Pandora of Fantasy And Reality Chapter 113

Real World

Riku’s lover, Kagami was talking with her subordinates inside the military car.

Her two subordinates were wearing military equipment. The inside of  the car was also loaded with assault rifles. There were also other  weapons stowed in.

「Report.」

「The aforementioned group headed toward a nearby hotel. It seems that  a Selector is their guild master. There is a high chance that they were  drawn here because of that.」

Kagami made a slightly tired face while glancing at the clock inside the car.

「……What a waste of time. I can’t laugh at that man like this.」

She was carrying out her own investigation separately from the information broker.

Kagami――Mira looked over her own appearance.

Her clothes were tattered because she had done some extreme movements. She was also really sweaty.

「I’ll return to my lodging first. After that I’ll go pick up Riku. You two can pack up and enjoy the vacation.」

One subordinate whistled.

「That’s mighty generous of you, captain.」

Kagami shrugged.

「This was a fruitless effort after all. Even so, my instinct was whispering to me that the enemy is here though.」

An individual, or perhaps an organization was sneaking around.

They chased after the enemy until this resort area, but it seemed that the group they were targeting was the wrong one.

「That reminds me, guild master’s friend got into trouble with the police you know? Well, he got released after a night though.」

Kagami was chuckling.

「That kid is also drawing in some troublesome personalities.」

They were heading to their lodging by the car. Meanwhile Kagami took out her smartphone and contacted Riku.

Her tone when talking with him was a bit brighter compared to when she was talking with her subordinates.

Her happiness was oozing out.

「Yes, it’s finished. What about your side?」

Riku reported about what happened to Akito. Kagami chuckled when she heard it.

「We’ll arrive there soon to pick you up, so wait for a bit. Yes, that’s fine.」

Kagami cut off the call and looked at the morning sun.

She narrowed her eyes from the brightness.

(That strength……come to think of it, I had heard about someone like her before from somewhere.)

She recalled the female soldier that she fought. Kagami felt slightly  guilty when she thought that she might also being drawn in by a  Selector.

(Did I perhaps get in the way of her romance?)

Selector had the trait of drawing in people toward them.

It was also the same when in real world.

People with the possibility of coming into contact with that Selector  would gather around them. And in case that didn’t happen, the people  would still get drawn in even if interference was needed to be done to  the real world.

Did something as absurd as that really possible?

Kagami too doubted it at first but, but now she didn’t have the slightest doubt about it.

After all players were connected to VR machines.

It wasn’t just the Selector, but also the people involved with them.

They would be able to meet easily if they wanted it to happen.

It was as though they were being controlled by fate.

Ticket that they obtained by coincidence.

Their travel destination being the same coincidentally.

Them coincidentally running to each other why going out.

All that happened centered around the Selector. In a sense, Selector  possessed powerful authority not just in VR world, but also in real  world.

They were being protected and moved by an invisible force.

That was why, if the group that she coincidentally ran into was  connected with Akito……it wouldn’t be strange at all for them to be here.

Yes, the former minister and the others were discovered by Kagami, but they were overlooked because they were related to Akito.

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Akito, Maya, and Yakumo were riding on car accompanied by Jun.

He was in the driving seat. Akito and the others were sleeping on the back seat.

Jun was talking into his phone with Maya’s father.

「I’m telling you a lot of things happened!」

『What do you mean a lot! Don’t screw with me! Why did she stay in the  same room with a man!? Do you understand that she’s an unmarried  girl!?』

Jun was having a hard time making excuse after he got found out  allowing boy and girl of high school age sleeping in the same room.

『Besides, it doesn’t matter what my daughter said. It’s the adult’s duty to stop her!』

Jun was irritated toward the man who could even be said as his best friend.

(You don’t know just how much I’ve been worrying about your  daughter……even the offline meeting I was looking forward to got  cancelled!)

Both sides had their own justification.

No, it was clear that Jun was in disadvantage here.

After all it was Maya’s father who was in the right.

『That brat is someone attending my school huh? Looks like I’ll have  to make him understand that he’s living in a different world.』

No matter how much Jun explained that nothing happened between the  two of them, it seemed that Maya’s father was still angry and couldn’t  forgive Akito.

Jun stopped him in panic.

「Oi, don’t do anything stupid. Listen well, I’m serious over here. Absolutely don’t do anything like that!」

『I’m just going to teach him how this world work. He’ll give up right away if I hinted about expulsion to him.』

Jun was feeling pity for Akito.

After all he was the victim who had gotten drugged several times in this case.

This time too he had almost gotten drugged with sleeping drug and aphrodisiac or vitality drug by Maya.

It was clear to see which one of them was in the wrong.

「……Let me make this clear, your daughter is the offender in this case.」

『Hah! What are you saying? You tossed a man into the room that had my cute Maya in it! All men are wolf and criminal!』

The father was thinking about his daughter too much that he was unable to think normally――no, rather he was the normal one here.

Though in this case, it was Maya herself who was the wolf.

Normally nobody would think that was the case.

「Anyway stop with the expulsion or suspension threat. I’m serious here.」

『W-what are you saying! I was so worried I couldn’t sleep yesterday just so you know!』

Jun wanted to complain that he himself just had a hard time.

「Just don’t do anything stupid. Absolutely don’t, okay!?」

『Whose ally are you huh!』

The close friends started arguing.

Behind him there was Ponsuke at the middle with Yakumo and Maya  resting their heads on his shoulders. The three of them were dead tired  and slept soundly inside the moving car.

Only Jun’s voice was audible inside the car.

「Do you want to hear just how much I had worked hard huhhhhh!」

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Half of the summer vacation was already gone. The greatly awaited resumption of the game’s service was also getting closer.

News about Pandora was getting broadcasted every day and night. It showed just how awaited that day was.

The information broker was looking down on the night scenery from the  window of a high-rise building. He was eating chicken while washing it  down with carbonated drink.

He continued to eat foods that were clearly bad for the body without any care.

He already didn’t care about his body that was continuously bloating up to be fatter.

The thin man standing nearby was looking exasperated.

「You might die before the important day if you don’t decrease the amount you eat.」

That warning didn’t even enter the information broker’s ear.

「I can go to that world anytime so it’s fine. Come on, take a look.」

The information broker had installed a part inside his body to  connect into VR machine. It was connected to the egg-shaped floating  device that the information broker was riding.

「……You’re prepared.」

「Right? I’m fine anytime. More importantly, what about the prototype?」

They had done experiment with the device that they transported from moon in order to complete Pandora.

The prototype was for that.

「We are storing it at another place as spare. By the way, we can’t turn back anymore now.」

The thin man’s complexion was bad.

The information broker dropped the bone of the chicken that he had finished eating on the floor.

「We already can’t turn back anymore since a long time ago. What, it’s  fine……everyone will complain at the beginning but, at time we will get  called as messiah.」

The plan to migrate the whole mankind into virtual world.

That should create a world where nobody would be sad.

A world where everyone could be the main character in their own world.

A world where every man could become hero, king, princess, or anything was waiting for mankind.

Just, there was a need for human to discard their unnecessary physical body in order to go to such world.

Human could advance to the territory of god with just that. They were seriously believing that.

「……Don’t forget that there’s no guarantee that Pandora’s AI will be our ally.」

The information broker was rummaging for a new deep-fried food.

「It can’t be helped that the goddess of victory is fickle. But, the Selectors are under our control.」

A fascinating world was awaiting.

It wouldn’t be just some interference to the real world. Human would be able to become free in the truest meaning.

Some people would lock themselves in their own world.

But there would also be a place for people to share a world together.

That was Pandora’s Box Garden.

「Now then, let’s conquer the World of Rage and……this shitty [Real World] shall we.」

The information broker was grinning widely.

The nine worlds that they mentioned.

One of them referred to the real world.

The large monitor inside the room was showing a news program announcing grandly that Pandora would resume service.

Right now, there was no human on earth who wasn’t touched by VR.

The people all over the world were directed to login into Pandora. And that plan was showing huge success.

The information broker was drinking soda from the bottle. Some of it spilled out from his lips.

「Rather it’s surprising that there are so few problems in our way.」

The thin man put his hands inside his pockets and hunched forward.

「Mira is telling us to look for the enemy though?」

「Forget about that woman. After all she herself failed despite acting so high and mighty against other people.」

There was nothing that could be their enemy.

The plan was progressing so smoothly that the information broker could be feeling so conceited.

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Akito returned to his family’s home during summer vacation.

His home was noisy because of his younger brother and sister. They were running around energetically under the strong sunlight.

Akito walked down the stairs while yawning and entered the living room. His parents looked slightly surprised seeing him.

「You are so early.」

Akito nodded to his father who was checking news through his tablet.

「I usually woke up even earlier than this though……」

He used his eyes to speak that he woke up because his little brother and sister were being noisy.

Before his eyes, his younger siblings who had returned from the  morning exercise finished their breakfast and watched anime in front of  the monitor.

The monitor was large and his siblings became quite once the anime started. Akito smiled wryly.

「You were also like this not long ago. More importantly, have you decided your course?」

Akito ate the breakfast on the table.

He had to prepare the breakfast on his own when living by himself. It  was at time like this that he felt grateful for his mother.

「Hm……I’ll go to college and then find a job……I think?」

His father looked exasperated.

「What, you still haven’t decided? It also won’t be bad to find a job  after you graduate. There will be places that will hire you as long as  you get the necessary qualifications.」

Akito’s parents weren’t really interested with Akito going to university. They didn’t know about his grade.

In the first place they knew that Akito’s talent score was average, so they didn’t really need to know about his grades too.

They were thinking that there was no problem with him at school.

Rather than him, they were more enthusiastic about his siblings.

After all they were blessed with more talents than Akito.

His mother raised her voice.

「You two, prepare to go to the cram school after you finish watching TV.」

「Yes~」

Akito’s siblings were going to cram school even though he himself didn’t when he was in elementary school and middle school.

His parents had especially high expectation to the second son.

「Geez, you two are really troublesome. I’ll confiscate the VR machine if you two are like that.」

Akito lifted up his face when he heard what his mother said.

「Eh, you bought something like that?」

His father said.

「Yeah, after all there was a type for family use being sold for  cheap. Many other people said they have one, and most of all these two  begged for it.」

Apparently even his father would loosen the string of his purse when  getting begged by the two cute and talented younger children.

It was a different treatment compared to what Akito received.

But, they thought that it was normal.

It could be said that his parents made the correct judgment to invest their money to the ones that had possibility.

Even if personally he couldn’t accept it.

(Well, that’s just how the world works.)

With VR spreading and widely into people’s daily life, they learned the talent that they were born with.

Because of that it became a trigger for difference like this to be formed among siblings.

Effort was something that could only be permitted for those with talent.

The world declared that those without talent working hard was something pointless.

It was something very depressing but, Akito was raised knowing only such world.

Sometimes there would also be household where parents held the policy  of treating siblings equally, but……Akito’s family was common for better  or worse.

「……I’ll return to my apartment tomorrow.」

Akito’s parents didn’t show much interest even when Akito said that.

「Oh, is that so? You also have part-time work, it must be hard.」

「Youth should work hard during this kind of time. After all it will be hard to continue to college if you don’t have saving.」

His parents let out a small sigh.

「That’s true. The cram school fee for the two is also expensive. We  need to save up money too but, the expenses keep piling up. Akito, can’t  you help out a little with the two’s cram school’s cost too?」

His father smiled.

「That will be helpful. The two are our family’s treasure after all.」

Akito smiled bitterly.

「……You two are expecting too much from a high school part-timer.」

Akito didn’t miss seeing how his mother’s face stiffened just for a moment.

(I wonder if she’s disappointed because held a bit of expectation from me?)

「Of course. After all it’s just part-time work so there’s no way it  will be enough. Haa……it’s troubling how big the monthly’s expenses are.」

Akito felt some coldness from his parents’ conversation, but this was still better than usual.

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That day.

Riku returned to his home for once.

That was because he had a necessary document that had to be signed by his guardian.

His older and younger siblings were out doing club activity when he returned home.

They must be having fun dripping with sweat under the hot summer sun  doing their club activity. No, or perhaps that was hell for them  instead?

It wasn’t Riku’s business.

His parents who were unable to become pro signed the document while complaining.

「……Can’t you send money home? Your brothers are going through their most important time right now.」

「That’s right. We want to provide them with environment where they  can do their best a bit more. Riku, you yourself understand right? Your  brothers are also working hard for your share too after you gave up.」

Riku felt annoyed being told that he gave up, but he simply took back the document without saying anything.

(Gave up? It was you guys who made me gave up.)

His talent score was just a bit below the standard.

Because of that his right to do club activity was taken away.

It wasn’t just the society, but also his parents that did it.

And then he was told to work hard to help his other siblings succeeded.

Before he realized it, his parents were talking as though his brothers were also carrying Riku’s dream on their shoulder.

「Not interested. You can just borrow money if you don’t have enough.」

Riku got out of the house without even looking at his parents’ face. A car was waiting outside.

Kagami was waiting for him inside the sports car.

Riku’s parents who were offended by his attitude also came out until  the entrance, but they became dumbfounded seeing the expensive car.

Riku immediately got into the car and asked Kagami to start driving the car while ignoring his yelling parents.

「Let’s go.」

「Roger.」

Mira was driving the sports car manually――she was driving it on her own. She looked at Riku who sat beside her and spoke.

「Looks like things aren’t going well with your parents.」

「It’s something common everywhere. Rather than that, I have  appointment with Akito so can you hurry? I don’t want to waste time for  something like this yeah.」

Kagami looked slightly displeased when Akito’s name came out.

「You’re really treasuring your friend. It makes me jealous.」

「……Oi, don’t misunderstand. We don’t have that kind of relationship!」

Kagami looked amused seeing Riku trying to deny it so desperately.

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