Chapter 492: DEM Corporation Base
"A gift?" Kaguya asked, somewhat bewildered. "What gift?"
"The gift in your clothes," Origami said, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Was this a surprise you planned for me, my dear?"
Kaguya suddenly remembered the gift—it was indeed there. But it wasn't from her to Origami; it was the gift from Mikie Okamine intended for her. Kaguya began to sweat, realizing that Origami might have misunderstood.
"Actually, that's not—" Kaguya glanced at Origami's rare expression of joy, finding it hard to say the truth.
Seeing Kaguya's troubled face, Origami's expression shifted slightly as if realizing something. Her voice softened. "So, it wasn't meant for me after all?"
Even though Origami's face returned to its usual blankness, the way she lowered her eyes hinted at her disappointment. Kaguya could tell she was feeling let down, but just as she was about to explain the truth—
"Was it a gift for Yoshino instead?" Origami suddenly looked up, her clear eyes fixated on Kaguya.
"What?" Kaguya froze, baffled by where that idea came from.
Origami seemed to interpret Kaguya's stunned silence differently. She withdrew her hand from Kaguya's and said softly, "I'm sorry. I acted impulsively without understanding the situation first." With that, Origami turned around, preparing to leave.
As Kaguya saw the misunderstanding deepening, approaching the edge of a potential disaster, she quickly grabbed Origami's wrist. "Wait—actually, you're not entirely wrong. The gift is for you."
Sorry, Mikie. Your gift has to be sacrificed for now. I'll make it up to you later, Kaguya thought to herself.
Origami halted, looking back in confusion. "But you said it wasn't for me?"
"It wasn't meant to be a secret," Kaguya explained, holding her cool hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Smiling, she added, "I just wanted to surprise you. Since you've already found it, I guess I'll give it to you early. I hope you like it."
"Really?" Origami blinked in surprise, still somewhat unsure.
"Of course," Kaguya confirmed with a smile. "So, do you like it?"
Origami gave a soft nod, her beautiful eyes focused on Kaguya. "Thank you. I like it very much."
"I'm glad you do," Kaguya said with a relieved smile. She finally felt like she had dodged a bullet. Now she truly understood—being in situations like this wasn't easy. A slight misstep, and things could escalate into chaos.
Just as Kaguya relaxed, Origami suddenly pressed closer. She wrapped her arms around Kaguya and, standing on tiptoe, kissed her softly on the lips.
The soft touch of Origami's lips and her warm body caught Kaguya off guard. She stared in surprise at Origami, whose face was slightly flushed, her eyes closed as she leaned in.
Wait, I'm being kissed by a beautiful girl again!
Hold on—again? Why did that thought even come to mind?
Kaguya wasn't the type to remain passive, and she certainly wasn't someone who'd always be on the receiving end. Steeling herself, she felt a surge of determination. With a subtle shift in posture, Kaguya wrapped her arms tightly around Origami, pulling her close.
Perhaps due to her rigorous training, Origami's body wasn't as delicate as most girls—it was firm, brimming with vitality.
Sensing Kaguya's movement, Origami momentarily froze. But instead of pulling away, she pressed herself even closer, her body wriggling slightly to adjust so Kaguya's hands could move more freely.
Just as Kaguya's hands began to wander upward, a faint burning smell reached her nose.
Wait... something's wrong.
Kaguya's face went blank for a second before she remembered—the food!
The dish on the stove had burnt, turning into a charred, black mess, filling the kitchen with the heavy scent of smoke. The dish was clearly beyond saving, and making another would take quite some time. Hearing this unfortunate news, Yoshino's hopeful little face fell immediately.
But to Kaguya's surprise, Origami calmly opened the gift box, took out the chocolates, and handed them to Yoshino. "Here's some chocolate. If you don't mind, you can snack on this while waiting."
Yoshino looked at the chocolates in her hand, gulped, and then glanced up. "Really? Is it okay?"
"Mhm," Origami nodded lightly.
"Thank you so much!" Yoshinon, the puppet, chortled happily. "Yoshino's so hungry her belly's gone flat!"
Sensing Kaguya's astonished gaze, Origami walked over and casually remarked, "Chocolates are meant to be eaten, aren't they?"
Kaguya realized what Origami was getting at. For her, it wasn't the gift itself that mattered—it was the thought behind it. What was important was Kaguya's gesture, not the item.
That afternoon, Kaguya returned to the virtual simulation area, preparing for another round of training with the manifestation suit. This time, however, her main goal wasn't training—it was to pass the virtual simulation exam. For Kaguya, these tests were far too easy. What had started out feeling like a fun game had quickly become tedious.
But when Kaguya arrived at the simulation area, a crowd had gathered. Something had clearly gone wrong, and the entire area was cordoned off with warning tape, prohibiting access to unauthorized personnel.
"Kaguya-chan!"
A bright voice called from behind, and Kaguya turned to see Mikie Okamine.
"Good afternoon," Kaguya greeted her with a smile.
"Afternoon," Mikie responded, her eyes crinkling with her smile. "You're here pretty early today."
"I had some free time, so I figured I'd come by sooner," Kaguya replied with a grin.
The truth was, Kaguya had been so riled up by Origami's teasing at home that she couldn't stay any longer—otherwise, who knew what might have happened between her and that little temptress.
"What happened here?" Kaguya turned her head, looking at the busy doctors in white coats and AST members. She was curious about the situation.
"I'm not entirely sure," Okamine Mikie said, her face showing concern. "But it seems the virtual simulation system malfunctioned, and all the AST members using it suddenly collapsed."
"Collapsed?" Kaguya was startled by the news.
"Yes," Mikie nodded, then added, "They've fallen into a deep coma. It's said that their minds have suffered serious damage, which might cause irreversible effects on their bodies. It's even possible that in the future..."
"In the future?" Kaguya's brows furrowed ever so slightly.
Mikie hesitated for a moment, then said, "It's possible that not only will they be unable to operate their manifestation devices ever again, but their bodies might suffer severe aftereffects, leaving them crippled."
"Crippled?" Kaguya's expression grew serious. After pondering for a while, she asked, "When did this happen?"
"Let me think," Mikie said. "It was around noon. The operators noticed that the AST members in the virtual simulation system weren't responding, and their brainwave signals showed abnormalities. Even when they tried calling out through the system, there was no reaction. That's when they realized something was wrong and found out they had encountered an accident."
Noon...
Kaguya felt an uneasy sensation creeping into her heart. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something seemed off. It was like a fog lingering in front of her, obscuring her view and making it difficult to discern the truth.
Then, suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind like a bolt of lightning, clearing the mist before her eyes.
She remembered the AST members she fought in the virtual simulation system, those with vacant, emotionless eyes and mechanical movements. They had no capacity for thought, yet Kaguya had felt something was wrong. They hadn't seemed like virtual, computer-generated opponents. Rather, they had felt more like real people under some kind of control.
Could it be that the people Kaguya had fought earlier weren't simulations, but real humans?
"Have the repair technicians arrived? What did they say?" Kaguya asked, turning toward Mikie.
"They came right after the incident," Mikie replied. "After inspecting the system, they said it was a system malfunction that caused the problem."
"A system malfunction?" Kaguya's lips curved into a faint, disdainful smile.
If they were simply attributing all this to a system malfunction, then that was far too convenient. It seemed like someone had already set their sights on her. And if Kaguya's guess was correct, there was only one entity capable of orchestrating something like this. She glanced at the repair workers wearing uniforms marked with the "DEM Corporation" logo, her eyes narrowing slightly.
"Oh, right!" Mikie suddenly recalled something, her face turning anxious. "You participated in the virtual simulation training this morning too, didn't you? How are you feeling? Do you think we should go to the hospital for a full-body checkup, just to be safe? If there's any injury, it would be best to catch it early."
Kaguya felt a vein throb on her forehead. Her reflexes are way too slow! If something had been wrong with her, her grave would already have half a meter of grass on it by now.
"If something had happened to me, do you think I'd still be standing here?" Kaguya said with some helplessness.
"You never know," Mikie replied, clutching her hands to her chest in concern. "What if there are lingering effects or hidden injuries? Those can be hard to detect."
"I'm fine, really," Kaguya waved her off. "I'm not some delicate young lady. I don't worry about things like this, and besides, there's nothing wrong with me."
"How can you make such a careless decision based on your own whims?" Mikie fretted. "There are many hidden dangers in the body that are hard to spot! Your health is the most important thing. DEM Corporation's medical staff is here to help, and their equipment is far more advanced than ours. If there's anything wrong with you, they'll definitely find it."
"DEM Corporation?" Kaguya's expression shifted slightly, her eyes narrowing as a glint of realization flashed in them.
"Yes! With them here, everyone should be fine. They have the world's most cutting-edge technology, so please, you have to get checked out!" Mikie pleaded. "If something happened to you, I wouldn't know how to face Origami..."
Realizing she had said too much, Mikie quickly covered her mouth, her face turning a bit red with embarrassment, looking very much like a bashful young girl.
"Alright, I'll go for a checkup," Kaguya said with a slight smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"Really? That's great!" Mikie said, relieved. "Let's go right now."
But what Mikie didn't notice was the enigmatic smile that lingered on Kaguya's lips.
The DEM Corporation building was located in the heart of the city, towering over its surroundings. It was one of the tallest structures in the area, and its imposing, cloud-piercing architecture could be seen from miles away. Due to the AST unit's medical facilities being unable to fully heal the members whose minds had been damaged, they were transported to DEM Corporation's base to undergo treatment using their advanced technology.
"So, this is the place..." Kaguya muttered, her gaze narrowing as she looked up at the towering structure.
"Come on, Kaguya-chan," Mikie smiled sweetly, beckoning Kaguya forward.
"Yeah," Kaguya replied.
As they walked inside, Kaguya immediately noticed the overwhelming presence of magic energy in the air. It wasn't subtle in the slightest—powerful and palpable, not something an ordinary magician or typical equipment could produce. This kind of magic could only come from something that had undergone extensive magical processing.
At that moment, a beautiful woman with light blonde hair walked toward them. She had finely arched brows, striking lavender eyes, and fair skin. Her tall, slender figure was accentuated by her sleek black suit, short black skirt, and black stockings, which added to her mature charm.
Kaguya's brows furrowed ever so slightly at the sight.
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