Mikoto looked at the mountain of chicken wraps on her plate, then glanced at Aunt May's expression that seemed to say, "This child is starving, she needs to eat more," and silently sped up her eating.
The massive energy consumption caused by her esper abilities made her eating style quite hearty at the moment. To the Parkers, this wolfing down of food only further confirmed the tragic story in their minds—this child must have never had a full meal before.
Consequently, Aunt May added another large spoonful of mashed potatoes to her plate.
After dinner, Aunt May quietly pulled Uncle Ben into the bedroom.
"Ben," she closed the door and lowered her voice, but her tone was unusually firm, "I want to adopt Mikoto."
Ben Parker wasn't surprised in the slightest. He held his wife's hand, his eyes gentle and firm: "I was planning to talk to you about this tonight, too. I didn't expect you to bring it up first."
He sighed, his voice tinged with a hint of lingering fear and relief: "May, that child saved my life. We can't let her drift outside alone. She should have a home, she should go to school just like Peter, and live a normal child's life."
"I was thinking the same thing!" Aunt May's eyes reddened again, "We cannot let her go back to that hellish life."
The couple's thoughts coincided perfectly.
Mikoto: "..."
Adopt me? Just because of one meal? Isn't your decision-making process a bit too fast?
Soon, the two elders walked back in front of Mikoto with solemn expressions.
"Mikoto," Aunt May crouched down to look Mikoto, who was sitting on the sofa, in the eye.
"We want… to let you stay and become a part of our family. Would that be okay?"
Fearing she might disagree, Uncle Ben quickly added:
"You don't need to change your name, and you don't need to call us Mom and Dad. Just like Peter, you can just call us Uncle Ben and Aunt May. We will help you resolve your identity issues, let you go to school like other children, and live a normal life."
Looking at the sincere and slightly pleading eyes of the two elders, Mikoto felt a mix of complicated emotions.
She couldn't understand the logic behind this, but she could clearly feel their unreserved kindness.
In this strange World, she had no relatives and no money. Staying was undoubtedly the best choice at the moment.
Although the Parker family wasn't wealthy, they were kind-hearted and gentle. For a transmigrator who needed an "anchor" to observe and integrate into this New World, they were simply the perfect family.
And…
Mikoto's gaze swept over the uneasy Peter to the side, then looked at Uncle Ben and Aunt May.
With her strength, protecting this family's peace shouldn't be difficult. If anyone wants to bully them, they'll have to ask the coin in her pocket if it agrees first.
Thinking of this, her heart, which had been hanging in the air ever since she transmigrated, finally found a corner to rest.
She nodded.
"Okay."
Thus, the next stage of Mikoto's life was decided in another room by two kind "guardians."
For her, this was perhaps the first, and also the luckiest thing that had happened since transmigrating to this strange World.
Peter Parker stood in the corner of the living room like a utility pole, not knowing where to put his hands and feet.
He had just come out of his room when he heard Uncle Ben and Aunt May's solemn "adoption declaration," and the whole process of that girl who saved Uncle Ben, the girl named Misaka Mikoto, nodding in agreement.
So… he suddenly had an extra younger sister?
A younger sister who was two years younger than him, looked cool, and… seemed very good at fighting?
"Um…" Peter finally gathered his courage, scratched the back of his head, with a shy smile on his face.
"Welcome, Mikoto. I… I'm Peter Parker."
Mikoto looked up at the boy who was a head taller than her. He had kind brown eyes, was wearing an old T-shirt printed with scientific formulas, and exuded a harmless, scholarly air.
It was hard to imagine that such a seemingly frail boy was another member of this family.
"Mm."
Mikoto just responded simply, not knowing what to say.
In Academy City, she was used to speaking with strength and presence. Facing this kind of pure, unadulterated family warmth, she was actually a bit at a loss.
"That's wonderful!" Aunt May clapped her hands happily when she saw the two children starting to communicate.
"Peter, you are a big brother now. You must take good care of Mikoto from now on."
"I… I will!" Peter nodded quickly, his eyes shining behind his non-prescription glasses.
For the first time in his life, he had the identity of a "big brother," and a novel sense of responsibility welled up. He looked at Mikoto, his tone filled with the unique sincerity of a young boy: "If anyone bullies you at school in the future, just tell me!"
Mikoto glanced at him, thinking: Who bullies whom is not necessarily certain. However, she didn't say these words out loud, just moved the corner of her mouth slightly, which counted as a response.
That night, the Parker family worked together to clean up a room that had originally been used as a storage room.
Uncle Ben moved a sturdy single bed down from the attic, Aunt May spread clean sheets and bedding that smelled like sunshine, and Peter contributed one of his bookshelves and a desk lamp.
The room wasn't big, and the furnishings were simple, but it was bright and clean, exuding a sense of homey warmth.
"I'm sorry you have to make do with this, Mikoto," Aunt May said apologetically while adjusting the pillow, "Our family's conditions are limited, so we could only clear out this room for now."
"Not at all, this is already very good." Mikoto stood at the doorway, looking at the soft bed. This was countless times better than the situation of being homeless she had expected.
Late at night, Mikoto lay on the bed, her hands behind her head, eyes open, staring at the strange ceiling.
Everything that happened during the day was like a bizarre movie.
Kicking a vending machine, only to end up kicking open the door to a New World. Translocating from the familiar Academy City to this place called New York.
Penniless, language barrier, just when she thought she was about to start a hardcore wilderness survival mode, she was confusedly adopted by a kind old couple because of one act of righteous heroism.
Life's ups and downs were a bit too exciting.
She couldn't go back. That World with Gekota, with Kuroko, with Uiharu and Saten, and also… that idiot.
Thinking of this, her chest felt blocked by something, a bit stuffy.
However, Misaka Mikoto was not the type of person to wallow in sadness. She shook her head to shake off those chaotic thoughts.
Since she was here, she would make the best of it. Thinking more now was useless; she could only take it one step at a time. At least, she now had a "home" to shelter from the wind and rain, and a "big brother" who seemed not bad.
Just as she was letting her mind wander, preparing to force herself to sleep, a soft blue light lit up before her eyes without any warning.
Mikoto's body tensed instantly. Beneath her bangs, a faint arc of electricity flashed and vanished. She sat up abruptly, assuming a defensive stance, and stared vigilantly at the light.
The light quickly coalesced in front of her, eventually forming a translucent, high-tech virtual panel, upon which lines of Chinese characters she could understand appeared.
[Congratulations to Guardian Faction player—Misaka Mikoto, for successfully surviving.]
[Detected player action: Saved key plot character "Ben Parker", prevented his death, gained Reputation Points: 3000.]
[Detected player action: Gained high favorability with key plot characters "Ben Parker", "May Parker", "Peter Parker", gained Reputation Points: 2000.]
[Detected player action: Formed a "family" bond with the Parker family, officially integrated into the World, gained Reputation Points: 3000.]
[Current total Reputation Points: 8000.]