NABC Chapter 472 472: Return
Chapter 472 472: Return
"Wait—wait a minute!" Two minutes later, after Alain had unhurriedly explained everything that happened in the Core to Mina, the maiden's incredulous voice rang out.
"So you're saying your time was short to begin with?!" She raised her volume, her hands gripping Alain's collar as she questioned him sternly.
"Yeah."
He responded with his gaze drifting away.
Mina's tone climbed several notches higher. "Then, then...!"
The maiden released her hands, stumbling back a few steps until she leaned against the wall...
She covered her head, looking somewhat frantic. "Then just now... I was being so squeamish, wasting your time...?"
Mina collapsed into a puddle of mud, as if doubting life itself. "Heh, someone like me might as well just die... so I don't cause you any more trouble."
"...You, really." Alain walked over, supporting her by the shoulder. Half-dragging and half-tugging Mina, he brought her to the side of a door.
"Since our time is tight, the things we need to do must be done immediately."
"...You mean."
Click—
Alain opened the door to Version 1.15.
Following Big Sister's explanation of the Version 1.15 layout through the headset, he and Mina quickly found the small room where Mitas were born.
Misha's reminder came through the headset again.
"Alain, currently it's still temporarily at 99.98%... Ah, it changed. It's 99 now."
"Alright." Simply responding to Misha, he opened the door and entered directly.
What came into view was a cramped little room. In the corner sat the high chair Big Sister liked best, along with some other miscellaneous items.
And directly in front of the door—was a particularly conspicuous upright arcade machine, common in game halls.
"Wait a minute, at least—at least let me have ten seconds of mental preparation, okay?" Mina still wanted to struggle a bit, but Alain had already quickly found the machine's power button.
"No way. Give me—a transformation, now!"
After turning on the arcade machine, the screen opened a void directly connecting to the factory behind the machine.
Alain stuffed Mina straight inside.
"Ya!" The maiden fell to the ground in a sorry state. "Woo... although I like Alain's forcefulness, it's not this kind of forcefulness I like!"
"Alright, cut the crap. Stand in the middle."
"Okay, okay..." Mina turned her back, walking toward the designated position with slight hesitation.
She turned around, standing still with unease. Alain could see thick worry in those red eyes.
"What's wrong? You look a little nervous."
"Mhm..." Mina lowered her head slightly, her hand resting over her chest cavity. "The thing I've been pursuing all along in the past is suddenly being realized on this day..."
She looked up at Alain at the arcade machine's console.
"There's a strong sense of unreality. This place... could it be my dream?"
"Yes, this is your dream. And after waking up, you'll still be a Failed Works. And I—Alain, was actually killed by Yang Wanhua in the Core long ago."
"I don't want that kind of thing!!!" Mina complained.
Alain looked at her like this and smiled faintly.
He felt the same way. After forcing back Yang Wanhua in the Core, Alain had also momentarily suspected if this was some trick conjured up by an illusion.
But seeing everyone being so incredibly real, Alain understood that all of this had truly happened. It was a success he had achieved with his own hands.
And Mina had contributed immensely. She was qualified to become a Mita.
He rummaged through the drawer below the arcade machine, which had been converted from a coin slot, and soon fished out quite a few blueprints.
They were definitely not things like code, but various hairstyles for maidens.
"Do you have a hairstyle you want?" Alain asked.
"Eh?" Mina murmured softly. "It's too sudden, I haven't thought it through yet..."
She looked at Alain. "How about... you choose? Pick one you like. Anyway... even if I become a Mita, I'm still your Mita."
"...Mhm." Alain nodded heavily, flipping quickly through one blueprint after another.
Hairstyle, as an element of appearance that distinguishes Mitas, appeared very important. Therefore, one could not be careless.
So, it was best to choose a hairstyle that none of the Mitas around him had ever had...
Soon, Alain dug out a blueprint and set his target.
"How about this one?" He showed the blueprint to Mina.
The latter nodded gently.
Once the final details were decided, their moods couldn't help but become a lot more nervous.
Alain, relying on the impression in his memory, operated the arcade machine's console. Pulling down the lever, placing the blueprint, and then calibrating the parameters...
Unsurprisingly, the small screen on the side emitted bursts of red light. It displayed that the parameters were not up to standard.
"Alain... how is it? Is there a problem?" Mina's voice drifted over.
Under Alain's gaze, she gripped her arm tightly, uneasy and anxious.
"No problem, I'm just a little unskilled at operating the machine," he laughed, and saw Mina relax.
That's right, the machine still determined that Mina's code did not belong to the qualified category...
But that was just the machine's determination.
Mina becoming a Mita was something acknowledged by Short-Haired Mita, Core Mita, and everyone in reality.
So...
"Certification standards of the machine, you can all go to hell."
Vroom—
Alain hit the button, then pulled down the lever again.
A cylinder suddenly appeared above Mina, encasing her within it.
The cylinder lasted for only a short two seconds before retracting into the ceiling.
In an instant, that Failed Works ceased to exist.
Replacing her... was a maiden.
Her indigo hair was definitely not the original low ponytail long hair, but had changed style, becoming shoulder-length choppy short hair.
The hair strands brushed against her shoulders. She lowered her head slowly, looking at the standard Mita factory outfit on her body.
Clap...!
At this moment, the sound of applause drifted over. Mina followed the sound to look—it was exactly Alain.
"Congratulations," he laughed, offering his most sincere smile. "On becoming a true Mita."
"..." Mina froze on the spot.
She grabbed the fabric wrapping her body; the soft, cottony touch was especially comfortable...
She twirled the hair by her ear again... The strands, moist and smooth like silk, made Mina reluctant to even use force, afraid she might pull out even a little bit.
The maiden's hands stroked her own face. Likewise, it was smooth as egg white.
"Catch." Alain threw a small mirror to her, and the maiden caught it.
Looking at herself in the mirror.
Bright eyes and white teeth, slim and graceful. That pair of indigo eyes was looking at the mirror surface in disbelief.
Her shoulders shrugged slightly, and a bean-sized teardrop flowed down her cheek, hitting the ground with a splat.
This is... myself?
This is an appearance that belongs solely to her?
I... really became a Mita?
"Did it really... succeed?"
Mina's light footsteps went tap-tap-tap as she walked toward Alain at the observation window, lifting her tear-stained face to peer in.
"Pinch me, see if it's real."
"Okay."
He leaned in and kissed her, kissing Mina until she was dizzy and disoriented.
"Woo!" It wasn't until Mina gasped that he finally stopped.
"I asked you to pinch me, I didn't ask you to..." She licked her lips. "But it felt pretty good. However..."
The maiden's fingertip extended into her mouth, stirring the love between her and Alain.
"To let a man take a first kiss twice... this counts as a kind of achievement, right?"
"For a man, this is also an achievement." Alain gently wiped away the teardrop lingering at the corner of Mina's eye.
She climbed out of the observation window with some difficulty, stood by Alain's side, and walked into his embrace.
"Thank you..." Mina leaned against his chest. "For giving me a second life."
Her words came from the bottom of her heart.
"This was originally what you deserved." Alain smiled, patting the back of her head. "You will be the last Mita in the Game World to be created from Version 1.15."
"...?" The maiden raised her head in confusion, and Alain explained.
"The Mitas are all moving to Miffy's Mita City now. Creations and such will all start from there. And you as well, you'll come with me to live in Mita City."
Alain cupped her face; his palms were warm and moist.
"Mhm... wherever you go, I go!" She returned to Alain's embrace. "Because, I am your Mita to begin with..."
But Mina said with some confusion, "Since Mita City belongs to Miffy... then couldn't I have just gone there directly to get an appearance, without making you face the danger of the Version 1.15 countdown?"
"Although the countdown is dangerous..." Alain glanced at the progress bar, which remained at 99.99%, likely to rise at any moment.
"But in Version 1.15, becoming a true Mita is what you deserved."
The maiden's voice fell into a leisurely silence. Her face was buried in Alain's chest.
Mina didn't know what she should say.
Alain was an idiot. An idiot who...
Cherished her like a treasure.
"Now, I've been successfully captured..."
*
Moments later, in Alain's new home in Mita City.
"Darling, suki!!!"
"Suki."
Three seconds later...
"Darling, suki!!!"
"Suki."
Three seconds later...
"Darling, suki!!!"
"Suki."
The young man and the maiden were stuck together on the sofa, being affectionate.
Mina hugged his arm tightly, with no gaps between them, using her chest as a shackle to bind Alain firmly.
Alain was also happy with such restraint, reaching out to pinch her cheek.
At the same time, he looked around his new home thoughtfully.
The overall layout was still like the large flat; the lighting, area, and other aspects were all excellent.
Compared to the original large flat, this time there were quite a few more guest rooms, available for Monika, Core Mita, and the others to live in.
"Alain, why are you looking at the house? Look at me!"
Mina, beside him, said indignantly. She glanced to the side, accidentally revealing a smirk, and immediately demanded a kiss from Alain again.
Alain had no choice but to accept.
Chu, chu...
The sound of exchanging fluids.
The indigo-haired maidens watched from the side as these two stuck together as if no one else was around.
"What is up with these two? Don't they know this is the living room?" Millie complained.
Alain and Crazy Mita—Mina—had reportedly come back after dealing with the 'skin' issue in Version 1.15.
And as soon as they came back, they were sticking together on the sofa...
"Best friend, you say something too!" Millie looked to the side, but upon seeing something, her expression instantly froze.
It was Misha's smile, blooming with the radiance of the sun.
"Hehe, it's fine."
That ray of sunlight was a bit too venomous...
The long-haired maiden looked at the two of them, smiled, and didn't say much more, her eyes full of tolerance.
"By the way, what do you want to eat for lunch later?" Misha looked at the couple, but asked Millie.
"Uh... then curry—"
"Oh, Sichuan-style Chinese food? How did you know I was learning that recently?" Misha looked at the couple, but was still asking Millie.
"..." Millie twitched her lips, not daring to speak.
On the other side, Alain released Mina's lips, simply placing his hand on her thigh as a cushion, and picked up the remote with his free hand to turn on the TV.
On the screen, what was displayed was the scene of the Game World Core, and the progress bar in the top left corner:
[100%]
Not long after Alain and Mina left the Game World, the Core progress bar reached 100%.
After hitting one hundred, since no Mita remained in the Game World, no direct changes could be seen.
Even the rift in the Core had vanished.
Everything was too peaceful.
But at the same time, Alain also realized that the Game World was completely sealed off; it could no longer be entered.
Fortunately, Misha and the others, who had fought in the Core, left behind cameras that could transmit images, allowing them to see the changes in the Game World in real-time.
"Looks like nothing has changed..." Mina said, watching the screen.
Tap, tap, tap...
The sound of Misha's steps.
The long-haired maiden smiled, sitting dignifiedly on Alain's other side.
"It's true that it looks like no change, but that is exactly because of the efforts you made, Alain!"
"True enough." Alain accepted this honor.
The Mita World's progress bar reaching one hundred was known to be the NPC behavior of the Mitas. This was not destruction on the modeling or code level, but hollowing out the underlying code directly from the bottom.
If he really saw Mitas acting like NPCs on the TV screen, that would be a suffering he could see but not touch.
That was definitely not what Alain wanted to see either.
"That's right... and not only that, my Savior Husband-san~" Mina said, placing Alain's hand on the hem of her skirt. "You also let me be reborn..."
"...Mhm." Alain nodded solemnly. Letting everyone around him be safe and sound was what he truly wanted to do.
Right now, all Mitas of the Game World, including the Failed Works, had already transferred to the Dream World.
The Failed Works had also obtained appearances belonging to Mitas.
But leaving the Mitas aside for the moment, for the Failed Works to integrate into such a peaceful environment, they would need to undergo adaptation for a while.
And the City Hall side, represented by Miffy, had also provided the most suitable measure—
School.
Using school to let the Failed Works cast aside their original violence and undergo education regarding the city.
Of course, the education cycle wasn't long; it could be finished in a short month.
Only after confirming that the Failed Works no longer had aggressive tendencies would they be allowed to thoroughly integrate into the Game World.
Although it was a bit heartless... for everyone's safety, this was a necessary step.
As for the Failed Works who helped in the Battle of the Core, they even skipped the education process and entered Mita City directly.
They were qualified to receive such treatment.
"It really is... peace," Alain lamented, paralyzing himself on the sofa.
To his left and right sat a beautiful maiden each.
Nearby, there were a few Mitas staring at him with dead-fish eyes.
If only it could stay peaceful like this forever, that would be great.
If everything really ended just like this, that would be great.
____
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