As we step out onto the platform, I'm immediately surrounded by a bustling crowd.
The aroma of baked goods creeps out from the themed cafés and the metallic scent of electronics fills the air.
Oversized screens on the tall buildings play advertisements for some odd Gacha game. The rows of shops in the street, each a treasure trove of Anime figurines and obscure merch, with their colorful signs flashing as if competing for dominance.
Whether someone is an anime fan, gamer, or just tech-savvy, there would be something for each of them. This is Akihabara—Tokyo's Electric Town.
"Wow, there are so many humans!" Blanc exclaims behind me, her wide silver eyes glinting in soft sunlight.
"Humans? You're really getting into character." Ina gazes at Blanc like she has spotted some rare cryptid.
"Ah-haha! You see, Blanc is completely obsessed with her cosplay!" I chime in. "Once she starts roleplaying, there's no stopping her!' "
"Mhm, I can understand." Ina nods earnestly. "After all, it shows your passion for your favorite characters."
Phew, she's actually buying it.
So why are we here? Well, we were supposed to head to Abadin Games' Tokyo head office. Unfortunately, Ina roped us into a Collab event, thinking Blanc was cosplaying for it.
On top of that, she's practically radiating extrovert aura. How could I refuse?
"Big sis! There's all these people, but none of them are fighting!" Blanc's ears twitch like a little bunny.
"Why'd they fight in the first place?" I ask, walking to her and gently rubbing her head from over her klobuk.
"But in Wall Slum there was always a fight whenever there was a crowd." She tilts her head innocently.
"Wall Slum?"
"It's where Blanc lived before meeting big sis."
A place with constant fights...what could she possibly have gone through?
"Hey, you two! Hurry up!" Ina calls out. "We'll be late for Magica Wonder Fes!"
"You're always so full of energy, huh?"
"Pfft... Miss Lilly, you're talking like an old granny."
Granny? I'm only 28, thank you!
"Besides." Ina pulls out a vibrant flyer with illustrations of various magical girls on it. "They're giving out limited-edition posters today, signed by the voice actors themselves! There might be a line already!"
"You don't exactly fit the image of an otaku, you know."
"That's outdated thinking," Ina crosses her arms. "Besides, I consider myself a devoted fan of Sailor Dawn."
Oh, that classic anime.
"Isn't that two decades old?"
"Hehe~ Sailor Dawn is timeless." Ina twirls on her heels as her twin tails swish like golden ribbons in the wind. "They just released two new movies, so they're gonna do a joint event here!"
Navigating through mazes of colorful stores, we follow Ina's enthusiastic lead.
While passing by a group of maids promoting some new café, my attention is drawn to Blanc who's staring at everything wide-eyed. She almost seemed like a child on her first field trip.
"Big sis, look at this!" She points at an arcade, her eyes locked on a colorful box with a glass window.
"Oh, that's a claw machine. You play it to win those prizes."
Although, many of them are rigged.
"It's just like what brother CatchMamemon had."
"CatchMamemon?"
"He's a very kind Digimon who used to protect stray Digitamas." A light smile tugs on her lips.
Okay, another new name to add to the list.
"Ah, a crane game! Do you want to play?" Ina says, walking to us.
"That's a waste of time. You can just buy the items instead." I protest.
"That's no good." Ina wags her finger as if stating the obvious. "These machines contain exclusive items that you can't get anywhere."
"Even if you say that..." My eyes dart to the price tag.
200 yen...this thing is a gambling trap.
"Okay, then I'll teach Blanc how to play it!" Ina declares while pulling Blanc towards the arcade.
As I reluctantly followed them, Ina already slid the coins into the hole.
"Now, just watch!" Her hands rest over the controller, her eyes like a hawk choosing its prey.
The mechanical claw moves at her will, grabbing a plushie of a round pink creature with red boots, and bringing it toward the prize chute.
"Just a piece of cake—"
"Thump."
The plushie drops back into the pile in the next moment.
"It was..." Ina turns to us. "An accident! It's been a while since I played it!"
She slid coins again.
"I got a hang of it now!" Her eyes seem to burning with blue flames. "This time I'll get it!"
"Thump."
"It fell."
"It fell."
Blanc and I mutter simultaneously.
"Um... It was another accident!" Ina flashes a nervous smile.
"Give up."
"No way!"
You're exactly the type of person these places target.
As I was about to refute her, I noticed Blanc fidgeting with the controller.
"Do you want to try it?"
"Yes."
The small girl nods, her ears flapping.
Well, once won't hurt.
"Here." I slid the coins for her, her delicate fingers wrapped around the joystick, her hands on buttons. With precise motion, the claw grabs the pink plushie.
"It's okay if you don't get it." Ina stands next to her. "After all, it's not so easy—"
"Thud."
With swift and calculated inputs, the plushie falls into the prize chute.
"Huh?" Ina stuns.
"For you," Blanc says softly, holding out the plushie towards Ina. "You wanted this one, right?"
"Uh...thanks." Ina's eyes dart between Blanc and the plushie. "On the first try...did you play it before?"
"Blanc used to help brother CatchMamemon sort Digitamas," Blanc's silver eyes glint with nostalgia. "Although his one was a lot bigger."
"CatchMamemon? Is that a nickname?"
"Don't mind Blanc! She's in her chuunibyou phase. Haha!"
Why's it getting harder to keep the cover?
After Blanc's skillful win at the claw machine, as we headed towards the collab venue, occasional foreign passersby eyed us with curiosity.
["Are those cosplayers? Is there any event here?"]
["You don't know? There's a special convention by some magical girl show."]
["That girl's outfit looks so well made. White and pink...is she cosplaying Kaname?"]
["Excuse me, can we take a picture?"]
"Um, sure..."
Of course not! My hands are already full from managing these two. We don't need more attention.
"That reminds me... Miss Lily, didn't you work in Akihabara before?" Ina asks while holding the plushie near her chest as seen by girls in advertisements.
"Well..that company shut down a few years ago." I scratch the back of my head with an awkward smile. "The boss was incompetent and suffered a huge loss. So he sold everything and ran away."
It's quite common for small startups to fall due to incompetent bosses. They underestimate running a business while lacking proper management and realistic goals, face a big failure, and give up.
But, worst of all... that bastard didn't even pay our final salary!
Welp, the past is in the past.
I watch Blanc who's looking around curiously. Seeing her smile so freely, it's hard to imagine the sorrow I sensed this morning. What kind of past lay behind her clear silver eyes?
At least she seems to enjoy herself.
"Rustle rustle..."
"Did your backpack just move?" Ina reaches behind Blanc.
Wait, that backpack is...
"Ina, that's..."
"It's a puppy!"
Before I can stop her, she opens the zipper, revealing the head of a white pup with purple ears.
"Ah, you see, it's actually..."
"It's so adorable!" Ina's eyes sparkle at Labramon's sight as she asks Blanc. "Is this your pet?"
"I—mmph!"
As Labramon was about to speak, I caught his jaws.
"Shh, the ramen, remember," I whisper in his ear.
Labramon glares at me bitterly before wagging his tail, making a woof like a real dog.
"Wow, what breed is it?" Ina's sparkly eyes glued on Labramon.
"Uh... it's...a lesser-known foreign breed!" I make up an excuse. "But I thought you hate pets."
"Oh, that apartment rule." Ina rolls her eyes. "My dad doesn't like animals. I always wanted to have one, but he never lets me."
"I see."
"Blanc's puppy looks very well-behaved. But in a backpack...is it part of your cosplay too?"
Ina comments while observing Labramon.
"Blanc doesn't like the dummy mutt."
"But it's so fluffy and cute."
While Ina chats with Blanc, I whisper to Labramon who has walked out of the backpack.
"Why did you come out? Weren't you supposed to stay put?"
"That man-made bag was too tight." He twitches his tail. "Besides, I'm hungry. Where is that ramen you mentioned?"
Didn't you have breakfast earlier?
"Just wait a little more. I'll buy it later."
"By any chance..." Labramon's sharp gaze falls over me. "You aren't tricking me, right?"
Ah, I almost forgot...this dog has trust issues.
"Okay okay!" I turn to Ina and Blanc. "So, it seems our little puppy is hungry, so I have to find something to feed him."
"Is there any store that sells dog food around here?" Ina crouches down to stroke Labramon's fur, who is giving me an annoyed glance.
Don't blame me. I didn't invite her.
"I think I know some store nearby! Can you two wait here?"
"No problem!" Ina pats her big chest with a confident smile. "I can take care of Blanc, don't worry about us."
"Blanc, take care of Ina. Okay?"
"Sure, big sis."
"Hey!"
Ignoring Ina's puffed cheeks, I left with Labramon on the ramen quest.
"Are we there yet?" Labramon sways his tail.
"We're close by." I sigh. "But till then, please be quiet. Dogs don't talk in this world."
I remember there were some ramen shops near the station. It shouldn't take too long.
["Look, that puppy is so adorable."]
["Hi, your dog's tail looks so stylish, is it trimmed?"]
["Can I pet it? Does it bite?"]
Once again, I'm bombarded with tourist's questions.
Why are dog lovers here? Go to some pet cafés!
"If one more human tries to touch me..." Labramon growls as his tail stiffens dangerously like a cornered beast. "They won't return alive."
This is bad. He's on the verge of snapping.
Quick, Lily! You have to find a ramen shop before the quest time-limit is over and you get a game over.
Looking around, a certain cart caught my attention.
["Ramen ramen, Come Get Your Ramen"]
A ramen cart? Fine! Anything works!
"Labramon, come on! That's the shop!"
"Hmph. This 'ramen' better be worth it."
As we approached the cart, a young man in a dark blue uniform greeted us.
"Welcome!"
He wore a wide grin larger than his cart, with orange sunglasses resting on his spiky burgundy hair, standing on brown zori sandals, worn from prolonged walking.
"Let's see, pork ramen with rice is...just 630 yen?"
That's pretty cheap for here.
"Haha. We're still pretty new." The man laughs heartedly. "But mark my words. One day, the name of Motomiya's ramen will be known all over the world!"
"Oh...good luck..."
All over the world, huh?
It must be nice...Having a big dream.
"One bowl of pork ramen please." I glance at Labramon whose tail is flickering impatiently.
"Sure thing! Just wait a moment!"
After paying for the ramen, I find a nearby stool to sit on.
"Slurp slurp... Ahhh, you weren't kidding. This is much more delicious than all those media data."
Seriously, what have you been eating till now, Labramon?
As Labramon digs into his ramen I look around.
A puppy eating ramen might be odd, but thankfully there are not many people here. We've walked quite far to avoid the tourists.
"Okay, let's go back now."
Calling Labramon, who has finished eating and licking the bowl, I stand up and start walking.
Let's see, Blanc and Ina...should be next to that Tekken merch shop.
"Hm?"
I glance around.
Wait, weren't they supposed to wait here?
"Could they have gone ahead?"
As I retrieve my black, AE brand smartphone to call Ina, I see Labramon sniffing around.
"What? Are you about to track them by smell?"
"Not that." Labramon's nose twitches. "There's another Digimon nearby."
"Wait, a Digimon other than you and Blanc?"
"My attribute is Vaccine." Labramon stiffened, his fur bristling. "Call it an instinct, but this Digimon is a Virus."
A Virus Digimon? Weren't those Digipolice Digimon Virus attributes too?
"Do you think Commandramon or Mechanorimon also fell into the rift with us?"
"Impossible." Labramon barks dismissively. "Despite working under those humans, they firmly believe they follow justice. What I'm sensing is a heart of evil."
The puppy steps forward, flashing his fangs, his next words sending a shiver down my body.
"Judging by the amount of dark energy, it might be on par with my original form."
"A Digimon on par with Dobermon…is here? In the middle of Akihabara?"
AN:
This is not a 02 crossover.
This is not a 02 crossover.
This is not a 02 crossover.
After all, in the Digimon multiverse, it's not unusual for many different versions of the same characters to exist.
In the next chapter, we'll see things from Ina's perspective. (= 'w'= )/ ₊˚⊹
And lastly, this is not a 02 crossover.