Ascension: Online

"So… you're telling me, you're stuck inside this 'reality plane', or whatever," Furuwa stared at me with unamused eyes.

I shrugged. "Yeah, that about sums it up."

"And that little girl over there, is the omnipotent supercomputer AI that governs all the reality planes out there, including Earth?"

I nodded. "Yep."

"… Are you even listening to yourself right now?" Furuwa asked, a look of bewilderment on her face.

"Hey, I warned you beforehand. It's up to you whether or not you want to believe me, but I've already told you everything there is to know. However, if you really want proof…"

"What?"

"Try logging out."

"Wha- huh?!"

Furuwa stared at her System as she frantically attempted to switch to the log out tab.

Hina-nee and I exchanged glances, chuckling together.

"You walked into this one, Furuwa."

"Wha- hey, don't tell me… you planned for this to happen?!" she shouted in anger.

"Too bad. Fool you once, it's shame on you, not me," I replied nonchalantly.

"Grr…" she growled, looking like she wanted to punch me right then and there.

"Hehe, it's okay, Chiaki-san~" Hina-nee giggled, patting Furuwa's head gently. "You're one of us now!"

"Tch… you damned AI, this was your doing, wasn't it?!" Furuwa moved in to try and grab Aisa.

I immediately intercepted, grabbing her arm. "Sorry, can't you do that."

"What?! You're trapped in here by her! Why are you protect-"

"Relax," I cut Furuwa off. "I hate her just as much as you do. However… as much as I want to, we can't hurt her. This body she's in right now is tied to reality itself - harming her would equal damaging reality - not just this one. Earth too, would be affected. Trust me on this, I've tested it."

"Ngh…" hearing my words, she slowly backed off. "So? Why did you two purposely bait me into getting trapped here?"

"Well, it was… a security measure," I admitted. "You see, even though you said you won't tell anyone about this situation, we don't know how much we can trust you. So, the best method to prevent this information from getting out to Earth would be to get you trapped in here as well."

"… And what will happen if this info does leak out to Earth?"

"All lifeforms in the reality plane will have their memories wiped clean," Aisa replied from on the bed, as stoic as ever. "No exceptions."

"… I see. That's fair, I guess," Furuwa clenched her fists in frustration, but she seemed to be more blaming herself for falling into my trap than us for tricking her.

I blinked. "You're taking this better than expected. Normally, one would be screaming and dying of desperation."

"Well… it's not like doing that is going to get me anywhere," Furuwa sighed and leaned back on the couch. "Besides… I doubt you panicked when you got trapped. I am not inferior to you in any way, so naturally I am able to respond calmly."

"Fair, I suppose."

"By the way, how are you doing for the tournament?" she asked Hina-nee and I.

"We've won both all of our matches so far," I replied. "How about you?"

"Same. The other contestants are all weak."

"Oh? Then I guess you haven't seen those two," Hina-nee smiled.

"Who?" Furuwa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You probably won't have to face them until the main tournament, but when you do… just be careful," I warned. "One of them is a beautiful girl with black hair and pink eyes, and the other is a man with hair covering his eyes. You won't miss either of them."

"Are they really strong or something?"

"One of them, Nadeshiko Nakano, is a player - yes, they are strong, and have a love for killing. But the other… his name is Koroth, and he's a native of this reality plane. I can't reveal the specifics of his identity to you due to certain circumstances, but just know he is extremely powerful as well."

"So, who would win if the two of them were to go against each other?" Furuwa asked.

"Good question. If Koroth can get a clean hit off, then he will win. However, the longer the fight drags on, the more advantageous it is for Nadeshiko. Overall, I'd say their total strength is about equal."

"What about you? Would you be able to win against them?"

"Hm… probably. Worst comes to worst, I can force Koroth to let me win, but against Nadeshiko, I don't have that many cards."

"… You can force him to let you win?" Furuwa echoed hesitantly. "I won't even ask…"

"In any case… you're stuck here with us now," I sighed. "I'll pay for a new room for you - think of it as an apology for what I did just now."

"No need. I can pay for my own things." Furuwa stood up, brushing past me and exiting the room without a single glance back. Ming Hong and his two siblings watched as she left, blinking in surprise, then slowly, hesitantly entered the room.

"Brother Kaze… everything okay? I am sorry, I do not know how she managed to find this place… did she attempt to threaten you or anything?"

Oh… right. I had told Ming Hong that Furuwa, Ichigo, and Horiya were a group of bandits.

I shook my head. "Nah, everything's settled. Also, it's not your fault. Starting today onwards, you don't have to worry about following anyone anymore. You can go back to your normal life."

Ming Hong nodded. "Understood. But… Ming An and Ming Kang… they want to…"

"Play with Aisa, right? Don't worry, you can send them over here anytime, as long as we're not outside the city doing stuff."

He laughed and scratched the back of his head. "Ah, yeah… thank you, Brother Kaze."

"No problem. Have a good night."

"Good night."

"Bye~" Hina-nee waved to the little kids.

"Bai bai!" Ming An and Ming Kang waved back cutely, as Ming Hong took them away.

Once they left, I shut the door tight and locked it.

"So? What do you think, Kaze-kun? How did Chiaki-san manage to find us here?"

"… Chances are, Ming Hong got exposed following her, and ended up getting followed by her instead today. Furuwa isn't stupid - she'll want to know who the person ordering someone to follow her is."

"Hm… so it is his fault?"

"Well, I can't exactly blame him," I sighed. "Ming Hong is an upright man… following people isn't really his strong suit."

"Fair. What's the plan from here on out though?" Hina-nee asked, carefreely kicking her feet into the air.

"Our goal hasn't changed - to get stronger, collect the eight tablets, then beat this reality plane and return to Earth. It just so happens that Furuwa shares a common objective with us now, so we might as well travel together with her."

Hina-nee nodded. "I see. But…"

"What?"

"Me, Chiaki-san, and also Nadeshiko-san very soon… hehe, Kaze-kun, this is starting to look like a harem!"

"… Please, even if I wanted a girlfriend, I would never choose a cold girl like Furuwa or a crazy psychopath like Nadeshiko."

"Then… what about me?" Hina-nee winked, unbuckling the buttons on her clothes seductively. The action let me get a brief glance of her generous cleavage.

I cleared my throat, averting my gaze and blushing slightly. "Hina-nee… we still have to fight tomorrow."

"Hehe, that's true. I'll let you go for tonight, Kaze-kun. But after the tournament is over… heh."

Saying this, she stood up and headed into the bathroom to shower first. I sat down, unsure of what to do about this.

"Men… how pitiful creatures," Aisa chuckled lightly from the bed.

"Shut up… what do you know?" I growled in frustration. "There's nothing wrong with Hina-nee - she's beautiful, caring, and has a nice body too. But the problem is… I've only seen her as a sister until recently. Hell, she's the closest thing to a mother for me. Changing that perspective I have of her… I don't know if I'll be able to."

"You have time, human. After all, you are only 14 years old, and did not interact much with others your own age. It is natural you do not understand the true meaning of relationships all that much - especially romantic and sexual ones," Aisa said calmly.

I looked over at her and laughed. "Since when were you such an expert on human relationships? You're a damn AI."

"An AI who has witnessed trillions of samples regarding the topic at hand. Do not underestimate me, human. If needed, I can function and act just like a real member of your inferior race. That is how experienced I am."

"… Sure, whatever. Still, getting life advice from a supercomputer feels weird."

"This world is not like your old one. Whether you like it or not, you will be maturing at a much quicker pace than before. Human relationships, including romantic or sexual ones, will be part of that. I predict, in a year's time, you will slowly begin to view that female as a woman."

… The first part of what she said was true. I mean… I was only 14, but I've already murdered someone since coming to this world, in addition to countless poor animals. Even most adults in my old world wouldn't be able to handle something like that.

I sighed. The matter with Hina-nee needed to be put aside for now. Until this tournament finished, I needed to focus on the battles to come.

All I hoped was that Hina-nee didn't try to tempt me further… after all, I was still a healthy young teenager - my self-control abilities hadn't fully matured yet.

I could end up giving in to the temptation.