In the pure white space, Shirou sat cross-legged staring blankly at the virtual panel suspended in mid-air with a blank expression.
To be honest, he was very happy when he just woke up.
The thin lines that originally occupied the entire field of vision disappeared. It's like - the first time he noticed all this, Shirou, thought that the previous half-day experience was just a dream
However, joy came and went quickly and after seeing everything in front of him clearly, Shirou was stunned again.
The surrounding environment was not the storage room where he lost consciousness, but a weird pure white space
Before Shirou fully understood the situation when a strange translucent panel appeared in the air. Shirou was shocked and quickly focused his eyes on the direction of the strange panel.
Accompanied by lullaby-like music the text on the panel scrolls slowly in the background showing a gentle mother holding a cute baby in her arms.
[In this world belongs a love so pure
It asks for nothing, just endure
Like a spring, it bathes the seeds
Nourishing with sunlight, fulfilling their needs
Whispering gently, till the fear dispel
Showing the way, like a bell
A love, not to conceal
It is maternal love, a love so real
In this world, imperfect and unjust
A mother's love, filled with trust
Children born, in this earthly plane
Deserves a mother's love, without any vain
The seats of happiness, belong to few
Only with a mother, can they pursue
Though absent at times, they remain
Stinging a child, in pain
Every child deserves, a mother
Such we sing, they do not suffer]
[To allow those poor children to receive motherly love equally, you—a person who is qualified to be the mother of all, descended to their side]
As the flowing text gradually disappeared above the panel, the lullaby-like music also stopped.
Then, the screen on the panel changed.
[Old Mother Simulator, Beta version, version number: 0.15]
[Tap to open]
When the screen was frozen in these contents, Shirou, who was completely overwhelmed fell into the sluggish state of doubting life.
There are so many thoughts that he doesn't know where to start.
'Are these contents specifically shown to me?'
Shirou glanced around where there was nothing, drooped his face, and scratched his copper-colored hair in frustration.
'There seemed to be no one nearby. But, what the hell is this mother simulator? Is it a prank? Or is someone teasing me? "Eligible to be a mother of all"?'
Leaving aside the fact that he wasn't a female, his dream is to become a hero of justice who makes everyone happy! No matter how you think about it, the title of mother doesn't fit him at all!
What's more, he is only twelve this year...
Thinking about his age, Shirou remembered a very important thing.
He lowered his head and glanced at his body which was still at the age of six. After being teased by the panel in mid-air, he began to show a little anger and suddenly closed it in frustration.
"..."
Shirou couldn't help but sigh.
After the fire that almost burned [Emiya Shirou]'s existence, he has always been a person who knows how to adapt comfortably.
So no matter how unreliable his father Emiya Kiritsugu was, Shirou had never been truly dissatisfied with Emiya Kiritsugu.
However, even Shirou, who knew how to take care of himself since he was a child still couldn't help but have the urge to escape from reality after encountering such an outrageous incident.
The impulse in his heart quickly turned into action. He covered his face and opened his mouth without any expectations
Saying what he wanted to do most at the moment: "I-I want to go home..."
[Received a request from a player, a prop has been found]
"?"
The moment he heard the inorganic, emotionless, and electronic female voice coming from his ear, Shirou showed a questioning face
[The props that meet the player's needs have been found, do you want to check the props information immediately?]
[Yes/No]
"..."
Shirou let out a long mouthful of depression.
Then he stood up from the ground and pressed the [Yes] button.
As soon as the screen on the panel turned, a large number of icons with different characteristics instantly filled the virtual panel in midair.
After seeing the dazzling item information, Shirou, who is not considered a gamer, suddenly felt a little bit at a loss.
After hesitating for a while, Shirou tentatively said, "Well, are you there?"
[I'm here, what do you need?]
Shirou breathed a sigh of relief after getting the response and then quickly asked the second question:
"Can you tell me what exactly is this place?"
[A place where you can decorate your room according to your personal needs and hobbies]
"What are you?" Shirou continued to ask.
[I am the player's assistant, serial number: Mot-Si0001. For convenience, players can directly call me an assistant. Players can ask me any questions about the game, and I will try my best to answer them]
"Game? That's what you just said..." After hesitating for a moment, Shirou said with a bit of difficulty: "Old... old mother simulator?"
[Yes]
"...Why me?"
The assistant repeated the words that flowed through the panel screen not long ago:
[Because the player is the one who is qualified to be the mother of everyone]
"?"
Shirou's eyelids twitched violently.
'I? Qualified to be the mother of all?!'
"How on earth did you come to such a strange conclusion?" Shirou with a dark face, endured the urge to yell,
"Can you see clearly!? I am a man after all! Not a woman! Who wants to pretend to be something else for no reason? Damn it!"
[Gender is not a necessary indicator for qualifying as a player. ]
Miss Assistant's inorganic voice without any emotional fluctuations answered
[An excellent mother, on the subjective level, must desire the happiness of others from the bottom of their heart. At the same time, on the materialistic level, they also need to have excellent skills to take care of others. There is no doubt that you have met these two at the same time]
"I—"
Shirou opened his mouth and couldn't even think of how to refute the assistant lady's words for a while.
He thought that he wasn't a stupid person, but this things words attacked him without acknowledging his mood. To make things worse he couldn't refute the outrageous and unreasonable claims.
The words "will take care of others" sounded like a kind of affirmation.
He really can't get angry when faced with such an evaluation that does not contain any personal feelings but still feel so sincere.