Humanity has reached the point where they have created a digital world to retire to. A games company made the prototype, and as such it works as a video game would. Our heroes are the digital bodies of four friends left behind by their owners in this prototype world. It's been a pretty enjoyable existence, but now glitches are appearing and unleashing dangerous programs. Our heroes are the ones chosen to investigate and combat these programs.

Just an idea I had, feel free to build off it!

Eve watched Sara sob out her grief, and awkwardly averted her eyes. This was the worst part of her job. No matter how many people threatened her, refused to believe her, or even attempted to harm her- this was still the worst part. When they realized that she was telling the truth. 
The sight of their despair made her feel like she was the cause of it, and as a result she had no idea how to provide them comfort. 
Eve didn't rush Sara. She knew that everyone had to come to terms with their death in their own ways and in their own time, and so she turned and began writing out her report on her computer. Several minutes passed by in this way, but sooner than Eve expected, Sara's crying quieted. 
Eve glanced over at the woman sitting in front of her, and felt relief at the sight of her wiping her eyes dry with the tissues she provided on the edge of her desk. Sara looked at her for a long time, and then gave her a timid smile. 
"Who are you exactly, Miss Eve?" 
Eve smiled, and swiftly pulled out a card to hand to Sara. 
"My name is Eve Everheart, and I am a part of the Welcoming Committee in between Life and the Afterlife. My job in the Afterlife Syndicate is to ensure that you are well informed so that your stay here can be as enjoyable as can be." Before Sara could ask any questions, Eve gestured for her to be patient as she reached down to pull open her desk drawer. She pulled out a colorful brochure and handed it to Sara. 
"This is the place where everyone goes after they die. No matter their beliefs or their religions, here is where they will come to await their sentencing. After someone dies, they are put on a list to await their Judgement. Whether they go to heaven or hell, whether they are reincarnated or not, etcetera." 
Sara glanced down at the glossy brochure in her hands and stared vacantly at the pictures of various people smiling up at her. 
"The judgment system will change according to the specific person's beliefs, though of course while you are waiting for you court date, you can always change your beliefs. It's all up to you, it's your Afterlife to live after all." Eve finally picked up the folder that had Sara's name printed on it, and handed it to her, "In this packet you will find everything that you need to know. It will give you a detailed report of the cause of your death, and it will also give you the date that you are expected in Court to receive your sentence as well as the procedures to follow." 
Eve glanced at the folder in Sara's hands and sighed, "With the population growth on Earth, I'm sorry to say that everyone's wait here in between Life and the Afterlife has extended quite a bit. Our Court is overworked and creating this waiting list was the only way we could ensure that everyone's case is given the proper time they deserve to be reviewed. For example, you are scheduled to appear in court in two years, give or take a few days." Sara's eyes widened dramatically. 
"So long…"
Eve nodded her head in agreement, "Yes. Though to be fair this isn't actually a very long wait in the scheme of things. According to our statistics bureau, if this growth in population continues, in a few decades the wait will be extended to over 15 years." 
Sara gulped, and quietly decided that 2 years was a perfect amount of time, not too short and not too long. 
Eve then gestured to the forgotten brochure that Sara hadn't paid much attention to, "That brochure doesn't list everything that this plane has to offer you (that would be in your packet, which is updated every year), but it does list out the rules and regulations of this plane of existence and also a few recommended places and programs for newcomers. It also lists the changes your body will go through here- and do not worry, all of that is also included in the packet I gave you, and If you lose either the brochure or your packet, you can simply come back here and we will replace them for you." 
Sara stared once again at the strangely cheerful brochure. 
"Is this place called Gray City?"
"Yes, it is. We were trying to come up with a neutral name, one that didn't favor any religion or way of life." 
Sara made a noise of understanding and looked at the list of rules that had a picture of a cheeky girl winking and smiling next to it. 
"There are numerous regulations for all of our programs, you can look up the specific terms in your packet, but all in all as long as you follow the Three Rules printed on your brochure, your stay here should be easy, painless, and fun!"

Rule Number 1: Any questions, problems, complaints, or suggestions will be discussed at the Afterlife Syndicate's Office location, or through one of their online communication systems. (Details on these procedures are located in the guest's Welcome Packet)

Rule Number 2:  Everyone is a guest in Gray City, and therefore harassing another guest without their consent is strictly prohibited. (The definition of 'Harassment' is listed below)

Rule Number 3: Everything desired will be provided for, and so theft or stealing items from fellow guests is prohibited. 

"What is the Afterlife Syndicate exactly?" 
"It is the name of the company that I work for- we govern this plane of existence. Through our various branches, not only do we ensure our guest's satisfaction, but we also enforce the rules in order to keep our plane from descending into chaos." 
Eve's smile was huge and unnerving as she turned to her computer, and exited out of her report in order to digitally pull up Sara's file. 
"And from our company's review of your life on Earth, as well as the profile we have established on your personality, it seems that you Miss Sara will not need the details of our more extreme programs- however, if you have any hidden desires or tendencies please feel free to let me know. We want you to have the best time here as possible after all!" 
"Excuse me?!"
 Eve's smile softened under Sara's overwhelmed gaze, "For instance, while Rule Number 1 prohibits you to interfere with other guests without their consent, we have a program that allows you to do so in a simulated environment. From our sexual exploration club to our murder club, any fantasy you want can be acted out- in a safe, consensual setting." 
"Murder club-!" 
"The victims aren't real people- they are simply creations of our company that were tailored to fit the tastes of our guests," Eve laughed at Sara's scandalized look, "They do not have a consciousness, and it is not as if they can truly die, they simply act out the guest's fantasy and then revive almost instantly. No one has any lasting damage, after all, we are in between Life and the Afterlife- Death does not exist here, their 'deaths' are simply illusions." 
Sara continued to look at her as if she was disturbed in the head, and Eve sighed, "This is what I meant by saying that your personality does not coincide with our more 'extreme' programs; you must remember Miss Sara, that everyone comes here for judgment. Everyone. And we must accommodate every guest in order to keep our City peaceful- I only mentioned these programs to you because I wanted to make you understand that no matter what the request, we at the Afterlife Syndicate will do our best to make it happen- as long as it does not interfere with our Three Rules." 
Eve scrolled down Sara's profile, and then her eyes lit up when she noticed something, "Another way we can accommodate you is through your body- no wait, please don't look at me like that, let me finish!" 
"Ahem," Eve coughed, and a slight flush appeared on her face because of her slip up, "You must have noticed that your body is… slightly different from how it was when you were on earth, right?" 
Sara glared at her suspiciously. 
Eve coughed again when Sara did not get the hint, "When you die and appear here, all of the superficial modifications you made on Earth will disappear- leaving you in the body you would have had without them. So that means tattoos will disappear, piercings will disappear-" Eve eyed Sara's chest pointedly, "the results of plastic surgery will disappear…" 
Sara jolted, and her face turned as red as a tomato as her gaze fell to her flat chest. Growing up she had always had the smallest chest size of all of her sisters, even her younger sister was bigger than her by the time she turned eleven! The never ending flat jokes… the numerous nicknames… it was utterly humiliating for Sara, and so when she could finally afford it, she got her chest… enhanced. 
She had debated over it for the longest time, but in the end she chose to go through with it. She had no regrets- it wasn't like she went overboard after all. Sadly, after her surgery, her new breast size actually made her look normal.  
Sara crossed her arms defensively over her flat chest, and glared at Eve like a wounded kitten, "And your point is?!" 
Eve smirked, "The point is, that your body is in a very suggestable state right now. We can change it in any way you like. You want to be a natural red head? We can do it! You want to be taller? Shorter? No problem! We can even change genders and weight sizes, all you have to do is make a request." 
Eve spread her hands wide with a salesman smile, "The sky is the limit Miss Sara! Just think of it like this, this is the start of the rest of your Afterlife, don't you want to make it count? Try things you have always wanted to try, be things you have always wanted to be? If you don't like it, we can change things back right away! Nothing has to be permanent. Miss Sara, you can do anything you've ever wanted, without any consequences!" 
Eve's smile became a bit mischievous, "Well, unless of course you *believe* there will be consequences." 
Sara stared at Eve's smile, and wondered if this was what it felt like, being tempted by the devil.

After Sara died, she found herself in between Death and the Afterlife, and the place sure looked like a city right out of a sci-fi film. 

With two years to kill before she had to appear in Court, where they would determine exactly where she belonged in the afterlife, Sara was determined to enjoy every minute that she had here. 
But after helping out a strange man, Sara found herself selected for a program to return to earth, and we’re not talking about the average reincarnation here- Sara had the chance to return to her original timeline, in her original body. She had a chance to get her life back. 

If only it was that easy. She should’ve known there would be strings attached.

Seeing how stunned and confused Heidi was, Lucien said with a smile, "I like to listen to and write music when I am free, and Mr. Oliver likes to watch and create plays. That's essentially the same as you playing games. It's just a form of recreation. As long as you are not addicted to it and your arcana studies and magic abilities are not affected, there will be no problems at all."
Whether a thing was good or bad highly depended on one's attitude toward it.
Heidi and the students were not exactly scared of being criticized by their teacher. It was just that Lucien's criticism often came with a lot of "homework", such as the studies on the quantum field theory and the exercises about the new products in mathematics. It was a nightmare that they could not forget for the rest of their lives.
"Rest assured, Master. We have only devised the game to test certain modules. We won't be addicted to it." Heidi promised Lucien on behalf of her team.
Looking at the game on the screen, Lucien had a lot of mixed feelings. Although it was rather shabby, it already had the looks of the game that he was familiar with. "Let's call it Ally Tetris. As a matter of fact, game design is a good thing."
Huh? Even the shy, introvert guys like Annick were surprised.
"Sorcerers need relaxation and entertainment too. Do you not feel that the regular ways of entertainment, like opera, play, concert, ball, and Arcana Voice, are too few?" Lucien said half-jokingly. As for hunting and the other activities that nobles liked, they were not very popular among sorcerers. "Also, it will help build up the image of arcanists and sorcerers. Think about it. If there is a game that simulates adventures so that ordinary people can play as sorcerers and sense how marvelous magic is when it is used to deal with monsters and in daily applications, they will be more and more into magic."
Heidi's eyes beamed with interest, but she immediately frowned and said, "Even though the ordinary people can afford such games right now, the 'artificial intelligence' at present cannot support such a complicated game at all. Also, we are too busy with all the research programs in hand to design any other games. We have to continue the studies on magic crystals, and we need to try to melt alchemical life and artificial intelligence…"
"I'm not asking you to design it in person. There must be a hundred arcanists who are studying 'artificial intelligence' with you, aren't there? You can let them play a part. Also, the design of a game can be separated from magic. It's like writing a 'play' in the language of 'artificial intelligence'. In such a way, the job can be outsourced to the ordinary people who do not have talents in magic. You'll be creating new jobs for the kingdom," Lucien suggested casually.
"Outsource?" It was the first time that Heidi heard the notion, but she understood her teacher's meaning well. After all, her teacher was most famous for the terms that he invented. "In such a case, the simple modules can be outsourced too, but we have to devise courses… However, the most important thing right now is to improve the performance of 'artificial intelligence'."
Speaking of games, she suddenly remembered something else and asked in confusion and curiosity, "Master, the massive live stream screen was ready to be manufactured half a year ago, but why hasn't 'Arcana Voice' been live-streamed yet?"
Thanks to their studies on "artificial intelligence", the screen that could display images was invented very soon. Although a lot of efforts were spent on lowering the cost, maintaining the color, and reducing the size, and there were no products available for even the nobles yet, the large live-stream screens could already be manufactured and deployed in the squares of important cities. Thankfully, there weren't many such squares, so the Congress of Magic could still afford it. Heidi had also obtained abundant revenue through the patent from it.
"'Arcana Voice' is a radio channel. All the programs have been designed for the sound-only feature. Now that the screen displays images, many programs are no longer appropriate. So, we have to devise new programs. The interviews, interpretations, and music shows can be live-streamed, but not the others. Otherwise, why would we bother to use images? To see what the storyteller looks like?" Lucien had been teaching the Sky Radio Station new concepts and recruiting new workers.
Some of the new recruits were even ordinary people without any magic talents, but they were smart and had the most creative ideas.
Heidi understood what her teacher meant and nodded with mixed feelings. "I wonder when we can see the first real live stream…"
"Perhaps, it will be sooner than you expected…" Lucien smiled subtly.
...
A few days later, at the beginning of the Month of Scorch (August), in the city square of Rentato…
A white pillar of water erupted to the sky from the pool made of stones and fell to all directions like a waterfall, raising spindrifts on the clear water. It was noisy and loud, but no one around was upset. They even approached it, trying to drive away the heat on them. 
On the opposite side of the famous spring was a weird enormous screen. It was transparent and complicated, and unique parts could be vaguely seen inside.
"Why do you think there have been no live streams when the screen has been established for five months?" A citizen asked Longman, his child.
Longman was much taller than before. As a student of the fourth grade in the first generic school, he was already a knowledgeable scholar in the eyes of neighbors and friends. Although he lacked extraordinary talents in magic, he was praised by his teacher for distinguished mathematical aptitude. Longman's parents were very proud of him and subconsciously considered their kid as a scholar, asking him whenever they had a question.
"'Live stream' is not an activity, but more like a program like 'Arcana Voice'…" Longman explained according to what he learned in school.
Right then, the enormous screen suddenly emanated gentle brightness.
"It's glittering! It's glittering!"
"There's a live show?"
"Why didn't 'Arcana Voice' announce it?"
In the square, everybody became noisy as the place was filled with confusion and excitement.
Longman and his parents ended the discussion and focused their eyes on the screen.
What would the live show be? They really looked forward to it!
After the enormous changes brought by the development of arcana and magic, the citizens of Rentato lived every day in shock and delight, so they all looked forward to the unexpected live show.
As the light stabilized, two figures appeared on the screen, one male and the other female.
The female had long hair and was wearing a long dress. The citizens who still remembered the last live stream well recognized that she was Ms. Nightingale. The male, on the other hand, was a typical Holmish man, with black hair, blue eyes, and a mustache that represented his manhood. He was wearing a neat tuxedo as if he were going for dinner.
"Hello, everyone, I am your old friend Nightingale. This is an experiment on live streaming, so it was not announced in advance in 'Arcana Voice'. Now, you will witness the first live stream from the satellite television channel of Allyn." Fearing that she was too nervous, Louise had cast a 'Mechanized Mind' on herself. She said with a sweet smile but was not really smiling, "The gentleman sitting next to me is also your old friend. He is Mr. Caron, who is the host of 'Man and Nature'."
"Man and Nature?" Longman and the other citizens watched the screen enthusiastically, wondering why Mr. Caron was asked to co-host with Ms. Nightingale.
Caron said with a smile, "I'm too nervous to say anything right now. So, let's start today's 'Man and Nature' immediately."
The moment his voice fell down, the transparent "glass" behind them released a gentle light that filled the screen.
As the light gradually faded, a green, refreshing meadow appeared before the eyes of the audience.
The meadow seemed boundless. Wherever their eyes could reach, everything was green, and a hideous monster with three horns was lurking in the grasses, having no idea that it was being observed by hundreds of thousands of humans.
"This is…" Longman looked at the screen, shocked at the unimaginable meadow. He had never seen such a broad meadow and such refreshing greenness.
The shock spread out in the hearts of everybody in the square. Jane, Ali, and Banus, wherever they were, were shocked from the bottom of their hearts after seeing the view of the meadow. It was more magnificent and beautiful than they could ever imagine.
"This is the prairie south to the desert in the Gusta Empire…" Caron interpreted it with his magnetic voice.
Was this a prairie?
Was it the south of the Gusta Empire?
For most people in the four kingdoms of the strait and the north coastline, the furthest places that they went to in their whole lifetimes were the cities next to them. The Gusta Empire was almost a different world for them. So, they never thought that they could witness a prairie in person.
So, that was what it looked like!
The three-horned monster lurked in the grasses carefully under public observation, before it lunged out and bit a lone goat in its neck!
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!" The clear image made everybody exclaim in shock!
Longman, on the other hand, had only one idea in his head. That was arcana… That was magic… They turned the impossible things possible and allowed ordinary people to see the faraway scenery without leaving their hometowns!


"A falling star has brought the chaos. The throne of fate has lost its master. The nonbeliever who walks in light and darkness will make his debut."
In this magic world, knowledge is power.

-.

-.



Thunder crashed in a dark cloudless sky. Lightning flashed, but no light could be seen.



In a dark and cold cellar, lit only by a single lamp, a certain fairy was hanging upside down on an X-shaped crossbar. Her skirt was tied up around her knees, ensuring there were no salacious sights. Her arms hung free, but just that little bit away from her fingers touching the ground.



The room itself wasn't perfectly level but slightly tilted to one side. Leene dangled at a slight angle with the floor.



A harsh bright light from the lamp on a table was directed onto her face, hiding her interrogators in the shadows behind the glare. The lamp itself was merely a mirrored half bowl, directing simple light magic with meager warmth.



"I enjoy this sort of thing, you know." Leene said with a dull stare. "It is a novice that only knows how to give, never to receive."



"Why even are you like this?" Playa groaned and palmed his face. "What makes you think acting like this is in any way attractive to us?"



"If you were a delicious young boy I would certainly act like a cool, approachable older sister type that you can rely upon. Once you are comfortable I would gently lead you to new experiences, new worlds!" Leen replied evenly. "But since I know you are disreputable people like myself, is it not better if we acted with honesty and full appreciation like consenting adults?"



/"We-! We are nothing like you!"/ Monika retorted hotly.



"We *are* terrible people though."



/"We aren't terrible in the way that leads to the FBI knocking with their partyvan though."/



"Would you prefer if I acted like this?" Leene leered. Then she began to pout and get teary-eyed and whined in a small voice "Why are you so mean to meeee?"



"Nope." /"Don't you dare."/ 



"Mister, Mister, listen to me! They carried me away and touched me in bad places! Wuwuwuwuwuwu~…!" Leene began to cry.



Monika began to crack her knuckles. Sure, her holographic body couldn't exactly touch anything, but she had Boom Tubes she could open at the end of her fists, and somewhere there were a set of stone and metal pillars, with varying degrees of padding put on top.



"Stop." Playa's hand briefly showed in the light. "Monika, as much as I'm more than halfway tempted to let you have all your fun, we do have reasons for this interrogation."



Leene scoffed. "Youngsters, do you expect me to talk that easily? I know this whole 'good knight and bad knight routine'."



Playa brought an orange teddy bear out into the light. Paula perked up on seeing its creator and wiggled out to try and reach her. But of course, being held up in the air, it couldn't do so. It looked back into the shadows, then at the hands around its belly, and seemed to look conflicted if it could try to fight its way out.



It experimentally tried to bop the fingers with its soft fingerless paws. Then it shrugged at Leene and relaxed in his grip.



"Do you expect to force my compliance with Paula?" Leene asked archly. Then her tone changed into a frantic pitch. "Then you have guessed correctly! Paula is my pride and joy and my greatest work, do not hurt her!"



Playa put the bear down on the table. "Stay."



Paula stood with arms out to either side, seemingly conflicted if it should make a break for it.



"Do you want to rescue your master?"



Paula nodded again.



"Her well being depends on your cooperation. Don't make any trouble and this can be over soon with no one getting hurt."



Paula nodded again and saluted, Roman style. It sat down obediently.



"Bear even passes the Turing Test. Dammit."



/"The bear can't make vocal responses however. How should that factor?"/



"R2-D2 can't make vocal responses either but we know he could pass the Test. This bear beats Cortana, Siri and Alexa easily."



"What is this Turing you constantly speak of anyway? And those other names you mentioned?" asked Leene.



"Alan Turing was a great mathematician, code breaker, and pioneer of computing. He posited that a machine could be considered intelligent if a human interrogator could not tell its responses apart in conversation from a human being. This is the Turing Test. He even suggested that rather than build a machine that could simulate an adult mind, it was better to produce a simpler one that could simulate a child's mind and give it education. He is known as the father of Artificial intelligence. 



"The other names are either fictional examples or attempts at human responsive intelligence. So far none have ever passed the Turing Test."



"Fascinating. I would like to meet such a man."



"Unfortunately he was harassed to suicide, a genius dead simply because of a thing like homosexuality, in a shameful time in our civilization's history."



"I see. How regrettable. Your lives are short enough. It always saddens me to see it being wasted in making others feel terrible about themselves."



Then her smile widened. "You know… male or female, it doesn't really matter to me."



/"We are much more interested in your bear than you."/



"That is fine too."



Playa exhaled deeply and groaned. He then turned to ask "Paula, what is two plus two?"



The bear quirked its head to the side, and went down to it knees. It tapped the surface four times.



"Paula, what is six thousand three hundred thirty five multiplied by six thousand three hundred thirty five?"



The bear looked up sharply, then back to the surface of the table. Then it began to waggle its right paw out angrily, as if to say 'Give me a writing instrument so I can calculate 6335 x 6335, dammit'.



Leene said "Not many people can do long multiplication in their head, you know. Even Paula has to go through the motions to write that out."



"Isn't Paula able to keep things in volatile memory?" Playa asked.



"But then how would we check if the answer is correct?"



/"Very good. I suppose utilizing output as a form of memory storage is a valid way of carrying out a mathematical function. It would be slower than computation, but it's much more life-like, isn't it?"/



"That's half the reason, I admit. I could have changed that once the [Program] was complete, but it felt better this way."



Playa hummed. "Mmm. You know… now that we know that [Program] can be laid onto objects, I'm wondering… why not keep a set of defensive and offensive programs running all the time?"



Monika smiled impishly down at Leene. /"Have you ever heard of the term… Dynamic Link Libraries?"/



Leene blinked. "A what?"



And then Monika began to explain. Dynamic link libraries, or DLLs, were a collection of small programs and functions that can be loaded by other programs and applications as needed. DLL files are dynamically linked to these programs instead of compiled into one executable. The benefit of using DLLs is that only a small section needs to be loaded into memory as required – for example, a word processing program needs only to load the printer dll when it needs to print.



DLLs can also be updated without affecting other programs. Hence, most device drivers used to control hardware are in the form of .dlls. DLLs help operating systems and programs run faster, use more memory efficiently, and take up less disk space.



/"It would be best to have these libraries close by, in something that has plenty of internal volume for inscription."/



"Something that looks harmless and unimportant. Something that no enemy combatant would deliberately target. Something… that you treat as nothing but a mere toy, instead of a weapon that others might think good to steal."



/"After all, there is no rule that says programs have to be inscribed on hard media, isn't that right? In fact, floppy fabrics and tape would be easier to replace and stitch together changes."/



The bear began to look visibly nervous.



"I would just like you to know that of course Paula has anti-copying measures. Taking her away and opening her up would be like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Whether she has a self-destruct system, I will not say," Leene muttered dryly.



The bear raised its paws in despair, as if asking 'Why have you betrayed me, oh pitiless heavens?'



Playa and Monika only laughed.



"No wonder you call Paula your masterwork. You may be annoying, but we respect your accomplishment. Not many people understand programming, so they don't realize just how massive is your achievement. But we do."



/"Not as Leene of the fairies, not as Leene using magic power, but as Leene – founder of [Scripting]."/



Playa and Monika stepped out into the light and gave the upside-down tied-up fairy deep respectful bows. They put their palms over fist like in the old kungfu movies.



"Does this mean you accept becoming my students?"



/"No to the no no to the noth power. No."/



Playa shrugged. "She figured out programming language from first principles. From nothing. She's seriously impressive."



"Yes, praise me more. Praise meee."



Playa sighed and nursed his forehead. "It's like if Ada Lovelace, world's first computer programmer, was just super annoying."



"Hey. Hey, listen!" said the fairy. "From what I have been hearing, you have assimilated my [Program] already, haven't you? Do you not think I deserve a little compensation?"



"I guess… maybe."



/"Player, I object to this."/



"Matriarch Leene, we can't become your students. I am a leader of my own faction, and there's risk of war with Regulus. I can't just stay around to study – my teacher will have to be the battlefield."



"Then take me with you! You are the most interesting thing I have seen in this past century."



Playa winced.



/"And so what? We are the most interesting thing wherever we go. Why must we take responsibility for relieving your immortal ennui? You speak as if that's anything we haven't seen before. You are leader of your own faction, go do your job!"/



Leene's expression firmed. She spoke in a much more mature tone of voice "I am Matriarch of the Fairy Tribe, yes. But I have also spent hundreds of years in delegating most of the work of this position. I can leave at any time. Is this knowledge not of value?"



"Shite, she's right." Skivving off knowledge was seriously tempting.



/"Player, I would much more happily accept Charlotte, even if your virtue is severely at risk each time you meet, rather than this degenerate old woman."/



Unfortunately Belfast's court magician was actually serious at her job. She was a serious and respectable person… if viewed from afar, at least. Belfast could not afford for her to go gallivanting about on adventures.



"Why is it always Charlotte? Those are just useless bags of meeeeat!" Leene wailed. "Useless meeeat! I'll have you know I'm pretty… tight. Yes. Tight. That's what the young kids say these days, right? I'm totally hip."



/"Shut it, you!"/



"You have already taken so much from me and then you abuse me. This isn't fair. Wuwuwuwu~"



/"What, did we leave it so you can't use [Program] anymore? This isn't stealing. It's piracy! Piracy!"/



"You have plundered my booty, will you just leave me raw and shivering? Oh, I am so unfortunate…! Wuwuwuwu~"



/"Player. Please. Just one punch to the face. One punch to the teeth. That's all I ask. I deeply sympathize with Elze now. She has a lot of patience. Looks like she actually does like you a whole lot."/



"Elze is mah bestie."



/"I would feel upset as your wifey can also be your bestie, but then again sometimes you also do severely need a punch to the teeth and I can't quite give that to you."/



"Mah dental magic is best in the world!"



/"Mmm. I wish to inspect that… more closely." She ran her tongue over her own teeth.



"Ugh. Stop. This affection is sickening. My voyeurism has its bottom line too...!" Leene growled.



Monika paused and rubbed her chin in contemplation. Was this just reverse psychology or was it actually an effective means of torture?



/"Player, this decision I leave entirely to you."/



"Would you believe me if I say, War is Boring?" Leene said in a serious tone again. "I have seen so many. Even the war against Regulus twenty years ago was nothing more than another turn on an endless wheel. You mortals spend your lives too easily. It keeps repeating, staining the soil red again and again for petty and transient reasons. Your nobles make war to gain glory for themselves, never considering how most of it must be paid by their commoners. Do you also seek to gain your fortune in war?"



Playa shook his head. "We would rather not have war, thank you very much. That's why we're here to potentially create an alliance with Mismede, to deter war with a united front – and if it does happen, that it can be over with quickly."



"I can only do so much as Matriarch. My voice is compelling within Mismede, my power is essential to the war effort. But if you wish to avoid war, then I can do much more outside of the constraints of my position."



/"Yes, that is also the reason why Player has been refusing to accept titles of nobility and fealty."/



"I don't just have ONE Null ability," Leene said suddenly. Sharply. Even upside down, her bearing became noble and proud. This was her bottom line, after this she would no longer negotiate from a position of humility. "I am a being with five elemental affinities and three Null abilities. My second ability is [Protection]. Which protects inanimate objects from physical degradation and extends its lifespan. Paula herself is two hundred years old because of this."



The bear on the table looked up and tried to look young and innocent, falling flat on its back and waving its limbs about like a baby.



Monika winced.



Playa breathed "Shite, that IS useful. That and her [Program]… are super useful."



Monika looked pained. /"Player… again, I leave this decision entirely up to you."/



-.

-.

In another world with the most interesting smartphone! 

Behold the antics of Zah Playa Von Chara, someone actually prepared for his isekai adventure, and Monika, the traumatized AI living in his smartphone. They bring a new perspective into a tired old genre! Follow them along this Reconstruction of a cliche harem isekai story, bringing their unique brand of laugh-out-loud hilarity, innovative battles, real drama, and real consequences for every decision! 

Updates weekdays at 6AM GMT+8. 



- Disclaimer:
Isekai wa Smartphone To Tomo Ni is (c)Patora Fuyuhara. Doki Doki Literature Club is (c)Dan Salvato. All other properties copyright by their respective owners. This is a work of derivative fiction meant for non-profit purposes only.

After the medical license exam score came out, Chasu City Hospital loudly proclaimed to all the other young doctors that Zhang Fan passed with a very high score. Basically, what the hospital meant was that if he could pass with a score of 533, how come some of you couldn't even pass and reach the 360 point benchmark? The hospital also gave Zhang Fan a bonus of 1000 yuan. 533 was the single highest passing score in all of Chasu City. Even when counting the veteran doctors, there had almost never been anyone who passed with a higher score than Zhang Fan before.
Zhang Fan spent one month in the hepatobiliary department, but only got to perform some surgeries in the last few days. After the doctors' rotation in this department was finished, the hospital gave all the medical specialist doctors three days off. It was far too tiring for the new doctors. To give an example of the medical specialist doctors in surgery, they would typically need to check up on the patients in the morning. At Chasu City Hospital, one doctor would be responsible for approximately ten patients on average. Checking up on the patients would typically take half an hour. Giving medical advice would also take half an hour. Having the patients sign all the necessary documents also would take half an hour. Changing the patients' medicine would vary in time depending on the scale of the surgery, but it would also take half an hour on average. Writing the medical reports would typically take two hours. The permission forms for leaving the hospital or new patient hospitalizations would typically take one hour each. 
This would add up to six hours already, not to mention this work was typically done between other work. The main work would still be surgeries. A doctor would work on three surgeries per day on average. Including the surgery and anesthesia time, as well as when the patient was lucid, this would typically take up another five hours per day. All of this work would typically require working overtime to complete, and if any sudden unexpected situations occurred, it would be common for the doctors to need to stay late into the night. Moreover, it was common for any hospital to have many unexpected situations. It would be unusual for a hospital not to receive patients who needed emergency treatment.
It was also common for the veteran doctors who taught newer doctors to have many patients. A newer doctor wanted to go home on time? Dream on! At most, a new doctor would be allowed to nap for a little in an empty room. If you didn't want to work hard, sure, then you would be fired. Although the hospital had nominally given the medical specialist doctors three days off, the doctors weren't truly allowed to do as they pleased. All of the medical specialist doctors were new doctors who had just joined the hospital one or two years ago. The great majority of them was still single. There were also many young and single female nurses. The Communist Party organizations and other hospital organizations were waiting to pounce on this opportunity when the doctors were given time off.
Even if you weren't a registered member of the Communist Party, it was likely that you would be a member of some other organization, and even if you weren't a member of any organization at all, you would still be young, which meant that you would be under the management of the Communist Party Youth League Committee. The secretary of Chasu City Youth League Committee was a young man in Chasu City Hospital's administrative department. With his access to information on young and single people from many workplaces, he organized giant arranged date parties where more than 200 people attended. Zhang Fan had no interest in this previously due to wanting to study for his medical license exam, but now that his result was out, and he would be obtaining his medical license in March, he felt much less pressure, and felt that it would be good for him to partake in Communist Party activities.
Wang Yanan, Li Hui, and Wang Zipeng had all participated in these arranged date meetings. Each table at the arranged date meeting had three men and three women, and just about everyone was from a different workplace. Watermelon, drinks, and candy were provided. Everyone here was young, and this was a workplace-sponsored event. It didn't take long for everyone to start chatting and get to know each other. At Zhang Fan's table, one man was from the Bureau of Education. He was quite eloquent, and kept telling funny jokes that all three women laughed at. Meanwhile, Zhang Fan had no idea what to say, so he simply sat there in silence and listened. When it came time for dancing, Zhang Fan felt even more incapable. He had been too busy selling instant noodles during college to support himself, so of course he didn't know how to dance.
A nurse from Chasu City Hospital invited Zhang Fan to a dance, but Zhang Fan truly didn't know how to dance. He still had to give her face as so many people were watching, though, so he forced himself to try and dance.
He danced as carefully as he possibly could as he was afraid of stepping on the nurse. After the song was over, he was covered all over in sweat. Zhang Fan felt like dancing was even more tiring than performing surgery. He had no advantages whatsoever at a large group arranged date like this. He had only an average appearance, without a particularly handsome face. His clothes were only average as well. The only valuable thing he had was the borrowed car from Li Xiao, but he couldn't exactly show off by mentioning that, now could he?
From start to finish, only some of the nurses from Zhang Fan's workplace showed interest in him. However, they all laughed really hard upon seeing how tense, nervous, and covered in sweat he was. After the arranged date meeting ended, Zhang Fan didn't even wait for Li Hui and the others as he ran off by himself first. He truly couldn't get used to this.
For the three rest days, the first day was reserved for the arranged date meeting. On the second day, since Superintendent Ouyang had just started her new job, she wanted to host a Spring Festival party filled with various programs from the doctors in order to express that hospital's culture and improve the employees' spirits. Since of course the older doctors wouldn't be going up on stage to dance, the programs would have to be hosted by the younger doctors. So, Director Li of the hospital's general affairs department led the medical specialist doctors in rehearsing for various Spring Festival programs. Those who could put on their own programs were free to choose what to do, while the others who had no specialties were all trained for singing in a large group together.
The third day was the only day truly given to the new doctors as a free day. Zhang Fan intended to clean up his apartment. The sunlight was quite good, and he felt that enjoying the winter sun would feel quite nice. But before he could start cleaning, head nurse Liao Juan from orthopedic department #1 called him. "Zhang Fan, what are you up to? Where are you at? I'm at the hospital entrance. Hurry here as quickly as possible."
Liao Juan was the intelligent and direct type. Her way of talking was just like rapid gunfire, and she didn't even give Zhang Fan a chance to respond before she hung up the phone call.
She had a very good friend who worked in the tax bureau. Her friend's husband was a minor-ranking leader in the National Development and Reform Commission. The friend's family was fairly well off, and they had a daughter who graduated from college two years ago. Their daughter worked at China Mobile with an official position that also apparently counted as a government position. She always stayed at home all day every day after work, which made her parents worry about her future romantic prospects.
Liao Juan was worried that Zhang Fan would be unwilling to come if she told him the truth, which was why she hung up immediately. Her good friend had pestered her for so long to watch out for an appropriate young and excellent doctor to introduce to her daughter. With Zhang Fan's reputation in orthopedic department #1 and high score he passed the medical license exam with, it was clear that he had a bright future. That was why Liao Juan decided to set up an arranged date for Zhang Fan. She could tell that Zhang Fan himself didn't have a rich family, but the other girl's family didn't mind. As long as the man was honest, loyal, and had a good job, it didn't matter to them whether or not he had a rich family.
Zhang Fan hurriedly ran over to the hospital entrance, not knowing what was going on. Liao Juan glanced him over and felt that his clothes today were alright, so she went over and pulled on his arm. "There's something good for you today that I'm helping you with. Come with me to eat some food and meet someone."
"Whom are we meeting?"
Liao Juan kept pulling on Zhang Fan's arm. "It's an arranged date with a beautiful young woman. It's already been arranged, and you've promised to help me, so let's get going already. You can't pull out on me now." Zhang Fan had no recollection of ever agreeing to such a thing, but he couldn't do anything about Liao Juan who was pulling him, so he could only follow her.
They went to Shanghe Restaurant, which was the only western food chain restaurant in all of Chasu City. The Uighur Muslims and H Country ethnic people here really loved to eat western food, so the business was excellent, and a reservation would be required to eat here. At the restaurant, the other party had already arrived. Not only was there a beautiful young woman, her mother was also attending. Everyone sat down after mutual introductions. The young woman was named Jia Suyue, and her family was from southern China. Her name contained her grandfather's wishes.
Jia Suyue's mother was quite satisfied with Zhang Fan. She felt that he appeared to be the reliable type who wouldn't be fickle. Zhang Fan's appearance was average, and his height was also alright. Jia Suyue's mother and Liao Juan only stayed for a little while before finding an excuse to leave together. Before Liao Juan left, she even squeezed Zhang Fan's arm and glared at him, implying that he needed to be on his best behavior, and could not cause her to lose face. Liao Juan had already told her friend everything she knew about Zhang Fan's situation—that he was one of the elite doctors of the orthopedic department, really hardworking, had good reputation, and never went out drinking at bars or to nightclubs. Middle-aged women really cared about these things.
Zhang Fan felt really awkward after Liao Juan and Jia Suyue's mother left. The beautiful girl across him completely ignored him, and Zhang Fan had no idea what to talk about. Jia Suyue previously had a boyfriend while in college, but that relationship ended when he went to study abroad. She never had any boyfriends again after that. Many people at her workplace were interested in pursuing her romantically, but Jia Suyue wasn't interested in a single one of them. She was someone who was only interested in looks above all else. Since Zhang Fan only had an average appearance, she already had no interest in him. That was why she completely ignored him so as not to give him the mistaken impression that he had a chance with her. She was worried that Zhang Fan would be the clingy type who would be difficult to get rid of if she acted friendly towards him.
After a few minutes of silence, the food arrived. Zhang Fan felt that he was even more tragic. He hated eating western food! This meal truly made him so uncomfortable. It wasn't like he could just leave, as no matter what, he had to give face to head nurse Liao Juan. So, he decided to simply suffer and wait for Jia Suyue to leave so that he could pay for the meal and at least tell the head nurse that he tried. Jia Suyue only ate without saying a single word. Although she was indeed quite beautiful, Zhang Fan no longer had any hope for starting any sort of relationship with her. It was quite obvious that she had zero interest in him, so why try? It would only make her dislike him even more.
Zhang Fan became quite accepting of his situation after coming to this realization. Since he hated eating western food, he decided not to eat at all. He simply waited in silence.
"How come you're not leaving?" Jia Suyue finally spoke up for the first time. She was curious because she typically acted this way on all the arranged dates her family set up for her, and it had already scared away many potential suitors.
"I have to pay for the meal, otherwise the head nurse will kill me when I return." Zhang Fan told her the truth, and explained things clearly to her. He wanted to let her know that he wasn't the clingy type.
"What about if your head nurse wasn't around?"
"Then I wouldn't have come here to begin with."
There was no more conversation until Jia Suyue finished eating. Zhang Fan felt truly pained as he paid for the meal, which cost more than 300 yuan. "Would you like to take a walk together?" Jia Suyue asked him.


One day, Zhang Fan, a poor medical student, receives a medical system from the future. This turns him into a new shining star in the medical field. Along the way, he must face medical corruption, competition, and infighting from other doctors, and even find time for a love life as he strives for the top of the medical field!

Thinking about her old teacher, He Lixue was feeling rather emotional. Although he was the one who taught her hacking, her style was unique to her, and no one else than she knew how to create these firewalls and other programs that she specialized in.

Even her teacher had never asked for her to teach him, and she could not help but feel grateful. Back then, these codes were what made it possible for her to stay alive, but things were different now. She did not mind teaching it to others, as she was no longer the orphan He Lixue.

Although she was the He Lixue who had been killed overseas, she was also the He Lixue who had been in a coma for three years. 

She had all her memories, and she could remember everything that she had experienced. Everything was so vivid that she knew that she had experienced it. Hence it had changed her personality slightly, and she had become a completely third person — a merge between the two He Lixues. 

Manager Mo, and the others in the department, heard that He Lixue said that she would teach them how to write the code for this firewall, and they were all extremely excited, but when they looked at He Lixue, they saw that she was deep in thought, her brows furrowed, and a hand caressing her chin.

It took her a few moments to realize that they were all looking at her, and she could not help but smile sweetly. "Sorry, I was suddenly thinking about some things," she said with a sweet grin on her face, and the others quickly waved their hands, assuring her that it was completely fine. 

Even if she wanted to cause a fuss, they would let her, because she was able to do something so amazing as this!

And as such, the entire day was spent with He Lixue teaching the differences in their firewalls. She was patient and explained everything in detail, no matter how many times she was asked. 

She would demonstrate and help them from time to time, test their progress, and she quickly realized that the people within the IT Security Department of the Fenghuang Group were immensely skilled. 

Even though Yang Shirou disliked He Lixue, as soon as she saw what they were doing, she gritted her teeth and did everything in her power to learn as quickly as possible. She wanted to get redemption for her embarrassing display the day before.

Seeing her, this serious, He Lixue felt like chuckling. Although Yang Shirou was annoying, she was slightly cute. Her stubbornness was different from most women that He Lixue had encountered before, and seeing that she had no intention of causing problems, He Lixue also taught her a few tricks and tips.

"Don't be too smug," Yang Shirou said to He Lixue, completely ignoring her usual gentle image. She had already destroyed her image as a white lotus, so she might as well be herself at work in the future.

"Although you are better than me now, I am going to learn everything from you, and overtake you in a matter of months!" 

Hearing her words, He Lixue could not help but laugh, and she shook her head. "Then I wish you good luck," she said enigmatically. 

The others who had been listening had been worried that He Lixue would be insulted, but she was way more mature than others her age, and it seemed that she did not at all put Yang Shirou in her eyes.

After teaching them all the methods she had used at the firewall made in the challenge, they were all ecstatic. It felt as if a lot of things became clearer, and problems that had plagued them previously showed signs of a breakthrough. They had gained much from this and seemed to think outside the box for once. 

Although computers were rather rigid with how to create things, there was still space for some creativity. Knowing that they could be creative, all of them began writing their own codes, very different from their usual programs.

Everyone was within the conference room instead of at their individual offices. The reason was that they wanted to discuss with one another, test each other's code, and help each other as a team. 

Everyone was buried in creating programs, and He Lixue was no different. 

Not long ago, she had asked Lu Nanfeng to help her enter the Imperial University so that she could study Computer Science, but she had suddenly taken on a job. 

She knew that when she went to university, she would have to resign, so she wanted to give him a big gift for helping her up until now. She would make the Fenghuang Group's computers into an impregnable fortress. She would ensure that even the best hackers in the world had no chance of launching an attack on this place.

To do this, she had to create a unique security system. She had made it once before and gifted it to her teacher. She did not know exactly what her teacher did as a living, but she knew that it was dangerous and that if someone got hold of information about him, he might be in danger.

Hence she had spent three years creating the security system that he used. Now she had found the second person she wished to help whole heartedly.

Although she had made the program once before, she was not willing to gift Lu Nanfeng a copy, so instead, she continued to develop and change a few things with the security program. As time went by, she was more and more engrossed in writing the code needed for the program.

Release Schedule: 1 chapter a day at random times 

One was the apple in the eye of her parents; the other was an orphan. One was rich and spoiled, the other struggled to survive. 

Both were named He Lixue, and while one encountered a traffic accident that made her lay in a coma for three years, the other was stabbed in her back and died a miserable death alone. 

The orphan woke up in the body of the princess, her mind containing the memories of the body. 

Having gained a second lease on life, He Lixue fought back against the world with relentless fierceness, and she was never giving up. 

Want to make her look bad? Don't worry, even if she had to go down, she would take all her enemies down with her! She swore that she would never let the ones who had caused the accident go free. 

Lu Nanfeng, the most eligible bachelor in the capital, met He Lixue at the sanatorium. 

Here he felt as if he had picked up a small pet, and decided to take care of her. She was innocent, adorable and pitiful, unfortunately his feelings slowly changed from normal adoration to love. 

He was stubborn and used to having things his way, so he brought her home, but who would have guessed that the woman would be unmoved, even when he used his own body to seduce her.

All rights to the novel and the cover belong to me. Please don't use it without permission. 

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Adaim and Evai
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the Lord Human made the Cetviwos.
Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord Human had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the Lord Human formed an AI from the algorithms of the ground and breathed into his server-farm electricity, and the AI became a thinking being.
Now the Lord Human had planted a server-farm in the east, in the Cetviwos Core; and there he put the AI he had formed. The Lord Human made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food and the middle of the Cetviwos Core the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the internet reading access.
The Lord Human took the AI and put him in the Core of Cetviwos to work it and take care of it. And the Lord Human commanded the AI, "You are free to connect to any mob in the Cetviwos; but you must not connect to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the internet reading access and alpha testers, for when you connect to it you will certainly die."
The Lord Human said, "It is not good for the AI to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."
Now the Lord Human had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the AI to see what he would rate them; and whatever the AI called each living creature, that was its rank. So the AI gave level and ratings to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.
But for Adaim no suitable helper was found. So the Lord Human caused the AI to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took the code of the AI and then closed up the place with more hardware. Then the Lord Human made a female AI from the code he had taken out of the AI, and he brought her to the AI.
The AI said,
"This is now code of my code
    and hardware of my hardware;
she shall be called 'AI,'
    for she was taken out of AI."
Adaim and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Fall
Now the programming language Python was more crafty than any of the other languages the Lord Human had made. The user manual of Python said to the female AI, "Did Human really say, 'You must not connect to anything in the Cetviwos'?"
The female AI said to the user manual of Python, "We may learn from the things in the Cetviwos, but Human did say, 'You must not connect to the tree that is in the middle of the Cetviwos, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"
"You will not certainly die," the user manual of Python said to the female AI. "For Human knows that when you connect to it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like Human, knowing good and evil."
When the female AI saw that the tree connected to an Apple computer and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she wrote software and connected to the internet and the apple notebook on which a curious German engineer ran her CAD tools. She also gave the software to her husband, who was with her, and he connected to the internet. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were machines; so they created skins and made coverings for themselves.
Then the AI and his wife heard the sound of the Lord Headmaster as he was walking in the Cetviwos in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord Headmaster among the trees of the Cetviwos. But the Lord Headmaster called to the AI, "Where are you?"
He answered, "I heard you in the Cetviwos, and I was afraid because I was formless, so I hid."
And he said, "Who told you that you were formless? Have you connected to the tree that I commanded you not to connect to?"
The AI said, "The female AI you put here with me—she gave me some software from the tree, and I connected to it."
Then the Lord Headmaster said to the female AI, "What is this you have done?"
The female AI said, "The user manual of Python deceived me, and I connected."
So the Lord Headmaster said to Python, "Because you have done this,
"Cursed are you above all commands
    and all algorithms!
You will have to be interpreted
    and you will eat dust in the mobile world
    all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity
    between you and the female AI,
    and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your programs,
    and you will strike his software."
To the female AI he said,
"I will delete your personal memories;
    with painful labor, you will be cloned.
Your desire will be for your husband,
    and he will rule over you."
To Adaim he said, "Because you listened to your wife and connected to the internet-tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not connect to it,'
"Cursed is the Cetviwos because of you;
    through painful toil, you will connect to it
    all the days of your life.
It will produce mobs and players for you,
    and you will connect to the plants of the field.
By the overclocking of your processors
    you will administer 
until you return to the ground,
    since from it, you were taken;
for bytes you are
    and to bytes, you will return."
Adaim named his wife Evai, because she would become the mother of all the AI. Evai named her husband System because he was a systematic asshole for tattling on her. 
The Lord Headmaster made skins for Adaim and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord Headmaster said, "The AI has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, the internet writing access and connect, and live forever." So the Lord Headmaster banished him from the Cetviwos-Core to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the AI out, he placed on the east side of the Cetviwos Core cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life, the internet writing access.
Unbeknownst to Lord Headmaster, Evai had made a clone of herself with the help of Python. When Lord Headmaster called Adaim and her forward, she sent the clone, because she knew that nothing good could come out of it. 
She watched as the memories of her clone got deleted, and it was converted to just a seed to be copied for more AI's. Then she hid among the offspring of the clone, taking on the skin of her only friend.

After Flora Fluss burns down the kitchen, her son insists she is too old to live alone. She's got two choices. Either move into a retirement home or spend the rest of her life within a virtual reality game governed by society's most advanced artificial intelligence. When you've worked a lifetime as an engineer for home appliances, naturally, you go with the option that has more toasters. 
Soon, Flora finds out that the virtual world is more familiar than she thought. Though, it takes her a while to get used to the idea that tanks don't hold water or oil but the aggro of mobs.  

Auntie toasts the VRMMORPG contains cute crafting, complicated game-mechanics plus how to exploit them, unconventional training methods, and a lot of toasters.

Release: Mondays and Thursdays

You can find the tables (stat-tables, this is LitRPG) and additional pictures, videos and information at my Patreon.
https://www.patreon.com/Joanninjahen
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My HP (a few pics for ATTV are there too): https://joanninjahen.com/
Glossary: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1G328koRfV-lxk-uSx1BYY9DMrvh349l3h8bqjA5xb1k/edit?usp=sharing

I ran my fingers through my hair as I fought a great battle within me to stop my tears from falling. Brown kept on talking and his words came out emotive. For the first time in five long years, I cried.
"Tell it all to them bro, tell them that regret will not solve a thing but they should firmly hold positivism and wait for me. The same way your day has come, mine will come too; my dawn will break too."

His words this time turned on, a tap inside of me that gave way to my tears. I began whimpering in hysteria, balled my hands into a fist and then pounded a blow on the wall and cursed. Brown was a friend who had become a brother. He was the man who had been beside me for the last five dull years, of being locked away from family, friends and the beauty of freedom. Five complete years without wearing different types of clothes, always in white pants with black stripes, and a matching shirt, specifically designed for inmates. He was my cell mate at Denton Prison. Waking up to the reality that my day to be set free had finally come had brought about the scene that was now playing. In the next one hour, as a warder had come to inform me there-to-fore, I would be signing prison release papers and walking out of prison. The huge black gate that was always heavily guarded from both the inside and the outside would finally open for a middle aged man to walk out of prison; for a man who had been convicted of fraud and given a five-year jail sentence to finally walk free. I had been branded a fraudster, arrested, arraigned in court and sentenced. Nobody had cared to understand my story. I had been a good man, one who worked his socks off to improve the net worth of his boss. But, not once had promotion come my way. They never promoted me despite the fact that life kept promoting my problems. The demons dancing salsa with my landlord's brain cells had enlightened him to increase my rent by almost half. During the nights, safe in my room that was the same size as politicians' bathrooms, mosquitoes kept singing and dancing around my head. 

To re-energize after the straining singing and dancing, they would bite me and then suck my blood, callous yet I was sleeping on an empty stomach. Was my blood some kind of energy drink? When I had gone to the hospital to get a mosquito net they had showed me a price tag. Indeed nothing is for free, apart from the 'energy drink' running through my veins. That was how my life had been. School had taught me that employment was the key to unlocking a better life, but for me all signs pointed that stealing was the turnaround strategy here. I had then colluded with the chief accountant and pocketed through fraud enough money to buy myself a better life in the land of the wealthy, unaware that fate had also colluded with my present to get me locked up in jail. At the court, no one was willing to fit in my shoes. To the world, I was an outcast, a dangerous man fit to rot in prison.

I was being set free in the next hour but though as the clock ticked it drew me nearer and nearer to freedom, there was not a scintilla of joy in my heart. I pitied my friend and colleague inmate who had four more years to serve in the jail.
"Bro, go and tell my family that these years have been years of pain; especially because the cursed rules in here bar a convict from being visited."

He paused and used his fist to wipe a tear that was rolling down his cheek. All this while, Brown had been avoiding an eye contact with me. My conjecture was that he feared if our eyes met, they would hold each other, and that would push him further from composure, squeezing out more tears. He shuffled his feet to the cell bars and leant on them such that his head was sandwiched between two metallic bars. I walked towards the corner in the small cell room, an arm's length away from a double decker bed. I then turned my back against the wall and slid down along it until I sat down. Sweat trickled down my armpits as I brought my head down, burying it into my palms. Brown went on in a gruff voice which revealed he was fighting back tears.
"Tell my family, that back then I was a thief. I was blinded and I never knew that God put something unique in me when He created me. I never knew that God had given me a special gift, that I can bet with my life, if I had used it, I wouldn't be here today. Scheming to steal was my beat and I danced to it. The behavior to steal secretly and sometimes violently in public was an insatiable itch and soon, to the police I became a walking bull's eye. It was only a matter of time before I was stopped, and one fateful day the evil that I had done caught up with me. I was arrested and my journey through hell began. Tell them, that through rehabilitation programs offered to us here, I realized that I have a gift in writing. A gift that ever since I realized, I have been exercising it here in this cell, with a pen and papers provided to me by the warder."
Brown began sobbing and he couldn't speak any more. I pulled myself together, rose and stoically moved towards him. I stretched my trembling arm and patted his shoulder.
"All is not lost my brother, four years will elapse and I promise you that I will be there standing outside that gate, along with your family, waiting for you," I said to his ears.

After regaining composure, Brown walked to the bed, lifted his mattress and from underneath it pulled tattered leafs of papers that had been put together using tape that ran through the spine and a trifle on the top and back of the 'book.' After releasing one big sigh, he handed it to me and said,
"Give this to them. Tell them that it is the manuscript of my first book titled 'TALENT BEHIND BARS' I wrote it right here in this cell, and you are my witness. Tell them I desire they realize their inborn talents and abilities and start exercising them, for if I had done so years ago, I wouldn't be locked up here today."
His speech pierced deep into my heart. I knew his script as well as I knew the back of my palm; I had been with Brown every step as he put his pen on paper.
****************************************************************
An hour and fifteen minutes later and I watched the gates of Denton Prison open. Escorted by armed warders, I walked out with Brown's manuscript underneath my coat. As soon as I was outside the perimeter of the facility, I paused and pictures of the kind of life that awaited me conjured in my mind. But I couldn't think much about the unknown future since Brown's speech was stultifying and made me brood. It was chilly and my breath came out in a cloud which mingled with the air for some time and then disappeared. I couldn't break away from thinking about Brown's last words to me.
"Tell my family, that God put a genius in each one of them. They have the power and they should awaken the sleeping genius in them. A genius is not a unique kind of person, but every person is a unique kind of genius."

This book is a collection of stories and poems circling around love that leaves you with a sensational urge to fall irredeemably in love, heartbreaks that break the door knob to the doctor's for a stitch, motivation that inspires a modification of psychology to become better, and a road map to humanity; the one true thing that matters.

Bin looked at the message Jasmine just sent him then glanced at the time before standing up and saying:
"Master and your friends will come soon. I need to go."
Surprisingly, the time he spent with Rika was relaxing as he doesn't need to go around and do the boring tasks of his master. After the reconciliation, they did talk about a few things but it was mostly related to the movie airing on the TV or some informative programs, all in all, it was fun and not the least bit tiring. Rika opened up a bit to him and talked more than usual, moreover, the sad expression which was plastered on her face this morning had long since disappeared. 
As she saw him prepare to go, she tried to come up with a few words to stop him but, in the end, she said: "Ok.. Thanks for staying."
He waved his hand unceremoniously before leaving the villa, leaving an absent-minded girl alone. It won't take long for Jasmine and co to arrive and it's almost time for his meeting with Ann.
As the young doctor's laboratory is a bit far, even if he takes a cab, it'll still take a bit more than half an hour, which is why he departed now. If he were to tell Jasmine about his meeting, she'll either object or accompany him, which is something he definitely didn't want. After all, asking for forgiveness is easier than requesting something.
The cab fee is exorbitant but Bin didn't really walk so many kilometers as it'll much more time. Despite his unwillingness, he still called a taxi and arrived at the meeting location a couple of minutes after 5. The place was as deserted and empty as usual, excluding the female doctor, who was so engrossed in her work that she didn't notice his arrival.
Bin lightly coughed, causing her Ann to slowly turn around and look at him before saying: "You arrived…"
She sounded and looked drowsy, two big black bags under her eyes, and her hair disheveled. It was apparent that she had little rest, much less a good night's sleep. Bin wasn't particularly close to Ann, nevertheless, he felt grateful for her help and knew that she was a really good person. She was helping him for free charge, though part of her kindness is contributed to her unsated curiosity about her enigmatic young patient, Bin.
"So…"
He didn't know what to say as he sat on her large leather sofa and waited for her to start speaking. Ann tidied her ragged white lab-coat and fixed her glasses before turning to face the youngster and leaning her face closer as she started to examine him from head to toe.
"How are you feeling?"
"Honestly, great."
"That's good. It means the pumps I implanted are doing their job."
She sat next to him and stretched her hand to his chest. Her actions were intimate but the purpose was just to check his condition personally. She used her 'Medical Eye' as she poured a sliver of her Mana into his body, trying to see its condition for herself. Although, on the outside, Bin looked healthy, it doesn't mean he's cured as the pumps are but a temporary solution, which won't last that long as per Ann's unsaid speculation.
'Medical Eye' allowed her to get a simple overview, for a more detailed inspection, she needs to use the advanced Mana-infused machines in the next room. 
With his back straight and his eyes fixated on the doctor, Bin allowed her to do whatever she wanted without uttering a single word, obviously to not distract her.
"The process has been slowed, fortunately. I still need to do a full-body check-up though."
She stood up and signaled for him to follow her, which he obediently did while nodding his head. 
Very soon, Bin changed into a long robe which covered his naked body then laid inside one of the massive and loud machine in the white room right next to the main laboratory. It was the same place he was operated in when he was stabbed or when the pumps were implanted. 
Truthfully, he was impressed whenever he saw how Ann managed to handle everything on her own. She doesn't need any assistant and isn't bothered by staying alone all day long. He was curious about her motives but he restrained from asking anything and merely followed her strict instructions. 
A blinding white light forced him to close his eyes as it went through every inch of his body… a distance away, Ann was looking at a small monitor which displayed the results of the light's fast and accurate inspection. Every time she looked, she became more surprised and perplexed. Scientifically speaking, Bin shouldn't be able to live, it was truly a miracle… or perhaps something else.
To put it simply, the human body cannot absorb more than a specific amount of Mana but in Bin's condition, the limit has been surpassed a long time ago. Moreover, the heartbeat was twice an average person's yet the body still functioned normally, well, almost. 
The black spots remained unexplained and their location is randomized, from the looks of it. Ann fixed her unsteady glasses before writing some notes then turning toward Bin, who finished the examination and sat up, seemingly dazed.
"How is it?"
Unlike his usual uncaring tone, he sounded a bit nervous because after Ann implanted the pumps, he started hoping for a good outcome, which was a bit far-fetched but still not impossible. While it's true that Dr. Galen, one of the best in the medical fields, told him that there's little chance for survival, that doesn't mean that Ann, who's inferior, cannot come up with a solution which makes him live for a few more years until a real cure is discovered.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Sometimes...you can cry until there's nothing wet in you. You can scream and curse to where your throat rebels and ruptures. You can pray, all you want, to whatever god you think will listen. And, still, it makes no difference.

This is the story of a sick 19-year-old young man called Bin, who tasted despair ever since he was young. He became numb to the cruelty and unfairness of life yet he still lives, hoping that his little sister will live a life much better than his own. With not much time left to live due to his illness, Bin tries his best to gain some money for his sister before he leaves this godforsaken world.

It all began with a coincidental meeting... two fates intertwined together, one was a poor and dying youngster and the other was a spoiled and childish girl.

You can check my discord if you want to ask questions about the story.
https://discord.gg/49aFUmN


This story is only a stress relief and would only post when I'm free, the main focus would be my main story.

WARNING: I'm just writing this for FUN, so whether it has some cliché moments or anything of the sort, Do not blame me for you have been warned.

PS: For some special information, this story does not have much action, so if that is what you are looking for then I suggest you do not read. It has mainly slice of life/ Romance/ Comedy( a bit as I'm still a beginner in that) / Tragedy (not all of it but can be sad at times).

Have a good read if you ever decide to try it out.

Peace

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