"It's fine, my dear." Inside the room, Misha sat on a high chair, dangling her long legs, her thoughtful gaze fixed on Alain.

"That one just now... that was Prankster Mita, wasn't it?"

"Nope." Alain, admiring the girl's legs, denied it without a shred of hesitation. "That was Crazy Mita."

"..." Misha pouted. She was jealous, but she didn't want to bother him.

"That was a force of nature."

As the two were talking, the door creaked open. The short-haired girl from before walked out. This time, however, Alain's gaze was different. He sized up "Big Sister's" profile. She was as serious as ever. But knowing it was Prankster Mita in disguise, he couldn't take her seriously.

"What's wrong, my cute Big Sister?" he teased. Since she hadn't changed back, it meant there was still another, unknown prank waiting for him. How should I tease her next time?

But the short-haired Mita who appeared this time, hearing Alain's greeting, just gave him a strange look. He fell silent. Why does this Mita feel so fierce... and why does she look so annoyed with me?

He noticed some subtle differences. Prankster Mita was lively, so her clothes were inevitably a little wrinkled, and her bow was a bit crooked. But this short-haired Mita... her clothes were neat and clean, impeccable. Even the bow on her head was straighter than Prankster Mita's.

"Ow, ow! Sister, stop pulling! It hurts!" A new voice came from inside the room, confirming a certain suspicion.

With a push of her slender hand, the door swung fully open.

There stood two girls with identical appearances. One had tears in her eyes, her body bent over as she endured the pain of having her ear pulled. The other girl—the culprit pulling the ear—had an expression of utter solemnity.

"You were told to properly entertain the guests. Now tell me, what did you do?"

"I... I... I was just playing with my Player, wasn't I?" The girl being punished, now clearly Prankster Mita, looked pitifully at her stern sister. When she realized that was having no effect, she glanced over, pleading for help from Alain.

"Big Sister," Alain spoke up to mediate, "she was playing with us just now, and we had a lot of fun."

Misha chimed in from the side. "That's right. This child's pranks are very interesting, and they aren't dangerous. We just finished a major incident and needed to relax a little." She smiled gently at the two short-haired Mitas, like a true older sister. "So, we should be thanking her."

Misha's persuasion was remarkably effective. The stern, short-haired sister pondered for two seconds, then finally let go of Prankster Mita's ear.

"Hmph." The older sister sighed, then looked toward the two guests, particularly the ever-composed Misha. "You must be Misha."

"Hello. It's... been a long time, hasn't it?" Misha gave a slight bow, her perfect etiquette making the short-haired Mita take notice.

"The last time we met... was when you were heading to the Core, I believe?" she said thoughtfully, then glanced at her younger sister, who was now pouting. "I was originally going to have that one explain things clearly to you."

Prankster Mita hung her head with a gloomy look, but Alain patted her shoulder encouragingly. "It's okay. We had a lot of fun just now. Thank you."

"Mmhmm! I knew you were the best, Player!" She immediately hugged Alain's arm, rubbing her cheek against it affectionately.

"The explanation is a bit pale and feeble on its own," the older sister said, her gaze falling upon Alain and Prankster Mita, who were stuck together. "This way..."

She led the group toward a machine in the corner of the room. A machine resembling a gaming console caught Alain's attention.

"The function of version 1.15 is, roughly... the birthplace of Mitas."

"I see... that's very much in her style."

"You can try operating it like this..." the short-haired Mita said, demonstrating with her hands.

Alain walked over to the machine and, under her guidance, pressed a red button on the side. A mannequin-like puppet then slowly walked out from an entrance on the left, stopping in the center of a "screen."

"This is... a Failed Work?!" Alain almost drew his greatsword, but Misha stopped him.

"Wait, Alain. It's a little different." The long-haired girl's slender fingertip pointed at the observation window. "The puppet's face..."

Only then did Alain realize that the puppet's "eyes," compared to a Failed Work's, were clear and limpid, not at all empty and extreme.

A blueprint was produced, and after a step that resembled an inspection, she pulled a lever.

Ding!

With a chime, the puppet was imprinted with a Mita's appearance. The factory-default clothes were then given to the newborn Mita. The new Mita, like a newly hired employee, bowed respectfully to them, then took her clothes and departed.

"I see," Alain and Misha said, a little stunned.

"As for where she's going..." the older sister continued her duties as a guide, explaining the contents that would greatly influence Alain's happiness and... carnal happiness.

_____

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