บท 11: Similar One
"No fucking way…?" I trailed off slack-jawed as a woman in techwear clothes approached me.
"Yahoo," She waved her hand smoothly in the air, "You're looking good tiger." She winked as her twin tails slipping from her hat flailed about.
"Uh… thanks? Wait, who even are you?" I stuttered in between my words.
"Eh~? Even though we talked to each other just earlier on our phones you still act like you don't know me…" She pouted as she pulled out her phone to show me our messages.
"That's certainly enough proof of your identity," I voiced as I entered the subway station by sliding my pass on the charging screen.
"Well, where should we head to?" Smool chimed in as she walked by my side.
"First off you should be telling me how the heck you became a woman," I demanded some information.
"What a pushy guy you are~" She trailed off as she poked me once in my cheeks.
"Sigh. I'm only asking because I'm confused as fu–" She disturbed my sentence and spoke with a higher voice.
"I'll answer some of your questions but we first must talk about this whole ordeal that has dawned upon us." She spoke full of seriousness, her change of tone catching me off guard.
"Yeah… This whole system thing coming to the real world is weird, rather, unreal." I spoke my honest thoughts.
"Let's take this train first and go to the next town, we can have a date as we catch up with each other."
"There you go again, teasing me with such words…"
"But I'm not, when a male and a female go out together doesn't it make it a date?" She raised her right brow questioningly.
"That's true… Well, let's board the subway first and go where you want to."
"Yeah, let's do just that."
So, as we mentioned, we followed that course of action.
Everything seemed too normal. The cracking of the reins, the yawns of the tired people, the soft chatters between students taking the train home, and the quiet music leaking out of the people who had earbuds etched to their ears.
"This sort of makes me uncomfortable…" I muttered as I gazed in Smool's direction.
Did that cool, hot, mature-looking guy really turn into this petite, flirty, and teasing woman?
I don't even know what's right and left anymore.
"Next stop is Kiga, next stop is Kiga." That line repeated several times on the speaker before we reached our stop.
"We're getting off here, Smool held me by my hand and pulled me out of the train."
"Ah… okay, okay." I simply went with her bouts of impulsive decisions without fighting back.
Her personality seems a little weird, after all.
In one moment she's cheerful and in the other she's serious and cold as ice.
Kind of a weird balance.
After we walked for a few minutes into the town next to ours, Smool pulls me in to step into Café Lumos, which seemed to be a sanctuary of modern aesthetics and technological marvels.
"Hmm…" The soft glow of holographic signage guided us toward the sleek barista counter, where the air was infused with the rich aroma of freshly brewed coffee.
The atmosphere hummed with a gentle energy as patrons immersed themselves in a world where past and future seemed to converge.
We settled into slightly floating chairs, their contours adjusting to our body with a gentle embrace.
"Phwa~" Smool let out a relaxed sigh as she rested all of her weight on the chair.
I couldn't help but marvel at the smart glass walls displaying an ever-changing tapestry of mesmerizing digital art.
With a swish of my fingers, I activated the system window to show up, allowing me to compare the holographic similarity between the two.
"Shall we get to talking?" I asked as I glanced over the menu projected before my eyes on a holographic screen.
The holographic images of culinary delights danced in front of me, enticing my taste buds as I scrolled through the options.
"Yes, we shall indeed get to talking after I get my order." She spoke in an excited tone.
"It feels like you're teasing me slowly with the whole grand reveal about to happen."
As I placed my order after her, I watched in fascination as the robotic waiters received the orders from the baristas, who were clad in sleek uniforms and dancing in perfect synchrony.
"Here's your order." The weird human voice coming out from the robot entered my ears.
"Thank you," After taking a sip of my perfectly brewed cappuccino, I was transported to a realm of indulgence.
"Mm, mm, mm… The flavors are melting in my tongue," I voiced as I savored the taste to the fullest.
Around me, conversations flowed effortlessly, and now, it was time I joined in.
"Well, let's get to talking." Smool finally voiced after regaining composure.
"Yes, it was about damn time," I sighed as I felt the air that was filled with a blend of laughter, animated discussions, and the gentle hum of ambient music, which seemed to have been composed exclusively for Café Lumos.
I wonder how much the bill will be to cover these two coffees… I'd feel so bad if a female paid for me.
"Yes, so, as you know, the Emberhorn System has reached the real world. Planet B-612, also known as Earth." She spoke.
"Yes, I had gotten that notification too," I nodded affirmatively.
"But do you remember how we tried to hack the game's stats window? Both me and you?"
After a slight pause, I let out a prolonged, "Yes…"
Occasionally, a holographic musician took over a small stage, captivating the crowd with a performance that managed to distract me from our current situation too.
"You could edit your stats when your stats window appeared out of thin air too, couldn't you?"
"That's correct." I nodded.
"But you never touched them, is that also correct?"
"That's incorrect, I edited one stat to change my body into what it is now."
"I see…"
"By your behavior so far, I can only assume you also have a hacked system… the same as mine."
"Correct," She grinned, "And the S-Grade attribute of my race is Shapeshifting."
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