Welp, I'm back. Just the prologue today, nothing special. Life happened, I dunno. Well, enjoy!

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Volume 3 Cover Image:

drive@google@com/file/d/18oLhHpoGNBPPHeYaibZr22hlZDG5ESNW/view?usp=drivesdk

(Replace the @'s with dots. Dots are good.)

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Little Wing It

Volume 3

In A Virtual Reality Without My VisiPhone!

Prologue

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"Good Morning! Another beautiful day to get some work done!"

The door to my room opened suddenly, and along with it, an awful noise before I was even fully awake.

I knew I locked that door but, somehow, this girl was still able to invade my privacy just like that.

"Wha, Emilia...? Damn it, it's too early for your nonsense..."

"Nonsense? Too early? What are you talking about? Haven't you heard the saying, the early worm gets the bird?"

It's the other way around, you imbecile!

I turned to face away from her and covered my face with my pillow.

Hopefully, it'll go away if I can't see it.

"Hey, get up! We've got some work to do!"

No luck.

The light immediately assaulted my eyes as the pillow was forcibly taken from me.

Ugh, it's times like these that I kinda miss the lazy Emilia.

It's been a week now since Emilia's birthday, and the difference it made in her is astounding, to say the least.

She's now the one pushing to go on missions, with me and sometimes Yut being dragged with her without a choice.

It's a change that was heavily welcomed by the entirety of Little Wing, and especially Kraz, but there's a thing called being too enthusiastic, you troublesome girl!

Either be lazy just right or not! No need to always go for the extremes! And stop pulling on me!

Just as I was about ready to ask for divine intervention, though...

"... you've been behaving differently since your birthday party, Emilia. Sitting in your room, looking at your earrings, smiling..."

"Woah, time out! I-I don't remember such a thing happening!"

"... happily humming while cleaning the gun Kara gave you..."

"Stop, s-stop! I don't like the way this conversation is headed...!"

Oh, praise thee, Lady Mika!

As Emilia continued to complain to Mika who suddenly developed a mischievous side, I started fixing my bed.

Now that I think about it, though, it's been a while since Mika showed up. I haven't seen her since Emilia and Kraz had that fight.

Of course, she must have greeted Emilia in private, though.

"What's not to like? Your happiness is my happiness."

"W-who said I was happy..."

"And not only your happiness, Emilia. The happiness of the entire Gurhal System, as well."

Putting aside the girl who wasn't fooling anybody, Mika just said something interesting.

Once again, I felt nothing but sincerity from Mika's tone. The kind that calms the soul and puts you at ease.

The motherly kind.

But still, the entire system, huh? She certainly isn't someone who plays things down.

"... hey, Mika. Not that I don't trust you but, why exactly are you helping us?"

"It is quite simple. You are all my children. My sons, my daughters. My family."

"Children? Family?"

"The Ancients created the humans but we did not create them from nothing. I am the vessel from which all of humanity was born."

So as it turns out, Mika is the great ancestor.

Yeah, it's that kind of day, huh?

"What, really? So if we, say, trace everything back to the start, then you'd be our great great... something grandmother?"

I'm sure it's more than a couple of great's but if I tell Emilia that then we'd be here all day.

But still, what Mika said was certainly interesting information. I guess that explains why she's so easy to trust.

Mika looked a little amused at Emilia's epileptic trees theory but smiled and nodded, nonetheless.

"Something like that, yes. So it's only natural that I would wish to protect you."

"Wow... They say there's nothing greater than a mother's love... Not that I'd know, but..."

"Indeed. I may only be a program now but I think that's exactly what it is."

The tender moment was interrupted however, when the door suddenly opened, yet again.

Seriously, have these people never heard of knocking?

Oblivious to my inner complaints, Yut came barging in.

"Hey, you two! Err, wait, I can smell Mika. Hey, you three!"

"Knock, then enter! I swear, you never listen!"

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! Take your own advice, you hypocrite!

As I was about to give this girl a piece of my mind, however, she suddenly looked affronted at Yut.

"And what do you mean you can 'smell' Mika?! She doesn't smell!"

It's probably just some more of Yut's mystical Kasch tracking but I'm not about to think that Emilia would catch on to that first.

This time, it was Yut's turn to look affronted.

"It's not like that! Whenever Mika's around, I smell something sweet, like honey."

For a second there, I thought Yut couldn't actually see Mika and was just basing on smell alone but I quickly dissolved that notion.

He's clearly heard her before and has also described her as a golden lady. Maybe not just scent, maybe all of the Kasch's senses are spiritually attuned?

That aside, said honey-smelling lady seemed to have recognized what Yut was going on about.

"The scent of the Tethi..."

"What's a Tethi?"

"A flower I liked once, long ago..."

Just as I was about to say I've never heard of such a flower before, my vision suddenly changed.

For a moment, we were standing in a bright field of unfamiliar but beautiful golden-white flowers.

And just as fast as it happened, we were back in my room.

"W-what happened?! I saw something... Was that you, Mika?"

Mika nodded in affirmation.

What did she do?

Image projection?

I could understand Emilia seeing the flowers, since she is Mika's host...

But why me too? Because of our supposed link? Yut didn't seem like he got the vision so it's possible.

"There are no tethis in this time, but perhaps my spirit carries their scent, even if it is no more than numbers in my program."

"Hmm, nope, no good, I can't smell anything..."

"Well, nevermind that, for now. What did you come here for, Yut?"

Yut turned towards me as he heard my question, having been blankly watching our exchange.

I'm pretty sure he didn't come here to talk about flowers, after all.

"Right, Kraz sent me to get you. He said he had something for us to do!"

"Well, what are we waiting for? He doesn't like being kept waiting!"

I had half a mind to ask this girl if she ate something funny during her birthday. Since when was she this eager to please the boss?

But that can wait. We have a job to do. We've been on a great streak lately, we best keep up the good work.

It couldn't hurt to earn some extra, after all.

"Alright, let's go."