Author's Note:
Hello, my dear readers!
I have come back to you guys with yet another chapter. Though, this one took longer than I expected. But hey, I did say the original release time for each chapter was 1-2 weeks! My schedule is to be blamed for that.
Well, that aside, we're getting pretty close to the final chapter. However, I do have plans regarding an after-story if there is enough demand for it.
As always, thank you all for the support, comments, and reviews!
All right, hope you enjoy the chapter!
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Emotions—something I had always found both essential and utterly excessive. They were the lifeblood of humanity yet often seemed so unnecessary. They're what make humans, well, human.
Think about it—when was the last time you heard someone say, "It's acting like a human" or "It seems human"? If you ever have, I can almost guarantee it wasn't because the thing looked human. No, it was because—whatever it was—it displayed the most defining trait of humanity: emotions.
Maybe that's why every Mita felt so incredibly real to me. Logically, nothing about what I was experiencing made sense. Especially not Mitas. The impossibly realistic Mitas.
And then there was me. I'd never felt more human in my entire life. So many emotions... And even though they were tearing me apart, for once, I felt a strange sense of relief.
Unfortunately, there was no time for me to cherish it. For I saw the light.
My eyes shot open as I attempted to rise up on instinct… only for a jolt of pain that spread all over my body to bring me to a halt.
One thought after another shot through my mind as many questions reared their heads. Confusion, anxiety, frustration… So many emotions churned within me.
It took me a while, but once I'd calmed down, I looked around with my eyes. Since I was lying down, all I could see was a ceiling. It was a familiar one – Mita's ceiling.
Back when I had woken up after being stabbed, I saw the same thing. Though, back then, there was no pain to be felt, for my injury had healed.
Not to mention, back then I had someone beside me right upon waking up.
Back then… Wait, Cappie! Tiny Mita! Are they safe!?
I had fallen off the platform and ended up in a version. But the others were still there. At the end, some others arrived, so I could only hope that they gained an advantage over Crazy Mita, that creepy one, and any other Players that might appear.
But wait… How am I lying on the bed?
Logic dictated that someone had moved me over to the bed. A friendly? An enemy?
Still, there was nothing that I could do about the situation. My body refused to move, so I was left defenseless.
Time passed slowly as I stared at the ceiling. Every now and then, I'd attempt to move. Surprisingly, each time I did so, I was able to move marginally more than the previous attempt.
Just when I was beginning to reach the point where I could rise from the bed, a door opened.
I instinctively shut my eyes.
The sound of light footsteps and a clock ticking – those were the only sounds I could hear as I pretended to be asleep.
And then I heard a voice speak.
"Still asleep?" a female voice spoke in an exasperated tone, "Were the injuries that bad? It's been days already!"
What!?
The one speaking sighed out loud before I heard some rustling right to my left.
Curiosity got to me, as I opened my eyes very slightly, such that I would be able to see, but it would still appear they were shut.
The first thing I noticed was a red towel that was placed on the bedside. And then my mind blanked.
Standing right in front of the wardrobe was a Mita. She had short, bobbed hair.
The reason I was so surprised was the fact that she was freaking naked!
At least, her backside was all I could see – that was until she opened the wardrobe and leaned down to grab something.
Holy shit.
Now, I'll be completely honest and admit I enjoyed the sight. However, there was also a great sense of discomfort from the act. It felt very wrong.
And so, I properly shut my eyes and waited for her to continue changing. That was until I felt an itch in my throat. It was a pretty bad one. So bad that I momentarily forgot the situation I was in and coughed.
"What!?" the Mita shrieked.
Silence ensued for a moment before I heard her speak, "Oh no. Don't wake up now!"
Following that, I could hear her rushing to put on her clothes.
Once she was done, the Mita spoke again, "Okay, you can wake up now."
…
…
I didn't "wake up". That would be stupid of me. It would be THE ultimate giveaway to the fact that I was awake earlier and was aware of what was going on.
Maybe it was my own delusions, but I could her sigh – probably in relief. No girl would want to be seen by a stranger… unless they had some very special interests.
"Seriously? Still continuing to sleep?" the Mita asked, sounding even more exasperated than earlier.
She stalled around for a short while before slowly walking out of the room.
Upon hearing the door shut, my eyes shot open as I made yet another attempt to get up from the bed.
Unlike all of my previous attempts, my body felt light and powerful as I easily got up. Not only that, but electric sparks were dancing all over my body. Sparks that originated from none other than the ring.
Seriously, what is this thing?
"You mean my ring?"
…
What the fuck!?
Someone spoke back to me in my mind. I was shocked briefly before I recalled my last memories prior to losing my consciousness.
I then noticed it. While I still had the ring on the middle-finger of my right hand, there was now the bracelet on the wrist of my left one.
Can you read my mind?
That was the first question that I asked internally in a panic.
"In a way, yes."
Oh no… Then she was aware of what happened earlier…
I heard peal of laughter in my mind, followed by a response, "Yes, I was. Though, I won't find fault with you for it. In fact, your actions were commendable."
I'm not sure what to say to that.
She laughed again before speaking, "You've been out for a long while. How are you feeling?"
Full of pain. At least, that was the case earlier. Now, I feel pretty fine. I assume it has something to do with the ring.
"Yes, you'd be correct. One of the core functionalities of the ring is making you adapt to this world. Bugs and unusual 'events' such as injuries fall within that line."
Talk about convenience. Thanks, by the way.
"Don't mention it! You've agreed to pay a price for it anyway."
…Should I be concerned?
"Not really."
I hoped so. Having made a deal and not being aware of its content was pretty bad.
Say, who was that Mita from earlier?
"That was Mila. An unfortunate one."
Mila, not Mita? Forget that – you said she's unfortunate, but aren't you all?
"Well, in her case, she never had a Player. Perhaps that's why she got corrupted so fast and simply."
Corrupted… That term – Crazy Mita also used it. What does it mean exactly?
"We Mita are born with a specific purpose. We are also meant to behave in a certain manner. In other words, any actions taken beyond what we are meant to do would be considered irregular."
I… don't get it. You mean to say that you guys are all coded to act in a specific way?
"That's the gist of it. Take Cappie as an example – as a Cool Mita, she is supposed to be cool and thrilled. Nothing more. However, should she begin to be more than just that, she will become an irregular. In other words, a corrupted Mita."
At that moment, I thought back to all my interactions with Cappie. Especially those that occurred after we exited her version. She definitely exhibited more than just "cool and thrilled".
What does it mean for a Mita to be corrupted?
"It would mean that the Mita acts beyond the framework of the world. Certain protocols won't apply to them, which can be both beneficial and harmful."
Is that… why you were able to remember me? Remember the past "loops"?
"That's right, Andrei. I was already corrupted when you met me."
It took me a short while to process the newly gained information. A lot of things began to make sense. But new questions also popped up.
What would it take for a Mita to be corrupted?
"Surprisingly, a lot of things. Though, unusual "events" and interaction with already corrupted Mitas are the main cause."
From the way it sounds, there should be an overabundance of them if that's the case.
"Indeed. That's why there is a special protocol to handle this sort of stuff."
Talk about ominous. What handles it and how?
"It depends. However, there has been less action taken recently. Probably her doing. Crazy Mita, I mean."
What do you mean by that, exactly?
"Technically speaking, her act of turning Players into cartridges is an immensely faulty one. By turning a Player into a cartridge, it would be effectively integrating them into this world. However, since such a function was never a part of the system handling this world, it shouldn't be possible."
And yet she has apparently succeeded.
"That's right. She found a workaround – it came in the form of indexing."
Don't tell me…
"Yes… she assigns a version and an index to any Player she turns into a cartridge to fool the system."
For a moment, a memory resurfaced in the back of my mind – back when I had just eaten with Crazy Mita and then felt a great deal of discomfort. Until she handed me the pills. Two pills, to be precise.
Could it be…
"What?"
Nothing much… just what I suspect to be the way she did it.
"If you're referring to the pills, we're still not sure about that. You had mentioned them before."
Before... maybe she means in the past "loops". Though, that brings up another question.
"What question?"
Dammit, I keep on forgetting that she's practically reading my mind right now.
At that, Kind Mita laughed in my mind. It seemed like she was finding it all too amusing.
Anyways! My question was about how the "loops" are even happening. Is there some kind of saving and loading feature that's causing it?
"Could be. We are not sure about that yet. Though what you said is the most plausible explanation we have come to yet. However, it would raise the question of how she accomplished it in the first place."
Just as I was beginning to think of ways it would be possible, a door opened, and a certain Mila walked in.
"Oh, you're awake!" she immediately pointed at me and spoke, though her speech was a bit impaired thanks to pocky sticks(?) in her mouth.
"Yes," I responded, "where am I? Who are you?"
"Asking questions already?" she spoke after finishing the snack in her mouth as she walked over to the end of bed before pointing at my torso, "Shouldn't you be resting more?"
I looked down at myself, only to be surprised by the sight of a ton of bandages around me.
"You… did this?"
"Who else but me!?" she scoffed, as if offended.
"Right. So, are you going to tell me who you are?"
"I'm Mila," she said, "this place is where I live. I was all alone here until you crashed into my front door."
"About that… sorry, I guess? It wasn't exactly intentional."
"I guessed as much with the way you looked like you were hit by a truck!"
"A truck leading into another world?" I joked.
To my surprise, her eyes widened before a question practically shot out of her mouth with how fast asked, "You know about Isekai!?"
"Well, yeah?" I responded, some memories from the real-world resurfacing, "I liked watching shows and reading books with that premise. They were a nice way to pass the time when free."
Now that I think about it, am I an Isekai protagonist right now?
"Seriously?" Kind Mita laughed at the internal question.
Can you, like, NOT read my mind, please?
"Not happening. It's too amusing for me not to."
"What have you watched or read!?" Mila exclaimed, bouncing onto the bed with her knees bent before her hands grasped my shoulders.
With how close she was, I could finally take a good look at her. Her short-bobbed hair held back on one side with a red claw clip. She wore a white collared shirt, a blue school skirt, a loose tie, and an open red cardigan. Looking down, I noticed long black stockings covering her legs.
"Uh, there are too many to list. Though, I suppose one I really liked would be Re: Zero."
"Oh, that's a good one!" she screamed with excitement. Who would've thought that a Mita would be watching anime?
"Yeah, I agree. I like the premise…" And the fact that it somewhat aligns with what I am going through.
"Tell me, who is your favorite character from the show?" she asked much too excitedly. It seemed like she was the kind of person that got thrilled whenever something involved her favorite hobbies.
I considered her question for a moment as I thought of the characters from the show before answering, "Probably Rem?"
"Rem, you say?" Mila questioned with her eyes squinted, "does it have to do with her appearance or personality?"
"I mean, she's cute and all, but her loyalty is what I really liked. Also…"
From there, the conversation continued for a long while as we exchanged ideas about the world and the characters. Apparently, Mila had watched the show on her computer and had even read the light novels.
The idea was still bizarre to me. A Mita – practically an anime girl – reading light novels and watching anime.
Eventually, our conversation came to a halt as a result of a loud growl.
"Ah! Are you hungry?"
For a moment, I had flashbacks to back when Crazy Mita asked me the same question.
Still, how am I even alive and kicking right now? According to Mila, I had been out of it for days. Yet, I just feel a bit hungry and not on the verge of death after not having eaten for so long.
If Kind Mita could hear my thoughts, she didn't say anything. So, I simply sighed before I pulled out some of the food I had stored back in Cappie's version using Vanishing Distortion.
Mila was startled by the food appearing out of thin air.
"What the!?" she exclaimed, "how did you do that?"
"I just got them out from my inventory?"
"But only Mita are supposed to have an inventory!" she retorted.
"Maybe I am one?"
"You are definitely not! As much as I don't care about the Mita, I know enough about them to know you're not one!"
"I'm just a very special one," I joked.
"Like I'll believe you!"
This is fun. She's easy to tease. Not to mention how cute she looks when flustered.
"Scum."
Wait, no! Listen here! I… actually have no excuse.
"Don't worry, I was already aware of the way you are."
I'm not sure if that makes me feel any better.
"Think nothing of it. Enjoy your time with Mila."
With that said, I focused back on reality – on the fruits and snacks now on the bed. From what I could tell, none of the stuff had gone bad. So, either degradation wasn't a thing for food here or it was non-existent in the Vanishing Distortion's space.
"No matter what, you shouldn't be eating only this much," Mila nagged as she pointed at the food, "you need to eat a proper meal!"
"Sorry, mom."
"Don't call me that!" she huffed before getting off the bed, "come on, follow me."
I chuckled lightly before storing the food and doing as she did. That was when I noticed that I was practically naked except for my boxers. Though, with the way I was bandaged, it seemed like I was actually dressed – just as a cosplay of a mummy or something.
Speaking of cosplay…
My mind immediately thought back to my confrontation with the Player faking to be a Mita.
Hey… I'm sorry for getting to you so late. I'm sure it must've been hellish.
"Don't apologize. You did nothing wrong. I set out to do something and accomplished it. Whatever happened afterwards was as a result of my carelessness."
What did you need to do anyway?
"Completely destroy her plans. She had prepared a special stage for you, which I got rid of. Though, as a result of that, the versions and the hallways connecting them are a little messed up now."
That doesn't sound good.
"It doesn't, but it might be."
I hope so.
With that internal conversation over, I asked Mila for my clothes, to which she responded by saying that they were all torn to the point of being rags.
"So, what am I supposed to wear?" I really didn't want to go around in boxers and bandages.
"I do have some spare clothing," she said as she eyed the wardrobe.
"Just to be clear, I'm NOT putting on female clothes."
No way in hell was I going to be putting on some kind of school uniform or rather anything that involved skirts. Maybe if I was Polish or Scottish I would've considered it, but I was neither.
"That wasn't what I was referring to!" Mila exclaimed, "I have some clothes for men."
Why?
"Sure, if that's the case…"
Mila got visibly more excited as she rushed to the wardrobe and opened it.
I'm pretty sure those weren't the clothes I saw earlier. Is it a magic wardrobe or something?
"Andrei… this is a game world."
Let me live in the moment, will you?
"Here, put this on!" Mila spoke while she held up a uniform.
"Mila… is that…?"
"What? Anything wrong with it?"
"That's cosplay."
"Yes, what of it? You got a problem with cosplaying?"
"Not exactly, but I'm not sure if I want to be dressed up as freaking Lelouch."
"Why are you against it? It's kind of poetic in a way, given what we are doing?"
Poetic my ass! Heck, why do you know about this stuff? Do you watch anime too?
"Why not?"
I don't know; I just didn't expect it.
Lo and behold, apparently another Mita watched anime. At least, Mila looked the part with the glasses and all that, but in Kind Mita's case, it was rather unexpected.
And so, I reluctantly had to put on the cosplay. Not before I shamelessly took off all the bandages right in front of Mila. Though, it somehow didn't bother her in the slightest to see me in just my boxers.
"Pervert," I said as I took the clothes from her hands.
Mila acted offended before she said, "Look at this jerk! After peeping on me while I was naked, you dare call me a pervert now?"
A bomb went off in my head at the reveal. She somehow knew of the peeping. Or, maybe, just maybe, was testing me.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, trying to not let my emotions show on my face.
She frowned at that before responding, "At least own up to your actions."
Oh, she definitely knew. I realized it with the way she said it.
"Okay, yeah…" I said awkwardly as I began putting on the clothes that were remarkably of high quality, "I really didn't mean to do it. Had no idea, I swear."
"Whatever happened has happened," she spoke with a wave of her hand, "once you put on the clothes, come to the kitchen."
Having said that, Mila exited the room a little hurriedly. Maybe she's not as indifferent as she seemed to be?
Kind Mita giggled in my mind. "She's definitely not letting a lot of her emotions show."
I thought as much.
Mila felt like the kind of girl that would be easily misunderstood if you got off with her on the wrong foot. Thankfully, it seemed that we would have a good relationship thanks to her patching me up and the conversation we had earlier.
That was why I didn't push her into giving me other clothing but went along with the cosplay one instead.
Once I was done putting on the uniform, which admittedly was a bit of a struggle due to how unusual it was, I hoped to examine myself in a mirror.
However, the mirror next to the wardrobe was not functioning. So, I stepped into the bathroom, but the mirror in there wasn't working either.
"Weird…" I commented before I began making my way over to the kitchen.
On the way, I observed the different portraits which had photos of Mila. In them, she was reading books, checking the bookshelves, and such.
Pretty cute. I like nerds.
"Because you're one yourself?"
Perhaps.
By this point, I had gotten used to Kind Mita's presence in my head, even though I didn't know how it worked, nor did I care enough to ask about how it was possible.
Once I eventually reached the kitchen, I found Mila standing in front of the stove. On top of the stove was a pot that was steaming already.
I then noticed something. Mila had two items in her hands. In her right hand, she was holding a ladle and in the other a…
Is that book? Maybe a recipe book?
That's what I thought until I heard her mutter, "What even is kvass?"
"Kvass?" I spoke up, startling her so much that she dropped the ladle in the pot as she quickly turned to face me, "why do you need that? What are you cooking?"
A light blush colored Mila's cheeks as she spoke, "You startled me… I was, uh, trying to make something you'd like."
"Guessed as much," I said as I approached her before reaching out with my hand.
Mila handed me the book in her hand, which I got to reading to see what she was cooking.
Apparently, she was planning to cook Pelmeni – otherwise known as Russian Dumplings. Though, it made me wonder who the fellow that wrote the recipe down was, since kvass wasn't exactly a traditional choice.
"Yeah, you're going about this the wrong way," I remarked as I glanced at the ladle in her hand. She didn't even have the right equipment.
Mila looked down as the red tinge on her cheeks grew. I could feel my heart melt at the adorable sight of her getting embarrassed for something like this.
"Come on," I said encouragingly, "let's cook together."
At that Mila looked up with widened eyes, though the bright smile on her lips suggested that she really liked the idea.
And so, the two of us began to prepare the food. It involved magically spawning items in the fridge and cupboards and some cutting the ingredients. All in all, it was a pretty fun experience.
Once we were done with preparing the dumplings, all that was left was to put them in boiling water for a few minutes.
So, we dumped them in with the correct equipment and I instructed Mila to stir it around every now and then while I prepared the table.
I grabbed two plates and utensils from the cupboard before I turned around to walk over to the dining table. That was when I noticed something pretty unusual.
"What the hell is THAT!?"
In the corner of the kitchen, a black mass of energy swirled with a purple core. Objects around it were glitching in and out of place, shifting erratically.
"I don't know," Mila responded, "just stay away from it!"
"That's a glitch. You might want to deal with it."
Deal with it… You mean using the ring?
"Yes."
I heaved a sigh before I set the things in my hands down on the table before slowly approaching the glitch.
"What are you doing!?" I heard Mila shout worriedly.
"Dealing with this thing."
"You're going to touch it!? What if the house explodes!? We're going to die along with it!"
"It'll be fine… Probably."
"Ah, hell! Do whatever you want!"
I stood in front of the glitch, curiously observing it. It was fascinating.
Eventually, I reached out with my arm and put it inside. Soon after, my consciousness faded into black before, a few seconds later, I found myself floating in a dark void. In front of me were two terminals and five nodes. One terminal was shooting out a beam that directly hit the other one, but none of the nodes.
I began to fiddle around with the nodes until the beam hit one and reflected on another.
Maybe…
With an idea of what to do, I arranged the nodes such that the beam reflected off of all of them and hit the other terminal.
The moment the beam hit the other terminal; my vision turned bright before I suddenly found myself in the kitchen again.
I blinked a few times as I examined my hand.
"Finally!" I heard Mila speak nearby.
I turned my head, only to be met with the sight of a fully prepared table along with the food. Mila was sitting as she stared at me.
"At least, the house didn't explode," she joked, "come on, let's eat."
"Yeah…" I responded a bit absentmindedly as I sat on the closest seat – which just so happened to be right beside the one she was sitting on.
A bit unconventional seating arrangement for two, but I didn't care much at that moment, and Mila didn't seem to mind it either.
Did I… gain a new Distortion?
"Yes."
What is it?
"Light Distortion is what I'd call it."
Does it let me bend light at will or something? The way the nodes did?
"You could say so."
Sounds neat. Will try it out once I'm done eating.
With that said, Mila and I began eating. While doing so, we had a small conversation.
"Do you only read light novels?"
"Of course not!" she replied, "It's best practice to not limit yourself and try out everything."
"Sounds about right. Though, I can't imagine it being fun to be cooped up here and continuously reading and watching."
"You think?" she huffed, "Do you have any idea how boring it is to live here all by myself as the days go by endlessly? If it weren't for the internet, I would have lost my mind by now."
Which is still something I find odd. Mita on the internet…
"By the way, why Mila?"
"What do you mean?"
"Why do you call yourself Mila. Shouldn't you be Mita as well?"
"I am not," she says firmly, "I'm Mila, not like the other Mita."
Has she gone through some kind of existential crisis or something? One which ended up with her convincing herself that she's not a Mita, but someone unique?
"All right, you're Mila."
She smiled at that, satisfied with the statement.
"By the way…" she said after a while, "what is your name?"
"Andrei," I responded, "a Player, as you guessed."
"Andrei…" she repeated, "this is my first encounter with a Player."
"Hopefully a favorable one," I joked.
She laughed lightly before responding, "So far, it's nice."
After that, the two of us focused on the food. Once we were done, I stacked the dishes and placed the utensils on top before getting up and walking toward the sink.
Last time this happened, my vision got all distorted and I had to be escorted to the bathroom to take some questionable pills. This time around, however, nothing happened.
It's like I've got PTSD or something.
"I wouldn't be surprised if you did."
In any case, now I could try out the new Distortion I had gained. Apparently, my expression gave it away as Mila curiously approached me and asked, "What are you planning?"
"Just now, when I dealt with that glitch, I gained a power."
"Seriously? You're making it sound like you're the protagonist of a story. What power did you get?"
It was pretty obvious that she was skeptical of the claim. Especially with the way she emphasized the word "power".
"This," I said as I lifted my arm and attempted to bend light rays.
To my pleasant surprise, I managed to succeed on my first try as light converged at the point I was focusing on while other parts of the room got dimmer.
"Woah," Mila gasped as she stared at the converged light rays.
I wonder if I can do more.
And so, I attempted it.
All of a sudden, parts of the room turned pitch black as a polygon of light formed as a result of me bending light entering from three windows.
That was when I noticed an oddity. There was a weird rectangular outline on the wall right underneath a clock.
It was between a stool and some furniture with a teddy bear on top of it.
"What's this?" I wondered out loud as I released my hold on the light rays, thus letting everything return to normal.
"Huh? What?" Mila muttered confusedly as she watched me approach the wall.
I placed my hand on the wall, only for it to surprisingly phase through the wall.
"What…?" "The heck?" the two of us were equally surprised.
More than a little curious, I stepped forth, and by doing so, sunk more than half of my body into the wall.
The next thing I knew, I was in a Mita bedroom – albeit one in which everything had been rearranged. Not only that, but all screens and frames were broken. Though, most noticeable was the convergence of darkness that was on the bed in the form of a Mita.
"Who is there?" a soft voice spoke, "I can hear you."
I opted to stay silent for the moment as I wondered just what the hell was going on.
"Something's wrong. You're not supposed to be here. Not like this."
What do you mean?
"Check the ring!"
I did as she said, only to be surprised by the ring displaying "V1.1".
"1.1 is where Sleepy Mita is. The ring can't be wrong. So, what's going on!?"
She was panicking in my head, which was, in turn, making me panic. How did she expect me to understand what she didn't?
After a few seconds, the shadow of a Mita spoke again, "Listen, you're a Player, right? Help me find… Find… Something…"
She sounded like even she didn't know what she was looking for.
"Oh, I think I've got what's going on. For now, head back."
I did as she said and backtracked into Mila's house.
"Yes!" I heard an exclamation as I felt myself get caught up in a hug, "I thought you were a lost cause!"
For some reason, Mila was sobbing as she hugged me. Just what the hell is going on?
"I think what I did had much more far-reaching effects than I expected. From what I can tell, multiple versions have converged and formed a network in a way that has happened before."
Meaning?
"To continue, you must deal with all abnormalities and pass through the final door to reach The Core."
Okay, that much makes sense I guess. But what's up with Mila?
"I'm not sure."
I heaved a sigh at that as I hugged Mila back in hopes of comforting her. Whatever mess it was that I had found myself in, I was going to deal with it. If not for my sake, then for all the Mitas.