CHAPTER 269: I’M BACK.

Neo-Vatra, White Hill.

The district known for its maze-like structure, with alleyways and passages that follow no plan or logic. The buildings expanded uncontrollably, their forms far removed from how they started.

Such a place was for the poor to live in, and unlike other parts of the city, it felt strangely quiet at night. The reason lies with the areas where people gather, which are usually concentrated in certain parts, or are located deep inside one of the buildings.

Either way, its complicated routes were empty most of the time, and if they knew their way around, even women could navigate it safely at night. Not that a woman brave enough to wander the district would fear what might happen in those narrow passages.

"Maria... you aren’t angry, are you?"

"... I’m not angry..."

"But you sound angry..."

"I’m not."

Two young girls navigated the maze with light steps, hooded cloaks covering their heads and bodies. Though they appeared familiar with the path they were taking, Something about their presence hinted that they didn’t belong to the area

"Everything worked in the end, right?" The one in the back said. "She hadn’t suspected anything until the end!"

"I said I’m not angry." The one at the front replied. "Be silent already."

"But..."

As they walked, a faint sniff broke the silence filling the alleyway, then another. They became more frequent with every passing minute, and eventually, a soft sigh brought them to an end. Coming to a stop, the girl leading the way turned around and stared at her companion before extending a hand.

With tears in her eyes, the second girl stared at the hand before her expression abruptly brightened, a brilliant smile illuminating her face. Not hesitating, she reached out and took hold of it, and just like that, the two of them continued their journey hand in hand. The first one wore the same stoic expression as always, but the second one beamed with a smile that banished the darkness of their surrounding.

Soon enough, they reached the building where their destination awaited. The trash and filth made it appear abandoned, haunted even. For that reason, one could tell that not a single soul has entered it for a long time.

The two girls walked through the main entrance and made their way to the elevators in the back. Though they appeared broken at first, one of them was still operational, requiring a certain command to work. Said elevator didn’t go to the upper floors and instead dropped down as if plunging deep underground. Once it reached the bottom, the doors opened up to an area that contrasted everything above ground, though there was still some dust and the occasional spider web.

"It has been a while since we came here, hasn’t it?" The cheerful girl said.

"Indeed."

A large alloy gate awaited them at the end of the corridor. Sensing their approach, it creaked and groaned as it split apart, revealing what appeared to be an endless tunnel shrouded in darkness. After a long walk and two more gates, they finally arrived at their destination.

Lights flickered on, revealing the interior of a cubic room that stretched for dozens of meters, causing the ceiling to appear rather high. As it had been a while since the place saw any visitors, the countless machines littering its floor were still and silent.

The monitors and terminals had no light, and the empty work benches had gained a layer of dust. The 3D printers and miniature fabrication systems suffered the same fate. From the looks of it, a lot of cleaning was in order, but that was something left for another time.

"Haa~ Home sweet home." The cheerful girl said as she removed her hood, letting the bright light shine on her milky white skin and short lime green hair. After taking in the interior with a nostalgic look in her emerald eyes, stars began to sparkle in their depth as she turned to the other girl. "Say, Maria, now that we have succeeded, shouldn’t we celebrate? Let’s get some ingredients and-"

"You should stop calling me that." The other girl said. "We no longer need those identities, remember?"

Tossing her cloak aside, she revealed her slender body, sharp eastern features, and the long blue hair cascading down her back.

"Ah! Sorry about that, Suzuka." The green-haired girl said, smiling apologetically. "I got too used to it."

"It’s fine. You’ll readjust soon enough."

Speaking in an even voice, she walked over to a nearby corner where a particular device was left. It was shaped like a capsule with half of it being made of glass, and with the type of padding lining its interior, it was easy to guess that it was a pod meant for a person to lie inside. As if sensing her presence, it suddenly came to life, and the lid opened on its own.

Suzuka stood over the terminal by its side, swiping her hand over the screen, removing the dust that had accumulated. She pressed her palm on it to unlock it, then fiddled with it for some time.

Once she confirmed that the parameters had remained as she had left them, she prepared everything and turned to her green-haired friend, only to see that she was standing far away, an anxious look on her face.

"What’s wrong?"

Faced with the question, the green-haired girl became even more troubled, her wandering down as she twiddled her fingers.

"We... we just achieved our goal, right?" She said in a small voice. "I thought we should celebrate, and..."

Though it seemed like she had more to say, the rest of her words never came. Watching her for a moment, Suzuka let out another sigh.

"Kizuna, how long has it been since you last had proper rest?"

"... Ah..."

"We haven’t done any maintenance in the last few years as well," Suzuka added. "There is some work that needs to be done before we can celebrate, okay?"

"But..."

Even after receiving an explanation, the green-haired girl still seemed reluctant. A frown slowly took over Suzuka’s expression, and as the seconds passed, she saw it fit to just give up.

"Alright, I understand." She said. "How about this? You will stay here and rest properly, and once we are done with your maintenance, we will go out to the city and celebrate the entire day. Okay?"

"The city!!?" As if she had heard a magic word, Kizuna beamed, her large, round eyes sparkling. "Really!? Are we going to the city!?"

"That’s right," Suzuka nodded, unable to stop herself from smiling. "Now, get over here. You want to be done as soon as possible, right?"

"Okay!"

With her mood making a dramatic turn, Kizuna skipped toward the pod. In her excitement, she almost climbed in just like that but remembered something at the last moment. Backing away, she quickly removed her cloak then the rest of her clothes and placed them on a nearby table. Once completely bare, she entered the pod and leaned back, still wearing the same smile.

"Say, Suzuka." She said. "This last adventure was a little boring at first, but it sure got exciting near the end, right?"

"Indeed."

"I really enjoyed being Miranda. Maria was super cute, too?"

"You think so?"

"Yes! I think Suzuka would look great in a maid outfit, too."

"Then, should we wear them again sometime?"

"Really!!? Can we really wear them again!!?"

"If it’s at home, then sure, why not?"

"Hooray!!!"

At that moment, Kizuna likely wanted to raise her arms in celebration, but the only thing that moved was her head. Suzuka gave her a glance then shifted her gaze below, to the exposed internals of the green-haired girl’s slender body.

The shell itself seemed unharmed, and none of the outer components showed any sign of damage. Even the cosmetic respiratory system appeared no different from when she first had it installed. None of the connectors had moved or come loose, either.

To be completely sure, a more thorough examination was in order, but it was fine to leave things as they are for the time being.

"Suzuka..."

Pulled out of her thoughts, the blue-haired girl looked up to find her friend wearing a troubled smile.

"Don’t forget to rest as well." She said. "You need it more than anyone else."

Caught off guard, Suzuka could only blink in response. Once she understood what was happening, a soft smile played on her lips.

"Kizuna..." Pausing for a moment, she reached up and patted her head. "Good night."

"Good night..."

Facing forward, the green-haired girl closed her eyes. As she watched her from the side, a notification appeared on Suzuka’s OAM.

[Kizuna has entered sleep mode.]

Heaving a sigh, she turned to her friend’s exposed internals and examined them once more. Before she knew it, a nearby workbench was beside her, and several tools were already out of their container.

Sometime later, she came back to her senses and realized that the night was already over. Though the prospect of continuing her work felt quite appealing, she forced herself to tidy things up and put away her tools. Once that was done, she gave the command to close the shell, returning the sleeping girl’s body to the way it should be. Watching her for a few more seconds, Suzuka backed away and tapped the terminal screen.

"... I should get going..."

After taking a quick shower and putting on some new clothes, she grabbed her bag and left the underground workshop.

Though the sun was already high in the sky by the time she left the maze district, the weather was as cold as it could get, signaling that winter was here to stay. What she didn’t expect was for the weightless white flakes to start falling from above.

Knowing the kind of trouble they brought with them, she hurried toward the train station, hoping to depart before the weather got any worse. Thankfully, the storm that gave her that scare never came, and she reached her destination before public transportation was brought to a halt.

Taking the large elevator to the ground level of the megastructure above which the station was located, she walked the rest of the way, keeping to the main roads and avoiding any of the alleyways. She soon found herself standing in front of a certain shop.

She looked up and studied the sign hanging over its entrance. "The Bowl of Fortune". To this day, Suzuka still doesn’t understand why it was given this name, even though she has heard the reason countless times already. Since it was still daytime, the lights were off, but the shop seemed open and so she pulled at the door, sliding it to the side.

"I’m home."

Noticing that there were no customers, she decided to say the words out loud. A moment later, she heard hurried footsteps from the other side of the counter, and soon after, a small old woman climbed over its surface, her eyes wide with shock.

"Suzuka!!?" Shouting the name, her eyes seemed to narrow for a moment before going wide once more. "Could it be..."

Seeing the familiar face, a pleasant smile bloomed on Suzuka’s face.

"I’m back, grandma." She said. "I’m back."