Bab 114: Chapter 114: Success
For a long time, Aleph was tormented by romantic matters.
He knew how to solve things like the Herrscher's attacks or even political problems. Only romance was something he couldn't handle well.
He was very level-headed. He could see things beyond normal. Great Sage's addition allowed him to predict something accurately.
{Result: The calculations, without factoring sudden actions nor out-of-record reactions, indicate a 78.55% chance of the plan succeeding.}
The girl's cold voice spoke of the 'simulation' results.
That's right.
Aleph went ahead and wanted to look for the answer sheet.
'Screw it. I will do it.'
With this prediction being the final straw, he no longer hesitated.
Mobius was also added to the fray in hopes of seeing something interesting.
She might have wanted to leave at first, but she acknowledged it would make things even more awkward between them, thereby adding more difficulty to what Aleph has to face. It was not the time for their usual cynical jokes.
The reason above made her 'helpless' and decided to watch from the sidelines instead.
What she did not expect was the grand spectacle she would witness soon.
However…
'It is ringing loudly.'
Mobius' intuition reacted strongly—far stronger than what she experienced before.
Fortunately… or not, her questions would be answered in the next moment.
"For a long time, I didn't know what to do. Mei… Kurumi… You two were there when I needed it."
The past.
The present.
The two girls represented a period of Aleph's life. From when he was a little guy who did not have anything special, to the Reaper who dared to kill twenty emperor-class honkai beasts all by himself.
"I…" He made a deep pause before continuing, "I like the two of you."
Six words.
It was short but impactful. The meaning behind them was also clear
Aleph could not decide between them, hence he wanted to take them both!
Unexpectedly, both the girls involved easily broke out of their daze.
"Oh? You can be this bold?"
Mei's seductive voice came to his left ear. Her hand already found its way to Aleph's left hand.
'It's cold.'
To him who experienced the freezing temperatures from the fifth Herrscher, it was a small matter.
'She was scared.' He thought.
Kurumi's sudden arrival shook her heart. She was, after all, the main reason why Mei could not take Aleph's heart. The existence of this 'childhood friend' was extremely strong.
Withholding anything else, Kurumi was there when Aleph's parents died. She was the one who pulled him out of his murky thoughts.
"Fufu. You learned a lot of new things, Ain."
Consequently, Kurumi took his right hand.
'It's… also cold.'
It wasn't just Mei who felt that.
Although Kurumi was with him in the past, she wasn't with him when he experienced extreme dangers. That was enough to make her feel complicated. All the things she missed out weighed on her mind.
'They reacted the same. '
An ultimatum weighed heavily in Aleph's mind.
Mei felt regretful for not being with him in the past.
Kurumi felt regretful for not being by his side in the present.
The person at Aleph's side would be able to walk together with him. The pasts nor presents could not be turned back, but the future was still there.
'To spend my life…'
'...with the one I hold dear.'
Two different girls shared the same thoughts.
It did not end on that.
'...Ah.'
Aleph was unable to react when both sides of his face were touched by the girls' lips. They gave a kiss on the cheek at the same time.
It was at this moment… that Great Sage's prediction came true once again.
*****
Amidst the pink-ish atmosphere, there was one audience who witnessed it all.
'...'
At this moment, Mobius completely shut off her head. She could not think of anything. It was enough to explain how flabbergasted she was. Her mouth was left wide open.
It was unbecoming of the fifth institute's director who killed many with her experimentations. She thought she wouldn't experience a shock as big as this.
After all, it wasn't exactly pleasant being a fourth-wheel, more so when the man in question…
Without any words, she stood up and left.
At this time, the three were in an awkward state of silence. The girls by his side continued fiddling Aleph's fingers while hugging his arm.
Before Mobius left, he mouthed a few words at her.
'Sorry.'
"Hmph. To do such a thing…"
Mobius could not word her inner conflict well. Even when she was far off the lounge at the corridor, her frustration only grew stronger.
"Isn't it better to focus on something else? Why…"
Mobius' refusal to acknowledge her thoughts led to this.
After nearly thirty years, the experiences of a normal high school girl caught up with her.
*****
"Fu…"
Half an hour had passed since then. Aleph was currently staring blankly at the night sky. After the strenuous time, what followed next was comfort.
Aleph felt what it was to have two girls by his side. The two did not conflict. They focused on playing with his fingers, laying on his shoulders, and teasing him in turns.
The two-versus-one scenario made him think how Kurumi and Mei were similar in doing these kind of things.
"Sigh…"
His eyes swept the notices he disregarded earlier.
[Achievement Unlocked: Beyond The Percentile]
[Beyond the Percentile: Do what most people could not do.]
[Achievement Unlocked: All or Nothing]
[All or Nothing: Sincerely confess to two girls at once.]
[Achievement Unlocked: By Their Side]
[By Their Side: Obtain the promise of your beloved partner/s to be with you.]
For once, Aleph knew that he might ruin the delicate atmosphere if he viewed it. He didn't let any distractions around him.
[Perfect Energy Box]
[Albion's Remains (Fragment)]
[Red Strings of Fate (Upgrade)]
Aleph took out the [Perfect Energy Box] first. The one he received during his eight days in the eastern region directly gave him 688 points at once.
Add to that his continuous growth due to Albion's trials as well as the [Major Energy Box] he received while fighting in the fifth major eruption…
[Cursed Energy (Converted): 3891]
Crack-!
Shatter-!
[Cursed Energy (Converted): 3891 → 4106]
"..."
Aleph was speechless. He knew the days of being lucky and striking that amount of points in a single try was gone.
The amount of his cursed energy soared. His sight turned blue, allowing him to handle them with ease.
"The next ones shouldn't be too bad…"
He turned his attention to the remaining rewards.
*****
A/N: Bro is cooked... or not. You all would see how he cooks (or gets cooked) by Mobius in the next few chapters. For now, this was how I thought of starting a somewhat logical harem with the characters' personalities not changing.
Kurumi and Mei were not the type to easily give a compromise. They were also the type to be somewhat mature in their actions (instead of the usual childish cliches in harem catfights). If the duty of saving the world was factored in, it was inevitable they would partially compromise, more so when the two knew that they represented a part of his life (Past and Present). As for the future, tht's what we'll later find out.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone