My High School Life Is Not As Quiet As I Expected It To Be

by Rikalukizi

During the accident Hachiman was recorded by a bystander and so he receives attention that he was not used to getting. Watch (Read) as he goes through his everyday high school life that he did not expect! Inspired by BoringBone (HachimanXEveryone) (Lots of anime cameos) Reviews Extremely Appreciated

4. Chapter 4

MY HIGH SCHOOL LIFE IS NOT AS QUITE AS I EXPECTED IT TO BE

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[Saturday, 13th April]

[The Mall]

"We used to go to the same class in middle school…" I rubbed the back of my neck and introduced her "Her name's Kaori Orimoto" She wore an orange shirt and underneath it was a tight black long sleeved shirt, complimented with a pair of black skinny jeans and black wedge shoes.

"Hey there~ Nice to meet cha~" She greeted cheerfully to which Miura responded with a nod and a polite smile.

"My name's Yumiko Miura, nice to meet you too" She greeted back, Orimoto returned the nod and turned to the other two behind her.

"These two are my friends; Chika Nakamachi and Tamanawa Kuronawa, we've been friends since our first years" She introduced.

"Hey! How's it going?" Nakamachi greeted; she wore a simplistic style of a deep blue hoodie, black skinny jeans and white skateboard shoes.

"Hello there" Kuronawa greeted formally; he wore a white long sleeved collar shirt under a black vest, complimented with black slacks and dress shoes.

Miura and I greeted back the superficial greetings with a nod "So~ What're you doing here, Hikigaya-Kun?" Orimoto asked.

"Just helping with the bags" I answered, nudging my head towards the bags at the bench "I see you're making Kuronawa helping you too" I turned towards Kuronawa who had a lot more bags in his grasp compared to mine, good thing Miura's picky…Kuronawa put his bag down and gave a comment.

"Well a gutto jantulman would always help a lady in need and a good gentlemen will always be asked for help from avriwan, therefore everyone would be able to go on life much more easier and that would make school work more easier, I feel that school is already hard for some students and because of that I will help those students make their life easier" He said while doing some weird hand movements.

What…The hell is with this guy? Is he playing charades? And does he even know he's using the some words in English and Japanese? My brain hurts just from listening to him blabber…

Nakamachi sighed and held her temple "Haa~ Come on Tamanawa! I had enough of your speeches already" She complained "You don't need to practice your student council speeches on us, you know?" Kuronawa flinched at that, embarrassed.

"He's in the student council?" Miura asked.

"Nope! But he wants to join it, and if possible to be the president of it this year; so he might be a little energetic about it" Nakamachi explained. Well I hope he fails, seriously he's Student Council speech is borderline bragging and fake promises…

"And I'm going to be in the student council too!" Orimoto added "I don't know what position though but anything's fine with me" For someone who wants to join it, you sure are casual about it…As always…

"I see…" Miura said then turned towards me "Speaking of extracurricular activities, Hikigaya-Kun, are you going to join a club at our school?" She asked.

"No" I answered curtly, there's no way in hell I'm going to join a club anytime soon seeing as there's no reason to do so…Plus every club has that unwritten rule to 'Get along with your club mates'

"Huh? Why? You used to join a sport club every year during middle school" Orimoto said, making me feel dreadful "You even received a medal from the principal, right? I don't know why everyone laughed though…" She said the last part quietly to herself. Damn it, Orimoto! I knew the moment she opened her mouth bad memories would come up…

"You received a medal?!" Miura exclaimed in surprise.

"He got straight A's in sport tests too" Orimoto further added, stop it!

"…How do you know this?" I asked, avoiding eye contact as a means to stop myself from giving her a pointed look.

"Oh um…" She hesitated a little, noticing my change of behavior probably "Well…We've been classmates for three years so…I'm bound to remember anything major that happened…" She answered.

G-Guh…Well that was a stupid question…Of course she would know since she's a classmate…Didn't think anything other than that certain incident would matter to her though…

"...I see" I said, after inconspicuously breathing in some air.

"T-That's pretty cool!" Nakamachi commented, although the way she said it suggests that the less than comfortable air between me and Orimoto might be showing a bit…

"Hm I agree, it's an impressive achievement" Kuronawa added somewhat neutrally. Even though they are no more than superficial praises, somehow I feel uncomfortable yet tingly receiving them…It's been a long time since I heard those from someone else other than Komachi.

"But you sure have changed, Hikigaya-Kun~" Orimoto continued, this time with a more uplifting spirit "Back in middle school, even though you always seemed nervous, you always used to mingle around with the boys, now you're way more reserved hahaha" She laughed.

"Well…I guess I matured a lot" I shrugged in a show of arrogance. You were the one who made the last hit on my head that made me realize to change though…

As everyone talked to each other, I went and secluded myself by the fountain to not ruin the fun. Orimoto must've seen the video, her friends too probably. Otherwise she would have made fun of me as soon as the topic regarding our middle school years come up…

But she didn't and even praised me so that definitely means she saw the video…Well either way, she would still approach me…I don't know if she would do the same thing or look at me the same way though…I glanced at the four that were chatting away…Make that three…

"By the way, Hikigaya-Kun, do you still have my phone number?" Orimoto asked as she approached me.

"No, I think I lost it" I lost most of my contacts after the accident.

"Do you remember it?" Can't say I do since I barely use it for communication, I shook my head "Give me your hand" Without waiting for me to respond, she took my left hand, making me flinch, and took out a pen maker from her beige purse. The contact made me feel a little flustered…

She wrote a horizontal line of numbers on the palm of my hand which made me squirm, I raised my hand to eye level and read the number. I looked at her with a raised brow "What's this?" And why the heck do you need to write it on my hand…?

"Hehehe, just like in the movies, huh?" She grinned, I don't get the reference though… "That's my phone number make sure to remember it this time and add me to your contact list" She ordered, I don't know what she's aiming for but I complied anyway with a nod.

"Yeah, sure" If I was Past!Hachiman right now, I would've fallen for you the moment we had skin contact…While Orimoto was talking about the movie they were watching, I noticed Nakamachi approaching us…Or more particularly, Kaori from behind; she raised her pointing finger and placed it on her grinning lips.

"Chika kept talking about this movie called 'The Number 23'. Apparently it's an English movie so it'll be a bit hard to understand but at least our academics will increase right? Plus Chika said the main character is played by Jim Carrey so I think it's going to be funny"

"'The Number 23', huh…" I decided to humor her seeing as she's still here "I think I saw that movie once, didn't had a lot of comedy in it but it was pretty interesting to say the least"

"Welp as long as it's nothing too scary, I'm fine with anything" She replied, Nakamachi stopped behind her and proceeded to quickly, judging from her movement, write an imaginary number seven on Orimoto's back "Seven!" And then poked both of her sides "Up!" In response, Orimoto jumped up a bit.

"Eek! Chika! Don't do that!" She scolded, Nakamachi rubbed her head and grinned playfully.

"Hehehehe sorry~ talking to those two was a bit…Difficult" We turned to the other two and can see that a heated debate was going on and surprisingly Kuronawa was holding his ground against Miura…Maybe he can be part of the student council…

But what's strange is that I can see a giant snake behind Miura and what's even stranger is a pair of hands behind Kuronawa that followed the movement of the persons hands…Did I had too much coffee…? "Man~ I'm so bored of waiting for this movie to start! What time is it?" Nakamachi asked; Orimoto simply showed her watch to her "11:45 Am, huh, alright, 40 minutes to go…So what are you guys talking about?"

Orimoto was about to answer but Kuronawa appeared and dragged her to Miura…The debate just got louder "…We were talking about that movie you guys are about to watch, 'The Number 23', main cast; Jim Carrey, right?" I answered in her stead.

"Yep! You like Jim Carrey, Hikigaya-Kun?" Can't say I don't, I always watched any movies that were entertaining together with Komachi. Even though there were embarrassing adult moments, we still laughed and cried together watching them.

"I'm on the fence on most celebrities, Jim Carrey movies I like in particular though are YesMan and Bruce Almighty" I answered.

"Oh! Oh! Do you have a copy of YesMan? D-Do you mind letting me borrow it?" She asked, obviously holding back her excitement. Looks like we've got ourselves a movie fanatic… "Since it's a really old movie, I couldn't find it in any video store and I rather watch a purchased one, please, Hikigaya-Kun?" She pleaded as she slapped her hands together and lowered her head.

"S-Sure, I think I have it but don't get your hopes up, it might have scratches on the back" Sheesh someone's a bit too excited…

"Well I had a couple of scratched CDs and it still works so let's just hope this one does too. Thanks, Hikigaya-Kun! I really like Jim Carrey movies so in return I'll let you borrow any movies that I have. I've got lots of them by the way, so don't be shy to ask for em!"

"…Are you serious?" So by lending someone a single movie, I now have access to other multiple movies for free?! I totally did not expected that…Nakamachi grinned and nodded "A-Alright…Thanks…"

"Hehehe you're welcome; now let me give you my number since we're not from the same school, we'll have to discuss later on how we're gonna do the trading. Oh and by the way I saw Kaori writing her number on your hand before so you don't mind me doing that too?" She grinned, taking off the cap of her pen marker she procured from her small handbag.

"I don't mind…" She lifted the same hand that Orimoto wrote on and wrote down her number below hers.

"Okay there you go! It's nice to finally have a movie friend!" She grinned and then bumped her fist onto my shoulder.

…A movie friend? My mind went blank on how easily she considered me a movie friend but I couldn't correct her as she continued to say something

"You know, I didn't feel sporty last year, so I joined a film club and thought that it would make me relax instead of running and sweating"

"Relatable" I nodded seriously but it elicited a giggle from her.

"Hahaha, right…? But…I was wrong" Her tone changed and it felt so miserable that even I can sense it seeping out of her…Wonder what happened…? "I had a lot of trouble dealing with some people in it…The club adviser, a white haired guy named Gintoki Sakata and two other members; Shinpachi Shimura, a pair of glasses wearing a human, and Kagura a girl who looks like a kid but is actually super strong…There was even a big white dog!"

…Shit! The Yorozuya?! Even Sadaharu's there?!

"I know it sounds crazy"

"It kinda does but-"

"But I'm telling the truth!" She grabbed my shoulders and looked at me in the eyes intensely.

"Y-Yeah, I believe you" What the heck have they done to her?!

"It was the worst year of my life!" She started to have swirls for eyes.

"C-Calm down, Nakamachi, think of the movies!" That was the only thing I could think but it seems to be working. Without letting go of my shoulder, she breathed in and out while repeating some kind of mantra in a low voice, after a couple of seconds she let go and returned to normal.

"Phew~ sorry about that Hikigaya-Kun, I got a little crazy there, didn't I?" She smiled with a little bit of red on her cheeks. Well I'm not surprised…Haa, why do those Yorozuya keep crossovering here…? "Remind me not to speak about this ever again?"

"Definitely" I agreed which got me a smile from her…I apologize on behalf of the Yorozuya, Nakamachi; I internally bowed to her.

Now that I think about it, I'm having no problem talking to both Orimoto and Nakamachi…I also had no trouble talking with Miura and Yuigahama yesterday…I may have a bit of trouble with Yukinoshita though…

Maybe I could actually have a friend…Nah…They're only like that because of the video, otherwise Miura wouldn't have talked to me, Yuigahama wouldn't felt that bad and Orimoto…She would only talk to me if I was right in front of her eyes and her friends would join in and it ain't gonna be a nice conversation either I bet…

"By the way, do you have any particular movie that you want?" I was too deep in my previous thought that I took a bit longer to think about it but luckily Kuronawa appeared.

"Sorry, Hikigaya-San but you'll have to answer that question some other time" He said "We only have 10 minutes until the movie starts" He explained and then Orimoto appeared along with Miura.

"Nice meeting you again, Hikigaya-Kun" Orimoto said "I'll text you later so make sure your phone's alive, okay?" I nodded in response.

"Alright, we'll talk about the DVDs later, Hikigaya-Kun, It's nice to meet you and Miura-San" Nakamachi said, nodding towards me and Miura.

"Even though we didn't converse much due to a certain someone, I hope we'll meet again soon, Hikigaya-San" Kuronawa said which provoked Miura.

"Ah? You got something you want to say to me, Kuronawa?" She said vehemently but it doesn't seem to affect him that much, he kept his calm and did…More weird hand movements again.

"If I had anything else to say, which I do, I would have already conveyed it but seeing as we have a movie to catch, we'll have to continue our 'conversation' some other time" He finished and went to get their shopping bags…Was he playing a clarinet?

"Grrrr that guy pisses me off!" Miura growled, eliciting a wry laugh from the other two girls.

"Welp at least he made a new friend!" Orimoto smiled happily.

"We're not friends!" Miura exclaimed.

"Ok you two let's go, have a good day, Hikigaya-Kun…Ah you too Miura-San" He said the last name deliberately as an afterthought.

"Bye Hikigaya-Kun, Miura-San~" Orimoto waved diminutively.

"See ya later" Nakamachi nodded.

"Ah see you…" I took the courtesy of bidding them goodbye as Miura was busy glaring at Kuronawa… "…Can I go home now?" I turned towards Miura who was already stomping her way to the elevator, I followed and after she pressed the upper level button she turned around.

"I feel really pissed off right now, so let's go to the arcade. I need to lose some steam" What the heck did you talked to Kuronawa about?!

"Haa, alright" I conceded, when Miura went to lose her steam with a shooting and punching game, I made a mental note not to anger her…She broke the score record on the punching game but she was wailing in pain after the impact. After that we went to get my phone and after a couple of more window shopping and bag lifting, we decided to head home, much to my pleasure. We headed to the underground parking lot where Miura's car was parked.

"By the way, Hikigaya-Kun, why were you so quite and nervous before?" I went wide eyed a little at the question, I guess she really did notice, huh…Perhaps my tendency to observe people may be rubbing off on her. I didn't answer her and just walked in silence "…Thanks for shopping with me, Hikigaya-Kun, I appreciate it" She said with a smile, changing the subject.

"Yeah…You're welcome" I replied as we reached the entrance of the underground parking lot; her car was already parked in front of us with the butler standing by, well ain't that convenient. He took the bags from my hands and bowed to me…Err should I bow back? This is the first time I've been bowed to…I didn't get to do anything though as he curtly went to put the bags away and went back to the driver's seat…A man of action, huh…I like him already…

"I'll see you at school on Monday, 'Kay?" Miura entered the passenger's seat at the back and then rolled down her windows but stopped midway so I could only see her eyes "Oh and um…Hikigaya-Kun?"

"Yeah?" Why are your ears red?

"I…I…I think…You're really nice too!" She exclaimed earnestly and leaned forward which must've accidentally rolled down the rest of the windows…Revealing her blushing face. I felt my own face heat up from the earnestness of her thoughts and from seeing her own blushing face, she noticed the fully rolled down window and turned away, I also did the same and rubbed the back of my neck.

I readied myself for the incoming yelling…But it didn't came…Err Miura, this is supposed to be your cue to yell something incoherent at me…Come on! Say something!

"…See you at school…" She said, still not looking at me.

"A-Ah see you…" Was all I could say as the window rolled back up and the car drove away…That wasn't what I was looking for though…Haa, that was awkward…After seeing off Miura, I headed towards home. Sheesh I had to deal with a lot of people today and it was pretty tiring…

As I walked along the sidewalk, I thought about how Miura…Behaved when we parted; was that the first time she said what she thought of me? If so, then no wonder she seemed embarrassed…The distance between us shrunk a bit today if her honest outburst was any indication of that and I think that's bad in my perspective…Plus, I'm not nice, that was obviously a misconception of me…Wonder what made her think of me like that though…?

During my musings, I noticed a cafe at the other side of the road. A small building that had a vintage feel to it with a sign board outside that read 'Anteiku Cafe' was placed between an electronic shop and a shoe shop.

"Hmm…I could use a cup of coffee…Hope she won't yell at me though…" I walked across the zebra crossing and arrived at the cafe, seeing as it's been a long time since I've visited I braced myself to get yelled at and pushed the door open, eliciting a bell ring, and entered the building.

"Welcome to Antei- Oh Hachiman-Kun, welcome back!" At the counter stood Kaneki-San, with white hair and onyx eyes, a college guy who wore black trousers, a gray waistcoat over a white dress shirt, completed with a brown necktie "I hope you're ready for Touka-Chan, hahahaha" He laughed.

"Don't worry, Kaneki-San, I'm ready…Did you dye your hair?" I asked, observing his hair. Last time I came here, I was sure he wasn't into fashion.

"Haa…No, Rize-San did, she forced me to dye it" Classic Witch Rize-San "She said it would make me look less like a bookworm" He explained with a wry smile; well it's working in my opinion.

"That reminds me, how are the others?" I asked as I took a sit on the stools and placed the bag of burgers on the counter.

"Everyone's fine, I think Touka-Chan also began her second year of high school at Kaihin Sougo, while Hinami-Chan's starting her second year of middle school. Rize's starting her next semester of college. Right now Enji-San and Kaya-San are at their home, saying the younger ones should replace them on weekends" He answered, rubbing the back of his neck "But they made Nishiki-San in charge if we were the only ones working; I think he's sleeping in the guest room upstairs right now" I looked towards the grandfather clock…It's way too late and too early to sleep…I'm so jealous…

"At 2:00 PM?" I asked with a raised brow.

"A-Ahaha…Yeah…He said he was bored. Oh and Yoshimura-San, Ukina-San and Eto-San are going overseas for a fan signing. They both are really proud of her" He further explained before turning around to make some coffee. Well they're pride isn't misplaced, that's for certain.

I've been coming to Anteiku ever since my third year of middle school, the first time I came I just wanted a cup of coffee but that was hard to do when a big guy with a hockey mask and two men wearing white coats were having a stare off with each other.

After the tough guys exited the building, Kaneki-San apologized for the disturbance and explained that they were fighting…Over who will get the last cup of milk coffee…Coffism is spreading very well at the time…My initial thoughts of them being enemies were discarded when he further explained that they were actually good friends…What a strange world we live in…

Also; a reoccurring event had developed between me and two people, when one day I visited for another cup of coffee, a little girl named Hinami asked Kaneki-San a question regarding an English subject. Seeing him struggling prompted me to help. At that time she was in her 6th grade and I was impressed by her crave for knowledge. Hinami would always asked me questions if I ever visited.

As for the second person, who's really tough to deal with sometimes due to her brash attitude; she saw me teaching Hinami from time to time and would sometimes, at the insistence of Kaneki-San, ask for tips regarding anything that she find difficult to understand; she would sometimes get angry if my explanation is too…Complex…

The doorbell rang and a girl with purple hair which covered her right eye, wearing a purple hoodie and black jeans with matching running shoes, came in along with another girl with straight brown hair and a headband with two four-leaf clover decorations on it "Kaneki, here's the milk you asked for-Hikigaya?!" She exclaimed when our eyes met.

"Ah, Hachiman Onii-San!" The little girl ran to me and hugged me.

"A-Ah, hey there Hinami…A-And Kirishima…" Crap…She's already glaring at me.

"You've got some guts coming here after abandoning me, I almost failed the fu- the test!" She caught her words and looked at me with contempt, making me unable to open my mouth. Thank god, Hinami is here but what the hell?! Can't you just study by yourself?!

"Now now Touka-Chan, you wouldn't want to scare off our long-time customer right?" Kaneki-San intercepted the situation.

"Tch! Whatever!" She said sulkily and climbed upstairs.

"…Phew, thanks Kaneki-San" He nodded with a smile at me, I turned towards Hinami and asked "So how's Ryouko-San doing, Hinami?" She filled Losers bowl with food before answering, I always wondered why his name is Loser…

"Here you go, Loser, eat up…Mom's fine, she's helping dad with work right now" She answered and then sat on the stool next to me "You know, ever since I got into middle school I learned a lot of English words but I have a hard time memorizing proverbs, hehehe" She shyly said.

"Yeah, that's usually how it is but don't worry, you're smart, just write down notes like you always do when learning and you'll eventually remember it" I advised and stroked her head, she nuzzled back in response.

"Hehehe thanks Hachiman Onii-San" She replied; she has that crave for knowledge like Komachi does, so I'm sure she'll have an easy time with any subject, not saying she's a super duper genius though.

"Here you go Hachiman-Kun, regular coffee, right?" Kaneki-San offered as he put down a cup of coffee in front of me.

"Yeah" I nodded before grabbing the warm beverage and taking a sip "…Delicious like always" As expected from my favorite cafe.

After a couple of minutes, the bell rang again signaling that someone had entered the premises. A girl with long silky black twin tails, wearing a white long sleeved shirt with a picture of a chibi black furred cat on it, she complimented with a deep blue skirt and high heels. I almost chocked on my coffee when I realized who this person is.

"Welcome to Anteiku, Miss" Kaneki-San welcomed politely, she just stood there silently as we had a staring contest of sorts, I won though since she dismissed my overall presence.

"I'll be having a strawberry cake with a cup of milk tea please, thank you" She placed her order and went to the corner, bringing a laptop with her.

"Understood" Kaneki-San complied and went to the back to prepare the food items. Meanwhile I tried my best at ignoring her back as I drank my coffee just like I always do when I come here.

"Do…Do you know that girl, Hachiman Onii-San?" Hinami whispered; who has been doing some paperwork all the while, her voice seemed kind of antsy somehow…

"Hm, not exactly…" I replied.

"Oh thank goodness" She sighed in relief "Someone that beautiful couldn't have been Hachiman Onii-San's girlfriend"

"Hinami…You know me so well" I said happily but am actually in fact very saddened; to think someone so young could understand and see my social standing, the future generation is very hopeful…

"A-Ah I didn't mean it like that!" She hurriedly responded, waving her hands in a fluster.

"What's all the hubbub about?" Kirishima asked as she appeared from descending the stairs and then noticed the second customer at the corner "Has Kaneki already taken that girls order?" She asked us to which we nodded "Alright, so what's with all the noise?" She asked as she took my cup and went to refill it.

"Err, I wasn't asking for more…" I said.

"Well too bad!" She simply replied "…Tch, then just don't pay for this one, you oaf…" What the heck kind of employee calls the customer an oaf…?

"Don't worry, Hachiman Onii-San, that's just her way of being nice" Hinami explained with a smile which made Kirishima flinch a little "Touka Nee-San, I think Hachiman Onii-San knows the girl at the corner…"

"Huh…" She glanced at Yukinoshita at the corner of her eye "…Pfft yeah right, no way someone like that is his girlfriend" She dismissed with a wave of her hand as she placed the coffee in front of me.

"Why do you two keep assuming I can get a girlfriend in the first place?" I asked as I took a sip.

"Good fuc- question" She replied in frustration before grabbing the food items from the newly appeared Kaneki-San and went to deliver it to Yukinoshita.

"What did I do this time…?" I asked anyone but didn't get any answer, only knowing sighs…An even more irritated one from Hinami…

"So…May I ask how well do you know that young lady?" Kaneki-San questioned as he was cleaning the glasses with a damp towel while Kirishima and Hinami were busying themselves at the back.

"We are perfect strangers" I answered.

"Good" He smiled "You wouldn't be Hachiman Hikigaya if you had friends"

"…What kind of employees does this place hire?" I ask incredulously, do they train their employees to burn me specifically? God damn…Although I don't mind it one bit, the relationship I have established here is just like that of a regular customer to employees despite our strange interaction.

Couple of minutes has passed and things passed by in bliss as I just sat there and read a novel from my phone while taking a sip from time to time "…Hikigaya-Kun" Imagine my surprise when Yukinoshita all of a sudden beckons me to sit at her table.

I ignored her but then felt her icy glare stabbing my back so I promptly took my coffee and brought it with me to sit at her table "…Can I help you, Ice Wom- Yukinoshita?"

"Have you said anything regarding the accident to anyone?" She questioned with an authoritative tone as she typed away at her laptop.

"Ah a checkup, huh…No I haven't said anything to anyone…" I answered taking another sip to warm myself up, sheesh her aura can even be felt…

"Good, now have you thought up of something on how you will be using my favor to you?" She further asked "The thought that someone has a favor over me is a displeasing thought"

"Well aren't you honest…And no, not yet" I answered, eliciting a small but heavy nod from her…With that over, I noticed Hinami, with a book in her hands, approaching and turned towards her.

"Hachiman Onii-San, can you help me?" She asked to which I nodded "Do you know what these mean?" She pointed with her pencil at the questions on her homework, hm proverbs, huh.

"'The more the merrier' means the larger the number of something the better the situation is" At the corner of my eye, I noticed Yukinoshita looking inconspicuously at Hinami "'Hitting two birds with one stone' means getting much more benefit from a single action and 'The apple doesn't fall far from the tree' means there's a similar trait between two people"

"Oh~ okay! Thank you, Hachiman Onii-San!" Hinami said, smiling brightly…Making Yukinoshita's cheeks go red a little, looks like someone's a big fan of cuteness…After that Hinami left us and went to the back.

"Are you sure you're giving the little girl the right information? It worries me that she is asking questions from someone like you" Someone like me? Is this girl trying to pick a fight…?

"Oi oi oi I may not seem like it but I'm very confident with my knowledge" I defended with fake gusto.

"Oh? How can I possibly believe that? Your eyes are telling me you're lying" She replied taking her eyes off of her laptop and looked down at me with a smirk; this bitch!

"You'll just have to wait for the first midterm exam on the 18th May, you'll see my infinite knowledge then!" You ice witch!

"Hm, alright, let's see how smart you are with the exam, although I doubt you are my level" She boasted, your modesty knows no bound…With that we continued what we were doing previously, I drank my coffee while watching the cars pass by while Yukinoshita continued her work on the laptop but kept glancing at the back, for Hinami I'm guessing.

This feeling I'm getting…Ah I felt this when I was at the mall…This time it came from…Yukinoshita. I took a peek at her and saw how she responded with an icy glare, I turned back to count the red cars that pass by. Yep…It's definitely from her…Heh, funny…Out of all people, Yukinoshita's the only person I couldn't think of who would do anything else if the video didn't exist…Maybe…I turned towards her and asked "Hey…Can we be-"

"Absolutely not" I didn't even finish asking! "I would prefer to not be associated with some weirdo who has rotten eyes" She explained, eyeing me with a cold look.

Says the weird girl…Your personality is pretty unattractive even though your face says otherwise… "Never mind then…" At the corner of my eye, I noticed Kirishima and Nishio-San holding their mouth, trying to stifle their laugh behind the counter along with Hinami and Kaneki-San giving me supportive smiles. Great, why do they have to gather now?!

"By the way…Are you well acquainted with the workers in this establishment?" Yukinoshita asked as she finished the last bit of cake she has, glancing at Hinami all the while.

"I've been a regular here ever since third year of middle school, so yeah I know them a little but not so much as to consider them my friends" Some of the workers and customers here are really strange though.

"Haa, they have to put up with you, huh" Looks like someone's jealous…

"At a certain perspective, yes" I said before chugging the rest of my coffee down.

"Now that I don't have anything else to say, I'll be taking my leave" She stood up, took her laptop and went to pay her bill "I'll be looking forward to seeing your exam results, Hikigaya-Kun, even though my expectations for that are quite nonexistent" She walked through the entrance and exited the cafe, well that was a cruel goodbye…

"Do you want anymore coffee, Hachiman-Kun?" Kaneki-San asked as he approached me.

"No thanks, I think I should go home too" I gave him my cup and stood up, not forgetting the bag of burgers "I'm already tired from meeting so many people in one day, I'm just not built for that…" I looked towards the grandfather clock, 3:00 PM, didn't even notice one hour just passed…I went to the counter and paid my bill.

"See you soon, Hachiman Onii-San!" Hinami waved cheerfully, if this was a maid cafe, you would be the most popular one.

"Finally, you're leaving!" Kirishima exclaimed, and you would be the most popular with masochists.

"Oi~ Hikigaya-Kun, don't forget to tip me next time" Nishio-San reminded, you didn't even talk to me today!

"Yeah yeah" I grasped the door knob and exited the building. After walking a long distance, I finally arrived home; unlocking the door, I entered "I'm home" I called out but received no answer, hmm Komachi must be still with her friends.

After putting the burgers into the refrigerator and changing into more comfortable house clothes, I decided to play Dark Souls on my Nerve Gear in my room to pass the time. After a couple of hours of farming souls and progressing the story as well as dying a lot in the process, I went downstairs to get some water.

…Oh it's almost night time, better get the laundry. After finishing that, I drank a cup of coffee and then heard the front door opening "I'm home~ Onii-Chan, you here~?" Komachi called out with a cheery voice.

"In the kitchen" I answered back "Welcome home, Komachi" I greeted as she arrived.

"Here you go, Onii-Chan, I bought you your all-time favorite, MAX Coffee!" She put the coffee on the table ceremoniously.

"Oh~ thanks and I bought us some burgers" I opened the fridge and showed her the food.

"Aw~ thanks Onii-Chan~! Ah I know let's eat it together tomorrow and watch a movie!"

"Sure" I nodded and closed the fridge.

"Imma take a shower now, Onii-Chan, I've been going around a lot today; it's so hard being popular~" She whined as she left the kitchen, I decided to turn on the lights for the night. With that done I went ahead to study considering how I just challenged the smartest girl in my school…I know I'm gonna get a low rank but I know how to semi-win this challenge, heheheheheh…

While I did that, Komachi appeared wearing a comfortable looking shirt and short pants…Which are mine "You were studying, Onii-Chan? I thought you would be lazing around since it's the weekends"

"Nah that will be for tomorrow; also, can you not wear my stuff?" Komachi raised a brow.

"You even have schedules for being lazy now?" She remarked, ignoring the second part of my sentence.

"Since the first term exam is a couple of weeks away I thought that cleaning the rust off of my brain would be nice" I further explained.

"Oh~ I see" She took a peek at my notes "…Too bad our materials are way off, I wanted to help you with your study"

"You needn't to do that, you should just worry about your own studies, alright?" I suggested.

"Hm…Okay~ well I don't want to disturb you so I'll be watching TV now~" She said and left the room, leaving me to my studies. After a two hour session of difficult formulas and complex cell reactions, I decided to take a rest and went to get some snack, while going downstairs I saw the television was turned on but there was no sign of Komachi, however when I got down there I saw her lying down on the sofa with her eyes closed.

I guess you had a pretty tiring day, huh, well that's to be expected. A cute little sister like you is bound to become popular with many people…

I gingerly removed the remote control from her hold and turned off the TV, then I slowly picked her up, bridal style…She's lighter than I thought. I carefully climbed up the stairs, making sure not to hit her head and not to step onto Kamakura's tail. After entering her room, I laid her down on her bed gently and tucked her in. After whispering goodnight and turning off the lights, I exited the room.

Hmm…Might as well go get some more snacks while I study, I made my way to the kitchen and took some snacks with me before going to my room. Although, As I got closer to my room the sound of my ringtone got louder…It's been a long time since I've heard that.

When I reached it, I picked it up and saw that I received a text message, this number…Ah it's Orimoto, if I'm not mistaken…Even though I feel indifferent about her texting me, it does bring up some bad memories.

KAO: Hey, Hikigaya-Kun~ whatcha up to~? (^_^)/

Eighto: Yo, just eating some snacks

KAO: I see~ well I hope I'm not disturbing anything right now O3O

I sat down at my study place and took a bite of my sandwich.

Eighto: I just finished studying so your timing is good

KAO: Hehehe thanks X3

Did that sound like a compliment? Oh I forgot, emotions can't be read in text…

KAO: But you're studying this early, huh? Hmm, maybe I should study too considering the first term exam's coming soon _ But have you been exercising lately? You said you didn't want to join a club so I was worried that you're not healthy anymore XD

Eighto: I bike to school so I'm certain that I'm still healthy…As I'll ever be

KAO: Huh? That's all? Well at least that's something XD Oh by the way, why was Chika fiddling with your hand at the mall before? O3O

Why did she did that again…? Ah right

Eighto: She was going to text me about some movie I think

I'm sure that was the reason, that girl was pretty tomboyish at first but after talking to her my impression of her changed into an unfortunate girl who had a bad first year of high school because of the Yorozuya…Also I think she's a casual and pretty easy-going girl who likes movies and also mistaken me for a friend.

KAO: Oh~ Okay I thought she was making a move on you or something lol XD

Nice joke…

KAO: Hey um can I ask you a question?

You already did…

Eighto: Sure

KAO: Remember…The day you…Confessed to me…?

My mind went blank when I read the question and it took me a couple of seconds to get a grip and replied…

Eighto: Yes

KAO: …I may not seem like it but I'm a really observant girl now. I felt really bad when everyone was treating you badly at the time and I didn't do a thing so I thought you would feel happier if I befriended you and gave you my number…But you were texting me nonstop for 2 weeks, you know? I mean that kind of annoyed me a little ^_^!||

Well that's true…

KAO: But I guess you being alone at the time didn't give you much experience about being friends with girls, huh? Hehe…But during your confession, I sincerely wanted to be just friends until…Someone heard it and spread it around, I was afraid of being treated badly by my friends if they saw me talking to you regardless of me saying 'Let's just be friends', heh pathetic of me, right?

…That's understandable, I thought of that scenario last year actually. I wasn't really attentive when I was in middle school so there's no need to reprimand yourself, I was about to text what I thought back but Orimoto sent another message.

KAO: I want to say sorry to you, Hikigaya-Kun, I'm sorry for being so pathetic, I'm sorry for being a useless friend, I'm sorry for hurting your feelings and most of all I'm sorry for not being there for when things got a lot worse. I wanted to say this to you ever since graduation but I never got a chance and I was afraid you would hate me if I visited your house. It's okay if you don't forgive me but can we please…Be friends again…?

I felt flabbergasted now, I knew Orimoto was a nice girl but I didn't knew she was this nice…And I also didn't knew how she felt she was the one at fault for my mistreatment or how long she had waited to say all of this but the most shocking of all was that she still wanted to be friends with me…Me of all people…

Haa…As expected…A nice girl to the end, huh…No, she was a genuine nice girl after all…I was mistaken…

Eighto: I forgive you

I couldn't send anything else due to not being able to conjure a text that would explain how I felt to her…For now I will accept her apology. There was no response for a while until a message popped up.

KAO: Thank you, Hikigaya-Kun! Uh um I feel really awkward and happy right now but that doesn't matter! ^/^ I won't let you down this time! You have my word! As a celebration of letting bygones be bygones, why don't we hang out tomorrow! X3

Tomorrow's my scheduled lazing around though…

Eighto: I don't know…I'm kind of busy tomorrow

KAO: Aw~ come on Hikigaya-Kun~ Just tomorrow please~ _

Well…I might as well do the trading with Nakamachi…At least I'll have a reason to go out

Eighto: Alright but can you bring Nakamachi? We're supposed to be borrowing movies from each other

KAO: Of course! I was gonna invite her anyway X3 I'll send her a text to let her know~ I'll text you tomorrow so bye Hikigaya-Kun (OwO)/

Eighto: Okay, thanks

As soon as Orimoto ended the texting there, another text room appeared, it showed Nakamachi's phone number.

ChiNA: Yo Hikigaya-Kun! I almost forgot about the movies _ It's kind of late now so let's keep this short :P

I glanced at the time on my phone and saw that it was already 12:45 AM. The hell? How I missed that?

Eighto: Agreed

ChiNA: I heard from Kaori we'll be hanging out tomorrow so let's exchange there X3 So what movie do you want?

Eighto: Well, I don't know…Why don't you recommend me one?

ChiNA: Alright! There's so many that I like so sorry if it's not your taste XP

Komachi might like it and I haven't seen any movies lately so anything might seem interesting.

Eighto: That's alright

ChiNA: Heh okay, look forward to it X3 And don't forget my YesMan! _

Eighto: I won't

ChiNA: Good night, Hikigaya-Kun! I'll see ya tomorrow~

"…Haa…" There goes my scheduled lazing around, honestly I should've expected this would happen after having a conversation like that…My gaze went down to my Nerve Gear.

"Hmm…" I made a contemplative sound, I wonder if that bastard is still playing…

"Haa…Well, since my laze day is already canceled I might as well have some more me time…" I setup the Nerve Gear and went online into a Post-Apocalyptic MMORPG called Shin Megami Tensei Imagine Online.

[Player Name: Eightman]

[Password:********]

According to ancient legend…

There was a time when humans all spoke the same language. But one day, they attempted to build a tower that would reach the heavens and bring them closer to their creator.

Their creator punished their impudence by taking away their common tongue and scattering them across the world…

Tokyo, 199x…

A freak accident involving a transportation device causes strange beings to appear in Kichijoji. The people who see them call them event triggers a series of nuclear wars in every region of the world that eventually lead to the end of civilization.

At the end of the century, humans and demons are still fighting a seemingly endless war…

202x…

A great flood drowns out the chaos of Tokyo. Very few demons survive the flooding, and people stopped fighting each other.

Rumors spread throughout the human population that it was a young man who saved Tokyo…

The 2xth Century…

The survivors build a series of underground nuclear shelters to live in and erect a giant tower on the surface of Tokyo. Humanity is on the verge of a resurgence. But the peace is shattered by the emergence of three mysterious pillars that form a triangle around the tower. Demons once again run rampant in the streets of Tokyo. The people blame the tower for this return of chaos and began calling it…

Shinjuku Babel…

[Beginner's Area]

Blinding white was all I see before it began to dim, what filled my vision was a Snake inspired NPC but was literally named Snakeman standing in front of me "Welcome back" He welcomed with a nod, I looked at the red devil dog, Garm, beside him to be greeted with a bark "Here, take this as a returning present" Snakeman raised his arm and gave me a wrapped box and 100,000 Macca, the currency of this game.

"Sweet…" A feminine voice said at a very approximate distance and at the same time as me, I looked around and found no one talking to me "Oh…Right…" I just remembered now that my character is a female… "Thanks, Snakeman" I told the NPC and he nodded back.

"Now go, put your Demon Buster License to good use!" He commanded dramatically, waving his arm forward.

I simply nodded and ended the conversation there before looking around the Beginner's Area, it was silent which is understandable considering it's the noobies starting place. I checked myself out first before heading out to the next area. Walking up to the monitors nearby Snakeman, I looked at my reflection.

"G-Guh! This is me, alright…" I created the character as close as what my appearance would look like to my female counterpart while still staying true to my principles. Longer black hair, rotten eyes, modest yet almost diminutive breast and same height, my equipment and gears are a lot more eye catching than I remembered though…

I opened up the Inventory and checked it out, ah~ no wonder! I left this turned off, and without waiting, I touched the 'Only Show Costume' button "…That's more like it…" I said twirling around, now I look more like a mid leveled player instead of a pro… "…I'm quite sexy though if I may say so myself, like a sexy genius amateur detective or a hard boiled cop assistant who has a lazy superior…Ah…" I noticed a player looking over here and quickly looked at the Chat Window "Phew~" It's still in Party Mode and luckily I'm not in any currently…I looked back in my reflection.

A black opened-buttoned long coat over a black sleek suit with a red tie and due to better stats instead of the matching gloves and boots I have in my inventory, I opted for the futuristic robotic limbs; it looks way cooler though in my opinion and If my character looked a bit older and have a different face, I might have become a selfcest… "Um, excuse me, Eightman-San…" A soft female yet boyish voice called out my name from behind, stopping me from appraising myself. I turned my Chat Mode into Normal Mode before speaking.

"Can I help you?" My tomboyish female voice said, as I turned to a character with short white hair and blue eyes, carrying a sawed-off shotgun, wearing military clothing; An enhanced camouflage hoodie, camouflage cargo pants and black military boots; a low mid-level player, huh…A cute one at that.

"U-Um I was wondering if you could help me with a mission…" Ah crap looks like she saw my equipment before hiding them… "Um it's okay if you don't want to…" She said as she glanced behind her where a bunch of noobs were mingling around.

"…Alright" I conceded "Tired of helping the noobs, huh?" I assumed which got me plenty of glares from the aforementioned noobies "What? Technically I'm correct, you know?" I said in an irritated manner and then revealed the revolver under my coat "If you got something to say, speak up, you punks" Oh god I feel so sexy, the only thing missing is having a cigarette in my mouth.

"L-Let's take this somewhere else" She said as she pulled on my robot arm and dragged me to next area.

[Home III]

After going through the large automated sliding doors she let go of my arm "This way, please" She beckoned and continued walking, as I followed I looked up her head and read her name; Saika.

"So, where are we going?" I asked, now looking around Home III, the market area is at the center and filled with all kinds of people and demons; still as noisy as ever…

"My house, I left the mission item there" She said, turning to me with a smile which made me feel a little warm on the cheeks; due to her military themed outfit, it made her look like a tomboy but that made her more appealing for some reason…

"D-Do you have Macca? I'm not giving out help for free, you know?" I voiced out, sure if someone was low leveled and don't know what to do, I'd help out for free on the first request for assistance but not people with levels above the low-leveled threshold; that's how I rolled previously, now that I think of it.

"Ah, um I may not have much…Let me check my savings first, I need to check it at my house though…Looks like I need to go farming again…" She said, her steps beginning to become more slow and hesitate.

"…Tch, fine, seeing as I'm a returning player, I might as well be nice and let the first request be free-of-charge" I said in mock frustration.

"Really?! Thank you so much, Eightman-San!" She cheered, turning to me and clasped my hands, shaking them with feelings of gratefulness.

"Yeah, yeah, let's get this over with" I forced myself to say dismissively and walked forward. Damn, I forgot how hard yet fun it is being the sexy genius detective/hard cop assistant Eightman…While we walked to her house, I opened up my Friend List (In name only); most of them were offline but as always that bastard isn't, he seems busy though, judging from the red icon on his name.

"Here we are!" Saika cheered as she presented her house to me, a generic white building like all of the other generated ones, this one has a more homey feel though due to it having plants nearby the entrance.

"…Wait, we can setup residency now?!" I exclaimed in realization, getting weird glances from nearby civilians and players "What patch number is this?!" I panicked, grabbing Saika by the shoulders.

"O-Oh! U-Um…" She opened the main menu and showed me a window that showed the newsletters "I-It's 10.6" I let her go and grabbed the window forcefully and turned, making her follow, due to it being her window, and trip on the ground "Ouch! Please be gentle!" She pleaded but I failed to listen as I kept reading the patch number in the recent update details.

"H-How long have I not played this game…?" I wondered to myself, I'm in a demonic-cursed level pickle here…The last time I played the patch number was 2.8…I scrolled through the newsletter, searching for the earliest patch update…

"U-Uh…Can you let go…?" Saika asked as she sat on the floor with a troubled expression.

"Oh right…" I said letting go of the window "Sorry about that…" I apologized, offering her my hand which she accepted and stood up "I…Go ahead and grab your things, I'll wait out here" I need to organize my thoughts…

"No. Can. Do!" I flinched at the firm tone "It's obvious to me that you're more than just dazed out, come inside, let me give you something to eat and drink" She said, once again dragging me inside, say what? Eat and drink?

[Saika's Home]

"Welcome to my humble abode" She welcomed warmly as she took my coat and hung it at the coat rack, this scenario is like a husband and wife except I'm a woman…I looked around and find myself pleasantly surprised, in contrast to most of the NPCs habit of having dark tones in the design of their rooms, Saika's have a homey feel to it, a western family style house would be the right word for it.

"…So you can design it to this extent…" I said in a flabbergasted manner as I sat down at what seemed like the living room, a bunch of couches surrounding a coffee table, with a Television & Stereo set at the front, I touched the fabric of the sofa and reeled a bit with how realistic it feels…They progressed so much after such stagnant years…

"It sounds like you missed a lot" Saika said as she went further into the house "I always wanted a western style house so I put a lot of work into getting it!" Her voice was full of pride and she came back wearing civilian clothing; a t-shirt and short pants, I wonder why she preferred to have a flat chest…Not that she's any less charming though…She also brought along a pack of cigarette, some snacks and drinks "I don't usually condone smoking and drinking in my house but it looked like you need it" Looks like someone likes to roleplay.

"Heh, you bet, kid…" I replied, playing along. Grabbing a single cigarette stick, letting Saika lit it up, I breathed the smoke in and felt my eyes widen as my throat began to irritate "Ack!" I coughed a lot and grabbed a bottle of water.

"Ah, sorry! By the looks of your character, I thought you'd be someone who smoked…" She apologized coming back after opening the windows and sat down at the adjacent sit.

"N-No, I do want my character to smoke but…I'm just surprised the sensation of it was actually enabled" I heard there was a lot of fuss going around about whether the Sensation Feature being enabled was a good move or not, some games enabled them and some not, this game is obviously the former "…Aren't addicts going to appear in the real world if this is the case though?" I asked myself but got an answer from Saika.

"Not really, the sensation can be felt but the addictiveness doesn't follow you to real life, I think someone explained about resetting the Sensation Feature Neural Memory Cache before logging out or something along the lines of that which will erases all memories that involved the use of the human senses…From breathing in air to drinking demonic blood" She answered evenly "But…"

"The effects of the Sensation Feature stays as long as the player is using their senses…Making an addict case possible, just in this virtual reality" I continued, examining the stick with a questioning eye, she nodded in response "…This is a risky move from Atlus; to join the Sensation-Pro side that is" I mused gaining a curious look from her.

"How so?" She asked, I discarded the cigarette into the ash tray before answering.

"Not a lot of games are Sensation-Pro so they'll be one of the few who shows the results of being one, tell me do you ever drink and eat in the game?" She nodded "How many times have you done so before, after or during battle against Demons or any hostiles?" She made a contemplative noise as she setup some cups.

"Hmmm, now that I think about it, a lot in both moments" She answered, pouring me a cup of coffee.

"Did it feel refreshing to drink water after a tiring battle or any scenario that involves wasting mental and/or physical energy?" She nodded profusely "Then there's your answer, it makes you feel more alive and accomplished" I finally answered and drank the coffee "More sugar" I asked.

"Sure…" She said standing up to go to the kitchen "I can see how that explains the good part of the Sensation Feature…But what makes it risky?" She asked and came back with a small container of sugar "How much?"

"Two scoops" I answered before continuing "As previously said, being one of the few who will show the results, another con of the action would be having addicts in the game which would still affect the real world" She raised a brow "Having addicts would mean that there would be more 'No-Lifers'" She gasped, her reactions are so cute… "Yep, in other words; Hikikomoris; another grim thought is that if those Hikikomoris are stupid and think that their hunger and pleasures are being satiated for real then they might die for real"

"Whoa…I didn't think things would go that bad" She said with a frown, looking down at her own cup of coffee.

"Well this is all just my speculation" I reasoned, taking in another sip before continuing "Just the ramblings of another shithead is all"

"No cursing please" A light girlish cutesy voice said in another room, catching me by surprise "Saika, I didn't knew you had a guest coming" The voice said as she came into the living room; I took in the sight to see a small Hua Po, small enough to fit my hands, floating towards here; She has orange skin, fairy wings, orange twin tails and a white Chinese dress; like any Hua Po out there "Hello, I am Hua Po but Saika calls me Hikari" She greeted politely with a bow.

"Hm, Eightman" I nodded, I see they also implemented a Sentient AI Coding into the Demon Partners…Wait, maybe they also implemented it on other Non-playable characters… "So the demons you partnered up with can roam around the place, huh?" I asked Saika, watching as Hikari landed on the table and took a sip from the offered coffee from her partner.

"Yep! The others are shy though and some are a bit too big to greet you, haha…" She said with a wry laugh "Hikari, do you mind if I take you out for a mission today? I've got Eightman-San helping me but I need you to accomplish it" The Chinese Fire Pixie shook her head and gave her a thumbs up.

"Speaking of mission, what do you need help with?" I asked, checking my munitions and durability of equipped items.

"I have to kill the Giant Cerberus that spawns at these coordinates" She sent me the coordinates through the arm computer terminals attached on our arms called COMPs "I need to shave 50% off of it's HP and the most intimate and strongest Contracted Demon I have needs to do the final hit" She explained.

"Sounds easy enough" Yeah I remember this mission; it's supposed to test the teamwork of a Demon Partner and its Demon Buster, I had an easy time with it but I was already high leveled at the time "I'll clear the mobs and aggro the Cerberus while you do just that"

"E-Eh~?!" Both females exclaimed "A-Are you sure?" Saika asked in disbelief to which I nodded "What level are you…?"

"Hm? You mean even at this point of patch number they didn't add an 'Observe Character' Feature yet?" I asked with a raised brow.

"Nope" She answered, shaking her head.

"…What the heck…? They can't even prioritize the small basic stuff…" I mumbled to myself "So are you ready? Got the mission item?" I reminded as I stood up, she nodded and went back into a room, coming out several seconds later with her previous gear and holding the mission item; an old video recorder.

"The NPC that wants to see our teamwork is not very well resourced even though he is a very important one, hehehe…" She laughed wryly. I simply nodded and grabbed my coat, equipping it "Here let's form a party" By the end of that sentence, I received a transparent blue window, I touched the Yes button, making the party members list popped up. I closed it and walked to the door.

"Let's go" I said before opening the door.

[Suginami, Under A Bridge]

"Ah, there it is!" Saika pointed at a Giant Cerberus circling around under a bridge surrounded by clusters of other mid-level demonic beings "What should I do, Eightman-San?" Exiting Home III through the platform elevator and entering Suginami was a surreal feeling every time; the barren wasteland full of demons mingling around was a very contrasting sight to Home III's bright joyful atmosphere.

"Like I said, do just that" I said taking out my revolver and ran forward.

"Ah wai-!" I didn't listen to Saika's words as I began the battle, every shot barely shaved off all of the receivers HP since I held back, however for Cerberus I only kicked it and effectively aggroed him. While I took the brunt of the attacks of the mobs, I looked at Saika who was slowly but surely damaging the Giant Cerberus with a mid-range strategy, occasionally using elemental magic such as Agilao to burn it, Bufula to freeze it, Garula to disorientate it and Zionga to paralyze it.

While Hikari, although I'm not certain which specifically, used all of the buffs and debuffs in her skill sets judging from her switching her focus from the Giant Cerberus to her partner but then she looked at me and healed me "What are you doing?" I said (Despite the many grunts and shouts of the demons attacking me, she still can hear me) Saika must've set her strategy plan to 'Free Will'.

"You just received 50 damage, so why not? hehehe" She giggled playfully "So are you a man or a woman in real life, Eightman-San?" I don't know why she asked me that but I answered anyway.

"I rather keep anything related to real life outside of the game" She huffed and pouted cutely in response.

"S-Sorry about that Eightman-San" Saika said without stopping her barrage of shotgun shooting "Hikari likes to get to know people, especially people who are really nice"

"I'm far from nice though…" I responded, a small and cheeky 'I see' was all I gained from her before we continued to focus at the task at hand.

Couple of minutes later, Saika finally reached the 50% mark "Alright, Saika, I'll take it from here, Hikari rev up your strongest skill" I prompted as I reloaded my revolver and gained some distance before killing all of the mobs following me, a bullet to the head to each and every one of them. After that I put my gun away in my holster and rolled up my sleeves, revealing the robotic limbs and putting them to good use.

"Whoa…" Was all the girls could convey as they watched the Giant Cerberus being rushed with a barrage of close combat attacks, I stopped the attacks, not wanting to give the final hit "Hikari, Now!" I shouted, jumping back.

"Agidyne!" She yelled as she launched large bursts of fire at the white lion effectively killing and burning him to a crisp; oh wow they stepped up the death animation, huh… "Wow, Saika, Eightman sure is the real deal!" I turned to see Hikari sitting on the palm of Saika's hand, raising her hand to give a high five.

"Yeah, that Cerberus never stood a chance!" She responded, smiling at me and giving me a thumbs up and then turned to Hikari, giving her a finger for a high five "You did good too, Hikari"

"I could say the same to you, Saika" I returned to my Eightman personality "For a mid-level Demon Buster that is" I smirked haughtily, approaching the two "You have a good Hua Po too" Hikari beamed at my praise.

"Yep! I'm proud of her" Saika responded, full of pride; she turned to me and asked "What about you, Eightman? Who's your- I mean who are your Partners?" Now that she asked, I never really did check on how they have been, haven't I? I raised my COMP and opened up the Demon Partners Menu.

"…What the…" I blinked several times, scrolled many times and opened & closed it repeatedly "…There's nothing here…"

"Eh? No way~ A skilled player like you would at least have a single powerful demon" Hikari said as she floated away from Saika's hand and started flying towards me "Modesty doesn't suit you so…Let's see…"

"Hikari, Eightman-San?" Saika called out, noticing our silence but eventually joined in and took a peek at my list "…There really is nothing…"

"…Haa…" My shoulders slumped as I leaned my back on a boulder "…All those years of convincing them…" I cried, covering my face with the palm of my hands "All those Gods and Goddesses…Demons…Beasts…All gone…"

"Um…If you don't mind me asking what's the quality and quantity of your Contracted Demons?" Saika asked, I raised my head to remember that.

"…Most if not all were high leveled and I had about more than 10 Demons…" I recalled and then in the end just sigh it all out "Haa…Well nothing I can do about it…I'll just submit a support ticket someday…"

"Sorry to hear that, Eightman" Hikari voiced out, plopping herself on my shoulder and stroked my cheek as a way to comfort me "I hope they're okay though…" She said dejectedly.

Even though they are all just a bunch of 1s and 0s, the Sentient AI Coding, from my understanding, enables their emotions liken to a human beings. However Hikari showed me that she has compassion for other Demon Partners but doesn't feel remorse or anything when we killed the Giant Cerberus which is rather interesting to me…

"I haven't logged in ever since patch 2.8, maybe my contract with them was canceled due to the updates so maybe they found someplace else to squat…" I explained to her.

"Still…Wait, were you trying to make me feel better?" She asked in surprise as she flew near my face, she smirked cheekily "I don't think that's what Eightman would do~"

"You little- You don't know me!" I exclaimed in retaliation, forcing myself to revert to Eightman "Tch, I almost forgot you're a Pixie. I swear if mine were here I would be annoyed to death" I complained, holding my temple.

"A-Ahaha sorry about that, Eightman-San" Saika said, pulling Hikari to her "I have trouble myself keeping her from teasing other people" She then opened up some menus before turning to me "I'll need to report to the NPC now, do you want to go with me?" She asked.

"No, I think I need to get updated on what I've been missing on" I answered "I guess this where we part ways, Kid"

"Oh…I see" She said somewhat dejectedly "Ah, hey want to be friends?" She asked excitedly but I shook my head haughtily.

"Heh no way, Kid. I don't see you as a friend let alone an acquaintance" Her shoulders sunk and Hikari gave me a pointed look.

"A-Ah I see…" She smiled wryly, though I feel bad I didn't take back what I said.

"You know, Eightman, Saika doesn't have much friends since the noobs are always looking for help so I'm really thankful that you're helping us while also alleviating the monotony so can you just drop the act?" Hikari explained in a miffed tone.

"I have no freaking idea what you're talking about" I said, looking at her with a raised brow.

"T-Then, Eightman-San, can I at least be in your friend list?" Saika asked quickly "So that, you know, I can ask for help in the future" She explained fidgeting with her fingers.

"…You didn't need to act cute to ask for that, you know?" I retorted, sending her a Friend Request.

"C-Cute?!" She exclaimed "I-I wasn't trying to do that" She said before accepting the request.

"Oh~ ho~ so you think Saika is cute, Eightman~?" Hikari teased but Eightman was impervious to teasing.

"Not as cute as me though and I'm a whole lot sexier too" I boasted, fabulously brushing my hair aside but got a deadpan look from her.

"A-Ahaha well I think it's getting late for me so I'm going to logout after reporting this mission" She said to which I nodded "I hope we'll meet again, Eightman-San" She nodded before dispersing the party and walked away.

"I'll see you when I see" I two-finger saluted.

"I think we'll see you sooner than you think" Hikari grinned, waving at me as she followed Saika.

"…Haa…Now…Lets go to Home III…" While I did that I indulge myself in the many news updates that have been done.

[Home III]

By the time I reached halfway through them, I find myself standing at Saika's house…I probably shouldn't stay here…I walked away and went to an open area where Bank Services can be proceeded, I went up to the counter and was about to talk to an NPC until someone called me from behind.

"Eightman, my sworn enemy!" I received a minuscule of damage from one single bullet to the head "I have waited 84 years for this!" I turned around and sighed.

"Haa, Hello there, BlademasterGeneral64" I greeted as the HP loss was returned through regeneration, I notice a lot of people are observing the exchange "Long time no see to you too, you bastard"

This motherfucker can be considered my enemy, he proclaimed to be one when I defeated him in every aspect of the game. I almost didn't recognized him due to the new gear; he has silver hair in a short ponytail, black eyes behind rimmed eyeglasses, he kept the trademark brown trench coat and underneath them is an all black swat outfit. On his back was a big ass sword and two automatic SMG on his gun holsters.

"Wait, did you change your Combat Style? I thought you were more of a magic long range user" There's no such thing as Class System but instead a Skill System exists which you can mix it up yourself; one would probably mess up if they don't study up though.

"Hmph! I do not belong to any Style for I am in the mightiest style of all!" This sparked my interest "I am in the Jack-Of-All-Trade Style!" Everyone started murmuring, I also find myself to be surprised, is that really possible? "I made it myself!" He huffed proudly, okay- no, this idiot just invested a lot of time… "Now, prepare yourself, my life long rival!"

"Wasn't I your enemy?" I retorted, taking out my Revolver. Everyone was amused at the sight of a fight but what I was curious was that the motherfucker hasn't sent me a PVP Request.

"Maragi!" He shouted, taking me by surprise as the AOE Fire Spell was casted upon me and the rest of the area, however, unexpectedly, it also almost damaged anyone in the range of the spell.

"What the-?!" I flabbergasted but then the audience started getting rowdy.

"Damn it, don't use fucking AOE!"

"I almost died, shithead!"

"Good thing I wasn't there LOL"

"It's fucking LIT"

"…Tch!" I suppressed my shock and dismissed this incident as a feature from an update "You should already know low leveled spells shouldn't effect me" I exclaimed as I shot 3 bullets spiraling at him, damaging him moderately, whew~ those are some nice gears.

"G-Guh!" He reeled in pain even though he shouldn't be able to feel any "As skillful as always, huh?!" He yelled in pain and anger, dude can you stop role playing? "Take this!" He took out his duel SMGs and started firing without aiming properly, making it east to avoid. With no accuracy at all, he almost shot the people behind me, including the cute NPCs behind the counter.

"Hahahaha! How are you still so below me even after all this time?!" I laughed, blocking every bullet using my Robotic Arms "Let me show you what real magic is! Oi, everyone!" I gained the attention of the audience even while blocking the bullets "You might want to get out of here!" Many took my warning but some stayed around at a further distance "You too, ladies" I said behind me at the cute NPCs, they nodded before heading to the back but still peeking through the door a bit.

"HAHAHAHA, I can feel you weakening, Eightman!" He yelled but I ignored him and voiced out an incantation quietly, before this an incantation wasn't needed but now it is optional to do it and if done successfully, the damage is increased by a large margin; I looked up and smiled a feral smile "Ready to give-"

"Megidoraon" I whispered as I threw a small black orb in an arc, landing it behind him; it made a plopping sound effect which made him stop shooting at me…

"Hah! Such puny-" The spell took effect, the result was BlademasterGeneral64 being engulfed in a blinding white explosion. I was immune to the magic since I was the caster, I thought, but now I see that I have taken a bit of damage before being blinded by it. Megido; a magic skill that sends almighty-based damage on the enemies, it is the highest form of magic and can only be casted as an AOE destructive magic.

"…Tch…" I looked up at my HP and half of it was gone "Another feature maybe…?" I said to myself before looking at the almost dead ass motherfucker in front of me. He was totally damaged and could barely stand up, so he just laid down there as I walked towards him.

"Ugh, still as skillful as ever…" He pathetically said, looking up at me with a grin.

"Seeing as this is my return after such a long time, I'll let you have my mercy" He sighed in relief but then laughed out loud.

"Hahahaha, how pathetic of you! Of course I will let you go for now!" I was silent at the response, everyone in the vicinity was silent too at the illogical response.

"Right, right, I'm still going to give you mercy though" I said and opened up my inventory.

"Hmph! No need to thank me, after all I am your master-" He couldn't finish his sentence as I equipped a Chainsaw Sword and stabbed it into the ground beside his head "E-Eh…? E-Eightman-San…?" I revved the engine of the sword up "K-Kya!" Sparks flew as the chain neared his neck.

"This is my mercy" I used [Grotesque Glare] on him, multiplying my 'mercy' tenfold.

"K-KYA~!" Was all he screamed as the saw slowly but surely approached his neck "A-AGH!" As the two came in contact, he did a good job of role playing the part and some of the people in the crowd was pretty convinced.

"Stop being annoying" I said in a miffed tone as I finally can't take anymore of his incessant tortured screams and dragged the weapon all the way, his shouting stopped, head separated and body convulsed "Dude, you're way into this" I said as he went limp and began to disappear.

"…Why couldn't you just wear skirts?" My legs automatically crossed as I pulled out my revolver.

"Pervert!" I angrily said in embarrassment as I put two bullets in his crotch before he completely disappeared…With that over with I breathed in and out once and walked towards the counter, things returned to normalcy, although some people were staring at me, I return the stare with a glare, revealing my Revolver, effectively scaring some.

"Sorry about the commotion" I apologized to anyone that was listening but mostly to the NPC I currently am talking to; a girl with white bobbed hair and golden eyes, in a uniform; a gray blazer underneath a white collar shirt and a black tie, complimented with a gray skirt and black loafers; her collar had a small Home III logo on it. She looks closer to a school girl rather than a bank employee.

"A-Ah yes, it's okay, I guess?" She said uncertainly, looking at her other workmates who shrugged in response "Um how may I help you, um…?"

"Eightman" I replied.

"Right!" She took out her COMP and opened up what seemed like a list of names I'm guessing, she typed out my name but no results came "Hm…That's weird…Do you three have any record of Eightman?" She asked the other employees who shook their heads or shrugged their shoulders.

"I don't remember there being a record…" I commented getting some raised brows from her.

"H-Huh? Um well…We do now…" She answered hesitantly, though that doesn't assuage my ignorance.

"Can you tell me the details though? I'm kind of like a returning player" I explained my circumstances with a somewhat annoyed tone, making her flinch.

"A-Ah right! I-I'm s-sorry about that!" She bowed repeatedly "U-Um l-let's see where should I start first…Ah right ever since the implementation of the Sentient AI Coding the NPCs started working on managing their own jobs" She walked out of the counter and beckoned me, I followed her and she lead me to the back "Each of the NPCs started to become aware of how weak and fragile the system of their own sections were" An iron storage room like where you could find in any real bank is where we stood "At our banking section, we implemented a mix of traditional and standardized method" She explained as she took out a key and used it on a single safe and opened it.

"Oh ho~…Wait, isn't this much more vulnerable?" I asked and she shook her head.

"Not really, on the outside it may look like this but on the inside there's a complex coding made by the CEO of the banking section that makes it so that it can be accessed though us NPCs, we're just the workers so we don't really understand it" She explained furthermore.

"Oh so it's all about codes, huh…" I nodded with a contemplative pose "What about me? I'm sure I have used the banking services before all of this"

"Ah…T-That, I-I'm not s-sure, s-sorry…" She nervously apologized and repeatedly bowed again.

"Haa…Never mind, I don't even remember what I put into my account anyway…" I dismissed "Let's make an account shall we?" I asked, getting a nod.

"Y-Yes! What shall you deposit?" She asked, I took out about 50,000 Macca and plopped it down on her arms, making her squeak.

"5-50,000 Macca minus that with registration fee…" There's a registration fee?! "That'll be 25,000 Macca!" She concluded putting the bunches of Macca into another empty cabinet and locked it.

"Didn't know there was a registration fee…" I commented earning her attention "It's almost like the CEO just blatantly ignored the developers"

"W-Well…That's what most Sentient AIs do, r-right?" She asked rhetorically with a wry smile.

"Well…Yeah…" I nodded leaving the conversation at that "Thanks for answering my questions, I'll take my leave now"

"Y-Yes! Have a nice day!" She bowed as I left the storage facility and went outside, I was contemplating where to go until somebody put me into a headlock.

"Eightman, you rascal!" The voice of BlademasterGeneral64 came to my ears "That fight was brilliant! You are truly worthy as my enemy-" He held his tongue as I shoved my gun on his junk.

"Perfect timing, you dipshit" I grinned "Tell me what I missed"

I don't know how much time has passed but it felt quick as BlademasterGeneral64 explained to me about everything I needed to know about the current version of the game "So you mean to tell me that this game is almost completely close to reality?" I asked in a flabbergasted state, I didn't show him that though.

"Yeah…" He replied tensely "C-Can you put away your revolver now…?" He pleaded pointing at his crotch.

"Oh, right" I said before putting back the gun into my holster "What are the developers thinking…? Making the players and NPC to handle the game themselves…?"

"It's not that bad in my opinion" He said as he took out a cigarette and lit it up "Sure, the unstable status quo is mostly the communities fault but hey isn't that what's real life like too? Plus what makes this game interesting is that we can make some things ourselves if we get an approval, like this cigarette"

"…Haa…Well whatever, not like I can do anything about it…It's just really unsettling how it's becoming more and more like our literal second life"

"I heard some guy called 'Kirito' is snooping around asking NPCs some questions that some people don't ask" He added taking out some booze "People say he's an Admin Undercover, some say he's a Player Detective, some even say unlikely things about him, I don't know what he is but he's certainly going to make some changes" He then spits on the ground "He pisses me off though…Being surrounded by girls all the time…"

"And because of this you're still a virgin" I retorted shaking my head, even though deep inside I feel the exact same way "Well, thanks for giving me the information, next time we fight, maybe I'll go easy on you" I smirked, standing up from the crate I sat on.

"Hmph, I should be the one saying that" He said despite making a fist pump with a relieved expression.

"By the way, are you an addict now?" I asked, even though we're far from having a friendly relationship, I know for certain that he won't get addicted to the virtual world; however I need to make sure of it and I can't just ignore some addicted person continue their ways if I can do something about it.

"Who do you think you are talking to?! I am BlademasterGeneral64! The only addiction I have is the bloodshed of my enemies! Theses pleasantries" He raised the items he held "Are only temporary replacements of that! D-"

"Ah I get it, I get it" I intervened before he could blabber some more "Good thing though, otherwise I might have to kill you over and over before you get some sense in that head of yours…Well whatever sense you normally have"

"Why are you acting Tsun Tsun with me? Don't make me fall in love with you, damn it!" He yelled in a disgusting manner, in my eyes anyway, I can't see him in any other manner but that, he has some good moments though.

"You want to die?" I asked with a simple smile, satisfied with his silence I opened the menu and exited the game "See ya" I rubbed my eyes after the transition between virtual reality and the real world "A lot has changed, huh…" I said as I laid on my bed, looking at the ceiling.

Technically speaking, things are forever changing if one were to think about it.

Therefore, I only just took notice of the changes that has occurred around me.

Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, it's still too early to say.

Either way, it doesn't matter, for no matter what change that will come, I will not let myself change for adaptation.

If I were to change then I will change for myself.

With that random thought in mind, I let myself sleep.

---

CHAPTER 4

GIRLS UNDERSTANDING

BOYS MISUNDERSTANDINGS

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CAMEO LIST:

1. The Yorozuya [Gintama]

A group of freelancers from Gintama; Gintoki and the gang were Chika Nakamachi's club mates last year.

2. Anteiku And Others [Tokyo Ghoul]

The Anteiku Employees and other characters from Tokyo Ghoul: Hachiman's favorite cafe.

3. Nerve Gear [Sword Art Online]

An advanced virtual reality gaming platform from SAO; He owns one.

4. Shin Megami Tensei Imagine Online [SMT Franchise]

An online game from the SMT Franchise; Eightmans main online game.

5. Kirito [Sword Art Online]

The main character from Sword Art Online; It's ya boi, back at it again to investigate some shifty developments occurring in a game.

HACHIMANS CONTACT LIST:

1. Dad

2. Mom

3. 3 Komachi 3 (←Komachi made him label her contact like this)

4. |Haiko Hara| (Yumiko Miura)

5. ~YuiYui~ (Yui Yuigahama)

6. KAO (Kaori Orimoto)

7. ChiNA (Chika Nakamachi)

HACHIMANS 108 LONER SKILLS:

1. Hikkikomori Mode (ACTIVE):

The ability to assume the characteristics of a hikikomori without compromising the personality or mindset of ones self.

Hikikomori meaning a person who excludes himself from the world in his /her comfort zone which most of the time is that persons own room due to various personal reasons.There was a period of time in his life that he once was a hikikomori, the reason he went hikikomori is unknown as he suddenly locked himself into his room. Fortunately that was only a short period of time and, with his twisted comical intelligence, found a way to manipulate his energy and determination.

2. Enhanced Peripheral Vision (PASSIVE):

The passive ability of being able to see more without looking directly in laymen terms.

One time, years ago, he was observing a girl he liked and due to his previously oblivious untactful ways, he got into trouble. So, eventually he learned to be tactful or inconspicuous when it came to observing things. He took it too far though and as a result he has a better peripheral vision than the average person.

3. Grotesque Glare (ACTIVE):

The ability to gross out yet instill fear in other people's heart.

Wanting to try out the killing intent skill he watched from various TV shows and movies, he tried to teach himself how to use it. After researching the subject, he only manage to acquire the lame variant of the skill that only grosses out and scares people due to the nature of his eyes.

4. Hikkisageru Shusseki (ACTIVE):

The ability to reduce a certain amount of presence

Hikisageru meaning reduce and Shusseki meaning presence. Reduced presence is a skill that Hachiman has learned after being treated as air for as long as he remembered. His presence doesn't completely disappear but only a certain amount of it will diminish. There is a complex manipulation of both mentality and physicality to use this skill so he can only use it in a certain amount of time and if he uses this skill any longer, he will be fatigued.