“There you are, Sarasa!” Ririna watched as her friend came out of the fast-travel station and ran up to her.

  “Hi there! Hope you didn’t get into a lot of trouble while I was out. I know how much you love getting caught up in problems when you’re by yourself.” With a cheeky grin, Sarasa poked Ririna from the side with her elbow. A while ago, Sarasa left Ebrilyon and went home for a few weeks. Seeing her catgirl friend as energetic as always was a good sign. Ririna couldn’t help but smile.

  “I did get into a lot of trouble, actually… You can’t imagine how much.” Her bangs look particurly sharp. They were always cut straight, but they’re very clean right now. Sarasa must have gotten her hair cut before coming back.

  “Nyahahaha! I was just messing with you. I know you’re not the kind of girl that gets herself into big messes.” Sarasa initially ughed it off. She thought Ririna was just saying that to get back at her. “Wait, seriously? You weren’t actually supposed to get into trouble. Is it over already?” Since Ririna was standing in front of her, it had to have been solved already, right?

  “Yeah… But I did get into a lot of trouble. I was being serious.” Ririna pouted to get back at her. “It’s a pretty long story, but everything’s okay now. Either way, it’s nice to have you back.”

  “Things are gonna get busy around Ebrilyon soon, so I just had to come back. Maybe I’ll finally find what I’ve been looking for. Maybe just some treasure. I don’t know, but I’m gonna make the most out of it!” Sarasa’s excitement stood out against Ririna’s perplexed expression.

  “Ebrilyon’s gonna get busy? Why? There aren’t any celebrations at this time of the year, are there?”

  “Woah, haven’t you heard? There have been some interesting rumors going around tely.”

  “What rumors?”

  “You really haven’t heard? I’m talking about the Hero! People have been saying the Hero finally left for the continent! His first destination is not far from here, so he might come to Ebrilyon! With some luck, we might run into his party!”

  “Oh! I remember hearing people saying that someone finally received the title a few months ago. That was actually true, huh?” Ririna giggled. “Still, I had no idea you were such a big fan of the Hero.”

  “Kinda…” Sarasa shrugged. “I was just thinking I could probably get scouted. Since I’m kind of a big shot, I bet I could join the Hero’s party no problem!”

  “Absolutely! If the Hero’s looking for someone who’s an expert at ditching their friends, I’m not sure there’s anyone better than you!”

  “Nyahahaha! You’re as full of yourself as always, Ririna. I think that one deserves some payback!” Sarasa spread her arms in the middle of the street and lowered her stance. She was ready to jump Ririna.

  “Are you sure you wanna do that?” Ririna matched Sarasa’s pose but with a less polished stance. “I’ll make all your future potions bitter. Any gadget too… They’ll be all permanently sticky. Deal?”

  The boratory we’re going to ter is in a research district of sorts, situated in the densest part of Three Records City. The district had multiple universities and research centers for both science and engineering. With how technology focused our city is, some people call it that district the heart of Three Records.

  The PSF apparently owns a few of the research centers there, but the one we’re going to is not directly owned by them. They have a partnership with the PSF but only contribute to the research of weaponry.

  But before that, we’re going to have a video conference… A video conference with the so-called Professor R. It sounds so ridiculous when it’s said out loud that I almost want to ugh. For now, Katja, Carol, and I are in Shinji office. He’s out of the House because of work. Katja’s sitting on his desk to set up the conference, and I’m a bit nervous… What even is a video conference? Didn’t those die like 10 years ago? Are we just supposed to stand here?

  “Are you two ready? I’m entering the room.” After a quick mouse click, a window with the feed of a webcam appeared, covering most of the screen. “Good afternoon, professor. Thank you for making time for us today.” The video was pretty dark. I could only see a dark silhouette of a girl in an equally dark room. This is kinda funny… It’s like we’re the underlings of a vilin that never shows her face.

  “It’s not a problem. Are those two the ones for today?” The voice coming from the other side was heavily distorted. Is she using some kind of voice changer? Does she really need to protect her identity that much? Is it just the aesthetic… I respect it.

  “That’s right. This is Carol, and this is Iroha. If possible, I’d like you to prepare two Matching Weapons for them today.”

  “It’s possible. We have good materials stocked right now. What kind of weapons do you want?” Is she talking to us from her bedroom or something? That’s a shelf behind her, right? That’s a design that would look at home in a bedroom…

  “Oh! Uhmmm…” She’s talking to us now! I was so distracted that I didn’t even notice. “Matching Weapons, please.”

  An awkward silence filled the room. “Of course, Iroha. She meant the shape of the weapon.” Katja smiled, trying to help me recover from my blunder. “Given how you’ve been using your sword, you probably wanna take a one-handed katana. You can choose something else if you want. But this is an important decision, so I’d recommend you stick with something you can use.”

  “Right!” I turned back to the silhouette. “Sorry for the misunderstanding. I’d like a one-handed katana, please.” Professor R vaguely nodded.

  “…” Carol’s arms were crossed, and she was deep in thought.

  “What’s wrong, Carol? Aren’t you gonna get something simir?” She always fights using a katana that’s the same as mine. She switches between one and two hands more often than me, so maybe that’s why she’s stuck.

  “I’m not sure… I only used a katana to train, but I don’t know if it fits me… Maybe I could do better with something other than a sword…”

  “The different weapon frames put strain on the body in different ways, making compatibility vary from person to person.” The distorted voice started expining unprompted. “A rare few have bodies strong enough to withstand the strain of any kind of weapon, but most have to pick from what they can handle. I believe Katja and your other companions are part of that exception.”

  Katja nodded, and Carol spoke up. “I know… I’ve heard this spiel already. I tested my compatibility before, but I was still too young. I just don’t wanna pick something that my body can’t handle.”

  “I’ll prepare a compatibility test for a one-handed katana, and simultaneous tests for common weapon types. Come to the b in an hour. Katja will show you the way.” Professor R made the choice for Carol, which left her surprised. It’s a good outcome for someone who hasn’t decided. She probably just wasn’t expecting the preferential treatment.

  “Is it alright?” Katja didn’t want to impose. “Simultaneous tests are more expensive, aren’t they?” Things were more or less settled and their conversation turned into background noise for me. There is something in the video that I couldn’t look away from.

  “The difference is small. Oh… It used to be more expensive. In the past.” Another silhouette. A silhouette of a tiny person on the shelf behind Professor R. That’s a figurine of a character from a game, isn’t it?

  “Koko Madoka…”

  “Hah!” After a gasp, Professor R instantly left the conference.

  Iroha and Carol were both stunned. “I- Iroha? What did you say?” Katja asked, completely confused.

  “Eh?” I didn’t mean to say anything out loud! The words just came out of my mouth! “Sorry! I didn’t mean to!”

  A text message arrived right after from Professor R, saying she’d be waiting for us. “Well, looks like she’s not upset…” The tension dissipated and Katja rexed her shoulders. “Why would she disconnect so suddenly? What did you say?”

  “Sounded like some kind of name.” Carol added. “Did you figure out her real identity or something?” That possibility interested Katja too as she looked at me expectantly.

  “No… Uhmm… How do I expin this without sounding weird?” This is gonna sound nerdy no matter what I say, isn’t it? “There was like a figurine of a character on a shelf behind her. Didn’t you notice?”

  “Was there? It was too dark to see anything.” Katja said.

  “Either way, what I said was just the name of the character. I recognized the silhouette and blurted it out without thinking.” Not only was the silhouette pretty unique, but the character is also one I really liked. Koko Madoka is the vilin of a story about a group of teenagers forced to kill each other. Forced by her. She’s definitely not a good person, but she sure knows how to make things fun. Plus, she’s hot as fuck.

  “So that was just the name of a character, huh?” Carol gave me a certain look, but she quickly dropped it.

  “Is that it? I’m surprised you noticed it when her room was so dark. But why would she disconnect just because of that?” The chair wobbled back and forth while Katja tried to figure that out.

  “I don’t know… Maybe she felt like we were invading her privacy? She kept her room dark for a reason, right? She probably doesn’t want us seeing anything that could give away her identity.” That’s the answer I gave her, but I think the truth is far simpler. She was probably just embarrassed.

  I get it… I truly do… I’m someone whose apartment is decorated in a simir fashion. I too would be embarrassed if someone saw my pce.

  “I see… That makes sense.” Katja nodded. “Professor R is one of the few contacts I have that work closely with the PSF, and even I don’t know her true identity. She must really care about keeping it a secret if she even hides it from her friends.”

  “You’re friends even though you’ve never met? What about when you and the others got your Matching Weapons?”

  “That was before Shinji created the House. When we got our weapons, we were still working directly for the PSF. It was one of their people who got us the weapons. I met Professor R a few years ago through a mutual acquaintance. So far, she’s only ever done some repairs on our weapons. This is the first time we’re asking for a Matching Weapon from her, so I was looking forward to finally meeting her. I have a lot to thank her for.”

  “You sure know a lot of people who work for the PSF…” Commented Carol.

  “Ahahahaha… Sorry to disappoint, but not at all… I know one or two people, and that’s it. Shinji’s the one with a lot of connections. We could mess up almost anything, and I have faith he’d still be able to get us out of trouble.” Friends in high pces! That’s good! I’m gd this is where I ended up working! “Well, we should head out to Professor R’s b. We’re supposed to meet her there in an hour, so we have to leave now if we want to get there in time.”

  “Got it!” The two of us answered Katja in sync.

  …

  “Humm… This is strange… Why are you here?”

  Katja tilted her head, and a girl with a hoodie over her head mirrored her. “Compatibility test?” It was Reia. The girl who nursed me when I got skewered by the mermaid. The same nurse that was pying with a revolver with a patient in bed…

  “Oh, you must be here for a compatibility test too. Wait… You’re not a fighter…” The way Katja described her, Reia was a prodigy with unrivaled medical knowledge for her age. Why was she here? “Where’s the professor?”

  “Busy.” Reia answered with a poker face. “I’ll run the test.”

  “Why? Why would you even be helping out at this b? This is for weapons, not medicine… Sorry, but can you take it from the beginning?” Katja was stumped, and I don’t bme her… Seems like the PSF is full of weirdos…

  Bam100