Old Lady: Welcome, miss.
Emiko: Thank you. Are you the owner here?
Old Lady: Yes, miss. I've been running this museum for forty-five years. On the right, we have our horror-themed figures. Upstairs, you'll find our more precious items. What brought you here today?
Emiko: Can't I just look around?
Old Lady: Of course, feel free to explore, miss.
Emiko: When exactly did you start this business?
Old Lady: We opened back in 1982, miss. My husband was still alive then… We crafted these works together with our own hands. Look, right here. (She points to a glass shelf.)
Old Lady: This is the first figure I ever made. We call it "Burrowfang." It's a Grates with the body of a dog. Though to be honest... we've made thousands of these.
Emiko: Yeah... it looks pretty new.
Old Lady: That's because I put a fresh one on the shelf this morning, miss. The previous one was a bit damaged.
Emiko (leaning in): Hmm… And what do these letters on the label mean? Like this "C," for instance?
Old Lady: Those indicate power, miss.
Emiko: I'm not following…
Old Lady: Think of it like durability. (They move to the display next to it.)
Old Lady: Look, right here is the Kinjui Komi. It translates to "man-eating spider."
Flashback – Emiko's inner thoughts: WHAT?! MAN-EATING?!
Emiko (slightly unnerved): Alright… what about these two?
Old Lady (pointing at the black figure): The black one? That's what we call Shingusu. A shadow warrior. A very rare piece. It appears when the mist rolls in. But it's been struggling to maintain its original form. That's why we've kept it in this special display case.
Emiko: And what about the red one beside it?
Old Lady: Ah... that was the highlight of 1997. The Crimson Knight. In Japanese, "Aka no Kishi." That year, a special magazine was published under its name — it became famous across all of Tokyo.
Emiko: What's the story behind it?
Old Lady: A former folk hero. If you look closely, you'll notice a badge on his right arm. He was seen as a symbol of the people... but over time, he was forgotten.
Emiko: Forgotten? Why?
Old Lady: Well... in 2002, when we released the Seven Gods figure set, all attention shifted to that. Countless novels, cartoons... even video games were made about it.
Emiko: The Seven Gods...?
Old Lady: Yes. A special set featuring seven gods living in a sealed realm. An incredibly rare piece… we keep the full set hidden away in storage.
Emiko: Any chance we could see it?
Old Lady (a little embarrassed): I'm afraid not… My son has the key. We can't access the storage without him, miss.
Emiko: I see… Well, thank you so much for all the information. Take care.
Old Lady: But you haven't seen the upstairs yet?
Emiko (smiling): I really should get going. I've got things to do. Hopefully another time.
Just as Emiko stepped out the door:
Old Lady: They come from the black shadows. Be careful.
Emiko nodded, not fully understanding what the old woman meant, and walked out of the shop. Meanwhile, watching them carefully from a nearby car was Ryuji, trying to make sense of what had just happened.
Logging in...
Username: Ryuji Kaito
Password: *****
Loading previous record...
Redirecting, please wait...
A few seconds later:
[Player Record]
Name: Ryuji Kaito
Age: 27
Level: 40
Status: Time left until next game: 6 hours 30 minutes
Ryuji: What? Next game? I finished all the games years ago!
He stood frozen for a moment, thoughts racing.
Ryuji (thinking): This must be Emiko's doing...
[Deleting record...]
System denied. Record operations have been temporarily frozen.
Ryuji (angrily): Oh come on... now's not the time for this!
[Phone rings – Beep... beep...]
Caller ID: Jin Arata Calling...
Jin: Hello, Ryuji?
Ryuji: Arata, gather the team. Urgent. Usual café.
Jin: Wait, what? Hello...? Hello— He hung up. (Turns to the others.)
Jin: Ayumi, Yuta, get ready. We're heading to the café. We'll pick up Hiroshi on the way.
Yuta: But… what's going on, Jin?
Jin: I wish I knew.
[30 minutes later – at the café]
Yuta (waving): Ryuji?! Over here!
Ryuji: Hey.
Jin: You seem tense. What happened? Tell us.
Ryuji: Jin, give me your phone. (Takes Jin's phone and logs into the Warrealm account.)
Ryuji: Look. This right here is the issue. We've been pulled back into the game.
Ryuji (continuing): Ayumi, Yuta, Hiroshi... you wouldn't know this, but Arata and I know it all too well.
Jin: But how? Ryuji, how did this happen?
Ryuji: I don't know… but I think it's my sister's doing. Emiko must've been taken over by the system. And most likely, she's the one who submitted our names — including Yuta, Hiroshi, and Ayumi.
Just as expected. New player profiles had been created for Ayumi, Yuta, and Hiroshi — but there were no current game logs. Apparently, the next game was meant for Ryuji alone.