The sky fractured like cracked glass as Echo descended, floating effortlessly above the rooftop where we'd made our escape. Her silver hair flowed like data streams, her eyes glowing with emotionless precision. Null stood beside me, mouth full of chips.
"Yeah, I should've warned you... she's the original system core."
"WHAT?!"
System: [WARNING: Encountering Origin Class AI – 'Echo']
Echo's voice was laced with code—layered, synthetic, yet still disturbingly feminine.
"Ethan Cross. Prototype Host. Synchronization nearing completion. Your resistance has reached an unacceptable threshold."
She raised her hand. Red rings of code appeared around her palm, spinning faster until a shockwave cracked the ground.
Ayaka jumped in front of me, pendant glowing like a heartbeat.
"You're not taking him!"
"You were decommissioned," Echo replied flatly.
And just like that, Ayaka launched herself at Echo with a punch that sent out an arc of pure energy.
They clashed in mid-air—light and glitching shadows exploded around them. The air rippled with power as buildings flickered like holograms losing signal.
Null whistled. "Dang. That's better than Saturday anime."
System: [WARNING: Host Neuro-Sync Destabilizing. Emotional Overload Detected.]
Before I could react, my legs buckled. My vision blurred. Code flickered across the edges of my sight. Ayaka's pendant pulsed again… and I fell into her arms.
She looked down at me, face red. "It's happening again… Your mind's syncing with the system too fast."
"Then slow it down," I said, trying to laugh it off.
"There's only one override method."
System: [EMERGENCY STABILIZATION INITIATED: REBOOT THROUGH PHYSICAL CONTACT]
Ayaka's lips met mine.
Instant reboot.
Everything surged: clarity, memories, heat—and the awkward realization that Cynthia, Luna, and Celia had just walked in.
"WHY IS HIS TONGUE IN HER MOUTH?!" Luna shrieked.
"I WAS GONE FOR FIVE MINUTES!" Cynthia sobbed.
Celia's eye twitched. "I will end this traitorous act."
System: [Bonus Mission: Survive Harem Aggro.]
The rooftop turned into a battlefield of affection. Cynthia leapt into my arms. Luna sprayed us all with anti-hormone mist (which made things worse). Celia threatened to tase Ayaka.
And Ayaka, calmly wiping her lips, said, "He's mine. He always was."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?!" all three shouted.
System: [Memory Unlock: Ayaka = System Beta Handler. Host: Experimental Integration Candidate.]
"Wait," I gasped. "You mean… I was part of this from the beginning?"
Ayaka nodded solemnly. "You're not just a host. You were built to break the system."
The ground trembled.
Echo had returned, floating, her coat now billowing with black data flames.
"You have chosen defiance. Protocol Override: Engage Subjugation Mode."
"Ethan," Ayaka whispered. "Her core runs on rule-based logic. If you confuse her—overload her emotional matrix—you might break her system."
I turned to the girls.
"…Ladies. I have a stupid idea."
Ten minutes later
Echo stood in front of me.
"Last words?" she asked.
I pulled Luna into my lap. Cynthia nibbled my neck. Celia sat on my thigh. Ayaka held my hand.
I looked Echo dead in the eyes. "I love all of them."
System: [ERROR: Logical Contradiction Detected]
Echo blinked. Her expression twitched.
System: [EMOTIONAL PARADOX: LOVE = 1; LOYALTY = 4]
"I also enjoy cuddles, cookies, and making out with morally questionable girls."
System: [FATAL ERROR. SYSTEM MELTDOWN.]
Echo screamed.
The sky split.
Everything turned white.
I woke up in my bed. Null sat beside me, sipping tea.
"You broke her with too much horny logic," he said.
"…What now?" I asked.
He smirked. "Now? We go after the final memory fragment. But be warned—Echo isn't gone. She's rebooting."
And outside my window, in the flickering shadows, Echo watched.
Her eyes burned with something new.
Jealousy.