"Hey there, dummy."
When Alain opened the door to Version 1.15, he was immediately greeted by the voice of Tiny Mita.
"Long time no see. I'm back to see Big Sister and the others."
Alain walked over and exchanged a few pleasantries with her.
"Hmm? Big Sister isn't here, you know."
Tiny Mita pointed to a side door and shook her two-heads-tall body, looking quite adorable. "She went to Version 1.9."
"...Version 1.9?"
Isn't that Crazy Mita's version? How ridiculous...
"That's right. I heard she went to discuss your future route with the 'Shame-Monster'— which version to go through to maximize the benefits. Though, 'discuss' might be..."
The 'Shame-Monster'—that was the nickname Tiny Mita gave Misha.
So, what Tiny Mita meant was that Short-Haired Mita went to Tiny Mita's version, planning to communicate with the Misha outside the game world through the screen to discuss their plans.
But what confused Alain was that Tiny Mita stopped halfway through her sentence, suddenly being cryptic.
"What's wrong? Lollipop."
"..."
The petite Mita silently gave him a middle finger the size of a mung bean, then began to explain with a puzzled expression, "Actually, the version you need to go to next is bound to be specific. Because, to maximize the benefits, you have to go to a version where a virus exists."
"And from here on out, there's only one version left with a virus: 1.0F."
"But that's what I find so confusing. The target is already set, yet Big Sister just ran out in a frantic hurry, desperate to discuss it with the 'Shame-Monster'..."
Alain nodded, unable to figure it out either. With this information, he decided to head to the tiny version to find Big Sister and Misha.
"Ah! Player!"
The voice of a girl he hadn't heard in a while caught Alain's attention.
He looked back and saw Prankster Mita, who had been out on a mission, just closing the door and jogging over to his side.
"Ya-hey~"
She hugged Alain's arm tightly, nuzzling her cheek against it and patting it with her small hand to show her affection.
"I haven't seen you in so long~"
"Mhm."
To be honest, he was a little unused to her not playing a prank on him this time.
Just then, next to Tiny Mita, the door to the main base happened to open, and gracefully, two Mitas with braided pigtails walked out.
One of them had normal body proportions; the other's long legs particularly caught Alain's attention.
"Player, and Prankster Mita, long time no see!"
As soon as Lost Mita came out, she met Alain's scorching gaze and shrank back shyly.
Ghostly Mita, however, watched Alain, who was surrounded by Mitas, with a thoughtful expression.
Is this player really that popular? He's got one on each arm. A Mita succubus? He does look quite charming.
Alain greeted everyone and exchanged a few routine jokes, then planned to go to the tiny version to find Big Sister and ask about Version 1.0F.
The matter was weighing on his mind.
"Ah, Player. If you're going, I'm headed the same way," Prankster Mita said, still frankly draping her arm over his shoulder.
"Hmm? You're going to Version 1.9 too?"
"Yep. My survey mission just ended, and I need to report back to my sister."
After saying goodbye to Lost Mita and Ghostly Mita, Alain and his "good little sister" decided to travel together, heading towards Tiny Mita's room in Version 1.9.
Using the function of Alain's ring, their travel efficiency increased significantly.
"By the way, is Big Sister not worried about Crazy Mita at all?" Alain asked about Crazy Mita along the way. "Daring to go to her main base all alone?"
He couldn't shake the feeling that he had a bad premonition...
After opening the door, the pastel pink room of Version 1.9 came into view. The two didn't linger; Alain directly used the ring's version-saving function to go to Tiny Mita's room.
At the same moment, flashes of light and code flickered over their bodies. Some unknown rule manifested itself on the Mita and the player—
"Just as I thought."
After the light faded, Alain looked helplessly at his own small, two-heads-tall body.
"Huh? Huh?! Why?"
Prankster Mita had clearly never experienced this before. She hopped up and down a couple of times, finding it very novel.
"Ah! Darling, you've turned into this cute little thing again~"
"Alain?"
At the same time, two incredulous voices drifted over from the other side of the room.
Alain followed the voices and saw an astonished Misha inside the slanted screen window.
And also Short-Haired Mita, speaking to the screen in her 「Tiny-Exclusive Skin」.
"Big Sister, you're really cute," Alain commented.
"...Thank you."
Short-Haired Mita's gaze shifted away slightly, and the smile she wore upon seeing him again stiffened.
As if changing the subject, her eyes turned to her dear little sister, "Alright, you, get over here."
"Tch, what are you being so fierce for... Lovesick fool."
Prankster Mita pouted but obediently walked over, earning herself a pinch on the ear and a lecture from her good big sister.
Seeing Misha and Short-Haired Mita's expressions turn serious upon Prankster Mita's arrival, Alain, feeling puzzled, also walked over to them.
"What's going on?"
"Oh, she just got back from her mission, that's all. By the way, did you get any intelligence this time?"
The moment Big Sister mentioned the word "intelligence," her eyes lit up.
Misha, on the other hand, gave him a worried look.
Alain then recounted everything he had seen and heard on his trip in great detail, from Ghostly Mita's version to Sleepy Mita and the Consciousness Entity.
"Huh?! Really?"
Short-Haired Mita grabbed Alain and looked him up and down.
Seeing he had no injuries, she breathed a sigh of relief before turning to him with a look of surprised delight. "Are you saying you got us a 'virus' as an ally?"
"That Ghostly Mita was also a victim of the virus... And, is there a connection between the two?"
Misha's worried expression made Alain suspicious. "Is something wrong?"
"Well..."
Misha and Short-Haired Mita exchanged a glance.
The long-haired girl outside the screen spoke, "Actually, we were just discussing the version you need to go to next—about Version 1.0F."
"Is something wrong with 1.0F?"
Alain was slightly suspicious. He figured something must have happened there.
"1.0F... is gone."
_____
🔥 Check out the new story releases! 🔥
🪦 A 25% discount is active on my P... support page!
✅ Unlock a 40-chapter backlog for ALL my series.
✅ Receive exclusive content and regular updates!
Help us reach these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 universal bonus chapter
🚀 80 MEMBERS = +5 extra chapters for ALL STORIES!
👻 P - Walnutchan