No Game No Life

Giant/Guiding Method

Part 1

Elchea"s King City——audience hall.

The two Imanity kings were lying on the throne, limp and weak.

"I say, this is boring.....When will the Eastern Union contact us about the

compet.i.tion date?"

"....Boring....."

After the series of events with Kurami, five days had already pa.s.sed by.

Their originally positive spirits now crumbled after all the waiting.

Even Steph, who always lectured them, couldn"t find anything to say now.

Finally, the restless Steph had a thought.

"Wh, what if they forgot——or the letter didn"t reach...here?"

——Steph said so, having experienced the same problem in the past.

Sora regained his vitality and sat up, displaying a tyrannicalsmile.

".....Oh? If that"s the case, then we"llsee what would happen——right?"

What Sora thought was, using the last trump card to cause the greatest

hara.s.sment——

"Master, sorry to bother you."

Jibrilsuddenly emerged from thin air.

Seeing a cylinder-shaped item in her hands, Sora and s.h.i.+ro suddenly got up.

"Whoa! Jibril! Is that——!?"

"Yes, this was sent from the Eastern Union, the date of the compet.i.tion."

Jibril continued while smiling:

"It seemed like someone didn"t want us to fight with the Eastern Union and

locked it somewhere in Elchea"s King City. Well, it was because they

appeared suspicious when looking at me——"

"Guuu....Unless you...."

Because it was Jibril, she would kil——

"Please rest a.s.sured, I politely and peacefully convinced the other party. I

gently looked into his eyes and coughed a bit, causing him to wet his pants

and he unhesitantly gave me the letter while crying."

"Is, is that so...."

——The [Ten Oaths]. Doesn"t include intimidation?

No, before that, wasn"t it looting if he prevented the letter from getting into

our hands——

Nevertheless, Steph hugged her head and said:

"....I should"ve guessed......Because it involved the fate of Imanity......As long

as someone in the parliament did not swear about not [Giving false reports to

Sora], then he could obtain the [Rights to send the letter] and——"

....It seemed as though Steph was really flexible as long as it was about

politics.

Slightly changing his opinion of Steph, Sora quietly thought and said:

"——so it was my fault someone didn"t specify a time for the letter to arrive?

Oi, if Imanity does something like this when the situation arises, why can"t they

use that sort of brain to focus on the country"s affairs."

"Since Sora is Imanity"s enemy, they are trying their best to stop you."

Steph coldly replied, but Sora jovially ignored her.

"Okay, what is written——————————s.h.i.+ro, today"s date?"

"27...."

Sora"s face stiffened when s.h.i.+ro answered him immediately.

"——ISN"T THAT TODAY!? THE COMPEt.i.tION DATE!!"

"Eh!? Th, that, time is ——"

Sora shouted towards the panicking Steph.

"From dusk——less than half a day! Oi! Everyone get yourselves prepared!"

"I, I know——"

"As expected ofJibril, always ready."

"....s.h.i.+ro....is allready...."

"s.h.i.+ro"s brother, Sora, is always OK! Good, let"s go!"

Looking at Sora and company who stood up and said they [We"re ready],

Steph started panicking.

"Th, that! Oi! This is a compet.i.tion for countries! At least wear formal attire

——"

"Eh? Isn"t this our formal attire? Is there a problem?"

In the group of abnormal people, the truly normal person was known as the

abnormality.

The three of them stared at Steph, giving her a look as if implying:["What are

you talking about"]——

"~~~~Fi, Fine! So be it!"

"Then, Masters and Dora-chan, please hold onto me, I"ll jump into the

emba.s.sy——"

"Ah, Jibril, there is no need for that."

After refusing Jibril"s fastest way to travel, Sora turned to the idling Steph.

"Steph, arrange a carriage at the entrance of the city——we"ll openly depart."

Jibril was unable to grasp that sentence while Steph was shocked speechless.

"Wh....What about the demonstrations!?"

"Why——why do you think I intentionally caused the demonstrations to start

in the first place?"

Part 2

With provocations coming one after another, they were at the Elchea King

City square.

The main entrance to Elchea King City slowly opened with a screech.

Everyone who appeared castigated them——but....

As soon as they saw the figures of the four, the crowd fellsilent.

In the midst of that silence, the crowd parted ways to allow them to pa.s.s.

Walking in the center, with jet-black hair and cold eyes——the [King] Sora.

Next to him, with ruby-red eyes——the [Queen] s.h.i.+ro.

Closely sticking behind them, with amber eyes s.h.i.+ning quietly——the

[Attendant] Jibril.

The three s.h.i.+ning eyes exuded out extraordinary determination and absolute

[Confidence].

The crowd couldn"t utter a word.

....No, it was too beautiful.

To be honest, Jibril"s eyes and gentle smile seemed to imply:

——[If I can hear your insults towards Master, prepare to hand out your

lives.]

The oppressive atmosphere that was capable ofstopping someone from

breathing stopped the crowd"s words.

At the rear of the group was the blue-eyed Steph, who was trembling while

chasing.

——In the end, not a single remark was spoken as they walked down the

road.

Steph breathlessly got into the carriage and asked Sora:

"You, you said you purposely caused the demonstrations——why is that so?"

Sora was surprised by that question and asked s.h.i.+ro:

"Eh? s.h.i.+ro, you didn"t tell her?"

".....?"

s.h.i.+ro tilted her head in confusion, leading Sora to finally realise something.

.....This was a really stupid question.

s.h.i.+ro wouldn"t take her own initiative to explain something to someone except

for Sora.

"Ah~It"s like that, the number of reasons as to why I betted the Imanity piece

is——[Three]."

Sora lifted his fingers and turned towards Steph.

"Needless to say, the first was to force the Eastern Union out; the second is

something you should know, to draw Kurami out and get her to join us; and,

lastly——"

Sora explained sequentially until the last finger, where he had a mischievous

smile:

"Everyone"s suspicious eyes."

"Eh.....?"

"I don"t need the kind of trust of [We"ll win if it"s us], but I need a bunch of

worried people to widen their eyes and see. This will be the countermeasure

for the Eastern Union"s cheat because there is nothing more reliable than a

pair ofsuspicious eyes."

Sora smirked.

Ignoring the stunned Steph, he commanded the carriage driver:

"Please start the journey, destination will be——Izuna-chan"s house!"

"....GO~"

Part 3

.....The outskirts of Elchea, the huge building that stood near the border.

This was Elchea, the Eastern Union emba.s.sy.

Sora and company got down from the carriage, and an old Werebeast who

was wearing a Hakama welcomed them.

He was the Elchea Eastern Union emba.s.sy foreign amba.s.sador——Hatsuse

Ino.

"....Waited for a long time."

"The ones who waited were us. Okay, we should start."

Once they got down, Sora carefreely said, but the alert Ino briefly responded.

"....Then, this way please."

Following Ino, Sora and company went into the building——Emba.s.sy, with

Ino being silent.

"Hmmmm, what is wrong with the old man, why is he so quiet?"

Sora muttered, obviously having that ironic talk earlier on.

Steph replied, with a look of utter defeat:

"Using a method close to fraud to force the Eastern Union to bet everything

on their territories, are you qualified to have those kinds of talks with him?"

"Rather than that——" Steph pressed her fingers on her head.

"Are your brains normal to act sooooo carefree after betting the whole of

Imanity"s rights?"

This was obviously the second visit, but Jibrilstarted salivating when she

looked around, deeply interested in everything she saw. In contrast, s.h.i.+ro

yawned and started to play with her phone; while Sora had hands behind his

back as he walked leisurely. Steph desperately endured a stomach-ache.

"Steph, are you okay? Please take it easy, or you won"t be able to handle it

oh?"

"Thank you for the concern, but the main reason why my stomach hurts is

definitely because of you....."

They were taken to the living room from several days ago.

"....Then before the game starts, please wait here temporarily."

"I know, you must also allow the audience in okay!"

Ino silently bowed and left. After disappearing, Sora unhesitatingly laid down

onto the sofa.

"Then, Jibril, please call me when the time is up."

"Understood, please rest a.s.sured and relax."

"....s.h.i.+ro too."

Saying so, s.h.i.+ro laid onto Sora"s stomach, huddled her body and closed her

eyes.

Just like that, the siblings fell asleep after a couple ofseconds.

"....Unbelievable, how sane are they supposed to be."

Several hours later, the game that would decide the fate of Imanity would

begin.

From the moment when Steph learnt of the game"s date, she started

experiencing nausea and stomach pain.

Jibril who was at ease as the siblings said:

"Dora-chan should rest awhile too? According to Master"s books, the human

brain can function better after several hours ofsleep!"

"If I had the steel heart to sleep under these circ.u.mstances, I would too...."

"Indeed, considering what Master has to do, this is indeed a tough situation."

".......!"

These words stiffened Steph.

"Looking at this match, Masters would be utilising their everything, so we

should give it our all too."

Feeling her stomachache worsening, Steph then——

In the few hours before that start of the game, Steph spent the time in the

toilet connected to the living room.

Part 4

"....Fuahhh....EH? Steph, you looked like you"ve lost weight in the last few

hours?"

"...If you say I look languish, it may actually be true....."

With the game about to begin, Steph depressingly replied to Sora who had

just woke up.

"Okay, s.h.i.+ro, status?"

"...Good."

Hearing Sora"s question, s.h.i.+ro"s eyes emitted a light several times sharper

than usual.

"What about Jibril?"

"There is no good or bad condition for The Flügel, as long as you command,

I"m ready to devote myself."

Jibril eliminated her usual gentle smile, erasing all expressions from her face

while speaking.

"Steph"s condition——....Un, looks very good."

After saying that, Sora continued, albeit slowly:

"Steph, remember what we bet the last time?"

"....Which bet?"

"The timing where the dove would fly away."

"Ahh.....I remembered that I was ordered to be a dog that day, so what

about it?"

"You remember? The bet that time——I still haven"t said it yet oh?"

"——Eh?"

"Jibril, can you ensure that the Werebeasts can"t hear my voice?"

"Yes, I"ve enshrouded Master and Dora-chan in a sound cancelling barrier."

After Jibril"s halo spun for a while, Sora nodded and faced Steph.

"Steph, I shall now impose on you a special curse....."

Sora"s smile was very, very gentle.

However, Steph felt troubled due to the unnaturally close distance to Sora.

Part 5

——start of the game.

A crowd was led by Ino into the emba.s.sy"s first floor.

It was a gargantuan hall that encompa.s.sed the entire first floor of the

emba.s.sy.

There were giant screens on each of the four walls.

The place was filled with hundreds——no, thousands of humans, watching

the game that decides the fate of Imanity with doubtful eyes.

Facing opposite the screen on the stage was a black box——with 5 chairs

near it.

"......"

Silently sitting on one of the chairs——was their opponent, a girl.

She was the amba.s.sador for the Eastern Union emba.s.sy in Elchea.

With fox-like ears, a black-haired Werebeast——Hatsuse Izuna.

The girl"s eyes were closed, as ifshe was concentrating, devoid of the

intimacy from before.

".....Please sit here."

Under Ino"s urging, Sora sat beside Izuna, while following in a sequence was

s.h.i.+ro, Jibril and Steph.

After confirming that they were seated, Ino stood beside Izuna and recited the

file in his hand.

"Then——we"llstart by [Confirming the contents of the Oaths]."

A sound ofsomeone swallowing their saliva was heard.

"The Eastern Union will bet up [Everything in their territory], while Elchea will

bet on their [Race piece]——namely, their human rights, territories and

whatnot. The Eastern Union representative, with Elchea"s two kings and their

entourages, it will be 5 people——a 4 versus 1 style, to partake in this

Eastern Union game."

The opponent followed his requirements——including the 4 versus 1, which

made Sora smile.

——of course, this was because he didn"t give his opponent any rights to

refuse.

"With an additionalrequirement from the Eastern Union, the erasure of

[Memories pertaining to this game], this will be set upon the whole of Imanity,

not just the partic.i.p.ants."

Ino continued reading in a dull tone.

"In addition, the rules would be explained once the game starts. The game will

be deemed invalid after the rules are explained, resulting in the erasure of the

memories——are these conditions okay?"

——a simply outrageous condition.

Only knowing the game after betting?

After mentioning all those heavy conditions, specifically asking if [these

conditions are okay]?

[Are these conditions okay?] was what the spectators wanted to ask.

However, Sora had a relaxed expression.

"Yes, there is no problem, but there are two points that need to be made

clear."

Meanwhile, Imanity"s king——Sora responded.

"Even if we forfeit, what we forget will be——[The memories of the game

today]. If you decide to have an impossible game that forces us to forfeit,

taking our memories, then you better give up on that kind of expectation,

because it"s a waste of time."

Staring into Ino"s eyes, Sora said;

"The second point is, [If there is any misconduct in the game, defeat will be

certain once brought to light]——this is one of the [Ten Oaths], so please

don"t forget about this point. Okay, there aren"t any problems left, so please

hurry up and start."

.......Too easy.

The first trap that the Eastern Union had arranged was already seen through

by Sora.

Sora had an expression that was certain of victory.

Everyone in the area had unmoving eyes.

Ino and Izuna knew that the contents of the game were already seen through.

Both of them frowned for different reasons.

"......Then we should get your agreement——to begin, swear to the Oaths."

After announcing this, Sora and s.h.i.+ro raised their hands.

Jibril unhesitantly, while Steph hesitated in fear——

"" [Acciente].""

" [Acciente], des."

The representative of Imanity, Sora and s.h.i.+ro, as well as the opponent.

The Eastern Union"s amba.s.sador Hatsuse Izuna.

——pledged to the [Ten Oaths], the mutual declaration.

"Then, s.h.i.+ro, don"t let go of my hands!"

"....Nii too."

Grasping onto each other"s hands tightly. Sora leaned back on the chair and

said:

"Okay——start the game."

".....Then let"s get started."

Ino said while controlling the black box——probably turning on the power.

What they saw were the huge screens that started glowing with light.

——this could be said to be a game where Imanity was betted against the

entire territory of the third largest country on the continent.

Anxiety, confusion, despair, countless of emotions intertwined together,

The hall packed with thousands ofspectators, went silent.

Looking at Izuna, Sora said:

"I say, Izuna."

".....What, des."

Izuna hesitated for a moment, not knowing ifshe should respond to the enemy

since the game was about to begin.

However, Sora gazed up at the screen, and casually said a sentence....

——Izuna was going to regret having heard those words.

"When was the last time you played games feeling [Happy]?"

Hearing that sentence, Izuna didn"t have a moment to think before the screen

dyed black, and——

——Sora and everyone"s consciousness was sucked into the screen.

Part 6

In the midst of the sinking consciousnesses, Sora started to think calmly.

(Going through the late king"s intelligence, and also the spying, speculating

what the game is is easy.)

It was indeed as what Sora had revealed, a [Video game].

The only difference as, this was a virtual game that involves the transfer of

consciousness.

The late king remembered this matter while playing in a [different world],

which was probably his limit.

(At that time the opponent was Hatsuse Ino, which was that old man.)

The record said that it was a [Body blowing game]——which meant it was

definitely a FPS

[7] game.

After the last compet.i.tion that was quite long ago, the opponent was also

changed to Hatsuse Izuna.

It definitely meant that there was a change in the game content, but.....——

(As this was an [Open] match for all to view, considering the characteristics

of the Werebeasts and their method of cheating, the game should not change

fundamentally.)

Indeed, under these conditions, the Werebeasts would always [Win].

(So, even if they were to change the venue and alter the rules. If we

responded to it rapidly and antic.i.p.ate it carefully, this would definitely be a

win——!)

However——before finis.h.i.+ng his monologue, Sora saw the world getting

constructed in front of his eyes which caused him to abandon his thoughts and

widen his eyes.

In front of their eyes were——————

"————————you"re kidding me."

".......————————"

The siblings resented their missteps.

They had predicted numerous rules, countless venues and were prepared with

countless strategies.

But————this was the only venue that they didn"t expect.

There was no doubt, what they saw......Was something that they didn"t want

to see.

Ahhhhh, love and hate, the place filled with psychological trauma——

They cannot be mistaken——this was indeed Tokyo.

"...Sorry, Steph, Jibril."

"Eh? What?"

".......AH! Erm, that, did Master call me!?"

Sora said to the stunned Steph and the salivating Jibril who was engrossed

with the scenery:

"I can"t do it, sorry, Imanity is finished."

" *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers*"

"Aaa......Wh, what happened!? That kind of rhetoric questi——"

"I"m sorry I"m sorry I did not think that it was Tokyo that we willface up

against our home again and that we can"t help anymore and that you need to

think of your own ways and that I"m sorry."

" *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers*"

The brother was rolling his eyes and saying a torrent of words; the sister was

squatting, shaking her head; Jibrilsaid:

"——un, unless, this is Master"s world?"

At this time, a narration——no, Ino"s voice resounded around.

[Surprising isn"t it? Welcome to the game world.]

".....Game....World."

[Yes, this is the stage for the game, the virtual world....]

"Hold on."

[——Yes?]

"Let me confirm, this is——a virtuals.p.a.ce, a non-existent place?"

[Indeed, what about it?]

Surveying around, Sora calmly re-evaluated.

enveloped the floor.

...Indeed, this was similar to the heart of Tokyo——but.

The billboards were not in j.a.panese, there were also Toriis

[8] everywhere,

giving a much greener feeling.....Something that was clearly different from the

Tokyo Sora knew.

"——which is to say, this virtual place was created with imagination?"

[Yes, you understand this very fast.]

"————————DON"T SCARE US LIKE THAT!!!!"

Sora"s roar echoed in the pseudo-Tokyo game.

"————Ahh, darn! Made me think ofsome traumatic experiences! I

would"ve unhesitantly cut my arteries and died. Don"t do this kind ofstuff

again, old man!"

Ino was confused as to why Sora was mad.

[....Why are you that mad......Is this stage not to your liking?]

"Unsatisfied! Why choose this kind ofstage! Is this a form of malicious attack

or simply hara.s.sment!"

[No......This is a sci-fistage that recently got popular with the youths in

Eastern Union, there isn"t any specific intentions for using this stage.]

"Ah....Ahhh? Science, science fiction?"

——ye, yeah.

Calm down, calm down, 18-year-old virgin Sora.

Yes, thinking about it, this is a fantasy world.

Which means this was what we fantasised back in our original world——a

world filled with elves and dragons.

Just like our world, this [Disboard] is indeed a fantasy world.

To these people, the idea of [Modern Earth] is just a product of what I"m

thinking——only me.

This is a game that absorbed our consciousness, a virtual game, not Tokyo, a

virtual game.

Sora convinced himself and took a deep breath.

"Fu......Ha....Okay, no problems, my heart is calm."

"..... *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers* *s.h.i.+vers*"

"s.h.i.+ro, calm down, although this looks like Tokyo, it ain"t. This is a place that

came out of their imaginations."

".....Guuuu....Eh?"

Perhaps she was. .h.i.t with a psychological trauma.

s.h.i.+ro didn"t seem to have heard Ino"s words and needed Sora to convince

her.

"Yes, and since this is a game, we can go out right? Like the Persona series,

Akiba"s Trip and Steins;Gate. This is a game, so there won"t be any

problems, so we"ll just hold hands and it"ll be alright?"

"...Inside a game.....Un...Okay, I got.....It...."

Although her eyes were still dazed, s.h.i.+ro nonetheless stood up.

[Uhh~ So let me repeat once more——shall we start the game?]

——there were human spectators in this game.

Sora lightly coughed, having felt the cold gazes staring at him even though the

spectators were invisible.

"Okay, no problems, we can begin."

[.....Un, then we"ll begin the animation.]

"Eh? What is that?"

"Is there a need to see it?"

Steph and Jibril were confused, but Sora and s.h.i.+ro had already positioned

themselves upright.

"You are not worthy of being a gamer if you skip the introductions, so stop

gazing around, widen your eyes and sit in the correct position to watch."

"....*nods**nods*...."

By their urging, Steph and Jibrilreluctantly sat in an upright position.

After that, a huge screen appeared from above Tokyo (fake).

[You——are a heartthrob.]

....Just a second has pa.s.sed before Sora gave the judgement that this was

undoubtedly a bad game.

But holding onto his gamer"s self-esteem, he remained silent.

[Every girl in the world is crazy for you, giving you days where you are

chased by them.....But you already have someone——someone you like.]

The huge screen that originally had narration suddenly changed to an angelic

Izuna, who was dressed beautifully.

[However, in the face of many temptations, there is no error in true love——]

Then the screen changed to a scene where dozens of kemonomimistarted to

chase, wanting an embrace.

[Can you resist all these temptations——and convey the [Love] to your

sweetheart!?]

A side-story of the Dead or Alive series.

L O V E D OR L O V E D 2~shoot your love to her~

Contrary to the the siblings" amused expressions, the other two had not seen a

gun before and were confused. Ino continued:

[Then I"ll explain the rules.]

With a tone as if he was reading an instruction manual, Ino said:

[Please use those guns——to shoot at the nearby NPCs.]

[9]

"Shoot!?"

[You can shoot or blast——give them the melty melty.]

"Gal*Gun!?"

[10]

[Once given the melty melty, the girls would understand your sweetheart and

entrust their love power to you."

".....Ah, yes."

[What the 『Melty melty gun』 shoots out is 『Love power』——which means

everyone"s 『Power of love』.]

Suddenly, everyone looked down on the gun on their hands that had a

peculiar shape.

"——this is called the [Melty melty gun] eh."

"....Good custom."

"What a cheap name, you can obviously feel the childish vibes from it."

"Hey hey, what is this [ㄑㄧㄤ]?"

"In other words, Izuna wants us to love her, the goal is a harem ending. While

our goal is Izuna alone."

[That is indeed right on the dot.]

"...That...How do I say...."

Holding complicated feelings, Sora spoke up:

"I"llforgive this setting since Izuna-chan is an adorable kimonomimi girl; if this

was you old man, then I"ll immediately log off and gouge out my own eyes."

[I can understand your strong feelings, but please don"t forget, the request of

4 versus 1 was set by you!]

——Ino"s explanation clearly emphasised that this setting was caused by

Sora"s request.

However, he continued saying, as if agreeing to Sora"s thoughts.

[The latest trend has got to do with all these cute games...Back when I was

younger, everything was more hot-blooded——]

——It appears no matter which world there would still be old gamers, Sora

thought.

"....Oh well. Old man, I need to confirm something, and some questions too."

[Please go ahead.]

One, the [Energy](power of love) consumed between the [Melty gun] and

[Melty grenade].

Second, attacking the [NPCs], willrestore the [Energy](power of love) or

not.

Third, when the [NPCs] received the [Energy](power of love) and starts to

attack, will the [Energy](Power of love) decrease upon contact.

Fourth, once the [Energy](power of love) is used up, the [NPCs] will no

longer approach and will be unable to fight.

Fifth, once hit by Izuna, you"ll become her [Companion](love slave),

becoming an uncontrollable——[Enemy].

Sixth, if a companion becomes an [Enemy] upon getting hit by Izuna, shooting

them back willreturn them back to normal.

Seventh, even when the [Energy] (power of love) is used up, reversing the

situation with the sixth is still possible.

Eighth, the situation reflects the reality of one"s own physical abilities, with no

usage of magic.

"——that should be allright?"

[You are learning too quickly, that saves time.]

——Sora placed a finger on his chin and started thinking.

Although there were problems with several of them, this wouldn"t affect the

overallstrategies.

This game is barely——just a little shy——but still within the predicted

range.

"So this a game where Gal*gun and Left 4 Dead had a child."

Sora had something to retort, even after listening to all those rules.

"This is such a stupid game....Like any otaku would happily buy it....."

"...Which means....Nii will buy."

"Yes, even though the stage and protagonist sucks, but using this game to

seize territories makes one feel awesome. Like being chased by kemonomimi

girls, or wanting to achieve more."

Sora explained with excitement, before asking:

"Old man, this [Melty gun]——what kind of principles would be restored if

you shoot it at your companion?"

[Simple, because what it shoots out is the 『Power of Love』.]

"....Same thing as being shot by Izuna?"

[Yes, only temporarily, the person shot will become the shooter"s 『Love

slave』——]

*Bang!*

Before Ino finished talking, s.h.i.+ro had already pulled the trigger at Sora

without any hesitation.

The pink bullet flew out of the gun and struck home to Sora"s arms, causing

countless ofsmall hearts to fly about——

"Ahhh, my little sister————my little sister! Why didn"t I notice that there

was such a lovely woman at my side the whole time! Ahhh! I really want to

dig out my own eyes!!!"

"......Kyaaa.....Nii, no.....We are siblings....."

s.h.i.+ro blushed and responded with exaggeration.

"Whoa whoa! What about it! Indeed, societal norms reject it, but the socalled

society isn"t present right now! This is [Disboard], where everything is

decided by games——no one will interrupt, so we can go——the other side

where ethicalrequirements does not exist!!"

"Oi! I"ll interrupt okay!! Have you forgotten that this is an important match!?"

Although she was confused, Steph nevertheless quickly interjected. Jibril who

was at the side suddenly said:

"Then let me have my fun too."

*Bang*

The bullet fired from Jibril hit s.h.i.+ro, scattering small hearts about.

"...Jibril....I love you.....?"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh s.h.i.+ro! Are you rejecting Nii"s love!?"

"Ah ha!! This must be the so-called [Love Triangle] and [Netorare]

[11]

written in Master"s book, I see——even though I don"t have feelings of love,

this is very exciting————!"

"————Ah!"

.....Sora suddenly woke up.

"Guu....I can"t even control myself in the state of being a [Love Slave], but I"m

still conscious of it.....This is horrifying, going into a state where I can"t control

myself......I almost did something to s.h.i.+ro and went to the land of the

prohibited....."

Slightly later, s.h.i.+ro seemed to have regained consciousness too and she

started staring at Jibril with her eyes half-opened.

".....Jibril......Later.....Punishment...."

"Ahhh! Forgive me s.h.i.+ro-sama! I couldn"t suppress my curiosity!"

"Why punish her? Whatever....In short, the rules have been

mastered.....next...."

Mastering the rules of the game content, Sora began to plan strategies.

However, the most concerning matter was——

"Ehhh.....Steph, the rules, do you understand it?"

"Heh, don"t underestimate me——I totally didn"t understand it!"

Steph puffed out her chest and said. Sora then said to her:

"Okay, firstly you"ll hold the gun like this."

"Un, like that?"

"Yes yes, then place your index finger into the hole."

"Okay."

"Next, point the gun downwards and pull your index back."

"Like this?"

Steph pointed the gun onto the ground and pulled the trigger.

With a *Bang*, the bullet hit the ground——and bounced back.

"......Ah, ahhhh.....Why am·I·so·beautiful——fufufu, I won"t let you go."

Becoming a love slave to herself, Steph embraced herself and started shaking

her body.

"Hmmm, as expected, this bullet has bouncing capabilities. s.h.i.+ro, this is the

key factor."

"....Un, I know....Leave it to me."

The siblings conversed while observing Steph with serious eyes.

"So we"ll tentatively treat this place as point α until we"ve finished settling

down in this place, before moving out. According to the rules, aside from

Jibril, our bodies are the same, meaning that if the NPCs have the strength of

Werebeasts, then it"ll be hard to shake them off. Jibril, you"ll be at the rear to

help send our pursuers packing home."

".....Yes, sir."

"Understood——but what about Dora-chan?"

Hearing this, Sora watched Steph whose body was writhing.

"Doesn"t matter, even ifshe gets shot by Izuna? Since it is [Steph] after all."

"Indeed, if it is [Steph]."

Listening to Sora"s certainty, Jibrilreadily abandoned Steph.

"Okay, let"s go! Both of you! The fate of Imanity lies in this battle!"

""Oh~!""

"Oh hohoho, why am·I·so·beautiful?......Ahhh, why are you so cold?"

Ignoring Steph who was sticking herself to the mirror, the three of them took

action and left.

■ Spectators" floor ■

The game has begun.

In the eyes of the dumbfounded audience observing this idiotic game.

There was a girl who had a tense atmosphere, with black eyes obscured

beneath the shadow of a black veil.

——Kurami"s figure appeared.

(......Fii, can you see it?)

《Yes~the angle is perfect, I"m completely receiving Kurami"s line ofsight.》

Kurami"s sight was currently in sync with the elf outside the building——Fiel,

and they were having a conversation.

Although this was as normal as breathing for Kurami who was born in Elven

Gard....

(Really, compared to the other races, who can bear to get hit with this sort of

magic.)

——Ino"s eyebrow started twitching.

(——This is...... The smell of magic?)

Humans do not have the capability to connect to the Elemental Gallery, and

neither can the Werebeasts.

However, Ino caught the [Smell] of magic with his extraordinary senses and

started looking around.

(....Kurami Zierh! Why is she here.....!)

He remembered that she was a spy sent by Elven Gard of the elf race to

infiltrate into the King selection battle of Elchea......

(——the person even lured over [Other races to monitor] eh.....)

——the Oaths only covered the partic.i.p.ants and the spectators" memories.

If Kurami is currently using magic to report to the currently far away elves,

then this game would be known to Elven Gard.

Staring at Sora who was running in the virtualreality, Ino thought:

(This man——prepared to this extent....!)

——[Try and blatantly cheat if you dare, even the tricks to your game would

be exposed.]

A shallow smile appeared on the man whose eyes were closed.

《Fufu, still pretending.....Your over-sensitive ears are currently showing a

reaction yo~》

Seeing that the unmoving Ino was directing his attention to them, Fii can"t help

but laugh.

——This should be the development as desired by Sora.

(Fii, this [Computer s.p.a.ce] is the game that was speculated by Sora, a virtual

world where magic can"t interfere, it seems like there is nothing we can do

——)

《I understand, the important thing is that we are looking at this.》

——as expected of Fii.

Once she had heard of Sora"s request, she already grasped onto his

intentions.

(This way, the Eastern Union can"t use an obvious cheat....)

Compared to the game content——if their cheating means were known by

Elven Gard, then they should be able to take countermeasures......Which

means next time Eastern Union willreally be finished.

For this reason, Sora would exploit the contents and use [Fii] to monitor, so

that her memories wouldn"t disappear even if they had lost.

(.....But even so, I do not intend on letting them cheat, so Fiishould also help

too.)

《Un~maintaining this is very tiring yo~! But, for Kurami, I"ll work hard.》

——re-examining Sora"s memories, about the method to win this game.

No matter how much she looked back, this was a plan that was too risky.

However, even with all those negative factors, [Victory] this word was s.h.i.+ning

in Sora"s memories.

For him to have such a confident answer——should lie in who Sora believed

in.

Kurami thought, ifshe could do that kind of thing in this game?

".....Let me see——Sora."

Just like that, Kurami looked through the black veil and stared at the screen

that was reflecting a running Sora.

■ In the game ■

There were a bunch of people running in a concrete jungle, between buildings

in a fictional Tokyo.

——Sora skillfully dodged the Kemonomimi NPCs who were swarming

them.

While observing with his sharp eyes, he started thinking.

Because the NPCs were set to be Werebeasts, their physical capabilities

were definitely higher than them——but,,,

Sora could barely cope with their actions.

This was probably because there was similarity in their movements, the

monotonous movements of wanting to hug them.

But, that sort of thing didn"t matter, the more important thing was——

Prior to this and due to his old habits as a gamer, Sora kept using the

approach ofshooting the NPCs [Head first], causing him to have a feeling

akin to a sense of violation.

"The disappearance of the NPCs(girls) and their clothing——has a slight

delay in timing!)

The gamers detected the slight difference with their ability of not missing a

single frame.

Unless it was actually possible to do a————partial destruction!

Sora aimed his gun and shot.

The gun flashed, causing the pink bullet to fly at the speed ofsound, hitting the

skirt of the NPC(girl).

——the NPC(girl) did not disappear, as the small hearts scattered. Only the

skirt disappeared!

"As——As I thought!!!!! This is the real catching point of this game!!!"

No, they must do it. The item that sticks closely to their body——which is!

The matter of hitting the underwear only——it can be done!!

"Cloth are——presumably cotton, average of 1.5mm."

Losing the skirt, the NPC(girl) started running at breakneck speed toward

Sora.

"The bullet"s accuracy has to be at the 1 mm.....But, I can do it——!"

The NPC(girl) charged towards Sora with her hands wide open.

Slightly bending his waist, Sora dodged the NPC(girl)"s hand and did a

sidestep.

Using the smallest possible action, Sora used two steps to get behind the

NPC(girl)"s back.

Sora started aiming with his gun at extremely close range at————the

horizontal-striped underwear!

"——right here!"

The bullet shot out brushed past the underwear——then disappeared.

But, the NPC(girl) also scattered the small pink hearts, turning into

[Energy(Power of Love)] and then disappearing....

"d.a.m.n it alllll! Why, why can"t you not wear underwear!? d.a.m.n it alll!!!"

■ Spectators" floor ■

Seeing how Sora failed to make the underwear disappear, the packed room

ofspectators....

OHHHHHHHHHH.......Let out sounds of regret.

Watching that scene, Kurami gripped onto her wrist, trying hard to not look

away.

(This is a trick, this is a trick, there must be some intentions, he must have

caught onto something, resist it, Fii.)

《I"m fine......but could Kuramistop s.h.i.+fting your gaze, I"m about to faint.》

[GOOOD! The bra is destroyed! How knowledgeable, to use a hand bra!]

From the screen came Sora"s voice, while the spectators" floor were filled

with cheers of OOOOOOHHHHHHHH.

(....This stupid race, I don"t care anymore....)

Kuramistopped thinking.

《Ahh, Kurami, don"t close your eyes, open them, Kurami!》

■ In the game ■

(——good, the final confirmation.)

Experiencing the chase from the Kemonomimis, Sora joyfully ran in the alley

between the buildings.

s.h.i.+ro was following his pace and closely followed Sora with her smallsteps.

Jibril was jumping between buildings, happily dispersing the NPCs(girls)

behind Sora.

Exchanging gazes, Sora nodded his head.

"s.h.i.+ro, report the performance of the gun."

"....All intelligence, parameters are roughly...In meters...."

s.h.i.+ro took a deep breath before continuing.

"Velocity of projectile is 300 m/s, range of 400m, not affected by wind or

gravity; has straight and bouncing capabilities, limit of bounce and the range of

the gun are geometrically similar, the angle of its bounce and the angle of

incidence are geometrically similar, simple....."

She finished the torrent of information in one breath. After regaining her

breath, s.h.i.+ro said.

"..How...Tired."

Compared to estimating, talking was more tiring to s.h.i.+ro. Sora started patting

his little sister"s head.

"Good, well done, as expected of s.h.i.+ro!"

Confirming that s.h.i.+ro"s mood was slightly better....

"Jibril, how are your physical abilities?"

Sora and s.h.i.+ro were still the same even after coming here, being out of breath

after running.

So what kind of change did Jibril experience?

"To not be able to use magic, feels like I"m denying [Myself], being limited to

my physical limits. Really, it"s such an inconvenience to have my physical body

only."

Why was it inconvenient ifshe could jump between the walls of

buildings.....but, Sora asked carefully:

"You said it earlier, that the Werebeasts could exceed their physical limits.

What"s the difference between that and your"s?"

"Although it"s unpleasant, but that should be correct."

But only, Jibrilsaid:

"As I"ve discussed before, the Werebeasts can use [Blood Devastation], if

that can be reflected in this game——then I"ll prevail in an instant, so best be

prepared."

——[Blood Devastation].....The Werebeasts have the capabilities to surpa.s.s

their physical limits, and this would result in their strength being multiplied

severalfold.

If this was a game prepared by the Werebeasts, then this capability was

certainly there.

"The Flügel, the Werebeasts......This world is too exaggerated."

Sora sighed——nevertheless, they"ve collected the necessary intel.

"In other words, in this virtuals.p.a.ce that prohibits magic, they have the

overwhelming advantage in that this game relying on the [Physical aspects]

——this is probably what the enemy thought."

Sora couldn"t help it, and started laughing.

They have no obligations to [Fight]; this is a game.

——In the previous world, [Blank] was at the peak of more than 280 kinds

of games.

Both of them revealed the truth of every game, which was——

"No matter how complicated the game looks, there are two kinds of actions

for the final action."

"Your meaning is?"

Facing Jibril"s question, Sora answered with a splenetic smile:

"——the tactical and corresponding action, which means the active and

pa.s.sive."

Which means——the one who initiates first wins.

This could be said to be a gamer"s fact, and——

"They didn"t realise, that since ancient times, this was mankind"s game."

The game was called——[Hunting].

"s.h.i.+ro, ready? Keep a low profile while running——okay?"

"...Understood..."

"Its about time we start eh?"

—————.....

At a distance hundreds of meters away from Sora, eighth floor of a building.

Izuna was hiding in a warehouse with a small window.

Because of where the sun reflected, Sora would not be able to see the

window. Izuna used her Werebeast sight to locate and watch Sora and

company"s movements.

There are four enemies, there is one of her.

Even if there were many ways to win, the result would be over if there was a

slight mistake. More importantly, there was the Flügel on the opposition.

Before the battle, Izuna had been focused on a.n.a.lysing the combat capability

of her enemies.

Upon seeing how the trio were having so much fun in removing the

NPCs(girls) clothes, Izuna frowned unhappily.

——[When was the last time you played games feeling 『happy』?]

Sora"s words caused Izuna to bite her lip.

(What is happiness? How can I have that kind of feeling, des!)

The game was akin to plundering, an indirect fight.

......As long as you lose, a lot of people would be unhappy.

For this reason, winning was obvious.

However, winning, the other party would suffer, even taking away their lives.

Those kind of things were [Happiness]?

The only feeling felt was——[Guilt] from being the predator.

(Why do you look so happy? Des!)

Izuna was irritated, her eyes that were locked onto Sora became sharper.

——suddenly, her eyes caught onto the [Grenade] Sora was holding in his

hand.

Sora waved his hand, throwing the [Grenade]. This caused a sudden pink

flash to appear.

After a bang, there was a severe impact shock.

"———!?"

The building Izuna hid in shook.

Izuna jumped out due to the fright. She then placed herself on alert and

listened.

(.......My hiding place was discovered, des!? Impossible, des!)

Since the beginning of the game, Izuna immediately pulled a distance away

from Sora and company to carry out observation.

If they didn"t have the five senses of the Werebeasts——no, they shouldn"t be

able to locate even if they had it.

But what Izuna heard——with her radar-like ears that could discern

movements in a 100 meter radius.

Was the sound of footsteps walking into the building.

(This sound——is s.h.i.+ro"s, des.)

Walking in at a certain pace that was short and lightweight.

She was the enemy that Izuna had designated as the most [Non-threatening].

No——not only s.h.i.+ro, but also Sora and Steph. Humans did not have

enough combat capabilities.

Izuna did not attack immediately at the outset, because of the FlügelJibril.

Even if the opponent had gaming technology, or knew their games, humans

would always be the same——unable to keep up with the Werebeasts"

response.

——Then....

From the [Grenade] and the [Close footsteps sound], what were these weird

feelings?

Suddenly, she sensed danger.

Izuna listened and found out that this building was suddenly full of

NPCs(girls).

Within all that chaos, there was a rhythmic sound of approaching

footsteps....?

"——!"

Izuna went on full alert and flipped up her kimono, revealing a gun which she

started pointing at the small door.

This was the only door that connected to the warehouse Izuna was hiding in.

Slightly opening the door, a huge amount of NPCs(girls) were wandering

about.

Once the compact and lightweight footsteps sound reached the eighth floor

——

It suddenly——stopped.

(——?)

Izuna raised her ears to pick up the sound, then——

The footsteps instantly increased in speed.

The speed of a human child was not supposed to have any threat——this

was originally the case, but——

(——what is going on, des!?)

Outside——in the hallway where the wandering NPCs(girls) were.

With every gunshot, one disappears. This sent a chill down Izuna"s spine.

These set of movements repeated, with no hesitation and disruption.

Dispersing the numerous NPCs(girls) without slowing down, the footsteps

generally——

(It"s coming here——des!?)

Izuna didn"t doubt it anymore, the fact that [Her hiding place was discovered]

——!

How did they find me?——this question didn"t matter at this point.

Activating her five senses, Izuna turned to face s.h.i.+ro who was outside the

warehouse and followed her movements with the gun in her hands.

With s.h.i.+ro closing in, she fired a bullet outside the door, causing the sound of

explosions and bursts of hearts to appear. The bounce from the bullet were

certain to hit home on s.h.i.+ro"s forehead——

Yes, it was a calculated move, using the bouncing power of the bullet and the

fact that s.h.i.+ro couldn"t see it.

However——that accurately shot bullet——

Was dodged narrowly by s.h.i.+ro.

(——impossible, des!)

Yes, impossible.

After seeing the bullet that travelled at the speed ofsound, avoiding it was

impossible.

Even if they knew it, their——bodies wouldn"t be able to react in time.

Not to mention if it was the fitness of an eleven-year-old girl, but——

That was—— a situation where you [Dodge].

Before that, [s.h.i.+ro"s footsteps] weren"t chaotic in the midst of all those

NPCs(girls).

Her footsteps gave Izuna her answer.

In order to confirm it, Izuna shot another bullet out in attempt to hit s.h.i.+ro——

but.....

"....Useless...."

The bullet that was [Shot] towards s.h.i.+ro——was repelled by another bullet

from s.h.i.+ro.

(Really——it"s like that, des!?)

Up to this point, Izuna had a new belief.

——she was sure.

This human——this eleven-year-old girl.

She took action after fully grasping onto the dynamics of all movements.

——the bullets and NPCs(girls) wouldn"t appear out of thin air.

As long as you confirmed the target location of the bullet, you could straighten

your arms, aim and fire.

As long as it was an NPC(girl), once you are discovered, they would come

after you.

Abiding by some numerous patterns, from the obvious attacks.

Then——there was no need to dodge.

As long as you are not in the trajectory of the shot.

——s.h.i.+ro"s actions were secretive.

In their original world, the urban legend gamers [Blank]——which means

Sora and s.h.i.+ro.

In the FPS world, the gamer that held the most kills in recorded history——

Was not Sora, but s.h.i.+ro.

She had a demonic ability to calculate and grasp onto the enemy"s dynamics,

deriving out what the enemy was going to do, predicting the future in regards

to shooting and dodging time, giving the enemy an illusion as if [The bullet

took the initiative on her, and is in hot pursuit].

(——is that possible, des!!)

Of course, Izuna couldn"t possibly know about the previous world Sora was

in.

The fact that Izuna inferred out, was not because she relied on her

Werebeast"s instincts.

But it was her gamer"s intuition that told her that s.h.i.+ro——was much more

dangerous than The Flügel.

Frantically searching around, Izuna found and hid in a smalls.p.a.ce filled with

items.

Facing against opponents that could dodge ricocheting bullets and are able to

mount an offensive front, places like these——were unfavorable.

(——I can only escape, des!)

In order to buy time for her escape, Izuna threw a [Grenade] outside the

door.

——but before the grenade flew out of the door.

A bullet was shot from outside——detonating it.

(What——!?)

*Bang*

Izuna instantly hid behind all those items, narrowly escaping the blast of wind

rus.h.i.+ng indoors.

But to counter-attack like that, it was like they already knew in advance that

she would throw out a grenade.

During that period, s.h.i.+ro"s footsteps weren"t in disorder. Reaching the

warehouse, Izuna started having gooseb.u.mps.

(She"s here, des!)

s.h.i.+ro launched a flying kick while running——kicking the door open.

She then threw a smoke grenade, before bursting into the warehouse.

Following that, s.h.i.+ro knocked down a nearby cupboard, mixing the sound of

her steps with the sound of the collapsing cupboard. Izuna"s ears couldn"t

discern s.h.i.+ro"s position.

Izuna started breathing erratically——she couldn"t hear.

(———I can only start shooting, des!)

Hiding behind the items, Izuna shot without aiming.

The countless bullets bounced after being fired, causing the room to become

an endless bombardment.

Then——in a moment......

Izuna heard s.h.i.+ro exhaling——causing a chill to run across her back.

Izuna immediately plunged out.

With ground-breaking strength, she crashed through the small window to go

out of the building.

Looking back, in the smoky room caused by an explosion, Izuna felt——

The sound of the enemy shooting down all bullets she shot.

Next, she heard all the reflected bullets headed into the spot Izuna was hiding

in.

(————What exactly is happening, des!?)

A moment——ifshe was a moment too late, she would have been

bombarded with a rain of bullets.

But, at this time, Izuna widened her eyes in surprise.

This didn"t come from s.h.i.+ro.

——it came from above.

"We~ lcome?"

(The Flügel——Jibril, des!?)

She seemed to have ambushed her, knowing in advance the timing of which

she would jump out.

——When did she move to the roof!?

Izuna gasped in astonishment. Although they were The Flügel, this game

restricted them to their absolute physical limits.

She shouldn"t be able to use magic, so she couldn"t fly.

Ifshe was moving with her two feet, her own ears should"ve been able to pick

up——

Despite the predicament she was in, Izuna still operated calmly and rationally.

She noticed that Jibril was ready to throw a [Grenade].

(——A flash bomb! Des!)

Izuna concluded.

Attacking the grenade first would result in an explosion.

So——ignore the grenade, shoot Jibril, and then use the second round to

deal with the bomb!

Repeating the actions that she"d picked out, Izuna pulled the trigger.

However——

"Aren"t you too naive?"

Even if they were restricted by magic, the physical limits of The Flügelstill

exceeded the Werebeasts.

In the air, Jibril twisted her body at the bullets fired at close range.

The bullet slightly grazed Jibril"s clothes, causing it to disappear.

Then, the grenade burst and caused an explosion, followed by a flash.

Jibrilraised her gun in an attempt to shoot the enemy hidden in the smoke.

However, she widened her eyes in surprise.

The bullet Izuna had fired——was the third shot.

Two shots were fired——the first was to allow Jibril to dodge it.

The second bullet was to lure Jibril to throw the flash grenade, then counterattacking

in the flash.

And the purpose of the third bullet——

"Heh——eh? Ah, I forget I can"t fly!?"

Jibril wanted to flap her wings to dodge, but the wings were only moving in

emptiness.

Unable to recover, she was going to get hit by the bullet at her forehead——

But, at that moment.

Jibril witnessed——

In the situation where there were no simultaneous plans——Izuna panickedly

looked at the distant outline on the other side of the building.

Izuna abruptly——twisted her body, taking the most evasive measure she

could.

A bullet penetrated her clothing——disappeared.

Then, the second bullet fired from the same direction impacted on Jibril who

was freshly hit by Izuna.

——facing the facts, with beast-like reaction.

The blow instantly brought Jibril back.

(Unless, everything was in the plan, des!?)

Izuna suddenly looked up——

In the place where Izuna broke the window, s.h.i.+ro was aiming her gun on

Izuna.

However——

(I can"t be attacked from here, des!)

Just like Jibril.

Because of the initial attack, Izuna was forced to dodge, she had no other

counters.

——even if their physicalstrength were higher, she couldn"t fly.

With no foothold to dodge bullets in the air——she had to throw away her

main focus to perform that kind of awkward movement.

This was her limit——she couldn"t adjust her position anymore.

s.h.i.+ro"s gun muzzle aimed coldly at her.

Fight back? Impossible. Avoid? Impossible. In that case——

Fire.

The bullet that couldn"t be avoided——

(——!!)

Izuna bit her teeth, waving her hands upwards.

Her second set of clothes flipped to stand in the trajectory of the bullet.

Penetrating the kimono, it disappeared.

However, the bullet scattered small hearts before——disappearing.

".....I see....Clothes can be used as a s.h.i.+eld....."

This rule wasn"t explained.

s.h.i.+ro murmured in admiration while Izuna managed to land safely on the

ground.

Immediately jumping up, she bolted away like a true four-legged beast.

Jibril who was. .h.i.t by the bullet, struck the tarmac ground head first.

——A moment ofsilence.

But, she slowly got up as if nothing had happened.

Then, with heart-shaped eyes, she stared into the distance.

"Master.....Ohhhh my Master.....Please let me stay by your side?"

Jibrilstarted running on the asphalt ground.

She was headed to——Sora who was sniping from three hundred meters

away.

——eleven seconds have pa.s.sed since the commencement of the battle.

"...Fuu...Fuuu..."

In the warehouse full ofsmoke, s.h.i.+ro panted intensely.

——even if her movements are as precise as machinery, and she did

calculations that even computers can"t replicate. Nevertheless her body was

still that of an eleven-year old human girl.

Including their physicalstrength, this game directly reflects their own self.

Not to mention that s.h.i.+ro and her brother were NEETs, they were exhausted

due to their lack of exercise——and their devastating lack of physical

strength.

In order to reply as soon as possible, s.h.i.+ro relaxed her body, and murmured

out:

"....Didn"t....Fuu....hit..."

"That isn"t s.h.i.+ro"s fault, compared to that——"

Responding to her was Sora who was three hundred meters away.

From the moment where Jibril got hit by the bullet, 15 seconds had pa.s.sed.

Regaining consciousness over her body that was hugging Sora, Jibril

immediately sent him to s.h.i.+ro who was in the warehouse.

"The state of being unable to manipulate lasts for 15 seconds.....And also

——"

Sora came down to s.h.i.+ro"s side, and asked Jibril:

".....Jibril, you confirmed it?"

"Yes, personally confirmed."

Jibril who was leaned on by Sora said:

"Before Master shot, she turned to the direction of Master, no mistakes."

Hearing her report, Sora asked another question.

"Well, I