"All right, then, let's end this story here!"
"Huh?"
"Anything further is a family matter."
"You go and stir up all this curiosity, and then just stop?!"
Kiana smiled apologetically at March 7th, who had puffed up her cheeks and cried, "That's unfair!"
First you fan my curiosity to the max, then slam the brakes on me like that?
Honestly, I'd be justified if I got mad about that.
"Well, I don't particularly mind telling you... but there's so much noise coming from beside me."
"What? Bronie isn't saying a word."
"No, I mean not Bronie next to me... Hmm, this actually needs some explanation."
Kiana scratched her cheek, hesitating over how to answer, but the dilemma didn't last long.
After all, using her head wasn't exactly her strong suit.
And she herself didn't fully grasp what was happening to her right now.
"Sigh... it would have been easier if either my husband or Bronie had shown up."
"Your mom and dad?"
"Yeah, you said you could feel warmth and ki when Bronie hugged me earlier, remember?"
"Yeah, I can feel it right now too."
"Normally, you shouldn't be able to feel it."
Especially the ki.
"You mean I shouldn't be feeling it?"
"Exactly. Because right now it's as if I've entered a virtual reality through a VR device."
"Virtual reality?"
"Yeah."
Virtual reality—in English, "virtual reality," abbreviated VR—is an artificially created environment or technology using computer systems or similar means that resembles reality but is not actually real.
Such constructed imagined environments or scenarios stimulate the user's senses, providing spatial and temporal experiences akin to reality, thus allowing one to traverse freely between the real and the imaginary.
Users not only immerse themselves in virtual reality but also interact with the simulated environment via actual devices—issuing commands or manipulating objects—creating experiences rather than passively undergoing a unidirectional simulation.
"Although it's engineered by the system to be identical to a real body, my current form is unequivocally a virtual body."
"A virtual body? It looks exactly like the real thing."
"Right? That part surprised me too. For VR, it felt incredibly lifelike. But since Bronie says she can even feel ki..."
Honestly, it made me wonder if everyone here is just a VR construct.
As she spoke, Kiana swept a piercing gaze around them, a faint smile playing on her lips, and they all felt a chill run down their spines.
Only Welt, however, spoke up, teasing Kiana in a manner unlike the others.
"No matter what, I think that's a bit rude, Kiana."
"See?"
Welt's well-timed remark instantly defused the tension that had hung in the air.
Dan Heng, March 7th, Stelle, and Bronie all let out relieved breaths, while Himeko placed her teacup back on its saucer with a trembling hand.
Could this really be the Harbinger of Finality... no, it's Lady Kiana herself.
Despite none of them being pushovers.
What surprised her even more was that Dan Heng and March 7th... and the girl called Stelle had been similarly affected.
Even Himeko, who was considered a veteran fighter, had shown signs of fear in an instant.
"Huh? Wait a second."
Something feels off.
Given their relief, it made sense that the younger ones had reacted that way.
After all, it was the Harbinger's aura they were sensing.
However, there was one person—Bronie—who shouldn't have been completely overpowered by it.
True, it had been a year since she'd trained under her parents, but experience never fades.
Besides, Bronie had never slacked off on controlling her ki, managing her stamina, or her physical training.
In fact, if she sensed something to learn even from a weaker opponent, she would suppress her auxiliary ki as much as possible to match the conditions before fighting.
So it would be stranger if she hadn't reacted that way when caught off-guard.
Had she reacted like Himeko, they'd have chalked it up to feeling the Harbinger's aura again after so long.
Also... why did I feel no discord when Kiana mentioned having a husband?
It made sense that Bronie had called Kiana "Mom," since she'd done so ever since she was little.
But as far as I remember, she hadn't married the Captain?
"Hmm... that's odd. I never expected you to find Bronie's reaction weirder than what I said."
"Hm?"
"But since I said it'd be less shocking if you realized it naturally, maybe this is for the best? Now that the barrier's weakened, it's our chance."
"Kiana?"
"It's about time to wake from the dream."
"Wake from the dream? What do you mean—"
At that moment, as Kiana snapped her fingers, the surrounding environment began to waver.
Startled by the sudden shift, I quickly called out to everyone around me, but somehow none of them could move, as if time itself had frozen—then they all turned into light and vanished.
Not long after, Welt realized that everyone except Kiana and himself had disappeared, and he slowly turned to face her.
"What is this?"
"I told you."
"When it's time to wake from the dream."
No sooner were the words out than he felt as if his body was being yanked forcefully backward.
Watching Kiana recede in an instant, Welt instinctively reached for the staff he'd been carrying—but stopped in shock when he felt nothing, staring at his hand.
"?!"
Instead, what he saw were his arm turning translucent and his hand vanishing from view.
And it wasn't just his hand.
His entire arm, legs, and body were all dissolving into light.
Though he felt no pain, seeing his body vanish made him let out an involuntary cry.
Simultaneously, he gasped in a deep breath as if he'd fallen from a great height—pain flared across his back.
"Gasp...! Gasp...!"
His vision filled with bright light, and somehow he glimpsed a familiar ceiling.
No, it was definitely familiar.
He was inside Cheonmyeong's facility—in the lab of a man he knew well.
Realizing that, he quickly checked his body.
And upon confirming his limbs and body were intact, he exhaled in relief.
But why was his body strapped to something inside the lab?
He noticed a structure reminiscent of a massage chair, then reached up and removed a helmet-like apparatus from his head.
"Ah, you're awake."
"...Captain?"
Turning toward the familiar voice, he saw the Captain—looking somewhat tired—welcoming him with a cup of coffee.
Confounded by the sudden situation, Welt looked at the Captain and got to his feet.
"...Ugh!"
The sudden ping in his head made Welt clutch his forehead and nearly collapse, but the Captain caught him just in time.
Grateful for being kept upright, Welt nevertheless decided to ask his question.
"What on earth happened, Captain?"
Actually, I'm not sure if anyone remembers, but there was a time when the recommendations, comments, bookmarks, and notifications suddenly surged, and I was tempted to bail on the story.
Back then, someone—I'm not sure who—started dumping donations into my lap to keep me from dropping out.
I was forced to write when I got overwhelmed, but now that's just a memory.
I couldn't resist the allure of real cash, so I made a rule: if it topped 100 coins, I'd post consecutive updates; below that, I couldn't run away.
No, it was just forced daily serialization... ha. Even if I got over 100 recommendations, I'd still post the next chapter.
I distinctly said this wasn't a serialized novel, so why did I let that happen?
So why am I suddenly telling you this?
The other day, I popped back into Novelpia after a long time, and I was grinning at the lower pre-coins than last time, when I stumbled upon something.
You want to know what I found?
Honestly, stop it already!
Why are you trying to keep someone from bailing?!
There are even people who I never see around!
And why are there people who left, then suddenly did a U-turn and came back?!
Just mind your own business and go!
Did anyone really think I wouldn't run away just because they donated?!
...Well, no, I'm actually too scared of another cash smack-down to really do it.
Anyway! Who wrote these comments?!
Who spread the rumor that I'd only serialize if I got donations?!
Looks like that person saw those comments and dumped donations!
That's not going to turn this novel into a daily publication!
So please, just go away!