Ha, you thought. The story is not actually canceled. Happy 4/1 and April Fools!
The sun shone through the city of Purple Progress. It was unsure if the title held true due to not being any competition between nations any longer.
It was late afternoon, which marked the start of rush hour. The street was filled with people and vehicles, which polluted the place with noise. A purple-haired girl who wore casual clothing stood out among the crowd of people. Nepgear was currently strolling in the city after another hard day's work while avoiding bumping into pedestrians on her way.
She was headed out to meet with IF at the guild to start their investigation into the sudden disappearance of the leader of the Citizen Group Movement.
The citizens, for the most part, didn't react to her presence. There were still the occasional glances and greetings she received, but mostly people went on their day. At first, she felt uncomfortable with her identity being known to all Gamindustris after having to announce to the whole world that she had become the sole CPU. Few knew who she was back then, which made her able to live a double life.
And now she didn't have this luxury any longer.
Children often look up to her and view her as a hero, like in those fairytale stories. They would often run up to her and bombard her with questions and admire her. Some would ask her to play with them, and she would happily indulge them. She sometimes put up a show for the kids with simple magic tricks that she learned from IF.
She came to love children and their innocence, but also hated how much they looked up to her.
She didn't view herself as a hero.
But she didn't want to shatter the children's image of her as well.
The vibration of her phone brought her back to the real world. She took it out and checked it and saw that she had received a text message from her tomboy friend.
[Iffy] Where u at Gear?
[You] On my way.
[Iffy] k
[Iffy] im waiting 4 u at the guild.
[You] Okay. Be there in 5 minutes or so.
[Iffy] 👍
She put her phone in her pocket. After a short walk through the bustling city, she reached the guild. The inside of the guild was packed with keen adventurers of all kinds of ranks, who ranged from newbies to veterans and in between. The place was filled with chatter, with parties of adventurers coming in and out as though they were working bees, with people coming to accept new quests or claim their rewards. The lobby was filled with adventurers looking to form a party or to join one. But there are others who prefer to work alone, and those are usually the veterans and they are seen as lone wolves. People sign up to be adventurers for various reasons. Some do it to keep their homes safe from the threats of the monsters, while others are only after fame and fortune, and some just like the sensation of adventure and thrill.
After studying the surroundings, she went back to look for her friend. A second later, she spotted her in the distance talking with someone. She walked towards them until her ears could pick up their conversation.
Guess you got your work cut out for you, huh?
Trust me, you don't know the half of it.
Mmhm, and how's your cousin, DF?
Eh, she's doing alright, I suppose.
So do all of your other family members share your two-letter initials... or is it just a family tradition?
I'd... rather not talk about it.
Okay then. Not gonna press any further.
"Oh, my friend's here. We'll talk later, T." Upon noticing her, she made an excuse for the man, who nodded and left without a word. "Yo, Gear. Glad you made it." IF smiled at her as the two exchanged quick fist bumps.
"Yes, here I am." She nodded. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting for long."
"Eh, no worries. I've kept myself busy by taking some quests and talking with some of the fellow guild members I know. So, shall we go then?"
"Yeah, lead the way." Nepgear gestured for her to take the lead with her hand as the two made their way towards the guild exit, with her following behind. "So, where are we going exactly? You said we were to search for clues, so any ideas as to where we could start?"
"Yeah, we're going to drop by Miss Ryghts' apartment first and start there. Got us a search warrant and all."
"So... We're like a couple of investigators now?"
"Yup, exactly. Now come on, I gotta show you something cool." Once outside, IF led her to her parked new shiny blue bike. It was an electric blue sport bike.
Nepgear whistled. "Is that a new bike?"
"Yeah. I got this bad boy recently." She ran her hand across the shiny blue metal. "My old bike unfortunately got wrecked on one of the missions. Named it Cerulean."
"You... named it?"
"Yeah, cool name, I know. Come on, hop on." She gestured.
"Okay." Nepgear flopped on the back seat and wrapped her arms around her friend as she started the engine, which made her wince from the loud noise. "Uh, don't you have helmets?"
"Heh, what for? This shouldn't take long. I'll hold on tight if I were you."
"What?" Before she could heed her friend's warning, the two immediately took off, with Nepgear screaming her lungs out. She felt the wind rushing through her face and eyes as they drove to their destination at high speed while skillfully avoiding traffic. And the ride ended quickly, as it started. They reached a district filled with apartments and buildings glued next to each other.
"We're here... You can stop clinging onto me, y'know." Nepgear was clutching on her friend like her life depended on it while refusing to open her eyes.
"Never, again... I feel like I'm going to throw up..." She slowly tried getting up from the bike, but she had trouble making her feet touch the ground. Her feet were wobbly while she tried to keep her balance. Nepgear put her hands on her knees to try to regain her breath.
"You'll live." IF rolled her eyes. "Stop being overdramatic. And I thought you were used to going at such high speeds in HDD."
"Yeah... in my HDD. My human body is still not used to these kinds of extreme stunts... Ugh, my head is spinning like crazy."
"Okay, jeez, sorry, I'll try to drive more slowly next time. Didn't know you that you get motion sickness so easily." She muttered the last part.
"I would have much preferred if you... had done that in the first place." Nepgear let out a couple of ragged breaths.
"There, there." IF went and patted her on the back. "You gonna be okay there, Gear?"
"Yeah... I'll be fine... Just... give me a minute." She uttered between breaths.
"Well, whenever you feel better."
"Okay... I'm fine now. Let's go." IF nodded before the two made their way inside building number nineteen. "Okay, Rei lives on the third floor. Room 307." Nepgear nodded and followed her friend into the small lobby. The elevator was shut down for maintenance.
"Welp, guess we're taking the stairs." IF clicked her tongue before the two went to the emergency exit.
"Hard to believe that Miss Rei. lives in a place like this." Nepgear voiced what's on her mind. The place wasn't the cheapest, but it wasn't the most expensive. The rooms were small and compact from the looks of them, and they were not properly taken care of, as evident by the small amount of litter scattered around and cracks on the floor.
"Well, with the current economic crisis we're facing and the massive increase in inflation, I doubt anyone can afford anything these days. Heck, it took me three months worth of my paycheck just to buy that bike. It's said to be the worst one yet we've had in a long time."
"I know... But we're trying our best, and I'm confident that Histoire will get us out of it just like she has countless times. She didn't get elected as an oracle for Planeptune for nothing."
"Let's hope so." After a short time of climbing the stairs, the two reached the third floor. The duo headed to where Rei. supposedly lived. IF, without wasting time, took out a lockpick and began lockpicking the door with nothing but a long, thin, curved metal piece.
"It'd look bad for us if someone saw us like this. Also, when did you learn to lockpick?" Nepgear whispered to her friend, who wasn't all that worried, unlike her, while checking each corridor with her head to make sure no one was there.
"You pick up a few tricks along the way. It's easy once you know what you're doing."
"Really? I thought for sure that you'd just bust the door open. It's more of your style."
"Heh, can't deny that, but... sometimes you gotta be smart about things." IF spoke while working on the lock at the same time.
After messing for a bit, she finally heard a click. "Ah, there we go."
IF pushed the door, and she headed inside, with Nepgear following behind. The apartment wasn't as spacious as expected. They were greeted with a living room that had a flat TV in the middle and a single window that had a fire exit, a kitchenette with a dining table, a bathroom, and finally a bedroom. The interior was filled with white, and the place had simple decor.
So far, the place was clean and tidy. There wasn't anything out of place so far.
IF quickly scanned the place with her retina. "Let's take a look around for anything that might tell us where she went. You take the other room, and I'll search here."
"Roger." Nepgear nodded, and the two began searching the place.
IF started rummaging through the living room for a while but found nothing of interest.
Nepgear was in Rei.'s bedroom, shuffling through the many scattered papers on the desk. The room had a single bed in the corner of the room with a counter that had a lamp on it. A bookshelf filled with various books—mostly philosophically—and a study desk filled with papers. They were the usual letters, notes, and various event invites—nothing special. Nepgear continued to search for a while until she stumbled on a peculiar note that caught her interest. She held the paper up and began to read with her head.
'We don't need CPUs to rule the nations! We humans can run the nations ourselves.
It's time for us humans to *pause here* start implementing proper laws, not worshipping some deities.
The so-called CPUs rely on their people's faith. In fact, they are born from people's desires, so why should we follow them? They need us to survive, just like we need them to protect us. One can't exist without the other. (This part needs a bit of rework.)'
Huh.. It's the same speech I heard the other day. This one seems for rehearsal purposes.
"How's it going there, Gear? Found anything yet?" She heard her friend shout from the other room.
"No, not yet! I'm still looking." She shouted and answered back before letting out a sigh to herself. "There's nothing but papers in here."
She noticed an addressed letter among the pile. She fished it out and saw that it was addressed to both Miss Rei.'s parents.
Dear Mom and dad,
It's been a while since I've written to you two. I hope that you two are always doing okay.
And before you ask, I've yet to settle down with a man, even though I'm nearing my forties.
I haven't had the chance to write since I have been very busy with my work lately, as usual.
I know how much you two want me to find a "real" job and also find a man for myself.
Ever since I've moved to Planeptune to chase my dreams, you two have been nothing but worried.
But you two know how much this work is important to me.
I wanted to change the world when I was young, and I still do!
I promise that I will, at some point, settle down and start a family like you always wanted.
I hope to hear from you two soon.
-Your loving daughter, Rei.
"I... probably shouldn't be reading this." She slowly sat the paper down in its original place before she decided to head back to her friend in the other room. Nepgear felt bad. Miss Rei. probably intended to send this letter to her parents.
Her parents are probably worried sick.
She silently made a promise to herself to get her back safely. She'd hate to be the one to break the news to her parents if something were to happen to her.
"So, any luck in there?" IF asked upon seeing her emerge from the room.
Nepgear shook her head. "Nothing."
"Damn, looks like we came all that way for naught." IF clicked her tongue. "The Planeptune Police and the investigation team will take care of the rest. We should get outta here."
Before they were about to call it a quit and leave, a faint static noise caught their attention. Nepgear diverted her attention to the source of the noise and found a radio setting on the dining table. Nepgear, curious, went to the device and adjusted the handle until they heard a familiar voice.
"Pssh—is 5pb back yet again with our Hi-Five Radio show where we take messages from our dear listeners. I'll read them and carry the messages on to whoever they want! These can be about anything: life updates, thank yous, love confessions, whatever! The messages can be for someone special or just to me. Okay. Before we start, I have some bad news. Our guest for today, Rei., was unable to make it due to her going missing. So if anyone has any leads, please turn them in to your nearest local authorities. Let's all pray for her safety. With that out the way, here are some messages we got today—"
IF suddenly turned the radio off. "Come on, we shouldn't linger here any longer."
"Right, sorry." The girls made their way out of the apartment.
As they left the building, IF's phone rang. "Hold on, I gotta pick this." She took out her phone and pressed answer. "Hello?... Yes... Wait, really?... Alright, we're on it."
"What is it?" Nepgear asked as she watched her friend put her phone away.
"Good news, this just came in. Apparently someone claimed they saw Rei before she went missing."
"And who might that person be?"
"Dunno." IF hopped on her bike. "They run a food stand somewhere in the city and it's pretty famous among the people. It shouldn't be far, but I'll drive there slowly this time."
"Gee, thanks." Nepgear dropped on her seat behind her and wrapped her arms around her friend's waist just like before. "Still, no safety helmets, though."
IF ignited the engine before she drove off carefully this time. After a while, they reached their next destination. The brunette parked her sport bike in one of the vacant parks before the two continued on foot to look for the food stand in the market area. It didn't take long to find, and it was void of customers at this hour. Thankfully, they didn't have to worry about anyone eavesdropping on their conversation.
Nepgear took a good look at the stand sign.
Nepugia famous pork soup? Oh no, please don't tell me...
"Well, well, I didn't think the mighty CPU herself would personally pay me a visit along with her special agent~" A seductive voice cut through her thoughts before she could finish. Nepgear mentally groaned to herself before she was face-to-face with a carbon copy of herself. The girl wore the same sailor dress outfit as her, albeit in black. And she had long hair that covered her eyes and an ASIC heart-shaped hairpin on her head. The girl has a mischievous smile on her face. "So, how can I help you two today? Are you perhaps interested in trying my famous pork soup... or maybe you are interested in something more~"
"Enough of your dumb display." IF was not having any of that and decided to take the lead and be direct. "We're here to ask about Rei. So do us a favor and tell us what you know."
"Hmph, do they also not include manners in you're training handbooks, hm?" The Nepgear look alike pretended to be annoyed while keeping her smug smirk.
"I asked you a question, so answer the damn question!" IF slammed her hands on the wooden counter and glared at her. Nepugia, however, didn't react to her. Instead, she did a fake thinking pose. "Old Rei.. Ryghts? Hmm... nope, can't say I have."
"You must have mistaken me for someone else, dearie. Don't worry, it happens. Some people just make stuff up so they can talk to me since they resist my charm and good look~"
IF felt her vein pop. She was about to reach for her gun in her coat to threaten her with it but Nepgear's hand caught her midway as she silently signaled to let her handle it instead. Her friend let out a sigh and stepped back as she waited with her hands crossed.
"Please, if you have any information that you've purposely withdrawn from us, I would advise telling us. Otherwise, you would be arrested and charged with criminal charges. Do you really want that?" Nepgear's voice was calm and deliberate as she waited for her response.
"Hmmm... Well, when you put it that way... okay. You got me there." The long-haired girl put her hands up in mock surrender.
"So you're finally going to tell us?" IF, a bit calmer now, asked. "No beating around the bush or anything?"
"Sure. Well, let's see... I remember passing by near one of the alleyways at night and hearing the voice of that old woman arguing with someone. Suddenly there was a bright light and everything went quiet."
"Did you happen to see the face of the person she spoke to?" Nepgear leaned closer.
"Nope, like I said, I was merely passing by and had no intention of getting myself involved with other people's business."
"Do you remember the ally that you passed by, at least?" IF asked.
"Yeah, sure, hang on..." Nepugia took out a pen and paper. "I'll mark down the location for you... and there! One marked DungleMap." She handed out the paper to her.
Nepgear brought her hand to take it. Once she took the piece of paper, the girl suddenly grabbed hold of her wrist. "Woah, hey—"
Nepugia starred at the Planeptune ring that she was wearing. "Hmm... nice ring you got there. Mind telling me where you get it from?"
Before Nepgear could answer, a clicking noise echoed through the area. IF was holding her gun with one hand as she aimed at the girl. "You have exactly ten seconds to let go of my friend before I put you right between your eyes." She glared at her as she rested her finger at the trigger.
Nepguia looked unfazed but she complied and slowly loosen her grip. "Of course. Forgive me. I didn't mean anything by it. I was simply captivated by the ring and wanted to have a closer look."
IF holstered her gun but kept her glare. "We're leaving."
She and IF were about to make their leave but suddenly the girl called out from behind.
"Before you go, do you mind if I ask you one simple question... Nepgear?" her voice suddenly turned serious.
The CPU stopped in her tracks, caught off guard by her sudden demeanor change. It was also the first time the girl addressed her by her name. Sensing the seriousness in her voice, Nepgear turned around. "What is it?"
"So, Nepgear... tell me..." The girl suddenly raised her hand and got hold of her hair before slowly unveiling her long hair, revealing red eyes as Ruby was staring at her along with a devious smile. "What makes you so special, hm?"
The question caught Nepgear off guard and left her speechless. Her red, almost hypnotizing eyes were almost like they bore holes in her soul. "I mean, what makes you so special from the other CPUs that came before you?"
"I-I uh, don't..." Nepgear tried to come up with a response but couldn't.
"Okay, we had enough of you and your games." Suddenly, she felt her friend's hand on her shoulder. "Come on, let's go, Gear."
"Good luck out there. I'm sure we'll meet again soon, hehe~"
She guided her away from the food stand and into the parking lot outside of the marketplace. "Just ignore her. She's probably trying to get you."
"Yeah, I know. Thanks."
"Of course. That girl really gets on my nerves. Why are we keeping her around anyway?"
"Well, she's still a citizen of Planeptune so she still has her rights like everyone else. Aside from making her occasional lascivious joke comment on Chirper, she hasn't done anything illegal, which means I can't do anything."
"That's a shame... Let's hope she gave us the right location. Otherwise, I'll make her regret messing with us."
What makes you so special?
For some reason, those words lingered in her mind like haunting sounds. She shook her head and tried to listen to what her friend told her and not pay any mind to it. She hopped on the bike behind her friend and drove to their last destination.
After a while, they reached the finally marked location on the paper.
The two went inside the alleyway and searched the area. Nepgear's eyes quickly caught something shiny on the ground. "Wait, I see something over there." She grabbed her friends attention before she went to take a closer look. "Wait... that's..." She crouched and picked up a pair of glasses that had a crack in them.
"What? What did you find?" Her friend asked as she glanced from her shoulder.
"These glasses belonged to Rei.." She showed them to her.
"Possible struggle. She might have been kidnapped." IF hummed as she took the glasses for safekeeping. "Well... I'm going to head back to the guild to continue investigating. Want me to give you a ride back?"
"No, thanks. I think I had enough bike rides for today."
"Fair enough. I'll let you know if we find anything. See ya, Gear."
"Take care, IF." She watched her friend get on her bike and drive off. The sun was now hanging low, turning the sky orange.
It's almost time to meet with Cave.
She felt the gentle breeze and the sound of crows cawing. Nepgear checked both ways to make sure she was all alone before transforming and flying away from the city to the meeting spot.
(N)
Once again, she was back in Leanbox. She could see the city ahead of her. It got a bit windy, and the moon illuminated the night sky with its light. Nepgear looked around the meetup spot, where she found Cave in strange attire.
"You're here. Excellent." Without warning, she threw a square-shaped box at her. "Fetch."
Nepgear almost fumbled as she caught the box due to the suddenness. She ripped open and took out the contents of the box, which consisted of a worn-out jacket, ragged jeans, and a beanie, the same as what Cave was wearing. "Huh, what's this?"
"Go change." The girl didn't bother to give an explanation, which prompted Nepgear to do what she was told.
"Okay..." Nepgear took it and went to a subtle place to change. When she came back, the red-haired girl was inspecting her scissor weapon and sniper. "Are you all done?"
"Yes." Nepgear nodded. "So, are you going to finally let me in on your plan?"
Cave continued to be subtle and she handed her a piece of paper. "The place is located on the other side of the city. We must do our upmost to avoid being detected to make sure no harm befalls Chika before we could reach her. These disguises I provided will aid us in getting through the city without being detected by our foes."
"I'm sensing a but here."
"But we might run into crossfire by the Elite Resistance Group on our way. They have been launching attacks on the city. Fortunately, I have located an alternative path that we should let us avoid the most of them. Near the shore lays a grill that leads straight to the sewer lines. The path will directly lead us to ASIC Remnants' location. However, it's not without hazards. Both from waste and monsters that could be living inside."
"Great. It's never easy, isn't it?" Nepgear groned. "So which way we're taking?
"That is for you to decide."
"Of course..." she muttered before she began contemplating which route they should take.
Author's Notes
The story is not canceled. It was just an April fool joke. I lost a few followers but it was worth it.
It's currently Ramadan here, where we have to fast for a whole month in our religion. So, I tried the first original Neptunia for a bit after finishing MK2. I've ended up enjoying it and didn't mind the gameplay that much, unlike from what I've heard from people.
The game is definitely underrated and a hidden gem. It's so polished compared to the newer main entries. (Excluding V2)
The original game is better than Re;birth 1. (Change my mind)
Next Chapters: Sewer/City Route
Cave and Nepgear began the rescue operations to save Chika by sneaking into the enemy's infested territory.
