"Bro, let's go!"
The voice of a young woman sounded from outside the house.
"We're heading out now!" said Michael towards his parents.
"Be careful on the road!" replied his mother from the kitchen who is busy washing the dishes.
While his father just nodded and waved for him to go as the old man seemed really focused on something that's being broadcasted in the TV.
"Bro! Hurry up! Geez!"
The voice of a young woman once again sounded from outside the house, but this time, it's full of impatience as the owner of the voice seems really eager to go somewhere.
Michael just helplessly shook his head and made his way out of the house, and his eyes landed on a somewhat beautiful young woman with black long hair standing beside their old grey pick-up truck while holding Hao in between her arms.
"Ha-ong!"
Hao cutely raised her paw with smiling eyes and waved it towards Michael, her face glowing in excitement!
Michael walked over towards them and took Hao from the woman's hands.
"Are you that excited?"
"Ha-ong~!"
"Yah!! Are you seriously ignoring me right now!? Let's go or I'm gonna be late!"
The young woman, who is clearly Michael's sister, placed her hands on her waist and yelled at Michael with frustration, before she hurried inside the car.
And not even two seconds later, she opened the car door and got down and took Hao from Michael's hand before making her way back inside the car again.
"The heck?"
Michael could only laugh dryly while shaking his hand before getting inside the car.
Along the way to Harin's school, she kept staring at Michael which made the latter uncomfortable.
"What?"
Finally got enough of it, Michael gave her a sharp glare while Hao that's on his lap leaned on the steering wheel on his pair of cute paws with shining eyes, acting like she's the one actually driving the car.
Harin lightly shook her head and said, "Nothing, I just still can't believe that my brother is now an awakened"
Hearing her, Michael couldn't help but laugh heartily as his nose couldn't help but get longer like pinocchio in a sense.
"But in the end, you're still a farmer though"
And once again, the reality hits him in the head.
"Shut up" Michael glared at her and just focused on driving as silence descended inside the car with the occasional sounds that Hao makes due to her excitement being inside this moving block of a vehicle once again.
Ten minutes later.
They arrived as the car alighted beside the school gates of Harin's school.
Where there's already a throng of students heading inside in a hurry.
"We're here. Now, get out"
"Hmmp!"
Harin just snorted and snatched Hao from his lap and hugged her tearfully.
"Hao, I'm gonna miss you! It sucks that I can't bring you with me to school!"
'So I can brag about you and my brother!' while thinking those inside her head.
"Hawong~!"
Hao has this weird look of understanding on her face as she patted Harin like she was pitying her because she can't bring such a cute creature like her in school.
"Get your butt moving or you're gonna be late!" shouted Michael at his sister in frustration when his sister still doesn't want to get out of the car after a minute.
Harin handed Hao back to him and got down from the car, and then looked at Michael from the opposite side of the window and said with her tongue sticking out, "Bleh! When I become an awakened in the future. I'll also get someone as cute as Hao! For real!"
After saying that, Harin quickly ran away and went inside the campus.
"Ha-ong!!!"
Hao has a shocked look on her face like she suddenly felt betrayed.
"There, there, she was just kidding. Hao is still the cutest!"
"Hawong! Hawong!"
When he saw how downcast Hao became, it melted his heart by how cute she is even when she is feeling down that Michael quickly comforted her by hugging her and rubbing his face against Hao, which quickly brightened her up!
"Now then, shall we?"
"Haong~!"
Half an hour later.
Michael had parked his car in a nearby parking lot and took Hao with him as they walked towards their destination.
"Is that a monster? It's so cute!"
"He must be a Terran, how lucky of him"
"I wish I was him so I can hug that cat all day! Urgh! It's so f*cking cute! Even the movement of its ears and its eyes blinking is so freaking cute! My heart is melting just looking at it!"
"Cuteness overload!"
"Cats are justice, humans are their slaves!"
"Shut up you cat slave! Don't lump us together with you!"
While they were walking along the streets, the duo couldn't help but attract the attention of the nearby pedestrians because of the cute little thing in Michael's arms that unconsciously attacks the people around them with her cuteness!
Being a normal person, Michael couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with all the attention that he's getting that he's even walking stiffly like a robot!
'Ha-ha, I didn't expect I'd get this much attention just by walking around with Hao'
Michael laughed dryly inside, but when he looked at Hao in his arms.
'Her level of cuteness is really too much, even a cute teddy bear can't hold its handle against her!'
'I'm so lucky to have her by my side, but at the same time, she's also one scary critter'
Michael couldn't help but get a cold shiver when he remembered how they encountered two goblins a few days ago when the army was clearing up the area in the back mountains, and how Hao easily turned them into minced meat that someone would have mistaken their flesh like those canned beefs you can buy from the supermarket.
"Hello mister! Can we get a photo of your pet?"
While Michael was deep in his thoughts, two girls around sixteen or seventeen years old who are around Harin's age suddenly approached him with bright smiles on their faces.
"S-sure, but I'll ask my partner first, alright?"
"Take your time, we don't mind mister!"
"Yeah mister!"
The two girls weren't surprised by Michael's actions as there are also others like Michael who has monster pets who can converse with their partner, but if this was before the Era of Terrane, then he would have been labeled as a crazy person.
On the other hand, Michael suddenly felt that his power to reject their request suddenly left his body when he saw those shing eyes full of hope and anticipation for his answer!
"Is i-"
"Hawong~!"
Michael didn't even get to finish what he wanted to say when Hao quickly cut him off by agreeing to the girl's request.
"Wait…"
Though it was already too late when Michael realized something.
An hour later, Michael finally managed to escape from the scene and is walking listlessly along the streets with Hao in his arms.
The simple request of taking a photo with Hao from the two girls earlier had turned into a Hao fan meet, where tens of people copied the two teenage girls and started asking for a selfie with a Hao, and where Michael became a backdrop in all of those photos where half of his body can only be seen.
Poor him.
"It must have been tiring for you" said Michael to Hao.
Hao who is comfortably being carried in Michael's arms while leaning against his chest turned her head around, and replied, "Ha-ong! Hawong!"
"Oh really? So it was fun?" Michael couldn't help but laugh at that.
"Hawong~!"
Hao showed a bright expression as an answer to that.
Michael also couldn't help but smile brightly when he saw that, and just chuckled to himself.
"Anyway, we're here"
There was a large blue building standing before them with people coming to and fro from the building, buzzing with activity.
Where there is a large plaque that reads, Terran Association, on top of the building.
Looking around, Michael noticed that there seem to be people similar to him who had awakened and came here.
And how did he know that?
Well, there's one person who is holding a common looking sword while talking to someone, probably a family member, and another person holding what looked like a long stick, but in fact a wizard's staff, standing at one side of the pathway all by himself.
"Good thing there are others like me" muttered Michael, as a wave of relief assaulted him because he was getting nervous the nearer they got to their destination.
Hao wriggled out of Michael's embrace before landing on the ground and jumped towards Michael and dangled along his shoulder like a certain yellow cartoon character that he had always watched since he was a child.
"Hawong! Hao!"
"Hahaha, now you're the one comforting me?"
"Hao!"
Michael suddenly felt also his remaining nervousness going away as he couldn't help but rub his finger against Hao cheeks who's currently wearing a bright expression on her face like how bright the sun is.
Reading the bold words written on top of the building, Michael couldn't help but get this bubbly feeling of anticipation and excitement inside him that couldn't help but shout towards the sky.
"Onwards to a new beginning!"
"Hawong!"
Then people stopped in their tracks and looked at him like he was a crazy person.
Michael dryly laughed in embarrassment when he realized what'd done while scratching the back of his head, before hastily making his way inside the building as he can't handle the stares directed towards him.