an unidentified node.]
[Initiating activation of the Key of Sentience to safeguard the Captain's consciousness.]
Alarms blinked on several consoles. Buer's breath caught. Kiana straightened. Elysia and Lumine exchanged looks. Miss A stopped bouncing.
[Activation failed. Attempting restart… failed. Restarting… failed.]
[Intrusion continues. Receiving transmission from an unidentified source. Playback commencing.]
A cheery voice rang out, almost playful.
["Why hello, my dears~ Apologies for interrupting your delightful little experiment, but I have a teeny need involving your dear Captain. Don't fret! I'll keep him safe. I do promise he'll enjoy this little prank—ahem—gift! Well then, Zel's out!~"]
The message ended with a wink in the tone.
"WAS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE COMFORTING?!" Kiana barked, stepping forward furiously.
"VA, identify that voice!" Lumine demanded, holding Kiana back before she could smack the closest monitor.
[...Voice signature unknown. However, based on residual data, the power's imprint corresponds to the designation 'Kaleidoscope.']
Miss A's eyes widened. "Did you say... Kaleidoscope?"
"Do you know him, A-chan?" Elysia asked, her playful air replaced with concern.
Miss A nodded slowly. "Not directly… but I've heard stories about him from other worlds. About a being who plays through infinite possibilities. If this is that Zelretch... then there's nothing we can do."
The tension in the room thickened. Kiana and Lumine stiffened, Elysia's usual smile faltered.
"But," Miss A quickly added, "he may be chaotic, but he's not evil. He keeps his promises. Captain will be fine. Probably confused... but will be fine."
------
As Noah opened his eyes inside the virtual space, he expected to see the familiar lounge of the Astral Express. Instead, swirling kaleidoscopic lights enveloped him, fading slowly as an entirely different room began to form around him.
His brows furrowed.
"This isn't right…" he muttered, glancing around as the surroundings looked familiar along with the familiar faces.
Turning toward it, Noah blinked as he spotted a group near a console, his childhood friend Satomi Koutaro standing beside a pink-haired girl in glasses, a blue-haired girl calmly typing, and a short blonde girl scanning the monitors.
"Clan, what's happening to the simulation system?!" Koutaro barked, glancing between the swirling data and Noah.
"I don't know!" Clan replied in a flustered rush, adjusting her glasses. "Everything was going smoothly, and then some weird program activated the moment we ran the Noah sim!"
The blue-haired girl, Ruth, didn't even look up. "It doesn't feel like a hack. More like… a hidden routine triggering under specific conditions."
"So it's a trap program?" Koutaro asked, glancing between Ruth and Clan.
"No, Koutaro-sama. Clan-sama. It is part of the system. But after the conditions were met. The program activated.," Ruth confirmed, as she analyzed the data from her console.
"…But none of our earlier simulations showed anything like this," the short blonde girl murmured suspiciously. "Don't tell me Kaleido Systems sold us something with backdoors?"
"Noah?!" a voice called out, full of surprise and confusion.
Before they could continue discussing, a sharp gasp spread across the room.
Everyone turned. Masha stood frozen, hands over her mouth, her eyes wide in disbelief. Beside her, Mahiru and Alya support her, though they too wore the same stunned expressions.
"No way…" Touya muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.
All eyes followed their gaze.
There, standing in the middle of the simulation room, was Noah Alden. But this wasn't the simulation. His felt too real, too alive in a way that data alone couldn't replicate.
Noah looked around, bewildered. Aside from Koutaro and the girls near the console, he spotted Mahiru, Touya, his twin siblings along with Masha and her sister Alya, his whole friend group Yuuya, Kaori, Minami, Athena, and Hayate. Even a few unfamiliar faces were present.
"...Did I get thrown into a parallel world?" he muttered, blinking in disbelief.
"Nokun?" Masha called out, her voice trembling with hope. "Is that you, Nokun?"
Noah's eyes widened.
"...That nickname…" he said, stunned. "Only one person in the entire universe ever calls me that."
He groaned internally.
Holy Akivili... What kind of shenanigans did I get dragged into this time?!