Daisy didn't waste any time. She strode straight out of the apartment complex and walked over to her sleek, custom personal bike—painted in a vibrant, eye-catching shade of bright pink.
Haruto raised an eyebrow, leaning against the doorway with a smirk. "Pink? Really?"
"Shut up and get on unless you want to walk," Daisy snapped back, swinging her leg over the saddle.
Haruto quickly hopped on right behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist as Daisy revved the high-tech engine. With a deafening roar, the bike surged forward, locking onto the internal spatial coordinates and tearing straight through the transit grid until they shot out directly into Layer 5.
They pulled up smoothly inside a heavily fortified safe zone maintained under the strict control of Gampid City's network. As the bike's engine powered down, Haruto and Daisy stepped off onto the reinforced ground.
Waiting for them in a massive, orderly formation were nearly a hundred young female military recruits. Dressed in tactical gear and holding standard-issue energy rifles, they stood at absolute attention.
The moment Daisy's boots hit the ground, the entire squad snapped into a crisp, unified military salute. Even the higher-ranking officers and veteran drill instructors overseeing the trials stood tall, saluting their superior with absolute respect.
Daisy acknowledged them with a sharp, professional nod, walking forward to take her place at the front.
But as the recruits lowered their arms and their eyes drifted just a step behind her, a collective wave of shock rippled through the ranks. Whispers broke out instantly as a hundred pairs of eyes locked onto Haruto.
Who is that guy?
Why is he here in the middle of a military evaluation zone?
Is he some high-ranking commander? Some secret faction leader?!
Haruto simply offered them a casual, lazy wave, entirely unbothered by the sea of stunned, questioning stares directed his way.
Haruto stood a step back, crossing his arms as he surveyed the sea of tactical gear and stern faces. What kind of weird game quest is this anyway? he thought, shaking his head with a faint grin.
Stepping forward to take command, Daisy raised her voice, cutting sharply through the whispers. "Alright, everyone, attention!"
The murmurs instantly died down, a hundred pairs of eyes snapping back to fixate on her.
"From here on out, we're pushing deeper into high-threat monster territory," Daisy announced, her tone ringing with absolute authority. "Our primary goal is leveling up. But keep this in mind—if anyone here chooses to slack off, you'll be risking your lives out in these zones. No one is to leave a team member behind, under any circumstances. Is that understood?"
She paused, scanning the formation. "Any questions?"
A single hand shot up near the front row of the recruits.
Daisy nodded toward her. "Go ahead."
The female recruit lowered her hand, casting a wary, suspicious glance sideways at Haruto. "Ma'am... who exactly is this guy? Is he with us?"
Daisy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in mild exhaustion as she gestured toward Haruto. "Relax. This is just my personal assistant. He's here to help out, so don't worry—he won't cause any trouble or hurt anyone."
Standing just a few feet away, Haruto blinked, a deadpan expression crossing his face as he thought, Yeah, yeah... keep telling yourself that, just keep finding new ways to bruise my ego publicly.
The entire unit began marching out in formation, their tactical gear clanking in rhythm. The commander of the battalion moved right alongside the recruits, matching their pace stride for stride.
Haruto watched them go, then leaned over to Daisy with an eager grin. "Hey, I need to level up too, you know."
Daisy groaned, crossing her arms as she gave him an unamused look. "This area is strictly for military training exercises—civilians aren't even allowed here."
"Oh, come on, please?" Haruto pleaded, flashing an innocent smile.
"Ugh, fine. If you're going to whine about leveling up, let's just go somewhere else," Daisy sighed in defeat. She strode over to her pink custom bike, revved the engine, and motioned for him to hop on. With a roar, she blasted past the restricted border zones, descending straight down into Layer 6.
As they sped along the winding subterranean highway, Haruto leaned in close against her back, shouting over the rush of the wind. "Hey, listen... does this bike have layer-jumping technology built into it?"
"Yeah, it does," Daisy replied, keeping her eyes fixed on the road ahead.
"Oh, nice! Is it expensive?" Haruto asked, his curiosity piqued.
"It's not just about money; the spatial matrix is extremely complex," Daisy explained.
"Ah, I see. Do all the girls have it?"
Daisy let out an audible sigh of exhaustion. "No. Only high-ranking military commanders have clearance for it... and me."
"Oh, cool," Haruto murmured, pausing for a second before another thought popped into his head. "Hey... can I ask you something else?"
Daisy groaned, rolling her eyes. "What is it now?"
"How come the entire military unit is made up of just girls?"
Without missing a beat, Daisy answered coldly, "Because I hate boys."
Haruto instantly choked on his own breath, snapping his mouth shut as an awkward silence settled over them. For a few minutes, the only sound was the hum of the engine. Finally, feeling a bit chastised, Haruto meekly asked, "...Even me?"
Daisy glanced back at him over her shoulder, her expression softening just a fraction as she saw his genuinely worried look. She let out a small sigh, shaking her head. "No... you're different from the rest. I actually think you're alright."
A quiet stillness settled between them as the bike hummed along the subterranean highway. Haruto broke the silence, his tone softening with genuine curiosity. "Then why do you push all the other guys away?"
Daisy kept her eyes fixed on the road ahead, her grip on the handlebars tightening just a fraction. A shadow crossed her face, her voice dropping into a somber, bitter tone.
"It's not just a whim... there's a reason. Where I came from before all of this, the old world was rotten. Men and boys ruled through cruelty and oppression. Every single day, thousands of girls were physically abused, harassed, and treated like nothing."
She paused, taking a slow, shaky breath. "Even down here in the new world, where things are supposed to be different, I still can't bring myself to trust them. Whenever I look at a guy, all I see is that same history repeating itself."
Daisy turned her head slightly, glancing back at Haruto over her shoulder, her expression softening into something uncharacteristically vulnerable. "But you... you're a little different. Even when you had the chance to fight back or overpower me, you didn't. You saved me, and you never once tried to use your strength against me or steal anything from me. You're always ready to help, going above and beyond what any total stranger would ever do."
Haruto blinked, a thoughtful expression crossing his face as he listened to her open up. Well, she's not wrong about how messed up things can get…
Before he could finish the thought, Daisy suddenly slammed on the brakes. The pink bike skidded to a sharp halt on the rough terrain, tires kicking up a spray of dust and gravel.
She turned back to look at him, her tone turning stern and business-like. "Alright, listen up. The tests for Layer 6 start right here, and it's definitely not safe to mess around. If you actually want to level up like you kept whining about, you're going to have to earn it by taking down some of these local monsters."
Haruto peered ahead, his eyes narrowing as he spotted a group of aggressive, chattering monkey-like monsters leaping across the jagged rocks ahead. He grinned, cracking his knuckles. "Easy enough. Just watch me bare-hand—"
"Hold on," Daisy interrupted, cutting him off. With a quick flick of her wrist, she reached into the side compartment of her bike and pulled out two small, sleek, perfectly balanced short swords.
She tossed them over to him, watching as Haruto caught them with a surprised look.
"Use these," Daisy instructed, leaning back against the bike with a calm, confident smirk. "Actually handling weapons will keep you focused. Starting from today, I'm putting you through formal swordsmanship training. It's about time you stopped being so lazy, and besides... it'll keep you under my supervision."
With a smooth, practiced motion, she pulled out a long, silver chain, hooking one end to the bike's frame and wrapping the other securely around her boots as she settled comfortably into a relaxed, cross-legged seat right on top of the bike's chassis, ready to watch the show.
Haruto gripped the twin short swords in his hands, but before he could even square his stance, the pack of aggressive monkey monsters shrieked and descended upon him in a furious blur, instantly overwhelming his defenses and pinning him under their sheer weight.
Seeing him struggling beneath the swarm, Daisy let out an amused sigh. With a flick of the silver chain attached to her boots, she effortlessly whipped the chain forward, slicing through the air and scattering the monsters away from him in a single, precise strike.
Haruto scrambled back up, dusting himself off. "How... how did you do that so fast?"
Daisy crossed her arms, looking down at him with an analytical eye. "Your physical reflexes are lightning fast, but your mental processing speed during combat is terrible. You can't win a real fight just by relying on raw instincts alone. So, starting now, I'm going to put you through a special training regimen—one that's going to be brutally strict, so you actually learn how to fight properly."
Haruto stared at her, thinking it over. Well, getting stronger wouldn't hurt...
Right as he started to nod, Daisy's lips curled up into a slow, mischievous devilish smile—the kind that promised absolute misery.
Haruto instantly froze, a cold sweat breaking out on his neck as his inner voice screamed in panic. Wait... no, no, no. This is definitely not going to end well!