"Hmp?!" Hytile let out a surprised noise.
Being the only one on the previously empty stage, everyone's gaze couldn't help but drift toward him, expecting Hytile to say something after someone made them gather here.
Quickly understanding the situation he's in, Hytile didn't step off the stage; instead, he decided that he'll be the opener instead, before leaving the actual announcement to Kanum.
Hytile stood on the stage with great dignity and confidently took charge, leveraging his experience from being the proctor during the number of Resonance Days he had organized ever since he took over this Resonance Hall.
"IF ANYONE IS MISSING FROM YOUR GROUP, PLEASE GO GET THEM; WE'RE ABOUT TO START." Hytile announced loudly with his voice, finding no reason to use his voice amplifying sequence when most guests are already gathered in one spot.
After saying that, Hytile looked to his left at the building he came out from, specifically at two adult figures watching him in admiration, both with their own reasons.
"Get over here," Hytile silently whispered, gesturing for Shelt and Kanum to come over.
Unintentionally, since Shry was also in the direction Hytile was gesturing, Shry thought Hytile needed him for something, so he also made his way to the stage, incidentally meeting up with his parents on the way.
"Mr. Luftra! What's that?" Shry said out loud as soon as he got there, trying his best to get his voice across the sea of noises.
Not showing any signs of being surprised, Hytile was about to address Shry when suddenly, Shry, unable to contain his curiosity, began running to the stage.
*Bwooom*
A soft but bombastic sound similar to the sound of a balloon being smacked rang out as Shry's body bounced off a black transparent barrier, sending him to the ground, a result that he had grown too familiar with.
"C'mon, Dad! Isn't that box for me anyway?" Shry raised his voice with fake agitation, secretly missing this kind of interaction.
Encountering a very familiar black transparent barrier, it was easy for Shry to come to a conclusion on who it is that stopped him.
"We have to make it a spectacle!" Kanum answered simply before walking over to his son.
Without warning, Kanum began to deliberately stare at Shry without saying anything, becoming unnaturally quiet for his character.
"Uuuuhhh... Dad?" Shry questioned, tilting his head slightly in confusion.
Even though Shry was on the receiving end of Kanum's relentless stare, he didn't feel uncomfortable at all; he just reciprocated the stare, just as serious as his dad, as retaliation.
"Heh, yup, this is my son alright!" Kanum said with a smile, both on his face and through his words, finally retracting his deep stare.
Initially, after their sudden realization that they've gotten too caught up with their objective, becoming distant from their don, Kanum was extremely concerned as to how they could repair their relationship, or if they could at all.
All of a sudden, it was like their relationship with their son went from the closest it could possibly be to a mere acquaintance, though that may not have been how Shry truly felt.
And after that, as they were about to meet up with their son again, after their moment, Kanum couldn't take it anymore and went forward, taking initiative to check their relationship with their son, and in the end, it turned out to be positive.
"Come on, what are you doing?" Shelt reprimanded Kanum, but the way she spoke and her facial expressions gave away how she truly felt at the moment.
An extremely uncommon smile was on Shelt's face, revealing where Shry got his amazing smile from.
"You guys go to the side for now; I'll call for you guys when we're ready," Hytile said, sensing that their operation might be derailing.
...
"HELLO EVERYONE, YOU ALL BE READY FOR WHAT COMES NEXT, BECAUSE TODAY WE'RE GOING TO MAKE HISTORY!" Kanum took over the stage, announcing with so much energy, it actually managed to shake the hearts of everyone there.
Before they started their announcement, since the opening of the event had essentially been done already, it was Hytile's turn to take over the stage.
*YEEEEAH, HUUUUU, WWAAA* Different sounds of cheering blared out from the crowd, not even knowing what they were cheering for, as Kanum's infectious energy permeated through their souls.
"ALRIGHT! WITHOUT FURTHER ADOOooo..." Kanum stretched his voice, ramping up the excitement, until...
Kanum gently kicked the box, causing the mechanism that held it down to unhatch and reveal a pair of finely crafted metallic exo-hands/gauntlets, one that is about the size of a kid's or maybe a teenager's hand.
"WE REVEAL TO ALL OF YOU TODAY...! THE FRUIT OF OUR LABOR, THE GREATEST INVENTION OF OUR ERA, AND MOST IMPORTANT, THE FUTURE FOR OUR SON!"
Hearing the last phrase of Kanum's crazy proclamation, Shry knew that it was his cue to reveal himself on stage, the main character of the current event.
"Come on, try them on!" Kanum significantly lowered his voice as he encouraged his son to wear their gift.
Finally getting a glance at the surprise that they had been hiding from him, Shry, although he still doesn't know what the gauntlet does, he can somehow feel how significant this pair of gauntlets is.
(That... is...) Shry moved his mouth, but no noise came out.
Continuing to look at the pair of gauntlets, Shry felt an intense emotion welling up inside, bobbling as he hoped that the gauntlets right before his eyes were what he thought they were.
*THE GAUNTLET, SILVER LINING* The name of the gauntlet was revealed, voiced out by Kanum like his voice was coming directly from the deepest depths of his soul.
It was then that Shry took a step, and as he did that, it was like he could hear a singular low note ring out; however, it was only him that could hear it.
Another step forward, and again another note rang out, higher and sharper than the last.
Finally, the last step, the step that symbolizes the third year, the present, the most obvious and cohesive sound, a note in its climax.
"..." Silently, Shry picked up the gauntlet, and suddenly, all sounds disappeared around him. All he could hear... was his own breathing and heartbeat.
Shry placed the gauntlet on his right hand first, clicking the straps together one by one, each one accelerating his heartbeat more.
*Tak* the last strap, clicked together, louder than the rest.
It was then that Shelt finally came into the picture, helping Shry set up the gauntlet by inserting an orange node canister that's uniquely shaped to fit the gauntlet into a slot above Shry's wrists.
(...is that...maybe...) Hytile thought in fragmented words as a crazy idea suddenly came to mind.
Quickly running to the storage room while everyone was distracted, Hytile frantically scoured for the Node Canisters he had stored up for experiments.
Running back from his search, Hytile stepped on stage, almost interrupting the moment, but luckily he restrained himself before that happened.
Quickly pulling Kanum aside, Hytile whispered his thoughts and ideas for the gauntlet, each whispered word causing Kanum's eyes to widen more and more.
"There's a slot for normal Node canisters below the wrist... Let's do it." Hytile, with his inside knowledge, told Hytile about the other Node canister slot that they didn't think would be used that much or even at all, pausing his words for a bit before giving off a maniacal grin.
Now tainted with this absurd idea, he went to his wife's side while she was calibrating the gauntlet and whispered what Hytile just told him into Shelt's right ear, causing her to have a similar reaction to when Kanum first heard the absurd idea.
"Wait here for a momen..." Shelt said, looking over to Hytile before stopping what she was going to say.
Shelt, wanting to explore this possibility in deeper detail, almost reverted back to their old ways, leaving Shry out while they discussed their plans. Luckily though, she was able to go against her logical nature and stop herself before the hole she dug got deeper.
"Let's just do it now; he's smarter than you give him credit for." Hytile jumped in and extinguished their conversation before embers could spark.
Going over to Shry, Hytile went to check if there was really a slot for the standard Node Canisters, taking and flipping Shry's left hand over with no resistance, which alarmed Hytile due to how limp Shry's hand was.
"Hey, are you—" Hytile turned to look at Shry's face, and what he saw stopped his speech, not because of something bad but something baffling.
It looked like Shry would burst into tears of joy at any moment. His face was filled with joy but also a small hint of pain that only those who are close to him would notice.
(You're smart enough to figure out what this gauntlet really is, huh... Good job) Hytile thought internally, while giving off a very smile on the outside.
Immediately after that, it wasn't hard for Hytile to locate the position of the receiver for standard Node Canisters.
A circular indent with two notches in the center of it was exposed and easy to identify while also being susceptible to elements like water and dirt, an oversight on the crafter's end.
"Hey Kanum, Shelt, when you make version 2, remember to add a latch that covers the receiver so dirt or other kinds of gunk doesn't get stuck in there," Hytile said to the couple while fiddling with the gauntlets, ejecting the custom node canister on the right gauntlet and replacing it with a normal light green node canister.
Hearing Hytile's suggestion, Kanum made a note of it in his mind, a loosely placed one since it'll only take about a week before he forgets it. While Shelt on the other hand, took the suggestion to heart, as she is the one in charge of crafting the shape and intricacy of the gauntlet.
The dynamic between Shry's parents and Hytile was strange; although Hytile is older than them, it is only by 2 years, and yet, Hytile seems to always take the elder or mentor position when he's with them.
"Alright, Shry, get going," Hytile encouraged, guiding Shry to the front of the Resonance Hall by gently pushing him.
...
In front of the Resonance Hall again
Having entered these halls hundreds or maybe even thousands of times, Shry had become numb to its significance, broken even, after it failed him countless times.
But now... He stands before it, having conquered every hurdle it threw at him with his family and friends, now ready for his new evaluation.
Casually, Shry dug through his pockets, searching for something specific through the forest of items in his pockets.
Finally, slowly pulling out his hand after 20 full seconds, the item he was searching for was finally revealed.
A beautiful white and dark blue box with marble patterns, with the dark blue replacing the veins, giving it a water-like aesthetic.
And inside this box, a very special item that few get to own, not just in their country but in their entire world.
Opening it, it reveals a controller, fitted snugly inside the box with not much room for it to maneuver.
With the lid opened, Shry flipped the box upside-down, holding it up with his right hand while planting his left hand underneath to catch it when it falls.
(This is it...)
Gripping his controller, Shry remembered all the times he had failed to get a result, and now, in his hands, everything was under his control.
Raising his finger, though it didn't seem like it took a long time for Shry to press the open button.
Internally, while his finger was slowly landing on the button, it was like Shry was rewatching and doing everything on the Resonance Day until his vision suddenly flipped to the present when his finger landed on the button, personally taking his fate in his own hands.