Special extra Chapter, thank you, cead_vin for the review.
Thank you for your support.
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Chapter 43: I Am the First of the Fatui Harbingers, Me!
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"Come in."
Seito opened the door and stepped inside, followed closely by Kanade.
She scanned the apartment with her usual quiet intensity, noting that while it was a bachelor pad, it was remarkably clean and organized.
"You can take this guest room for now," Seito said, pointing to one of the three bedrooms.
The three-bedroom layout was perfect; even with a guest, there was plenty of space.
"I understand," Kanade nodded, accepting the arrangement without complaint.
Seito headed to the kitchen to stow the groceries in the fridge. It was only 3:00 PM, so there was no rush for dinner yet.
"Kanade, when you set up your character, remember: put every single initial attribute point into Attack," Seito called out from the kitchen.
In the original stories, Kanade's combat intuition was flawless, especially with her Hand Sonic blades. Going full "Glass Cannon" was the most efficient way to utilize her natural talent.
"Mm," Kanade nodded, clutching her neural helmet.
"My IGN is 'Sei.' Add me as soon as you spawn in."
"Understood."
They retreated to their respective rooms. Kanade was far from slow; she had the hardware configured in minutes. She lay back on her bed and initiated the Direct Dive.
Meanwhile, Seito's figure flickered as he entered the game from his own room.
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God's Domain: Floor 11
Seito materialized at his previous logout point and pulled up his friends list.
Blank, Maple, and Sally were all online. Even the newcomer, Ako, was already grinding. He opened the Guild Chat.
[Sei: Where are you guys?]
[Shiro: Big Brother Seito~! I heard a girl moved into your house!]
[Sei: How do you know that?]
[Shiro: Hmph (｀^′). Maple told me!]
[Maple: Eh?!! I... wait!]
Maple's face turned bright red behind her VR interface. She prayed Seito wouldn't think she was gossiping about him.
[Sora: Sending coordinates. Come meet us; we're starting the Resistance Grind.]
[Sei: On my way.]
Seito punched in the coordinates and initiated a teleport.
Zap!
He appeared at the edge of the Floor 11 safe zone. The first thing he saw was Shiro's puffed-out cheeks and Maple's shy, averted gaze.
"Yo. Ready to go?" Sora greeted him.
"Almost. Just need a minute," Seito said. He reached out and picked up Shiro, perching her on his arm. The little girl immediately felt better, squinting happily as she leaned against him.
Sora didn't ask questions. If Seito told them to wait, there was a reason.
Meanwhile, Seito looked over at Ako. She was exactly as he remembered—clumsy but earnest. "How's the guild treating you, Ako?"
"It's amazing!" Ako chirped. "Everyone is so nice. I spent the afternoon leveling with Sora and Shiro; I'm already Level 22!"
The current roster stood at six:
Blank (Sora/Shiro) & Ako: Level 22
Maple & Sally: Level 21
Seito: Level 20
Seito was slightly behind, but he wasn't worried. With his current stats and a few Boss kills, he could bridge that gap in an hour.
[Notification: Player 'Kanade' has sent a friend request.]
Seito hit accept.
[Sei: Sending coordinates. Use the teleport function in your menu to find me.]
[Kanade: Okay.]
A second later, a pillar of white light erupted in the center of the group. As the light faded, Kanade appeared, wearing the standard Level 1 linen novice gear.
"Is this the one...?" Sally stepped forward, eyeing Kanade's ethereal features. "So, Kanade... you're really living with Seito now?"
Maple and Shiro both pricked up their ears, listening intently.
"Mm," Kanade nodded. "Seito-kun's house is quite spacious. And clean."
Maple: "(゜ロ゜)"
Shiro: "('⌒′メ)"
Shiro immediately wrapped her arms around Seito's neck, staring him dead in the eye.
"Big Brother Seito! I want to move in too! Buy a house next door!"
"Shiro, don't be unreasonable," Sora cut in.
"We have money, but we shouldn't waste it."
The Blank siblings had inherited a significant estate after their parents passed away in the same accident as Seito's parents. They weren't hurting for cash, but Sora was the pragmatic type.
"Hmph!" Shiro pouted. "We have millions of gold coins in-game. We can just sell some and buy the apartment."
Sora rubbed his chin. Seito was their closest friend in this world. Living next door to him sounded... actually, it sounded perfect. No more instant ramen.
"Seito, what's the real estate market like near your place?" Sora asked.
"Not bad. About a million yen for a unit. I'm on the second floor, and the other two units on my level are owned by the same guy who's looking to sell."
"That's cheap," Sora nodded. "Shiro and I will come find you tomorrow."
Tomorrow was Saturday—no school. It was the perfect time for a move.
"Count on it!" Seito grinned.
"Man, must be nice to have no adults around," Sally said, looking at the trio with envy. Her mother was constantly nagging her to study less and play... well, actually, her mother wanted her to play less. Maple was in a similar boat.
"Alright, enough talk," Seito said, his expression turning serious as he raised a hand. "Let's talk about the future of the Fatui. We are establishing the Eleven Harbingers, corresponding to the eleven seats of power."
"Currently, I am the 1st Seat. Sora and Shiro together will occupy the 2nd Seat. Maple is the 3rd Seat, and Sally is the 4th Seat."
"Ako and Kanade will start as Elite Cadres.
We'll start recruiting more members tomorrow, but for tonight, our mission is simple: Status Resistance."
Seito had to do it. The Eleven Harbingers was too cool of a concept to pass up. He could already imagine himself confronting a boss and saying:
"I am the First of the Fatui Harbingers, Me!" (Or maybe just 'The Captain,' but 'Me' had a certain flair).
He kept Sora and Shiro together because 'Blank' was a single entity. Together, they were invincible; apart, they were... well, agoraphobic.
The group nodded in agreement. The legend of the Fatui was officially taking shape.
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Thank you for reading.
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I will be starting a new translation you can check it out later on.