Chapter 179: Chapter 165.2 : Joy and Gratitude

Session now over, Silver didn’t rush to leave - he couldn’t. The reunion had stirred up no small amount of positive emotions in him.

These positive emotions came in the form of waves and crashed into his beached body, imparting a pleasant but paralysing sensation in their wake. Silver soaked it all up with a smile, hoping that it would continue forever. But this wasn’t meant to be.

Each successive wave grew smaller and smaller, and five seconds later, only ripples would reach the fused being. Silver’s stay atop cloud nine came to an abrupt end at the fact, and his consciousness was returned to the small grey room.

Taking in the bland walls and tiles around him, he quickly lost interest in staying any longer. He briefly considered something upon capturing the door but decided against it. The Hana situation was a beautiful accident, but not something Silver was looking to repeat.

There’ll be no shortcuts this time around, he made sure to tell himself.

Finding no worthwhile reason to continue existing as is, Silver thanked the staff and then defused, snapping the telepathic links in the process.

One now two again, the duo moved to mentally anchor themselves in reality. The next few seconds were ones of both internal and external silence…until a certain topic was brought up, that is.

[[Hugs already…and a party, you’re as speedy as ever, Ralf]] Ray commented with a wry smile.

Upon fusing, Ralf’s memories became his, enlightening him to what his other self had been up to since they separated.

[[You can join us, you know,]] Ralf offered. [[It’ll be a lot of fun. We’re going to play Psi games and probably watch some anime…unless you’re against the idea. What do you say, can I show them Babel or no?]] Ralf asked, his voice filling with seriousness.

The Mental Space was as much Ray’s as it was his, so if his other self vetoed the idea of showing off Babel, that would be that. Real Psi games would instantly be kicked off the table, along with several other interesting things Ralf had planned to show the group involving the Mental Space.

It would be embarrassing to go back on his words, but Ralf would stomach it. He would never defy Ray’s wishes for the sake of others…no matter who they were.

Luckily for Charlotte and the others, Ray saw no need to oppose the idea.

[[It’s fine with me. Do as you please. I’ll do the same,]] Ray said with a shrug before heading to the Mental Space. [[I’m going to finish up the episode I was working on. Fill me in on the PA meeting later.]]

[[Sure sure.]]

The Mental Link snapped as the exchange completed. Ralf got up, dismissed his Psi chair and exited the room. In the corridor, he found Lane, seated on a Psi chair, hands curled around a Psi Controller.

The former assassin had wrapped up his meeting within five minutes and then headed to Silver’s room. He needn’t knock on the door or say anything, for a Psi Controller had already been waiting for him, atop a nearby table, along with a note and the words ‘knock yourself out’ written in Psi writing. Knowing what to do with it, Lane got comfortable and started playing.

Since then, he had been playing Psi games against Zero System’s AI non-stop - well, almost. To hide his ‘unlimited’ status, Silver had a five-minute break every thirty minutes. Lane’s behaviour during these five minutes was as troubling as it was amusing.

The former assassin had taken to tapping his feet. It started off light and slowly before ramping up to the point where Silver mistakenly believed that Lane was sending a Gretten Code message - he was not. Impatience was the only conductor of the melody; conscious thought played no role. The fused being listened in for a bit before conjuring a soundproof barrier around him and shifting his full focus back to Hana.

Honestly, Silver would have let the former assassin play uninterrupted in other circumstances, but the current one was a no-go. The staff were paying keen attention to him and he didn’t want his ultimate card to be revealed, just yet.

*Bam* *Swoosh* *Bam*

Ralf didn’t interrupt the other’s gaming. Lane was playing Psi Fighters, a favourite of his. By now, he had played all twenty-five games, but the fighting game held a special place in his heart, with the assassin character doing a lot of the heavy lifting.

Ralf’s eyes shifted to it. Unlike the generic assassin model from before, the model now resembled Lane almost one-to-one, from his clothing to his signature blank expression and even his moves, well a single move.

This new assassin was the special prize Ralf had promised. On his way to the Communication Centre building, Ralf popped into the Mental Space, remodelled the character to match his new friend and then added a special move, which now Lane moved to employ.

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Special bar full, Lane’s fingers completed the sequence of button pushes perfectly, activating the special move. Following a unique sound, the assassin reached for the scarf around his neck, removed it and then threw it toward his opponent, a burly boxer.

The ‘projectile’ was slow but unblockable; one had to dodge it. The AI-controlled fighter, having just been dazed, was unable to and suffered the consequences. Upon making contact, the scarf transformed into a lively snake, and coiled itself around the boxer, binding him in place.

Swoosh!

Then, just like Lane did in his match, the assassin dashed in at teleportation-like speeds and thrust his dagger into the boxer’s beefy chest. The special move was potent, allowing the assassin to take away 70% of their opponent’s HP with it. Normally, the assassin would rip the scarf off the other, retreat with a teleport and then reequip it… however, when it was used as a finishing move like now, things got flashy.

Ralf watched as the snake hissed to the sky before setting itself alight. The blue flames quickly engulfed the flailing boxer, and in a matter of seconds, the blaze reduced the snake and the fighter to a pile of ashes. After showing a look of approval at the sight, the assassin character thrust his hand into the still raging flames, grabbed at it, and with a pulling motion, transformed the flames back into a scarf. He elegantly reequipped it before walking away with triumphant steps.

“Like it?” Ralf asked as the match concluded.

“Very much,” Lane said, his bland voice greatly undercutting how impressed he was.

The response brought a smile to the Transmigrator’s face. “Glad to hear. I whipped that up pretty quickly. Since it’s your character, feel free to make any suggestions. I can add other special or basic moves pretty easily.”

“Then…can you make the character transform into a giant snake and consume their opponent?” Lane asked, eyes flickering with an expectant light.

Ralf’s lips tugged up, it was clear that the other had been thinking about new additions this entire time.

“On it. I’ll add it by tomorrow. Okay, let’s go, we’re cutting it pretty close,” he patted Lane’s shoulder before breaking into stride. At the same time, he dismissed his Psi. The former assassin’s gaze lingered on the vanishing particles before he stood up and followed after his new friend.

“Ralf,” Lane started. “Those games…they really are automatic?”

“Yep, all automatic,” Ralf confirmed. “You can play them even if I’m asleep or unconscious.”

Lane went silent at the words. His gaze left the floor and moved to study Ralf’s side profile.

The Transmigrator caught onto his friend’s ‘mind-reading’ attempt and flashed a mischievous smile. “How, you wonder?”

Lane simply nodded. Ralf returned his gaze to the front. “If you stick around me, you’ll understand eventually - oh, it’s Yuki,” his eyes brightened as he captured the ice Mimic in his sights, and then again when he captured her current expression. “Oh, she seems to be in a much better mood.”

Compared to the sour expression she had been wearing earlier, Yuki was practically glowing right now. The shades of black and pink around her eyes remained, but now, a warm smile adorned her face. Looking at her, Ralf strongly believed that she had contacted her Hana-equivalent.

‘The timing isn’t great, but here goes nothing…’ Thinking this, Ralf hastened his steps to close the distance. But again, he wouldn’t be fast enough. As soon as she exited the building, Yuki summoned her Winter Empress armour and zoomed off at high speeds.

‘Ah, too late. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.’ Ralf thought, slightly disappointed.

“Let’s pick up the pace Lane, we’re going to be late.”

“Sure.”

The two upped their pace and after exiting the building, summoned their Psi bikes and headed to the student hotel, where they would meet with their respective Personal Advisors.

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