Alain picked up his greatsword, and with Millie following behind him, pulled open the bedroom door.
During that time, Misha had already been waiting by the dressing table, looking bored. Her gaze refocused only when she saw the two of them appear.
"The ring is adjusted." Misha reached out, palm open, revealing the dark green band resting there. "Put it on first, Dear."
"Okay." He took the ring.
"Whoa~ Is this the token of love between Best Friend and Bro?" Millie murmured from the side, making Misha blush.
"Mm-hmm... Sort of, I guess." Surprisingly, Misha didn't deny it, adding, "There will be better ones in the future... right? Alain."
"Right."
Alain nodded with a smile and put the ring on, temporarily ignoring the piqued expression on Millie's face beside him.
He opened the System panel and checked the progress bar.
Previously at 95%, the incident where he'd removed Millie's glove had pushed it well over the threshold: it had reached 100%. The mission return sequence was initiated.
They could now decide where to go next.
Alain considered whether to return to reality or continue progressing through the game.
After all, he was curious about the situation at the core, and figuring out the cause sooner rather than later would be ideal.
However—
He checked the status of his skills.
Memory Optimization had been used once when charging the Gauntlet of Failure earlier. Both skills could only be reused during the next mission. Checking the progress bar skills again: Cleanup Boost, naturally, had been upgraded via the DLC code and could now be used continuously in combat. Safety Shield was still available, while Virus Scan had already been used once scanning the worms back in the corridor.
Overall, he wasn't in peak condition.
Alain reached a conclusion and spoke to the two girls, "Let's head back this time."
Simultaneously, he glanced at the door behind him, the one leading to the living room where he and Millie had been fooling around.
"We heard those 'spiders' knocking on the door again in the living room just now. If we head to the core, Millie might be in danger if left alone in the house."
"Ehh...? Then, couldn't I just go with you guys?" Millie puffed her cheeks slightly, only to be met by Alain and Misha answering in unison:
"No!"
Alain explained, "Because we don't have enough weapons right now, it's bound to be dangerous ahead. And you're not really suited for combat."
As he spoke, Alain glanced at the pink guitar by the bed. "Are you going to entertain us with that on the battlefield?"
"...Ooh, you don't have to put it like that..." It was the first time Millie had seen Alain look stern, his figure gradually overlapping with that of her Best Friend, Misha.
Misha, conversely, offered gentle comfort now, "Alain isn't wrong, Cappie. Didn't you want to play games with Alain?"
She then looked at Alain. "Dear, have you made a decision?"
"Yes," Alain confirmed. "Let's take Millie back to reality first to ensure her safety. Then we'll wait for the next time we enter the game, and it'll just be you and me coming back here."
"Okay." With their next objective set, the tension in Misha's brow eased. "By the way, Dear, did you give Cappie a name too?"
"That's right. Are you jealous?" Alain was curious.
Misha shook her head, smiling. "Not at all. After all, my name was your first~"
"..."
Their gazes met, passing right through Millie in the center, intertwining hotly within the version 1.75 room.
"Hmph! You two, ignoring me again! Hmph~"
Seeing her friend getting upset again, Misha gave an awkward laugh and went over to console her.
Alain smiled wryly. "Alright, alright, Bro. As compensation, do you need me to clear out those spiders outside the door for you?"
"No need." Millie shook her head.
"Even if you clear them, they'll just come back. Might as well... let those guys have this boring room. I'm going to enjoy Alain's game cabin!" After saying that, she added meaningfully, "After all, it's not like I can help with anything~"
"Okay, okay, didn't I give you a gamepad earlier? Don't forget to use it to carry me later."
"Definitely!"
Watching this heartwarming scene while glancing at the progress bar on the system panel, Alain felt relaxed and remarked casually,
"This trip home is turning out to be quite peaceful."
"Ah, Dear, you think so too?"
The fact that Alain and Misha shared the same thought piqued Millie's curiosity.
"What are you guys talking about?"
"You don't know yet, do you?" Misha adopted a reminiscent expression.
"Last time we left the game, Crazy Mita suddenly showed up. Ah, Crazy Mita should be considered our enemy."
"...Should be?" Millie was confused.
She saw her Best Friend turn a meaningful gaze towards Alain.
"Yeah, she's my enemy, but not Alain's. That's why I used 'should'. Those two are on very good terms."
"Ahem... thanks." Alain almost choked on his own saliva.
"Ehhh...? Bro is sailing two Mita ships? Is that even allowed...?"
Millie looked as if her worldview had just shattered, her expression flickering.
Misha was puzzled.
"Cappie, what's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing~ By the way, what kind of Mita is Crazy Mita? I haven't heard of her before."
"Her?" Alain started to jump in, having endless things to say on the subject, but Misha immediately cut him off.
"Alright, Dear, you're not objective at all. I can just imagine how many times 'cute' will pop out of your mouth."
Misha rubbed her brow, exasperated, and explained to her friend, "Her actions are very violent, but she cares deeply for Alain, exclusively."
The long-haired girl glanced at the certain someone who had captured Crazy Mita's heart. "Crazy Mita especially loves chasing Alain around with a chainsaw, trying to chop him up. Other times, they're stuck together like a couple in the throes of new love. Sigh, I really don't get those two."
"...Thanks?" Alain wasn't sure how to respond.
"Chainsaw?" Millie suddenly seemed to recall something. "Does she wear her hair in two low twintails?"
"Yes."
Alain was surprised. Millie continued,
"And besides the chainsaw, does she also commonly use knives and a baseball bat?"
"...Baseball bat? The knives and chainsaw are correct..." This time, it was Misha who hesitated before nodding.
"And is she also really strong?"
Hearing this, Alain and Misha exchanged a look, both seeing the disbelief in each other's eyes.
"Yes."
"Oh! Then I might have seen her!"
Millie clapped her hands and pointed towards the bedroom door – more accurately, towards the entrance door in the living room area.
"She sometimes wanders around outside my front door. She even helped me clear out quite a few spiders."
Then, the girl looked puzzled again. "But, she hasn't come by in a while. It must have been during this lull that a spider managed to sneak into the room."
Alain swallowed hard, his gaze shifting to see Misha's equally dry lips.
Then, they heard footsteps coming from the living room.
_____
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